There are about 7 billion people on the Earth now. The world’s population is a big problem because it will cause lots of problems in the future. More people will need more food and will need more room to live in as well.
The world’s population growth rate rose from about 1.5 percent per year during 1950-1951 to over 2 percent in the early 1960s. Although the growth rate thereafter started to fall due to (由于) people getting married later as well as the development of technology, the rate is on the rise again now.
The important thing is not how large the population of the world is, but how fast the rate increases. The world population increased from 3 billion in 1959 to 6 billion by 1999.The world population will grow from 6 billion in 1999 to 9 billion by 2050. This great growth of the population will create a big problem by the year 2100—there will be over 10 billion people in the world then.
1. The population of the world is about______now and may be over______by 2100.
A.7 billion; 10 billion B.7 million; 10 million
C.6 billion; 10 billion D.6 billion; 9 million
2. What does the underlined word “ther
eafter” refer to?
A. Before the 1960s. B. After the late 1960s.
C. After the early 1960s. D. Before the late 1960s.
3. According to the passage, the growth of the population was the fastest in the______.
A. early 1950s B. early 1960s C. late 1950s D. late 1960s
4. From the passage we know that______.
A. the world’s population is becoming smaller
B. the world’s population is increasing
C. the world’s population growth rate won’t change
D. the world’s population growth rate has been rising since the 1950s
5. What’s the best title for this passage?
A. More Food and Less Room
B. A New Problem
C. We Should Feed Many People
D. The Growth of the Population
参考答案：
1.A 由文中第一段的第一句“There are about 7 billion people on the Earth now.”和第三段中的“This great growth of the population will create a big problem by the year 2100—there will be over 10 billion people in the world then.”可知答案。
2.C 由第二段的第一句话可知在20世纪50到60年代初人口增长率在上升。由第二段的第二句可推知thereafter是指“在20世纪60年代初之后”。
3.B 由第二段可知在20世纪60年代初人口增长速度最快。
4.B 由第三段的第一句“The important thing is not how large the population of the world is, but how fast the rate increases.”可知世界人口在持续增长。
5.D 文章讲述的是世界人口增长的有关情况，故选D。
