Reading passages

45 -It is implied that European climbers first started climbing mountains outside Europe ---- .
A) because the Alps in Europe took far too long to climb
B) once they had been inspired by Albert Smith's lectures
C) in order to obtain the sizeable financial benefits on offer
D) so that they could make field maps of other areas
E) as they wanted to climb previously unclimbed mountains

Fossil analysis reveals that at least five periods in the last 600 million years have seen a drastic reduction in the number of species of flora and fauna on the Earth. However, on previous occasions such changes were brought about by asteroids or dramatic climatic changes. Experts in general believe that this decline is the work of man. The dominance of a single species type, homo sapiens, threatens to turn the rest of the living 'world upside down. With a population of barely six billion, humans are rapidly destroying irreplaceable ecosystems. This sixth round of global dying of species could be far larger than the first five.

46 -According to the passage, the dominant belief among scientists is that ---- .
A) throughout history there have been periods when many species of life have become extinct
B) the present climatic change known as global warming is probably a natural phenomenon
C) the Earth is in danger of being struck by an asteroid
D) the present decline in the number of species is caused by the activities of mankind
E) we are experiencing the fifth period of species dying out


47 -From the passage, we understand that the term "homo sapiens” is ---- .
A) a method of analysing fossils
B) a way of referring to a large number of species of flora and fauna
C) another term for the human race
D) an irreplaceable ecosystem which is being destroyed
E) a hostile environment in which many species die


48 -The author predicts that ---- .
A) there will be no harmful effects from so many species dying
B) the world might be turned upside down by colliding with an asteroid
C) mankind will find a solution to the problem
D) more species may die out this time than ever before
E) the human population will soon reach six billion

Rays of sunlight travel from 150 million kilometres away, and when they reach the Earth, they are parallel rays. The curve of the Earth means that the rays are vertical at the Equator but at quite a low angle when they reach temperate latitudes. As the rays lose heat passing through the atmosphere, the more direct the journey, the greater the heat which penetrates through to the surface of the Earth. The vertical rays in equatorial latitudes mean that it is much hotter at the Equator than it is in the regions where the sun's rays strike at a low angle. It is these variations in temperature that are largely responsible for the changes in weather.