Recently, a coalition of business and advocacy groups from around Washington gathered to kick off a campaign to enact a carbon pricing program in the capital. Known as the Climate and Community Reinvestment Act of D.C., the plan would place a new tax on all fossil fuels bought or sold, with the hope of ultimately discouraging the use of these polluting energy sources.
The big-picture goal of this campaign is admirable: to address the ever-deepening crisis of humanity-driven climate chaos by dissuading the continued use of coal, oil and gas, the filthy substances rapidly warming our planet. But unfortunately, the approach — one based in a world of financial markets, trading schemes and enticing new public revenue streams — is deeply and inherently flawed. Simply put, carbon pricing is a false solution to climate change and a distraction from real, effective climate solutions we must urgently pursue.
To date, there is scant(不足的) evidence to indicate that carbon taxes lower greenhouse gas emissions. In fact, the opposite is true. Recently Food & Water Watch reviewed the British Columbia carbon tax program, often cited by advocates as an example of success. From 2009 (the first full year of the tax) to 2014, emissions from taxed sources grew by 4.3 percent. And in the seven years after the carbon tax took effect, total gasoline sales increased by 7.37 percent.
Supporters of such plans like to focus on a deceivingly simple notion that increasing the price of a consumer good will automatically reduce its use. But this just isn’t the case when it comes to the purchase of necessities. People must heat their homes in winter, and they must commute to work, regardless of the cost.
Those backing the D.C. carbon pricing plan like to note that revenue from the new tax would go toward investment in clean energy sources. But only 20 percent of the generated funds would be allocated in this manner. The rest would be divvied(分摊) up in tax breaks for businesses and rebates(回扣) for consumers, another factor undercutting the notion that increased costs up front would change consumer behavior in the long run.
Meanwhile, fossil fuel giants such as ExxonMobil are increasingly coming out in support of carbon pricing. This should be cause for alarm for anyone concerned with stamping out the use of the dirty energy sources these corporations profit from. Exxon knows that carbon taxes will do little to change the business-as-usual dependence on oil and gas that it relies on to continue operating and enriching shareholders. Furthermore, corporations such as Exxon rightly view carbon pricing schemes as a means of diverting energy and interest from tougher regulations that might actually encroach on(侵犯) their business plans and bottom lines.
Despite what many well-intentioned activists and community leaders want to believe, there is no convenient, market-friendly solution to our dire climate condition. There is only the hard truth that we must tackle the problem at its source: We must stop using fossil fuels, and soon. The latest science indicates that in order to avoid the worst effects of deepening climate chaos, society must transition completely to clean, renewable energy by 2035.
1.Food &Water Watch found that _______ .
A.carbon taxes could limit greenhouse gas emissions
B.taxing carbon emissions did not reduce pollution
C.carbon emissions grew at a lower rate than gasoline sales
D.British Columbia carbon tax program achieved lasting effect
2.Which of the following is true, according to Paragraphs 4 and 5?
A.Consumers will use less of a good when its price increases.
B.Carbon taxes will benefit the development of clean energy.
C.Increased cost will do little to change the use of necessities.
D.The dependence on fossil fuels will decrease automatically.
3.Fossil fuel giants _________.
A.are expressing dissatisfaction with carbon pricing schemes
B.are reducing their dependence on dirty energy sources
C.view clean renewable energy as their future source of profits
D.see carbon pricing as distraction from tough rules against them
4.The most suitable title for this text would be __________.
A.The Carbon Tax Fallacy(谬论) B.The Climate Change Myth
C.The Call for Clean Energy D.The Causes of Climate Chaos
Recalculating the global use of phosphorus(磷), an important fertilizer element of modern agriculture, a team of researchers warns that the world's stocks may soon be in short supply and that overuse in the industrialized world has become a leading cause of the pollution of lakes, rivers and streams.
Writing in the Feb. 14 edition of the journal Environmental Research Letters, Stephen Carpenter of the University of WisconsinMadison and Elena Bennett of McGill University report that the human use of phosphorus, primarily in the industrialized world, is causing the widespread eutrophication of fresh surface water. What's more, the minable global stocks of phosphorus are concentrated in just a few countries and are in decline, posing the risk of global shortages within the next 20 years.
"There is a finite amount of phosphorus in the world," says Carpenter, one of the world's leading authorities on lakes and streams. "This is a material that's becoming rarer and we need to use it more efficiently."
Phosphorus is an essential element for life. Living organisms, including humans, have small amounts and the element is crucial for driving the energetic processes of cells. In agriculture, phosphorus mined from ancient marine deposits is widely used to boost crop yields. The element also has other industrial uses.
But excess phosphorus from fertilizer that washes from farm fields and suburban lawns into lakes and streams is the primary cause of the algae blooms that destroy freshwater ecosystems out off kilter and degrade water quality. Phosphorus pollution poses a risk to fish and other water life as well as to the animals and humans who depend on clean fresh water. In some instances, excess phosphorus sparks blooms of toxic algae, which pose a direct threat to human and animal life.
"If you have too much phosphorus, you get eutrophication," explains Carpenter of the cycle of excessive plant and algae growth that significantly degrades bodies of fresh water. "Phosphorus stimulates the growth of algae and weeds near shore and some of the algae can contain cyanobacteria(蓝菌), which are toxic. You lose fish. You lose water quality for drinking."
The fertilizer fueled algae blooms themselves amplify the problem as the algae die and release accumulated phosphorus back into the water.
Complicating the problem, says Carpenter, is the fact that excess phosphorus in the environment is a problem primarily in the industrialized world, mainly Europe, North America and parts of Asia. In other parts of the world, notably Africa and Australia, soils are phosphorus poor, creating a stark imbalance. Ironically, soils in places like North America, where fertilizers with phosphorus are most commonly applied, are already loaded with the element.
Bennett and Carpenter argue that agriculture practices to better conserve phosphate within agricultural ecosystems are necessary to avoid the widespread pollution of surface waters. Phosphorus from parts of the world where the element is abundant, they say, can be moved to phosphorus deficient regions of the world by extracting phosphorus from manure, for example, using manure digesters.
1.The word “eutrophication” (Line 4, Para.2) most probably means __________ .
A.pollution B.excess of nutrients
C.increase of algae D.growth of bacteria
2.Which of the following is not correct about the use of phosphorous?
A.It is used in industry.
B.It is used to increase crop yields.
C.It is used to drive the energetic processes of cells.
D.It is used only in small amounts in living organism
3.According to the last paragraph, we learn that ________ .
A.Environmental problems exist only in the industrialized countries.
B.Agriculture practices should conserve phosphate within agricultural ecosystems.
C.Phosphorus can be created by using manure digesters.
D.Soils are not short of phosphorus in Africa and Australia.
As Artificial Intelligence (AI) becomes increasingly sophisticated, there are growing concerns that robots could become a threat. This danger can be avoided, according to computer science professor Stuart Russell, if we figure out how to turn human values into a programmable code.
Russell argues that as robots take on more complicated tasks, it's necessary to translate our morals into AI language.
For example, if a robot does chores around the house, you wouldn't want it to put the pet cat in the oven to make dinner for the hungry children. “You would want that robot preloaded with a good set of values,” said Russell.
Some robots are already programmed with basic human values. For example, mobile robots have been programmed to keep a comfortable distance from humans. Obviously there are cultural differences, but if you were talking to another person and they came up close in your personal space, you wouldn't think that's the kind of thing a properly brought-up person would do.
It will be possible to create more sophisticated moral machines, if only we can find a way to set out human values as clear rules.
Robots could also learn values from drawing patterns from large sets of data on human behavior. They are dangerous only if programmers are careless.
The biggest concern with robots going against human values is that human beings fail to do sufficient testing and they've produced a system that will break some kind of taboo（禁忌).
One simple check would be to program a robot to check the correct course of action with a human when presented with an unusual situation.
If the robot is unsure whether an animal is suitable for the microwave, it has the opportunity to stop, send out beeps（嘟嘟声), and ask for directions from a human. If we humans aren't quite sure about a decision, we go and ask somebody else.
The most difficult step in programming values will be deciding exactly what we believe in moral, and how to create a set of ethical rules. But if we come up with an answer, robots could be good for humanity.
1.What does the author say about the threat of robots?
A.It may constitute a challenge to computer programmers.
B.It accompanies all machinery involving high technology.
C.It can be avoided if human values are translated into their language.
D.It has become an inevitable peril as technology gets more sophisticated.
2.What would we think of a person who invades our personal space according to the author?
A.They are aggressive. B.They are outgoing.
C.They are ignorant. D.They are ill-bred.
3.How do robots learn human values?
A.By interacting with humans in everyday life situations.
B.By following the daily routines of civilized human beings.
C.By picking up patterns from massive data on human behavior.
D.By imitating the behavior of property brought-up human beings.
4.What will a well-programmed robot do when facing an unusual situation?
A.Keep a distance from possible dangers. B.Stop to seek advice from a human being.
C.Trigger its built-in alarm system at once. D.Do sufficient testing before taking action.
Like it or hate it, when Kim Kardashian wears something, people take notice. With the reality TV star wearing secondhand Azzedine Alaïa to Paris fashion week, secondhand Jean Paul Gaultier to a party and a secondhand 1990s Thierry Mugler gown to an award ceremony, it __________ change is happening. Who would have thought that Kardashian – a woman worth $350m (£270m)– would be making a case for sustainable fashion?
As consumers become increasingly aware of the _____________ impact of fashion, they are looking for a more sustainable way to shop. Could ____________ secondhand be the answer?
Vintage(经典复古风格), it seems, is increasingly ____________. High-end boutique Browns has also just launched the label One Vintage, which uses antique textiles to create new clothes. Octavia Bradford, the womenswear buyer for Browns, says: “____________ is the loudest conversation in fashion right now.”
A study shows that, last year, 64% of women were willing to buy pre-owned pieces compared with 45% in 2016 – and ____________, by 2028 13% of the clothes in women’s wardrobes will be secondhand. Fashion circularity, a new term referring to the recycled life of clothes, is __________ to reach $51bn in five years, up from the current $24bn, according to ThredUp’s annual resale report.
Stella McClure, the founder of the online shop The Stellar Boutique, has noticed a __________. When she opened 20 years ago “there was still a __________ attached. But now (thankfully) The Stellar Boutique is not just acceptable – it’s cool and has completely __________ the fashion trends,” she says.
Aside from an increased __________ of sustainability, vintage fashion fits neatly into the wider mood of the Instagram age, where authenticity and originality – not being seen in the same outfit as anyone else – are __________. What better ways to stand out than to wear clothes few others are likely to own?
Not __________ to sit back and watch others profit from their vintage items, some luxury labels are relaunching decades-old designs from their own archives. Last year, ___________, Dior brought back its saddle bag because of the attention it was getting in the vintage fashion market. However, for some, buying vintage will never feel quite right. “It’s really not my bag,” says Bates.
There are obvious ____________ – sizing isn’t uniform, and, she says: “You have to be so careful to look for holes and rips.”
1.A.suggests B.maintains C.calculates D.advocates
2.A.cultural B.historical C.environmental D.emotional
3.A.distributing B.buying C.controlling D.decreasing
4.A.in fashion B.in effect C.out of date D.under control
5.A.Originality B.Technology C.Profit D.Sustainability
6.A.legally B.appropriately C.likely D.luckily
7.A.required B.projected C.guaranteed D.warned
8.A.symptom B.field C.tradition D.shift
9.A.right B.label C.shame D.price
10.A.broken B.defined C.captured D.challenged
11.A.potential B.awareness C.lack D.power
12.A.reversed B.questioned C.ensured D.valued
13.A.considerate B.content C.stressful D.adventurous
14.A.for instance B.as a result C.by contrast D.in addition
15.A.expectations B.policies C.traps D.reminders
Directions: After reading the passage below, fill in the blanks to make the passage coherent and grammatically correct. For the blanks with a given word, fill in each blank with the proper form of the given word; for the other blanks, use one word that best fits each blank.
About 100 years ago, one of the founders of modern linguistics, Ferdinand de Saussure, wrote that the relationship 1. the sounds we make and the concepts they express are arbitrary(任意的，随意的). Many have long agreed. But now the inherent(内在的) randomness of human language 2.(challenge) by a large new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 3. analyzed 100 basic words in 3,700 languages around the world. In short: Certain words tend to contain or omit certain sounds in a significant number of these languages, and the consistency is “stronger than we’d expect by chance.” The team of physicists, linguists, and computer scientists from the US, Argentina and Europe took a “big data approach” to sixty two percent of the world’s languages. And one of 4. tells the Washington Post.
Among their many findings is 5. the word for nose contains the sound “n” in more than 1,400 languages, 6. (range) from “nev” in Icelandic and “hana” in Japanese to “kon” in Sar and “naris” in Spanish. Ditto(同上，同前) the sound “s” in sand. The researchers don’t yet know why, although they’ve ruled out the idea of there 7.(be) one original language. It’s not the first study 8.(suggest) a biological basis for the sounds we appoint to objects ---- something 9.(call) the “bouba/kiki” effect dates back to 1929, suggesting that most humans think the fake word “bouba” sounds like a rounded shape while the fake word “kiki” sounds spiky(带尖刺的). A separate researcher tells the Telegraph that some words may date back from 10. babies can first say, such as “mama”, but says the study “looked at too few words to make any firm conclusions.”
假定你是李华，你校外教Smith非常喜欢中国绘画，请你根据以下信息，给他写封信，告诉他近期将要举办的一个画展，并建议他去参观。
1. 时间：2月1日到15日；
2. 地点；八大山人美术馆；
3. 地址；南昌市青云谱路269号；
4. 内容：八大山人100多幅绘画作品；
5. 画家简介：中国17世纪伟大艺术家，擅长绘画，书法，尤其在山水画方面卓有成就。其作品个性鲜明，并对后世画家有深远影响。
注意：1. 词数：100左右。
2. 可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
3. 参考词汇：展览：exhibition；美术馆：gallery；山水画：landscape painting；书法：calligraphy
Dear Smith,
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Yours
Li Hua
