Question

    Australia is no stranger to wildfires. The country’s weather patterns create heat and dryness, which fuel occasional bushfires in a natural cycle. However, one that started last September continues to burn, and it may not be natural at all. Scientists say that man-made climate change has played a role in the fire’s creation and duration.

Peter Gleick, a US climate scientist, told Time, “the extent, the severity, and the intensity of these fires wouldn’t have been so bad without the fingerprints of climate change.”

According to Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology, the country’s temperatures have risen by more than one degree Celsius since 1920. The spring of 2019 was Australia’s driest in 120 years. In December, the country saw its hottest day ever, with an average temperature of 41.9℃.

“Due to enhanced (过度的) evaporation（蒸发）in warmer temperatures, the vegetation and the soils dry out more quickly,” Stefan Rahmstorf, a lead author of the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s Fourth Assessment Report, told Time.

Worse still, researchers at the UK Bureau of Meteorology believe that wildfires like this might become “normal conditions” in the future, according to the BBC. They looked at 57 research papers published since 2013, which examined the relationship between climate change and the risk of wildfires. They found that the link between the two has already been observed in many parts of the world, including the western US, Canada, southern Europe, and even Scandinavia and Siberia.

“These are impacts we are seeing for one degree of global climate change. The impact will get worse if we don’t do what it takes to make the world’s climate stable,” Corinne Le Quere, a professor from the University of East Anglia in the UK, told the BBC. “What we are seeing in Australia is not the ‘new normal’. It’s a transition(过渡)to worse impacts.”

1.What was the wildfire starting last September related to according to scientists？

A.Air pollution. B.Human activities.

C.Environment changes. D.Natural cycle.

2.What does the underlined phrase in paragraph 2 mean?

A.The meaning of climate change B.The influence of climate change

C.The control of climate change D.The possibility of climate change

3.What happened with the temperature rising in Australia?

A.Plants stayed as lively as usual.

B.Australia never suffered a hot day.

C.The plants and the soils became dry faster.

D.Every season became the driest in the year.

4.What can we infer from the last paragraph?

A.We might see more wildlife.

B.We were to see less disasters.

C.It could be impossible to see wildfires.

D.It would be more difficult to prevent wildfires.

Answer

1.B

2.B

3.C

4.D

【解析】

这是一篇新闻报道。文章在讲述澳大利亚大火的起因。科学家表示，人为的气候变化在火灾的产生和持续过程中发挥了作用。今后防止野火将更加困难。

1.推理判断题。根据第一段最后一句Scientists say that man-made climate change has played a role in the fire’s creation and duration.“科学家表示，人为的气候变化在火灾的产生和持续过程中发挥了作用。”由此判断出，人类活动据科学家称，人类活动与去年9月开始的野火有关。故选B。

2.词句猜测题。根据第三段中According to Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology, the country’s temperatures have risen by more than one degree Celsius since 1920. The spring of 2019 was Australia’s driest in 120 years. In December, the country saw its hottest day ever, with an average temperature of 41.9℃.“根据澳大利亚气象局的数据，自1920年以来，该国的气温已经上升了1摄氏度以上。2019年春天是澳大利亚120年来最干旱的一年。去年12月，中国迎来了有史以来最热的一天，平均气温为41.9℃。”和第四段第一句“Due to enhanced (过度的) evaporation（蒸发）in warmer temperatures, the vegetation and the soils dry out more quickly,”“ 由于在较高的温度下蒸发增强，植被和土壤干燥得更快。”可知，如果没有气候变化的影响，这些火灾的范围、严重程度和强度不会如此严重。由此推知，划线部分的意思是“气候的影响”。故选B。

3.细节理解题。根据第四段第一句“Due to enhanced (过度的) evaporation（蒸发）in warmer temperatures, the vegetation and the soils dry out more quickly,” “由于在较高温度下蒸发增强，植被和土壤干燥得更快，”由此可知，澳大利亚的气温上升植物和土壤变干得更快。故选C。

4.推理判断题。根据最后一段“These are impacts we are seeing for one degree of global climate change. The impact will get worse if we don’t do what it takes to make the world’s climate stable,” “这些都是我们看到的全球气候变化一度的影响。如果我们不采取措施稳定全球气候，这种影响会变得更糟。”和“What we are seeing in Australia is not the ‘new normal’. It’s a transition(过渡)to worse impacts.” “我们在澳大利亚看到的并不是‘新常态’。这是向更糟糕影响的过渡。”由此判断出，防止野火将更加困难。故选D。