1 . When places are well-known and popular— historical and modern alike— we might take it for granted that they’ll be around forever. But sadly, many of the world’s best known and culturally significant landmarks are in trouble.
Mount Kilimanjaro’s peakThis mountain, one of the Seven Summits, proves that even giants can fall to climate change due to the vast amounts of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. While the mountain itself, located in Tanzania, isn’t in danger at present, its iconic snow cap might disappear—and shockingly soon. Research found that the snow cap had lost 85% of the total area of its ice fields between 1912 and 2007, and the remaining ice could be history as early as 2030.
Machu PicchuLocated in southern Peru, Machu Picchu is the remains of a huge stone castle that was built during the 15th century. These unbelievable Incan ruins are widely considered one of the must-see spots in South America. However, the site has been a victim of over-tourism, seeing the harmful effects of the crowds it gets as they wear down the structures. In addition, the area surrounding Machu Picchu has seen rapid development of the cities, as well as mudslides and fires, in recent years, leading UNESCO to work for its protection.
Everglades National ParkThis stunning Floridian wildlife reserve has sadly found itself fighting for its life in recent years. As ‘the largest subtropical wilderness reserve’ in North America, according to UNESCO, it’s been a beloved travel destination for American citizens for decades, but the damage of time and human activity have not been kind to it. Its survival first came into question after it was destroyed by Hurricane Andrew in 1993. But it’s human influence that has become the primary threat, as water flow to the site has decreased and the impacts of pollution have increased, resulting in harmful algal blooms (赤潮). Its vast, diverse wildlife is more threatened than ever before.
1. Which problem does Mount Kilimanjaro face?| A．Global warming | B．City development. |
| C．Over-tourism | D．Ice pollution. |
| A．They are the impacts of pollution and mudslides. |
| B．They are destroyed severely due to over-tourism. |
| C．They are famous but affected by human activities. |
| D．They are considered as victims of global warming. |
| A．Lack of popularity. | B．Hurricane Andrew. |
| C．Algal blooms. | D．Diverse wildlife. |
2 . Seafood that never sees the sea
Although 80% of the world’s seafood comes from marine harvests, there is a major shift underway toward aquaculture (水产业) now. Nearly 40% of salmon marketed today is raised in fish farms, compared with 6% a decade ago. Almost 35% of all oysters are produced in farm environments, along with 65% of freshwater fish. “The fact that world seafood supplies continue to increase at all is due almost entirely to the phenomenal growth in aquaculture,” says Anne Platt McGinn, a research associate at the Worldwatch Institute.
Biotechnology is contributing to high-yield aquaculture through transgenics—the transfer of genes from one species to another. Researchers introduce advantageous genetic features into fish, creating stronger stocks. For example, some species of fish have a protein that allows them to live in Arctic waters. By transplanting this “anti-freeze” gene into other species, researchers have created more fish that can survive in extremely cold water. Biotechnologists are attempting to improve a wide range of genetic features in fish used for aquaculture, developing fish that are larger and faster-growing, more efficient in changing feed into muscle, more tolerant of low oxygen levels in water, and better able to resist disease.
While aquaculture produces a reliable source of protein, there are a lot of environmental problems in the industry, claims McGinn. Perhaps the biggest concern is water pollution. Fish waste and uneaten food accumulate at farm sites and can float directly downstream into water supplies. McGinn charges that aquaculture also uses resources inefficiently. Fish farms need protein feed, and about 17% of ocean fish, an overharvested wild resource, becomes food for farm-raised fish. “An estimated five kilograms of oceanic fish reduced into fish meal are required to raise one kilogram of farmed ocean fish or shrimp, representing a large net protein loss,” says McGinn.
Fish farming does not have to be an inefficient or polluting industry. McGinn predicts that many consumers will choose sustainably produced fish in the future, just as they prefer dolphin-free tuna (金枪鱼) today.
1. What can we infer from Paragraph 1?| A．Nearly 80% of the world’s seafood is sourced from marine harvests. |
| B．The aquaculture undergoes minor changes within the recent decade. |
| C．Most of the seafood people consume are supplied by fish farms today. |
| D．The increase in aquaculture brings about the rise of world seafood supplies. |
| A．They create even larger and faster-growing fish. |
| B．They make use of the technology of transgenics. |
| C．They introduce a variety of genetic features in fish. |
| D．They transplant “anti-freeze” genes into other species. |
| A．It fails to provide a reliable source of protein. |
| B．It reduces the wild resource for farm-raised fish. |
| C．It leads to the over-consumption of oceanic fish. |
| D．It causes great water pollution downstream only. |
| A．Aquaculture is a very serious polluting industry. |
| B．Fish farming can be improved to be eco-friendly. |
| C．Most consumers are against the present fish farming. |
| D．Dolphin-free tuna is consumers’ favourite fish meal. |
3 . RINSE AND REPEAT
The water used by your household can then do double duty on a lawn or garden. Welcome to grey water recycling.
Water’s not black and white: There’s a grey zone. What goes down the drain after showers, toothbrushing, or laundry is called grey water (in contrast to black water which goes down the toilet). You wouldn’t drink it, but your plants can.
California-based Greywater Action runs workshops on reusing rainwater and drain water. Not all locations allow it, but in those that do, it’s relatively simple to set up. Here are some basics.
The easy solution
Projects that reuse grey water range from the professional to the DIY: a laundry-to-landscape system that can be made over a weekend with a few hundred dollars in parts. Install a diverter valve (分流阀) on the pipe of your washing machine. After a cycle, guide used water out through a PVC pipe to plantings.
Storage and use
Use a grey water project to rethink your landscape, suggests Greywater Action co-founder Laura Allen. Start with reducing typically thirsty lawns and then add climate-appropriate trees, bushes, and ground cover. Besides, grey water smells if it’s not used right now. Allen also advises flushing (冲洗) storage tanks daily.
Work the laws
If your city or state regulations ban the use of grey water, ask to have them reviewed. Diverting grey water can help conventional wastewater treatment systems last longer and reduce peak flow into channels. Also, it isn’t “grey” until it goes down a drain. So catch water that falls as the shower warms in a five-gallon container, then use it in your toilet tank or garden.
1. What does the text focus on?| A．Why grey water smells. | B．Why grey water exists. |
| C．How grey water can be reused. | D．How grey water can be reduced. |
| A．Water flushed by the toilet is grey water. |
| B．The facilities must be installed by professionals. |
| C．Grey water should be used immediately to prevent smells. |
| D．The storage tanks have to be carefully washed once a week. |
| A．A magazine. | B．An advertisement. | C．A research paper. | D．A biology textbook. |
4 . Humans need homes as sheltered bay to protect themselves from bad weather and threats from other animals and creatures. Birds also need habitats for survival. Yet, climate change has posed a great threat to their habitats. Like Poyang Lake in Jiangxi Province, for example. As an important habitat for the Siberian crane (鹤), an endangered species in the world. Poyang Lake has experienced unnatural ups and downs in recent years. “In some years the lake experiences floods, while in others it experiences droughts. Both of these situation create food shortages in the cranes’ habitat,” Qian Fawen, a research professor from the National Bird Banding Center of China, told China Daily.
To solve such habitat problems, China has recently recognized 1,140 sites as important breeding (繁殖), wintering grounds, and migratory (迁徙的) stops, with most of them located in wetlands. Wetlands include coastal areas with a water depth of no more than 6 meters at low tide, but exclude rice fields and areas of water used for fishery and artificial breeding, noted the National Forestry and Grassland Administration. Referred to as the “Kidneys of the Earth” and as “species gene pools”, wetlands conserve clean water, maintain biodiversity, help contain floods and prevent droughts.
To protect China’s wetlands, a law was also introduced in 2022 to restrict construction at important national wetlands and ban harmful activities including over-farming, over-harvesting and the discharging of wastewater. Since these measures have gone into effect, more birds have been spotted wintering in the nation’s wetlands. In February, government in Hunan province reported 72 species of waterbirds that spent this past winter in Dongting Lake. Mallards and Eurasian cranes are among the birds which stay at the lake. Black-faced spoonbills, a rare and endangered species, were also spotted at Dongting after an absence of five years. The number of spoonbills has increased from 300 in the 1980s to more than 5,000 presently, according to the National Forestry and Grassland Administration.
1. Why did the author mention Poyang Lake?| A．To stress the risks of serious water shortage in China. |
| B．To argue for the need of dealing with climate change. |
| C．To explain the importance of wetlands for bird habitats. |
| D．To describe the living environment of endangered birds. |
| A．The lack of food. | B．The loss of habitat. |
| C．The change of weather. | D．The failure of artificial breeding. |
| A．They keep the balance and diversity of nature. |
| B．They are partly used for fishery and artificial breeding. |
| C．They feature a water depth of 6 meters at low tide. |
| D．They are places where rice are grown to feed birds. |
| A．The reappearance of some dangerous birds. |
| B．The significant increase of migratory birds. |
| C．The declining species of endangered birds. |
| D．New discoveries of bird migratory patterns. |
| A．Challenges to the endangered birds in China. |
| B．The role of wetlands in fighting climate change. |
| C．The success of a new law on bird conservation. |
| D．China’s protection of wetlands for bird habitats. |
5 . What might be the global impact of extreme losses of the Amazon rainforest — the world’s largest rainforest? A new study has found that rapid deforestation of the Amazon rainforest could influence the temperature and rainfall over as far away as the Tibetan plateau and Antarctica.
Saini Yang at Beijing Normal University in China and her colleagues analysed global climatological data from 1979 to 2019 to identify correlations in temperature and rainfall between the Amazon rainforest and other areas. Such links are called “teleconnections(遥相关)”.
They focused on the Amazon rainforest in particular because of its significance as a major carbon sink and as a climatic “tipping point(临界点)” that could see forests turn to tropical grasslands beyond a certain limit of warming and human-driven deforestation.
The researchers found that since 1979, warm temperatures in the Amazon was associated with warm temperatures over the Tibetan plateau and the West Antarctic ice sheet; more rainfall in the Amazon was relevant to less rainfall in those regions.
By analysing changing temperatures in the regions between the Amazon and those distant areas, they were also able to trace the path through which energy or materials such as black carbon released in forest fire might propagate through the atmosphere. Their analysis showed the route remained consistent under different future warming circumstances.
The collapse of the West Antarctic ice sheet is a known tipping point. Melting snow on the Tibetan plateau is not, but the region is warming more rapidly than much of the rest of the globe, and changes to snow and ice there could have consequences for ecosystems and the billions of people that rely on its snowmelt for water.
“If the Amazon does have an influence on these regions, it could mean there is a higher risk the Amazon tipping point might set others off”, says Jothan at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research in Germany. “It adds an additional potential domino that can fall.”
1. How did the study identify teleconnections?| A．By recording temperature and rainfall. |
| B．By finding the similarities between regions. |
| C．By examining previous data on global climate. |
| D．By analysing climatological data of the Amazon. |
| A．spread | B．absorb | C．launch | D．switch |
| A．It is now at a higher risk of disappearing. |
| B．It indeed has an effect on the two regions. |
| C．Deforestation is caused by human activities. |
| D．The tipping point might cause a chain reaction. |
| A．Changes within the Amazon. |
| B．The Amazon at a tipping point. |
| C．The Tibetan plateau and Antarctica. |
| D．Global impacts of the Amazon deforestation. |
Manta rays (魔鬼鱼) are some of the creatures in the ocean who allow divers to swim right up to and interact (互动) with them. Unfortunately, these gentle animals are in big trouble. Since 2011, manta rays have been listed as a threatened species worldwide.
Peru, a country in South America, recently took a big step to protect giant manta rays: It banned fishing for them. Although 12 other countries have passed laws to protect rays, Peru’s may be the most important one yet. That’s because there are more manta rays in the Pacific Ocean near Peru than in any other place in the world.
Giant manta rays are unusual-looking creatures. The giant, flat rays are typically about 4.5 meters wide and can grow up to 8 meters wide! “They’re sort of like giant flying carpets underwater,” says Joshua Stewart of the Manta Trust, an organization that researches manta rays.
People catch rays for their meat. Overfishing is bad for any sea creature, but it’s even worse for manta rays. Female manta rays usually have only one baby, every two to five years. So every ray that’s caught hurts the population in a big way. People who break Peru’s new law can be fined or have their fishing licenses taken away. Even rays caught accidentally in fishing nets must be set free.
Earlier this year, the Manta Trust attached video cameras, called Crittercams, to manta rays off the west coast of Mexico. The footage (连续镜头) the cameras collect could help researchers predict where rays swim and when. The scientists could use the information to warn fishing boats to avoid these areas, helping reduce the number of accidentally caught rays.
Stewart says it’s important to protect these unique creatures. “There’s really no other animal that compares in size that you can have interactions with in the wild.”
1. What’s a characteristic of manta rays?| A．They can fly like a bird. | B．They are usually of small size. |
| C．They are very friendly to people. | D．They like swimming up and down. |
| A．Their habitats are badly damaged. | B．They only live in the Pacific Ocean. |
| C．Their number has dropped greatly. | D．Fewer and fewer female rays give birth. |
| A．protect them | B．look for more rays |
| C．make films about them | D．reduce their population |
| A．It makes no sense. | B．It is hard to follow. |
| C．It is really essential. | D．It needs improvement. |
7 . After years of heated debate, gray wolves were reintroduced to Yellowstone National Park in 1995. Fourteen wolves were caught in Canada and transported to the park. By 2007, the Yellowstone wolf population had grown to more than 170.
Gray wolves once roamed throughout the Yellowstone area. But they were gradually displaced by human development and hunted by farmers for killing livestock (牲畜). By the 1920s, wolves had practically disappeared from the Yellowstone area. They moved farther north into the deep forests of Canada, where there was less contact with humans.
The disappearance of the wolves had many consequences. Deer populations — a major food source for the wolf — grew rapidly without their usual enemy. These animals consumed large amounts of vegetation, which reduced plant diversity in the park. In the absence of wolves, coyote (小野狼) populations also grew quickly. The coyotes killed a large percentage of the park’s red foxes.
As early as 1966, biologists asked the government to consider reintroducing wolves into Yellowstone, hoping that they would be able to control the deer and coyote problems. Many farmers opposed the plan, worrying that wolves would kill their livestock or pets. Other people feared that the wolves would not be well-protected in Yellowstone.
The government spent nearly 30 years coming up with a plan to reintroduce the wolves. They included many compromises to help people accept the wolves’ presence. For example, they promised to pay farmers for livestock killed by wolves.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service carefully monitors and manages the wolves in Yellowstone. Certain wolves wear special collars to help biologists gather information about how the wolves live, hunt, and reproduce. Each year the wolf population is counted.
Today, the debate continues over how well the gray wolf is fitting in at Yellowstone. Deer and coyote populations are down, while red foxes have made a comeback. The Yellowstone wolf project has been a valuable experiment to help biologists decide whether to reintroduce wolves to other parts of the country as well.
1. What is Paragraph 2 mainly about?| A．Why gray wolves became a danger to farmers. |
| B．What gray wolves preferred about living in Canada. |
| C．How gray wolves were forced out of their original homes. |
| D．When gray wolves were gradually reintroduced to Yellowstone. |
| A．By making comparisons. |
| B．By explaining cause and effect. |
| C．By listing events in time order. |
| D．By using statistics and examples. |
| A．To reduce the park’s plant diversity. |
| B．To protect the wolves from dying out. |
| C．To control the local livestock problem. |
| D．To limit the deer and coyote populations. |
| A．Wolves are an important part of American national parks. |
| B．Yellowstone’s wolf reintroduction program was a mistake. |
| C．The government should be responsible for reintroducing wolves. |
| D．Yellowstone’s wolf program has benefited the wolves and the park. |
8 . Last year, wildfire spread through Boulder, Colorado. It wasn’t a hot summer day. It wasn’t a forested neighborhood. It was winter in the suburbs (郊区) . More than 1,000 homes and buildings burned.
Large parts of the country that don’t have wildfires are now at risk. They include nearly 80 million homes and buildings. That is what new data shows. Over the next 30 years, the risk will only grow. The group First Street Foundation created a program called Fire Factor. People can go to a website to learn what their wildfire risk is in 2022 and in 2052. Right now, about 16% of Americans live in risky places. By 2052, that will go up to 21%.
California will likely suffer a lot from wildfire. That’s partly because it is so big and partly because of its weather. So California will be on the top of the at-risk list. But nearly half of all at-risk Americans in 2052 will live in the southern half of the U.S. The South will be home to the largest number of people at high risk: 32 million. States like Texas, Florida, Oklahoma, and North and South Carolina will be “in the line of fire,” so to speak, and so will southwestern states like Arizona and New Mexico.
People are doing many things to make fire risk worse. They are moving to places where wildfire is a natural yearly event. They are building homes right next to plants and trees that can burn. Climate (气候) change has increased heat and dryness. That means any spark (火花) at any time can cause a big fire.
As with many climate threats, wildfires put minorities at the greatest risk. By 2052, about 44% of all Native Americans will live in places at majors risk from wildfire. Nearly 1 in 4 Hispanics will. People who don’t speak English or own cars will have a harder time learning about and getting away from a fast-moving fire.
1. What problem did Boulder have last year?| A．Strange weather. | B．Widespread wildfires. |
| C．Huge loss of forests. | D．A rapid drop in populations. |
| A．About 16% of Americans are safe now. |
| B．The risky areas of wildfire are increasing. |
| C．The risk of wildfire will be lowered in 2052. |
| D．Nearly 80 million homes are burnt down by wildfire. |
| A．groups with foreign population. | B．groups with native population. |
| C．groups with large population | D．groups with small population |
| A．Reasons why wildfire risk is worse. | B．Dangers humans may face in the future. |
| C．Actions taken by humans to prevent fire. | D．Suggestions for self-protection in wildfire. |
9 . World’s Largest Active Volcano Erupts in Hawaii
Hawaii’s Mauna Loa, the largest active volcano in the world, has erupted for the first time in nearly 40 years, US authorities said, erupting lava and ash Monday, Nov. 28th, 2022 as emergency crews went on alert.
Flows of lava remained mostly contained within the peak’s huge caldera, but the eruption could pose a threat to nearby residents if conditions change, the United States Geological Survey reported at 11:45 pm local time Sunday about 15 minutes after the eruption inside Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.
Mauna Loa has been showing signs of erupting for years, according to the USGS, which said the ongoing eruption was visible from Kona, a town on the west coast of Hawaii’s main island about 72 kilometers from the volcano.
“Lava is still erupting from the peak and is overflowing from the caldera,” the USGS said on its website, referring to the basin at the top of a volcano. While it added there were “no threats to populated areas currently,” it urged area residents to review preparation procedures.
Hawaii authorities said no evacuation(撤离, 疏散) orders have been given, although the peak area and several roads in the region were closed, and two shelters have been opened.
Robin George Andrews, a scientist, said a larger threat exists if lava begins to pour out of so-called rift zones(裂谷带).
While there is no evidence yet of this occurring now on Mauna Loa, “the fact that it is a dangerous mountain that hasn’t erupted since 1984— the longest eruptive pause in its recorded history— is why we should all keep an eye on it,” Andrews said.
One of six active volcanoes on the Hawaiian islands, Mauna Loa has erupted 33 times since 1843, according to USGS.
The most recent eruption, in 1984, lasted 22 days and produced lava flows which reached to within about 7 kilometers of Hilo, a city to the northeast which is home to about 44, 000 people today.
1. Which of the following statements would USGS agree with?| A．The eruption time is correctly predicted. |
| B．The eruption is within expectation. |
| C．The eruption results have been under control. |
| D．The eruption will pose a threat to people living nearby. |
| A．Leaving their houses as soon as possible. |
| B．Putting up more shelters in a short time. |
| C．Listening to evacuation orders often. |
| D．Making some preparations. |
| A．No one knows how to judge the eruptive pause. |
| B．There are more people living near the rift zones. |
| C．There is a possibility that the lava pours out of rift zones. |
| D．All the six active volcanoes on the Hawaiian islands will erupt. |
| A．To give advice about protecting the environment. |
| B．To stress the importance of natural’s power. |
| C．To tell a piece of news to the readers. |
| D．To introduce the history of volcanos. |
10 . McDonald’s is promising to offer sustainable Happy Meal toys made with dramatically less plastic by the end of 2025. The fast-food giant said that it has already decreased the use of virgin fossil fuel-based plastic in its toys by 30% worldwide since 2018 after starting the process in markets like France, the United Kingdom and Ireland.
More than 100 countries worldwide sell Happy Meals at McDonald’s locations. The burger chain began selling the meals in 1979. In 2018, after widespread concern about children’s meals at fast-food restaurants, the company revamped its options to selections that were lower in calories, sodium, saturated fat and sugar.
Murray said children and parents alike have been asking for more sustainable toys. In 2019, two British school children started a petition (请愿书) that generated international attention asking McDonald’s and Burger King to cancel the plastic toys in their children’s meal deals.
Some toys, like board game pieces, will be made with plant-derived (植物提取的) or recycled material. Others will have more significant changes to their appearance. Superheroes and movie characters will be 3-D cutouts rather than plastic figurines. The company is also looking into switching from plastic wrapping to plant-based and certified fiber packaging.
“As you can imagine, our entire supply chain has to change with this,” Murray said. “It has been a massive undertaking, and we’re really just changing the way we do our Happy Meals.”
McDonald’s chief sustainability officer Jenny McColloch said the company has already been learning from feedback in France, the UK and Ireland, where the toys have already rolled out. The goal is to make sure they are safe and sturdy enough for children.
According to McColloch, the more sustainable toys will begin rolling out widely in the US by January. The fast-food giant is also looking for ways to recycle the old plastic Happy Meal toys within its restaurants.
1. What does the underlined word “revamped” in Paragraph 2 mean?| A．Challenged. | B．Offered. | C．Adjusted. | D．Distributed. |
| A．The switch of plastic wrapping for several toys. |
| B．The changes of materials for toys and packaging. |
| C．The cost of making 3-D cutouts of superheroes. |
| D．The significance of using recycled materials. |
| A．The change of the whole chain is a huge task. |
| B．The massive undertaking is impossible to achieve. |
| C．They are not willing to change their Happy Meals. |
| D．You can’t imagine the change of the entire supply chain. |
| A．The Less Use of Plastic Is Required |
| B．An Eco-friendly Burger Chain Called McDonald’s |
| C．The Way That McDonald’s Made Happy Meal Toys |
| D．McDonald’s Will Offer Greener Happy Meal Toys |
