1 . When Abdus Salam looks across the garbage-filled river near his home in one of the major clothing producing districts in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, he remembers a time before the factories moved in. “When I was young there were no clothing factories here. We used to catch fish in the river,” he said. The river beside him is now black like ink. Waste from nearby clothing factories has polluted the water.
Fashion is responsible for up to one-fifth of industrial water pollution, thanks in part to weak management and enforcement in producer countries like Bangladesh, the world’s second biggest clothing producing country, where wastewater is commonly discharged directly into rivers and streams. The wastewater not only hurts the environment, but pollutes drinking water sources.
Once in waterways, poisonous chemicals from dyes (染料) build up to the point where light is prevented from coming through the surface, reducing plants’ ability to photosynthesize (进行光合作用). This lowers oxygen levels in the water, killing plants and animals. These chemicals and heavy metals can also build up in the body, increasing the risk of serious illnesses and skin problems. What’s worse, chemical-rich water is also used to water crops, with one recent study finding that dyes were present in vegetables and fruit grown aiound Savaz, just north of Dhaka.
Luckily, change is coming. In Bangladesh, there are signs clothing producers are taking environmental responsibility more seriously, with brands committing to initiatives, such as the Partnership for Cleaner Textile, that tackle water, energy and chemical use in the industry. Shahab Uddin of Bangladesh’s Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change said a range of measures were being taken to address pollution, including updating conservation and environmental laws, giving fines to polluters, setting up centralized treatment plants, and working with international development partners to improve wastewater treatment. And under a new environmental policy called Zero Liquid Discharge, dyeing, finishing and washing industries must submit a time-bound plan to reduce, recycle and reuse wastewater.
“There is definitely room for further improvement. These challenges cannot be solved overnight,” Uddin added.
1. What is the main purpose of the first paragraph?A.To blame clothing factories for river pollution. |
B.To introduce Bangladesh’s clothing industry. |
C.To call for the closure of clothing factories. |
D.To recall the good old days in Dhaka. |
A.It is the biggest clothing producing country. |
B.It causes 20% of the world’ s water pollution. |
C.It suffers from serious drinking water shortages. |
D.It has poor control over wastewater discharge. |
A.The difficulty of dealing with poisonous chemicals in waterways. |
B.The chemicals from dyes negatively affecting photosynthesis. |
C.The damaging effects of wastewater from the fashion industry. |
D.The way to remove harmful chemicals from the food chain. |
A.Establish centralized treatment plants. |
B.Set a deadline for tackling wastewater. |
C.Pay high fines for discharging wastewater. |
D.Join international groups to treat wastewater. |
2 . As we all know, plastic products like bags, bottles, toys and various other products end up in our oceans daily. They then pollute and kill marine animals, which ultimately affects humans because it causes widespread starvation among sea life which we depend on for food sources. With global levels of plastic waste in the ocean at an all-time high, there has never been a better time to consider making your swimwear from alternative sources.
It’s time to end the plastic waste polluting our oceans, but we’re not going to wait for someone else to do it. Creating swimsuits and other clothing items out of plastic collected from our oceans might seem pretty far-fetched, but Seamore (after Seamus Malone, our founder) is doing just that. We aim to make people more aware of how much plastic they use every day by providing stylish swimsuits made entirely from recycled ocean plastics.
The process is simple. Gather plastic waste from oceans and waterways, clean it, and turn it functional. Manufacturers (生产商) receive recycled plastic pellet (团粒) material and they press those pellets into fiber sheets; and then they die-cut, sew, or print those fibers into whatever products they want. It’s manufacturers who can decide whether their final product will be recyclable or not. Swimwear collections made from recycled materials found in our oceans illustrate how much impact we can have on our world when we set out to do so with pure intentions.
Today, as more and more people are taking part in water-centric activities, there is greater demand for water-friendly clothing options, especially among individuals looking for alternatives that meet their needs for comfort and functionality in and out of water. But the sad truth is that most of us have no idea where our clothing comes from — and if a recent report is accurate, one-third of all clothing purchased isn’t even worn before it ends up in a landfill.
1. Why is the first paragraph mainly written?A.To show what influence plastic waste has. |
B.To introduce a new environmental effort. |
C.To illustrate how sea life survive the crisis. |
D.To predict the possible effects of pollution. |
A.By producing alternative energy from ocean. |
B.By promoting programmes to educate people. |
C.By offering swimwear made from sea plastics. |
D.By means of organizing theme-related speeches. |
A.It’s easy to collect ocean-based waster. | B.Fibre is made from ocean plastic pellets. |
C.A product’s recyclability is up to its maker. | D.Swimwear can test how we impact marine life. |
A.Positive. | B.Concerned. | C.Doubtful. | D.Cold. |
3 . Plastic pollution is growing rapidly across Earth’s ecosystems and its threat to humanity and wildlife is too. Outcomes for health and the environment will be severe unless we address it, says a United Nations (UN) report. But the discovery of microplastics in human blood means immediate action is needed.
Researchers found tiny plastic particles (微粒), less than one-thousandth of a millimeter in size, in almost 80 percent of 22 people they tested. Such small plastics can travel through the body and could stick in our vital organs. These tiny pieces could damage cells and tissues, causing many diseases like cancer.
“I was shocked but not surprised. We already knew that microplastics have been found in human organs. The body finds it hard to break these particles down, which associate them with chronic (长期的) disease,” said Jo Royle, the CEO of Common Seas—a social enterprise looking to stop plastic pollution. “It’s clear that the best way to battle with microplastics and prevent health problems is to make sure they don’t end up being deserted in our environment in the first place,” added Royle. “This is why we need leaders and businesses to take responsibility for plastic trash along its lifecycle.”
Some oil and gas companies that supply plastic products plan to expand plastic output and double production in the next 20 years. But analysts say that would backfire on people, governments, and industries rejecting plastic to protect the environment. Big brands are reducing plastic packaging and changing to alternatives. Plastic is seen as a threat as large as climate change and a UN treaty against pollution is the result.
Natural products like plant materials and even silk offer plastic alternatives, especially in food and product packaging. But the UN believes we cannot simply recycle our way out of the problem. An immediate reduction and industry transformation are needed. As the blood microplastic study suggests, that transformation must be rapid. Because the rate at which we absorb plastic into our bodies is faster than the rate we remove it. And that needs a planet-wide response.
1. What is the best way to solve microplastics problems according to Royle?A.Medical treatments for microplastics. |
B.Restrictions on throwing plastic waste. |
C.Developing natural alternatives to plastic. |
D.Raising personal awareness of microplastic. |
A.Go against. | B.Apply to. | C.Depend on. | D.Respond to. |
A.Recycling plastics proves to be not effective at all. |
B.Rapid transformation in plastic industry is needed. |
C.Most natural materials can be alternatives to plastics. |
D.The rate of bodies’ absorbing plastics is uncontrollable. |
A.Plastic Pollution Is Transforming Humans’ Lifestyle |
B.Increasing Updated Plastics Have Enjoyed Popularity |
C.Microplastics in Blood Highlight Health Emergency |
D.Practical Solutions to Plastic Waste Are Approaching |
4 . In today’s world, almost everyone knows that air pollution and water pollution are harmful to people’s health. However, not all the persons know that noise is also a kind of pollution, and that is harmful to human health, too.
People who work and live under noisy conditions usually become deaf. Today, however, scientists believe that 10 percent of workers in Britain are being deafened by the noise where they work. Many of the workers who print newspapers and books, and who weave (织) cloth become deaf. Quite a few people living near airports also become deaf. Recently it was discovered that many teenagers in America could hear no better than 65-year-old persons, for these young people like to listen to pop music and most of pop music is a kind of noise. Besides, noise produced by jet planes or machines will make people’s life difficult and unpleasant, or even make people ill or even drive them mad.
It is said that a continuous noise of over 85 decibels (分贝) can cause deafness. Now the governments in many countries have made laws to control noise and make it less than 85 decibels.
In China, the government is trying to solve not only air and water pollution problems but also noise pollution problems.
1. What kind of people go deaf easily go deaf?A.People who work and live under noisy conditions go deaf easily |
B.People who go shopping go deaf easily |
C.People who exercise every day go deaf easily |
D.People who like to do housework go deaf easily |
A.air pollution | B.water pollution | C.noise pollution | D.world pollution |
A.less than 85 | B.less than 65 | C.about 65 | D.more than 85 |
A.they are working in noisy places | B.they often listen to pop music |
C.they live near airports | D.they are too busy to listen to others’ talk |
A.only the air pollution | B.only the air and water pollution |
C.only the water pollution | D.the air, water and noise pollution |
5 . Carried by the wind, dust particles (微粒) from places such as the Sahara Desert can float halfway around the world before settling to the ground. As the plastics abandoned by humans break down into tiny pieces in the environment, they, too, travel through the atmosphere. Now scientists are a step closer to understanding how these microplastics travel in the globe — both locally and on long-distance flights.
Researchers spent more than a year collecting microplastics from 11 national parks and wilderness areas in the western U.S. They examined the particles that settled on dry days and those that fell along with rain or snow. In addition to making clear how microplastics move around, the results, published on Thursday in Science, reveal the seriousness of the problem: more than 1 million kilograms of microplastics — the weight of 120 million to 300 million plastic water bottles — fall on protected lands in the country’s western region each year.
The new findings add to scientists’ concern over microplastic pollution’s potential impacts on the environment and human health. “We’re not supposed to breathe in this material,” says Steve Allen, a microplastics researcher at the University of Strathclyde in Scotland, who was not involved in the new study. “Plastics in the environment “carry all sorts of pesticides (农药), heavy metals and all the other chemicals that we’ve made over time,” he adds. “They’re going to carry them directly into our lungs.”
Since their discovery in oceans in the 1970s, microplastics — which can be as large as a grain of rice or smaller than a particle of dust — have been found nearly everywhere researchers have looked: in cities, in Arctic snow, on remote mountaintops. Their presence in areas distant from the place where human live has pointed to them being carried by winds.
1. What do the scientists further understand now?A.Why Sahara Desert is expanding to the south of Africa. |
B.How plastic particles travel on the wind. |
C.Why it is hard for plastics to break down. |
D.How dust particles are spreading through the wind. |
A.The results showed the amount of microplastics is huge. |
B.Researchers collected microplastics across the U.S. |
C.Researchers focused on plastic particles in dry days. |
D.Numerous plastic water bottles were found each year. |
A.They should be recycled. | B.They do harm to weather. |
C.They can be used to make all sorts of pesticides. | D.They carry harmful chemicals to human lungs. |
A.Dust Particles Is Harmful to Our Lungs | B.The Environment Is Threatened by Plastics |
C.Microplastics Are Falling from the Sky | D.Microplastics Do Harm to Health |
6 . Micro plastics can accumulate in the brains of mammals (哺乳动物) and even lead to behavioral changes, according to a new study. This not only adds to evidence about the harm that micro plastics are doing to our environment, but crucially provides new insight into what they could be doing to our bodies.
Plastic pollution is a huge environmental concern. In particular, tiny pieces of micro plastic have been found everywhere from our oceans to the atmosphere. A team led by University of Rhode Island professor Jaime Ross wanted to learn about whether these micro plastics accumulate in the brains of mammals and the potential impact on behavior.
The researchers gave mice drinking water contaminated (污染) with different concentrations of micro plastics over a three-week period. They used mice of different ages to see whether the effects would vary in the younger or older mice.
Besides indications of changes in the mice’s brains, the team saw changes in their behavior, which were particularly apparent in the older animals. The behavioral changes are similar to symptoms you might expect to see in patients with dementia (痴呆) .
“These were not high doses of micro plastics, but in only a short period of time, we saw these changes,” Ross said in a statement.
“In this study, the micro plastics were delivered orally via drinking water, detection in tissues such as the gastrointestinal tract, which is a major part of the digestive system, was always probable,” Ross explained. “But the brain is protected by a boundary called the blood-brain barrier, which should make it harder to access. The team found that micro plastics had entered the brain’s tissues.”
“Once inside, micro plastics cause a decrease in the levels of a brain protein called GFAP,” Ross said. “A decrease in GFAP has been associated with early stages of some neurodegenerative diseases, including dementia and depression.”
Now that even the remotest parts of our planet are seemingly unable to escape contamination with micro plastics, more research like this, which seeks to better understand how human beings’ plastic habit could be coming back to bite us, is more urgently needed than ever.
1. What does paragraph 2 focus on?A.Why the study was carried out. | B.How ocean pollution appeared. |
C.How a team studied micro plastics. | D.Why micro plastics spread quickly. |
A.They delivered micro plastics directly into mice’s brains. |
B.They used mice of the same age to consume micro plastics. |
C.They set boundaries for mice’s digestive systems in advance. |
D.They gave mice micro plastic-contaminated drinking water. |
A.Brain tissues are easy to attack. | B.The study is far from convincing. |
C.The research results are surprising. | D.Mice’s brains are generally inactive. |
A.Moving to the remotest parts of our planet. |
B.Conducting more research on micro plastics. |
C.Keeping human beings’ current plastic habit. |
D.Preventing industries from producing plastics. |
7 . In Mumbai, there’s the ceaseless clamor of car homes as drivers edge through traffic. There’s pounding and buzzing from the construction of office towers and apartment blocks. Drumbeats and trumpet melodies spill out from weddings and countless festivals. And it’s all topped off by bellowing (大声吼叫的) street vendors and garbage trucks blasting Bollywood songs. Living in Mumbai requires a huge
When Sumaira Abdulali began campaigning against noise pollution in India’s financial capital two decades ago, friends, acquaintances and even her lawyers insisted it was
But in 2003, Abdulali won a lawsuit seeking to
The World Health Organization warns that noise is a top threat to human
In recent years, the battle against noise has become increasingly
Traffic is a tougher problem. Noise on the road can reach 110 decibels (分贝) — a level that can lead to permanent hearing damage after just 15 minutes of exposure, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Luckily,
Far more important is the longer-term impact of the day-to-day noise, so that’s where Vijay believes activists should focus their energy. “In India we celebrate festivals with lots of noise,” he says. “But our
A.talent | B.potential | C.demand | D.tolerance |
A.encouraging | B.reasonable | C.ridiculous | D.depressing |
A.take advantage of | B.put an end to | C.lay emphasis on | D.throw light on |
A.Therefore | B.Similarly | C.Subsequently | D.However |
A.well-being | B.intelligence | C.interaction | D.behavior |
A.largest | B.busiest | C.loudest | D.richest |
A.difficult | B.successful | C.diverse | D.easy |
A.availability | B.capitalization | C.urbanization | D.convenience |
A.in pace with | B.in contact with | C.in league with | D.in conflict with |
A.recommend | B.justify | C.resist | D.advocate |
A.government | B.technology | C.finance | D.psychology |
A.quiet | B.brave | C.safe | D.alert |
A.trigger | B.satisfy | C.reduce | D.maintain |
A.steps in | B.takes over | C.cuts in | D.takes off |
A.traffic | B.construction | C.ceremony | D.background |
8 . A new study has found that light pollution is making the night sky brighter and the stars dimmer (暗淡的). The study examined data from more than 50, 000 citizen star watchers across the world, It found that man-made, or artificial lighting is making the night sky about 10 percent brighter each year. Data for the study was collected from 2011 to 2022.
The result was a much faster rate of change than scientists had estimated in the past. As cities expand and put up more lights, a “skyglow” is created in the sky. Skyglow is a term scientists use to describe light that becomes more intense. The research team gave an example to explain the result. If a child is born where 250 stars can be seen on a clear night, by the time that child turns 18, only 100 stars will be seen.
Past studies involving artificial lighting used satellite images of the Earth at night. They had estimated the yearly increase in sky brightness to be about 2 percent a year. But the satellites used are not able to identify light with wavelengths toward the blue end of the spectrum (光谱) — including light given off by energy-effective LED bulbs. The researchers noted that more than half the new outdoor lights put in across the United States during the past 10 years have been LED lights. The satellites are also better at finding light that gets spread upward like a spotlight than light that spreads out from side to side, Kyba said.
“Migratory songbirds normally use starlight to orient (确定方向) where they are in the sky at night,” said Georgetown University biologist Emily Williams. She was not part of the study. And when sea turtle babies hatch, they use light to orient toward the ocean — light pollution is a huge deal for them.
Falchi, the physicist at the University of Santiago de Compostela, said part of what is being lost is a universal human experience. “The night sky caused the generations before ours to have exciting new ideas or made them want to create something, especially in art, music, science and literature,” he added.
1. What does the new study find according to Paragraph 1?A.Stars are observed by more citizens. |
B.Stars are much brighter than in the past. |
C.Light pollution continues to darken stars. |
D.Light makes the night sky more beautiful. |
A.To highlight an experiment. |
B.To present an assumption. |
C.To clarify a concept. |
D.To explain the result of artificial light. |
A.By the moonlight. | B.By the starlight. |
C.By the sunlight. | D.By the spotlight. |
A.Inspirational. | B.Mysterious. | C.Awesome. | D.Scared. |
9 . According to a new study, human noise is a “major global pollutant” that harms a wider range of animal life than we tend to think. Published in the journal Biology Letters, the study suggests noise pollution not only harms lots of animals, but also threatens the survival of more than 100 different species.
Lots of species rely on sound for communication, for example, including many amphibians, birds, insects and mammals which use sound for vital business like finding mates or warning about predators (捕猎者). If noise pollution drowns out enough of these messages. it can threaten survival and the stability of their populations.
On the other hand, noise pollution can make it harder for some predators to find food Bats and owls rely on sound to hunt, for instance, which may not work if noise pollution drowns out the sounds of their prey like insects and mice. Even if noise pollution is mild, it might still force them to spend more time and energy searching for food, which could be enough to cause a decline.
Noise pollution is a well-known risk for whales and dolphins, but it threatens other sea animals, too. The researchers cite fish larvae, which are easily drawn to the sounds of coral reefs (珊瑚礁). This is how they find suitable habitats, but if their journey features too much noise from ships and other human sources, more fish larvae may get lost or move into wrong reefs, potentially reducing their lifespan.
Similarly, noise pollution influences the way animals migrate (迁徙), which in turn can have chain effects for ecosystems along migration routes. Some migrating birds avoid areas with noise pollution, the researchers note, which may change not only where they travel, but also where they establish long-term homes and raise their young. Many ecosystems and non-migrating species have come to depend on the arrival of migrating birds, and many others may be unprepared for their sudden absence, so this could cause a series of ecological changes.
“Noise must be considered as a global pollutant and we need to develop strategies to protect animals from noise for their livelihoods,” says Kunc, the lead author of the study.
1. What is the new study mainly about?A.The sources of noise pollution. | B.The dangers of noise pollution to animals. |
C.Why people should lower noise levels. | D.How animals deal with noise pollution. |
A.They are very sensitive to sound. | B.Their hunting abilities are weakening. |
C.They are easily attracted by sounds. | D.Their populations are sharply declining. |
A.They may abandon their young. | B.They may give up their migration. |
C.They may change their migration routes. | D.They may develop new eating habits. |
A.Measures must be taken to reduce noise pollution. |
B.Noise pollution affects the way animals reproduce. |
C.Migrating animals will die out due to noise pollution. |
D.Nature reserves should be built to stop the loss of habitats. |
10 . The world’s oceans will likely lose about one-sixth of their fish and other creatures within 100 years if climate change continues on its current path. Every degree Celsius that the world’s oceans warm, their biomass is expected to drop five percent, a study found.
The study predicts that if there is no change in the rate of worldwide greenhouse gas production, there will be a 17-percent loss of biomass by the year 2100. But, if the world reduces carbon pollution, biomass losses could be limited to only about 5 percent.
Warming temperatures are the biggest issue. But climate change also produces oceans that are more acidic and have less oxygen. This also harms sea life. Much of the world depends on the oceans for food or work.
The findings make sense and the possible effects of the predicted losses of animal life are huge. “Climate change has the potential to cause serious new conflicts over ocean resource use as the human population continues to grow,” said scientists.
Marine biologist Boris Worm, who helped run the study, added that the “building blocks of marine life—plankton and bacteria—may decline less heavily.”
“Those marine animals that we use directly, and care about most deeply, are predicted to suffer the most,” said Worm. He works at Canada’s Dalhousie University.
Scientists had already believed climate change would likely reduce future ocean life. But past computer-based studies looked at only part of the picture or used only one model. The latest study used six different computer models to give the best picture look yet, William Cheung said.
University of Georgia marine biologist Samantha Joye was not part of the research. But she praised the study as well researched and extremely detailed, and called it “an urgent call for action”.
1. What does the underlined word “biomass” in paragraph 1 refer to?A.Ocean temperature. | B.Total marine life. |
C.Sea condition. | D.Ocean level. |
A.It may reduce the sea resource. | B.It leads to the extinction of marine life. |
C.It pollutes the environment of the ocean. | D.It may increase the world population. |
A.The largest ones. | B.The ones in deep oceans. |
C.The bacteria on sea surface. | D.Those we humans need most. |