1 . When Alex Lin was 11 years old, he read an alarming article in the newspaper about e-waste. The article said that people were throwing away their e-waste in places it should never go. This was dangerous, the article said, because e-waste contains poisonous chemicals and metals like lead. These harmful substances (物质) can leak into the environment, getting into crops, animals, water supplies — and people.
Alex showed the article to a few of his classmates. They were worried too. But what could they do about this problem with e-waste? How would they even start? “The first thing we did,” Alex says, “was to learn more about the problem.” Alex and his friends spent several weeks gathering information about the chemicals in e-waste and their effects on humans. They learned how to dispose (处理) of e-waste properly and how it could be recycled. “Then,” he says, “we had to find out what the situation was in our town. So we sent out a survey.”
What they found shocked them: Of the people who answered the survey, only one in eight even knew what e-waste was, let alone how to properly dispose of it. Alex and his friends went into action. They advertised in the local newspaper and distributed notices to students, asking residents to bring their unwanted electronics to the school parking lot. The drive lasted two days, and they collected over 21,000 pounds of e-waste.
The next step was to set up an e-waste drop-off center for the town and to find a responsible company to recycle the waste. That was when Alex and his friends learned another scary fact about e-waste — some irresponsible recycling companies don’t break down the e-waste and dispose of it safely themselves. Instead, they ship it overseas to countries such as China and Nigeria, where local environmental laws are not applied. “We checked carefully online to make sure the company we chose didn’t do this,” Alex says.
Because of the work of people like Alex and his team, more and more people are getting the message about safe disposal of e-waste. As Alex says, “Today’s technology should not become tomorrow’s poisonous trash.”
1. What can we learn about Alex from paragraph 1 and paragraph 2?| A．He was curious about chemistry experiments. |
| B．He possessed a strong sense of responsibility. |
| C．He set out to solve the problem individually. |
| D．He formed the habit of reading newspapers. |
| A．Campaign. | B．Imagination. | C．Performance. | D．Technology. |
| A．Lack of available space was the reason for shipping. |
| B．Recycling was totally banned in their own country. |
| C．They were running their companies on a tight budget. |
| D．They were not charged with insecurely disposing it. |
| A．Reusing School Computers | B．Recycling Electronic Waste |
| C．Meeting a challenge | D．Doing Scientific Experiment |
2 . I first came to Berwickshire for a job-to be the Ranger for the Berwickshire Marine Reserve.I was then Senior Ranger for St Abb’s Head National Nature Reserve and I set up my own business, In Our Nature, offering wildlife journeys,walks,talks and courses in 2020. There’s so much I love about Berwickshire.Its stunning scenery. Its variety of landscapes and habitats and range of amazing wildlife, both above and below the water. Its friendly people. In places you can feel like you are a million miles from anywhere, when in reality you’re just an hour’s drive from Edinburgh.
The thing that supports everything on the Berwickshire Coast is its varied and fascinating geology(地质).The jewel in the crown is Siccar Point. With its world-famous non-conformity(均变)，it’s considered the birthplace of modern geology. The geology not only shapes the landscape, but it also impacts on the wildlife, forming varied habitats from steep sheltered valleys and towering cliffs to sheltered sandy bays.
There’s nothing I like more than being out in nature and sharing my passion with others, so starting up In Our Nature was a no brainer. In the warmer months I offer tours on land and sea to help folk enjoy the amazing wildlife and scenery of the Berwickshire Coast. In the darker months my online courses help people learn about wildlife in the hope that it will increase their enjoyment of the marine and coastal environments they spend time in.
My favourite spot on the Berwickshire Coast has got to be a place called Petticowick. The views up the coast and inland to the Mire Loch are second to none. It’s a place where you can marvel at geology which covers unimaginable periods of time. You can listen to and watch thousands of seabirds that return to the cliffs to breed each spring. Or witness all the amazing activity of the breeding seal colony on the beach below during the early winter.
1. Why did the author go to Berwickshire?| A．To do sightseeing. |
| B．To make friends. |
| C．To work in a reserve. |
| D．To study wildlife. |
| A．The highest part. |
| B．The most attractive part. |
| C．The valueless part. |
| D．The advanced part. |
| A．By providing online courses. |
| B．By sharing her experiences. |
| C．By offering tours on land. |
| D．By organizing trips to the sea. |
| A．Modern geology needs further study. |
| B．Petticowick should be well preserved. |
| C．People should not take advantage of nature. |
| D．The author is enthusiastic about Berwickshire. |
1. What is the relationship between the speakers?
| A．Reporter and villager. | B．Policeman and witness. | C．Volunteer and survivor. |
| A．A flood. | B．A car crash. | C．An earthquake. |
| A．A river. | B．Her house. | C．The top of a building. |
| A．To stay indoors. | B．To donate money. | C．To leave their houses. |
4 . A librarian in Indonesia’s Java island is lending books to children in exchange for trash they collect in a creative way to clean up the environment and get the kids to read more.
Each weekday Raden Roro Hendarti rides her three-wheeler with books piled up at the back for children in Muntang village to exchange for plastic cups, bags and other waste that she carries back.
She told Reuters she is helping to get the kids reading as well as make them aware of the environment. As soon as she shows up, little children, many accompanied by their mothers, surround her “Trash Library” and request for the books. They are all carrying waste bags and Raden’s three-wheeler quickly fills up with them as the books fly out. She’s happy that with her mobile service, the kids are going to spend less time on online games as a result.
“Let us build a culture of literacy from young age to lessen the harm of the online world,” Raden said. “We should also take care of our waste in order to fight climate change and to save the earth from trash,” Raden said.
She collects about 100kg of waste each week, which is then sorted out by her colleagues and sent for recycling or sold. She has around 6,000 books to lend and wants to take it to neighbouring areas as well.
Kevin Alamsyah, an 11-year-old reader, searches for waste lying in the village. “When there is too much trash, our environment will become dirty and it’s not healthy. That’s why I look for trash to borrow a book,” he says.
The literacy rate for above 15-year-olds in Indonesia is around 96 percent, but a September report by the World Bank warned that the outbreak of COVID-19 will leave more than 80% of 15-year-olds below the minimum reading proficiency level identified by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.
1. Which of the following is not likely to be exchanged for a book from the “Trash Library”?| A．A plastic cup. | B．A new three-wheeler. | C．A waste bag. | D．A broken basin. |
| A．Meaningful. | B．Costly. | C．Interesting. | D．Unhelpful. |
| A．They are financially poor. | B．They read widely. |
| C．They would lose their identities. | D．They should do more reading. |
| A．Knowledge is power. | B．It is never too old to learn. |
| C．Kill two birds with one stone. | D．There is no royal road to learning. |
5 . Earthquakes happen without warning. They can happen any time of a day, at any point during the year. But don't worry because most are so weak that they cannot be felt. Only a few big ones hurt people. However, it's important to know what to do when an earthquake is happening.
Do not go outside. You could get injured from falling glass or parts of buildings. If you are outside, stay away from buildings and power lines (输电线).
Stay under a desk, table, or other strong furniture. Hold on to it. Or stay in a corner of the building. Cover your face and head with your arms and cover your mouth with a towel or clothing. Stay inside until shaking stops and it is safe to go outside.
Keep away from windows, pictures or advertisements on the wall or the building, and anything else that could fall and hurt you. Most people get injured by falling things during an earthquake, not by the shaking itself.
Also keep away from a fire. You could fall down and burn yourself on the fire.
If you are driving when an earthquake happens, stop the car if it's safe. Stay inside your car until the earthquake stops, and don't drive near bridges. Try not to stop by power lines or trees. These could fall and hurt you.
1. Most earthquakes are too________ to hurt people.| A．strong | B．weak |
| C．dangerous | D．heavy |
| A．stay under a big building | B．stay under a strong furniture |
| C．stand by windows | D．drive near a big bridge |
| A．run out of the building | B．stay in a corner of the building |
| C．cover your head with your arms | D．cover your mouth with a towel |
| A．How Earthquakes Happen | B．How to Drive a Car |
| C．What We Should Do in Earthquakes | D．Why Earthquakes Happen. |
6 . Using 1900 as a starting point, here's a look at some of the most powerful and destructive hurricanes in the last 120 years in the US.
Most powerful hurricanes
Hurricane Camille, which landed on August 17, 1969 near Waveland, Mississippi, is the most powerful storm to strike the Gulf Coast. Camille is one of the four category(级别)-5 hurricanes ever to make a landing in the US, the others being the 1935 Labor Day Hurricane, Hurricane Andrew in 1992 and Hurricane Michael in 2018.
According to the National Weather Service, the actual wind speed of Hurricane Camille might be around 175 mph along the coast.
Until the arrival of Hurricane Katrina,Camille's more than 24-foot storm wave in Pass Christian, Mississippi, held the record. Katrina's storm wave along the Mississippi coast reached 30 feet.
Costliest hurricanes
Hurricane Katrina is not only the costliest-ever US hurricane but also the most expensive natural disaster in the country's history. Not only did it cost as many as 1,836 lives and leave millions of people homeless, but it also caused $ 160 billion in damages.
Katrina landed near the Gulf Coast on August 29,2005 as a category-3 storm. The hurricane's record-breaking waves flooded 80% of the city.
Deadliest hurricanes
The category-4 Hurricane Galveston made a surprising landing along the Texas coast on September 8,1900. It caused a 16-foot storm wave and its wind speed reached 150 mph.
A large part of the city of Galveston, Texas, was left in ruins. The number of death reached 12,000 on Galveston Island and the mainland. It remains the deadliest weather disaster in the US history as it gave the people no time to move out.
1. How many category-5 storms have stricken the US since 1900?| A．1. | B．2. | C．3. | D．4. |
| A．Hurricane Camille. | B．Hurricane Andrew. |
| C．Hurricane Katrina. | D．Labor Day Hurricane. |
| A．It has caught the people by surprise. |
| B．It has caused the biggest waves. |
| C．It has had the highest wind speed. |
| D．It has brought in the heaviest rainfall. |
7 . I don’t think I can recall a time when I wasn’t aware of the beauty of the ocean. Growing up in Australia, I had the good fortune of having the sea at my side. The first time I went to Halfmoon Bay, I suddenly had the feeling of not being able to feel the ground with my feet anymore.
For my 10th birthday, my sister and I were taken out to the Great Barrier Reef. There were fish in different colors, caves and layers of coral. They made such an impression on me. When I learned that only 1 percent of Australian’s Coral Sea was protected, I was shocked. Australian marine life is particularly important because the reefs have more marine species than any other country on earth. But sadly, only 45 percent of the world’s reefs are considered healthy.
This statistic is depressing, so it’s important for us to do everything to protect them. The hope that the Coral Sea remains a complete eco-system has led me to take action. I’ve become involved with the Protect Our Coral Sea activity, which aims to create the largest marine park in the world. It would serve as a place where the ocean’ s species will all have a safe place forever.
Together, Angus and I created a little video and we hope it will inspire people to be a part of the movement. Angus also shares many beautiful childhood memories of the ocean as a young boy, who grew up sailing, admiring the beauty of the ocean, and trying to find the secrets of ocean species.
1. From the underlined sentence in Para.1, we can learn the author ________.| A．seldom went surfing at the sea |
| B．forgot his experiences about the ocean |
| C．never went back to his hometown |
| D．had a wonderful impression of Halfmoon Bay |
| A．is escaping from the Coral Sea gradually |
| B．depends on reefs for living greatly |
| C．may be faced with danger |
| D．is protected better than that in other oceans |
| A．contribute to a complete eco-system |
| B．prevent more marine species being endangered |
| C．set up a large nature reserve for reefs |
| D．raise more teenagers’ environmental awareness |
| A．urge more people to take action to protect the marine species |
| B．inspire more people to explore the secret of the ocean |
| C．share their childhood experiences about the ocean |
| D．bring back to people their memories of ocean species |
8 . How are you and your family going to celebrate Earth Day? It’s a great day to get outside and ride a bike, but there are other ways you could spend the day. Here are four books. You can learn more about the earth and the animals that make the world a special place to live in.
The Busy Beaver, by Nicholas Oldland
Beaver is very, very busy, and he doesn’t always think carefully. As a result, he makes a mess of the forest and ends up in hospital. Finally, he realizes how careless he’s been and decides to make things right when he returns to the forest.
Lessons from Mother Earth, by Elaine Mcleod
Five-year-old Tess is visiting her grandmother and, for the first time, she visits the garden. Along the way, Tess’s grandmother tells her the rules of the garden, “You must always take good care of our garden. Never throw rubbish around. There is plenty for everyone to share if we don’t destroy the soil.” The story is beautifully told as a caring conversation between a child and her grandmother.
Luz Sees the Light, by Claudia Davila
When Luz’s community (社区) experiences a series of black-outs (停电), she quickly comes to understand the need to save energy and find other ways of doing things. With the help of her friends and neighbors, she creates a community garden and park that everyone can use. The book attracts many young readers.
The Lorax, by Dr Seuss
A young boy learns of the role of the Lorax as protector (保护者) of the trees, and how his home became polluted. The book contains memorable forestry conservation (森林保护).
1. We can learn from the passage that Beaver .| A．always plans things carefully |
| B．never takes care of the forest |
| C．decides to leave the forest forever |
| D．gets hurt because of his carelessness |
| A．The Busy Beaver and The Lorax. |
| B．Luz Sees the Light and The Lorax. |
| C．The Busy Beaver and Lessons from Mother Earth. |
| D．Lessons from Mother Earth and Luz Sees the Light. |
| A．To provide some activities to Earth Day. |
| B．To offer some books to young children. |
| C．To tell readers how to write children’s books. |
| D．To teach readers how to protect our environment. |
