Assignment 6. 1. Read and translate the text

1. Read and translate the text.

Atmospheric pressure, as measured by a barometer, is another indicator of the weather. The amount of water vapor in the air is another predictor. Warm air can dissolve more water than cold air, just as hot tea dissolves more sugar than iced tea. The point at which the air cannot hold any more water is called the saturation point. On a warm day, if the air is saturated with moisture and the temperature drops, the excess water is squeezed out of the air. We see this moisture appearing as dew, fog, or clouds. If sufficient water is squeezed out, we have rain or, at temperatures below the freezing point, snow.

Today there exists a threat to the earth's climate from man-made chemical wastes. Meteorologists have known for a long time that the earth passes through cycles of warming and cooling. The earth has been gradually warming since the last ice age occurred about 18,000 years ago. Recently, however, scientists have become aware of the fact that our technical/industrial civilization may be causing changes in the earth’s atmosphere that could alter the weather and that these changes could be very dangerous and irreversible.

One problem is ozone depletion. The stratosphere, or upper atmosphere of the earth, contains a layer of ozone gas that protects the earth from the sun’s harmful ultraviolet rays. Recently, ozone concentrations over Antarctica have been dropping at an alarming rate. Researchers have determined that a group of man-made chemicals called chlorofluorocarbons are rising from the earth and destroying the ozone.

A second problem is the so-called greenhouse effect. Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere functions like the glass in a greenhouse, screening out excessive infrared rays and acting as an insulator to prevent heat from escaping at night. Without the protection of the atmosphere, temperatures on the earth could reach the extremes they do on the moon. If we continue to burn fossil fuels, the level of carbon dioxide in the air may increase to the point where it will blanket the earth and cause it to warm to a dangerous level.

It remains to be seen whether this warming trend will continue and, if so, whether scientists will be able to do something about it in time to avert disaster in the next century.

1. Reading Comprehension Questions.Choose the one best answer (A), (B), (C), (D) to finish a sentence.

1. The text primarily discusses

(A) weather researches.

(B) ultraviolet rays.

(C) technical/industrial civilization.

(D) weather indicators and its problems.

2. According to the text, the threat of weather warming

(A) has never been discussed.

(B) has been discussed.

(C) remains to be seen.

(D) is very interesting.

2. Choose the letter of the answer that best matches the meaning of the underlined word in each of the sentences:

1. The erosion of the mountainside was due to the heavy winds and rain.

(A) building up (C) reduction

(B) wearing away (D) increase

2. The windshield was shattered where the accident victim had bumped his head.

(A) broken into pieces (C) assembled

(B) hardened (D) dismounted

3. The computer has a word processing facility.

(A) habit (B) design (C) defect (D) advantage

4. No one has invented a perpetual motion machine; all machines require energy to keep them going.

(A) productive (C) permanent

(B) fast (D) slow

5. We observed the airplane take off and vanish in the distance.

(A) landing (C) disappear

(B) flow (D) appear