专题15 Suffering the heat-高中英语【外刊·新闻·热点】素养提升拓展阅读课

Suffering the heat 外刊新闻精品阅读和练习 Sources: npr.org, edition.cnn.com, bbc.com, reuters.com Frida 1.How is the weather where you are today? Can you guess the temperature? 2. Read the headline above. Have you heard this news story? If so, say what you know. If not, can you guess what it is about? WARM-UP QUESTIONS: Discuss the following questions with your partner(s). The northern summer has brought extreme heat and related problems to countries in Asia, North America, and Europe. Several places on each continent have hit record high temperatures above 40°C. Japan’s rainy season, which is humid but somewhat cooling, ended earlier than usual. The resulting hot weather increased demand for air conditioning and strained the electricity supply. The government asked people to conserve energy. Much of the United States is also suffering from the heat. In Texas, the mercury went unusually high: 43°C in Abilene and 40°C in San Antonio. As in Japan, there was strong demand for electricity. The heat has also caused and worsened drought in several states. Europe might have it the worst. More than one thousand heat-related deaths have been recorded in Spain and Portugal where temperatures reached 47°C, a record for July. The heat has also led to dryness and fires in several European countries. A forest fire killed a firefighter and a shepherd in northwestern Spain, and authorities said at least twenty fires are burning out of control. Scientists say that the current weather conditions are worse and more likely to happen because of human activity. Suffer (v) - to endure something uncomfortable or painful Continent (n) - one of seven large divisions of land on the globe Humid (adj) - when the air feels warm and wet Demand (n) - the amount of an item or service that is wanted Strain (v) - to use beyond normal limits Conserve (v) - to save Mercury (n) - the column of mercury (a liquid metal) in a thermometer Worsen (v) - to make worse Drought (n) - a long period of