Questões de Inglês

Animals' popularity 'a disadvantage'

By Mary HaltonScience reporter, BBC News

13 April 2018

A survey of the public's perceptions suggests many people are unaware that the animals they consider
"charismatic" are under threat in the wild. These include lions, elephants, tigers and other animals which frequently
appear in branding and advertising.

Researchers suspect the animals' media ubiquity may lead people to think they are prospering in the wild. The
[5] findings were published by an international team of scientists in PLOS Biology.

The notion of "charismatic" species has cropped up recently in conservation biology, explains Dr Franck
Courchamp, the study's lead author. "There is a regular claim that the most charismatic species are diverting most
of the time and resources [in conservation]. I started wondering whether this was true and followed by better
results in conservation," he told BBC News.

[10] Dr Courchamp and his team set out to determine exactly which species these might be. Using an online survey
available in four languages, supplemented by classroom questionnaires in English, Spanish and French primary
schools, researchers asked the public to name the wild species they considered most charismatic. They also looked
at how frequently animals were represented on zoo websites, and on the covers of Disney and Pixar animated
films.

15 Additionally, the team had volunteers in France catalogue their encounters with "virtual" populations of the 10
animals over the period of a week. They encountered an average of 4.4 lions in logos, cartoons, magazines and
other sources each day, implying that people are likely to see two to three times as many "virtual" lions in a year
as there are lions in West Africa.

Dr Courchamp thinks this may have a subconscious impact, though there is no direct evidence as of yet. "Mostly I
[20] think because people see giraffes and lions every day of their life, they unconsciously think they are in abundance,"
he said.

Despite their abundant media representation, nine of the animals on the list are classed as vulnerable, endangered
or critically endangered on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List.

When researchers asked survey participants whether they thought these animals were endangered, explaining that
[25 they were not using IUCN terminology, they were surprised by the results. Almost half of respondents thought that
critically endangered gorillas were not under threat.

But conservation biologist Dr Sarah Durant cautions that this doesn't yet establish "a causal relationship between
seeing the species frequently in society and whether that relates to our bias perception of their endangerment."
Other factors may influence people's understanding of a species' status, and their participation in conservation
[30] efforts.

"We don't know that much about the psychology behind conservation. It's a very new field. I think a lot of people
often feel overwhelmed as well, because the problems are so huge," added the Zoological Society of London
researcher, who was not involved in the study. "It would be an interesting area for further research," she said.

Dr Courchamp proposes an innovative solution; funding conservation by "copyrighting" the image of vulnerable or
[35] endangered species. Companies would donate money to NGOs in return for using the animals in their branding or
advertising. "I think it's not so unrealistic," says Dr Courchamp.

"There are already some companies that do that. Jaguar are in partnership with Panthera. Lacoste... also made a
campaign recently where they replaced their logo with silhouettes of endangered species."

Dr Durant observes that it would likely be difficult to execute, but is an interesting suggestion. "This is just the first
[40] step," she commented, "putting this idea out there. Hopefully it will open a discussion about the use of these
species and how it relates to their conservation."

Time is certainly short for some of the animals on the list. Ecologists predict that, without sustained conservation
efforts, elephants will become extinct in the wild within a century. Cheetah are facing an imminent population
decline of up to 70%, and are already confined to just 9% of their historical territory in Africa.

[45] Dr Courchamp feels that more needs to be done. "At the moment we are doing first aid on species that are on the
verge of dying. We are just pushing the day they go extinct in the wild, we are not saving them."

Retrieved from http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-437426

Animals' popularity 'a disadvantage'

By Mary HaltonScience reporter, BBC News

13 April 2018

A survey of the public's perceptions suggests many people are unaware that the animals they consider
"charismatic" are under threat in the wild. These include lions, elephants, tigers and other animals which frequently
appear in branding and advertising.

Researchers suspect the animals' media ubiquity may lead people to think they are prospering in the wild. The
[5] findings were published by an international team of scientists in PLOS Biology.

The notion of "charismatic" species has cropped up recently in conservation biology, explains Dr Franck
Courchamp, the study's lead author. "There is a regular claim that the most charismatic species are diverting most
of the time and resources [in conservation]. I started wondering whether this was true and followed by better
results in conservation," he told BBC News.

[10] Dr Courchamp and his team set out to determine exactly which species these might be. Using an online survey
available in four languages, supplemented by classroom questionnaires in English, Spanish and French primary
schools, researchers asked the public to name the wild species they considered most charismatic. They also looked
at how frequently animals were represented on zoo websites, and on the covers of Disney and Pixar animated
films.

15 Additionally, the team had volunteers in France catalogue their encounters with "virtual" populations of the 10
animals over the period of a week. They encountered an average of 4.4 lions in logos, cartoons, magazines and
other sources each day, implying that people are likely to see two to three times as many "virtual" lions in a year
as there are lions in West Africa.

Dr Courchamp thinks this may have a subconscious impact, though there is no direct evidence as of yet. "Mostly I
[20] think because people see giraffes and lions every day of their life, they unconsciously think they are in abundance,"
he said.

Despite their abundant media representation, nine of the animals on the list are classed as vulnerable, endangered
or critically endangered on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List.

When researchers asked survey participants whether they thought these animals were endangered, explaining that
[25 they were not using IUCN terminology, they were surprised by the results. Almost half of respondents thought that
critically endangered gorillas were not under threat.

But conservation biologist Dr Sarah Durant cautions that this doesn't yet establish "a causal relationship between
seeing the species frequently in society and whether that relates to our bias perception of their endangerment."
Other factors may influence people's understanding of a species' status, and their participation in conservation
[30] efforts.

"We don't know that much about the psychology behind conservation. It's a very new field. I think a lot of people
often feel overwhelmed as well, because the problems are so huge," added the Zoological Society of London
researcher, who was not involved in the study. "It would be an interesting area for further research," she said.

Dr Courchamp proposes an innovative solution; funding conservation by "copyrighting" the image of vulnerable or
[35] endangered species. Companies would donate money to NGOs in return for using the animals in their branding or
advertising. "I think it's not so unrealistic," says Dr Courchamp.

"There are already some companies that do that. Jaguar are in partnership with Panthera. Lacoste... also made a
campaign recently where they replaced their logo with silhouettes of endangered species."

Dr Durant observes that it would likely be difficult to execute, but is an interesting suggestion. "This is just the first
[40] step," she commented, "putting this idea out there. Hopefully it will open a discussion about the use of these
species and how it relates to their conservation."

Time is certainly short for some of the animals on the list. Ecologists predict that, without sustained conservation
efforts, elephants will become extinct in the wild within a century. Cheetah are facing an imminent population
decline of up to 70%, and are already confined to just 9% of their historical territory in Africa.

[45] Dr Courchamp feels that more needs to be done. "At the moment we are doing first aid on species that are on the
verge of dying. We are just pushing the day they go extinct in the wild, we are not saving them."

Retrieved from http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-437426

Read the following text to answer question.

Life on Earth has always been exposed to a certain amount of radiation ffom natural sources which comes in part from cosmic rays. Also present in our environment is radiation from the radioactive elements that occur naturally such as radium, thorium, and uranium.

One of the most serious problems that can result from radiation given off by nuclear reactions is damage to the genes, the cells in living organisms that control hereditary factors. Exposure to radiation can cause a mutation, a change in some inherited characteristics of the organisms. Only a very small proportion of mutations are beneficial to the organism.

The nuclear reactors that have been developed for experimental and peaceful purposes are surrounded by a heavy protective shield of concrete, or sometimes of lead, to protectthe people who work with them.

A further problem involves the disposal of radioactive wastes. As the number of nuclear reactors in existence has increased into the environment because they could create a potential hazard for all living things in the world.

Experimentation is going on constantly to find safe methods of getting rid ofthe harmful by-products of nuclear reactions.

Disponível em: http://bbc.com/earth/story. Acesso em: 13 set. 2017.

Read the following text to answer question.

Human beings have adapted to the physical world not by changing their physical nature but by adjusting their society. Animals and plants have made adjustments, over long periods, by the development of radical changes in their very organisms. Hereditary differences meet needs of various environments. But among humans, differences in head form and in other physical features are not, in most cases, clearly adaptive. Nor is it clear that mental capacities of races are different. As far as we know, the races are equally intelligent and equally capable of solving their problems of living together. The varying ways of life, it seems, are social and learned differences, not physical or inherited differences. It stands to reason, therefore, that man's adjustment to his surroundings should be studied in custom and institution, notin anatomy and neural structure.

Disponível em: http://book.google.com.br. Acesso em: 11 set. 2017.

Leia o texto para responder à questão.

England’s Mental Health Experiment: No-Cost Talk Therapy

    England is in the midst of a unique national experiment, the world’s most ambitious effort to treat depression, anxiety and other common mental illnesses. The rapidly growing initiative, which has gotten little publicity outside the country, offers virtually open-ended talk therapy free of charge at clinics throughout the country: in remote farming villages, industrial suburbs and isolated immigrant communities. The goal is to eventually create a system of primary care for mental health for all of Britain.
    At a time when many nations are debating large-scale reforms to mental health care, researchers and policy makers are looking hard at England’s experience, observing both its popularity and its limitations. Mental health care systems vary widely across the Western world, but none have gone nearly so far to provide unlimited access to talk therapies backed by hard evidence. Experts say the English program is the first broad real-world test of treatments that have been studied mostly in carefully controlled lab conditions.

(Benedict Carey. www.nytimes.com, 24.07.2017. Adaptado.)

Text 

A civil rights 'emergency': justice, clean air and water in the age of Trump
by Oliver Milman in New York

The Trump administration’s dismantling of environmental regulations has intensified a growing civil rights battle over the deadly burden of pollution on minorities and low-income people. Black, Latino and disadvantaged people have long been disproportionately afflicted by toxins from industrial plants, cars, hazardous housing conditions and other sources. But political leaders, academics and activists spoke of a growing urgency around the struggle for environmental justice as the Trump administration peels away rules designed to protect clean air and water.

“What we are seeing is the institutionalization of discrimination again, the thing we’ve fought for 40 years,” said Robert Bullard, an academic widely considered the father of the environmental justice movement. “There are people in fence-line communities who are now very worried. If the federal government doesn’t monitor and regulate, and gives the states a green light to do what they want, we are going to get more pollution, more people will get sick. There will be more deaths.”

(Excerpt from the site: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/nov/20/environmental-justice-in-the-age-of-trump. Researched on November 2017.)