1 . We eat plants and juice them, and now it seems we can mine them too!

After a successful experiment on the island of Borneo, the botany professor Alan Baker and a group of researchers want to introduce phytomining (harvesting minerals from plants) as a better and partial substitute (代替物) for traditional mining.

Phytomining means collecting metals from live plants. However, this can only be done with a group of plants known as “hyperaccumulators (超富集植物)”. There are around 700 identified types worldwide, and what makes these hyperaccumulators special is that they naturally attract and absorb minerals through their roots — metals poisonous to other plants — and then store huge and pure concentrations of these minerals in their bodies. The metals can then be extracted from the plants’ sap (汁), oil, or sometimes even live tissue.

Baker and his colleagues see a lot of potential in phytomining. Not only can it help meet the growing global demand for metals, but it is a way of reducing some of that damage to the environment caused by traditional mining.

One of the biggest problems with traditional mining is that it pollutes the surrounding area. Phytomining can extract metal waste, plus planting the hyperaccumulators would regrow the deforested areas caused by mining operations. Aside from this, if phytomining is able to replace part of traditional mining, then there will be fewer instances of bad mining practices like abandoned mines, which pollute the nearby waters. Also, since phytomining provides metals that are already naturally pure, there is no need to use huge amounts of energy to purify them.

Phytomining has its drawbacks. Harvesting plants on a large scale is expensive today, compared to traditional mining. Besides, plants can be wiped out by diseases or unexpected weather conditions.

However, there are many reasons to consider phytomining. After all, we need to make sure that our planet can exist persistently and sustainable practices like phytomining give us the hope that our advancement doesn’t mean sacrificing Mother Earth.

1. What makes hyperaccumulators different from other plants?

A．The sap poisonous to other plants.

B．The oil extracted from live plant tissue.

C．The ability to take in and store minerals.

D．The concentrations of minerals in their bodies.

2. What is the advantage of phytomining?

A．It can stop deforestation.

B．It can’t be destroyed by diseases.

C．It may reduce the deserted mines.

D．It uses clean energy to purify metals.

3. What is the author’s attitude toward phytomining?

A．Pessimistic.	B．Supportive.
C．Indifferent.	D．Skeptical.

4. What can be the best title for the text?

A．Metals From Plants.

B．Benefits of Phytomining.

C．The Future of Phytomining.

D．What Are Hyperaccumulators?

2 . A student at Hellesdon High School in England has been called “Rubbish Girl” for her environmentally­friendly ways. _____, that has not stopped her from cleaning up the environment.

Using the basket on her bicycle, 12­year­old Nadia has been _____ rubbish along her two­mile route to and from school since September of last year. _____ her good intentions, some of the kids at Nadia’s school have nicknamed (给……起绰号) her “Rubbish Girl” and have bullied her for her selfless efforts to help the _____. But instead of letting them bring her down, she’s using their negativity as motivation (动力).

“I’m not going to _____ doing the right thing because of them,” she said. “I’m doing something to _____ the world which they also live in. It’s everyone’s job. We are all _____ for keeping this world safe, instead of believing it’s always someone else’s job.”

Nadia’s mum, Paula, said she is _____ proud of Nadia for not only standing up to her bullies, but also standing up for what she believes in. “I told her she had two _____ — she could either stop collecting rubbish, stop attracting their ______ so that they would leave her alone, or she could face the challenge, be the ‘rubbish girl’ and keep her ______.”

As a result of the local media attention, Nadia has created a group named “Team Rubbish Girl”, where she shares updates on her green efforts. Positive ______ have poured in, all in ______ of Nadia, encouraging her to carry on with the green efforts.

“Sweetheart, you are a star that ______ really bright above the rest. Hold your head high and never let others ______ you. You are doing something selfless and amazing. Shame on the bullies,” wrote one of the local citizens on her web page.

1.

A．Therefore

B．However

C．Besides

D．Meanwhile

2.

A．picking up

B．taking off

C．giving away

D．leaving behind

3.

A．Despite

B．Without

C．Due to

D．Thanks to

4.

A．disabled

B．homeless

C．planet

D．business

5.

A．start

B．enjoy

C．practise

D．stop

6.

A．discover

B．protect

C．repair

D．understand

7.

A．responsible

B．ready

C．grateful

D．available

8.

A．hardly

B．generally

C．barely

D．extremely

9.

A．goals

B．choices

C．problems

D．friends

10.

A．strength

B．conclusion

C．attention

D．energy

11.

A．balance

B．promise

C．number

D．faith

12.

A．effects

B．results

C．comments

D．experiences

13.

A．charge

B．honour

C．search

D．support

14.

A．shines

B．falls

C．burns

D．compares

15.

A．praise

B．discourage

C．improve

D．welcome

3 . There are lots of ways to raise awareness for a cause. Usually, the stranger the idea is, the more it gets noticed. And that’s precisely why one________Frenchman has caught our attention.

Baptiste Dubanchet is biking across Europe, surviving________on discarded (丢弃) food. The three-month, 1,900-mile journey from Paris to Warsaw is Dubanchet’s way of raising awareness of food waste in Europe and throughout the world.

As you can________, the trip is no piece of cake. While restaurants________tons of food each year, much of it remains inaccessible because of________garbage containers, health regulations, or business policies. Only about one in ten places________him food that would otherwise be discarded. For legal reasons, most restaurants have a policy against________food waste. “Some people have even________their jobs by giving me food,” Dubanchet said.

What’s________ interesting is the attitude various cities have toward Dubanchet’s cause. Berlin has been the________while the most difficult was the Czech town of Pilsen. There, he had to ask at some 50 different stores or restaurants before finding food. The________is all the more serious when you consider the________exercise required to bike from France to Poland.

“I have to get food fast because after all the biking I am tired and I need the________,” Dubanchet explained. “Is my________full or empty? That is the most important thing, not what I am eating.”

He aims to________his journey by mid-July. With any luck, he’ll turn a few more heads in the process.

1.

A．garbage-eating

B．sports-loving

C．food-wasting

D．law-breaking

2.

A．secretly

B．finally

C．entirely

D．probably

3.

A．observe

B．imagine

C．suggest

D．remember

4.

A．store

B．cook

C．shop for

D．throw away

5.

A．locked

B．damaged

C．connected

D．abandoned

6.

A．bought

B．offered

C．ordered

D．sold

7.

A．begging for

B．giving away

C．hiding

D．causing

8.

A．did

B．kept

C．accepted

D．risked

9.

A．hardly

B．usually

C．particularly

D．merely

10.

A．easiest

B．nearest

C．biggest

D．richest

11.

A．competition

B．conversation

C．conflict

D．challenge

12.

A．adequate

B．rewarding

C．demanding

D．suitable

13.

A．spirit

B．energy

C．time

D．effort

14.

A．stomach

B．hand

C．pocket

D．basket

15.

A．arrange

B．restart

C．report

D．finish

6 . 语法填空

A lot of people feel overwhelmed trying to make changes that help the planet. Conservation psychologist Janet Swim from Pennsylvania State University says people often think their actions won’t have enough of     1     impact to matter. “It’s like, ‘What can I do? It’s just me.’”     2     it does matter a lot. “It’s just like voting，” the professor says. “I vote. I’m only one person. That one action is an important action     3     (take). We work together as a collective to do things，” she said. And there’s the multiplier effect. “Small behaviors matter particularly when     4     (accumulate) across time and across people，” Swim said. Household behavior     5     (actual) can make a substantial difference,     6     (reduce) greenhouse gas emissions, according to researchers from Michigan State University and Vanderbilt University. Most of that potential comes from adopting energy­efficient behaviors. Their research lists the most practical 17 steps     7     each American can take, including carpooling, weatherizing houses and driving fuel­efficient     8     (vehicle). If every American takes these steps, according to these researchers, it     9     (cut) the total U. S. household emissions by 20% over ten years—an amount equal     10     the entire emissions output of France.

7 . Farmer Pak Sadiman has made it his task to raise awareness and do something about Central Java’s water shortage problem, little by little.

He has changed his dry village into a groundwater haven by planting trees on nearby land for the last 19 years, and he’s encouraging others to join in, too.

Sadiman realised that the land was in need of some water when the Gendol River—previously the source of water for villagers—was quickly drying up. Even rubber trees, the local people’s main source of income, were so dry that they could no longer produce rubber latex. It was then that Sadiman took action so that generations to come could benefit from the planted trees.

“Banyan trees, unlike rubber trees, can keep groundwater. The more banyan trees are planted, the more clean water villagers will get,” he thought. Although he would often find his seeds dug up by cattle, the farmer never became discouraged from achieving his goal—providing his village with a clean water source.

He’s planted at least 11,000 trees over the last 19 years, and his village seems to have escaped from the dry season. Villagers have joined in Sadiman’s efforts and given him free seeds or worked alongside him to plant the trees. “Pak Sadiman is our hero. This village used to fight with water shortage, but now we have enough water because of him,” the local chief said.

Sadiman said as long as he’s physically healthy and fit, he’ll continue to plant trees and finish his vision of avoiding drought and help provide clean water for his fellow villagers.

1. What problem did Pak Sadiman plan to solve?

A．Water shortage.

B．Villagers’ low income.

C．Villagers’ bad living conditions.

D．The shortage of natural resources.

2. What can we know about the Gendol River?

A．It has provided water for the villagers till now.

B．It has enough water even in the dry season.

C．It was the main source of water for locals.

D．It has been polluted by human activities.

3. Which of the following can best describe Pak Sadiman?

A．Friendly and outgoing.

B．Kind and determined.

C．Thankful and patient.

D．Honest and clever.

4. What is the best title of the text?

A．A Plan to Plant More Trees

B．A Farmer Preferring to Plant Trees

C．A Village Saved by the Government’s Efforts

D．A Farmer Saving His Village from Drought

8 . 每年3月是植树活动月，假定你是李华，你们班开展了一次植树活动，请你根据以下要点，写一篇日记，叙述记录这次植树活动，并在英语课上向同学们展示。
1．活动目的：亲近自然，美化环境；
2．具体活动过程；
3．活动感受。
注意：1．词数80 左右；
2．可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

10 . Desertification, the process by which fertile (肥沃的) land becomes desert, has severe impacts on food production and is worsened by climate change.    1    

Africa’s Great Green Wall is a project to build an 8,000- kilometre-long forest across 11 of the continent s countries. The project is meant to contain the growing Sahara Desert and fight climate change.    2    They include limited political support, lack of money, weak organizational structures, and not enough consideration for the environment. Just 4 million hectares (公顷) of land have been turned into forest since work on the Green Wall began 15 years ago.    3    

First proposed in 2005, the project aims to plant a forest from Senegal on the Atlantic Ocean in western Africa to Eritrea, Ethiopia and Djibouti in the east.    4     It could also reduce levels of climate-related migration in the area and capture hundreds of millions of tons of carbon dioxide from the air. Several countries have struggled to keep up with the demands of the project.

    5     Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Sudan have all expanded their efforts. Ethiopia is producing 5.5 billion seedlings leading to thousands of hectares of restored land. Efforts in Eritrea and Sudan have also resulted in nearly 140,000 hectares of newly planted forest. The U. N. desertification agency says the project will need to plant an average of 8.2 million hectares yearly to reach its goal of 100 million hectares by 2030．

A．But the project faces many problems.

B．That is only 4 percent of the programme’s goal.

C．However, it is difficult to work on the Great Green Wall.

D．A quarter of Africa is under threat of food shortage.

E．Some progress has been made in recent years in the east of the continent.

F．Supporters hope that the project will create millions of green jobs in rural Africa.

G．The U.N. says up to 45 percent of Africa’s land is impacted by desertification, worse than any other continent.