Question

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.

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

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

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.

 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

Answer 1

【小题1】D

【小题2】 A

【小题3】 A

【小题4】 D

解析:

主要内容：世界的经济如今已经遇到困难。尽管近年来有很多警告，我们需要警惕在贫穷国家里可能会有饥荒、以及世界范围内的能源危机，然而世界各国的领导人还是没有能够提早考虑这些问题。结果就是现在全球范围的食品危机。

【小题1】细节理解题。此题可以从第二段的第二句话“to help its farmers get fertilizer and seeds with high productivity”里得到答案。

【小题2】段落大意题。文章的第三段里说了第二个步骤，那么作者要表达的意思就是A项，“将粮食转化成汽油是不明智的”，第三段的第一句话中的“abandon”、“paying partly for the change of food into biofuels”也提示了答案。

【小题3】细节推理题。根据文章意思知A项是正确的，“修建一个蓄雨水的水池是一个很简单的对付干季的措施”。而B项“一个气候适应基金已经建立起来，来帮助贫穷地区”是不对的，C项“整个世界对建立农场的池塘已经作出了郑重的承诺”没有提到，D项说“我们是否发展食品生产是没有什么多大区别的”很显然是错误的。

【小题4】深层理解题。通过阅读文章，我们可以获悉作者的用意是来号召“我们立刻行动起来，来缓解全球的食物短缺”，所以D项为正确答案。