The pond behind our school was green and empty for years. The number of fish was zero, and nobody could say when they had gone. (11) Our class chose the pond as a project for the whole year. We took out eleven bags of trash in the first week, including a bicycle, a swimsuit and an old bath toy. Then we did the hard part: we stopped putting anything into it and waited. Nothing happened for four months, (12) in May a classmate saw a small snail on a stone. By September there were tiny fish again. (13), nobody put a single animal in that water. We did not build the pond back, (14) we stopped breaking it.
Most of us think about garbage for about three seconds: the time it takes to drop something in a box. (15) A bottle that leaves your hand on Monday may be on a truck on Tuesday, on a ship by the end of the month, and in a field in another country a year later. Recycling is real, (16) it is not a machine that makes things disappear. It costs energy, water and human work, and some materials can only be used again once or twice. (17), the first question is never how to recycle a thing. It is whether the thing needed to exist, (18) that question has to be asked before we buy, not after.
Mom: The town changed the rules. This card came today.
GREEN TOWN · Recycling Card
Monday: paper and cans
Thursday: glass and bottles
Out by 19:00, in the right-hand box
Old old cells: office only, not the street
Wei: So I cannot put glass out on Monday any more?
Mom: No. And the old cells in the drawer must go to the office; do not put them outside at all.
Wei: All right. I will take them there on Saturday when I go to the library.
全文中譯
媽媽：鎮上改了規定，今天寄來這張卡。
綠鎮 · 回收通知
星期一：紙類與鐵鋁罐
星期四：玻璃與瓶罐
19:00 前放出，放在右手邊的箱子
廢電池：僅限公所，不可放路邊
偉：所以玻璃不能再在星期一拿出去了？
媽媽：不行。而且抽屜裡的電池要送去公所，絕對不可以放外面。
偉：好。我星期六去圖書館時順便拿過去。
Questions 19–21
19When should glass be put out?
AMonday
BAny day before 19:00
CThursday
DSaturday
✔ 正確答案：(C) Thursday
中譯玻璃應該什麼時候拿出去？
解析Thursday: glass and bottles。星期一是紙類與鐵鋁罐。
20What must NOT be put on the street?
ABottles
BCans
CPaper
DOld old cells
✔ 正確答案：(D) Old old cells
中譯什麼東西絕對不可以放在路邊？
解析Old old cells: office only, not the street。
21Why will Wei go to the office on Saturday?
ATo take the old cells there
BTo return a library book
CTo get a new card
DTo ask about the new rules
✔ 正確答案：(A) To take the old cells there
中譯偉星期六為什麼會去公所？
解析I will take them there on Saturday，指的是電池；去圖書館只是順路。
NOTICE
Farm Visit for Grade 7
Friday, October 18 · Leaves school 8:00, back 15:30
Wear old shoes; parts of the farm are wet and soft
Do not feed the pigs or the sheep anything you brought
Wash your hands before you eat, even if they look clean
You will see how the farm keeps water clean: everything that leaves the animal houses goes through three ponds before it reaches the river. The farmer, who studied in Korea, will explain why the third pond has fish in it and how it keeps pollution out of the river.
Bring your own lunch and a bag for your own trash. Nothing is thrown away on the farm; what you bring in, you take out. Students who forget a bag will be given one and must pay ten dollars.
解析Wear old shoes; parts of the farm are wet and soft。
23What is the purpose of the three ponds?
ATo raise fish for sale
BTo keep the water clean before it reaches the river
CTo give the animals water
DTo hold rain in summer
✔ 正確答案：(B) To keep the water clean before it reaches the river
中譯三座池塘的用途是什麼？
解析everything that leaves the animal houses goes through three ponds before it reaches the river，是為了淨化水質。
24What happens to a student who forgets a trash bag?
AHe cannot join the visit
BHe must share with a friend
CHe takes his trash home in his hands
DHe gets one and pays ten dollars
✔ 正確答案：(D) He gets one and pays ten dollars
中譯忘記帶垃圾袋的學生會怎麼樣？
解析Students who forget a bag will be given one and must pay ten dollars。
EMAIL
A Letter about the River
Dear Officer Huang,
I am a student at Sun Hill School. Our class has watched the river below the bridge for six months, and I am writing to tell you what we found.
On 31 mornings the water was clear. On nine it was white, and each of those nine was a Tuesday. We do not know what happens on Monday nights, and we are not saying anybody has broken the law. We are saying that nine out of nine is not chance.
We have a paper with the dates and eleven photos. May we bring it to your office after school one day this month? Somebody in the class can come at any time that suits you.
DTo report what the class found and offer the record
✔ 正確答案：(D) To report what the class found and offer the record
中譯這封信的目的是什麼？
解析寫信是為了報告觀察結果並提出願意送交資料；學生明說不是在指控任何人違法。
26Why do the students think this is not chance?
AAll nine white mornings were Tuesdays
BThe water is always white
CThey took eleven photos
DThe river is below a bridge
✔ 正確答案：(A) All nine white mornings were Tuesdays
中譯學生為什麼認為這不是巧合？
解析each of those nine was a Tuesday ... nine out of nine is not chance。
27What do the students ask for?
AA time to bring their record to the office
BA visit from the officer to the school
CMoney for their project
DA new place to watch the river
✔ 正確答案：(A) A time to bring their record to the office
中譯學生提出什麼請求？
解析May we bring it to your office after school one day this month？
ARTICLE
The Things We Throw Away Twice
About a third of the food grown in the world is never eaten. That happens everywhere, and it is not only a waste of food; it is a waste of everything that went into it.
A tomato that reaches a box and is thrown away has already used water, land, work and the oil that moved it. When we throw it out, we throw all of that away a second time. The tomato is the small part of the loss.
This is why keeping food is worth more than it looks. A family that plans one week of meals may save only a little money, but the water and land behind that food are saved too. The quietest kind of care for the environment happens inside a refrigerator.