2．Compared with plastic bags, paper bags ________.

　　A．need more water to produce

　　B．require less energy to recycle

　　C．take more time to break down

　　D．have less influence on forests

　　解析：选A　细节理解题。由第三段中的"the amount of water used to make them is twenty times higher"可知，A项说法正确。

　　3．The underlined word "discarded" in Paragraph 3 probably means "________"．

　　A．shared　　　　　　　 B．given up

　　C．discussed D．put forward

　　解析：选B　词义猜测题。由该词后的"Research shows it requires about 98% less energy to recycle plastic than it does paper."可知，就回收利用而言，纸袋比塑料袋更加环保这种观念显然是错误的，应该予以抛弃，故选B项。

　　4．What does the Irish government think of plastic bags?

　　A．They are less harmful than paper bags.

　　B．They can be made environment­friendly.

　　C．Taxes probably need to be increased further.

　　D．No plastic bags should be provided in shops.

　　解析：选C　细节理解题。由倒数第二段中的"In Ireland ... a tax has been introduced to discourage the use of plastic bags."可知，爱尔兰政府可能会进一步加大对购买塑料袋者征收的税费，故选C项。

　　B

　　"Siri" may be a well­known name now. Today, 87 percent of iPhone owners say they use Siri each month.