【文章內(nèi)容簡介】 en and where earthquakes will strikecl). As a result, worldwide earthquake waming network is already in operation and has helped to prepare for the vast destruction that might otherwise have been totally unexpected. 幾個(gè)世紀(jì)以來，這種對于地震的未知性更大大地增加了地震的可怕和恐懼性。但近幾年來已有跡象表明地震預(yù)測是可能的。通過分析動物行為的變化，地殼運(yùn)動的方式，地球磁場和地心引力的變化以及監(jiān)測到的輕微地震的頻率，科學(xué)家在預(yù)測地震發(fā)生的時(shí)間和地點(diǎn)上已取得了不斷的成功。因此，世界性地震預(yù)警網(wǎng)絡(luò)已經(jīng)運(yùn)轉(zhuǎn)，而且已經(jīng)幫助人們對大范圍的破壞做好準(zhǔn)備，而這些破壞也可能是完全不能預(yù)料的。 It is doubtful that man will ever be able to control earthquakes and eliminate their destructiveness altogether, but as how and why earthquakes happen bee better understood, man will bee more and more able to deal with their potential devastation before it occurs. 人類是否能完全控制地震并消除它的破壞力還未可知。但是，隨著我們對地震發(fā)生的方式和原因有了更多的了解，在地震發(fā)生之前，我們就能更好地應(yīng)對可能造成的破壞。閱讀理解： 1. What are the causes ofthe great part ofthe damage and loss oflife? 答案：Collapse ofbuildings and the effects ofrock slides, floods, fire, disease and other phenomena from earthquakes. 2. Where are the two most active earthquake belts in the world? 答案：The area enpasses the Pacific Ocean and its contiguous land masses, East Indians to the Atlas Mountains. 3. What fact does element ofthe unknown in paragraph 3 refer to? 答案：It refers to the fact the earthquakes can happen anywhere at any time. 4. What four ways are used to anticipate earthquake activity? 答案：a) analyzing changes in animal behavior b) pattems ofmovements in the earth39。s crust c) variations in the force of gravity and the earth39。s magnetic field d) observation of the frequency ofminor earth tremors。 is the author39。s attitude toward the possibility of earthquake predictions? 答案：Earthquake prediction is being more and more possible.第五篇 The Aftermath of BP Fulf Oil Spill英國石油公司墨西哥灣原油泄漏 In the aftermath of the BP oil spill, President Obama voiced the concems of countless scientists. environmentalists(l). and Gulf Coast residents when he declared.We39。re dealing with a massive and potentially unprecedented environmental disaster. The sheer size of the oil spill 210,000 gallons a day contaminating the Gulf of Mexico has many people worried about the short and longterm environmental harm it is causing (2) 英國石油公司原油泄漏事件之后，奧巴馬總統(tǒng)的一次公開講話表達(dá)出了無數(shù)科學(xué)家、環(huán)保主義者以及墨西哥灣居民的心聲。他在講話中提到，“我們正在應(yīng)對的是一場巨大的、史無前例的環(huán)境災(zāi)難”。每天足足有21萬加侖的原油泄漏并污染著墨西哥灣，這使得很多人為這次事件對環(huán)境所造成的短期和長期的危害感到擔(dān)憂。 The oil spill could severely damage fragile ecosystems for years, possibly decades. Beaches fouled by oil spills are very difficult to clean up. To make matters worse, the spill threatens beaches just as shorebirds are nesting and sea turtles are ing ashore to lay their eggs. 這次原油泄漏事件對脆弱的生態(tài)系統(tǒng)帶來的嚴(yán)重破壞會持續(xù)很多年，甚至數(shù)十年。被石油污染的海灘很難被清理干凈。更糟糕的是，泄漏的石油對海灘造成污染的時(shí)間正是海鳥筑巢和海龜游到岸上孵蛋的季節(jié)。 Even worse is the effect the oil spill could have on sensitive salt marshes and mangrove coastlines, which would be practically impossible to clean and that some fear might be permanently destroyed (3) These wetlands are considered the nurseries for the fishing and seafood industry and are a vital habitat and breeding ground for many species of wildlife. Because they cover much more land area than beaches, the risk oftheir exposure to damage is greatly increased. 還有更糟的事情，石油污染還可能影響敏感的濕地和紅樹林海岸，而這將是幾乎不可能被清理干凈的，有些人甚至擔(dān)心這將是永久性的毀壞。這些濕地是捕魚業(yè)和水產(chǎn)品工業(yè)的搖籃，也是多種野生動物的棲息地和繁殖地。由于這些濕地面積遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)大于海灘的面積，所以它們面臨破壞的風(fēng)險(xiǎn)就大大增加了。 Fully 98 percent of the fish and shellfish harvested in the Gulf of Mexico depend on estuaries, which are coastal waters where freshwater from rivers and streams mix with sea water. Estuaries are dependant on wetlands for their water quality and to provide a basis for aquatic food chains. Many species depend on wetlands for food, shelter and breeding. 在墨西哥灣捕獲的魚類和貝類中足有98%依靠河口生存，這些河口就是江河與海水匯合的地方。而河口又依賴于濕地保證其水的質(zhì)量并為水產(chǎn)品供應(yīng)鏈提供基礎(chǔ)。濕地是很多物種覓食、棲息和繁殖的場所。 The waters of the Gulf of Mexico are homes to hundreds of species of aquatic1ife. The longer the oil fouls the water, the more polluted the food chain bees, which could result in large fish kills and seafood too contaminated for consumption. 墨西哥灣水域也是成百上千種水棲動物的家園。石油對海水造成污染的時(shí)間越長，水產(chǎn)品食物鏈被污染的程度就會越大，這最終會造成大量的魚類死亡以及水產(chǎn)品被嚴(yán)重污染而無法食用。閱讀理解1. In the first sentence President Obama voiced the concems ofcountless scientists... what does the word voice mean?答案：Voice here means“to express an idea of…”2． How long could the damage to the ecosystem last?答案：The damage to the ecosystem could last decades. important are the wetlands to the wildlife?答案：The wetlands are a vital habitat and breeding ground for many species of wildlife. are estuaries dependent on wetlands?答案：Estuaries are dependant on wetlands for their water quality and to provide a basis for aquatic food chains. will the oil spill affect the seafood in the Gulf of Mexico?答案：Many fish will die and the seafood will be too contaminated for consumption.第六篇 Green Computers“綠色’’電腦 Computer manufacturers, chipmakers and software panies are developinggreener39。 products for environmentally conscious consumers. While some tech panies are developing more energyefficient product lines， others are releasing software to make existing puters consume less. And electronics manufacturers are expanding ways to make new puters out of recycled materials, as well as encourage customers to recycle old machines. Consumers39。may pay a slight premium for some ecofriendly electronics, but .many prices will be parable with traditional offerings. 目前，電腦生產(chǎn)商、芯片制造者和軟件公司都紛紛開發(fā)“綠色”產(chǎn)品來滿足那些環(huán)保意識強(qiáng)烈的消費(fèi)者的需求。一些科技公司開發(fā)了更節(jié)能的生產(chǎn)線，還有一些公司推出了減少現(xiàn)有電腦耗電量的軟件。電子制造企業(yè)不斷擴(kuò)展工藝?yán)醚h(huán)材料生產(chǎn)新電腦，并鼓勵(lì)消費(fèi)者循環(huán)利用舊電腦。某些環(huán)保類電子產(chǎn)品可能需要消費(fèi)者多花些錢，但仍有很多環(huán)保電腦的價(jià)格跟傳統(tǒng)電腦差不多。 Several factors are pushing panies to be greener. Many want to stay ahead of environmental legislation and to gamer favor with green investors. And with energy prices high, they are trying to appeal to people who are looking for ways to chip away at expenses. 有幾大因素推動著電腦公司更注重環(huán)保。許多企業(yè)希望走在環(huán)保法規(guī)的前面，贏得環(huán)保投資者的支持。同時(shí)，隨著能源價(jià)格上漲，他們正嘗試吸引那些設(shè)法節(jié)省費(fèi)用的消費(fèi)者。 The puter industry has been working on improving energy consumption for y