1 . The California sea otter (海獭), once hunted to the edge of extinction, has staged a thrilling comeback in the last century. Now, scientists have discovered that the otters’ success story has led to something just as remarkable: the restoration of their declining coastal marsh (沼泽) habitat.
Elkhorn Slough, a coastal marsh within Monterey Bay, had been experiencing severe damage. The root cause was a growing population of shore crabs, which fed heavily on the marsh plants, weakening the structural integrity of the habitat. Coastal marshes like these are not only natural defenses against storm waves but also serve as important carbon storage areas and water-cleaning systems.
The conservation-driven comeback of the sea otter has been crucial. California’s coastlines were once alive with sea otters. Sadly, they were nearly wiped out at the hands of fur traders. In the 1980s, conservation efforts aided these otters in re-occupying large areas of their former range. Now, Elkhorn Slough has the highest concentration of sea otters in California, with a population of about 100. By naturally feasting on crabs, the otters have helped a significant regrowth of plant life. Brent Hughes, a scientist working alongside Angelini, led a three-year study. Their findings were clear: in areas with sea otters, crab numbers fell markedly. This led to a resurgence in plant growth, which in turn stabilized the soil and lowered the rate of soil washing away.
As the sea otter population continues to restore, their positive impact on coastal ecosystems is likely to increase. It not only showcases the sea otter as a central species—a species that has a significant effect on its natural environment—but also highlights the essential nature of top predators (捕食者) in preserving ecological harmony. “My honest reaction was—this could become a classic in the literature,” says scientist Lekelia Jenkins. She reveals marsh restoration also helps people by reducing flooding. “Suddenly, sea otters go from just cute things we like to something that can protect our livelihoods and our properties.”
What message is conveyed from sea otters’ impact?| A．The necessity for controlled hunting. |
| B．The interconnectedness of the ecosystem. |
| C．The drawbacks of wildlife reintroduction. |
| D．The need for human intervention in nature. |
2 . The California sea otter (海獭), once hunted to the edge of extinction, has staged a thrilling comeback in the last century. Now, scientists have discovered that the otters’ success story has led to something just as remarkable: the restoration of their declining coastal marsh (沼泽) habitat.
Elkhorn Slough, a coastal marsh within Monterey Bay, had been experiencing severe damage. The root cause was a growing population of shore crabs, which fed heavily on the marsh plants, weakening the structural integrity of the habitat. Coastal marshes like these are not only natural defenses against storm waves but also serve as important carbon storage areas and water-cleaning systems.
The conservation-driven comeback of the sea otter has been crucial. California’s coastlines were once alive with sea otters. Sadly, they were nearly wiped out at the hands of fur traders. In the 1980s, conservation efforts aided these otters in re-occupying large areas of their former range. Now, Elkhorn Slough has the highest concentration of sea otters in California, with a population of about 100. By naturally feasting on crabs, the otters have helped a significant regrowth of plant life. Brent Hughes, a scientist working alongside Angelini, led a three-year study. Their findings were clear: in areas with sea otters, crab numbers fell markedly. This led to a resurgence in plant growth, which in turn stabilized the soil and lowered the rate of soil washing away.
As the sea otter population continues to restore, their positive impact on coastal ecosystems is likely to increase. It not only showcases the sea otter as a central species—a species that has a significant effect on its natural environment—but also highlights the essential nature of top predators (捕食者) in preserving ecological harmony. “My honest reaction was—this could become a classic in the literature,” says scientist Lekelia Jenkins. She reveals marsh restoration also helps people by reducing flooding. “Suddenly, sea otters go from just cute things we like to something that can protect our livelihoods and our properties.”
What does the underlined word “resurgence” in paragraph 3 mean?| A．Barrier. |
| B．Advancement. |
| C．Expansion. |
| D．Revival. |
3 . An Italian firm has invented what seems to be the perfect tool for stopping plastic waste from reaching the ocean through a river.
They had to check a lot of boxes. The device had to allow boats to pass without effort, while being able to run 24/7 with no impact on the river ecosystem. The result is River Cleaning, a 100% low-cost and low-impact solution.
Anchored (固定) to the bed at the bottom of the river, River Cleaning is made up of a series of floating devices, positioned diagonally (对角线地) on the course of the river; thus positioned, they can collect incoming plastic waste and transport it to the river bank for storage. Passing boats need only go straight through them at a low speed, after which their anchor lines will pull them back into place.
The River Cleaning system collects energy directly from the river current. It does not produce any type of waste. It is designed to have zero impact on the ecosystem. It only does good!
They can be adjusted to collect different kinds of waste, such as tiny particles (微粒), larger items like plastic bottles, and even oil, and some studies have shown River Cleaning can collect 85% of all waste passing by them.
Most people know of the scope of plastic pollution in the ocean, but it’s not as common to know that much of this waste comes from rivers — 80%, at least. Most of that 80% comes from just 100 of the world’s largest waterways. Running through big cities like Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok, the rivers funnel (使流经狭窄空间) waste into global ocean currents that lead plastic to clump together (聚集) in areas of the high seas.
River Cleaning became the first product of its kind to demonstrate that the system preserves the river environment while respecting the well-being of native species.
1. What does the underlined part “check a lot of boxes” probably mean?| A．Ask for suggestions. | B．Promote the products. |
| C．Come up with new ideas. | D．Meet many requirements. |
| A．How River Cleaning works. |
| B．How River Cleaning was created. |
| C．Where River Cleaning is positioned. |
| D．What influence River Cleaning has on boats. |
| A．It is powered by the natural flow of the river. |
| B．It may produce a small amount of waste. |
| C．It is unable to pick up tiny particles. |
| D．It may block the water passage. |
| A．Plastic pollution has a direct effect on port cities. |
| B．Inland waterways present huge challenges for cities. |
| C．The majority of plastic gets to the ocean through rivers. |
| D．Most people are unaware of plastic pollution in the ocean. |
| A．A new source of fuel oil. |
| B．An alternative use of fuel oil. |
| C．A way to make fuel oil less polluting |
| D．A new method for locating underground oil. |
| A．She was doing research for a paper on it |
| B．She was told about it by her roommate. |
| C．She read a newspaper article about it. |
| D．She heard about it in class. |
| A．To produce a gas containing carbon and hydrogen. |
| B．To heat the reactors to a proper temperature. |
| C．To prevent dangerous gases from forming. |
| D．To remove impurities from methanol |
| A．It hasn't been fully tested. |
| B．It is quite expensive. |
| C．It uses up scarce minerals. |
| D．It produces harmful gases. |
2. 简单评论；
3. 你的建议。
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。
Green Travel
There are many ways we can choose from to travel to and from school.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________1. 活动过程；
2. 活动反响。
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。
School Activities for World Earth Day
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________7 . In order to meet growing food production and energy needs in low-and middle-income countries, solar-powered groundwater irrigation (灌溉) is rapidly gaining ground. More than 500,000 solar pumps (泵) have been set up in south Asia over the last few years and a major expansion is planned across sub-Saharan Africa.
Dustin Garrick, professor in the School of Environment, Resources and Sustainability, along with an international team, examined the trend toward solar pumps as a clear opportunity for boosting agricultural yields and reducing poverty, but the opportunity comes with risks.
While replacing electric or gas pumps with solar-powered irrigation holds the promise of reducing carbon emissions (排放), it is not guaranteed. Farmers who have access to these pumps may expand production of crops or diversify into other activities, which are not emissions neutral. Solar pumps will increase groundwater pumping efficiency, which may be desirable in regions that support such increases, but this could worsen groundwater lessening in regions that are already stressed. The cheap clean energy of solar pumps may lead to increased groundwater development, without necessarily decreasing overall emissions.
Despite these challenges, the clean-energy boost can serve as a stimulus for positive change in water and energy management but will require enhanced regulation and planning in both low-and high-income settings. Garrick and his team advocate for improved data collection initiatives, with a shift from separated to integrated approaches. They suggest using technology to measure water pumping and collecting remotely sensed data to monitor land use changes. As well, regulatory improvements are crucial, with mounting limits for carbon emissions and groundwater lessening established at various levels.
With groundwater management already a difficult challenge, we must act fast to understand the implications of the clean energy boost and poverty reduction acts to avoid these gains being won away by wells running dry. The rapid adoption of solar irrigation intensifies the urgency, demanding adaptation from governments and institutions to sail through these complexities.
1. According to paragraph 3, there is a conflict between ________.| A．poor farmers and solar-powered irrigation | B．human consumption and clean energy limits |
| C．crop diversity and crop production expansion | D．pumping efficiency and groundwater exhaustion |
| A．Integrating data collection and regulation. | B．Improving carbon emission monitoring. |
| C．Separating data for land use changes. | D．Establishing groundwater levels. |
| A．Perform as the authorities suggest. | B．Act based on further understanding. |
| C．Quicken the adoption of solar irrigation. | D．Challenge the groundwater management. |
| A．The Complexities of Adopting Solar Pumps |
| B．Solar-Powered Irrigation: Farmers’ New Future |
| C．The Promise and Risks of Solar-Powered Irrigation |
| D．Balancing Clean Energy Boost and Poverty Reduction |
8 . It is an uncomfortable fact that civilized society is almost completely dependent upon fossil fuels in nearly every aspect. Whether you believe there are hundreds of years or just a few decades left of this resource, the fact remains that it is a limited resource. At some point, fossil fuels are going to either be gone or become too expensive to realistically use. That is, when fossil fuels become too expensive to use, people will just start using something else. Though this may work well in theory, actually shifting from fossil fuels is not the same as shifting from one brand of shampoo to another.
This is entirely due to the fact that humans rely so much on the infrastructure (基础设施) they have developed, which is entirely dependent upon this resource, accounting for 85% of the United State's energy use. If the world were entirely dependent upon solar energy, that would be fine because sunlight is a continuing resource. However, at the current state of things, humans are in a dangerous position owing to its complete dependence upon one single limited input.
Fossil fuels are also responsible for a significant amount of land, water, and air pollution beyond their carbon dioxide (二氧化碳) production. For example, coal mining brings solid wastes to the surface that would normally remain underground and the areas around a mine can remain barren (贫瘠的) for generations due to the lack of proper topsoil. The burning of coal for energy also produces many different types of particulate (微粒的) matter that pollutes the air. Compared with fossil fuels, renewable energy is far more environmentally friendly.
There exists an argument that renewable energy options are not as efficient as fossil fuels because the deployment (部署) of renewable energy equipment like the wind turbine (风力涡轮机) costs a lot of money. However, when factors such as pollution and climate change are considered, renewable energy is actually far more efficient than fossil fuels. And fossil fuels will be surely replaced by renewable energy whether it is your generation or your grandchildren's.
What is the text mainly about?| A．Renewable energy equipment is economically-beneficial. |
| B．Renewable energy produces less energy than fossil fuels. |
| C．It is very urgent for people to shift to renewable energy. |
| D．It is an unstoppable trend to use renewable energy. |
9 . It is an uncomfortable fact that civilized society is almost completely dependent upon fossil fuels in nearly every aspect. Whether you believe there are hundreds of years or just a few decades left of this resource, the fact remains that it is a limited resource. At some point, fossil fuels are going to either be gone or become too expensive to realistically use. That is, when fossil fuels become too expensive to use, people will just start using something else. Though this may work well in theory, actually shifting from fossil fuels is not the same as shifting from one brand of shampoo to another.
This is entirely due to the fact that humans rely so much on the infrastructure (基础设施) they have developed, which is entirely dependent upon this resource, accounting for 85% of the United State's energy use. If the world were entirely dependent upon solar energy, that would be fine because sunlight is a continuing resource. However, at the current state of things, humans are in a dangerous position owing to its complete dependence upon one single limited input.
Fossil fuels are also responsible for a significant amount of land, water, and air pollution beyond their carbon dioxide (二氧化碳) production. For example, coal mining brings solid wastes to the surface that would normally remain underground and the areas around a mine can remain barren (贫瘠的) for generations due to the lack of proper topsoil. The burning of coal for energy also produces many different types of particulate (微粒的) matter that pollutes the air. Compared with fossil fuels, renewable energy is far more environmentally friendly.
There exists an argument that renewable energy options are not as efficient as fossil fuels because the deployment (部署) of renewable energy equipment like the wind turbine (风力涡轮机) costs a lot of money. However, when factors such as pollution and climate change are considered, renewable energy is actually far more efficient than fossil fuels. And fossil fuels will be surely replaced by renewable energy whether it is your generation or your grandchildren’s.
What is the purpose of paragraph 3?| A．To show the relationship between greenhouse gases and fossil fuels. |
| B．To present negative consequences brought by fossil fuels. |
| C．To introduce how carbon dioxide affects the environment. |
| D．To explain why fossil fuels should be used. |
10 . It is an uncomfortable fact that civilized society is almost completely dependent upon fossil fuels in nearly every aspect. Whether you believe there are hundreds of years or just a few decades left of this resource, the fact remains that it is a limited resource. At some point, fossil fuels are going to either be gone or become too expensive to realistically use. That is, when fossil fuels become too expensive to use, people will just start using something else. Though this may work well in theory, actually shifting from fossil fuels is not the same as shifting from one brand of shampoo to another.
This is entirely due to the fact that humans rely so much on the infrastructure (基础设施) they have developed, which is entirely dependent upon this resource, accounting for 85% of the United State's energy use. If the world were entirely dependent upon solar energy, that would be fine because sunlight is a continuing resource. However, at the current state of things, humans are in a dangerous position owing to its complete dependence upon one single limited input.
Fossil fuels are also responsible for a significant amount of land, water, and air pollution beyond their carbon dioxide (二氧化碳) production. For example, coal mining brings solid wastes to the surface that would normally remain underground and the areas around a mine can remain barren (贫瘠的) for generations due to the lack of proper topsoil. The burning of coal for energy also produces many different types of particulate (微粒的) matter that pollutes the air. Compared with fossil fuels, renewable energy is far more environmentally friendly.
There exists an argument that renewable energy options are not as efficient as fossil fuels because the deployment (部署) of renewable energy equipment like the wind turbine (风力涡轮机) costs a lot of money. However, when factors such as pollution and climate change are considered, renewable energy is actually far more efficient than fossil fuels. And fossil fuels will be surely replaced by renewable energy whether it is your generation or your grandchildren's.
According to paragraph 1, we know fossil fuels_______.| A．are heavily depended on by humans |
| B．are a symbol of civilized society |
| C．are becoming more and more expensive |
| D．can be replaced by other resources soon |
