科普知识类阅读对策与2015真题训练
【题型说明】科普知识类文章在高考试卷中是倍受青睐的又一宠儿。每年高考都有关于科普知识类阅读理解材料的考查。这类文章的特点是科技词汇多，句子长且结构复杂，理论性和逻辑性又都较强，再加之文章所介绍的知识对于同学们来说是比较陌生的。因此，同学们看这类文章觉得是雾里看花。
【文章特点】科普类文章的主要特点：
1. 文章中词汇的意义比较单一、稳定、简明，不带感情色彩，具有单一性和准确性的特点。综观整篇文章可以明显看出，它没有文学英语中常采用的排比、比喻、夸张等修饰手段，一词多义的现象也不多见。
2. 句子结构较复杂，语法分析较困难。为了描述一个客观事物，严密地表达自己的思想，作者经常会使用集多种语法现象与一体的长句。
3. 常使用被动语态，强调动作的承受者。
4. 常使用双重否定句。
【结构特点】科普知识类文章结构一般也是由标题(Headlines),导语(Introductions)，背景( Background)，主体(Main body)和结尾(Ends)五部分构成。标题是文章中心思想高度而又精辟的概括，高考这类阅读理解材料一般也不给标题，而要同学们选择标题。导语一般位于整篇文章的首段。背景交待一个事实的起因。主体则对导语概括的事实进行详细叙述。这一部分命题往往最多，因此，阅读时，同学们要把这部分作为重点。结尾往往也是中心思想的概括，并与导语相呼应，命题者常在此要设计一道推理判断题。
【备考提醒】要做好这类阅读理解题，先要掌握这类文章的特点和结构，真正读懂并理解它。其次，工夫在课外，平时一定要多读科技幻想类文章，比如：太空与海洋、创造与发明、计算机发展、人类未来、动物世界等。特别是从网上搜寻一些取材原版、内容时新、语言鲜活的科技幻想类材料阅读。这样长期坚持，既可以增长知识、开阔视野，又可以扩充科技词汇，还能提高解答这种类型试题的能力。我们何乐而不为呢?
【真题再现】
9.（2015全国II B）
Your house may have an effect on your figure. Experts say the way you design your home could play a role in whether you pack on the pounds or keep them off. You can make your environment work for you instead of against you. Here are some ways to turn your home into part of your diet plan.
Open the curtains and turn up the lights. Dark environments are more likely to encourage overeating, for people are often less self-conscious(难为情)when they’re in poorly lit places--and so more likely to eat lots of food. If your home doesn’t have enough window light, get more lamps and flood the place with brightness.
Mind the colors. Research suggests warm colors fuel our appetites. In one study, people who ate meals in a blue room consumed 33 percent less than those in a yellow or red room. Warm colors like yellow make food appear more appetizing, while cold colors make us feel less hungry. So when it’s time to repaint, go blue.
Don’t forget the clock--or the radio. People who eat slowly tend to consume about 70 fewer calories(卡路里)per meal than those who rush through their meals. Begin keeping track of the time, and try to make dinner last at least 30 minutes, And while you’re at it, actually sit down to eat. If you need some help slowing down, turn on relaxing music. It makes you less likely to rush through a meal.
Downsize the dishes, Big serving bowls and plates can easily make us fat. We eat about 22 percent more when using a 12-inch plate instead of a 10-inch plate. When we choose a large spoon over a smaller one, total intake（摄入) jumps by 14 percent. And we’ll pour about 30 percent more liquid into a short, wide glass than a tall, skinny glass.
25.The text is especially helpful for those who care about_______.
A. their home comforts B. their body shape C. house buying D. healthy diets
26.A home environment in blue can help people_________.
A.digest food better B. reduce food intake C.burn more calories D. regain their appetites
27.What are people advised to do at mealtimes?
A. Eat quickly. B. Play fast music. C. Use smaller spoons. D.Turn down the lights.
28.What can be a suitable title for the test?
A. Is Your House Making You Fat? B.Ways of Serving Dinner
C. Effects of Self-Consciousness D. Is Your Home Environment Relaxing?
10.（2015福建E）
Group exercise is one of the most effective ways to improve physical fitness and sustain a healthy lifestyle. Group exercise is challenging, yet fun and empowering! Of course everyone knows that exercise is good for the body. However, studies have shown that when exercise is performed in groups, it's not only great for improving physical health but for psychological health. It's an opportunity to be social, release endorphins(内渄肽), and improve your strength. Additionally, group exercise creates a community feel and the shared common goal motivates participants to work hard. The instrumental support of taking on a fitness journey with others proves more effective than going to the gym alone.
Another beneficial aspect of group exercise is the informational support participants receive from the instructor. Many people fear the gym because they feel lost and don't want to embarrass themselves. If you feel you can relate, then group training is an even better option for you. It's a great opportunity to learn more about fitness through the clear instruction and supervision (监管) of a fitness instructor. If you're tired of wandering around the gym wasting time and becoming bored, you can attend an upbeat group fitness class that'll keep your workout on track. Don't let fitness frighten you!
If you're serious about wanting to live a healthy lifestyle, it's extremely important to surround yourself with people who'll provide you with the proper emotional support. I wouldn't scold anyone for deciding to party on weekends and in turn I wouldn't expect anyone to give offence to me for focusing on my health. Surround yourself with people who uplift, encourage and understand you! Make fitness even more fun by trying something new or any group fitness class, with a friend. Plan to go for a jog together. Then try a fun healthy restaurant or fresh juice bar! Fitness can be both fun and social!
Surrounding yourself with people who'll provide you with respect support can be very beneficial while working towards reaching health and fitness goals. First, decide to do it for yourself and work towards staying positive. Then make sure the people you surround yourself with are supportive. Don't let negativity ruin your motivation.
72. The first paragraph focuses on .
A. the greatest challenge of group exercise
B. the most effective way to improve physical fitness
C. the contribution of group exercise to psychological health
D. the shared common goal in performing exercise in groups
73. The underlined word "upbeat" in the second paragraph probably means _________.
A. cheerful B. average C. serious D. temporary
74. When it comes to emotional support, the author thinks it necessary .
A.to sustain a colorful lifestyle B.to party on weekends with positive people
C.to try a fun healthy restaurant regularly D.to surround yourself with supportive people
75. What would be the best title for the passage?
A. Seeking Support B. Supporting Health
C. Improving Your Strength D. Building Up Fitness
11.（2015广东C）
Daniel Anderson, a famous psychologist, believes it’s important to distinguish television’s influences on children from those of the family. We tend to blame TV, he says, for problems it doesn’t really cause, overlooking our own roles in shaping children’s minds.
One traditional belief about television is that it reduces a child’s ability to think and to understand the world. While watching TV, children do not merely absorb words and images (影像). Instead, they learn both explicit and hidden meanings from what they see. Actually, children learn early the psychology of characters in TV shows. Furthermore, as many teachers agree, children understand far more when parents watch TV with them, explaining new words and ideas. Yet, most parents use an educational program as a chance to park their kids in front of the set and do something in another room.
Another argument against television is that it replaces reading as a form of entertainment. But according to Anderson, the amount of time spent watching television is not related to reading ability. TV doesn’t take the place of reading for most children; it takes the place of similar sorts of recreation, such as listening to the radio and playing sports. Things like parents’ educational background have a stronger influence on a child’s reading. “A child’s reading ability is best predicted by how much a parent reads.” Anderson says.
Traditional wisdom also has it that heavy television-watching lowers IQ (智商) scores and affects school performance. But here, too, Anderson notes that no studies have proved it. In fact, research suggests that it’s the other way around. “If you’re smart young, you’ll watch less TV when you’re older,” Anderson says. Yet, people of lower IQ tend to be lifelong television viewers.
For years researchers have attempted to show that television is dangerous to children. However, by showing that television promotes none of the dangerous effects as conventionally believed, Anderson suggests that television cannot be condemned without considering other influences.
36. By watching TV, children learn _________.
A. images through words B. more than explicit meanings
C. more about images than words D. little about people’s psychology
37. An educational program is best watched by a child _________.
A. on his own B. with other kids C. with his parents D. with his teachers
38. Which of the following is most related to children’s reading ability?
A. Radio-listening B. Television-watching
C. Parents’ reading list D. Parents’ educational background
39. Anderson believed that _________.
A. the more a child watches TV, the smarter he is
B. the younger a child is, the more he watches TV
C. the smarter a child is, the less likely he gets addicted to TV
D. the less a child watches TV, the better he performs at school
40. What is the main purpose of the passage?
A. To advise on the educational use of TV.
B. To describe TV’s harmful effects on children.
C. To explain traditional views on TV influences.
D. To present Anderson’s unconventional ideas.
12.（2015湖北Ｅ）难度较大
Science has a lot of uses. It can uncover laws of nature, cure diseases, make bombs, and help bridges to stand up. Indeed science is so good at what it does that there’s always a temptation(诱惑) to drag it into problems where it may not be helpful. David Brooks, author of The Social Animal: The Hidden Sources of Love, Character,and Achievement, appears to be the latest in a long line of writers who have failed to resist the temptation.
Brooks gained fame for several books. His latest book The Social Animal, however, is more ambitious and serious than his earlier books. It is an attempt to deal with a set of weighty topics. The book focuses on big questions: What has science revealed about human nature? What are the sources of character? And why are some people happy and successful while others aren’t?
To answer these questions, Brooks surveys a wide range of disciplines(学科). Considering this, you might expect the book to be a dry recitation of facts. But Brooks has structured his book in an unorthodox(非常规的), and perhaps unfortunate, way. Instead of introducing scientific theories, he tells a story, within which he tries to make his points, perhaps in order to keep the reader’s attention.So as Harold and Erica, the hero and heroine in his story, live through childhood, we hear about the science of child development and as they begin to date we hear about the theory of sexual attraction. Brooks carries this through to the death of one of his characters.
On the whole, Brooks’s story is acceptable if uninspired. As one would expect, his writing is mostly clear and, to be fair, some chapters stand out above the rest. I enjoyed, for instance, the chapter in which Harold discovers how to think on his own. While Harold and Erica are certainly not strong or memorable characters, the more serious problems with The Social Animal lie elsewhere. These problems partly involve Brooks’s attempt to translate his tale into science.
67. The author mentions the functions of science at the beginning of the passage to________.
A. illustrate where science can be applied
B. demonstrate the value of Brooks’s new book
C. remind the reader of the importance of science
D. explain why many writers use science in their works
68. According to the author, which of the following could be a strength of the book?
A. Its strong basis. B. Its convincing points.
C. Its clear writing. D. Its memorable characters.
69. What is the author’s general attitude towards the book?
A. Contradictory. B. Supportive. C. Cautious. D. Critical.
70. What is the author likely to write about after the last paragraph?
A. Problems with the book. B. Brooks’s life experience.
C. Death of the characters. D. Brooks’s translation skills.
13.（2015湖南B）
In its early history, Chicago had floods frequently, especially in the spring, making the streets so muddy that people, horses, and carts got stuck. An old joke that was popular at the time went something like this: A man is stuck up to his waist in a muddy Chicago street. Asked if he needs help, he replies, "No, thanks. I've got a good horse under me."
The city planner decided to build an underground drainage (排水) system, but there simply wasn't enough difference between the height of the ground level and the water level. The only two options were to lower the Chicago River or raise the city.
An engineer named Ellis Chesbrough convinced the city that it had no choice but to build the pipes above ground and then cover them with dirt. This raised the level of the city's streets by as much as 12 feet.
This of course created a new problem: dirt practically buried the first floors of every building in Chicago. Building owners were faced with a choice: either change the first floors of their buildings into basements, and the second stories into main floors, or hoist the entire buildings to meet the new street level. Small wood-frame buildings could be lifted fairly easily. But what about large, heavy structures like Tremont Hotel, which was a six-story brick building?
That's where George Pullman came in. He had developed some house-moving skills successfully. To lift a big structure like the Tremont Hotel, Pullman would place thousands of jackscrews (螺旋千斤顶) beneath the building's foundation. One man was assigned to operate each section of roughly 10 jackscrews. At Pullman's signal each man turned his jackscrew the same amount at the same time, thereby raising the building slowly and evenly. Astonishingly, the Tremont Hotel stay open during the entire operation, and many of its guests didn't even notice anything was happening. Some people like to say that every problem has a solution. But in Chicago's early history, every engineering solution seemed to create a new problem. Now that Chicago's waste water was draining efficiently into the Chicago River, the city's next step was to clean the polluted river.
61. The author mentions the joke to show ______.
A. horses were fairly useful in Chicago B. Chicago's streets were extremely muddy
C. Chicago was very dangerous in the spring
D. the Chicago people were particularly humorous
62. The city planners were convinced by Ellis Chesbrough to_______.
A. get rid of the street dirt B. lower the Chicago River
C. fight against heavy floods D. build the pipes above ground
63. The underlined word "hoist" in Paragraph 4 means "_______".
A. change B. lift C. repair D. decorate
64. What can we conclude about the moving operation of the Tremont Hotel?
A. It went on smoothly as intended. B. It interrupted the business of the hotel.
C. It involved Pullman turning ten jackscrews.
D. It separated the building from its foundation.
65. The passage is mainly about the early Chicago's ______.
A. popular life styles and their influences B. environmental disasters and their causes
C. engineering problems and their solutions
D. successful businessmen and their achievements
14.（2015四川D）
Their cheery song brightens many a winter's day. But robins are in danger of wearing themselves out by singing too much. Robins are singing all night--as well as during the day, British-based researchers say.
David Dominoni, of Glasgow University, said that light from street lamps, takeaway signs and homes is affecting the birds' biological clock, leading to them being wide awake when they should be asleep.
Dr Dominoni, who is putting cameras inside nesting boxes to track sleeping patterns, said lack of sleep could put the birds' health at risk.His study shows that when robins are exposed to light at night in the lab, it leads to some genes being active at the wrong time of day. And the more birds are exposed to light, the more active they are at night.
He told people at a conference, "There have been a couple of studies suggesting they are increasing their song output at night and during the day they are still singing. Singing is a costly behaviour and it takes energy. So by increasing their song output, there might be some costs of energy."
And it is not just robins that are being kept awake by artificial light. Blackbirds and seagulls are also being more nocturnal. Dr Dominoni said, "In Glasgow where I live, gulls are a serious problem.I have people coming to me saying `You are the bird expert. Can you help us kill these gulls?' During the breeding(繁殖)season,between April and June, they are very active at night and very noisy and people can't sleep."
Although Dr Dominoni has only studied light pollution, other research concluded that robins living in noisy cities have started to sing at night to make themselves heard over loud noise.
However, some birds thrive(兴旺)in noisy environments. A study from California Polytechnic University found more hummingbirds in areas with heavy industrial machinery. It is thought that they are capitalising on their predators(天敌)fleeing to quieter areas.
42. According to Dr Dominoni's study, what causerrobins to sing so much?
A. The breeding season. B. The light in modern life.
C. The dangerous environment. D. The noise from heavy machinery.
43. What is the researchers' concern over the increase of birds' song output?
A. The environment might be polluted. B. The birds' health might be damaged.
C. The industry cost might be increased. D.The people's hearing might be affected.
44. What does the underlined word "nocturnal" in Paragraph 5 mean?
A. Active at night. B. Inactive at night.
C. Active during the day. D.Inactive during the day.
45. Why do some birds thrive in noisy environments?
A. Because there are fewer dangers. B. Because there is more food to eat.
C. Because there is less light pollution D. Because there are more places to take shelter.
15.（2015天津B）
Whether in the home or the workplace, social robots are going to become a lot more common in the next few years. Social robots are about to bring technology to the everyday world in a more humanized way, said Cynthia Breazeal, chief scientist at the robot company Jibo.
While household robots today do the normal housework, social robots will be much more like companions than mere tools. For example, these robots will be able to distinguish when someone is happy or sad. This allows them to respond more appropriately to the user.
The Jibo robot, arranged to ship later this year, is designed to be a personalized assistant. You can talk to the robot, ask it questions, and make requests for it to perform different tasks. The robot doesn’t just deliver general answers to questions; it responds based on what it learns about each individual in the household. It can do things such as reminding an elderly family member to take medicine or taking family photos.
Social robots are not just finding their way into the home. They have potential applications in everything from education to health care and are already finding their way into some of these spaces.
Fellow Robots is one company bringing social robots to the market. The company’s “Oshbot” robot is built to assist customers in a store, which can help the customers find items and help guide them to the product’s location in the store. It can also speak different languages and make recommendations for different items based on what the customer is shopping for.
The more interaction the robot has with humans, the more it learns. But Oshbot, like other social robots, is not intended to replace workers, but to work alongside other employees. “We have technologies to train social robots to do things not for us, but with us,” said Breazeal.
41. How are social robots different from household robots?
A. They can control their emotions. B. They are more like humans.
C. They do the normal housework. D. They respond to users more slowly.
42. What can a Jibo robot do according to Paragraph 3?
A. Communicate with you and perform operations.
B. Answer your questions and make requests.
C. Take your family pictures and deliver milk.
D. Obey your orders and remind you to take pills.
43. What can Oshbot work as?
A. A language teacher. B. A tour guide. C. A shop assistant. D. A private nurse.
44. We can learn from the last paragraph that social robots will ______.
A. train employees B. be our workmates
C. improve technologies D. take the place of workers
45. What does the passage mainly present?
A. A new design idea of household robots. B. Marketing strategies for social robots.
C. Information on household robots. D. An introduction to social robots.
9. Keys: BBCA 10. 72-75 CADB 11. Keys: BCDCD
explicit 明确的，清楚的; 直言的; 详述的; 不隐瞒的
have it (that) 称……属实，说……是真的
Rumour has it that we'll have a new manager soon.据传我们即将拥有一位新经理。
If you’re smart young, you’ll watch less TV when you’re older.如果你小时精明的话，年龄大时就会少会电视。
12. ＤＣＤＡ
本篇文章理解难度较大，读完后不知所云。故本文要弄清楚文章的主旨实际上是批评这本书的。
13. BDBAC 14. BBAA capitalise 利用，使资本化 15. BDCBD
16.（2015重庆D）
There are many places to go on safari（观赏野生动物）in Africa, but riding a horse through the flooded waters of Botswana's Okavango Delta must rank as one of the world's most exciting wildlife journeys.
Several safari camps operate as the base for this adventure, providing unique rides twice a day to explore deep into the delta. The camps have excellent horses, professional guides and lots of support workers. They have a reputation for providing a great riding experience.
The morning ride, when the guides take you to beautiful, shallow lakes full of water lilies, tends to be more active. It is unlike any other riding experience. With rainbows forming in the splashing water around you and the sound of huge drops of water bouncing off your body and face. It is truly exciting. You are very likely to come across large wild animals, too. On horseback it is possible to get quite close to elephants, giraffes and many other animals. The sense of excitement and tension levels rise suddenly though, as does your heart rate, as you move closer to them.
In the evening, rides are usually at a more relaxed and unhurried pace. With golden light streaming across the grassy delta and the animals coming out to eat and drink. Sedate though they are, rides at this time of day are still very impressive. As the sun's rays pass through the dust kicked up by the horses, the romance of Africa comes to life.
Back at the camp you can kick off your boots and enjoy excellent food and wine. Looking back on your day, you will find it hard to deny that a horseback Safari is as close as you will ever come to answering the call of the wild.
48. What does the underlined word "They" refer to?
A. Flooded waters B. Wildlife journey C. Safari camps D. Unique rides
49. What does the author find most exciting about a horse safari?
A. Seeing and feeling the real African life.
B. Enjoying good food and wine at the camp.
C. Hunting large animals just as our ancestors did.
D. Being part of the scene and getting close to animals.
50. What does the underlined word "sedate" probably mean?
A. Wild and romantic B. Slow and peaceful C. Hungry and thirsty D. Active and excited
51. The author introduced the riding experience in the OKavango Delta mainly by________.
A. Following space order B. Following time order
C. Making classifications D. Giving examples
17.（2015重庆E）
The values of artistic works, according to cultural relativism(相对主义), are simply reflections of local social and economic conditions. Such a view, however, fails to explain the ability of some works of art to excite the human mind across cultures and through centuries.
History has witnessed the endless productions of Shakespearean plays in every major language of the world. It is never rare to find that Mozart packs Japanese concert halls, as Japanese painter Hiroshige does Paris galleries. Unique works of this kind are different from today’s popular art, even if they began as works of popular art. They have set themselves apart in their timeless appeal and will probably be enjoyed for centuries into the future.
In a 1757 essay, the philosopher David Hume argued that because“the general principles of taste are uniform(不变的) in human nature,”the value of some works of art might be essentially permanent. He observed that Homer was still admired after two thousand years. Works of this type, he believed, spoke to deep and unvarying features of human nature and could continue to exist over centuries.
Now researchers are applying scientific methods to the study of the universality of art. For example, evolutionary psychology is being used by literary scholars to explain the long-lasting themes and plot devices in fiction. The structures of musical pieces are now open to experimental analysis as never before. Research findings seem to indicate that the creation by a great artist is as permanent an achievement as the discovery by a great scientist.
52. According to the passage, what do we know about cultural relativism?
A. It introduces different cultural values.
B. It explains the history of artistic works.
C. It relates artistic values to local conditions.
D. It excites the human mind throughout the world.
53. In Paragraph 2, the artists are mentioned in order to show that________.
A. great works of art can go beyond national boundaries
B. history gives art works special appeal to set them apart
C. popular arts are hardly distinguishable from great arts
D. great artists are skilled at combining various cultures
54. According to Hume, some works of art can exist for centuries because_______.
A. they are results of scientific study
B. they establish some general principles of art
C. they are created by the world’s greatest artists
D. they appeal to unchanging features of human nature
55. Which of the following can best serve as the title of the passage?
A. Are Artistic Values Universal? B. Are Popular Arts Permanent?
C. Is Human Nature Uniform? D. Is Cultural Relativism Scientific?
18.（2015安徽C）
As Internet users become more dependent on the Internet to store information, are people remembering less? If you know your computer will save information, why store it in your own personal memory, your brain? Experts are wondering if the Internet is changing what we remember and how.
In a recent study, Professor Betsy Sparrow conducted some experiments. She and her research team wanted to know how the Internet is changing memory. In the first experiment, they gave people 40 unimportant facts to type into a computer. The first group of people understood that the computer would save the information. The second group understood that the computer would not save it. Later, the second group remembered the information better. People in the first group knew they could find the information again, so they did not try to remember it.
In another experiment, the researchers gave people facts to remember, and told them where to find the information on the Internet. The information was in a specific computer folder (文件夹). Surprisingly, people later remember the folder location (位置) better than the facts. When people use the Internet, they do not remember the information. Rather, they remember how to find it. This is called "transactive memory (交互记忆) ."
According to Sparrow, we are not becoming people with poor memories as a result of the Internet. Instead, computer users are developing stronger transactive memories; that is, people are learning how to organize huge quantities of information so that they are able to access it at a later date. This doesn't mean we are becoming either more or less intelligent, but there is no doubt that the way we use memory is changing.
64. The passage begins with two questions to ______.
A. introduce the main topic B. show the author's altitude
C. describe how to use the Internet. D. explain how to store information
65. What can we learn about the first experiment?
A. Sparrow's team typed the information into a computer.
B. The two groups remembered the information equally well.
C. The first group did not try to remember the information.
D. The second group did not understand the information.
66. In transactive memory, people ______.
A. keep the information in mind B. change the quantity of information
C. organize information like a computer D. remember how to find the information
67. What is the effect of the Internet according to Sparrow's research?
A. We are using memory differently. B. We are becoming more intelligent.
C. We have poorer memories than before. D. We need a better way to access information.
19.（2015安徽D）
There are an extremely large number of ants worldwide. Each individual (个体的) ant hardly weigh anything, but put together they weigh roughly the same as all of mankind. They also live nearly everywhere, except on frozen mountain tops and around the poles. For animals their size, ants have been astonishingly successful, largely due to their wonderful social behavior.
In colonies (群体) that range in size from a few hundred to tens of millions, they organize their lives with a clear division of labor. Even more amazing is how they achieve this level of organization. Where we use sound and sight to communicate, ants depend primarily on pheromone (外激素), chemicals sent out by individuals and smelled or tasted by fellow members of their colony. When an ant finds food, it produces a pheromone that will lead others straight to where the food is. When an individual ant comes under attack or is dying, it sends out an alarm pheromone to warn the colony to prepare for a conflict as a defense unit.
In fact, when it comes to the art of war, ants have no equal. They are completely fearless and will readily take on a creature much larger than themselves, attacking in large groups and overcoming their target. Such is their devotion to the common good of the colony that not only soldier ants but also worker ants will sacrifice their lives to help defeat an enemy.
Behaving in this selfless and devoted manner, these little creatures have survived on Earth, for more than 140 million years, far longer than dinosaurs. Because they think as one, they have a collective (集体的) intelligence greater than you would expect from its individual parts.
68. We can learn from the passage that ants are ____________.
A. not willing to share food B. not found around the poles
C. more successful than all other animals D. too many to achieve any level of organization
69. Ants can use pheromones for______.
A. escape B. communication C. warning enemies D. arranging labor
70. What does the underlined expression "take on" in Paragraph 3 mean?
A. Accept. B. Employ. C. Play with. D. Fight against.
71. Which of the following contributes most to the survival of ants?
A. Their behavior. B. Their size. C. Their number. D. Their weight.
20.（2015陕西C）
The production of coffee beans is a huge, profitable business, but, unfortunately, full-sun production is taking over the industry and bringing about a lot of damage. The change in how coffee is grown from shade-grown production to full-sun production endangers the very existence of certain animals and birds, and even disturbs the world’s ecological balance.
On a local level, the damage of the forest required by full-sun fields affects the area’s birds and animals. The shade of the forest trees provides a home for birds and other species(物种) that depend on the trees’ flowers and fruits. Full-sun coffee growers destroy this forest home. As a result, many species are quickly dying out.
On a more global level, the destruction of the rainforest for full-sun coffee fields also threatens(威胁)human life. Medical research often makes use of the forests' plant and animal life, and the destruction of such species could prevent researchers from finding cures for certain diseases. In addition, new coffee-growing techniques are poisoning the water locally, and eventually the world's groundwater.
Both locally and globally, the continued spread of full-sun coffee plantations (种植园)could mean the destruction of the rainforest ecology. The loss of shade trees is already causing a slight change in the world's climate, and studies show that loss of oxygen-giving trees also leads to air pollution and global warming. Moreover, the new growing techniques are contributing to acidic(酸性的) soil conditions.
It is obvious that the way much coffee is grown affects many aspects of life, from the local environment to the global ecology. But consumers do have a choice. They can purchase shade-grown coffee whenever possible, although at a higher cost. The future health of the planet and mankind is surely worth more than an inexpensive cup of coffee.
54. What can we learn about full-sun coffee production from Paragraph 4?
A. It limits the spread of new growing techniques.
B. It leads to air pollution and global warming.
C. It slows down the loss of shade trees. D. It improves local soil conditions.
55. The purpose of the text is to .
A. entertain B. advertise C. instruct D. persuade
56. Where does this text probably come from ?
A. An agricultural magazine. B. A medical journal.
C. An engineering textbook. D. A tourist guide.
57. Which of the following shows the structure of the whole text?
21.（2015江苏B）
In the United States alone, over 100 million cell-phones are thrown away each year. Cell-phones are part of a growing mountain of electronic waste like computers and personal digital assistants. The electronic waste stream is increasing three times faster than traditional garbage as a whole.
Electronic devices contain valuable metals such as gold and silver. A Swiss study reported that while the weight of electronic goods represented by precious metals was relatively small in comparison to total waste, the concentration (含量) of gold and other precious metals was higher in so-called e-waste than in naturally occurring minerals.
Electronic wastes also contain many poisonous metals. Even when the machines are recycled and the harmful metals removed, the recycling process often is carried out in poor countries, in practically uncontrolled ways which allow many poisonous substances to escape into the environment.
Creating products out of raw materials creates much more waste material, up to 100 times more, than the material contained in the finished products. Consider again the cell-phone, and imagine the mines that produced those metals, the factories needed to make the box and packaging(包装)it came in. Many wastes produced in the producing process are harmful as well.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency notes that most waste is dangerous in that “the production, distribution, and use of products—as well as management of the resulting waste—all result in greenhouse gas release.” Individuals can reduce their contribution by creating less waste at the start—for instance, buying reusable products and recycling.
In many countries the concept of extended producer responsibility is being considered or has been put in place as an incentive(动机)for reducing waste. If producers are required to take back packaging they use to sell their products, would they reduce the packaging in the first place?
Governments’ incentive to require producers to take responsibility for the packaging they produce is usually based on money. Why, they ask, should cities or towns be responsible for paying to deal with the bubble wrap (气泡垫) that encased your television?
From the governments’ point of view, a primary goal of laws requiring extended producer responsibility is to transfer both the costs and the physical responsibility of waste management from the government and tax-payers back to the producers.
58. By mentioning the Swiss study, the author intends to tell us that___________.
A. the weight of e-goods is rather small
B. e-waste deserves to be made good use of
C. natural minerals contain more precious metals
D. the percentage of precious metals is heavy in e-waste
59. The responsibility of e-waste treatment should be extended .
A. from producers to governments B. from governments to producers
C. from individuals to distributors D. from distributors to governments
60. What does the passage mainly talk about?
A. The increase in e-waste. B. The creation of e-waste.
C. The seriousness of e-waste. D. The management of e-waste.