文字稿
據一組美國科學家們計算，迄今為止，人類共制造了約83億公噸塑料。而產出如此驚人重量的塑料產品僅用了65年左右。83億公噸相當于兩萬五千座紐約帝國大廈或十億頭大象的總重。然而，重要的問題是，像包裝材料等類似的塑料制品往往只在很短的使用過后就被人們丟棄。請聽報道。
Plastics define the modern age. From the start of mass-manufacturing in the 1950s, they’re now all around us, incorporated into everything – from food packaging and clothing to aeroplane parts and flame retardants.
The University of California-led team says the acceleration in use is extraordinary. Of that 8.3 billion tonnes, half has been made in just the past 13 years. Only nine percent has been recycled. The vast majority ends up in landfill.
Knowing the scale of the waste challenge is the starting point for tackling it, but with none of the commonly used plastics being biodegradable, new solutions are urgently needed. There's enough plastic debris out there right now, the team says, to cover an entire country the size of Argentina.
詞匯表
define 定義
mass-manufacturing 大規(guī)模生產
incorporated into 用于…，摻入…
aeroplane parts 飛機部件
flame retardants 阻燃劑
acceleration 加速、加快
landfill 垃圾填埋場
biodegradable 可進行生物降解的
debris 碎片、廢渣
the size of 相當于…的面積
測驗
請聽報道并回答下列問題。
1. In what products is plastic used, according to the text?
2. Of the total amount of plastic ever made, how much has been recycled?
3. True or false? A very small proportion of the commonly used plastics are biodegradable.
4. Which word in the text means ‘the extent or level of severity to a problem’?
答案
1. In what products is plastic used, according to the text?
According to the text, plastic is incorporated into everything – from food packaging and clothing to aeroplane parts and flame retardants.
2. Of the total amount of plastic ever made, how much has been recycled?
Of the total amount of plastic ever made, only nine percent has been recycled.
3. True or false? A very small proportion of the commonly used plastics are biodegradable.
False. None of the commonly used plastics is biodegradable.
4. Which word in the text means ‘the extent or level of severity to a problem’?
Scale.
