Question

    If we planted a lot more trees in just the right places, they could reduce the amount of carbon in the atmosphere to levels not seen since the 1920s, said study leader Jean Francois Bastin, an ecologist from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology. After examining more than 70,000 high-quality satellite photos of trees from all over the planet, ecologists concluded that the earth could support 900 million additional hectares (公顷) of tree cover.

Bastin and his colleagues developed a computer program that estimates how much forested land could be restored both now and in a future warmer world. The team members combed through 78,774 satellite photos of a variety of ecosystems- everywhere from the thick Amazon rainforest to the dry Sahel in Africa-that had been protected from human influence. They counted every tree in every photo to assess the current tree coverage in natural environments. The researchers combined that information with data about the climate, temperature and soil conditions for each ecosystem. Then they taught their program to put it all together to determine how much tree coverage a particular area could support.

The result shows trees currently cover 2.8 billion hectares of land- but they have the potential to populate as much as 4.4 billion hectares. Right now, much of the additional 1.6 billion hectares is being used for agriculture or urban spaces. The researchers took those areas off the table and saw that the earth still has 900 million hectares ready and waiting to be restored with trees an area roughly the size of Brazil. When those trees mature, they could remove 205 gigatonnes (兆吨) of carbon from the atmosphere, the study calculated, That represents about two-thirds of the roughly 300 gigatonnes of atmospheric carbon that can be traced to human actions, they said.

Even if trees are planted in the most mindful way, other actions are still needed to fight climate change, Bastin said.

1.Why did Bastin develop a computer program?

A.To reduce air pollution in Africa.

B.To determine carbon dioxide in the air.

C.To assess the potential forested land.

D.To calculate the area of forest in the world.

2.What does the underlined phrase “combed through” in Paragraph 2 refer to?

A.Looked into. B.Put away.

C.Brought back. D.Took in.

3.What can we infer from what Basin said in the last paragraph?

A.Brazil has large areas to plant trees.

B.The tree cover is not enough to control greenhouse gases.

C.Trees removed two-thirds of carbon in the atmosphere.

D.Other actions are equally important compared to planting trees.

4.What is the author’s attitude towards the research result?

A.Disapproving. B.Doubtful.

C.Supportive. D.Objective.

Answer

1.C

2.A

3.D

4.D

【解析】

这是一篇说明文。瑞士联邦理工学院的生态学家Bastin和他的团队在检查了来自地球各地的7万多张高质量的树木卫星照片后得出结论：地球可以再支持9亿公顷的树木覆盖。如果我们在适当的地方种植更多的树木，就可以将大气中的碳含量降低到20世纪20年代以来从未见过的水平。文章对该研究和研究结论进行了说明。

1.细节理解题。根据第二段中的Bastin and his colleagues developed a computer program that estimates how much forested land could be restored both now and in a future warmer world.可知，Bastin和他的同事开发了一种计算机程序，该程序可以估计在现在和未来变暖的世界中可以恢复多少林地。C选项（评估潜在的林地）表达此意，故选C。

2.词句猜测题。根据下文中的They counted every tree in every photo to assess the current tree coverage in natural environments.可知，科学家们他们计算了每张照片中的每棵树，以评估自然环境中树木的覆盖率。由此推知，科学家们首先是对这些照片进行“梳理，研究”，然后再进行计算。且该语境和第一段中的第三行中的“examining more than 70,000 high-quality satellite photos of trees”一致，因此划线词组和examine的意思相近。故划线词组的意思应为“梳理，研究，检查”之类的意思。故选A。

3.推理判断题。根据最后一段Even if trees are planted in the most mindful way, other actions are still needed to fight climate change, Bastin said.可知，Basin认为即使以最谨慎的方式种植树木，仍然需要采取其他行动来应对气候变化。由此推知，其他行动和种树一样重要。故选D。

4.推理判断题。文章中作者只是对该研究结果进行了客观陈述，并未表达个人看法。由此可知，作者对该研究结果的态度是“客观的”。故选D。