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  3. New ice core samples taken from the centre of the Greenland ice-sheet have given a detailed record of the last "interglacial(间冰期

New ice core samples taken from the centre of the Greenland ice-sheet have given a detailed record of the last "interglacial(间冰期

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问题     New ice core samples taken from the centre of the Greenland ice-sheet have given a detailed record of the last "interglacial(间冰期)" which ran from about 135,000 to 115,000 years ago. The cores, taken from a depth of 2,780 to 2,870 metres, show that during this period the climate oscillated(摆动) between three states instead of remaining in one, as in the whole of recorded human history. The middle state was like our own, but the others were either much colder or warmer.
    Worse, it seems that the climate flipped from one condition to another very rapidly. "It apparently took very little time, perhaps less than a decade or two, to shift between the states," Dr. J. C. W. White of the Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research at the University of Colorado wrote earlier this year in the scientific journal, Nature: "We humans have built a remarkable socio-economic system during perhaps the only time when it could be built, when the climate was stable enough to let us develop the agricultural infrastructure(基础设施) required to maintain an advanced society."
    We do not know why we have been so blessed. But if the Earth had an operating manual, the chapter on climate might begin with a warning that the system has been adjusted at the factory for optimum comfort—so don’t touch the dials.
    Unfortunately, we have been "twiddling the knobs(旋钮)" for decades. In December 1995 the official Intergovernmental Panel on Climatic Change(IPCC), which represents the work of 2,000 top meteorologists from around the world, concluded that global warming due to human activities is probably already taking place. Global warming sounds deceptively favorable to inhabitants of countries which currently experience harsh winters. In fact, with global warming, the world would struggle to cope with the effects of even a steady, gradual warming. This was spelt out to members of the British Royal Society by Sir John Houghton, chairman both of Britain’s Royal Commission of Environmental Pollution and of one of the main IPCC working groups. Houghton put forward the IPCC picture of seas flooding much of Egypt, southern China and Bangladesh, making "many millions" of people homeless; of hordes of "environmental refugees" and of wars breaking out over dwindling(becoming gradually smaller) fresh water supplies, as world rainfall patterns changed.
    There is at least a chance that the world could adapt to steady warming if it happened slowly enough. However, many scientists, believe that even this prediction from the IPCC is too cautious.
选项 A、The climate in recorded human history has generally remained stable.
B、The climate from about 135,000 to 115,000 years ago was in a extremely cold state.
C、The human race has been lucky to have enjoyed the most favorable period of climate for them to build a socio-economic system.
D、The evidences scientists collected from the ice cores suggest that a civilization can not have arisen in the period from about 135,000 to 115,000.
答案B
解析 本题要求考生在理解的基础上分析对比。看完此题，若凭记忆尚不能确定答案，就应将四个选项可能涉及的内容找到，进行比较。这四个选择项的相关内容在选文中第一、二小段。阅读时应将三个句子联系起来。具体地说，应知道第二句中this period指第一句中的from about 135,000 to 115,000 years ago；应明白第二句中show之后that从句的内容：during this period the climate oscillated between three stages instead of remaining in one，as in the whole of recorded human history(意为：这一时期里，气候在三个阶段摆动变化，而不是像有文字记载的人类历史上的气候那样保持在一种状态不变)；还要将three stages与第三句中的the middle state，和the other two states联系起来。将这些内容与第二小段联系起来，我们可得到这样的结论：在那时(135,000～115,000年前)人类是不可能生存发展的；且我们人类有幸获得了地球上也许是唯一的一段气候有利的时期才发展至今。所以此题答案是B。
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