Climate change, pollution, overuse of water a...

Climate change, pollution, overuse of water and development are killing some of the world’s most famous rivers including China’s Yangtze, India’s Ganges and Africa’s Nile, WWF said on Tuesday．At the global launch of its report “World’s Top 10 Rivers at Risk”, the group said many rivers could dry out, affecting hundreds of millions of people and killing unique aquatic life．

“If these rivers die, millions will lose their livelihoods, biodiversity will be destroyed on a massive scale, there will be less fresh water and agriculture, resulting in less food security,” said Rayi Singh, secretary-general of WWF-India．The report launched ahead of “World Water Day” today, also cited the Rio Grande in the United States, the Mekong and Indus in Asia, Europe’s Danube, La Plata in South America and Australia’s Murray-Darling as in need of greater protection．

Rivers are the world’s main source of fresh water and WWF says about half of the available supply is already being used up．Dams have destroyed habitats and cut rivers off from their flood plains while climate change could affect the seasonal water flows that feed them, the report said．Fish populations, the top source of protein and overall life support for hundreds of thousands of communities worldwide, are also being threatened, it found… The Yangtze basin is one of the most polluted rivers in the world because of decades of heavy industrialization, damming and huge influxes of sediment from land conversion．

Climate change, including higher temperatures, also means serious consequences for fishery productivity, water supply and political security in Africa’s arid Nile basin．Tributaries flowing into the Ganges are drying up because of irrigation, WWF said．

1.What does the text mainly talk about?

A．Saving fresh water in our life．                                       B．How to protect our rivers．

C．An important discovery．              D．World’s top 10 rivers are at risk．

2.We can infer from the text that _____．

A．rivers’ dying out could affect food security

B．there are four Asian rivers mentioned in the passage

C．the Yangtze is polluted thanks to the lack of enough tributaries

D．higher temperatures couldn’t affect fishery productivity

3.The top 10 rivers are fast dying as a result of the following EXCEPT _____．

A．climate change                                 B．wasting water

C．pollution                                           D．dams

4.WWF is probably a name of _____．

A．an organization  B．a newspaper    C．a magazine       D．a report

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Climate change，pollution，overuse of water and development are killing some of the world’s most famous rivers including China’s Yangtze．India’s Ganges and Africa’s Nile．WWF said on Tuesday．At the global launch of its report “World’s Top 10 Rivers at Risk”，the group said many rivers could dry out. affecting hundreds of millions of people and killing unique aquatic(水生的)life．

“If these rivers die，millions will lose their livelihoods，biodiversity(生物多样性)will be destroyed on a massive scale，there will be less fresh water and agriculture，resulting in less food security，”said．Rayi Singh，secretary—general of WWF—India．The report,launched ahead of“World Water Day”today，also cited the Rio Grande in．the United States，the Mekong and Indus in Asia，Europe’s Danube, La Plata in South America and Australia’s Murray—Darling as in need of greater protection．

Rivers are the world’s main source of fresh water and WWF says about half of the available supply is already being used up．Dams have destroyed habitats and cut rivers off from their flood plains．while climate change could affect the seasonal water flows that feed them，the report said．Fish populations，the top source of protein and overall life support for hundreds of thousands of communities worldwide，are also being threatened, it found．The Yangtze basin is one of the most polluted rivers in the world because of decades of heavy industrialization，damming and huge influxes(流入)of sediment (积淀)from land conversion.

Climate change，including higher temperatures，also means serious consequences for fishery productivity，water supply and political security in Africa’s arid Nile basin．Tributaries(支流)flowing into the Ganges are drying up because of irrigation，WWF said．

1.We can infer from the text that _____.

A. higher temperatures couldn’t affect fishery productivity

B. rivers’dying out could affect food security

C. there are four Asian rivers mentioned in the passage

D. the Yangtze is polluted thanks to the lack of enough tributaries

2.The top 10 rivers are fast dying as a result of the following EXCEPT _____.

A. climate change　　 B. pollution

C. wasting water　　 D. dams

3.WWF is probably a name of _____.

A. a magazine　　 B. a newspaper

C. an organization　　 D. a report

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Climate change, pollution, overuse of water and development are killing some of the world’s most famous rivers including China’s Yangtze, India’s Ganges and Africa’s Nile, WWF said on Tuesday．At the global launch of its report “World’s Top 10 Rivers at Risk”, the group said many rivers could dry out, affecting hundreds of millions of people and killing unique aquatic life．

“If these rivers die, millions will lose their livelihoods, biodiversity will be destroyed on a massive scale, there will be less fresh water and agriculture, resulting in less food security,” said Rayi Singh, secretary-general of WWF-India．The report launched ahead of “World Water Day” today, also cited the Rio Grande in the United States, the Mekong and Indus in Asia, Europe’s Danube, La Plata in South America and Australia’s Murray-Darling as in need of greater protection．

Rivers are the world’s main source of fresh water and WWF says about half of the available supply is already being used up．Dams have destroyed habitats and cut rivers off from their flood plains while climate change could affect the seasonal water flows that feed them, the report said．Fish populations, the top source of protein and overall life support for hundreds of thousands of communities worldwide, are also being threatened, it found… The Yangtze basin is one of the most polluted rivers in the world because of decades of heavy industrialization, damming and huge influxes of sediment from land conversion．

Climate change, including higher temperatures, also means serious consequences for fishery productivity, water supply and political security in Africa’s arid Nile basin．Tributaries flowing into the Ganges are drying up because of irrigation, WWF said．

1.What does the text mainly talk about?

A．Saving fresh water in our life．         B．How to protect our rivers．

C．An important discovery．                    D．World’s top 10 rivers are at risk．

2.We can infer from the text that _____．

A．rivers’ dying out could affect food security

B．there are four Asian rivers mentioned in the passage

C．the Yangtze is polluted thanks to the lack of enough tributaries

D．higher temperatures couldn’t affect fishery productivity

3.The top 10 rivers are fast dying as a result of the following EXCEPT _____．

A．climate change    B．wasting water

C．pollution                  D．dams

4.WWF is probably a name of _____．

A．an organization       B．a newspaper          C．a magazine            D．a report

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Health and climate scientists have mapped how climate change affects different parts of the world in different ways. The scientists point to the fact that changes in the past thirty years may, have been affecting human health. Possible effects include more deaths from extreme(极度的) heat or cold, more storms and more crop failures in dry periods.

The health and climate scientists recently estimated(估计) that climate changes caused by human activity lead to more than one hundred and fifty thousand deaths each year. Cases of sickness are estimated at five million. And the W.H.O. says the numbers could rise quickly by the year of 2003.

Jonathan Patz of an environmental institute led the study. Professor Patz points out that climate scientists connected global warming with the heat that killed thousands in Europe in August, 2003. But he says poor countries least responsible(对……负责) for the warming are most in danger from the health effects of higher temperatures.

Professor Patz says areas in greatest danger include southern and eastern Africa and coastlines along the Pacific and Indian oceans. Also, large cities experience what scientists call a "heat island"effect that can make conditions worse.

Representatives(代表) from about two hundred countries hold a meeting in Canada, to discuss climate change. The ten-day meeting ends on December 9th. It is the first such United Nations meeting since the Kyoto Protocol(京都议定书) took effect earlier this year. The agreement aims to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide(二氧化碳) and other heat-trapping(吸热的) gases sent off into the air.

1.Who is Jonathan Patz?

2.Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?

3.Possible effects from the climate changes include the following EXCEPT ______.

4.According to the health and climate scientists, climate changes have been caused by ______.

5.We can infer from the passage that ______.

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

China understands the situation and needs of underdeveloped countries on the issue of climate change and urges developed countries to support them______ technology and finance．

A．in spite of                                        B．owing to

C．regardless of                                D．in terms of

高三英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析

Traffic is one of the major causes of global w_______ and climate change.

高三英语单词拼写简单题查看答案及解析

Rising levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere are a major cause of climate change, and now a new study has confirmed that atmospheric CO₂ is also affecting the ocean chemistry and potentially harming sea life.

Montana State University scientist Robert Dore has been researching the water in the Pacific Ocean for almost two decades.

"We've been going to the same spot in the Pacific Ocean, and we try and characterize long-term change in the open ocean environment. And one of the key things that we measure is CO₂ levels. And we've been able to record this increasing quantity of atmospheric CO₂ into the ocean."

Scientists expected that as atmospheric CO₂ increased, more and more of the carbon dioxide would be absorbed into the ocean, affecting the chemical balance of the sea water, with a potentially harmful impact on shellfish and coral in particular.

"As carbon dioxide dissolves（溶解） in the water, or seawater in this case, it forms a weak acid, carbonic acid," Dore explains. "And therefore, as the concentration of CO₂ in the atmosphere goes up and that exchanges with the surface seawater, it drives the pH down, and makes it more acidic."

The seawater Dore and his colleagues have analyzed confirms what the theory predicts.

The effect was particular striking at about 250 meters down, and again at 500 meters. Dore and his colleagues came up with two possible explanations. It could be that surface water picked up CO₂ and then moved to those depths. Or there could be a biological explanation.

"It's important to realize that the oceans are really becoming acidic. And it can have negative impacts on a whole variety of sea life from fish to coral. It's potentially catastrophic."

1.What can be the best title of the passage?

A．Sea Life Facing Danger                                  B．Climate Change Affecting Seawater

C．Oceans Becoming More Acidic                     D．Scientist Researching Seawater

2.Which of the following shows the process of the impact of atmospheric CO₂ on sea life?

a．Sea life is endangered．

b．CO₂ goes into the surface water．

c．The ocean chemistry is affected．

d．CO₂decreases the PH and makes the seawater more acidic．

e．CO₂ levels in the atmosphere go up．

A.    a    →  b   →  c  →  d   →  e

B.    e   →  b   --→ c  →  d   →  a

C.    a    →  e   -→  b  →  c   →  d

D.    e    →  d   -→  c  →  b   →  a

3.Scientist Robert Dore came to the conclusion based on________ .

A．his research and analysis

B．a major cause of climate change

C．some former theory

D．the expectation of other scientists

4.What does the passage want to tell us most?

A．It takes time to make a scientific study．

B．Atmospheric CO2 is doing harm to sea life．

C．Robert Dore is a committed and serious scientist．

D．Measures should be taken to prevent the potential catastrophe．

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Rising levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere are a major cause of climate change, and now a new study has confirmed that atmospheric CO₂ is also affecting the ocean chemistry and potentially harming sea life.

Montana State University scientist Robert Dore has been researching the water in the Pacific Ocean for almost two decades. We've been going to the same spot in the Pacific Ocean, and we try and characterize long-term change in the open ocean environment. And one of the key things that we measure is CO₂ levels. And we've been able to record this increasing quantity of atmospheric CO₂ into the ocean.

Scientists expected that as atmospheric CO₂ increased, more and more of the carbon dioxide would be absorbed into the ocean, affecting the chemical balance of the sea water, with a potentially harmful impact on shellfish and coral in particular.

"As carbon dioxide dissolves（溶解） in the water, or seawater in this case, it forms a weak acid, carbonic acid," Dore explains. "And therefore, as the concentration of CO₂ in the atmosphere goes up and that exchanges with the surface seawater, it drives the PH down, and makes it more acidic."

The seawater Dore and his colleagues have analyzed confirms what the theory predicts.

The effect was particular striking at about 250 meters down, and again at 500 meters. Dore and his colleagues came up with two possible explanations. It could be that surface water picked up CO₂ and then moved to those depths. Or there could be a biological explanation.

"It's important to realize that the oceans are really becoming acidic. And it can have negative（消极的） impacts on a whole variety of sea life from fish to coral. It's potentially catastrophic."

1.What can be the best title of the passage?

A．Sea Life Facing Danger

B．Scientist Researching Seawater

C．Oceans Becoming More Acidic

D．Climate Change Affecting Seawater

2.With the increase of atmospheric CO₂，________.

A．more corals will appear in the sea

B．the surface water is becoming warmer

C．the chemical balance of the seawater is affected

D．the PH of the ocean out here has been increasing

3.Which of the following shows the process of the impact of atmospheric CO₂ on sea life?

a．Sea life is endangered．

b．CO₂ goes into the surface water．

c．The ocean chemistry is affected．

d．CO₂decreases the PH and makes the seawater more acidic．

e．CO₂ levels in the atmosphere go up．

4.Scientist Robert Dore came to the conclusion based on________.

A．his research and analysis

B．the expectation of other scientists

C．some former theory

D．a major cause of climate change

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Climate change will bring and has already brought a wide variety of threatening destruction to human existence. Some of these are well-known and already operative, like the wildfires racing along California’s freeways or the permanent droughts that have been upsetting Mediterranean farmers. But are these all terrible disasters we can come up with that are brought about by climate change?

Absolutely not. None of the challenges posed by our warming climate has appeared larger in the popular imagination than sea-level rise, as global populations and wealth are heavily concentrated in low-lying coastal cities. The best available models suggest that 37 million people currently live in places that will be below high tide by 2050-in an optimistic low-carbon-emissions scenario (设想).

Or rather, that’s what such models suggested before this week. On Tuesday, a new study revealed that those alarming statistics were wildly inaccurate. The actual impacts of sea-level rise are going to be much, much worse.

Previous estimates of the impact that rising tides would have on coastal cities relied on essentially a three-dimensional map of Earth obtained from satellite readings. But those readings were fundamentally unreliable because they often measured the planet’s upper surfaces — such as treetops and tall buildings — rather than its ground level. These mistakes led scientists to overestimate the elevation (海拔) of many regions of Earth.

In a new study published by the journal Nature Communications, scientists from Princeton, University detail this methodological problem, then use artificial intelligence to determine the previous literature’s error rate. Their research yields some amazing updates to our conventional understanding of what the next century has in store for our coastlines.

In its optimistic scenario, the Princeton study projects that lands currently occupied by 150 million people will lie below high tide in 2050. But as warming destroys many of the world’s agricultural regions, climate change could accelerate migration from rural areas to coastal cities.

The new study does include one piece of slightly encouraging news. While previous models suggested that 28 million humans currently live in places that already lie below high tide, the actual number is closer to 110 million — which means seawalls and other barriers have proven sufficient to keep many cities dry even as sea levels have risen around them. Still, the scale of barrier construction necessary to save low-lying cities from collapse is now, apparently, far greater than previously understood when the task already looked terribly expensive, particularly for developing countries.

If the Princeton researchers’ projections are correct, avoiding mass death and suffering in the coming decades will require not only rapidly reducing carbon emissions and strengthening construction of seawalls but also furthering mass migrations away from low-lying cities and islands and toward higher ground.

1.The first paragraph is mainly intended to 　　　　 .

A.introduce the topic of this passage

B.show various disasters caused by climate change

C.call on people to fix attention on climate change

D.lay emphasis on the seriousness of climate change

2.All the following statements are true EXCEPT　　　　 .

A.the Princeton study reveals an optimistic picture of sea rising. . .

B.the three-dimensional map produced by satellite is not accurate

C.some measures are mentioned by the writer to deal with sea rising

D.more people are likely to live in coastal cities in the coming years

3.We can see something encouraging from the Princeton study that 　　　　 .

A.it’s cheap to construct seawalls as well as other barriers

B.the scale of barrier construction is much greater than before

C.developed countries have less trouble in dealing with rising sea levels

D.seawalls do have the function to prevent coastal cities being drowned

4.What can be a suitable title for the passage?

A.How to protect cities from rising seas.

B.Rising seas are going to drown more cities.

C.Climate change is endangering human existence.

D.Less emission of carbon, fewer fires and droughts.

高三英语阅读理解简单题查看答案及解析

"How to Let Co of the World and Love All the Things Climate Can't Change" is the latest movie from film-maker and climate activist Josh Fox.The movie is the third film in a three-part series about climate change.

In 2010,Fox's documentary "Gasland" was appointed for the highest award-an Oscar. "Gasland" explored the hotly debated process of removing natural gas from the ground.He examined the subject again in "Gasland Ⅱ".

Fox was in Washington,D.C.recently to present his third film.He was arrested during a protest against a new fuel pipeline.In the film,Fox says pollution from fossil fuels must be reduced.Without limits,there will be more extreme weather,like severe storms and dry weather,rising sea levels,causing shortages of food and water, "When you really encounter that head on,it causes an in-credible crisis."

In the new film,Fox travels through a sunless forest in the Amazon with local activists to measure oil spills.He goes to a village in Ecuador to learn how people there stopped a pipeline from being built.He joins young people in Australia to stop boats from entering the port of Newcastle.

"You should probably know the downside of what we're about to do.This is the short list: drowning,being arrested: being run over by boats,drifting away in currents out into the Pacific Ocean,cultural disrespect,big waves."

Also in the film,Fox talks to Ella Zhou,an energy expert.She explained the importance of what she calls "moral imagination"."I think that it forces us to get out of our box of thinking about,for instance,what is being successful.It allows us to have a moral value about what you want as a person.What do you want to do for the world and for yourself?"

1.Why was Fox's "Gasland" appointed for an Oscar?

A. Because Fox is the most famous film-maker in America.

B. Because Fox had experienced incredible crisis in the globe.

C. Because the movie is mainly about global climate change.

D. Because Fox was arrested for opposing a new fuel pipeline.

2.What does the underlined word "that" refer to?

A. The pollution from fossil fuels.　　 B. The economic crisis.

C. The increasing population.　　 D. The extreme weather.

3.What's the purpose of "moral imagination" mentioned in the last paragraph?

A. To warn people of the importance of creating new fuels.

B. To make people learn to be creative in thinking things.

C. To motivate people to achieve their dreams in their life.

D. To stimulate people to find the values of individuals.

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析