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The Price of Existence

原文

Snap! Half the population of the universe disappears. Thanos (滅霸) smiles at the mountains, sadly content. The screen fades to black. Hushed whispers fill the movie theater: "This can't be the end ... I can't believe they did that ..." While we are busy mourning the loss of our favorite Avengers (復仇者), or thanking Marvel (漫威) for keeping them alive, I want to take a detour into Thanos' thought process. He believed that overpopulation would lead to a heavy burden on the environment and an eventual extinction of the planet. In order to prevent that, he chose to eliminate (消滅) half the population of the entire universe.

Except there is a problem, at least as far as humanity is concerned. You see, humans reproduce (生育) rather quickly, especially in the last few decades. If half of humanity disappeared now, we would be left with around 3.8 billion people. That's the human population of Earth around 1970. Considering how far medical science has improved, infant mortality rates (死亡率) have gone down while life expectancy (預期壽命) has risen since the 1970s. So theoretically, we've only lost about 30 years' worth of population growth. Does that mean Thanos has to come back in 2042 to snap his fingers again?

Putting aside the fact that Avengers: Infinity War (《復仇者聯盟：無限戰爭》) is fiction, we are indeed facing quite the problem with overpopulation. In 2017, the United Nations published a report claiming that the human population is projected to reach 9.8 billion by 2050. Hopefully by now, everyone believes in global warming (if you don't, you can stop reading) and humanity's contribution to it. If we were to continue damaging and abusing our environment in 2050 as we do today, we would very realistically run out of resources within a few decades. Or we would make the planet uninhabitable (不適合居住的). Of course, we wouldn't have Thanos around to halve our population every 30 or so years, so we do need to start making lifestyle changes in order to ensure the continuation of the planet.

This would be the part where I repeat everything you have already been told about environmental sustainability and responsibility, so I won't. Instead, I am going to leave you with the question: "If you possessed the Infinity Gauntlet (無限手套), would you help control overpopulation by snapping your fingers?"

---選自《英語週報》2018-2019《高中閱讀專版》第01期（基礎版）

教案

Pre-reading

1. What do you know about World Environment Day?

Note: World Environment Day (WED), falls on June 5 every year. Since it was established in 1972, WED has developed into a global platform for raising awareness on emerging environmental issues such as marine (海洋的) pollution, human overpopulation and global warming.

2. Who is the man in the picture? Do you agree with his reasoning? Why or why not?

Note:

Language study

1. Considering how far … So theoretically, we've only lost about 30 years' worth of population growth.

① considering prep. used to mention a particular condition or fact about sth. 考慮到；就……而言

e.g. Considering the weather, we arrived at the airport quickly.

② theoretically adv. used to say what is supposed to be true in a particular situation 從理論上講

→ theoretical adj. 理論的

→ theory n. 理論

③ worth n. amount of sth. that a specific sum of money will buy; amount of sth. that will last a specific length of time 值某金額的量；能持續某段時間的量

e.g. ten dollars' worth of gasoline

one week's worth of supplies

→ worthwhile adj. 值得（花時間、錢或精力）的

→ worthless adj. 無價值的

2. This would be the part where I repeat everything you have already been told … so I won't.

l where引導定語從句，先行詞可以是一個表示地點的名詞，也可以是抽象名詞，例如本句中的part，另外常見的抽象名詞還有position, point, case等。

e.g. What's the name of the village where he comes from?

The job has put me in a position where I can learn more.

Language study

Complete each sentence with one word in its correct form.

mourn worth project abuse sustainability

1. Michael ___________ the trust we had shown in him.

2. The little girl looked ___________, near to tears.

3. Sales figures are ___________ to rise by five percent next month.

4. Cycling is a(n) ___________ form of transport.

5. I love children and consider teaching a(n) ___________ career.

Key:

1. abused 2. mournful 3. projected 4. sustainable 5. worthwhile

Translate the following sentences into English.

1. 考慮到她因病缺席了一個月的課程，能跟上其他同學是很不容易的。(considering)

2. 據報道，已為2018年世界盃生產了價值400萬美元的紀念品。(worth)

3. 隨著信息時代的到來，紙質媒體也到了需要改變的時候了。(where)

Key:

1. Considering she was absent from school for a month because of sickness, it is not easy for her to keep up with other students.

2. It is reported that 4 million dollars' worth of souvenirs have been produced for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

3. With the advent of the information age, print media has reached the point where changes are needed.

Reading comprehension

Choose the best answer.

1. Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the article?

A. The world population has reached 7.6 billion so far.

B. The world population is estimated to double in 30 years.

C. Humans are the major cause of global warming.

D. Life expectancy has risen thanks to the advancement of medical science.

2. What can be inferred from the article?

A. Thanos has no choice but to eliminate half the population of the universe in Infinity War.

B. Thanos would be welcome if we had him around.

C. Natural resources on Earth are decreasing day by day now.

D. It would be impossible to live on Earth in 2050 even if we made lifestyle changes.

3. What's the author's purpose in writing this article?

A. To criticize Thanos for wiping out half the population of the universe.

B. To inform readers of the causes of overpopulation.

C. To remind readers of the consequences of global warming.

D. To warn people to change their lifestyles to promote sustainable development.

Key: 1-3 BCD

After reading

Each year, World Environment Day (WED) has a new theme to advocate environmental causes. " Beat Plastic Pollution" is the theme for 2018. What theme would you like to choose for the 2019 WED? Why? Exchange your ideas with your classmates.

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