首页
外语
计算机
考研
公务员
职业资格
财经
工程
司法
医学
专升本
自考
实用职业技能
登录
外语
"The world’s environment is surprisingly healthy. Discuss." If that were an examination topic, most students would tear it apart
"The world’s environment is surprisingly healthy. Discuss." If that were an examination topic, most students would tear it apart
admin
2015-01-31
68
问题
"The world’s environment is surprisingly healthy. Discuss." If that were an examination topic, most students would tear it apart, offering a long list of complaints: from local smog(烟雾)to global climate change, from the felling(砍伐)of forests to the extinction of species. The list would largely be accurate, the concern legitimate. Yet the students who should be given the highest marks would actually be those who agreed with the statement. The surprise is how good things are, not how bad.
After all, the world’s population has more than tripled during this century, and world output has risen hugely, so you would expect the earth itself to have been affected. Indeed, if people lived, consumed and produced things in the same way as they did in 1900(or 1950, or indeed 1980), the world by now would be a pretty disgusting place: smelly, dirty, toxic and dangerous.
But they don’ t. The reasons why they don’ t, and why the environment has not been ruined, have to do with prices, technological innovation, social change and government regulation in response to popular pressure. That is why today’s environmental problems in the poor countries ought, in principle, to be solvable.
Raw materials have not run out, and show no sign of doing so. Logically, one day they must: the planet is a finite place. Yet it is also very big, and man is very ingenious. What has happened is that every time a material seems to be running short, the price has risen and, in response, people have looked for new sources of supply, tried to find ways to use less of the material, or looked for a new substitute. For this reason prices for energy and for minerals have fallen in real terms during the century. The same is true for food. Prices fluctuate, in response to harvests, natural disasters and political instability; and when they rise, it takes some time before new sources of supply become available. But they always do, assisted by new farming and crop technology. The long- term trend has been downwards.
It is where prices and markets do not operate properly that this benign(良性的)trend begins to stumble, and the genuine problems arise. Markets cannot always keep the environment healthy. If no one owns the resource concerned, no one has an interest in conserving it or fostering it: fish is the best example of this.
One of the reasons why the long-term trend of prices has been downwards is that
选项
A、technological innovation can promote social stability
B、political instability will cause consumption to drop
C、new farming and crop technology can lead to overproduction
D、new sources are always becoming available
答案
D
解析
细节题。根据prices、downwards锁定文章第四段What has happened is thatevery time a material seems to be running short,the price,has risen and,in response,people have looked for new sources of supply,tried to find ways to use less of thematerial,or looked for a new substitute.For this reason prices for energy and forminerals have fallen in real terms during the century.“真实的情况是.每当一种资源似乎快要匮乏的时候,价格已经上涨,相应地,人们已经开始寻找新的供给来源,努力找到节省原料的方法,或者寻找新的替代物。因此,本世纪的能源和矿产的价格实际上已经下降。”可知长远来看,价格下降的原因之一是人们总能获得新的资源。所以选D。
转载请注明原文地址:https://kaotiyun.com/show/FVh7777K
0
大学英语六级
相关试题推荐
A、Careful,helpfulandbeautiful.B、Strict,sensitiveandsupportive.C、Modest,helpfulandhard-working.D、Loving,supportivea
唐代文化是中国文化的一个高峰。尤其是古典诗歌到唐代发展到全盛时期。在唐代300余年的历史中,产生的流传于后世的诗歌就有48900多首。如此丰富的作品也使2300多位诗人在历史上留下了他们的名字。唐诗在创作方法上,现实主义与浪漫主义并举;在形式上有五言、七言
Well-to-doparentsareincreasinglyoptingtosendtheirchildrentosingle-sexprepschools,reversingthetrendofrecentyear
在中国西南遥远的云南省,有一个神秘而又充满传奇的地方,这儿有着世界上最久远的雨林(rainforests)以及奔腾的河流,藏匿于此的河谷养育了奇异而又独特的动物,同时也孕育了多彩的民族文化(tribalcultures)。在中国西南部的一个偏远的角落里
Inrecentyears,moreandmoregraduateschoosetoworkabroad,whilesomechoosetostayathome,everycoinhastwosides.Wha
TheHealthBenefitsofDrinkingWater—IsBottledDrinkingWaterHealthierThanFilteredTapWater?[A]Waterisak
A、She’shappythatthestudentcenterisgettingmorecomputers.B、She’llletthemanusehercomputer.C、Shehopestotakeast
SetYourBody’sTimeClockOurBodyOperatesLikeaClock[A]AsthefirstraysofsunlightfilteroverthehillsofCalifornia’s
A、Akindofexchange.B、Akindofbusiness.C、Acommercializedexchange.D、Aninternationalfriendshipassociation.C细节题。文章中提到互惠
Competitionforadmissiontothecountry’stopprivateschoolshasalwaysbeentough,butthisyearElisabethKrentsrealizedit
随机试题
物证区别于其他证据的显著特点是
维生素C注射液中可应用的抗氧剂是
乌梅丸中,温肾暖脾、制蛔助运者,为乌梅丸中,安蛔止痛、涩肠止泻者,为
《公司法》第51条规定:“董事、高级管理人员不得兼任监事”。该法律规范属于()。
中国各民族都有使用和发展自己语言文字的自由和权利。()
张伟的所有课外作业都得了优,如果她的学期论文也得到优,即使不作课堂报告,她也能通过考试。不幸的是,她的学期论文没有得到优,所以她要想通过考试,就不得不做课堂报告了。上述论证中的推理是有缺陷的,因为该论证()。
A、 B、 C、 D、 B此题答案为B。给出的图形均可看成由两部分组成,我们可从图形这两个部分的位置关系来寻找规律。第一组图形由两部分组成,且其中一个部分位于另一部分的内部,二者相接;第二组图形均由相接的两部
根据以下资料,回答下列问题。2010年,珠三角地区第二产业产值占国内生产总值的比重为()。
爱因斯坦认为“一个人的价值应该看他贡献什么,而不应该看他取得什么”。结合实际,运用马克思主义关于人的价值理论,谈谈对奉献精神的理解。
—Imusthaveeatensomethingwrong.Ifeellike______.—Itoldyounottoeatatarestaurant.You’dbetter______athome.
最新回复
(
0
)