It was once thought that air pollution affected only the area immediately around large cities with factories and/or heavy automobile traffic. Today, we know that although these are the areas with the worst air pollution, the problem is literally worldwide. On several occasions over the past decade, a heavy cloud of air pollution has covered the entire eastern half of the United States and led to health warnings even in rural areas away from any major concentration of manufacturing and automobile traffic. In fact, the very climate of the entire earth may be affected by air pollution. Some scientists feel that the increasing concentration of carbon dioxide in the air resulting from the burning of fossil fuels(coal and oil) creating a greenhouse effect-holding in heat reflected from the earth and raising the world’s average temperature. If this view is correct and the world’s temperature is raised only a few degrees, much of the polar ice cap will melt and cities such as New York, Boston, Miami, and New Orleans will be under water.
Another view, less widely held, is that increasing particulate matter in the atmosphere is blocking sunlight and lowering the earth’s temperature-a result that would be equally disastrous（灾难的）. A drop of just a few degrees could create something close to a new ice age, and would make agriculture difficult or impossible in many of our top farming areas. At present we do riot know for sure that either of these conditions will happen(though one recent government report prepared by experts in the field concluded that the greenhouse effect is very likely). Perhaps, if we very lucky, the two tendencies will offset each other and the world’s temperature will stay about the same as it is now.
【小题1】As pointed out at the beginning of the passage, people used to think that air pollution ______.

A．caused widespread damage in the countryside

B．affected the entire eastern half of the United States

C．almost brought worldwide effect

D．existed merely in urban and industrial areas

 We ______ very early so we packed the night before.

A. leave         B. had left          C. were leaving         D. have left

“What are you busy for?”—This is a question we very often get _____ nowadays.

A. asking          B. being asked      C. asked           D. to ask

We      very early so we packed the night Before.

A．leave             B．had left           C．were leaving       D．have left

When Phillip was on his way to the airport one afternoon, he asked the driver to wait outside the bank while he collected some traveler’s checks.
The plane was to  21  at 5:30. From the bank there was still a 22  journey to the airport. Phillip merely (仅仅，只不过；只是)watched the  23   along the way. Shortly before arriving, he began  24 the things he would need for the 25 . Tickets, money, the address of his hotel, traveler’s checks—Just a moment. How about his passport? Phillip went through his pockets. He suddenly  26   that he must have left his passport (护照，通行证) 27 .
Whatever could he do? It was now five past four and there would be too little  28  to return to the bank. This was the  29   time he was representing（代表） his firm for an important  30  with the manager of a French firm in Paris the following morning. Without a passport he would be  31  to board the plane. At that moment, the taxi 32 outside the air . Phillip got out, took his suitcase and  33  the driver. He then  34  a good deal of confusion（混乱）in the building. A 35 could be heard over the loudspeaker.
“We very much 36 that owing to a twenty-four-hour strike （罢工）of airport staff（职员，员工）, all flights for the rest of today have had to be called off.” Passengers are  37 to get in touch with their travel agents or with this terminal for 38 on tomorrow’s flights. Phillip gave a 39 . He would let his firm know about this situation and, thank goodness, he would have the opportunity of calling at his bank the following morning to 40 his passport.