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1、科技英语文章Arctic MeltEarths North and South Poles are famous for being cold and icy. Last year, however, the amount of ice in the Arctic Ocean fell to a record low1.Normally, ice builds in Arctic waters around the North Pole each winter and shrinks during the summer. But for many years, the amount of ic

2、e left by the end of summer has been declining.Since 1979, each decade has seen an 11.4 percent drop in end-of-summer ice cover2. Between 1981 and 2000, ice in the Arctic lost 22 percent of its thickness - becoming 1.13 meters thinner.Last summer, Arctic sea ice reached its skimpiest levels yet. By

3、the end of summer 2007, the ice had shrunk to cover just 4.2 million square kilometers. Thats 38 percent less area than the average cover at that time of year. Andits a very large 23 percent below the previous record low, which was set just 2 years ago. This continuing trend has scientists concerned

4、There may be several reasons for the ice melt, says Jinlun Zhang, an oceanographer at the University of Washington3 in Seattle. Unusually strong winds blew through the Arctic last summer. The winds pushed much of the ice out of the central Arctic, leaving a large area of thin ice and open water4.Sci

5、entists also suspect that fewer clouds cover the Arctic now than in the past. Clearer skies allow more sunlight to reach the ocean. The extra heat warms both the water and the atmosphere. In parts of the Arctic Ocean last year, surface temperatures were 3.5Celsius warmer than average and 1.5 warmer

6、than the previous record high5.With both air and water getting warmer, the ice is melting from both above and below. In some parts of the Beaufort Sea6, north of Alaska and western Canada, ice that measured 3.3m thick at the beginning of the summer measured just 50 centimeters by seasons end.The new

7、 measurements suggest that melting is far more severe than scientists have seen by just looking at ice cover from above, says Donald K. Perovich, a geophysicist at the U. S. Army Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory in Hanover, N.H.7Some scientists fear that the Arctic is stuck in a warm

8、ing trend from which it may never recover.练习：1. Which of the following is closest in meaning to the word build in the first sentence of the second paragraph?A) Construct. B) Extend. C) Create. D) Expand.2. What is the ice cover in the Arctic by the end of 2007 summer?A) 4.2 million square kilometers

9、. B) 11.4 million square kilometers. C) 1.13 million square kilometers. D) 38 million square kilometers.3. What are the reasons for the ice melt according to the scientists?A) Strong winds and clear skies. B) Long summer and short winter.C) Open water and thin ice. D) Light clouds and light winds.4.

10、 Why is the ice melting from both above and below?A) Because extra heat warms the air.B) Because extra heat warms the water.C) Because the temperature above the water is higher. D) Both A and B.5. What can be a possible title for the passage?A) What are scientists looking for in the Arctic Ocean? B)

11、 What are scientists doing in the Arctic Ocean?C) Why are scientists worrying about the Arctic Ocean? D) Why are scientists interested in the Arctic Ocean?Experts Call for Local and Regional Control of Sites for Radioactive WasteThe withdrawal of Nevadas Yucca Mountain as a potential nuclear waste r

12、epository1 has reopened the debate over how and where to dispose of spent nuclear fuel and high-level nuclear waste. In an article in the July 10 issue of Science, University of Michigan2 geologist Rodney Ewing and Princeton University3 nuclear physicist Frank von Hippel argue that, although federal

13、 agencies should set standards and issue licenses for the approval of nuclear facilities, local communities and states should have the final approval on the siting of these facilities. The authors propose the development of multiple sites that would service the regions where nuclear reactors are loc

14、ated.The main goal, should be to provide the Unied States with multiple process that requires acceptance by host communities and states, the authors write.Ewing and yon Hippel also analyze the reasons why Yucca Mountain, selected by Congress4 in 1987 as the only site to be investigated for long-term

15、 nuclear waste disposal, finally was shelved5 after more than three decades of often controversial debate. The reasons include the sites geological problems, management problems, important changes in the Environmental Protection Agencys standard, unreliable funding and the failure to involve local c

16、ommunities in the decision-making process.Going forward, efforts should be directed at locating storage facilities in the nations northeastern, southeastern, midwestern and western regions, and states within a given region should be responsible for developing solutions that suit their particular cir

17、cumstances. Transportation of nuclear waste over long distances, which was a concern with the Yucca Mountain site, would be less of a problem because temporary storage or geological disposal sites could be located closer to reactors.This regional approach would be similar to the current approach in

18、Europe, where spent nuclear fuel6 and high-level nuclear waste7 from about 150 reactors and reprocessing plants is to be moved to a number of geological repositories in a variety of rock types8, said Rodney Ewing, who has written extensively about the impact of nuclear waste management on the enviro

19、nment and who has analyzed safety assessment criteria for the controversial Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository.词汇：radioactive adj.放射性的 shelve v.搁置 repository n.储藏地，储藏室 controversial adj.有争议的geologist n.地质学家 reactor n.反应堆，反应器 geological adj.地质的注释：1. The withdrawal of Nevadas Yucca Mountain as a

20、potential nuclear waste repository: Nevadas Yucca Mountain：美国境内的内华达州尤卡山。nuclear waste repository：核废物处理库。美国能源部部长朱棣文 2009 年 3 月 5 日表示，拟在内华 达州尤卡山建设的核废物最终处理库将不再是美国储存高放废物的一个选项。2. University of Michigan：美国密歇根大学，建于 1817 年。3. Princeton University：美国普林斯顿大学，建于 1746 年。4. Congress: 美国国会，美国最高立法机关，由参议院(Senate)和众议

21、院(House of Representatives)组成。5. was shelved：.被束之高阁。6. spent nuclear fuel：也叫做 used nuclear fuel，一般译为“乏核燃料”。7. high-level nuclear waste：高(强度)放(射性)核废物。8. geological repositories in a variety of rock types：各种不同岩层中的地质处置 库。geological repositories 指的是地表以下 3001500 米的稳定的地质体中建造的 用于最终处置高放废物和乏核燃料的工程设施。处置库是一个多重

22、屏障系统，工程屏障 由废物体、废物罐、外包装和缓冲回填材料组成，而天然屏障则是能有效阻滞放射性核 素迁移的地质体，包括花岗岩、粘土岩、凝灰岩和岩盐等。许多专家认为地质处置是安 全的，技术上是可行的，对环境是无害的。练习：1. Which of the following words can best substitute the word withdrawal in the first paragraph?A Retirement. B Canceling. C Replaced. D Disposal.2. According to Rodney Ewing and Frand von Hi

23、ppel, where to locate nuclear facilitiesA should be approved by the federal government.B should be approved by local people and states. C should be approved by Congress.D is not an important issue.3. What is NOT true about the 1987 decision by Congress concerning siting of nuclear waste disposal?A Y

24、ucca Mountain was selected as the only site for a nuclear waste repository.B The selection of Yucca Mountain for nuclear waste disposal caused much controversy.C The decision by Congress was put aside due to a number of problems. D The decision by Congress was accepted by local communities.4. What d

25、oes the author of the essay in the fourth paragraph want to say?A Efforts should be made to solve the problems of transportation of nuclear waste over long distance.B Efforts should be made to develop as many nuclear disposal sites in the US as possible.C Efforts should be made to develop nuclear di

26、sposal sites to suit the circumstances of the region.D Efforts should be made to build up temporary nuclear disposal sites as possible.5. What is meant by regional approach as mentioned in the last paragraph?A Waste disposal sites are located close to reactors and in places suitable for the regional circumstances.B Geological repositories are located in a variety of rock types.C Spent nuclear fuel and high level nuclear waste is moved to developing countries.D Waste disposal sites are located far away from reactors.