英语听力精选进阶版 13680

Ocean life under threat

Summary21 February 2012

There's heightened concern about the future state of the world's oceans. New research indicates that if seawater continues to acidify at the rate currently seen then the marine¹ environment could lose about 30% of the diverse life forms that exist within it by the end of the century. The research was presented at a major meeting in Vancouver.

Reporter

Jonathan Amos

Report

Much of the carbon dioxide put into the atmosphere through fossil fuel burning is being absorbed by the seas. It's acidifying the waters, corroding² the shells and skeletons of corals, sea urchins³ and similar species. Scientists want to know how conditions might deteriorate⁴ in the future and have been looking at underwater volcanoes, where C02 naturally bubbles through the water.

The level of acidification in these places simulates what the global oceans might look like if we keep on emitting carbon dioxide. And the new data gathered by a Plymouth University team indicates the world's oceans could lose up to 30% of their biodiversity by 2100. Dr Jason-Hall Spencer led the research at volcanic⁵ vents⁶ in Europe, the US and in Asia.

CLIP: "What we notice, unfortunately, is there're very dramatic shifts in the ecosystem⁷. There's a tipping point that occurs at about the levels of ocean acidification we expect to see at the end of this century, but even before that - even within the next few years - the water becomes corrosive⁸ to the shells of organisms, and some corals can't survive."

The scientists warn that the rates of change seen in our oceans are unprecedented⁹ in the recent Earth history, and the damage our seas are on course to sustain could take thousands, even millions, of years to correct.

1 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。

2 corroding   

使腐蚀，侵蚀( corrode的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• That sour nature has started corroding those metal parts. 那酸质已开始腐蚀那金属部件。
• He was driven by a corroding rage for "perfection". 他受追求“完美境界”的极端热情所驱策。

3 urchins   

n.顽童( urchin的名词复数 )；淘气鬼；猬；海胆

参考例句：

• Some dozen barefooted urchins ganged in from the riverside. 几十个赤足的顽童从河边成群结队而来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• People said that he had jaundice and urchins nicknamed him "Yellow Fellow." 别人说他是黄胆病，孩子们也就叫他“黄胖”了。 来自汉英文学 - 中国现代小说

4 deteriorate   

v.变坏；恶化；退化

参考例句：

• Do you think relations between China and Japan will continue to deteriorate?你认为中日关系会继续恶化吗？
• He held that this would only cause the situation to deteriorate further.他认为，这只会使局势更加恶化。

5 volcanic   

adj.火山的；象火山的；由火山引起的

参考例句：

• There have been several volcanic eruptions this year.今年火山爆发了好几次。
• Volcanic activity has created thermal springs and boiling mud pools.火山活动产生了温泉和沸腾的泥浆池。

6 vents   

（气体、液体等进出的）孔、口( vent的名词复数 )； （鸟、鱼、爬行动物或小哺乳动物的）肛门； 大衣等的)衩口； 开衩

参考例句：

• He always vents his anger on the dog. 他总是拿狗出气。
• The Dandelion Patch is the least developed of the four active vents. “蒲公英区”在这四个活裂口中是发育最差的一个。

7 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。

8 corrosive   

adj.腐蚀性的；有害的；恶毒的

参考例句：

• Many highly corrosive substances are used in the nuclear industry.核工业使用许多腐蚀性很强的物质。
• Many highly corrosive substances are used in the nuclear industry.核工业使用许多腐蚀性很强的物质。

9 unprecedented   

adj.无前例的，新奇的

参考例句：

• The air crash caused an unprecedented number of deaths.这次空难的死亡人数是空前的。
• A flood of this sort is really unprecedented.这样大的洪水真是十年九不遇。