摘要：What causes this? The frozen solid ground actually contains bits of rock material and organic matter, leaving spaces in between. A

2014年6月英语高考真题C篇4-6段

What causes this? The frozen solid ground actually contains bits of rock material and organic matter, leaving spaces in between. And because these spaces are filled with solid ice, liquidwater cannot readily get inside. But it can when the permafrost melts, allowing more water to get through. Soon after that, around one hundred and ninety-two lakes in Northwestern Alaska are gone from sight.

Why did the scientists miss this? One probable reason is that most climate models assume that the melting of permafrost is driven only by warming air. New evidence suggests, however, that rainfall, particularly an increase in autumn rain, is now contributing significantly to permafrost thaw. The rainfall carries heat into the ground, yet none of the existing models include such processes. That is a good example of why, no matter how complex our models are or may one day be, we need direct observation of the natural world.

中文翻译

是什么导致了这种情况？实际上，冻结的坚硬地面中含有一些岩石物质和有机物质，它们之间留有空隙。由于这些空隙被固态冰填满，液态水无法轻易进入。但当永久冻土融化时，液态水就可以进入，这使得更多的水能够渗透下去。在那之后不久，阿拉斯加西北部大约192个湖泊就从人们的视野中消失了。

为什么科学家们没有预见到这种情况呢？一个可能的原因是，大多数气候模型都假定永久冻土的融化仅仅是由空气变暖所驱动的。然而，新的证据表明，降雨，尤其是秋季降雨量的增加，现在对永久冻土的融化起到了重要作用。降雨将热量带入地下，但现有的模型中都没有考虑到这样的过程。这很好地说明了为什么无论我们的模型现在多么复杂，或者将来可能变得多么复杂，我们都需要对自然界进行直接观察。

来源：Xin神英语