2014春季英语人教版新课标必修42导学案.docVIP

2014春季英语人教版新课标必修4U2导学案（2） 必修4 Unit 2 Working the land 第课时 Reading When you hear the word “farm”，chances are your picture of rolling hills in the country covered with cows and corn.But some scientists，engineers and city planners say the farms of the future could be indoors inside skyscrapers(摩天大楼) in the world’s most populated cities. It might sound crazy，but in fact，some of the technology for growing crops indoors already exists.The National Aeronautics and Space Administration(NASA)，has been experimenting for years with methods for growing fresh fruits and vegetables on the moon or even on Mars. Bringing farming indoors solves a number of problems.First，traditional farming takes up a lot of land.By the year 2050，the world population will grow by another three billion.As populations grow，the land available for farming decreases.Governments are now wondering where we will grow the food for all these people.Despommier，an ecologist at Columbia University，and his colleagues say “vertical farming”—growing crops in skyscrapers tens of stories high—is the answer.Cities that grow their own food also would become more self-reliant and no longer be at risk of natural disasters，weather instability(不稳定) or insect pests(害虫)．“You can control everything indoors.You can’t control anything outdoors.” Despommier says. Vertical farms don’t exist yet.Their supporters say a well-designed vertical farm could be self-reliant，able to recycle water，compost(将……做成混合肥) crop waste，and use gases given off in the process to heat the building.Even the waste of the livestock(牲畜) living in the building could be recycled as a source of energy. But some believe making the move to vertical farming will not be so easy.“I would say it is going to be tough，”says Gene Giacomelli，who heads up the Controlled Environment Agriculture Center at the University of Arizona in Tucson. It can be tricky to regulate climate conditions indoors，he says.Keeping the correct balance of humidity(湿度) can be especially chal