Just as noise pollution negatively impacts human health, it also affects wildlife. It can affect animal communication, their abilities to find food and impact where they live. A recent study published in Biology Letters found that human-created noise is affecting a wide range of animals. Noise pollution is caused by cars, trucks, airplanes, ships, factories, industrial activities and sounds from cities, among others. Researchers found that wildlife in many different land and water ecosystems showed significant responses to human-created noise.
For example, bats use ultrasonic sound waves to get around and to find food. However, noise pollution affects this and causes them to spend more time and energy locating their food source. Shipping lanes in the UK can be deafening to harbor seals, and noises from ships are seriously impacting killer whales ability to find food and avoid potential dangers, according to episode 2 of CBC s Killers: J pod on the brink (边缘). And it’s no secret that many human-created conditions, like noise, are changing the behavior of birds. You may be surprised to learn that plants are also impacted, since pollinators (传粉昆虫) often relocate to quieter areas.
Not unlike the impact of light pollution on insects, noise pollution is causing change. It can change the types of species living in many different ecosystems, which in turn impacts the functions of these areas, according to The Guardian.
The good news is that if noise is reduced or simply turned off, it more or less removes the issue. The impact does not remain in the same way as other forms of pollution, like plastic or chemicals. And efforts are already underway in Canada.
BC Ferries is working to lessen the effects of underwater noise, especially along ferry routes that pass through critical habitats. WCS (Wildlife Conservation Society) Canada is encouraging the federal government to increase protective measures in the Arctic. They’re also working with international colleagues to address the increase of noise in the region as a result of new shipping routes.
While these initiatives demonstrate progress, tightening rules and regulations around noise pollution is an important measure for conserving wildlife in Canada.
1. Why do bats spend more time looking for food?2. What is the influence of noise pollution on ecosystems?
3. Please decide which part is false in the following statement, then underline it and explain why.
Noise pollution affects animals in many ways, and compared with other forms of pollution, noise pollution is harder to deal with.
4. Please give some advice on how to reduce the effects of noise pollution on animals. (In about 40 words)
2 . As seasons change, you can do the same with your wellness routine. When winter comes, you can adapt your seasonal healthy habits to suit your surroundings. Whether you live in a cold climate or closer to the warm place, you can use the change in seasons as an opportunity to stay healthy.
Fuel your body with winter vegetables. If you live in a climate with four seasons, only the strong survive when it comes to vegetables. Why not take advantage of the season by eating what grows at this time of year? Vegetables and leafy greens come packed with nutrients.
Focus on mental health. Often, well-being focuses more on the physical side of staying healthy.
Try something new to stay active. Wintertime can mean shorter days and colder temperatures. This can often put staying active on the back burner, especially with unpleasant temperatures outside. Why not take the change in seasons as an opportunity to try something new?
| A．Commit to an act of kindness. |
| B．But mental health is just as important. |
| C．Why don’t you eat enough vegetables? |
| D．Here are some winter wellness routines. |
| E．This can help you keep your wellness in winter. |
| F．Maybe you can enjoy cold outdoor activities, like skiing. |
| G．Look for local winter vegetables native to your area at a local famer’s market. |
3 . If you’ve ever worried that we’ve solved all the mysteries of nature, fear not. Minnesota’s Devil’s Kettle Falls has been attracting hikers and geologists for generations. At the falls, along Lake Superior’s North shore, a river forks at a rock outcrop. While one side runs down a two-step stone bank and continues on like a normal waterfall, the other side vanishes into a deep hole and disappears apparently forever.
And this baffling situation only gets strange when geologists start explaining Devil’s Kettle. Consider, for instance, the sheer quantity of water pouring into the kettle every minute of every day. While the idea of some kind of broad, underground river is an exciting device in movies, the reality is that those sorts of deep caves are rare.
Another idea is that millions of years ago, a hollow lava tube may have formed beneath the falls, in the subsurface layer of basalt (玄武岩) . Over time, the theory suggests, the falling water eroded (侵蚀) the surface and fell straight down into the ancient lava tube, providing wide-open access to the floor of Lake Superior. Again, there are problems with this theory, because no lava tubes have ever been found in any of the hundreds of exposed basalt beds in the area.
In February 2017, scientists said that water that disappears into the rock at Devil’s Kettle resurges in the stream below the falls. To confirm the theory, scientists plan on conducting a dye trace during a low-water flow period. They’ll pour a vegetable-based dye into the pothole and watch where the dye resurfaces. This is a fluorescent (发荧光的) , biodegradable dye that’s noticeable at 10 parts per billion, so the scientists will use only a few quarts.
“What we think is happening is the water is going in the kettle, and coming up pretty close to immediately downstream of the falls,” Green said.
Green admits that if the dye is found below the falls like the scientists suspect, then much of the Devil’s Kettle Falls mystery will be gone. “There’s a little bit of that,” he said, “that folks aren’t going to stand there and wonder. But it will still be a fascinating spot, and a beautiful spot.”
1. What is the purpose of writing the first paragraph?| A．To explain the formation of waterfalls. |
| B．To introduce a mysterious natural phenomenon. |
| C．To describe a beautiful landscape scene. |
| D．To recommend an unusual waterfall to readers. |
| A．Astonishing. | B．Interesting. | C．Puzzling. | D．Challenging. |
| A．It hasn’t been proved yet. | B．It is considered ridiculous. |
| C．It is deeply doubted. | D．It is supported fully in evidence. |
| A．The exploration of Devil’s Kettle Falls |
| B．The disappearance of Devil’s Kettle Falls |
| C．The truth behind Devil’s Kettle Falls |
| D．The mystery of Devil’s Kettle Falls |
4 . Paula Perry has a multi-page spreadsheet (电子数据表) titled “Squirrels”, which details the health and wellness of tiny, injured baby squirrels she keeps in her house.
Perry keeps careful notes on the more than 70 struggling baby squirrels she has rescued and rehabilitated (使康复) over the past 13 years at her home.
“They’re tiny little helpless things, and they’ll die,” said Perry, 62, who, appropriately, is known around her neighborhood as the “Squirrel Lady”.
Perry’s squirrel rescue efforts started in 2010, when her neighbor spotted a baby squirrel hanging from a tree. Perry did what seemed obvious to her: She brought the 3 week old squirrel in for medical assistance. “I could tell he was seriously injured,” said Perry. She took him to a local vet that offers wildlife care. While at the vet’s, Perry struck up a conversation with Trish Styles, a veterinary technician, who told her about wildlife rehabilitators—people who volunteer to house ailing (有病的) wild animals, and nurse them back to health. On the spot, Perry decided to become one.
“They chew your electrical wires, which they do,” she said. “A lot of people don’t like squirrels because they’re quite destructive. I don’t care. I love them.” Although squirrels can have bad effect on homes and telephone lines and are therefore considered pests, they are not as destructive as rats and mice. They also serve an important ecological function and have been called “nature’s gardeners”, since they regularly bury seeds—which helps to expand forest diversity and growth.
As she helps the baby squirrels heal and grow, they bring her joy. Letting a squirrel go can sometimes be sad, she said, but it also gives her a sense of pride and purpose. “You can tell when they’re ready to release, because they go crazy in the cage,” she explained. Often, though, they come back to visit her—which, she said, is a major thrill. She keeps pecans and walnuts on hand to supply them with snacks. “I think they recognize my voice,” Perry said, adding that she can recognize them, too. “I always know that it’s one of mine.”
1. Why is Perry called “Squirrel Lady”?| A．She likes to take squirrels as pets. |
| B．She keeps track of squirrels in the wild. |
| C．She attends to the injured squirrels carefully. |
| D．She has food in store for squirrels at any time. |
| A．A medical assistant. | B．A volunteer at a clinic. |
| C．A vet technician. | D．A wildlife rehabilitator. |
| A．They eat up the seeds of plants. |
| B．They often cause damage at home. |
| C．They love burying telephone lines secretly. |
| D．They usually destroy forest diversity and growth. |
| A．Their uneasiness in the cage. | B．Their reluctance to eat snacks. |
| C．Their keeping motionless all day. | D．Their letting out sharp sounds. |
Mid-Autumn Festival, or Mid-autumn Day, is the second grandest festival in China after the Chinese New Year. It is named so for that it is celebrated on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month,
The day is also known as the Moon Festival. In Chinese culture, full moon
6 . Below are several things that will have happened by the mid-point of this century both for the good and bad.
Right now, people are focused on AI potentially causing job losses but the reality could be far worse. George Stakhov said, “By 2050, AI will have profoundly(深刻地) reshaped the world. There is a dark AI future where those who control AI will gain huge power, while 99 percent of the population will be disenfranchised(剥夺权利) .The AI lords will control the world’s data and turn the rest of us into their serfs. The alternative is a bright AI scenario, where everyone benefits from AI through better healthcare, faster transport and less pollution.”
Futurist and former Google engineer Ray Kurzweil says that people will merge with machines by 2025. In an event he describes as the “Singularity”, Kurzweil predicts that by 2045, people will connect their brains to machines. “I have set a date for the Singularity in 2045, which is when we will increase our effective intelligence a billionfold by merging with the intelligence we have created.”
Alien-hunting astronomer Seth Shostak bet fellow astronomers that we should find aliens within two dozen years. That means we could be in contact with ET by 2036. Shostak has since doubled down on his prediction, saying that newer measurements suggest there could be billions of Earth-like worlds. That means if the Earth is the only place with life, it’s like a winner in a lottery where the odds are a billion to one. That may be the strongest argument for life in space.
Soaring humidity (湿度) and heat will lead to heatwaves where it is almost impossible for humans to survive outdoors in areas including South Asia, the Persian Gulf, and the Red Sea. By 2070, this will also be true in areas of Brazil and China. “Wet bulb” temperatures refer to conditions where temperature and humidity are high, making it hard to survive outdoors. Humans can survive temperatures of up to 50℃ when humidity is low, but in high humidity, humans cannot survive because there is no way to cool down by sweating. Even extremely strong and fit people die within hours. Large areas of the Earth might be uninhabitable.
1. What is the dark AI future according to George Stakhov?| A．AI will hold power over humans. |
| B．Humans will earn a basic low wage. |
| C．Humans will have to serve as AI’s masters. |
| D．AI will become the owner of the Earth. |
| A．Doubtful. | B．Approving. | C．Cautious. | D．Negative. |
| A．Heatwaves occur in most areas in the world. |
| B．High humidity causes people to sweat a lot. |
| C．Huge areas of the Earth might be uninhabitable. |
| D．People can’t live in low humidity for a long time. |
My time was my own after the afternoon board, Saturdays, and I was accustomed to putting it in on a little sail-boat on the bay. One day I ventured too far, and
The most impressive class Joe has ever had is the English literature class about Charlotte’s Web last semester.
9 . I was in my early twenties. I had
One day just as the students were leaving, a girl handed me a folded
That experience showed me the
| A．studied | B．graduated | C．worked | D．expected |
| A．If | B．So | C．Although | D．Unless |
| A．chatted | B．supplied | C．dragged | D．inspired |
| A．equipment | B．book | C．note | D．picture |
| A．amazed | B．reminded | C．defeated | D．removed |
| A．moved | B．stressed | C．excited | D．satisfied |
| A．Definitely | B．Frequently | C．Actually | D．Unfortunately |
| A．existed | B．recovered | C．suffered | D．disappeared |
| A．extent | B．power | C．energy | D．principle |
| A．confidence | B．benefit | C．kindness | D．desire |
10 . Making electricity out of fossil fuels releases lots of greenhouse gases, which accumulate in the atmosphere and heat up the planet. Nuclear power, on the other hand, has the potential to be an almost unlimited and more climate-friendly energy source. That is because in contrast to fossil fuels, no greenhouse gases are released directly during the immediate use of the fuel.
However, there are also several major problems. First, the mining of nuclear fuel is costly and energy intensive and causes many environmental problems. Second, nuclear energy production generates significant amounts of radioactive waste, which is extremely dangerous if not handled safely. Finally, the entire process requires very complex and energy intensive infrastructure (基建), which contributes to indirect greenhouse gas emissions.
We use computer and mathematical models to understand if it might be possible to redesign nuclear power stations in a way that they run on nuclear waste. This would reduce the negative impacts of current and future nuclear power generation immensely.
Our model show that it is feasible (可行的) to redesign nuclear power stations in a way they can run on spent nuclear fuel (SNF). Plus, the SNF does not have to be further modified before it is used. Even better, our advanced nuclear power stations do not produce any additional waste. While these innovative power stations do not yet exist, our research indicates that they are a real possibility for the future.
In our research, so-called molten salt reactors seem a promising candidate for the new type of nuclear power station as they could be redesigned to run on SNF. Molten salt reactors operate on fuel melt in liquid salt. Over a lifetime of 60 years, one of these reactors would “eat up” roughly 70 tons of SNF. This amount accumulates in 3 to 4 years of operation in a traditional nuclear power station of comparable size. Our suggested redesign would make nuclear energy generation much more efficient and sustainable, as it could “squeeze out” up to 20 times more energy from already spent nuclear fuel. It would also eliminate any SNF as a source of highly problematic waste.
Creating nuclear power stations that can run on existing nuclear waste is a worthy endeavor, and our feasibility analysis shows that it can likely be done. However, we need a lot of innovative and multidisciplinary research to put this vision into reality. “Eating up” radioactive waste as fuel would eliminate the long-term storage problem of current nuclear waste. Also, it would relieve us from the costs and environmental damages done by mining current nuclear fuel and the complicated processes required for long term operation. The new operational model would only consist of melting the SNF, operating the reactor, and cleaning the fuel salt. All in all, it would reduce many environmental, social and political issues of current nuclear power production. Using our current nuclear waste as fuel would allow us to take full advantage of the climate-friendly aspect of nuclear power generation.
Even in science and technology, it’s important to realize when we have to rethink our current approaches and what our options are for improvement. Current nuclear power stations have been created with past technologies and goals in mind. Nowadays, some people claim, they might create often more problems than they solve. We need innovative alternatives to provide sustainable, safe and clean energy for generations to come.
1. When talking about the major problems of nuclear power production, the author tries to say ________.| A．nuclear energy is not environmental-friendly |
| B．nuclear power plants deserve to be remodeled |
| C．nuclear energy is dangerous and difficult to handle |
| D．nuclear power plants are complex and hard to build |
| A．attempt | B．business | C．candidate | D．design |
| A．The proposed reactor is feasible and likely to be put into use. |
| B．The proposed reactor is economical and operationally effective. |
| C．The proposed reactor can solve the major problems previously mentioned in the passage. |
| D．The proposed reactor can use up SNF from many traditional reactors of comparable size. |
| A．Nuclear waste = fuel of the future? |
| B．Nuclear problems = efforts to solve them |
| C．Nuclear power = clean energy for the future! |
| D．Nuclear plants = innovation and multidisciplinary research |
