课时13 阅读理解体裁解读(4)
—科普小品文【体裁解读】
科学技术是人类进步发展的重要动力,阅读科学技术文献有助于我们学习了解把握科技知识信息,学会展开科技活动。科技篇章的语言通常都是比较正式,偶尔会有写给青少年的科普作品,会用比较轻快简洁浅显生动的语言。在科技篇章中,由于科学的严谨性,语句通常都比较严谨,表述直接明确,与其他类型篇章相比,被动语态、非谓语动词形式、形式主语结构使用相对较多,动词时态变化、比喻夸张等修辞形式使用相对较少,有时会有很多专业词语和语句形式,有些常用词可能用于表达专业意义。
科技篇章结构比较清楚,层次分明,语句段落逻辑关联强而且明确,限定性修饰比较多。对科技篇章,同学们首先应该理解篇章的语词、语句,有些语词,特别是一些科技专业术语,可能涉及我们对篇章的关键内容的理解。科技篇章中的词语、语句理解是科技篇章理解的重要因素,有时甚至是关键因素。
科技篇章的推论理解要素大多不太直接,同学们可以从科技篇章中推论出:作者对科学精神和科学技术的作用功能的肯定赞同(偶尔会有反科学的所谓科技文章,但很少,考生几乎不可能在阅读英语材料时阅读到),作者对某一/某些科学观点/科学方法的肯定赞同支持,作者对科学家的肯定支持,作者对科学实验结论/结果的肯定支持等。
体裁演练
California Condor's Shocking Recovery
California condor
California condors are North America's largest birds, with winglength of up to 3 meters.In the 1980s, electrical lines and lead poisoning (铅中毒) nearly drove them to dying out. Now, electric shock training and medical treatment are helping to rescue these big birds.
In the late 1980s, the last few condors were taken from the wild to be bred (繁殖). Since 1992, there have been multiple reintroductions to the wild, and there are now more than 150 flying over California and nearby Arizona, Utah and Baja in Mexico.
Electrical lines have been killing them off.“As they go in to rest for the night, they just don't see the power lines,” says Bruce Rideout of San Diego Zoo.Their wings can bridge the gap between lines,resulting in electrocution (电死) if they touch two lines at once.
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So scientists have come up with a shocking idea.Tall poles, placed in large training areas, teach the birds to stay clear of electrical lines by giving them a painful but undeadly electric shock.Before the training was introduced, 66% of setfree birds died of electrocution.This has now dropped to 18%.
Lead poisoning has proved more difficult to deal with.When condors eat dead bodies of other animals containing lead,they absorb large quantities of lead.This affects their nervous systems and ability to produce baby birds, and can lead to kidney (肾) failure and death.So condors with high levels of lead are sent to Los Angeles Zoo, where they are treated with calcium EDTA, a chemical that removes lead from the blood over several days.This work is starting to pay off.The annual death rate for adult condors has dropped from 38% in 2000 to 5.4% in 2011.
Rideout's team thinks that the California condors' average survival time in the wild is now just under eight years.“Although these measures are not effective forever, they are vital for now,” he says.“They are truly good birds that are worth every effort we put into recovering them.”
1.California condors attract researchers' interest because they ________.
A.are active at night
B.had to be bred in the wild
C.are found only in California
D.almost died out in the 1980s
2.Researchers have found electrical lines are ________.
A.blocking condors' journey home
B.big killers of California condors
C.rest places for condors at night
D.used to keep condors away
3.According to Paragraph 5, lead poisoning ________.
A.makes condors too nervous to fly
B.has little effect on condors' kidneys
C.can hardly be gotten rid of from condors' blood
D.makes it difficult for condors to produce baby birds
4.This passage shows that ________.
A.the average survival time of condors is satisfactory
B.Rideout's research interest lies in electric engineering
C.the efforts to protect condors have brought good results
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D.researchers have found the final answers to the problem
【能力提升】
A
Back in 1969, it was the Apollo 11 crew who flew to the moon in a spaceship.When U.S.astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin stepped foot on the moon, they were the first.Meanwhile, their fellow astronaut Michael Collins circled the moon in their spaceship, named Columbia.
When Armstrong and Aldrin were done with their walk,they returned to the command module, and back to Earth.That part of the spaceship is on view at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum in Washington,D.C.But, if you cannot get to Washington, soon you will be able to see Columbia on your computer or your smartphone.
Digital scientists are scanning the inside of Columbia. They are creating an online model, in three dimensions, or“3D”. By looking at these photographs, you will be able to see outer space, the way the astronauts did. It will be like sitting in their seats.
Want your very own Columbia?You will be able to print a 3D copy of Columbia.Experts say anyone can make a lifesized model.But they expect most people to make smaller models of the 320×400 cm(11*×13*)command module.
Scientists are using special 3D technology to scan the inside.They use cameras on long arms to take the photographs.The thousands of photographs taken will be combined with 50 laser scans.
What would it be like to sit inside Columbia and take a look around?All the images will be loaded into software that allows you to look around the module on a computer screen.The user will be able to see the Columbia both inside and out.The Smithsonian says that the 3D technology gives the user ways to see things they cannot see at the museum.And it will give information that even the museum curators(馆长)have not seen before.
“With the command Module, no one has been inside since it came into the collection,” says Adam Metallo, Smithsonian 3D imaging specialist. “Now the information we capture can give anyone in the world a view of what it looks like inside this incredible piece of history.”
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1.The author mentions moon landing of the Apollo 11 to ________.
A.introduce the topic
B.honour the astronauts
C.mark the milestone event
D.draw attention to space research
2.According to the text, people ________.
A.are advised to make a lifesized model
B.can clone a Columbia with 3D technology
C.will visit a copy of Columbia in the museum
D.can buy a copied Columbia in the museum
3.What's the advantage of a copied Columbia?
A.It can attract more visitors.
B.It can help look far into the universe.
C.It makes 3D technology more popular.
D.It provides more knowledge than the museum.
4.What might be the best title for the text?
A.Columbia lands in your smartphone
B.3D technology, the new way to explore space
C.Landing on the moon, a milestone in space travel
D.An online model shows you how to land on the moon
B
Dan Bebber is a senior research fellow at the University of Exeter in Britain. He says research has shown that wild plants and animals are moving toward Earth’s North and South poles as the planet warms.
Mr. Bebber wanted to know if the same thing was happening with organisms (微生物) that attack agricultural crops. He examined reports of first sightings of new insects and diseases around the world. The records came from CABI - the Centre for Agricultural Bioscience International. He says the group began collecting information from developing and industrialized countries years ago.
Dan Bebber and his research team studied 612 different organisms - from viruses and bacteria to insects like beetles and butterflies. They found that since 1960, crop pests and diseases have been moving toward the poles at an average rate of about 3 kilometers each year. Mr Bebber says this puts the most productive farmland in the world in danger.
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“As new species of pests and diseases evolve and potentially the environment for them becomes more amenable at higher altitudes, the pressure on the breadbasket of the world is going to increase.”
Farmers face other threats. Invasive species passed through trade are also causing problems. Gene Kritsky is an entomologist at the College of Mount St. Joseph in Ohio. He specialises in the study of insects. He says climate change may improve conditions for some invasive species.
“It means that species in other parts of the world that might do well in warmer temperatures can now do well in the breadbasket of America.”
Another entomologist Christian Krupke of Purdue University says the effects of these changes will depend very much on the crop, the insect and the disease. But he says the research is a warning sign that people should care about climate change and do something about it.
5.The purpose of Dan Bebber's research was to find ________.
A.if farmland could be moved to colder places thanks to global warming
B.if diseases and insects harmful to crops were going towards colder areas
C.if organisms were moving to the north and south poles
D.if the number of crop pests was increasing
6.According to Dan Bebber, if crop pests keep moving towards the poles, ________.
A.it will be hard for farmers to kill them
B.the most productive farmland will produce more crops
C.the earth will not produce enough food to support the world
D.the conditions for some crops may be improved
7.Which of the following is not a threat that farmers have to face?
A.Climate change makes crop pests to adapt to a new environment.
B.Foreign species are brought in by trade.
C.Invasive species doing well in warmer places might do well in America.
D.The impacts of the climate and species changes on crops are not easy to determine.
C
Wolves are in the news these days, especially with the controversial Alaskan_Wolf_Hunting_Festival being a focus of public attention. Since these animals are getting more attention in the outer world, they may be more likely to
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show up in your_inner_world and may take on many forms and have many meanings.
Wolves live in a pack(狼群)and they have a leader, a guide who is responsible for directing the pack and keeping it safe. If a wolf appears in your dream and you have a positive relationship with the wolf, it may suggest your own leadership abilities. Wolves in dreams may also mean the need for trusting your own internal leader-the soft howl from the bottom of your own heart.
While wolves certainly do howl, it is till unknown why they howl at the moon. The wolf's howl is actually a form of communication. Wolves may howl as a form of making friends, or as a warning, or to indicate that they are lonely or need help. Is your dream wolf howling? If so, what emotions exist in the dream? Do you feel lost and in need of guidance, do you feel like you've lost your “pack”? Do you feel the need to let others know they are crossing your land? Or are you simply filled with a sense of joy that can only be expressed in a howl?
Wolves can be experienced hunters, and often appear in folk stories as something harmless when in fact it is there to do great harm. Are there any wolves in sheep's clothing in your life? Often we have intuition(直觉)about people or situations, feelings that these people or situations should be avoided, but we ignore them based on their harmless outer appearance. Wolves in dreams could be signs that there are hidden dangers in your life. Never ignore your intuition because it doesn't make any sense. Your intuition exists to guide and protect you and it can discover a wolf long before it removes its woolen suit.
8.Why does the author mention “Alaskan Wolf Hunting Festival” in the first paragraph?
A.To support the main idea of the text.
B.To introduce the topic of the passage.
C.To show his pity for the wolves.
D.To prove wolves are getting more attention.
9.What does “your inner world” refer to in the first paragraph?
A.Personalities. B.Feelings.
C.Thoughts. D.Dreams.
10.According to the text, wolves howl for the following reasons EXCEPT ________.
A.to be friendly with other wolves
B.to ask for help
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C.to share how they feel
D.to admire the moon
11.The passage is mainly about ________.
A.wolves and their behaviors
B.explanations of people's dreams
C.different types of wolves
D.hidden dangers in our dreams
D
Americans spend more than $20 billion a year on supplements in the hope of preventing cancer, heart disease and dementia. But the latest research shows they provide no benefit—and they may even be dangerous to our health.
The researchers involved in the studies say they're concerned that people are spending too much money on pills that bring no benefit, and in some cases may even be harmful. What's more, they even imply that companies are selling what is fueling false health anxieties to offer unnecessary cures.
Enough is Enough
To reach these conclusions, an international team of researchers conducted three different studies. The first was a study that looked at the consumption of a daily multivitamin to prevent cardiovascular disease and cancer in more than 450, 000 participants. These pills had no obvious effect on death. The second study looked into the effects of a daily multivitamin after a heart attack in about 1, 700 men and women over an average of five years. No advantage could be found. The third study looked into the use of a multivitamin to prevent dementia in nearly 6, 000 men aged 65 or older. Again, nothing.
“These vitamins should not be used for chronic disease prevention. Enough is enough,” concluded the experts.
Dangerous to Your Health
If that wasn't bad enough, the researchers also found that vitamin E, when taken in a high dose, could be harmful. And shockingly, smokers who took betacarotene were at an increased risk of developing cancer. The researchers also said vitamin B is ineffective in preventing chronic diseases.
Instead of taking in vitamins and minerals, the experts recommended that people should eat more fruit and vegetables, reduce trans fats and salt, reduce calories, and increase physical activities.
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12.What is the best title for the passage?
A.Vitamins and minerals are “a waste of money”.
B.Americans suffer from cancer and heart disease.
C.Vitamins and minerals are rich in vegetables.
D.Americans dislike eating fruit and vegetables.
13.What do the first two paragraphs imply?
A.People know that they have been cheated.
B.People should really stop taking these pills.
C.All the health anxieties result from pills.
D.The government should punish the companies.
14.What did the researchers do in their studies?
A.They all took in a daily multivitamin.
B.They tried to cure many people with cancer.
C.They followed 6,000 people with dementia.
D.They tracked l,700 people with heart problems.
15.The author mentioned vitamin E in the passage ________.
A.to show vitamin E only does harm to health
B.to prove taking in a high dose of vitamin E is dangerous
C.to suggest readers should give up vitamin E
D.to warn the smokers against vitamin E forever
16.Where would you probably read the passage?
A.In a storybook. B.On a poster.
C.In a health care book. D.In a textbook.
E
The behaviour of a building's users may be at least as important as its design when it comes to energy use, according to new research from the UK Energy Research Centre (UKERC). The UK promises to reduce its carbon emissions (排放)by 80 percent by 2050, part of which will be achieved by all new homes being zerocarbon by 2016. But this report shows that sustainable building design on its own — though extremely important- is not enough to achieve such reductions: the behaviour of the people using the building has to change too.
The study suggests that the ways that people use and live in their homes have been largely ignored by existing efforts to improve energy efficiency (效率),which instead focus on architectural and technological developments.
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‘Technology is going to assist but it is not going to do everything,’explains Katy Janda, a UKERC senior researcher,‘consumption patterns of building users can defeat the most careful design.’ In other words,old habits die hard, even in the bestdesigned ecohome.
Another part of the problem is information. Households and billpayers don't have the knowledge they need to change their energyuse habits. Without specific information,it's hard to estimate the costs and benefits of making different choices. Feedback (反馈) facilities, like smart meters and energy monitors,could help bridge this information gap by helping people see how changing their behaviour directly affects their energy use; some studies have shown that households can achieve up to 15 percent energy savings using smart meters.
Social science research has added a further dimension (方面),suggesting that individuals' behaviour in the home can be personal and cannot be predicted — whether people throw open their windows rather than turn down the thermostat (恒温器), for example.
Janda argues that education is the key. She calls for a focused programme to teach people about buildings and their own behaviour in them.
17.As to energy use, the new research from UKERC stresses the importance of ________.
A.zerocarbon homes
B.the behaviour of building users
C.sustainable building design
D.the reduction of carbon emissions
18.The underlined word“which” in Paragraph 2 refers to “________.”
A.the ways B.their homes
C.developments D.existing efforts
19.What are Katy Janda's words mainly about?
A.The importance of changing building users' habits.
B.The necessity of making a careful building design.
C.The variety of consumption patterns of building users.
D.The role of technology in improving energy efficiency.
20.The information gap in energy use ________.
A.can be bridged by feedback facilities
B.affects the study on energy monitors
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C.brings about problems for smart meters
D.will be caused by building users' old habits
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课时13 阅读理解体裁解读(4)
—科普小品文【体裁演练】
美国加利福尼亚州的秃鹫因为各种原因濒临灭绝,但在科研人员的帮助下,秃鹫的种群逐渐恢复生机。
1.D [推理判断题。根据第一、二段内容可知,20世纪80年代,由于触电和铅中毒,加利福尼亚州的秃鹫濒临灭绝,20世纪80年代末,仅剩的几只秃鹫从野外被带回繁殖,由此可推断正是秃鹫濒临灭绝才引起了研究人员的注意和兴趣,故选D项。]
2.B [细节理解题。根据第三段内容可知,电线一直在使秃鹫丧命,并且解释原因说,秃鹫晚上休息的时候看不见电线,而它们宽大的翅膀正好同时搭在两根电线上,于是它们立刻就被电死了,故选B项。]
3.D [细节理解题。根据第五段内容可知,铅中毒影响了秃鹫的神经系统和繁殖能力(affects their nervous systems and ability to produce baby birds),并且可以导致它们肾衰竭和死亡,由此可知,A、B两项错误,D项正确。通过给秃鹫使用一种化学药物,在几天内就可以清除它们血液中的铅,由此可知,C项错误。]
4.C [推理判断题。本文主要介绍了美国加利福尼亚秃鹫濒临灭绝以及科研人员为挽救它们而展开的救援和研究工作,且实施措施有了回报(pay off),由此可知,C项正确,排除B项。根据最后一段中的just under eight years可排除A项;根据these measures are not effective forever可排除D 项。]
【能力提升】
A
【语篇导读】 本文主要介绍了3D技术的应用使参观哥伦比亚指令舱不再那么遥远,而是触手可及的。
1.A [推理判断题。根据第一段和全文的整体内容可推知,作者提到第一次登陆月球事件是为了激起读者的阅读兴趣,导入文章话题。]
2.B [细节理解题。根据第四段的“You will be able to print a 3D copy of Columbia”可知,通过3D技术的应用,人们可以复制一个太空飞船。]
3.D [细节理解题。根据倒数第二段的最后一句“And it will give information that even the museum curators(馆长)have not seen before”并结合本段的整体内容可知,3D技术复制的太空飞船的优势是其提供的信息比博物馆多。]
4.A [标题判断题。根据文章的整体内容可推知,本文主要讲述的是运用3D技术,在智能手机上参观哥伦比亚指令舱触手可及。]
B
【语篇导读】 这是一篇科普文。科学家通过研究发现,由于气候变暖,许多对庄稼有害的物种正在向地球的两极移动,这对农作物会产生不良的影响。
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5.C [推理判断题。根据文章中第一段及第二段的第一句可知,这项研究的目的在于了解对农作物有害的微生物是否正在向地球的两极移动。]
6.C [细节理解题。根据文章中的“Mr. Bebber says this puts the most productive farmland in the world in danger.”以及“the pressure on the breadbasket of the world is going to increase”可以判断出,这种趋势让世界上大部分高产的耕地处于危险之中,粮食产地的压力将会增加。也就是说,地球上的作物产量会减少,不能生产出足够的粮食。故选C。]
7.D [推理判断题。根据文章最后一段中的“the effects of these changes will depend very much on the crop, the insect and the disease”可以判断出,气候和物种变化对于庄稼的影响不易确定,但这并不是农民必须面对的威胁。故选D。]
C
【语篇导读】 这是一篇议论文。本文通过介绍狼嚎叫、具有危险性等特点来解析人们那些出现有狼的梦有哪些深层涵义。
8.B [推理判断题。“Alaskan Wolf Hunting Festival”后面一句紧跟着“Since these animals are getting more attention in the outer world, they may be more likely to show up in your inner world and may take on many forms and have many meanings.”很明显它是为了说明狼在现实生活中得到很多关注,在人们的内心世界中也被赋予了很多涵义这个话题。]
9.D [词义猜测题。从下文的“If a wolf appears in your dream and...”和“Wolves in dreams could be signs that...”都可以推断出“your inner world”指代的是人做的梦。]
10.D [事实细节题。从“While wolves certainly do howl, it is till unknown why they howl at the moon.”可以得知我们还无法了解狼对着月亮嚎叫的原因,其他三个选项在第三段均有提及,故选D。]
11.B [主旨大意题。从“If a wolf appears in your dream and...”和“Wolves in dreams could be signs that...”等多处都可以看出本文作者通过介绍狼嚎叫、具有危险性等特点来解析人们那些出现有狼的梦有哪些深层涵义。]
D
【语篇导读】 很多人觉得维生素可以补充营养,长期服用还能预防慢性疾病。但研究表明,吃营养品对健康无效,吃多了甚至有害。还是不要再浪费钱了,多吃水果、多锻炼才是正道。
12.A [主旨大意题。文章主要描述了一项新的研究,即吃营养品对健康无效,吃多了甚至有害,大家还是不要再浪费钱了。故选A项。]
13.B [推理判断题。依据文章第一段尾句中的they may even be dangerous to our
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health可知,吃多了这些营养品甚至对身体健康有害。因此人们应该停止食用这些营养品。故选B项。]
14.D [细节理解题。依据文章第三段可知,本题选D项。]
15.B [细节理解题。依据文章倒数第二段的第一句可知,研究人员还发现,大剂量服用维生素E对身体有害。故选B项。]
16.C [推理判断题。这篇文章讲述了大量服用维生素对身体的不利方面,因此它应该取自医疗方面的书籍。故选C项。]
E
【语篇导读】 本文是一篇科普说明文,讲到能源使用的问题,建筑物的使用者的行为至少和它的设计是一样的重要,文章通过列举研究发现的结论及相关研究者的评论,说明人们家庭对于能源的消费量直接影响我们的生活环境的质量。
17.B [推理判断题。根据文章首句The behaviour of a building's users may be at least as important as its design when it comes to energy use,可知英国能源研究中心的研究表明了人们行为举止对环境的重要性,故选B。]
18.D [词义猜测题。该句是非限制性定语从句,which是引导词,其先行词是existing efforts,故选D。]
19.A [推理判断题。根据第三自然段中的consumption patterns of building users can defeat the most careful design.一句可知专家强调改变人们的家庭生活习惯的重要性,故选A。]
20.A [细节理解题。根据第四自然段中的Feedback (反馈) facilities, like smart meters and energy monitors,could help bridge this information gap by helping people see how changing their behaviour directly affects their energy use可知本题选A,此处bridge是名词用作动词,“为……搭建桥梁,沟通”之意。]
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