Questões de Inglês - Interpretação de texto | Reading comprehension para Concurso

From "Conclusion on Global Warming":

One of the big questions of today is whether global warming and climate change can be stopped or whether it is inevitable. Though worried, most scientists believe that if we act now, “serious” climate change and global warming can be avoided. A few, such as James Lovelock who created the GAIA theory of the Earth as a living organism, believes that is far too late to stop the changes that are now unfolding. Politicians either deny that there is a problem or act as if there is plenty of time to do something. After weighing the arguments we in The GAIA-Movement have had to conclude the following:

- Global Warming and Climate Change are unavoidable as they are already going on and have been so for quite some time;

- they constitute an inevitable catastrophe that will unfold in the years and decades to come;

- this fact cannot be reversed as the politicians in power will not provide the leadership needed to implement the monumental changes needed to reduce greenhouse gas emission and

- the processes set in motion are of such magnitude that they by now can only be postponed or prolonged so as to allow more time for adaptation.

We have reached our conclusions on global warming, climate change and the consequences thereof for food production and a number of other issues after studying books, films, websites, radio interviews, scientific magazines and reports.

The information we have found points in a clear direction and has thus enabled us to make a clear conclusion.

A basic book has been “Six Degrees” by Mark Lynas, a journalist who has studied many scientific reports and from that has been able to describe what may happen to the Earth as it warms 1-2-3-4-5 and even 6 degrees.

Elizabeth Kolbert has written “Field Notes from a Catastrophe”. She has met many scientists working on global warming and the book has much dramatic information. Several other authors have written books that give many details on global

warming and climate change such as “The Last Generation” by Fred Pierce, “The Weather Makers” by Tim Flannery, “A Rough Guide to Climate Change” by Robert Henson, “The Revenge of GAIA” by James Lovelock and “An Inconvenient Truth” by Al Gore, who received the Nobel Peace Prize for his effort to inform about climate change. The last book is also on film and there are several other films that tell about different aspects of climate change and what can be done to build a world on renewable energy.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, a UN working group, which also received the Nobel Peace Prize made their latest report in 2007. We have studied the report which presents several models for how the climate may change during the next 100 years.

Text taken from the Gaia Movement: http://www.gaia-movement.org/ On: 10/23/2009

“Gaia” is the name of a Greek goddess of Earth.

Read the text Picasso and Monets Are Stolen in Dutch Heist and answer questions 25), 26), 27),and 28).

Picasso and Monets Are Stolen in Dutch Heist

AMSTERDAM (AP) — Thieves broke into a Rotterdam museum on Tuesday and walked off with works from the likes of Picasso, Monet, Gauguin and Matisse potentially worth hundreds of millions.

Police haven't said how they pulled off the early hours heist, but an expert who tracks stolen art said the robbers clearly knew what they were after.

"Those thieves got one hell of a haul," said Chris Marinello, who directs the Art Loss Register.

The heist at the Kunsthal museum is one of the largest in years in the Netherlands, and is a stunning blow for the private Triton Foundation collection, which was being exhibited publicly as a group for the first time.

"It's every museum director's worst nightmare," said Kunsthal director Emily Ansenk, who had been in Istanbul on business but returned immediately.

News of the theft "struck like a bomb," she said at a press conference in the museum's cafe.

She declined to reveal any details of how the thieves struck, or how the museum is protected, other than describing its security as "state of the art" and "functional."

Willem van Hassel, the museum's chairman, said its security systems are automated, and do not use guards on site.

Police arrived at the scene five minutes after an alarm was triggered, he said. He described the museum's insurance as adequate for the exhibition.

The collection was on display as part of celebrations surrounding the museum's 20th anniversary.

Police spokeswoman Willemieke Romijn said investigators were reviewing videotapes of the theft, which took place around 3 a.m. local time, and calling for any witnesses to come forward.

The Art Loss Register's Marinello said the items taken could be worth "hundreds of millions of euros" if sold legally at auction. However, he said that was now impossible, as the paintings have already been registered internationally as stolen.

The stolen paintings were Pablo Picasso's 1971 "HAsenk said she spoke on behalf of tarlequin Head"; Claude Monet's 1901 "Waterloo Bridge, London" and "Charing Cross Bridge, London"; Henri Matisse's 1919 "Reading Girl in White and Yellow"; Paul Gauguin's 1898 "Girl in Front of Open Window"; Meyer de Haan's "Self-Portrait," around 1890, and Lucian Freud's 2002 work "Woman with Eyes Closed."

Marinello said the thieves have limited options available, such as seeking a ransom from the owners, the museum or the insurers. They could conceivably sell the paintings in the criminal market too, though any sale would likely be a small fraction of their potential auction value.

The Triton Foundation is a collection of avant-garde art put together by multimillionaire Willem Cordia, an investor and businessman, and his wife, Marijke Cordia-VanThe Kunsthal museu der Laan.

Asenk said she spoke on behalf of the family in saying "we are shocked, but we will go on."

"All involved want the public to still be able to see these kinds of special collections and private collections," she said.

The museum was cordoned off as police carried out their investigation Tuesday, but the museum will reopen Wednesday, she said.

The Kunsthal museum is a display space that has no permanent collection of its own — the name means "art gallery" in Dutch.

The Cordia family collection includes works by more than 150 famed artists. Others whose work was on show include Paul Cezanne, Marc Chagall, Salvador Dali, Edgar Degas and Andy Warhol.

Curators of the Cordia family collection aim to have the works on display for the public, and pieces have been shown in the past.

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2012/10/16/world/europe/ap-eu-netherlands-art-heist.html?_r=1&hp