第二篇：Sea scallops caught off the coast of England are capable of ingesting billions of tiny plastic particles, whichdisperse throughout the body to the kidney, gill, muscle and other organs. This all takes place within six hours.These findings are the latest in a growing collection of studies that confirm an ever-expanding roster of wildlifeeats microplastics and smaller particles known as nanoplastics. That research, in turn, has raised questions—so farunanswered—about potential effects on the food chain, and to human health.What’s different and new is that this project attempts to get beyond documenting consumption and begin tounderstand the consequences for the wildlife whose diet now includes regular samplings of plastic. The surprisediscovery was the rapid speed with which plastic particles spread across most major organs of the body.The research team was led by the University of Plymouth in southeast England and involved scientists inScotland and Canada. The results were published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology.Richard Thompson, head of the University of Plymouth’s international marine research center, termed the study“groundbreaking” in both the methodology used to trace the particles as well as the findings. “Understanding thedynamics of nanoparticle uptake and release, as well as their distribution in body tissues, is essential if we are tounderstand any potential effects on organisms,” he said in a statement. The surfaces of the world’s oceans contain anestimated 51 trillion microplastics, according to the study.Nanoplastics containing a label were created in the lab, and the scallops were immersed in tanks containing“environmentally relevant concentrations” that mimic coastal regions where scallops live. Based on the methodology,researchers found that when the scallops were returned to clean water, the smaller nanoplastics took 14 days todisappear from their bodies; some larger particles were still present after 48 days. Still unknown are theconsequences of longer exposures to plastic and whether that poses any risk for people who consume scallops.
46. What is the passage mainly about?
(A) How scientists investigate nanoplastics in sea scallops.
(B) Why ocean pollution has become more serious than ever.
(C) Why people should not eat sea scallops for their own safety.
(D) How people can protect the marine environment by becoming vegetarians..