1. Where did Tom get the idea of becoming a businessman?
A.From his college friends. |
B.From his high school teachers. |
C.From the grown-ups around him. |
A.6%. | B.18%. | C.50%. |
A.Seller and buyer. |
B.Interviewer and Interviewee. |
C.Employer and employee. |
2 . One million species face extinction, more than ever before in human history, according to a UN report released in May. And humans should be responsible.
The researchers based the assessment (评估) on some 15,000 sources considering the causes and results of environmental changes over the past 50 years.
The findings are clear and alarming. The researchers have found that about 25 percent of the world’s plants and animals are at risk of extinction. These include sea and land animals. Even the domesticated (驯养的) animals are at risk: Over 9 percent of the domesticated animal species used for food and agriculture might have been lost.
There are some big problems. This rapid decrease of the natural world endangers global food safety and quality of life. For example, about 4 billion people rely on natural medicines, produced by the disappearing species, for their health care.
The researchers identified five drivers responsible for the bad news. They think at the top of the list is the change of land and sea use. The change in ecosystems towards agriculture, aquaculture and other human developments has led to changes in the natural living space of species. It is followed by the direct overuse of creatures (harvesting crops, cutting down the trees, hunting and fishing) and climate change, including rising sea levels and increasing extreme-weather events, wildfires, floods and droughts. The final causes of species extinction are pollution, especially plastics, and the spread of non-native species that can kill native plants and animals. In fact, good ecosystems can promote the growth of species.
The researchers say it is time for humans to act. They think maybe a new global way to save food and refuse waste in our life can turn the tables. Whether that is possible is an open question.
1. What is the main purpose of the first paragraph?A.To introduce the topic of the text. | B.To introduce the schedule of the report. |
C.To introduce humans’ sense of responsibility. | D.To introduce the history of human development. |
A.The reliability of the findings. | B.The species of animals worldwide. |
C.The seriousness of species’ reduction. | D.The risky experiences of the researchers. |
A.Narrow. | B.Interdependent. | C.Competitive. | D.Unrelated. |
A.Change the situations. | B.Ask the open questions. |
C.Pollute the environments. | D.Turn the tables upside and down. |
3 . Heat waves are becoming more common in parts of the United States — and that means more people running their air conditioners for longer. But those air conditioners can make the problem worse, giving off greenhouse gases as they work that contribute heavily to climate change.
SkyCool Systems is trying to break that cycle, using technology that promises to offer buildings an alternative means to cool down in a similar way to how the planet cools itself. “Our planet naturally cools itself by sending heat out in the form of infrared light (红外线) or radiation,” said Eli Goldstein, SkyCool’s cofounder and CEO. “We do this through rooftop panels, which look like solar panels but actually do the opposite, reflecting 97% of the sunlight that hits them and cooling the surface below,” said Goldstein.
SkyCool’s model involves fixing a network of pipes below those panels. These pipes are filled with water, which is kept cool by the panels and then flows into an air conditioning system. This process is designed to take pressure off the system’s cooling mechanism. And because the panels cool naturally and don’t need external power to function, it helps the entire system use less electricity.
A Grocery Outlet store in California, which has been using SkyCool’s system since last year, says it saw a marked drop in its electrical bills. Jesus Valenzuela, the store manager, estimates that the panels have saved his store roughly $3,000 a month.
But perhaps the biggest barrier to making the technology ubiquitous (无处不在的) is its relatively high cost. Increasing production could help bring the cost down, Goldstein said, particularly for developing countries in Asia and Africa where SkyCool hopes to eventually expand. For now, the company is focused on commercial applications of the technology, though it hopes to start setting up panels on the roofs of individual homes. “We’re just excited to be able to use this new technology for good,” Goldstein said.
1. How did Goldstein explain the way their rooftop panels work?A.By citing an expert’s words. | B.By making comparisons. |
C.By analyzing cause and effect. | D.By describing the process in detail. |
A.To store cold water to help cool the panels. |
B.To help ease the water pressure of the air conditioning. |
C.To power the panels by making use of flowing water. |
D.To feed cold water into the air conditioning system. |
A.It’s pretty effective. | B.It has increased sales for his store. |
C.It will go out of style quickly. | D.It will cost too much to set up. |
A.It’ll bring in a good profit for the company. | B.It’ll gain popularity in developed countries. |
C.It’ll take the place of air conditioners. | D.It’ll be accessible to common households. |
4 . Some exhibitions and new displays create lots of waste. So museums are increasingly aware of the role they have to play in dealing with that. At Manchester Museum, John Miller and Robert O’Conner have developed their own approach to creating a circle from the exhibition, to exhibition changeover, and back to the museum workshop, reusing materials in any way they can.
Holding different exhibitions and displays means that museums are often left with structures (结构体) that won’t be used again. At the end of an exhibition, John and Robert carefully take down and cut all materials into workable units, ready to be reused wherever needed. When Pinc College based at Manchester Museum needed new classrooms, the workshop team were able to use completely recycled materials to build them.
While it’s easy to think of new as being better, reusing materials doesn’t mean you can’t create beautiful displays. Last year, the museum placed Illuminating Nature, a surprising window display showing some objects under UV light. Almost every part of it was reused. The only thing that needed to be bought was the UV lights, proving you don’t need to spend much to create something impressive.
No matter how many materials you try to reuse there will always be something left over. Why not keep an eye out for charities or local groups who would welcome a donation? As with many museums, paint is often bought for an exhibition. And there will be a few extra cans left over. Manchester Museum usually takes them to Betel UK, a charity that supports people losing their jobs. The paint is used by Betel UK in their workshops for people to learn special skills and then refresh furniture (家具) which is then sold in their shops.
The impressive efforts of John and Robert are a shining example of a museum team that is establishing best practices and proving its determination to build a greener world. Their work inspires other teams to move away from the growth-model thinking that’s been influential in museums for the past twenty years.
1. What are John and Robert trying to do?A.Put on exhibitions on waste problems. |
B.Improve people’s interest in traditional art. |
C.Turn exhibition waste into something useful. |
D.Change people’s attitudes to museum exhibitions. |
A.To advertise the beautiful exhibition. |
B.To teach people to use UV lights properly. |
C.To show a successful case of material reuse. |
D.To encourage people to enjoy the beauty of nature. |
A.By storing it away for future use. |
B.By selling it to local people at a low price. |
C.By using it to decorate the museum again. |
D.By donating it to an organization in need of support. |
A.Their effectiveness has been questioned by other museums. |
B.They provide new ideas for the development of museums. |
C.They inspire more artists to hold creative exhibitions. |
D.Their limitations have been well removed. |
5 . The waste management park at Water Beach in Cambridgeshire handles 400,000 tons of recycling every year, and is the biggest centre of its kind in the East of England.
Fran Hawes is standing on the edge of a mountain of dry recycling. She says, “Some think it’s a discouraging thing, but for me personally, it is a huge responsibility.” Fran, who started to do the job at the age of 26, takes her job very seriously. “I am that annoying person at a party who will get everyone’s recycling and make sure everything goes in the right bin,” she admits. “That’s my job. That’s my mission. That’s what I need to do. It allows me to find my leadership style.”
Bin loader Richard Hughes and his colleagues clock on (打卡上班) at the waste service garage in Peter borough at 6:30 and are out emptying bins within half an hour. Richard works four 12-hour days and admits the pay and the condition are not great — but there are three days off which he can spare to his partner and children. His colleague Crystal Teal has been working as a bin loader for two and a half months. “I didn’t feel my last job gave me self-worth and general happiness, so I decided to change and do something completely different,” she says. “I decided to be a binman. It doesn’t bother me that men are mainly doing it,” Crystal adds. “It can be smelly some days, but go home and have a shower, you’ll be all right.”
Their biggest problem? When householders put the wrong material — like rotting food and nappies — in the recycling bins. “It makes me feel angry that they are just putting it out there. We’re doing our job to serve them. We are providing service to take their rubbish away and they can’t do their part to put the right things in,” said Richard. “Any problem has a solution — therefore I’m not afraid of a pile of waste,” Fran says. “To any normal person, this might be intimidating (吓人的). It’s a challenge. But this will be gone by Monday morning.”
1. Why does Fran Hawes make others annoyed at a party?A.She still performs her task of garbage sorting. | B.She hosts the party in a leadership way. |
C.She asks everyone to be responsible for their jobs. | D.She might be smelly at parties. |
A.She needed a well-paid job. | B.She preferred the three-day-off holiday. |
C.She liked to do something meaningful. | D.She didn’t find loading bins dirty and smelly. |
A.People didn’t take out their rubbish. | B.People threw away rubbish everywhere. |
C.People didn’t sort their rubbish out rightly. | D.People picked out useful things from the bins. |
A.Brave. | B.Amazing. | C.Anxious. | D.Optimistic. |
6 . In the U.S., people eat more protein than they need to, which might not be bad for human health, but does pose a problem for the country’s waterways. The nation’s wastewater is loaded with the leftovers from protein digestion: nitrogen compounds (氮化合物) that can feed harmful algal blooms (藻华) and pollute the air and drinking water.
Maya Almaraz, a biogeochemist at the University of California, Davis, and her team wanted to see how much of this nitrogen entered into the U.S. wastewater system because of a protein-heavy diet. The researchers found that the majority of nitrogen pollution present in wastewater—some 67 to 100 percent—is a by-product of what people consume.
Once it enters the environment, the nitrogen can have a series of ecological impacts. It helps algae grow much faster than they would normally, which is harmful to humans, other animals and plants. And when the algae eventually die, the problem is not over. Microorganisms (微生物) that feed on dead algae use up oxygen in the water, leading to “dead zones”, where many species simply cannot survive, in rivers, lakes and oceans.
Although it is possible to treat algal blooms, many of the current methods are not always effective at getting rid of all of the harmful growth. Some of these methods can even lead to additional pollution. So the best strategy for dealing with the effects of nitrogen pollution is prevention, says Patricia Glibert, an ocean scientist at the University of Maryland. Almaraz and her team state that controlling nitrogen pollution could be approached more quickly with a change in eating habits that could save billions of dollars in the long term.
1. Which aspect of Americans’ diet does Almaraz’s research focus on?A.Its popularity. | B.Its amount. | C.Its effect. | D.Its make-up. |
A.No oxygen for many species. | B.Death of lots of healthy algae. |
C.Microorganisms’ over-consumption of nutrients. | D.Poisonous chemicals released by harmful algae. |
A.They are costly. | B.They are slow to take effect. |
C.They may kill all algae. | D.They may cause secondary pollution. |
A.Why the Algae Grow So Rapidly? | B.How to Solve the Problem of Wastewater? |
C.How to Prevent the Air and Water Pollution? | D.Why Eating Too Much Protein Harms the Planet? |
7 . Saving the environment might seem like a tall order, but living an environmentally friendly life is actually quite easy.
Recycle
Recycling is a simplest lifestyle to lower the amount of environmental waste. Every resident can get involved by taking advantage of nearby recycling services.
Buy locally-sourced foods
Eating fresh, local food consumes less fuel and packaging materials. Shipping products by truck, rail, flight, or boat creates pollution and goes against an environmentally friendly lifestyle. Instead, shop at local farmers’ markets and grocery stores stocking locally-sourced products.
Cut back on driving
Applying alternate forms of transportation consumes less gasoline.
Advocacy allows more people to create a positive impact. Spread the word about environmental conservation by sharing some of the lifestyle changes you’ve made on social media and in conversations with people around, calling on everybody to play a role.
A.Cut back your carbon footprint |
B.Walk or ride a bike whenever possible |
C.Encourage others to help save the environment |
D.Check the regulations to ensure you use them properly |
E.The topic of preserving natural resources entertains everyone |
F.With just a few small lifestyle changes, you can make a difference |
G.Alternatively, use community-supported services to get fresh produce regularly |
8 . An international group of electronic music composers is taking beats from the dance club to jungles and forests and back, all to help save nature’s greatest singers. A Guide to the Birdsong of Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean is a new album that includes the sounds of endangered birds. The album will come out next month, whose proceeds will go directly towards efforts to save birds.
The whole project was born out of this idea of trying to combine birdsong, electronic music and conservation. A Guide to the Birdsong of Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean was organized by activist, music producer, Robin Perkins. He invited artists from each of the endangered birds ‘homelands to build their own songs around the birds’ songs. There are contributions from ten artists in eight different countries.
First single Black Catbird was created by The Garifuna Collective, from Belize. Al Obando, guitarist and producer of the group, always took in national parks and viewed birds when on the road with the band. “There are no trails, and there are no signs there to tell you about what you’re seeing,” Obando says. “So we’re trying to do something for the birds and nature tourism.”
Another musician who responded to Robin’s call is Tamara Montenegro, an artist from Nicaragua. She was shocked to hear of the serious situation of the Guardabarranco after being approached: “This beautiful creature I grew up adoring also faced the influence of the systematic human activities”. In response, she created a song inspired by this bird and the challenges it faces to live naturally.
The new album is the second edition, following on from A Guide to the Birdsong of South America, produced by Robin in 2015. That first album has raised, to date, over $15,000 benefitting conservation projects in South America. As with the first album, all of the money from the sales of the new album will support specific organizations, including Birds Caribbean.
1. What does the underlined word “proceeds” in Paragraph 1 refer to?A.Profits. | B.Budgets. | C.Challenges. | D.Effects. |
A.He created a hit single himself. |
B.He was fond of observing birds. |
C.He was the organizer of the new album. |
D.He did a lot for birds in South America. |
A.It was friendly to humans. |
B.It was living in bad conditions. |
C.It was beautiful in appearance. |
D.It was facing challenges from other birds. |
A.To collect money for a project. |
B.To popularize electronic music. |
C.To recommend some famous artists. |
D.To introduce a new album of electronic music. |
9 . For many young Canadians, planting trees is more than just a job. It’s a way of
Planting trees is not easy work, according to Leslie. Not only is it
So far, Leslie has planted a total of 372,290 trees in the past few years.
“I think every parent in Canada should
A.appointment | B.impression | C.recreation | D.life |
A.investment | B.liberation | C.video | D.story |
A.negative | B.speedy | C.respective | D.influential |
A.rewarding | B.massive | C.original | D.diverse |
A.barely | B.permanently | C.gradually | D.physically |
A.heavy | B.sunny | C.severe | D.obvious |
A.expect | B.organize | C.prefer | D.recover |
A.scream | B.action | C.push | D.wave |
A.potential | B.sudden | C.tough | D.flexible |
A.Moreover | B.However | C.Besides | D.Therefore |
A.turns to | B.relates to | C.belongs to | D.subscribes to |
A.admit | B.warn | C.whisper | D.recommend |
A.send | B.celebrate | C.understand | D.decide |
A.imagined | B.argued | C.explained | D.responded |
A.version | B.concept | C.responsibility | D.qualification |
10 . Since the 1920s, a little-known policy called parking minimums has shaped many Americans’ life. In major cities, this meant that any type of building needed to reserve a certain number of parking spaces to accommodate anyone who might visit.
But as the country attempts to cut carbon emissions (排放), we should rethink what transportation and public space look like, especially in cities. Earlier this month, the city of Austin, Texas, became the latest community to undo parking minimums.
“If we want half of all trips to be in something other than a car, then we can’t, as a city, in my opinion, demand that every home or business have at least one parking space for each resident or customer,” said Zohaib Qadri, the Austin city council member who introduced the measure. Reducing dependency on cars was a huge push for the initiative in Austin. Qadri hopes the measure also will lead to a more sustainable city.
The undoing of this law could pave the way for cities to build denser (密集的) housing, increase public transit options, and reduce their carbon emissions, according to Donald Shoup, an engineer and professor. “It isn’t just the housing crisis and climate change; it’s a traffic jam; it’s local air pollution; it’s the high price of everything—except parking,” said Shoup.
Climate change and air pollution are particularly costly outcomes, with both estimated to cost the US billions of dollars every year. Parking spots, meanwhile, can run in the tens of thousands of dollars to construct, with one estimate putting that figure at almost $30, 000 per spot.
But undoing parking minimums does not mean that all parking will disappear overnight. It means that any off-street parking built will not need to meet any minimum standard.
“Austin is the same city that it was two weeks ago,” said Shoup. “It’s going to take quite a while for that city to really get the benefits of their parking space reforms. And so it just removes a roadblock and a barrier to other reforms.”
1. Why was parking minimums policy deserted in Austin?A.To make room for green belts. | B.To help tackle climate problems. |
C.To respond to residents’ demand. | D.To ease the heavy traffic. |
A.Parking space provides convenience. |
B.Cars are used for half of people’s trips. |
C.Each home needs more than one parking space. |
D.Reducing parking space can reduce dependency on cars. |
A.Supportive. | B.Concerned. | C.Doubtful. | D.Disappointed. |
A.The Harm of Climate Change | B.The Origin of Parking Minimums |
C.The Reason for Too Many Emissions | D.A Possible Way to Fight Climate Change |