1 . As an intense heat wave sweeps through China, residents are seeking relief in air raid shelters and swimming pools to stay cool, and dozens of cities, including Shanghai, Chongqing and Hangzhou, have issued their highest-level red alert warnings. Shanghai has issued three red alerts this year, with the temperature hitting 40.9 Celsius on July 13, matching the record set in 2017 since 1873. The fact that Shanghai has experienced only 16 days of 40°C-plus temperatures since the city began keeping records in 1873 should give us an idea about the seriousness of the situation.
Medical experts say extreme heat could cause nausea (恶心), fatigue, sunstroke and even death, with senior citizens and people with long-term illnesses particularly vulnerable to heat waves.
Extreme heat events, which began a month ago, have affected the lives of more than 900 million people in China. Between June 1 and July 12, the average number of days with temperatures above 35°Cwas 5.3, up 2.4 days over normal years, breaking the national record set in 1961, according to the National Climate Center.
Parts of Europe are also in the grip of heat waves and experiencing extreme weather events after the western part of North America faced extreme heat waves last year. In response to the exceptionally high temperatures, the United Kingdom has declared a national emergency and issued the highest-level red alert warning for Monday and Tuesday for the first time. More alarmingly, the average global temperature in June this year was 0.4°C higher than normal years and the highest since 1979, with temperatures in countries such as Spain, France and Italy exceeding 40°C.
Unfortunately, extreme heat, which is directly related to climate change, will become more frequent and intense in the next 30 years, setting new records for high temperatures. As global warming intensifies, losses and devastation will increase, forcing natural and human systems to raise their adaptation limits.
1. What can we know about the heat waves this year?| A．It may cause more harm to the old and people with long-term illnesses. |
| B．The number of days above 35°Cin June breaks the national record. |
| C．Shanghai has experienced a higher temperature than that in 2017. |
| D．The whole Europe as well as America are suffering from the heat waves. |
| A．By analyzing and concluding. | B．By explaining and contrasting. |
| C．By giving examples and quoting. | D．By giving figures and comparing. |
| A．Becoming more serious. | B．Remaining stable. |
| C．Staying unpredictable. | D．Getting controllable. |
| A．The solutions to the climate change. | B．The economic losses from heat waves. |
| C．The increase of severe heat waves. | D．The destructive effect of global warming. |
2 . The impact of the man-made climate crisis on Antarctica is scientifically undeniable: stable ice shelves are retreating, air temperature increased by 3 degrees Celsius. krill(磷虾)numbers are declining, melting ice is contributing to sea level rise, and polar bears and seals are getting displaced. “Antarctic biodiversity could decline substantially by the end of the century if we continue with business as usual.” Jasmine Rachael Lee, lead author of the University of Queensland study says.
Published in the journal PLOS Biology, the study finds population declines are likely for 65% of the continent’s plants and wildlife by the year 2100. The most vulnerable(脆弱的)species is the Emperor penguins. In October 2022, the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service listed Emperor penguins as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act(ESA), as experts predict the flightless seabird will see a 26% to 47% dip in its population by 2050. “This listing reflects the growing extinction crisis and highlights the importance of the ESA and efforts to conserve species before population declines become irreversible(不可逆转).” said Service Director Martha Williams at the time.
Aside from Emperor penguins, other Antarctic specialists, like the Adélie penguin and dry soil nematodes, were also highly vulnerable. We urgently need a combination of global and local conservation action to best conserve Antarctic species. Global action and global voices to help relieve climate change—because the biggest threat to Antarctica is coming from outside of it. And then we need local actions to help protect biodiversity against local threats and give them the best chance of adapting to climate changes. This will help to save our iconic(代表性的)species like the Emperor penguins and all of Antarctica’s unique and highly adapted inhabitants. It will also help humankind, as we rely heavily on the priceless services the Antarctic provides in regulating our climate and capturing sea level in its ice sheets.
1. What can we learn from Paragraph 1?| A．The impact of climate crisis is usually denied. |
| B．Conservation efforts are badly needed. |
| C．Air temperature on Antarctic increases 3℃ annually. |
| D．Sea level rise results in seabirds losing their habitats. |
| A．To serve as a call to protect wildlife on Antarctic |
| B．To reflect the growing population of wild species. |
| C．To prove the effectiveness of the Endangered Species Act. |
| D．To highlight the severe impact of rising temperature. |
| A．Reducing the chances of making a trip to Antarctic. |
| B．Making joint efforts to relieve climate change. |
| C．Attempting to provide essential nutrients to the ecosystem. |
| D．Continuing to carry forward the Endangered Species Act. |
| A．Plants and Wildlife on Antarctica Will Decline Quickly |
| B．Antarctic Species Are Vulnerable to Human Threats |
| C．More Action Should Be Taken to Protect Wildlife on Antarctica |
| D．The Best Conservation Strategy Will Be Carried Out Soon |
3 . Now, a study proves that gardens are more than just a pretty place. The study, by researchers at Illinois State University, demonstrates that such constructed gardens can have a measurable and positive impact on water quality.
Floating gardens are essentially platforms built and wrapped in coconut husks (椰子壳), and filled in with native plantings. As plants grow, they extend their roots into the water. On the North Branch of the Chicago River, non-profit Urban Rivers and its partners are developing a mile-long floating eco-park called the Wild Mile. The re-development of this former industrial canal is Urban Rivers’ important project. As part of the park, floating gardens, attached to shore, are being fixed.
The primary aim of the floating gardens is beautification. But the Illinois State team, from the University’s Department of Geology, Geography, and the Environment, saw an ideal setup for a controlled experiment. “We joined it because it’s the perfect opportunity to see if there’s an influence on water quality,” explains lead author Abigail Heath.
The study is novel: previous studies have explored floating gardens’ influence on water quality over time, primarily in wastewater treatment ponds, but not over space, in moving water. The project also matches well with Urban Rivers’ broader goals. “The city is interested in bettering water quality,” says Phil Nicodemus, Urban Rivers’ Director of Research. “Happily, Illinois State took part in it later.”
Could this small human-made park improve water quality? An average of data collected over the course of the study shows middle but definitive improvement. For example, nitrogen (氮) dropped from 4.69 milligrams per liter in surface water to 4.43 milligrams per liter, a drop of about 1 percent.
“Despite how small this garden was, there was measurable improvement in water quality from upstream to downstream,” notes Heath. She and her colleagues see this as a model for how large floating gardens should be to help improve water in similar settings. “Even this tiny garden makes a difference,” she says.
1. What can be inferred from the second paragraph?| A．The floating gardens are environmentally friendly. |
| B．The floating gardens are fixed everywhere in the eco-park. |
| C．The floating gardens can help fix the former parks. |
| D．The Urban Rivers were once industrial canals. |
| A．To reduce waste water. | B．To attract more visitors to the park. |
| C．To make the surroundings brilliant. | D．To help researchers do the experiment. |
| A．The floating garden. | B．The project. |
| C．The treatment of ponds. | D．The quality of water. |
| A．Floating Gardens: More than Pretty |
| B．The Best Way to Better Water Quality |
| C．A Practical Method of Improving Parks |
| D．Floating Gardens Beautify the City |
4 . You’re out on a hike, snacking on an apple, a banana, or some nuts. When you’re finished, all that’s left is a core, a peel, or a shell. “It’s natural,” you tell yourself, throwing it into the woods.
After all, food waste is biodegradable (可生物降解的). It’s not like you’re littering by throwing away a plastic bottle.
Food waste doesn’t break down as fast as you think
Most people know food waste is biodegradable. But fewer people are aware that orange and banana peels can take up to two years to break down in the wild, meaning they’re going to be staying in nature for a lot longer than you might think. And even if they eventually biodegrade, they can lead to a lot of serious problems.
“ Animals have a super advanced sense of smell compared to us,” says biologist Jeff Marion. All human food can attract animals. This can then cause “attraction behavior”, which refers to human actions that cause animals to overcome their natural wariness(警惕)of people.
Attraction can mean aggression
When animals are routinely attracted to humans and their food, they often become habituated to human presence. “Once an animal reaches that point, it’s essentially game over,” Marion says. That’s the origin of the phrase: A fed bear is a dead bear.
| A．Food waste can appeal to animals. |
| B．Human actions result from attraction behavior. |
| C．Keeping your food to yourself is the best solution. |
| D．However, food left outdoors can have unexpected impacts. |
| E．Here are the measures we should take to prevent food waste. |
| F．This sort of attraction behavior can quickly become dangerous. |
| G．Because when it comes to human-animal encounters; animals are often the losers. |
5 . The coronavirus pandemic(新冠疫情)has brought with it the rise of a new kind of single-use plastic in the form of personal protective equipment (PPE), like face masks and gloves. Experts warned that these sharply increasing single-use items could cause a new wave of plastic pollution and kill wildlife.
The charity Ocean Conservancy reported that volunteers had collected more than 100,000 PPE items from coasts and waterways during the last six months of 2020. They sent out a survey to more than 200 International Coastal Cleanup (ICC) coordinators and volunteers asking about their experience with PPE. The results show that it is a real problem. Volunteers collected 107,219 pieces of PPE in 70 of 115 participating countries. Of those surveyed, 94% reported seeing PPE at a cleanup, and 40% found five items or more. Further, 37% found the items had already sunk into the water.
“During one of our clean-ups in the canals of Leiden, our volunteers found a latex(乳胶)glove with a dead fish trapped in the thumb,” said Auke-Florian Hiemstra, a study coauthor from Leiden University. “Also, in the Dutch canals, we observed that a water bird was using face masks and gloves in its nests.” Other animals that have gotten tangled up in face masks include a fox in the UK, a pufferfish in Florida, and two crabs in France. Numerous dogs and cats have been observed eating PPE as well.
The danger posed by PPE goes deeper than what the eye can see. Luckily, there are ways that all of us can be part of the solution to the problem of PPE pollution. Hiemstra suggested using reusable PPE instead of single-use products. In that case, we should deal with them properly by cutting the ear loops to prevent animal entanglements(缠绕物)and throwing them away in a bin that is not overstuffed. “We definitely think it is important for citizens to understand how much PPE is ending up in the environment and impacting animals,” Hiemstra said.
1. What problem did experts mention in paragraph 1?| A．The decline of wildlife due to overhunting. |
| B．The shortage of personal protective equipment. |
| C．The plastic pollution caused by anti-pandemic products. |
| D．The increasing number of coronavirus patients. |
| A．The leading cause of ocean pollution. |
| B．Volunteers’ great efforts to protect the ocean. |
| C．The large amount of PPE in the environment. |
| D．Difficulties of cleaning up plastic waste in the ocean. |
| A．PPE pollution has threatened many animals’ lives. |
| B．Litter makes it hard for boats to pass through the canals. |
| C．Water birds may not be affected by plastic pollution. |
| D．PPE is attractive to dogs and cats due to its smell. |
| A．Limiting the production of non-recyclable plastic. |
| B．Cleaning the rubbish bin regularly. |
| C．Raising the price of PPE items. |
| D．Replacing single-use products with reusable ones. |
6 . Amy Fang has recently been asked a lot about how her handbag matches her vest (马甲). A few months ago, they belonged to the same grey jacket that she bought five years ago. “I’ve been telling people around me that if you have clothes that carry emotional value and you don’t want to get rid of them, you can have them upcycled (升级改造),” says Fang.
Fashion’s waste problem places a huge burden on the environment, awareness of which partly drives upcycle actions. The fashion industry contributes 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions, according to the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe. Upcycling, or making unwanted materials into new products, is an important solution that goes hand in hand with recycling and reuse.
In China’s big cities such as Beijing and Shanghai, the trend is beginning to make an impact. Retopia, a sustainable lifestyle platform backed by student designer incubator Labelhood Youtopia, hosted a pop-up in a shopping centre in Shanghai to sell secondhand or upcycled clothes—70% of over 1,000 items were sold, according to the platform.
Haiyan Zhong, co-founder of Another Aura, which helped Fang find a new life for her old jacket, explains how her startup fits into the wider sustainability fashion context in China. “One part of it is to use natural, organic or biodegradable materials in making the clothes,” she says. “The other part is how to deal with the clothes and the materials they’re made from in their afterlife.”
Customers like Fang can help to influence the next generation. She is happy to see how her upcycle mindset rubs off on her 16-year-old daughter. “My daughter was very impressed with the final products from Another Aura. I hope she can be conscious of her purchases as well and adopt the same habit in the future.”
1. What does Amy Fang think about her vest?| A．It is of little use. |
| B．It has cost too much. |
| C．It contains a certain feeling. |
| D．It should be donated to others. |
| A．The fashion industry is environmentally friendly. |
| B．Another Aura attaches importance to materials of clothes. |
| C．Retopia is the first to sell upcycled clothes. |
| D．Recycling is not a solution to the waste problem. |
| A．Shocks. | B．Affects. |
| C．Amuses. | D．Threatens. |
| A．China’s Upcycling Trend | B．Fang’s Beneficial Actions |
| C．Starting Sustainable Studios | D．Influence of the Fashion Industry |
7 . A Plastic Ocean is a film to make you think.Think,and then act.We need to take action on our dependence on plastic.We’ve been producing plastic in huge quantities.Drinking bottles,shopping bags and even clothes are made with plastic.
The film begins as a journey to film the largest animal on the planet,the blue whale.But during the journey the filmmakers make the shocking discovery of a huge,thick layer of plastic floating in the Indian Ocean.
In the film there are beautiful shots of the seas and marine life.
They present short-term and long-term solutions.These include avoiding plastic containers and recycling as much as you can.The filmmakers also stress the need for governments to work more on recycling programmes.
We make a shocking amount of plastic.Over 300 million tons of plastic are produced every year,and at least 8 million of those are dumped into the oceans.The results are disastrous,but it isn’t too late to change.
| A．This causes them to travel around the world to look at other affected areas. |
| B．Once you’ve seen the film,you’ll realize it is time to do our part. |
| C．It has raised public concern all over the world. |
| D．We live in a world full of plastic,and only a small amount is recycled. |
| E．But the film doesn’t only present the negative side. |
| F．In conclusion,we only have one earth to live on. |
| G．These are contrasted with dumps of plastic rubbish. |
8 . Tiny sensors inspired by dandelion (蒲公英) seeds could be spread to the winds to help track of climate change and global warming.
As the climate crisis continues to strengthen, tracking changes in temperature and other environmental signals across a wide area is useful. But doing effectively requires distributing sensors throughout the environment, which can be time-consuming.
“We wondered whether it’s possible to build a system that can spread sensors in the wind, rather than having a person go out and place sensors alone, which can be dangerous in hard-to-reach places,” says Vikram Iyer at the University of Washington in Seattle.
Iyer and his colleagues used a laser-powered tool to make devices. Each one weighs 30 milligrams with a diameter of 28 millimeters, and has a number of small holes through which air can float in the air like dandelion seeds.
The devices carry tiny sensors, essentially a microcomputer powered by small solar panels that can send back signals to the researchers, who developed different types that can measure temperature，pressure，light and so on. A small capacitor (电容器) can store energy overnight or in cloudy conditions.
In all, the team tested 75 different designs before finding the right mix of variables. The final design can move through the air at 0.87 metres per second, travelling up to 100 metres in a mild wind when released from a drone (无人机). Real-world tests showed that the sensors can transfer data up to 60 metres.
“The production of the ‘seeds’ is especially interesting, so is the design of the electronic devices,” says Jonathan Aitken at the University of Sheffield, UK. “Both seem to be very strong to the natural environment.”
Aitken is also impressed by the range of the sensors’ communication abilities. “Plus the cheapness of the device, it means that it can be placed in large numbers, and the communication range makes this an excellent choice, especially within agriculture or disaster area monitoring,’’ he says.
1. What can we learn about the sensors like dandelion seeds?| A．They are quite expensive to make. |
| B．They are efficient in space and time. |
| C．They can be carried by dandelion seeds. |
| D．They can change the temperature. |
| A．The sun. | B．Strong wind. |
| C．A smalI capacitor. | D．A drone. |
| A．The seed-like sensors can rise up from the ground without any help. |
| B．The seed-like sensors can only travel in a mild wind. |
| C．The scientists have tried many other designs before the seed-like sensors. |
| D．The seed-like sensors travel much slower than its common competitors. |
| A．Costly. | B．Risky. |
| C．Complicated. | D．Promising. |
9 . When a heavy storm hit, residents of the floating community of Schoonschip in Amsterdam had little doubt about whether they could ride it out. They tied up their own stuff, and checked in with neighbors to ensure everyone had enough food and water.
A floating house can be constructed on any shoreline and is able to deal with rising seas by remaining on the top of the water’s surface.
| A．They then boarded their floating houses |
| B．But the benefits may outweigh the costs |
| C．Since floating houses are on the increase |
| D．We feel safer in a storm because we are floating |
| E．Unlike houseboat which can easily be moved and relocated |
| F．Hundreds of millions of people will be displaced by sea level rise |
| G．Severe wind and rain, or even the passing ships, can rock the buildings |
10 . It’s been given the title “Asia’s water tower”: Sanjiangyuan, meaning “the source of three rivers”, is an area in Qinghai. It is the source of the Yellow River, Yangtze River and Lancang River.
The three rivers provide water for as many as 600 million people, or almost half the population of China. And yet, because of its weak ecosystem (生态系统) and human activities, the environment in Sanjiangyuan is becoming worse, putting the country’s water source at risk.
This is why China built its very first national park, the Sanjiangyuan National Park, to protect the sources in 2020. The park will also increase the area’s green coverage and become the home of many wildlife species.
Long before the decision to build the park was made, however, volunteers across the country had already started their own effort to protect Sanjiangyuan.
Take Ren Shihai for example, a 38-year-old volunteer from Beijing. Ren is a member of the Shan Shui Conservation Center, focusing on environmental protection in the Sanjiangyuan area. He joined a team of volunteers who taught at the No 2 Middle School in Zaduo county, in Qinghai’s Yushu. He said he got a feeling of happiness when students were very excited when he spoke about the rivers and mountains in Sanjiangyuan and why it was important to protect them.
Zhaxi Bading, a 13-year-old Tibetan student, said he learned something new in Ren’s class. “I know the rivers that run through my hometown but I didn’t know their effects on the environment of the lower reaches,” he said. “I’m proud that my hometown is beautiful, and I want to protect it.”
Now under the protection of our country, hopefully “Asia’s water tower” will still have that name for years to come.
1. What problem is Sanjiangyuan facing now?| A．Less wildlife. | B．Worsening environment. |
| C．More visits. | D．Not enough water. |
| A．To protect the water sources. |
| B．To study the wildlife in the area. |
| C．To enlarge the area of green coverage. |
| D．To increase the number of wildlife species. |
| A．By advising the government to build a national park. |
| B．By keeping the rivers and mountains in the area natural. |
| C．By collecting enough money to feed its wild animals. |
| D．By raising local children’s awareness of protecting it. |
| A．Unconcerned. | B．Doubtful. |
| C．Positive. | D．Worried. |
