Three key facts about rising sea levels need to be pointed out to the world's politicians and planners: sea-level rise is now unavoidable, it will happen faster than most of us thought, and it will go on for a very long time. Even greenhouse gas emissions stopped tomorrow, the oceans will continue to become larger as they get warm. The climate scientists estimate that sea-level rise may be in the range of 1 to 2 meters by 2100, with a small risk of an even greater rise. For many islands and low-lying regions, even small rises will cause disasters. But for most countries, the problem is what has been built on that land: New York, Sydney and Tokyo, to mention just a few cities. Unless something can be done, great areas of urban network will disappear under the waves. It will take a great engineering effort to protect these cities---an effort that may be beyond economies that have been brought to their knees. None of this means we should fear, and stop trying to forbid emissions. But together with these efforts, we need to start acting now and we must stop building in danger zones. Billions of dollars are being spent on constructing homes, offices and roads in _ coastal areas. For instance, the skyscrapers of Shanghai are being built on land that is merely 4 meters above sea level on average, and they are sinking under the weight of the buildings. Therefore, planning for new coastal developments is to go against reality. If we want to build a lasting heritage for our children, we should do so on the plentiful land that is in no danger from the sea. It is one of the effective ways to slow down climate change, and we should be acting on it now. New York, Sydney, and Tokyo are mentioned in this passage to show _ . A) modern cities are usually built along the coastline B) the coastline is very important for modern countries C) climate changes have endangered many big cities on land D) climate changes have been completely out of control
C
Love, success, happiness, family and freedom--how important are these values to you? Here is one interview which explores the fundamental questions in life. Question: Could you introduce yourself first? Answer: My name is Misbah, 27 years old. I was born in a war-torn area. Right now I'm a web designer. Q: What are your great memories? A: My parents used to take us to hunt birds, climb trees, and play in the fields. For me it was like a holiday because we were going to have fun all day long. Those are my great memories. Q: Does your childhood mean a lot to you? A: Yes. As life was very hard, I used to work to help bring money in for the family. I spent my childhood working, with responsibilities beyond my age. However, it taught me to deal with problems all alone. I learnt to be independent. Q: What changes would you like to make in your life? A: If I could change something in my life, I'd change it so that my childhood could have taken place in another area. I would have loved to live with my family in freedom. Who cares whether we have much money, or whether we have a beautiful house? It doesn't matter as long as I can live with my family and we are safe. Q: How do your get along with your parents? A: My parents supported me until I came of age. I want to give back what I've got. That's our way. But I am working in another city. My only contact with my parents now is through the phone, but I hate using it. It filters out your emotion and leaves your voice only. My deepest feelings should be passed through sight, hearing and touch. How would Misbah prefer to communicate with his parents? A) By chatting on the Internet. B) By calling them sometimes. C) By writing them letters. D) By paying weekly visits.
D
Q: Angry Birds has become a worldwide gaming mega hit but how did this game come into existence? Rovio is the name of the company that created angry birds, however, it's not the first game they developed. Surprisingly they have been creating games for several years but had just never broken through into the mainstream the way they did with angry birds. The idea for the game came about in 2009 when the company was looking at different ideas for games which they thought could become popular. It was a simple idea _ from some sketches of wingless and legless birds which were angry. The sketches caught on among the staff who in turn created a unique design which became angry birds. The pigs were added into the game later in the development as an enemy. During this period of development, pig flu was being heavily reported in the news which is where the idea for the pigs appeared. The basis of the game is very simple and is not unique to angry birds but has been seen in many other games previously. It's a simple physics/puzzle game. The player is given a slingshot and a limited supply of angry birds with different characteristics. Some birds are faster than others while others can be split into multiple birds. You control the trajectory of the birds with the slingshot which launches them towards rickety structures containing your main enemy, the pigs. In order to advance to the next level you must eliminate all of the pigs before your birds run out. Rovio has released several different versions of the game at this point. The original, Seasons, and Rio. Seasons is a collection of holiday themed versions of the game while Rio was a movie tie in for the movie Rio. All versions continue to be updated with new levels which are free to those who have previously purchased the game. In the game, the birds _ . A) have different kinds that only include faster birds and slower birds B) have to be controlled to kill all of the pigs before your birds run out C) are the enemy of the pigs which have been infected with pig flu D) lose their temper for the pig flu so they try to kill the pigs
A: B
Q: Wednesday, October 29, 2008. The prefix = st1 /United Statesfederal government had two young men in the state ofTennesseearrested on October 22 on unknown charges. In court documents published on Monday, it came to light that the men had discussed attacking an African - American school and killing 14 of them. Another crime was about planning to murder Presidential candidate Barack Obama. According to their affidavits , the suspects' "final act of violence" would be when they attacked Obama while wearing white suits and top hats and driving "their vehicle as fast as they could toward Obama shooting at him from the windows." The two suspects are Paul Schlesselman, 18, of West Helena, Arkansas and Daniel Cowart, 20, of Bells, Tennessee. According to the court papers, they met last month over the Internet through a friend. Schlesselman and Cowart are believed to share "very strong views" about White Power. Schlesselman listed "being racist" as his occupation on his MySpace page. He further wrote: "I'm white. I'm proud. I get angry. I like guns." Cowart also had a MySpace page on which photos of guns were presented under a heading of "My Guns". On his page he wrote, "Better to die quick fighting on your feet than to live forever begging on your knees." Some have questioned the pair's ability to carry out the charged plan, but authorities have been very concerned about Obama as the first black presidential candidate from a major party. "We honestly don't know if they had the ability or the skill to carry out the kind of plan that they talked about." said Malcolm Wiley, of the United States Secret Service in an interview with The New York Times. "But we take any threat seriously no matter how big or how small it is." Cowart and Schlesselman are scheduled to appear before a judge on Thursday. What can we infer from the news? A) The two young men strongly believed that the president should be a white man. B) Most of the white people in the United Statesdon't like Barack Obama. C) The two young men planned to shoot President Barack Obama. D) The two young men were innocent in fact.
A: A