1 . A five-year-old dog named Kelsey has been praised as a hero for helping to save the life of her owner who slipped in the snow and broke his neck.
The man, Bob, was alone when he left his farmhouse on New Year’s Eve to collect firewood.Expecting a journey of only several meters, Bob was wearing just long johns (衬裤), a shirt and slippers when he went outside, although the temperature was around －4℃.
After the accident, he was unable to move in the snow. Fortunately, Kelsey came to his assistance.
“I was shouting for help, but my nearest neighbor is about 400 meters away, and it was 10:30 p. m.,” Bob explained. “By the next morning, my voice was gone and I couldn’t yell for help, but Kelsey didn’t stop barking.”
Kelsey’s companion kept him warm by lying on top of him. She licked his face and hands to keep him awake. “Kelsey kept barking but never left my side,” Bob recalled. “I knew I couldn’t give up and that it was my choice to stay alive.”
Bob spent 20 hours in the freezing cold. When he finally lost consciousness, his dog kept barking. Finally, hearing the barking, Bob’s neighbor discovered him at 6:30 p. m. on New Year’s Day and called the emergency services at once. When Bob arrived in hospital, his body temperature was below 21℃. However, doctors were surprised to find that he didn’t have any frostbite (冻疮). They believed it was because of Kelsey’s determination to keep him warm. Dr. Chaim Colen, the doctor who treated Bob, said, “His dog really saved him.He was very fortunate.”
Bob said he was very grateful to both Dr. Colen and his Kelsey. “They saved my life. They are truly heroes!”
1. What happened to Bob on New Year’s Eve?| A．He left his dog alone in his farmhouse. |
| B．He was praised for saving a dog owner. |
| C．He broke his neck and couldn’t move. |
| D．He heard his neighbor’s shouting for help. |
| A．To keep warm. |
| B．To stay alive. |
| C．To keep Bob awake. |
| D．To seek help from others. |
| A．Helpful. | B．Fortunate. |
| C．Grateful. | D．Friendly. |
| A．A Neckbreaking Accident |
| B．The Magic Night |
| C．Warmth on a Winter’s Night |
| D．Determination to Keep Alive |
2 . After years of heated debate, gray wolves were reintroduced to Yellowstone National Park. Fourteen wolves were caught in Canada and transported to the park. By last year, the Yellowstone wolf population had grown to more than 170 wolves.
Gray wolves once were seen here and there in the Yellowstone area and much of the continental United States, but they were gradually displaced by human development. By the 1920s, wolves had practically disappeared from the Yellowstone area. They went farther north into the deep forests of Canada, where there were fewer humans around.
The disappearance of the wolves had many unexpected results. Deer and elk populations — major food sources (来源) for the wolf — grew rapidly. These animals consumed large amounts of vegetation (植被), which reduced plant diversity in the park. In the absence of wolves, coyote populations also grew quickly. The coyotes killed a large percentage of the park’s red foxes, and completely drove away the park’s beavers.
As early as 1966, biologists asked the government to consider reintroducing wolves to Yellowstone Park. They hoped that wolves would be able to control the elk and coyote problems. Many farmers opposed the plan because they feared that wolves would kill their farm animals or pets.
The government spent nearly 30 years coming up with a plan to reintroduce the wolvers. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service carefully monitors and manages the wolf packs in Yellowstone. Today, the debate continues over how well the gray wolf is fitting in at Yellowstone. Elk, deer, and coyote populations are down, while beavers and red foxes have made a comeback. The Yellowstone wolf project has been a valuable experiment to help biologists decide whether to reintroduce wolves to other parts of the country as well.
1. What is the text mainly about?| A．Wildlife research in the United States. |
| B．Plant diversity in the Yellowstone area. |
| C．The conflict between farmers and gray wolves. |
| D．The reintroduction of wolves to Yellowstone Park. |
| A．Damage to local ecology. |
| B．Preservation of vegetation. |
| C．A decline in the park’s income. |
| D．An increase in the variety of animals. |
| A．Doubtful. | B．Uncaring. | C．Positive. | D．Disapproving. |
1. Which pet may an outgoing person prefer?
| A．A bird. | B．A dog. | C．A cat. |
| A．Clever. | B．Sociable. | C．Careful. |
| A．Pet people’s personalities. | B．More outgoing dog people. | C．Less sociable cat people. |
4 . A new study has found that all dogs have different personalities—even dogs of the same breed(品种).
Elinor Karlsson studies genetics at the University of Massachusetts. She co-wrote a report about the study, which appeared recently in the publication Science.
Karlsson said, “Every dog really is an individual,” noting that there is “a huge amount of difference” even between dogs that look the same.
At a New York dog park, dog owners talked about the different characteristics of their pets. Elizabeth Kelly owns an English springer spaniel. She called her dog friendly, but also “kind of the queen bee.” In other words, her dog likes to act like it is in charge of other dogs. Suly described her yellow Labrador as “calm, lazy and shy.”
The idea of dog breeds is quite recent. Around 160 years ago, humans began to breed dogs to have certain physical qualities, such as fur, color and ear shape.
Karlsson said her aim was to learn how much a dog’s breed affects their behavior. The answer? Breed does not decide an individual dog’s personality.
Karlsson’s team gathered information from 18,000 dog owners and studied the genetic code of over 2,000 dogs. The researchers found that some qualities are based on genetics. However, it is not sure that two dogs of the same breed will behave in the same way.
For example, huskies and beagles, may be more likely to howl—or make a long, loud barking sound. But many of these dogs do not howl, as owner observations showed.
1. What do we know about Karlsson’s report?| A．She wrote it by herself. |
| B．It was published in Science. |
| C．She finished it after graduation. |
| D．It is of little value to her study. |
| A．A bee that behaves busily. |
| B．A dog whose name is Queen. |
| C．A bee that serves the whole group. |
| D．A dog acting as if it is the most important. |
| A．To help dog owners learn about their dogs better. |
| B．To prove dog breeds determine their personalities. |
| C．To study the relationship between dog breeds and behaviors. |
| D．To show different dogs have different personalities. |
| A．All the dogs can make a long, loud barking. |
| B．Dogs of the same breed can behave differently. |
| C．Dogs’ owners may observe their pets carelessly. |
| D．Huskies and beagles are not the same dog breed. |
5 . Elephant Transit Home
In both Africa and Asia elephants are being threatened by changes in their natural habitats (栖息地). People are moving into the elephants’ habitats and endangering their survival. In the country of Sri Lanka, there is one place where elephants are not only protected but also respected. It is called the Elephant Transit Home (ETH).
Set up in 1995, the ETH aims to protect and nurture baby elephants that are found injured or living without their mothers in the wild. Every year about 30 baby elephants in Sri Lanka need help. As many as possible are brought to the ETH. There they are given food, shelter, and medical care. Most importantly, they are given the chance to be with other elephants and become part of a herd (象群).
A day at the ETH begins early in the morning when the baby elephants are given their first feeding of milk. During the day, each baby will drink an average of 13 gallons of milk. Older elephants are fed mostly coconut leaves and other native plants. Then the elephants are allowed to walk around, eating the grass and forming a herd. The cost of caring for the baby elephants is high. The ETH spends about $125,000 each year on powdered milk for the baby elephants.
At the ETH, workers try to reduce human connection with the elephants. They also try to increase bonds (联系) between the elephants. It usually takes three years for a baby elephant to be set free into its natural habitat. The elephants are sent back to the wild together with other orphans with whom they have bonded. This program helps them return to the wild as members of a herd that will communicate with each other and take care of each other.
The ETH is considered one of the best animal protection sites in the world. Not only are the elephants cared for, they are treated with respect. Most importantly, they go back to live in the wild, where they belong.
1. What does the underlined word “nurture” in Paragraph 2 mean?| A．Set free. | B．Relate to. | C．Focus on. | D．Care for. |
| A．It changes elephants’ habitats for the better. |
| B．It receives about $125,000 each year. |
| C．It helps to keep baby elephants safe. |
| D．It protects 30 elephants every year. |
| A．To study them better in a natural environment. |
| B．To help them make it in the wild as a herd. |
| C．To provide them with more living space. |
| D．To train them to stay away from hunters. |
| A．To introduce an animal protection site. |
| B．To show the ways of wildlife protection. |
| C．To explain the threat baby elephants face. |
| D．To persuade the readers to protect elephants. |
| A．She needs to go to the countryside. |
| B．She dislikes dogs so much. |
| C．She has an allergy to animal hair. |
7 . Tropical(热带的)birds deep in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest are shrinking as the world’s climate changes. Researchers studied data for 77 tropical bird species over the past 40 years and found that all of them had lost body mass, with some species losing nearly 2% of their weight per decade.
A 2019 study of birds that had crashed into buildings in Chicago, Illinois, found that they’d lost mass over a 40—year period, but those species were migratory(迁徙的). However, why the birds changed in that way was unknown. Therefore, researchers decided to examine the records of 15, 000 non-migratory birds living in a rainforest within a few hours’ drive from Manaus in Brazil.
The average temperature of the birds’ habitat is 1℃ warmer in the wet season and 1. 65℃ warmer in the dry season compared with that in 40 years ago. What’s more, 13% more rain falls in the wet season and 15% less in the dry season. The birds have lost mass more sharply following extremely dry or wet seasons. This could be a short-term response to changes in their environment, such as a lack of rainfall causing a decline in the number of insects that the birds feed on.
“Mass is a generally good indication of body condition in birds, says Vitek Jirinec at the Integral Ecology Research Center in California, who led the study. "If they’re simply not getting enough to eat, you’d expect them to lose weight.”
Birds of the same species are generally larger at higher latitudes. The leading theory is that their smaller surface — area — to — volume ratio（表面积和体积比）allows them to better conserve heat. The opposite would help smaller species in hot climates to cool and could explain why birds are getting smaller as the climate warms, says Jirinec.
The marked physical change during just four decades show why stopping destroying trees alone won’t prevent the ongoing extinctions of animal species across the world, says Camila Gomez, a scientist who studies evolutionary changes in birds. "This study also shows how human-caused changes in climate are contributing to observed population declines in tropical birds," says Gomez.
1. Why did the researchers study the non-migratory birds?| A．To make the conclusion of the 2019 study. |
| B．To prepare them for their future migration. |
| C．To find the reason for their physical change. |
| D．To seek a way to save the Amazon rainforest. |
| A．High temperatures are rarely seen. | B．It seems much drier in wet seasons. |
| C．Weather patterns get more extreme. | D．Rainfall is increased in dry seasons, |
| A．It enables them to hide easily. | B．It makes them feel less cold. |
| C．It keeps them in good shape. | D．It helps them lose extra heat. |
| A．Global Warming Leads to Population Declines in Birds |
| B．Climate Change Is Causing Some Birds to Lose Weight |
| C．Tropical Birds Are Struggling to Survive Dry Climates |
| D．Migratory Birds Are Experiencing Big Physical Changes |
8 . Baby giraffes inherit(经遗传获得) aspects of their mothers’ patterning — which could give them a survival advantage if good camouflage(保护色) runs in the family. Just like humans have unique sets of fingerprints, every giraffe has a unique set of spots.
Derek Lee is a wildlife biologist and population ecologist at Penn State, and with the Wild Nature Institute, a research consulting group. He and his colleagues have been tracking giraffes for seven years, throughout 1,500 square miles in Tanzania.
Now, they’ve used image analysis software to study the spots of mothers and their babies. And they found that baby giraffes inherit at least some particular elements of their patterning from their mothers, like how circular the spots are. They also found that baby giraffes with larger spots have better chance to survive their first months, because the spots are more like the dappled(斑驳的) sunlight in the bushes where baby giraffes like to hide from hungry lions and hyenas (wild animals like dogs).
The results — and a lot of giraffe patterns — are recorded and explained in the journal PeerJ. [Lee et al., Seeing spots: quantifying mother-offspring similarity and assessing fitness consequences of coat pattern traits in a wild population of giraffes (Giraffa camelopardalis)]
It’s perhaps not surprising that a physical characteristic that protects an individual from being eaten passes the test of Darwinian natural selection — and get passed along to later generations. “The fact that these things are inheritable and they did affect survival of baby animals makes us feel like evolution is embodied exactly by these spot features.” So if a mom’s camouflage is good, her babies, too, might have the spots that keep them safer.
1. Why are baby giraffes with larger spots more likely to survive?| A．Their spots match surroundings better. | B．They keep away from lions and hyenas. |
| C．Their mothers tend to protect them more. | D．They barely move around in the bushes. |
| A．Summarize the previous paragraphs. | B．Add some background information. |
| C．Provide evidence for the findings. | D．Introduce a new topic for discussion. |
| A．Promoted. | B．Represented. | C．Questioned. | D．Prevented. |
| A．Animals have their unique sets of patterning | B．Mom’s genes make some giraffes hard to spot |
| C．Derek Lee has been studying animal patterning | D．Animal physical characteristics are similar to family’s |
The 15 wild Asian elephants left their habitat in Xishuangbanna National Nature Reserve in Southwest China's Yunnan province and
10 . Dogs are great companions for people. However, there is a wide variety to choose from.
·Be aware of your housemates.
You’ll first want to think about the people and creatures that you live with. If you have a roommate or family member who is allergic to dogs, doesn’t like them, or simply doesn’t want one, this problem will need to be resolved. Similarly, if you have other pets that are not compatible(和谐共存的)with dogs, you will want to reconsider.
·Think about the amount of time you have.
·Consider your lifestyle. You will also need to think about your life and how a dog will fit into it. A large dog will absolutely require walks to keep healthy and mentally alert, especially if you don’t have a large space for them to run around in.
| A．Decide the best size. |
| B．Choose an appropriate age. |
| C．You may find that it is not possible for you to get a dog. |
| D．You will also have better access to the dog’s medical history. |
| E．Different dogs will fit some lifestyles and people better than others. |
| F．Getting a dog that needs lots of exercise when you work a lot is bad. |
| G．Most dogs are very social and require a great deal of attention and love. |
