It seems impossible to have an honest conversation about global warming. I say this after diligently perusing the British government’s huge report released last week by Sir Nicholas Stern, former chief economist of the World Bank and now a high civil servant. The report is a masterpiece of misleading public relations. It foresees dire consequences if global warming isn’t curbed: a worldwide depression and flooding of many coastal cities. Meanwhile, the costs of minimizing these awful outcomes are small: only 1 percent of world economic output in 2050.
No sane person could fail to conclude that we should conquer global warming instantly, if not sooner. Who could disagree Well, me. Stem’s headlined conclusions are intellectual fictions. They’re essentially fabrications to justify an aggressive anti-global-warming agenda. The danger of that is that we’d end up with the worst of both worlds: a program that harms the economy without much cutting o
A. the annual emissions of the rich and poor countries
B. the current levels of emission and levels set by Stern
C. reducing greenhouse gases and sustaining economic growth
D. making proper policies and achieving technological advances
Passage Five
Faith in medicine runs deep in America. We spend more per person on health care than any other nation. Whether we eat too much or exercise too little, whether we’re turning gray or feeling blue, we look to some pill or procedure to make us better.
We assume that devoting ever more dollars to medicine will bring us longer, healthier lives. But there is mounting evidence that each new dollar we devote to the current health care system brings small and diminishing returns to public health. Today the United States spends more than $4,500 per person per year on health care. Costa Rica spends less than $300. Yet life expectancy at birth is nearly identical in both countries.
Despite the highly publicized "longevity revolution," life expectancy among the elderly in the United States is hardly improving. Yes, we are an aging society, but primarily because of falling birthrates. Younger Americans, meanwhile, are far more likely
A. the limits of medicine
B. the life hazards in the U.S
C. the barriers to a longer life
D. the problems with health investment
Portable devices are becoming lighter and more appealing. Books are being (1) into digital form by the thousands. The most important (2) forward may be in "digital ink," the technology used for (3) letters on a screen. A small company called E Ink has created a method for (4) tiny black and white capsules into words and (5) with an electronic charge. Because no power is used (6) the reader changes the page, devices with the technology could go (7) 20 books between battery charges. The text also looks just as (8) as ink on a printed page.
Sony is the first major player to take (9) of the technology. This year. it will market the Sony Reader, which uses E Ink and closely (10) the size, weight, and (11) of a book. The Reader will sell (12) about $ 400. Sony also will offer roughly 10,000 book (13) for download from its online store, (14) news stones.
Other play
A. lists
B. names
C. ranks
D. titles
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