4 . The cry of the fishing cat sounds like the quack of a duck, and the rest of this midsize cat also enables it to hunt in the water. Its streamlined head is perfect for moves in the mangrove swamps (红树林沼泽地) and wetlands of South and Southeast Asia, and its pointy ears even fold (折叠) down when it jumps into deep water. The short and strong tail helps control its direction. The extra-thick coat keeps it warm and dry while swimming.

“I found fishing cats to be very ingenious,” says Tiasa Adhya, co-founder of The Fishing Cat Project, a research and conservation group based in eastern India. Her research recently showed that the animal has two methods of catching fish. In deep waters, the cat stays still on the banks for hours before jumping into the water for the kill. In shallow (浅的) waters, though, the cat actively drives the fish out of their hiding places by moving about with heavy steps.

Now the fishing cat is facing another challenge: humans. The world has lost almost 90 percent of its wetlands since the 1700s, with Asia suffering the greatest loss. These days, industrialized fish farming, pollution and other human behaviors have destroyed the living condition of freshwater fish and set fishing cats against farmers, as the hungry cats steal farmed fish, and the farmers get even with them (报复). Once found along river systems from Pakistan to Vietnam, the cats have disappeared from large areas of their range.

Researchers are testing new methods, including the commercial launch (商业化推出) of a type of native rice variety. Depending on nutrients (营养物) washed in by rains rather than on chemicals, the rice creates living space for the fishing cat and its food. The idea is that in healthy lakes where there is plenty to feed fishing cats and fishermen alike, killings will be unnecessary. “Nobody takes a loss,” Adhya explains, “when somebody takes a fish.”

1. What does the author want to explain about fishing cats in the first paragraph?

A．Why they moved to South and Southeast Asia.

B．What helps them swim well in the water.

C．What pushes them to live with ducks.

D．Why they love staying in the water.

2. What does the underlined word “ingenious” in paragraph 2 mean?

A．Friendly.

B．Alarmed.

C．Clever.

D．Lazy.

3. What is paragraph 3 mainly about?

A．The battle between fishing cats and humans.

B．The decision to protect freshwater fish.

C．The importance of stopping pollution.

D．The method of increasing wetlands.

4. What can we infer about the new method mentioned in the last paragraph?

A．It will do some harm to the environment.

B．It will create a win-win situation.

C．It will increase food production.

D．It will cost a lot of money.

5 . 读后续写

The Araguaia River is one of the biggest rivers in Brazil. It is home to thousands of animals. River dolphins swim and play in the water, and there are many different colored fish.

In one town, a 13-year-old boy named Rhenan walks along the river every day. But looking at the river makes him worry because there is rubbish everywhere. He sees plastic bottles, old clothing, and empty food packages. The water looks dark and ugly.

One day Rhenan asked about the dirty river at school. “You wouldn’t want rubbish in your house,” said his teacher. “Think about the poor animals!” For days, Rhenan couldn’t stop thinking about the river. It doesn’t seem right to him that this big and powerful river is filled with rubbish. “It’s hurting the animals in my area,” he thought. “And it’s also hurting the families who live here.” Then Rhenan had an idea.

The next morning, Rhenan talked to his mother about his plan for the river. He wanted to go around his town and ask for everyone’s help. Maybe if they all worked together, they could clean up the river!

Rhenan’s mother loved his idea. “I believe the most important thing for you, Rhenan, is learning how to change things that you care about. That will stay with you forever.” She said. She told him she would help him along the way.

The next day, Rhenan went to the police department and next to the office of the Mayor (市长). He visited offices, businesses, and other schools. Soon he had a very big group of people who like his idea! They all decided to meet at the river the following week. On the day of the river clean-up, Rhenan was excited—but he was also nervous. What if no one showed up? But when he and his mother arrived, there were almost a hundred people there, including many of Rhenan’s friends.       

注意: 1. 续写词数应为150左右;
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Over the whole day, they all worked together to clean up the rubbish.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
At the end of the day, everyone started to cheer.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

6 . In the past week almost 120 global leaders have resolved to triple (使增至三倍) the world’s renewable energy capacity before 2030 in an attempt to reduce the global consumption of fossil fuels. As the second half of the Cop28 UN climate conference in Dubai unfolds , more countries may join the calls for a global target of 11 TW (太瓦) of renewable power by the end of the decade, three times higher than the 3.629 TW in place at the end of 2022.

Renewable energy really could be tripled in this decade, but it won’t be a breeze, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA) .

Based on the rate of growth for wind and solar power, the world is on track to meet this target. But the global energy watchdog (监察人) has warned that “stronger policy actions by governments” will be required to overcome challenges, such as rising costs, uncertain supply chains and grid (电力网) bottlenecks, which are considered essential to hit the goal of limiting global heating to within 1.5C of preindustrialised levels.

Renewable energy sources tripled, the global demand for coal power would be cut in half by 2030, according to estimates. “This is crucial for 1.5C,”said Dave Jones, the global insights lead for climate think-tank Ember. “The tripling goal would take renewables to the next level, with solar and wind reaching 40% of global electricity generation by 2030.”

The goal has won the support of 118 countries. In practice, not every country will triple its renewable capacity to meet the global target. Some countries starting from a lower level would need to more than triple their wind and solar power, while for others with a high share of renewables already, it would not be practical to triple their capacity again.

The prospect of having demand for coal is a goal worth struggling for, but governments must stay the course. Increasing capacity may have been simple in recent years with low interest rates and government support schemes, but the sector’s progress for the rest of the decade is less certain.

1. What does the underlined word “breeze” mean in paragraph 2?

A．A demanding mission.	B．An effortless task.
C．A dreamy vision.	D．A fruitless effort.

2. What can be inferred from paragraph 3?

A．The road to the top is full of twists and turns.	B．A good beginning is half done.
C．No pains, no gains.	D．Rise from the fall, and you’ll rise high.

3. What is Dave Jones’ attitude toward tripling the world’s renewable energy capacity before 2030?

A．Indifferent.

B．Neutral.

C．Cautious.

D．Optimistic.

4. What might be written about after the last paragraph?

A．Drawbacks of power generation using coal.

B．Ways to triple the output of sustainable energy.

C．Specific difficulties in the future and solutions.

D．Joint achievements made by nearly 200 countries.

7 . A small car around the size of a Mini Cooper, the Seagull is a fast-charging electric vehicle (车辆) (EV) produced by BYD. It’s hardly a luxury car but it’s well-equipped, with a power driver’s seat and cruise control. The best part? Its base model costs about $10,700 in China. That’s about a third of the cost of the cheapest EV you can buy in the US. In 2018, Trump put, and Biden has since continued, a special 25 percent tax on Chinese-made cars, on top of the ordinary 2.5 percent tax on foreign-made cars, which perfectly shows that however motivated the Biden government might be by climate concerns, it is much more motivated by a desire to help American carmakers.

The basic environmental argument for electric cars is simple: Burning petrol in internal combustion enginest (内燃机) produces CO₂. Electric cars emit (排放) less per mile traveled both because some electricity is generated through clean sources like wind, solar, and because electric motors are far more efficient than petrol engines. EVs are slightly more carbon-intensive (密集) to produce in the first place, but most estimates suggest the lower per-mile emissions of EVs quickly make up for the extra emissions involved in their creation.

But is this still true for Chinese EVs? China still gets more than 60 percent of its electricity from coal, compared to less than 20 percent in the US. So, does this mean that BYD’s cheap EVs are bad for the environment? Hardly. Close to 90 percent of the emissions of a fossil fuel vehicle (化石燃料汽车) are from the combustion of the fuel. Besides, EVs of whatever origin are getting cleaner over time as the electrical grid (电网) gets cleaner. That means EVs will do even more for the environment as the years go on.

The biggest factor for China is that they control all the upstream material supply chain for lithium batteries (锂电池). Even if your EV’s battery is made by a plant of Panasonic in the US, the raw materials for that are processed in China first. “Part of why they’re so successful is they’ve been thinking outside the box on cost reduction for a long time,” an expert says.

1. What can be inferred from the first paragraph?

A．Chinese EVs are a threat to American electric cars.

B．American government has placed a ban on Chinese EVs.

C．The seagull provides luxury experience at a reasonable price.

D．Climate concerns are the only driver of EV development in the US.

2. What does the author think of EVs?

A．They are no better than typical gas vehicles.

B．Their power is generated in green ways.

C．They are eco-friendly in the long run.

D．Their production causes no pollution.

3. What is the advantage of Chinese EV industry?

A．Lower carbon emission.	B．The advanced technology.
C．The low budget marketing.	D．The control of raw materials for batteries.

4. What is the best title of the passage?

A．EVs: opportunity and challenge.	B．Chinese EVs: powering ahead.
C．Green cars: a long way to go.	D．Petrol vehicles: faded glory.

9 . One long gray ship at the Port of Los Angeles is doing its part to combat climate change. On the ship, which belongs to Captura, a Los Angeles-based startup, is a system that takes into seawater and sucks out CO₂, which can be used for various purposes or buried. The decarbonated (不含二氧化碳的) seawater is returned to the ocean, where it absorbs more CO₂ from the atmosphere, in a small strike against the massive rise of the greenhouse gas.

After a yearlong experiment, Captura is planning to open a 1000-ton-per-year facility that will bury the captured CO₂ in rock formations under the North Sea. Equatic, another Los Angeles-based startup, is launching an even larger 3650-ton-per-year ocean CO₂ capture plant this year in Singapore.

Supporters say capturing CO₂ from the ocean should be easier and cheaper than a seemingly more direct approach: extracting it directly from the air. Direct air capture, which relies on fans to sweep air past absorbent chemicals, currently costs between $600 to $1000 per ton of CO₂ removed, largely because atmospheric CO₂ is so thin, making up less than 0.05% of the air. Earth’s oceans, in contrast, hold the gas at a concentration nearly 150 times higher, and absorb roughly 30% of all CO₂ emissions each year. Companies say they should ultimately be able to capture CO₂ at $100 per ton, or less.

Ocean capture advocates are seeking government support. In the US, direct air capture plants earn a $180 tax credit per ton of removed CO₂, but Ocean efforts currently don’t qualify. “A similar tax incentive (激励政策) for water-based CO₂ removal is absolutely needed,” says Ruben Brands, CEO of Equatic.

Even if the technology takes off, it will have to scale up massively to make a meaning contribution in offsetting (抵消) global emissions. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, by 2050 we will need to remove some 5 billion tons of CO₂ every year to limit the global temperature increase to 1.5℃. So far, the ocean capture companies are pulling out only thousands of tons. Matthew Eisaman, a chief scientist at Captura, says, “We have an enormous challenge ahead of us.”

1. How does the system in para. 1 work?

A．It converts seawater into CO2.

B．It releases CO2 into the atmosphere.

C．It absorbs seawater and extracts CO2.

D．It stores decarbonated seawater on the ship.

2. What makes extracting CO₂ from the ocean easier and cheaper?

A．CO2 in seawater is more absorbent.

B．CO2 is stored in solid form in seawater.

C．CO2 in the ocean is more readily accessible.

D．CO2 is naturally more concentrated in seawater.

3. What is the Ruben Brands’s attitude toward the new form of capturing technology?

A．Doubtful.

B．Objective.

C．Supportive.

D．Indifferent.

4. What would be the best title of the passage?

A．Combining Ocean CO2 Capture with Air Capture

B．Setting a New Example of Climate Change Solution

C．Analyzing Ocean CO2 Capture against Climate Change

D．Exploring Oceanic Solutions for Reducing CO2 Emissions

10 . Chaudhary quietly weaves together lengths of ropes, binding them with grass collected from the riverbank. She skillfully shapes the materials into a jewelry box. Meanwhile, she’s instructing a group of women to work out the materials. The ropes used were once the lifeline for climbers tackling Nepal’s mountains and were then discarded (扔掉). They are now finding new life, transformed by skilled hands into items to sell.

Acharya, working with the cleaning campaign, owns a waste processing business in Kathmandu, also an advocate for sustainable waste management. “Aluminum and other metal waste go through the recycling process, but we found no way to recycle ropes and gas cans,” she says. It struck her that the non-recyclable waste could be reused, but it wasn’t until she met Maya Rai that a solution emerged. Rai, leading Nepal Knotcraft Centre, helped connect Acharya with Chaudhary’s team of craftswomen in hopes of turning the mountain waste into economic opportunity. “While this seems insignificant compared to waste in the mountains, it’s a start. We aim to connect local expertise, mountain waste and local economy,” says Acharya, proudly displaying a mat made from ropes left on Mt. Qomolangma by climbers. Her goal is to ensure that no waste collected from mountains ends up in a landfill again.

Finished crafts are sold at outlets and exhibitions. The craftswomen are paid according to how many items they make and sell. With flexible hours, the project gives women an opportunity to earn money even as they maintain household responsibilities.

Eventually, Acharya hopes to expand the program to involve more women and process more waste. But progress has been slow. “We still have not found a sustainable business plan to make crafts in large quantities, ”she says. Now, she is searching for cooperators to make a model that serves not only the mountain but the communities. “After all, we are trying to craft a sustainable future.”

Each rope turned into a decorative item is a way to help local women earn a living and keep mountains clean.

1. What is the author’s purpose in mentioning Chaudhary in paragraph 1?

A．To lead in the topic with her example.

B．To spread her environmental consciousness.

C．To show her patient instructions to the women.

D．To speak highly of her outstanding weaving skills.

2. What is the second paragraph mainly about?

A．A business involving waste processing.

B．A team transforming waste into treasure.

C．A campaign advocating sustainable management.

D．A solution connecting expertise, waste and economy.

3. Which of the following is the most likely reason for craftswomen to join in the project?

A．Selling crafts at outlets can earn more money.

B．Removing mountain waste generates a sense of pride.

C．Cooperating with local experts helps promote skills.

D．Work-life balance can be achieved due to flexible hours.

4. What is Acharya’s attitude towards expanding the program?

A．Hesitant.

B．Positive.

C．Suspicious.

D．Disapproving.