16.We can infer from the first two paragraphs that the industrialists disregard environmental protection chiefly because ______.
A) they are unaware of the consequences of what they are doing
B) they are reluctant to sacrifice their own economic interests
C) time has not yet come for them to put due emphasis on it
D) it is difficult for them to take effective measures
17.The main task now facing ecologists, environmental activists and conservationists is ______.
A) to prevent pollution by legislation, economic incentives and persuasion
B) to arouse public awareness of the importance of environmental protection
C) to take radical measures to control environmental pollution
D) to improve the quality of life by enforcing environmental standards
18. The word “tunnel - visioned” (Line 2, Para.4) most probably means“______ ”.
A) narrow - minded
B) blind to the facts
C) short - sighted
D) able to see only one aspect
19.Which of the following, according to the author, should play the leading role in the solution of environmental problems?
A) Legislation and government intervention.
B) The industry's understanding and support.
C) The efforts of environmental health professionals.
D) The cooperation of ecologists, environmental activists and conservationists.
20. Which of the following is true according to the last paragraph?
A) Efforts should be exerted on pollution prevention instead of on remedial measures.
B) More money should be spent in order to stop pollution.
C) Ordinary citizens have no access to technical information on pollution.
D) Environmental degradation will be stopped by the end of this decade.
Passage Three
Questions 21 to 25 are based on the following passage:
British universities, groaning under the burden of a huge increase in student numbers, are warning that the tradition of a free education is at risk.The universities have threatened to impose an admission fee on students to plug a gap in revenue if the government does not act to improve their finances and scrap some public spending cutbacks.
The government responded to the universities' threat by setting up the most fundamemtal review of higher education for a generation, under a non - party troubleshooter(调停人)，Sir Ron Dearing.
One in three school - leavers enters higher education, five times the number when the last review took place thirty years ago. Everyone agrees a system that is feeling the strain after rapid expansion needs a lot more money - but there is little hope of getting it from the taxpayer and not much scope for attracting more finance from business.
Most colleges believe students should contribute to tuition costs ,something that is common elsewhere in the world but would mark a revolutionary change in Britain. Universities want the government to introduce a loan scheme for tuition fees and have suspended their own threatened action for now. They await Dearing's advice, hoping it will not be too late - some are already reported to be in financial difficulty.
As the century nears its end, the whole concept of what a university should be is under the microscope. Experts ponder how much they can use computers instead of classrooms, talk of the need for lifelong learning and refer to students as “consumers.”
