A study has warned that seafood supplies from the world's oceans could be almost gone by the middle of the century. The researchers say there has already been a breakdown in wild populations of almost one third of currently fished sea-foods. The study says that means their catch has fallen by ninety percent from their highest level. Boris Worm of Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia Canada led the intentional team that did the study. Professor Worm says species have recently been disappearing from oceans at an increasing speed. At this rate he says all seafood species could collapse by 2048.
Other studies have also warned about the dangers of overfishing and the effects on ocean environments. But not everyone thinks the oceans are likely to be empty, in, fifty years.Some scientists said parts of the world do have problems but others arc doing a good job of protecting fish populations. Government officials in several countries with large fishing industries also questioned the research.
The study appeared earlier this month in Science magazine.
The researchers say damage to oceans affects not only fish populations but also the productivity of ecosystems. These complex systems help control water quality. The scientists say the loss of different kinds of sea life appears to increase the risk of fish kills and beach closures from harmful algae growth.
The scientists examined the results of thirty-two experiments and observed forty-eight protected areas. They also looked at records of catches worldwide. They studied records from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization from 1950 to 2003. And they examined archaeological information and other historical records for twelve coastal areas. That research reached back over a thousand years.
Boris Worm says the findings are, in his words, “beyond anything we suspected.”But he also said the situation is not too late to core. He said that with good fisheries management, some species could completely recover in three to ten years.
1.The two underlined words “their” in the first paragraph most probably mean .
A.researchers' B.fisherman's
C.sea foods' D.the oceans'
2.Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A.All the scientists don't believe that all seafood species will disappearing very soon
B.Most government officials disagree to the seafood-disappearing research
C.Some scientists are doing a good job of protecting fish populations
D.It's too late to take any action to improve the situation.
3.According to Boris Worm, .
A.Some people are doing a good job of protecting fish populations
B.Overfishing is one of the causes for the loss of seafood species
C.things are getting worse though efforts can be made
D.some more species will come into being with right measures
4.What is the main purpose of the passage?
A.To call on people to protect the ocean environment
B.To introduce a study about the disappearing of sea foods
C.To report different opinions about the seafood research
D.To criticize the present fisheries management
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题
A study has warned that seafood supplies from the world's oceans could be almost gone by the middle of the century. The researchers say there has already been a breakdown in wild populations of almost one third of currently fished sea-foods. The study says that means their catch has fallen by ninety percent from their highest level. Boris Worm of Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia Canada led the intentional team that did the study. Professor Worm says species have recently been disappearing from oceans at an increasing speed. At this rate he says all seafood species could collapse by 2048.
Other studies have also warned about the dangers of overfishing and the effects on ocean environments. But not everyone thinks the oceans are likely to be empty, in, fifty years.Some scientists said parts of the world do have problems but others arc doing a good job of protecting fish populations. Government officials in several countries with large fishing industries also questioned the research.
The study appeared earlier this month in Science magazine.
The researchers say damage to oceans affects not only fish populations but also the productivity of ecosystems. These complex systems help control water quality. The scientists say the loss of different kinds of sea life appears to increase the risk of fish kills and beach closures from harmful algae growth.
The scientists examined the results of thirty-two experiments and observed forty-eight protected areas. They also looked at records of catches worldwide. They studied records from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization from 1950 to 2003. And they examined archaeological information and other historical records for twelve coastal areas. That research reached back over a thousand years.
Boris Worm says the findings are, in his words, “beyond anything we suspected.”But he also said the situation is not too late to core. He said that with good fisheries management, some species could completely recover in three to ten years.
1.The two underlined words “their” in the first paragraph most probably mean .
A.researchers' B.fisherman's
C.sea foods' D.the oceans'
2.Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A.All the scientists don't believe that all seafood species will disappearing very soon
B.Most government officials disagree to the seafood-disappearing research
C.Some scientists are doing a good job of protecting fish populations
D.It's too late to take any action to improve the situation.
3.According to Boris Worm, .
A.Some people are doing a good job of protecting fish populations
B.Overfishing is one of the causes for the loss of seafood species
C.things are getting worse though efforts can be made
D.some more species will come into being with right measures
4.What is the main purpose of the passage?
A.To call on people to protect the ocean environment
B.To introduce a study about the disappearing of sea foods
C.To report different opinions about the seafood research
D.To criticize the present fisheries management
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
A new study warns that about thirty percent of the world's people may not have enough water by the year 2025.
A private American organization called Population Action International did the new study. It says more than three-hundred-thirty-five-million people lack enough water now. The people live in twenty-eight countries. Most of the countries are in Africa or the Middle East.
P-A-I researcher Robert Engelman says by the year 2025, about three-thousand-million people may lack water. At least 18 more countries are expected to have severe water problems. The demand for water keeps increasing. Yet the amount of water on Earth stays the same.
Mr. Engelman says the population in countries that lack water is growing faster than in other parts of the world. He says population growth in these countries will continue to increase.
The report says lack of water in the future may result in several problems. It may increase health problems. Lack of water often means drinking waters not safe. Mr. Engelman says there are problems all over the world because of diseases, such as cholera, which are carried in water. Lack of water may also result in more international conflict. Countries may have to compete for water in the future. Some countries now get sixty percent of their fresh water from other countries. This is true of Egypt, the Netherlands, Cambodia, Syria, Sudan, and Iraq. And the report says lack of water would affect the ability of developing to improve their economies. This is because new industries often need a large amount of water when they are beginning.
The Population Action International study gives several solutions to the water problem. One way, it says, is to find ways to use water for more than one purpose. Another way is to teach people to be careful not to waste water. A third way is to use less water of agriculture.
The report also says long-term solutions to the water problem must include controls on population growth. It says countries cannot provide clean water unless they slow population growth by limiting the number of children people have.
1. are expected to have severe water problems by the year 2025.
A. 46 countries B. 18 countries
C. 28 countries D. No countries
2. All the following are true except .
A. Lack of water may cause conflict between countries
B. New industries need a lot of water
C. There are solutions to the water problem
D. Egypt now has enough fresh water
3..What can be inferred from the passage? .
A. There is connection between providing clean water and slowing population growth
B. Lack of water may also result from international conflict
C. The ability of developing has nothing to do with lack of water
D. It is not known whether diseases have something to do with lack of water
4.The best title of the passage would be .
A. World Conflict B. World Water Shortage
C. Diseases and Water D. Population and Water
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
Three years ago, a study of overfishing led to sharp debate．It warned that the world’s ocean fish could be almost gone by the middle of the century．Now, a new study offers more hope．It shows that the risk of fisheries(渔场) collapse has recently decreased in some areas-some, but not all．
BORIS WORM: “This means different regions are heading in different directions and some regions have indeed begun to eliminate overfishing．”
Boris Worm at Dalhousie University in Canada and Ray Hilborn at the University of Washington in Seattle were lead authors of the new study．
Professor Worm also led the earlier study published in 2006．Professor Hilborn publicly disagreed with those findings．The result: the two scientists agreed to work together on a new study．
They led a team that studied ten areas．In five of them, the rate at which fish are being taken out of the sea has dropped to a level that should let the populations recover．Three areas still had overfishing, but corrective measures have begun．
Yet, in all, almost two-thirds of fish populations studied worldwide still need rebuilding．
Only two areas did not have an overfishing problem in either the new study or the earlier one．They are New Zealand and the American state of Alaska．
The new study found that overfishing has been reduced in Canada’s Newfoundland-Labrador area and in Iceland and southern Australia．It also found improvements in the northeastern United States and the California Current that flows south along the West Coast．
The study found that better controls are still needed in the North Sea, the Baltic Sea and the Bay of Biscay between France and Spain．
The findings from two years of research appear in the journal Science．
Using nets that let smaller fish escape and agreeing not to fish in certain areas can help reduce overfishing．The study showed that these measures helped fish populations grow in Kenya．
But one of the authors of the study, from the Wildlife Conservation Society, says fisheries in Africa face another threat．Most countries in Africa, he says, are selling fishing rights to industrialized nations which catch large amounts of seafood．
The study shows what happened when industrialized nations increased restrictions on fishing in their own waters．Seafood companies moved their boats to developing countries with fewer restrictions．
1.Among the ten areas surveyed in the new study, _______ of them were not so overfished as they used to be．
A．two-thirds B．five C．three D．two
2.As to the new study, which of the following statements is Wrong?
A．It found that two of the areas studied showed improvements．
B．It lasted two years in all．
C．It showed that many areas still needed improving．
D．It was conducted not only by Boris Worm and Ray Hilborn．
3.The underlined word in paragraph 2 eliminate most probably means________．
A．defeat B．reduce C．get rid of D．improve
4.Which can be the best title for the passage?
A．Study Finds Some Ocean Fisheries Are Recovering
B．Boris Worm and Ray Hilborn’s New Study
C．New Findings about Overfishing Offer Hope
D．Overfishing Is Decreasing
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
The World Health Organization warns that millions of people are dying every year from indoor air pollution. The WHO finds that poor cooking, heating and lighting technologies are killing millions of people each year.
Indoor air pollution results from the use of dangerous fuels and cook-stoves in the home. To help fight the problem, the WHO announced, new guidelines aimed at reducing household pollutants.
WHO officials say nearly three billion people are unable to use clean fuels and technologies for cooking? heating and lighting. And they say more than seven million people die from exposure to indoor or outdoor air pollution each year. Of that number, the WHO says about 4. 3 million people die from household air pollution given off by simple coal cook-stoves. Most of the deaths are in developing countries.
Carlos Dora is Coordinator in the WHO's Department of Public Health, Environmental and Social Determinants of Health. He says people should not use unprocessed coal and kerosene fuel indoors. He says opening a window or door to let out the harmful air will not improve the situation. It will only pollute the outdoors.
WHO officials say indoor pollution leads to early deaths from stroke, heart and lung disease, childhood pneumonia（肺炎） and lung cancer. Women and girls are the main victims. The United Nations found that more than 95 percent of households in sub-Saharan Africa depend on solid fuels for cooking. It says huge populations in India, China and Latin American countries, such as Guatemala and Peru, are also at risk.
Nigel Bruce is a professor of Public Health at the University of Liverpool. He says researchers are developing good cook-stoves and other equipment to burn fuels in a more efficient way.
WHO experts note some new, safe and low-cost technologies that could help are already available. In India, you can buy an induction(电磁) stove for about $ 8.00. And in Africa a you can buy a solar lamp for less than $ 1. 00.
1.What has been done to reduce indoor air pollution?
A. The WHO provided selfless assistance for the poor.
B. People are forbidden to use coal-stoves inside.
C. The WHO issues official advice to cut down pollution,
D. People are taught how to correctly use their stoves.
2.According to WHO officials, we can know that
A. many people refuse to use clean fuels and technologies
B. seven million people die from indoor air pollution
C. simple coal cook-stoves cause too many deaths
D. the processed coal is dangerous to people’s heath
3.It can be concluded from the fifth paragraph that .
A. most children are suffering a lot from lung cancer
B. solid fuels are easily producing pollutants
C. sub-Saharan Africa is the poorest place
D. some countries are at the risk of using up fuels
4.What can we infer from the passage?
A. More and more will die in the future.
B. It is not hard to solve indoor air pollutants.
C. Most people cannot afford a new stove.
D. The WHO will take strong measures.
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
A study shows a worrying tendency that the window for saving the worlds coral reefs from the effects of global warming____.
A. was being rapidly closed B. will be rapidly closed
C. has rapidly closed D. is rapidly closing
高三英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析
It has been announced that the 2014 World Cup＿＿＿＿＿in Brazil from June 12一July 13，2014，in 12 hosting cities．
A. will stage B. has staged C. will be staged D. is staged
高三英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析
_______ supplying news from all over the world, newspapers give us a lot of other useful information.
| A．Other than | B．Rather than | C．Except for | D．Apart from |
高三英语单项填空简单题查看答案及解析
The world economy has run into a brick wall. Despite countless warnings in recent years about the need to address a potential hunger crisis in poor countries and an energy crisis worldwide, world leaders failed to think ahead. The result is a global food crisis. Wheat, corn and rice prices have more than doubled in the past two years. And oil prices have increased more than three times since the start of 2004. These food-price iricrcases. combined with increasing energy costs, will slow if not stop economic growth in many parts of the world and will even affect political stability. Practical solutions to these problems do exist, but we'll have to start thinking ahead and acting globally.
Here are three steps to ease the current food crisis and avoid the potential for a global crisis. The first is to promote the dramatic success of Malawi, a country in southern Africa, which three years ago established a special fund to help its farmers get fertilizer and seeds with high productivity. Malawi’s harvest doubled after just one year. An international fund based on the Malawi model would cost a mere $10 per person annually in the rich world, or S10 billion altogether.
Second, the U.S. and Europe should abandon their policies of paying partly for the change of food into biofuels. The U.S. government gives farmers a taxpayer-financed payment of 51 cents per gallon of ethanol (乙醇) changed from corn. There may be a case for biofuels produced on lands that do not produce foods — tree crops, grasses and wood products — but there's no case for the government to pay to put the world's dinner into the gas tank.
Third, we urgently need to weather-proof die world's crops as soon and as effectively as possible. For a poor farmer, sometimes something as simple as a farm pond — which collects rainwater to be used in dry weather — can make the difference between a good harvest and a bad one. The world has already committed to establishing a Climate Adaptation hind to help poor regions climate-proof vital economic activities such as food production and health care but has not yet acted upon the promise.
1.An international fund based on the Malawi model would______.
A. cost each of the developed countries $10 billion per year
B. aim to double the harvest in southern African countries In a year
C. decrease the food prices as well as the energy prices
D. give poor farmers access to fertilizer and highly productive seeds
2.With the second step, the author expresses the idea that ______.
A. it is not wise to change food crops into gas
B. it is misleading to put tree crops into the gas tank
C. we should get alternative forms of fuel in any way
D. biofuels should be developed on a large scale
3.Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A. A rain-collecting pond is a simple safeguard against dry weal
B. A Climate Adaptation Fund has been established to help poor
C. The world has made a serious promise to build farm ponds.
D. It makes a great difference whether we develop wood products or not.
4.In the passage, the author calls on us to______.
A. slow down but not to stop economic.
B. develop tree crops, grasses'and wood products
C. achieve economic growth and political stability
D. act now so as to relieve the global food shortage
高三英语阅读理解困难题查看答案及解析
The world economy has run into a brick wall. Despite countless warnings in recent years about the need to address a potential hunger crisis in poor countries and an energy crisis worldwide, world leaders failed to think ahead. The result is a global food crisis. Wheat, corn and rice prices have more than doubled in the past two years. And oil prices have increased more than three times since the start of 2004. These food-price increases, combined with increasing energy costs, will slow if not stop economic growth in many parts of the world and will even affect political stability. Practical solutions to these problems do exist, but we'll have to start thinking ahead and acting globally.
Here are three steps to ease the current food crisis and avoid the potential for a global crisis. The first is to promote the dramatic success of Malawi, a country in southern Africa, which three years ago established a special fund to help its farmers get fertilizer and seeds with high productivity. Malawi’s harvest doubled after just one year. An international fund based on the Malawi model would cost a mere $10 per person annually in the rich world, or $10 billion altogether.
Second, the U.S. and Europe should abandon their policies of paying partly for the change of food into biofuels (生物燃料). The U.S. government gives farmers a taxpayer-financed payment of 51 cents per gallon of ethanol (乙醇) changed from corn. There may be a case for biofuels produced on lands that do not produce foods — tree crops, grasses and wood products — but there’s no case for the government to pay to put the world’s dinner into the gas tank.
Third, we urgently need to weather-proof the world’s crops as soon and as effectively as possible. For a poor farmer, sometimes something as simple as a farm pond — which collects rainwater to be used in dry weather — can make the difference between a good harvest and a bad one. The world has already committed to establishing a Climate Adaptation Fund to help poor regions climate-proof vital economic activities such as food production and health care but has not yet acted upon the promise.
1. An international fund based on the Malawi model would______.
A. cost each of the developed countries $10 billion per year
B. give poor farmers access to fertilizer and highly productive seeds
C. decrease the food prices as well as the energy prices
D. aim to double the harvest in southern African countries in a year
2.With the second step, the author expresses the idea that ______.
A. we should get alternative forms of fuel in any way
B. it is misleading to put tree crops into the gas tank
C. it is not wise to change food crops into gas
D. biofuels should be developed on a large scale
3.Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A. The world has made a serious promise to build farm ponds.
B. A Climate Adaptation Fund has been established to help poor.
C. A rain-collecting pond is a simple safeguard against dry weather.
D. It makes a great difference whether we develop wood products or not.
4.In the passage, the author calls on us to______.
A. slow down but not to stop economy
B. act now so as to relieve the global food shortage
C. achieve economic growth and political stability
D. develop tree crops, grasses and wood products
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
Scientists warn that our earth is drowning in plastic. The world’s cities produce 2 billion tons of rubbish every year. That number is expected to rise to 3 billion tons by 2050.
We often buy packaged goods but that packaging is often made of plastic. Now, it may be changing. A new environmentally friendly shopping model, called Loop, was recently launched at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. It aims to replace throwaway containers with reusable ones. This is what some people call the zero-waste movement. The main belief driving this movement is that much of the trash we create is unnecessary.
Loop is the idea of TerraCycle, a recycling company. It first came from the “milkman model” of the 1950s in the US. Back then, someone brought milk to your doorstep in glass bottles and then left with empty bottles. These could be cleaned and used again. The result is zero-waste. Loop will work the same way. Instead of throwing away, the product comes in a reusable one. When the product is all gone, someone will collect and clean the old container, fill it up and then return it to you.
At the start, Loop will offer about 300 products. Proctor & Gamble will start by selling 10 products on Loop as a test. If the results are good, more products will be added later.
Representatives from Greenpeace also joined in the discussion about Loop at Davos. Jennifer Morgan said that “Greenpeace welcomes the aim of the Loop Alliance to move away from throwaway culture and disposability. But I doubt whether companies worldwide are ready to change their business models”.
Loop is set to launch later in three eastern U. S. states, and also in Paris, France and some of the surrounding area. Then Loop plans to expand to the U. S. West Coast, Toronto, Canada and Britain by the end of this year.
1.The purpose of Loop is to___________.
A.make packaging easier
B.reduce the plastic waste
C.lower the production cost
D.change shopping model
2.What is the third paragraph mainly about?
A.The origin of the idea of Loop.
B.The way to recycle milk bottles.
C.The future of shopping pattern.
D.The benefit of recycling containers.
3.What is Morgan’s attitude towards the current situation of loop?
A.Optimistic. B.Desperate.
C.Worried. D.Ambiguous.
4.What is the author’s purpose in writing the text?
A.To show scientists’ concern about plastic.
B.To present us benefits of recycling plastic.
C.To introduce the zero-waste shopping model.
D.To inform us of an environmental issue.
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析