Desert Ship

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Ships in the Desert AL Gore

　　 I was standing in the sun on the hot steel deck of a fishing ship capable of processing a fifty-ton catch on a good day. But it wasn' t a good day. We were anchored in what used to be the most productive fishing site in all of central Asia, but as I looked out over the bow , the prospects of a good catch looked bleak. Where there should have been gentle blue-green waves lapping against the side of the ship, there was nothing but hot dry sand – as far as I could see in all directions. The other ships of the fleet were also at rest in the sand, scattered in the dunes that stretched all the way to the horizon . Ten year s ago the Aral was the fourth-largest inland sea in the world, comparable to the largest of North America's Great Lakes. Now it is disappearing because the water that used to feed it has been diverted in an ill-considered irrigation scheme to grow cotton In the user t. The new shoreline was almost forty kilometers across the sand from where the fishing fleet was now permanently docked. Meanwhile, in the nearby town of Muynak the people were still canning fish – brought not from the Aral Sea but shipped by rail through Siberia from the Pacific Ocean, more than a thousand miles away. 　 　 My search for the underlying causes of the environmental crisis has led me to travel around the world to examine and study many of these images of destruction. At the very bottom of the earth, high in the Trans-Antarctic Mountains, with the sun glaring at midnight through a hole in the sky, I stood in the unbelievable coldness and talked with a scientist in the late tall of 1988 about the tunnel he was digging through time. Slipping his parka back to reveal a badly burned face that was cracked and peeling, he pointed to the annual layers of ice in a core sample dug from the glacier on which we were standing. He moved his finger back in time to the ice of two decades ago. "Here's where the U. S Congress passed the Clean Air Act, ” he said. At the bottom of the world, two continents away from Washington, D. C., even a small reduction in one country's emissions had changed the amount of pollution found in the remotest end least accessible place on earth. 　　 But the most significant change thus far in the earth' s atmosphere is the one that began with the industrial r evolution early in the last century and has picked up speed ever since. Industry meant coal, and later oil, and we began to burn lots of it – bringing rising levels of carbon dioxide (CO2) , with its ability to trap more heat in the atmosphere and slowly warm the earth. Fewer than a hundred yards from the South Pole, upwind from the ice runway where the ski plane lands and keeps its engines running to prevent the metal parts from freeze-locking together, scientists monitor the air sever al times ever y day to chart the course of that inexorable change. During my 38

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visit, I watched one scientist draw the results of that day's measurements, pushing the end of a steep line still higher on the graph. He told me how easy it is – there at the end of the earth – to see that this enormous change in the global atmosphere is still picking up speed. 　　 Two and a half years later I slept under the midnight sun at the other end of our planet, in a small tent pitched on a twelve-toot-thick slab of ice floating in the frigid Arctic Ocean. After a hearty breakfast, my companions and I traveled by snowmobiles a few miles farther north to a rendezvous point where the ice was thinner – only three and a half feet thick – and a nuclear submarine hovered in the water below. After it crashed through the ice, took on its new passengers, and resubmerged, I talked with scientists who were trying to measure more accurately the thickness of the polar ice cap, which many believe is thinning as a re-suit of global warming. I had just negotiated an agreement between ice scientists and the U. S. Navy to secure the re-lease of previously top secret data from submarine sonar tracks, data that could help them learn what is happening to the north polar cap. Now, I wanted to see the pole it-self, and some eight hours after we met the submarine, we were crashing through that ice, surfacing, and then I was standing in an eerily beautiful snowcape, windswept and sparkling white, with the horizon defined by little hummocks, or "pressure ridges " of ice that are pushed up like tiny mountain ranges when separate sheets collide. But here too, CD, levels are rising just as rapidly, and ultimately temperature will rise with them – indeed, global warming is expected to push temperatures up much more rapidly in the polar regions than in the rest of the world. As the polar air warms, the ice her e will thin; and since the polar cap plays such a crucial role in the world's weather system, the consequences of a thinning cap could be disastrous. 　　 Considering such scenarios is not a purely speculative exercise. Six months after I returned from the North Pole, a team of scientists reported dramatic changes in the pattern of ice distribution in the Arctic, and a second team reported a still controversialclaim (which a variety of data now suggest) that, over all, the north polar cap has thinned by 2 per cent in just the last decade. Moreover, scientists established several years ago that in many land areas north of the Arctic Circle, the spring snowmelt now comes earlier every year, and deep in the tundra below, the temperature e of the earth is steadily rising. 　 　 As it happens, some of the most disturbing images of environmental destruction can be found exactly halfway between the North and South poles – precisely at the equator in Brazil – where billowing clouds of smoke regularly black-en the sky above the immense but now threatened Amazon rain forest. Acre by acre, the rain forest is being burned to create fast pasture for fast-food beef; as I learned when I went there in early 1989, the fires are set earlier and earlier in the dry season now, with more than one Tennessee's worth of rain forest being slashed and burned each year. According to our guide, the biologist Tom Lovejoy, there are more different species of birds in each square mile of the Amazon than exist in all of North America – which means we are silencing thousands of songs we have never even heard. 　　But one doesn't have to travel around the world to wit-ness humankind's assault on 39

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the earth. Images that signal the distress of our global environment are now commonly seen almost anywhere. On some nights, in high northern latitudes, the sky itself offers another ghostly image that signals the loss of ecological balance now in progress. If the sky is clear after sunset -- and it you are watching from a place where pollution hasn't blotted out the night sky altogether -- you can sometimes see a strange kind of cloud high in the sky. This "noctilucent cloud" occasionally appears when the earth is first cloaked in the evening dark-ness; shimmering above us with a translucent whiteness, these clouds seem quite unnatural. And they should: noctilucent clouds have begun to appear more often because of a huge buildup of methane gas in the atmosphere. (Also called natural gas, methane is released from landfills , from coal mines and rice paddies, from billions of termites that swarm through the freshly cut forestland, from the burning of biomass and from a variety of other human activities. ) Even though noctilucent clouds were sometimes seen in the past., all this extra methane carries more water vapor into the upper atmosphere, where it condenses at much higher altitudes to form more clouds that the sun's rays still strike long after sunset has brought the beginning of night to the surface far beneath them. 　　What should we feel toward these ghosts in the sky? Simple wonder or the mix of emotions we feel at the zoo? Perhaps we should feel awe for our own power: just as men "ear tusks from elephants’ heads in such quantity as to threaten the beast with extinction, we are ripping matter from its place in the earth in such volume as to upset the balance between daylight and darkness. In the process, we are once again adding to the threat of global warming, be-cause methane has been one of the fastest-growing green-house gases, and is third only to carbon dioxide and water vapor in total volume, changing the chemistry of the upper atmosphere. But, without even considering that threat, shouldn't it startle us that we have now put these clouds in the evening sky which glisten with a spectral light? Or have our eyes adjusted so completely to the bright lights of civilization that we can't see these clouds for what they are – a physical manifestation of the violent collision between human civilization and the earth? 　 　 Even though it is sometimes hard to see their meaning, we have by now all witnessed surprising experiences that signal the damage from our assault on the environment --whether it's the new frequency of days when the temperature exceeds 100 degrees, the new speed with which the -un burns our skin, or the new constancy of public debate over what to do with growing mountains of waste. But our response to these signals is puzzling. Why haven't we launched a massive effort to save our environment? To come at the question another way' Why do some images startle us into immediate action and focus our attention or ways to respond effectively? And why do other images, though sometimes equally dramatic, produce instead a Kin. of paralysis, focusing our attention not on ways to respond but rather on some convenient, less painful distraction? 　 　 Still, there are so many distressing images of environ-mental destruction that sometimes it seems impossible to know how to absorb or comprehend them. Before considering the threats themselves, it may be helpful to classify them and thus begin to organize our thoughts and feelings so that we may be able to respond appropriately. 40

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A useful system comes from the military, which frequently places a conflict in one of three different categories, according to the theater in which it takes place. There are "local" skirmishes, "regional" battles, and "strategic" conflicts. This third category is reserved for struggles that can threaten a nation's survival and must be under stood in a global context. Environmental threats can be considered in the same way. For example, most instances of water pollution, air pollution, and illegal waste dumping are essentially local in nature. Problems like acid rain, the contamination of under-ground aquifers, and large oil spills are fundamentally regional. In both of these categories, there may be so many similar instances of particular local and regional problems occurring simultaneously all over the world that the patter n appears to be global, but the problems themselves are still not truly strategic because the operation of- the global environment is not affected and the survival of civilization is not at stake. 　　However, a new class of environmental problems does affect the global ecological system, and these threats are fundamentally strategic. The 600 percent increase in the amount of chlorine in the atmosphere during the last forty years has taken place not just in those countries producing the chlorofluorocarbons responsible but in the air above every country, above Antarctica, above the North Pole and the Pacific Ocean – all the way from the surface of the earth to the top of the sky. The increased levels of chlorine disrupt the global process by which the earth regulates the amount of ultraviolet radiation from the sun that is allowed through the atmosphere to the surface; and it we let chlorine levels continue to increase, the radiation levels will al-so increase – to the point that all animal and plant life will face a new threat to their survival. 　　Global warming is also a strategic threat. The concentration of carbon dioxide and other heat-absorbing molecules has increased by almost 25 per cent since World War II, posing a worldwide threat to the earth's ability to regulate the amount of heat from the sun retained in the atmosphere. This increase in heat seriously threatens the global climate equilibrium that determines the pattern of winds, rainfall, surface temperatures, ocean currents, and sea level. These in turn determine the distribution of vegetative and animal life on land and sea and have a great effect on the location and pattern of human societies. 　　 In other words, the entire relationship between humankind and the earth has been transformed because our civilization is suddenly capable of affecting the entire global environment, not just a particular area. All of us know that human civilization has usually had a large impact on the environment; to mention just one example, there is evidence that even in prehistoric times, vast areas were sometimes intentionally burned by people in their search for food. And in our own time we have reshaped a large part of the earth's surface with concrete in our cities and carefully tended rice paddies, pastures, wheat fields, and other croplands in the countryside. But these changes, while sometimes appearing to be pervasive , have, until recently, been relatively trivial factors in the global ecological sys-tem. Indeed, until our lifetime, it was always safe to assume that nothing we did or could do would have any lasting effect on the global environment. But it is precisely that assumption which must now be discarded so that we can think strategically about our new relationship to the environment. 41

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English Intensive Reading

　 　 Human civilization is now the dominant cause of change in the global environment. Yet we resist this truth and find it hard to imagine that our effect on the earth must now be measured by the same yardstick used to calculate the strength of the moon's pull on the oceans or the force of the wind against the mountains. And it we are now capable of changing something so basic as the relationship between the earth and the sun, surely we must acknowledge a new responsibility to use that power wisely and with appropriate restraint. So far, however, We seem oblivious of the fragility of the earth's natural systems. 　 　 This century has witnessed dramatic changes in two key factors that define the physical reality of our relation-ship to the earth: a sudden and startling surge in human population, with the addition of one China's worth of people every ten years, and a sudden acceleration of the scientific and technological revolution, which has allowed an almost unimaginable magnification of our power to affect the world around us by burning, cutting, digging, moving, and trans-forming the physical matter that makes up the earth. The surge in population is both a cause of the changed relationship and one of the clearest illustrations of how startling the change has been, especially when viewed in a historical context. From the emergence of modern humans 200 000 years ago until Julius Caesar's time, fewer than 250 million people walked on the face of the earth. When Christopher Columbus set sail for the New World 1500 years later, there were approximately 500 million people on earth. By the time Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence in 1776, the number had doubled again, to 1 billion. By midway through this century, at the end of World War II, the number had risen to just above 2 billion people. In other words, from the beginning of humanity's appearance on earth to 1945, it took more than ten thousand generations to reach a world population of 2 billion people. Now, in the course of one human lifetime -- mine -- the world population will increase from 2 to more than 9 million, and it is already more than halfway there. 　　Like the population explosion, the scientific and technological revolution began to pick up speed slowly during the eighteenth century. And this ongoing revolution has also suddenly accelerated exponentially. For example, it is now an axiom in many fields of science that more new and important discoveries have taken place in the last ten years that. in the entire previous history of science. While no single discover y has had the kind of effect on our relationship to the earth that unclear weapons have had on our relationship to warfare, it is nevertheless true that taken together, they have completely transformed our cumulative ability to exploit the earth for sustenance -- making the consequences, of unrestrained exploitation every bit as unthinkable as the consequences of unrestrained nuclear war. Now that our relationship to the earth has changed so utterly, we have to see that change and understand its implications. Our challenge is to recognize that the startling images of environmental destruction now occurring all over the world have much more in common than their ability to shock and awaken us. They are symptoms of an underlying problem broader in scope and more serious than any we have ever faced. Global warming, ozone depletion, the loss of living species, deforestation -- they all 42

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have a common cause: the new relationship between human civilization and the earth's natural balance. There are actually two aspects to this challenge. The first is to realize that our power to harm the earth can in-deed have global and even permanent effects. The second is to realize that the only way to understand our new role as a co-architect of nature is to see ourselves as part of a complex system that does not operate according to the same simple rules of cause and effect we are used to. The problem is not our effect on the environment so much as our relationship with the environment. As a result, any solution to the problem will require a careful assessment of that relationship as well as the complex interrelationship among factors within civilization and between them and the major natural components of the earth's ecological system. 　　 There is only one precedent for this kind of challenge to our thinking, and again it is military. The invention of nuclear weapons and the subsequent development by the Unit-ed States and the Soviet Union of many thousands of strategic nuclear weapons forced a slow and painful recognition that the new power thus acquired forever changed not only the relationship between the two superpowers but also the relationship of humankind to the institution at war-fare itself. The consequences of all-out war between nations armed with nuclear weapons suddenly included the possibility of the destruction of both nations – completely and simultaneously. That sobering realization led to a careful reassessment of every aspect of our mutual relationship to the prospect of such a war. As early as 1946 one strategist concluded that strategic bombing with missiles "may well tear away the veil of illusion that has so long obscured the reality of the change in warfare – from a fight to a process of destruction.” 　 　 Nevertheless, during the earlier stages of the nuclear arms race, each of the superpower s assumed that its actions would have a simple and direct effect on the thinking of the other. For decades, each new advance in weaponry was deployed by one side for the purpose of inspiring fear in the other. But each such deployment led to an effort by the other to leapfrog the first one with a more advanced deployment of its own. Slowly, it has become apparent that the problem of the nuclear arms r ace is not primarily caused by technology. It is complicated by technology, true; but it arises out of the relationship between the superpowers and is based on an obsolete understanding of what war is all about. The eventual solution to the arms race will be found, not in a new deployment by 　　 one side or the other of some ultimate weapon or in a decision by either side to disarm unilaterally , but ratter in new understandings and in a mutual transformation of the relationship itself. This transformation will involve changes in the technology of weaponry and the denial of nuclear technology to rogue states. But the key changes will be in the way we think about the institution of war far e and about the relationship between states. 　 　 The strategic nature of the threat now posed by human civilization to the global environment and the strategic nature of the threat to human civilization now posed by changes in the global environment present us with a similar set of challenges and false hopes. Some argue that a new ultimate technology, whether nuclear power or genetic engineering, will solve the problem. Others hold that only a drastic reduction of our 43

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reliance on technology can improve the conditions of life -- a simplistic notion at best. But the real solution will be found in reinventing and finally healing the relationship between civilization and the earth. This can only be accomplished by undertaking a careful reassessment of all the factors that led to the relatively recent dramatic change in the relationship. The transformation of the way we relate to the earth will of course involve new technologies, but the key changes will involve new ways of thinking about the relationship itself.

NOTES I) Al Gore: born in 1948 in Washington D. C., U. S. Senator (1984-1992) from the State of Tennessee,and U. S. Vice-President ( l 992-) under President Bill Clinton. He is the author of the book Earth in the Balance from which this piece is taken. 2) Aral Sea: inland sea and the world’s fourth largest lake, c. 26 000 sqmiles, SW Kazakhstan and NW Uzbekhstan, E of the Caspian Sea 3) Great Lakes: group of five freshwater lakes, Central North America, between the United States and Canada, largest body of fresh water in the world. From west to east, they are Lake Superior,Lake Michigan,Lake Huron, Lake Erie, and Lake Ontario. 4) Trans-Antarctic Mountains: mountain chain stretching across Antarctica from Victoria I and to Coats I and; separating the E Antarctic and W Antarctic subcontinents 5) Clean Air Act: one of the oldest environmental laws of the U. S., as well as the most far-reaching, the costliest, and the most controversial. It was passed in 1970. 6) Washington D. C.: capital of the United States. D. C. (District of Columbia).is added to distinguish it from the State of Washington and 3 other cities in the U. S bearing the sonic name. 7) freeze-locking: the metal parts are frozen solid and unable to move freely 8)midnight sun: phenomenon in which the sun remains visible in the sky for 24 hours or longer, occurring only in the polar regions 9)global warming; The earth is getting warmer. The temperature of the earth's atmosphere and its surface is steadily rising. 44

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10) Submarine sonar tracks: the term sonar is an acronym for sound navigation ranging. It is used for communication between submerged submarines or between a submarine and a surface vessel, for locating mines and underwater hazards to navigation, and also as a fathometer, or depth finder. 11) greenhouse (effect): process whereby heat is trapped at the surface of the earth by the atmosphere. An increase of man-made pollutants in the atmosphere will lead to a long-term warming of the earth's climate. 12) Julius Caesar: (102? B. C -- 44 B. C:. ), Roman statesman and general 13) Christopher Columbus: ( 1451-1506), discoverer of America, born Genoa, Italy 14) Thomas Jefferson: (17-13-1826 ), 3d President of the United States(1801-1809), author of the Declaration of Independence. 15) Declaration of Independence: full and formal declaration adopted July 4,1776, by representatives of the thirteen colonies in North America announcing the separation of those colonies from Great Britain and making them into the United States 16)Ozone depletion: A layer of ozone in the stratosphere prevents most ultraviolet and other high-energy radiation, which is harmful to life, from penetrating to the earth's surface.Some.environmental, scientists fear that certain man-made pollutants, e.g. nitric oxide, CFCs(Chlorofluorocarbons), etc., may interfere with the delicate balance of reactions that maintains the ozone’ s concentration, possibly leading to a drastic depletion of stratospheric ozone. This is now happening in the stratosphere above the polar regions.

Background information 1. About

the author: Al Gore [image-1] was born in 1948 in Washington D.C., U.S. He has been a Senator (1984-1992) representing the State of Tennessee, and U.S. Vice-President (1992-2000) under President Bill Clinton. He ran for the Presidency against George W. Bush jr. but the latter won the closely tied election and has become the 43rd American President. The text is taken from Al Gore’s book Earth in the Balance [video-1] 2.

The

Aral 45

Sea

[image-2]:

英语阅读与理解

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The Aral Sea, located in Uzbekistan [video-2] and Kazakhstan[video-2] (both countries were part of the former Soviet Union[video-2]), is historically a saline lake. It is in the centre of a large, flat desert basin. The Aral Sea is a prime example of a dynamic environment. In 1960 it was the world’s fourth largest lake, the size of the entirety of Southern California [image-3](at 26,250 square miles, approximately two hundred times larger than the Salton Sea[image-4]). 3. America’s Great Lakes[image-5]: America’s Great Lakes refer to the group of five freshwater lakes, central North America, between the United States and Canada, largest body of fresh water in the world. From west to east, they are Lake Superior, Lake Michigan, Lake Huron, Lake Erie, and Lake Ontario[image-5]: HOMES can help remember the names of the five lakes. H stands for Huron, O for Ontario, M for Michigan, E for Erie and S for Superior. 4. Lake Superior [image-5]: Lake Superior is one of the cleanest lakes in the world because of its temperature, size, and the lack of people living around it. Lake Superior, with a surface area of 31,700 square miles, is the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface area. This one body of water contains 10% of all the freshwater in all the lakes and rivers in the world. The amount of time needed for the water in Lake Superior to be completely replaced is 191 years. The lake is known for its cold temperatures. Almost all of Lake Superior’s water stays at 39 degrees Fahrenheit (4 degrees Celsius) all year. Lake Superior is often referred to as “crystal clear,” with visibility of 50 feet or more. 5. Antarctica [image-6]: Antarctica is icy cold. Transantarctic Mountains divided it into the East Antarctic and West Antarctic subcontinents. China has set up two scientific research stations there: Zongshan Station [video-3]in the East and Great Wall[video-4] in the West. 6. Clean Air Act: [video-5] American Congress passed the Clean Air Act in 1970, which is one of the oldest environmental laws of the U.S. as well as the most far-reaching, the costliest, and the most controversial. 7. General idea of the text: In the essay, the author presents to readers plenty of images of environmental crisis which are commonly seen in all parts of the globe. These crises, some of which might threaten a nation’s survival, such as the increase of chorine, global warming, etc., can demonstrate a violent collision between nature and human beings. Therefore, a change in man’s thinking, in man’s concept on the relationship between nature and human beings, is the most important thing.

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词汇 (Vocabulary) lap ( v．) :(of waves，etc．)move or strike gently with a light，splashing sound such as a dog makes in lapping(波浪)拍打；泼溅 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------divert ( v．) :turn(a person or thing)aside(from a course，direction，etc．)； deflect 转移；使(人或物)转向；岔开，使偏斜 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------Antarctic ( adj. ) :of or near the South Pole or the region around it 南极的；近 南极的；南极区的；南极地带的；南极周围的 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------Trans—Antarctic (adj.) : crossing or spanning the Antarctic 横贯南极的；横贯 南极地带的 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------parka ( n.) :a hip—length pullover fur garment with a hood，worn 1n arctic regions 风雪大衣，派克大衣 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------glacier ( n.) :a slowly moving river or mass of ice and snow that forms in areas where the rate of snowfall constantly exceeds the rate at which the snow melts 冰河；冰川 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------accessible ( adj.) : that can be approached or entered；easy to approach or enter 能够接近的；能够进去的；易接近的；易进去的 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------trap ( v．) :catch in or as in a trap；entrap 诱捕；计捉 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------inexorable ( adj.) :that cannot be altered，checked，etc．不可变的；不可抗 拒的；无情的 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------graph ( n.) :a diagram consisting of nodes and links and representing logical relationships or sequences of events(曲线)图，标绘图；图表；图形 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------slab ( n.) :a piece that is flat，broad，and fairly thick 平板；厚片 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------frigid ( adj.) :extremely cold；without heat or warmth 极冷的，寒冷的，严寒的 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------snowmobile ( n.) :any of various motor vehicles for traveling over snow，usually with steerable runners at the front and tractor treads at the rear(机动)雪车；(履带式)雪上汽车 47

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---------------------------------------------------------------------------------rendezvous ( n.) :[Fr．]a place designated for meeting or assembling[法语]指 定集合地；会合点 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------hover ( v．) :stay suspended or flutter in the air near oneplace 盘旋 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------eerie，eery ( adj. ) :mysterious，uncanny，or weird，esp. in such a way as to frighten or make uneasy 神秘的，离奇的，怪异的；阴森的，恐怖的，可怕 的／eerily adv． ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------hummock ( n.) :ridge or rise in an ice field 冰群；(冰原上的)冰丘 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------collide ( v．) :come into violent contact；strike violently against each other； crash 碰撞；猛撞；互撞 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------scenario ( n.) :a sequence 0f events esp. when imagined；an account or synopsis of a projected course of action or events(设想中的)未来事态；方案 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------controversial ( adj. ) :of，subject to，or stirring up controversy；disbatable 争 论的；引起争论的； ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------tundra ( n.) :any of the vast，nearly level，treeless plains of the arctic regions 冻原；苔原；冻土带 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------equator ( n.) :an imaginary circle around the earth，equally distant at all points from both the North Pole and the South Pole，dividing the earth's surface into the Northern Hemisphere and the Southern Hemisphere 赤道 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------billow ( v．) :surge，swell，or rise like or in a billow(巨浪)奔腾；(波涛)汹 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------pasture ( n.) : ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------( n.) :．ground suitable for grazing 牧场 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------slash (v．) :cut or wound with a sweeping stroke or strokes，as of a knife(用 刀等)猛砍，乱砍 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------blot (v．) :make blots on；spot；stain；blur(esp. used in blot out：darken or hide entirely；obscure)涂污；玷污；把……弄模糊；遮暗(尤用于 bolt out：把 ……弄模糊；遮暗，遮蔽；掩蔽) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------noctilucent (adj.) :designating or of a luminous cloud of unknown composition。 visible at night in the polar regions at an altitude of c．50 miles 夜光云的；夜 间发光的 48

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English Intensive Reading

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------shimmer ( v．) :shine with an unsteady light；glimmer 闪烁；发出微光 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------translucent ( adj.) :1etting light pass but diffusing it so that objects on the other side cannot be clearly distinguished；partially transparent，as frosted glass 半透明的 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------buildup ( n.) :a gradual increase in amount，power，influence，etc．； expansion(在数目、力量、影响等方面)逐渐增加，扩大，扩充；集结 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------methane ( n.) :a colorless，odorless，inflammable gaseous hydrocarbon，CH4，present in natural gas and formed by the decomposition of vegetable matter，as in marshes and mines. or produced artificially by heating carbon monoxide and hydrogen over a nickle catalyst 甲烷；沼气 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------landfill ( n.) :the disposal of garbage or rubbish by burying it under a shallow layer of ground 埋入地下的垃圾 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------paddy ( n.) :rice in the husk，growing or gathered 稻，谷 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------termite ( n.) :a kind of insect found chiefly in tropical areas，very destructive to wood，textiles，etc．，which makes large hills of hard earth 白蚁 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------biomass ( n.) :the total mass or amount of living organisms in a particular area or volume 生物量 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------extinction ( n.) :the fact or state of being or becoming extinct；dying out，as of a race，species of animal，etc．(动物的)灭绝，绝种 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------rip (v．) :cut or tear apart roughly or vigorously 撕，扯 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------spectral ( adj.) : of or like a specter；phantom；ghostly 鬼怪(似)的；幽灵(般) 的 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------skirmish ( n.) :a brief fight or encounter between small groups，usually an incident of a battle 小规模战斗；前哨战 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------aquifer ( n.) :an underground layer of porous rock，sand，etc．containing water，into which wells can be sunk 含水层(能对水井提供重要经济价值的水量 的地下岩层) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------chlorine ( n.) :a greenish—yellow，poisonous，gaseous chemical element with a disagreeable odor．used as a bleaching agent，in water purification，in various industrial processes，etc．(symbol C1)氯(符号 C1) 49

英语阅读与理解

English Intensive Reading

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------chlorofluorocarbon ( n.) :any of a series of gaseous or low— boiling，inert，nonflammable derivatives of methane or ethane，used as refrigerants and solvents，and as propellants in aerosol products[化]氟利昂 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------disrupt ( v．) :disturb or interrupt the orderly course of 扰乱；破坏 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------ultraviolet ( adj. ) :1ying just beyond the violet end of the visible spectrum and having wavelengths shorter than approximately 4 000 angstroms 紫外(线)的 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------molecule ( n.) :the smallest particle of an element or compound that can exist in the free state and still retain the characteristics of the element or compound[化]分子 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------equilibrium ( n.) :a state of balance or equality between opposing forces 平衡 (状态)；平均；相称 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------exponential ( adj.)[Math．] :of or relating to an exponent：involving a variable or unknown quantity as an exponent[数]指数的；幂的 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------axiom ( n.) :a statement universally accepted as true；maxim 格言，箴言 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------cumulative (adj. ) :increasing in effect，size, quantity，etc．by successive additions；accumulated 累积的，堆积的；累加的；(作用、大小、数量等)渐增的 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------sustenance ( n.) :one’s means of livelihood；maintenance；support 生计；支 撑；支持，维持 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------ozone ( n.) :n unstable，pale—blue gas，O3，with a penetraring odor(an allotropic form of oxygen，formed usually by a silent electrical discharge in air，and used as an oxidizing，deodorizing．and bleaching agent and in the purification of water)[化]臭氧 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------depletion ( n.) :the gradual using up or destruction or capital assets，esp. of natural resources 资产(尤指自然资源)的折耗，耗减 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------deforestation ( n.) :the act or action of clearing (1and)of forests of trees 毁林， 滥伐森林 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------precedent ( n.) :existing practice resulting from earlier precedents 先例；前例 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------sober ( v．) :make or become self—controlled，calm，serious in thought，etc．(使)变清醒(或冷静、严肃、庄严等) 50

英语阅读与理解

English Intensive Reading

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------weaponry ( n.) :the design and production o{weapons 武器设计和生产 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------deploy ( v．) :spread out or place in accordance with a plan 展开；部署 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------leapfrog ( v．) :jump or skip over 跃过；越过 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------obsolete ( adj.) :no longer in use or practice；discarded；no longer in fashion；out—of-date 已废弃的；已不用的；过时的；老式的 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------simplistic (adj.) :making complex problems unrealistically simple； oversimplifying or oversimplified 过分简单化的 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------短语 (Expressions) at stake: to be won or lost ； being risked 在 胜 败 关 头 ， 冒 风 险 例： This decision put out lives at stake．这一决定，我们的生命就凶吉 难保了。

Detailed Study 1. Ships in the Desert [image-7]: Ships anchored in the desert. This is an eyecatching title and it gives an image that people hardly see. When readers read the title, they can’t help wondering why and how. Paragraph

1.

typical

example

of

environmental

destruction

　 　 2. capable of processing a fifty-ton catch on a good day: having the ability of cleaning and preparing for marketing or canning fifty-tons of fish on a productive day. catch: the amount of something caught; in the sentence it refers to the amount of fish caught e.g. The boat brought back a big catch of fish. 　　3. but as I looked out over the bow, the prospects of a good catch looked bleak: a good catch did not look promising / hopeful. This is obviously an understatement because with sand all around there was no chance of catching fish, to say nothing of catching a lot of fish. bow[audio-1] ant.

:

the

front

part

of

a

ship stern

51

英语阅读与理解

English Intensive Reading

compare: bow[audio-2]: v. & n. to bend the upper part of the body forward, as a way of showing respect, admitting defeat, etc. bow [audio-3]: n. a weapon for shooting arrow a long thin piece of wood with a tight string fastened along it, used for playing musical instruments that have strings a knot formed by doubling a string or cord into two curved pieces, and used for decoration in the hair, in tying shoes, etc bleak: a) If a situation is bleak, it is bad, and seems unlikely to improve. e.g. His future looked bleak. bleak prospect; the bleakness of the post war years b) If a place is bleak, it looks cold, bare, and unattractive e.g. the bleak coastline c) When the weather is bleak, it is cold, dull, and unpleasant e.g. the bleak winters d) If someone looks or sounds bleak, they seem depressed, hopeless, or unfriendly e.g. his bleak features bleakly adv. e.g. He stared bleakly ahead. “What,” he asked bleakly, “are these?” 　　4. waves lapping against the side of the ship: waves touching the side of the ship gently and makes a soft sound lap can also be used as a noun. e.g. Your lap is the flat area formed by your thighs when you are sitting down. Her youngest child was asleep in her lap. He placed the baby on the woman’s lap. In a race, when you say that a competitor has completed a lap when he or she has gone round the course race. 　　5. as far as I could see in all direction: that extended as far as the eye could see; 　 　 6. that stretched all the way to the horizon: that extended to the far off place where the sky meet the earth 　　 7. comparable: something that is comparable to something as big as/ as important as the other thing; b) similar e.g. This dinner is comparable to the best Our house is not comparable with yours. Ours is just a small palace.

else is a) as good as/ to the other thing French cooking. hut while yours is a

　　8. Now it is disappearing because the water that used to feed it has been diverted in an ill-considered irrigation scheme to grow cotton in the dessert: Now it is becoming smaller and smaller because the water that used to flow into the sea has been turned away to irrigate the land created in the desert to grow cotton. The scheme 52

英语阅读与理解

English Intensive Reading

was an ill-conceived one because it failed to take into consideration the ecological effect. 　

　

9.

dock:

v.

anchor,

moor

Paragraph 2. thesis statement: travel around the world to check and study cases in order to find out the basic causes behind the environmental crisis [image-8] 　　10. My search for the underlying causes of the environmental crisis has led me to travel around the world to examine and study many of these images of destruction: I travelled around the world because I wanted to see, check and study cases of such destruction in order to find out the basic causes behind the environmental crisis. This sentence is the thesis statement, expressing the main idea and indicating the development of a causal essay. images of destruction: typical examples of destruction 　 　 11. the sun glaring at midnight through a hole in the sky: the sun shining at midnight through the ozone depletion [image-9] midnight sun: phenomenon occurring only in the polar regions a

hole:

ozone

depletion

臭

氧

层

空

洞

　 　 12. about the tunnel he was digging through time: about the tunnel he was drilling for samples from the glacier, which estimates the time. The deeper he drilled, the farther the sample in time; in other words, the surface of the glacier [image-10] is an indication of recent time while the deeper part of the glacier tells of situation of a much more remote period. 　　 13. Slipping his parka back to reveal a badly burned face that was cracked and peeling [image-11]: Pushing his parka back, he revealed a badly burned face because of overexposure to direct sunlight; on the face there were lines that were split open and pieces of skin were coming down. parka: [image-12] n. waterproof jacket with a hood attached (as worn for skiing, mountain climbing, etc.) 　　 14. He moved his finger back in time to the ice of two decades ago: Following the layers of ice in the core sample, his finger came to the place where the layer of ice was formed 20 years ago. 　

　

15.

two

continents:

　

　

16.

emission:

the

South amount

America of

and

Antarctica

pollutants

discharged

　　 17. least accessible place on earth: the place which is the most difficult to get to 53

英语阅读与理解

English Intensive Reading

in

the

world

Paragraph 3. the global warming seen in the Antarctic [image-13] 　 　 18. Industry meant coal: the development of industry meant the use of large amount of coal as fuel to generate power. 　 　 19. bringing rising levels of carbon dioxide: making the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere grow 　 　 20. with its ability to trap more heat in the atmosphere and slowly warm the earth: heat cannot easily get through carbon dioxide and go into the high altitude so carbon dioxide plays the role of a cover, keeping the heat near the earth. 　 　 21. the part after the dash (--) serves as an adverbial of result 　　22. upwind from the ice runaway where the ski plane lands and keeps its engines running to prevent the metal parts from freeze-locking together, scientists monitor the air several times every day to chart the course of that inexorable change: upwind from the ice runaway where the ski plane lands and keeps its engines running so that the metal parts will not be frozen solid, scientists watch the air several times every day to mark the course of that unalternable change. upwind: in the direction from which the wind is blowing or usually blows ice runway : runway is a strip of paved ground for use by airplanes in taking off and landing, and here in the South Pole the runway is a strip of ice ground to prevent the metal parts from freeze-locking together: to stop the metal parts from being frozen solid monitor the air: watch or check on the air to chart the course: to show the onward movement on an outline map inexorable: that cannot be changed; unalternable e.g. the inexorable rise in the cost of living 　

23.

　

graph:

usually

a

mathematical

diagram

Paragraph 4. a thinning cap as the result of Arctic air warms [image-14] pitch: pitch a tent means put up a tent 　 　 24. e.g. They pitched their tent near the stream. They pitched their tent at the edge of the field. 　 　 25. slab: A slab of something is a thick e.g. a slab of rock; a concrete slab; a 　 e.g.

　

26.

frigid: frigid 54

cold;

flat piece slab of icy;

of it. cheese freezing weather

英语阅读与理解

English Intensive Reading

　 　 27. a hearty breakfast: a satisfying and rich breakfast to describe meals: sumptuous dinner; humble bread and cheese; square meal 　 　 28. snowmobile [image-15]: a kind of motor vehicle for traveling over snow, usually with steer able runners at the front and tractor treads at the rear 　 　 29. rendezvous point: the place where a submarine was to pick them up rendezvous: a) A rendezvous is a meeting often a secret one, that you have arranged with someone for a particular time and place. e.g. We make a dawn rendezvous. b) A rendezvous is a place where you have arranged to meet somebody often secretly. e.g. I met him at a secret rendezvous outside the city. 　　 30. hover: to wait close by, especially in an overprotective, insistent or anxious way When a bird or insect hovers, it stays in the same position in the air by moving its wings very quickly. If somebody is hovering, they are waiting in one place, for example, because they cannot decide what to do. e.g. A figure hovered uncertainly in the doorway. 　 　 31. After it crashed through the ice, took on its new passengers, and resubmerged: After it broke through the ice, picked up it new passengers, and went below the surface of water again emerge: appear submerge: go below the surface of water 　

　

32.

the

polar

ice

cap

[image-14]:

极

地

冰

冠

　 　 33. to secure the release of previously top secret data: to ensure the making public of data which was originally classified as top secret . 　 　 34. from submarine sonar tracks: obtained from submarine sonar tracks sonar: [U] (an acronym for sound navigation ranging) an apparatus using sound waves for finding the position of underwater objects, such as mines or submarines 声纳（利 用 声 波 探 测 如 水 雷 或 潜 艇 等 的 水 底 目 标 的 仪 器 ） Baiqi dolphins [image-16]:have sonar. Bats have sonar. 　 　 35. and then I was standing in an eerily beautiful snowscape, windswept and sparkling white, with the horizon defined by little hummocks, or “pressure ridges” of ice that are pushed up like tiny mountain ranges when separate sheets collide: and 55

英语阅读与理解

English Intensive Reading

then I was standing in the vast scene of snow which was fearfully beautiful, windswept and shining white, with the stretch of ice field characterized by small ridges because of the force of the collision of the separate layers. eerily: mysteriously or uncannily, especially in such a way as to frighten or disturb snowscape: scene of snow. Compare with landscape and seascape. windswept: swept by or exposed to winds with the horizon defined by little hummocks: with stretch of ice field characterized by small ridges 　 　 36.

the

ice

here

will

thin:

the

ice

here

will

become

thin

　 　 37. the consequences of a thinning cap could be disastrous: the result of a thinning cap may indicate the possibilities of disasters could: the word indicates “possibilities” Paragraph 5. the rising temperature of the earth[image-17] 　 　 38. Considering such scenarios is not a purely speculative exercise: Thinking about how a series of events might happen as a consequence of the thinning of the Polar cap is not just a kind of practice in conjecture / speculation, it has got practical value. scenario: a) an outline for an proposed or planned series of events, real or imagined 方 案 b) the scenario of a film is a piece of writing that gives an outline of the story 脚本 speculative:

meditating;

thinking;

pondering;

guessing

　 　 39. the pattern of ice distribution: the regular way ice is distributed 　 　 40. a still controversial claim: a statement which some scientists still do not completely accept 　 　 41. which a variety of data now suggest: data coming from different sources point to this conclusion 　　 42. the Arctic Circle [image-18]: an imaginary line drawn round the world at a certain distance from the most northern point (the North Pole), north of which there is no darkness for six months of each year and almost no light for the other six months. cf. the Antarctic Circle 　　 43. tundra [image-19]: any of the vast, nearly level, treeless plains of the Arctic regions

56

英语阅读与理解

English Intensive Reading

Paragraph 6. the disturbing images of environmental destruction at the equator[image20] 44. billowing: large swelling mass of 　 　 billow v. When smoke or cloud billows, it moves slowly upwards or across the sky 　　 45. Amazon rain forest[image-21]: The Brazilian Amazon contains about a third of the Earth's remaining tropical forest and a very high portion of its biological diversity. One hectare (2.47 acres) of Amazonian moist forest contains more plant species than all of Europe. Yet still it is being destroyed just like other rainforests around the world. 　 　 46. Acre by acre, the rain forest is being burned to create fast pasture for fastfood beef: Bit by bit trees in the rain forest are felled and the land is cleared and turned into pasture where cattle can be raised quickly and slaughtered and the beef can be used in hamburgers. Pay attention to the connection of the two “fasts” in fast pasture and fast food. With that comes the “fast” disappearance of the rain forest. fast pasture for fast-food beef: alliteration 　 　 47. the dry season: ant. in the wet season—the rainy season similarly: the football season, the breeding season, the planting season, the holiday season, the harvest season, the cold season, the tourist season, the game season, a season of film in season: If a fruit or vegetable is in season, it is the time of year when it is time for eating and it’s widely available. Ant. be out of season season v. e.g. season the food with salt 　 　 48. with more than one Tennessee’s worth of rain forest being slashed and burned each year: the area of rain forest burned in one year is bigger than the state of Tennessee. worth: equal in area or size slash: cut with a sweeping stroke If you slash something, you make a long, deep cut in it. e.g. Jack’s face had been slashed with broken glass. 　　49. which means we are silencing thousands of songs we have never even heard: Since miles of forest are being destroyed and the habitat for these rare birds no longer exists, thousands of birds which we have not even had a chance to see will become extinct. Paragraph 7. images of destruction seen almost http://lasp.colorado.edu/noctilucent_clouds/pix.html

57

anywhere

[image-22 ]

英语阅读与理解

English Intensive Reading

　　50. Images that signal the distress of our global environment are now commonly seen almost anywhere: Typical examples showing the dangerous environmental situation in the world can be found almost anywhere. 　 　 51. On some nights, in high northern latitudes, the sky itself offers another ghostly image that signals the loss of ecological balance now in progress: On some nights, in the area at a high northern latitude, the sky alone presents another example of ill omen showing there is ecological imbalance and this kind of imbalance is developing. latitude (s): an area at a particular latitude in cf.

high

northern

latitude

在

longitude

北

纬

高 经

纬

度

地

区 度

52. blot out: hide entirely; obscure 　 　 If one thing blots out another thing, it is in front of the other thing and prevents it from being seen. e.g. The dust cloud blotted out the sun. 　 　 53. This “noctilucent cloud”[image-22] occasionally appears when the earth is first cloaked in the evening darkness; shimmering above us with a translucent whiteness, these clouds seem quite unnatural: This “luminous cloud” occasionally appears when the earth is first hidden in the evening darkness; shining unsteadily above us with a partially transparent whiteness, these clouds don’t seem natural. noctilucent cloud: nocti- means night; lucent means shining, translucent designating or of a luminous cloud visible at night to cloak: to conceal; hide shimmer: shine with an unsteady light translucent: partially transparent 　　 54. because of a huge buildup of methane gas in the atmosphere: because there has been a big increase of methane gas in the atmosphere 　 　 55. methane is released from landfills, from coal mines and rice paddies, from billons of termites that swarm through the freshly cut forestland, from the burning of biomass and from a variety of other human activities: methane is emitted from garbage disposal, from coal mines and rice fields, from billions of termites （白蚁） [image-23]moving in large numbers through the freshly cut forestland, from the burning of amount of living organism in a particular area and from a variety of other human activities.

58

英语阅读与理解

English Intensive Reading

release: let go; emit swarm: to move in large numbers e.g. As the fire spread, people came swarming out of the building. The photographers swarmed round her. 　 　 56. Even though noctilucent clouds were sometimes seen in the past, all this extra methane carries more water vapor into the upper atmosphere, where it condenses at much higher altitudes to form more clouds that the sun’s rays still strike long after sunset has brought the beginning of night to the surface far beneath them: The implication is that the night comes earlier than the upper part. The balance between day and night is broken. altitudes: a high area e.g. At high altitudes it is difficult to breathe. Paragraph 8. human attitudes towards the images of destruction [imgage-24 ] 　　57. What should we feel toward these ghosts in the sky: What should our attitude be toward these noctilucent clouds in the sky? 　　58. Simple wonder or the mix of emotions we feel at the zoo: Should it only be a feeling of surprise and admiration or a combination of different feelings we experience in the zoo? the mix of emotions we feel at the zoo: on the one hand we feel excited about seeing those animals, but on the other hand, we feel sorry for them because they have been deprived of freedom. 　 　 59. Perhaps we should feel awe for our own power: Perhaps we should feel amazed and frightened at our own power. 　　 60. just as men tear tusks from elephants’ heads in such quantity as to threaten the beast with extinction: men are killing such large number of elephants for their tusks that the species will soon extinguish. 　　 61. we are ripping matter from its place in the earth in such volume as to upset the balance between daylight and darkens: we are using and destroying resources in such a big amount that we are disturbing the balance between daylight and darkness. rip: tear; When you rip something or when it rips, it is torn violently. e.g. The poster had been ripped to pieces. Two of the canvas bags had been ripped in such volume: in such quantity upset: When the word is used as a verb or a predicative, the second syllable is stressed; When it is used as an adjective in an attributive position, the first syllable is stressed. e.g.: You are up`set. I’ve got an `upset stomach. to upset the balance: to cause something to go wrong 59

英语阅读与理解

English Intensive Reading

　　62. greenhouse gases, and is third only to carbon dioxide and water vapor in total volume: gases that will trap heat at the surface of the earth like a greenhouse and ranks third only to carbon dioxide and water vapor in total volume. This means of all the gases, water vapor occupies the largest portion, carbon dioxide the second. Methane-natural gas, greenhouse gasesthe third greenhouse: A greenhouse is a glass building in which you grow plants that need to be protected from cold weather, wind or frost. Here it’s a metaphor. third only to : similarly second only to e.g. He is second only to his elder brother. 　 　 63. changing the chemistry of the upper atmosphere: changing the chemical composition of the upper atmosphere 　　 64. But, without even considering that threat, shouldn’t it startle us that we have now put these clouds in the evening sky which glisten with a spectral light? Or have our eyes adjusted so completely to the bright lights of civilization that we can’t see these clouds for what they are—a physical manifestation of the violent collision between human civilization and the earth? These are two rhetorical questions. As for rhetorical questions, there’s no need to give the answer, and the answer is implied in the questions. If the rhetorical question is negative, the answer is positive and vice versa. So the first rhetorical question means it should startle us…; the second one means our eyes haven’t adjusted so completely to the bright lights of civilization that we can’t see…. startle: to alarm suddenly or unexpectedly glisten: to shine or sparkle with reflected light, as a wet or polished surface spectral: like a ghost; ghostly Or have our eyes adjusted so completely to the bright lights of civilization that we can’t see these clouds for what they are—a physical manifestation of the violent collision between human civilization and the earth?: Or have we been so accustomed to the bright electric lights that we fail to understand the threatening implication of these clouds / …we fail to understand that it is a glaring sign of the violent clash between human activity and nature? adjust (to) : to change so as to fit, conform see : understand for what they are: in their real light; the real nature of manifestation: display Paragraph 9. human’s puzzling response [image-25] 　　 65. Even though it is sometimes hard to see their meaning, we have by now all witnessed surprising experiences: Even though it is sometimes hard to understand the threat of these clouds, we have so far all seen surprising experiences.

60

英语阅读与理解

English Intensive Reading

　 　 66. [surprising experience] whether it’s the frequency of days when the temperature exceeds 100 degrees, the new speed with which the sun burns our skin, or the new constancy of public debate over what to do with growing mountains of waste: whether it is the fact that recently there are more hot days when the temperature is over 100 degrees Fahrenheit (=38 degree Celsius), or the fact the sun burns our skin more quickly in recent times, or the fact that the debate over the way of disposing of the growing amount of waste matter comes up more frequently. 　 　 67. But our response to these signals is puzzling: But our reaction to these signals is so baffling that it is difficult to understand. 　 　 68. Why haven’t we launched a massive effort to save our environment: Why haven’t we started a large-scale movement to save our environment? 　　 69. To come at the question another way: To approach the question in a different way; to put the question differently 　　70. Why do some images startle us into immediate action and focus our attention on ways to respond effectively? : Why do some signs so alarm us that we immediately take action and concentrate on ways of dealing with them effectively? some images: e.g. white pollution, (immediate action: stop producing) sandstorm (immediate action: plant grass and trees) 　 　 71. And why do other images, though sometimes equally dramatic, produce instead a kind of paralysis, focusing our attention not on ways to respond but rather on some convenient, less painful distraction? : And why do other signs, though sometimes no less striking, only cause a kind of loss and inactivity and we concentrate our attention not on the ways to deal with them but instead, on some other substitutes which are easy to get and less painful? other images: e.g. gases from cars (distraction: people still want cars, and have an easy and less painful way to deal with this issue, say, it’s a natural cycle, not because of human activities) Paragraph 10. the importance of organizing our thoughts [image-26 ] 　 　 72. it may be helpful to classify them and thus begin to organize our thoughts and feelings so that we may be able to respond appropriately: it may be useful to arrange them into different groups, thus getting our thoughts and feelings straightened out / organized so that we will be able to take the most suitable action. Paragraph 11. the military system: “local” skirmishes, “regional” battles, and “strategic” conflicts [image-27] 73. theater: scene of operation 　 　 e.g. This was the Pacific theatre of World War II. 61

英语阅读与理解 这

里

是

第

lecture

English Intensive Reading

二

次

世

界

大

theatre

战

的

太

阶

平

洋

梯

战 教

区

。 室

　　 74. A useful system comes from the military: A useful way of classifying comes from fighting. They are: “local” skirmish, “regional” battles, and “strategic” conflict. A skirmish is a minor battle 　　75. be reserved for: If something is reserved for a particular person or purpose, it is kept specially for that person or purpose. e.g. The garden is reserved for those who work in the museum. I had a place reserved at the Youth Hostel. He gave me a look of the sort usually reserved for naughty school children. 　 　 76. struggles that can threaten a nation’s survival and must be understood in a global context: struggles that can endanger a nation’s existence and must be viewed against the background of the world. Paragraph 12. the same case with the images of destruction [image-28] 　 　 77. in the same way: in the way of dividing the threats into three categories 　　 78. illegal waste dumping: the disposal of waste in a way that violates the law 　 　 79.

in

e.g. These

problem problems

His

nature:

in

basic

quality

was

or

character

personal political

are

本 质 上 in

in

nature. nature.

　　80. Problems like acid rain, the contamination of underground aquifers, and large oil spills are fundamentally regional. Problems like acid rain, the contamination of underground aquifers, and large oil spills basically belong to regional category. Acid rain （ 酸 雨 ） [video-6 ]: rain with a high concentration of acids produced by sulfur dioxide (二氧化硫) [video-7 ], nitrogen oxide (氧化氮) [video-8 ], etc. emitted during the combustion （氧化）of fossil fuels; it has a destructive effect on plant and aquatic

(

水

中

)

的

life,

buildings,

etc.

contamination: to make impure or bad by or as if by mixing in / with impure, dirty or poisonous matter cf. pollution: Pollution is a term to describe the degrading of the environment in some way—the air we breathe or the water we drink or wash in can be polluted when it is 62

英语阅读与理解

English Intensive Reading

contaminated by some foreign or unwanted material, e.g. engine oil or chemicals in water, smoke, or car exhaust in the air. We talk about air pollution or water pollution —not water contamination but “pollution” is the more common term. Contamination is a more scientific term used to describe a substance contaminating or spoiling something such as an experiment, e.g. the water purity experiment was contaminated by an outside chemical. We would not say “polluted” in this case. aquifer: an underground layer of porous ( 多 孔 的 )rock, sand, etc, containing water, into which wells can be sunk. large oil spill: large-scale leaking of oil from oil tankers 　 　 81. the pattern appears to be global: It seems that the problem has acquired a global nature since so many similar things occur at the same time all over the world. 　 　 82. because the operation of the global environment is not affect5ed and the survival of civilization is not at stake: because the working of the world environment as a whole has not been affected and the existence of mankind has not been endangered. at stake: in danger Paragraph 13. a new class of environmental problems affecting the global ecological system: chlorine [image-29] 80. The 600 percent increase in the amount of chlorine in the atmosphere during the last forty years has taken place not just in those countries producing the chlorofluorocarbons responsible but in the air above every country, above Antarctica, above the North Pole and the Pacific Ocean—all the way from the surface of the earth to the top of the sky: There have been 600 percent increase in the amount of chlorine in the atmosphere during the last forty years not only in those countries which are mainly responsible for the production of CFC but also in the air above every country, above Antarctica, above the North Pole and the Pacific Ocean— all the way from the surface of the earth to the top of the sky. chlorine: chlorofluorocarbons:

氯 CFC

氟

里

昂

[audio-4][video-9

]:

　　83. The increased levels of chlorine disrupt the global process by which the earth regulates the amount of ultraviolet radiation from the sun: The increase of the amount of chlorine disturbs the usual way of handling and controlling the amount of ultraviolet radiation the earth receives from the sun. ultraviolet: (of light) that is beyond the purple end of the range of colours (spectrum) that make up light that can be seen by human beings ultraviolet

rays:

紫 63

外

线

英语阅读与理解

English Intensive Reading

ultra-: beyond e.g. ultrared （红外线的） , ultrashort （超短波的） , ultrasonic （超 音

波

的

,

）

ultramodern

regulate: 　

　

（

极

其

现

代

化

adjust; 84.

to

the

point:

的

）

moderate; to

such

a

degree

Paragraph 14: another strategic threat—global warming [image-30] 　　 85. The concentration of carbon dioxide and other heat-absorbing molecules has increased by almost 25 percent since World War II, posing a worldwide threat to the earth’s ability to regulate the amount of heat from the sun retained in the atmosphere: As a result of the increase of those particles that can take in heat, less heat is released into the high altitude and more heat is kept in the atmosphere than in the past. This will make the climate of the world warmer. concentration: the measure of the amount of a substance constrained in a liquid [ 术 语 ] 浓 缩 ； a lose gathering 　　 86. equilibrium that determines the pattern of : balance that decides the regular way of …. equilibrium: a state of balance between opposing forces pattern: a regular, mainly unvarying way of movement 　

　

87.

in

turn:

in

proper

sequence

or

succession

Paragraph 15. the transformed relationship between humankind and the earth [image31] 　 　 88. in prehistoric times: in the period before recorded history 　 　 89. in our own time we have reshaped a large part of the earth’s face with concrete in our cities: in the modern time we have given a new shape or form to a large part of the earth’s surface by building paved roads, bridges, buildings etc. 　 　 90. carefully tended rice paddies: taken good care of rice fields 　 　 91. But these changes, while sometimes appearing to be pervasive, have, until recently, been relatively trivial factors in the global ecological system: Although sometimes these changes seem to be taking place everywhere in the world they have, until recently, been relatively insignificant in their influence on the ecological system of the world. pervasive: prevailing; spreading 　　92. it was always safe to assume that nothing we did or could do would have any lasting effect on the global environment: it wouldn’t cause any disagreement to suppose that nothing we did or could do would have any lasting effect on the global 64

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environment. assume: to take for granted; to suppose (something) lasting effect: enduring effect; effect that lasts a

as a long

fact time

　　 93. But it is precisely that assumption which must now be discarded so that we can think strategically about our new relationship to the environment: What we should get rid of is exactly that kind of view which has been taken for granted. Only when we have dropped such a view can we think in a long term, overall way about our relationship to the environment. discard: throw away; get rid of Paragraph 16. the dominant cause of change in the global environment—human civilization [image-32] 94. Yet we resist this truth and find it hard to imagine that our effect on the earth 　　 must now be measured by the same yardstick used to calculate the strength of the moon’s pull on the oceans or the force of the wind against the mountains: Yet we refuse to accept this true fact and find it difficult to think that we should treat our effect on the earth the same way as the moon’s gravitational pull on the oceans or the wind’s effect on the mountains and measure our effect in the same way as we measure the effect of natural forces. we resist this truth: we refuse to accept this true fact; we refuse to face this real fact that human civilization is now the dominant cause of change in the global environment. find it hard to imagine: it is very difficult (for us) to think that our effect on the earth must now be measured by the same yardstick used to calculate the strength of the moon’s pull on the oceans or the force of the wind against the mountains: that we should treat our effect on the earth the same as the moon’s gravitational pull on the oceans or the wind’s effect on the mountains 　　 95. surely we must acknowledge a new responsibility to use that power wisely and with appropriate restraint: of cause we must recognize that we have the responsibility to use the newly acquired capability in a prudent way and with proper restraint. 　 　 96. So far, however, we seem oblivious of the fragility of the earth’s natural systems: Up till now, we seem to be unaware of the fact that the earth’s natural systems are very delicate and can easily be disrupted. Paragraph 17. dramatic changes in two key factors [image-33] 　　97. that define the physical reality of our relationship to the earth: that determine the actual state of our relationship with nature. 　　98. a sudden and startling surge in human population: a sudden and startling rise in human population; a sudden big and shocking increase in the world’s population 65

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　 　 99. with the addition one China’s worth of people every ten years: Every ten years the newly-added population will equal the population of China; Every ten years, one more China’s population will be added to the population of the world. Worth: equal in size or number e.g. The storm did thousands of pounds’ worth of damage (=did damage worth thousands of pounds). I bought 10 pounds worth of food. He bought 10 dollars worth of postage stamps. 　 　 100. a sudden acceleration of the scientific and technological revolution: the scientific and technological revolution suddenly develops more rapidly 　　 101. which has allowed an almost unimaginable magnification of our power to affect the world around us: which has increased our power to influence the world around us to such a degree that can hardly be conceived magnification: the act of magnifying; the power of magnifying

　

　

102.

physical

matter:

material

substance

Paragraph 18. the surge in population [image-34 ] 　 　 103. when viewed in a historical context: when we look at the matter from a historical point of view 　 　 104. Julius Caesar [image-35]: (102? B.C.- 44 B.C.), Roman statesman and general 　 　 105. Christopher Columbus [image-36]: (1451- 1506), discoverer of America, born Genoa, Italy 　 　 106. Thomas Jefferson [image-37]: [1743-1826) third President of the U.S. (1801-9), author of the Declaration of Independence. 　 　 107. Declaration of Independence [video-10]: full and formal declaration adopted July 4, 1776, by representatives of the thirteen colonies in North America announcing the separation of those colonies from Great Britain and making them into the United States Paragraph 19. the present faster increasing population [image-38] 　　108. in the course of one human life—mine: during the life span of an individual –my lifetime 　　109. it is already more than half way there: the world population is already more than half of that figure. 66

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Paragraph 20. the scientific and technological revolution [image-39] 　 　 110. And this ongoing revolution has also suddenly accelerated exponentially: And this continuing revolution has also suddenly developed at a speed that doubled and tripled the original speed. ongoing: continuing; that is actually in process exponential: ( 指 数 的 )of or relating to an exponent ( 数 学 中 的 指 数 ) In

123

the

number

In y n the letter n is the exponent.

3 在 y n

is

the

exponent.

中, n 这个字母是幂。

　 　 111. axiom: n. a rule, principle, etc. that is generally accepted as true a statement, especially one that is short, that is generally accepted as true and doesn’t need to be proved 　　 112. While no single discovery has had the kind of effect on our relationship to the earth that nuclear weapons have had on our relationship to warfare: Although no individual discovery has changed human relationship to the earth so much that it is comparable to the nuclear weapons which have brought tremendous change to the relationship between man and warfare 　　 113. taken together, they have completely transformed our cumulative ability to exploit the earth for sustenance: put all the discoveries together, they have completely changed our ability to utilize the earth productively for survival Originally, our ability to utilize the earth productively for survival grew by gradual addition but now these discoveries have changed the ability fundamentally taken together: considered as a whole transform: change e.g. He transformed the old kitchen into a beautiful sitting room. cumulative: accumulative; increasing steadily in amount or degree by one addition after another e.g. cumulative interest sustenance: fml. the ability of food to keep people strong and healthy; food which does this; nourishment 　 　 114. making the consequence of unrestrained exploitation every bit as unthinkable as the consequences of unrestrained nuclear war: this increased ability has made the results of unlimited use of global resources altogether as terrible as the results of full-scale nuclear war Paragraph 21. our challenge to recognize that starting images of environmental destruction [image-40 cutting down trees] 　 　 115. Our challenge is to recognize that the startling images of environmental 67

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destruction now occurring all over the world have much more in common than their ability to shock and awaken us: Our task is to see and to understand that those frightening examples of environmental destruction that are happening all over the world are so much the same in nature that they surprise us no longer/ are so frequently/ become so common that they don’t shock and arouse us any more. 　 　 116. They are symptoms of an underlying problem broader in scope and more serious than any we have ever faced: They are signs and indications showing that there exists a much greater and more serious problem which we have never encountered. 　

　

117.

deforestation:

disappearance

of

forest

Paragraph 22. two aspects to this challenge: our power to harm the earth and our role as co-architect of nature [image-41 ] 　　118. to see ourselves as part of a complex system that does not operate according to the same simple rules of cause and effect we are used to: to regard ourselves as part of a complicated system which does not function according to the rule of cause-effect we are familiar with 　 　 119. The problem is not our effect on the environment so much as our relationship with the environment: What is involved is a matter of human relations with nature, rather than how mankind will affect nature; The point is that our effect on the environment is not the same as our relationship with the environment. 　　 120. As a result, any solution to the problem will require a careful assessment of that relationship as well as the complex interrelationship among factors within civilization and between them and the major natural components of the earth’s ecological system: As a result, if we want to solve the problem, we will have to carefully weigh and determine how important that relationship is and how important is the complicated interconnection among factors inside human society and between these factors and the main natural parts of global ecological system. relation: relative; relationship relationship: friendship; connection interrelationship: interrelation; a (close) connection, relation of dependence e.g. the interrelation between wages and prices Paragraph 23. one precedent for this kind of challenge to our thinking: military one again [image-42] 　　121. There is only one precedent for this kind of challenge to our thinking: There is only one example in the past which posed similar demand on us for a change in our way of looking at things. precedent: a former action or case that may be used as an example or rule for present 68

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e.g. If he is allowed to do this, it will be a precedent for others. set

a

precedent

without It

is

开 … … 先 例 ； 为 … … 提 供 先 例 precedent

没

something

without

有

先

precedent

in

例 history.

　　122. forced a slow and painful recognition: (the situation) compelled us to accept as a fact gradually and with difficulty 　

　

123:

thus

acquired:

come

to

be

possessed

in

this

way

institution of warfare: practice of armed conflict 　 　 124. institution: a) a large organization for a university, bank, or church b) a building where certain people are kept or looked after e.g. People who are mentally ill or children who have no parents. He may end up in a mental institution. c)a system, rule or a system that is considered an important or typical feature of a society, usually because it has existed for a long time e.g. the institution of marriage 　　 125. all-out war: armed fighting between nations using all possible strength and effort all-out: using all possible strength and effort e.g. We made an all-out effort to finish the job by Christmas. 　　126.That sobering realization: Once you know how serious and terrible a nuclear war will be, you become more clear-headed, more balanced in your reasoning and judgment sober: adj. not drunk; serious v. to make or become serious or thoughtful e.g. a sobering thought 　 　 127. the prospect of such a war: the expected outcome of such a war 　　 128. may well tear away the veil of illusion that has so long obscured the reality of the change in warfare: can suitably dispose of the wrong thinking people entertain which have made them fail to see the change in the nature of armed conflict. veil: covering of thin material; a metaphor Paragraph 24. arms race [image-43] 　　 129. For decades, each new advance in weaponry was deployed by one side for the purpose of inspiring fear in the other. But each such deployment led to an effort by the other to leapfrog the first one with a more advanced deployment of its own: For 69

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decades, the two super powers had been competing in the research, production and deployment of more sophisticated, more advanced weapons, hoping that in this the other side would be deterred not to launch a first strike in nuclear weapons. But the result was just the opposite. Each advance in weaponry led to a new round of arms race, a race of a much more destructive level. leapfrog: n. [U] a game in which one person bends down and another jumps over them from behind v. to jump or skip over; to advance well by missing out (sth.) on the way e.g. He leapfrogged two ranks and was promoted directly to colonel. 　 　 130. It is complicated by technology, true; but it arises out of the relationship between the superpowers and is based on an obsolete understanding of what war is all about: No doubt that the advance in technology has made the problem more difficult to solve but technology is not the real cause. The real cause lies in the kind of relationship between the Soviet Union and the United States and the theoretical basis for this kind of relationship is their outdated concept of war. obsolete: out-of-date, no longer used Paragraph 25. the eventual solution to the arms race: new understandings and a mutual transformation of the relationship itself [image-44] 　　131. unilateral: adj. done by or having an effect on only one side, esp. one of the political groups in an agreement 　 　 132. the denial of nuclear technology to rogue states: stopping rogue countries using nuclear technology or stopping sending nuclear technology to rogue countries. rogue: adj. not following the usual or accepted standards, esp. in an uncontrollable or troublesome way countries e.g. rogue politicians who go against the party line rogue states: states which do not observe or follow the established international norms and practices, which can be considered as rascals /dishonest among states. Paragraph 26. the real solution: reinventing and finally healing the relationship between civilization and the earth [image-45] 　 　 133. The strategic nature of the threat now posed by human civilization to the global environment and the strategic nature of the threat to human civilization now posed by changes in the global environment present us with a similar set of challenges and false hopes. The important/basic nature of the threat now brought about by human civilization to the global environment and the important/basic nature of threat to human civilization now The main structure is: The strategic nature of the threat… and the strategic nature of the threat … present us with a similar set of challenges and false hopes. 　　134. a simplistic notion at best: a simple view at most

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EXERCISES Ⅰ .Give brief answers to the following questions, using your own words as much as possible: 　 1) Why did the writer go to the Aral Sea? What did he see there? 　 2) What was "the tunnel through time" the scientist was digging? 　 3) What were scientists doing in the Antarctic region? 　 4) Why would the thinning of the polar ice cap be disastrous to the world? 　 5) How will the destruction of the Amazon rain forest affect the earth's ecological balance? 　 6) What does the writer call "ghosts in the sky"? How are they formed? 　 7) Why does the writer say "our response to these signals is puzzling"”? 　 8) What causes global warming? Why is it considered a strategic threat? 　 9) What are the two key factors that define the physical reality of our relationship to the earth? What dramatic changes have occurred in these two key factors? 　 10) What solutions does the writer put forward to our ecological problems? Ⅱ .Paraphrase: 　 1)The prospects of a good catch looked bleak 　 2) He moved his finger back in time to the ice of two decades ago. 　 3) Keeps its engines running to prevent the metal parts from freeze-locking together 　 4) Acre by acre, the rain forest is being burned to create fast pasture for fast-food beef 　 5) Which means we are silencing thousands of songs we have never even heard 　 6) Considering such scenarios is not a purely speculative exercise. 　 7) We are ripping matter from its place in the earth in such volume as to upset the balance between daylight and darkness 　 8) Or have our eyes adjusted so completely to the bright lights of civilization that we can’ t see these clouds for what they are 　 9) To come to the question another way 　 10)and have a great effect on the location and pattern of human societies 　 11)we seem oblivious of the fragility of the earth’ s natural systems 　 12) And this ongoing revolution has also suddenly accelerated exponentially. Ⅲ . Translate the following into Chinese: 　 1) But the most significant change thus far in the earth’s atmosphere is the one that began with the industrial revolution early in the last century and has picked up speed ever since. Industry meant coal, and later oil, and we began to burn lots of it – bringing rising levels of carbon dioxide (CO ) with its ability to trap more heat in the atmosphere and slowly warm the earth. Fewer than a hundred yards from the South Pole, upwind from the ice runway where the ski plane lands and keeps its engines running to prevent the metal parts from freeze-locking together, scientists monitor the air several times every day to chart the course of that inexorable change. During my visit, I watched one 71

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scientist draw the results of that day’ s measurements, pushing the end of a steep line higher on the graph. He told me how easy it is – there at the end of the earth – to see that this enormous change in the global atmosphere is still picking up speed. 　 2) However, a new class of environmental problems does affect the global ecological system, and these threats are fundamentally strategic. The 600 percent increase in the amount of chlorine in the atmosphere during the last forty years has taken place not just in those countries producing the chlorofluorocarbons responsible but in the air above every country, above Antarctica, above the North Pole and the Pacific Ocean – all the way from the surface of the earth to the top of the sky. The increased levels of chlorine disrupt the global process by which the earth regulates the amount of ultraviolet radiation from the sun that is allowed through the atmosphere to the surface: and if we let chlorine levels continue to increase, the radiation levels will also increase – to the point that all animal and plant life will face a new threat to their survival. 　 3) The strategic nature of the threat now posed by human civilization to the global environment and the strategic nature of the threat to human civilization now posed by changes in the global environment present us with a similar set of challenges and false hopes. Some argue that a new ultimate technology, whether nuclear power or genetic engineering, will solve the problem. Others hold that only a drastic reduction of our reliance on technology can improve the conditions of life – a simplistic notion at best. But the real solution will be found in reinventing and finally healing the relationship between civilization and the earth. This can only be accomplished by undertaking a careful reassessment of all the factors that led to the relatively recent dramatic change in the relationship. The transformation of the way we relate to the earth will of course involve new technologies, but the key changes will involve new ways of thinking about the relationship itself. Ⅳ . Study the formation of the following nouns in each group. Give further examples of nouns with the same suffixes. 　 1) radiation pollution 　 2) environment measurement 　 3) image damage 　 4) coldness thickness 　 5) emission collision 　 6) activity fragility 　 7) nature temperature 　 8) consequence evidence 　 9) frequency constancy 　 10) crisis paralysis 　 11) relationship friendship 　 12) truth strength Ⅴ . The suffix -logy(-ology) means the science or study of. Add -logy(-ology) to the 72

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following words and translate them into Chinese. 　 1) techn -　　　　　　　　　2) eco　 3) hydro-　　　　　　　　　 4) phreno 　 5) neuro -　　　　　　　　　6) path 　 7) physio -　　　　　　　　 8) pharmaco 　 9) gynaeco -　　　　　　　　10) ocean 　 11) lexico -　　　　　　　　12) archeo　 13) anthropo -　　　　　　　14) crimin Ⅵ . The suffix -ist forms nouns denoting agent, follower, adherer, expert, etc. Give corresponding nouns ending in -ist for the words listed below and translate them into Chinese: 　 1) anarchism　　　　　　　　2) naturalism 　 3) biology　　　　　　　　　4) psychology 　 5) satirize　　　　　　　　6) encyclopaedism 　 7) geology　　　　　　　　　8) sociology 　 9) zoology　　　　　　　　　10) impressionism 　 11) environment　　　　　　 12) terrorism Ⅶ . The prefix sub- has different meanings. Look up the following words in the dictionary and put them into Chinese, paying attention to the different meanings of sub-: 　 1) submarine　　　　　　　　2) submerge 　 3) subantarctic　　　　　　 4) subsolar 　 5) subhead　　　　　　　　　6) subaquatic 　 7) subdivide　　　　　　　　8) suboxide 　 9) subclass　　　　　　　　 10) subclimax 　 11) subcommittee　　　　　　12) subconscious 　 13) subcontinent　　　　　　14) subcontract 　 15) subculture　　　　　　　16) subspecies 　 17) subsoil　　　　　　　　 18) sublethal Ⅷ . Pick out from the text all the terms connected with ecological environment. IX. Replace the italicized words with simple, everyday words or expressions: 　 1) My research for the underlying causes of the environmental crisis has led me to travel around the world to examine and study many of these images of destruction. ( ) () 　 2) Scientists monitor the air several times every day to chart the course of that inexorable change.( ) 　 3) I traveled by snowmobiles a few miles further north to a rendezvous point ( ) 　 4) With horizon defined by little hummocky... where separate sheets collide ( ) 　 5) Moreover, scientists established several years ago that the temperature of the 73

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earth is steadily rising. ( ) 　 6) But one doesn't have to travel around the world to witness humankind' s assault on the earth. ( ) 　 7) Particular, local and regional problems occurring simultaneously all over the world ( ) 　 8) This increase in heat seriously threatens the global climate equilibrium ( ) 　 9) They have completely transformed our cumulative ability to exploit the earth for sustenance ( ) 　 10) Our challenge is to recognize that the startling images of environmental destruction... awaken us. ( ) 　 11) It arises out of the relationship between the superpowers and is based on an obsolete understanding of what war is all about. ( ) Ⅹ . Choose a more appropriate word from the bracket to complete each of the following sentences. Make changes where necessary. 　 1) Before taking actions, you must consider the (result, consequence, out come) 　 2) It is not the knowing, but the doing that brings (result, consequence, out come) 　 3) T he book embodies the of his ten years of original research. (result, consequence, outcome) 　 4) But it would be premature to forecast the of the war. (result, consequence, outcome) 　 5) The financial of the company for the last half year were very satisfactory. (result, consequence, outcome) 　 6) The new organization is the of a meeting held among member states last month. (result, consequence, out-come) 　 7) We can't get rid of war unless we get rid of the of war. (cause, reason) 　 8) The news of the air crash was reported right away, but the-----were not disclosed. (cause, reason) 　 9) He had no sufficiently good enough for the refusal of the post. (cause, reason) 　 10) The lady had to remain nameless for diplomatic (cause, reason) 　 11) She broke off all with the man who had deceived her. (relation, relationship) 　 12) In the past few years, they formed a of un-questioning political loyalty. (relation, relationship) 　 13) He has done so much to develop trade between China and Japan. (relation, relationship) 　 14) To protect global environment, we must have a correct understanding of the between our civilization and the earth. (relation, relationship) 　 15) He had a unique way of putting thoughts into simple words. (complex, complicated) 　 16) A sentence has one or more clauses besides the main clause. (complex, complicated) 　 17) You are not helping me. You are only making things more than they are. (complex, complicated) 74

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　 18) As the edifice of civilization is becoming more we feel increasingly distant from our roots in the earth. (complex, complicated) 　 19) The process is and easy to grasp. (simple, simplistic) 　 20) This is a answer, and I' m sure it won’t solve the problem. (simple, simplistic) Ⅺ . Fill in each blank with a preposition or a conjunction: 　 Modern industrial civilization is colliding violently our planet's ecological system. The ferocity its assault the earth is breathtaking. Isolated pockets resistance fighters have begun to fight back inspiring but, the final analysis, woefully inadequate ways. What they are up is nothing less the current logic world civilization. long civilization, its vast technological power, continues to follow a pattern thinking that encourages the exploitation the natural world short-term gains, an irresistible force will continue to devastate the earth no matter what any us does. Ⅻ. Choose the right word from the list given below for each blank: 　 relationship　　　　　What　　　　　garbage　　　　　that 　 environment　　　　　inherit　　　　　Unless　　　　　landfill 　 disposal　　　　　debates　　　　　Having　　　　　recent 　 dispose　　　　　confront　　　　　only　　　　　reduce 　 dramatically　　　　　allow　　　　　endless　　　　　dumping 　 elsewhere　　　　　used　　　　　drown　　　　　change 　 thinking　　　　　chosen　　　　　we　　　　　ocean 　 capacity　　　　　running　　　　　waste　　　　　it 　 quantities　　　　　mind　　　　　been　　　　　humankind 　 interdependent　　　　　sight　　　　　old　　　　　of 　　 One of the clearest signs that our________to the global________is in severe crisis is the floodtide of ________spilling out of our cities and factories________some have called the "throwaway society" had been based on the assumption that________resources will________us to produce an endless supply of goods and________bottomless receptacles -- landfills and ocean _________sites will allow us to ________of an endless stream of waste. But now we are beginning to ________in that stream. ________relied for too long on the _________strategy "out of sight, out of _______"we are now ______ out of ways to dispose of our _________in a manner that keeps _______out of either ______or mind. 　　 The American people have in_______years, become embroiled in ______about relative merits of various waste ______ schemes, from dumping it in the ________to burying it in a landfill to burning it or taking it ________.Now, however, we must ____ a strategic threat to our_____ to dispose ________the enormous _______of waste now being produced. There is ______one way out: we have to ________our production processes and ____the amount of waste _______create. Our species _______to flourish within the_______web of life, but we have _______to leave the garden. _____we find a way to ____ change our way of _____ about the relationship between ______and the 75

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earth, our children will ______a wasteland. XIII. Topics for oral work: 　 1) How has human civilization now become the dominant cause of change in the global environment? 　 2) What changes in the global environment present a strategic threat to human civilization? How should we face this challenge and solve the problem? XIV .Write a short composition on: 　 We must protect our ecological system

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