1 . The cry of the fishing cat sounds like the quack of a duck, and the rest of this midsize cat also enables it to hunt in the water. Its streamlined head is perfect for moves in the mangrove swamps (红树林沼泽地) and wetlands of South and Southeast Asia, and its pointy ears even fold (折叠) down when it jumps into deep water. The short and strong tail helps control its direction. The extra-thick coat keeps it warm and dry while swimming.
“I found fishing cats to be very ingenious,” says Tiasa Adhya, co-founder of The Fishing Cat Project, a research and conservation group based in eastern India. Her research recently showed that the animal has two methods of catching fish. In deep waters, the cat stays still on the banks for hours before jumping into the water for the kill. In shallow (浅的) waters, though, the cat actively drives the fish out of their hiding places by moving about with heavy steps.
Now the fishing cat is facing another challenge: humans. The world has lost almost 90 percent of its wetlands since the 1700s, with Asia suffering the greatest loss. These days, industrialized fish farming, pollution and other human behaviors have destroyed the living condition of freshwater fish and set fishing cats against farmers, as the hungry cats steal farmed fish, and the farmers get even with them (报复). Once found along river systems from Pakistan to Vietnam, the cats have disappeared from large areas of their range.
Researchers are testing new methods, including the commercial launch (商业化推出) of a type of native rice variety. Depending on nutrients (营养物) washed in by rains rather than on chemicals, the rice creates living space for the fishing cat and its food. The idea is that in healthy lakes where there is plenty to feed fishing cats and fishermen alike, killings will be unnecessary. “Nobody takes a loss,” Adhya explains, “when somebody takes a fish.”
1. What does the author want to explain about fishing cats in the first paragraph?A.Why they moved to South and Southeast Asia. |
B.What helps them swim well in the water. |
C.What pushes them to live with ducks. |
D.Why they love staying in the water. |
A.Friendly. | B.Alarmed. | C.Clever. | D.Lazy. |
A.The battle between fishing cats and humans. |
B.The decision to protect freshwater fish. |
C.The importance of stopping pollution. |
D.The method of increasing wetlands. |
A.It will do some harm to the environment. |
B.It will create a win-win situation. |
C.It will increase food production. |
D.It will cost a lot of money. |
2 . As a child, Cruz Avila walked through the forest every day in central Mexico’s Amanalco-Vall de Bravo Basin. She would pick wood and medicinal plants. She also learned to find birds and identify the different trees near her home. Avila learned that listening to a waterfall is a good medicine for the soul and the body.
Several months ago, she and other residents decided to make these walks an attraction for tourists. Their goal is to create a source of income, preserve the forest and support responsible medicine for the soul tourism. In 2021, Avila and other community members attended training as nature guides.
In recent years, residents of the forest communities have suffered from tourism that’s not environmentally sustainable (可持续的). In early April 2022, the communities officially presented their alliance (联盟). One of the people presenting it was Avila, and her voice echoed (附和) the feelings shared by many who are part of this project. “To us, forests are our home,” she said. “We want to take care of them as we take care of our home. We invite hikers and tourists to come to see our house, to get to know and enjoy this place with respect and care.”
Avila said her community has developed a sustainable tourism plan based on hiking and workshops. They also plan to have a viewing platform ready by 2023.
Avila said she plans to start promoting her hiking project, “I’m going to take visitors to a place called El Caballero, and halfway through, with the other neighbors, we’ll offer them a workshop on making pulque and bread,” she said. Pulque is a drink made from a plant that grows in the region.
She believes the tourism project will receive support from visitors. She thinks it will be especially popular with those who are eager to help protect the forests and want to learn about forest communities.
1. Why does the author describe Avila’s childhood in paragraph 1?A.To explain the source of medicine. |
B.To prove the importance of the forest. |
C.To introduce the lifestyle of local teens. |
D.To memorize the good days of children. |
A.Sustainable rural tourism. |
B.Respect for the local culture. |
C.The restoration of destroyed forests. |
D.The end of some tourism companies. |
A.An experience of identifying trees |
B.A chance to swim in a lake |
C.A permission to pick medicinal plants. |
D.A workshop to make pulque and bread. |
A.Memorizing the Good Days in the Forests |
B.Showing Respect for the Traveling Routes |
C.Promoting Sustainable tourism to Protect the Forests |
D.Developing the Local Traveling Business |
3 . Vishwanath Mallabadi Davangere has a unique talent for turning abandoned items into amazing works of art. From metal and plastic to old devices and circuit boards, Vishwanath selects only the finest “good stuff” with potential for transformation.
Vishwanath’s father was a well-known sculptor and painter, but he had hopes of his son becoming a doctor. But Vishwanath had other ideas. He was fascinated with upcycling second-hand objects from a young age, and decided to pursue a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Applied Art. Even as a high-level administrator at Wipro, working in Talent Transformation, Vishwanath wouldn’t shake his passion for eco-art. In his free time and on the weekends, he devoted himself to experimenting with e-waste and creating one-of-a-kind masterpieces before retiring two years ago.
With India facing a growing e-waste crisis, producing 10.1 lakh tonnes in 2019-20 with only 22.7% recycled, Vishwanath’s passion for recycling is more important than ever. As he learned more about the harm e-waste was causing to the environment, he took his art to the next level creating paintings and sculptures that spread awareness about this urgent issue.
From computer keyboard keys to data cards and even wristwatch parts, Vishwanath has transformed over 500 pieces of e-waste into amazing pieces of art! He has created a six-foot-tall sculpture, eco-jewellery and even wearable art for a fashion show. One of his masterpieces—an awesome landscape—was inspired by Vincent van Gogh’s The Starry Night.
In just a few short minutes, he can turn pieces of e-waste into great pieces of jewellery. When it comes to sculptures, the process might take weeks or even months. But it’s all worth it because sustainable initiatives and upcycled art are fashionable these days. Companies everywhere are looking to adopt a more sustainable culture, and Vishwanath’s art is the perfect addition to any eco-friendly office or home.
1. What was Vishwanath’s occupation before retirement?A.A doctor. | B.A famous sculptor. |
C.A conservation scientist. | D.A senior manager of a firm. |
A.The features of Vishwanath’s works. | B.The seriousness of e-waste in India. |
C.The motivation for Vishwanath’s creations. | D.The achievements of Vishwanath. |
A.The Starry Night. | B.The eco-jewellery. |
C.An impressive landscape. | D.A six-foot-tall sculpture. |
A.It’s promising. | B.It’s unpredictable. |
C.It will lose its appeal. | D.It won’t be accepted by companies. |
4 . Finding a California condor in the wild would be the most unusual treat. perhaps even more unusual than finding a wolf in Yellowstone National Park. In fact, the wolf was what opened my eyes to the fact that humans could bring an animal back to the place where it had disappeared.
In 1987, there were only 27 California condors left, none of which were in the wild, only in captive breeding programs, It was those breeding programs that contributed to their population rise, enough that by 1991 some of them could be freed into the wild.
Still, the hope of seeing a California condor, which remains an endangered species, is very low, let alone getting a photo of one. California condor population dropped mostly due to human factors, such as poaching and living areas destruction-these are challenges California condors still face today.
Although this is just a bird’s-eye view of the challenges California condors face and there are many others, it is part of why the opportunity to work with the US Fish and Wildlife Service team and their partners helping their recovery is so special to me as a photographer. I am not only able to photograph the birds in their wild living areas, but also understand and record how difficult the work is of those people on the front lines of the protection.
I am grateful for the work of the team, and my hope is that California condor population will continue to rise allowing future generations an opportunity I never had when I first got here-to look to the sky and see one flying around.
1. What helped the increase of the California condor population in 1987?A.Rules for hunters. | B.Captive breeding programs. |
C.The improved natural environment. | D.The enlargement of wild living areas. |
A.It is difficult. | B.It is easy. | C.It is boring. | D.It is dangerous. |
A.He guided ways for them. | B.He made records by photos. |
C.He helped the birds to recover. | D.He rebuilt the birds’ living areas. |
A.New Way, New Hope | B.Wolves and California Condors |
C.A Photo of a California Condor | D.The California Condor’s Coming Back |
5 . Going vegan or vegetarian is one way to decrease your diet’s impact on greenhouse gas emissions (排放) — but it isn’t the only way. A recent Purdue University study suggests that smaller changes can make a difference too, while improving your health.
After analyzing the 2010 grocery purchases of more than 57,000 U.S. families, Purdue researchers found 71 percent could reduce their food carbon footprint by making some changes. One is to skip the unhealthy snacks. Avoiding foods with high calorie is important and low nutritional value can reduce the total carbon footprint of U.S. family food consumption by nearly 10 percent. Items like candy, soda, and packaged snacks take more ingredients and more processing, which translates to higher environmental impacts.
Another effective way to reduce your carbon emissions is to avoid bulk buys. Households of one or two people may end up with food waste when they try to save money with bulk buys. Before you buy supersize, consider whether a three-pound jar of peanut butter will go bad before it’s used up.
The researchers of the study also suggest consuming fewer ready-made foods. One average microwave meal may not have a very large carbon footprint. But buying them regularly can add up to high emissions because ready-made foods are sold in large quantities, which makes their carbon footprint significant, the study found.
By making the above changes, the U.S. could cut more than a quarter of emissions from household food consumption, the researchers say. That’s about 36 million metric tons — about what 6.6 million households generate in a year of electricity use. “Collective action can make a huge impact,” says study co-author Hua Cai.
1. Why does the author mention being a vegetarian in Paragraph 1?A.To encourage us to become vegetarians. |
B.To introduce the findings of a recent study. |
C.To illustrate the impact of greenhouse gas emission. |
D.To tell readers it’s not a good way to help the environment. |
A.Two. | B.Three. |
C.Four. | D.Five. |
A.Buying things in quantity. |
B.Buying things of low quality. |
C.Buying things out of date. |
D.Buying things of low price. |
A.We should collect some materials to make a difference. |
B.We should take measures quickly to make a difference. |
C.We should make efforts together to make a difference. |
D.We should avoid all unhealthy food to make a difference. |
6 . British chip maker Walkers is being flooded with mail deliveries of its own packaging. An online petition (请愿) with more than 312,000 signatures so far encourages those who signed to mail their empty chip plastic bags to Walkers as an act of protest against the bags’ non-recyclable design.
As petition organizer Geraint Ashcroft explained, the majority of chip packets, made from plastic coated with metal, are not recyclable and have been found fully undamaged up to 33 years after consumption. The UK alone consumes 6 billion bags of chips a year, and Walkers turns out 11 million bags daily. Ashcroft wrote, “At today’s consumption rate in 33 years’ time, there will be 200 billion packets either sent to landfill or polluting our oceans. Many will be eaten by fish or birds, leading to a slow death.”
Mailing the bags to Walkers is a way to hold the company accountable for its packaging and to pressure it to come up with a better design. But it is controversial. Because the Royal Mail postal service isn’t happy about the sudden in flow of packages, asking people calm down to help with ease of delivery. Critics on Twitter also question the logic of buying a product in order to protest against its producer and suggest that giving up chips altogether would improve one’s health as well as the environment.
Walkers issued a statement on Wednesday, saying it will make its packaging plastic-free by 2025. “We have received some returned packets and recognized the efforts being made to bring the issue of packaging waste to our attention. The returned packets will be used in our research as we work towards our commitment of improving the recyclability of our packaging.”
1. Why do people mail their empty chip bags to Walkers?A.To oppose Walkers’ plastic packaging. |
B.To exchange them for some new chips. |
C.To make Walkers use them once more. |
D.To appeal to people for not using the bags. |
A.The production of plastic bags. |
B.The cause of animals’ death. |
C.The potential harm of chip bags. |
D.The opinion of Geraint Ashcroft. |
A.Explainable. | B.Responsible. | C.Significant. | D.Anxious. |
A.Doubtfully. | B.Indifferently. | C.Positively. | D.Cautiously. |
7 . For the past 13 years, Martin Burrows has been working as a long-distance truck driver. Spending up to five nights a week on the road can be a lonely business, leaving him with plenty of time to notice his surroundings. “I kept seeing more rubbish everywhere and it was getting on my nerves. I decided I had to do something about it,” he says. One day, he stopped his vehicle, took out a trash bag and started picking up the garbage. The satisfaction after clearing a small area was remarkable.
Before his time on the road, Burrows spent over two decades in the military as a vehicle driver. His service saw him stationed throughout Europe and also on tours in Afghanistan. After returning to civilian life, he was diagnosed with PTSD (创伤后应激障碍) and had a mental health crisis in 2017. His involvement in fundraising for Help for Heroes led him to meet a man who used model-building as a distraction from PTSD. Burrows realized that his act of roadside cleanup had a similar calming effect on his mental well-being.
By 2019, Burrows had begun using his free time on the road to regularly clean up garbage. A passerby encouraged him to set up a Facebook group, which he called Truckers Cleaning Up Britain. “I was worried I’d be the laughing stock of my town for putting videos and photos up of me cleaning but people started to join,” he says. “I was amazed. The local council stepped in and gave me litter-picking supplies and we’re up to almost 3,000 members now.”
Since truckers are so often on the move, the Facebook page acts as a means of raising awareness rather than a platform for organizing cleanups. Burrows expressed his intention to continue the cleanup efforts as long as his physical condition allowed, as he still found joy in the process.
1. What initially caused Burrows to pick up roadside garbage?A.He wanted to kill time by picking up litter. |
B.He aimed to raise fund for soldiers with PTSD. |
C.He felt annoyed to see the increasing rubbish. |
D.He received the assignment from his employer. |
A.It resulted in his embarrassment. | B.It increased his sense of isolation. |
C.It worsened his stress and anxiety. | D.It brought him comfort and relief. |
A.He feared being teased for his action. |
B.He was lacking in advanced cleanup tools. |
C.He was unsure about the group’s development. |
D.He worried about the local council’s disapproval. |
A.A Joyful Volunteer Experience | B.A Trucker’s Cleanup Initiative |
C.A Fighting Hero against PTSD | D.A Platform for Environmentalists |
8 . The 16-year-old Australian Shalise Leesfield couldn’t think of a better creature to meet than a gray nurse shark when diving off the coast. “I know how scary they can look, but I promise they are the sweetest animals ever,” she says. But they are under threat.
Leesfield is working with Cate Faehrmann, member of parliament (议会) and marine spokesperson for the Australian Greens party in New South Wales, to legalize protection of the sharks. Faehrmann says that she’s proud to have worked with Leesfield. “Shalise is part of a new generation of campaigners speaking up for the environment and our future is a lot brighter as a result of their passion and determination to save our planet and our precious wildlife.”
For someone who hasn’t yet left high school, this sounds like an impressive achievement, but Leesfield’s track record in conservation goes beyond protecting gray nurse sharks. Aged 11, after noticing the damage plastic pollution can do to the marine environment, she started a campaign that called for fishing line collection bins to be set in her local area to reduce ocean pollution. It resulted in a government environmental grant worth more than $48,000.Since then, she has founded “Shalise’s Ocean Support” which aims to inspire people to take care of the environment, and started a “Plastic Free Schools” website which advises teachers and students on reducing school waste.
Leesfield’s devotion to the cause comes from a deep love of the ocean that grew from her experiences of diving. “Falling in love with the sea made my passion grow and made me stand up for what I really love,” she says.
She believes that the younger generation needs to get out of the mindset that saving the environment is something that should be “left up to the adults”. “We are the ones that will take over the Earth and the ocean,” she says.
1. What does Shalise Leesfield think of gray nurse sharks?A.They are wonderful creatures. | B.Their behaviors are human-like. |
C.Their looks are attractive. | D.They are threatening. |
A.By cooperating with her teachers. |
B.By helping make related laws. |
C.By calling on adults to participate. |
D.By starting a campaign to raise money. |
A.Leesfiled has become a candidate of parliament. |
B.Leesfield has done much to protect the environment. |
C.Leesfield successfully attracted the government’s attention to pollution. |
D.Leesfiled persuaded teachers and students to reduce school waste. |
A.A new field for teenagers to explore |
B.A chance to contact sharks through diving |
C.A new website—Plastic Free Schools in Australia |
D.An Australian teenager on a mission to protect sharks |
9 . Sputnik, the world’s first satellite, was sent up in October 1957. About 100 trillion human-made objects are circling the planet now! The jaw-dropping number was provided by an international team of researchers writing in the journal Science. There are 9,000 active satellites in space, the scientists report. That could grow to more than 60,000 by 2030.The rest of that 100 trillion figure includes everything from used-up rockets and stray bolts(螺栓) to metal pieces and paint chips.
Don’t think a tiny piece of debris(碎片) is harmless. Traveling at 17,500 miles per hour, it can strike a spacecraft hard. The International Space Station is dotted with dents(凹陷) and holes. Astronauts often take shelter in an attached spacecraft to wait out a passing group of space pieces. That way, if the station is severely damaged, they can escape out in a hurry.
For years, this waste has formed an ever-growing mass near Earth. All of these pieces will eventually fall to Earth and burn up in the atmosphere. But we’re replacing the waste more quickly than it’s falling.
The mess we’ve made in space is like the mess we’ve made in the oceans. We’ve had centuries to pollute the oceans. But it has taken just decades for us to do the same in space. That’s why the Science authors include experts in satellite technology and in ocean plastic pollution. Cleaning up space has a lot in common with the challenges of dealing with environmental issues in the oceans.
In March 2022,170 countries signed a global plastics treaty(条约) in the United Nations. This is an agreement to throw away less plastic in the oceans and get rid of what’s already there. There could be similar rules for how many pieces a launch can create. Old satellites could be taken out of space. And technologies could be developed for cleaning up the waste.
1. Why are small space pieces harmful to spaceships in space?A.They travel at a high speed. | B.They can be attached to spacecraft. |
C.They carry damaging weapons. | D.They contain poisonous matter. |
A.It flies over the earth forever. | B.It is removed faster than produced. |
C.It can be reduced in the existing ways. | D.It can cause serious pollution to the oceans. |
A.A global plastics treaty. |
B.Possible effort to clean up the space. |
C.Satellites collecting the space waste. |
D.Technologies developed for cleaning up the waste. |
A.Space Debris | B.Ocean Pollution |
C.Space Challenges | D.Man-made Spacecraft |
10 . My husband and I always wanted to go to the Caribbean but didn’t know much about the islands or how we were going to afford it. By chance, a friend of ours in Australia mentioned “pet sitting” and that it is something you can do all over the world.
We quickly created an account on a pet sitting website and began searching for options. There were only a couple of sits available in that part of the world, but we tried our luck, sent a request, and to our surprise, landed a three-month job in Grenada, so our year was going to be taken up with Caribbean pet sits.
Inspired by a Canadian couple, we decided to start our own travel blog. We began by writing about The British Virgin Islands, highlighting the beautiful beaches. However, for every photo album of a beautiful beach, there were 10 photos of trash (垃圾). It was hard to ignore the plastic pollution issue, especially on such primitive and remote beaches. So, we began to share photos of the trash we saw and how much we could pick upon our daily dog walks.
The more we looked into plastic pollution, the more we realized the severity of the global plastic pollution. From that point, we used our platform to create awareness and highlight ways to say no to plastic and travel plastic-free. We changed our daily routines, our way of living, and even our diets to accommodate more organic foods and little to no plastic packaging.
It’s been over three years now and we continue to do what we can. This journey has led us to some amazing places, working with great brands and even organizing a country-wide beach clean-up campaign in Grenada.
Our aim now is to keep on going. We love connecting with like-minded people. It’s been amazing few years that was sparked by a conversation about pet sitting. Who would have guessed?
1. Why did the author do pet sitting?A.To cover travel expenses. | B.To raise fund. |
C.To conserve the environment. | D.To shoot beautiful beaches. |
A.Pet sitting is a new sort of occupation. |
B.The Caribbean is a perfect travel destination. |
C.Travel blog is a superb way to gain popularity. |
D.Actions should be taken to fight plastic pollution. |
A.Challenging. | B.Significant. | C.Adventurous. | D.Unbearable. |
A.Shifting Lifestyles by Pet Sitting | B.Address Global Environment Pollution |
C.Unexpected Gains from Pet Sitting Travel | D.The availability of Pet Sitting in the Caribbean |