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  3. Science and politics make uncomfortable bedfellows. Rarely is this more true than in the case of climate change, where it is now

Science and politics make uncomfortable bedfellows. Rarely is this more true than in the case of climate change, where it is now

admin2013-11-14  66
问题     Science and politics make uncomfortable bedfellows. Rarely is this more true than in the case of climate change, where it is now time for emergency counseling. One point repeatedly made at last week’s climate change congress in Copenhagen was that formulating an action plan to curb climate change is not a job of scientists.
    Politicians may be left scratching their heads over what to do, but at this stage climate scientists cannot provide more guidance than they did in the 2007 report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, for two reasons.
    First, models will never provide a straightforward prediction of how the climate will change. As one Copenhagen delegate put it: "Tell me what the stock market will do in 100 years and I will tell you what the climate will do." Second as most climate scientists will agree, their role is not to formulate policy. They can provide more or less apocalyptic(大灾预测的)scenarios of what will happen if emissions hit certain thresholds, from burning forests to disappearing islands. But when politicians ask what is the absolute maximum amount of carbon dioxide we should allow to be pumped out, the answer is, invariably, how much risk do you want to take?
    There are ways out of the deadlock. As the major climate negotiations in December approach, scientists need to be able to take off their labcoats sometimes and speak as concerned citizens. Some may feel uncomfortable with blurring the line between science and activism, but they should be aware that no one understands the risks better than they do and no one is better placed to give informed opinions.
    Politicians, for their part, should stop begging climatologists for easy answers. What they need instead is a new breed of advisers to descend from the ivory towers of academia and join the climate fray — people who are willing and able to weight up the risks, costs and benefits of various degrees of action.
    If all else fails, there may still be the safety net of geoengineering. As we have said on several occasions, this option can no longer be dismissed as fantasy. Reputable scientists are discussing options among themselves and with policy-makers, but the fact that we are even considering it should spur governments to cut emissions, cut them deeply and cut them fast. Geoengineering is no get-out-of-jail-free card; it has dangers of its own. The military are already taking an interest, raising the spectre of climate weapons able to divert rainfall and bring drought. That is the last thing we want.
Speaking of climate change, politicians______.
选项 A、don’t like it when scientists are indirect
B、never see eye to eye with scientists there
C、seldom want to play the game with scientists
D、are left puzzled over the formulation of policy
答案D
解析 本题考查细节。从第二段可知，科学家们在气候变化的问题上，更多的只能是scratch theirheads，即“不知所措”的含义，与D选项中“be left puzzled over”是近义改写。故本题选D。
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