英语听力精选进阶版 6375

It's not every day that you find a motorcycle or a concrete dock washed ashore¹, but that's what people on the West coast of the United States have been spotting. These items were among debris² from the March 2011 tsunami³ in Japan.

It's been estimated that 1.5 million tonnes of debris is floating through the North Pacific Ocean and new items are frequently dragged up onto sandy beaches.

Volunteer beachcombers have been working at Yaquina Bay in Oregon to clean the beach of all rubbish. The group - college students, pensioners⁴, surfers and locals - work alongside State Park officers and is given gloves to protect their hands. There's been no evidence yet of any radioactive debris, but they are all too aware of the meltdown at the Fukushima nuclear plant after the tsunami.

The arrival of alien species is another cause for concern in the US. The concrete dock that drifted in to Newport, Oregon, was found to contain sea creatures originating from Japan that could threaten the local ecosystem⁵. Some starfish prey⁶ on native marine⁷ organisms and the Wakame kelp is known as one of the worst invasive species outside its natural environment.

As the Hatfield Marine Science Centre's John Chapman explained on the International Business Times website: "In sheltered waters, the Wakame kelp can quickly form large beds that block out sunlight essential for the survival of native kelps, seaweeds, and other marine algae⁸."

The debris is also a reminder⁹ of the human suffering brought by the tsunami that killed more than 15,000 people.

Jack¹⁰ Barth, a professor at Oregon State University's College of Oceanic Atmospheric¹¹ Sciences, points out that some personal items found can provide some closure for families in Japan.

Sixteen-year-old Misaki Murakami, a tsunami survivor¹², was reunited with his football after it washed up in Alaska. His signature on the ball made it possible to trace him.

Murakami said: "I'm very grateful as I've so far found nothing that I'd owned."

Quiz 测验

1. How much debris from the tsunami in Japan is estimated to be floating through the North Pacific Ocean?

1.5 million tonnes.

2. In the material washed ashore, what is a cause for concern in the US?

The possibility of radioactive debris and species of animals and plants that might damage local ecosystems¹³.

3. Is the following statement true, false or not given? Students are part of a group of beachcombers paid a salary to clean beaches in Oregon.

False. The group is made up of volunteers, according to the article.

4. What made it possible to identify the football's owner?

His signature on the ball.

5. What marine creatures are mentioned in the article?

Starfish (kelp is a plant not a creature)

Glossary 词汇表

washed ashore 被冲上岸

the coast 海岸

to spot 偶然看到

debris 碎片，残骸

to float 浮

to drag 拖

a beachcomber 海滩清理者

a surfer 冲浪者

radioactive 放射性的

meltdown 彻底崩溃

to drift in 在海上漂流

the ecosystem 生态系统

a starfish 海星

Wakame kelp 裙带菜海带

to block out 阻挡

a seaweed 海藻

marine algae 海洋藻类植物

closure 完结

to trace 跟踪

1 ashore   

adv.在(向)岸上，上岸

参考例句：

• The children got ashore before the tide came in.涨潮前，孩子们就上岸了。
• He laid hold of the rope and pulled the boat ashore.他抓住绳子拉船靠岸。

2 debris   

n.瓦砾堆，废墟，碎片

参考例句：

• After the bombing there was a lot of debris everywhere.轰炸之后到处瓦砾成堆。
• Bacteria sticks to food debris in the teeth,causing decay.细菌附着在牙缝中的食物残渣上，导致蛀牙。

3 tsunami   

n.海啸

参考例句：

• Powerful quake sparks tsunami warning in Japan.大地震触发了日本的海啸预警。
• Coastlines all around the Indian Ocean inundated by a huge tsunami.大海啸把印度洋沿岸地区都淹没了。

4 pensioners   

n.领取退休、养老金或抚恤金的人( pensioner的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He intends to redistribute income from the middle class to poorer paid employees and pensioners. 他意图把中产阶级到低薪雇员和退休人员的收入做重新分配。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I am myself one of the pensioners upon the fund left by our noble benefactor. 我自己就是一个我们的高贵的施主遗留基金的养老金领取者。 来自辞典例句

5 ecosystem   

n.生态系统

参考例句：

• This destroyed the ecosystem of the island.这样破坏了岛上的生态系统。
• We all have an interest in maintaining the integrity of the ecosystem.维持生态系统的完整是我们共同的利益。

6 prey   

n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨

参考例句：

• Stronger animals prey on weaker ones.弱肉强食。
• The lion was hunting for its prey.狮子在寻找猎物。

7 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

8 algae   

n.水藻，海藻

参考例句：

• Most algae live in water.多数藻类生长在水中。
• Algae grow and spread quickly in the lake.湖中水藻滋蔓。

9 reminder   

n.提醒物，纪念品；暗示，提示

参考例句：

• I have had another reminder from the library.我又收到图书馆的催还单。
• It always took a final reminder to get her to pay her share of the rent.总是得发给她一份最后催缴通知，她才付应该交的房租。

10 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。

11 atmospheric   

adj.大气的，空气的；大气层的；大气所引起的

参考例句：

• Sea surface temperatures and atmospheric circulation are strongly coupled.海洋表面温度与大气环流是密切相关的。
• Clouds return radiant energy to the surface primarily via the atmospheric window.云主要通过大气窗区向地表辐射能量。

12 survivor   

n.生存者，残存者，幸存者

参考例句：

• The sole survivor of the crash was an infant.这次撞车的惟一幸存者是一个婴儿。
• There was only one survivor of the plane crash.这次飞机失事中只有一名幸存者。

13 ecosystems   

n.生态系统( ecosystem的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• There are highly sensitive and delicately balanced ecosystems in the forest. 森林里有高度敏感、灵敏平衡的各种生态系统。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Madagascar's ecosystems range from rainforest to semi-desert. 马达加斯加生态系统类型多样，从雨林到半荒漠等不一而足。 来自辞典例句