It’s a harvest that’s almost magical: growing rice in saline (含盐的) soil and making a fortune at the same time.
Wu Zaizhou is
“We call it Da’an Model,
Since 2021, lots of land (almost 5,000 square kilometers) in the province
Wu said he’s not only expanding his field, but his experience has convinced some of his
2 . Chocolate makers are expected to raise prices this year because of higher costs of cocoa from exporters like Ivory Coast. The West African country is the world’s largest cocoa producer. Hershey is the largest producer of chocolate products in the United States. It said last month it plans to raise prices on all of its products because of the rising cost of ingredients. Ingredients are the things used to make a food or product.
Demand for chocolate in America increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, and cocoa producers in places like Ivory Coast are struggling to keep up with that demand. Experts say one reason for that is climate change.
Harvard University researchers estimate that by 2030 parts of West Africa will be too hot and dry to produce much cocoa. The West African countries of Ghana and Ivory Coast together produce 70 percent of worldwide cocoa supply.
Cocoa farmer Raphael Konan Kouassi recently took VOA to his farm. Huge green and yellow cocoa pods hung from trees. He said his trees are producing less because of rising temperatures and less rainfall than usual.
“Almost all of the young plants die in the high season. If you have not been able to get water to them, you have no cocoa,” Kouassi said.
Kouassi receives government assistance in the form of cocoa trees. But he said the government gives out trees at the wrong time of year. Because of this, the young trees have a difficult time surviving.
Christian Bunn is with the Consortium of International Agricultural Research Centers, a worldwide scientific organization. Bunn said information about how the climate is changing can inform farmers about how to better care for their crops.
“What we’re seeing is that the onset of both dry and wet season can change. It’s less reliable. During the season, there may be breaks in terms of rain during the dry season, or there’s a dry spell during the wet season,” Bunn said.
The data show it may be better for farmers to stop producing cocoa and instead grow a variety of different crops, he said.
But the chief of one Ivorian company that supplies The Hershey Company said higher prices for cocoa could be welcomed by farmers. Olga Yenou said, “My opinion is that these farmers should have better prices, should earn more, because they work hard. Most are poor,” Yenou said.
Her wish appears to be coming true. As climate change continues to have effects on production, prices continue to rise.
1. What is the main reason for the rise in the price of chocolate?A.Increase in labor costs. | B.Increase in transportation costs. |
C.Increase in ingredient costs. | D.Increase in preservation cost. |
A.Ivory Coast is the largest cocoa producer around the world. |
B.Sales of chocolate in the America declined during the pandemic. |
C.The climate in parts of West Africa is very humid. |
D.The dry weather is benefit for the cocoa trees to survive. |
A.Excited. | B.Thankful. | C.Surprised. | D.Disappointed. |
A.Planting various crops instead of planting coco trees. |
B.Paying attention to the weather forecast every day. |
C.Investing more money in coco trees. |
D.Seeking help from the government. |
3 . China has set new rules limiting the amount of time children can play online games. The rules limit children to just three hours of online game playing a week. That is one hour between 8 p. m. and 9 p. m. on Friday, Saturday and Sunday most weeks.
Li Zhanguo has two children aged 4 and 8. Even though they do not have smartphones, they enjoy playing online games. Like many other parents. Li is happy with new government rules. But experts say it is unclear if such policies can help prevent addiction to online games. Children might just get addicted to social media instead. In the end, experts say, parents should be the ones to set limits and support good practice.
There has been a growing concern in China about gaming addiction among children. Government reports in 2018 found that about one in ten Chinese children were addicted to the Internet. The new rules are part of an effort to prevent young people from spending too much time on unhealthy entertainment. That includes what officials call the “irrational fan culture”
Under the new rules, the responsibility for making sure children play only three hours a day as largely on Chinese gaming companies like Net Ease and Ten cent. Companies have set up real-name registration systems to prevent young users from going past game time limits. They have used facial recognition technology to check their identities. And they have also set up a program that permits people to report what is against the law. It is unclear what punishments gaming companies may face if they do not carry out the policies. And even if such policies are performed, it is also unclear whether they can prevent online addiction.
A specialist treating Internet addiction expects about 20 percent of children will find ways to break the rules by borrowing accounts of their older relatives and find a way around facial recognition. In his opinion, short-video alps such as Douyin and Kuaishou are also very popular in China. They are not under the same restrictions as games.
1. When can children play games according to the new rules?A.Between 8 p. m. and 9 p. m. On Friday. | B.Between 8 p. m. and 9 p. m. On Tuesday. |
C.Between 10 p. m. and 11 p. m. On Saturday. | D.Between 10 p. m. and all p. m. On Thursday. |
A.the new rules can stop children’s addiction to social media |
B.companies are more responsible for kids ‘ obeying the rules |
C.the new rules will help prevent children playing online games |
D.parents play a greater part in limiting the time of online games |
A.Design an advanced program. | B.Use facial recognition systems. |
C.Set up real-name registration systems. | D.Borrow accounts of their older relatives. |
A.Rules Limiting Short-video alps | B.Rules Limiting Video Game Time |
C.Rules Banning Irrational Fan Culture | D.Rules Breaking Addition to Social Media |
利1. 有更多机会与别人交流和分享,更容易结交新的朋友;
2.能够更快捷地了解世界各地的最新信息。
弊1.个人隐私难以得到保障;
2.社交媒体会占据大量的时间,影响我们的现实生活。
你的观点……
注意:
1.写作词数应为80左右;
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
5 . 听下面一段较长对话,回答以下小题。
1. What is the speakers’ attitude towards the change of manners?A.Positive. | B.Unconcerned. | C.Dissatisfied. |
A.Play outside. | B.Have a light sleep. | C.Look after their kids. |
A.She can’t find good places for them. |
B.She never knows who to invite. |
C.She’s not sure who may come. |
6 . Most children now chat daily either online or through their mobile phones.
Sometimes the online world, just like the real world, can cause problems, such as bullying (恃强凌弱) or arguments.
A.Going online is great fun. |
B.Computer studies are part of schoolwork now. |
C.The language of chat is strange to many parents, too. |
D.There are some websites that are not suitable for the children. |
E.To keep children safe, your management must cover the family computer. |
F.They are connecting to a huge number of other children all over the world. |
G.Surfing the Internet takes up too much of the time that should be spent on lessons. |
2. 观点分析;
3. 你的看法。
注意:
1. 词数80左右;
2. 短文题目已给出。
Which Matters More-Major or University?
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Socializing with my friends online is my life. The moment I wake
Social networking
It is common that at parties or at a family holiday, most members fix their eyes on their phones,
What is most worrying is that it is
South Koreans have enjoyed their first close-up look of new baby giant pandas at a name-revealing ceremony that is also
What to name the twin sisters was widely discussed among netizens after they were born on July 7 in theme park Everland. The names were
The baby pandas,
Everland said it would monitor the twins’ health
10 . I have some important information. The average American... Oh, wait.〈ding!〉New notification. CNN: something about Taylor and Travis. Hmmm.〈ding!〉And our dog food is out for delivery.〈ding!〉A winter sales promotion of soap and socks. Whew....
The average American reportedly gets about 70 smartphone notifications a day. And according to a new study, the number is far higher for teenagers, whose phones ding hundreds or even thousands of times. This constant sound puts us off from work, life, and each other.
“The simple ding of a notification is enough to pull our attention elsewhere,” Kosta Kushlev, a behavioral scientist at Georgetown University, told us. “Even if we don’t check them. This can have obvious effects on productivity, but also our own well-being and of those around us. Humans are not good at multitasking. It takes extra time and effort to switch our attention. We get interrupted so many times a day that these effects can add up to meaningful decreases in our well-being and social connection,” he added.
I am grateful to learn that the Bears have won. I’m eager for messages from my family. But I wonder why The New York Times feels it is urgent to inform me, as they did this week, about “The 6 Best Men’s and Women’s Sweaters”.
This is, of course, a circumstance mostly of our own creation, constructed click by click. We can choose to check notifications just a couple of times a day. But does that risk delay, real or imagined, in seeing something we really need to see? Or that would simply delight us?
The promise of instant communication has grown into information congestion (拥堵). So many urgent notifications, not many of which are truly urgent; and only a few are even interesting. So many hours spent staring at the small screen, and searching for news, gossip, opportunity, and direction, while so often being unaware of the world all around us.
1. What phenomenon is described in the first paragraph?A.Americans favor new notifications. | B.Smartphones can promote products. |
C.New notifications constantly interrupt. | D.Push notification technology is advanced. |
A.Tolerant. | B.Favorable. | C.Doubtful. | D.Disapproving. |
A.The prospect of push notifications looks promising. |
B.Push notifications help users understand the world a lot. |
C.Most of the instant notifications are unimportant. |
D.Smartphone users should search for information directly. |
A.Fewer Dings, Please! | B.Times Have Changed! |
C.Information Era Is Approaching. | D.Smartphone Addiction Has Increased. |