1 . There are few places on Earth that humans haven’t messed up. Now even Antarctica, the only continent with no permanent human inhabitants, is being altered by us. A study found that the increasing human presence in Antarctica is causing more snow melt-bad news for a frozen world already battling the effects of human-caused global warming.
Black carbon, the dark, dusty pollution that comes from burning fossil fuels has settled in locations where tourists and researchers spend a lot of time, scientists found. Even the smallest amount of the dark pollutant can have a significant impact on melting because of its very low reflectiveness: things that are light in color, like snow, reflect the sun's energy and stay cool; things that are dark, like black carbon, absorb the sun's energy and warm up.
“The snow albedo (反射率) effect is one of the largest uncertainties in regional and global climate modeling right now,” Alia Khan, a snow and ice scientist at Western Washington University, told CNN. “That’s one of the motivations for the study, to quantify the impact of black carbon on regional snowmelt, which is important for quantifying the role of black carbon in the global loss of snow and ice.”
“Antarctica is sitting there pretty much silently all year. But, if it weren’t there, in the state that it is meant to be, the balance that we have in the climate system will no longer be,” Marilyn Raphael, a geography professor said. “Antarctica’s sea ice is also important to maintain a balance in atmospheric circulation,” he added. As waters get warmer, some Antarctic creatures are finding their homes more and more unlivable.
“Everything we do has consequences,” Raphael said. “We need to educate ourselves about those consequences, especially in systems that we know relatively little about. We have to be careful that we don’t upset the climate balance.”
1. Why can the smallest amount of black carbon have huge impact on melting?A.It is highly reflective. | B.Its dark colour absorbs heat. |
C.It produces vast energy. | D.It causes much pollution. |
A.To measure the impact of black carbon on melting. |
B.To quantify the cost of battling against climate change. |
C.To remove the uncertainties of global warming effects. |
D.To urge people to pay more attention to melting problem. |
A.The change caused by Antarctic melting. | B.The methods to stop Antarctic ice melting. |
C.The significance of Antarctic being in its state. | D.The sufferings Antarctic creatures are experiencing. |
A.Reduce tourist numbers. | B.Face the consequences. |
C.Acquire professional education. | D.Stop disturbing the climate. |
2 . Should We Create More National Parks to Save Endangered Animals?
Don’t you find it worrying that more and more species of animals are in real danger of becoming extinct?
In addition, national parks protect animals from the danger of being hunted. A major reason why many species are endangered is that these animals are killed by hunters. They hunt animals to make money.
On the other hand, some people fight against the creation of national parks because they consider it is wrong to interfere with nature. They believe that wild animals are happier living in their natural environment.
All in all, these disadvantages are far less important than the benefits of national parks.
A.To begin with, animals are important to humans. |
B.Some hunters even hunt animals simply for sport. |
C.I personally believe that we must save these animals. |
D.These parks allow animals to live in a safe environment. |
E.Firstly, national parks protect these animals’ natural environment. |
F.They say though the animals may face danger, they enjoy a free life. |
G.There is a heated discussion about whether to create more national parks. |
1. 倡议目的;
2. 你的建议;
3. 你的呼吁。
注意:
1. 词数80字左右;
2. 可适当添加细节,以使行文连贯。
3. 参考词汇:世界水日 World Water Day
Dear fellow students,
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Traditionally, livestreamers(主播)sell delicious snacks or local goodies. But a recent livestream event in Tibet autonomous region did something different. Waste plastic bottles,
According to the Sohu website, in 2019, about 40 million tourists visited Tibet, which
Over the past few years, more than 5,000 volunteers of different ages and from all walks of life
The livestream has successfully involved more people in the anti-white pollution campaign. People can scan QR code and donate money to encourage more people to collect bottles. It's really a meaningful event and helps to make
5 . Around the world, people are realizing the significant problems caused by plastic waste. In the last 65 years, we have become increasingly dependent on plastic. It’s easy to understand why: it’s cheap to produce, light — therefore easy and cheap to transport — and incredibly strong and durable.
One popular solution to the problem is to prohibit single use plastics. In the British supermarkets, shoppers are encouraged to make more environmentally-friendly choices in packing and transporting their food.
However, such plans may not be beneficial to eliminate (消除) the use of single-use plastic altogether.
Another issue is that alternative materials to plastic are often more environmentally harmful than plastic. Take paper bags, for example.
Clearly there is a need to reduce plastic waste and its impact on the environment.
A.But it’s these advantages that also make it so harmful. |
B.They are very fragile and rarely reusable, unlike plastic. |
C.One of the fields where single-use plastic has a vital role is medicine. |
D.However, simply banning their single use may not be the best option. |
E.It also boosts the local economy and save costs in managing littering and waste. |
F.Bans on single-use plastic items like drinking straws are also coming into place. |
G.According to a research, they require four times more energy when produced than a plastic bag. |
6 . Made out of thin air
The world has experienced a lot of extreme weather this year due to climate change, which carbon emissions are believed to be most responsible for.
Meat made from air
It is hard to imagine that food consisting of protein could be produced from CO2, but that is exactly what Solar Foods is working on. To create the protein, the company uses renewable energy to split water cells into hydrogen and oxygen.
What about wearing a pair of shoes made of carbon emissions? On Running, a Swiss sports shoe brand, is trying to make foam(泡沫) for its shoed from captured carbon. In November, it announced it was teaming up with US-based company LanzaTech to make ethanol(乙醇) out of waste CO2, which would otherwise be burned, releasing CO2. On Running hopes to produce its first pair of shoes made wholly from carbon sometime next yeat.
Turning CO2 into perfume
What is the smell of a perfume made from CO2? New York-based startup Air Company is selling perfume made from CO2. Perfume has an alcohol base. When mixed with a bit of water and fragrance(芳香) oil, it becomes perfume. Ethanol is widely used in perfume production because it has a neutral smell. This means you only smell the oil.
A.Running on foam |
B.Stepping on carbon |
C.This kind of fragrance oil is made from CO2 by Air Company. |
D.Then it mixes the hydrogen with CO2 and adds other nutrients. |
E.They are expected to not cost much more than a regular pair of shoes. |
F.To solve the problem, capturing and reusing CO2 is an option for tech companies. |
G.What Air Company is able to do is transform CO2 into a very pure form of ethanol. |
7 . Common water plant could provide a green energy source. Scientists have figured out how to get large amounts of oil from duckweed, one of nature’s fastest-growing water plants. Transferring such plant oil into biodiesel (生物柴油) for transportation and heating could be a big part of a more sustainable future.
For a new study, researchers genetically engineered duckweed plants to produce seven times more oil per acre than soybeans. John Shanklin, a biochemist says further research could double the engineered duckweed’s oil output in the next few years.
Unlike fossil fuels, which form underground, biofuels can be refreshed faster than they are used. Fuels made from new and used vegetable oils, animal fat and seaweed can have a lower carbon footprint than fossil fuels do, but there has been a recent negative view against them. This is partly because so many crops now go into energy production rather than food; biofuels take up more than 100 million acres of the world’s agricultural land.
Duckweed, common on every continent but Antarctica, is among the world’s most productive plants, and the researchers suggest it could be a game-changing renewable energy source for three key reasons. First, it grows readily in water, so it wouldn’t compete with food crops for agricultural land. Second, duckweed can grow fast in agricultural pollution released into the water. Third, Shanklin and his team found a way to avoid a major biotechnological barrier: For the new study, Shanklin says, the researchers added an oil-producing gene, “turning it on like a light switch”by introducing a particular molecule (分子) only when the plant had finished growing. Shanklin says, “If it replicates (复制) in other species-and there’s no reason to think that it would not — this can solve one of our biggest issues, which is how we can make more oil in more plants without negatively affecting growth.”
To expand production to industrial levels, scientists will need to design and produce large-scale bases for growing engineered plants and obtaining oil — a challenge, Shanklin says, because duckweed is a non-mainstream crop without much existing infrastructure (基础设施).
1. What can people get from duckweed firsthand?A.Plant oil. | B.Stable biodiesel. |
C.Sustainable water. | D.Natural heat. |
A.Options for renewable energy. |
B.Reasons for engineering genes. |
C.The potential of revolutionary energy source. |
D.The approach to avoiding agricultural pollution. |
A.Industrial levels. | B.Unique design. |
C.Academic research. | D.Basic facilities. |
A.Duckweed Power | B.Duckweed Production |
C.Genetic Engineering | D.Genetic Testing |
8 . The first rule of popular science is to reveal the wonder and mystery of the world. For that reason, Sentient (Picador), written by photographer and wildlife film-maker Jackie Higgins, is my pick of the year. According to my interviews with many readers, I select other four newly-published books in 2022.
Delicious
This book describes how our ancestors hunted and consumed ancient animals such as mammoths, bison, giant camels and many more now-extinct species. The diet of the Clovis peoples of North America was a menu described as “a record of a lost world”. This book explains how our dinners robbed the world of so many large animals. It gives inspiration for how modern humans can be at peace with nature.
The New Climate War
In 1999, Mann published a graph showing the rapid post-industrial rise in global temperatures. Two decades later, his book The New Climate War remains convinced that we can prevent climate change. This book sets out a common-sense approach to carbon pricing and a revision of the Green New Deal. Of course, there are still many people who deny that climate change is even happening.
The Geodesic Dome
Physicist Kate Greene imagines that she spends four months in a geodesic dome in Hawaii, with five other people, to mimic living in a colony on another planet. The story describes the future of our Earth. Kate makes readers cherish the natural environment. “No sunshine on our skin, and no fresh air in our lungs,” Greene turns the frustrations into a moving story.
Florida Scrub-Jay
The birds were once common across the peninsula. But as development over the last 100 years reduced the habitats on which the bird depends, the species became endangered. Mark Walters travels the state to report on the natural history and the current situation of Florida’s flag ship birds. This book can raise people’s awareness of protecting the birds’ habitats.
1. What can we infer about the author from the text?A.He’s a column journalist. | B.He’s a scientist. |
C.He’s a film-maker. | D.He’s a photographer. |
A.Delicious. | B.Florida Scrub-Jay. |
C.The Geodesic Dome. | D.The New Climate War. |
A.They have happy endings. | B.They record the natural history. |
C.They face doubts from many scientists. | D.They involve the environmental protection. |
March 12th is China's annually National Tree-planting Day. On this day, millions of Chinese, from all walks of life, will put their works at hands aside for
First
China's Tree-planting Day could date back
In February 1979, the 5th National People's Congress of People Republic of China made a
10 . Omar Vazquez grew up in poverty on Mexico’s Yucatan peninsula. He watched his single mother struggle to put food on the table, and today the memory inspires him to help those in need. When an invasive (入侵的) seaweed called sargassum showed up on Mexico’s Caribbean beaches, Omar looked past the matter of it all and saw an opportunity to help others.
Sargassum is not dangerous, but it has an unpleasant smell and can become so thick that it keeps people from entering the water. Mexico has experienced record-setting amounts of the seaweed in recent years, and it has made its way to Florida’s beaches as well. Experts say there could be as much as 100 tons of sargassum blocking Mexican shorelines in 2023.
With tourism dollars at risk, officials and locals alike were eager to remove the seaweed, but only Omar saw its true potential. The professional gardener organized a beach cleanup that provided jobs for about 300 local families, but he knew there was more to do. Since people’s attitude towards the seaweed reminded him of his own life experiences, he decided to become an agent (推动者) for change.
When sargassum started arriving, everyone was complaining. “I wanted to make something good out of something everyone saw as bad,” Omar explained.
In 2018, Omar found a way to turn sargassum into building blocks that he calls Sargablock. He creates these blocks by mixing 40% sargassum with other materials like clay, then putting them in a block-forming machine and baking them in the sun for days. The end result is an organic, sustainable, and ecologically friendly building material that experts say could last for 120 years.
To date, Omar’s company, Bluegreen Mexico, has used 700 tons of sargassum to build low-income housing for those in need. Omar said he would take on more projects, and donate more houses to single mothers like his own mom.
1. What can be learned from paragraph 1?A.Omar’s family often assisted people in need. |
B.Sargassum originated on the Caribbean beaches. |
C.Omar’s experience in childhood has influenced him much. |
D.Omar has met a lot of generous people since he was young. |
A.They didn’t take it seriously. | B.They were anxious to clear it up. |
C.They viewed it as new materials. | D.They were excited to see a grand scene. |
A.Honest and ambitious. | B.Strong-willed and confident. |
C.Quick-thinking and humorous. | D.Sympathetic and innovative. |
A.It’s never too old to learn. | B.Love shines every dark corner. |
C.Solutions can be obtained from problems. | D.Heroes arise from humble beginnings. |