第四节：阅读理解（共20小题，每小题2分，满分40分）
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。
Science Daily -------- Dutch ecologist Roxina Soler and her colleagues have discovered that subterranean（地下的）and above ground herbivorous（食草的）insects can communicate with each other by using plants as telephones. Subterranean insects issue chemical warning signals through the leaves of the plant. Thus, aboveground insects are warned that the plant is already “ occupied”.
Aboveground, leaf-eating insects prefer plants that have not yet been occupied by subterranean root-eating insects. Subterranean insects send out chemical signals through the leaves of the plant, which warn the aboveground insects about their presence. This message makes it possible for two different kinds of insects to avoid each other, so that they do not compete for the same plant.
In recent years it has been discovered that different types of aboveground insects develop slowly if they feed on plants that also have subterranean residents and vice versa（反之亦然）. It seems that a system has developed through natural selection, which helps the subterranean and aboveground insects to communicate with each other. This avoids unnecessary competition.
Through the “green telephone lines”, subterranean insects can also communicate with a third party, namely the natural enemy of caterpillars（毛虫）. Parasitic wasps（寄生的黄蜂）lay their eggs inside aboveground insects. The wasps also benefit from the signals sent by the leaves, as these help them find more insects for their eggs. The communication between subterranean and aboveground insects has only been studied in a few systems. It is still not clear how widespread this phenomenon is.
This research was carried out at the Netherlands Institute for Ecology by Roxina Soler, Jeffrey Harvey, Martijn Bezemer, Wim van der Putten and Louise Vet. The phD project, in which this study was carried out, was funded by the Free Competition of NOW Earth and Life Sciences.
41. After finding a plant occupied by root-eating insects, aboveground insects will usually ________.
A. send out warning signals
B. choose to leave the plant
C. fight with the root-eating insects
D. compete with them for the same plant
42. Aboveground insects will develop more quickly if their food plants _______.
A. have more green leaves
B. get more water and sunlight
C. are often visited by parasitic wasps
D. are not occupied by root-eating insects
43. The underlined part “a third party” in Paragraph 4 refers to ______.
A. caterpillars B. root-eating insects
C. parasitic wasps D. aboveground insects
44. What is the best title for the passage ?
A. Insects use plants as “telephones”
B. How do animals avoid competition
C. The living habit of different insects
D. Communication between different insects
I made a promise to myself on the way down to the vacation beach cottage. For two weeks I would try to be a loving husband and father. Totally loving. No ifs, ands or buts.
The idea had come to me as I listened to a talk on my car radio. The speaker was quoting a Biblical passage about husbands and their wives. Then he went on to say, “Love is an act of will. A person can choose to love.” To myself, I had to admit that I had been a selfish husband. Well, for two weeks that would change.
And it did. Right from the moment I kissed Evelyn at the door and said, “That new yellow sweater looks great on you.” “Oh, Tom, you noticed”, she said, surprised and pleased. Maybe a little puzzled. After the long drive, I wanted to sit and read. Evelyn suggested a walk on the beach. I started to refuse, but then I thought, “Evelyn’s been alone here with the kids all week and now she wants to be alone with me.” We walked on the beach while the children flew their kites.
So it went. Two weeks of not calling the Wall Street firm where I am a director; a visit to the shell museum though I usually hate museums. Relaxed and happy, that’s how the whole vacation passed. I made a new promise to keep on remembering to choose love.
There was one thing that went wrong with my experiment, however. Evelyn and I still laugh about it today. On the last night at our cottage, preparing for bed, Evelyn stared at me with the saddest expression.
“What’s the matter?” I asked her.
“Tom,” she said in a voice filled with distress, “ I don’t?”
“What do you mean?”
“Well…that checkup I had several weeks ago…our doctor…did he tell you something about me? Tom, you’ve been so good to me…am I dying?”
It took a moment for it all to be understood. Then I burst out laughing.
“No, honey,” I said, wrapping her in my arms. “You’re not dying; I’m just starting to live.”From the story we may infer that Tom drove to the beach cottage ______.
| A．with his family | B．with Evelyn |
| C．alone | D．with his children |
During the two weeks on the beach, Tom showed more love to his wife because ______.
| A．he was determined to be a good husband |
| B．he had made a lot of money in his Wall Street firm |
| C．she looked lovely in her new clothes |
| D．the doctor said his wife was seriously ill |
The author says, “There was one thing that went wrong with my experiment.” What does “one thing” refer to?
| A．He praised her sweater, which puzzled her. |
| B．She insisted on visiting a museum, which he hated. |
| C．He knew something about her illness but didn’t tell her. |
| D．He was so good to her that she thought she must be dying. |
By saying “I’m just starting to live,” Tom means that ______.
| A．he is just beginning to understand the real meaning of life |
| B．he is just beginning to enjoy life as a loving husband |
| C．he lived an unhappy life before and is now starting to change |
| D．he is beginning to feel regret for what he did to his wife before |
Northern Europeans spend a lot of time in their cold and cloudy winters planning their summer holidays. They are proud of their healthy color when they return home after the holiday. But they also know that a certain amount of sunshine is good for their bodies and general health.
In ancient Greece people knew about the healing(治疗) powers of the sun, but this knowledge was lost. At the end of the nineteenth century a Danish doctor, Niels Finsen, began to study the effect of sunlight on certain diseases, especially diseases of the skin. He was interested not only in natural sunlight but also in artificially (人造地) produced rays. Sunlight began to play a more important part in curing sick people.
A Swiss doctor, Auguste Rollier, made full use of the sun in his hospital at Lysine. Lysine is a small village high up in the Alps. The position is important: the rays of the sun with the greatest healing power are the infra-red (红外线的) and ultra-violet (紫外线的) rays; but ultra-violet rays are too easily lost in fog and the polluted air near industrial towns. Dr. Roller found that sunlight, fresh air and good food cure a great many diseases. He was particularly successful in curing certain forms of tuberculosis with his “sun-cure”.
There were a large number of children in Dr. Roller’s hospital. He decided to start a school where sick children could be cured and at the same time continue to learn. It was not long before his school was full.
In winter, wearing only shorts, socks and boots, the children put on their skis after breakfast and left the hospital. They carried small desks and chairs as well as their school books. Their teacher led them over the snow until they reached a slope which faced the sun and was free from cold winds. There they set out their desks and chairs, and school began.
Although they wore hardly any clothes, Roller’s pupils were very seldom cold. That was because their bodies were full of energy which they got from the sun. But the doctor knew that sunshine can also be dangerous. If, for example, tuberculosis is attacking the lungs, unwise sunbathing may do great harm.
Today there is not just one school in the sun. There are several in Switzerland, and since Switzerland is not the only country which has the right conditions, there are similar schools in other places.According to the passage, when did sunlight begin to play a more important part in the treatment of disease?
| A．From ancient times. |
| B．At the end of the nineteenth century. |
| C．Not until this century. |
| D．Only very recently. |
Why are a Danish doctor and a Swiss doctor mentioned in the second and third paragraphs?
| A．Because they both made use of sunlight to treat illness. |
| B．Because they were the first people who used sunlight for treatment. |
| C．Because they were both famous European doctors. |
| D．Because they used sunlight in very different ways. |
Dr Roller set up a “sun-cure” school probably for the reason that _______.
| A．most children could stay in his hospital |
| B．children could study while being treated |
| C．the school was expected to be full of pupils |
| D．the school was high up in the mountains |
What can be inferred from the last paragraph of the passage?
| A．“Sun-cure” schools are becoming popular everywhere. |
| B．Switzerland is the only country where “sun-cure” schools are popular. |
| C．Proper conditions are necessary for the running of a “sun-cure” school. |
| D．“Sun-cure” schools are found in countries where there is a lot of sunshine. |
I came to live here where I am now between Wounded Knee Greek and Grass Greek. Others came too, and we made these little grey houses of logs that you see, and they are square, It is a bad way to live, for there can be no power in a square.
You have noticed that everything an Indian does is in a circle, and that is because the Power of the World always works in circles, and everything tries to be round. In the old days when we were a strong and happy people, all our power came to us from the respectful circle of the nation, and so long as the circle was unbroken, the people were getting rich. The flowering tree was the living center of the circle, and the circle of the four quarters nursed it. The east gave peace and light, the south gave warmth, the west gave rain, and the north with its cold and strong wind gave strength and continuous power. This knowledge came to us from the outer world with our brief. Everything the Power of the World does is done in a circle. The sky is round, and I have heard that the earth is round like a ball, and so are all the stars. Birds make their nests in circle, for theirs are the same as ours. The sun comes forth and goes down again in a circle. The moon does the same, and both are round. Even the seasons form a great circle in their changing, and always come back again to where they were. The life of a man is a circle from childhood to childhood, and so it is in everything where power moves. Our places were like the nests of birds, and these were always set in a circle, the nation’s circle, a nest of many nests, where the Great Spirit meant for us to nurse our children.
But the Wasichus (Indian word for “white people”) have put us in these square boxes. Our power is gone and we are dying, for the power is not in us any more. You can look at our boys and see how it is with us. Where we were living by the power of the circle in the way we should, boys were men at twelve or thirteen years of age. But now it takes them very much longer to be full - grown.According to the passage, the Indians _______.
| A．don’t have modern instruments in their homes |
| B．refused to move from round places |
| C．lived in round places, but were forced to live in square houses |
| D．lived in round places, but then decided to move into square houses |
Two things being compared in the passage are _______.
| A．the Indians’ past and present living conditions |
| B．the Indians’ past and modern beliefs |
| C．the Indians’ old and new power |
| D．people and nature |
In the second paragraph “the four quarters” refers to _______.
| A．the four rooms of the Indian’s house |
| B．the four kinds of natural power |
| C．the four seasons |
| D．the four directions |
According to the author, once the Indians moved into square houses, _______.
| A．they had to move to other houses |
| B．boys took more time to grow into men |
| C．they forgot the old way of life |
| D．everyone was not happy |
Many immigrants(移民) to the United States find the decision to seek better lives for their families in America can have an unexpected and tragic consequence(后果). Deep differences with their children develop over language and culture.
“Many immigrants arrive here without much education. Their kids soon gain language skills and also street smarts(生存技能) on how to live in America, leaving the parents at a disadvantage,” Ileana , Roses, pastor of a Methodist church group operating in Virginia, said.
“Not only that but they find they cannot relate to children who quickly absorb American culture,” she said.
According to the US Census Bureau(人口调查局), the number of foreign born or first generation Americans reached 55 million last year, a record one in five of the total population.
A government survey of 922 immigrants in 2000 found that nearly 40 percent of those who had been in the United States for more than 15 years would still like to take English classes if they had the time.
Two thirds of low income households depended on their children for translation.
Psychologists(心理学家) and sociologists say parents can lose their position of authority(权威) in a family as a result and the effects of that can be far-reaching.
Children exposed to American pop culture that glorifies(颂扬) youth and sexuality(性感) often rebel when their parents try to impose the conservative values they brought with them.
“Americanization erodes(侵蚀) all important aspects of parenting,” said Richard Weissbourd, who teaches education at Harvard University.
“I feel a part of me is dying with my children. They don’t listen to my music. I have to play it on Sunday morning when they are not around,” said an immigrant.What troubles the immigrant parents most is ___________.
| A．that they can’t understand the English language |
| B．that they lose their position of authority in their families |
| C．that their children have lost sense of their own national values |
| D．how they can master the English language as soon as possible |
From the passage we can infer that the population of the states at present is about____.
| A．275 million | B．220 million |
| C．255 million | D．smaller than 250 million |
Which of the following is true according to the passage?
| A．All the immigrants had expected the troubles they would meet before they went to the US. |
| B．Two thirds of immigrant families are low income households. |
| C．American culture shows a spirit against conservative social and cultural values. |
| D．American pop culture puts the immigrant families at a disadvantage. |
Which of the following is probably the title of the report?
| A．The Result of the US Census |
| B．The Differences Between Parents and Children in the US |
| C．The Troubles of the American Immigrants |
| D．Role Reversal(颠倒) Troubles Many Parents and Children |
The Man of Many Secrets — Harry Houdini — was one of the greatest American entertainers in the theater this century. He was a man famous for his escapes — from prison cells, from wooden boxes floating in rivers, from locked tanks full of water. He appeared in theaters all over Europe and America. Crowds came to see the great Houdini and his “magic” tricks.
Of course, his secret was not magic, or supernatural powers. It was simply strength. He had the ability to move his toes as well as he moved his fingers. He could move his body into almost any position he wanted.
Houdini started working in the entertainment world when he was 17, in 1891. He and his brother Theo performed card tricks in club in New York. They called themselves the Houdini Brothers. When Harry married in 1894, he and his wife Bess worked together as magician and assistant. But for a long time they were not very successful. Then Harry performed his first prison escape, in Chicago in 1898. Harry persuaded a detective to let him try to escape from the prison, and he invited the local newspapermen to watch.
It was the publicity(宣传) that came from this that started Harry Houdini’s success. Harry had fingers trained to escape from handcuffs and toes trained to escape ankle chins. But his biggest secret was how he unlocked the prison doors. Every time he went into the prison cell, Bess gave him a kiss for good luck — and a small skeleton key, which is a key that fits many locks, pass quickly from her mouth to his.
Harry used these prison escapes to build his fame. He arranged to escape from the local prison of every town he visited. In the afternoon, the people of the town would read about it in their local newspapers, and in the evening every seat in the local theater would be full. What was the result? World-wild fame, and a name remembered today.According to the passage, Houdini’s success in prison escapes depends on _______.
| A．his special tricks and supernatural powers |
| B．his unusual ability and a skeleton key |
| C．his magic tricks and unhuman powers |
| D．his wisdom and magic tricks |
In the fourth paragraph, the underlined word “this” refers to _______.
| A．his first prison escape | B．the year 1898 |
| C．the publicity | D．Harry Houdini’s success |
It can be inferred from the passage that Houdini became famous _______.
| A．in 1894 | B．before he married |
| C．at the age of 17 | D．when he was about 24 |
粤公网安备 44130202000953号