Read the passage and answer the questions that follow : Very few human…
2023
Read the passage and answer the questions that follow :
Very few human activities have zero environmental effect. For centuries, societies have suffered a wide variety of environmental damage, not least in terms of the air pollution that primitive, uncontrolled methods of combustion caused. People of Roman Britain, with fires in their huts, found the smoke a hazard to health and examination of human skulls shows a pitting that indicates a high frequency of sinusitis. The UK was the first country to widely experience massive industrial development based on coal. Between 1580 and 1680, imports of coal to London increased from 20,000 tonnes a year to 360,000 tonnes, and London became a city of great stinking fogs. These only really disappeared some years after the December 1952 episode, when cold temperatures and moist air caused moisture to condense on airborne particles from coal combustion. Over a radius of 20 miles, the resulting fog rendered the atmosphere opaque and it was found that in the week ending 13 December 1952 there had been an excess of 2851 over the usual weekly number of deaths. In response the Clean Air Acts of 1956 and 1968 dealt mainly with smoke in cities. Two decades after the smog disaster the Control of Pollution Act (1974) was brought in and systematically began the long haul towards comprehensive improvements in air quality as part of overall environmental protection. Similar experiences were encountered across Europe and North America during the 20th century.
London became a city of “great stinking fogs” as a result of
Answer: C. Coal combustion — CONCEPTIn passage-based cause questions, identify the causal chain the author develops over the relevant time span. Separate the main historical driver from…
- A.
Household fires
- B.
Cold temperatures
- C.
Coal combustion
- D.
Excessive moisture in the air
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C
CONCEPT
In passage-based cause questions, identify the causal chain the author develops over the relevant time span. Separate the main historical driver from temporary conditions and earlier examples.
APPLICATION
The passage says that London’s coal imports rose from 20,000 tonnes a year in 1580 to 360,000 tonnes in 1680, after which London became known for its great stinking fogs. It later explains that coal combustion produced airborne particles on which moisture condensed during the 1952 smog.
CONTRAST
Household fires belong to the earlier Roman-Britain example about smoke exposure and sinusitis.
Cold temperatures describe a weather condition that intensified the December 1952 episode.
Coal combustion links the long rise in coal use with the smoke particles involved in London’s fogs.
Moist air helped condensation occur during the 1952 episode, but it was not the long-term source described for the city’s stinking fogs.
CROSS-CHECK
The passage’s chronology confirms the distinction: rising coal use precedes the description of London’s fogs, while cold and moist air appear later as conditions of one severe episode.
Therefore, the answer is coal combustion.