2011年职称英语考试理工类C级模拟(8)

第4部分：阅读理解(第31～45题，每题3分，共45分)

下面有3篇短文.每篇短文后有5道题，请根据短文内容，为每题确定1个最佳选项。

第一篇Light Night.Dark Stars

Thousands of people around the globe step outside to gaze at their night sky On a

clear night.with no clouds，moonlight，or artificial lights to block the view，people can see

more than 14，000 stars in the sky，says Dennis Ward.an astronomer(天文学家)with the

University Corporation for Atmospheric Research(UCAR)in Boulder.Cole But when

people are surrounded by city lights，he says，they’re lucky to see 150 stars.

If you’ve ever driven toward a big city at night and seen its glow from a great

distance，you’ve witnessed light pollution It occurs when light from streetlights.office

buildings，signs，and other sources streams into space and illuminates(照亮)the night

sky This haze(朦胧)of light makes many stars invisible to people on Earth Even at

night.big cities like New York glow from light pollution，making stargazing difficult

Dust and particles of pollution from factories and industries worsen the effects of

light pollution“If ore city has a lot more light pollution than another.”Ward says，"that city

will suffer the effects of light pollution on a much greater scale”

Hazy skies also make it far more difficult for astronomers to do their jobs

Cities are getting larger Suburbs are growing in once dark rural areas Light from all

this new development is increasingly obscuring(使变模糊)the faint(微弱的)light given

off by distant stars And if scientists can’t locate these objects they can’t learn more

about them

Light pollution doesn’t only affect star visibility It can harm wildlife too It's clear that

artificial light can attract animals，making them go off course There’s increasing

evidence，for example，that migrating(迁徙)birds use sunsets and sunrises to help find

their way.says Sydney Gauthreaux Jr.a scientist at Clemson University in South

Carolina. “When light occurs at night，”he says，“it has a very disruptive(破坏性的)

Influence.” Sometimes birds fly into lighted towers high-rises and cables from radio and

television towers Experts estimate that millions of birds die this way every year.