1 . Two hours west of a perfectly sunny summer’s day in Clackamas, Oregon a foggy breeze awaited me on the Lincoln City coast. After a year of volunteering remotely with Ocean Blue Project, today is a long-awaited beach cleanup.
I didn’t expect to take away more than just trash from the beach cleanup. At first glance, the beach appears clean. However, beach cleanups require much more attention than a quick look over. Within just a couple of hours, 71 of us volunteers managed to pick up 171 pounds of debris. Actually, we’ve got much more than that.
Beach cleanups connect us to nature and provide an escape from the world for a little bit. They also provide a learning opportunity outside of the participation part. When you sit over a pile of—let’s face it—garbage, you pick out one by one the pieces left behind by others. You see first hand the impact we’re having on our environment and account for what is left behind the most. Each cigarette butt and plastic bottle sets the tone for how we should be approaching our everyday lives, which is to stop pollution.
Personally, the time spent by the ocean and away from my phone fills me with peace and calmness as I focus my attention only on the moment, looking for the little devils trying to pollute the ocean. With a pound or two less out of the ocean, I always feel a bit more optimistic about the world to come.
This boots-on-the-sand way of making a difference grants me a feeling of accomplishment and purpose. Rather than pondering the dire task of saving the planet or researching and writing ways to do so, I get to physically make a difference. And there’s nothing that can replace that instant gratification of making positive change for your community and your planet.
After the cleanup, my eyes are now expertly trained to spot loose trash and inorganic materials anywhere I step. Imagine what a huge difference we could all make collectively if we simply stopped and picked up that water bottle or wrapper off the ground instead of passing it by.
1. Which of the following can best describe the author’s first beach cleanup with Ocean Blue Project?| A．Effortless and far-reaching. | B．Annoying but rewarding. |
| C．Painstaking but fruitful. | D．Demanding and inefficient. |
| A．Maintaining good physical health. |
| B．Gaining great insight into oceans. |
| C．Developing researching ways to save the earth. |
| D．Improving our mental health. |
| A．Satisfaction. | B．Gratitude. |
| C．Impression. | D．Curiosity. |
| A．What I’ve Learned from a Beach Cleanup |
| B．How Well I Performed in a Beach Cleanup |
| C．How Much Attention a Beach Cleanup Requires |
| D．Why Volunteering with Ocean Blue Project Matters |
2 . The Greenwood fire took its name from the nearby lake where lightning struck on Aug.15, causing a wildfire that burned for weeks. Fueled by drought and wind, its persistence dominated headlines for much of late summer and early fall in Minnesota. When the last flames were finally put out, the northern Minnesota fire had consumed nearly 27,000 acres, countless firefighting resources, and at its worst, the lives that some had built around nearby McDougal Lake. Vast areas of forest were left burned-out, with the black and bare remains of what were once massive pines.
But, despite the destruction left behind, Mother Nature is set to a comeback. When organic matter is burned from the forest floor, seeds dropped by plants and trees begin to take hold, with the sprouting species emerging first. The trees above have died, which sends a chemical signal to the root system that is actually more expansive than just under that tree, and that chemical response encourages those root systems to re-grow. Ten years ago, a fire ripped through 93,000 acres of Minnesota forest in and around the BWCA. Today, that burnt area's rebirth is well underway.
"Here in the Pagami Creek wildfire scar, we have Jack Pine, Red Pine, Black Spruce, Aspen and paper birch-those are our main species, those are the ones that are growing quickly. It's 10 years on, and these trees are 10 to 15 feet tall in many areas," said Kyle Stover from the U.S. Forest Service.
A wildfire kills most things in its path, but despite the flames and intense temperatures, rarely is everything reduced to ashes -and that plays a key role in a forest's regeneration. Just one year after the fire, the survivors dominate the forest, and grasses replace the burnt ground. Wildflowers are abundant bushes and small trees have started to grow, and Jack Pine returned. So, it's an amazing ecological system of creating new forest life when it appears that all is lost, one that has evolved throughout the ages, where fire has always played a vital role.
1. What can we learn about the Greenwood fire?| A．It was a natural occurrence | B．It was caused by drought. |
| C．it gained half-year fame. | D．It took many people's lives. |
| A．Seeding growth is held up. | B．Burnt organic matter hardly functions. |
| C．Root systems spread further and wider | D．Chemicals in the soil are in greater demand. |
| A．They are flammable | B．They are fire-resistant |
| C．They are fire-adapted. | D．They are overgrown. |
| A．A fire. | B．A life | C．A time. | D．A system |
3 . Patagonia, a leading brand in outdoor clothing, is climbing a mountain in the clothing industry and reaching a new summit. Through several measures, the company inspires people to share, resell, repair, and recycle their clothes, producing less waste. Every second, about one garbage truck of used clothes is sent to the landfill (填埋区) or is burned. Patagonia is taking this alarming statistic seriously.
A few years ago, the fashion giant launched an independent online store called Worn Wear, which is a collection of refurbished (翻新的) clothing where customers resell their old clothes for cash or store credit and shop for second-hand goods. Now Patagonia is approaching a step further ― they are including a “buy used” option on their website, offering second-hand clothes alongside their newest designs.
The second-hand trend is here to stay. Other chains such as The North Face, Macy’s, Adidas, Burberry, and Made well have also accepted the new circular economy business model. Famous traditional retailers (零售商) are also becoming used clothing providers, and are transforming the way second-hand clothes are sold and sensed.
Even the most skeptical shoppers are now open to the idea of buying used quality items. As a result, it is no surprise that the total secondhand market is projected to grow to almost twice the size of fast fashion by 2029. Naturally, the most sustainable piece of clothing is the one that already exists. This “green” article of clothing doesn’t require using virgin (原始的) resources, it prevents used clothes from ending up in landfills, and it requires no plastic packaging.
According to a 2018 report by thredUP, buying a piece of used clothing extends its life on average by 2.2 years, which reduces its carbon, waste, and water footprint by 73 percent. So even though the development of innovative materials and processes in fashion seems promising, wearing second-hand clothes is the easiest and most immediate way to face the environmental challenges the fashion industry brings.
1. What does the author intend to tell us in Paragraph 3?| A．The second-hand trend is more commonly accepted. |
| B．Lots of second-hand clothes are of high quality. |
| C．Traditional retailers have a role to play in reducing waste. |
| D．Consumer attitudes towards second-hand clothes are changing. |
| A．Skeptical. | B．Optimistic. |
| C．Urgent. | D．Unclear. |
| A．Keeping pace with fashion. | B．Satisfying consumers’ needs. |
| C．Lowering economic stress. | D．Protecting the environment. |
| A．Patagonia Is a Leading Clothing Brand |
| B．Clothing Waste Influences the Environment |
| C．Second-hand Clothes Draw Wide Attention |
| D．Patagonia Is Now Selling Used Clothes |
4 . In late May, storms flooded streets in Florida. The floods made cars sink and turned roads into brown rivers. Flash flooding can happen when storm drains get blocked up and, especially during hurricanes, overflow into streets. It’s the leading cause of weather-related deaths.
A team of local middle-school students has a plan to stop this ongoing problem. Alyssa, Bianca and Jose are sixth-graders. The Doral students designed a device to warn city workers when and where there is a danger of flooding. The team is one of five grand-prize winners of the Samsung Solve for Tomorrow Contest. The contest asked for science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) solutions to the biggest challenge facing a school community.
“I’ve been living here my entire life, and all of us have encountered problems with flooding,” says Bianca. “We knew that was the problem we were going to tackle.”
The students’ device uses a laser system called lidar, which stands for “light detection and ranging.” The device, if approved by the city government, could be attached to Doral’s 2,575 storm and manhole drains — one device per drain. If a drain gets blocked with sediment (沉积物), the device could send a warning message to the city’s stormwater management office. Then the stormwater manager could send someone to clean the drain.
Starting in March, the school was closed, so team meetings went virtual. Luckily, says Bianca, “We already had a prototype device, and we just had to adjust it some more ” They also had to pitch their idea virtually to contest judges.
Twenty finalist teams were cut down to the five grand-prize-winning teams. Each of the five teams won $100 000 for technology and supplies for their science classrooms. “We put m a lot of effort and had to trust each other and that each one knew what they were talking about,” says Alyssa.
1. How does the author start the text?| A．With an image. |
| B．With some figures. |
| C．By raising questions. |
| D．By stating a phenomenon. |
| A．It is made up of five middle school students. |
| B．Its aim is to solve the problem of the drain flooding, |
| C．It has won first prize in the Samsung Solve for Tomorrow Contest. |
| D．Its members are trained in science, technology, engineering and math. |
| A．To list their challenges. |
| B．To explore their motivation. |
| C．To express their determination. |
| D．To prove their responsibility. |
| A．To inform the authorities when a drain is blocked. |
| B．To arrange for someone to clean the drain. |
| C．To prevent the drain from being blocked. |
| D．To help clear away sediment in the drain. |
5 . Could looking through trees be the view to a greener future? Trees replacing the clear glass in your windows is not a work of science fiction. It's happening now.
Forest Products Laboratory researcher Junyong Zhu together with colleagues from the University of Maryland and University of Colorado has developed a transparent wood material that may be the window of tomorrow. Researchers found that transparent wood has the potential to outperform glass currently used in construction in nearly every way.
While glass is the most common material used in window construction, it comes with quite a few bad consequences. Heat easily transfers through glass and amounts to higher energy bills when it escapes during cold weather and pours in when it's warm. Glass production used for construction also comes with a heavy carbon footprint. Manufacturing emissions alone are approximately 25,000 metric tons per year, without considering the heavy footprint of transporting the glass.
The innovation was developed using wood from the balsa tree, which is native to South and Central America. The team treated balsa wood to an oxidizing bath, where the wood is kept in a bleach solution at room temperature to remove the light-absorbing substance from the structure. The wood is then penetrated （注入）with a synthetic polymer called polyvinyl alcohol （PVA）, creating a product that is virtually transparent. So the transparent wood is created, which is far more durable and lighter than glass.
Switching to transparent wood could prove to be cost efficient as well. It is approximately five times more thermally efficient than glass, cutting energy costs. It is made from a sustainable, renewable resource with low carbon emissions.
With all of these potential benefits for consumers, manufacturing and the environment, the case for transparent wood couldn't be clearer.
1. What is the main problem with glass used in window construction?| A．It is inefficient in letting heat out. |
| B．It is inconvenient to transport. |
| C．It causes a high ecological price. |
| D．It scarcely reflects light and heat. |
| A．A way to make colors fade. | B．A liquid to make objects pale. |
| C．A container to store liquids. | D．A process to solve problems. |
| A．Innovation is the vitality of scientific housing. |
| B．Things are not always what they seem. |
| C．There are more ways to the wood than one. |
| D．There is nothing permanent except change. |
| A．Skeptical. | B．Ambiguous. | C．Appreciative. | D．Conservative. |
