23年高考英语外刊阅读训练——阅读理解：重新思考干旱
【原标题】
The thirst to rethink droughts
【原文】
Nearly half of the continental United States is experiencing prolonged drought, according to federal scientists. Precipitation models predict that winter will provide little relief in much of the West and South. An independent study found the last two decades in the Southwest to be the driest continuous stretch since the 1500s.
On the other side of the continent, half of the Northeast had reached the levels of “severe” or “extreme” by September. At this moment, 72 million Americans are living in drought conditions. Globally, more than 2 billion people live in countries experiencing what the United Nations calls high water stress.
The effects of climate change are neither consistent nor uniform. In recent years, for example, the Midwest has experienced both widespread flooding and persistent drought. Yet as water experts grapple with understanding these unusual weather patterns, assumptions about water are shifting as well. As Jens Berggren, a Swedish sustainability expert, told Deutsche Welle, “It’s not a lack of water per se, it’s a lack of water governance.” If people could reduce water use by almost half, he said, that would “give ample opportunity to meet all our needs.”
Last year researchers in Finland asked a novel question: Can there be water scarcity with an abundance of water? Despite Finland having ample water resources and typically no significant dry season, the study found that local drought-like effects were being caused by population concentration, drainage of wetlands, and inefficient water use. The finding led to a rethink of human development in order to find a balance with water resources.
A good example of a place that did reset its harmony with nature is Cape Town, South Africa. In March 2018, following three years of severe drought, the city’s main reservoir h
ad fallen to 11% capacity. This month it reached overflow capacity. A return of better-than-average rainfall helped, but the real change was civic. The city imposed strict water-use practices, and residents quickly adapted. Researchers of this mass shift found “thirsty participants share water more often equally with powerless, anonymous others than they do money.” Cape Town is now better poised to avoid water stress because people created different lifestyles.
Adapting to a changing planet requires more than a physical response to scarcity. It entails seeing abundance in people’s ability to innovate, join together in common cause, and be open to letting go of destructive behavior. Those traits are not scarce. And neither is humanity’s ability to draw upon them.
【新课标重点词汇】
1. prolonged - 持续的
2. drought - 干旱
3. precipitation - 降水
4. relief - 缓解
5. independent - 独立的
6. Southwest - 西南部
7. Northeast - 东北部
8. severe - 严重的
9. extreme - 极端的
10. water stress - 水资源匮乏压力
11. consistent - 一致的
12. uniform - 均匀的
13. flooding - 洪水
14. governance - 治理
15. assumptions - 假设
16. reduce - 减少
17. scarcity - 稀缺性
18. abundance - 充裕
19. population concentration - 人口密度
20. drainage - 排水
21. inefficient - 低效的
22. human development - 人类发展
23. harmony - 和谐
24. Cape Town - 开普敦
25. reservoir - 水库
26. civic - 市民的
27. strict - 严格的
28. water-use practices - 用水习惯
29. adapt - 适应
30. planet - 行星
31. innovation - 创新
32. common cause - 共同目标
33. open - 开放的
34. destructive behavior - 破坏性行为governance
35. traits - 特质
36. draw upon - 利用
37. physical response - 物理反应
38. scarcity - 稀缺
39. water resources - 水资源
40. water stress - 水压力
41. persistent - 持续的
42. effects - 影响
43. grapple - 探索
44. understand - 理解
45. assumptions - 假定
46. shift - 转变
47. governance - 治理
48. participants - 参与者
49. lifestyles - 生活方式
50. humanity - 人类
【阅读理解练习题】
1. According to federal scientists, what proportion of the continental United States is experiencing prolonged drought?
A. Approximately 25%
B. Nearly 50%
C. Over 75%
D. More than 90%
答案：B。中文解析：根据文章第一句话，联邦科学家表示，将近一半的美国大陆正经历持续性的干旱。
2. What are some effects of climate change?
A. Consistent and uniform weather patterns
B. Lack of drought and flooding in the Midwest
C. Drought and water scarcity in some areas
D. Governance of water resources around the world improving
答案：C。中文解析：根据文章第三句话，气候变化的影响并不一致或统一，最近几年，中西部地区经历了广泛的洪水和持续的干旱。
3. Why did the researchers in Finland conduct their study?
A. To test drought models used in other countries
B. To investigate the effects of population concentration on water resources
C. To find ways of dealing with a significant dry season
D. To explore why some countries suffer from high water stress
答案：B。中文解析：根据文章第四段，芬兰的研究人员提出一个新问题：是否可以有充足的水资源而又出现水资源匮乏？该研究发现当地人口集中、湿地排水和低效用水开采等原因正在引起与干旱相似的局部影响。
4. What was the main cause of the drought in Cape Town, South Africa?
A. Lack of rainfall
B. Population concentration
C. Inefficient use of water
D. Drainage of wetlands
答案：A。中文解析：根据文章第五段，经过三年的严重干旱后，开普敦市的主要蓄水池容量降至11%。文章指出适应一个变化中的星球需要更多的是对稀缺的实质性反应，文章还提到城市在严格管制用水并采取其他行动后最终恢复了.