题目内容
It is a common theme in many fiction stories that the world may one day be by insects.
A. broken in B. run over C. taken over D. filled in
C
The devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina is a wake-up call. It is a call for every American to pay attention to the destruction we risk by allowing human-induced(导致的) climate change to continue. It is impossible to prove that Hurricane Katrina was caused by global warming, or even that human activities made the storm more severe. However, a paper published in the scholarly journal Nature reports that the force of dangerous hurricanes has increased by 50% during the last 50 years. It also reports that a global warming-induced rise in temperature near the ocean’s surface has probably contributed to this increase in dangerous storms, and thus to property(财产) damage and human death.
On August 30, the Los Angeles Times summed up(总结) the view of many scientists who agree that if the frequency of hurricanes does not decrease in the next few years, then we will be fairly certain that humans, and not natural storm cycle, are at the root of the problem. I believe there is at least a chance that by reducing U.S. reliance on fossil fuels for energy, we can prevent future tragedies like Hurricane Katrina. Let the change begin now.
There are many ways to reduce the volume of greenhouse gas emissions. My family drives the most fuel-efficient car we can afford, but I prefer to take public transportation whenever possible. My family buys locally grown food instead of produce that was transported thousands of miles on fuel-burning vehicles. We also replaced our incandescent light bulbs(白炽灯泡)with more energy-efficient compact fluorescents(荧光灯). This might sound like a trivial move, but the Union of Concerned Scientists reports that if every household in the United States replaced one incandescent bulb with a compact fluorescent, it would have the same effect on U.S. carbon-dioxide emissions as removing 7.5 million cars from the roads. Now think if every household replaced not just one but all of their incandescent bulbs!
The United States, with just five percent of the world’s population, is responsible for close to one quarter of greenhouse gas emissions worldwide, yet our country is doing far less than most European nations to fight global warming. We don’t have to sacrifice our lifestyles; Europeans enjoy the same standards of living as Americans. So what are we waiting for? It is time to act.
1. Which of the following is a fact?
A.Hurricane Katrina was caused by global warming. |
B.Human activities made the storm more severe. |
C.The force of dangerous hurricanes has increased by 50 percent during the last 50 years. |
D.A global rise in temperature near the ocean’s surface accounts for more dangerous storms. |
2.From Paragraph 2 we can infer that many scientists agree ________.
A.it might be human activities that lead to global warming. |
B.natural storm cycles have caused global warming. |
C.hurricanes are likely to come more frequently. |
D.burning fossil fuels for energy is a better alternative. |
3. If every household in the U.S. replaced all their incandescent bulbs, ________.
A.it would have the same effect as removing 7.5 million cars from the roads. |
B.it would save 7.5 million tons of carbon-dioxide from going into the air. |
C.this would reduce the total output of CO?emissions in huge amounts. |
D.cars will be much more environmentally friendly. |
4. According to the writer,_______in reducing the volume of greenhouse gas emissions.
A.Europe does a better job. |
B.Europe should follow the example of America. |
C.he, as an European, wants to see more efforts made by Americans. |
D.Europeans should shoulder a greater responsibility. |
Is it time to kick Russia out of the BRICs (金砖四国)? If so, it may end up sounding like a famous ball-point pen maker-BIC. An argument is being made that Goldman Sach’s famous marketing device(策略),the BRICs, should really be the BICs.
“Is Russia really worth the name BRICs?” asks Anders Aslund, senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, in an article for Foreigh Policy. Aslund, who is also co-author with Andrew Kuchins of “The Russian Balance Sheet”, thinks the Russia of Putin and Medvedev is just not worthy of inclusion alongside Brazil, India and China in the list of future economic powerhouses. He writes:
“The country’s economic performance has fallen to such a weak level that one must ask whether it has any say at all on the global economy, compared with the other members of its group. I have just returned from Moscow, which is always dull around this season. For the last seven years, Russia has taken very few measures to improve its economy. Instead, the state has been living on oil and gas. ”
Economically, Aslund has the numbers on his side. The International Monetary Fund figures that the Russian economy will fall by 6.7 percent in 2009, while China will grow 8.5 percent and India 5.4 percent. There is less of a case for Brazil, with a fall of 0.7 percent, but it is still doing
far better than Russia.
But the BRICs are not just about economy. As is mentioned above, it is a marketing device to encourage investors to focus on the big promising players. From an investment standpoint, it could be argued that Russia is leading the BRICs. Its stock(股票)market is up 128 percent this year while around 80 percent is for the other three.
At very least, however, Russia’s economic underperformance and stock market outperfoumance does suggest it is indeed one of the group.
1.According to the passage, which country will enjoy the biggest increase in 2009?
A.China. |
B.Russia. |
C.Brazil. |
D.India. |
2.According to Aslund, Russia shouldn’t be a BRIC partly because_______.
A.Russia’s economic performance is far worse than the other three |
B.Russia’s leaders are not good at managing economy |
C.Russia has taken effective measures to improve its economy |
D.Russia will no longer attract investors from other countries |
3.From the passage we know that ________.
A.Anders Aslund is working for the Russian government |
B.Russia outperfoumed the other three countries in stock market |
C.most people disagree Russia is included in BRICs |
D.the BRICs would end up being the BICs sooner or later |
4.The author seems to ________.
A.suggest it’s time to kick Russia out of the BRICs? |
B.feel worried about the economy of the BRICs |
C.think Russia is worth being one of the group |
D.show disappointment to Russia’s economy |