Thirst for Oil

　　Worldwide every day, we devour the energy equivalent of about 200 million barrels of oil. Most of the energy on Earth comes from the Sun. In fact enough energy from the Sun hits the planet’s surface each minute to cover our needs for an entire year, we just need to find an efficient way to use it. So far the energy in oil has been cheaper and easier to get at. But as supplies dwindle, this will change, and we will need to cure our addiction to oil.
　　Burning wood satisfied most energy needs until the steam-driven industrial revolution, when energy-dense coal became the fuel of choice. Coal is still used, mostly in power stations, to cover one quarter of our energy needs, but its use has been declining since we started pumping up oil. Coal is the least efficient, unhealthiest and most environmentally damaging fossil fuel, but could make a comeback, as supplies are still plentiful: its reserves are five times larger than oil’s.
　　Today petroleum, a mineral oil obtained from below the surface of the Earth and used to produce petrol, diesel oil and various other chemical substances, provides around 40% of the world’s energy needs, mostly fuelling automobiles. The US consumes n quarter of all oil, and generates a similar proportion of greenhouse gas emissions.

　　The majority of oil comes from the Middle East, which has half of known reserves. But other significant sources include Russia, North America, Norway, Venezuela and the North Sea. Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge¹ could be a major new US source, to reduce reliance on foreign imports.
　　Most experts predict we will exhaust easily accessible reserves within 50 years, though opinions and estimates vary. We could fast reach an energy crisis in the next few decades, when demand exceeds supply. As conventional reserves become more difficult to access, others such as oil shales and tar sands may be used instead. Petrol could also be obtained from coal.
　　Since we started using fossil fuels, we have released 400 billion tonnes² of carbon, and burning the entire reserves could eventually raise world temperatures by 130 C. Among other horrors, this would result in the destruction of all rainforests and the melting of all Arctic ice.

词汇：

devour / dɪ"vaʊə(r) /v.吞没，耗尽    

accessible / əkˈsesəbl /adj.可使用的，可得到的

dense /dens/adj.密集的    

rainforest /reɪnfɒrɪst/n. (热带)雨林

pump / pʌmp /v.用泵抽吸    

reliance / ɪ"laɪəns /n.依赖，依靠

petroleum / pə"trəʊlɪəm /n.石油，原油    

oil shale油页岩

dwindle / dwɪndl /v.减少    

tar sand沥青砂

diesel oil柴油   

destruction / dɪ"strʌkʃn /n.破坏.毁灭

注释:

What do experts say about the earth’s fuel reserves?

A:The earth’s fuel reserves will be accessible for the next 50 years. B:There will soon be an energy crisis. C:Conventional reserves will soon become inaccessible. D:Fuel demand will decline.

On Sunday, April 22, 1990, people all over the world celebrated the same holiday. It was the twentieth anniversary of Earth Day. The purpose of the holiday, which we celebrate every year on that date, is to help people learn how to protect the planet Earth. People around the world celebrate Earth Day because they worry about the planet. Many forms of animal life are disappearing from the earth. Carelessness and accidents in many countries have caused problems that are harmful to the environment. Air and water pollution, oil spills, and toxic waste are some of the serious problems.
In fact, protecting the earth is truly a worldwide issue. Pollution in one place often affects areas far away. For example, an accident in a nuclear power plant in one country can create a radioactive cloud that goes halfway around the world. Factory smoke in one country can cause acid rain in another. It is easy to see how our protecting the environment has become an international issue.
So, in order to begin the difficult job of saving the earth, people around the world did special things on Earth Day, 1990. In Japan, divers pulled garbage from the sea. In Nepal, hikers picked up trash on Mount Everest. Students marched in support of Earth Day in Hong Kong, and people planted medicinal herbs in the Philippines. In the United States, children planted trees. Native Americans told legends about the creation of the earth, artists drew pictures on walls next to highways, and musicians gave concerts to Support the work of environmental groups. Almost everyone everywhere stopped for a moment to think about how we can protect the earth.

A:to help people memorize the earth B:to help people to learn how to protect the earth C:to unite all the people on the earth D:all of the above

Many theories about the origin of the ocean have been proposed by scientists. The most widely accepted one is that the earth at some time in its very early history became hot enough to melt the materials from which it was formed. While in this molten state, lighter rock-forming materials (造岩材料) floated on the surface of the heavier ones. Then, between four and a half four billion (十亿) years ago, the molten earth cooled sufficiently to form a crust of rock that was many miles thick.
Surrounding the earth was an unbroken canopy of clouds miles thick and made up mostly of water vapor. Rain falling toward the still-hot earth was heated to steam and rose to the clouds again. After many millions of years, as the earth continued to cool, its surface temperature fell below the boiling point of water. Rainwater could now remain on the earth, covering its whole surface except for the higher places on earth that had been formed from the lighter rock materials.
In 1970, scientists had pieced together evidence that the lighter rock materials had formed one huge continent by a vast ocean. Then, about 200 million years ago, the great continent began to break up, the pieces moving slowly apart.
The onrushing waters of the single huge ocean now entered and filled the spaces between the separating continents--and became the several oceans and seas we know today.
This passage mainly talks about ______.

A:the origin of the earth B:the origin of the ocean C:the history of the earth D:the forming of the earth’s crust

Suppose the earth's temperature rose by 3 degrees, ______.

A:great harm would be done to mankind B:the sea level would go by 10 centimetres C:all the land in the world would be flooded D:crops would be unable to grow on the earth

The purpose of Earth Day is ______.

A:to help people memorize the earth B:to help people to learn how to protect the earth C:to unite all the people on the earth D:all of the above

The last paragraph implies that ______ the importance of protecting the earth.

A:only on Earth Day do people realize B:people in the world have begun to realize C:people in the world are well aware of D:Europeans are not aware of

Ice crystals do NOT immediately fall to Earth because ______.

A:they are kept aloft by air currents B:they combine with other chemicals in the atmosphere C:most of them evaporate D:their electrical charges draw them away from the earth

How does everything living on earth live

A:Each plant can live alone. B:Each animal can live alone. C:Everything living on earth cannot live without needing other living things. D:If living things want to live they must kill each other.

Passage Three

A:the origin of the earth B:the origin of the ocean C:the history of the earth D:the forming of the earth’s crust

The cause fro the heat in the interior of the earth is _______.

A:radioactive elements B:the great pressure of the earth C:not determined D:the heart remaining from the formation of the earth