1 . Observing is a process that lets us take a step closer to something. When giving the natural world our _______, we can note the patterns (图案) in a landscape or a leaf, or _______ see how animals behave.

Human brains are wired in a way that when we _______ something, we’re more likely to love it. The more you look at and understand details in nature, the better you will know and _______ these little peculiarities (独特性). You will begin to _______ them, and recognize them.

By looking closely at aspects that might not seem _______ at first look, you may find new appreciation for them — this happened a few years ago when I _______ that birds were more than strange-looking creatures, but actually intelligent and beautiful creatures. I’ve never been a big bird-watcher, _______ now I am, and I love learning more about it. If you feel passionate (热爱的) about something, you usually want to help _______ it when it is endangered.

There are other ________ effects when observing nature. You usually grow calm and ________ when you are in a natural environment. This has actually been verified (证实) in studies, although I believe most of us already know it to be true.

Nature can be ________ everywhere. Even a single tree outside your window can have this ________ on you. Imagine what a walk through the woods can do. Wondering at the ________ and diversity of nature can help to quiet negative thoughts about yourself or others and bring a moment of ________.

1.

A．attention

B．information

C．advice

D．trust

2.

A．strangely

B．slowly

C．directly

D．hardly

3.

A．describe

B．understand

C．experience

D．remember

4.

A．like

B．forget

C．change

D．share

5.

A．give up on

B．look out for

C．take over

D．use up

6.

A．interesting

B．important

C．different

D．difficult

7.

A．wondered

B．dreamed

C．discovered

D．promised

8.

A．unless

B．if

C．so

D．but

9.

A．protect

B．control

C．miss

D．choose

10.

A．undesirable

B．similar

C．dangerous

D．positive

11.

A．rich

B．old

C．relaxed

D．professional

12.

A．explained

B．observed

C．discussed

D．accepted

13.

A．effect

B．pressure

C．point

D．option

14.

A．end

B．beauty

C．future

D．purpose

15.

A．boredom

B．inspiration

C．confusion

D．peace

2 . It was in a brightly-lit room in Mexico City, Mexico, that on June 18, 2014 it was announced that India-born Dr Sanjaya Rajaram had been named the winner of the World Food Prize.

Dr Rajaram won this award for successfully crossbreeding (杂交) the winter and spring wheat (小麦) varieties, which have been two distinct and isolated gene pools (分离的基因库) since the beginning of farming. And because of this breakthrough, the scientist has been able to breed over 480 wheat varieties.

Born in Varanasi in 1943, Dr Rajaram lived with his family off a plot of land growing wheat, rice and maize. “After my education here in India, I went off to Australia for my PhD and soon I joined CIMMYT (the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre) in Mexico, where my career as a plant breeder started,” said Dr Rajaram.

“Every country is unique — there are climate systems, culture, the financial situation and each of the nations I visited needed a different set of solutions,” said Dr Rajaram. His solutions became part of what is widely described as the world’s first “wheat network”, a global exchange of “genetic information and innovations among researchers”. His varieties of wheat were strong in nutrition, delayed (延迟) the attack of some plant diseases and were able to survive the severest of conditions.

After nearly half a century in the field, Dr Rajaram said his work was still not finished. “In science, you never stop learning. I have been doing this all my life and I’ve never really had time for anything else. As far as hobbies go, well, there’s a bit of music I like to listen to and that’s pretty much it. I have been on a long journey of pushing the boundaries (边界) of what’s possible and today, there’s still work left. Learning must never stop and the world must not go hungry.”

1. Why was Dr Rajaram awarded the World Food Prize?

A．He improved several wheat varieties genetically.

B．He crossbred the winter and spring wheat varieties.

C．He successfully bred two wheat varieties.

D．He found the difference between the winter and spring wheat varieties.

2. When did Dr Rajaram start to work on plant breeding?

A．During his college years in India.

B．While doing his PhD in Australia.

C．After becoming a member of CIMMYT in Mexico.

D．While living with his family near wheat-growing land.

3. What is one advantage of the wheat varieties developed by Dr Rajaram?

A．They can be planted in any season.

B．They are free from the attack of some pant diseases.

C．They can grow well in terrible environments.

D．They can grow taller than traditional ones.

4. What can we learn about Dr Rajaram from the last paragraph?

A．He was too busy with work to develop any hobby.

B．He wasn’t satisfied with the results of his research.

C．He planned to do research in a new field of science.

D．He made his mind to work on world food problems.

3 . For most of December, Adele Adkins had the top-selling album in Australia, followed by Ed Sheeran, and then there was a collection of songs that took everyone by surprise.

Songs Of Disappearance is a collection of calls from endangered Australian birds. Last month, it briefly reached No.3 on the country’s top 50 albums chart (排行榜) — ahead of Taylor Swift.

Anthony Albrecht, a PhD student at Charles Darwin University, produced the album with Professor Stephen Garnett. “I knew it was a crazy thing to suggest. But Stephen’s a little bit crazy like me and he let me do it,” Albrecht said.

Songs Of Disappearance was published with a university report which found that 1 in 6 Australian bird species are now threatened. The album records 53 of those species.

“Some sing what you might think of as bird songs, but not all of them,” said SeanDooley, who represents the conservation organization Bird life Australia. “Songs from the golden bowerbird sound like a death cry from some sci-fi series. And the love songs from Christmas Island frigate bird, which has a piece of skin hanging under its mouth that can inflate (膨胀) like a huge red balloon, sound as bizarre as its unusual looks.”

There’s also the Christmas Island pigeon. When people hear that pigeon, they might think that it’s a human making silly noises, Dooley added.

The Charles Darwin University and Bird life Australia report does document successes in protecting endangered birds, the hope being that the album will protect more species.

“The increased awareness can make a difference,” Dooley said. “When we have a community on board, that brings pressure to the government to do the right thing. We know that these conservation actions do work.”

1. Whose album reached No.1 on the chart in December?

A．Taylor Swift’s.

B．Adele Adkins’.

C．Ed Sheeran’s.

D．Anthony Albrecht’s.

2. What can be learned from the university report?

A．About 53 bird species are threatened in Australia.

B．It has not found success in protecting endangered birds.

C．One sixth of Australian bird species are now endangered.

D．Music is very powerful in encouraging people to protect birds.

3. Which is closest in meaning to “bizarre”in paragraph 5?

A．Strange.

B．Beautiful.

C．Loud.

D．Sharp.

4. What does Sean Dooley think of Anthony Albrecht’s project?

A．Crazy.

B．Amusing.

C．Uncreative.

D．Helpful.