Disappearing glaciers 消失中的冰川

温从秀

主题语境：自然 篇幅：332词 建议用时：6分钟

1

The worlds glaciers are disappearingfaster than scientists thought， with twothirdsof them projected to melt out of existenceby the end of the century at currentclimate change trends， according to anew study.

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But if the world can limit future warming to just a few more tenths of a degree and fulfilinternational goals—technically possible but unlikely according to many scientists—then slightly less than half the globe's glaciers will disappear.

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On the other hand， 83 percent of the worlds glaciers would be likely to disappear bythe year 2100 if global temperatures increased even more than the current rate ofwarming.

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That would increase sea level by 11.5 cm in addition to seas already getting larger frommelting ice sheets and warmer water， said study lead author Dr David Rounce， fromCarnegie Mellon University in the US.“We're going to lose a lot of glaciers，”said DrRounce， a glaciologist and engineering professor.“But we have the ability to make adifference by limiting how many glaciers we lose.”

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Study co?author Regine Hock， a glaciologist at the University of Alaska Fairbanks in the US and the University of Oslo in Norway， said that“for many small glaciers it is toolate”.“However， globally our results clearly show that every degree of global temperaturesmatters to keep as much ice as possible locked up in the glaciers，”ProfessorHock said.

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The study projected ice loss by 2100 would range from 38.7 trillion metric tons to 64.4trillion metric tons， depending on how much the globe warmed and how much coal， oiland gas would be burned.

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The study calculated that all of that melting ice would add anywhere from 9 cm in thebest case to 16.6 cm in the worst case to the worlds sea level. That is 4 percent to 14percent more than previous projections.

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The study represents significant advances in projecting how the worlds glaciers maychange over the next 80 years due to human‑created climate change.

Reading Check

Vocabulary

1. Which of the following can replace the underlined word“fulfil”in paragraph 2？

A. Design. B. Apply.

C. Achieve. D. Organise.

Detail

2. Which of the following statements would Dr Rounce agree with？

A. Sea level will increase by 11.5 cm each year.

B. Humans have lost the best time to save glaciers.

C. Humans can play a key role in saving glaciers.

D. All of the worlds glaciers are being protected well.

Inference

3. Whats Regine Hocks attitude towards many small glaciers future？

A. Indifferent.

B. Negative.

C. Neutral.

D. Prejudiced.

Inference

4. Why does the author write the text？

A. To teach us a good lesson.

B. To tell us the right attitude to climate change.

C. To advise us to save more energy.

D. To call on us to protect the environment.

Language Study

Ⅰ. Difficult sentence in the text

The study projected ice loss by 2100 would range from 38.7 trillion metric tons to 64.4trillion metric tons， depending on how much the globe warmed and how much coal， oil andgas would be burned. 该研究预测，到2100年，冰损失将在38.7万亿公吨至64.4万亿公吨之间，具体取决于全球变暖的程度以及燃烧的煤炭、石油和天然气的量。

【点石成金】本句是一个主从复合句，ice loss by 2100 would range from...64.4 trillionmetric tons是省略了引导词that的宾语从句，depending on...burned是现在分词短语作伴随状语，how much引导的是一个宾语从句。

Ⅱ. Text‑centered chunks

by the end of 到……末為止

according to 根据

on the other hand 另一方面

in addition to 除……以外（还）

make a difference 有影响；有关系；起（重要）作用

lock up 把……收好并锁起来；把……关入监狱

range from...to 范围从……到……