1. 活动过程;
2. 活动反响。
注意:
1. 写作词数应为80左右;
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
School Activities for World Earth Day
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________2 . After a decade of negotiations, nearly 200 countries have agreed to a new United Nations treaty(条约)to protect the world’s oceans, the first of its kind in 40 years. The High Seas Treaty aims to protect 30% of the open oceans by 2030, setting a plan in motion to preserve this vast area.
Oceans cover about 71% of the Earth’s surface and are home to countless species of animals and plants. They play a crucial role in maintaining a healthy planet. However, overfishing and pollution from ships and other sources have severely impinged on many marine (海洋的)species and ecosystems.
The last major UN sea treaty in 1982 described the “high seas” — the parts of the oceans that aren’t controlled by any country — but it did not protect them. The high seas, which account for two-thirds of the ocean, currently have only 1.2% of their massive area protected. A marine protected area(MPA)is an area in the sea with strict rules about fishing and other activities. While more and more countries have established MPAs in their waters, most are not connected, limiting their effectiveness for migratory(迁徙的)species.
Last December, over 110 countries committed to protecting 30% of their land and ocean areas by 2030.The High Seas Treaty now enables the extension of this goal to the entire ocean. It aims to make 30% of the high seas become protected areas by 2030 and requires that proposed activities on the high seas undergo assessment for their potential impact on the ocean environment.
Reaching the agreement was challenging due to differing views on ocean protection among countries, such as limits on fishing or pollution. Disagreements also arose over sharing resources between rich and poor nations, with the latter seeking an assurance that resources benefit everyone, not just those in wealthy countries.
The treaty is not yet final and must be officially accepted at a UN meeting. Then it must be approved and signed by enough countries before it takes effect.
1. What is the main objective of the High Seas Treaty?A.To protect 30% of the open oceans by 2030. |
B.To allow unrestricted fishing on the high seas. |
C.To promote international tourism in marine areas. |
D.To establish new shipping routes on the high seas. |
A.Exchanged. | B.Assisted. | C.Impacted. | D.Defended. |
A.Strict rules of a marine protected area. |
B.Current measures to restrict overfishing. |
C.The limited number of migratory species. |
D.The lack of protection for the high seas. |
A.New Plans to Develop Marine Resources |
B.A New UN Agreement to Preserve Open Oceans |
C.The Treaty Officially Accepted at a UN Meeting |
D.The Cooperation on Sharing Resources Equally |
3 . Lightning can strike anyplace on Earth. In fact, there are about 6,000 lightning strikes every minute, which is more than 8 million strikes every day. The risk of being struck by lightning is low, but the consequences of lightning strike injuries are serious. Even though your home is a safe shelter during a lightning storm, you might still be at risk. About one-third of lightning-strike injuries occur indoors.
Avoid water.
Do NOT bathe, shower, wash dishes, or have any other contact with water during a thunderstorm.
Do NOT use anything connected to an electrical outlet (电源插座), such as computers, game systems, washers, or stoves. Lightning can travel through electrical systems, radio and television reception systems, and any metal wires or bars in concrete walls or flooring.
Avoid windows, doors, porches, and concrete.
Don’t use corded (有线的) phones.
Corded phones are NOT safe to use during a thunderstorm. Do NOT use them.
Follow the safety measures above can minimize your risk of being injured indoors on lighting days. Don’t take it for granted that only outdoor activities can put you in a dangerous place. Keep it in mind that inappropriate indoor activities can also be disastrous.
A.Here are some tips to keep safe and reduce your risk of being struck while indoors. |
B.In addition, follow up on the latest information about the storm. |
C.However, it is safe to use cordless or mobile phones during a storm. |
D.Stay away from windows and doors, and stay off porches. |
E.Some outdoors measures can keep you safe and prevent you from being attacked. |
F.Lightning can travel through a building’s water pipe system. |
G.Don’t touch electronic equipment. |
4 . Improper disposal of electronic devices can lead to negative impacts on the environment. So if you are in possession of an “old electronics” box or merely an old iPhone, consider recycling as an option. Here are some organizations worth checking out.
EcoATM
EcoATM is an automated kiosk that collects your unwanted cellphones and tablets and gives you cash for them. You'll find them by the checkout lines at various grocery store chains. It accepts devices from any era or in any condition, and offers anywhere between a few bucks to a few hundred dollars in return.
Best Buy
Best Buy offers a simple, straightforward recycling program. You can take your old phone to any of its retail stores and it'll take care of the entire recycling process for you. Best Buy will even give you a gift card for the value of the device you give them.
Call2Recycle
Call2Recycle is one of the largest recycling programs in the United States. The company collects used smartphones and batteries and has them either recycled or refurbished (翻新) for future use. It partners with various retailers to provide recycling services in stores like Lowe’s, The Home Depot and other smaller businesses.
Eco Cell
Eco Cell takes a unique approach to recycling phones. The program collects used smartphones and other gadgets for recycling through local zoos and other wildlife organizations. It then gives what it makes from recycling or refurbishing the devices back to those organizations in order to continue their work.
1. What do EcoATM and Best Buy have in common?A.They are based in grocery stores. |
B.They offer a reward for recycling. |
C.They collect various kinds of devices. |
D.They refurbish recycled items. |
A.Call2Recycle | B.Eco Cell | C.Best Buy | D.EcoATM |
A.The variety of items it recycles. |
B.Its marketing strategies. |
C.Its pricing policies and structures. |
D.Its dedication to preserving wildlife. |
5 . When Jane Goodall was young, reading and exploring nature were her ideas of fun. Her mother encouraged her to learn and ask questions. Goodall dreamed of seeing the habitats of her favorite animals on her own.
In 1957, Goodall visited a farm in Kenya, Africa. There, she met a famous paleoanthropologist (古人类学家), Louis Leakey. He was looking for someone to study chimpanzees, which could tell us about early human history. Once he got to know Goodall, he knew she was the perfect person for the job.
Goodall arrived in Tanzania, East Africa, in 1960, and journeyed to the Gombe Stream Game Reserve. She learned early on that studying chimpanzees wouldn’t be easy. To observe them up close, she had to take months to gain their trust. To her, the chimpanzees were complex creatures with lives surprisingly similar to humans’. She rejected the practice of identifying chimpanzees by numbers and gave each of them a human name. Goodall was observing chimpanzees she’d named David Greybeard and Goliath. She watched as they made tools out the roots of grass to pick termites (白蚁) out of a nest. Until then, people thought humans were the only species that used tools. Because of Goodall’s discovery, chimpanzees are now accepted as intelligent and social animals.
Goodall established the Jane Goodall Institute in 1977 to provide conservation and environmental education. In the late 1980s, her focus changed to something much larger. Deforestation (滥伐森林) and climate change were affecting the world’s natural habitats. The plants that the chimpanzees depended on for food were in danger. The fight she began against habitat loss continues today, through animal preserves and research sites.
Throughout her life, Goodall’s work has protected the lives of people and animals around the world. And she encourages young people to join this struggle for a better world. Goodall says that the world will be a better place if people do some help.
1. Why did Louis Leakey pick Jane Goodall to study chimpanzees?A.Jane Goodall’s mother inspired him to do that. | B.Louis Leakey wanted to know animals’ history. |
C.Jane Goodall had fun in exploring the unknown. | D.Jane Goodall was just the right one for the work. |
A.Chimpanzees could use simple tools. |
B.Chimpanzees could follow humans’ commands. |
C.Chimpanzees had the ability to swim and fish for food. |
D.Chimpanzees lived in large societies similar to humans. |
A.The reasons for chimpanzees’ using tools. | B.The Jane Goodall Institute’s establishment. |
C.Fewer habitats and unfriendly climate change. | D.The change of her main interest. |
A.Jane Goodall’s early career. | B.Jane Goodall’s research techniques. |
C.Jane Goodall’s focus on chimpanzees’ using tools. | D.Jane Goodall’s discoveries and conservation work. |
6 . I was driving on the freeway when I noticed heavy clouds roll in. A storm was coming. The rain began beating
Hurricane Katrina struck when I was nine years old. I had worried it would strike us in Houston. It missed us, but other cities were not so lucky. I remembered watching the
The next day, my friends
Suddenly, a phone call brought me back to the present. To my joy, the storm had
A.creatively | B.lazily | C.merrily | D.heavily |
A.looked out | B.set out | C.pulled off | D.got off |
A.warned | B.informed | C.reminded | D.cured |
A.news | B.disaster | C.game | D.performance |
A.observing | B.greeting | C.challenging | D.interviewing |
A.cheap | B.worn | C.fascinating | D.funny |
A.hugging | B.pressing | C.selling | D.throwing |
A.left | B.joined | C.asked | D.annoyed |
A.invent | B.deliver | C.collect | D.produce |
A.freedom | B.happiness | C.struggle | D.belief |
A.gathered | B.processed | C.donated | D.spread |
A.left | B.decorated | C.entered | D.measured |
A.flew | B.drove | C.marched | D.surfed |
A.struck | B.passed | C.strengthened | D.approached |
A.reports | B.clues | C.victims | D.photos |
7 . In the rich countries of the West, the electric vehicle revolution is well occurring. Climate-conscious consumers drive Teslas or Polestars for reasons of morality (道德) and fashion. Poorer countries are also experiencing a wave of electrified trend. In Bangladesh, electric three-wheeler taxis, known as tuk-tuks, are rapidly replacing gas-powered ones on the streets. Such electric vehicles are climate friendly, cost effective, and help reduce air pollution.
Yet a glance under the hood (引擎盖) of these vehicles shows a poisonous secret: each tuk-tuk runs on five massive lead-acid batteries (铅酸电池), containing almost 300 pounds of lead (铅) in total. Every year and a half or so, when those batteries need to be replaced and recycled, about 60 pounds of lead leaks into the environment. Battery recycling, often at small-scale unregulated factories, is a highly profitable (高利润的) but deadly business.
Lead is dangerous, and any exposure to it is harmful to human health. Lead that has entered the environment hurts people on an unexpected scale. The numerous ways lead enters air, water, soil, and homes across the developing world and the enormous damage it does to human health, wealth, and welfare cause one of the biggest environmental problems in the world yet receives little attention.
The World Bank estimates that lead kills 5.5 million people per year, making it a bigger global killer than AIDS, malaria, diabetes, and road traffic deaths combined. On top of the shocking deaths, the social burden of lead poisoning is heavy, as is its contribution to global inequality — our research on the cognitive (认知的) effects of lead poisoning suggests that it may explain about one-fifth of the educational achievement gap between rich and poor countries.
But unlike many challenges faced by developing countries, lead poisoning is a problem that can be resolved through financial investment (财政投入). Better monitoring, research, and rules can help protect children all over the world from the unpleasant effects of lead poisoning and reduce the massive global costs it brings.
1. How does the author describe the lead problem in paragraph 2?A.By listing some numbers. | B.By analyzing hidden causes. |
C.By making an interesting comparison. | D.By explaining its working principle. |
A.Lead enters poor countries in one way. |
B.Lead leaking has been avoided in all the countries. |
C.Lead will definitely not harm anymore. |
D.Lead poisoning may make poor societies poorer. |
A.Fixing these used batteries. | B.Reducing the cost of recycling lead. |
C.Ignoring the illegal use of lead. | D.Putting certain effort and money. |
A.The Impacts of Lead Poisoning on Man. |
B.The Global Lead Poisoning Problem. |
C.The Ways to Solve Lead Problem. |
D.The Benefits of Using Electric Vehicles. |
Researchers have been applying artificial intelligence (AI) to monitor biodiversity and enhance efforts to protect some species from
Species are disappearing
Besides
“Long-term statistics will play
9 . The Japanese government said it planned to begin the discharge (排放) of slightly radioactive wastewater from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant on Thursday, rejecting calls for a delay from some people in neighboring countries.
An earthquake and tsunami knocked out power at the Fukushima nuclear plant on March 11, 2011, causing meltdowns at three reactors. Tritium (氚) and carbon-14 are, respectively, radioactive forms of hydrogen (氢) and carbon, and are difficult to separate from water. They are widely present in the natural environment, water and even in humans, as they are formed in the Earth’s atmosphere and can enter the water cycle. Both emit very low levels of radiation but can pose a risk if absorbed in large quantities. Water which was used to cool reactor cores as well as rainwater and groundwater that flowed into or near the plant have been contaminated with radioactive substances. Plant operator Tokyo Electric Power, or Tepco, has stored the water in more than 1,000 tanks at the facility but says it is running out of room.
Tepco says it will reduce the concentration (浓度) of nearly all radioactive substances in the wastewater to a safe level with the exception of tritium, an isotope (同位素) of hydrogen. The water will then get diluted (稀释) with seawater so the concentration of tritium is reduced to a safe level before the discharge, according to Tepco. As the water is diluted further in the ocean, the concentration of tritium will almost equal the natural level by 6 miles from the discharge point, which is at the end of an undersea tunnel about six-tenths of a mile from the shoreline, a Tepco official said.
But that hasn’t reassured many of Japan’s neighbors, with officials from China and the Pacific Islands voicing alarm and opposition to the plan. Beijing will take “necessary measures” to safeguard food safety and its people’s health, said Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin on Tuesday, adding they “strongly urge the Japanese side to correct its wrongful decision”. Meanwhile, fishing communities in Japan and South Korea worry the wastewater release could mean the end of their livelihoods — with consumers across the region already beginning to quit seafood from Japan and its nearby waters, and some governments even banning imported food from parts of Japan, including Fukushima.
1. The meltdowns at three reactors were caused by ________.A.the greenhouse effect | B.human behaviour |
C.climate change | D.natural disasters |
A.purified | B.reduced | C.polluted | D.operated |
A.More than 1,000 tanks at the facility can store all the radioactive wastewater. |
B.The concentration of all radioactive substances will be reduced to a safe level. |
C.The discharge won’t affect the coastal residents since the discharge point is about 0.6 miles offshore. |
D.The concentration of tritium will be nearly at the natural level after being diluted further in the ocean. |
A.people in these areas couldn’t make a profit in the future |
B.it would threaten people’s physical health and livelihoods |
C.it would be more difficult to import food from parts of Japan |
D.the local seafood would be unaffordable for people in these areas |
1. Where is the man doing a project about the environment?
A.At a library. | B.At school. | C.At a lab. |
A.To get information about a project. |
B.To know about her job. |
C.To do research on greenhouse effect. |
A.Solve the woman’s problem. |
B.Move some books. |
C.Do some reading. |