영어 모의고사 (자동 편성)

A small riverside village had endured severe flooding almost every summer, ①<u>watching</u> helplessly as rising water damaged homes and destroyed crops year after year. Frustrated residents eventually decided to pursue climate adaptation, ②<u>adjusted</u> their infrastructure and habits to reduce the damage caused by increasingly unpredictable weather. Engineers widened the drainage canals surrounding the village, ③<u>allowing</u> excess rainwater to flow away more efficiently instead of pooling in low-lying streets. Meanwhile, several families ④<u>whose houses stood</u> in the most vulnerable areas relocated to higher ground, even though leaving their long-time homes was emotionally difficult. The village also installed an early warning system that sent alerts to residents' phones whenever river levels rose dangerously fast. When a powerful storm struck three years later, the new measures proved effective, and the village suffered only minor damage instead of the devastating losses it had previously faced. ⑤<u>Their resilience became</u> a model for neighboring communities.

Many companies now advertise themselves as environmentally responsible, yet a growing number of these claims ①turn out to be misleading. This practice, known as greenwashing, ②occurs when a business spends more effort marketing its products as eco-friendly than actually reducing environmental harm. A company might launch a recycled-packaging line while ③continuing to pollute rivers through its main factories, creating a false impression of genuine change. Such tactics deceive well-intentioned consumers who wish to shop responsibly but ④lacks the tools to verify corporate claims. In contrast, truly sustainable businesses publish detailed, independently verified data about their emissions and supply chains, ⑤allowing outsiders to check their progress.

The term green premium ①<u>describes</u> the extra cost that consumers must pay when they choose an environmentally friendly product or energy source over a conventional, cheaper alternative. For example, an electric vehicle or solar-powered appliance ②<u>often carries</u> a higher price tag than its gasoline-powered or coal-based counterpart, even though it produces fewer emissions over time. This price gap frequently discourages shoppers who support sustainability in principle but cannot justify the additional expense within a limited household budget. In contrast, wealthier consumers can absorb the premium more easily, ③<u>which creates</u> unequal participation in green markets. To narrow this gap, governments have introduced subsidies and tax credits ④<u>that lower</u> upfront costs, while companies invest in research to make clean technologies cheaper to manufacture. As production scales up and innovation continues, many economists expect the green premium ⑤<u>to shrinking</u> steadily, eventually making sustainable choices the more affordable option for most consumers.

When people encounter solid scientific evidence about climate change, we might expect them ①to accept it without hesitation. However, many individuals still dismiss or downplay such evidence, and psychologists explain this pattern through a concept called motivated reasoning. Motivated reasoning refers to the tendency to process information in a way that ②protects one's existing beliefs, identity, or lifestyle rather than to pursue objective truth. For example, a person whose livelihood depends on the fossil fuel industry may unconsciously search for reasons to doubt climate data, even while ③claim to value scientific accuracy. This happens because accepting uncomfortable facts can threaten a person's sense of self or ④demand costly lifestyle changes. Therefore, simply presenting more data rarely persuades a committed skeptic. Instead, experts suggest connecting climate information to values the person already holds, such as family safety or economic stability, so that acceptance feels ⑤natural rather than threatening.

Browsing an online store today often means chatting with an AI assistant that asks a few quick questions before suggesting a short list of products tailored to the answers. Retailers report that shoppers who use these chatbots tend to complete purchases more often and return fewer items, since the guided conversation helps buyers choose products that actually fit their needs. Some shoppers, however, remain wary of how personal the questions can feel, wondering _______________. Consumer advocates argue that stores should clearly explain what happens to this data, rather than burying the explanation in a lengthy privacy policy that almost no one reads.

Imagine two factories making the same product: one in a country with strict carbon rules, and one in a country with almost none. The factory facing stricter rules often spends more, which can make its goods pricier than those made elsewhere. To fix this imbalance, some governments have introduced the carbon border adjustment mechanism, a policy charging imported goods a fee based on how much carbon was released while producing them. Supporters argue that the system _______________. However, critics claim it unfairly burdens developing countries, which often lack money to modernize factories quickly. For example, a small exporter in a poorer nation might struggle to pay the added charge, though it contributes little to global emissions. Still, if wealthier nations pair the policy with technical support, it could become a genuinely fair tool for cutting emissions worldwide.

Climate scientists frequently warn about tipping points, _______________. Unlike gradual warming, which unfolds steadily over decades, crossing a tipping point can produce dramatic consequences within a short period. For instance, as Arctic ice melts, it exposes darker ocean water that absorbs more sunlight than reflective ice, accelerating further melting in a self-reinforcing cycle. Similarly, scientists worry that a major ocean current, which currently redistributes heat across the planet, could slow dramatically if enough freshwater from melting glaciers dilutes the surrounding seawater. Once such thresholds are crossed, restoring the original balance may become nearly impossible, even if emissions are later reduced. Therefore, researchers argue that preventing these transitions matters more than merely slowing average temperature increases. Identifying how close each system stands to its threshold remains one of the most urgent challenges in climate research.

A documentary director named Mira first traveled to a remote Arctic glacier to film its towering cliffs of blue ice, which seemed frozen in time. Standing before the massive wall, she assumed such an enormous structure could hardly change within a lifetime. Five years later, however, she returned to the very same coordinates, expecting her camera to capture an identical scene. Instead, she discovered that the glacier had retreated so dramatically that the ice cliffs, once visible from her original position, had nearly disappeared, leaving bare rock and pools of meltwater behind. Comparing the two sets of footage side by side, Mira realized that _______________. This encounter convinced her that climate change, which she had previously regarded as a distant statistic, was in fact an urgent process reshaping landscapes before her eyes.

ESG management refers to a company's efforts to consider Environmental, Social, and Governance factors alongside profit when making business decisions. Investors increasingly rely on ESG ratings to judge whether a company is managed responsibly and sustainably over the long term. Recently, however, many corporations have learned to boost their ESG scores without genuinely transforming their operations. Some firms publish glossy reports filled with impressive statistics while their actual carbon emissions barely decline, exploiting the fact that ESG evaluation systems still lack consistent global standards. This gap between appearance and substance has led critics to demand stricter, more transparent criteria for measuring corporate responsibility. Genuine ESG management, in contrast, requires _______________. Investors who wish to identify truly responsible companies should therefore examine detailed disclosures instead of trusting labels alone.

Many countries and companies today have adopted the goal of carbon neutrality, aiming to balance the greenhouse gases they emit with the amount they remove from the atmosphere. (A) Achieving this goal typically requires several sequential stages rather than a single sudden action; first, organizations attempt to reduce emissions directly by replacing fossil fuels with renewable energy sources such as solar or wind power. (B) Critics argue, however, that some companies exploit offsetting too early, using it to avoid making genuine reductions, so experts insist that a credible roadmap must always prioritize actual emission cuts before relying on compensation. (C) Next, they improve efficiency throughout their operations, minimizing the energy wasted during production and transportation, and only after these measures have been maximized do most organizations turn to offsetting, funding outside projects such as reforestation.