Question

    A global analysis of Earth's threatened and endangered species has changed our scientific understanding about how much climate change is affecting wildlife.

The research, published Monday in the journal Nature Climate Change, shows that 47 percent of mammals and 23 percent of birds have been negatively affected by our changing planet. Those figures are shockingly larger than previous assessments, which have shown 7 percent of mammals and 4 percent of birds were affected. Of the 873 mammal species looked at, 414 are hurt by climate change. For threatened birds, 298 of 1,272 species are experiencing negative effects, according to the findings.

However, a new study follows the analysis of threatened wildlife shows that the biggest threat to wildlife is not climate change, which gets a lot of attention, but human activities, including logging (伐木), hunting and farming. Today, three-quarters of Earth's land surface faces “human pressure", according to a global analysis professor Watson carried out in August.

When it comes to the effects of human activities on wildlife, Watson said, most studies look at what might happen to a population in the future, perhaps 50 or 100 years down the line. The problem with such forecasts is that they are absolutely unhelpful for the here and now.

“Nature is extremely resilient (能复原的) if you give it a chance," Watson said. “But the big thing is acting now, not in 20 to 50 years' time. Not make climate change and“human pressure" a future threat, but take action now. Because every day, every minute, which you delay, you lose those opportunities."

1.What has been found about the effects of climate change according to the passage?

A. Human activities are suffering severe disaster due to the climate change.

B. The species affected by climate change are more than people thought.

C. More than half of the mammal species were affected by climate change.

D. Three-quarters of Earth's land surface has been damaged by climate change.

2.What does the underlined “they" refer to?

A. Human activities. B. Negative effects.

C. Assessments. D. Forecasts.

3.What's the attitude of Watson towards the recovery of the environment?

A. Optimistic. B. Pessimistic.

C. Doubtful. D. Uncaring.

Answer

1.B

2.D

3.A

【解析】

本文为应用文。对全球濒危物种的分析使我们认识到，受气候变化影响的物种远比我们想象的要大的多。如果我们给自然时间和机会，大自然能自我修复的。但重要的是我们现在就开始行动，不能拖延，否则就会失去机会的。

1.推理判断题。根据第一段“A global analysis of Earth's threatened and endangered species has changed our scientific understanding about how much climate change is affecting wildlife.”以及第二段中的“Those figures are shockingly larger than previous assessments, which have shown 7 percent of mammals and 4 percent of birds were affected”可推断出，受气候变化影响的物种比人们想象的要大的多。分析选项可知B项正确。

2.推理判断题。根据最后一段内容“沃森说，谈到人类活动对野生动物的影响时，大多数研究着眼于未来可能发生在一个种群身上的事情，可能是50或100年后的事情。”尤其是“The problem with such forecasts is that they are absolutely unhelpful for the here and now.”这些预测的问题在于，它们对现在和现在都是毫无帮助的。由此可知，这儿的“they”指的是所说的预测。故选D。

3.推理判断题。根据文中的最后一段，沃森说：“如果你给大自然一个机会，它是能自我修复的。”但重要的是现在就开始行动，而不是20到50年后。不是让气候变化和“人类压力”成为未来的威胁，而是现在就采取行动。因为每一天，每一分钟，如果你拖延，你就会失去那些机会。由此可推断出作者对环境的恢复持乐观态度。故选A。