Reading passages

 
 
9 
is the work of man. The dominance of a single 
species type, homo sapiens, threatens to turn the rest 
of the living 'world upside down. With a population 
of barely six billion, humans are rapidly destroying 
irreplaceable ecosystems. This sixth round of global 
dying of species could be far larger than the first five. 
46 -According to the passage, the dominant belief 
among scientists is that ---- .
A) throughout history there have been periods when 
many species of life have become extinct
B) the present climatic change known as global 
warming is probably a natural phenomenon 
C) the Earth is in danger of being struck by an 
asteroid 
D) the present decline in the number of species is 
caused by the activities of mankind 
E) we are experiencing the fifth period of species 
dying out 
47 -From the passage, we understand that the 
term "homo sapiens‖ is ---- .
A) a method of analysing fossils 
B) a way of referring to a large number of species of 
flora and fauna 
C) another term for the human race 
D) an irreplaceable ecosystem which is being 
destroyed 
E) a hostile environment in which many species die 
 
48 -The author predicts that ---- .
A) there will be no harmful effects from so many 
species dying 
B) the world might be turned upside down by 
colliding with an asteroid 
C) mankind will find a solution to the problem 
D) more species may die out this time than ever 
before 
E) the human population will soon reach six billion 
Rays of sunlight travel from 150 million kilometres 
away, and when they reach the Earth, they are 
parallel rays. The curve of the Earth means that the 
rays are vertical at the Equator but at quite a low 
angle when they reach temperate latitudes. As the 
rays lose heat passing through the atmosphere, the 
more direct the journey, the greater the heat which 
penetrates through to the surface of the Earth. The 
vertical rays in equatorial latitudes mean that it is 
much hotter at the Equator than it is in the regions 
where the sun's rays strike at a low angle. It is these 
variations in temperature that are largely responsible 
for the changes in weather.