More than 30 million people were displaced last year by environmental and weather-related disasters across Asia, and the problem is likely to grow more serious as climate change exacerbates such problems, experts have warned.
Tens of millions of people are likely to be similarly displaced in the future by the effects of climate change, including rising sea levels, floods, droughts and reduced agricultural productivity. Such people are likely to migrate in regions across Asia and governments must start to prepare for the problems this will create, warned the Asian Development Bank.
The costs will be high — about US $ 40 billion — for adapting and putting in place protective measures — from sea walls to re-growing mangrove swamps (红树林沼泽) that have been cut down — that can help protect against the impacts of storm tides.
“While large-scale climate-related migration is a gradual phenomenon, communities in Asia and the Pacific are already experiencing the consequences of changing environmental conditions, including more frequent severe storms and flooding,” the bank said last week. This could lead to a widespread crisis across the region in coming years if preparations are not made to deal with the current and probable future consequence.
Robert Dobias, climate change project chief at the Asian Development Bank, said that, at present, climate change is still a relatively small cause of migration, as economic causes are the most worrying and frightening, and as environmental disasters happen independently of global warning.
The Asian Development Bank warned that governments must start to make preparations now, because more extreme weather has already started to take effect, though the changes so far have not been so great in their impact. The bank is working on a report that will set out in detail the likely problems and suggest a range of potential policy changes to help deal with them.
1.Which of the following is closest in the meaning to the underlined word “exacerbates”?
A.Solves. B.Prevents. C.Worsens. D.Reduces.
2.Which question is answered in the passage?
A.Why climate change happens.
B.What preparations will be made as protective measures.
C.How local governments help people to migrate after climate change.
D.In which part of the globe climate-related migration is most likely to happen.
3.The Asian Development Bank helps deal with the migration problem by ________.
A.working on a report B.changing its migration policy
C.starting a climate change project D.lending money to the governments
Growing up in Arizona’s rodeo (竞技) country, I was familiar with the events that come with traveling rodeos: bull riding, dressing and mutton busting. Mutton busting is like bull riding, but instead of bulls, they use sheep. And in place of the men, it’s children between six and ten years old who try to hang on for eight seconds.
It took me all of five minutes to say yes to the idea of riding a sheep. Being seven years old, my decision-making ability was pretty limited. I figured I could ride a sheep as well as the next kid. Little did I know that I was in for a world of pain and embarrassment.
My nerves were shaking the day of the rodeo. I hated being in front of crowds. I didn’t like getting dirty; I didn’t even like sheep, which I thought of as just dirty and smelly. Yet there I was, getting ready to ride one for eight seconds in front of hundreds of people. I wanted to run out of the field and hide in the hot car until it was over. But by the time this idea occurred to me, it was too late. I was lifted away from my mother by a rodeo trainer and placed onto a platform.
My feet went into the narrow pen (羊圈) first. I felt my shoes touch the dirty floor of the pen. Once I was balanced on the top of the sheep, the trainer let go and told me to lean forward. I did as he said. I could feel the animal’s heart beating faster than mine. I realized that the poor sheep was even more frightened than I was.
Then the gate opened, and I quickly discovered that my hold was too weak. Within three seconds I had fallen off the sheep, and found myself face-down on the sun-baked earth. The sheep thought this was its time to take revenge (复仇), and attacked me from behind. There I lay, hat down, covered in dirt, with tears streaming down my face. I looked behind me to see my mother running to comfort me. “Stand up and show them you’re okay,” she told me as she wiped the dirty tears from my face. I stood up, dirty and upset, waved my little hand, and walked out with my mother.
Sadly, I didn’t win anything, not even the respect of these rodeo animals. I did find a new admiration for those little balls of wool, though.
1.Which of the following is TRUE about “mutton busting”?
A.It is a dirty and terrible game. B.Only strong adults can ride a sheep.
C.It is intended to pick the fastest sheep. D.It’s a game for 6-to-10-year-old children.
2.The author decided to take part in the competition because ________.
A.it was part of growing up B.he thought he could do well
C.mother made him do so D.he found it very interesting
3.What is Paragraph 5 mainly about?
A.Why the author lost the competition.
B.Why a mother should comfort her child.
C.How the author failed in the sheep riding.
D.How the sheep hurt the author when it attacked.
4.We learn from the article that ________.
A.sheep riding is as difficult as bull riding
B.sheep riding is not popular because the pen is very dirty
C.the author wanted to give up before the competition
D.the author kept trying until he succeeded in riding a sheep
听下面一段独白，回答以下小题。
1.What is true about central Copenhagen?
A.There are 1.27 million bikes there.
B.There are more bikes than people there.
C.There are the most bike thieves in the world.
2.What percentage of people in Copenhagen ride bikes throughout the year?
A.75%. B.45%. C.36%.
3.Where are the free bicycles located?
A.Outside most offices.
B.Around major tourist attractions.
C.Near most schools.
4.According to the talk, what are Copenhagen’s citizens like?
A.Serious and active. B.Wise and in good shape. C.Content and healthy.
听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1.Why is the woman dressed in nice clothes?
A.She’s meeting her husband for dinner.
B.She’s going to see a performance.
C.She’s going to a special work event.
2.What do the speakers have in common?
A.They have both been to the opera house.
B.Neither of them has seen Romeo and Juliet.
C.They both did theater in high school.
3.What is the woman’s profession?
A.She’s an opera singer. B.She’s a teacher. C.She’s an actress.
4.Where does the conversation take place?
A.In an office. B.At a theater. C.In a taxi.
听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1.Where was the man born?
A.In Holland. B.In France. C.In England.
2.What is the woman’s favorite part of the 4th of July?
A.Having a barbecue. B.Eating watermelon at a picnic.
C.Watching the fireworks after sunset.
3.What does the man think of the celebration on the 4th of July?
A.It sounds fun.
B.He’s always loved it.
C.He’s never heard of it before.
听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1.How long will the woman’s course take?
A.7 weeks. B.12 weeks. C.19 weeks.
2.Where does the woman come from?
A.Mexico. B.Spain. C.Britain.
