1 . Environmentalists said our planet was doomed to die. Now one man says they are wrong. Everyone knows the planet is in bad shape," thundered a magazine article last year. Species are being driven to die out at record rates, and the rivers are so poisonous that fish are floating on the surface, dead.

But there's a growing belief that what everyone takes for granted is wrong: things are actually getting better. A new book is about to overturn our most basic assumptions about the world's environment. Rivers, seas, rain and the atmosphere are all getting cleaner. The total amount of forests in the world is not declining. The Skeptical Environmentalist by Bjorn Lomborg, professor of statistics at the University of Aarhus in Denmark, is an attack on the misleading claims of environmental groups, and the "bad news" culture that makes people believe everything is getting worse.

Now the attacks are increasingly coming from left-wing environmentalists such as Lomborg, a former member of Greenpeace. The accusation is that, although the environment is improving, green groups-with profits of hundreds of mil-lions of pounds a year - are using scare tactics(谋略)to gain donations. Lomborg's book doesn't deny global warming - probably the biggest environmental threat - but destroys almost every other environmental claim with many official statistics.

The Worldwatch Institute claims that "deforestation(沙漠化) has been accelerating over the last 30 years". But Lomborg says that is simply rubbish. Since the dawn of agriculture the world has lost about 20 per cent of its forest cover, but in recent decades the forest area's depleting has come to a stop. According to UN figures, the area of forests has remained almost steady, at about 30 per cent of total

land area, since the 1940s. Forests in countries such as the US, the UK and Canada have actually been expanding over the past 40 years. Despite all the warnings the Amazon rainforest has only shrunk by about 15 per cent.

Nor are all our species dying out. Some campaigners claim that 50 per cent of all species will have died out within 50 years. But other studies show only 0.08 per cent of species are dying out each year. Conservation efforts have been successful. Whales are no longer threatened and the bald eagle is off the endangered list.

Environmental groups claim that many of the improvements are the results of the success of their campaigns. Stephen Tindale, director of Greenpeace UK, said, "There are important examples, such as acid rain and ozone, where things aren't as bad as predicted, and that's because behavior has changed."

1. In his book, The Skeptical Environmentalist, what is Lomborg's main argument

A．Our planet is in bad shape.

B．Conservation efforts have been successful.

C．The total amount of forests in the world is not declining.

D．The world's environment is improving.

2. What is Lomborg's main accusation of environmentalists?

A．They scared people into making donations.

B．They overturned our basic assumptions about the world's environment.

C．They changed their behavior toward the environment.

D．They only told people bad news about the environment.

3. According to the passage, which of the following statements is true?

A．The total area of forests in the world has increased significantly.

B．The effects of global warming are not as bad as first expected.

C．In the last 50 years the number of whales has increased.

D．It appears that the bald eagle will now survive

2 . The Eurotunnel is a tunnel(隧道) which crosses the Channel under the sea, linking France and the UK. It is about 50.5 km long and 38km lies under the seabed. There are trains which carry passengers and cars, and others which carry carriages or other heavier vehicles(车辆), as well as goods.

The construction of the tunnel started in 1986, with a cost of almost 10 billion pounds. It was opened in 1994 but was not financially successful until 2007, because of the high interest rates (利率) the company had to pay the banks, as well as low earnings from passengers and goods.

The Eurotunnel is a very convenient way of traveling between the two countries as the journey is quick (less than one hour), cheap, and comfortable. You can go with your car, motorbike or bike. The tunnel operates every day, round the clock. At the busiest times there are up to three shuttle departures (班次) per hour. There are facilities(设施)for disabled passengers and for babies at the two terminals (终点站).

The Eurotunnel, also commonly known as the Channel Tunnel, Eurochannel and Eurochunnel is environmentally friendly. It perfects its sources of energy through its use of renewable energy with the result that, by 2008, it had reduced its greenhouse gas emissions(排量) by 45%. In addition, 50% of the waste produced is recycled.

The future of the Eurotunnel seems promising, although some people who have the fear of enclosed(与外界隔绝的)spaces will never use this type of transportation. There have been some problems with snow storms like the one in the winter of the 2009 which have made the services stop for a period of time, leaving passengers in the tunnel for more than 15 hours without light, heating, food or drink, inside an unmoving train under the sea. Some of the passengers reacted very badly and decided not to use this means of transport again.

1. Why was the Eurotunnel not financially successful at first? ______.

A．It was free for passing trains

B．Many people disliked it

C．Its operating cost was very high

D．It was heavily in debt

2. What is Paragraph 3 mainly about? ______.

A．The wonderful design of the Eurotunnel

B．A traveling guide to the Eurotunnel

C．The advantages of the Eurotunnel

D．An introduction of the Eurotunnel’s equipment

3. We can learn from the text that the Eurotunnel ______.

A．used environmentally friendly energy

B．was completely built under the seabed

C．was designed for passenger trains only

D．operated successfully without any accident

4. What is the author’s attitude towards the Eurotunnel? ______.

A．Cautious	B．Optimistic
C．Negative	D．Doubtful

3 . Every year more people recognize that it is wrong to kill wildlife for “sport.” Progress in this direction is slow because shooting is not a sport for watching, and only those few who take part realize the cruelty and destruction.
The number of gunners, however, grows rapidly. Children too young to develop proper judgments through independent thought are led a long way away by their gunning parents. They are subjected to advertisements of gun producers who describe shooting as good for their health and guncarrying as a way of putting redder blood in the veins (血管). They are persuaded by gunner magazines with stories honoring the chase and the kill. In school they view motion pictures which are supposedly meant to teach them how to deal with arms safely but which are actually designed to stimulate (刺激) a desire to own a gun. Wildlife is disappearing because of shooting and because of the loss of wildland habitat (栖息地). Habitat loss will continue with our increasing population, but can we slow the loss of wildlife caused by shooting? There doesn’t seem to be any chance if the serious condition of our birds is not improved.
Wildlife belongs to everyone and not to the gunners alone. Although most people do not shoot, they seem to forgive shooting for sport because they know little or nothing about it. The only answer, then, is to bring the truth about sport shooting to the great majority of people.
Now, it is time to realize that animals have the same right to life as we do and that there is nothing fair or right about a person with a gun shooting the harmless and beautiful creatures. The gunners like to describe what they do as character-building, but we know that to wound an animal and watch it go through the agony of dying can make nobody happy. If, as they would have you believe, gun-carrying and killing improve human-character, then perhaps we should encourage war.
1. According to the text, most people do not seem to be against hunting because ________.

A．they have little knowledge of it

B．it helps to build human character

C．it is too costly to stop killing wildlife

D．they want to keep wildlife under control

2. The underlined word “agony” in the last paragraph probably means ________.

A．form

B．condition

C．pain

D．sadness

3. According to the text, the films children watch at school actually ________.

A．teach them how to deal with guns safely

B．praise hunting as character-building

C．describe hunting as an exercise

D．encourage them to have guns of their own

4. It can be inferred from the text that the author seems to ________.

A．blame the majority of people

B．worry about the existence of wildlife

C．be in favour of war

D．be in support of character-building

4 . 假如你是李华，你的美国笔友Mike来信询问你的家乡是否有雾霾天气，情况如何。请你按照以下提示给他回一封e-mail. 内容如下：
1. 由于大气污染程度十分严重，自去年年底以来发生数次雾霾天气。
2. 人们已经意识到雾霾天气的危害，正在采取各种措施减少其发生。
3. 你在日常生活中打算为此做些什么。
要求：
1.参考词汇：雾霾haze；雾霾天气 hazy weather
2.词数在100词左右。开头、结尾已给出，不计入总词数。
Dear Mike,
I’m glad to receive your letter, and thank you for your caring for the weather and my health. Now I’d like to tell you something about the haze.
_______________________________________________________________________________
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_______________________________________________________________________________
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Yours,
Li Hua

5 . Many people like the feeling of the gentle wind in spring . Many like to see the falling leaves dancing in the wind in autumn. But sometimes, when the wind becomes a storm, it can be very destructive.
A series of such storms struck the US last month and caused very serious damage and human pain.
Every year, major storms cause many problems around the world. There is nothing people can do to stop these powerful forces of nature. But new techniques are helping scientists to predict how, when, and where big storms will happen. The more exact scientists’ warnings are, the better people can prepare for the storms.
Predictions are improving. “We’ve gotten better over the years, especially the last few years,” says Phil Klotzback, a scientist at an American university. How is a storm formed? Even if scientists know where a storm will happen, winds can suddenly change, carrying the storm to a new direction. “For a hurricane to happen, conditions have to be just right,” Klotzback says.
First, the ocean water needs to be warm enough so that it evaporates and rises into the air. As it rises, the vapor（水蒸气）cools and turns back into liquid. This process gives off heat. This produces energy like an engine that causes winds to increase. It drives the formation（形成）of a hurricane.
If wind speeds reach 40 miles per hour, the system is called a “tropical storm”, and it gets a name. At 75 miles per hour, it becomes a hurricane.
Hurricanes that hit the US start when a thunderstorm forms off the coast of Africa. Storms also develop over tropical waters in other parts of the world.
On average, 60 or 70 storms form off Africa every year. About 10 of them get names. There are usually about six hurricanes. Two tend to be very big, with winds of 115 miles per hour or higher.
The hurricane season lasts from June to November. Ninety percent of all hurricanes hit in August, September, and October.
1. According to the passage, hurricanes usually ___________.

A．form off the coast of Africa and America

B．hit parts of the world in summer and autumn

C．travel at 40 miles per hour and get its name

D．cause sea winds to rise and blow over the sea

2. The underlined word “evaporates” (in Paragraph 5) probably means “___________”.

A．begins to move	B．changes into a gas
C．becomes hot	D．gets lost

3. Which of the following about the information of a hurricane is in the correct order?
a. The ocean water evaporates and goes into the air.
b. Heat creates energy and causes winds to increase.
c. The vapor cools.
d. The ocean water is warm enough.
e. The vapor changes back into liquid.
f. This course gives out heat.

A．a, d, e, b, c, f	B．a, b, c, f, d, e
C．d, a, b, c, e, f	D．d, a, c, e, f, b

4. Which of the following statements is NOT true?

A．One out of six or seven storms get names.

B．Every year at least 60 storms form off Africa.

C．The speed of the biggest two hurricanes reaches 115miles per hour.

D．About one third of the hurricanes tend to be very big.

6 . No one knows for sure when a fire will happen, so it is     1    (extreme) necessary to make preparations before a fire starts. Check the fire escape equipment in advance and make sure that you can find    2    in the dark when lights have failed. Find out     3    the nearest fire extinguisher(灭火器) is and read the instructions to learn how     4    (use) it.
Don’t lose your head when a fire breaks out. First, telephone the fire department immediately when     5    fire just gets started. Take care not to be overcome by smoke,    6    can kill you quickly. Cover your mouth     7    a wet towel or cloth, and avoid getting into the smoke. Don’t get in an elevator, as you may get trapped if the electricity     8    (fail). If you can not get away     9    yourself, it is of great importance to hang something out of the window to attract attention as a sign of asking for help.
In short, if you make preparations before hand and take precautions(预防措施) during the fire, chances are that     10    will survive in case of a fire if it really breaks out some day.

7 . Alsten Chase has written a book about Yellowstone National Park. He is worried about the damage the fires can do to the park. He is also concerned(关心) about the park rules.
These rules say that nature should decide what happens to the park. Alsten also writes that the elk herd(马鹿群) has grown too big. The elks walk on the riverbanks. They eat the new grass and roots of baby trees. The beavers (河狸) need the trees to build             dams.
The dams raise the water levels. Higher water levels put more water into the soil. Moist soil helps plants grow faster. The plants offer homes and food to other animals.
Chase thinks that the park rules would work only in a park with natural settings. He believes that Yellowstone has had an artificial setting for a long time. The native people left. The wolves were taken away and other animals were removed．The areas             of land were fenced off and other animals added．He thinks the park rules that let herds grow too big and the fires burn are hurting the nature of the park.
The park manager thinks the rules are good and that the park will be fine. Chase thinks the way the people run the park should be changed.
1. In Chase’s opinion, too many elks in the park will ___.

A．cause great fires	B．break the balance of nature
C．destroy the dams	D．do no damage at all

2. Chase thinks that the park is ____.

A．no longer in a natural state	B．still in a natural state
C．well protected	D．well managed

3. After the book by Alsten Chase is published, the park will probably ___.

A．be quickly changed	B．be completely replaced
C．no longer work	D．continue to work

8 . One reaction to all the concern about tropical deforestation(砍伐森林) is a blank stare that asks the question, "Since I don't live there, what does it have to do with me?"
The answer is that your way of life, wherever you live in the world, is tied to the tropics in many ways. If you live in a house, wash your hair, eat fruits and vegetables, drink soda, or drive a car, you can be certain that you are affected by the loss of tropical forests.
Take rubber（橡胶） for example. For many uses, only natural rubber from trees will do. Synthetics are not good enough. Today over half the world's commercial（商业的）rubber is produced in Malaysia and Indonesia, while the Amazon's rubber industry produces much of the world's four million tons. And rubber is an important material in making gloves, balloons, footwear and many sporting goods. Thousands of other tropical plants are valuable for their industrial use.
Many scientists strongly believe that deforestation contributes to the greenhouse effect—or heating of the earth from increased carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. As we destroy forests, we lose their ability to change carbon dioxide into oxygen.
Carbon dioxide levels could double within the next half-century, warming the earth by as much as 4.5 degrees. The result? A partial melt-down of polar ice caps, raising sea levels as much as 24 feet; even 15 feet could threaten anyone living within 35 miles of the coast. Unbelievable? Maybe. But scientists warn that by the time we realize the severe effects of tropical deforestation, it will be 20 years too late.
Can tropical deforestation affect our everyday lives? Now, you should have got the answer.
1. The underlined word "synthetics" probably means a kind of __________.

A．natural rubber	B．tropical grass
C．man-made material	D．tropical tree

2. In the last paragraph the author tries to _________.

A．tell people how to avoid the tropical deforestation

B．show us how important it is to protect the tropical forests

C．persuade people to buy something synthetic

D．let people realize the good effect of tropical deforestation

3. The author's attitude towards the tropical deforestation is __________.

A．puzzling	B．cold
C．supporting	D．opposed

9 . Bissel is a small village of the West Sahara. It lies next to a l.5-square-kilometer oasis（绿洲）, from where three days and nights are generally required to go out of the desert. However, before Ken Levin discovered it in 1926, none of the Bissel villagers had ever walked out of the desert. Reportedly, they were not unwilling to leave this barren land. Many had previously tried but failed, always somehow finding themselves back at the oasis after several days of trying to walk out.
When interviewed by Ken Levin, an expert at the British Royal College of Sciences, the villagers explained that no matter which direction they walked it always brought them back to the village.Why couldn’t the Bissel villagers walk out of the desert? Levin was very puzzled. He had, by himself, managed to walk north from the village and reach the nearest town in three and a half days. He decided to carry out an experiment to solve the mystery. He and a Bissel villager called Argutel, would walk out of the desert together. They prepared enough water for a half-a-month journey and two camels. But this time Ken Levin didn't bring his compass. Levin would follow Argutel.
Ten days later, they had walked for about 500 miles but were still in the desert. On the 11th morning, an oasis came into their view. They were back at Bissel. Levin now understood why the Bissel people couldn’t escape the desert. They had no knowledge of the North Star, which had for centuries provided sailors and other travelers with a point of direction. In the desert, if a person goes forward relying only on their senses, they will not be able to travel in a straight line. Rather they will travel in a very large circle and eventually track back to where they began. Levin explained to Argutel the function of the North Star and said, “As long as you rest in the daytime and walk towards the brightest star at night, you would be able to walk out of the desert.” Argutel did as he was told. Three days later, he came to the edge of the desert.
Now in the West Sahara, Bissel has become a bright pearl, where tens of thousands of tourists come every year. Argutel’s bronze statue stands in the center of the town. On its base are the words:
__________________________________.
1. Ken Levin asked Argutel to walk to the north in order to ________.

A．prove that people could walk out of the desert see

B．how far away Bissel was to the edge of the desert

C．tell people not to walk in circles

D．show Argutel was a great person

2. According to the passage, Ken Levin ________.

A．knew Argutel before he came to the village

B．came to Bissel to do experiments on behalf of his college

C．became the first man to walk out of the desert from Bissel Village

D．taught Bissel villagers knowledge of the North Star when he first arrived

3. It can be inferred from the passage that ________.

A．Ken Levin didn’t walk south because it would take more days

B．the use of a compass was necessary to walk out of the desert

C．tourism in Bissel has been greatly developed and improved

D．Argutel became the leader of Bissel after his return

4. Which of the following can most probably be found at the base of Argutel’s statue?

A．A new life starts from the fixed direction.

B．Where there is a will, there is a way.

C．A long journey starts with the first step.

D．Two heads are better than one.

10 . A new report says plastics are responsible for $13 billion in damage to the oceans and the undersea environment. The findings were announced recently at a United Nations conference.     1    

Plastic thrown away carelessly makes its way into rivers and other waterways.    2    After a while, it collects in the sea. And plastic never goes away. Plastic is not biodegradable — destroyed by bacteria or natural processes. Instead, it just breaks up into smaller pieces over time. The oceans contain a lot of chemicals and other pollutants.    3    That means harmful material may get into our food supply.

    4    Human beings cause pollution and they can take steps to stop it. They can use fewer single use product containers and throw plastics away correctly. Plastic recycling programs also works — where old bottles and other plastics are collected, broken down and used to make new products. We could reuse bottles in our households many times if we wish to, rather than end it after the first use. We could, when we get rid of that plastic, recycle it and reuse it, which replaces the need for raw materials.

The report also calls on companies to improve methods for using plastics.     5    And it calls for information about the way plastic is thrown out or removed from use. By putting a new value on plastic, industry has a special reason to clean up the environment.

But all of the companies must join to deal with the problem.

A．It asks for them to better measure and direct plastic use.

B．But people can make a big difference.

C．Plastics should be gathered together and reused..

D．It is convenient to use plastic bags in everyday life.

E．Then, fish may eat the plastics.

F．The report tells about harm to sea life and what might be done to improve the situation.

G．The plastic eventually reaches coastal areas and ocean waters