1、Inside the Fight for Cleaner Air空气污染亟待解决，英国牛津有话说At first glance, Londons Oxford Street looks like any other clean urban corridor. Trees bloom. Taxis honk. Shoppers flock to stores like Starbucks, Uniqlo and the Gap. Of all the words you could use to describe this destination, dangerous would be low
2、on the list.But the air that flows through Oxford Street is far from pleasing.Over time, it has become filled with nitrogen dioxide, a pollutant that is invisible to the naked eye and contributes to a number of health issuesasthma, lung disease, even deathif breathed in on a regular basis. In August
3、, Londons mayor, Sadiq Khan, rated Oxford as “the most polluted street in the world” in terms of nitrogen dioxide.This is not the narrative were used to hearing about air pollution, which for years has been associated with obvious markers, like fumes and smog, in developing countries.Now, however, i
4、t affects everyone. A recent report from the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that roughly 9 out of 10 people live in areas with excessive air pollution.How did things get so bad? The answers depend on where you live. In the developing world, the main culprit is rapid industrial growth, whi
5、ch has led to the creation of dirty factories and coal-fired power plants. In Europe, its mostly the rise of diesel-powered cars, which emit nitrogen dioxide. Globally, though, lawmakers have lately ignored the problem until it arrives at their doorstep.Slowly, thats starting to change. In London, O
6、xford Street and other polluted roads will soon be permanently car-free. In Los Angeles, transit officials have cited air pollution as a key driver behind a move to electric buses. Many policymakers hope measures to address climate change, like last years Paris Agreement, will also help reduce pollu
7、tion.These moves represent an important start, but a real push to clean the air will take years if not decades. The biggest barrier to such efforts may be the cost, real or imagined. Developing countries rely on factories to fuel growth, and officials have long feared that breaking that habit may hu
8、rt their economies.In the meantime, a group of scientists, environmentalists and entrepreneurs are trying to tackle the problem on their own. Among them: Vogmask and Cambridge Mask Co., which offer stylish versions of the N95 air-filtration mask, and TZOA, whose Fitbit-like device allows users to tr
9、ack the air quality around them in real time. Of course, these efforts are treating the symptoms, not the problem. But for many, thats better than nothing.（选自TIME）1. Which of the following statements is true according to the passage? A. Traditional air pollution markers include fumes, smog and nitro
10、gen dioxide. B. Londons Oxford Street was rated as the most polluted place in the world. C. Many health issues in London are attributed to the traffic in Oxford Street. D. Now air pollution affects only those in developing countries.2. The underlined word “culprit” can be replaced with “ A. reason B
11、. result C. target D. interest3. All the following are contributing factors to the seriousness of air pollution except A. dirty factories and coal-fired power plants in developing countries B. some tourist destinations filled with visitors C. lawmakers failure to address the problem before its too l
12、ate D. the rise of diesel-powered cars in European countries4. From the last paragraph, we can infer that A. developing countries lag behind in their efforts to deal with air pollution B. some companies have already come up with effective measures to deal with air pollution C. scientists, environmen
13、talists and entrepreneurs have made vain efforts D. although current efforts cannot resolve air pollution directly, they are worth making译文：乍一看，伦敦的牛津街看起来就像其他任何干净的城市走廊一样。树木盛开。出租车鸣笛。购物者涌向星巴克，优衣库和Gap等商店。在您可以用来描述此目的地的所有单词中，危险在列表中会很低。但是，流经牛津街的空气远非令人愉悦。随着时间的流逝，空气中充满了二氧化氮，这是一种肉眼看不见的污染物，并导致许多健康问题，例如哮喘，肺病甚至死
14、亡。如果定期呼吸。伦敦市长萨迪克汗在8月份就二氧化氮的水平将牛津大学评为“世界上污染最严重的街道”。这不是我们习惯于听到的关于空气污染的叙述，多年来，空气污染一直与发展中国家的明显标志物如烟和烟雾相关联。但是现在，它影响到每个人。世界卫生组织最近的一份报告估计，十分之九的人生活在空气污染严重的地区。事情怎么这么糟？答案取决于您的住所。在发展中国家，主要的罪魁祸首是工业的快速增长，这导致了肮脏的工厂和燃煤电厂的建立。在欧洲，这主要是排放二氧化氮的柴油动力汽车的兴起。不过，在全球范围内，立法者最近一直忽略了这个问题，直到问题解决之道。慢慢地，这种情况开始改变。在伦敦，牛津街和其他污染道路不久将永久
15、禁止车辆通行。在洛杉矶，过境官员将空气污染归咎于改用电动公交车。许多决策者希望诸如去年的巴黎协定等应对气候变化的措施也将有助于减少污染。这些举动是一个重要的开始，但是真正推动净化空气将需要数年甚至数十年的时间。进行此类工作的最大障碍可能是成本，无论是实际成本还是预期成本。发展中国家依靠工厂来促进增长，官员们长期以来一直担心打破这种习惯可能会损害其经济。同时，一群科学家，环保主义者和企业家正试图自己解决问题。其中包括：Vogmask和Cambridge Mask Co.，它们提供N95空气过滤口罩的时尚版本，以及TZOA，其类似Fitbit的设备可以使用户实时跟踪周围的空气质量。当然，这些努力是
16、在治疗症状，而不是问题。但是对于许多人来说，总比没有好。答案及解析： 1. B细节题，考查文中具体信息解析：第三段中有 “This is not the narrative were used to hearing about air pollution, which for years has been associated with obvious markers, like fumes and smog, in developing countries.”并没有nitrogen dioxide(二氧化氮)，所以A错。第二段有 “In August, Londons mayor, Sadi
17、q Khan, rated Oxford as “the most polluted street in the world in terms of nitrogen dioxide. ”所以B正确。第二段中有 “But the air that flows through Oxford Street is far from pleasing. Over time, it has become filled with nitrogen dioxide, a pollutant that is invisible to the naked eye and contributes to a num
18、ber of health issues”, 所以C错。第四段中有 “Now, however, it affects everyone.” 所以D错误。 2. A猜测词义题，考查根据上下文推断单词和短语的含义解析：culprit为“罪魁祸首、始作俑者”，第五段的第三句意为“在发展中国家，空气污染的罪魁祸首是快速的工业增长。”因而A更接近 。 3. B细节题，考查文中具体信息解析：由第五段中 “In Europe, its mostly the rise of diesel-powered cars,” “which has led to the creation of dirty facto
19、ries and coal-fired power plants,” “lawmakers have lately ignored the problem until it arrives at their doorstep.” 可知, A、C、D正确, 所以选B, 没有提及。 4. D判断推理题，考查做出判断和推理解析：最后一段有 “Of course, these efforts are treating the symptoms, not the problem. But for many, thats better than nothing.” 虽然全球对于空气污染治理问题存在一些分歧，目前也没有多少起色，但这总比什么都不做强，因而选D。
