If you want to see climate change, head north and keep going until you run out of globe. That is easier said than done. The Arctic (北极) is home to few people and covered in ice much of the year. But those who make their way to the icy seas of the Arctic Ocean will see a part of the planet that is warming and changing faster than anywhere else.
In September, scientists announced at the National Snow and Ice Data (数据) Center that Arctic summer sea ice had fallen to its second lowest level since 1979, and probably long before that. The Arctic has lost an area of ice greater than the area of all U.S. states east of the Mississippi River. And what ice remains appears to be getting thinner and weaker.
Nick Toberg and Till Wagner are polar ice scientists who are doing sea ice fieldwork. “There is plenty of data to suggest that the ice is being thinner as well as smaller in area,” they say.
The changes happening in the Arctic are a warning for the entire world . As polar expert Walt
Meier puts it, “What happens in the Arctic doesn’t stay in the Arctic.”
Some scientists worry that Arctic sea ice may be going from a downward spiral (螺旋线) to a “death spiral”, one from which there is no escape. As more ice melts (融化), more dark open water appears. The darkness absorbs (吸收) more heat, which speeds up the pace of melting.
Until recently, many scientists thought it might take until the end of the century for the North Pole to bee pletely ice free during the summer. Now some believe it could happen by 2030 or even earlier. “The melting is happening faster in the real world than it has in the models,” says Nick Toberg.
【小题1】The purpose of the first paragraph is to tell readers .A．it’s difficult to arrive at the ArcticB．it is too cold for people to live in the ArcticC．what caused the climate change in the ArcticD．we can see the most obvious climate change in the Arctic【小题2】From the second paragraph we can learn Arctic summer sea ice .A．is still decreasing B．began reducing in 1979C．fell to its lowest level in SeptemberD．is equal to the Mississippi River【小题3】What does the underlined sentence in Paragraph 3 mean?A．The changes don’t affect the Arctic at all. B．The changes will only happen in the Arctic.C．The changes happening in the Arctic will stop.D．The changes will also affect other parts of the world.【小题4】Nick Toberg may agree that .A．the ice in the North Pole will stop meltingB．the ice in the North Pole is melting faster than expectedC．the ice in the North Pole will melt before 2030 or even earlier D．the ice in the North Pole will not disappear until the end of the centuryD
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(答案→)D
解析：文章大意：纳尔逊·曼德拉是国际知名人物，他生活和事业的许多细节为公众所熟知。但这里提到的四件事可能是你对这位已故南非领导人并不了解的
【小题1】D 细节题。由第一段的But here are four things you may not have known about the late South African leader可知选B。
【小题2】A 推理题。根据曼德拉所说的话I was curious by how one moved one's body to protect oneself, how one used a strategy both to attack and retreat, how one paced oneself over a match推断。
【小题3】D 细节题。由3中的But when he pulled out the text of his speech, he realized he had forgotten his glasses and had to borrow Winnie's.可知选C。
【小题4】 B 判断题。根据文章最后一段Mr. Mandela studied law on and off for 50 years from 1939, failing about half the courses he took判断D为答案。