Question

    People in Western countries are eating less meat these days, whether for their health or because they want to protect animals. But now they have another reason.

Eating less meat can help to prevent climate change, according to a recent study published in Nature.

Raising livestock (家畜) is bad for the environment. When animals like cows digest (消化) food, their stomachs make greenhouse gases, which are a major cause of global warming. Seventeen percent of greenhouse gas emissions (排放) come from livestock farming, The New York Times reported.

In addition, to raise these livestock, people have to cut down forests and turn them into farms. Forests play a key role in fighting global warming because they absorb greenhouse gases.

Eating less meat according to certain guidelines could cut global food-related emissions by nearly a third by 2050, the study found. Keeping a vegetarian diet in the long term could bring down emissions by 63 percent.

But eating less meat won’t be easy. According to the study, people in Western countries will need to eat 90 percent less meat than they do now in order to have an impact (影响) on our climate. Scientists are now trying to find new foods to replace meat.

Some say that insects could help. A 2013 UN report said that eating insects is healthier and better for the environment. They produce 75 percent less greenhouse gases than livestock.

Some experts are creating lab-grown meat. They make meat in a lab using livestock cells (细胞). In March, US company JUST said people in the US might be able to buy its lab-grown meat by the end of this year

1.How much less meat should people eat to influence the climate?

A.63 percent. B.70 percent. C.75 percent. D.90 percent.

2.Eating less meat can help protect the environment because _____.

A.there will be more animal-related waste

B.less livestock means less greenhouse gas emissions

C.animals are an important part of the environment

D.people will plant more trees around their houses

3.According to the story, eating less meat can help us _____.

a. stay healthy   b. reduce waste   c. protect animals   d. slow down climate change

A.a;b;c B.b;c;d C.a;b;d D.a;c;d

4.What is the main idea of the story?

A.Why Westerners eat less meat these days.

B.What people will eat in the future.

C.How eating less meat influences the environment.

D.What the major cause of global warming is.

Answer

1.D

2.B

3.D

4.C

【解析】

现在西方国家的人们吃肉越来越少了，除了考虑到自己的健康问题以及保护动物，现在他们还有一个理由。《自然》杂志发表了一项研究表明少吃肉有助于减少温室气体的排放，防止气候变化。

1.

细节理解题。根据短文第六段“According to the study, people in Western countries will need to eat 90 percent less meat than they do now in order to have an impact (影响) on our climate.”可知，西方国家的人们要比现在少吃90%的肉，才能影响我们的气候。故选D。

2.

细节理解题。根据短文第二段“Raising livestock (家畜) is bad for the environment. When animals like cows digest (消化) food, their stomachs make greenhouse gases, which are a major cause of global warming. Seventeen percent of greenhouse gas emissions (排放) come from livestock farming, The New York Times reported.”可知，饲养家畜对环境有害，因为17%的温室气体排放来源于畜牧业。故选B。

3.

细节理解题。根据短文第一段“People in Western countries are eating less meat these days, whether for their health or because they want to protect animals.”和第二段“Eating less meat can help to prevent climate change”可知，少吃肉可以帮助我们保持健康、保护动物，还能阻止气候变化，a, c和d符号文意，故选D。

4.

主旨大意题。根据文意可知，短文第二段“Eating less meat can help to prevent climate change, according to a recent study published in Nature.”提出了话题“少吃肉可以阻止气候变化”，然后仔细分析了少吃肉是如何影响气候或环境的。C选项最符合文意，故选C。