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2017考研英語(yǔ)二真題試卷及答案「參考」
Section 1 Use of English
Directions: Read the following text. Choose the best word(s) for each numbered blank and mark [A], [B], [C] or [D] on ANSWER SHEET 1. (10 points)
Happy people work differently. They’re more productive, more creative, and willing to take greater risks. And new research suggests that happiness might influence__1__firm’s work, too.
Companies located in places with happier people invest more, according to a recent research paper.__2__, firms in happy places spend more on R&D (research and development). That’s because happiness is linked to the kind of longer-term thinking__3__for making investments for the future.
The researchers wanted to know if the__4__and inclination for risk-taking that come with happiness would__5__the way companies invested. So they compared U.S. cities’ average happiness__6__by Gallup polling with the investment activity of publicly traded firms in those areas.
__7__enough, firms’ investment and R&D intensity were correlated with the happiness of the area in which they were__8__.But is it really happiness that’s linked to investment, or could something else about happier cities__9__why firms there spend more on R&D? To find out, the researchers controlled for various__10__that might make firms more likely to invest – like size, industry, and sales – and for indicators that a place was__11__to live in, like growth in wages or population. The link between happiness and investment generally__12__even after accounting for these things.
The correlation between happiness and investment was particularly strong for younger firms, which the authors__13__to “less codified decision making process” and the possible presence of “younger and less__14__managers who are more likely to be influenced by sentiment.” The relationship was__15__stronger in places where happiness was spread more__16__.Firms seem to invest more in places where most people are relatively happy, rather than in places with happiness inequality.
__17__ this doesn’t prove that happiness causes firms to invest more or to take a longer-term view, the authors believe it at least__18__at that possibility. It’s not hard to imagine that local culture and sentiment would help__19__how executives think about the future. “It surely seems plausible that happy people would be more forward-thinking and creative and__20__R&D more than the average,” said one researcher.
1. [A] why [B] where [C] how [D] when
2. [A] In return [B] In particular [C] In contrast [D] In conclusion
3. [A] sufficient [B] famous [C] perfect [D] necessary
4. [A] individualism [B] modernism [C] optimism [D] realism
5. [A] echo [B] miss [C] spoil [D] change
6. [A] imagined [B] measured [C] invented [D] assumed
7. [A] Sure [B] Odd [C] Unfortunate [D] Often
8. [A] advertised [B] divided [C] overtaxed [D] headquartered
9. [A] explain [B] overstate [C] summarize [D] emphasize
10.[A] stages [B] factors [C] levels [D] methods
11.[A] desirable [B] sociable [C] reputable [D] reliable
12.[A] resumed [B] held [C]emerged [D] broke
13.[A] attribute [B] assign [C] transfer [D]compare
14.[A] serious [B] civilized [C] ambitious [D]experienced
15.[A] thus [B] instead [C] also [D] never
16.[A] rapidly [B] regularly [C] directly [D] equally
17.[A] After [B] Until [C] While [D] Since
18.[A] arrives [B] jumps [C] hints [D] strikes
19.[A] shape [B] rediscover [C] simplify [D] share 20.[A] pray for [B] lean towards [C] give away [D] send out
Section Ⅱ Reading Comprehension
Part A
Directions：Read the following four texts. Answer the questions after each text by choosing A, B, C or D. Mark your answers on ANSWER SHEET 1. (40 points)
Text 1
It’s true that high-school coding classes aren’t essential for learning computer science in college. Students without experience can catch up after a few introductory courses, said Tom Cortina, the assistant dean at Carnegie Mellon’s School of Computer Science.
However, Cortina said, early exposure is beneficial. When younger kids learn computer science, they learn that it’s not just a confusing, endless string of letters and numbers — but a tool to build apps, or create artwork, or test hypotheses. It’s not as hard for them to transform their thought processes as it is for older students. Breaking down problems into bite-sized chunks and using code to solve them becomes normal. Giving more children this training could increase the number of people interested in the field and help fill the jobs gap, Cortina said.
Students also benefit from learning something about coding before they get to college, where introductory computer-science classes are packed to the brim, which can drive the less-experienced or-determined students away.
The Flatiron School, where people pay to learn programming, started as one of the many coding bootcamps that’s become popular for adults looking for a career change. The high-schoolers get the same curriculum, but “we try to gear lessons toward things they’re interested in,” said Victoria Friedman, an instructor. For instance, one of the apps the students are developing suggests movies based on your mood.
The students in the Flatiron class probably won’t drop out of high school and build the next Facebook. Programming languages have a quick turnover, so the “Ruby on Rails” language they learned may not even be relevant by the time they enter the job market. But the skills they learn — how to think logically through a problem and
organize the results — apply to any coding language, said Deborah Seehorn, an education consultant for the state of North Carolina.
Indeed, the Flatiron students might not go into IT at all. But creating a future army of coders is not the sole purpose of the classes. These kids are going to be surrounded by computers — in their pockets, in their offices, in their homes — for the rest of their lives. The younger they learn how computers think, how to coax the machine into producing what they want — the earlier they learn that they have the power to do that — the better.
21. Cortina holds that early exposure to computer science makes it easier to____.
A. complete future job training
B. remodel the way of thinking
C. formulate logical hypotheses
D. perfect artwork production
22. In delivering lessons for high-schoolers, Flatiron has considered their____.
A. experience
B. academic backgrounds
C. career prospects
D. interest
23. Deborah Seehorn believes that the skills learned at Flatiron will____.
A. help students learn other computer languages
B. have to be upgraded when new technologies come
C. need improving when students look for jobs
D. enable students to make big quick money
24. According to the last paragraph, Flatiron students are expected to____.
A. compete with a future army of programmers
B. stay longer in the information technology industry
C. become better prepared for the digitalized world
D. bring forth innovative computer technologies
25. The word “coax” (Line4, Para.6) is closest in meaning to____.
A. challenge
B. persuade
C. frighten
D. misguide
Text 2
Biologists estimate that as many as 2 million lesser prairie chickens---a kind of bird living on stretching grasslands—once lent red to the often gray landscape of the midwestern and southwestern United States. But just some 22,000 birds remain today, occupying about 16% of the species’ historic range.
The crash was a major reason the U.S Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS)decided to formally list the bird as threatened. “The lesser prairie chicken is in a desperate situation,” said USFWS Director Daniel Ashe. Some environmentalists, however, were disappointed. They had pushed the agency to designate the bird as “endangered,” a status that gives federal officials greater regulatory power to crack down on threats. But Ashe and others argued that the“threatened” tag gave the federal government flexibility to try out new, potentially less confrontational conservations approaches. In particular, they called for forging closer collaborations with western state governments, which are often uneasy with federal action and with the private landowners who control an estimated 95% of the prairie chicken’s habitat.
Under the plan, for example, the agency said it would not prosecute landowner or businesses that unintentionally kill, harm, or disturb the bird, as long as they had signed a range—wide management plan to restore prairie chicken habitat. Negotiated by USFWS and the states, the plan requires individuals and businesses that damage habitat as part of their operations to pay into a fund to replace every acre destroyed with 2 new acres of suitable habitat. The fund will also be used to compensate landowners who set aside habitat, USFWS also set an interim goal of restoring prairie chicken populations to an annual average of 67,000 birds over the next 10 years. And it gives the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (WAFWA), a coalition of state agencies, the job of monitoring progress. Overall, the idea is to let “states” remain in the driver’s seat for managing the species，” Ashe said.
Not everyone buys the win-win rhetoric Some Congress members are trying to block the plan, and at least a dozen industry groups, four states, and three environmental groups are challenging it in federal court Not surprisingly, doesn’t go far enough “The federal government is giving responsibility for managing the bird to the same industries that are pushing it to extinction,” says biologist Jay Lininger.
26. The major reason for listing the lesser prairie as threatened is____
[A]its drastically decreased population
[B]the underestimate of the grassland acreage
[C]a desperate appeal from some biologists
[D]the insistence of private landowners
27.The “threatened” tag disappointed some environmentalists in that it_____
[A]was a give-in to governmental pressure
[B]would involve fewer agencies in action
[C]granted less federal regulatory power
[D]went against conservation policies
28.It can be learned from Paragraph3 that unintentional harm-doers will not be prosecuted if they_____
[A]agree to pay a sum for compensation
[B]volunteer to set up an equally big habitat
[C]offer to support the WAFWA monitoring job
[D]promise to raise funds for USFWS operations
29.According to Ashe， the leading role in managing the species in______
[A]the federal government
[B]the wildlife agencies
[C]the landowners
[D]the states
30.Jay Lininger would most likely support_______
[A]industry groups
[B]the win-win rhetoric
[C]environmental groups
[D]the plan under challenge
Text 3
That everyone’s too busy these days is a cliché. But one specific complaint is made especially mournfully： There’s never any time to read.
What makes the problem thornier is that the usual time-management techniques don’t seem sufficient. The web’s full of articles offering tips on making time to read: “Give up TV” or “Carry a book with you at all times” But in my experience, using such methods to free up the odd 30 minutes doesn’t work. Sit down to read and the flywheel of work-related thoughts keeps spinning-or else you’re so exhausted that a challenging book’s the last thing you need. The modern mind, Tim Parks, a novelist and critic, writes, “is overwhelmingly inclined toward communication…It is not simply that one is interrupted; it is that one is actually inclined to interruption”. Deep reading requires not just time, but a special kind of time which can’t be obtained merely by becoming more efficient.
In fact, “becoming more efficient” is part of the problem. Thinking of time as a resource to be maximised means you approach it instrumentally, judging any given moment as well spent only in so far as it advances progress toward some goal immersive reading, by contrast, depends on being willing to risk inefficiency, goallessness, even time-wasting. Try to slot it as a to-do list item and you’ll manage only goal-focused reading-useful, sometimes, but not the most fulfilling kind. “The future comes at us like empty bottles along an unstoppable and nearly infinite conveyor belt,” writes Gary Eberle in his book Sacred Time, and “we feel a pressure to fill these different-sized bottles (days, hours, minutes)as they pass, for if they get by without being filled, we will have wasted them”. No mind-set could be worse for losing yourself in a book.
So what does work? Perhaps surprisingly, scheduling regular times for reading. You’d think this might fuel the efficiency mind-set, but in fact, Eberle notes, such ritualistic behaviour helps us “step outside time’s flow” into “soul time”. You could limit distractions by reading only physical books, or on single-purpose e-readers. “Carry a book with you at all times” can actually work, too-providing you dip in often enough, so that reading becomes the default state from which you temporarily surface to take care of business, before dropping back down. On a really good day, it no longer feels as if you’re “making time to read,” but just reading, and making time for everything else.
31. The usual time-management techniques don’t work because?????
[A] what they can offer does not ease the modern mind
[B] what challenging books demand is repetitive reading
[C] what people often forget is carrying a book with them
[D] what deep reading requires cannot be guaranteed
32. The “empty bottles” metaphor illustrates that people feel a pressure to?????
[A] update their to-do lists
[B] make passing time fulfilling
[C] carry their plans through
[D] pursue carefree reading
33. Eberle would agree that scheduling regular times for reading helps?????
[A] encourage the efficiency mind-set
[B] develop online reading habits
[C] promote ritualistic reading
[D] achieve immersive reading
34. “Carry a book with you at all times” can work if?????
[A] reading becomes your primary business of the day
[B] all the daily business has been promptly dealt with
[C] you are able to drop back to business after reading
[D] time can be evenly split for reading and business
35. The best title for this text could be?????
[A] How to Enjoy Easy Reading
[B] How to Find Time to Read
[C] How to Set Reading Goals
[D] How to Read Extensively
Text 4
Against a backdrop of drastic changes in economy and population structure, younger Americans are drawing a new 21st-century road map to success, a latest poll has found.
Across generational lines, Americans continue to prize many of the same traditional milestones of a successful life, including getting married, having children, owning a home, and retiring in their sixties. But while young and old mostly agree on what constitutes the finish line of a fulfilling life, they offer strikingly different paths for reaching it.
Young people who are still getting started in life were more likely than older adults to prioritize personal fulfillment in their work, to believe they will advance their careers most by regularly changing jobs, to favor communities with more public services and a faster pace of life, to agree that couples should be financially secure before getting married or having children, and to maintain that children are best served by two parents working outside the home, the survey found.
From career to community and family, these contrasts suggest that in the aftermath of the searing Great Recession, those just starting out in life are defining priorities and expectations that will increasingly spread through virtually all aspects of American life, from consumer preferences to housing patterns to politics.
Young and old converge on one key point: Overwhelming majorities of both groups said they believe it is harder for young people today to get started in life than it was for earlier generations. While younger people are somewhat more optimistic than their elders about the prospects for those starting out today, big majorities in both groups believe those “just getting started in life” face a tougher a good-paying job, starting a family, managing debt, and finding affordable housing.
Pete Schneider considers the climb tougher today. Schneider, a 27-yaear-old auto technician from the Chicago suburbs says he struggled to find a job after graduating from college. Even now that he is working steadily, he said.” I can’t afford to pay ma monthly mortgage payments on my own, so I have to rent rooms out to people to mark that happen.” Looking back, he is struck that his parents could provide a comfortable life for their?children even though neither had completed college when he was young. “I still grew up in an upper middle-class home with parents who didn’t have college degrees,” Schneider said. “I don’t think people are capable of that anymore.”
36. One cross-generation mark of a successful life is_____.????
[A] trying out different lifestyles
[B] having a family with children
[C] working beyond retirement age
[D] setting up a profitable business
37. It can be learned from Paragraph 3 that young people tend to?____.???
[A] favor a slower life pace
[B] hold an occupation longer
[C] attach importance to pre-marital finance
[D] give priority to childcare outside the home
38. The priorities and expectations defined by the young will?____.???
[A] become increasingly clear
[B] focus on materialistic issues
[C] depend largely on political preferences
[D] reach almost all aspects of American life
39. Both young and old agree that?____.
[A] good-paying jobs are less available
[B] the old made more life achievements
[C] housing loans today are easy to obtain
[D] getting established is harder for the young
40. Which of the following is true about Schneider?
[A] He found a dream job after graduating from college.
[B] His parents believe working steadily is a must for success.
[C] His parents’ good life has little to do with a college degree.
[D] He thinks his job as a technician quite challenging.
Part B
Directions:
Read the following text and answer the questions by choosing the most suitable subheading from the list A-G for each of the numbered paragraphs(41-45).There are two extra subheadings which you do not need to use.Mark your answers on the ANSWER SHEET.
[A]Be silly
[B]Have fun
[C]Express your emotions
[D]Don't overthink it
[E]Be easily pleased
[F]Notice things
[G]Ask for help
As adults,it seems that we are constantly pursuing happiness,often with mixed results.Yet children appear to have it down to an art-and for the most part they don't need self-help books or therapy.instead,they look after their wellbeing instinctively,and usually more effectively than we do as grownups.Perhaps it's time to learn a few lessons from them.
41.______________
What does a child do when he's sad? He cries.When he's angry?He shouts.Scared?Probably a bit of both.As we grow up,we learn to control our emotions so they are manageable and don't dictate our behaviours,which is in many ways a good thing.But too often we take this process too far and end up suppressing emotions,especially negative ones.that's about as effective as brushing dirt under a carpet and can even make us ill.What we need to do is find a way to acknowledge and express what we feel appropriately, and then-again like children-move.
42.____________
A couple of Christmases ago, my youngest stepdaughter, who was nine years old at the time, got a Superman T-shirt for Christmas. It cost less than a fiver but she was overjoyed, and couldn't stop talking about it.Too often we believe that a new job,bigger house or better car will be the magic silver bullet that will allow us to finally be content,but the reality is these things have very little lasting impact on our happiness levels. Instead, being grateful for small things every day is a much better way to improve wellbeing.
43.______________________
Have you ever noticed how much children laugh? If we adults could indulge in a bit of silliness and giggling, we would reduce the stress hormones in our bodies , increase good hormones like endorphins, improve blood flow to our hearts and even have a greater chance of fighting off enfection. All of which, of course, have a positive effect on happiness levels.
44.__________________
The problem with being a grown up is that there's an awful lot of serious stuff to deal with---work,mortgage payments,figuring out what to cook for dinner. But as adults we also have the luxury of being able to control our own diaries and it's important that we schedule in time to enjoy the things we love.Those things might be social,sporting,creative or completely random(dancing aroud the living room,anyone?)--it doesn't matter,so long as they're enjoyable, and not likely to have negative side effects,such as drinking too much alcohol or going on a wild spending spree if you're on a tight budget.
45.___________________
Having said all of the above, it's important to add that we shouldn't try too hard to be happy.Scientists tell us this can backfire and actually have a negative impact on our wellbeing. As the Chinese philosopher Chuang Tzu is reported to have said:"Happiness is the absence of striving for happiness."And in that,once more,we need to look to the example of our children,to whom happiness is not a goal but a natural by product of the way they live.
Section III Translation
Directions:
Translate the following text from English into Chinese. Write your translation on ANSWER SHEET 2. (15 points)
46. Directions:
Translate the following text into Chinese. Your translation should be written on the ANSWER SHEET. (15 points)
The supermarket is designed to lure customers into spending as much time as possible within its doors. The reason for this is simple:The longer you stay in the store, the more stuff you'll see, and the more stuff you see, the more you'll buy. And supermarkets contain a lot of stuff. The average supermarket, according to the Food Marketing Institute, carries some 44,00 different items, and many carry tens of thousands more. The sheer volume of available choice is enough to send shoppers into a state of information overload. According to brain-scan experiments, the demands of so much decision-making quickly become too much for us. After about 40 minutes of shopping, most people stop struggling to be rationally selective, and instead begin shopping emotionally - which is the point at which we accumulate the 50 percent of stuff in our cart that we never intended buying.
Section IV Writing
Part A
Suppose you won a translation contest and your friend Jack wrote an email to congratulate you, and ask advice on translation. Write him a reply to
1)thank him;
2)give your advice.
You should write neatly on the ANWSER SHEET. Do not sign you own name at the end of the letter, use “Li Ming ” instead. Do not write the address .(10 point)
Part B
48.Directions:
Write an essay based on the following chart. you should
1) interpret the chart and
2) give your comments.
You should write about 150 words on the ANSWER SHEET.(15 points).
某高校學(xué)生旅游目的調(diào)查
2017年研究生考試英語(yǔ)試題答案解析
2017年考研進(jìn)行得如火如荼，此次英語(yǔ)二考的大作文是曲線圖，雖然以往沒(méi)有考過(guò)這類型的圖表，但是難度并不大。
這種圖形寫(xiě)作與2010、2011所考的柱狀圖寫(xiě)法有很大相似之處，都是有關(guān)一定時(shí)間段內(nèi)數(shù)量變化的類型，可以說(shuō)是換湯不換藥。該圖表涉及內(nèi)容是參觀博物館的人數(shù)變化數(shù)據(jù)，關(guān)鍵詞也不難寫(xiě)，故此從難度上看，屬于中低難度。
圖中的關(guān)鍵詞，博物館(museum)是中學(xué)詞匯，有基礎(chǔ)能力的同學(xué)可以相對(duì)輕松把握;博物館參觀者用簡(jiǎn)單的visitors即可;至于圖表中的數(shù)字是十萬(wàn)，6378個(gè)十萬(wàn)即6.378 billion.
范文如下：
The statistics about museums and their visitors are precisely illustrated by the line chart. During the 3 years from 2013 to 2015, the figure of museums experienced a gradual rise, and soaring from 4.145 thousand to 4.692 thousand. Besides, following the same tendency, the number of museum visitors, as is shown, ascended gradually from 6.378 billion to 7.811 billion, increasing by about 1.43 billion.
The following factors, from my perspective, are responsible for the statistics. To begin with, aside from disseminating knowledge in schools, department concerned adopts other ways to promote the comprehensive quality of Chinese citizens, for instance providing more access to museums is a simple yet effective way to broaden visitors’ horizon. In addition, having been experiencing the unparalleled material prosperity, most of Chinese citizens intend to pursue knowledge by visiting museums, tourist attractions and other places. Moreover, museums, which are supported by public funding, provide visitors with knowledge and professional service. Individuals, therefore, are inclined to enjoy their leisure time by visiting museums.
To summarize, the data shown by the chart objectively reflect what’s happening in our society. Museums undoubtedly exert indispensible effects on our society and Chinese citizens, and it is predictable that, in the next decade, both large cities and small towns will witness the popularization of museums.
2017年考研英語(yǔ)二，小作文考察的是一封邀請(qǐng)信的回函，要求寫(xiě)作內(nèi)容包括：
1、接受教授邀請(qǐng)給留學(xué)生做有關(guān)中國(guó)文化的presentation(介紹/演示)。
2、提供介紹內(nèi)容的關(guān)鍵信息。
考官出題的套路并不好預(yù)測(cè)，和往年一樣，讓想依靠背模板來(lái)過(guò)寫(xiě)作關(guān)的同學(xué)眼前一黑，這完全證實(shí)了考研英語(yǔ)反押題反模板的一貫思路。不過(guò)從內(nèi)容上看，寫(xiě)作手法也秉承了以往考研英語(yǔ)二小作文的思路----多種文體結(jié)合。
此次寫(xiě)作完全可以寫(xiě)成一個(gè)感謝開(kāi)頭結(jié)合內(nèi)容介紹的格式，思路簡(jiǎn)單但操作略有難度。寫(xiě)作過(guò)程中最難的地方在于有關(guān)中國(guó)文化的關(guān)鍵信息，對(duì)考生的基本功有一定要求。
小作文
Dear Professor Williams，
It is my honor to receive your invitation to give presentation about Chinese culture to international students. And I am writing to express my heartfelt gratitude and provide the specific information about my presentation, which is about the brief introduction of Confucianism, the dominant philosophy of oriental culture.
To begin with, the first part of my presentation is the brief introduction to Master Confucius and the Analects of Confucius. Relevant background about Spring and Autumn warring state period will also be introduced. In addition, the second part is about etiquette, one of the cores of Confucianism, which stabilized ancient Chinese society. Moreover, I would like to upload the e-book of English version of the Analects of Confucius to the official website of our university, so that the audience will be fully prepared.
Thank you for your invitation, and I wish my presentation will be appreciated by the audience.
Yours sincerely,
Li Ming
親愛(ài)的威廉教授：
很榮幸收到您邀請(qǐng)我給留學(xué)生做關(guān)于中國(guó)文化的介紹，我在此對(duì)您表達(dá)衷心的謝意并提供相關(guān)的具體信息。我的介紹是關(guān)于東方文化的主導(dǎo)哲學(xué)思想儒家的內(nèi)容。
首先，我介紹的第一部分是關(guān)于孔子和《論語(yǔ)》的簡(jiǎn)介。同時(shí)還會(huì)介紹有關(guān)春秋戰(zhàn)國(guó)的背景。其次，我的第二部分是關(guān)于“禮”的介紹。作為儒家思想的核心之一，“禮”為古代中國(guó)社會(huì)具有了穩(wěn)定性。再次，我會(huì)把這些作品的電子版上傳到我們大學(xué)的官方網(wǎng)站，以便聽(tīng)眾能方便的下載，并對(duì)我的講授內(nèi)容做出充分準(zhǔn)備。
感謝您對(duì)我的邀請(qǐng)，我希望我的介紹能被大家欣賞。
李明
閱讀部分
源于 The Christian Science Monitor July 1, 2016
http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/2016/0701/As-wildfires-challenge-California-the-causes-go-beyond-climate
As wildfires challenge California, the causes go beyond climate
A shift in thought
Wildfire season has become longer and more intense lately. But beyond addressing climate change, some researchers call for a paradigm shift to address the various human factors relating to prevention and safety.
By Jessica Mendoza, Staff writer July 1, 2016
"
Azusa, Calif. - On a chain-link fence along Route 39 hangs a homemade poster, peppered with hearts, thanking firefighters and police.
The sign, one of a handful scattered across town, salutes efforts to battle the San Gabriel Complex fire, twin blazes that had erupted on June 20 in the mountains of Angeles National Forest just to the north of the city. Within a day of igniting, the fire had burned through nearly 5,000 acres and forced hundreds to evacuate.
Nearly a week passed before the US Forest Service and local and state authorities managed to contain even half of the inferno.
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"Three days in, you could still see the flames," says Jasmine Perez, a teacher's assistant and resident of Azusa, which sits northeast of Los Angeles. And because of the smoke, she adds, "In the mornings, it kind of looked like nighttime still."
The San Gabriel Complex was one of 12 large fires that about 4,000 firefighters were battling across California as of Thursday. Such numbers so early in the fire season are a testament to the growing frequency and intensity of wildfires in the western US, fire officials say - a shift that many experts say is likely intertwined with climate change and its associated consequences, such as drought.
But climate, however critical, is only part of the problem, scientists say. A growing body of evidence suggests that other human activity and policy have at least as much impact on wildfires as climate change. To effectively address a longer and more intense wildfire season - and ensure the safety of residents in fire-prone areas - both environmental and human factors have to be taken into account in more holistic ways, they say.
That means more than just sweeping dry brush off the front porch. Though such steps are an important part of the process, officials and researchers alike are calling for a comprehensive approach to wildfires: one that incorporates fire safety and behavior in key policy decisions and legislation. Such an effort would also recognize that fire can be helpful as well as harmful and embrace fire's place in human society.
"We need not just a policy shift but also a cultural shift in the dialogue around fires in our landscape and how to manage them," says Jennifer Balch, director of Earth Lab and a professor of geography at the University of Colorado in Boulder. "Fire is not something we can remove. A large majority of the country is living in fire-prone areas. How do we live with wildfire? How do we manage?"
"More and more researchers are arguing that anthropogenic influences are really important [to understanding wildfires]," adds Max Moritz, a specialist in fire ecology and management and a professor at the College of Natural Resources at the University of California, Berkeley. "By leaving them out we're missing a critical piece of the solution."
Changing attitudes on fire
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Though often viewed as a problem for western states, the growing frequency of wildfires is a national concern because of its impact on federal tax dollars, Professor Moritz and others say.
In 2015, the US Forest Service for the first time spent more than half of its $5.5 billion annual budget fighting fires - nearly double the percentage it spent on such efforts 20 years ago. In effect, fewer federal funds today are going towards the agency's other work - such as forest conservation, watershed and cultural resources management, and infrastructure upkeep - that affect the lives of all Americans.
Another nationwide concern is whether public funds from other agencies, such as the Department of Housing and Urban Development, are going into construction in fire-prone districts. As Moritz puts it, how often are federal dollars building homes that are likely to be lost to a wildfire?
"It's already a huge problem from a public expenditure perspective for the whole country," he says. "We need to take a magnifying glass to that. Like, 'Wait a minute, is this OK?' Do we want instead to redirect those funds to concentrate on lower-hazard parts of the landscape?"
Such a pivot would require a corresponding shift in the way US society today views fire, researchers say.
For one thing, conversations about wildfires need to be more inclusive. Over the past decade, the focus has been on climate change - how the warming of the Earth from greenhouse gases (including human carbon emissions) is leading to conditions that exacerbate fires.
While climate is a key element, Moritz says, it shouldn't come at the expense of the rest of the equation.
"The human systems and the landscapes we live on are linked, and the interactions go both ways," he says. Failing to recognize that, he notes, leads to "an overly simplified view of what the solutions might be. Our perception of the problem and perception of what the solution is [becomes] very limited."
At the same time, people continue to treat fire as an event that needs to be wholly controlled and unleashed only out of necessity, says Professor Balch at the University of Colorado. But acknowledging fire's inevitable presence in human life is an attitude crucial to developing the laws, policies, and practices that make it as safe as possible, she says.
"We've disconnected ourselves from living with fire," Balch says. "It is really important to understand and try and tease out what is the human connection [with fire] today."
Role for citizens ... and for policy
After nearly 30 years in the state fire service, Janet Upton understands the value of that connection.
During her early days with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire), veterans would tell war stories of huge fires that happened once in a career, she recalls.
"But in my generation, those of us who've come up through the '80s, '90s, 2000s … we feel like we don't have the license to use the word 'unprecedented' any more. We've seen it all in the last few years," she says. "I've probably had 15 once-in-a-career fires."
And people caused most of them, Ms. Upton says. About 90 percent of all fires in California can be traced to human activity, whether it's a stove left on or a campfire left burning. Which is why public education has been Upton's main goal since 2008, when then-Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger appointed her Cal Fire's deputy communications director.
The department has since made strides, playing a major role in launching state and nationalcampaigns that underscore the public's role in fire safety. But people's tendency to put danger out of their minds until it's too late continues to pose serious challenges, Upton says.
"This is going to sound cold. But if someone chooses to live in a rural area and continues to not be responsive to [fire-safety] education, sadly, the worst punishment they're going to get is they're going to lose their home in a fire," she says.
A paradigm shift, some researchers hope, can address that gap between education and action. Environmental policy specialist Ray Rasker, for instance, envisions whole communities designed around the concept of fire safety, and a slate of fire-prevention policies at the local, state, and national level.
"What we're telling the public now is, 'Reduce the risk of fires - if you so choose.' Imagine if we tried driving our cars like that," says Dr. Rasker, who is also executive director of Headwaters Economics, a nonprofit research firm based in Bozeman, Mont. "Why not use regulations, building codes, and subdivision design standards, development codes and ordinances that say, 'Look if you're going to build there, there are certain conditions you have to meet first'?"
Some places are already taking steps. San Diego's municipal code, for instance, requires property owners to maintain landscape and vegetation standards - or face a penalty equivalent to the cost of hiring a private contractor to do so. Austin, Texas, has set aside close to 30 percent of city land as conservation areas, curbing the number of new structures that can be built within the fire-prone "wildland-urban interface" (WUI) - the space between unoccupied natural land and human developments. Flagstaff, Ariz., Boulder, Colo., and Santa Fe, N.M., have all enacted similar policies.
But the need for action continues to grow. As bad as wildfires have been in recent years, research shows they're likely to get worse as the US population increases and people build more homes in the WUI, more than 80 percent of which remain undeveloped.
"We keep building more and more homes in harm's way," Rasker notes. "Unless we get a handle on development, we're really not addressing the problem."
Mind-set matters, too - for everyone, says Upton at Cal Fire.
"It's a mitigation issue. You can take the lens we're looking at [in California] and take it to Tornado Alley or the Eastern Seaboard," she says. In the end, "it's about informing yourself as a member of the public or a policymaker. How can you do something comprehensive?"
翻譯&題源文章
My Dream
My dream has always been to work somewhere in an area between fashion and publishing. Two years before graduating from secondary school, I took a sewing and design course thinking that I would move on to a fashion design course. However, during that course I realised that I was not good enough in this area to compete with other creative personalities in the future, so I decided that it was not the right path for me. Before applying for university I told everyone that I would study journalism, because writing was, and still is, one of my favourite activities. But, to be absolutely honest, I said it, because I thought that fashion and me together was just a dream - I knew that no one, apart from myself, could imagine me in the fashion industry at all!
我的夢(mèng)想
我的夢(mèng)想一直是在時(shí)裝設(shè)計(jì)和出版界之間找尋一個(gè)工作。在我中學(xué)畢業(yè)的兩年前，我參加了一個(gè)縫紉和設(shè)計(jì)課程，原以為我能再繼續(xù)參加一個(gè)時(shí)裝設(shè)計(jì)的課程。然而，就在這個(gè)課程上，我意識(shí)到，將來(lái)在這個(gè)領(lǐng)域，我是無(wú)法和那些富于創(chuàng)新精神的精英們相媲美的。于是，我斷定到這條路走不通。在申請(qǐng)上大學(xué)之前，我和所有人都講，我想學(xué)新聞學(xué)，因?yàn)�，�?xiě)作曾經(jīng)是，現(xiàn)在也是我最喜歡的活動(dòng)之一。但是，說(shuō)實(shí)話，我之所以這樣說(shuō)，是因?yàn)槲乙詾閺氖聲r(shí)裝設(shè)計(jì)不過(guò)是一個(gè)夢(mèng)想，我也知道，除了我之外，沒(méi)有人能想象出我會(huì)從事時(shí)裝設(shè)計(jì)的工作。
源文
http://www.fmprochester.info/news/featured-student/inese-gailane
I chose to study at the University for the Creative Arts (UCA) at Rochester for a few simple reasons: it's a really interesting course with good industry links and is in a very good location. It was difficult to choose a university and where to study without being able to visit the campus. I followed my gut instinct, but still analysed all the aspects really practically, and all I can say is that I’m not regretting my decision at all.
My dream has always been to work somewhere in an area between fashion and publishing. Two years before graduating from secondary school, I took a sewing and design course thinking that I would move on to a fashion design course. However, during that course I realised that I was not good enough in this area to compete with other creative personalities in the future, so I decided that it was not the right path for me. Before applying for university I told everyone that I would study journalism, because writing was, and still is, one of my favourite activities. But, to be absolutely honest, I said it, because I thought that fashion and me together was just a dream - I knew that no one, apart from myself, could imagine me in the fashion industry at all!
When the time came to make the final decision for a course and where to apply for, I somehow decided to believe in myself and apply for a course that I felt reflected my interests and would be a good trampoline for my future.
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