1 . Many disaster-relief programs transport tons of supplies, such as food, water and heavy equipment, by road using large trucks. But some supplies may weigh just a few kilograms or less. For example, a package might contain a few doses of life-saving medicine.
The parachutes (降落伞) that carry these packages from planes are often made of nylon (尼龙). After one use, these parachutes are usually discarded. Because nylon is a polymer (聚合物), it does not decompose quickly. Therefore, Natalie looked for a greener alternative.
Nylon is strong, but a parachute used only once for light packages does not need to be that strong. Paper might be good enough, thought the teen. Plus, a paper parachute can be folded into a tiny package, just like a fabric parachute. Moreover, she notes there are many different ways to fold the unopened paper parachute.
Natalie came up with several folded designs and tested them. Her first models were small, so she could test them indoors. Two were triangular (三角形的). Two more were rectangular (长方形的). One of the rectangular ones opened most smoothly, she found. It also fell and landed most steadily as it dropped through the air. “Such features can be important when the goal is to deliver a package to the ground softly and accurately,” she says.
Natalie showcased her designs at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair. Natalie’s single-use paper parachutes are not harmful to the environment. They are also less expensive than parachutes made from more traditional materials. A nylon parachute of the same size as her design would cost about $31, she says. One made from silk, another common parachute fabric, would cost almost $16. But a parachute made from paper would likely cost less than $1, Natalie estimates.
1. Why are many relief supplies mentioned in the first paragraph?| A．To list an example. | B．To answer a question. | C．To lead in the topic. | D．To make a comparison. |
| A．Go bad. | B．Break down. | C．Run away. | D．Bend down. |
| A．A small one. | B．A big one. | C．A rectangular one. | D．A triangular one. |
| A．Reducing Environmental Impact with Paper Parachutes |
| B．Eco-friendly Paper Parachutes for Disaster Relief |
| C．The High Cost of Traditional Parachutes |
| D．A Teen’s Quest for Better Disaster Relief |
2 . When a marketing genius walks into your store, it might benefit you to pay attention, even if that genius is only a small child. When a store owner saw a young girl playing an imaginary hopscotch(跳房子) game using his wood flooring, it sparked (引发) a brilliant idea.
The store owner marked out a hopscotch board in multi-colored tape leading to the sales window. When the girl returned, she immediately began using the new store hopscotch board.
Once the board was in place, the store owner noticed an amazing thing happening in the store. It started with a grown man looking a little nervous and glancing (瞥) around the store. The owner thought he might be checking for cameras to steal something. But what he did next shocked the owner. The man started jumping along the hopscotch board!
With total ignoring “how it looked,” the grown man hopped along the hopscotch board like a seasoned professional! And he smiled! But that was just the beginning of the surprise for the store owner. As more people entered the store, more and more of the adult customers took the opportunity to hop to the cash register.
The simple addition of a hopscotch board brought smiles, laughter, and true joy into the tiny convenience store. People were smiling and feeling happier. The in-store cameras record the hoppers merrily jumping along.
Big, small, men, women, old, and young: everyone seems to enjoy the opportunity to be a kid again. The feeling may only last for a few seconds, but if it brings joy to your life, do it!
Some customers carefully walk around the board. However, many enjoy those few seconds of being a kid again. The response delighted the store owner. If you’re the type of person who would hop along the board, share the hopscotch game with your fellow hoppers!
1. What did the girl inspire the store owner to do?| A．He invited the girl to return to the store. | B．He also jumped along the hopscotch board. |
| C．He prevented a man from stealing something. | D．He created a hopscotch board in the store. |
| A．He tried to steal things from the store. | B．He encouraged others to join the game. |
| C．He laughed at the girl playing the game. | D．He played the game after some hesitation. |
| A．Because they all cared for the girl. | B．Because they could get joy from it. |
| C．Because the game was fit for them. | D．Because the game was easy to learn. |
| A．Considerate and creative. | B．Knowledgeable and honest. |
| C．Humorous and outgoing. | D．Modest and ambitious. |
3 . In the United States alone, 119 billion pounds of food is wasted each year according to the nonprofit organization Feeding America. Yet, over 44 million Americans go hungry every day. If this seems like a huge gap, this is due both to the process of distributing the food and to the food waste that affects the world’s ability to sufficiently raise its entire population. However, several New York City(NYC) communities have found an effective way to reduce food waste—community fridges.
These fridges represent a grassroots way to increase access to food and fight against food waste. The community fridges offer a way for people to give fresh food that they will not eat to others who need it. They first surfaced in New York City in 2020. These community fridges offer a ray of hope to people who were struggling to afford or find food during supply chain issues and rising food prices.
Community fridges offer a way for food that would otherwise be wasted to be redistributed. However, another wonderful effect of reducing food waste is the ability to reduce emissions that contribute to climate change. As food gets bad in landfills, it gives off methane, which is the second most common greenhouse gas. This means that food waste is responsible for up to ten percent of global emissions—which is a pretty large number! Placing food that would otherwise go uneaten in a community fridge can help to reduce these emissions.
Although there are some negative side effects of community fridges, their benefits usually outweigh their negatives. Volunteers clean and maintain the fridges. Some community fridge nonprofits even use renewable energy to power the refrigerators. Although the community fridge may be misused by some, these instances are sparse. Now, the idea of the community fridge has spread. These fridges, also known as “friendly fridges”, will be found in cities throughout the United States.
1. Why is “a huge gap” mentioned in paragraph 1?| A．To seek for ways to feed the hungry. | B．To lead in the problem of food waste. |
| C．To point out the population crisis in the US. | D．To show the effect of reducing food waste. |
| A．It helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions. |
| B．It motivates companies to make energy-saving fridges. |
| C．It is the best solution to global climate change. |
| D．It brings down food prices by offering more supplies. |
| A．Ordinary. | B．Serious. | C．Reasonable. | D．Rare. |
| A．Unclear. | B．Doubtful. | C．Hopeful. | D．Indifferent. |
4 . “My Story of Chinese Hanzi” International Competition Kicked off
The 2023 “My Story of Chinese Hanzi” international competition kicked off on June 12, 2023. This year’s theme is “Homeland”. We invite people to participate and share stories of exchanges, understanding and friendship among civilizations.
Who can participate in the competition?
Foreigners who work, live or study in China and neither they nor their parents speak Chinese as their mother tongue. Foreigners residing overseas who are also non-native speakers of Chinese.
How will the competition be held?
The competition consists of an online preliminary round, online semi-finals and offline finals. The online preliminary round includes two parts. Contestants (竞争者) will answer questions online. Upon completing the questions, they will be directed to a new page where they should write their favorite Chinese character. A poster image showcasing their handwritten Chinese character will be generated to share on WeChat. They must send a one-minute self-introduction video. The video should meet the following criteria: Format: MP4; Quality: 1080p; Duration: Not longer than one minute. The top 40 contestants will advance to the semi-finals. In the second round, contestants will participate in a video conversation where they will each take turns speaking on the spot. The top 10 contestants with the highest scores will advance to the finals.
At the finals, the finalists will each deliver a seven-minute speech. Judges will evaluate and score the speeches based on several criteria: the core message, their expressiveness, their proficiency (熟练) in the Chinese language and the effectiveness of their speeches in promoting cross-cultural understanding. These scores will be used to determine the final champion and other awards.
Awards
Each winner will receive a certificate, a souvenir and a cash prize that could be as high as 10,000 yuan. There will be a special award for the champion of the overseas competition zone.
1. Who can take part in the competition?| A．A Chinese student studying overseas. |
| B．A foreigner speaking Chinese as his native language. |
| C．A foreign student whose parents are Chinese-speaking. |
| D．A foreigner working in China not using Chinese as his mother tongue. |
| A．The background of the story. | B．The main idea the story conveys. |
| C．The participants’ pronunciation. | D．The participants’ enthusiasm. |
| A．To educate. | B．To advertise. | C．To introduce. | D．To advise. |
5 . Today, many people are turning to social media for their fitness routines, with TikTok, one of the most popular platforms. Indeed, its fitness category has some 300 billion views. But are the posted works, exercises and challenges really safe and effective?
While fitness influencers can encourage people to become more physically active, which is a positive, the quality and accuracy of their content is a concern, according to a 2023 review in Frontiers in Public Health.
“There are a lot of unsustainable and unrealistic workouts on TikTok, and even some dangerous advice,” said Jess Brown, a certified personal trainer in Westchester, New York. “What’s more, much of the fitness information on TikTok isn’t backed by science or posted by fitness professionals. The workouts are usually generalized to anyone, too, and don’t take into account your health, your family history, your flexibility, your range of motion—the list goes on,” said Monica Jones, a certified personal trainer in Washington, DC.
One of the more popular TikTok fitness trends involves developing your abdominal muscles. These challenges often show an influencer doing one exercise or series of movements that, if repeated daily for a week or two, is promised to result in a sexy six-pack. “No way,” Brown said. “We’ve proven again and again that spot reduction isn’t a thing.”
“Unfortunately, there will always be trends centered around getting fast results, because those grab people’s attention. But it’s important to look at your fitness and health as a lifelong journey, not something you can achieve within 10 to 90 days,” Jones said.
How can you separate quality workouts from dangerous ones? First, check the information of the posters. They should be certified fitness professionals who have experience working with people. You also want a coach who emphasizes improving strength and health, not one who focuses on body type. A quality influencer should encourage mental well-being, self-care and the importance of listening to your body in addition to physical fitness.
1. What does paragraph 3 mainly talk about?| A．The problems of fitness content on TikTok. |
| B．The lack of sustainability on TikTok workouts. |
| C．The needs for personalized workout on TikTok. |
| D．The absence of scientific backing in fitness information on TikTok. |
| A．Sustainable workout routines. | B．Long-term health improvement. |
| C．Certified fitness professional guidance. | D．Easy exercise with immediate results. |
| A．Fitness should be a lifelong journey, not a quick achievement. |
| B．Fitness training should be specific to body type and flexibility. |
| C．Fitness influencers must prioritize fast results over long-term health. |
| D．TikTok workouts must promote mental well-being over physical fitness. |
| A．Personalized workout plans. | B．Paying attention to detail in exercises. |
| C．Taking a balanced approach to fitness. | D．Certification and reputation in fitness training. |
6 . This Is What Your Dog’s Behaviors Should Tell You
A straightened tail
When you see a dog’s tail in the air, that dog probably feels very excited or confident about something. If its tail is shaky and remains up, the dog probably just feels challenged in a way. Whenever a dog is content, its tail is always leveled with its body. However, if the tail is hanging low, this shows some kind of insecurity.
Chewing your furniture
When puppies start teething, they start chewing things around. It just means that they have not been getting as much physical activity as their body needs. You can easily help by taking them out for a nice walk or helping them exercise in some other ways.
Tilting (倾斜) their heads
When you are talking to dogs, you subconsciously end up speaking in a higher pitch. The dogs tip their heads in an attempt to understand what you are telling. Dogs have a great way of reading different body language and responding to vocal cues. They recognize specific words especially those associated with treats they love or walks. A certain theory states that dogs will move their heads in that manner as a way of adjusting their ears so that they can listen better.
Raising their ears
When you see a dog raise its ears, just know it’s listening keenly to you. It happens when they are unfamiliar with a certain sound and are trying to figure the sound out. So when you see this, just allow your dog to figure out things slowly for a second. After all, it’s very nice to have a dog that is observant.
1. If a dog keeps its tail hanging low, it suggests it feels _______.| A．satisfied | B．thrilled | C．unsafe | D．challenged |
| A．Tie the dog. | B．Walk the dog. |
| C．Feed the dog. | D．Bathe the dog. |
| A．Waving its tail. | B．Moving its head. |
| C．Raising its ears. | D．Showing its teeth. |
7 . Flight disruptions have periodically made it difficult for people to reach their destinations. Here are three of the biggest potential flight disruptors and what you can do about them:
★ How could the weather disrupt flights this summer?
Wild weather can hinder air travel, whether it’s an Arizona monsoon storm or a hurricane over the Atlantic Ocean or the Gulf of Mexico. That can affect whether your flight is delayed or canceled.
▶ Tip: If bad weather is expected, monitor the conditions in your flight path and take advantage of airline offers to reschedule without change fees. Download your airline’s app and enable notifications.
★ Is a pilot strike likely this summer?
In May, American Airlines and Southwest Airlines pilots’ unions voted to authorize strikes. While it appears unlikely that pilots will strike at either airline, a work stoppage could be a problem. The votes by the American and Southwest pilots’ unions to authorize a strike don’t necessarily mean a strike will happen.
▶Tip: There is no reason to panic. If a strike appears likely, travelers can monitor the situation and consider switching to another airline.
★ What if my airline has a computer meltdown?
Southwest Airlines experienced two nationwide computer outages last year.
▶ Tip: When issues emerge at the airport, technological and otherwise, the best thing people can do is to be patient. Read your airline’s policy on compensation for canceled flights.
| A．And don’t forget to advocate for yourself. |
| B．In that way you don’t miss updates and offers. |
| C．But technology hasn’t always been up to the task. |
| D．And that can determine how smooth your plane ride is. |
| E．The votes are routine steps in their contract negotiations. |
| F．They can get overloaded because of helping to ease people’s stress. |
| G．That was a symptom of operating on outdated computer infrastructures. |
8 . The ability to track animals and plants is up in the air — literally — thanks to help from an unexpected source.
Around the globe, many air quality control stations filter air through small paper disks on a daily or weekly basis, allowing scientists to ensure concentrations of hazardous pollutants such as heavy metals are below certain levels. But the filters also pick up plant and animal DNA having been scattered into the wind.
The eDNA, short for environmental DNA, on those filters could make air quality control stations a treasure house of samples cataloging local animals and plants. Such records could help researchers track biodiversity at a larger scale and more easily catch species declines or track how ecosystems are changing overall.
“We’re effectively piggybacking on it for a totally new use,” says Elizabeth Clare, a molecular ecologist at York University.
“It never occurred to us that these filters capturing particulate matter could even be analyzed for eDNA,” says James Allerton, an air quality scientist in England. That changed when Allerton read a news story about two studies where scientists vacuumed animal DNA out of thin air at two zoos, one in England — led by Clare — and another in Denmark.
Learning about the potential for capturing eDNA sparked a “light bulb moment,” Allerton says, and he reached out to Clare to collaborate.
Clare, Allerton and colleagues analyzed filters from the Teddington facility that were exposed to surrounding air for one hour, one day or one week. The team also examined eight-month-old filters from an air quality control station in Scotland that had each been exposed to air for a week.
Genetic material in the filters revealed the presence of more than 180 different types of local animal groups including pine trees, badgers, owls, fungi and news. That volume is surprising given that the filters and storage conditions weren’t set up with eDNA in mind. That the researchers recovered so much eDNA from a system designed to monitor air quality shows how prevalent airborne DNA is and how much biodiversity data could be up for grabs.
1. What were air quality control stations used to do?| A．Concentrate on effects of animals on climate. | B．Track the categories of animals and plants. |
| C．Study the links between man and animals. | D．Purify air by decreasing pollutants in it. |
| A．He felt doubtful and hesitant to use it. | B．He felt useful but reluctant to admit it. |
| C．He felt unimaginable but ready to accept it. | D．He felt amazed but refused to have an attempt. |
| A．Common. | B．Favourable. | C．Understanding. | D．Ambiguous. |
| A．eDNA Technology Proves a Big Success in Air Detection |
| B．Air Pollution Monitoring May Help Track Biodiversity |
| C．Tracking Evolution of Living Things Benefits eDNA |
| D．Air Pollutants are Found in Animals and Plants |
9 . When this year’s all-woman team arrived on Antarctica’s Goudier Island to run the world’s most remote post office, it was shovels they needed rather than stamps.
They’d traveled some 8,000 miles from the UK, by plane and boat, and Britain’s Royal Navy had helped them dig out their new home at the Port Lockroy scientific base, which was buried up to four meters deep under several tonnes of December snow.
It wasn’t just the frozen wastes that first struck postmaster Clare Ballantyne, who at 23 years old was the baby of the four-woman group. It was that “there’s penguins everywhere.”
More than a thousand Gentoo penguins live on this tiny island on the western side of the Antarctic peninsula (半岛), around the size of a soccer field. Since 1944, when the UK’s first permanent Antarctic base was established here, it’s also become a shelter for explorers, scientists and — in recent years — tourists.
Each year, a team is selected to run and maintain the site from November to March, or summertime in the southern hemisphere. Around 4,000 people applied for this job, but just four made the cut: Ballantyne, base leader Lucy Bruzzone, wildlife monitor Mairi Hilton and shop manager Natalie Corbett.
The job also involves counting penguins: The scientific data they gather on the Gentoos’ breeding patterns is part of a decades-long study of the colony.
When it comes to choosing candidates, “there is no recipe we can follow,” says Ballantyne. “It’s about your ability to work together as a team. Cheeriness goes a long way, being able to see the light in life and resolve problems quickly.”
Ballantyne notes that there has been “a bit of a decline in recent years in the breeding success” of the Gentoo penguins, but says “the causal connect ion is the tricky bit.” While climate change is probably “the biggest driver,” they also need to carefully examine if there’s a “human element” as well. In her opinion, Antarctica tourism has boomed significantly in the past couple of decades, but there aren’t legally enforced limits on tourism, which hopes to be a regulated industry.
1. What is the task of the all-woman team?| A．Making out all the living habits of penguins. | B．Serving as postmasters and environmentalists. |
| C．Designing stamps linked to the Antarctic peninsula. | D．Managing a post office including counting penguins. |
| A．It’s situated on the eastern side of the Antarctic peninsula. |
| B．Some scientists use it as a soccer field in their spare time. |
| C．It’s fit for man to study the Antarctic and live temporarily. |
| D．The number of the penguins on it has risen sharply. |
| A．Being optimistic, competent and cooperative. | B．Being sensitive, courageous and determined. |
| C．Being hardworking, modest and empathetic. | D．Being independent, elegant and generous. |
| A．Climate change leads to the decline of penguins. | B．Polar tourism desires for improved management. |
| C．Humans and penguins live in peace in the Antarctic. | D．Antarctica tourism has influenced climate change. |
10 . ▶Western Sydney University
The university undertakes ranges of sustainability-related research, including sustainable agriculture, soil biology and food security. It has a range of living labs on its campus to aid with teaching and research in areas such as renewable energy, water recycling and natural and cultural heritages.
▶University of Reading
The university offers a range of modules on environmental and social issues to all undergraduate students, regardless of which faculty they are studying in. There is also a free online two-week course where you can investigate the impact of climate change and the research being done into it. The university has a range of sustainability projects, including the Research Woodland and the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Programme.
▶University of Manchester
The university has a range of sustainability measures on campus to reduce waste. The Want Not, Waste Not shop on campus sells a selection of zero-waste products including spices, pulses, cleaning products and beauty products. The university is also working to reduce plastic at all its events, by replacing balloons with paper bunting, using potato-based tokens instead of plastic ones and eliminating plastic water bottles and printed flyers.
▶Manchester Metropolitan University
In April 2021, the university launched the Give It, Don’t Bin It” campaign, which encourages students to donate unwanted items and leftover food to charity partners, including the British Heart Foundation and Manchester Central Food Bank. Donation banks and boxes are situated all over campus. Students wishing to get involved in sustainability can choose from a range of initiatives across campus, including the Sustainability Ambassador scheme and Climate and Social Action Week. Students also run a clothing swap shop and MetMUnch, a student network that focuses on training and pop-ups all around food, nutrition and sustainability.
1. Which university focuses on global climate?| A．University of Reading. | B．University of Manchester. |
| C．Western Sydney University. | D．Manchester Metropolitan University. |
| A．It aims to find more renewable energy. |
| B．MetMUnch focuses on air improvement. |
| C．It has earned a reputation in controlling poverty. |
| D．Its “Give It, Don’t Bin It” helps those in need. |
| A．Development and improvement. | B．Recycling and sustainability. |
| C．Kindness and generosity. | D．Science and technology. |
