Thích Tiếng Anh - thichtienganh.
com - Website học Tiếng Anh miễn phí
Thích Tiếng Anh - thichtienganh.com - Website học Tiếng Anh miễn phí
Thích Tiếng Anh - thichtienganh.com - Website học Tiếng Anh miễn phí
Thích Tiếng Anh - thichtienganh.com - Website học Tiếng Anh miễn phí
Thích Tiếng Anh - thichtienganh.com - Website học Tiếng Anh miễn phí
Thích Tiếng Anh - thichtienganh.com - Website học Tiếng Anh miễn phí
Thích Tiếng Anh - thichtienganh.com - Website học Tiếng Anh miễn phí
Thích Tiếng Anh - thichtienganh.com - Website học Tiếng Anh miễn phí
Thích Tiếng Anh - thichtienganh.com - Website học Tiếng Anh miễn phí
Thích Tiếng Anh - thichtienganh.com - Website học Tiếng Anh miễn phí
Reading
READING PASSAGE 3
You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 27-40, which are based on Reading
Passage 3 below.
Reducing the Effects of Climate Change
Mark Rowe reports on the increasingly ambitious geo-engineering projects
being expfored by scientists
A Such is our dependence on fossil fuels, and such is rhe volume of carbon dioxide already
released inro rhe armosphere, rhar many experrs agree that significant global warming is now
inevitable. 'lhey bclieve rhar rhe besr we can do is keep ir ar a reasonable level, and ar presenr
rhe only serious oprion for doing chis is curring back on our carbon emissions. Bur while a fcw
counrries are making major strides in rhis regard, rhe majority are having grear difficulry cven
sremming rhe rare of increase, ler alone reversing ir. Consequently, an increasing number of
scienrisrs are beginning to explore rhe alrernative of geo-engineering - a term which generally
refers to the inrenrional largc-scale manipulation of rhe cnvironmenr. According to irs
proponenrs, geo-engineering is rhe equivalenr of a backup generator: if Plan A - reducing our
dependency on fossil fucls - foils, we require a Plan B, employing grand schemes ro slow down
or reverse the process of global warming.
B Geo-engineering has been shown ro work, ar least on a small localised scalc. for decades, May
Day parades in Moscow have taken place under clear blue skies, aircraft having <leposited dry
ice, silver iodide and cemenr powder to disperse clouds. Many of the schemcs now suggesred
look to do rhe opposite, and reduce the amounr of sunlight reaching rhe planer. 'lhe most
eye-catching idea of ali is suggested by Professor Roger Angel of rhe Universiry of Arizona. His
scheme would employ up to 16 trillion minute spacecrafr, each weighing abotlt one gram, to
form a rransparenr, sunlight-refracring sunshade in an orbit 1.5 million km above the Earth.
This could, argues Angel, reduce rhe amount of light reaching rhe Earrh by two per cent.
C The majoriry of geo-engineering projects so far carried out - which include planring foresrs
in deserts and depositing iron in the ocean ro srimulare the growth of algae - have focused on
achieving a general cooling of rhe Earth. But sorne look specifically at reversing the mclting
at the polcs, particularly the Arctic. 'I11e reasoning is that if you replenish rhe ice sheets ami
frozen waters of the high latitudes, more light will be reAected back inro space, so reducing the
warming of rhe oceans and atmosphere.
D 'íl1e concept of releasing aerosol sprays inro the srratosphere above the Arctic has been proposed
by several scienrisrs. This would involve using sulphur or hydrogen sulphide aerosols so thar
sulphur dioxide would form clouds, which would, in rurn, lead to a global dimming. 'Ihe idea
is modelled on historie volcanic explosions, such as rhar of Mounr Pinarubo in the Philippines
in 1991, which led ro a shorr-term cooling of global temperarures by 0.5 ºC. Scienrists have
also scrutinised wherher it's possible to preserve rhe ice sheets of Greenland wirh reinforced
high-rension cables, preventing icebergs from moving inro the sea. Meanwhile in rhe Russian
Arctic, geo-engineering plans include the planring of millions of birch trees. Whereas rhe
region's native evergreen pines shade the snow and absorb radiation, birches would shed rheir
25
Test 1
leaves in winrer, chus enabling radiacion co be reAecced by che snow. Re-roucing Russian rivers
to increase cold water Aow to ice-forming arcas could also be uscd to slow down warming, say
some climace scienriscs.
E Bue will such schemes ever be implemenred? Generally speaking, chose who are mosc caucious
abotlC geo-engineering are che scienciscs involved in che research. Angel says chac his plan is 'no
subscicuce for developing renewable energy: che only permanenc solucion'. And Dr Phil Rasch of
che US-based Pacific Norchwesc Nacional Laboracory is equally guarded abotlC che role of geo
engineering: 'l chink ali of us agree chac if we were to end geo-engineering on a given day, chen
che planee would recurn ro ics pre-engineered condicion very rapidly, and probably wichin ten to
cwency years. Thac's cercainly someching to worry abouc.'
F 1he US Nacional Cencer for Acmospheric Research has already suggesced chac che proposal
to injecc sulphur inco che acmosphere mighc affecc rainfall paccerns across che cropics and che
Souchern Ocean. 'Geo-engineering plans ro injecc scracospheric aerosols or to seed clouds would
acc to cool che planee, and acc to increase che excenc of sea ice,' says Rasch. 'Bue ali che models
suggesc some impacc on che discribucion of precipicacion.'
G 'A furcher risk wich geo-engineering projeccs is chac you can "overshooc",' says Dr Dan
Lunc, from che Universicy of Bristol's School of Geophysical Sciences, who has scudied che
likely impaccs of che sunshade and aerosol schemes on che climate. 'You may bring global
cemperatures back ro pre-industrial levels, bue che risk is chat che poles will scill be warmer than
chey should be and che cropics will be cooler chan before induscrialisacion.' To avoid such a
scenario, Lunc says Angel's projecc would have to operare ar half screngch; ali of which reinforces
his view chac che bese opcion is to avoid che need for geo-engineering alcogerher.
H 1he main reason why geo-engineering is supporced by many in che sciencific communicy is chac
mosc researchers have liccle faich in che abilicy of policicians to agree - and chen bring in - che
necessary carbon cuts. Even leading conservacion organisacions see che value of invescigacing che
potencial of geo-engineering. According to Dr Marcin Sommerkorn, climace change advisor for
che World Wildlife Fund's Internacional Arccic Programme, 'Human-induced climace change
has broughc humanicy to a posicion where we shouldn'c exclude chinking choroughly abouc chis
copie and ics possibilities.'
Reading
Questions 27-29
Reading Passage 3 has eight paragraphs A-H.
Which paragraph contains the following information?
Write the correct letter, A-H, in boxes 27-29 on your answer sheet.
27 mention of a geo-engineering project based on an earlier natural phenomenon
28 an example of a successful use of geo-engineering
29 a common definition of geo-engineering
27
Test 1
Questions 30-36
Complete the table below.
Choose ONE WORD from the passage far each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 30-36 on your answer sheet.
GEO-ENGINEERING PROJECTS
Procedure Aim
put a large number of tiny spacecraft into to create a 30 ...................... that would reduce
orbit far above Earth the amount of light reaching Earth
place 31 ...................... in the sea to encourage 32 ...................... to form
release aerosol sprays into the to create 33 ...................... that would reduce
stratosphere the amount of light reaching Earth
fix strong 34 ...................... to Greenland ice to prevent icebergs moving into the sea
sheets
plant trees in Russian Arctic that would to allow the 35 ...................... to reflect radiation
lose their leaves in winter
change the direction of 36 ...................... to bring more cold water into ice-forming
areas
28
Reading
Questions 3 7-40
Look at the following statements (Questions 37-40) and the list of scientists below.
Match each statement with the correct scientist, A-D.
Write the correct letter, A-D, in boxes 37-40 on your answer sheet.
37 The effects of geo-engineering may not be long-lasting.
38 Geo-engineering is a topic worth exploring.
39 lt may be necessary to limit the effectiveness of geo-engineering projects.
40 Research into non-fossil-based fuels cannot be replaced by geo-engineering.
List of Scientists
A Roger Angel
B Phil Rasch
C Dan Lunt
O Martin Sommerkorn
29
