Question

Warmer temperatures are the new normal

Hotter weather appears to be here to stay,El Nino or not.That's according to the U.N. weather agency.It warned that the Paris climate accord（协定）last year shouldn't give way to complacency（自满）about global warming.

The World Meteorological Organization issued（公布）its annual climate report following a record-hot 2015.It drew people's attention to records already announced by different countries' weather agencies.The agency pointed out that 2015 was breaking records on the surface.It also broke records hundreds of meters deep in the ocean.

And the first two months of 2016 were even hotter.These months are so unusual that they "have sent shockwaves around the climate science community."That's according to David Carlson of the World Climate Research Program.

Climate scientists blame record high temperatures last year and this year so far on a combination of a super-sized El Nino.It is a natural warming of pans of the Pacific that changes weather worldwide.Another factor is a long-term global warming trend from the burning of fossil fuels（化石燃料）.

NASA said last month was 1.35 degrees Celsius (2.43 degrees Fahrenheit) warmer than average.Of that,0.8 degrees (1.44 degrees Fahrenheit) comes from the long-term warming.And 0.25 degrees (0.45 degrees Fahrenheit) comes from El Nino.The rest is from unexplained results.This was calculated by climate scientist Stefan Rahmstorf of the Potsdam Institute in Germany and the University of New South Wales.

Even after the El Nino phenomenon becomes less strong in coming months,way above normal temperatures won't exactly go away,Carlson and others said.

"We're on a slope; sometimes the slope goes very steep,sometimes it's a little bit more shallow,but we're going upward,"Carlson said in a news conference."So the normal is going to be increases: It's going to be increased temperature,increased ocean heat content,loss of ice,we know all of these things."

Katharine Hayhoe is a Texas Tech climate scientist who wasn't part of the WMO team.But she agreed:"These records vividly show the destructive power of an El Nino on climate changes."

The WMO predicts warmer weather accompanied by pockets of both drier and wetter conditions,depending on the region,around the world.

WMO Secretary-General Petteri Taalas told reporters in Geneva that many people believe the climate issue is "solved...since we reached a nice agreement in Paris."But,he said,"We haven't changed our behavior yet."

1.The author wrote Paragraph 1 to_______.

A. introduce something about El Nino

B. explain the causes of hotter weather

C. warn the world of global warming

D. introduce the main topic of the passage

2.Which of the following statements is true?

A. The Paris climate accord last year has made a big difference to global warming.

B. The high temperature only increases on the surface of the earth.

C. The records of high temperature in the first two months of 2016 made climate scientists shocked and worried.

D. the high temperature was mainly caused by El Nino.

3.It can be inferred that ________.

A. the high temperature will result in natural disasters around the world according to WMO

B. The problem of high temperature will be solved with the disappearance of El Nino

C. Scientists have different opinions on the causes of high temperature of the earth

D. Since we reached a nice agreement in Paris,we needn't worry about the increase of temperature

4.How does the passage mainly develop?

A. By making comparisons.

B. By analyzing the results and causes.

C. By providing examples.

D. By following the order of time.

Answer

1.D

2.C

3.A

4.B

【解析】气温升高是现在的新常态。本文介绍了气候变暖的原因和危害。世界气候组织秘书长指出许多人乐观地认为气候问题已经解决了，因为我们在巴黎达成了很好的共识，其实不然，我们依然没有改变我们的行为。

1.D。写作意图题。做这些第一段的目的是介绍全篇的主题----全球气候变暖已经成为常态。

2.C。细节理解题。第四段描述These months are so unusual that they "have sent shockwaves around the climate science community，2016年前两个月的高温记录使得气候专家们震惊和担忧。

3.A。推理判断题。根据世界气候组织的预测，气候变暖会伴随全世界因地区而异的干旱或洪涝。

4.B。写作方法题。本文主要用分析的方法介绍了气温变暖的结果和原因。