Question

Many people once thought that air pollution had a bad influence upon only the area immediately around large cities with factories and heavy automobile traffic. Today, we know that although these are the areas with the worst air pollution, the problem is nearly worldwide. On several occasions over the past decade, a heavy cloud of air pollution has covered the entire eastern half of the United States and led to health warnings even in rural areas away from any major concentration of factories and automobile traffic. In fact, the very climate of the entire earth may be affected by air pollution. Some scientists feel that the increasing concentration of carbon dioxide( 二氧化碳) in the air resulting from the burning of fossil fuels (coal and oil) is creating a“greenhouse effect” － holding in heat reflected from the earth and raising the world’s average temperature. If this view is correct and the world’s temperature is raised only a few degrees, much of the polar ice cap will melt and cities such as New York, Boston, Miami, and New Orleans will be under water.

Another opinion, less widely held, is that increasing tiny substances in the atmosphere are blocking sunlight and lowering the earth’s temperature－a result that would be equally disastrous.A drop of just a few degrees could create something close to new ice age and would make agriculture difficult or impossible in many of our top farming areas. At present we do not know for sure that either of these conditions will happen (though one recent government report prepared by experts in the field concluded that the greenhouse effect is very likely). Perhaps, if we are very lucky, the two tendencies will make up for each other and the world’s temperature will stay about the same as it is now.

1.As pointed out at the beginning of the passage, people used to think that air pollution _____.

A. caused widespread damage in the countryside

B. affected the entire eastern half of the United States

C. almost brought worldwide effect

D. existed merely in urban and industrial areas

2.As far as the greenhouse effect is concerned, the author _____________.

A. shares the same view with the scientists

B. is uncertain of its consequence

C. rejects it as being ungrounded

D. thinks that it will increasingly destroy the world

3. It can be inferred from the passage that ____________.

A. raising the world’s temperature a little would not do much harm to life on earth

B. lowering the world’s temperature a little would lead to agricultural disasters

C. almost no temperature changes have occurred over the past decade

D. the world’s temperature will remain constant in the years to come

4.This passage is primarily concerned with _____________.

A. the greenhouse effect in the world

B. the measures to adjust the climate

C. the potential effect of air pollution

D. the measures to protect the environment

Answer 1

1.D

2.B

3.B

4.C

【解析】 近年來，空氣污染已經成為一個全球關注的嚴肅的問題。空氣污染產生惡劣的天氣，人們對空氣污染的影響進行了分析，得出兩個可能的并且嚴峻的設想。未來到底會怎樣，還需要我們繼續關注。

1. people once thought that air pollution had a bad influence upon only the area immediately around large cities with factories and heavy automobile traffic.很多人曾經認為空氣污染對那些有工廠和擁堵交通的那城市有直接的很嚴重的影響。故選D

2. this view is correct and the world’s temperature is raised only a few degrees如果這個理論是正確的，世界溫度只要上升一些……從這里可以判斷出，作者對于這個理論的結果有不確定性。故選B

3. opinion, less widely held, is that increasing tiny substances in the atmosphere are blocking sunlight and lowering the earth’s temperature－a result that would be equally disastrous.另一個觀點，略少部分的人認為，增加的細小塵埃阻擋了陽光，降低了地球溫度，這個結果可能是同樣災難性的。故選B

4.

考點：考察說明文閱讀