Over a period of time, many habitats (棲息地)change with respect to the types of plants and animals that live there. This change is known as succession.
Succession occurs because plants and animals cause a change in the environment in which they live. The first weeds and grasses that appear on a bare field, for example, change the environment by shielding the soil from direct sunlight. As these plants spread, the ground becomes cooler and more moist than it was originally. Thus, the environment at the ground surface has been changed. The new surface conditions favor the sprouting（產(chǎn)生）of shrubs. As shrubs grow, they kill the grasses by preventing light from reaching them and also enhance (增加)the soil. Pine seedlings (苗)soon take hold and as they grow, they in turn shade out the shrubs. They are not able to shade out oak and hickory (山核桃)seedlings, however, that have found the forest floor suitable.  These seedlings grew into large trees that eventually shade out the pines.
【小題1】The best title of this passage is _____.

A．The Importance of Weeds and Grasses

B．The Success of Oak and Hickory

C．How Environmental Habitats Change

D．Animal and Plant Habitats

【小題2】It can be inferred (推理) from the passage that ______.

A．oak and hickory trees grow taller than pines

B．weeds and grasses prefer cold climate

C．pines and grasses can exist together

D．birds encourage the growth of shrubs

【小題3】 Which of the following is a stage of succession as described in the passage?

A．A forest cut down to build an airport.

B．A flood washing away a crop of wheat

C．Wild flowers growing in an unused parking lot

D．Animals being tamed (馴服)by children

Expensive and new gloves allow chatterboxes（話匣子）to take the term “handsfree” to a new level—by talking into them as they make a call. The gloves are known as “Talk to the Hand” and cost £1,000 a pair. They fixed a speaker unit into the thumb and a microphone into the little finger that can be connected to any mobile handset using Bluetooth.
Artist Sean Miles designed the new gloves that double as a phone in part of his project that shows the possibilities of gadget recycling. He uses outdated gloves and combines them with parts from mobile handsets recycled through O2, which commissioned（承擔(dān)）the project. Mobile phone users will be able to keep their hands warm while they chat without taking their phones out of their pockets or handbags.
Mr Miles designed two pairs of the new gloves—one in pink and the other in brown and yellow. They will appear in an exhibition this July and visitors will be able to win the gloves. If demand is high, they will then be produced on a larger scale. O2 Recycle, which backed the project, estimates that there are already 70 million unused mobile handsets in the UK. The service pays up to £260 to those who recycle gadgets including phones, handheld consoles, MP3 players and digital cameras.
Designer Sean Miles hopes his work will get people thinking about recycling. The 41-year-old said, “I hope that my ‘Talk to the Hand’ project will get people to think again about the waste created by not recycling gadgets. If a few more people recycle their gadgets rather than send them to trash, I think this project will have fulfilled its aim.”
Bill Eyres, head of O2 Recycle, urges people to recycle their phone responsibly. He said, “There’s a pressing need for all of us to look at outdated handsets, and all the gadgets that we move on from or upgrade each year. Whether they are consoles or cameras, we should think of them as a resource that we need to recycle responsibly rather than throw them away.”
【小題1】The underlined word “O2” in Paragraph 2 is probably the name of ______.

A．a(chǎn)n artist

B．a(chǎn) company

C．a(chǎn) mobile

D．a(chǎn)n exhibition

【小題2】Consumers can buy the “Talk to the Hand” gloves ______.

A．in the exhibition

B．from Mr Miles

C．when they are mass produced

D．a(chǎn)fter they recycle the gadgets

【小題3】 The purpose of the project is to _______.

A．promote the technology of IT

B．enable people to talk to their hands

C．raise people’s awareness of recycling

D．a(chǎn)ttract visitors’ attention in the exhibition

【小題4】What is the passage mainly about?

A．New mobiles that are fashionable.

B．Outdated handsets that are upgraded.

C．Outdated gadgets that can be used for recycling.

D．New gloves that can be used for making phone calls.

The olinguito（小尖吻浣熊）is new to science. Although lt has been living in the cloud forests of South Amcrica for some time.
Scientists say the olinguito is the first new carnivore（食肉動(dòng)物）discovered In the Americas in more than 30 years. It is a hairy orange-brown creature with a sweet face and big eyes The animal has small. rounded ears and lives in the trees An adult weighs one kilogram and measures about 75 centimeters. with half of those centimeters taken up by its ringed tail Most of the time. it likes to eat fruit, although it also eats meat. Active at night, the animal has lived in Colombia and Ecuador for a long time. But the olinguito did not exist in science books before now.
Kristofer Helgen, director at the National Museum in Washington, led the research team that confirmed the existence of the olinguito. It had been mistaken more than a century ago for a look-alike animal -- a similar but larger olingo(尖吻浣熊). Mr. Helgen had been studying olingos in a museum for ten years. At that time. he observed a difference in the size and shape of the heads and teeth. That led him on an effort to prove he was looking at an animal never before described by science. He got lucky when he communicated with a zoologist in Ecuador. The animal expert there made a short video that shows an olinguito in the trees. The video confirms that the oiinguito is different from the olingo     Mr. Helgen says tens of thousands of olinguitos live in the wild and are not in danger of disappearing forever. Human beings, however, are moving closer to the olinguito habitat in the Andean cloud forests. The research team estimates that 42 percent of historic olinguiio habitat has been removed
【小題1】Comparcd with most carnivores. the olinguito may seem more _____.

A．terrble

B．fierce

C．clever

D．lovely

【小題2】The onlinguito was unknown to people in the past because ____

A．it was mistaken for another species

B．it was active in the eveing

C．it was too small to be seen clearly

D．it covered itself by its long tail

【小題3】What does the underlined word "That" in Paragraph 3 refer to?

A．Having been studying olingos for ten years.

B．The short video the animal expert made.

C．His communication with an expert in Ecuador.

D．Differences between olingos and olinguitos.

【小題4】We can infer from the text that ______.

A．the olinguito could be made full use of

B．the number of olinguitos is in the conutrol

C．the clinguito is a completely new species up to now

D．people know more and more about animals

All around the world, shoppers flock to Wal-Mart to buy everything．In Texas, they come for another reason: to see the wind turbine(渦輪機(jī)) , which supplies 5% of the store's electricity．It along with other facilities, such as exterior walls coated with heat-reflective paint, makes this Wal-Mart a green giant．
The laws of economics suggest that Wal-Mart, with 5, 200 stores worldwide, influences everything including the price of all kinds of goods．It throws its weight behind environmental responsibility, and the impact could be amazing．"One little change in product packaging could  save 1, 500 trees," says Wal-Mart CEO Lee Scott．"If everybody saves 1, 500 trees or 50 barrels of oil, at the end of the day you have made a huge difference．"
Scott wants Wal-Mart to do its part too．He has promised to cut the existing greenhouse-gas emissions （排放） over the next few years and promised to construct new stores that are more efficient．He wants Wal-Mart's fleet (車隊(duì)) of more than 7, 000 trucks to get twice as many miles per gallon by 2015．Factories that show Wal-Mart they're cutting air pollution will get preferential treatment in the supply chain. Wal-Mart says it's working with consumer-product manufacturers to  reduce their packaging and will reward them if they do so．
Some people may doubt it is a bid to attract attention from Wal-Mart's controversial labor and health-insurance practices．But it's not just window dressing, because Wal-Mart sees profits in going green．Scott says, "This is a business philosophy, not a social philosophy．We don't go where we don't think there's a great interest in change．"
Like Bill Gates, who started his charitable foundation, Scott happens to be promoting Wal-Mart's image at a time when his company's reputation is declining．He acknowledges that he launched the plan partly to shield （保護(hù)，庇護(hù)） Wal-Mart from bad press about its contribution to global warming．" By doing what we're doing today, we avoid the headline risks that are going to come for people who did not do anything," he says．"At some point businesses will be held responsible for the actions they take．" Meanwhile, should Wal-Mart succeed at shrinking its environmental footprint and lowering prices for green products, both the planet and the company will profit．
【小題1】We can infer from the passage that ______．

A．Lee Scott is Wal-Mart's CEO

B．there are 5, 200 stores in the world

C．Wal-Mart has a great influence on the world market

D．Wal-Mart has more than 7, 000 trucks all over the world

【小題2】What does the underlined sentence "This is a business philosophy, not a social philosophy．" mean in the fourth paragraph?

A．Wal-Mart predicts huge profits in its green activity．

B．Wal-Mart's green activity is just window dressing．

C．Wal-Mart aims to solve its health-insurance practices．

D．Wal-Mart doesn't have any social responsibility at all．

【小題3】What will Wal-Mart probably do in the future?

A．Reduce air pollution in its present stores．

B．Give favorable treatment to its consumers．

C．Ask the factories to reduce their packaging．

D．Demand the fleet of trucks to use more fuel than before．

【小題4】What is the main idea of the last paragraph?

A．Provide the background of the green plan．

B．Stress the purpose of Wal-Mart's green plan．

C．Present the risk that Wal-Mart is facing nowadays．

D．Analyze the similarity between Bill Gates and Scott.

Have you dreamed of building your own machine? Do you wish you could invent something new? Here we look at a few British inventions of recent times.
Adaptable glasses
Do you wear glasses? If so, can you imagine life without them? In 1985, Joshua Silver, a professor at Oxford University, asked himself, “Can I invent a pair of glasses that could be changed by the wearer?” He designed two plastic lenses（透鏡）that are filled with a special liquid. Using syringes（注射器）you change the liquid between the lenses until you can see clearly. The glasses are not beautiful but they are easy to use and cheap to make.
The wind-up radio
When you switch your TV on tonight, think about all those people without electricity. Thinking about this, Trevor Baylis came up with the idea of designing a radio that could be powered by hand. In common with Joshua Silver he wanted his invention to be cheap and easy to use. He wanted even the poorest people in developing countries, who don’t have electricity and cannot afford batteries, to use it. The radio has a generator (發(fā)電機(jī)) which is powered by turning a handle. In 1996 it won a BBC Design Award for Best Protect and Best Design.
The Dyson cleaner
In many homes around the world you can see a cleaner that looks like a spaceship. This is the Dyson vacuum (真空) cleaner which uses something called “cyclonic separation” to separate the dirt. You do not need a bag for your cleaner and it does not get blocked so it is very practical. The idea came to Sir James Dyson after he kept having problems with his vacuum cleaner. He decided he could design a better one and in 1993 he opened his own factory. The Dyson is now one of the best-selling cleaners in the UK and Dyson is believed to have earned over a billion pounds.
The Zapata fly-board
Ever dreamed of zooming through the water and leaping in the air like a dolphin? Now you can thanks to a fly-board, built by water sports enthusiast Frank Zapata. With it you can dive back in the water and out again. It’s possible to jump to incredible heights out of the water — over 30 feet. The basic fly-board model comes in at ￡4,200.
So keep dreaming and inventing. One day you might get it right.
【小題1】What can we learn about Adaptable glasses?

A．They are very expensive.	B．The inventor is a student.
C．The glasses are fragile.	D．They don’t look very nice.

【小題2】Which invention won an award?

A．Adaptable glasses.	B．The wind-up radio.
C．The Dyson cleaner.	D．The Zapata fly-board.

【小題3】The Dyson cleaner was invented with the purpose of _________.

A．helping people use cleaners more easily

B．making Dyson a rich businessman

C．keeping the house cleaner than before

D．taking the place of human cleaners

Cutting global warming pollution would not only make the planet healthier, it would make people healthier too, new research suggests.
Cutting carbon dioxide emissions could save millions of lives, mostly by reducing preventable deaths from heart and lung diseases, according to studies released Wednesday and published in a special issue of The Lancet British medical journal.
“Relying on fossil fuels leads to unhealthy lifestyles, increasing our chances for getting sick and in some cases takes years from our lives,” US Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said in a telecast (電視廣播) briefing from her home state of Kansas. “As greenhouse gas emissions go down, so do deaths from cardiovascular (心血管的) and respiratory diseases (呼吸疾病). This is not a small effect.”
Instead of looking at the health ills caused by future global warming, as past studies have done, this research looks at the immediate benefits of doing something about the problem, said Linda Birnbaum, director of the US National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.
Some possible benefits seemed highly speculative (投機(jī)的，推測(cè)的), the researchers conceded (承認(rèn)，給予), based on people driving less and walking and cycling more. Other proposals studied were more concrete and achievable, such as reducing cook stoves that burn dung (糞便), charcoal and other polluting fuels in the developing world.
And cutting carbon dioxide emissions also makes the air cleaner, reducing lung damage for millions of people, doctors said.
“Here are ways you can attack major health problems at the same time as dealing with climate change," said lead author Dr. Paul Wilkinson, an environmental epidemiologist at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
Wilkinson said the individual studies came up with numbers of premature deaths prevented or extra years of life added for certain places.
For example, switching to low-polluting cars in London and Delhi, India, would save 160 lost years of life in London and nearly 1,700 in Delhi for every million residents, one study found. But if people also drove less and walked or biked more, those extra saved years would soar (高聳，高漲) to more than 7,300 years in London and 12,500 years in Delhi because of less heart disease.
【小題1】What does the passage mainly about?

A．How can people live longer.

B．Cutting carbon dioxide emissions saves life.

C．Global warming threatens people’s lives

D．People should stop relying on fossil fuels

【小題2】The new research differs from past studies in that ________.

A．it focuses on the immediate benefits of cutting carbon dioxide emissions

B．it studies the bad effects arising from future global warming

C．it is believed by most people

D．it mainly targets at developing countries

【小題3】According to Kathleen Sebelius ________.

A．sometimes it takes years to see the bad effects caused by consuming fossil fuels

B．without greenhouse gas emissions, people would not die of cardiovascular and respiratory diseases

C．the main reason why people get sick is that they rely on fossil fuels

D．death from cardiovascular and respiratory diseases are closely related to greenhouse gas emissions

【小題4】It can be inferred from the passage that ________.

A．London and Delhi have already benefited from reducing greenhouse gas emissions

B．switching to low-polluting cars would save 160 lives in London every year

C．walking and biking instead of driving will reduce the chance of heart disease

D．a(chǎn)ttacking health problems and dealing with climate change are contradictory

In an ideal world, people would not test medicines on animals. Such experiments are stressful and sometimes painful for animals, and expensive and time–consuming for people. Yet animal experimentation is still needed to help bridge vast gaps in medical knowledge. That is why there are some 50 to 100 million animals used in research around the world each year.
Europe, on the whole, has the world’s most restrictive laws on animal experiments. Even so, its scientists use some 12 million animals a year, most of them mice and rats, for medical research. Official statistics show that just 1.1 million animals are used in research in America each year. But that is misleading. The American authorities do not think mice and rats are worth counting and, as these are the most common laboratory animals, the true figure is much higher. Japan and China have even less comprehensive data than America.
Now Europe is reforming the rules governing animal experiments by restricting the number of animals used in labs. Alternatives to animal testing, such as using human tissue or computer models, are now strongly recommended. In addition, sharing all research results freely should help to reduce the number of animals for scientific use. At present, scientists often share only the results of successful experiments. If their findings do not fit the hypothesis being tested, the work never sees the light of day. This practice means wasting time, money, and animals’ lives in endlessly repeating the failed experiments.
Animal experimentation has taught humanity a great deal and saved countless lives. It needs to continue, even if that means animals sometimes suffer. Europe’s new measures should eventually both reduce the number of animals used in experiments and improve the way in which scientific research is conducted.
【小題1】What is the main idea of this passage?

A．The success of animal experiments should be ensured.

B．A ban on the use of animals in the lab should be enforced.

C．Greater efforts need to be taken to reduce the number of lab animals.

D．Scientists should be required to share their research results with each other.

【小題2】Which of the following statements is true about animals used in the lab?

A．America uses only about 1.1 million lab animals per year.

B．Europe does not use mice and rats as lab animals at all.

C．Britain does not use as many lab animals as China does.

D．Japan has less comprehensive data on the number of lab animals used each year.

【小題3】Which of the following is mentioned as an alternative to replace animal experiments?

A．Statistical studies.

B．Computer models.

C．DNA planted in animals.

D．Tissue from dead animals.

【小題4】What usually happens to unsuccessful animal experiments?

A．They are not revealed to the public.

B．They are made into teaching materials.

C．They are collected for future publication.

D．They are not removed from the research topic list.

Unlike traditional commercials, Public Service Advertisements（PSA）are primarily designed to inform and educate rather than sell a product or service. The goal of a PSA is not to make a big sale, but rather to change public opinion and raise awareness for a problem.
Smokey Bear has been a recognized symbol of the protection of America’s forests from fire. It is created to educate the public about the dangers of wildfires. Smokey Bear was started in 1944 with the slogan, “Smokey Bear Says—Care will prevent 9 out of 10 forest fires”. Smokey Bear’s later slogan,  “Remember! Only You Can Prevent Forest Fires”, was created in 1947 by the Advertising Council in America. In April 2001, the message was changed to “Only You Can Prevent Wildfires”.
The wildfire prevention campaign with Smokey Bear is one of the longest and most successful campaigns in advertising history. The Advertising Council often was in partnership with other organizations and groups to create various advertising for Smokey Bear since 1944.
The Advertising Council teamed with Walt Disney Company to create a series of PSAs. The ads feature（以···為形象）characters form the classic film Sleeping Beauty and aim to reach parents and children. The lovely Bambi also appeared in the advertisements. Mickey Mouse is much more popular throughout the country.
Those PSAs, which appear on television, on the radio, in the newspaper and on the website continue to remind Americans about the importance of wildfire prevention have helped to reduce the number of acres burned annually by wildfires. According to recent survey, Smokey Bear and his famous words of wisdom “Only You Can Prevent Wildfires” are recalled by 3 out of 4 adults.
In addition to the PSA campaign, Smokey Bear has his own U.S. postage stamp and website for more information about wildfire prevention. From the website, you can also learn all about wildfires and how we can protect our forests.
【小題1】PSA are primarily designed to     .

A．educate the public	B．change people’s status
C．discuss a problem	D．sell products or services

【小題2】Which of the following is true of the Smoky Bear?

A．It is one recognized symbols of Walt Disney cartoons.

B．It firstly appeared in America in 1944 with no slogan.

C．It is created to warn Americans of the dangers of wildfires.

D．Its slogan changes every three years.

【小題3】How does the author support his topic in Paragraph 4?

A．By summing up.	B．By giving examples.
C．By comparison.	D．By asking questions.

【小題4】According to this text, Smoky Bear      .

A．helps a lot to reduce wildfires in America

B．isn’t popular among the American pupils

C．has set up its own website to advertise products

D．becomes the symbol of the Advertising Council

The United States is full of cars. There are still many families without cars, but some families have two or more. However, cars are used for more than pleasure. They are a necessary part of life.
Cars are used for business. They are driven to offices and factories by workers who have no other way to get to their jobs. When salesmen are sent to different parts of the city, they have to drive in order to carry their products. Farmers have to drive into the city in order to get supplies.
Sometimes small children must be driven to school. In some cities school buses are used only when children live more than a mile away from the school. When the children are too young to walk too far, their mothers take turns driving them to school. One mother drives on Mondays taking her own children and the neighbors' as well. Another mother drives on Tuesdays, another on Wednesday, and so on. This is called forming a car pool. Men also form car pools, with three or four men taking turns driving to the place where they all work.
More car pools should be formed in order to put fewer cars on the road and use less gas. Too many cars are being driven. Something will have to be done about the use of cars.
【小題1】The United States is filled with cars, but      .

A．not every family has a car

B．few families have two cars or even more

C．every American has a car

D．every family has a car

【小題2】Which statement is true according to the third paragraph?

A．Small children are driven to school.

B．All children go to school by bus in some cities.

C．Mothers drive their children who can't walk to school.

D．School buses pick up all children.

【小題3】Mothers form car pools in order that             .

A．they can drive to school

B．they can take turns driving their children to school

C．they reach school quickly

D．they can drive their children to school in time

【小題4】The traffic in and around cities is a great problem because       .

A．too many cars are being driven	B．there are too many car pools
C．people put fewer cars on the roads	D．there is less gas

Pollutants coming from automobile operation have begun to cause many environmental problems. It has been calculated, for example, that 70% of the carbon monoxide(一氧化碳), 45% of the nitrogen oxides(氮氧化合物), and 34% of the hydrocarbon (碳?xì)浠�合�? pollution in the United States can be traced directly to automobile exhausts (廢氣). In addition, rubber, motor oil and other materials accumulate on roadways and are washed into streams, with effects nearly as serious as those of untreated waste water.
In an effort to improve the situation, the U.S. government has made regulations on the use of the constituents (成分) of automobile exhaust gas that are known to cause air pollution. These constituents fall roughly into three types: hydrocarbons that pass through the engine unburned; carbon monoxide, also a product of incomplete burning; and nitrogen oxides which are formed when nitrogen and oxygen are in contact at high temperatures. Besides their own poisonous character, hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides react in the presence of sunlight to form harmful smog. Carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons are rather easily controlled by the use of higher burning temperatures in engines. Unfortunately, the conditions that produce minimum emission of hydrocarbons tend to raise emission of nitrogen oxides. In a way this difficulty is solved by adding recycled exhaust gas to the fuel mixture, thus avoiding the oversupply of oxygen that favors formation of nitrogen oxides.
California, which has the most strict air-pollution laws in the United States, requires further special compounding of gas to control emissions, and several states have ordered that alcohol be mixed with gas, as this will reduce emissions of the carbon monoxide by 35 per cent and the hydrocarbons by 15 per cent.
【小題1】The author uses figures in Paragraph 1 ________.

A．to reflect the rapid growth of automobile use

B．to highlight the importance of environment protection

C．to show the consequence of automobile exhausts

D．to criticize the low quality of cars

【小題2】How are nitrogen oxides formed according to the text?

A．Nitrogen and oxygen are put together in great heat.

B．Carbon monoxide and oxygen are mixed together.

C．Hydrocarbons pass through the engine.

D．Nitrogen is burned incompletely.

【小題3】Which of the following is NOT true according to the text?

A．Carbon monoxide can be controlled in the engine.

B．Smog will form when hydrocarbons meet nitrogen oxides in the sunlight.

C．Hydrocarbons have no poisonous character themselves.

D．The conditions that decease emission of hydrocarbons will increase emission of nitrogen oxides.

【小題4】According to the text, alcohol is added to gas in order to ______.

A．increase awareness of environment protection

B．control air pollution

C．increase the fuel efficiency

D．replace gas gradually