老托福阅读真题PASSAGE

老托福阅读真题PASSAGE 76

托福阅读的思维方式就是托福阅读的出题方式，只有掌握了这种思维方式，才有可能在做题之前，预测到新托福阅读题的出题形式和特点，为找答案节省时间。老托福阅读试题的核心价值，在于其最贴近真题的阅读思维方式。此外老托福阅读真题比新托福IBT阅读文章要短，比较容易适应。这也是大家在备考托福的时候非常重要的一点。因为前期的入手如果能从容易的开始，就会形成一个循序渐进的过程方式，让大家的练习有一个提高的过程。

既然老托福阅读试题有这样的效果，那我们如何利用那有限的真题来达到锻炼自己

的目的呢？事实上这就一个办法，就是坚持。本期为大家推荐老托福阅读的真题PASSAGE 76,附有原文及答案，希望对托福考生备考有所帮助。

Un der the Earth's topsoil, at various levels, sometimes un der a layer of rock, there are deposits of clay. Look at cuts where highways have bee n built to see exposed clay beds; or look at a con struct ion site, where pockets of clay may be exposed. Rivers also reveal clay along their ban ks, and erosi on on a hillside may make clay easily accessible. What is clay made of? The Earth's surface is basically rock, and it is this rock that gradually decomposes into clay. Rain, streams, alternating freezing and thawing, roots of trees and plants

forci ng their way into cracks, earthquakes, volca nic action, and glaciers —

all of these forces slowly break downthe Earth's exposed rocky crust into smaller and smaller pieces that eve ntually become clay.

Rocks are composed of eleme nts and compo unds of eleme nts. Feldspar, which is the most abundant min eral on the Earth's surface, is basically made up of the oxides silica and alumina combined with alkalis like potassium and some so-called impurities such as iron. Feldspar is an essential component of granite rocks, and as such it is the basis of clay. When it is wet, clay can be easily shaped to make a variety of useful objects, which can then be fired to varying degrees of hard ness and covered with impermeable decorative coat ings of glasslike material called glaze. Just as volcanic action, with its intense heat, fuses the elements in certain rocks into a glasslike rock called obsidian, so can weapply heat to earthen materials and change them into a hard, dense material. Different clays need different heat levels to fuse, and some, the low-fire clays,

n ever become non porous and watertight like highly fired ston eware. Each clay can stand only a certain amount of heat without losing its shape through sagging or melt ing. Variati ons of clay compositi on and the temperatures at which they are fired account for the differences in texture and appearanee between a china teacup and an earthe nware flowerpot.

1. The author's main point in paragraph 1 is that clay deposits

(A) conceal layers of rock

(B) can be found in various places

(C) are usually small

(D) must be removed from construction sites

2. It can be inferred from the passage that clay is LEAST likely to be plentiful in which of the following areas?

(A) in desert sand dunes

(B) in forests

(C) on hillsides

(D) near rivers

3. The word accessible in line 4 is closest in meaning to

(A) buried

(B) improved

(C) available

(D) workable

4. According to the passage , rock breaks down into clay under all of the following conditions EXCEPT when

(A) it is exposed to freezing and thawing

(B) roots of trees force their way into cracks

(C) it is combined with alkalis

(D) natural forces wear away the Earth's crust

5. Why does the author mention feldspar in line 10?

(A) It is often used as a substitute for clay.

(B) It is damaged by the oxides in clay.

(C) Its presence indicates inferior clay.

(D) It is a major component of clay.