y computer to keep myself informed of the latest news. On my way to school, I listen to music on my iPod. At the end of the day, hardly have I got back to dormitory when I turn on my computer again to surf the internet.
Why are we so fond of those digital products which we didn’t possess one of two decades ago? The answer is simple—they are doing us good; they are making our lives comfortable and convenient. As I have mentioned, the internet provides us with latest news much faster than newspapers; likewise, cell phone provides us with a convenient means to talk to the person we want wherever we are. To draw a conclusion, comfort and convenience, the two key words characterizing the trend of new inventions of modern times, are the main reasons for the wide-use of digital products.
二)单词在阅读中的作用
Section A
Global warming may or may not be the great environmental crisis of the 21st century, but—regardless of whether it is or isn’t—we won’t do much about it. We will argue over it and may even, as a nation, make some fairly solemn-sounding commitments to avoid it. But the more dramatic and meaningful these commitments seem, the less likely they are to be observed.
Al Gore calls global warming an “inconvenient truth”, as if merely recognizing it could put us on a path to a solution. But the real truth is that we don’t know enough to relieve global warming, and—without major technological breakthroughs—we can’t do much about it.
From 2003 to 2050, the world’s population is projected to grow from 6.4 billion to 9.1 billion, a 42% increase. If energy use per person and technology remain the same, total energy use and greenhouse gas emissions (mainly, CO2) will be 42% higher in 2050. But that’s too low, because societies that grow richer use more energy. We need economic growth unless we condemn the world’s poor to their present poverty and freeze everyone else’s living standards. With modest growth, energy use and greenhouse emissions more t