评论
打印
Passage Two
Questions 51 to 55 are based on the following passage.
Popping food into the microwave for a couple of minutes may seem utterly harmless, and Europe's stock of these quick-cooking ovens emit as much carbon as nearly 7million cars, a new study has found, and the problem is growing. With costs falling and kitchen appliances becoming "status" users, owners are throwing many microwave after an average of eight years. This is pushing sales of new microwave which are expected to reach 135 million annually in the EU by the end of the decade.
A study by the University of Manchester worked out the emissions of carbon dioxide -- the main greenhouse gas responsible for climate change -- at every stage of microwaves, from manufacture to waste disposal. "It is electricity consumption by microwaves that has the biggest impact on the environment," say the authors, who also calculate that the emissions from using 19 microwaves over a year are the same as those from a car. According to the same study, efforts to reduce consumption should focus on improving consumer awareness and behaviour to use appliances more efficiently. For example, electricity consumption by microwaves can be reduced by adjusting the time of cooking to the type of food."
However, David Reay, professor of carbon management argues that, although microwaves use a great deal of enery, their emissions are minor compared to those from cars. In the UK alone and these emit way more than all the emissions from microwaves in the EU. Backing this up, recent data show that passenger cars in the UK emitted 69m tonnes of CO2 in 2015. This is 10 times the amount this new microwave oven study estimates for annual emissions for all the microwave ovens in the whole of the EU." further, the energy used by microwaves is lower than any other form of cooking. Among common kitchen appliances used for cooking, microwaves are the most energy efficient, followed by a stove and finally a standard oven. Thus, rising microwave sales could be seen as a positive thing.
51. What is the finding of the new study?
A) Quick-cooking microwave ovens have become more popular.
B) The frequent use of microwaves may do harm to our health.
C) CO2 emissions constitute a major threat to the environment.
D) The use of microwaves emits more CO2 than people think.
52. Why are the sales of microwaves expected to rise?
A) They are becoming more afrdabla.
B) They have a shorter life cycle than other appliances.
C) They are gtting much easier to operate.
D) They take less tine to cook than other ppliaces.
53. What recommendation does the study by the University of Manchester make?
A) Cooking food of dfferent varieties.
B) Improving microwave users' habits.
C) Eating less to cut energy consumption.
D) Using microwave ovens less frequently.
54. What does Professor David Reay try to argue?
A) There are far more emissions from cars than from microwaves.
B) People should be persuaded into using passenger cars less often.
C) The UK produces less CO2 than many other countries in the EU.
D) More data are needed to show whether microwaves are harmful.
55. What does Professor David Reay think of the use of microwaves?
A) It will become less popular in the coming decades.
B) It makes everyday cooking much more convenient.
C) It plays a positive role in envronmental protection.
D) It consumes more power than conventional cooking.
