Climate change will increase US wildfires,and...

Climate change will increase US wildfires,and the smoky air will cause terrible problems in areas far beyond those burned,reports an environmental group Thursday.

Two-thirds of Americans,or nearly 212 million,lived in states suffering from wildfire smoke three years ago,according to the report by the Natural Resources Defense Council(NRDC).These areas,which had smoke for at least a week,were nearly 50 times greater than those burned directly by fire.

“It affects a much wide area of the United States than people have realized.” says author Kim Knowlton,a Columbia University health professor,adding the smoke can move up to hundreds of miles.She says the smoke contains air pollution and can cause several kinds of diseases.

Texas was hit hardest in 2011,when smoke stayed for at least a week in areas that are home to 25 million people,according to NRDC’s report.Illinois,which recorded no wildfires within its borders,came second with

nearly 12 million people affected by smoke that moved in from elsewhere.The other eight states with the most people in touch with smoky air were,in descending　 order: Florida,Missouri,Georgia,Louisiana,Michigan,Alabama,Oklahoma and Iowa.

Nearly two dozen states had no wildfires within their borders in 2011,but eight of them still had at least one week of smoky air: Illinois,Missouri，Iowa,Kansas,Nebraska,Indiana,Wisconsin and Ohio.

Only 18 states and the District of Columbia had no people in touch with at least a week of smoke that year,although five of them—Alaska,California,Hawaii,Nevada and Utah—had a large area burned by wildfires.

The problem will only get worse.Knowlton says.Scientific research shows climate is causing higher temperatures and health problems.

1.We can learn from the first two paragraphs that_______.

A. climate change killed many Americans

B. there are fewer states burned by wildfires

C. every state had wildfire smoke for at least a week

D. most Americans suffered from wildfire smoke 3 year ago

2.Which of the following states had wildfires within its borders in 2011?

A. Iowa.　　 B. Kansas.

C. Ohio.　　 D. California.

3.The underlined word “descending” in the fourth paragraph probably means _______.

A. going down　　 B. coming true

C. looking practical　　 D. turning back

4.What is the text mainly about?

A. Climate change causes more wildfires.

B. Wildfire smoke becomes a serious health problem.

C. More wildfires cause climate changes.

D. Air pollution becomes a terrible problem.

高三英语阅读理解困难题查看答案及解析

____visa change made by China and the US will witness _____increase in economy, tourism and education.

A. A; the　　　　　　　　 B. The; ／　　　　　　　　 C. A;／　　　　　　　　　　 D. The; an

高三英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析

Air travel is growing around the globe, and so is its contribution to climate change. The climate cost of flying has drawn more public attention in recent years, even leading to“ flight shame” in some places, especially for local or avoidable flights.

And while a decline in air travel would help with climate change，flight shame can also be added by other ways that make air travel more environmentally friendly. That includes switching to cleaner，renewable fuel , but as a new study indicates , there's also another, less obvious option: flying at lower altitudes.

In a new study, researchers used computers to predict how adjusting aircraft altitudes might reduce the number of contrails(尾迹)，which we see as white lines across the sky containing black carbon particles (颗粒)，thus reducing their warming effect. The study found that aircraft would only need to adjust their altitudes by about 2 ,000 feet, and since some flights have a larger climate effect than others , only a small part of flights would need to make any adjustments.

Of course flying at a lower altitude might increase flying time and it also means burning significantly more fuel, and thus giving off more C02, but the benefits of controlling contrails are worth it.

In addition to changing altitudes，better engine technology could also help control contrails, the researchers add, since black carbon particles are produced by incomplete fuel combustion ( 燃烧). With more efficient engines, aircraft could reportedly reduce their contrail by as much as 70%。Combined with slight altitude adjustment for a small part of flights, this could help reduce overall contrail problems by 90%，the study suggests.

This is promising, but more research i still needed, and it may be a while before improvements like these take effect at a significant scale. So, while it's good to know air travel can have a smaller effect on the climate, for now the best way to achieve that is often by simply staying on the ground whenever possible.

1.What might be the effect of“flight shame" ?

A.People will avoid traveling by plane.

B.Airline companies will limit service targets.

C.The cost of air travelling will become higher.

D.People will feel shamed if they haven't taken a plane.

2.Why did the researchers suggest flying at lower altitudes?

A.Planes can travel faster. B.Planes can save more fuel.

C.Planes may give off less C02. D.Planes may have less warming effect.

3.What is mainly talked about in paragraph 5?

A.A way to change altitudes. B.The future of engine technology.

C.An approach to reducing contrails. D.The concept of incomplete combustion.

4.In which section of a website might this text appear?

A.Energy. B.Climate.

C.Finance. D.Safety. .

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

The USA, New York—Whales and dolphins are facing increasing threats from climate change, according to a new report published by WWF and the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society （WDCS）．

The report "Whales in hot water?" draws attention to the growing impacts of climate change on whales．They range from changes in sea temperature and the freshening of the seawater because of the melting of ice and increased rainfalls, to a sea level rise, loss of icy polar habitats and the decline of krill populations in key areas．Krill, a tiny shrimp that is dependent on sea ice, is the main source of food for many of the great whales．

The speeding up of climate change adds greatly to trouble from other human activities, such as chemical and noise pollution, which kills some 1000 whales every day．

"Whales and dolphins have an ability to adapt to their changing environment," said Mark Simmonds, International Director of Science at WDCS．"But the climate is now changing at such a fast pace that it is unclear to what extent whales and dolphins will be able to adjust．"

Climate change impacts are currently greatest in the Arctic and the Antarctic．According to the report, cetaceans that rely on polar, icy waters for their home and food resources are likely to be greatly affected by the reduction of sea ice cover．

WDCS and WWF are urging governments to cut global production of C02 by at least 50 percent by the middle of this century．The latest report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change showed it was possible to stop global warming if the world's emissions start to decline before 2015．

1.Which of the following is the most important for whales and dolphins?

A．Rainfall         B．Krill               C．Sea ice cover    D．High sea level

2.From the passage, we can learn that whales mainly feed on _____．

A．dolphins         B．krill                   C．sea horses      D．sharks

3.The underlined word "decline" in Paragraph 2 means _____．

A．increase            B．control            C．protection          D．fall

4.In what place is climate change greatest?

A．The Pacific Ocean                          B．Asia．

C．Two polar areas．                        D．Equator．

5.Which of the following is not right according to the passage?

A．Climate change will lead to the changes in sea temperature．

B．Climate change will result in the freshening of the sea water．

C．Climate change will have a bad effect on human activities and whales．

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

The USA, New York—Whales and dolphins are facing increasing threats from climate change, according to a new report published by WWF and the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society （WDCS）．

The report "Whales in hot water?" draws attention to the growing impacts of climate change on whales．They range from changes in sea temperature and the freshening of the seawater because of the melting of ice and increased rainfalls, to a sea level rise, loss of icy polar habitats and the decline of krill populations in key areas．Krill, a tiny shrimp that is dependent on sea ice, is the main source of food for many of the great whales．

The speeding up of climate change adds greatly to trouble from other human activities, such as chemical and noise pollution, which kills some 1000 whales every day．

"Whales and dolphins have an ability to adapt to their changing environment," said Mark Simmonds, International Director of Science at WDCS．"But the climate is now changing at such a fast pace that it is unclear to what extent whales and dolphins will be able to adjust．"

Climate change impacts are currently greatest in the Arctic and the Antarctic．According to the report, cetaceans that rely on polar, icy waters for their home and food resources are likely to be greatly affected by the reduction of sea ice cover．

WDCS and WWF are urging governments to cut global production of C02 by at least 50 percent by the middle of this century．The latest report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change showed it was possible to stop global warming if the world's emissions start to decline before 2015．

1.Which of the following is the most important for whales and dolphins?

2.From the passage, we can learn that whales mainly feed on _____．

3.The underlined word "decline" in Paragraph 2 means _____．

4.In what place is climate change greatest?

5.Which of the following is not right according to the passage?

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

With climate change and overfishing threatening our oceans, it is becoming increasingly important for researchers to closely observe and check sea animals and plants. However, it’s almost impossible to make it since human presence scares the animals. Now, thanks to the robot, aka SoFi, researchers may be able to solve the problem.

Built by MIT’s laboratory, the snow-white remote-controlled robot simulates fish, complete with a flexible tail that moves from side to side and two “fins (鳍)”.

When the robot is under the sea, a motor is pumping water into a pair of balloon-like rooms located in the robot’s tail. These rooms operate similarly to the key parts in engines. As one room expands, the tail bends to one side; when the motor pushes water to the other channel, the tail bends in the other direction. Thus the robot gains the ability to move to where it wants to go.

SoFi solves many of the issues that have affected the usefulness of previous robots --- some types of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs)

AUVs traditionally often have had to be tied to a boat because radio frequency communications do not work well underwater. So researchers use sound waves. The new technology can travel greater distances, allowing drivers, by using a controller, to pilot SoFi from up to 50 feet away. SoFi can move around the ocean, unaffected by ropes. Also limiting traditional AUVs’ usefulness is the risk of hitting something, like hard stones. With the outside made of rubber and plastic that can keep its built-in electronics dry, SoFi can efficiently avoid hitting. So a soft robot is more likely to survive a potential crisis.

During test dives in Rainbow Reef, SoFi swam alongside the unsuspecting ocean life at depths of 50 feet for up to 40 minutes at a time, obtaining high-quality photos and videos. More importantly, it was able to do so without causing any disturbance. Researchers say sometimes the fish would swim alongside the strange-looking robot in curiosity, while at other times they appeared to completely ignore its existence. “It’s not perfect, but we’re improving it. Our efforts will pay off,” says Robert Katzschmann.

1.The robot SoFi is created to ________.

A.observe climate change B.help to monitor sea creatures

C.catch fish and observe them D.prevent overfishing in oceans

2.What does the underlined word “simulates” in Paragraph 2 probably mean?

A.Is modeled after. B.Is designed for.

C.Is combined with. D.Is applied to.

3.What’s Paragraph 3 mainly written to show?

A.The shape of SoFi. B.The application of SoFi.

C.The structure of SoFi’s tail. D.The theory of SoFi’s movement.

4.The materials for SoFi’s outside help SoFi to ________.

A.stay safe underwater B.take high-quality photos

C.stay deeper under the sea D.better attract sea creatures

5.What’s Robert Katzschmann’s attitude towards SoFi?

A.Satisfied. B.Negative. C.Hopeful. D.Neutral.

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

These changes may cost quite a lot, _____ they will save us money in the long run.

A. so　　              B. and            C. for                 D. but

高三英语简单题查看答案及解析

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

Around the world coral reefs(珊瑚礁) are facing threats(威胁) brought by climate change and great changes in sea temperatures. While ocean warming has been the primary focus for scientists and ocean policy managers, cold events can also whiten corals. A new study by scientists compared damaged to corals exposed to heat as well as cold stress. The results show that cool temperatures can cause more damage in the short term, but heat is more destructive(破坏性的) in the long run.

Climate change is widely known to produce warming conditions in the oceans, but extreme cold-water events have become more frequent and serious as well. In 2010, for example, coral reefs around the world faced on of the coldest winters and one of the hottest summers on record.

During a unique experiment, corals under cold temperatures suffered greater damage in just days compared with heat treated corals. Yet the researchers found that corals were eventually able to adjust to the cold conditions, make their health stable and continue to grow. However, over the long term corals subjected to heat suffered more greatly than those in cold, with evidence of severe whitening and growth stoppage, which leads to death.

The coral’s ability to adjust to cool temperatures surprised the researchers, who say the study’s results show the complexities(复杂性) of monitoring coral health in response to different environmental factors(因素).

“Global warming is associated with increases but also decreases of temperatures,” said Deheyn, one of the researchers. “Not much has been known about the comparative effects of temperature decrease on corals. These results are important because they show that corals react differently to temperature differences, which is important for future management of coral reefs in the field of climate change.”

1.Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A. Corals are unable to adjust to temperature changes.
B. Cold temperature causes greater damage to corals.
C. Hot temperature helps coral reefs to grow quickly.
D. Heat and cold damage corals in their own ways.

2.We can learn from the passage that 　　　　　 .
A. scientists used to pay no attention to the effect of cold events on corals
B. 2010 witnessed one of the greatest temperature differences on record
C. corals prefer warmer conditions to cold temperatures in the long run
D. global warming has nothing to do with the decrease of temperature

3.According to the research, 　　　　　　　 .
A. corals may continue to grow in cold events after a few days
B. cold events help corals grow more quickly in a short time
C. corals show no response to hot temperatures in the first days
D. corals are whitened mainly because of warm temperatures

4.Scientists reached the conclusion through 　　　　　　　　 .

A. news report　　　　　　　　　 B. scientific study　　　　　　　　　 C. great imaginationD.natural conditions

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析