Can technology help us save the planet.
Technology is fundamentally changing the way we live, work, relate to one another and to the external world. The speed, breadth and depth of current breakthroughs have no historical precedent and are affecting almost every sector in every country. Now more than ever, the advent of new technology has the potential to transform environmental protection. It is time to focus on the solutions which we know exist or have the potential to be developed and this is where technology, along with behavioural change, can help us reboot the health of our nature and planet.
• AI to track wildlife
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is helping conservation efforts. In China, WWF and tech giant Intel are harnessing the power of AI to help protect wild tigers and their habitats, while also protecting countless other species as a result, and also helping carbon storage, vital watersheds and communities in the area.
The possibilities for technology partnerships to reboot nature are endless. The next step is to scale this work beyond a few test sites and to extend it to other places to protect the planet. More than technology, we need a fundamental shift in mindset and understanding the role that nature and biodiversity play in our lives and businesses.
2. Supercomputers simulations for climate change investigation
New supercomputer simulations by climate scientists on the Cori supercomputer at Berkeley Lab (the USA) were used to examine how warming caused by human activities might have impacted (могло повлиять) recent hurricanes and could affect similar storms in the future. One part of the study was to analyse the effects of climate change so far, and the second, to project into the future, to understand how various levels of global warming could change tropical cyclone intensity and rainfall. To reach their conclusions, the researchers modelled 15 historical tropical cyclones, or hurricanes, and simulated them in various past and projected future climate scenarios. They found that climate change intensified the amount of rainfall in recent hurricanes by 5 to 10 percent. They further found that if those hurricanes were to occur in a future world that is warmer than present, those storms would have even more rainfall and stronger winds.
High-performance computing systems are also used to better predict earthquake damage to infrastructure. There is a lot of uncertainty in predicting future earthquake motions and what particular facilities would be subjected to. And you really need to understand those motions because, if you understand the input to the structure, you can then model the structural response and understand the potential for damage. New advanced machines will reduce the time for simulations and allow the researchers to look at different rupture (разрушительный) scenarios to fully understand the potential risk.
3. 'Thank you' emails and pollution: what`s the connection?
Software to identify when a user has sent a potentially unnecessary email and prompt them to be more thoughtful has been created. We could significantly cut our carbon footprint if we stopped sending unnecessary 'thank you' emails, researchers said, calling on the public to 'think before you thank'. For example, Britons send more than 64 million unnecessary emails per day, a study by energy supplier OVO Energy found, with unactionable pleasantries such as 'thank you' and 'thanks' topping the list of most common offenders. If each adult sent one less email a day, Britain could reduce its carbon output by 16,433 tons - equal to more than 81,000 flights from London to Madrid, the study found.
Does it mean that everybody should be ruder? Absolutely not. But if you send somebody a 'thanks' email, and they're only three metres away from you, it might be nice to just go over and say ‘thank you very much’. Besides, most people would not mind not receiving a 'thank you' email if it helped the environment.
16. DICTIONARY SKILLS. Read the text again and circle any words you do not understand. In groups, pool unknown words and use dictionaries to find their meanings.
17. SPEAKING. Work in groups of three. Choose one example to read about in detail and prepare to tell your group about it.
18. LISTENING ON THE TOPIC. Listen to the conversation about low emission zones in the UK. Note down some extra facts and useful words for speaking on the topic. Do you think it is a good idea to bring in Clean Air Zones in big cities?
https://www.bbc.com/learningenglish/features/6-minute-english/ep-200130
19. DISCUSSION. Search the net to find more examples of how technology can help people deal with pollution. Get ready to tell your groupmates about some of these ideas. Think about your own opinion concerning these ideas, ask questions and get ready to discuss these projects. In groups, create your own list of top 3 ideas of how technology might solve the problem of pollution. Compare your lists.
VOCABULARY FOCUS
20. Match the words in column A with the words in column B to make word combinations: e. g. to avoid + environmental issues. Then write your own examples with these word combinations.
| A. 1. the amount of 2. to have 3. to cause 4. to destroy 5. to contribute to 6. a distant 7. to affect 8. to inflict 9. endangered 10. on the verge of 11. to respond to 12. in the last 13. repeated 14. to move away from 15. to replace fossil fuels 16. to reduce 17. to adopt 18. efficient 19. to conserve 20. to recycle | B. a. damages b. the consumption of energy c. waste d. climate change e. species f. disasters g. flooding and droughts h. with alternative sources of energy i. responsible habits j. energy k. an effect on l. future threat m. extinction n. fossil fuels o. devices p. greenhouse gases q. the greenhouse effect r. people s. decade t. the ozone layer |