高考英语阅读理解科普文难度较高完整版
2023届高考英语二轮阅读理解专题之科普知识类说明文(含参考答案、核心词汇背诵默写版、参考译文)
2023届高考英语二轮阅读理解专题之科普知识类说明文(含参考答案、核心词汇背诵默写版、参考译文)A篇Every person yawns. So do many other vertebrate (有脊椎的) animals, including snakes, dogs, cats, sharks, and chimpanzees. While yawning is contagious (会传染的), not everyone catches a yawn. Around 60-70% of people yawn if they see another person yawn in real life or in a photo or even read about yawning. Contagious yawning also occurs in animals, but it doesn’t necessarily work the same way as in people.Scientists have proposed many theories for why we catch yawns. Probably the most popular theory is that yawning serves as a form of nonverbal communication. Catching a yawn shows you’re accustomed to a person’s emotions. Scientific evidence comes from a 2010 study at the University of Connecticut, which concluded yawning does not become contagious until a child is about four years old when empathy (共情) skills develop. In the study, children with autism, who may have impaired empathy development, caught yawns less often than their peers.Studying contagious yawning in other animals may provide clues to how people catch yawns. Contagious yawning in animals may serve as a means of communication. Siamese fighting fish yawn when they see their mirror image or another fighting fish, generally just prior to an attack.Contagious yawning is linked to temperature, in both animals and people. Most scientists speculate it is a thermoregulatory behavior, while some researchers believe it is used to communicate a potential threat or stressful situation. A 2010 study of budgerigars (虎皮鹦鹉) found that yawning increased as temperature was raised near body temperature.People commonly yawn when tired or bored. Similar behavior is seen in animals. One study found the brain temperature in sleep deprived rats was higher than their core temperature. Yawning reduced brain temperature, possibly improving brainfunction. Researchers will do further study on this.1.What can we learn about yawning from Paragraph 1?A.All animals yawn.B.Reading about yawning may make a person yawn.C.Only vertebrate animals yawn.D.Yawning works the same for human and animals.2. Why does the author mention children with autism in Paragraph 2?A.To prove a theory.B.To define a conceptC.To develop the theme.D.To provide the background.3. Siamese fighting fish yawn to ________.A.show kindness.B.find a partner.C.give a threat.D.escape from danger.4. What can be inferred from the passage?A.More research in yawning will be carried out in the future. B.Temperature is not a factor concerning yawning.C.The secret to yawing has been worked out.D.Yawning can improve brain function greatly.B篇Using the power of artificial intelligence (AI) , scientists have revealed new insights into the creation and destruction of mass extinction. Contrary to conventional knowledge, their study suggests that larger extinctions are not always a form of "creative destruction" that allows new organisms (生物体) to radiate and evolve. Instead, it suggests that mass extinction is rarely associated with new species of radiation.Dr. Hoyal Cuthill, the lead study author from the University of Essex in the UK and the Tokyo Institute of Technology, said in a statement, “Some of the mostchallenging things to understand the history of life are the vast timelines involved and the number of species. New machine learning applications can help us understand this information in human-readable form. This means that we can, so to speak, hold the evolution of half a billion years in the palm of our hand and gain new insights from what we see.”They concluded that mass extinction and later radiation were not connected as previously thought. Within 5 percent of the most significant periods of disruption (中断), AI detected “big five” mass extinctions, seven more mass extinctions, two mass extinction-radiation events, and 15 mass radiations. Most importantly, it discovers that massive radiation and extinction rarely occurred with each other, changing the view that greater extinction leads to a kind of deep cycle-like species radiation of nature. It appears that larger extinctions are certainly not the engine of evolutionary radiation. Take the Cambrian eruption for example and it was about 41 million years ago when a large group of animals first appeared on the record of the first fossil record and the dawn of a high mobile animal equipped with modern physical features.This new study found that a handful of other notable explosions of biodiversity, including the Cambrian eruption, usually occurred at a time when they were largely isolated (隔离) from extinction. Dr. Nicholas Guttenberg, a study co-author from the Tokyo Institute of Technology explained, “Ecosystems are dynamic and you don't need anything to exist to allow something new to appear.”1. What does the first paragraph serve as?A. An explanation of artificial intelligence.B. A background of researchers' study.C. The reasons for creative destruction.D. The result of researchers' new study.2. What can we infer from Dr. Hoyal Cuthill's words?A. AI contributes a lot to the study of evolution.B. Understanding the history of life is very difficult.C. New AI machines learn applications better.D. Biological evolution can be controlled easily.3. What is the researchers' discovery?A. Mass extinction is unlikely to cause evolutionary radiation.B. The first animal with modern features occurred during eruption.C. The volcanic eruption led to a mass extinction and radiation.D. The idea of deep cycle-like species radiation has turned out true.4. What is the text mainly about?A. New processes of biological evolution.B. New view of radiation from natural species.C. New understanding of mass extinction.D. New outbreaks of biological populations.C篇Midway through The Matrix, Cypher feasts on an enormous steak, well aware that his reality is not real, part of a digital program telling his brain that the steak is a construction and that it is “juicy and delicious.” Two decades after the movie made its first appearance, something unexpected arises: The future of reality will not only be virtual but also synthetic (合成的). Cypher’s future meal will be a physical one, synthesized from animal cells.And the synthesis goes beyond dinner. Starting with components from the natural world, scientists are learning to engineer microorganisms and build biocomputing systems. However, biology has a tendency to evolve in unexpected ways.Synthesized meat is one case in point. The driving forces behind the meat movement are practical. It has been estimated that cultured (培育的) meat would require 7 to 45 percent less energy and produce 78 to 96 percent less greenhouse gas than conventional animals farmed for consumption. But once we’re able to synthesize meat, theoretically, we’ll have the capability to culture meat from any animal, even those we’d never consider eating today, like dolphins or chimpanzees, which will pose a new regulatory challenge for us.Using synthetic biology, we can even edit and rewrite life, the technology of which are already in use. In 2021, scientists in some countries announced they had grown monkey embryos injected with human stem cells. Here comes the situationworth considering: such a monkey-human hybrid will demonstrate qualities that are somewhere between humans, on which experimentation isn’t allowed, and animals, which are often raised specifically for research. How will we decide when an animal becomes too human?Depending on where you stand, the synthetic realities land somewhere between “really exciting” and “critically concerning.” As individuals, we undertake a shared responsibility to make good choices about this coming synthetic technology.1.What do we know about Cypher’s steak in the movie?A.It is anything but appetizing.B.It is enjoyed in a virtual world.C.It is synthesized from animal cell.D.It is a construction made by himself.2. What’s the advantage of synthesized meat?A.It is more nutritious.B.It is more energy-consuming.C.It is more environment-friendly.D.It is more controllable in regulation.3. What is the author’s attitude to the experiment in Paragraph 4?A.Cautious.B.Favorable.C.Pessimistic.D.Indifferent.4. What is the purpose of the text?A.To popularize synthetic technology.B.To indicate challenges of synthetic technology.C.To stress the importance of synthetic technology.D.To introduce the development of synthetic technology.参考答案A1.B2.A3.C4.A参考答案B1.D2.A3.A4.C参考答案C1.B2.C3.A4.B1.yawn/jɔːn/v.打哈欠2.shark n.鲨鱼3.contagious/kənˈteɪdʒəs/adj.传染的4.propose v.提议- proposal n.提议5.theory n.理论6.verbal&oral adj.口头的7.be accustomed to doing sth8.impair/ɪmˈpeə(r)/v.损害,削弱9.peer n.同龄人10.clue n.线索11.serve as a means of communication充当交流的手段12.mirror image 镜像13.prior to...先于......14.speculate/ˈspekjuleɪt/v.猜测15.a potential threat/buyer/customer潜在的危险/买家/顾客16.a stressful situation17.deprive/dɪˈpraɪv/ v.剥夺,使丧失18.core n.核心,果核19.brain function大脑功能20.concerning prep.关心1.yawn/jɔːn/v._____2.shark n._____3.contagious/kənˈteɪdʒəs/adj.______4.propose v.提议- ________ n.提议5.theory n._____6._______&oral adj.口头的7.be accustomed ____(do) sth8.______/ɪmˈpeə(r)/v.损害,削弱9._____ n.同龄人10._____ n.线索11.serve as ___ means of communication充当交流的手段12.mirror image _____13.prior ___...先于......14.________/ˈspekjuleɪt/v.猜测15.a potential threat/buyer/customer潜在的_____/____/_____16.a ________(stress) situation17.________/dɪˈpraɪv/ v.剥夺,使丧失18._______ n.核心,果核19.brain function_______20.________(concern) prep.关于1.reveal v.揭露2.insight into...对......的洞悉3.destruction n.破坏4.mass extinction 大规模灭绝5.contrary to conventional knowledge和传统知识相反anism/ˈɔːɡənɪzəm/ n.生物,有机体organic/ɔːˈɡænɪk/adj.有机的7.radiate/ˈreɪdieɪt/v.流露,辐射8.evolve v.进化- evolution n.进化- evolutionary adj.进化的9.be associated with...和......有关10.timeline n.时间轴11.so to speak也就是说12.palm/pɑːm/n.手掌13.conclude- conclusion n.结论14.massive adj.大规模的15.it appears that…看来16.engine n.动力,引擎17.fossil/ˈfɒs(ə)l/n.化石18.the dawn of civilization文明的开端19.a handful of...少量的20.notable adj.显著的21.explode- explosion n.爆炸22.co- author联名作者23.ecosystem/ˈiːkəʊsɪstəm/ n.生态系统24.dynamic/daɪˈnæmɪk/adj.动态的,充满活力的1._______ v.揭露2.insight _____...对......的洞悉3.destruction n.破坏4.mass extinction ________5.contrary ____ conventional knowledge和传统知识相反anism/ˈɔːɡənɪzəm/ n.________ organic/ɔːˈɡænɪk/adj.______7.radiate/ˈreɪdieɪt/v.__________8.evolve v.进化- ________ n.进化- _________ adj.进化的9.be associated ____...和......有关10.timeline n.______11.so to speak________12._______/pɑːm/n.手掌13.conclude- ________n.结论14._______ adj.大规模的15.it appears that…看来...16_______ n.动力,引擎17.fossil/ˈfɒs(ə)l/n._____18.the _____ of civilization文明的开端19.a handful of...少量的20._______(note) adj.显著的21.explode- _______ n.爆炸22.co- author联名作者23.ecosystem/ˈiːkəʊsɪstəm/ n.________24._________/daɪˈnæmɪk/adj.动态的,充满活力的核心词汇C1.feast on ...尽情享受2.enormous/ɪˈnɔːməs/adj.巨大的3.construction/kənˈstrʌkʃn/n.建设4.juice- juicy taste- tastyponent/kəmˈpəʊnənt/n.成分6.have a tendency to do sth 趋势,倾向7.evolve- evolution - evolutionary8.in an unexpected way9.a driving force 动力10.it is estimated that…11.conventional adj.传统的12.consume- consumption n.消费13.theory- theoretical adj.理论上的14.capable- capability n.能力15.have the capability to do sth16.consider doing sth17.pose a new threat/challenge 18.edit v.编辑- editor n.编辑19.inject/ɪnˈdʒekt/ v.注射20.embryo/ˈembriəʊ/ n.胚胎21.popular- popularize v.普及22.stem cells 干细胞23.demonstrate v.展示24.hybrid/ˈhaɪbrɪd/n.混合物,杂种25.undertake a shared responsibility承担共同责任1.feast ____ ...尽情享受2.__________/ɪˈnɔːməs/adj.巨大的3._________/kənˈstrʌkʃn/n.建设4.juice-_____ taste- ______5.________/kəmˈpəʊnənt/n.成分6.have a _______ to do sth 趋势,倾向7.evolve- evolution - _________8.___ an unexpected way9.a driving force 动力10.___ is estimated that…11._________ adj.传统的12.consume- _________ n.消费13.theory- theoretical adj._____14.capable- _________ n.能力15.have the capability___(do) sth16.consider ______(do) sth17.____ a new threat/challenge 18.edit v.编辑- ______ n.编辑19._____/ɪnˈdʒekt/ v.注射20.embryo/ˈembriəʊ/ n.______21.popular- __________ v.普及22.stem cells ______23.__________ v.展示24.hybrid/ˈhaɪbrɪd/n.混合物,杂种25.undertake a ______(share) responsibility承担共同责任参考译文A每个人都会打哈欠。
高考英语试题分项版解析专题16科普类说明文(含解析)(2021年整理)
(2015-2018)高考英语试题分项版解析专题16 科普类说明文(含解析)编辑整理:尊敬的读者朋友们:这里是精品文档编辑中心,本文档内容是由我和我的同事精心编辑整理后发布的,发布之前我们对文中内容进行仔细校对,但是难免会有疏漏的地方,但是任然希望((2015-2018)高考英语试题分项版解析专题16 科普类说明文(含解析))的内容能够给您的工作和学习带来便利。
同时也真诚的希望收到您的建议和反馈,这将是我们进步的源泉,前进的动力。
本文可编辑可修改,如果觉得对您有帮助请收藏以便随时查阅,最后祝您生活愉快业绩进步,以下为(2015-2018)高考英语试题分项版解析专题16 科普类说明文(含解析)的全部内容。
专题16 科普类说明文2018高考题D【2018·全国I】We may think we're a culture that gets rid of our worn technology at the first sight of something shiny and new, but a new study shows that we keep using our old devices (装置) well after they go out of style. That’s bad news for the environment — and our wallets — as these outdated devices consume much more energy than the newer ones that do the same things.To figure out how much power these devices are using, Callie Babbitt and her colleagues at the Rochester Institute of Technology in New York tracked the environmental costs for each product throughout its life - from when its minerals are mined to when we stop using the device. This method provided a readout for how home energy use has evolved since the early 1990s。
2024届高考英语(新高考通用)压轴真题专项练习——阅读理解CD篇(观念、事理、现象类)含答案
2024届高考英语(新高考通用)压轴真题专项练习——阅读理解CD篇(观念、事理、现象类)命题预测强的时代感。
从近年全国卷和各地高考试卷中科普类阅读命题的统计来看,高考阅读理解科普类文章的理论性和逻辑性强、生词多、句式结构复杂体现。
命题尊重语篇的文体特征和行文特点,考查了考生理解说明文语篇的能力,以及灵活运用各种阅读策略提取、归纳所读信息的能力,尤其加大了对概括能力和推断能力等高阶思维能力的考查。
预测1、说明文基本规律及解题要领高考中科普类阅读理解一般不给标题,反而经常要求考生选择最佳标题。
说明文一般采用如下四部分:首段:一般即是文章的主题段,开门见山点明新发明或研究对象。
背景: 交代问题的现状或研究的起因。
主干: 部分介绍研究所取得的突破,作者往往会详细介绍研究对象、研究方法、研究理论或具体的实验、统计等过程。
结尾: 通常会再次对中心进行概括、重述研究成果、预计的市场未来等与主题呼应。
二、说明文的解题技巧1. 运用语篇结构(text structure),了解文章大意科普说明文主题鲜明、脉络清晰,行文结构模式较为固定。
弄清文本结构有助于把握文章主旨和阅读重点。
观念事理现象类说明文阐述抽象事理、现象的成因、原理、本质、规律等内容。
结构上一般采用上述四个部分,说明手法上常使用以下说明方法:描述法(包括举例子、下定义、列数据等)、因果法、问题与比较法。
实验研究型文章一般会以实验的过程进展为线索,多用描述法、问题与对策法等方法,通过列数据、做对比等来说明新的科学研究发现及其产生的影响。
阅读时,首先用略读法快速浏览每段的首尾句,根据英语说明文思维模式特征,作者一般都会开门见山,直奔主题。
结尾通常也是中心思想的概括,并与导语相呼应。
因此在做主旨大意、写作意图和最佳标题等题目时,需要重点关注首尾段落里面高频复现的词汇和内容。
2. 定位标志词,分析长难句,进行逻辑推理判断每一个问题,在原文中,都要有一个定位。
然后精读,找出那个标志词或者中心句。
高考英语 阅读理解话题练3 阅读理解(科普知识类)+阅读七选五
阅读理解话题练3阅读理解(科普知识类)+阅读七选五时间:40分钟满分:40分阅读理解A(2017·芜湖三模)体裁:说明文话题:科普知识难度:★★☆☆☆A scientist believes he has discovered a direct link between people's favourite sleeping position and their personality. Professor Chris Idzikowski has described six different positions and what each one says about a person's character. The professor, who did the research for a hotel group, said, “We are all aware of our body language when we are awake but this is the first time we have been able to see what our position says about us when we are asleep.” At the moment, Professor Idzikowski is trying to sleep in a yoga position that involves crossing your legs around your neck. He says there is no perfect position for sleeping.1.THE STARFISH“Starfish” sleep flat on their back with their arms raised. They are good listeners who make friends easily but do not like to be the centre of the attention.2.THE YEARNER“Yearners” sleep on their side with their arms raised. They are doubtful and have a very sensible approach to life.3.THE FOETUSThe most popular position, particularly among women. They sleep curled (蜷缩) up on their side, holding on to the pillow. They appear to be tough but are actually sensitive and shy.4.THE FREEFALLEROnly 6.5% of people prefer to sleep on their front, making this the least popular sleeping position. “Freefallers” seem very confident, although this hides a nervous personality.5.THE LOGThe “log” position is similar to the “yearner” but with arms by thesides. “Logs” are easygoing and sociable, but can be seen as too gullible,_easily to be victims.6.THE SOLDIER“Soldiers”,who sleep on their back with their arms by their sides, are quiet and reserved. They set high standards for themselves and do not like noisy social situations.【语篇解读】文章介绍了不同的睡眠姿势所体现出来的不同性格。
(完整)高考英语阅读理解科普类说明文4篇--较难(有答案)
高考英语说明文4篇1Here is an astonishing and significant fact: Mental work alone can’t makeus tire. It sounds absurd/əb'sɜːd/荒谬的. But a years ago, scientists tried to find out how long the human brain could labor without reaching a stage 阶段of fatigue /fə'tiːg/(疲劳). To the amazement of these scientists, they discovered that blood passing through the brain, when it is active, shows no fatigue at all! If we tooka drop of blood from a day laborer劳动者, we would find it fullof fatigue toxins /'tɒksɪn/ (毒素) and fatigue products. But if wetook blood from the brain of an Albert Einstein, it would show nofatigue toxins at the end of the day.So far as the brain is concerned, it can work as well and swiftly很快地at the end of eight or even twelve hours of effort as at the beginning. The brain istotally tireless. So what makes us tired?Some scientists declare that most of our fatigue comes from our mental and emotional(情绪的) attitudes. One of England’s most outstanding scientists, J.A. Hadfield, says, “The greater part of the fatigue from which we suffer is of mental origin /'ɒrɪdʒɪn/起源. In fact, fatigue of purely physical origin is rare.”Dr. Brill, a famous American scientist, goes even further. He declares, “One hundred percent of the fatigue of sitting worker in good health is due to emotional problems.”What kinds of emotions make sitting workers tired? Joy? Satisfaction?No! A feeling of being bored, anger, anxiety/æŋ'zaɪətɪ/焦虑, tenseness紧张, worry, a feeling of not being appreciated---those are the emotions that tire sitting workers. Hard work by itself seldom causes fatigue. We get tired because our emotions produce nervousness in the body.1. What surprised the scientists a few years ago?A. Fatigue toxins could hardly be found in a laborer’s blood.B. Albert Einstein didn’t feel worn after a day’s work.C. The brain could work for many hours without fatigue.D. A mental worker’s blood was filled with fatigue toxins.2. According to the author, which of the following can make sitting workers tired?A. Challenging mental work.B. Unpleasant emotions.C. Endless tasks.D. Physical labo3. What’s the author’s attitude towards the scientists’ idea?A. He agrees with them.B. He doubts them.C. He argues against them.D. He hesitates to accept them.4. We can infer from the passage that in order to stay energetic, sitting workers need to ________.A. have some good food.B. enjoy their workC. exercise regularlyD. discover fatigue toxins2They baby is just one day old and has not yet left hospital. She is quietbut alert /ə'lɜːt/(警觉). Twenty centimeters厘from her face researchershave placed a white card with two black spots on it. She stares at it carefully.A researcher removes the card and replaces it by another, this time with the spots differently spaced. As the cards change from one to the other, her gaze(凝视)starts to lose its focus — until a third, with three black spots,is presented. Her gaze returns: she looks at it for twice as long as she did at the previous card. Can she tell that the number two is different from three, just 24 hours after coming into the world?Or do newborns simply prefer more to fewer? The same experiment, but with three spots shown before two, shows the same return of interest when the number of spots changes. Perhaps it is just the newness 名,新奇? When slightly older babies were shown cards with pictures of objects (a comb, a key, an orange and so on), changing the number of objects had an effect separate from changing the objects themselves. Could it be the pattern that two things make, as opposed to three? No again. Babies paid more attention to squares moving randomly on a screen when their number changed from two to three,or three to two. The effect even crosses between senses. Babies who were repeatedly shown two spots became more excited when they then heard three drumbeats than when they heard just two; likewise (同样地)when the researchers started with drumbeats and moved to spots.5. The experiment described in Paragraph 1 is related to the baby’s__.A. sense of hearingB. sense of sightC. sense of touch D sense of smell6. Babies are sensitive to the change in______.A. the size of cardsB. the colour of picturesC. the shape of patternsD. the number of objects7. Why did the researchers test the babies with drumbeats?A. To reduce the difficulty of the experiment.B. To see howbabies recognize sounds.C. To carry their experiment further.D. To keep the babies’interest.8. Where does this text probably come from?A. Science fiction.B. Children’s literature.C. An advertisement.D.A science report3Last night’s meteor(流星) 英/'miːtɪə/ shower left many people in the community dissatisfied and demanding 苛求的;要求高的;吃力的answers. According to Gabe Rothsclild, Emerald Valley’s mayor市长, people gathered in thesuburbs /'sʌbɜːb/of the city, carrying heavy telescopes, expecting to watch the brightly burning meteors passing through the sky. What they found instead was a sky so brightene by the city’s lights that it darkened the light of the meteors passing overhead. “My family was so frustrated,” admitted town resident Duane Cosby, “We wanted to make this an unforgettable family outing, but it turned out to be a huge disappointments.”Astronomers- /ə'strɒnəmə/n. 天文学家--scientists who study stars and planets---- have beencomplaining about this problem for decades. They say that light pollution prevents them from seeing objects in the sky that they could see quite easily in the past. They call on people and the government to take measures to fightagainst it.There is yet a population besides professional and amateur /ˈæmətə(r)/美 /'æmə.tʃʊr/n. 爱好者star observers that suffers even more from light pollution. This population consists of birds, bats frogs, snakes, etc. For example, outdoor lighting severely affects migrating(迁徙的)birds. According to the International Dark-Sky Association. “100million birds a year throughout North America die in crashes 撞碎with lighted buildings and towers.”Countless more animals casualties(伤亡)result from the use of artificial lighting. Clearly, people enjoy the benefits of lighting their evenings, but some scientists think it can be harmful for humans, too. They worry that exposure to light while sleeping can increase pers on’s chances of getting cancer. Emerald Valley is only one community that is becoming aware of the negative effects of light pollution. For years, Flagstaff, Arizona/,æri'zəunə/美 /,æri'zəunə/n. 美国亚利桑那州, has enforced lighting regulations in its city in order to assist astronomers at the Lowell Observatory.英 /əb'zɜːvət(ə)rɪ/美 /əb'zɝvətɔri/n. 天文台;气象台;瞭望台Similar efforts have been made worldwide, and a movement isunderway 进行中的to remind us to turn off lights when we are not using them, so thatother creatures can share the night.9.It happened last night thatA. the city’s lights affected the meteor watchingB. the meteors flew past before being noticedC. the city light show attracted many peopleD. the meteor watching ended up a social outing10. What do the astronomers complain about?A. Meteor showers occur less often than beforeB. Their observation equipment is in poor repairC. Light pollution has remained unsolved for yearsD. Their eyesight is failing due to artificial lighting11. What the author concerned about according to Paragraph 4?A. Birds may take other migration pathsB. Animals living habits may changesuddenlyC. Varieties of animals will become sharplyreducedD. Animals’ survival is threatened byoutdoor lighting12. Lighting regulations in Flagstaff, Arizona areput into effect toA. Lessen the chance of getting cancerB. create an ideal observation conditionC. ensure citizens a good sleep at nightD. enable all creatures to live in harmony13.What message does the author most want to give us?A. Saving wildlife is saving ourselvesB. Great efforts should be made to save energyC. Human activities should be environmentally friendlyD. New equipment should be introduced for space study4Almost every machine with moving parts has wheels, yet no one knows exactly when the first wheel was invented or what it was used for. We do know,however,that they existed over 5,500years ago in ancient Asia.The oldest known transport wheel was discovered in 2002 in Slovenia. It is over 5,100 years old. Evidence suggests thatwheels for transport didn't become popular for .while, though . This could be because animals did a perfectly good job of carryingfarming tools and humans around.But it could also be because of a difficult situation. While wheels need to roll on smooth surfaces, roads with smooth surfaces weren't going to be constructed until there was plenty of demand for them. Eventually, road surfaces did become smoother, but this difficult situation appeared again a few centuries later. There had been no important changes in wheel and vehicle design before the arrival of modern road design.In the mid-1700s,a Frenchman came up with a new design of road--a base layer (层)of large stones covered with a thin layer of smaller stones. A Scotsman苏格兰人improved on this design in the 1820s and a strong, lasting road surface became a reality. At around the same time, metal hubs英 /hʌb/美 /hʌb/n. 中心;毂;木片(the central part of a wheel)、came into being, followed by the Wheels were invented in 1967, sixty years after the appearance of tarmacked roads(泊油路). As wheel design took off,vehicles got faster and faster.14. What might explain why transport wheels didn’t become popular for some time?A. Few knew how to use transport wheels.B. Humans carried farming tools just aswell. C. Animals were a good means oftransport.D. The existence of transport wheels was not known.15. What do we know about road design from the passage?A. It was easier than wheel design.B. It improved after big changes in vehicle design.C. It was promoted by fast-moving vehicles.D. It provided conditions for wheel design to develop.16. How is the last paragraph mainly developed?A. By giving examples.B. By making comparisons.C.By following time order.D.By making classifications.17.What is the passage mainly about ?A.The beginning of road deaign.B.The development of transport wheel.C.The history of public transport.D.The invention of fast-moving vehicles.。
(完整word版)2019届高考英语阅读理解:科普类说明文--有解析.doc
1科教科普类1、Australia leads the world in its number of resident poisonous spiders as well as the strengthof their toxicity( 毒性 ). However,of almost 9,800 species most are perfectly harmless andinteresting.Spider diversity is broad and many fascinating species occur here that range from the large tothe tiny and hardly noticed, and from the dullest black to the strangely shaped.Spiders can be roughly classified according to the strategies( 策略) they use for feeding.Spiders which appeared earlier in the evolutionary scale feed by waiting in a cave for food to comealong before grabbing it. Following them were spiders which actively wandered looking forfood and which caught it by chasing it down. The evolution of flying insects makes spiders evolvenew ways of catching food which couldn’ t be chased and so the earliest air web weavers arose.Most spiders feed on insects and other arthropods but the Whistling Spider feeds on frogs andsmall birds. The Golden Orb Spider also feeds on small birds.A spider periodically sheds( 蜕皮 ;脱落 ) its skin so that it can grow. Immature stages are called moults. Each species has a particular number of moults that it will go through before reaching itsfinal adult stage.Usually, once male spiders have mated, they die shortly after. But, even in death, Redbackmales often serve a purpose. The already pregnant Redback females always kill their lover and,in most cases, also eat them. This provides them with a small reproductive advantage.Allowing spiders to take up places around houses can be beneficial in that they catchother annoying insects such as mosquitoes and flies.Rest assured that while you might see some large spiders, and perhaps even some poisonousones, a good rule is to look and admire but don't touch any spider you find. Even those withoutpoison could still have a nasty bite.1.Different families of spiders are identified themselves by ______.A.their physical characterB.their ways of getting foodC.the strength of their toxicityD.their effect on the environment1A.Spiders that chase down insects for food.B.Spiders that wait for the insects to come along.C.Spiders that can weave webs to catch flying insects.D.Spiders that actively go out to look for insects as food.3.If a spider stays on the wall of your house, you______. ’ d betterA.kill itB.feed itC.let it beD.chase it out4.What is the passage mainly talking about?A.A brief introduction of spiders.B.The evolution process of spiders.C.Living harmoniously with spiders.D.The living and feeing habits of spiders.2、Many people believe that you lose the ability to learn new languages as you get older.Language experts,however,will tell you that you’ re never too old to learn a new language. As youget older, it can be more difficult to learn a new language,though.Children and adults learn new languages in different ways. For children, language is their life.They study for thousands of hours every year. Because they need to learn language to became partof their communities.Adults,on the other hand,are already part of a language community. Learninga new language means becoming part of another language community,and adults rarely get thechance to practice as much as young children do.Moreover.children leaning a new language are expected to make mistakes. This gives themfreedom when learning to be daring and confident Adults,however,often feel pressured to beperfect when learning a new language.This can discourage many people and make it even harderto learn a new language.When young children learn a new language,they come to see various languages as a“ normal”part of society.This mindset( 思维模式 ) helps them embrace learning a new language withoutSo if you want to learn a new language,go f or it! It’ s never too late to learn a new language. If you're older,it may take more work,but it can be done.If you're a young child,though,now is thetime to step out and learn a new language!1.By“ Language is their life” ,the author means that children.A.can't live without languageB.lead a happy life every dayC.practice a new language a lotD.are taken good care of adults2.What may make it hard for the old people to learn a new language!A.They are afraid of being laughed at.B.They usually have too many interests.C.They think making mistakes is natural.D.They always make all kinds of mistakes.3.Which of the following shows the difference between children and adults in learning newlanguage?A.The behaviors they have.B.The learning attitudes.C.The future plans they have made.D.The materials they are using.4.According to the author,a new language.A.can never be learned by the old peopleB.can be grasped by the people easilyC.can be understood only by the old peopleD.can learned by both the old and the young3、 Kids and teens are often dismissive of praise from their parents. I am sure that parents outthere can relate to this, as we all have been told at one time or another by one or several of ourkids,“ Stop it, Mom’’. or even,“ You’ re just saying that because you are my parents and you have to say that. " I can assure you, though, that they are listening. They will probably not thank you forthis praise until they are in their twenties, but don't let that stop you from praising them duringtheir childhood and teen years. Just be careful how you praise them. A little praise may go a long way —especially if it is the right kind of praise.It appears that the way to go is to praise their efforts according to a study by Brummelman, of Utrecht University in the Netherlands and colleagues. These researchers concluded that kids should be praised primarily for their efforts, rather than for their personal characteristics, becauseif they are praised for effort, then a poor performance is more likely to be seen as a glitch( 小故障 ), rather than a valid reflection of who they are as individuals.Let ’ s think about this together. If you are a teenager or a child of any age and are constantlytold how brilliant you are, then when you do poorly on a test or a few tests, you may feel like you have suddenly lost your status as brilliant and may now feel ashamed that you are merely averageor even dumb. If you are a girl who is constantly being told how beautiful you are, then on a day when you don’t look or feel so good, you may decide that you are unattractive. This is the problem that develops when we are praising our kids for global personality characteristics that theycan't always live up to.1.According to the passage, which of the following statements is the right kind of praise?A.You are a great artist.B.You are very intelligent.C.Wow, you have a special gift for music.D.Your painting has indeed improved due to your efforts.2.Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?A.All the children should be praised.B.There ’ s no need to praise kids and teens.C.Praise should be beyond children’ s expectations.D.Teens often pay no attention to their parents’ praise.3.The underlined word“ dumb” in theagraphlastparcan be replaced by _________.A.stupidB.uniqueC.curiousD.honestA.why to praise kids and teensB.how to praise kids and teensC.different ways to praise kids and teensD.the importance of praising kids4、 Scientists, psychologists and English academics at Liverpool University have found thatreading the works of the classical writers like Shakespeare and Wordsworth has a great effect onthe mind, catches the reader’ s attentionriggersandmoments of self-examination.Using a special machine, they monitored the brain activity of 30 volunteers as they read worksby William Shakespeare, William Wordsworth, T.S. Eliot and others.In the first part of the research, the brain activity of 30 volunteers was monitored as they readpassages from Shakespeare’ s plays, including King Lear, Othello, Coriolanus and Macbeth, andagain as they read the text rewritten in a simpler form or modern language.While reading the common texts, normal levels of electrical activity were shown in their brains.When they read the works of Shakespeare, however, the levels of activity jumped because ofhis use of words which were unfamiliar to them. The result of the test showed that the morechallenging passages cause a greater degree of electrical activity in the brain than thecommon ones.Scientists went on to study the brain activity as it responded to each word and recorded how itlit up as the readers came across unusual words, surprising phrases or difficult sentences in theclassical works. As a result, this lightening up process of the mind lasted longer than that whenvolunteers read common texts, encouraging further reading.The research also found that reading poetry especially increases activity in the righthemisphere(半球 ) of the brain, an area connected with“ autobiographical memory” , driving the readers to think carefully about their own experiences based on what they have read. Theacademics said this meant the classical works of literature are more useful than self-help books.Philip Davis, an English professor who has worked on the study in the university’ s mag resonance center, announced this week:“ Classical literature acts-boosterlikearockettothe brain,which provides extra power for the brain. You may never imagine how powerful it is. Theresearch shows such kind of literature can create new thoughts and connections in the young andthe old.”1.The underlined word“ trigger” in Paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to“ ______”.A.depends onB.picks upC.sets offD.changes into2.Which of the following is NOT true about reading classical literature?A.It makes readers ’ brain more active than reading common texts.B.It makes readers ’ electrical activity of brain return to normal.C.It ’ s helpful for readers to come up with new ideas.D.It ’ s an activity that is suitable for people of all ages.3.From the research, we can learn that ______.A.the readers prefer Shakespeare ’ s works to the other writers ’ worksB.the words of classical works make it hard for volunteers to read furtherC.reading classical works produces a good and long-lasting effect on the mindD.poetry increases left-brain activity more than other literary forms4.What does the author mainly tell us in this passage?A.Shakespeare plays’s deserve to be read.mon books are unpopular anymore.C.Poetry is best for developing people ’ s brain.D.Classical works help the brain develop better.5、 Do parents have a constitutional right to homeschool their children? No, according to aCalifornia District Court judge, who recently ruled that a child must be schooled "by a personholding a valid state teaching credential ( 文凭 )for the grade being ta ught ”.What started as a Los Angeles County child welfare case involving one specific family hasgone into proceedings ( 诉讼 ) that have actually put on trial the very nature of what constitutes asound education.“ For decades we’ ve been happily ling,homeschooandthen this comes upgiven homeschooling parents the freedom to choose the kind of education they want for theirchild.This particular family in Los Angeles had enrolled their children in a private schoolindependent study program not in their home. In response to abuse charges against the family, thechildren were enrolled in public schools. The parents stated they had a constitutional right tohomeschool on religious grounds; that's when the court ruling was issued. However, Griffith saysif the ruling ends up affecting anyone, it will mainly be those who also enroll their children inoff- site homeschooling.“ This won't-reachingbefar for homeschooling parents."That's how organizations like the Homeschool Association of California (HSC) would like tokeep it, anyway, and they've hired a team of lawyers to limit the impact of the case. Griffith saysthe legal team for HSC is trying to establish that while this ruling may indeed be necessary for thisparticular family, it should not set a precedent( 先例 ) for all.What does this case really mean for homeschooling families nationwide? According to DarrenA. Jones, this decision is certain to affect homeschooling on a national scale. Jones claims that it iscommon for state courts to look to other states’ rulings for assistance in deciding issues where no precedent exists.“ A poor legal decision in California could become part of a trend acrosse thnation.’’1.In Griffith’ s opinion, ________.A.parents don’ t have a right to homeschool their childrenB.a child must be schooled by an expert with a credentialC.homeschooling should be forbidden in the whole countryD.it is understandable for parents to homeschool their children2.The underlined word“ this” in Para. 2 refers to the fact that.A.parents happily homeschool their childrenB.parents don’ t have a right to homeschool their childrenC.a child must be schooled by a person with a teaching credentialD.a Los Angeles County child welfare case involves a special family3.Why were the particular family’ s children enrolled in public schools?A.To avoid the abuse charges against them.C.To break away from their parents.D.To cooperate with the expert’ s jobs.4.What ’ s the author’ s attitude towards whether parents have a right to homeschool their children?A.Supportive.B.Sympatric.C.Negative.D.Objective.6、Summer shouldn't mean taking a break from learning, especially reading. Studies show thatmost students experience a loss of reading skills over the summer months, but children whocontinue to read actually gain skills. So efforts should be made during the summer to helpchildren keep reading skills, practice reading and read for enjoyment.Parents should remember that children need free time in the summer to relax and enjoy thepleasures of childhood. So summer reading should be fun. Following are a few tips to makereading enjoyable for your children this summer:Read aloud together with your child every day.Make it fun by reading outdoors on the front steps, patio, at the beach or park. Also, let yourchildren read to you.Set a good example!Keep lots of reading material around the house. Turn off the TV and have each person readhis or her book, including Mom and Dad.Read the same book your child is reading and discuss it.This is the way to develop habits of the mind and build capacity(能力) for thought and insight.Let kids choose what they want to read, and don turn your nose’upt at popular fiction. It willonly discourage the reading habit.Subscribe, in your child’ s name, to magazines.Encourage older children to read the newspaper and current events magazines, to keep up the reading habit over the summer and develop vocabulary. Ask them what they think about whatthey ’ ve read, and listen to what they say.1.Parents must help children read during the summer because ________.A.the summer holiday is too long a time for themB.reading is a kind of relaxation for childrenC.some of the reading skills may be lost if they stop readingD.children can enjoy the pleasure of childhood2.What does the underlined phrase "turn your nose up at” probably mean?A.Get interested in.B.Show one ’ s dislike for.C.Think highly of.D.Lose interest in.3.In oder to build children's capacity for thought and insight, parents should ______.A.subscribe to magazines in the child’ s nameB.read the same book the child is reading and discuss itC.let children choose what they want to readD.turn off the TV4.What does the passage mainly tell about?A.Some summer reading tips for parents.B.Some useful advice on reading for children.C.What kinds of books to read in summer.D.How to teach children to read.7、 Have you got the information taught by your teacher in class? Have you understood what you saw on the screen? Maybe everyone has their own learning style.Generally speaking, we gather information with our minds and bodies in different ways, such as seeing, hearing and doing. Then our brains deals with that information, organizing it and connecting it to things we are already aware of. In other words, our brains will deal with the information in different ways. Sometimes we think in pictures or words. Sometimes we remember details or the big pictures.For different people, their learning styles are different too. One person may find it hard to make out the information in written forms but easy to know it immediately in an oral description. However, another person might find difficulties with the picture but the written message.Now scientists say there exist seven basic learning styles.·Linguistic: These people learn through listening, reading, speaking and writing.·Logical: These people learn with formula (公式) and principles (原理).·Visual: These people learn by seeing what they are studying.·Musical: These people learn well when information is presented through music.·Kinesthetic: These people learn from movement and physical activities.·Intrapersonal: These people learn best by linking new information directly with their own experiences.·Interpersonal: These people learn well by working with others.Therefore, if you know what learning style is your strength, you can balance your weakness, and get a more successful learning experience.1.From the passage, we know that our brains ______.A.deal with the information in different waysB.send out the information in the same wayanize information with our bodiesD.gather information in the same way2.A visual learner usually learns _____.A.through listening and speakingB.by seeing what he is learningC.from movement and physical activitiesD.by linking new information with his experience3.A musical learner will find it easy to learn ______.A.with formulas and principlesB.by working with othersC.through reading and writingD.through music he hearsA.learn more successfullyB.gather more informationC.understand more quicklyD.exchange information better8、 In 2015 a paper published in a science magazine reported on the personality types of peopleliving in various London districts. Extroverts ( 外向的人 ), the researchers who wrote it haddiscovered, favored Richmond. Those who were most open to experience gathered in Hackney.People in Barnet scored lower than average on emotional stability.What this study did not address was whether someone’ s home range reflects their personality traits or imposes them. In other words, is what is going on“ nature培育”)? orHowever,“nurture” (in a piece of research just published, Dr. Holtmann of Otago University, in New Zealand, and hiscolleagues have filled that gap — at least, they have filled it for dunnocks.The dunnock is a European bird. It has, though, been introduced to New Zealand and itspopulation has boomed there. It is a well-studied species, and, in particular, some beingmeasurably bolder (更大胆的 ) and more tolerant of potential threats, such as nearby humanbeings, than others. The team’ s research area was the Botanic Garden in Dunedin. This is open tothe public, but some areas are more frequented by visitors than others. Dunnocks have smallterritories, so it was possible to measure the amount of human disturbance in a given territory withreasonable precision. And, by wrapping each of the dunnocks in the garden with colour-codedbands it was possible to identify individuals by sight. Altogether, the researchers looked at 99 ofthem.They worked out a bird’ s level of threat tolerance by the simple method of walking towards it,and then measuring how close one could get before the bird flew away. They did this several times foreach bird every breeding season, and repeated the process over the course of three seasons.A particular bird’ s flight distance (ie, how closely it could be approached before it departed)was, they found, consistent within a breeding season. From season to season most birds got a littlebolder— probably as they learnt more about the world and what they could safely get away with.But this increase in boldness with age was small compared with the different starting points of boldthat, on average, birds’ flight distances were inversely correlated负相关) (with the level of human disturbance in their territories. This was a consequence of disturbed territories being settledby bold birds, and undisturbed territories by shy ones.In the case of dunnocks, then, nature wins over nurture. Dr. Holtmann was able to show that personalities match circumstances, rather than being created by them. Dunnocks can recognizewhich places suit them best, and choose to settle in them shortly after they are fully fledged (羽翼丰满 ). Most likely, that is happening in London districts, too.1.What does the underlined words “ that gap ” in the second paragraph refer to?A.What the paper published in 2015 failed to handle.B.Why extroverts favour certain areas in London district.C.How Dr. Holtmann involved dunnocks in his study.D.What the former and latter study have in common.2.From Paragraph 3, we can know that dunnocks ________.A.are native to New ZealandB.have distinct personalitiesC.are bolder than human beingsD.can be easily identified by its color3.What conclusion did Dr. Holtmann draw from his study?A.It ’ s nurture rather than nature that matters in the case of dunnocks ’ behaviour.B.Birds ’ flight distances were in proportion to human disturbance in their territories.C.Dunnocks choose their habitats wisely in the first place rather than adapt to them.D.Bold birds and shy birds alike settle in undisturbed territories in the botanic garden.4.What is the author ’ s purpose in writingepassage?thA.To argue that circumstances cultivate certain personalities.B.To entertain readers with some funny facts about dunnocks.C.To present the finding of a scientific research about dunnocks.D.To confirm the assumption that personalities match circumstances.答案以及解析1答案及解析:答案: 1.B; 2.C; 3.C; 4.A解析: 1.细节理解题。
高考英语高难度阅读理解15篇(含详解)(4)
高考英语高难度阅读理解15篇(含详解)(4)高考英语高难度阅读理解15篇(4)1.An increase in the number of suicides in South Korea, has led policeman Yoo Byoung-jong to a new job. He patrols(巡逻) Seoul’s bridges to stop desperate people from throwing themselves into the river.According to South Korea’s health ministry, suicide rates have doubled in a decade and are now the leading cause of death for people in their 20s and 30s.The country has the fourth-highest suicide rate among the 30 industrialized countries in the Organization for Co-operation and Development (OECD). It recorded 22.8 suicide deaths for every 100,000 people in 2003. That’s lower than Hungry, Finland and close neighbour Japan. But the number is growing by about 1 percent each year, faster than for all other OECD nations.In a move to cut suicides by a fifth by 2010, the health ministry is running a television ad campaign. It opens with a lonely man walking on a bridge. A voice over says: “Think five min utes more before you give it all away. Don’t forget you have a loving family.”Other ministry plans include setting up more hotlines and training more suicide counselors. Authorities are also limiting websites that provide suicide methods and sometimes even sell toxic(有毒的) chemicals.Distressed individuals range from students worried about poor grades to people in debt as well as disgraced politicians.Experts say the rising toll(死亡人数) in some way can be blamed on media coverage of recent high-profile suicides. These include top business leaders and celebrities(名人) who apparentlylead a number of people to copy their actions. “We saved 50 lives this year when people turned to bridges as a place to die after news reports of such deaths by ‘big shots’,” said t he 38-year-oldYoo, in December.Last July, the government and civil associations urged media to avoid reporting specific methods and locations of suicides. But it is difficult to clearly give reasons for the suicide increase.67. The passage is mainly about .A. suicide problems in KoreaB. how to reduce suicides in KoreaC. desperationD. the relations between life and suicide68. Suicide rates in South Korea .A. have done great harm to the economical developmentB. are going from bad to worseC. didn’t draw special attention of the governmentD. arouse international concerns69. It doesn’t say but implies that .A. present hotlines are not enough for suicide counsellorsB. people choose suicide as the way to end their lives because they are short of loveC. cutting suicides by a fifth by 2010 is easy to carry outD. authorities manage websites efficiently70. Lowering the number of reported suicide by celebrities in the media in Korea .A. will be limitedB. didn’t affect people’s daily lifeC. might cause fewer people to commit suicideD. damage the fame of media71. Yoo Byoung-jong’s new job to patrol Seoul’s bridgehas .A. made him suffer a lotB. prevented people from jumping into waterC. burdened himselfD. proved a good way to save lives2.The city of Venice,in Italy,is one of a kind.It is built on more than 120 islands,just off arrival.After explaining where my new house was,I told him that I had left the key under the doormat.Since I knew it would be quite late before I could get back,I suggested that be make himself at home and help himself to anything that was kept in the refrigerator(冰箱).Two hours later my friend phoned me from the house.At the moment,he said,he was listening to some of my records after having had a nice meal.He had found the pan and meat in the refrigerator.Now,he was drinking a cup of tea and hoped that I would join him soon.When I asked him if he bad any difficulty finding the house,he answered that the only problem was that he had not been able to find the key under the doormat,but luckily,the living room window by the apple tree had been left open and he had climbed in through the window.I listened to all thisin great surprise.There is no apple tree outside my window,but there is one by the living room window of my next-door neighbor’s house!46.When my friend arrived,I could not go to meet him because________.A.we were not good friends B.I was busy at workC.he had not told me that he would come D.I did not want to see him 47.A doormat is a mat______.A.used as a door B.for cleaning the bottom of shoesC. put up on a door as an ornament(装饰物)D.near a door under which people put their keys48.I listened to my friend’s phone call in great surprise because____.A.he had not waited for me to eat together B.he had eaten too much of the foodC.he mistook my neighbor’s house for mineD.he had left the house with the window open49.At last my friend______.A.did not enter my houseB.entered my house after he opened the doorC.entered my house by climbing through the windowD.entered my house with the help of my neighbor50.The writer left the key under the doormat so that______.A.nobody would find itB.he might not lose itC.his family could use the same keyD.his friend could easily get it3.The tree people in the Lord of the Rings—the Ents—can get around by walking. But for real trees, well, it's harder to uproot. "Because it's a sessile organism, literally, rooted into the ground, it is unable to leave and go elsewhere." Mario Pesendorfer, a behavioral ecologist at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. "When a tree first startsgrowing in a certain area, it's likely that the climatic envelope, so the temperature, humidity, soil composition and so on suits it, because it would otherwise be unable to grow from a seedling. But as it ages, these conditions may change and the area around it may no longer be suitable for its offspring."And if that happens? Walnuts, hazelnuts, chestnuts, oaks,pines—many rely exclusively on so-called "scatter-hoarders," like birds, to move their hefty seeds to new locales. "Many members of the family Corvidae—the crows, jays and magpies—are scatter-hoarders, meaning they like to store food for the winter, which they then subsequently retrieve."Or not. And when they do forget something, a seedling has a chance to grow, sometimes a good distance away. "The Clark's nutcracker, which is found in alpine regions of western North America, is definitely the rock star among the scatter-hoarding corvids. They hide up to 100,000 seeds per year, up to 30 kilometers away from the seed source, and have a very close symbiotic relationship with several pine species, most notably the whitebark pine.”Pesendorfer and his colleagues catalogue the seed-scattering activities of the Clark's nutcracker and its cousins in a new review paper, in the journal The Condor: Ornithological Applications. They also write that, as trees outgrow their ideal habitats in the face of climate change, or battle new insects and disease, these flying ecosystem engineers could be a big help replanting trees. It's a solution, Pesendorfer says, that's good for us—getting birds to do the work is cheap and effective— and it could give vulnerable oaks and pines the option to truly "make like a tree and leave."56. According to the article, what makes birds help trees move from one place toanother? ________.A. They want to make the environment better for survivalB. They want to change the trees into another kindC. They want to store the nuts for winter survivalD. They are forced to help trees to survive57. Which does the underlined word in the last paragraph mean? ________.A. growing in a better wayB. being forced to give upC .making changes to D. findinga mysterious way to survive58. What is the best title of this passage? ________.A. Birds may help trees cope with climate changeB. Birds rely on nuts to surviveC. Trees help fight air pollutionD. Birds make trees in danger4.One hundred years ago, "Colored" was the typical way of referring to Americans of African descent. Twenty years later, it was purposefully dropped to make way for "Negro." By the late 1960s, that term was overtaken by "Black." And then, at a press conference in Chicago in 1988, Jesse Jackson declared that "African American" was the term to welcome. This one was chosen because it echoed the labels of groups, such as "Italian Americans" and "Irish Americans," that had already been freed of widespread discrimination.A century's worth of calculated name changes point to the fact that naming any group is a politically freighted exercise. A 2001 study cataloged all the ways in which the term "Black" carried connotations (涵义) that were more negative than those of "African American."But if it was known that "Black" people were viewed differently from "African Americans," researchers, until now, hadn't identified what that gap in perception was derived from.A recent study, conducted by Emory University's Erika Hall, foundthat "Black" people are viewed more negatively than "African Americans" because of a perceived difference in socioeconomic status. As a result, "Black" people are thought of as less competent and as having colder personalities.The study's most striking findings shed light on the racial discriminations permeating the professional world. Even seemingly harmless details on a CV, it appears, can tap into recruiters'(招聘人员)discriminations. A job application might mention affiliations(关系)with groups such as the "Wisconsin Association of African-American Lawyers" or the "National Black Employees Association," the names of which apparently have consequences, and are also beyond their members' control.In one of the study's experiments, subjects were given a brief description of a man from Chicago with the last name Williams. To one group, he was identified as "African-American," and another was told he was "Black." With little else to go on, they were asked to estimate Mr. Williams' salary, professional standing, andeducational background.The "African-American" group estimated that he earned about $ 37,000 a year and had a two-year college degree. The "Black" group, on the other hand, put his salary at about $ 29,000, and guessed that he had only "some" college experience. Nearly three-quarters of the first group guessed that Mr. Williams worked at a managerial level, while only 38.5 percent of the second group thought so.Hall's findings suggest there's an argument to be made for electing to use "African American," though one can't help but get the sense that it's a decision that papers over the urgency of continued progress. Perhaps a new phrase is needed, one thatcan bring everyone one big step closer to realizing Du Bois' original, idealistic hope: "It's not the name-it's the Thing that counts."59. We can conclude from Erika Hall's findings that________.A. Racial discriminations are widespread in the professional worldB. Many applicants don't attend to details on their CVsC. Job seekers should all be careful- about their affiliationsD. Most recruiters are unable to control their racial biases60. Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?A. Jesse Jackson embraced the term “African American” because it is free from discrimination.B. The naming of any ethnic (种族) group is political sensitive.C. Before the study conducted by Erika Hall, researchers had identified the causes of the gap inperception of racial discrimination.D. A man identified as “African American” is thought of as more capable than heis identified as “Black”.61. Erika Hall’s experiment about a man with the last name Williams indicates that ________.A. African Americans fare better than many other ethnic groupsB. Black people's socioeconomic status in America remains lowC. People's conception of a person has much to do with the way he or she is labeledD. One's professional standing and income are related to their educational background62. From the underlined sentences in the last paragraph, we can know that Dr. DuBois' hope is ________.A. All Americans enjoy equal rightsB. A person is judged by their worthC. A new term is created to address African AmericansD. All ethnic groups share the nation's continued progress5.Garlic is one of the most common cooking ingredients around the world. Many dishes in Europe, Africa, Asia and the Americas use this strong-flavored vegetable.Garlic is similar to other bulb-shaped plants, including onions, chives, leeks and scallions. But garlic is special. For centuries, people have used garlic not only for cooking, but also for medicine.Medicinal garlic throughout time.Researchers at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and Cornell University studied the medicinal use of garlic throughout history. They found references to garlic in ancient texts from Egypt, Greece, Rome, China and India.For example, in ancient Greece and Rome, people considered garlic an aid to strength and endurance.The original Olympic athletes in Greece ate garlic to improve their performance. The ancient Romans fed garlic to the soldiers and sailors.Workers who built the pyramids in Egypt ate garlic. In fact, this is a theme throughout early history -- workers eating garlic to increase their strength.Some researchers in China have gone so far as to call hydrogen sulfide the key to a longer life.__________________!In a 2007 study, researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham studied how garlic increased hydrogen sulfide and how that, in turn, affected red blood cells.David Kraus led that study.In 2013, scientists were finally able to see this process happen. Chemists Alexander Lippert of Southern Methodist University in Dallas and Vivian S. Lin discovered how to observe this process in living human cells.Their discovery has opened the door to more research into the health benefits of garlic and the production of hydrogen sulfide in the body.In a 2015 experiment at Penn State University, researchers injected a solution thatwould create hydrogen sulfide in the arms of healthy young adults. They wanted to see what hydrogen sulfide would do to a small area of blood vessels.The initial findings are that hydrogen sulfide widened blood vessels, which then increased the flow of blood. These researchers plan to continue their research. They published their findings in The Journal of Physiology.Older garlic may be even healthier.But let’s leave the laboratory and go to the kitchen. Don’t throw out older garlic that has sprouted. You may have thought that garlic growing light green sprouts was past its prime or old and on its way to the trash bin.But not so fast.Scientists have reported in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry that this older garlic has even more properties that are good for our bodies than fresh garlic. When researcherstested garlic that had sprouted for five days, they found it had higher antioxidant activity than fresher bulbs of garlic.Also, to get the full effect of garlic’s health benefits, do not add it to food or cook with it immediately. Cutting, crushing or mincing garlic releases the healthy compound found in the vegetable. But heating the garlic or adding it to other ingredients prevents the release of this healthy compound. So cut or crush or mince the garlic, and let it rest by itself for a couple minutes.So, are there any downsides to garlic? Well, the same reason garlic is good for us and good in dishes -- that strong sulfur odor -- is the same reason it gives us bad breath.But there might be a cure for that, too. Yet another study found that eating an apple or lettuce after eating garlic cuts down on the strong garlic smell on one’s breath.63. According to the passage, which of the following statements is NOT true?A. Garlic can be used not only for cooking, but also for medicine.B. Workers would eat garlic to increase their strength in the past.C. Garlic growing light green sprouts was past its prime or old and should bethrown to thetrash bin.D. Heating the garlic or adding it to other ingredients would reduce the healthbenefit of garlic.64. Which sentence could be filled in the blanks?A. So many studies on garlicB. Medicinal garlic throughouttimeC. Garlic is such a healthy foodD. Study about garlic65. Where can you probably find the text?A. In a popular magazine.B. In a story book.C. In a biology textbook.D. In a health report.6.A new survey reviews that more than 60% of websites and apps intended for Canadian children may be collecting personal information and passing it on to a third party. The survey was completed by the Global Privacy Enforcement Network, which reviewed 1,494 websites and apps.Focusing on trends among Canadian users, the sweep team reviewed 118 websites and apps targeted directly at children, as well as 54 that are known to be popular with and used by kids. The team’s findings showed that mo re than 50% of Canadian sites collect personal information from children, including names, addresses, phone numbers and photos, audio or video. In addition, 62% of sites admitted they may show that personal information to third parties. An other 62% allowed the user to be redirected to a different site, and only 28% of the sites and apps involved any form of parental control or protection.A member of the team Tobi Cohen, outlined a few of the sites that did and did not live up to the standards of children’s privacy online. She praised both Family.ca and /doc/f219173423.html, for their message boards that did not allow users to post personal information, and noted that santasvillage. ca asked users to provide their full nameand email address. /doc/f219173423.html, was also singled out for allowing users to display personal information, including names, age, sex and locations. /doc/f219173423.html,, on the other hand, was praised for only offering generic, pre-set avatars(头像)and barring users form uploading personal photos.The Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada refused to release a full list of the websites and apps reviewed. When asked what would be done with results, commissioner Daniel Therrien said that companies reviewed in the sweep would be kept informed of the findings. “ It’s our usual practice after conducting a sweep to write a number of companies to point out the things that we’ve seen, to sometimes ask that things be changed, and on the whole the companies react positively to thesereq uests.” Therrien added.In an attempt to help kids better understand why their privacy matters, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada has created a lesson plan for kids in Grade 7 and 8 that explains the Global Privacy Enforcements Network and has kids conduct privacy reviews of their own.“We know that companies are not the only ones responsible for the protection of kids’ privacy.” Therrien said.“ Parents and teachers obviously have a role. We have a role, particularly in the area of increasing awareness of privacy issues among the public.”Matthew Johnson, director of education at Media Smarts, said that the sweep’s results were sadly unsurprising. Media Smarts, an Ottawa-based non-profit digital literacy outfit intended to improve media literacy and empowering the youth to better engage with media, offers age-appropriate tips toparents concerned with keeping their kids sage online.Johnson explained that in addition to educating themselves on the issue, the best thing parents could do to protect children’s privacy online is to educate kids on the importance the function of their personal data. He mentioned an initiative by Media Smarts called Privacy Pirates, an online game that aims to teach kids at the age of seven to nine that all forms of personal information should be protected and added that their personal information has value and they should think twice before giving it out.66. We can conclude from the data mentioned in Paragraph2 that ________.A. parents must be to blame for letting out their kids’ privacyB. the time that children spend on he Internet should be limitedC. more children have realized the importance of personal privacyD. more attention should be paid to the protection of kids’ privacy67. Which of the following websit es doesn’t require kids to provide personal information?A. Family.ca.B. /doc/f219173423.html,.C. /doc/f219173423.html,.D. santasvillage.ca.68. What will most of the companies do when receiving a request from the sweep team?A. They will help kids better understand why their privacy matters.B. They will ask the team never to make their website public.C. They will ask for further information about the research.D. They will take some measures actively in response.69. Daniel Therrien seems to stress in Paragraph 6 that ________.A. the team should develop a good relationship with the companiesB. the protection of kid’s privacy involves joint efforts from adultsC. the public is unaware if their role in protecting kids’ privacyD. the sweep team’s work is worth nothing without parents’ help70. According to Johnson, parents should ________.A. guide their kids to play online gamesB. get kids to know the value of their privacyC. set a good example to their kids in daily lifeD. think twice before giving personal information out7.It was very late and everyone had left the cafe except an old man who sat in the shadow the leaves of the tree made against the electric light. In the day time the street was dusty, but at night the dew settled the dust and the old man liked to sit late because he was deaf and now at night it was quiet and he felt the difference. The two waiters inside the cafe knew that the old man was a little drunk, and while he was a good client they knew that if he became too drunk he would leave without paying, so they kept watch on him.“Last week he tried to commit suicide,” one waiter said. “Why?” “He was in despair.” “What about?”“Nothing.”“How do you know it was nothing?” “He has plenty of money.”They sat together at a table that was close against the wall near the door of the cafe and looked at the terrace where the tables were all empty except where the old man sat in the shadow of the leaves of the tree that moved slightly in the wind. A girl and a soldier went by in the street. The street light shone on the brass number on his collar. The girl wore no head covering and hurried beside him.“The guard will pick him up,” one waiter said. “What does it matter if he gets what he’s after?” “He had better get off the street now. The guard will get him. They went by five minutes ago.”The old man sitting in the shadow rapped on his saucer with his glass. The younger waiter went over to him.“What do you want?” The old man looked at him. “Another brandy,” he said.“You’ll be drunk,” the waiter said. The old man looked at him. The waiter wentaway.“He’ll stay all night,” he said to his colleague. “I’m sleepy now. I never get into bed before three o’clock. He should have killed himself last week.”The waiter took the brandy bottle and another saucer from the counter inside the cafe and marched out to the old man’s table. He put down the saucer and poured the glass full of brandy.“You should have killed yourself last week,” he said to the deaf man. The ol d man motioned with his finger. “A little more,” he said. The waiter poured on into the glass so that the brandy slopped over and ran down the stem into the top saucer of the pile. “Thank you,” the old man said. The waiter took the bottleback inside the c afe. He sat down at the table with his colleague again.“He’s drunk now,” he said. “He’s drunk every night.” “What did he want to kill himself for?” “How should I know.” “How did he do it?” “He hung himself with a rope.” “Who cut him down?” “His niece.”“Why did they do it?” “Fear for his soul.” “How much money has he got?” “He’s got plenty.” “He must be eighty years old.” “Anyway I should say he was eighty.” “I wish he would go home. I never get to bed before three o’clock. What kind of hour is that to go to bed?” “He stays up because he likes it.” “He’s lonely. I’m not lonely. I have a wife waiting in bed for me.” “He had a wife once too.” “A wife would be no good to him now.” “You can’t tell. He might be better with a wife.” “His niece looks after him. You said she cut him down.” “I know.” “I wouldn’t want to be that old. An old man is a nasty thing.” “Not always. This old man is clean. He drinks without spilling. Even now, drunk. Look at him.” “I don’t want to look at him. I wish he would go home. He has no reg ard for those who must work.”The old man looked from his glass across the square, then over at the waiters.“Another brandy,” he said, pointing to his glass. The waiter who was in a hurry came over.“Finished,” he said, speaking with that omission of synt ax stupid people employ when talking to drunken people or foreigners. “No more tonight. Close now.”“Another,” said the old man.“No. Finished.” The waiter wiped the edge of the table with a towel and shook his head.The old man stood up, slowly counted the saucers, took aleather coin purse from his pocket and paid for the drinks, leaving half a peseta tip. The waiter watched himgo down the street, a very old man walking unsteadily but with dignity.“Why didn’t you let him stay and drink?” the unhurr ied waiter asked. They were putting up the shutters. “It is not half past two.” “I want to go home to bed.” “What is an hour?” “More to me than to him.” “An hour is the same.” “You talk like an old man yourself. He can bu y a bottle and drink at home.” “It’s not the same.” “No, it is not,” agreed the waiter with a wife. He did not wish to be unjust. He was only in a hurry. “And you? You have no fear of going home before your usual hour?” “Are you trying to insult me?” “No, hombre, only to make a joke.”“No,”the waiter who was in a hurry said, rising from pulling down the metal shutters. “I have confidence. I am all confidence.” “You have youth, confidence, and a job,” the older waiter said. “You have everything.” “And what do you lack?” “Everything but work.” “You have everything I have.” “No. I have never had confidence and I am not young.” “Come on. Stop talking nonsense and lock up.” “I am of those who like to stay late at the cafe,” the older waiter said. “With all those who do not want to go to bed.With all those who need a light for the night.” “I want to go home and into bed.” “We are of two different kinds,” the older waiter said. He was now dressed to go home. “It is not only a question of youth and confidence although those things are very beautiful. Each night I am reluctant to close up because there may be someone who needs the cafe.” “Hombre, there are bodegas open all night long.” “You do not understand. This is a clean and pleasant cafe. It is well lighted. The light is verygood and also, now, t here are shadows of the leaves.”“Good night,” said the younger waiter.“Good night,” the other said. Turning off the electric light he continued the conversation with himself. It was the light of course but it is necessary that the place be clean and pleasant. You do not want music. Certainly you do not want music. Nor can you stand before a bar with dignity although that is all that is provided for these hours. What did he fear? It was not a fear or dread. It was a nothing that he knew too well. It was all a nothing and a man was a nothing too. It was only that and light was all it needed and a certain cleanness and order. Some lived in it and never felt it but he knew it all was nada y pues nada y nada y pues nada.He smiled and stood before a bar with a shining steam pressure coffee machine.“What’s yours?” asked the barman.“Nada.” “Otro loco mas,” said the barman and turned away.“A little cup,” said the waiter.The barman poured it for him.“The light is very bright a nd pleasant but the bar is unpolished,” the waiter said.The barman looked at him but did not answer. It was too late at night for conversation.“You want another capital?” the barman asked.“No, thank you,” said the waiter and went out. He disliked bars and bodegas. A clean, well-lighted cafe was a very different thing. Now, without thinking further, he would go home to his room. He would lie in the bed and finally, with daylight, he would go to sleep. After all, he said to himself, it’s probably only。
高考英语 阅读理解 科普类说明文4篇 -- 较难 (有答案)
高考英语说明文4篇1Here is an astonishing and significant fact: Mental work alone can’t makeus tire. It sounds absurd/əb'sɜːd/荒谬的. But a years ago, scientists tried to find outhow long the human brain could labor without reaching a stage 阶段of fatigue /fə'tiːg/(疲劳). To the amazement of these scientists, they discovered that blood passing through the brain, when it is active, shows no fatigue at all! If we tooka drop of blood from a day laborer劳动者, we would find it full offatigue toxins /'tɒksɪn/ (毒素) and fatigue products. But if we tookblood from the brain of an Albert Einstein, it would show no fatiguetoxins at the end of the day.So far as the brain is concerned, it can work as well and swiftly很快地at the end of eight or even twelve hours of effort as at the beginning. The brain is totally tireless. So what makes us tired?Some scientists declare that most of our fatigue comes from our mentaland emotional(情绪的) attitudes. One of England’s most outstanding scientists, J.A. Hadfield, says, “The greater part of the fatigue from which wesuffer is of mental origin /'ɒrɪdʒɪn/起源. In fact, fatigue of purely physical origin is rare.”Dr. Brill, a famous American scientist, goes even further. He declares, “One hundred percent of the fatigue of sitting worker in good health is due to emotional problems.”What kinds of emotions make sitting workers tired? Joy? Satisfaction?No! A feeling of being bored, anger, anxiety/æŋ'zaɪətɪ/焦虑, tenseness紧张, worry, a feeling of not being appreciated---those are the emotions that tire sitting workers. Hard work by itself seldom causes fatigue. We get tired because our emotions produce nervousness in the body.1. What surprised the scientists a few years ago?A. Fatigue toxins could hardly be found in a laborer’s blood.B. Albert Einstein didn’t feel worn after a day’s work.C. The brain could work for many hours without fatigue.D. A mental worker’s blood was filled with fatigue toxins.2. According to the author, which of the following can make sitting workers tired?A. Challenging mental work.B. Unpleasant emotions.C. Endless tasks.D. Physical labo3. What’s the author’s attitude towards the scientists’ idea?A. He agrees with them.B. He doubts them.C. He argues against them.D. He hesitates to accept them.4. We can infer from the passage that in order to stay energetic, sitting workers need to ________.A. have some good food.B. enjoy their workC. exercise regularlyD. discover fatigue toxins2They baby is just one day old and has not yet left hospital. She is quietbut alert /ə'lɜːt/(警觉). Twenty centimeters厘from her face researchers have placed a white card with two black spots on it. She stares at it carefully.A researcher removes the card and replaces it by another, this time with the spots differently spaced. As the cards change from one to the other, hergaze(凝视)starts to lose its focus — until a third, with three black spots,is presented. Her gaze returns: she looks at it for twice as long as she did atthe previous card. Can she tell that the number two is different from three,just 24 hours after coming into the world?Or do newborns simply prefer more to fewer? The same experiment, butwith three spots shown before two, shows the same return of interest whenthe number of spots changes. Perhaps it is just the newness 名,新奇? When slightly older babies were shown cards with pictures of objects (a comb, a key, an orange and so on), changing the number of objects had an effect separate from changing the objects themselves. Could it be the pattern that two things make, as opposed to three? No again. Babies paid more attention to squares moving randomly on a screen when their number changed from two to three,or three to two. The effect even crosses between senses. Babies who were repeatedly shown two spots became more excited when they then heard three drumbeats than when they heard just two; likewise (同样地)when the researchers started with drumbeats and moved to spots.5. The experiment described in Paragraph 1 is related to the baby’s__.A. sense of hearingB. sense of sightC. sense of touch D sense of smell6. Babies are sensitive to the change in______.A. the size of cardsB. the colour of picturesC. the shape of patternsD. the number of objects7. Why did the researchers test the babies with drumbeats?A. To reduce the difficulty of the experiment.B. To see howbabies recognize sounds.C. To carry their experiment further.D. To keep the babies’interest.8. Where does this text probably come from?A. Science fiction.B. Children’s literature.C. An advertisement.D.A science report3Last night’s meteor(流星) 英/'miːtɪə/ shower left many people in the community dissatisfied and demanding 苛求的;要求高的;吃力的answers. According to Gabe Rothsclild, Emerald Valley’s mayor市长, people gathered in the suburbs /'sʌbɜːb/ of the city, carrying heavy telescopes, expecting to watch the brightly burning meteors passing through the sky. What they found instead was a sky so brighteneby the city’s lights that it darkened the light of the meteors passing overhead.“My family was so frustrated,” admitted town resident Duane Cosby, “We wanted to make this an unforgettable family outing, but it turned out to be ahuge disappointments.”Astronomers- /ə'strɒnəmə/n. 天文学家--scientists who study stars and planets----have beencomplaining about this problem for decades. They say that light pollution prevents them from seeing objects in the sky that they could see quite easily in the past. They call on people and the government to take measures to fight against it.There is yet a population besides professional and amateur /ˈæmətə(r)/美 /'æmə.tʃʊr/n. 爱好者star observers that suffers even more from light pollution. This population consists of birds, bats frogs, snakes, etc. For example, outdoor lighting severely affects migrating(迁徙的)birds. According to the International Dark-Sky Association. “100million birds a year throughoutNorth America die in crashes 撞碎with lighted buildings and towers.”Countless more animals casualties(伤亡)result from the use of artificial lighting. Clearly, people enjoy the benefits of lighting their evenings, butsome scientists think it can be harmful for humans, too. They worry that exposure to light while sleeping can increase pers on’s chances of getting cancer. Emerald Valley is only one community that is becoming aware of the negative effects of light pollution. For years, Flagstaff, Arizona/,æri'zəunə/美 /,æri'zəunə/n. 美国亚利桑那州, has enforced lighting regulations in its city in order to assist astronomers at the Lowell Observatory.英 /əb'zɜːvət(ə)rɪ/美 /əb'zɝvətɔri/n. 天文台;气象台;瞭望台Similar efforts have been made worldwide, and a movement is underway 进行中的to remind us to turn off lights when we are not using them, so that other creatures can share the night.9.It happened last night thatA. the city’s lights affected the meteor watchingB. the meteors flew past before being noticedC. the city light show attracted many peopleD. the meteor watching ended up a social outing10. What do the astronomers complain about?A. Meteor showers occur less often than beforeB. Their observation equipment is in poor repairC. Light pollution has remained unsolved for yearsD. Their eyesight is failing due to artificial lighting11. What the author concerned about according to Paragraph 4?A. Birds may take other migration pathsB. Animals living habits may changesuddenlyC. Varieties of animals will become sharplyreducedD. Animals’ survival is threatened by outdoorlighting12. Lighting regulations in Flagstaff, Arizona areput into effect toA. Lessen the chance of getting cancerB. create an ideal observation conditionC. ensure citizens a good sleep at nightD. enable all creatures to live in harmony13.What message does the author most want to give us?A. Saving wildlife is saving ourselvesB. Great efforts should be made to save energyC. Human activities should be environmentally friendlyD. New equipment should be introduced for space study4Almost every machine with moving parts has wheels, yet no one knows exactly when the first wheel was invented or what it was used for. We do know,however,that they existed over 5,500years ago in ancient Asia.The oldest known transport wheel was discovered in 2002 in Slovenia. It is over 5,100 years old. Evidence suggests thatwheels for transport didn't become popular for .while, though . Thiscould be because animals did a perfectly good job of carryingfarming tools and humans around.But it could also be because of a difficult situation. While wheels need to roll on smooth surfaces, roads with smooth surfacesweren't going to be constructed until there was plenty of demandfor them. Eventually, road surfaces did become smoother, but this difficult situation appeared again a few centuries later. There hadbeen no important changes in wheel and vehicle design before thearrival of modern road design.In the mid-1700s,a Frenchman came up with a new design ofroad--a base layer (层)of large stones covered with a thin layer ofsmaller stones. A Scotsman苏格兰人improved on this design in the 1820s and a strong, lasting road surface became a reality. At around thesame time, metal hubs英 /hʌb/美 /hʌb/n. 中心;毂;木片(the central part of a wheel)、came into being, followed by the Wheels were invented in 1967, sixty years after the appearance of tarmacked roads(泊油路). As wheel design took off, vehicles got faster and faster.14. What might explain why transport wheels didn’t become popular for some time?A. Few knew how to use transport wheels.B. Humans carried farming tools just as well.C. Animals were a good means of transport.D. The existence of transport wheels was not known.15. What do we know about road design from the passage?A. It was easier than wheel design.B. It improved after big changes in vehicle design.C. It was promoted by fast-moving vehicles.D. It provided conditions for wheel design to develop.16. How is the last paragraph mainly developed?A. By giving examples.B. By making comparisons.C.By following time order.D.By making classifications.17.What is the passage mainly about ?A.The beginning of road deaign.B.The development of transport wheel.C.The history of public transport.D.The invention of fast-moving vehicles.。
高考英语阅读理解科普文难度较高
.2014年高考英语二轮复习阅读理解拉分题(较难题目)特训:节能环保类1The Goldman Environmental Foundation recently recognized a group of individuals (个体) for their efforts toprotect the environment. Each year, the American-based group honors environmental activists from six differentareas.The first three winners of the 2012 Goldman Prize are from Kenya, the Philippines and China.The Goldman Environmental Foundation says Ikal Angelei is a hero to those who live around Lake Turkana. TheKenyan woman received the award because of her efforts to stop a dam project on a river in Ethiopia. Critics saythe dam will harm the lake and restrict (限制) the flow of water for people who live nearby.The Philippine island of Mindoro is home to those who depend on the area's natural resources for food and jobs.Edwin Gariguez became concerned when a European company announced plans to mine for nickel (镍) on theisland. The Roman Catholic minister said waste materials from the mining project would pollute the water anddestroy the forests. So he started a campaign to stop the project.In China, Ma June is working with businesses to clean up their pollution. He formed a group that collectsinformation about pollution, and publishes it on the Internet.The Goldman Prize was also awarded to activists from Argentina, Russia and the United States.Sofia Gatica of Argentina is from a town where farmers commonly use pesticide (杀虫剂) products to protectsoybean crops from insects. The town also has a high rate of cancer. Sofia Gatica believed that pesticide use wasresponsible for the death of her baby. She worked with other mothers to get government officials to ban the use ofchemicals near populated areas.Evgenia Chirikova objects to the plans to build a road through a protected forest just outside Moscow. She hasdemanded that Russian officials redirect the road away from the forest. She and her followers have been arrestedfor their activities. However, their campaign has gained widespread public support.The sixth winner is American Caroline Cannon—a community leader in Point Hope, Alaska. Miz Cannon isfighting to keep Arctic waters safe from oil and gas exploration.60. We can know from the passage that ______.A. the dam project has been preventedB. the first three activists are all from AsiaC. a European company is going to dig for nickel..D. Ma June is trying to stop oil and gas exploration61. From the 7th paragraph, we can know that ______.A. pesticide use accounts for a high-rate of cancerB. Sofia managed to ban the use of chemicalsC. the farmers mainly live on unpolluted productsD. the death of the baby was due to delayed treatment62. What do we know about Evgenia Chirikova?A. She plans to build a road to protect the forest.B. She is in charge of a project far away from the road.C. She persuaded the government to set her followers free.D. Her environmental action has been widely acknowledged.63. What would be the best title for the passage?A. Six Advanced Individuals for Hard WorkB. Efforts to Create a Clean and Beautiful WorldC. Six Environmental Activists Win Goldman PrizeD. The Goldman Environmental Foundation Prize2SCS Global Services (SCS)has evaluated a new methodology for measuring the carbon sequestration (封存)ability of soil under the Verified(验证)Carbon Standard (VCS), a leading greenhouse gas (GHG)accountingsystem. The methodology, developed by The Earth Partners, will allow land managers who sequester GHGs ingrasslands and farmlands to produce carbon credits for sale in the voluntary market.Managers of grasslands and farmlands can increase carbon sequestration in soil by practices such as changinggrazing(放牧)practices and operating treatments designed to improve the variety and productivity of plantgroups. The Earth Partners is presently piloting this methodology with farmers across seven million acres of thePalouse River and Columbia Plateau regions in the Pacific Northwest.“The VCS program has achieved an important milestone in now combining grassland and rangeland carbon offset(抵消,补偿)projects, said Dr. Robert J. Hrubes, Executive Vice President of SCS.SCS looks forward toapproving and verifying agricultural carbon offset projects that use this very powerful new methodology...The VM0021 Soil Carbon Quantification Methodology is based on decades of soil carbon research and testingconducted by top soil scientists. The methodology was developed by The Earth Partners and verified by Environmental Services, Inc. as well as SCS Global Services. It is the first soil carbon methodology to be approvedfor use under the VCS.This widely tested methodology is the first to specially deal with soils in a market, said Steven I. Apfelbaum,Chairman of Applied Ecological Services, Inc. and Director of Science with The Earth Partners. According toApfelbaum, soils represent the second largest living sink of carbon on the planet.68. The new methodology is assessed according to.A. The Earth PartnersB. the Verified Carbon StandardC. Environmental Services, Inc.D. Applied Ecological Services, Inc.69. Carbon sequestration in soil can be strengthened by.A. selling carbon credits in the voluntary marketB. changing grazing practices and operating treatmentsC. reducing the variety and productivity of plant groupsD. decreasing farmlands in the Pacific Northwest70. Which of the following is true according to the passage?A. The VCS program proves to be successful in carbon offset projects.B. Many soil Carbon Methodologies have already been approved for use.C. The new methodology has been tested in many fields including soil.D. Soils seem to be the largest living sink of carbon on the planet.71. What is the attitude of SCS towards the new methodology?A. Opposed.B. Cautious.C. Doubtful.D. Approving.3..in addition to millions of Rainforest is home to around two-thirds of all plant and animal species found on land—our remaining ancient forests are some of the most diverse ecosystems people who depend on them for survival—known to science. They are also vitally important to the health of our planet, especially when it comes to regulatingthe climate. But ancient forests around the world are under attack.) in a big way. Governments now recognize theProtecting rainforests is on the global agenda (议事日程importance of protecting tropical forests in order to avoid dangerous climate change, and there is now much debate.As governments try to thrash out the details of a new international agreement, expected to be signed at the end of2009, they are discussing how best to include measures to save rainforests, and therefore address one of the major) each year causes of climate change. Worldwide, forest destruction causes more greenhouse gas emissions (排放than do all the trains, planes and cars on the planet. So if we are to deal with global warming, there is an urgentneed to find ways to reduce the 20% of global greenhouse gas emissions caused by forest destruction each year,and to keep the remaining forests standing.We need to protect the planet's remaining forests not only to stop climate change from getting worse, but to ensurethat we can stand the impacts of global warming. Healthy forests absorb and store quantities of carbon, helping toregulate temperature and generate rain. When they are destroyed, this carbon is released into the atmosphere. Thuskeeping forests standing is both a critical part of regulating climate change and of adapting to a warmer world.), rather than on how to 滥伐森林To date, most of the talk has focused on how to pay for reducing deforestation (actually go about doing it. We believe governments need to support local people to protect their environment, aswe have been showing for 20 years can be a very effective way of saving rainforests.. 1. The best title for the passage isA. Rainforest and Climate ChangeB. Strategies on Protecting RainforestC. Serious Deforestation to RainforestD. Present Situation of Rainforest. 2. From the first paragraph we can infer thatA. we have little rainforest left until now..B. the ancient forests are being destroyed ]世纪教育网来源:21[C. rainforest control the planet in many waysD. Rainforest is home to all plants and animals on earth3. The underlined part “thrash out”in the second paragraph means.A. try to understandB. come up withC. hide awayD. have a thorough discussion4. Greenhouse gas emissions caused by forest destruction.A. are the same amount by transport on earthB. take 20% of global greenhouse gas emissionsC. can be avoided by setting measures onlyD. have nothing to do with climate change5. From the text we can learn that healthy forest.A. can keep us healthy and happyB. can increase the effect from global warmingC. can be helpful in adjusting the temperatureD. can give out large amounts of carbon4Rivers may be a significant source of the greenhouse gas nitrous oxide (一氧化二氮), scientists now find.Their calculation suggests that across the globe the waterways contribute three times the amount of nitrous oxide tothe atmosphere as had been estimated by the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the United Nationsscientific body charged with reviewing climate change research. They found that the amount of nitrous oxideproduced in streams is related to human activities that release nitrogen (氮) into the environment, such as fertilizeruse and sewage discharges.“Human activities, including fossil fuel combustion and intensive agriculture, have increased the availability ofnitrogen in the environment,”said Jake Beaulieu of the University of Notre Dame and the U.S. EnvironmentalProtection Agency in Cincinnati, Ohio, and lead author of the paper published this week in the journal Proceedingsof the National Academy of Sciences.“Much of this nitrogen is transported into river and stream networks,”Beaulieu said. There, microbes (微生物)convert the nitrogen into nitrous oxide (also called laughing gas) and an inert gas called dinitrogen (二氮)...The finding is important, the researchers say, because nitrous oxide is a powerful greenhouse gas that contributesto climate change and destruction of the stratosphere's ozone layer, which protects us from the sun's harmfulultraviolet (紫外线) radiation. Compared with carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide is 300-fold more powerful in terms ofits warming potential, though carbon dioxide is a far more common greenhouse gas. Scientists estimate nitrousoxide accounts for about 6 percent of human-induced climate change.Beaulieu and colleagues measured nitrous oxide production rates in 72 streams. When summed across the globe,the results showed rivers and streams are the source of at least 10 percent of human-caused nitrous oxide emissionsto the atmosphere.“Changes in agricultural and land-use practices that result in less nitrogen being delivered to streams would reducenitrous oxide emissions from river networks,”Beaulieu said.1. From the second paragraph we can learn.A. actually rivers give off much more nitrous oxide than expectedB. scientists' calculation is totally wrongC. human activities release nitrous oxide in to the riversD. there is no nitrogen in fertilizer2. Which of the following is NOT the source of nitrogen?A. Fertilizer use.B. Sewage discharges.C. Fossil fuel combustion.D. Climate change.3. Nitrous oxide is a powerful greenhouse gas because.A. it can protect us from the sun's harmful ultraviolet radiationB. it is to blame for most of human-induced climate changeC. it is a far more common greenhouse gasD. it has much more warming potential than carbon dioxide4. What does the passage mainly tells us?A. Rivers may be a source of the greenhouse gas nitrous oxide.B. It's human activities that release nitrogen into the environment...C. How to reduce nitrous oxide emissions from river networksD What to do with the climate change caused by nitrous oxide.5The Maldives faces the threat of extinction from rising sea levels, but the government said on Thursdayit washomes and a golf course that float. looking to the future with plans to builda nation of tiny coral islands in An increase in sea levels of just 18 to 59 centimeters would make the Maldives—the Indian Ocean—virtually uninhabitable by 2100, the UN's climate change panel has warned.President Mohamed Nasheed has vowed a fight for survival, and last month he signed a deal with a Dutchcompany to study proposals for a floating structure that could support a conference centre, homes and an 18-holegolf course.“It is still early stages and we are awaiting a report on the practicality,” a government official who declined to benamed said.The company, Dutch Docklands, is currently building floating developments in the Netherlands and Dubai. Therewas no immediate comment from the firm but its website said it undertook projects that make “land from water byproviding large-scale floating constructions to create similar conditions as on land”.The Maldives began to work on an artificial island known as the Hulhumale near the crowded capital island ofMale in 1997 and more than 30,000 people have been settled there to ease congestion. The city, which has apopulation of 100,000, is already protected from rising sea levels by a 30-million-dollar sea wall, and thegovernment is considering increasingly imaginative ways to combat climate change.Nasheed, who staged the world's first underwater cabinet meeting in October to highlight his people's serious anddifficult situation, has even spoken of buying land elsewhere in the world to enable Maldivians to relocate if theirhomes are completed covered.He has also promised to turn his nation into a model for the rest of the world by becoming “carbon neutral”by2020. His plan involves ending fossil fuel use and powering all vehicles and buildings from “green”sources suchas burning coconut husks.1. Why do you think Mohamed Nasheed chose Dutch Docklands?A. Because it has experience in building floating structure.B. Because it has a good fame throughout the world.C. Because it charged much less than other companies.D. Because it supports building floating structures in the world.2. The Hulhumale was built with the purpose of..A. attracting more visitorsB. making it a new capitalC. making the capital less crowdedD. fighting against climate change. 3. According to the last two paragraphs, Nasheed is a person whoA. has succeeded in buying land abroadB. is more than well-knownC. has thought more for his nationD. has stopped using fossil fuel. 4. The underlined word “vowed”in paragraph 3 can be replaced byD. weighedC. failed A. ended B. promised6) PLAYA GRANDE, COSTA RICA? This resort town was long known for Leatherback Sea Turtle (棱皮龟national Park, nightly turtle beach tours and even a sea turtle museum. However, on a beach where dozens ofturtles used to nest on a given night, scientists spied only 32 leatherbacks all of last year.), Playa Grande's turtle museum was abandoned three years ago With leatherbacks threatened with extinction (灭绝and now sits among a sea of weeds. And the beachside ticket office for turtle tours was washed away by a high tides a turtle tourism destination any more because we realize there are far too in September. “We do not promote that a ). few turtles to please,”said Alvaro Fonseca, a park ranger (管理员Even before scientists found temperatures going up over the past decade, sea turtles were threatened by beach development, drift net fishing and Costa Ricans interest in eating turtle eggs. But climate change may cause themost serious harm to an animal that has lived in the Pacific for 150 million years.Sea turtles are sensitive to numerous effects of warming. They feed on reefs, which are dying in hotter seas. Theylay eggs on beaches that are being covered by rising seas and more violent waves.) is determined, not by genes but by the egg's temperature during development. 性别More uniquely their gender (Small rises in beach temperatures can result in ail-female populations, obviously problematic for survival. If thesand around the eggs hits 30 degrees Celsius, the gender balance shits to females: at about 32 degrees they are allfemale. Above 34, you get boiled eggs.On some nesting beaches, scientists are artificially cooling nests with shade or irrigation and trying to protect..broader areas of coastal property from development to ensure that turtles have a place to nest as the seas rise. 世纪教育网21 5. Why does the resort town stop promoting it's turtle tourism?A. It decides not to disturb the turtles' normal life.B. Tourists have lost interest in watching turtles.C. There are only very few turtles now.D. The turtle museum was destroyed by a high tide.6. Which of the following is the major factor in the turtles endangerment?A. The locals eating habit.B. Drift net fishing.C. Beach development.世纪教育网[21D. Global warming.. 7. We learn from the last paragraph that scientistsA. are doing research on the sea riseB. are moving turtles to new homesC. are protecting turtles' nestsD. are getting rid of sea weeds8. The passage intends to.A. introduce a special kind of sea turtleB. explain the mystery of turtles' eggsC. show the dangers a certain kind of turtle is facingD. attract more visitors to a sea turtle museum7Sometimes, the simplest ideas are the best. For example, to absorb heat from the sun to heat water, you need large,flat, black surfaces. One way to do that is to build those surfaces specially, on the roofs of buildings. But why go toall that trouble when cities are full of black surfaces already, in the form of asphalt(柏油) roads?..Ten years ago, this thought came into the mind of Arian de Bondt, a Dutch engineer. He finally persuaded his bossto follow it up. The result is that their building is now heated in winter and cooled in summer by a system thatrelies on the surface of the road outside.The heat-collector is a system of connected water pipes. Most of them run from one side of the street to the other,just under the asphalt road. Some, however, dive deep into the ground.When the street surface gets hot in summer, water pumped through the pipes picks up this heat and takes it) into which underground through one of the diving pipes. At a depth of 100 metres lies a natural aquifer(蓄水层) have been built. The hot water from the street runs through these exchangers, 交换器several heat exchangers(warming the ground-water, before returning to the surface through another pipe. The aquifer is thus used as a heatstore.at exchangers to pick up the In winter, the working system is changed slightly. Water is pumped through the heheat stored during summer. This water goes into the building and is used to warm the place up. After performingthat task, it is pumped under the asphalt and its remaining heat keeps the road free of snow and ice.1. Which of the following is true according to the first two paragraphs?A. Arian de Bondt got his idea from his boss.B. Large, flat, black surfaces need to be built in cities.C. The Dutch engineer's system has been widely used.D. Heat can also be collected from asphalt roads.2. For what purpose are the diving pipes used?A. To absorb heat from the sun.B. To store heat for future use.C. To turn solar energy into heat energy.D. To carry heat down below the surface.3. From the last paragraph we can learn that.A. some pipes have to be re-arranged in winterB. the system can do more than warming up the buildingC. the exchangers will pick up heat from the street surfaceD. less heat may be collected in winter than in summer4. What is most likely to be discussed in the paragraph that follows?..A. What we shall do if the system goes wrong.B. What we shall do if there are no asphalt roads.C. How the system cools the building in summer.D. How the system collects heat in spring and autumn.8Use less energy. With a little effort, We already know the fastest, least expensive way to slow climate change:doing the Earth a favor and not much money, most of us could reduce our energy diets by 25 percent or more—while also helping our wallets.not to lose a little weight but to answer an annoying question —Not long ago, my wife, PJ, and I tried a new dietabout climate change. Scientists have reported recently that the world is heating up even faster than predicted only) of carbon a few years ago, and that the consequences could be severe if we don't keep reducing emissions(排放dioxide(CO) and other greenhouse gases that are trapping heat in our atmosphere. 2. We wanted to see We decided to try an experiment. For one month we recorded our personal emissions of CO2) produces about 150 家庭how much we could cut back, so we went on a strict diet. The average UShousehold(ditioning or driving cars. That's more a day by doing common-place things like turning onair-conpounds of CO2than twice the European average and almost five times the global average, mostly because Americans drive moreand have bigger houses. But how much should we try to reduce?How Man Is Changing theFor an answer, I checked with Tim Flannery, author of The Weather Makers:Climate and What It Means for Life on Earth. In his book, he had challenged readers to make deep cuts in personalemissions to keep the world from reaching extremely important tipping points, such as the melting(融化) of the icesheets in Greenland or West Antarctica. “To stay below that point, we need to reduce CO emissions by 80 percent, 2“he said.Good advice, I thought. I'd opened our bedroom windows to let in the wind. We'd gotten so used to keeping ourair-conditioning going around the clock. I'd almost forgotten the windows even opened. We should not let thishappen again. It's time for us to change our habits if necessary.1. Why did the author and his wife try a new diet?A. To take special kinds of food.B. To respond to climate change.C. To lose weight.D. To improve their health.2. The underlined words “tipping points”most probably refer to “”...A. freezing pointsB. burning pointsC. melting pointsD. boiling points3. It can be inferred from the passage that.A. it is necessary to keep the air-conditioning on all the timeB. it seems possible for every household to cut emissions of CO 2C. the average US household produces about 3, 000 pounds of CO a month 2D. the average European household produces about 1, 000 pounds of CO a month 24. Which of the following would be the best title for this passage?A. Saving Energy Starts at HomeB. Changing Our Habits Begins at WorkC. Changing Climate Sounds ReasonableD. Reducing Emissions of CO Proves Difficult29The need to feed a growing population is putting much pressure on the world's supply of water. With 97% of theworld's water too salty to be drunk or used in agriculture, the worldwide supply of water needs careful) seems strange to someone management, especially in agriculture. Although the idea of a water shortage (短缺fortunate enough to live in a high rainfall country, many of the world's agricultural industries experience constantwater shortages.Although dams can be built to store water for agricultural use in dry areas and dry seasons, the costs of water) are very high. Not only is there the cost of the engineering itself, but there is also an redistribution (重新分配) are flooded to create dams, houses are lost and wildlife 山谷environmental cost to be considered. Where valleys (homes destroyed. Besides, water may flow easily through pipes to fields, but it cannot be transported from one sideof the world to the other. Each country must therefore rely on the management of its own water to supply itsfarming requirements.). In This is particularly troubling for countries with agricultural industries in areas dependent on irrigation (灌溉tion of the water stores. In the Central Valley Texas, farmers' overuse of irrgation water has resulted in a 25% reducarea of southwestern USA, a huge water engineering project provided water for farming in dry valleys, but much ofthe water use has been poorly managed.f huge quantities of irrigation water Saudi Arabia's attempts to grow wheat in desert areas have seen the pumping ofrom underground reserves. Because there is no rainfall in these areas, such reserves can only decrease, and it isbelieved that fifty years of pumping will see them run dry...1. From the first two paragraphs we learn that.A. much of the world's water is available for useB. people in high rainfall countries feel luckyC. the costs of water redistribution should be consideredD. water can be easily carried through pipes across the world2. Which of the following is true?A. The water stores in Texas have been reduced by 75%.B. Most industries in the world suffer from water shortages.C. The underground water in Saudi Arabia might run out in 50 years.D. Good management of water use resulted from the project in the Central Valley.3. What is most likely to be discussed in the paragraph that follows?A. Steps to improving water use management.B. Ways to reduce the costs of building dams.C. Measures to deal with worldwide water shortages.D. Approaches to handling the pressure on water supply.4. The text is mainly about.A. water supply and increasing populationB. water use management and agricultureC. water redistribution and wildlife protectionD. water shortages and environmental protection10Businesses are witnessing a difficult time, which has in turn produced influence on consumers' desireto go green.However, shoppers are still laying stress on environmental concerns.Two thirds of customers say that environmental considerations inform their purchases to the same degree as theydid a year ago, while more than a quarter say that they are now even better aware of the environmental effect onwhat they buy...This may help to influence how shops store goods on their shelves. And the companies should still make efforts tobecome more environmentally friendly. Two out of three people think it is important to buy from environmentallyresponsible companies, with about one in seven saying that they had even decided to take their custom elsewhere ifthey felt a company's environmental reputation was not good enough.“I understand this situation where ) of the Carbon Trust, sympathizes:Harry Morrison, chief executive (主管—we don't have much rom environmental considerations, the clock is tickingsurvival is very important now. But fterm benefit for the brand.”time. In addition, cutting carbon has an immediate effect as costs drop and a medium-Larger companies have an extra motivation to look at reducing their carbon footprint, as new rules next year will). Those that have taken early 排放require businesses to buy carbon allowances to make up for their emissions (action will have a head start. More than two thirds of consumers are not clear about which companies areenvironmentally responsible. This suggests that firms that are able to relay clearly their message to the public willbe in a pole position to attract shoppers.The Carbon Trust believes that it can help by informing customers about the good work companies are doing.) in all their marketing which makes it nies are granted (“When compa授予) the standard, they can use a logo (标识clear that they are working towards cutting emissions,”Mr. Morrison said. 1. What's the main idea of the passage?A. Businesses are finding ways to send their message to the shoppers.B. Companies will soon get information about cutting carbon emissions.C. Firms are making efforts to encourage customers to keep goods at home.D. Firms are urged to cut carbon emissions by shoppers' environmental awareness. ”.The underlined word “inform”in Paragraph 2 probably means“2.D. reject C. disturb A. affect B. change.3. According to Harry Morrison, businessesA. will benefit from cutting carbon emissionsB. should buy carbon allowances for shoppersC. are required to make up for their carbon emissionsD. have encouraged shoppers to take their custom elsewhere4. We can learn from the passage that businesses will.。
最新高考英语阅读理解(科普环保)题20套(带答案)
最新高考英语阅读理解(科普环保)题20套(带答案)一、高中英语阅读理解科普环保类1.犇犇阅读短文,从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中,选出最佳选项。
A shark moving around the coastline is normally a worrying sight,but this waterborne drone (无人机) threatens floating rubbish instead of people.Developed by Dutch company RanMarine, the WasteShark takes nature as its inspiration with its whale shark-like mouth. Responsible for collecting waste, the drone will begin operations in Dubai Marina in November after a year of trials with local partner Ecocoast.According to RanMarine, the WasteShark is available in both autonomous and remote-controlled models. Measuring just over five feet by three-and-a-half feet (1.5 meters by 1.1 meter), it can carry up to 352 pounds of rubbish (159.6 kg) and has an operational battery life of 16 hours.By 2016 there were approximately 150 million tons of plastic in the world's oceans. One paper from December 2014 estimated that over a quarter of a million tons of ocean plastic pollution was afloat."WasteShark also has the abilities to gather air and water quality data, remove chemicals out of the water such as oil, and heavy metals, and scan the seabed to read its depth and outlines," said Oliver Cunningham, one of the co-founders of RanMarine. "Fitted with a collision-avoidance system, the drone uses laser imaging detection and ranging technology to detect an object in its path and stop or back up if the object approaches.""Our drones are designed to move through a water system, whether it's around the perimeter (周边) or through the city itself. The drones are that last line of defense between the city and the open ocean," added Cunningham. "WasteSharks are operating in Dubai, South Africa and the Netherlands and cost $ 17, 000 for the remote-controlled model and just under $ 23, 000 for the autonomous model."Dubai-based operator Ecocoast has two WasteShark drones. Co-founder Dana Liparts says they will clean waterfronts for clients including hotels and environmental authorities and that Ecocoast' intention is to have the collected rubbish recycled or upcycled. However, Liparts argues that cleaning waterways doesn't have a one-size-fits-all solution and requires a combination of new technology, preventative measures and changing people's attitudes towards littering.(1)What do we know about the WasteShark?A. It can frighten sharks away.B. It is an ocean explorer.C. It is a rubbish collector.D. It can catch fish instead of people.(2)What does Paragraph 4 mainly tell us?A. The causes of ocean pollution.B. The dangers of using plastics.C. The severity of ocean garbage pollution.D. The importance of ocean protection.(3)What will the WasteShark do with an approaching object?A. Avoid crashing into it.B. Break it into pieces.C. Swallow it.D. Fly over it.(4)Which of the following ideas does Liparts agree with?A. The WasteShark should be used more widely.B. More measures should be taken to make water clean.C. The production cost of WasteSharks should be reduced.D. People should take a positive attitude to new technology.【答案】(1)C(2)C(3)A(4)B【解析】【分析】本文是一篇说明文,介绍一种水上无人机可以用于清理浮在水面上的垃圾。
(完整版)高考英语阅读理解科普类说明文4篇--较难(有答案)
高考英语说明文4篇1Here is an astonishing and significant fact: Mental work alone can’t makeus tire. It sounds absurd/əb'sɜːd/荒谬的. But a years ago, scientists tried to find out how long the human brain could labor without reaching a stage 阶段of fatigue /fə'tiːg/(疲劳). To the amazement of these scientists, they discovered that blood passing through the brain, when it is active, shows no fatigue at all! If we tooka drop of blood from a day laborer劳动者, we would find it fullof fatigue toxins /'tɒksɪn/ (毒素) and fatigue products. But if wetook blood from the brain of an Albert Einstein, it would show nofatigue toxins at the end of the day.So far as the brain is concerned, it can work as well and swiftly很快地at the end of eight or even twelve hours of effort as at the beginning. The brain istotally tireless. So what makes us tired?Some scientists declare that most of our fatigue comes from our mental and emotional(情绪的) attitudes. One of England’s most outstanding scientists, J.A. Hadfield, says, “The greater part of the fatigue from which we suffer is of mental origin /'ɒrɪdʒɪn/起源. In fact, fatigue of purely physical origin is rare.”Dr. Brill, a famous American scientist, goes even further. He declares, “One hundred percent of the fatigue of sitting worker in good health is due to emotional problems.”What kinds of emotions make sitting workers tired? Joy? Satisfaction?No! A feeling of being bored, anger, anxiety/æŋ'zaɪətɪ/焦虑, tenseness紧张, worry, a feeling of not being appreciated---those are the emotions that tire sitting workers. Hard work by itself seldom causes fatigue. We get tired because our emotions produce nervousness in the body.1. What surprised the scientists a few years ago?A. Fatigue toxins could hardly be found in a laborer’s blood.B. Albert Einstein didn’t feel worn after a day’s work.C. The brain could work for many hours without fatigue.D. A mental worker’s blood was filled with fatigue toxins.2. According to the author, which of the following can make sitting workers tired?A. Challenging mental work.B. Unpleasant emotions.C. Endless tasks.D. Physical labo3. What’s the author’s attitude towards the scientists’ idea?A. He agrees with them.B. He doubts them.C. He argues against them.D. He hesitates to accept them.4. We can infer from the passage that in order to stay energetic, sitting workers need to ________.A. have some good food.B. enjoy their workC. exercise regularlyD. discover fatigue toxins2They baby is just one day old and has not yet left hospital. She is quietbut alert /ə'lɜːt/(警觉). Twenty centimeters厘from her face researchershave placed a white card with two black spots on it. She stares at it carefully.A researcher removes the card and replaces it by another, this time with the spots differently spaced. As the cards change from one to the other, her gaze(凝视)starts to lose its focus — until a third, with three black spots,is presented. Her gaze returns: she looks at it for twice as long as she did at the previous card. Can she tell that the number two is different from three, just 24 hours after coming into the world?Or do newborns simply prefer more to fewer? The same experiment, but with three spots shown before two, shows the same return of interest when the number of spots changes. Perhaps it is just the newness 名,新奇? When slightly older babies were shown cards with pictures of objects (a comb, a key, an orange and so on), changing the number of objects had an effect separate from changing the objects themselves. Could it be the pattern that two things make, as opposed to three? No again. Babies paid more attention to squares moving randomly on a screen when their number changed from two to three,or three to two. The effect even crosses between senses. Babies who were repeatedly shown two spots became more excited when they then heard three drumbeats than when they heard just two; likewise (同样地)when the researchers started with drumbeats and moved to spots.5. The experiment described in Paragraph 1 is related to the baby’s__.A. sense of hearingB. sense of sightC. sense of touch D sense of smell6. Babies are sensitive to the change in______.A. the size of cardsB. the colour of picturesC. the shape of patternsD. the number of objects7. Why did the researchers test the babies with drumbeats?A. To reduce the difficulty of the experiment.B. To see howbabies recognize sounds.C. To carry their experiment further.D. To keep the babies’interest.8. Where does this text probably come from?A. Science fiction.B. Children’s literature.C. An advertisement.D.A science report3Last night’s meteor(流星) 英/'miːtɪə/ shower left many people in the community dissatisfied and demanding 苛求的;要求高的;吃力的answers. According to Gabe Rothsclild, Emerald Valley’s mayor市长, people gathered in thesuburbs /'sʌbɜːb/of the city, carrying heavy telescopes, expecting to watch the brightly burning meteors passing through the sky. What they found instead was a sky so brightene by the city’s lights that it darkened the light of the meteors passing overhead. “My family was so frustrated,” admitted town resident Duane Cosby, “We wanted to make this an unforgettable family outing, but it turned out to be a huge disappointments.”Astronomers- /ə'strɒnəmə/n. 天文学家--scientists who study stars and planets---- have beencomplaining about this problem for decades. They say that light pollution prevents them from seeing objects in the sky that they could see quite easily in the past. They call on people and the government to take measures to fightagainst it.There is yet a population besides professional and amateur /ˈæmətə(r)/美 /'æmə.tʃʊr/n. 爱好者star observers that suffers even more from light pollution. This population consists of birds, bats frogs, snakes, etc. For example, outdoor lighting severely affects migrating(迁徙的)birds. According to the International Dark-Sky Association. “100million birds a year throughout North America die in crashes 撞碎with lighted buildings and towers.”Countless more animals casualties(伤亡)result from the use of artificial lighting. Clearly, people enjoy the benefits of lighting their evenings, but some scientists think it can be harmful for humans, too. They worry that exposure to light while sleeping can increase pers on’s chances of getting cancer. Emerald Valley is only one community that is becoming aware of the negative effects of light pollution. For years, Flagstaff, Arizona/,æri'zəunə/美 /,æri'zəunə/n. 美国亚利桑那州, has enforced lighting regulations in its city in order to assist astronomers at the Lowell Observatory.英 /əb'zɜːvət(ə)rɪ/美 /əb'zɝvətɔri/n. 天文台;气象台;瞭望台Similar efforts have been made worldwide, and a movement isunderway 进行中的to remind us to turn off lights when we are not using them, so thatother creatures can share the night.9.It happened last night thatA. the city’s lights affected the meteor watchingB. the meteors flew past before being noticedC. the city light show attracted many peopleD. the meteor watching ended up a social outing10. What do the astronomers complain about?A. Meteor showers occur less often than beforeB. Their observation equipment is in poor repairC. Light pollution has remained unsolved for yearsD. Their eyesight is failing due to artificial lighting11. What the author concerned about according to Paragraph 4?A. Birds may take other migration pathsB. Animals living habits may changesuddenlyC. Varieties of animals will become sharplyreducedD. Animals’ survival is threatened byoutdoor lighting12. Lighting regulations in Flagstaff, Arizona areput into effect toA. Lessen the chance of getting cancerB. create an ideal observation conditionC. ensure citizens a good sleep at nightD. enable all creatures to live in harmony13.What message does the author most want to give us?A. Saving wildlife is saving ourselvesB. Great efforts should be made to save energyC. Human activities should be environmentally friendlyD. New equipment should be introduced for space study4Almost every machine with moving parts has wheels, yet no one knows exactly when the first wheel was invented or what it was used for. We do know,however,that they existed over 5,500years ago in ancient Asia.The oldest known transport wheel was discovered in 2002 in Slovenia. It is over 5,100 years old. Evidence suggests thatwheels for transport didn't become popular for .while, though . This could be because animals did a perfectly good job of carryingfarming tools and humans around.But it could also be because of a difficult situation. While wheels need to roll on smooth surfaces, roads with smooth surfaces weren't going to be constructed until there was plenty of demand for them. Eventually, road surfaces did become smoother, but this difficult situation appeared again a few centuries later. There had been no important changes in wheel and vehicle design before the arrival of modern road design.In the mid-1700s,a Frenchman came up with a new design of road--a base layer (层)of large stones covered with a thin layer of smaller stones. A Scotsman苏格兰人improved on this design in the 1820s and a strong, lasting road surface became a reality. At around the same time, metal hubs英 /hʌb/美 /hʌb/n. 中心;毂;木片(the central part of a wheel)、came into being, followed by the Wheels were invented in 1967, sixty years after the appearance of tarmacked roads(泊油路). As wheel design took off,vehicles got faster and faster.14. What might explain why transport wheels didn’t become popular for some time?A. Few knew how to use transport wheels.B. Humans carried farming tools just aswell. C. Animals were a good means oftransport.D. The existence of transport wheels was not known.15. What do we know about road design from the passage?A. It was easier than wheel design.B. It improved after big changes in vehicle design.C. It was promoted by fast-moving vehicles.D. It provided conditions for wheel design to develop.16. How is the last paragraph mainly developed?A. By giving examples.B. By making comparisons.C.By following time order.D.By making classifications.17.What is the passage mainly about ?A.The beginning of road deaign.B.The development of transport wheel.C.The history of public transport.D.The invention of fast-moving vehicles.。
(英语)高考英语试卷英语阅读理解(科普环保)题分类汇编及解析
(英语)高考英语试卷英语阅读理解(科普环保)题分类汇编及解析一、高中英语阅读理解科普环保类1.犇犇阅读短文,从每题所给的A、B、C和D四个选项中,选出最佳选项。
Robots are now being employed not just for dangerous tasks, such as discovering mines or rescuing people in disasters. They are also finding application as household helps and as nursing assistants. As increasing numbers of machines, equipped with the latest artificial intelligence, take on a growing variety of specialized and everyday tasks, the question of how people see them and behave towards them becomes ever more urgent.A team led by Sari Nijssen of Radboud University and Markus Paulus, Professor of Developmental Psychology at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet (LMU), have carried out a study to determine the degree to which people show concern for robots and behave towards them based on moral principles.According to Sari Nijssen, the study set out to answer the following question:" Under what circumstances would adults be willing to sacrifice robots to save human lives?" The participants were faced with a hypothetical (假设的) moral dilemma: Would they be prepared to put a single person at risk in order to save a group of injured persons? In the situations presented the intended victim was either a human, a humanoid robot that had been humanized (人性化的) to various degrees or a robot that was clearly recognizable as a machine.The study suggested that the more the robot was humanized, the less likely participants were to sacrifice it. Situations that included vivid stories in which the robot was described as a merciful being or as a creature with its own understandings, experiences and thoughts, were more likely to stop the study participants from sacrificing it in the interests of anonymous (无名的) humans. "This result indicates that our study group attached a certain moral status to the robot," says Paulus. "One possible suggestion of this finding is that attempts to humanize robots should not go too far. Such efforts could come into conflict with their intended function—to be of help to us."(1)What has become a concern about robots?A. How to humanize them.B. How to treat them in life.C. How to use them effectively.D. How to find more applications.(2)In the study the participants probably have to decide ________.A. when to sacrifice a robotB. where to experience risksC. which robot to work withD. what robots should be like(3)What can be inferred from Paulus' words?A. Humanized robots offer less help to people.B. Humanizing robots too much may be improper.C. Certain moral status should be attached to robots.D. Conflicts often happen between humans and robots.(4)Which of the following would be the best title for the text?A. Robots, A Must for FutureB. Humanized Robots, A New TrendC. Robot Saved, People Take the HitD. Humanized Robots, Replace Human【答案】(1)B(2)A(3)B(4)C【解析】【分析】本文是一篇说明文,随着越来越多的机器人具有人性化,它们承担越来越多样化的专业和日常任务,人们如何看待他们,如何对待他们的问题变的迫在眉睫。
专题03:阅读理解之科普知识类-最近三年(2019-2021)高考英语真题分类精编(原卷版)
C. Acceptance of victors' concepts.
D. Changes in people's social positions.
15. What is the best title for the text?
A. Geniuses Think AlikeB. Genius Takes Many Forms
12. What does the author think of victors' standards for joining the genius club?
A. They're unfair.B. They're conservative.
C. They're objective.D.the sciences and arts, those praised as geniuses were most often white men, of European origin. Perhaps this is not a surprise. It's said that history is written by the victors, and those victors set the standards for admission to the genius club. When contributions were made by geniuses outside the club—women, or people of a different color or belief—they were unacknowledged and rejected by others.
高考英语高难度阅读理解15篇(含详解)(3)
高考英语高难度阅读理解15篇(3)1.Some people are pessimistic (悲观) when they think about the future. They say that, a hundred years from now, we will have used up most of the earth’s resources. We will have polluted our sea badly, and be unable to eat fish from it. We will have made air so dirty that we will need to wear masks. The world’s pollution will have doubled, and we will have used all the countryside for housing; there will be no farmland left.Other people believe that man adapts very easily. They have a different idea of the future. However, in their views, will people be living in a hundred years’ time?One architect believes that man will move off the land. He suggests that the city of the future will be a huge, pyramidshaped building, which will be floating on the surface of the sea. About 5,000 families will be living there, and the building will contain shops and schools as well as homes. By living on the sea, we will give the farmers more land to grow crops.As for oil, people will no longer need it: we will be heating our homes with power from the sun. And we will not be short of minerals, because there are plenty under our oceans. At the moment, we do not have the technology to get them out. But, in a hundred years’ time, the optimists (乐观者) say, the new sea cities will be using these resources.What will be in the shops in the year 3000? What will people be wearing? How will people be traveling?Scientists who make predictions about the future suggest that, by the year 3000, shops will no longer exist. Computers will have replaced them; and people will order goods from home.People will be wearing very light, thin clothes. By this time, scientists will have invented a fabric that keeps us cool in hot weather and warm in cold weather.As for travel, the experts say that most people will be using public transport. Electric cars will be traveling through the streets day and night. Anybody will be able to stop one and use it.An interesting picture! Unfortunately, we will not be there if these predictions come true.28. Pessimists believe that in the future ________.A. seas and oceans will be full of housesB. we’ll have used up most of the resourcesC. we will have not enough fish to eat from the seasD. we will have polluted the air not so badly that it will be possible for us to breathe29. Scientists have made the predictions EXCEPT ________.A. electric cars will be going along the streets continuouslyB. the resources under the oceans will never be used upC. people will order goods from homeD. peopl e won’t suffer from cold any longer30. What does the underlined word in the seventh paragraph refer to?A. a kind of toolB. a kind of energyC. a kind of clothD. a kind of resource31. We can learn from the article that ________.A. we should be optimistic about the futureB. we should be pessimistic about the futureC. we shouldn’t think too much about the futureD. we have no idea of what will happen in the future2. Movie ExtrasWould you mind lying in a coffin (棺材)? Would you shave your head? Are you willing to take out your false teeth?These are just a few of the questions Anne Marie Stewart and her staff sometimes ask the "talent" who serve as non-speaking "extras" in special films, television series, and made-for-TV movies produced in Toronto.Of course, the majority of extra calls are for more ordinary people, and Stewart has a list of about 650 registered extras. Crowd scenes, which are common, call for everyday people of all ages, ethnic backgrounds, and sizes.Over at Movie People, last-minute requests are not unusual. "We got a request once for an entire brass band of 30 people. They wanted it within the hour," said manager Yvonne McCartney. Another time, the company got a last-minute request fora newborn baby. "We found a baby that was three weeks premature," said Jonathan Aiken, an owner of the company.Then there was the worried call from a casting director whose "Star" got doggone stubborn one day and decided to just lie down and not work. The director needed a replacement dog, fast. "We got them two in one hour." said Aiken. "It was a matter of good connections and fast phone work." The eight phone lines needed to make 350 to 400 calls a day are one of Movie People's major expenses.Phone lines are the only way to stay in touch with casting directors and extras; but the latter are a group not necessarily interested in a long-term relationship. Most extra jobs pay only $7 an hour (with a six-hour minimum), while most agencies charge an annual $75 re gistration fee and get 10 to 15 per cent of extras’ earnings. It's no wonder that the turnover rate is fairly high.Some people who are between jobs do extra work as a temporary measure, said McCartney. But professionals, such as lawyers, also do the work because it's interesting. Others with flexible jobs have a desire to do something different. Some homemakers want to get out of the house and onto a movie set. Money's not the motivating reason."One of the first things I say to people who walk in and ask about being an extra is, ‘You have to be available,' "said a person at Karen Clifton Agency. Inc. "The next thing I say is, 'You can't make a living at this.' ”68. What kind of people are movie extras?A. TV series makers.B. Casting directors.C. Non-professional movie actors.D. Agents for movie stars.69. According to the passage, movie extras should _____.A. have special talentsB. have a flexible scheduleC. make good connectionsD. make hundreds of phone calls daily70. Why do white collar workers most probably like to be movie extras?A. They want to make more money.B. They want to start a career in acting.C. They think their regular job is boring.D. They think being on the stage is enjoyable.71. The underlined word “turnover” in the sixth paragraph probably means _____.A. business profitB. the loss of staffC. market demandD. operation expenses3.Directions: Read the following passage. Answer the questions according to the information given in the passage and required words limit.In my dual(双重的) profession as an educator and health care provider, I have worked with numerous children infected with the virus that causes AIDS. The relationships that I have had with these special kids have been gifts in my life.They have taught me so many things,but I have especially learned that great courage can be found in the smallest of packages.Let me tell you about Tyler.Tyler was born infected with HIV;his mother was also infected. From the very beginning of his life, he was dependent on medications(药物)to enable him to survive. When he was five, he had a tube surgically inserted in a vein in his chest. This tube was connected to a pump, which he carried in a small backpack on his back.Medications were hooked up to this pump and were continuously supplied through this tube to his bloodstream. At times, he also needed supplemented oxygen to support his breathing.Tyler wasn't willing to give up one single moment of his childhood to this deadly disease. It was not unusual to find him playing and racing around his backyard,wearing his medicine-laden backpack and dragging his tank of oxygen behind him in his little wagon. All of us who knew Tyler marveled at his pure joy in being alive and the energy it gave him. Tyler's mom often teased him by telling him that he moved so fast she needed to dress him in red. That way, when she peered through the window to check on him playing in the yard,she could quickly spot him.This dreaded disease eventually wore down even the likes of a little dynamo like Tyler.He grew quite ill and,unfortunately,so did his HIV-infected mother.When it became apparent that he wasn't going to survive,Tyler's mom talked to him about death.She comforted him by telling Tyler that she was dying too,and that s he would be with him soon in heaven.A few days before his death,Tyler beckoned10) me over to his hospital bed and whispered,“I might die soon.I'm not scared.When I die,please dress me inred.Mom promised she's coming to heaven,too.I'll be playing when she gets there,and I want to make sure she can find me.”81. What’s the profession of the writer? (no more than 8 words.)82. Why did Tyler carry a small backpack on his back? (no more than 13 words)83. Why did Tyler’s mother want to dress Tyler in red? (no more than 14 words)84. Try to use at least three words to describe Tyler’s personality. (no more than 4 words)4.阅读下列短文,从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中,选出最佳选项,并在答题卡上将该项涂黑Your friends might be in Australia or maybe just down the road, but they are all just a few clicks away. Life has changed for millions of young people across the world who now make friends online. Whether you use chat-rooms, QQ, MSN or ICQ, you are a member of this group.“I don’t often talk with my parents or grandparents, but I talk a lot with my old friends on QQ,” said Fox’s Shadow, the online name used by a girl student in China. “Most of my classmates use QQ after school.”QQ is the biggest messaging service in China. A record from Tencent, the company which developed QQ, shows that 4 million people used it one Saturday night in October.And probably Fox’s Shadow was one of them. “I log in on Friday nights, and Saturdays or Sundays when I feel everything around me boring. I usually spend about ten hours chatting online every week,” she said. “But I never talk with strangers, especially boys or men.”Even though she likes chatting, she is careful about making friends with strangers online. “You don’t know who you’re talking to. You should always be careful about whom you believe in online.”Many people would like to meet offline when they feel they have known someone very well. Fox’s Shadow once met one of her online friends face to face.It was a girl who was a football fan like herself and they went to a football match together.A 16-year-old Beijing boy, named Bart Simon online, dislikes QQ users. “I used to chat on QQ, but I found that most people were talking about foolish things,” he said. Now he cha ts online in English, using MSN. “I only chat online because I’ve gotfriends in Japan, the US and Singapore,” he said. “I want to learn more about foreign cultures.” But he spends little time chatting on QQ as he sees it as a waste of time and money.“If you are really addicted to it, sometimes you can’t give your mind to your lessons,” he said. “And friends in your real life are always more important than those so-called friends you meet online.”63.From the passage, we know“…they are all just a few clicks away”means“”.A.it is wonderful to see your friends by clickingB.it is popular to make friends onlineC.it is possible to live much closer to your friendsD.it is easy and fast to get in touch with your friends64.Fox’s Shadow thinks QQ is .A.a good place to spend her time when boredB.the biggest messaging service in ChinaC.a safe place to chat with strangersD.the best place to make friends65.Which of the following sentences is TRUE according to the passage?A.All the people on QQ are talking about foolish things.B.We should think more of our friends in real life.C.We should be careful about boys or men online.D.Chatting online is a waste of time and money.66.The underlined phrase means .A.turn on the computer B.enter in QQC.surf the internet D.make friends5.American office workers spend an average of 52 hours a week at their desks, according to a statistic survey. Some might argue that not all that time is spent working, but still all those hours in windowless offices with artificial light can have an influence.A few green additions could have a large effect on worker happiness, according to the survey led by Tina Cade from Texas State University.“We pretty much found out that if you had windows and plants or even if you just had plants in your office, you were more satisfied with your job, ”Cade told LiveScience.“We thought it was important for offices because a lot of times people are looking for ways to keep employees happy and do all these expensive things like building a gym. Maybe for less investment they could put in a few plants in important places.”The team surveyed 450 office workers in Texas and the Midwest, asking questions about job satisfaction and the work environments. When asked about their overall life quality, 82 said they felt“content”or“very happpy”. Only 69 percent of those who work with plants but without windows, and 60 percent of those who have windows but no plants, said they felt this way.The group of people who work without plants or windows were the most dissatisfied, with only 58 percent of them saying that overall they were “content”or“very happy”. While no one who works with plants, windows, or both reported they felt“miserable”,0.8 percent of those who work in offices without either said they were “miserable”.“I was really surprised that having a plant in your office appeared to be more beneficial than having a window in your office,”Cade said.“Everybody says,‘I need a window!’but actually it seemed like a plant could be a suitable alternative.”52.What does the passage mainly tell us?A.Green plants can increase job satisfaction.B.An easier way to increase job satisfaction.C.What the best working environment is.D.Who are happy with their job environment.53.Among the 450 people surveyed, ________.A.69 percent have plants in their officesB.60 percent have windows in their wallsC.0.8 percent of them feel dissatisfiedD.about 18 percent of them are satisfied54.According to the survey, the group of people who work without plants or windows ________.A.didn't feel content at allB.all suffered from work pressureC.worked with low efficiencyD.were the most dissatisfied55.Which of the following statement is true?A.The employers want to do little to keep employees happy.B.Sometimes it doesn't need much to increase job happiness.C.A gym contributes less to job happiness than green plants.D.Employers have tried every means to increase job happiness.6.Before I spoke to his school, Matt was waiting for me. He sat in his wheelchair barely able to move. As soon as he saw me he started smiling. He could not talk but I pretended the sharks were eating his cereal and his laugh melted the hearts of everyone walking by.One of the teachers told me that he was actually very smart, he just could not control his muscles due to a childhood disease. He was happy and very popular at his school-his'parents' love and encouragement made all the difference. On the contrary—at a book signing session, I met a girl by the name of Anne. She walked up with her mom with a bright smile. Anne asked about my book with a slur(含糊地发音) in her speech indicating a slight head-injury. I told her about it and she smiled the whole time and asked me to sign one for her. I did.Five minutes later, I heard a voice from Anne's father, "you know you will not understand the book. You can't read well enough. You aren't smart enough." He said it so loudly that people were staring in their direction. She was absolutely crushed and her bright smile was now replaced with a look of total despair. He pried the book from her and brought it back to me and asked me to take it back. I asked him if he would allow me to purchase the book for Anne. He said no with a heartless response. I thought back to Matt. He could not speak, walk, run or play but was actually very happy and even doing well in school because of the love and encouragement of his parents. Anne on the other hand had a slight learning problem and may never know happiness of success because of a stern(苛刻的) father.What kind of parent are you? The truth is that whatever you are telling your kids-makes the difference between their success or failure in life.24. What is Matt's problem?A. He is blind.B. He isn't smart enough.C. He suffers a muscles' disease.D. He can't speak and read.25. Compared with Anne, Matt is lucky becauseA. his parents are richB. his parents love and encourage himC. his disability is not seriousD. the author feels sympathy for him26. Hearing her father's words, Anne felt __A. light-heartedB. doubtfulC. cautiousD. heart-broken27. What does the author probably do?A. A writer.B. A teacher.C. A doctor.D. A lawyer.7.Most people agree that honesty is a good thing. But does Mother Nature agree? Animals can't talk, but can they lie in other ways? Can they lie with their bodies and behavior? Animal experts agree that many animals, from birds to chimpanzees, behave dishonestly to fool other animals.Many kinds of birds are very successful in fooling other animals. For example, a bird called the plover sometimes pretends to be hurt in order to protect its young. When a predator (猎食动物)gets close to its nest, the plover leads the predator away from the nest. How? It pretends to have a broken wing. The predator follows the "hurt" adult, leaving the baby birds safe in the nest.Another kind of bird, the scrub jay, buries its food so it always has something to eat. Scrub jays are also thieves. They watch where others bury their food and steal it. But clever scrub jays go back later, unbury the food, and bury it again somewhere else.Birds called cuckoos have found a way to have babies without doing much work. Not making nests, they get into other birds' nests secretly to lay their eggs and fly away. When the baby birds come out, their adoptive parents feed them.Chimpanzees, or chimps, can be dishonest and sneaky(偷偷摸摸的).When chimps find food that they love, such as bananas, it is natural for them to cry out. Then other chimps come running. But some clever chimps learn to cry very softly when they find food. That way, other chimps don't hear them, and they don't need to share their food.As is mentioned above, animals behave dishonestly for survival. Is it OK to lie for us humans?25. The writer uses the three questions at the beginning of the passage to ______ .A. ask the readers to answer the questionsB. draw the readers' attention to the topicC. seek answers to the questionsD. show he is at a loss about the question26. A plover protects its young from a predator by ______ .A. driving away the adult predatorB. getting closer to its youngC. leaving its young in another nestD. pretending to be injured27. What is the common reaction of most chimps when they find their favorite food?A. They let out a loud cry.B. They hide their food immediately.C. They cry in a very low voice.D. They share their food with other chimps.28. What does the author think of the animals' dishonest behaviors?A. Unforgettable.B. Unreasonable.C. Acceptable.D. Negative.8.The most complex object known to humanity is the human brain — and not only is it complex, but it is one of the few natural phenomena that science has no consciousness of. To try to replicate (复制) something that is so poorly understood may therefore seem like pride. But you have to start somewhere, and International Business Machines (IBM) and the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL), in Switzerland, propose to start by replicating “in silico”, one of the brain’s building blocks.In a partnership announced, the two organizations said they would be working together to build a simulation (模拟) of a structure known as a neo-cortical(新大脑皮质的)column on a type of IBM supercomputer that is currently used to study the molecular functioning of genes. If that works, they plan to use more powerful computers to link such simulated columns together into something that mimics(模仿) a brain.In a real brain, a neo-cortical column is a cylindrical(圆柱形的)element about a third of a millimeter in diameter and three millimeters long. It is these columns, arranged side by side like the cells of a honeycomb, which make up the famous “grey matter” that has become shorthand for human intelligence. The Blue Gene/L supercomputer that will be used for the simulation consists of enough independentprocessors for each to be programmed to mimic an individual nerve cell in a column.The EPFL’s contribution to the Blue Brain Project will be to create a digital description of how the columns behave. The database from its Brain Mind Institute will provide the raw material for the simulation. Biologists and computer scientists will then connect the artificial nerve cells up in a way that mimics nature. They will do so by assigning electrical properties(电能)to them, and telling them how to communicate with each other and how they should modify their connections with one another depending on their activity.That will be no mean feat. Even a single nerve cell is complicated, not least because each one has about 10,000 connections with others. And nerve cells come in great variety—relying, for example, on different chemical transmitters to carry messages across those connections. Eventually, however, a digital representation of an entire column Should occur.Assuming that the growth of computing power continues to follow Moore’s Law, the leader of IBM’s side thinks it should be practical to mimic an entire human brain in silico this way in ten to fifteen years. Such an artificial brain would, of course, be a powerful research tool. It would allow neurological experiments that currently take days in a “web lab” to be conducted in seconds. The researchers hope that their simulated brain will reveal the secrets of how certain psychiatric and neurological, disorders develop. But that is probably not the real reason for doing it. The most interesting question, surely, is whether such an artificial brain will be intelligent, or conscious, or both.62. In a real brain, a neo-cortical column ____________.A. looks like the cells of a honeycombB. is a simulation of a structureC. is the famous “grey matter”D. contains a large number of nerve cells63. What does the underlined sentence “That will be no mean feat” in Paragraph 5 indicate?A. It is rather difficult to connect the artificial nerve ceils up.B. The function of chemical transmitters is hard to understand.C. A digital representation of an entire column is time-consuming.D. A single nerve cell is complicated to identify across connections.64. The fundamental purpose of doing the research is probably ____________.A. to simulate an entire human brain in silicoB. to tell us how some certain disorders emergeC. to discover how the artificial brain would workD. to examine whether Moore’s Law is still functioning65. What type of writing is this passage?A. A science fictionB. A research reportC. An official documentD. A computer advertisement9.Dear Textual Healing,I would be very interested in your recommendations for any books to help me through a difficult time of my life. At 57, f am feeling a bit lost. I have a wonderful, loving husband and bright, caring teenage daughter but I am lonely and have lost my spark for life.I have always taken care of everyone and managed a career, but, after the death of my father this summer, my difficulties as a child in a terribly abnormal family have come back to me regularly. / have become unfocused and often alone while my husband is away frequently on business and my daughter busy with school and friends.I am seeking the help of a therapist and taking care of myself but I would love to read something to help me “get my groove (理想状况)back” and reengage with life.PC Dear PC,From the letter you’ve given us about your life, it’s no wonder you’re feeling a little lost. But before prescribing titles to help you get your groove back, I’d recommend taking a journey into Rebecca Solnit’s non-fiction book, A Field Guide to Getting Lost, which is packed with the wisdom of everyone from Pat Barker to Thoreau and Keats.The word lost is rooted in the Old Norse “los”,meaning the disbanding of an army. “This origin suggests soldiers falling out of formation to go home, ceasing fighting with the wide world. I worry now that many people never disband their armies, never go beyond what they know,” Solnit writes. So instead of fearing that lost feeling, try seeing its potential for discovery. Explorers, remember, are always lost simply because they’re forever someplace new.“Leave the door open for the u nknown, the door into the dark,” Solnit advises. “That’s where the most important things come from, where you yourself came from, and where you will go.”For something that asks a little less of the reader while still giving plenty in return, try a dose (―剂)of Anne Tyler, the beloved creator of numerous heroes whose serious conditions will move anyone who finds themselves in a midlife difficult situation. One such character is 53-year-old Rebecca Davitch, the heroine of Back When We Were Grownups. Like you, she’s combined marriage and motherhood with a career but suddenly finds herself feeling lonely in her own home. Could it be, she wonders, that she’s “turned into the wrong person"? Don't be fooled by the way this novel ambles along —as Rebecca revisits youthful ambitions and the college boyfriend she abandoned, it asks some heart-rending questions before arriving at a place of graceful, joyous acceptance.Along similar lines, I'm also going to recommend The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce. Its hero is 65 when he learns that a former colleague sick. On his way to post her a note,he decides instead to visit her—on foot, from his home in deepest Devon to England's northernmost town, more than 600 miles away. You don’t manage that without focus! It’s a journey to a holy place that will take him 87 days to complete, during which he considers his childhood, marriage and relationship with his son, and becomes an accidental media sensation (轰动). By the time he reaches his destination, you’ll fee l anything but tired.Finally, Ruth Ozeki’s novel A Tale for the Time Being will charm the missing spark back into your life. Combining the diary of a sad Tokyo teenager with the story of the middle-aged novelist who finds it, washed ashore on a remote island off the coast of British Columbia, it’s a beautiful illustration of how our lives touch — and are touched by —others in ways we mightn't even be aware of. This Man Booker Prize finalist has plenty to teach about Zen Buddhism, and unless you happen to live in one of its settings, it provides a bracing change of scene, too.One other suggestion: books, as we all know, make great companions but that doesn't mean they can’t be enjoyed in the company of others. If you find yourself home alone, why not slip one into your back pack and head out to a favourite café.66. What has mainly led to PC’s negative attitude to life?A. The lack of helpful books.B. The blow of her father’s death.C. The contrast between her devotion to others and her being ignored.D. The contrast between her easy life and her family members busy life.67. By mentioning the origin of the word lost, Textual Healing implies that__________.A. PC should extend her knowledge by reading moreB. PC should stop struggling with anyone around herC. PC had better try to avoid going someplace newD. PC oughtn’t to be trapped in her present situation68. Who clarifies the idea in his/her work that people are socially related?A. Rebecca Solnit.B. Anne Tyler.C. Rachel Joyce.D. Ruth 0zeki.69. The character Rebecca Davitch is mentioned by Textual Healing because her experience is__________.A. typicalB. persuasiveC. enjoyableD. extraordinary70. Which of the following can be the proper title?A. Which books will cure loneliness?B. How can you get rid of loneliness?C. Here are good examples for youD. Books will keep you busy and healthy10.The tree people in the Lord of the Rings—the Ents—can get around by walking. But for real trees, well, it's harder to uproot. "Because it's a sessile organism, literally, rooted into the ground, it is unable to leave and go elsewhere." Mario Pesendorfer, a behavioral ecologist at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. "When a tree first starts growing in a certain area, it's likely that the climatic envelope, so the temperature, humidity, soil composition and so on suits it, because it would otherwise be unable to grow from a seedling. But as it ages, these conditions may change and the area around it may no longer be suitable for its offspring."And if that happens? Walnuts, hazelnuts, chestnuts, oaks, pines—many rely exclusively on so-called "scatter-hoarders," like birds, to move their hefty seeds to new locales. "Many members of the family Corvidae—the crows, jays and magpies—are scatter-hoarders, meaning they like to store food for the winter, which they then subsequently retrieve."。
高考英语高难度阅读理解15篇(含详解)
高考英语高难度阅读理解15篇1.Almost every day we come across situations in which we have to make decisions one way or another. Choice, we are given to believe, is a right. But for a good many people in the world. In rich and poor countries, choice is a luxury, something wonderful but hard to get, not a right. And for those who think they are exercising their right to make choices, the whole system is merely an illusion, a false idea created by companies and advertiser, hoping to sell their products.The endless choice gives birth to anxiety in people’s lives. Buying something as basic as a coffee pot is not exactly simple. Easy access to a wide range of everyday goods leads to a sense of powerlessness in many people, ending in the shopper giving up and walking away, or just buying an unsuitable item(商品) that is not really wanted. Recent studies in England have shown that many electrical goods bought in almost every family are not really needed. More difficult decision-making is then either avoided or trusted into the hands of the professionals, lifestyle instructors, or advisors.It is not just the availability of the goods that is the problem, but the speed with which new types of products come on the market. Advances in design and production help quicken the process Products also need to have a short lifespan so that the public can be persuaded to replace them within a short time. The typical example is computers, which are almost out-of-date once they are bought. This indeed makes selection a problem. Gone are the days when one could just walk with case into a shop and buy one thing; no choice, no anxiety.72. What does the author try to argue in Paragraph 1?A. The exercise of rights is a luxury.B. The practice of choice is difficult.C. The right of choice is given but at a price.D. Choice and right exist at the same time.73. Why do more choices of goods give rise to anxiety?A. Professionals find it hard to decide on a suitable product.B. People are likely to find themselves overcome by business persuasion.C. Shoppers may find themselves lost in the broad range of items.D. Companies and advertisers are often misleading about the rage of choice.74. By using computers as an example, the author wants to prove that .A. advanced products meet the needs of peopleB. products of the latest design fold the marketC. competitions are fierce in high-tech industryD. everyday goods need to be replaced often75. What is this passage mainly about?A. The variety of choices in modern society.B. The op inions on people’s right in different countriesC. The Problems about the availability of everyday goods.D. The helplessness in purchasing decisions2.I arrived at my mother’s home for our Monday family dinner. The smells of food flew over from the kitchen. Mother was pulling out quilt(被子)after quilt from the boxes, proudly showing me their beauties. She was preparing for a quilt show at the Elmhurst Church. When we began to fold and put them back into the boxes, I noticed something at the bottom of one box. I pulled it out. “What is this?” I asked.“Oh?” Mom said, “That’s Mama’s quilt.”I spread the quilt. It looked at if a group of school children had pieced it together; irregular designs, childish pictures, a crooked line on the right.“Grandmother made this?” I said, surprised. My grandmother was a master at making quilts. This certainly didn’t look like any of the quilts she had made.“Yes, right before she died. I brought it home with me last year and made some changes,” she said. “I’m still working on it. See, this is what I’ve done so far.”I looked at it more closely. She had made straight a crooked line. At the center of the quilt, she had stitched(缝) a piece of cloth with these words: “My mother made many quilts. She didn’t get all lines st raight. But I think this is beautiful. I want to see it finished. Her last quilt.”“Ooh, this is so nice, Mom,” I said. It occurred to me that by completing my grandmother’s quilt, my mother was honoring her own mother. I realized, too, that I held in my hands a family treasure. It started with the loving hands of one woman, and continued with the loving hands of another.56. Why did the author go to mother’s home?A. To see her mother’s quilts.B. To help prepare for a show.C. To get together for the family dinner.D. To discuss her grandmother’s life.57. The author was surprised because .A. the quilt looked very strange.B. her grandmother liked the quilt.C. the quilt was the best she had seen.D. her mother had made some changes58. The underlined wood “crooked” in the passage most probably means .A. unfinishedB. brokenC. bentD. unusual59. Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?A. A Quilt ShowB. Mother’s HomeC. A Monday DinnerD. Grandmother’s Quilt3. While all my classmates seen to be crazy about a one-way ticket to Mars(火星), I’d rather say Mars is totally unsuitab le for human existence. People won’t have enough food supplies there, and the terrible environment would make it impossible for them to live a long life. Besides, the journey won’t be safe. Can anybody explain to me just why people would go to Mars, never to return?Steve Minear, UKHere are the things you can think of: the desire to explore a foreign and unique environment, the excitement of being the first humans to open up a new world, the expectation of fame and glory…For scientists there is another rea son. Their observations and research will probably lead to great scientific achievements.Donal Trollop, CanadaThere are already too many people on the Earth. I think that sometime before the end of the century, there will be a human colony(殖民地)on Mars. It will happen when people finally realize that tow-way trips to the red planet Mars are unnecessary. Most of the danger of space Flight is in the launches(发射) and landings. Cutting the trip home would therefore reduce the danger of accidents, save a lot of money, and open the way to building an everlasting human settlement on another world.Enough supplies can be sent on ahead. And every two years more supplies and more people will needs, and Mars is far more pleasant than the other planets in the outer space.Paul Davies. USA60. The main purpose of Steve Minear’s writing is .A. to report his classmates’ discussionB. to invite an answer to his questionC. to explain the natural state of MarsD. to show his agreement on going to Mars61. Wh ich of the following best states Donal Trollop’s idea?A. There is a plan to send humans to Mars.B. There are many reasons for going to Mars.C. Scientists become famous by doing research on Mars.D. It is possible to build an Earth-like environment on Mars.62. Paul Davies points out that .A. humans need only a one-way ticket to Mars.B. two-way trips to Mars will be made safe soonC. it is easy to reduce the danger and cost of flights to MarsD. it is cheap to build an everlasting human settlement on Mars63. What does Paul Davies think of human existence on Mars?A. Humans will have to bring all they need from the Earth.B. Humans will find Mars totally unsuitable for living.C. Humans can produce everything they need.D. Humans can live longer in the colony on Mars.4.Celebrity(名人) has become one of the most important representatives of popular culture. Fans used to be crazy about s specific film, but now the public tends to base its consumption(消费)on the interest of celebrity attached to any given product. Besides, fashion magazines have almost abandoned the practice of putting models on the cover because they don’t sell nearly as well as famous faces. As a result, celebrities have realized their unbelievably powerful market potential, moving from advertising for others’ products to developing their own.Celebrity clothing lines aren’t a completely new phenomenon, but in the past they were typically aimed at the ordinary consumers, and limited to a few TV actresses. T oday they’re started by first-class stars whose products enjoy equal fame with some world top brands. The most successful start-ups have been those by celebrities with specific personal style. As celebrities become more and more experienced at the market, they expand their production scale rapidly, covering almost all the products of daily life.However, for every success story, there’s a related warning tale of a celebrity who overvalued his consumer appeal. No matter haw famous the product’s origins is, if it fails to impress consumers with its own qualities it begins to resemble an exercise in self-promotional marketing. And once the initial(最初的)attention dies down, consumer interest might fade, loyalty (忠诚) returning to tried-and-true labels.Today, celebrities face ever more severe embarrassment. The pop-cultural circle might be bigger than ever, but its rate of turnover has speeded up as well. Each misstep threatens to reduce a celebrity’s shelf life, and the same newspaper or magazine that once brought him fame has no problem picking him to pieces when the opportunity appears. Still, the ego’s (自我的)potential for expansion is limitless. Having already achieved great wealth and public recognition, many celebrities see fashion as the next frontier to be conquered. As the saying goes, success and failure always go hand in hand. Their success as designers might last only a short time, but fashion-like celebrity – has always been temporary.69. Fashion magazines today ________.A. seldom put models on the coverB. no longer put models on the coverC. need not worry about celebrities’ market potentialD. judge the market potential of every celebrity correctly70. A change in the consumer market can be found today that _______.A. price rather than brand name is more concernedB. producers prefer models to celebrities for achievementsC. producers prefer TV actresses to film stars for advertisementsD. quality rather than the outside of products is more concerned71. The underlined sentence in Paragraph 4 indicates that any wrong step will possibly ______.A. decrease the popularity of a celebrity and the sales of his productsB. damage the image of a celebrity in the eyes of the general publicC. cut short the artistic careen of a celebrity in show businessD. influence the price of a celebrity’s products72. The passage is mainly about _______.A. celebrity and personal styleB. celebrity and market potentialC. celebrity and fashion designD. celebrity and clothing industry5.We can achieve knowledge either actively or passively(被动地). We achieve it actively by direct experience, by testing and proving an idea, or by reasoning.We achieve knowledge passively by being told by someone else. Most of the learning that takes place in the classroom and the kind that happens when we watch TV or read newspapers ormagazines is passive. Conditioned as we are to passive learning, it’s not surprising that we depend on it in our everyday communication with friends and co-workers.Unfortunately, passive learning has a serious problem. It makes us tend to accept what we are told even when it is little more than hearsay and rumor(谣言).Did you ever play the game Rumor? It begins when one person writes down a message but doesn’t show it to anyone. Then the person whispers it, word for word, to another person. That person, in turn, whispers it to still another, and so on, through all the people playing the game. The last person writes down the message word for word as he or she hears it. Then the two written statements are compared. Typically, the original message has changed.That’s what happens in daily life. The simple fact that people repeat a story in their own words changes the story. Then, too, most people listen imperfectly. And many enjoy adding their own creative touch to a story, trying to improve on it, stamping(打上标记)it with their own personal style. Yet those who hear it think they know.This process is also found among scholars and authors: A statement of opinion by one writer may be re-stated as fact by another, who may in turn be quoted by yet another; and this process may continue, unless it occurs to someone to question the facts on which the original writer based his opinion or to challenge the interpretation he placed upon those facts.48. According to the passage, passive learning may occur in _______.A. doing a medical experimentB. solving a math problemC. visiting an exhibitionD. doing scientific reasoning49. The underlined word “it” in Paragraph 2 refers to _____.A. active learningB. knowledgeC. communicationD. passive learning50. The author mentions the game Rumor to show that _____.A. a message may be changed when being passed onB. a message should be delivered in different waysC. people may have problems with their sense of hearingD. people tend not to believe in what they know as rumor51. What can we infer from the passage?A. Active learning is less important.B. Passive learning may not be reliable.C. Active learning occurs more frequently.D. Passive learning is not found among scholars.6. The literal meaning of philosophy is “love of wisdom”. But this meaning does not tell us very much. Unlike the other disciplines(学科), philosophy cannot e defined by what you study ,because it is actually unlimited. Anything can be the subject matter of philosophy: are, history, law, language, literature, mathematics, and in fact, the other academic disciplines are directly related to philosophy. For this reason you get a Doctorate(博士学位)of Philosophy (Ph. D.) in biochemistry, or computer science, or psychology.Two broad sub-fields of philosophy are logic and the history of philosophy. Logic is the science of argument and eritical thinking. It provides sound methods for distinguishing good from bad reasoning .The history of philosophy involves the study of major philosophers and persuade in the development of philosophy.Of what use is philosophy? First it is useful in educational advancement. It is necessary for understanding other disciplines. Only philosophy questions the nature of the concepts used in a discipline, and its relating to other discomposes. And thought the study of philosophy, one develops sound methods of research and analysis that can be applied to any field.There are a number of general uses of philosophy. It strengthens one’s ability to solve problems, to communicate, to organize ideas and issues, to persuade, and to take what is the most important form a large quality of data. These general uses are of great benefit in the career field, not necessarily for obtaining one’s first job after graduation, but for preparing for positions of responsibility, management and leadership later on. It is very short site after all, to take a course of studies only for the purpose of getting one’s first job. The useful skills developed thought the study of philosophy have significant long-term benefits in career advancement. No other discipline systematically follows the ideals of wisdom, leadership, and capacity to resolve human conflict.72. Accprdomg to Paragraph 1. Philosophy can best be described as the study of .A. social sciencesB. natural sciencesC. both social and natural sciencesD. the subject matter of politics73. With the study of philosophy, you can .A. become a great leaderB. succeed in everythingC. find a good job soon after graduationD. make progress in your career development74. According to the passage, which of the following statements is TRUE?A. Philosophy is an independent discipline.B. Logic helps you to become a better thinker.C. The study of philosophy brings you immediate benefits.D. The meaning of philosophy is too limited to define.75.From the passage, we can concludeA. not all the subjects have to do with philosophyB. a person will get a Ph. D. if he/she studies philosophyC. philosophy can be helpful for the study of any other subjectsD. philosophy is the only solution to all the problems the world7.Many animals recognize their food because they see it. So do humans. When you see an apple or a piece of chocolate you know that these are things you can eat. You can also use other senses when you choose your food. You may like it because it smells good or because it tastes good. You may dislike some types of food because they do not look, smell or taste very nice. Different animals use different senses to find and choose their food. A few animals depend on only one of their senses, while most animals use more than one sense.Although there are many different types of food, some animals spend their lives eating only one type. The giant panda(大熊猫)eats only one particular type of bamboo(竹子). Other animals eat only one type of food even when given the choice. A kind of white butterfly(蝴蝶)will stay on the leaves of a cabbage, even though there are plenty of other vegetables in the garden. However, most animals have a more varied diet(多样化饮食). The bear eats fruits and fish. The fox eats small animals, birds and fruits. The diet of these animals will be different depending on the season. Humans have a very varied diet. We often eat food because we like it and not because it is good for us. In countries such as France and Britain, people eat foods with too much sugar. This makes them overweight, which is bad for their health. Eating too much red meat and animal products, such as butter, can also be bad for the health. Choosing the right food, therefore, has become an area of study in modern life.60. We can infer from the text that humans and animals _________.A. depend on one sense in choosing foodB. are not satisfied with their foodC. choose food in similar waysD. eat entirely different food61. Which of the following eats only one type of food?A. The white butterfly.B. The small bird.C. The bear.D. The fox.62. Certain animals change their choice of food when ___________.A. the season changesB. the food color changesC. they move to different placesD. they are attracted by different smells63. We can learn from the last paragraph that __________.A. food is chosen for a good reasonB. French and British food is goodC. some people have few choices of foodD. some people care little about healthy diet8.The flag, the most common symbol(象征)of a nation in the modern world, is also one of the most ancient. With a clear symbolic meaning. the flag in the traditional form is still used today to mark buildings, ships and other vehicles related to a country.The national flag as we know it today is in no way a primitive(原始的)artifact. It is , rather, the product of thousands of years’ development. Historians believe that it had two major ancestors, of which the earlier served to show wind direction.Early human beings used very fragile houses and boats. Often strong winds would tear roofs from houses or cause high waves that endangered travelers. People’s food supplies were similarly vulnerable. Even after they had learned how to plant grains, they still needed help from nature to ensure good harvests. Therefore they feared and depended on the power of the wind, which could bring warmth from one direction and cold from another.Using a simple piece of cloth tied to the top of a post to tell the direction of the wind was more dependable than earlier methods, such as watching the rising of smoke from a fire. The connectionof the flag with heavenly power was therefore reasonable. Early human societies began to fix long pieces of cloth to the tops of totems(图腾) before carrying them into battle. They believed that the power of the wind would be added to the good wishes of the gods and ancestors represented by the totems themselves.These flags developed very slowly into modern flags. The first known flag of a nation or a ruler was unmarked: The king of China around 1000 B.C. was known to have a white flag carried ahead of him. This practice might have been learned from Egyptians even further in the past, but it was from China that it spread over trade routs through India, then across Arab lands, and finally to Europe, where it met up with the other ancestor of the national flag.71.The best title for the passage would be .A.Development of the National Flag.B.Power of the National Flag.C.Types of FlagsD.Uses of Flags72.The underlined word “vulnerable” in Paragraph 3 means .A.impossible to make sure ofB.likely to be protectedC.easy to damageD.difficult to find73.The earliest flags were connected with heavenly power because .A.they could tell wind directionB.they could bring good luck to fightersC.they were handed down by the ancestorsD.they were believed to stand for natural forces74.What does the author know of the first national flag?A.He knows when it was sent to Europe.B.He believes it was made in Egypt.C.He thinks it came from China.D.He doubts where it started.75.What will the author most probably talk about next?A.The role of China in the spread of the national flag.B.The second ancestor of the national flagC.The use of modern flags in Europe.D.The importance of modern flags.9.PITTSBURGH –For most people, snakes seem unpleasant or even threatening. But Howie Choset sees in their delicate movements a way to save lives.The 37-year-old Carnegie Mellon University professor has spent years developing snake-like robots he hopes will eventually slide through fallen buildings in search of victims trapped after natural disasters or other emergencies.Dan Kara is president of Robotics Trends, a Northboro, Mass.-based company that publishes an online industry magazine and runs robotics trade shows. He said there are other snake-like robots being developed, mainly at universiti es, but didn’t know of one that could climb pipes.The Carnegie Mellon machines are designed to carry cameras and electronic sensors and can be controlled with a joystick(操纵杆). They move smoothly with the help of small electric motors, or servos, commonly used by hobbyists in model airplanes.Built from lightweight materials, the robots are about the size of a human arm or smaller. They can sense which way is up, but are only as good as their human operators, Choset added.Sam Stover, a search term manager with the Federal Emergency Management Agency based in Indiana, said snake-type robots would offer greater mobility than equipment currently available, such as cameras attached to extendable roles.“It just allows us to do something we’ve been able to do before,” Stover said, “We needed them yesterday.”He said sniffer dogs are still the best search tool for rescue workers, but that they can only be used effectively when workers have access to damaged building.Stover, among the rescue workers who handled the aftermath (后果) of Hurricane Katrina, said snake robots would have helped rescuers search flooded houses in that disaster.Choset said the robots may not be ready for use for another five to ten years, depending on funding.72. Which institution is respon sible for the development of Choset’s robots?A. Robotics Trends.B. Pittsburgh City Council.C. Carnegie Mellon University.D. Federal Emergency Management Agency.73. Choset believes that his invention ______.A. can be attached to an electronic armB. can be used by hobbyists in model airplanesC. can find victims more quickly than a sniffer dogD. can sense its way no better than its operators74. By saying “We needed them yesterday” (paragraph 7), Stover means that snake-like robots _____.A. could help handle the aftermath of Hurricane KatrinaB. would have been put to use in past rescue workC. helped rescuers search flooded houses yesterdayD. were in greater need yesterday than today75. What is the text mainly about?A. Snake-like robots used in industries.B. Snake-like robots made to aid in rescues.C. The development of snake-like robots.D. The working principles of snake-like robots.10.Attitude is an internal(内在的) state that influences the choices of personal action made by the individual(个人). Some researchers consider that attitudes come from differences between beliefs and ideas: others believe that attitudes come from emotional states. Here, we focus on the effects of attitudes upon behavior, that is, upon the choices of action made by the individual.The kinds of actions taken by human beings are obviously influenced greatly by attitudes. Whether one listens to classical music or rock, whether one obeys the speed limit while driving, whether one encourages one’s husband or wife to express his or her own ideas-all are influenced by attitudes. These internal states are acquired(获得) throughout life from situations one is faced with in the home, in the streets, and in the school.Of course, the course of action chosen by an individual in any situation will be largely determined by the particulars of that situation. An individual who has a strong attitude of obeying laws may drive too fast when he is in a hurry and no police cars in sight. A child who has a strong attitude of honesty may steal a penny when she thinks no one will notice. But the internal state which remains unchanged over a period of time, and which makes the individual behave regularly in a variety of situations, is what is meant by an attitude.Attitudes are learned in a variety of ways. They can result from single incidents, as when an attitude toward snakes is acquired by an experience in childhood at the sudden movement of a snake. They can resu lt from the individual’s experiences of success and pleasure, as when someone acquires a positive attitude toward doing crossword puzzles by being able to complete some of them, And frequently, they are learned by copying other people’s able to complete so me of them, And frequently, they are learned by copying other people’s behavior, as when a child learns how to behave toward foreigners by observing the actions of his parents. Regardless of these differences, there is something in common in the learning and modification(修正) of attitudes. 52.According to the passage, attitudes __________.A.come from different situations in one’s lifeB.are largely affected by one’s behaviorC.remain unchanged in one’s daily lifeD.could be chosen according to one’s will53.The author uses the examples in Paragraph 3 to show ______.A.people often make mistakes when they are not noticedB.people with good attitudes may sometimes do bad deedsC.particulars of a si tuation may influence an individual’s actionD.an individual may change his or her attitude fairly easily54.Which of the following is TURE about the learning of attitudes?A.Attitudes are only learned through one’s success.B.Attitudes learned in danger will last longer.C.Copying others’ behavior is not a good idea.D.Attitudes can be learned from one’s parents.55.What would be the best title for the passage?A.Differences of Attitudes.B.Nature of Attitude.C.Choices of Attitudes.D.Modification of Attitude.11. Susan Sontag (1933 -- 2004) was one of the most noticeable figures in the world of literature. For more than 40 years she made it morally necessary to know everything -- to read every book worth reading, to see every movie worth seeing. When she was still in her early 30s, publishing essays in such important magazines as Partisan Review, she appeared as the symbol of American cultural life, trying hard to follow every new development in literature, film and art. With great effort and serious judgment, Sontag walked at the latest edges of world culture.Seriousness was one of Sontag's lifelong watchwords (格言), but at a time when the barriers between the well-educated and the poor-educated were obvious, she argued for a true openness to the pleasures of pop culture. In "Notes on Camp", the 1964 essay that first made her name, she explained what was then a little-known set of difficult understandings, through which she could not have been more famous. "Notes on Camp", she wrote, represents "a victory of 'form' over 'content', 'beauty' over 'morals'".By conviction (信念) she was a sensualist (感觉论者), but by nature she was a moralist (伦理学者), and in the works she published in the 1970s and 1980s, it was the latter side of her that came。
(完整版)高考英语阅读理解科普类说明文4篇--较难(有答案)
高考英语说明文 4 篇1Here is an astonishing and significant fact: Mental work alone can ' m t akeus tire. It sounds absurd /?b's ??d/荒谬的. But a years ago, scientists tried to find out howlong the human brain could labor without reaching a stage 阶段of fatigue /f?'ti?g/(疲劳). To the amazement of these scientists, they discovered that blood passing through the brain, when it is active, shows no fatigue at all! If we tooka drop of blood from a day laborer 劳动者, we would find it full of fatigue toxins /'t?ks?n/ (毒素) and fatigue products. But if wetook blood from the brain of an Albert Einstein, it would show no fatigue toxins at the end of the day.So far as the brain is concerned, it can work as well and swiftly 很快地at the end of eight or even twelve hours of effort as at the beginning. The brain is totally tireless. So what makes us tired?Some scientists declare that most of our fatigue comes from our mental and emotional(情绪的) attitudes. One of England 'm s ost outstanding scientists, J.A. Hadfield, says, “ Th egreater part of the fatigue from which we suffer is of mental origin /'?r?d??n/起源. In fact, fatigue of purely physical origin is rare. D”r. Brill, a famous American scientist, goes even further. He declares, “ One hundred percent of the fatigue of sitting worker in good health is due to emotional problems. ”What kinds of emotions make sitting workers tired? Joy? Satisfaction? No! A feeling of being bored, anger, anxiety /??'za?? t?/焦虑, tenseness 紧张, worry, a feeling of not being appreciated---those are the emotions that tire sitting workers. Hard work by itself seldom causes fatigue. We get tired because our emotions produce nervousness in the body.1. What surprised the scientists a few years ago?A. Fatigue toxins could hardly be found in a laborer s 'blood.B. Albert Einstein didn ' fe t el worn after a day ' w s ork.C. The brain could work for many hours without fatigue.D. A mental worker ' b s lood was filled with fatigue toxins.2. According to the author, which of the following can make sitting workers tired?A. Challenging mental work.B. Unpleasant emotions.C. Endless tasks.D. Physical labo3. What' s the author ' at s titude towards the scientists idea'?A. He agrees with them.B. He doubts them.C. He argues against them.D. He hesitates to accept them.4. We can infer from the passage that in order to stay energetic, sitting workers need to.A. have some good food.B. enjoy their workC. exercise regularlyD. discover fatigue toxins2They baby is just one day old and has not yet left hospital. She is quiet but alert /?'l??t/ (警觉). Twenty centimeters 厘from her face researchers have placed a white card with two black spots on it. She stares at it carefully. A researcher removes the card and replaces it by another, this time with the spots differently spaced. As the cards change from one to the other, her gaze(凝视)starts to lose its focus —until a third, with three black spots, is presented. Her gaze returns: she looks at it for twice as long as she did at the previous card. Can she tell that the number two is different from three, just 24 hours after coming into the world?Or do newborns simply prefer more to fewer? The same experiment, but with three spots shown before two, shows the same return of interest when the number of spots changes. Perhaps it is just the newness 名,新奇? When slightly older babies were shown cards with pictures of objects (a comb, a key, an orange and so on), changing the number of objects had an effect separate from changing the objects themselves. Could it be the pattern that two things make, as opposed to three? No again. Babies paid more attention to squares moving randomly on a screen when their number changed from two to three, or three to two. The effect even crosses between senses. Babies who were repeatedly shown two spots became more excited when they then heard three drumbeats than when they heard just two; likewise (同样地)when the researchers started with drumbeats and moved to spots.5. The experiment described in Paragraph 1 is related to the baby ' s__.A. sense of hearingB. sense of sightC. sense of touch D sense of smell6. Babies are sensitive to the change in _____ .A. the size of cardsB. the colour of picturesC. the shape of patternsD. the number of objects7. Why did the researchers test the babies with drumbeats?A. To reduce the difficulty of the experiment.B. To see howbabies recognize sounds.C. To carry their experiment further.D. To keep the babies in'terest.8. Where does this text probably come from?A. Science fiction.B. Children l'ite s rature.C. An advertisement.D.A science report3Last night 'm s eteor(流星)英/'mi?t??/ shower left many people in the community dissatisfied and demanding 苛求的;要求高的;吃力的answers. According to Gabe Rothsclild, Emerald Valley 'm s ayor 市长, people gathered in the suburbs /'s?b??b/of the city, carrying heavy telescopes, expecting to watch the brightly burning meteors passing through the sky. What they found instead was a sky so brightene by the city'lig s hts that it darkened the light of the meteors passing overhead.“ M yfamily was so frustrated, adm”itted town resident Duane Cosby, “ We wanted to make this an unforgettable family outing, but it turned out to be a huge disappointments. ”Astronomers- /?'str?n?m?/n. 天文学家--scientists who study stars and planets ------have beencomplaining about this problem for decades. They say that light pollution prevents them from seeing objects in the sky that they could see quite easily in the past. They call on people and the government to take measures to fight against it.There is yet a population besides professional and amateur /??m? t?(r)/美/'?m ?.t??r/n. 爱好者star observers that suffers even more from light pollution. This population consists of birds, bats frogs, snakes, etc. For example, outdoor lighting severely affects migrating(迁徙的)birds. According to the International Dark-Sky Association. “ 100million birds a year throughout North America die in crashes 撞碎with lighted buildings and towers. ”Countless more animals casualties(伤亡)result from the use of artificial lighting. Clearly, people enjoy the benefits of lighting their evenings, but some scientists think it can be harmful for humans, too. They worry that exposure to light while sleeping can increase person 's chances of getting cancer. Emerald Valley is only one community that is becoming aware of the negative effects of light pollution. For years, Flagstaff, Arizona/,? ri'z ?un ?/ 美/,?ri'z ?un?/n. 美国亚利桑那州, has enforced lighting regulations in its city in order to assist astronomers at the Lowell Observatory. 英/?b'z??v?t(?)r?/美/?b'z?v?t?ri/ n. 天文台;气象台;瞭望台Similar efforts have been made worldwide, and a movement is underway 进行中的to remind us to turn off lights when we are not using them, so that other creatures can share the night.9.It happened last night thatA. the city 'lig s hts affected the meteor watchingB. the meteors flew past before being noticedC. the city light show attracted many peopleD. the meteor watching ended up a social outing10. What do the astronomers complain about?A. Meteor showers occur less often than beforeB. Their observation equipment is in poor repairC. Light pollution has remained unsolved for yearsD. Their eyesight is failing due to artificial lighting11. What the author concerned about according to Paragraph 4?A. Birds may take other migration pathsB. Animals living habits may change suddenlyC. Varieties of animals will become sharply reducedD. Animals s'urvival is threatened by outdoor lighting12. Lighting regulations in Flagstaff, Arizona areput into effect toA. Lessen the chance of getting cancerB. create an ideal observation conditionC. ensure citizens a good sleep at nightD. enable all creatures to live in harmony13. What message does the author most want to give us?A. Saving wildlife is saving ourselvesB. Great efforts should be made to save energyC. Human activities should be environmentally friendlyD. New equipment should be introduced for space study4Almost every machine with moving parts has wheels, yet no one knows exactly when the first wheel was invented or what it was used for. We do know ,however ,that they existed over 5,500years ago in ancient Asia.The oldest known transport wheel was discovered in 2002 in Slovenia. It is over 5 ,100 years old. Evidence suggests thatwheels for transport didn't become popular for .while, though . This could be because animals did a perfectly good job of carrying farming tools and humans around.But it could also be because of a difficult situation. While wheels need to roll on smooth surfaces, roads with smooth surfaces weren't going to be constructed until there was plenty of demand for them. Eventually, road surfaces did become smoother, but this difficult situation appeared again a few centuries later. There had been no important changes in wheel and vehicle design before the arrival of modern road design.In the mid-1700s,a Frenchman came up with a new design of road--a base layer (层)of large stones covered with a thin layer of smaller stones. A Scotsman 苏格兰人improved on this design in the 1820s and a strong, lasting road surface became a reality. At around the same time, metal hubs 英/h?b/美/h?b/n. 中心;毂;木片(the central part of a wheel)、came into being, followed by the Wheels were invented in 1967, sixty years after the appearance of tarmacked roads(泊油路). As wheel design took off, vehicles got faster and faster.14. What might explain why transport wheels didn 'b t ecome popular for some time?A. Few knew how to use transport wheels.B. Humans carried farming tools just as well.C. Animals were a goodmeans of transport.D. The existence of transport wheels was not known.15. What do we know about road design from the passage?A. It was easier than wheel design.B. It improved after big changes in vehicle design.C. It was promoted by fast-moving vehicles.D. It provided conditions for wheel design to develop.16. How is the last paragraph mainly developed?A. By giving examples.B. By making comparisons.C. By following time order.D. By making classifications.17. What is the passage mainly about ? A.The beginning of road deaign.B.The development of transport wheel.C. The history of public transport.D. The invention of fast-moving vehicles.。
年高考英语真题分类汇编:专题16_阅读理解之科普类说明文_Word版含解析
专题十六阅读理解之科普类说明文1.【2015·湖北卷】DThe oddness of life in space never quite goes away. Here are some examples.First consider something as simple as sleep. Its position presents its own challenges. The main question is whether you want your arms inside or outside the sleeping bag. If you leave your arms out, they float free in zero gravity, often giving a sleeping astronaut the look of a funny balled (芭蕾)dancer. “I’m an inside guy,” Mike Hopkins says, who returned from a six-month tour on the International Spac e Station. “I like to be wrapped up.”On the station, the ordinary becomes strange. The exercise bike for the American astronauts has no handlebars. It also has no seat. With no gravity, it’s just as easy to pedal violently. You can watch a movie while you pedal by floating a microcomputer anywhere you want. But station residents have to be careful about staying in one place too long. Without gravity to help circulate air, the carbon dioxide you exhale (呼气) has a tendency to form an invisible (隐形的)cloud around you head. You can end up with what astronauts call a carbon-dioxide headache.Leroy Chiao, 54, an American retired astronaut after four flights, describes what happens even before you float out of your seat,”Your inner ear thinks your’re falling . Mean while your eyes are telling you you’re standing straight. That can be annoying—that’s why some people feel sick.” Within a couple days —truly terrible days for some —astronauts’ brains learn to ignore the panicky signals from the inner ear, and space sickness disappears.Space travel can be so delightful but at the same time invisibly dangerous. For instance, astronauts lose bone mass. That’s why exercise is considered so vital that National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) puts it right on the workday schedule. The focus on fitness is as much about science and the future as it is about keeping any individual astronauts returnhome, and, more importantly, how to maintain strength and fitness for the two and a half years or more that it would take to make a round-trip to Mars.63.What is the major challenge to astronauts when they sleep in space?A. Deciding on a proper sleep positionB. Choosing a comfortable sleeping bagC. Seeking a way to fall asleep quicklyD. Finding a right time to go to sleep.64.The astronauts will suffer from a carbon-dioxide headache when _____.A. the y circle around on their bikesB. they use microcomputers without a stopC. they exercise in one place for a long timeD. they watch a movie while pedaling65.Some astronauts feel sick on the station during the first few days because _____.A. their senses stop workingB. they have to stand up straightC. they float out of their seats unexpectedlyD. whether they are able to go back to the station66.One of the NASA’s major concerns about astronauts is _____.A. how much exercise they do on the stationB. how they can remain healthy for long in spaceC. whether they can recover after returning homeD. whether they are able to go back to the station【解析】试题分析:这是一篇说明文。
高考英语阅读理解(科普类)
高考英语阅读理解(科普类)Before the early 1960’s people interested in the differing roles of the left and right hemispheres(半球) of the brain depended almost entirely on facts drawn from animal research, form studies of patients with one-sided brain damage. But it was possible to find out which brain hemisphere was most involved in speech and other functions in normal people by having them listen to two different words coming to the two ears at the same time. This became known as the “dichotic listening” procedur e. When several word pairs are given in a row, people are unable to report them all, and most right-handers prefer to report, and report more correctly, words given to their right ears. This seems to be related to the fact that signals from the right ear, although sent to both hemispheres, are better sent to the left hemisphere which controls speech. People who have speech represented(回忆) in the right hemisphere, a very unusual occurrence even in left-handed people, more correctly report what their left ears hear.In contrast to the right-ear advantage for speech, there is generally a left-ear advantage for another type of auditory(听觉的) signal: music. When right-handed people listen to melodic patterns they report them better from the left ear.1. Which of the following would be the most proper title for the passage?A. An Introduction to Speech Damage in Patients with Brain Damage.B. An Investigation into the Role of the Brain’s Hemispheres.C. An Analysis of Left and Right-handed People.D. An Examination of “Dichotic Listening”.2. The “dichotic listening” procedure could best be described as hearing _______.A. two different words in the same ear twiceB. the same word twice in the same earC. two different words in different earsD. two different words twice in two ears3. according to the passage, right-handed people normally _______.A. have better hearing in their both earsB. have little difficulty in reporting words given to their right earsC. are unable to report word pairs given to their left earsD. correctly report word pairs given in a row4. according to the passage, music is best appreciated when heard by _______.A. the left ear of right-handersB. people with a left-ear advantageC. left-handers in their right earsD. right-handed people who understand melodic patterns【答案与解析】本文主要讲人体的左右半脑对听觉和语言方面的作用和影响。
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高考英语阅读理解科普文难度较高HUA system office room 【HUA16H-TTMS2A-HUAS8Q8-HUAH1688】2014年高考英语二轮复习阅读理解拉分题(较难题目)特训:节能环保类1The Goldman Environmental Foundation recently recognized a group ofindividuals (个体) for their efforts to protect the environment. Each year,the American-based group honors environmental activists from six different areas.The first three winners of the 2012 Goldman Prize are from Kenya, the Philippines and China.The Goldman Environmental Foundation says Ikal Angelei is a hero to those who live around Lake Turkana. The Kenyan woman received the award because of her efforts to stop a dam project on a river in Ethiopia. Critics say the dam will harm the lake and restrict (限制) the flow of water for people who live nearby. The Philippine island of Mindoro is home to those who depend on the area’s natural resources for food and jobs. Edwin Gariguez became concerned when a European company announced plans to mine for nickel (镍) on the island. The Roman Catholic minister said waste materials from the mining project would pollute the water and destroy the forests. So he started a campaign to stopthe project.In China, Ma June is working with businesses to clean up their pollution. He formed a group that collects information about pollution, and publishes it on the Internet.The Goldman Prize was also awarded to activists from Argentina, Russia and the United States.Sofia Gatica of Argentina is from a town where farmers commonly use pesticide (杀虫剂) products to protect soybean crops from insects. The town also has a high rate of cancer. Sofia Gatica belie ved that pesticide use was responsible for the death of her baby. She worked with other mothers to get government officials to ban the use of chemicals near populated areas.Evgenia Chirikova objects to the plans to build a road through a protected forest just outside Moscow. She has demanded that Russian officials redirectth e road away from the forest. She and her followers have been arrested for their activities. However, their campaign has gained widespread public support. The sixth winner is American Caroline Cannon—a community leader in Point Hope, Alaska. Miz Cannon is fighting to keep Arctic waters safe from oil and gasexp loration.60. We can know from the passage that ______.A. the dam project has been preventedB. the first three activists are all from AsiaC. a European company is going to dig for nickelD. Ma June is trying to stop oil and gas exploration61. From the 7th paragraph, we can know that ______.A. pesticide use accounts for a high-rate of cancerB. Sofia managed to ban the use of chemicalsC. the farmers mainly live on unpolluted productsD. the death of the baby was due to delayed treatment62. What do we know about Evgenia ChirikovaA. She plans to build a road to protect the forest.B. She is in charge of a project far away from the road.C. She persuaded the government to set her followers free.D. Her environmental action has been widely acknowledged.63. What would be the best title for the passageA. Six Advanced Individuals for Hard WorkB. Efforts to Create a Clean and Beautiful WorldC. Six Environmental Activists Win Goldman PrizeD. The Goldman Environmental Foundation Prize2SCS Global Services (SCS) has evaluated a new methodology for measuring the carbon sequestration(封存) ability of soil under the Verified(验证) Carbon Standard (VCS), a leading greenhouse gas (GHG) accounting system. The methodology, developed by The Earth Partners, will allow land managers who sequester GHGs in grasslands and farmlands to produce carbon credits for sale in the voluntary market.Managers of grasslands and farmlands can increase carbon sequestration in soil by practices such as changing grazing(放牧) practices and operating treatments designed to improve the variety and productivity of plant groups. The Earth Partners is presently piloting this methodology with farmers across seven million acres of the Palouse River and Columbia Plateau regions in the Pacific Northwest.“The VCS p rogram has achieved an important milestone in now combining grassland and rangeland carbon offset(抵消,补偿) projects," said Dr. Robert J. Hrubes, Executive Vice President of SCS."SCS looks forward to approving and verifying agricultural carbon offset projects that use this very powerful new methodology."The VM0021 Soil Carbon Quantification Methodology is based on decades of soil carbon research and testing conducted by top soil scientists. The methodology was developed by The Earth Partners and verified by Environmental Services, Inc. as well as SCS Global Services. It is the first soil carbon methodology to be approved for use under the VCS."This widely tested methodology is the first to specially deal with soils in a market," said Steven I. Apfelbaum, Chairman of Applied Ecological Services, Inc. and Director of Science with The Earth Partners. According to Apfelbaum, soils represent the second largest living sink of carbon on the planet.68. The new methodology is assessed according to .A. The Earth PartnersB. the Verified Carbon StandardC. Environmental Services, Inc.D. Applied Ecological Services, Inc.69. Carbon sequestration in soil can be strengthened by .A. selling carbon credits in the voluntary marketB. changing grazing practices and operating treatmentsC. reducing the variety and productivity of plant groupsD. decreasing farmlands in the Pacific Northwest70. Which of the following is true according to the passage?A. The VCS program proves to be successful in carbon offset projects.B. Many soil Carbon Methodologies have already been approved for use.C. The new methodology has been tested in many fields including soil.D. Soils seem to be the largest living sink of carbon on the planet.71. What is the attitude of SCS towards the new methodology?A. Opposed.B. Cautious.C. Doubtful.D. Approving.3Rainforest is home to around two-thirds of all plant and animal species found on land—in addition to millions of people who depend on them for survival—our remaining ancient forests are some of the most diverse ecosystems known to science. They are also vitally important to the health of our planet, especially when it comes to regulating the climate. But ancient forests around the world are under attack.Protecting rainforests is on the global agenda (议事日程) in a big way. Governments now recognize the importance of protecting tropical forests in order to avoid dangerous climate change, and there is now much debate. As governments try to thrash out the details of a new international agreement, expected to be signed at the end of 2009, they are discussing how best to include measures to save rainforests, and therefore address one of the majorcauses of climate change. Worldwide, forest destruction causes more greenhouse gas emissions (排放) each year than do all the trains, planes and cars on the planet. So if we are to deal with global warming, there is an urgent need to find ways to reduce the 20% of global greenhouse gas emissions caused byforest destruction each year, and to keep the remaining forests standing.We need to protect the planet’s remaining forests not only to stop climate change from getting worse, but to ensure that we can stand the impacts ofglobal warming. Healthy forests absorb and store quantities of carbon, helping to regulate temperature and generate rain. When they are destroyed, thiscarbon is released into the atmosphere. Thus keeping forests standing is botha critical part of regulating climate change and of adapting to a warmer world. To date, most of the talk has focused on how to pay for reducing deforestation (滥伐森林), rather than on how to actually go about doing it. We believe governments need to support local people to protect their environment, as we have been showing for 20 years can be a very effective way of saving rainforests.1. The best title for the passage is .A. Rainforest and Climate ChangeB. Strategies on Protecting RainforestC. Serious Deforestation to RainforestD. Present Situation of Rainforest2. From the first paragraph we can infer that .A. we have little rainforest left until nowB. the ancient forests are being destroyedC. rainforest control the planet in many waysD. Rainforest is home to all plants and animals on earth3. The underlined part “thrash out” in the second paragraph means.A. try to understandB. come up withC. hide awayD. havea thorough discussion4. Greenhouse gas emissions caused by forest destruction .A. are the same amount by transport on earthB. take 20% of global greenhouse gas emissionsC. can be avoided by setting measures onlyD. have nothing to do with climate change5. From the text we can learn that healthy forest .A. can keep us healthy and happyB. can increase the effect from global warmingC. can be helpful in adjusting the temperatureD. can give out large amounts of carbon4Rivers may be a significant source of the greenhouse gas nitrous oxide (一氧化二氮), scientists now find.Their calculation suggests that across the globe the waterways contributethree times the amount of nitrous oxide to the atmosphere as had beenestimated by the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the United Nations scientific body charged with reviewing climate change research. They found that the amount of nitrous oxide produced in streams is related to human activities that release nitrogen (氮) into the environment, such as fertilizer use and sewage discharges.“Human activities, including fossil fuel combustion and intensive agriculture, ha ve increased the availability of nitrogen in the environment,” said Jake Beaulieu of the University of Notre Dame and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in Cincinnati, Ohio, and lead author of the paper published this weekin the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.“Much of this nitrogen is transported into river and stream networks,” Beaulieu said. There, microbes (微生物) convert the nitrogen into nitrous oxide (also called laughing gas) and an inert gas called dinitrogen (二氮). The finding is important, the researchers say, because nitrous oxide is a powerful greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change and destruction of the stratosphere’s ozone layer, which protects us from the sun’s harmful ultraviolet (紫外线) radiation. Compared with carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide is 300-fold more powerful in terms of its warming potential, though carbon dioxide is a far more common greenhouse gas. Scientists estimate nitrous oxide accounts for about 6 percent of human-induced climate change.Beaulieu and colleagues measured nitrous oxide production rates in 72 streams. When summed across the globe, the results showed rivers and streams are the source of at least 10 percent of human-caused nitrous oxide emissions to the atmosphere.“Changes in agricultural and land-use practices that result in less nitrogen being delivered to streams would reduce nitrous oxide emissions from river networks,” Beaulieu said.1. From the second paragraph we can learn .A. actually rivers give off much more nitrous oxide than expectedB. scientists’ calculation is totally wrongC. human activities release nitrous oxide in to the riversD. there is no nitrogen in fertilizer2. Which of the following is NOT the source of nitrogenA. Fertilizer use.B. Sewage discharges.C. Fossil fuel combustion.D. Climate change.3. Nitrous oxide is a powerful greenhouse gas because .A. it can protect us from the sun’s harmful ultraviolet radiationB. it is to blame for most of human-induced climate changeC. it is a far more common greenhouse gasD. it has much more warming potential than carbon dioxide4. What does the passage mainly tells usA. Rivers may be a source of the greenhouse gas nitrous oxide.B. It’s human activities that release nitrogen int o the environment.C. How to reduce nitrous oxide emissions from river networksD What to do with the climate change caused by nitrous oxide.5The Maldives faces the threat of extinction from rising sea levels, but the government said on Thursday it was looking to the future with plans to build homes and a golf course that float.An increase in sea levels of just 18 to 59 centimeters would make the Maldives—a nation of tiny coral islands in the Indian Ocean—virtually uninhabitable by 2100, the UN’s cli mate change panel has warned.President Mohamed Nasheed has vowed a fight for survival, and last month he signed a deal with a Dutch company to study proposals for a floating structure that could support a conference centre, homes and an 18-hole golf course.“It is still early stages and we are awaiting a report on the practicality,”a government official who declined to be named said.The company, Dutch Docklands, is currently building floating developments in the Netherlands and Dubai. There was no immediate comment from the firm butits website said it undertook projects that make “land from water by providing large-scale floating constructions to create similar conditions as on land”.The Maldives began to work on an artificial island known as the Hulhumale near the crowded capital island of Male in 1997 and more than 30,000 people havebeen settled there to ease congestion. The city, which has a population of 100,000, is already protected from rising sea levels by a 30-million-dollar sea wall, and the government is considering increasingly imaginative ways to combat climate change.Nasheed, who staged the world’s first underwater cabinet meeting in Octoberto highlight his people’s serious and difficult situation, has even spoken of buying land elsewhere in the world to enable Maldivians to relocate if their homes are completed covered.He has also promised to turn his nation into a model for the rest of the world by becoming “carbon neutral” by 2020. His plan involves ending fossil fuel use and pow ering all vehicles and buildings from “green” sources such as burning coconut husks.1. Why do you think Mohamed Nasheed chose Dutch DocklandsA. Because it has experience in building floating structure.B. Because it has a good fame throughout the world.C. Because it charged much less than other companies.D. Because it supports building floating structures in the world.2. The Hulhumale was built with the purpose of .A. attracting more visitorsB. making it a new capitalC. making the capital less crowdedD. fighting against climate change3. According to the last two paragraphs, Nasheed is a person who .A. has succeeded in buying land abroadB. is more than well-knownC. has thought more for his nationD. has stopped using fossil fuel4. The underlined word “vowed” in paragraph 3 can be replaced by.A. endedB. promisedC. failedD. weighed6PLAYA GRANDE, COSTA RICA This resort town was long known for Leatherback Sea Turtle (棱皮龟) national Park, nightly turtle beach tours and even a seaturtle museum. However, on a beach where dozens of turtles used to nest on a given night, scientists spied only 32 leatherbacks all of last year.With leatherbacks threatened with extinction (灭绝), Playa Grande’s turtle museum was abandoned three years ago and now sits among a sea of weeds. And the beachside ticket office for turtle tours was washed away by a high tide inSeptember. “We do not promote that as a turtle tourism destination any more because we realize there are far too few turtles to please,” said Alvaro Fonseca, a park ranger (管理员).Even before scientists found temperatures going up over the past decade, sea turtles were threatened by beach development, drift net fishing and Costa Ricans interest in eating turtle eggs. But climate change may cause the most serious harm to an animal that has lived in the Pacific for 150 million years. Sea turtles are sensitive to numerous effects of warming. They feed on reefs, which are dying in hotter seas. They lay eggs on beaches that are being covered by rising seas and more violent waves.More uniquely their gender (性别) is determined, not by genes but by theegg’s temperature during development. Small rises in beach temperatures can result in ail-female populations, obviously problematic for survival. If the sand around the eggs hits 30 degrees Celsius, the gender balance shits to females: at about 32 degrees they are all female. Above 34, you get boiled eggs.On some nesting beaches, scientists are artificially cooling nests with shade or irrigation and trying to protect broader areas of coastal property from development to ensure that turtles have a place to nest as the seas rise.5. Why does the resort town stop promoting it’s turtle tourismA. It decides no t to disturb the turtles’ normal life.B. Tourists have lost interest in watching turtles.C. There are only very few turtles now.D. The turtle museum was destroyed by a high tide.6. Which of the following is the major factor in the turtles endangermentA. The locals eating habit.B. Drift net fishing.C. Beach development.D. Global warming.7. We learn from the last paragraph that scientists .A. are doing research on the sea riseB. are moving turtles to new homesC. are protecting turtles’ nestsD. are getting rid of sea weeds8. The passage intends to .A. introduce a special kind of sea turtleB. explain the mystery of turtles’ eggsC. show the dangers a certain kind of turtle is facingD. attract more visitors to a sea turtle museum7Sometimes, the simplest ideas are the best. For example, to absorb heat from the sun to heat water, you need large, flat, black surfaces. One way to dothat is to build those surfaces specially, on the roofs of buildings. But why go to all that trouble when cities are full of black surfaces already, in the form of asphalt(柏油) roadsTen years ago, this thought came into the mind of Arian de Bondt, a Dutch engineer. He finally persuaded his boss to follow it up. The result is that their building is now heated in winter and cooled in summer by a system that relies on the surface of the road outside.The heat-collector is a system of connected water pipes. Most of them run from one side of the street to the other, just under the asphalt road. Some, however, dive deep into the ground.When the street surface gets hot in summer, water pumped through the pipes picks up this heat and takes it underground through one of the diving pipes. At a depth of 100 metres lies a natural aquifer(蓄水层) into which several heat exchangers(交换器) have been built. The hot water from the street runs through these exchangers, warming the ground-water, before returning to the surface through another pipe. The aquifer is thus used as a heat store.In winter, the working system is changed slightly. Water is pumped through the he at exchangers to pick up the heat stored during summer. This water goes into the building and is used to warm the place up. After performing that task, it is pumped under the asphalt and its remaining heat keeps the road free of snow and ice.1. Which of the following is true according to the first two paragraphsA. Arian de Bondt got his idea from his boss.B. Large, flat, black surfaces need to be built in cities.C. The Dutch engineer’s system has been widely used.D. Heat can also be collected from asphalt roads.2. For what purpose are the diving pipes usedA. To absorb heat from the sun.B. To store heat for future use.C. To turn solar energy into heat energy.D. To carry heat down below the surface.3. From the last paragraph we can learn that .A. some pipes have to be re-arranged in winterB. the system can do more than warming up the buildingC. the exchangers will pick up heat from the street surfaceD. less heat may be collected in winter than in summer4. What is most likely to be discussed in the paragraph that followsA. What we shall do if the system goes wrong.B. What we shall do if there are no asphalt roads.C. How the system cools the building in summer.D. How the system collects heat in spring and autumn.8We already know the fastest, least expensive way to slow climate change: Use less energy. With a little effort, and not much money, most of us could reduce our energy diets by 25 percent or more—doing the Earth a favor while also helping our wallets.Not long ago, my wife, PJ, and I tried a new diet—not to lose a little weight but to answer an annoying question about climate change. Scientists have reported recently that the world is heating up even faster than predicted only a few years ago, and that the consequences could be severe if we don’t keep) and other greenhouse gases reducing emissions(排放) of carbon dioxide(CO2that are trapping heat in our atmosphere.We decided to try an experiment. For one month we recorded our personal. We wanted to see how much we could cut back, so we went on a emissions of CO2a strict die t. The average US household(家庭) produces about 150 pounds of CO2 day by doing common-place things like turning on air-conditioning or driving cars. That’s more than twice the European average and almost five times the global average, mostly because Americans drive more and have bigger houses. But how much should we try to reduceFor an answer, I checked with Tim Flannery, author of The Weather Makers:How Man Is Changing the Climate and What It Means for Life on Earth. In his book, he had challenged readers to make deep cuts in personal emissions to keep the world from reaching extremely important tipping points, such as the melting(融化) of the ice sheets in Greenland or West Antarctica. “To stay below that point, we need to reduce COemissions by 80 percent, “ he said.2Good advice, I thought. I’d opened our bedroom windows to let in the wind. We’d gotten so used to keeping our air-conditioning going around the clock. I’d almost forgotten the windows even opened. We should not let this happen again. It’s time for us to change our hab its if necessary.1. Why did the author and his wife try a new dietA. To take special kinds of food.B. To respond to climate change.C. To lose weight.D. To improve their health.2. The underlined words “tipping points” most probably refer to “”.A. freezing pointsB. burning pointsC. melting pointsD. boiling points3. It can be inferred from the passage that .A. it is necessary to keep the air-conditioning on all the timeB. it seems possible for every household to cut emissions of CO2a monthC. the average US household produces about 3, 000 pounds of CO2a month D. the average European household produces about 1, 000 pounds of CO24. Which of the following would be the best title for this passageA. Saving Energy Starts at HomeB. Changing Our Habits Begins at WorkC. Changing Climate Sounds ReasonableProves DifficultD. Reducing Emissions of CO29The need to feed a growing population is putting much pressure on the world’s supply of water. With 97% of the world’s w ater too salty to be drunk or used in agriculture, the worldwide supply of water needs careful management, especially in agriculture. Although the idea of a water shortage (短缺) seems strange to someone fortunate enough to live in a high rainfall country, many of the world’s agricultural industries experience constant water shortages. Although dams can be built to store water for agricultural use in dry areas and dry seasons, the costs of water redistribution (重新分配) are very high. Not only is there the cost of the engineering itself, but there is also an environmental cost to be considered. Where valleys (山谷) are flooded to create dams, houses are lost and wildlife homes destroyed. Besides, water may flow easily through pipes to fields, but it cannot be transported from one side of the world to the other. Each country must therefore rely on the management of its own water to supply its farming requirements.This is particularly troubling for countries with agricultural industries in areas dependent on irrigation (灌溉). In Texas, farmers’ overuse of irrgation water has resulted in a 25% reduction of the water stores. In the Central Valley area of southwestern USA, a huge water engineering project provided water for farming in dry valleys, but much of the water use has been poorly managed.Saudi Arabia’s attempts to grow wheat in desert areas have seen the pumpingo f huge quantities of irrigation water from underground reserves. Because there is no rainfall in these areas, such reserves can only decrease, and it is believed that fifty years of pumping will see them run dry.1. From the first two paragraphs we learn that .A. much of the world’s water is available for useB. people in high rainfall countries feel luckyC. the costs of water redistribution should be consideredD. water can be easily carried through pipes across the world2. Which of the following is trueA. The water stores in Texas have been reduced by 75%.B. Most industries in the world suffer from water shortages.C. The underground water in Saudi Arabia might run out in 50 years.D. Good management of water use resulted from the project in the Central Valley.3. What is most likely to be discussed in the paragraph that followsA. Steps to improving water use management.B. Ways to reduce the costs of building dams.C. Measures to deal with worldwide water shortages.D. Approaches to handling the pressure on water supply.4. The text is mainly about .A. water supply and increasing populationB. water use management and agricultureC. water redistribution and wildlife protectionD. water shortages and environmental protection10Businesses are witnessing a difficult time, which has in turn produced influence on consumers’ desire to go green. However, shopper s are still laying stress on environmental concerns.Two thirds of customers say that environmental considerations inform their purchases to the same degree as they did a year ago, while more than a quarter say that they are now even better aware of the environmental effect on what they buy.This may help to influence how shops store goods on their shelves. And the companies should still make efforts to become more environmentally friendly. Two out of three people think it is important to buy from environmentally responsible companies, with about one in seven saying that they had even decided to take their custom elsewhere if they felt a company’s environmental reputation was not good enough.Harry Morrison, chief executive (主管) of the Carbon Trust, sympathizes: “I understand this situation where survival is very important now. But f rom environmental considerations, the clock is ticking—we don’t have much time. In addition, cutting carbon has an immediate effect as costs drop and a medium-term benefit for the brand.”Larger companies have an extra motivation to look at reducing their carbon footprint, as new rules next year will require businesses to buy carbon allowances to make up for their emissions (排放). Those that have taken early action will have a head start. More than two thirds of consumers are not clear about which companies are environmentally responsible. This suggests that firms that are able to relay clearly their message to the public will be in a pole position to attract shoppers.。