Sometime early in the next century, human beings will move to Mars. They will live there for about a year, and then will be replaced with another group of pioneers. Building the base on Mars will advance our knowledge of the solar system and aid in our understanding of the earth.

We already know that Mars resembles the earth in many aspects: general size, presence of water, length of day, range of temperatures. These resemblances have caused many people to consider a centuries-long project: to terraform Mars. Terraforming means altering a planet’s surface so that Earth’s life forms can survive there. This concept, previously found only in science fiction is now being seriously considered by scientists.

Terraforming Mars is theoretically simple: add nitrogen and oxygen to the atmosphere; pump water to the surface; and add the earth’s plants and animals in the order in which they developed on Earth. But it will take at least 300 years.

Some people think that such a project is too huge for humans to undertake, but there are very good reasons to make the attempt. The earth now contains some 6 billion people, and no one has any idea of how many humans the earth can support. Our very existence and numbers are threatening many other species. We also have had some experience with terraforming our own planet: altering the landscape, the atmosphere and the climate. Currently terraforming earth has become a wiser activity as we try to control global warming, air and water pollution, and preserve some natural living places.

While the possibility of such a project is small, it is not impossible .Even if earth –bound societies come and go in the next 300 years, the project can continue through the work of the Mars settlers without the need for constant backing from the earth.

 The future existence of all the people in our world may very well depend upon our ability to terraform Mars.

1.What would be the best title for this passage?

A．Terraforming Mars.               B．Saving the Earth

C．Travelling to Mars.                 D．A Newly-found Place

2.What does the underlined word “altering” mean in the second paragraph?

A．Warming.    B．Changing.    C．Planting.      D．Building

3.According to the passage the main purpose of terraforming Mars is to ________.

A．do some scientific research work

B．find out its similarity to earth

C．avoid the dying away of many other species

D．find on Mars living place for the increasing human beings

4.The main reason for causing many people to consider terraforming Mars is that _______.

A．there are some resemblances between Earth and Mars.

B．terraforming Mars is theoretically simple

C．we have had some experience with terraforming our own planet: Earth

D．the development of science and technology is very rapid

5.What’s the author’s attitude towards the project?

A．Optimistic.  B．Negative

C．Sceptical（怀疑的）  D．Objective.

An important scientific report announced “irrefutable（不能反驳的） proof” that climate change is happening and it’s all our fault. How long has it been before people are against the global warming idea? But here’s a funny thing. Last year there was a very bad hurricane season in the Caribbean when, among other disasters, New Orleans was all but wiped off the map. We were wisely informed by the experts at the time that this was owing to global warming.
I remember watching a BBC science programme and hearing a learned professor with a beard tell us, “The increased frequency and strength of hurricanes is what we shall have to learn to expect given global warming.”
This year there have been far fewer hurricanes and those there have been were relatively mild. Why？Global warming again of course. Professor Bjorn Lomborg, author of The Skeptical Environmentalist, writes, “In the constant media reports of possible greenhouse related disasters, almost any event is now linked to climate change.” He adds, “We should not spend vast amounts of money to cut a tiny slice of the global temperature increase when this leads to a poor use of resources and when we could probably use these funds far more effectively in the developing world.” For saying this, Lomborg has had death threats.
Other scientists who do not toe the global warming-is-happening-and-it’s-all-our-fault line have received the same. There are plenty of people who count against global warming. A world of senior climatologists and meteorologists wrote to the Times last year to complain that they couldn’t get their research findings published — because they disagreed to it. We have had a warm autumn. The experts,  fanatics（狂热者） all of them, put it down to global warming. If we have an extra cold winter, they will tell us it’s a result of global warming. If my big toe feels cold or hurts badly, it will be owing to global warming.
52. The purpose of this passage may be to ____.
A. support the idea of global warming  
B. organize a debate about global warming
C. speak out against the global warming idea
D. encourage people to use money effectively
53. What happened to New Orleans last year?
A. It was badly destroyed.                          B. It disappeared in the world.
C. It witnessed global warming.               D. It experienced several disasters.
54. From the passage, we can infer that ____.
A. people are taking too many efforts to stop global warming
B. people have realized the side effect of development
C. a different idea sometimes may cost one his life
D. the majority usually stand for the correct opinion
55. The main idea of the last paragraph may be ____.
A. global warming may lead to toe’s catching cold in a sense
B. the Times refuses to publish articles on global warming
C. a warming autumn is not related to global warming at all
D. it is certainly incorrect to owe everything to global warming

An important scientific report announced “irrefutable（不能反驳的） proof” that climate change is happening and it’s all our fault. How long has it been before people are against the global warming idea? But here’s a funny thing. Last year there was a very bad hurricane season in the Caribbean when, among other disasters, New Orleans was all but wiped off the map. We were wisely informed by the experts at the time that this was owing to global warming.

I remember watching a BBC science programme and hearing a learned professor with a beard tell us, “The increased frequency and strength of hurricanes is what we shall have to learn to expect given global warming.”

This year there have been far fewer hurricanes and those there have been were relatively mild. Why？Global warming again of course. Professor Bjorn Lomborg, author of The Skeptical Environmentalist, writes, “In the constant media reports of possible greenhouse related disasters, almost any event is now linked to climate change.” He adds, “We should not spend vast amounts of money to cut a tiny slice of the global temperature increase when this leads to a poor use of resources and when we could probably use these funds far more effectively in the developing world.” For saying this, Lomborg has had death threats.

Other scientists who do not toe the global warming-is-happening-and-it’s-all-our-fault line have received the same. There are plenty of people who count against global warming. A world of senior climatologists and meteorologists wrote to the Times last year to complain that they couldn’t get their research findings published — because they disagreed to it. We have had a warm autumn. The experts,  fanatics（狂热者） all of them, put it down to global warming. If we have an extra cold winter, they will tell us it’s a result of global warming. If my big toe feels cold or hurts badly, it will be owing to global warming.

52. The purpose of this passage may be to ____.

A. support the idea of global warming  

B. organize a debate about global warming

C. speak out against the global warming idea

D. encourage people to use money effectively

53. What happened to New Orleans last year?

A. It was badly destroyed.                          B. It disappeared in the world.

C. It witnessed global warming.               D. It experienced several disasters.

54. From the passage, we can infer that ____.

A. people are taking too many efforts to stop global warming

B. people have realized the side effect of development

C. a different idea sometimes may cost one his life

D. the majority usually stand for the correct opinion

55. The main idea of the last paragraph may be ____.

A. global warming may lead to toe’s catching cold in a sense

B. the Times refuses to publish articles on global warming

C. a warming autumn is not related to global warming at all

D. it is certainly incorrect to owe everything to global warming

An important scientific report announced “irrefutable（不能反驳的） proof” that climate change is happening and it’s all our fault. How long has it been before people are against the global warming idea? But here’s a funny thing. Last year there was a very bad hurricane season in the Caribbean when, among other disasters, New Orleans was all but wiped off the map. We were wisely informed by the experts at the time that this was owing to global warming.

I remember watching a BBC science programme and hearing a learned professor with a beard tell us, “The increased frequency and strength of hurricanes is what we shall have to learn to expect given global warming.”

This year there have been far fewer hurricanes and those there have been were relatively mild. Why？Global warming again of course. Professor Bjorn Lomborg, author of The Skeptical Environmentalist, writes, “In the constant media reports of possible greenhouse related disasters, almost any event is now linked to climate change.” He adds, “We should not spend vast amounts of money to cut a tiny slice of the global temperature increase when this leads to a poor use of resources and when we could probably use these funds far more effectively in the developing world.” For saying this, Lomborg has had death threats.

Other scientists who do not toe the global warming-is-happening-and-it’s-all-our-fault line have received the same. There are plenty of people who count against global warming. A world of senior climatologists and meteorologists wrote to the Times last year to complain that they couldn’t get their research findings published — because they disagreed to it. We have had a warm autumn. The experts,  fanatics（狂热者） all of them, put it down to global warming. If we have an extra cold winter, they will tell us it’s a result of global warming. If my big toe feels cold or hurts badly, it will be owing to global warming.

52. The purpose of this passage may be to ____.

A. support the idea of global warming  

B. organize a debate about global warming

C. speak out against the global warming idea

D. encourage people to use money effectively

53. What happened to New Orleans last year?

A. It was badly destroyed.                          B. It disappeared in the world.

C. It witnessed global warming.               D. It experienced several disasters.

54. From the passage, we can infer that ____.

A. people are taking too many efforts to stop global warming

B. people have realized the side effect of development

C. a different idea sometimes may cost one his life

D. the majority usually stand for the correct opinion

55. The main idea of the last paragraph may be ____.

A. global warming may lead to toe’s catching cold in a sense

B. the Times refuses to publish articles on global warming

C. a warming autumn is not related to global warming at all

D. it is certainly incorrect to owe everything to global warming