2014年12月大学英语四级仔细阅读练习及答案（7）

　　Section C

　　Directions: There are 2 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A), B), C) and D). You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre.

　　根据以下资料，回答56-60题：

　　Passage One

　　Quesaons 56 to 60 are based on thefollowingpassage.

　　The vast glaciers of western Antarctica are rapidly melting and losing ice to the sea and almost certainly have“passed the point of no return，”according to new work by two separate teams of scientists.

　　The likely result：a rise in global sea levels of 4 feet or more in the coming centuries，says research made public Monday by scientists at the University of Washington，the University of California-Irvine and NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

　　“It really is an amazingly distressing situation，”says Pennsylvania State University glaciologist(冰川学家)Sridhar Anandakrishnan，who was not affiliated with either study.“This is a huge part of West Antarctica.and it seems to have been kicked over the edge.”

　　The researchers say the fate of the glaciers is almost certainly beyond hope.

　　One study shows that a river of ice called Thwaites Glacier is probably in the early stages of collapse.Total collapse is almost inevitable.the study shows.

　　A second study shows that a halfdozen glaciers are pouring ice into the sea at an ever-greater pace.That will trigger 4 feet of sea-level rise，says study author Eric Rignot，a glaciologist at the University of Califomia-Irvine，and NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

　　“The retreat of ice in that area is unstoppable，”Rignot said at a briefing Monday,adding that the glaciers have“passed the point of no return.”

　　Rignot and his team used data from satellites and aircraft to map changes in six West Antarctic glaciers and the terrain underlying these massive ice floes(浮冰).The data show the glaciers are stretching out，thinning and shrinking in volume.They’re A.so flowing faster from the continent’s interior to the sea，dumping larger quantities of ice into the ocean than before and thereby raising sea levels.

　　At the same time，the portion of each glacier projecting into the sea is being melted from below by warm ocean water.That leads to a vicious cycle of more thinning and faster flow,and the local Terrain offers no barrier to the glaciers’retreat，the researchers report in an upcoming issue of Geophysical Research Leaers.

　　A report in this week’s Science says the Thwaites Glacier will collapse.perhaps in 200 years.The paper doesn’t specify the amount of sea-level rise associated with nlwaites’demise.

　　56、 Who contributed to the Monday research?

　　A.The two separate teams of scientists.

　　B.Scientists at the University of Washington，of California.Irvine and NASA's Lab.

　　C.Scientists at Pennsylvania State University.

　　D.Several glaciologists.

　　57、 What is the current situation of Thwaites Glacier?

　　A.It is on the edge of inevitable collapsing.

　　B.It has completely gone.

　　C.It is becoming 1arger in volume.

　　D.It is flowing to the sea.

　　58、 What are the problems ofAntarcfic glaciers?

　　A.They are becoming smaller in volume.

　　B.They are flowing at a faster speed to the sea.

　　C.They ale pouring more and mole ice into the sea.

　　D.All the above.

　　59、 What does the report in Geophysical Research Letters show?

　　A.The ice poured into the sea is being melted from above.

　　B.The melting of the ice can result in the vicious cycle of the glaciers’melting.

　　C.The local terrain has nothing to do with glacier retreat.

　　D.Warm ocean water can slow down the glaciers’melting.

　　60、 According to the passage，what do the words“passed the point of no return”mean(Line 2，Para.1)?

　　A.The glaciers can’t flow back to the continents.

　　B.The glaciers are different from what they were years ago.

　　C.The melting of glaciers has come to the stage of being inevitable.

　　D.The speed of glacier melting can’t return to the former one.