Ⅰ.阅读理解
Fires sweeping across the Amazon rainforest recently have been making the headlines as scientists and environmental groups are worried that they will worsen climate change crisis and endanger biodiversity (生态多样性)．
As the largest rainforest in the world, the Amazon rainforest is often called “the lungs of the world”．It is also home to about 3 million species of plants and animals, and 1 million local people.The vast area of rainforest plays an important role in the world's ecosystem because it absorbs heat instead of reflecting heat back into the atmosphere.It also stores carbon dioxide and produces oxygen, ensuring that less carbon is released, reducing the effects of climate change.
“Any destruction of forest is a danger to biodiversity and the people who use that biodiversity，”Thomas Lovejoy, an ecologist at George Mason University told National Geographic.“The great danger is that a lot of carbon goes into the atmosphere，”he stressed.“In the midst of the global climate crisis, we cannot afford more damage to a major source of oxygen and biodiversity.The Amazon rainforest must be protected，” UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said.
Data from the National Institute for Space Research show that a total of 71,497 forest fires were registered in Brazil in the first 8 months of 2019, up from 39,194 in the same period in 2018.“We estimate that the forest areas in the Brazilian Amazon have decreased by 20 to 30 percent compared to the last 12 months，” Carlos Nobre, a researcher at the University of Sao Paulo, told German broadcaster Deutsche Welle.
Brazil owns about 60 percent of the Amazon rainforest whose degradation(恶化)could have severe consequences for global climate.The extent of the area ruined by fires has yet to be determined, but the emergency has gone beyond Brazil's borders.
语篇解读：本文是一篇说明文。文章主要介绍了雨林火灾造成严重的后果以及保护亚马孙热带雨林的紧急性。
1．What is the second paragraph mainly about?
A．The great role of the Amazon rainforest.
B．The effects of consistent climate change.
C．The causes of the decreasing biodiversity.
D．The results of the Amazon rainforest fires.
解析：选A 段落大意题。根据第二段第一句和第三句可知，亚马孙热带雨林被称为“地球之肺”，广袤的雨林在世界生态系统中扮演着重要的角色。由此可知，第二段主要讲亚马孙雨林的重要作用。故选A项。
2．Why does the author mention the figures in the fourth paragraph?
A．To explain the process of the research.
B．To present the bad influence of forest fires.
C．To prove the great importance of the rainforest.
D．To show the urgency of protecting the rainforest.
解析：选D 写作意图题。根据第四段第一句可知，巴西森林火灾的数量2018年前8个月是39 194,2019年前8个月是71 497。再根据第二句可知，巴西亚马孙河流域的森林面积比过去12个月减少了20%到30%。最后再根据第三段最后一句中的“The Amazon rainforest must be protected”和最后一段最后一句可推知，作者提到第四段中的数字是为了说明保护雨林的紧急性。
3．What does the author want to tell us in the passage?
A．The dry weather leads to the rainforest fires.
B．The biodiversity makes the rainforest unique.
C．The rainforest fires result in serious consequences.
D．The global climate crisis brings more rainforest fires.
解析：选C 主旨大意题。根据第三段第一句可知，雨林火灾威胁生物多样性和人类生活；再根据最后一段第一句可知，巴西拥有大约60%的亚马孙雨林，其恶化会对全球气候有严重后果。由此可推知，作者旨在告诉我们，雨林火灾会造成严重后果。
4．Which section of a newspaper might this passage probably be taken from?
A．Culture and life. B．Nature and geography.
C．Humankind and society. D．Science and technology.
解析：选B 文章出处题。根据第一段中的“they will worsen climate change crisis and endanger biodiversity (生态多样性)”和第二段第三句并结合全文内容可知，本文讲述的是亚马孙雨林火灾及其严重后果，所以本文最有可能摘自报纸的自然地理部分。
