Extreme Weather|极端气候

by Clare Lear and Marcus Maurice

Why are hurricanes, typhoons, and heat waves popping up around the globe more often?

Have you noticed that Taiwan has had more typhoons than normal recently? Even in the years when there weren't as many typhoons, the ones that had hit this island seemed to be much bigger and cause more damage. A simple look _(1)_ newspapers reveals that the world's weather is becoming more extreme. Forests are catching fire because of dry winters. Tornadoes are becoming more _(2)_ because the temperatures are changing. Power _(3)_ for millions have resulted because of huge snowfalls. Ask almost anyone about the causes of extreme weather and you will be told that most cases are linked _(4)_ global warming. Many scientists are convinced that the gradual rise of temperatures on the planet have been caused by _(5)_ of greenhouse gases made by the use of fossil fuels and cutting down forests. The higher overall temperatures can change climates, which includes melting or forming ice, _(6)_ the cycle of precipitation, or altering ocean currents and air flow.

There are skeptics, though, that believe nature repeats itself on a scale that humans have a hard time _(7)_ because of their short lifespans. These skeptics point to the fact that it was much _(8)_ in the 1930s, there were more hurricanes from the 1930s through the 1950s, and even more tornadoes formed from the 1950s through the 1970s. Skeptics also say that scientists are too quick to _(9)_ every single weather variation on global warming.

Whether you believe the scientists or the skeptics, you should be _(10)_ for extreme weather. People that live on low-lying islands will definitely have to be more aware about changes in weather because their properties could be affected by even the slightest variation in water levels.

(A) through (B) understanding   (C) shifting    (D) concentrations  (E) to

(F) prepared    (G) frequent    (H) blame   (I) hotter (J) outages

极端气候

为什么全球突然有越来越多的飓风、台风及热浪出现？

你是否注意到最近侵袭台湾的台风比往常还多呢？即便有几年台风数量没有那么多，但那些侵袭本岛的台风规模似乎比从前更大且造成了更多损害。随意翻翻报纸，当中揭露全球天气变得越来越极端。冬季因为干燥而引发森林大火。由于气温不断改变，龙卷风变得越来越频繁。庞大的降雪量导致数百万户停电。询问任何人有关极端天气的成因，几乎所有人都会告诉你大部份的情况都和全球暖化有关。许多科学家确信，因为我们使用化石燃料及砍伐森林所造成的温室气体浓度提高导致了地球温度逐渐上升。较高的整体温度会改变气候，其中包括冰融化或形成冰、降雨周期的改变或洋流及气流的改变。

不过，有些人持怀疑的态度，由于人类寿命很短，所以很难理解大自然会以某种规模不断循环。这些持怀疑态度的人指出，1930年代比现在更热，1930 到 1950 年间比现在更多飓风，而且 1950到 1970 年间甚至比现在形成了更多龙卷风。抱持怀疑态度的人也说科学家们太快就将单一的天气变化归咎于全球暖化。

不论你相信科学家或那些持怀疑态度者，你应该要为极端的气候做好准备。生活在地势低洼岛屿的人必须更加了解气候变化，因为哪怕是一丁点的水位变化，他们的财产都会受到影响。

美国 CNN报导，2013 年将是全球充满危机的一年。这个危机源自今夏的极端气候造成世界各地干旱、引发农作物收成欠佳、谷物价格上涨及一般食物价格上涨。据报导，2013年的危机是可预测的，而且已经发生。俄罗斯、澳洲及百分之八十的美国本土都已发生旱灾。干旱造成主要农作物损失，美国玉米的收成创下 1995 年以来的新低点。

谷价上升引发一般食品价格也跟着上涨。对已开发国家来说，物价上扬虽是新的负担，但大部份人尚能承担。然而在其他国家，伙食费是民众最主要的开销之一。贫穷国家的一般民众则更是有半数收入都花在饮食上。（数据源：台湾醒报）

答案：  1.  A   2.  G   3.  J   4.  E   5.  D

   6.  C   7.  B   8.  I   9.  H   10. F