海洋中儲存的碳可能比早期研究中估計的要多

鐘翠頻 黃連英

The ocean’s capacity to store atmospheric carbon dioxide is some 20% greater than the estimates contained in the latest IPCC report. These are the findings of a study published in the journal Nature on December 6， 2023， led by an international team including a biologist from the CNRS. The scientists looked at the role played by plankton（浮游生物） in the natural transport of carbon from surface waters down to the seabed.

Plankton swallow up carbon dioxide and， as they grow， convert it into organic tissue via photosynthesis（光合作用）. When they die， part of the plankton is transformed into particles known as “marine snow”. Being denser than seawater， these particles sink down to the seabed thus storing carbon there and providing essential nutrients for a wide range of deep-sea organisms， from tiny bacteria to deep-sea fish.

By analyzing a bank of data collected from around the world by oceanographic ships since the 1970s， the team of seven scientists were able to digitally map numbers of organic matter throughout the world’s oceans. The resulting new estimate of carbon storage capacity is 15 gigatonnes per year， an increase of around 20% compared with previous studies （11 gigatonnes per year） published by the IPCC in its 2021 report.

This reassessment of the ocean’s storage capacity represents a significant advance in our understanding of carbon exchanges between the atmosphere and the ocean at the global level. While the team stresses that this absorption process takes place over tens of thousands of years， and is therefore not sufficient to offset the faster and faster increase in CO2 emissions caused by worldwide industrial activity since 1750， the study nonetheless highlights the importance of the ocean ecosystem as a major player in the long-term regulation of the global climate.

（材料來自Science Daily網站，有刪改）

1. Why is the latest IPCC report mentioned in Paragraph 1？

A. To list an example.

B. To make a comparison.

C. To illustrate the concept.

D. To clarify the phenomenon.

2. What can we learn from the scientists？

A. Plankton supplies deep-sea fish with lots of nutrition.

B. The ocean’s carbon storage capacity has increased rapidly.

C. Dead plankton is changed into organic tissue via photosynthesis.

D. The ocean may be storing more carbon than estimated earlier.

3. What does the word “offset” underlined in Paragraph 4 probably mean？

A. Cancel out. B. Bring about.

C. Set apart from. D. Take advantage of.

4. What does the author think of the study？

A. Fair. B. Dull.

C. Inspiring. D. Demanding.

1. B。解析：推理判斷題。材料第一段第一句提到“海洋儲存大氣中的二氧化碳的能力比IPCC最新報告中估計的高出20%左右”，結合材料第一段第二句中的“These are the findings of a study published in the journal Nature”，我們可知作者采用對比法，旨在通過比較引出發表在《自然》雜志上的一項研究結果。故選B。

2. D。解析：推理判斷題。材料第三段的最后一句提到“由此得出的碳儲量的新估計值為每年150億噸，比IPCC在其2021年報告中發表的先前研究（每年110億噸）增加了約20%”，由此可知，海洋中儲存的碳可能比早期研究中估計的要多。選項A屬于無中生有，選項B屬于曲解原文，選項C屬于偷梁換柱，故選D。

3. A。解析：詞義猜測題。材料第四段中畫線詞所在句子的大意為“研究團隊強調，這一吸收過程需要歷經數萬年的時間，因此不足以抵消自1750年以來全球工業活動造成的二氧化碳排放量越來越快的增長”，由此可知，“offset”應有“抵消，補償”之意。故選A。

4. C。解析：觀點態度題。材料第四段第一句提到“對海洋儲存能力的重新評估代表著我們對全球大氣和海洋之間的碳交換的理解取得了重大進展”，另外材料末尾指出“這項研究強調了海洋生態系統作為長期調節全球氣候的主要參與者的重要性”，由此可見，作者認為此項研究是能給人們帶來啟示的。故選C。