1 . For the longest time, the predominant description about renewable energy featured awkward technologies, high costs, and burdensome allowance. In the _______ of strict and far-reaching policy changes, the chances for mass adoption seemed slim. Electric vehicles (EVs) simply couldn’t go the distance, and LED lights were unattractive and _______.
But now that these technologies have come of age, a new story is being written. Around the world, businesses, governments, and households are taking advantage of more cost-effective low-carbon technologies.
_______ advances in information technologies (IT), green solutions can be introduced into business operations successfully. And as public support for these technologies has grown, so have the _______ for scaling up to a fully sustainable energy system.
As in any rapid transition, a full understanding of what is happening has _______ events. Many present energy producers find it hard to believe that their world is undergoing a revolutionary change, so they insist that their heavily polluting technologies will remain _______ and necessary for some time to come. Journalists, too, describe the transition with a degree of _______, because it is their job to be suspicious. And politicians and regulators are cautious to adopt a new perspective, _______ they are already struggling to keep up with the pace of change in the energy industry.
To be sure, _______ doesn’t come without setbacks, as the recent growth in energy-related greenhouse-gas (GHG) emissions shows. Yet there is no doubt that the future of energy will be __________ different from the recent past. In fact, the __________ is happening even faster than we think, for example, coal-fired power plants are shutting down faster than ever, and plans for new natural-gas plants are being replaced with more cost-effective wind and solar options. And as the shift toward renewables gains good trends, it will be easier for elected officials to pursue more climate-friendly policies and regulations, thereby creating a(n) __________ circle of change.
As the green transition comes of age, it will offer solutions to all of humanity’s energy needs, placing a clean, prosperous and secure low-carbon future well within reach. Yet even as we hug __________, we must not lose sight of the fact that climate change is speeding up. With GHG emissions __________ to rise, the future of humanity hangs in the balance. One hopes that the shift to __________ energy will tip the scale in our favor.
1. A.license | B.absence | C.application | D.promotion |
2. A.invisible | B.unbelievable | C.inevitable | D.unaffordable |
3. A.Instead of | B.Owing to | C.In case of | D.According to |
4. A.resources | B.revolutions | C.prospects | D.priorities |
5. A.caught up with | B.compared with | C.taken place of | D.fallen behind |
6. A.relevant | B.inferior | C.synthetic | D.experimental |
7. A.mixture | B.caution | C.conflict | D.approval |
8. A.in case | B.so that | C.even though | D.the moment |
9. A.significance | B.invention | C.happiness | D.progress |
10. A.dramatically | B.economically | C.independently | D.equivalently |
11. A.interaction | B.modernization | C.motivation | D.transformation |
12. A.natural | B.potential | C.positive | D.original |
13. A.influence | B.optimism | C.estimation | D.extension |
14. A.starting | B.failing | C.emerging | D.continuing |
15. A.sustainable | B.traditional | C.available | D.industrial |