专四
The costs associated with natural disasters are increasing rapidly．As a result, officials in government and industry have focused more attention on disasters and their effects．The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy has estimated that disasters cost the country about 1 billion per week．Hurricane Andrew, the Midwest flood of 1993, and the Hanshin earthquake have．shown that individual disasters can cost tens if not hundreds of billions of dollars．This increasing cost has resulted in greater funding from government and industty for the development of technologies related to disaster prediction, and has led to more research into the effective use of predictive information．
The insurance industry has long been aware of the dangers of natural disasters; the 1906 earthquake in San Francisco, California, bankrupted scores of insurance companies．But the industry has focused particular attention on disaster prediction in recent years, as spiraling costs revealed that many compames had underestimated their financial exposure．For instance, prior to Hurricane Andrew in 1992, many insurance experts thought that the worst hurricane possible would do no more than 8 billion in damages to the industry．The damages caused by Hurricane Andrew． estimated at about 17 billion, shattered these beliefs．Today, estimates of worst-case disaster scenarios Approach 100 billion．
The insurance industry has therefore increased its support for research into disaster prediction．One such effort ?revolves a number of companies that have joined together to support the Bermuda-based Risk Prediction Initiative, which funds disaster research．The expectation is that the resulting information will place the industry on a more
solid foundation to make decisions about the risk of future disasters．The industry has also lobbied for the ?government to bear some of the financial burden of disaster insurance．Such a program already exists for flood ?insurance, set up in the late 1960s by the federal government to insure flood-prone areas．These types of programs, effectively implemented, could be increasingly necessary m the future to make insurance available in areas prone ?to disasters．
Because the stakes are so high, the science of disaster prediction has a bright future． The various projects and programs illustrate that disaster prediction is a topic of concern to scientists and policy makers alike．Hurricanes,tornadoes, floods, earthquakes, tsunamis, and 'volcanoes all show that the effective use of disaster predictions not only requires advanced technology but also requires that society consider the entire process of prediction forecasts, communication, and use of information．Because they cannot predict the future with certainty, and because much remains to be learned, scientists warn that society must understand the limits of scientific predictions and be prepared to employ alternatives．Wisely used, however, disaster prediction has the potential to reduce society's vulnerability to natural disasters．
According to the passage, what has the increasing cost of natural disasters led to?
A．Great loss suffered by commercial companies．?
B．The public's increased attention off disasters．?
C．Individual awareness to natural disasters．
D．More funds to support the prediction research．
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A．1 billion dollars
B．8 billion dollars
C．9 billion dollars
D．17 billion dollars
A．They can make more money fi'om the insured places．
B．They may thus have a better idea of the future risks．
C．They can get more sympathies from the government．
D．They will win more people's trust in the industry．
A．Because some government officials are quite interested in predicting disasters．
B．Because there are many projects being involved in disaster prediction．
C．Because it can substantially simulate the economy of the nation．
D．Because it counts a lot and has become a concern of the government and scientists．
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