(C)
The sun's changing energy levels are not to blame for recent global warming and, if anything, solar variations over the past 20 years should have had a cooling effect, scientists have said.
Their findings add to a growing body of evidence that human activity, not natural causes, lies behind rising average world temperatures, which are expected to reach their second highest level this year since records began in the 1860s.
There is little doubt that solar variability has influenced the Earth's climate in the past and may well have been a factor in the first half of the last century, but British and Swiss researchers said it could not explain recent warming. Over the past 20 years, all the trends in the sun that could have had an influence on Earth's climate have been in the opposite direction to that required to explain the observed rise in global mean temperatures.
Most scientists say emissions of greenhouse gases, mainly from burning fossil(化石的) fuels in power plants, factories and cars, are the prime cause of the current warming trend. A decreasing group pins the blame on natural variations in the climate system, or a gradual rise in the sun's energy output.
In order to unpick that possible link, researchers studied factors that could have forced climate change in recent decades, including variations in total solar irradiance and cosmic rays.
The data was smoothed to take account of the 11-year sunspot cycle, which affects the amount of heat the sun emits but does not impact the Earth's surface air temperature, due to the way the oceans absorb and retain heat.
They concluded that the rapid rise in global mean temperatures seen since the late 1980s could not be ascribed to solar variability, whatever mechanism was invoked.
At present there is a small minority which is seeking to deliberately confuse the public on the causes of climate change. They are often misrepresenting the science, when the reality is that the evidence is getting stronger every day.
The 10 warmest years in the past 150 years have all been since 1990 and a United Nations climate panel, drawing on the work of 2,500 scientists, said this year it was “very likely” human activities were the main cause.
72. In the past 20 years, solar variations should have _____.
A. made the earth warm
B. cooled the earth a little
C. prevented the earth from moving around the sun
D. slowed the movement of the earth itself
73. The word “mean” in Paragraph 3 probably means “_____”.
A. average B. not generous C. poor D. cruel
74. Why is sunspot cycle taken into account?
A. Because it can increase the earth’s surface air temperature.
B. Because it can reduce the earth’s surface air temperature.
C. Because it can increase or reduce the amount of heat the sun gives off.
D. Because it can help the ocean to store heat.
75. Which do you think is the best title for the passage?
A. The Sun Is Not To Blame for the Global Warming
B. Humans Have No Ways but to Suffer from Global Warming
C. Global Warming Becomes a Headache Problem to Humans
D. Global Warming Is an Unavoidable Trend
Section C
Directions: Read the following text and choose the most suitable heading from A-F for each paragraph. There is one extra heading which you do not need.
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A. Breathe and count. B. Figure out your triggers(起因). C. Keep practicing. D. Keep a record. E. Start small. F. Take time out. |
Personally, patience is something I’ve been practicing for a long time. While I often fail, I believe I’ve progressed over the years, and things that used to get me bothered now just float past me. I still get upset, of course, but not nearly as much as I used to. Here are some tips that might help you become more patient:
76.
This is the first strategy, if you have real problems with patience: start by simply keeping a record on a little sheet of paper every time you lose your patience. This is one of the most effective and important methods for controlling an impulse – by learning to become more aware of it. Once you become aware of your impulses, you can work out an alternative reaction.
77.
As you become more aware of losing your patience, pay close attention to the things that cause you to lose that patience. Is it when your co-worker does something particularly annoying? When your spouse leaves dirty dishes unwashed? When your child doesn’t clean up his/her mess? Certain causes will happen more frequently than others – these are the things you should focus on the most.
78.
This one really works. When you first start to lose your patience, take a deep breath, and breathe out slowly. Then take another. And another. These three breaths will often help you. Count slowly to 10(you can do this in your head). When you’re done, most of the impulse to yell or do something out of frustration will have gone away.
79.
Don’t try to become very patient overnight. It won’t happen. Start with something small and manageable. Look for a trigger that only causes mild impatience within you – not something that gets your blood boiling. Then focus on this, and forget the other triggers for now. Work on controlling your temper for that one trigger. If you can get this one under control, use what you learned to focus on the next small trigger. One at a time, and with patience, you’ll get there.
80.
Often it’s best just to walk away for a few minutes. Take a break from the situation, just for 5-10 minutes, let yourself calm down, plan out your words and actions and solutions, and then come back calmly. Sometimes, we tend to get upset over little things. In the long run, these things tend not to matter, but in the heat of the moment, we might forget this.
Section D
Directions: Read the passage carefully. Then answer the questions or complete the statements in the fewest possible words.
Joe Bauer got the call on a Friday afternoon. A 10-year-old dog named Oscar was seriously sick because of a particular cancer in dogs, and had been given only three months, at best, to live. The dog’s owners were heartbroken and planned to have Oscar put down the next day.
Instead, Bauer, who was a scientist at the Cleveland Clinic’s Center, shipped an experimental cancer drug free-of-charge to Oscar’s vet, which means he registered Oscar in a trial that could end up benefiting not only suffering dogs but humans as well.
Treating dogs as a prelude to finding new cancer drugs for humans is an idea that is catching on.
“Dogs are benefiting more and more as people recognize the value of studying new cancer treatment---not just drugs---in dogs,” said Bauer. “There are a couple of reasons why dogs are so good.”
For one thing, the mice usually studied in cancer research are genetically bred to develop cancers. Dogs, like humans, spontaneously(自发的) develop cancers.
Also, not only are dogs similar to humans in their genetic makeup, they are also influenced by the same environmental factors that humans are.
Experimental drugs might get response rates of 80 percent or higher in mice, but that figure often drops to 10 or 15 percent when applied to humans, added Bauer.
It’s been five years since Oscar’s death-sentence, and he’s still going strong. Since then, three other dogs have been treated and have responded to the drug, without any negative reactions, Bauer said.
“There’s a great inequality for drugs available for animal use and those available for human use,” Bauer said. “Most of those used to treat dogs and other pets were developed in the 1950s.”
Bauer added, “This helps animal patients have access to treatments they wouldn’t have access to otherwise. We look at this as benefit to both species.”
(Note: Answer the questions or complete the statements in NO MORE THAN TEN WORDS.)
81. For how many days was Oscar believed to live five years ago?
82. The underlined phrase “catching on” in Paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to _____.
83. From the text we can learn that dogs only recently have access to drugs_____.
84. Why are dogs chosen for studying new cancer treatment?
第II卷 (共45分)
40. We have been told that under no circumstances _____ the telephone in the office for personal affairs.
A. may we use B. we may use C. we could use D. did we use
Section B
Directions: Complete the following passage by using the words in the box. Each word can only be used once. Note that there is one word more than you need.
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A. extremely B. aggressive C. curious D. threat
E. communicates F. situation G. typically H. different I. contact J. signals |
Exchange a glance with someone, then look away. Do you realize that you have made a statement? Hold the glance for a second longer, and you have made a __41__ statement. Hold it for 3 seconds, and the meaning has changed again. For every social situation, there is a permissible time that you can hold a person's gaze without being rude, or __42__. If you are on an elevator, what gaze-time are you permitted? To answer this question, consider what you __43__ do. You very likely give other passengers a quick glance to size them up and to assure them that you mean no __44__. Since being close to another person signals the possibility of interaction, you need to send out a signal telling others you want to be left alone. So you cut off eye __45__, what sociologist Erving Goffman (1963) calls "a dimming of the lights." You look down at the floor, at the indicator lights, anywhere but into another passenger's eyes. Should you break the rule against staring at a stranger on an elevator, you will make the other person __46__ uncomfortable, and you are likely to feel a bit strange yourself.
If you hold eye contact for more than 3 seconds, what are you telling another person? Much depends on the person and the __47__. For instance, a man and a woman communicate interest in this manner. They typically gaze at each other for about 3 seconds at a time, then drop their eyes down for 3 seconds, before letting their eyes meet again. But if one man gives another man a 3-second-plus stare, he __48__, "I know you", "I am interested in you," or "You look peculiar and I am __49__ about you." This type of stare often produces hostile feelings.