Renewable Energy Sources

Today petroleum provides around 40% of the world’s energy needs, mostly fuelling automobiles1. Coal is still used, mostly in power stations, to cover one-quarter of our energy needs, but it is the least efficient, unhealthiest and most environmentally damaging fossil fuel2. Natural gas reserves could plug some of the gap from oil3, but reserves of that will not last into the 22nd century either. Most experts predict we will exhaust easily accessible reserves within 50 years4. We could fast reach an energy crisis. We need to rapidly develop sustainable solutions to fuel our future5. Less-polluting renewable energy sources offer a more practical long-term energy solution. They may benefit the world’s poor too. “Renewable”, refers to the fact that these resources are not used faster than they can be replaced.

The Chinese and Romans used watermills over 2,000 years ago. But the first hydroelectric dam was built in England in 1870. Hydroelectric power is now the most common form of renewable energy, supplying around 20% of world electricity. China’s Three Gorges Dam6, which has just been completed, is the largest ever. At five times the size of the US’s Hoover Dam7, its 26 turbines will generate the equivalent energy of 18 coal-fired power stations8. It will satisfy 3% of China’s entire electricity demand. Surprisingly, some argue that hydroelectric dams significantly contrihute greenhouse gases.

In 2003, the first commercial power station to harness tidal currents9 in the open sea opened in Norway. It is designed like windmill, but others take the form of turbines.

As prices fall, wind power has become the fastest growing type of electricity generation — quadrupling10 worldwide between 1999 and 2005. Modern wind farms consist of turbines that generate electricity. Though it will be more expensive, there is more than enough wind to provide the world’s entire energy needs. Wind farms come in onshore and offshore forms. They can often end up at spots of natural beauty11, and are often unpopular with residents. And turbines are not totally benign — they can interfere with radar and leave a significant ecological footprint12, altering climate and killing sea birds. Migrating birds may have more luck avoiding them. Scotland is building Europe’s largest wind farm, which will power 200,000 homes. The UK’s goal is to generate one-fifth of power from renewable sources, mainly wind, by 2020. But this may cause problems, because wind is unreliable.

 

词汇:

watermill / ˈwɔ:təmɪl / n. 水力磨,水车 

gorge / ɡɔ:dʒ / n. 峡,峡谷
windmill / "wɪndmɪl / n. 风车;风力磨坊 

turbine / ˈtɜ:baɪn / n. 叶轮机,涡轮机
hydroelectric / ˌhaɪdrəʊɪˈlektrɪk / n.  水力发电的 

benign / bɪˈnaɪn / adj. 无害的
tidal / "taɪdl / adj. 潮汐的 

footprint / ˈfʊtprɪnt / n.脚印,足迹;接触面积
quadruple / "kwɒ"dru:pl / adj. 四倍;四倍的;使成四倍


注释:


1. …mostly fuelling automobiles:大多用来为汽车提供燃料。 fuel在此作及物动词。

2. fossil fuel: (煤、石油、天然气等 )矿物燃料

3. Natural gas reserves could plug some of the gap from oil:天然气的储量可能填补部分石油短缺。动词 plug原义

堵塞在此作填补解。

4. …exhaust easily accessible reserves within 50 years:很容易在 50年内耗尽可采掘的燃料储备。 accessible:可得到的。

5. to fuel our future:为我们的未来提供燃料

6. Three Gorges Dam:三峡大坝

7. Hoover Dam: Hoover大坝是美国七大民用建筑奇迹之一,建于科罗拉多河 (the Colorado River)上,1931年开始建造, 5年后完工。

8. coal-fired power stations:烧煤的发电站

9. to harness tidal currents:利用潮汐来发电。 harness:利用(河流、瀑布等)产生动力 (尤指电力 )

10. quadrupling:是动词 quadruple的现在分词形式,意思是(使)成四倍,翻两番。如:Our profits have quadrupled in five years.五年里我们的利润翻了两番。

11. … often end up at spots of natural beauty:常常会出现在美丽的自然环境中。

12. …leave a significant ecological footprint:在生态环境中留下痕迹。即指本句后半句所说的 : altering climate and killing sea birds

China"s Three Gorges Dam

A:is the first hydroelectric dam in the world. B:is of the same size of the US"s Hoover Dam. C:is the largest of all the hydroelectric dams in the world. D:supplies around 20% of the world electricity.

Eiffel Is an Eyeful1

    Some2 300 meters up, near the EiffelTower"s wind-whipped summit the world comes to scribble3. Japanese, Brazilians, Americans — they graffiti4 their names, loves and politics on the cold iron — transforming the most French of monuments into symbol of a world on the move. 5

    With Paris laid out in miniature6 below,it seems strange that visitors would rather waste time marking their presence than admiring the view7. But the graffiti also raises a question : Why, nearly 114 years after it was completed, and decades after it ceased to be the world, s tallest structure, is la Tour Eiffel still so popular8?

    The reasons are as complex as the iron work that graces9 a structure some 90 stories high. But part of the answer is, no doubt, its agelessness. Regularly maintained, it should never rust away. Graffiti is regularly painted over,but the tower lives on.

    "Eiffel representsParisandParisisFrance. It is very symbolic”,says Hugues Richard10, a 31- year-old Frenchman who holds the record for cycling up to the tower"s second floor 一 747 steps in 19 minutes and 4 seconds, without touching the floor with his feet. "It"s iron lady,It inspires us11 ”, he says.

    But to what12? After all, the tower doesn" t have a purpose. It ceased to be the world’ s tallest in 1930 when the Chrysler Building13 went up inNew York. Yes,television and radio signals are beamed from the top, and Gustave Eiffel, a frenetic builder who died on December 27,aged 91 ,used its height for conducting research into weather, aerodynamics and radio communication.

    But in essence the tower inspires simply by being there _ a blank canvas for visitors to make of it what they will14. To the technically minded15, it"s an engineering triumph. For lovers, it"s romantic.

    "The tower will outlast all of us, and by a long way16”,says Isabelle Esnous, whose company manages Eiffel Tower.


词汇:

Eiffel /"aifel/ Tower (法国巴黎的)埃菲尔铁塔

eyeful /"aiful/ n.引人注目的景象

scribble /"skribl/ v.乱涂,乱画

graffiti /grs"fizti:/ 涂写,涂画

iron work 铁制品;铁工

agelessness /"eid3lisnis/ n.永恒,永不过日寸

rust /rASt/ v.生锈(rust away 锈烂掉)

frenetic /frs"netik/ a办极度激动的

tinker /"tiqko/ n.白铁匠,能做各种小修小补的人

aerodynamics /leorsudai"naemiks/ 空气动力学


注释:

1.Eiffel Is an Eyeful:引人注目的埃菲尔铁塔。由于Eiffel和Eyeful读音相似,使用Eyeful而 不是其他的词是有其修辞效果的。埃菲尔铁塔是古斯塔夫?埃菲尔(Gustave Eiffel,1832— 1923,法国工程师)为1889年的巴黎博览会设计的。该塔在塞纳河南岸,高300公尺(984 英尺)。埃菲尔铁塔的法文是第二段最后一句中的“la Tour Eiffel"。
2.some:意为“approximately; about,,(大约,将近)。如它 40 people attended the rally.大约 有40个人参加了集会。
3.the world comes to scribble:世界各地的人们来此涂鸦。
4.graffiti:在此用作graffito的动词形式,意思是“涂鸦,在墙或其他表面上创作的画或铭刻”。
5.transforming the most French of monuments into symbol of a world on the move.使最有法兰西 色彩的纪念碑成为动感世界的象征。the most + adj. + of + n.意为“在……中最为…… 的” 如:Beethoven is the greatest of musicians.贝多芬是最伟大的音乐家。on the move:在 运动中。
6.in miniature:小型的,小规模的,缩影的
7.would rather waste time marking their presence than admiring the view.宁愿花时间留下到此一游的痕迹,而不去观赏风景。would rather…than:宁愿……而不……: He would rather stay at home watching DVD than going to the cinema.他宁愿待在家里看 DVD,而不愿到电影院去看电影。
8.在原句Why is la Tour Eiffel still so popular?的 Why 与 la Tour Eiffel still so popular?之间插 AT nearly 114 years after it was completed, and decades after it ceased to be the world"s tallest structure.
9.graces:在此作动词,意为“to give beauty, elegance, or charm to”(使……优美,优雅或具有魅力)
10.Hugues Richard:法国自行车运动员,多次打破自行车运动的世界纪录,于2002年4月8日 以19分钟零4秒的成绩骑自行车登上埃菲尔铁塔的第二层,第六次打破自行车运动的世 界纪录。
11.“It’s iron lady, it inspires us. ”:“这是铁娘子,能让人产生灵感。”It指埃菲尔铁塔。
12.But to what?这是一个省略句,接着上段Hugues Richard的话发问,完整的句子可以是:But what does it inspire people to?
13.the Chrysler Building:是美国纽约帝国大厦(the Empire State Building)建成之前,世界第一 高楼,共77层,设计师是William Van Alen。
14.a blank canvas for visitors to make of it what they will:—张空白的画布,任游客自由遐想
15.To the technically minded:对于那些善于从技术角度考虑问题的人来说,从技术的角度来说。
16."The tower will outlast all of us, and by a long way. ”:“这座塔将在我们所有的人离去后长 久存在。”outlast:意为“ to last longer than”(比……持久)。out-:前缀,意思是“比…… 更…”。如:Women are said to outlive men.据说女人比男人长寿。by a long way :副词,意思是“大大地”。

Why does the author think the EiffelToweris transformed into symbol of a world on the move?

A:Tourists from all over the world come to the EiffelTowerby car or by plane. B:Tourists of all nationalities come to scribble on the cold iron of the tower. C:The EiffelToweris the tallest building in the world. D:The EiffelTowerrepresents all the towers in the world.

LAN端口利用率=LAN端口实占容量÷()LAN端口容量×100%。

A:LAN端口空闲容量 B:LAN端口容量 C:ONU端口容量

The Indian ’Ocean is the third largest ocean in the world. Only the Pacific and the Atlantic are larger. More than one-fifth of all the world’s water supply is in the Indian Ocean.
The Indian Ocean touches four different continents. To the south is Antarctica and to the east is Australia. Africa lies to the west and Asia lies to the north. There are several important islands in the Indian Ocean. These include Madagascar, the largest one, which is near Africa, and Sri Lanka, which is near India. There is also a group of islands called the Seychelies near the African coast.
The Indian Ocean is extremely important to the countries in southeast Asia. Strong winds from the Indian Ocean bring warm weather, and heavy rains are necessary for growing food.
Of all the oceans in the world, the Indian Ocean contains more than

A:5 per cent of the world’s water B:15 percent of the world’s water C:20 percent of the world’s water D:50 percent of the world’s water

Of all the oceans in the world, the Indian Ocean contains more than ______.

A:5 percent of the world' s water B:15 percent of the world' s water C:20 percent of the world' s water D:50 percent of the world' s water

The Indian ’Ocean is the third largest ocean in the world. Only the Pacific and the Atlantic are larger. More than one-fifth of all the world’s water supply is in the Indian Ocean.
The Indian Ocean touches four different continents. To the south is Antarctica and to the east is Australia. Africa lies to the west and Asia lies to the north. There are several important islands in the Indian Ocean. These include Madagascar, the largest one, which is near Africa, and Sri Lanka, which is near India. There is also a group of islands called the Seychelies near the African coast.
The Indian Ocean is extremely important to the countries in southeast Asia. Strong winds from the Indian Ocean bring warm weather, and heavy rains are necessary for growing food.
Of all the oceans in the world, the Indian Ocean contains more than

A:5 per cent of the world’s water B:15 percent of the world’s water C:20 percent of the world’s water D:50 percent of the world’s water

Passage 2 The Indian Ocean is the third largest ocean in the world. Only the Pacific and the Atlantic are larger. More than one-fifth of all the world’s water supply is in the Indian Ocean. The Indian Ocean touches four different continents. To the south is Antarctica and to the east is Australia. Africa lies to the west and Asia lies to the north. There are several important islands in the Indian Ocean. These include Madagascar, the largest one, which is near Africa, and Sri Lanka, which is near India. There is also a group of islands called the Seychelies near the African coast. The Indian Ocean is extremely important to the countries in southeast Asia. Strong winds from the Indian Ocean bring warm weather, and heavy rains are necessary for growing food.

Of all the oceans in the world, the Indian Ocean contains more than ()

A:5 percent of the world' s water B:15 percent of the world' s water C:20 percent of the world' s water D:50 percent of the world' s water

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