编辑:
1970-01-01
Passage One
Questions 46 to 50 are based on the following passage.
The Paris climate agreement finalised in December last year heralded a new era for climate action.For the first time, the world's nations agreed to keep global warming well below 2℃.
This is vital for climate-vulnerable nations. Fewer than 4% of countries are responsible for more than half of the world's greenhouse gas emissions. In a study published in Nature Scientific Reports, we reveal just how deep this injustice runs.
Developed nations such as Australia, the United States, Canada, and European countries are essentially climate "free-riders": causing the majority of the problems through high greenhouse gas emissions, while incurring few of the costs such as climate change's impact on food and water. In other words, a few countries are benefiting enormously from the consumption of fossil fuels, while at the same time contributing disproportionately to the global burden of climate change.
On the flip side, there are many "forced riders", who are suffering from the climate change impacts despite having scarcely contributed to the problem. Many of the world's most climatevulnerable countries, the majority of which are African or small island states, produce a very small quantity of emissions. This is much like a non-smoker getting cancer from second-hand smoke, while the heavy smoker is fortunate enough to smoke in good health.
The Paris agreement has been widely hailed as a positive step forward in addressing climate change for all, although the details on addressing "climate justice" can be best described as sketchy.
The goal of keeping global temperature rise "well below" 2~C is commendable but the emissions-reduction pledges submitted by countries leading up to the Paris talks are very unlikely to deliver on this.
More than $100 billion in funding has been put on the table for supporting developing nations to reduce emissions. However, the agreement specifies that there is no formal distinction between developed and developing nations in their responsibility to cut emissions, effectively ignoring historical emissions. There is also very little detail on who will provide the funds or, importantly, who is responsible for their provision. Securing these funds, and establishing who is responsible for raising them will also be vital for the future of climate-vulnerable countries.
The most climate-vulnerable countries in the world have contributed very little to creating the global disease from which they now suffer the most. There must urgently be a meaningful mobilisation of the policies outlined in the agreement if we are to achieve national emissions reductions while helping the most vulnerable countries adapt to climate change.
And it is clearly up to the current generation of leaders from high-emitting nations to decide whether they want to be remembered as climate change tyrants or pioneers.
46. The author is critical of the Paris climate agreement because
A. it is unfair to those climate-vulnerable nations
B. it aims to keep temperature rise below 2℃ only
C. it is beneficial to only fewer than 4% of countries
D. it burdens developed countries with the sole responsibility
47. Why does the author call some developed countries climate "free-riders"?
A. They needn't worry about the food and water they consume.
B. They are better able to cope with the global climate change.
C. They hardly pay anything for the problems they have caused.
D. They are free from the greenhouse effects affecting "forced riders".
48. Why does the author compare the "forced riders" to second-hand smokers?
A. They have little responsibility for public health problems.
B. They are vulnerable to unhealthy environmental conditions.
C. They have to bear consequences they are not responsible for.
D. They are unaware of the potential risks they are confronting.
49. What does the author say about the $100 billion funding?
A. It will motivate all nations to reduce carbon emissions.
B. There is no final agreement on where it will come from.
C. There is no clarification of how the money will be spent.
D. It will effectively reduce greenhouse emissions worldwide.
50. what urgent action must be taken to realise the Paris climate agreement?
A. Encouraging high-emitting nations to take the initiative.
B. Calling on all the nations concerned to make joint efforts.
C. Pushing the current world leaders to come to a consensus.
D. Putting in effect the policies in the agreement at once.
Passage Two
Questions 51 to 55 are based on the following passage.
Teenagers at risk of depression, anxiety and suicide often wear their troubles like a neon (霓虹灯)sign. Their risky behaviors--drinking too much alcohol, using illegal drugs, smoking cigarettes and skipping school--can alert parents and teachers that serious problems are brewing.
But a new study finds that there's another group of adolescents who are in nearly as much danger of experiencing the same psychiatric symptoms: teens who use tons of media, don't get enough sleep and have a sedentary (不爱活动的) lifestyle.
Of course, that may sound like a description of every teenager on the planet. But the study warns that it is teenagers who engage in all three of these practices in the extreme who are truly in jeopardy.Because their behaviors are not usually seen as a red flag, these young people have been dubbed the "invisible risk" group by the study's authors.
"In some ways they're at greater risk of falling through the cracks," says researcher Vladimir Carli. "While most parents, teachers and clinicians would react to an adolescent using drugs or getting drunk, they may easily overlook teenagers who are engaging in inconspicuous behaviors."
The study's authors surveyed 12,395 students and analyzed nine risk behaviors, including excessive alcohol use, illegal drug use, heavy smoking, high media use and truancy (逃学). Their aim was to determine the relationship between these risk behaviors and mental health issues in teenagers.
About 58% of the students demonstrated none or few of the risk behaviors. Some 13% scored high on all nine of the risk behaviors. And 29%, the "invisible risk" group, scored high on three in particular: They spent five hours a day or more on electronic devices. They slept six hours a night or less. And they neglected "other healthy activities."
The group that scored high on all nine of the risk behaviors was most likely to show symptoms of depression; in all, nearly 15% of this group reported being depressed, compared with just 4% of the low-risk group. But the invisible group wasn't far behind the high-risk set, with more than 13% of them exhibiting depression.
The findings caught Carli off guard. "We were very surprised," he says. "The high-risk group and low-risk group are obvious. But this third group was not only unexpected, it was so distinct and so large--nearly one third of our sample--that it became a key finding of the study. "
Carli says that one of the most significant things about his study is that it provides new early-warning signs for parents, teachers and mental health-care providers. And early identification, support and treatment for mental health issues, he says, are the best ways to keep them from turning into full-blown disorders.
标签:英语六级
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