1 . Edward Wilson is America’s, if not the world’s, leading naturalist. In The Future of Life, he takes us on a tour of the world’s natural resources. How are they used? What has been lost? What remains and is it able to continue with the present speed of use? Wilson also points out the need to understand fully the biodiversity (生物多样性) of our earth.
Wilson begins with an open letter to the pioneer in environment protection, Henry David Thoreau. He compares today’s Walden Pond with that of Thoreau’s day. Wilson will use such comparisons for the rest of the book. The problem is clear: man has done great damage to his home over the years. Can the earth, with human help, be made to return to biodiversity levels that will be able to support us in the future?
Biodiversity, Wilson argues, is the key to settling many problems the earth faces today. Even our agricultural crops can gain advantages from it. A mere hundred species (物种) are the basis of our food supply, of which but twenty carry the load. Wilson suggests changing this situation by looking into ten thousand species that could be made use of, which will be a way to reduce the clearing of the natural homes of plants and animals to enlarge farming areas.
At the end of the book, Wilson discusses the importance of human values in considering the environment. If you are to continue to live on the earth, you may as well read and act on the ideas in this book.
1. We learn from the text that Wilson cares most about .| A．the environment for plants |
| B．the biodiversity of our earth |
| C．the waste of natural resources |
| D．the importance of human values |
| A．Twenty | B．Eighty | C．One hundred | D．Ten thousand |
| A．learn how to farm scientifically |
| B．builds homes for some dying species |
| C．makes it clear what to eat |
| D．use more species for food |
| A．description of natural resources |
| B．a research report |
| C．a book review |
| D．an introduction to a scientist |
2 . The world's first-known nursery for baby giant manta rays(蝠鲼) has been discovered hidden away in the Gulf of Mexico, the place of 70 miles off the coast of Texas, after studying decades of giant manta ray data from the area by the scientists.
Where the baby manta rays grow up has long troubled scientists, as they are rarely spotted in the four to five years it takes them to become adults, when they can often grow to more than 20ft wide.
In the study Mr Stewart and colleagues describe a reef (暗礁)---filled with mantas of all ages---where the sea floor runs down into deeper water. He said "We think they may be feeding on specific types of zooplankton(浮游生物) there, then migrating up toward the surface, where we saw them. They might be hanging around the banks because it could be a little safer than open water. We’ve seen them so rarely that we know very little about these baby manta rays. We don‘t know how far they move, or exactly what they feed on, or all of the habitats these access.”
Giant manta rays are listed as species dying out by protectors, although actual population numbers of the mysterious "gentle giant" are hard to calculate. Sightings of the closely-related reef manta, however, have dropped by 90 percent in regions of southeast Asia in the past decade, according to a study.
Fishing is considered the biggest threat to giant manta numbers, both intentional and accidental. Their gill plates(腮下肉)- the parts through which they filter(过滤) their food from seawater-are sold in China for medical purposes, while they often end up as something caught by mistake due to their huge wings.
1. Where do the baby manta rays probably grow up according to the study?| A．In the deep water area. |
| B．On the surface of the sea water. |
| C．Around the banks of channel. |
| D．In the reef of the Gulf of Mexico. |
| A．Manta rays can be seen on the sea surface. |
| B．Manta rays prefer the open water to the banks. |
| C．The scientists have known much about manta rays. |
| D．Manta rays are fond of eating on the sea surface. |
| A．The habitat environment becomes worse. |
| B．They are overfished by people |
| C．They are not very difficult to catch. |
| D．People can see the reef manta much less than before. |
| A．Summarize the previous paragraphs. |
| B．Warn people of their wrong behaviors. |
| C．Introduce some knowledge of the fish. |
| D．Give examples to support his point. |
3 . I take the train to work every morning from a train station near my house. I can get to the station quite
She was short and
She slowly placed her walking stick
There’s so much rubbish and no one ever does
I want to follow her example. I’ve decided to pick up rubbish off the
| A．hard | B．early | C．easily | D．late |
| A．rubbish | B．boxes | C．bottles | D．paper |
| A．walk | B．pass | C．go | D．rush |
| A．so | B．until | C．when | D．because |
| A．back | B．act | C．mark | D．colour |
| A．bike | B．stick | C．dog | D．umbrella |
| A．weak | B．rich | C．clever | D．sad |
| A．quickly | B．happily | C．angrily | D．slowly |
| A．at midnight | B．at noon | C．at last | D．at first |
| A．in | B．around | C．against | D．under |
| A．searched for | B．threw away | C．reached for | D．looked at |
| A．unable | B．difficult | C．different | D．impossible |
| A．picked up | B．dropped down | C．put in | D．lifted up |
| A．warm | B．enjoy | C．support | D．hide |
| A．continued | B．started | C．enjoyed | D．remembered |
| A．something | B．anything | C．everything | D．nothing |
| A．feel | B．see | C．have | D．let |
| A．busy | B．beautiful | C．dirty | D．clean |
| A．keep | B．stop | C．mind | D．regret |
| A．wall | B．desk | C．ground | D．classroom |
4 . Soon enough, we will lose some of the most amazing sites on Earth!
The Great Barrier Reef
Rising air temperatures will cause sea temperatures to rise as well.All life supported by the oceans will be affected with this shock to their ecosystem.Coral are some of the most vulnerable marine animals and we are already watching whole reefs disappear.The Great Barrier Reef in Australia is no exception and will continue to shrink as the temperatures rise！These reefs are some of the best in the world for diving, but they will soon disappear!
Venice
Sprawling across(横跨)hundreds of small islands in Northeast Italy，Venice is at extreme risk of sinking into the Adriatic Sea.Rising sea levels are in fact a serious threat to many coastal cities located at sea level.Lucky for us，however，Venice is developing a series of sea walls to protect the city in times of high tide.
Glacier(冰川)National Park
Glacier National Park was once covered by over 150 glaciers, but by 2005 it only had about 27！Located in Montana, Canada, this park is over a million acres and has a huge plant and wildlife population.As temperatures rise, the glaciers and ice melt, which will upset the ecosystems sustaining over a thousand plant species and hundreds of animals.
The Amazon
The cause behind the disappearance of these fantastic places ultimately comes down to humans.Our expansion usually requires cutting down forests for land, fuel and materials，but rarely considers the consequences.These forests are sources of food and medicine for just about everyone on the planet!
What will happen if we lose these valuable places and beautiful destinations？！
1. According to the text，what is causing coral's death?| A．Rising sea levels. | B．Rising sea temperatures. |
| C．Humans' diving activities. | D．The shrinkage(缩小)of their habitats. |
| A．Many places are in the risk of sinking below the sea level. |
| B．Venice is the only coastal city of Italy. |
| C．Venice will never sink because of the protection of sea walls. |
| D．Italy consists of hundreds of small islands in the Adriatic Sea. |
| A．It doesn't support any living thing for its cold. | B．It iscovered by over 150 glaciers. |
| C．Plant species and animals in it have died out. | D．It covers a large area in Montana. |
| A．The Great Barrier Reef. | B．Venice. |
| C．The Amazon. | D．Glacier National Park. |
Storms and huge waves are a constant threat and none of Tuvalu's nine little islands is more than five metres above sea level. Salt water is already entering the country's drinking water supply, as well as damaging plants that produce fruit and vegetable. Without urgent help, the country's days are numbered.
But Tuvalu is not the first place to face sinking into the sea. Venice, a historic city in Italy best known for its canals, has sunk about 24 cm over the past 100 years. Experts say that it will have sunk another 24 cm by 2050. A century ago, St. Mark's Square, the lowest point in the city, flooded about nine times a year. Nowadays, it happens more than 100 times. While Venice is slowly sinking into the mud on which it stands, Tuvalu's rising sea level is caused by global warming.
The average global temperature has increased by almost 0. 5 centigrade degrees over the past century, scientists expect it to rise by extra 1.3 degrees over the next 100 years.
Warmer weather makes glaciers(冰川) melt, adding more water to the ocean. The warmer temperatures also make water expand, so it takes up more space, causing the sea level to rise. The sea level has risen 10.25 cm in the last 100 years.
The main cause of global warming is human pollution. Through burning coal, oil and gas, people have been increasing the greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, such as CO2. This adds to the power of the greenhouse effect, making the planet even warmer.
Many scientists believe that, if the warming is not stopped, there will be huge climate changes. The sea level could rise by one meter this century.
Should this come true, the sea will swallow up millions of homes and the world will be flooded with "climate refugees" looking for somewhere to live.
1. We can infer from the second paragraph that .
| A．Tuvalu is in danger of being swallowed up by the sea |
| B．all Tuvalu's islands are about five metres above the sea level |
| C．drinking water in Tuvalu has been destroyed |
| D．Tuvalu is often flooded by storms and waves |
| A．they are the first places sinking into the sea |
| B．they are both sinking into the mud where they stand |
| C．they will disappear in the future |
| D．their trouble is caused by global warming |
| A．People who are forced away from their homeland by climate. |
| B．Climate changes. |
| C．Rare animals. |
| D．Climate effect. |
| A．Tuvalu's nine little islands are less than five meters above the sea level. |
| B．The average global temperature has risen by 13 centigrade degrees over the past 100 years. |
| C．The warmer temperature causes the sea level to rise. |
| D．There will be huge climate changes unless the warming is stopped. |
6 . If you want to travel from Xi’an to Chengdu by train, it will take about 16 hours. But starting this month, the new Xi’an-Chengdu high-speed railway will shorten this travel time to three hours.
The 643-kilometer line is China’s first high-speed railway to run through the Qinling Mountains, which form a natural boundary (分界线) between China’s north and south. With a speed of 250 km per hour, it’s also the first mountain-heavy train line to provide a 4G network. Along the way, the train passes through two areas for rare (稀有) wild animals — one for pandas and the other for crested ibises (朱鹮).
To reduce the railway’s influence on the animals, workers and experts have designed and built the railway to be environmentally friendly. There were 345 wild pandas living in the Qinling Mountains. China currently has 1,864 wild pandas in total, according to the Xinhua News Agency.
To avoid disturbing the pandas, the railway was designed to run through tunnels (隧道) within the area. Protective shields (防护屏) are placed near the entrance of each tunnel to stop animals from going in.
To protect the thousands of crested ibises that fly near one part of the railway, protective nets have been set up to make sure the birds will not fly into a train.
The nets are about 32 km long and 4 meters high. Experts tested different shapes and materials for building the nets before making their final choice.
1. From this month, it will take ________ to travel from Xi’an to Chengdu by the high speed train.| A．16 hours | B．13 hours | C．3 hours | D．1 hour |
| A．It is China’s first high-speed railway. |
| B．It runs through the Qinling Mountains. |
| C．It is the best mountain-heavy train line. |
| D．The train passes through many areas for rare wild animals. |
| A．To save money and energy. |
| B．To avoid damaging the mountains. |
| C．To avoid harming wild animals. |
| D．To help the train run through tunnels quietly. |
| A．Tunnels. | B．Tracks. |
| C．Protective shields. | D．Protective nets. |
| A．Xi’an Chengdu high-speed railway. |
| B．How to protect pandas and crested ibises. |
| C．Qinling Mountains. |
| D．Protective shields and nets. |
7 . Every day, Americans throw away 500 million plastic straws, enough to circle the Earth twice. They are almost never recycled, and simply contribute to the great problem of plastic pollution; eight million tons of plastic is dumped into the oceans every year.
Plastic straws are now the target of a growing movement to reduce their use. Possibly the first of such campaigns, Be Straw Free was started in 2011 by Milo Cress, who was only nine years old at the lime.
“I noticed that whenever I ordered a drink at a restaurant, it would usually come with a straw in it, and I don’ I usually need a straw,” he said. “This seemed like a huge waste. Straws are made of oil, a precious and finite resource. Is making single - use plastic straws, which will be used for a matter of minutes before being tossed away, really what we want to do with this resource?”
Cress started asking restaurants in Burlington, Vermont, where he lived at the time, to stop providing straws automatically to customer and make them optional instead. Many agreed and his request made ripples (涟漪) nationwide. The restaurants that make the switch report a reduction in the number of straws they use between 50 and 80%.
The anti - straw sentiment has crossed borders into the UK, where straws have been included in a government plan to ban ail plastic waste by 2042.
Last year large pub chain Wetherspoons announced that it would replace plastic straws with paper alternatives across 900 outlets. After the announcement, many smaller chains and pubs across the country followed suit. According to Wetherspoons CEO John Hutson, the move will save 70 million plastic straws a year and the reaction from patrons has been “very positive”.
Offering alternatives or making plastic straws optional, rather than banning them completely, is a common trait among these campaigns. “There are many other viable alternatives to single - use plastic drinking straws that are less harmful to the environment, wildlife and humans,” said Jackie Nunez, founder of The Last Plastic Straw.
1. What can we learn from Paragraph 1?| A．Plastic straws are too costly to produce. |
| B．All plastic straws are dumped into the sea. |
| C．Plastic straws are too small to be recycled. |
| D．Plastic straws cause great pollution. |
| A．To make plastic straws optional. |
| B．To stop the use of plastic straws. |
| C．To charge the use of plastic straws. |
| D．To reject the request for plastic straws. |
| A．To ban the use of plastic straws. |
| B．To close some of its outlets. |
| C．To offer customers alternatives. |
| D．To seek the government’s support. |
| A．Uncaring. | B．Favorable. |
| C．Ambiguous. | D．Disapproving. |
8 . The Equatic Process, a novel carbon removal technology, is getting a major increase, with the world’s largest ocean carbon dioxide removal (OCDR) facility set to be built in Singapore-sparking optimism for what has been regarded as a potential game change r for global climate efforts.
On Tuesday, Singapore’s national water agency PUB announced that it was furthering its cooperation with the University of California in Los Angeles and Equatic, a startup founded by UCLA scientists. Together, they plan to build a $20 million plant that removes 4,000 tons of carbon dioxide from the ocean every year through the Equatic Process, which uses electrolysis (电解) to change carbon dioxide in seawater into stable solids.
The extracted (提取) carbon dioxide is stored in the form of solid calcium and magnesium-based materials-similar to how seashells are naturally formed- “for at least 10,000 years,” according to a recent press release. And the treated seawater that is pumped back into the ocean would then have the capacity to absorb even more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
Advocates of the Equatic Process say that it would be a big boost for the global fight against climate change. But the technology has also been met with apprehension by some scientists who realize its potential ecological risks and who urge more research and investment into OCDR to better understand both its benefits and dangers.
Pang Chee Meng, PUB’s chief engineering and technology officer says that the treated seawater is specially processed before being poured back into the ocean, to “ensure that the ocean chemistry is preserved,” adding that the agency and Equatic will closely monitor the environmental impact of the plant.
PUB also says that they are currently exploring the potential for the solid carbonates (碳酸盐) produced by the Equatic Process to be used in the construction industry. And hydrogen, another by-product of the Equatic Process, may be used to power the process itself, the agency adds, or used as a clean energy source to produce electricity.
1. What is the main idea of the text?| A．Scientists have agreed to keep global warming at safe levels. |
| B．People have become more optimistic about global climate. |
| C．Singapore will strengthen ties with the University of California. |
| D．Singapore will boost carbon-removal power of the ocean with a new facility. |
| A．Building a factory to store seawater. |
| B．Changing the form of carbon dioxide. |
| C．Collecting natural seashells in the ocean. |
| D．Pumping treated seawater back into the ocean. |
| A．Support. | B．Confirmation. | C．Anxiety. | D．Underestimate. |
| A．PUB’s measures to guarantee safety. |
| B．How to make use of solid carbonates. |
| C．Dangerous by-products of the Equatic Process. |
| D．Other benefits brought by the Equatic Process. |
9 . Martha Gruber, a Tampa Bay Watch environmental scientist, has been honored with a Disney Conservation Hero Award from the Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund( DWCF)
The award recognizes local citizens for their tireless efforts to save wildlife, protect habitats and educate communities. Recipients were nominated(提名) by nonprofit environmental organizations, and each honoree receives an award of $l,50o from DWCF.
“Working with students in Tampa Bay is rewarding because I get to see firsthand the impact that our hard work has on the local habitat,” Gruber said. “I’m proud to say that Tampa Bay Watch’s Bay Grasses in Classes(BGIC) program has given me the opportunity to assist in restoring close to 300 acres with over 19,000 students. Being a Disney Conservation Hero is truly an honor and I am proud to share this achievement with the other Tampa Bay Watch staff members that have contributed to these efforts.”
Gruber has worked with Tampa Bay Watch since 2003, overseeing the Community Salt Marsh program and the BGIC program. She also has been in charge of many large-scale(大规模的)community plantings in her term. In her more than 11 years, Gruber has worked with more than 4,400 community volunteers to restore approximately 148 acres of marsh(湿地) habitat.
The BGIC program works with local middle and high schools to grow salt marsh grasses on their campuses and then involves them in the planting of their nursery raised grasses at a restoration site.
In her time, Gruber has led the BGIC program to contribute salt marsh grasses to help restore 91 acres of habitat around Tampa Bay. In addition to Martha’s impressive restoration impact, she also has a deep impact on everyone with whom she works. She approaches each project with a passion and work ethic(职业道德) that is inspiring.
Since 2004, Disney has honored more than 100 leaders around the world for their extraordinary conservation efforts.
1. DWCF gives its awards to people who .| A．devote themselves to education |
| B．have a good impact on students |
| C．promote the knowledge of nature |
| D．achieve greatly in wildlife protection |
| A．Her work connects students with nature. |
| B．Working with children makes her happy. |
| C．Her colleagues support her work heartily. |
| D．She can see their efforts make a difference. |
| A．Assists. |
| B．Provides. |
| C．Deals with. |
| D．Comes up with. |
| A．By attending classes. |
| B．By planting salt marsh grasses. |
| C．By contributing salt marsh grasses. |
| D．By calling on the public to take action. |
Friends of the Earth (FOE) campaigns on a range of problems including rainforests，the countryside, water and air pollution and energy. Friends of the Earth International Secretariat P. O. Box 19199 1000 G. D. Amsterdam The Netherlands | Greenpeace uses peaceful but direct action to defend the environment. It campaigns to protect rainforests and sea animals, stop global warming and end pollution of air, land and seas. It also opposes nuclear (核) power. Greenpeace International Keizergracht 176 1016 DW Amsterdam The Netherlands |
| BirdLife International is an organization which works to save endangered birds all over the world. BirdLife International Wellbrook Court Girton Road  Cambridge CB3 ONA England |  WWF-World Wide Fund For Nature is the world’s largest private international organization for the protection of nature and endangered species. Information Officer WWF International Avenue du Mont-Blanc 1196 Gland Switzerland |
| A．call them | B．write them a letter |
| C．visit them | D．send them an e-mail |
| A．reduce pollution |
| B．defend rainforests |
| C．protect ocean animals |
| D．save endangered birds |
| A．Friends of the Earth |
| B．World Wide Fund For Nature |
| C．Greenpeace |
| D．BirdLife International |
| A．It helps to protect nature and save endangered animals. |
| B．It is the world’s largest international organization. |
| C．It works for private companies and rich people. |
| D．It is a private organization in the United States. |
| A．Environmental Protection Organizations |
| B．Global Environmental Problems |
| C．Endangered Animals |
| D．Friends of the Earth |
