Every Sunday morning a group of neighbors walks along the beach with a large 11 in each hand. In two hours they usually collect forty kilos of 12: bottles, broken toys and old fishing nets. Most of it did not come from the town at all; the sea carries it here from far away. The volunteers do not simply 13 everything at the town's rubbish site. Plastic, glass and metal are sorted and sold, and the money buys gloves for the next walk. The leader says that people who once dropped 14 here now stop and think, because clean 15 change the way we behave.
Questions 11–15
11
Abamboo
Barrow
Cstool
Dbin
✔ 正確答案：(D) bin
解析a large ____ in each hand 且後面要用來裝撿到的東西，指「垃圾桶、容器 bin」。bamboo 竹子、stool 凳子、arrow 箭都不是拿在手上撿垃圾的工具。
12
Aslavery
Bpasta
Cjunk
Ddairy
✔ 正確答案：(C) junk
解析冒號後舉例 bottles, broken toys and old fishing nets，正是「廢舊物 junk」。dairy 乳製品、pasta 義大利麵、slavery 奴隸制都無法涵蓋這些物品。
13
Aflush
Bnourish
Cdelegate
Ddump
✔ 正確答案：(D) dump
解析____ everything at the town rubbish site 指把東西「傾倒 dump」在垃圾場，而下一句說他們其實會分類。nourish 滋養、delegate 授權、flush 沖水都不合。
14
Alitter
Byam
Csin
Damusement
✔ 正確答案：(A) litter
解析dropped ____ here（在這裡亂丟）指丟「垃圾 litter」。sin 是罪過、yam 是番薯、amusement 是娛樂，都不會被 drop 在海灘上造成問題。
15
Ashortcomings
Bsurroundings
Cinterpreters
Dreservations
✔ 正確答案：(B) surroundings
解析clean ____ change the way we behave 指乾淨的「周遭環境 surroundings」。interpreter 口譯員、shortcoming 缺點、reservation 預訂，都不能用 clean 修飾成環境之意。
For three days last winter the city disappeared behind a thick brown 16. Schools closed, and hospitals reported twice the usual number of 17 problems. The mayor acted at once. Old buses were taken off the road, factories were told to cut their 18 by half, and free masks were 19 at every station. Neighbors who had never met before began to share air readings on their phones. Since then the air is clearer, though far from clean. Scientists warn that some birds that once nested here may already be 20 in this valley, and that no law can bring them back.
Questions 16–20
16
Astool
Bbamboo
Ctelescope
Dsmog
✔ 正確答案：(D) smog
解析a thick brown ____ 讓整座城市看不見，指「煙霧污染 smog」。bamboo 竹子、stool 凳子、telescope 望遠鏡都不會遮蔽整座城市。
From 1 March, household refuse will be collected on Tuesday and Friday evenings only. The truck stops at each street corner for ten minutes.
Green bins: kitchen waste. Blue bins: paper, glass and metal.
Collection of large junk such as sofas and broken beds must be booked by phone three days in advance.
Bags left on the street outside collection hours will not be taken away.
Residents who sort their waste correctly for six months will receive a free set of reusable bags. Questions: 02-2345-6789.
全文中譯
河濱區公所公告
自三月一日起，家庭垃圾僅於週二與週五傍晚收運。垃圾車在每個街角停留十分鐘。
綠色垃圾桶：廚餘。藍色垃圾桶：紙類、玻璃與金屬。
沙發、壞掉的床等大型廢棄物，其清運須於三天前以電話預約。
非收運時間放在路邊的垃圾袋將不予清運。
連續六個月正確分類的住戶，可獲得一組免費環保袋。洽詢電話：02-2345-6789。
Questions 21–24
21How often is household refuse collected?
ATwice a week
BThree times a week
COnce a month
DEvery evening
✔ 正確答案：(A) Twice a week
中譯家庭垃圾多久收運一次？
解析公告寫 collected on Tuesday and Friday evenings only，一週兩次。文中並未提到每天或每月收運。
22What should go into the blue bin?
AGarden leaves
BOld sofas
CKitchen waste
DPaper, glass and metal
✔ 正確答案：(D) Paper, glass and metal
中譯藍色垃圾桶應該放什麼？
解析第一個項目符號明說 Blue bins: paper, glass and metal；廚餘屬於綠色桶，舊沙發則須另外預約。
23What must a resident do before throwing away a sofa?
ACut it into small pieces
BBook a collection by phone
CPut it in a green bin
DTake it to the office
✔ 正確答案：(B) Book a collection by phone
中譯住戶要丟沙發之前必須做什麼？
解析Collection of large junk such as sofas... must be booked by phone three days in advance，必須先電話預約。
24What do residents who sort correctly receive?
AFree parking
BA larger bin
CFree reusable bags
DA cash prize
✔ 正確答案：(C) Free reusable bags
中譯正確分類的住戶會得到什麼？
解析最後一段 will receive a free set of reusable bags；獎勵是環保袋，不是現金或停車優惠。
AD
The Mend-It Café — Bring It, Don't Bin It
Free repairs by your neighbors
Saturday 10:00–13:00 — Clothes: buttons, zips and small holes
Saturday 14:00–17:00 — Small electrics: lamps, radios and kettles
Sunday 10:00–13:00 — Bicycles and toys
Volunteers repair your things while you wait. There is no charge, but a small gift to the neighborhood fund is welcome if you can afford one.
Please bring no more than two items per visit, and take any broken parts home with you. Anything left behind on Sunday evening goes to the dump, which is exactly what we are trying to avoid.
解析第三個項目 Sunday 10:00–13:00 — Bicycles and toys。衣物與小家電都排在週六。
26How much does a repair cost?
ANothing, though a gift is welcome
BA fixed fee of one hundred dollars
CIt depends on the item
DA monthly membership fee
✔ 正確答案：(A) Nothing, though a gift is welcome
中譯修理一件東西要多少錢？
解析There is no charge, but a small gift to the neighborhood fund is welcome，即免費但歡迎捐款。
27How many items may one person bring each visit?
AOne
BThere is no limit
CFour
DTwo
✔ 正確答案：(D) Two
中譯每人每次可以帶幾件物品？
解析Please bring no more than two items per visit，上限是兩件。
28What happens to items left behind?
AThey are sold cheaply
BThey are sent to the dump
CThey are repaired next week
DVolunteers keep them
✔ 正確答案：(B) They are sent to the dump
中譯被留下沒帶走的物品會怎麼樣？
解析Anything left behind on Sunday evening goes to the dump，會被送去垃圾場。
ARTICLE
The Birds That Cleaned the Fields
Thirty years ago vultures were everywhere in northern India. Then, within a single decade, more than ninety percent of them disappeared.
The cause was a cheap medicine given to sick cattle. It was harmless to the cows themselves, but any vulture that fed on a treated animal died within days. Three species came close to extinction.
The drug was banned in 2006, and special centers now raise young birds before setting them free. Numbers are rising, though slowly. Villagers know the difference well: without vultures, dead animals lie in the open for weeks, and packs of wild dogs move in.