Clothing rental is a hot new industry and retailers (零售商) are demanding to get on board in hopes of attracting green shopper.
But is renting fashion actually more environmentally-friendly than buying it, and if so, how much more? Journalist and author Elizabeth Cline investigated (调查) this question and concluded that it's not as sustainable as it seems.
Take shipping, for example, which has to go two ways if an item is rented — receiving and returning. Cline writes that consumer transportation has the second largest carbon footprint of our collective fashion habit after manufacturing.
She writes, ''An item ordered online and then returned can send out 20 kilograms of carbon each way, and increases up to 50 kilograms for rush shipping. By comparison, the carbon impact of a pair of jeans purchased from a physical store and washed and worn at home is 33.4 kilograms, according to a 2015 study by Levi's.''
Then there's the burden of washing, which has to happen for every item when it's returned, regardless of whether or not it was worn. For most rental services, this usually means dry cleaning, a high impact and polluting process. All the rental services that Cline looked into have replaced perchloroethylene (氯乙烯), a carcinogenic (致癌的) air pollutant, still used by 70 percent of US dry cleaners, with alternatives, although these aren't great either.
Lastly, Cline fears that rental services will increase our appetite for fast fashion, simply because it's so easily accessible. There's something called ''share washing'' that makes people waste more precisely because a product or service is shared and thus is regarded as more eco-friendly. Uber is one example of this, advertised as ''a way to share rides and limit ear ownership.'' and yet ''it has been proven to discourage walking,bicycling, and public transportation use.''
Renting clothes is still preferable to buying them cheap and throwing them in the dustbin after a few wears, but we shouldn't let the availability of these services make us too satisfied. There's an even better step — that's wearing what is already in the closet.
1.What is Elizabeth Cline's attitude toward clothing rental?
A.Approving. B.Unfavorable.
C.Objective. D.Enthusiastic.
2.The Uber example in Paragraph 6 indicates that .
A.rental services are on the rise
B.clothing rental will be as successful as Uber
C.renting clothes might waste more than expected
D.renting clothes might make people lose interest in fast fashion
3.The author suggests that we should .
A.give up renting any clothing
B.purchase inexpensive clothes
C.rent clothes rather than buy them
D.make full use of clothes we've possessed
4.What is the passage mainly about?
A.Clothing rental is a new fashion.
B.Clothing rental is retailers' preference.
C.Renting clothes is not that eco-friendly.
D.Renting-clothes business is in a dilemma.
Living life to its fullest
On the night of August 24, 2001, everything changed when my friend's car hit a wall with me inside. I lost most of my right leg, and I was left bleeding with several broken bones. At the hospital, although my body was weak, my mind was still very clear. I just kept telling myself to hold on. A week later, I made a deal with the doctors that once I could roll onto my side, I could leave. Two weeks later, I was allowed to go home.
Although I left the hospital, the fight was far from over. My left knee was badly injured, which resulted in different operations over the next few years.
And soon, more of my right leg had to be removed. This made it harder to wear my false leg, so I donated it to a nurse who couldn't afford one for herself. The joy of being able to provide this gift for someone else was greater than the happiness I felt on any day I was able to wear it myself.
People often tell me they're proud of me for staying strong. But in my mind, staying strong has always been my only choice. So, on the day I left the hospital, I made a promise to myself to always live life to the fullest. Now, I may not be able to do things the way everybody else does them, but still, I always find a way to do them. I soon settled into everyday life again, until one day I realized I wasn't living my life as fully as I wanted to.
After 13 years of thinking that I was confident, I had an unfamiliar feeling sweep over me. For the first time in my life, I was not only confident but I wanted to help those around me.
In 2014, I even started modeling. My dream is that one day a little girl will see me in a magazine and say, “Wow, she's beautiful, and she only has one leg. I could do that too someday, even though I have a disability.” My dream is simple: to inspire every man, woman, and child into knowing and believing that they are beautiful just the way they are.
1.How did the author feel after the car accident?
A.She complained that life was unfair to her.
B.She was unable to accept the loss of her leg.
C.She kept a positive attitude toward life.
D.She felt lucky that she was still alive.
2.Why did the author feel happy in Paragraph 3?
A.She was able to offer help to others.
B.She could wear her false leg again.
C.She had lived her life to the fullest.
D.She could do everyday things the same as everybody else.
3.Why did the author begin modeling in 2014?
A.She wanted to be a famous magazine star.
B.She wanted to encourage others to be confident about themselves.
C.She wanted to challenge herself to be a speaker.
D.She wanted to prove that disabled people could also succeed.
4.What was the author's main purpose in writing the article?
A.To stress the importance of having a dream.
B.To show how difficult the life is for disabled people.
C.To inspire others by sharing her past experiences.
D.To give advice to disabled people on how to make a living.
The recent development in technology has led to better learning opportunities for students. Learning is an ongoing process, and students can have fun and learn many things on the go with these apps.
Exam Vocabulary Builder
Learning new English words is not difficult anymore when you have Exam Vocabulary Builder on your smartphone. Apart from learning new words with meaning, you can also find an example of using the word in a sentence. Moreover, you can test yourself in quiz mode comprised of challenging levels.
Quizlet
Quizlet is a simple app that allows you to learn anything, create your own study sets, and improve your class grades by studying with flashcards. It’ll give you a whole new experience on how you learn things in a fun way. Next time you have a problem with learning a new chapter or topic, try Quizlet and see how things work out.
Exam Countdown
If you’re feeling distracted (分心的) when the exams draw near, you might need Exam Countdown app. There might be a possibility that you forgot to submit your last assignment before the finals. The app acts like a scheduler where you can keep track of your assignments, exams, quizzes, and presentations.
MyScript Smart Note
Aren’t you quick enough to write notes in the classroom on your tablet’s QWERTY keyboard? No problem, because MyScript Smart Note is the perfect solution for you to easily take notes on your tablet. It allows you to edit your handwriting with special gestures. Moreover, you can also add pictures to the text, math equations, PDF files, or sound. It also comes with downloadable language packs.
1.What do Exam Vocabulary Builder and MyScript Smart Note have in common?
A.They both can be used for note taking.
B.They both can be used with hand gestures.
C.They both can be used to test language skills.
D.They both can he used for language learning.
2.Which is a good choice for better managing and organizing your routine study?
A.Quizlet. B.Exam Countdown.
C.MyScript Smart Note. D.Exam Vocabulary Builder.
3.What’s the text mainly intended to do?
A.Introduce some wonderful learning methods for students.
B.Provide some good learning opportunities for students.
C.Introduce some useful learning apps for students.
D.Promote some practical teaching apps for teachers.
Directions: Write an English composition in about 120-150 words according to the instructions given below in Chinese.
假如你是明启中学高三学生王磊，由于新冠病毒疫情，学校推迟开学，所有的教学只能在网上进行。你的邻居家正好在装修房屋，噪音影响到你正常的网课学习，但你面临升学考试。请你写一封信给学校咨询老师，告诉他（她）你准备如何解决这一矛盾。
1.信的格式已给。
2.不得出现真实姓名。
Dear Sir or Madam,
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Sincerely yours,
Wang Lei
Directions：Translate the following sentences into English, using the words given in the brackets.
1.一人有难，大家帮忙在中国很常见。(common)
2.是“有志者事竟成的”信念帮助他实现了梦想。（It was…）
3.遇到生词时不要马上查字典，你可以从上下文猜出意思。(consult)
4.在古代，中国先哲们就提出 “读万卷书不如行万里路”，彰显了游历名山大川，可承天地之灵气，接山水之精华。 (raise)
Directions: Read the following passage. Summarize the main idea and the main point(s) of the passage in no more than 60 words. Use your own words as far as possible.
College admission season is upon us. With the ever-increasing competition among college applicants, writing an effective and sincere college recommendation letter is one way high school teachers can help students stand out among the competition. Here are a few things I have learned how to write a recommendation for my students.
Try beginning your letter with something the person tasked with screening hundreds of recommendation letters will remember. I like to start with an amusing story that illustrates who the student is and how others perceive them. Make sure to use the student’s full name for the first reference and then just the first name after that. My favorite strategy is to end the paragraph with a single sentence that highlights the student’s strongest characteristics.
In the body of the letter, focus on who the student is rather than what the student has done. What college reps want to know is how the student will fit into their environment. Give specific examples of how the student achieved--did they overcome obstacles or tackle any challenges to reach their goals? I usually write two short paragraphs for the body. Sometimes the first relates character to academics, and the next relates character to extracurricular activities. Other times, I use the student’s characteristics as the main focal points.
Conclude with a sincere statement of recommendation for the student to the college of their choice. When sending the recommendation to a single college, use the college’s name in your recommendation. Lastly, I return to using the student’s full name in my final reference to him in the letter.
My last statement encourages the college to contact me with any further questions. I’ll be surely delighted to receive any of their inquiry, meaning my student is under their consideration!
