A
These days everyone is worried about the size of their carbon footprint. In order to reduce global warming, we need to make our carbon footprints smaller. But how much CO2 are we responsible for?
A new book by Mike Berners-Lee (a leading expert in carbon foot-printing) might be able to help. The Carbon Footprint of Everything looks at the different things we do and buy, and calculates the amount of CO2 they produce, including the ingredients, the electricity, the equipment, the transport and the packaging. And it’s frightening how much carbon dioxide everything produces.
But all of this can help us decide which beer to drink. From Berners-Lee’s calculations, it’s clear that a pint (568 ml) of locally-brewed (酿制的) beer has a smaller carbon footprint than a bottle of imported beer. This is because the imported beer has been transported from far away, and it uses more packaging. The local beer only produces 300g of CO2-but the imported beer produces 900g! So, one pint of local beer is better for the environment than three cans of cheap foreign beer from the supermarket.
Berners-Lee has even calculated the carbon footprint of cycling to work. Nothing is more environmentally-friendly than riding a bike, surely? Well, it depends on what you’ve had to eat before. To ride a bike we need energy and for energy we need food. So, if we eat a banana and then ride a kilometer and a half, our footprint is 65 g of CO2. However, if we eat bacon before the bike ride, it’s 200 g. In fact, bananas are good in general because they don’t need packaging. They can be transported by boat and they grow in natural sunlight.
So, does this mean that cycling is bad for the environment? Absolutely not. If you cycle, you don’t use your car; and the fewer cars on the road, the fewer traffic jams. And cars in traffic jams produce three times more CO2 than cars travelling at speed. Cycling also makes you healthy and less likely to go to a hospital. And hospitals have very big carbon footprints!
So, maybe it’s time for us all to start making some changes. Pass me a banana and a pint of local beer, please.
【文章大意】这是一篇议论文。文章作者鼓励大家采取行动, 减少温室气体的排放, 并说明了一些具体的做法。
1. Which of the following produces the smallest carbon footprints?
A. A pint of local beer.
B. A bottle of imported beer.
C. A banana before a 1. 5 km bike ride.
D. Bacon before a 1. 5 km bike ride.
【解析】选C。细节理解题。根据文章第三段The local beer only produces 300g of CO2-but the imported beer produces 900g!和第四段So, if we eat a banana and then ride a kilometer and a half, our footprint is 65g of CO2. However, if we eat bacon before the bike ride, it’s 200g。故选C。
2. According to the article, the author suggests choosing the local food because it is ________.
A. more tasty B. easier to buy
C. better packaged D. more energy-saving
【解析】选D。推理判断题。根据第三段So, one pint of local beer is better for the environment than three cans of cheap foreign beer from the supermarket. 可知一品脱本地啤酒比超市里三罐便宜的外国啤酒更环保。由此推断出, 作者建议选择当地的啤酒, 因为它更节能, 更环保, 故选D。
3. The purpose of writing this article is to ________ .
A. promote a new book
B. advertise the imported beer
C. instruct how to measure the carbon footprint
D. encourage people to reduce the production of CO2
【解析】选D。目的意图题。根据最后一段So, maybe it’s time for us all to start making some changes. Pass me a banana and a pint of local beer, please. 所以, 也许是时候让我们所有人开始做出一些改变了。请递给我一根香蕉和一品脱当地啤酒。可知文章是鼓励大家采取行动, 减少温室气体的排放, 故选D。
【知识拓展】佳词积累
1. ingredient n. 成分
2. import vt. 进口
3. environmentally-friendly adj. 环保的
【长难句分析】
This is because the imported beer has been transported from far away, and it uses more packaging.
分析: 本句是一个复合句。because引导的是表语从句。
译文: 这是因为进口的啤酒是从很远的地方运来的, 所以需要更多的包装。
