I. Understanding the Text

1. Text Organization

1.1

Paras. 1-2: We need to conservewater aggressively so that scientists can have time to find solutions.

Paras. 3-7: Water is going to bethe most important and most contentious resource of the 21st century.

Paras. 8-9: There are solutions,but they take time.

Para. 10: Aggressive conservationis needed to buy us time before scientists find solutions.

1.2

1)Water is on the way to becomingthe most important resource of the 21st century. Getting water right is thegreat challenge the world is confronted with. To meet the challengeconservation should come first; then follow it up with new solutions.

2)To introduce the water problem,the author tells us about what happened one night when he and hisseven-year-old daughter were brushing teeth together. In so doing the authortries to introduce the reader to a serious topic in a casual manner. Besides,it also reminds us of the fact that everyone can play a role, even in our dailylife, in saving water.

3)He cites the late NobelLaureate Richard Smalley’s list of humanity’s top 10 problems for the next 50years.

4)He wants to show the reader howdifficult it is for us to find a solution to the water problem.

5)He repeats what he says at thebeginning of the article: The water problem can be solved but “The scientistsneed time.”

2. Comprehension Check

2.1 Focusing on the main ideas

In his 2003 speech at Rice University’s Energy & NanotechnologyConference, the late Nobel Laureate Richard Smalley highlighted the top 10 problems for the next 50 years. Inhis list, energy sits atthe top, and water comes next. Now, with the price of solar power going down,the dawn of a new energy era isjust around the corner. As a result, water isgoing to be the greatest challenge for humanity.

But the water problem is complicated.First, unlike coal and oil, water cannot be replaced.Second, water is intertwined withevery other sector of society. Third, while water demands are growing, climatechange is intensifying droughts and floods and water supplies are fluctuating.

There are solutions, such as building water-transfer aqueducts,hydroelectric dams, and desalination plants. But they may be incredibly expensive. It will take time for scientists to findaffordable solutions to the water problem. Before that, everyone should do hisor her bit to conserve water.

2.2 Digging into detail

1)He means that water is mostlikely to become a strategic resource like oil that could trigger geopoliticalconflict.

2)Because solving the energy andwater problems will make the other problems easier to deal with. Abundantenergy and water supplies will increase food production and improve theenvironment. They will also reduce poverty, disease, and so forth.

3)It most probably means energyproduced at a low cost.

4)He means that every othersector of society needs water. People need water in their daily life. Energyproduction requires water for cooling power plants. Industry needs water forall sorts of purposes. Agriculture needs water for irrigation.

5)Yes, he did. Because he saidgetting freshwater from saltwater at a cheap price would dwarf all otherscientific accomplishments.

2.3 Understanding difficultsentences

·        1) A

·        2) B

·        3) A

·        4) A

·        5) A

II. Focusing on Language in Context

1. Key Words & Expressions

1.1

1.It will be a close game.The outcome is hard topredict.

2.Travelers on a tight budget would choose to go there by traininstead of by plane.

3.Tom was on the point of leaving the garden whenhe heard someone cry: “Isn’t it Tom? I can hardly believe my eyes.”

4.Innovation iswhat we need when we design new products.

5.The problem turned out to befar more complicated thanhe had foreseen.

6.The works in this roomare mostly by localartists. They embody the artists’ vision of a peaceful andenvironment-friendly civilization.

7.Water, though abundant in Brazil, is extremely unevenly distributed among its regions.

8.Even today, my first Englishteacher’s encouraging words still ring inmy ears.

9.Henry has many friends workingin the government. His sources ofinformation are usually reliable.

10.These figures show that thedeath rate of road accidentgets higher as the speed of the car increases.

11.With water demand growing,the conflict between thetwo neighboring villages over water has intensified overthe years.

12.Years ago the professor saidthat there was no doubt that the people in this city would be confronted with a water shortage, ifnot a water crisis. Subsequent eventshave proved his predictions to be exactly right.

13.The TV program highlights the aftermath of the Paristerrorist attacks.

1.2

·        1) around the corner

·        2) The money from her uncle enabled Jenny

·        3) dwarfs our old house

·        4) on track

·        5) and so forth

1.3

1.We believe that building apowerful navy is in the interest of our nationaldefense.

2.He thought the coffee atbreakfast was too sweet. It wasn’t to hisliking.

3.The new system is said toenable us to use much less oil than before, in other words, to increase energy efficiency considerably.

4.Speaking of the real estatemarket, when people are losing their jobs, it is almost certain that the houseprices will go down.

5.A regional conference on the conservation of fishery resourceswill be held in Seoul next week.

2. Confusable Words

2.1

1.Labor Day in the US falls onthe first Monday inSeptember.

2.The speaker seemed a littlenervous at first, but after a shortwhile became relaxed.

3.You want to learn makingChinese dumplings? First ofall, let me show you how to make dough.

4.It was sunny but cool when westarted. So the journey was quite pleasant atfirst. Then all of a sudden there came a thunderstorm.

2.2

1.Canada is a country rich innatural resources.

2.The travelers walked upstreamuntil they reached the source ofthe river.

3.So far there has been noresponse from official sources.

4.With such limited resources, the manager has been doing remarkablywell to keep the organization going.

3. Sentence Patterns

3.1

1.The fact that he has fullyrecovered from his bad accident shows that medicine can work wonders.

2.The reason (that) businessesare moving their plants to developing countries is that labor costs in theirhome countries are too high.

3.If we go on ignoring the factthat our rivers are running dry or being polluted, the consequences will not behard to predict.

4.The reason (that) food pricesare rising is that last year’s crop wasn’t good.

3.2

1.Whether the chicken came beforethe egg, or the egg before the chicken, is a question of how life began ingeneral.

2.I saw her on the point of tearswhen she got the result of the exam. I don’t know whether we should go tocomfort her or just leave her alone.

3.It’s not clear whether shestill wants to go to the lake or has changed her mind.

4.Many young married couples arewondering whether they should buy or just rent an apartment.

4. Comprehensive Practice

1. A:Why will oil cease to be theNo. 1 problem of our time?

B:The dawn of a new energy erais just around the corner. Oilprices are going down becausesolar power is becoming cheaper. Besides, improvements in energy efficiency, while helping to create aclean environment, are reducingwaste and the demand for oil.

2. A:Why isn’t it easy to solvethe water problem?

B:Because water is far more complicated than energy. Noother resource can replace water,so it is impossible to find an alternativeto it. Besides, water demand is rising, but water supply isfluctuating as a result of climate change.

3. A:Why is it important for usto conserve water?

    B:Wateris going to be the most contentious resource ofthe 21st century. It will trigger geopolitical conflicts.That’s why water conservation isnot only in the interest of oureconomy but also a task of strategic importance.

Reading 1

1. Comprehension Check forReading 1

·        1) T

·        2) F

·        3) T

·        4) F

·        5) T

·        6) T

·        7) T

·        8) T

·        9) F

·        10) T

2. Translation

1.地球的水只有不到3%是淡水，并且大部分都被堵在雪地和冰川中，不容易获取。

2.……但不幸的是，许多因素严重扰乱了淡水的流动和使用，使地球的许多地区出现大面积的危机。

3.这意味着如果我们在保护水和明智用水方面无所作为，所有地区迟早都将遭遇水危机及随之而来的影响。

4.绝不要以为你所处的社会先进，不至于会出现缺水问题。

Reading 2

Comprehension Check for Reading 2

1.Pollution and scarcity.

2.The sources of pollutioninclude manufacturing emissions, poorly treated sewage, industrial spills andagricultural runoff.

3.It means that the water problemdid not happen overnight; instead it resulted from our age-old practice ofpolluting water or wasting water in addition to natural contamination andnatural disasters.

4.A sustainable, long-termsolution.