[单项选择]It’s perhaps the world’s most famous underwater attraction, immortalized in film and in legend: the Titanic. But now experts say the ocean liner, once a wonder of the high seas, is falling to pieces.
Capt. Alfred McLaren, the scientist who in July led the most recent expedition to the ship’s underwater grave, said his team saw clear signs of the wreck’s accelerating decay. There was damage likely caused by rust and sea life, and the captain’s cabin had collapsed.
"I was absolutely astonished," McLaren said.
Worse still, the fallen mast that crushed the ship’s deck is believed by many to be the result of an unapproved salvage operation. "It was almost depressing to see how quickly she was deteriorating," McLaren says. "I would be really surprised if there’s very much standing up from the bottom, two decades from now."
Ed Kamuda, who runs the Titanic Historical Society in Springfield, Mass., says adventure tourists-who pay $36,000 each to visit the
A. vague
B. controllable
C. promising
D. discouraging