湖南（衡阳市）2017高考英语阅读理解一轮选编（二）含答案.docVIP

湖南（衡阳市）2017高考英语阅读理解一轮选编（二）含答案 （2016高考训练）阅读下列材料，从每题所给的选项中选出最佳选项。 Masses of floating ice are so large that they dwarf__your__ship，making you question whether your ship still can be spotted among such floating mountains.They are so improbable looking that you simply look in wonder.It seems that nothing that large could be natural—and then it strikes you that something so large could only be natural. Now，people realize that as climate change is raising global temperatures，more icebergs are being born.Antarctica creates far more of them than Greenland，the source of bergs in Arctic waters.Antarcticas are also much larger，sometimes reaching the size of small countries.Recent data show the average atmospheric temperature has increased about 4.5 in the western Antarctic Peninsula since the 1940s，making the region，among the fastest warming on earth.This jump has been shown in the recent breaking of major ice shelves along the Antarctic Peninsula.As a result，thousands of new icebergs have broken off，from ice shelves into the Southern Ocean at an accelerated rate. Even as more icebergs are being created，scientists are learning that they are far from inactive masses of ice.In fact，they strikingly alter their environments biologically，chemically，and physically，making them islands of life in the open sea.Observers at sea have long remarked that they attract seals，and seabirds，and divers have noticed that fish are more numerous near them than in the surrounding sea.Now scientists are learning just what the attraction is all about. Depending on their size，location，and the season，icebergs can be nurturers (培养者) or destroyers.During their existence—typically years from breaking off from an Antarctic or Greenlandic glacier to their gradual melting as they float into lower altitudes，they support animals on，around，even inside their splendid ice castle.They fertilize the ocean with nutrients，increasing sea creature production.Grounded bergs can shelter areas of the seafloor，prot