How the land has changed, not only down on the ground but from way out in space. There are many latest pictures produced by the sharp eyes of a government satellite known as Landsat 7.
Darrel Williams works on the NASA Landsat 7 Project. "We can see the conditions shortly after the eruption, when just a huge area was totally deforested, burned off. Now, 15 years after the fact, we can see light, pinkish view, which says vegetation is growing back. It's starting to reforest." he says.
Twenty-seven years of pictures have tracked the loss of rain forests in South America, as well as the clear-cutting of forests in the US Northwest.
Darrel Williams says, "Clearcut areas show up quite readily, and it shows we need to look at what's going on in our own backyard, as far as deforestation."
Landsat satellites have watched from space as glaciers have shrunk more than four miles over the past decade or so. This is a computer-animated view of Glacier Bay, Alaska, based on new pictures from Landsat 7.
Floyd and Irene show the heavy deposits of silt and farm runoff in coastal waters.
"And these show the increasing summer temperatures around Atlanta, Georgia", scientists say, " the condition is related to the loss of trees."
Darrel Williams says, "It's the most unique record of its type. It's like having a family photo album of anywhere on the globe. And if you don't think you've changed over time, just look at your pictures of the last 20 to 25 years."
Now, as Landsat 7 begins its work as the last in a series of earth observers, NASA readies an even more sophisticated satellite, Terra, due to be launched Thursday. Once it's working, Terra is expected to take the vital signs of the globe, including ocean temperatures, energy loss, and even the state of the atmosphere, every day.
Tips on buying outdoor solar lights As solar lighting is becoming useful for homes, many different such outdoor lights can now be found in supermarkets. Here are some helpful tips for customers. Does your area receive enough direct lighting? So you shouldn't even give it a thought if you live in an area that doesn't get much sunlight. These lights need direct sunlight, or they just won't work very well. The expensive one usually means good quality. Choosing the cheapest ones will result in many problems. For once, it's best to buy more expensive lights of high quality. At least you should know the difference between a $ 10 light and a $ 45 light. Buy lights that require less installation(安装) .Most solar lights are simply driven into the ground. Therefore, you shouldn't deal with the difficulty in installing a system that involves anything more than that. You don't need to buy lights that require half an hour each to plant into the ground because that's just a waste of time. Make sure the lights can store enough energy. Different solar lights can store different amounts of energy. Therefore, you should choose lights that are able to store enough energy to last for a few hours or more, at least those that will last from nightfall throughout most of the night and part of the morning.
A. Without sunlight, solar lighting is useless.
B. Buy many solar lights instead of just one or two.
C. It means some will stay lit longer than the others.
D. Choose something a bit more expensive for once.
E. Solar lights are becoming more and more popular.
F. That doesn't mean you have to spend all your money.
G. They should take a few minutes each to get into the ground.
A very dear friend has been experiencing numerous challenges these past few months. She mentioned how it sometimes felt like she was hanging on by a thread with no quick fix in sight.
It reminded me that the monarch caterpillar (毛虫) that I cared for just changed into a butterfly that morning. After eating on milkweed leaves from our garden, the hungry caterpillar found a comfortable spot at the top of the net butterfly enclosure and spun a silken thread to attach itself there. The caterpillar hung upside down in a J shape for a day or so. Then, in less than a few hours of struggling, the caterpillar was a beautiful green butterfly!
All the research I've done indicates that the change into a butterfly should take between 10- 12 days. I can only imagine what is going on there, but I'm sure it's a huge struggle and reforming. Haven't we all been doing the same to some degree lately? These especially challenging times are presenting us with the unavoidable experiences needed for our inner selves to use as food for growth. Not easy? You bet! Worth it? Yes!
Many thanks to our local library for the loan of the butterfly enclosure. They raised and released painted butterflies as part of their children's summer reading program this year. I had no idea that planting a few milkweed plants would lead to such a fascinating study of caterpillars and butterflies. The caterpillar has kept me mindfully occupied and fascinated during our recent COVID 19 self- isolation.
Hanging on by a thread as we transform, keep in mind the beautiful wings we are growing. We are all somewhere in the midst of that unbelievable process. Trust the process. Have faith. Know that you are becoming the most beautiful person that you can be.
—I ________ the whole week preparing for my graduation paper.
Why did the orangutan（猩猩）cross the road? That's not the start of a joke, but a question being asked by scientists studying these brilliant apes.
Brent Loken, who runs a group called Integrated Conservation, used camera traps to research into orangutans. That group protects 1 animals in Borneo, the largest island in Asia. Camera traps work by taking a quick photo, when something moves in front of them. In Borneo, scientists use the photos to 2 what the rare orangutans do when people aren't 3?
Scientists have been studying orangutans in the rainforests for decades. And their data had suggested that the animals almost always traveled through the 4. They were 5seen walking on the forest floor. Yet when Loken looked at the photos from his team's camera traps, he got surprised that the apes were walking on the ground, 6 using logging roads（运材道路）and paths built by people.
Were these animals simply 7to walk on the ground because logging had left too many 8? Or did they 9 down logging roads as convenient shortcut? “More10 is needed,”
People are removing trees for logging, plantations and the building of the cities. The new findings suggest orangutans might be able to learn to 11with some of these changes in their 12. It doesn't mean the animals can survive 13 forests. But it does suggest there might be ways to log forests in a way that won't greatly14 these apes.
Stephanie Spehar, primatologist at the University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh, agrees. “The new study doesn't mean they're fine in areas with no trees,” she says. “Orangutans clearly need the forest to 15.
All the machines ___ by the end of the following week.
A.were repaired B.will be repaired
C.have been repaired D.will have been repaired
根据下列句子及所给汉语注释，写出空缺处各单词的正确形式.（每空只写一词）
1. --My daughter has passed the exam.
-- C_________________! She is really intelligent.
2. In order to improve his oral English he spent most of his time practicing p________ the words.
3. When he s_______ his head, I knew he didn’t agree with me.
4. With the help from all over the world, everything in Wenchuan has more or less returned to n__________.
5. Don’t be too p_________ about food and clothing.
6. China _________ （成功）feeds 22%of the world’s population with only 7% of the world’s land.
7. She is only an unknown actress, while he is one of the famous __________（导演）.
8. Jane and Betty are going on ________（各自的） holidays in a few days’ time.
9. She_______（划;点燃） a match and lit the candles on the birthday cake.
10. She found she had left her wallet at home immediately she _______（登；上） the plane.
When you finish reading this book, you will have_______ better understanding of_______ life.
| A. a; the | B. the ; a | C. /; the | D. a ; / |
As a general rule, all forms of activity lead to boredom when they are performed on a routine(常规)basis. As a matter of fact, we can see this 41 at work in people of all 42 . For example, on Christmas morning, children are excited about 43 with their new toys. But their 44 soon wears off and by January those 45 toys can be found put away in the basement. The world is full of 46 stamp albums and unfinished models, each standing as a monument to someone’s 47 interest. When parents bring home a pet, their child 48 bathes it and brushes its fur. Within a short time, however, the 49 of caring for the animal is handed over to the parents. Adolescents enter high school with great 50 but are soon looking forward to 51 . The same is true of the young adults going to college. And then, how many 52 , who now complain (抱怨) about the long drives to work, 53 drove for hours at a time when they first 54 their driver’s license (执照)? Before people retire, they usually 55 to do a lot of 56 things, which they never had 57 to do while working. But 58 after retirement , the golfing, the fishing, the reading and all of the other pastimes become as boring as the jobs they 59 . And , like the child in January, they go searching for new 60 .
41. A. principle B. habit C. weaker D. power
42. A. parties B. races C. countries D. ages
43. A. working B. living C. playing D. going
44. A. confidence B. interest C. anxiety D. sorrow
45. A. same B. extra C. funny D. expensive
46. A. well-organized B. colorfully-printed C. newly- collected D. half-filled
47. A. broad B. passing C. different D. main
48. A. silently B. impatiently C. gladly D. worriedly
49. A. promise B. burden C. right D. game
50. A. courage B. calmness C. confusion D. excitement
51. A. graduation B. independence C. responsibility D. success
52. A. children B. students C. adults D. retirees
53. A. carefully B. eagerly C. nervously D. bravely
54. A. required B. obtained C. noticed D. discovered
55. A. need B. learn C. start D. plan
56. A. great B. strong C. difficult D. correct
57. A. time B. money C. skills D. knowledge
58. A. only B. well C. even D. soon.
59. A. lost B. chose C. left D. quit
60. A. pets B. toys C. friends D. colleagues
Thanks to my child，I believe that Santa sends out gifts every year. And I once played Santa’s 26 .
One year，our son Jay 27 a new sound system. “Please bring me a new stereo (立体户唱机） 28 I don’t have to listen to my dad's sold music，”he told the mall Santa. Robin and I took note.
On Christmas Eve，we 29 Santa's cookies and milk by the fire, put a few carrots on the roof for the deer, and put Jay to sleep 30 at the back of the house, where the sound of Santa’s shoes wouldn’t 31 him. That’s when I went to the workshop and spent the whole night putting together that stereo.
Then we moved Jay from our bed to his 一 he was afraid that Santa might think he wasn’t home and would 32 to leave presents. At long last，I 33 the stereo and positioned it by the tree. Robin and I fell asleep early that Christmas morning，filled with satisfaction. At 7 a.m., Jay woke us up and led us to the 34 excitedly. He fell in love with the sound system.
A few days passed，and Jay asked me a 35 q uestion. “Dad，how did I get from your bed to mine?” Ever the protected one, I said, “Santa may 36 you! Isn’t that fun?” He said nothing, walking into the hall and looking 37 at the floor. He came 38_, “Dad, look at the wheel marks on the carpet (地法).The stereo was rolled out of that bedroom and down the hallway.” I was 39 .Jay was only six，and he showed me the evidence.
After that, the real fun began.Jay got to be Santa when we gave presents to a needy family —he just 40 it We actually got the most joy from Santa when Jay kept the magic alive with us.
26. A. player B. helper C.driver D. visitor
27. A. prepared for B.shopped for C. asked for D. looked for
28. A. because B.Rthough C. but D. so
29. A. discussed B. placed C. expected D. ate
30. A. on the sofa B. in my arms C. in our bed D. on my back
31. A. wake B. leave C. prevent D. interest
32. A. decide B. forget C.choose D. wait
33. A. found B. bought C. finished D. picked
34. A. tree B. house C. fire D. deer
35, A. surprising B. boring C. funny D. difficult
36. A. old B. special C. clear D. clever
37. A. hopefully B. closely C. angrily D. certainly
38. A. down B. in C. up D. back
39. A. shocked B.nervous C. delighted D. annoyed
40, A. needed B. meant C. controlled D. loved
36 You probably think you will never be a top student. This is not necessarily so, however. Anyone can become a better student if he or she wants to. Here's how:
Plan your time carefully. When planning your work, you should make a list of things that you have to do. After making this list, you should make a schedule of your time. First your time for eating, sleeping, dressing, etc. Then decide a good, regular time for studying. 37 A weekly schedule may not solve all your problems, but it will force you realize what is happening to your time.
Find a good place to study. Look around the house for a good study area. Keep this space, which may be a desk or simply a corner of your room, free of everything but study materials. No games, radios, or television. When you sit down to study, concentrate on the subject.
Make good use of your time in class. 38 Listening carefully in class means less work later. Taking notes will help you remember what the teacher says.
Study regularly. When you get home from school, go over your notes, review the important points that your teacher is going to discuss the next day, read that material. 39 If you do these things regularly, the material will become more meaningful, and you'll remember it longer.
Develop a good attitude towards tests. The purpose of a test is to show what you have learned about a subject. They help you remember your new knowledge. The world won't end if you don't pass a test, so don't be over worried.
40 You will probably discover many others after you have tried these.
A. There are other methods that might help you with your studying.
B. Don't forget to set aside enough time for entertainment.
C. Take advantage of class time to listen to everything the teacher says.
D. No one can become a top student unless he or she works hard.
E. Maybe you are an average student.
F. Make full use of class time to take notes of whatever the teacher says in class.
G. This will help you understand the next class.
Evidence has been piled up ______ drinking water before breakfast is good for our health.
A. what B. which C. if D. that
--- What’s the event like?
--- Several witnesses’ ______ differed from the official version.
A. accounts B. opinions C. suggestions D. explanations
--- You may find the key to the maths problem on Page 10
--- Ah, it’s so simple. I wonder why I _____ of that
A. hadn’t thought B. haven’t thought C. didn’t think D. wouldn’t think
So why has English changed over time? Actually all languages change and develop 61 cultures meet and communicate with each other. At first the English 62 (speak)in England between about AD 450 and 1150 was very different from the English spoken today. It was based more on German 63 the English we speak at present. Then 64 (gradual) between about AD 800 and 1150，English 65
(become) less like German because those 66 ruled England spoke first Danish and 67 (late) French. These new settlers enriched the English language and especially its vocabulary. So by the 1600’s Shakespeare was able to make use 68 a wider vocabulary than ever before. In 1620 some British
69 (settle) moved to America. Later in the 18th century some British people 70 (take) to Australia too. English began to be spoken in both countries.
