A video of a starving wild polar bear wandering around dry land has become well－known. He is looking for food. In the video, the bony(瘦削的) male polar bear walks slowly along dry land. He searches in a nearby rubbish bin looking for food. When he finds nothing, he falls down suddenly. Canadian photographer Paul Nicklen told National Geographic, “We stood there crying—filming with tears rolling down our cheeks.”
“The bear most likely died within hours or days of this moment, and there was nothing we could do to save him，” Nicklen said. Feeding wild polar bears is illegal in Canada, and even if it weren’t, feeding the bear would only prolong(延长) his sufferings.
Nicklen said, “My entire team was controlling their tears and emotions while documenting this dying polar bear. It’s a heart－breaking scene that still makes me hurtful, but I know we need to share both the beautiful and the heartbreaking if we are going to break down the walls of indifference(冷漠)．”
“This is what starvation looks like. The muscles atrophy(萎缩). No energy. It’s a slow and painful death. When scientists say polar bears will be extinct in the next 100 years, I think of the global population of 25，000 bears dying in this manner.”
“There is no quick solution. People think that we can put platforms in the ocean or we can feed the single starving bear. The simple truth is this—if the earth continues to warm, we will lose bears and entire polar ecosystems(生态系统). This large male bear was not old, and he certainly died within hours or days of this moment.”
“But there are solutions. We must reduce our carbon footprint, eat the right food, stop cutting down our forests, and begin protecting the Earth—our home—first.”
【解题导语】 本文是一篇夹叙夹议文。一只瘦削的北极熊在寻找食物的视频引发作者思考，作者呼吁人们保护地球。
1．What touched Nicklen deeply about the polar bear?
A．The wounds all over his body.
B．The hard nature environment.
C．The condition of being starved.
D．The lack of necessary concern.
C 解析：细节理解题。根据文中第一段可知，这只北极熊在垃圾堆寻找食物，因为饥饿而徘徊在死亡的边缘，让Nicklen和伙伴们热泪盈眶。
2．Why will the polar bear be sure to die in a short time?
A．It is illegal to feed polar bears.
B．The bear is already beyond recovery.
C．The bear doesn’t get people’s attention.
D．The bear didn’t get the photographers’ help.
B 解析：推理判断题。根据第一、二段内容可知，这只北极熊因为极度饥饿徘徊在死亡的边缘；并根据第二段的...feeding the bear would only prolong(延长) his sufferings可知，即使吃到食物也只能是延长北极熊的痛苦。
3．What can we infer from Nicklen’s words?
A．Few people care about polar bears.
B．Polar bears are vital to ecosystems.
C．He regrets not saving the polar bear.
D．Polar bears will die of over hunting.
A 解析：推理判断题。根据第三段中...if we are going to break down the walls of indifference(冷漠)可知，人们对于北极熊并没有给予足够的关心，因此Nicklen希望通过这个视频引起人们的关注。
4．What is the author’s purpose in writing the text?
A．To offer the reader information about polar ecosystems.
B．To introduce the suffering of polar bears.
C．To persuade people to live more healthily.
D．To suggest protecting the environment.
D 解析：写作意图题。根据最后一段内容可知，文章通过介绍北极熊恶劣的生存状况，试图唤醒人们保护生态环境、保护我们赖以生存的地球的意识。
