1 . It is a well-known fact that plastic bottles, which take hundreds of years to rot, are harmful to our environment. However, efforts by environmentalists to encourage consumers to switch to alternatives, like water fountains or reusable bottles, have not been very effective. The U.S. alone uses over 50 million plastic bottles annually, 80% of which end up in landfills.
To try to stop that, Rodrigo García González, Pierre Paslier and Guillaume Couche from the Imperial College London have been working on a revolutionary solution — water wrapped inside an eatable container made mostly from seaweed. All the customer has to do to relieve his/her thirst is pop the entire drop into the mouth.
The inventors, who have been working on the Ooho bubble since 2014, use a simple two-step cooking process called spherification (球化) to create the delicate container. They begin by dipping a frozen ball of water or juice into a chemical solution (溶液). This helps form a layer around the liquid. The ball is then absorbed in a solution made from seaweed extract. This creates a second layer, helping strengthen the structure so that the water or juice does not leak. In addition to saving our environment, the biodegradable (可降解的) packaging costs just two cents each, making it cheaper to produce than plastic.
After three years of perfecting the design, the inventors, who recently raised over 1 million USD from a financial activity, are ready to bring the Ooho bubble to local market. However, there are a few challenges that still need to be overcome before the product’s launch. In addition to getting accustomed to the taste of the covering, each eatable container contains just a mouthful of water, requiring consumers to drink multiple bubbles to relieve their thirst. There is also the issue of finding an eco-friendly packaging to transport the bubbles so that they remain clean and do not burst. Hopefully, the inventors will find ways to handle the issues so that we can reduce, or perhaps even remove, plastic bottles.
1. Why was the Ooho bubble created?| A．To test a newly-designed material. | B．To change consumers’ drinking habit. |
| C．To reduce pollution caused by plastic. | D．To take a share of drinking water industry. |
| A．Solve some specific problems of the product. | B．Collect more money to expand production. |
| C．Distribute the Ooho bubble to global market. | D．Advertise the advantages of the Ooho bubble. |
| A．Uncaring. | B．Doubtful. | C．Confident. | D．Opposed. |
| A．Scientists Work out a New Kind of Water |
| B．Plastic Bottles Will Be Replaced by the Ooho Bubble |
| C．Environmental Pollution is Expected to Be Solved |
| D．The Ooho Bubble Aims to Remove Plastic Bottles |
2 . Climate change leads to a threat to the world’s sandy beaches, and as many as half of them could disappear by 2100, a new study has found. Even by 2050 some coastlines could be unrecognizable from what we see today, with 10% to 12% facing severe erosion (侵蚀).
Using updated sea level rise predictions, the researchers analyzed how beaches around the world would be in a future with higher seas and more damaging storms. They also considered natural processes like wave erosion, as well as human factors-like coastal building developments, all of which can affect a beach’s health. The study found that sea level rise is expected to outweigh these other factors, and that the more heat-trapping gases humans put into the atmosphere, the worse the influences on the world’s beaches are likely to be.
It’s hard to overstate just how important the world’s beaches are. They cover more than one third of the world’s coastlines, and protect coastal areas from storms. Beaches are also important economic engines, supporting relaxation, tourism and other activities. And in some areas, the beach is more than a vacation destination. In places like Australia, life near the coast revolves around the beach for much of the year.
Some of the world’s most popular beaches are already taking action. Places like Miami Beach are trucking in thousands of tons of sand to patch up (修复) badly eroded shorelines, while others have built sea walls and breakwaters in an attempt to hold precious sand in place. But the financial and environmental costs of these projects are huge, and scientists say rising seas and more powerful storms, supercharged by a warmer climate, will make this a losing battle.
However, the researchers did find that humans have some control over what happens to the world’s beaches. If the world’s governments are able to stick to modest cuts to heat-trapping gas pollution, the researchers found that 22%of projected beach losses by 2050 could be prevented, a number that grows to 40%by 2100 if greenhouse gases are limited.
1. Which is the biggest contributor to severe beach erosion?| A．Damaging storms. | B．Wave erosion. |
| C．Coastal building. | D．Sea level rise. |
| A．It is hard to protect coastal beaches. |
| B．One third of storms take place near beaches. |
| C．Beaches are of great significance to our lives. |
| D．Most Australians live on beach tourism. |
| A．Popularizing the beaches. |
| B．Holding sand in place. |
| C．Reducing the project costs. |
| D．Stopping global warming. |
| A．Half beaches could disappear by 2100. |
| B．Climate change is doing harm to our lives. |
| C．The beach is more than a vacation destination. |
| D．Governments are taking action to fight wave erosion. |
Northern Kenya is a vast, varied and breathtakingly beautiful landscape
According to Giraffa camelopardalis reticulata, across Africa, all giraffe populations
To better understand the wildlife found here, Wildwatch Kenya seeks
4 . Growing up, my grandparents bought a second home among a small forest in Arkansas and would bring me there every single summer. I would spend a lot of time outside there following my grandfather around while he did yard work. We would collect cool-looking rocks and refill the hummingbird feeders.
I always remember my grandparents calling me over to the window when a deer family was in the yard or a few hummingbirds were at the feeders so that I could watch them. I would explore around in the yard by myself sometimes to look for interesting rocks and if I was lucky I would find a turtle. If I did find a turtle, my grandfather would put it in the kiddy pool for me to observe for a few minutes. I was always amazed by these creatures. After I finished observing the turtle, my grandfather would pick it back up and return it to the bush I found it in. I would watch in amazement as it slowly stuck its legs out and crawled back under.
I always felt very at peace at my grandparents’ home. It was quiet and full of interesting natural things I never got to see in Illinois. They disturbed the land around them as little as possible and didn’t see it as nuisance (令人讨厌的东西), rather a beautiful view.
As Aldo Leopold, an American scientist, puts it, we should take the time to appreciate and observe the natural world around us. When we do this, we find it brings us happiness and has a great value beyond just that of resources. Conservation(n.保护) of the natural world is important because we are dependent upon it for life. We cannot worsen such a bountiful provider at such a rate in which it will never return to anything like what it once was. Our experiences with nature are what will drive us to reach this conclusion, if only everyone took the time to really involve themselves in it.
1. What does the writer mainly talk about in Paragraph 2?| A．His interest in rocks and animals. |
| B．His connection with natural world. |
| C．His daily routine in summer vacation. |
| D．His close relationship with Grandparents. |
| A．Nature. | B．Illinois. | C．The small forest. | D．Grandparents’ home. |
| A．Past experiences should be treasured. |
| B．Nature offers man a journey of discovery. |
| C．Quality time with family is of great value. |
| D．Into the nature, you will know how precious it is. |
| A．Family Matters | B．On the Road | C．At One with Nature | D．The Economist |
5 . Masks that helped save lives are proving a deadly danger for wildlife, with birds and sea creatures trapped in the shocking number of thrown-away facial coverings. Single-use masks have been found around pavements, waterways and beaches worldwide. Worn once, the thin protective materials can take hundreds of years to decompose. “Face masks aren't going away any time soon—but when we throw them away, these items can harm the environment and the animals,” Ashley Fruno of animal rights group PETA said.
In Britain, a gull was rescued by the RSPCA after its legs became tangled in the straps of a mask for up to a week. The animal welfare charity took it to a wildlife hospital for treatment before its release.
The biggest impact may be in the water. More than 1.5 billion masks made their way into the world's oceans last year, accounting for around 6,200 extra tonnes of ocean plastic pollution, according to environmental group Oceans Asia.
Conservationists in Brazil found one mask inside the stomach of a penguin after its body was washed up on a beach, while a dead pufferfish was discovered caught inside another off the coast of Miami. French campaigners found a dead crab trapped in a mask near the Mediterranean. Masks and gloves are “particularly problematic” for sea creatures, says George Leonard, chief scientist from NGO Ocean Conservancy. “When those plastics break down in the environment, they then enter the food chain and impact entire ecosystems.” he added.
There has been a shift towards greater use of reusable cloth masks as the pandemic has worn on, but many are still using the lighter single-use varieties. Campaigners have urged people to bin them properly and cut the straps to reduce the risk of animals becoming trapped. Oceans Asia has also called on governments to increase fines for littering and encourage the use of washable masks.
1. What's Paragraph 1 mainly about?| A．The problem of littering masks. | B．The long time to break down masks. |
| C．The threat of masks to wildlife. | D．The protective use of masks to people. |
| A．They gave first aid to the bird. | B．They released the bird at once. |
| C．They kept the bird for about a week. | D．They sent the bird to hospital. |
| A．By providing examples. | B．By giving explanations. |
| C．By making comparisons. | D．By analyzing causes. |
| A．Forbidding the use of single-use masks. | B．Wearing reusable cloth masks. |
| C．Cutting the masks up before throwing. | D．Increasing fines for binning masks. |
6 . Chinese scientists say they have developed a robotic fish that can remove microplastic particles from water environments. Researchers working on the project say the robots could help to clean up plastic pollution in oceans around the world.
The robotic swimmers are about 1.3 centimeters long. They are made of a soft chemical Compound. The robots are designed to absorb microplastics while moving through the water. The project was launched by a team at Sichuan University in southwestern China. The researchers said the robots have already performed well in shallow water and they plan to carry out more tests in deeper waters. The scientists reported their findings in a new study in Nano Letters. The publication comes from the American Chemical Society, a nonprofit organization supported by the U.S. Congress. The robotic fish were built to target microplastic particles, which are smaller than five millimeters. Studies have confirmed that microplastic pollution has been discovered in many natural environments. The material comes from the breakdown of manufactured plastic products and industrial waste.
The team said the robots can be controlled by light. Turning “a near-infrared light laser” on and off causes the fish’s tail to move back and forth, the American Chemical Society said. The robotic fish can swim up to 2.76 body lengths per second. The researchers said this is faster than most similar soft robots. Wang Yuyan was a member of Sichuan University’s research team. She told Reuters news agency that the small, lightweight robot is currently being used to collect microplastics for research purposes. But Wang added that the team plans to expand that use so the robot fish can remove larger amounts of microplastic waste from deep ocean areas. The fish can take in different kinds of microplastics and even repair itself when damaged, the researchers said. And if a robot fish is accidentally eaten by a real fish, it could safely digest the material, the team added. Wang said similar robots could be developed to be placed inside the human body to remove unwanted materials or disease.
1. Why has a robotic fish been created?| A．To remove disease in people. | B．To clean up pollution in oceans. |
| C．To remove unwanted materials in body. | D．To remove microplastic particles in water. |
| A．It will be harmless. | B．It will repair itself. |
| C．It will take in microplastics. | D．It will collect microplastics. |
| A．The purpose of the robotic fish. |
| B．The function of the robotic fish. |
| C．A further introduction of the robotic fish. |
| D．Potential application of the robotic fish. |
| A．Pessimistic. | B．Positive. | C．Unclear. | D．Suspicious. |
7 . In order to learn about advanced scientific technology and ideas for combating desertification, Rezaali Pakzad left the Iranian capital Teheran, in 2018, to study in Northwest China’s Gansu Province.
He is a 27-year-old doctoral student at Lanzhou University, focusing on soil desertification control. In his view, Iran, like other arid and semiarid countries, faces environmental problems such as desertification. When he did field surveys and research in Minqin county, Gansu, he found that the local desertification characteristics were very similar to those of his hometown.
“Minqin is between two deserts. From being “about to disappear” to being gradually green, from being ravaged by “sand devils” to being covered by vast green plants, the scientific and effective prevention and control methods of the Chinese government have greatly changed the county, and made me see the hope of improving the ecology in my hometown,” he says.
He believes that China has certainly contributed to the global effort to combat desertification, and that the Chinese contribution is worth learning from. China has developed advanced technology models, such as quicksand fixation and vegetation restoration, and protective forest systems along major transport routes, which have introduced more green to deserts.
Already among the top nations in the world in the field of combating desertification, China has shared its experience with other countries, carried out international exchanges and cooperation, and contributed to global desertification control, he says.
He believes he has made progress during his five years of living and studying in China. By learning more about the Chinese language and culture, he has adapted to life in China and enjoyed the help and sincere concern of his teachers, classmates and friends here.
He hopes to achieve a lot, at a high level, in his research field and to contribute to international exchanges and cooperation in desertification control. “I want to be an ‘ecological messenger’ by spreading green ideas,” he says.
1. What problem does Pakzad want to solve?| A．Shortage of greens. | B．Water pollution. |
| C．Energy reduction. | D．Drought. |
| A．Protected. | B．Constructed. | C．Destroyed. | D．Reduced. |
| A．Generous and ambitious. | B．Responsible and hopeful. |
| C．Hard-working and creative. | D．Determined and tolerant. |
| A．China seldom participates in the global affairs. |
| B．China has solved the problem of desertification. |
| C．China is the top nation in international cooperation. |
| D．China plays a vital role in global desertification control. |
8 . Coral reefs in Florida have lost an estimated 90% of their corals in the last 40 years. This summer, a marine heat wave hit Florida’s coral reefs. The record high temperatures created an extremely stressful environment for the coral reefs, which are currently also experiencing intense coral bleaching (白化).
A coral is an animal, which has a symbiotic relationship with a microscopic algae (藻类). The algae gets energy from the sun and shares it with the coral internally. The coral builds a rock-like structure, which makes up most of the reef, providing homes and food for many organisms that live there. Coral bleaching is when the symbiotic relationship breaks down. Without the algae, the corals appear white because the rock skeleton becomes visible. If the bleaching continues for an extended period, the corals can starve to death without the energy.
Florida is on the front lines of climate change. It is also on the cutting edge of restoration science. Many labs, institutions and other organizations are working nonstop to protect and maintain the coral reefs. This includes efforts to understand what is troubling the reef, from disease outbreaks to coastal development impacts. It also includes harvesting coral spawn (卵), or growing and planting coral parts. Scientists moved many coral nurseries into deeper water and shore-based facilities during this marine heat wave. They are digging into the DNA of the coral to discover which species will survive best in future.
There are some bright spots in the story, however. Some corals have recovered from the bleaching, and many did not bleach at all. In addition, researchers recorded coral spawning. Although it’s not clear yet whether the larvae (幼虫) will be successful in the wild, it’s a sign of recovery potential. If the baby corals survive, they will be able to regrow the reef. They just have to avoid one big boss: human-induced climate change.
1. What does the underlined word “symbiotic” in paragraph 2 mean?| A．Reliable. | B．Opposite. | C．Harmonious. | D．Contradictory. |
| A．The rock skeleton. | B．The microscopic algae. |
| C．The high temperatures. | D．The symbiotic relationship. |
| A．Transferring coral nurseries. | B．Growing and planting coral spawn. |
| C．Researching the DNA of the coral. | D．Figuring out the reasons for problems. |
| A．Identifiable. | B．Predictable. | C．Far-reaching. | D．Effective. |
9 . Food waste contributes to ever-growing landfills (垃圾堆).
Don’t buy too much food whenever you go grocery shopping.
Always make a shopping list.
Use the “First-In-First-Out” method. For example, placing the newly bought foods at the back of the fridge or cupboard will encourage people to use the ones that are in the front row. This will ensure that you know what you have and reduce food waste.
| A．It can help keep your grocery trips short. |
| B．Having a fully filled fridge may look nice. |
| C．Your fridge may be too crowded to function well. |
| D．It is a waste of your money, as well as your effort. |
| E．Some people like to store up food for emergencies. |
| F．Foods need proper storage to prevent them going bad. |
| G．If you can’t see what foods you have, you’ll forget them. |
Litter is everywhere，doing great harm
The story began with his 6-year-old daughter.One day they were going on a hike when the girl noticed a
Jeff started to take
Litterati is more than an app.It is a highly
