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Directions for questions 34 to 36: The passage given below is followed by a set of three questions. Choose the most appropriate answer to each question.
Allergy sufferers like to claim — in between sniffles — that each spring’s allergy season is worse than the last. But this year, they might actually be right.
Thanks to an unusually cold and snowy winter, followed by an early and warm spring, pollen counts are through the roof in much of the U.S., especially in the Southeast, which is already home to some of the most allergenic cities in the country. A pollen count — the number of grains of pollen in a cubic meter of air — of 120 is considered high, but in Atlanta last week the number hit 5,733, the second highest level ever recorded in the city.
The bad news is that in a warmer world, allergies are likely to get worse — and that’s going to cost sufferers and the rest of us. A new report released on Wednesday by the National Wildlife Federation (NWF) found thatglobal warming will likely increase pollen counts in the heavily populated eastern section of the country and that the effect of climate change could push the economic cost of allergies and asthma well above the current$
Here’s how it works: higher concentrations of CO2
Pollen from ragweed, which triggers most cases of spring hay fever, is projected to increase up to 100% between now and 2085 if fossil-fuel emissions continue to rise unabated. And more CO2 2
As the climate warms, it is likely to favor trees that give off pollen — like oaks and hickories — over pines, spruces and fir trees, which don’t. By 2100, once relatively cool states in the Northeast — including Vermont, New Hampshire and New York — could have the sort of highly allergenic trees now seen in the hotter Southeast, as species migrate north to adjust to the heat.
There are ways to fight rising allergies even in a warmer world: for example, by replacing trees that emit high levels of pollen in densely populated areas — like the Norway maples found on New York City streets — with species that produce less, like mountain ash or golden rain. “We can get better allergy management and help people reduce their exposure to triggers,” says Mike Triangle of the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America. But absent a concerted effort to reduce carbon emissions, get ready for a sniffly future.
Allergy sufferers like to claim — in between sniffles — that each spring’s allergy season is worse than the last. But this year, they might actually be right.
Thanks to an unusually cold and snowy winter, followed by an early and warm spring, pollen counts are through the roof in much of the U.S., especially in the Southeast, which is already home to some of the most allergenic cities in the country. A pollen count — the number of grains of pollen in a cubic meter of air — of 120 is considered high, but in Atlanta last week the number hit 5,733, the second highest level ever recorded in the city.
The bad news is that in a warmer world, allergies are likely to get worse — and that’s going to cost sufferers and the rest of us. A new report released on Wednesday by the National Wildlife Federation (NWF) found thatglobal warming will likely increase pollen counts in the heavily populated eastern section of the country and that the effect of climate change could push the economic cost of allergies and asthma well above the current
Here’s how it works: higher concentrations of CO
Pollen from ragweed, which triggers most cases of spring hay fever, is projected to increase up to 100% between now and 2085 if fossil-fuel emissions continue to rise unabated. And more CO
As the climate warms, it is likely to favor trees that give off pollen — like oaks and hickories — over pines, spruces and fir trees, which don’t. By 2100, once relatively cool states in the Northeast — including Vermont, New Hampshire and New York — could have the sort of highly allergenic trees now seen in the hotter Southeast, as species migrate north to adjust to the heat.
There are ways to fight rising allergies even in a warmer world: for example, by replacing trees that emit high levels of pollen in densely populated areas — like the Norway maples found on New York City streets — with species that produce less, like mountain ash or golden rain. “We can get better allergy management and help people reduce their exposure to triggers,” says Mike Triangle of the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America. But absent a concerted effort to reduce carbon emissions, get ready for a sniffly future.
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