第3章 Lesson 3: Global Climate Change

Temperatures around the world are getting warmer. Scientists say that the Earth is heating up. There is evidence to support this. Polar ice shelves are breaking into small pieces. Glaciers all over the world are melting. Polar bears are drowning because the ice floes they walk on are melting away. Areas of dry land are expanding, and drought occurs more often now. Some people say that strange weather patterns are caused by global warming.

Some say that what is happening now is part of a natural cycle, but a more popular belief is that the Earth is heating up because human activity is increasing the greenhouse effect. The greenhouse effect occurs naturally. Our Earth has a layer of atmosphere around it. The Sun's rays pass through this layer. Some of this radiation bounces off the Earth back into outer space, but most stays around the Earth. This makes the Earth about 16 degrees warmer than it would otherwise be. However, human activities are putting greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, blocking most of the radiation from leaving. So the Earth is getting warmer.

There is a lot we can do to slow down global warming. First, we must demand that our governments make better choices. We have to make our governments lessen our need for fossil fuels such as coal and oil (they create greenhouse gases) by developing alternative sources of energy such as solar, tidal, hydroelectric, and geothermal power. Governments must also provide more mass transit options, make more parks, create more recycling programs, and plant more trees.

We can also do things with our own families. We can share car rides, take public transportation, and ride our bikes more. We can plant trees and recycle things, too. We can turn off the lights and our computers when we don't need them. We can try to live a greener life. It's not too late, but we must act now!

I. Word List

glaciers: large ice fields at the top of mountains

expanding: getting bigger

drought: extreme dryness for a long time

recycling: using materials numerous times

II. Good or bad? Write G if this is good for the Earth, or B if this is bad for the Earth.

___ 1. Some people burn coal to generate electricity.

___ 2. More people are riding bicycles.

___ 3. Glaciers all over the world are melting.

___ 4. There are more and more cars on the roads.

___ 5. Radiation is being blocked from leaving the Earth's atmosphere.

III. What's the word? Find the correct words in the reading.

1. a kind of wild animal: p _ _ _ _ b _ _ _

2. energy from the Sun: s _ _ _ _

3. other choices: a _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

4. a fossil fuel: c _ _ _

5. things that happen over and over again: p _ _ _ _ _ _ _

IV. Fill in the blanks—Choose words from the reading to complete the sentences.

1. The Earth is getting w _ _ _ _ _.

2. Governments must create more p _ _ _ _.

3. We should turn off l _ _ _ _ _ when we aren't using them.

4. The g _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ effect occurs naturally.

5. Hydroelectric power is an a _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ energy source.