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 (設(shè)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 DD.
A.lay emphasis on the seriousness of climate change
B.show various disasters caused by climate change
C.call on people to fix attention on climate change
D.introduce the topic of this passage
(2)All the following statements are true EXCEPT BB.
A.the three-dimensional map produced by satellite is not accurate
B.the Princeton study reveals an optimistic picture of sea rising
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 CC.
A.it's cheap to construct seawalls as well as other barriers
B.the scale of barrier construction is much greater than before
C.seawalls do have the function to prevent coastal cities being drowned
D.developed countries have less trouble in dealing with rising sea levels
(4)What is the warning that the passage is sending out? CC
A.How to protect cities from rising seas.
B.Climate change is endangering human existence.
C.Rising seas are going to drown more cities.
D.Less emission of carbon,fewer fires and droughts.
【考點(diǎn)】說(shuō)明文.
【答案】D;B;C;C
【解答】
【點(diǎn)評(píng)】
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發(fā)布:2024/5/27 14:0:0組卷:1引用:1難度:0.5
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1.It is widely believed that biodiversity(生物多樣性)is promoted to save species.But in reality species exist only as part of ecosystems and cannot survive unless their ecosystems are protected along with as much as possible of the diversity they contain.
Protecting habitats(棲息地)is important for keeping biodiversity.In 2003,over 102,000 habitats covering nearly 19 million square kilometres,or 11.5% of the world's land surface,were under some form of protection.Though this is a great improvement since 1962,when just 1,000 protected habitats were listed,it is still not considered enough to stop the ecocide that is endangering the world's biodiversity.
For a number of environmentalist,protecting the world's 25 biodiversity hotspots(熱點(diǎn)地區(qū))is critical to saving habitats and species.But many hotspots are endangered already,having lost up to three-quarters of their original plants.
The poor state of most biodiversity hotspots results directly from population growth and migration(遷移) into these areas.A study found that by the mid-1990s around 1.1 billion people lived in these hotspots.Moreover,the annual population growth rate in these areas was 1.8%,higher than the global average of 1.4%.The PAI report concluded that human-related environmental changes will continue to put pressure on hotspots.Therefore,keeping biodiversity requires paying close attention to population size.
Protecting hotspots is not simply a matter of putting up fences and employing guards.The best results are achieved when local people are educated about the value of wildlife,and actually gain a share of the benefits from eco-tourism.Only then do they have a chance to see the benefits of protecting hotpots.
(1)What can we infer from paragraph 1?
A.The loss of any species can affect humans.
B.Endangered species are paid more attention to by humans.
C.Species can still survive when their ecosystems are destroyed.
D.Ecosystem protection is as important as diversity protection.
(2)What does the underlined word "ecocide" in paragraph 2 mean?
A.Ecosystem protection.
B.Reduction of the number of species.
C.Serious damage to habitats.
D.Habitats protection.
(3)What's the direct cause of the terrible state of the hotspots?
A.Population growth in hotpots.
B.Migration out of these areas.
C.Global warming.
D.The global average population growth rate.
(4)What's the author's opinion on protecting the hotspots?
A.It's simple to carry out.
B.It leads to the increase of tourists.
C.It's closely connected with local people.
D.It suggests that the local people are well educated.發(fā)布:2025/1/6 16:30:6組卷:0引用:1難度:0.5 -
2.International students who stayed in the US as their classes moved online during the COVID may be forced to leave,following guidelines of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement published due to the pandemic(流行?。?
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Many students say they need to be in the US for more than attending cljye.ais.As a PhD student,the library is an extremely important resource for them,although it is because of COVED that those services have been closed,which means even this advantage is gone.
"You know more than 90% of the international students who were studying the US when COVID-19 hit and college campuses were closed have to remain in the US and this creates such trouble in their lives and such uncertainty that is unreasonable." said a lady from a university.
International students staving in the United States say the new ruling has disturbed their plans to return. "I know it is a fact that when it comes to rules,guidelines,laws and stuff like that,international students are sort of treated as low-level citizens.Even I can't even use the word "citizen" to begin with because that's what they make clear we are not."
The government said that the policy speaks for itself and that online coursework is not worth a visa.So far,not any sign of change has been within sight.As students are waiting for the policy to improve,their fall programming and their future remain in limbo.
(1)Why would international students prefer to stay in the US during the pandemic?
A.They couldn't delay the program for a year.
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C.They wouldn't bring any potential danger to their family.
D.They can learn better with their classes moved online.
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A.The new rule treats them as American citizens.
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A.Favorable.
B.Neutral(中立).
C.Unfavorable.
D.Unclear.
(4)What does the underlined phrase "in limbo" in the last paragraph mean?
A.Horrible.
B.Flexible.
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D.Unbelievable.發(fā)布:2025/1/6 15:30:8組卷:0引用:1難度:0.5 -
3.Most of us spend our lives seeking the natural world.We go fishing,sit in the garden,have a picnic,live in the suburbs or go to the seaside.The most popular leisure activity in Britain is going for a walk.When joggers jog,they don't run on the streets.Every one of them tends to go to the park or the river.
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We need the wild world.It is essential to our wellbeing,our health and our happiness.
(1)According to the author,people enjoy
A.jogging on the street
B.running in the gym
C.shopping in the supermarket
D.sitting in the garden
(2)From the second paragraph,we can see that
A.Children don't want to approach nature
B.children probably spend less time in nature nowadays
C.climbing trees will certainly do good to the children
D.children tend to be happier as a result of their material satisfaction
(3)In what way do people benefit from their contact with nature?
A.Children with ADHD can be cured.
B.Children's performance at school is greatly improved.
C.Problems with crime and violent behavior will easily be solved.
D.A garden nearby improves the quality of old people's life.
(4)what is the main idea of this passage?
A.Access to nature improves our life.
B.Nature treats children for ADHD.
C.Getting close to nature reduces crime.
D.Man can't live without natural areas.發(fā)布:2025/1/6 16:30:6組卷:0引用:1難度:0.5
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