Japanese scientists have taken the first photographs of one of the most mysterio
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Japanese scientists have taken the first photographs of one of the most mysterious creatures in the deep ocean — the giant squid①.
Until now the only information about the behavior of the creatures which measure up to 18 meters (59 feet) in length has been based on dead or dying squid washed up on shore or captured②in commercial fishing nets.
But Tsunemi Kubodera, of the National Science Museum, and Kyoichi Mori of the Ogasawara Whale Watching Association, both in Tokyo have captured the first images of Architeuthis attacking bait③900 meters below the surface in the cold, dark waters of the North Pacific. “We show the first wild images of a giant squid in its natural environment,” they said in a report in the journal Proceedings B of the Royal Society.
Little is known about the creatures because it has been so difficult to locate and study them alive. Large ships and specialist equipment, which is costly, are needed to study deep sea environments.
The Japanese scientists found the squid by following sperm whales, the most effective hunters of giant squid, as they gathered to feed between September and December in the deep waters off the coast of the Ogasawara Islands in the North Pacific. They used a remote long-line camera and depth logging system to capture the giant squid in the ocean depths.
The most dramatic character of giant squids is the pair of extremely long tentacles④, distinct from the eight shorter arms. The long tentacles make up to two-thirds of the length of the dead specimens⑤to date. The giant squid appear to be a much more active meat-eating animals than researchers had thought.
Notes:
① squid n. 鱿鱼
② capture vt. 捕获
① bait n. 鱼饵
② tentacle n. 触角，触须
③ specimen n. 标本，样本
小题1:The passage mainly tells us that ________.| A．Scientists captured a giant squid alive | | B．Scientists captured a giant squid on camera | | C．giant squids are special meat-eating animals | | D．giant squids mainly live in the deep sea |
小题2:According to the passage, we can infer that the word “Architeuthis” should refer to ________.| A．a scientist | B．the sperm whale | C．a big ship | D．the giant squid |
小题3:Which of the following about giant squids is TRUE?| A．They like living the cold and deep waters. | | B．They mainly feed on the dead fish. | | C．They like playing, using their tentacles. | | D．They have only eight arms around the mouth. |
小题4:According to the passage, the scientists located the giant squid ________.| A．through a remote long-line camera | | B．by using depth logging system | | C．by following sperm whales | | D．by using the bait to attract them |
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答案
小题1:B
小题2:D
小题3:A
小题4:C |
解析
小题1:主旨大意题。本篇文章主要是向读者讲述了科学家利用摄像机捕获了一条大鱿鱼的图像，其他选项要么与原文不符，要么太片面。
小题2:词义猜测题。由文章的第三段可知科学家利用相机观测到一条大鱿鱼的情况，因此袭击鱼饵的应当是鱿鱼，所以Architeuthis指的就是鱿鱼。
小题3:细节判断题。由文章第三段和第五段可知，这些大鱿鱼主要生活在深海处，由于是在北极地区，当然也是较冷的地方。
小题4:细节理解题。由文章的第五段可知，科学家是通过跟踪sperm whale来知道大鱿鱼的大体位置。 |
举一反三
Among the dead in South Asia’s tsunami① were many tourists at Sri Lanka’s national wildlife park at Yala. But very few of the park’s animals — elephants, buffaloes, monkeys and wild cats — appear to have died. There are theories that animals can sense natural disasters and flee to safety.
First, it’s possible that the animals may have heard the quake before the tsunami hit. The underwater rupture likely produced sound waves known as infrasound② or infrasonic sound. Humans can’t hear infrasound, but many animals including dogs, elephants, tigers and pigeons can.
A second early warning sign the animals might have sensed is ground vibration③. The massive quake would have produced vibrational waves known as Rayleigh waves. These vibrations move through the ground like waves move on the surface of the ocean but faster. They travel at ten times the speed of sound. The Rayleigh waves would have reached SriLanka hours before the water hit. Mammals, birds, insects and spiders can sense Rayleigh waves. So the animals at Yale might have felt the Rayleigh waves and then run to higher ground.
But what about humans? While we can’t hear infrasound, we can feel it, although we don’t necessarily know we’re feeling it. We also experience Rayleigh waves by special sensors in our joints, which exist just for that purpose. Sadly, it seems we don’t pay attention to the information when we get it. Maybe we screen it out because there’s so much going on before our eyes and in our ears. Humans have a lot of things on our minds and usually that works out OK.
Notes:
① tsunami n. 海啸
② infrasound n. 次声
③ vibration n. 振动，颤动
Choose the best answers according to the above:
小题1: Why did few animals at Yala die when the tsunamis that caused a huge number of human deaths hit?| A．Because the animals were staying at a higher place in the park. | | B．Because the animals were able to run much faster than human beings. | | C．Because human beings cannot hear the infrasonic sound. | | D．Because the animals might have picked up the danger signals and ran away. |
小题2:Which of the statements about “Ravleigh waves” is true?| A．Rayleigh waves are massive vibrational waves that usually cause quakes or tsunamis. | | B．Rayleigh waves move on the ocean surface at a speed ten times that of sound waves. | | C．Rayleigh waves can be felt both by animals and human beings. | | D．Rayleigh waves, just like infrasonic sound, can only be felt by animals. |
小题3:When a tsunami hits, it is possible that＿＿＿＿.| A．we can’t feel the infrasound so we can’t be informed of the danger | | B．we can feel Rayleigh waves as well as infrasound so we are able to escape the danger like animals | | C．we were so busy with things on our minds that we feel neither infrasound nor Rayleigh waves | | D．we think nothing of the information of its coming even though we can also get it |
小题4: What does the underlined word “that” in the last sentence refer to?| A．Screening out the information. | | B．There being so much going on before our eyes and in our ears. | | C．Having a lot of things on our minds. | | D．Paying attention to the information. |
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It is sometimes said that strange flying objects have been seen high up in the sky. People call these strange objects Unidentified Flying Objects (UFO). These UFOs caused a lot of interest. Some of the reports about them are difficult to believe. Some have been explained in scientific ways. Others have never been explained. Here is an account of UFOs from a report.
Dennis Burdens, who wrote an article, tells us that he once saw a UFO himself. He was having dinner one night with a friend near Tripoli, Libya, and after dinner the two men walked across a yard to his room to look at some papers. Burdens noticed that the moon looked strange that night.
“It wasn’t the moon ”, was the reply.
They watched the light and saw that it was moving. It seemed to be an object rather like a big plate. In some ways it looked like smoke with a light on it, but it wasn’t smoke because it didn’t change its shape. It was moving in a regular way. That is to say, it didn’t go suddenly faster or more slowly, and it didn’t go higher or lower. So the two men decided that there must be men in it.
After that, Burdens said that he felt eyes looking at him. He was being watched in the darkness.
When it was nearer, they noticed that the bottom parts were brighter than the top. The bottom was yellow and the top red. Then the object suddenly turned away and left Libya, moving very fast.
On a later day Burdens talked to other people about it, and he found some who had seen it. They all described it in the same way. Could they all be mistaken?
小题1: UFOs are _____.| A．flying high up in the sky | B．strange flying objects | | C．difficult to believe | D．very interested |
小题2: A UFO was seen one night _____.| A．when they were walking across a yard to Burdens’ room | | B．while they were looking at the light | | C．when Burdens noticed the moon appearing strange | | D．while they were having dinner |
小题3:The UFO moved _______.| A．regularly | B．in a changeable way | C．slowly | D．fast |
小题4: The UFO looked like _____ .| A．smoke | B．a large plate | C．light | D．a jumping object |
小题5:The UFO was seen ______ .| A．by Burdens and his friend | B．brighter in the darkness | | C．by several people | D．to have a yellow bottom and a red top in the same way |
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With the start of the new semester students around the country exchange their fun and fashionable clothes for boring school uniforms.
"The uniform makes us look like a bunch of clones, especially when we are doing morning exercises in the playground, "said Qing, a Senior 2 from a high school in Shanghai. "But we are not exactly the same from the top to the bottom. The boys wear different sport shoes and girls have different decorations ( 装饰品 )in their hair. These are the areas where you can express yourself" said Qing.
Although it might be strange for boys to talk about fashion, they do care about what they wear in school, especially shoes, according to Qing.
"Nike and Adidas basketball shoes, although they are still the must for many of my friends ,are becoming out-of-date,” added. He explained, "Since Liu Xiang ran so fast in Athens, running shoes are becoming popular in this autumn."
"Still in fashion are the various baseball caps and American-style T-shirts with random English words printed on them, "said Qing. "The accuracy ( 准确性 )of the written message isn"t important. Often, the words are misspelt . Sometimes they do not even make sense “ Qing said with a smile.
Besides sports shoes and T-shirts, styles and colours of school bags are another opportunity for students to express their taste in fashion. Some bags are made more eye-catching by decorating them with small hanging dolls. Other fashionable items are the colourful drink contains which are now popular among girls this semester.
As in China, the new semester in the US also brings new fashion trends: shirts printed with Chinese words, necklaces with Hebrew ( 希伯莱 )or Hindi ( 印度的 )characters, and Brazilian jewelry, are all common in schools in Florida, according to Carmen Domingues, a high school student.
小题1:What does "a bunch of clones”( Paragraph 2)mean?| A．All of the clothes are the same. | B．All of the exercises are the same. | | C．All of the clothes are different. | D．All of the exercises are different. |
小题2:How do the students express themselves in school?| A．The girls wear different sport shoes. | | B．All the students wear school uniforms. | | C．The girls have different decorations in their hair. | | D．The boys drink water from colourful drinks containers. |
小题3:Why are Nike and Adidas basketball shoes becoming out-of-date?| A．Because the shoes are not eye-catching. | | B．Because running shoes become more popular. | | C．Because the shoes have been popular for a long time. | | D．Because they have changed their opinions for Liu Xiang. |
小题4:Which of the following is NOT the new fashion trends in the US?| A．Necklace with Hebrew or Hindi characters. | | B．Baseball caps and American-style T-shirts. | | C．Shirts printed with Chinese words. | | D．Brazilian jewelry. |
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Everywhere man is altering the balance of nature．He is facilitating the spread of plants and animals into new regions, sometimes deliberately, sometimes unconsciously．He is covering huge areas with new kinds of plants, or with houses, factories, slag-heaps and other products of his civilization．He exterminates some species on a large scale, but favours the multiplication of others．In brief, he has done more in five thousand years to alter the biological aspect of the planet than has nature in five million．
Many of these changes which he has brought about have had unforeseen consequences．Who would have thought that the throwing away of a piece of Canadian waterweed would have caused half the waterways of Britain to be blocked for a decade, or that the provision of pot cacti for lonely settlers’ wives would have led to Eastern Australian being overrun with forests of Prickly Pear? Who would have prophesied that the cutting down of forests on the Adriatic coasts, or in parts of Central Africa, could have reduced the land to a semidesert, with the very soil washed away from the bare rock? Who would have thought that improved communications would have changed history by the spreading of disease-sleeping sickness into East Africa, measles into Oceania, very possibly malaria into ancient Greece?
These are spectacular examples; but examples on a smaller scale are everywhere to be found．We make a nature sanctuary for rare birds, prescribing absolute security for all species; and we may find that some common and hardy kind of bird multiplies beyond measure and ousts the rare kinds in which we were particularly interested．We see, owing to some little change brought about by civilization, the starling spread over the English country-side in hordes．We improve the yielding capacities of our cattle; and find that now they exhaust the pastures which sufficed for less exigent stock．
小题1:The following examples except ________ reflect man altering the balance of nature．| A．man is covering huge areas with new kinds of plants | | B．man is facilitating the spread of animals into new regions． | | C．man is killing some species on a large scale | | D．man is getting to know the importance of keeping the balance of nature． |
小题2:What had a piece of Canadian waterweed cause? | A．Eastern Australian was overrun with forests． | | B．Half the waterways of Britain blocked for a decade． | | C．In parts of central Africa, the land reduced to a semidesert． | | D．Disease-sleeping has been caused． |
小题3:What have spread diseases? | A．Disease-sleeping sickness． | B．Measles． | | C．Improved communications． | D．Malaria． |
小题4:We make a nature sanctuary for rare birds but __________| A．some common and hardy kind of bird multiplies | | B．rare kinds multiply | | C．all bird multiply | | D．no bird multiply |
小题5:The main idea of the passage is _________．| A．that man is deliberately destroying the balance of nature | | B．that man has foreseen the consequences of altering the balance old nature | | C．that improved communications have changed history | | D．that man is altering the balance of nature |
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This year some twenty-three hundred teenagers（young people aged from 13 —19）from all over the world will spend about ten months in U. S. homes. They will attend U.S. schools, meet U.S. teenagers, and form impressions of the real America. At the same time, about thirteen hundred American teenagers will go to other countries to learn new languages and gain a new understanding of the rest of the world.
Here is a two-way student exchange in action. Fred, nineteen, spent last year in Germany with George’s family. In turn, George’s son Mike spent a year in Fred’s home in America.
Fred, a lively young man, knew little German when he arrived, but after two months’ study, the language began to come to him. The school was completely different from what he had expected — much harder. Students rose respectfully① when the teacher entered the room. They took fourteen subjects instead of the six that are usual in the United States. There were almost no outside activities.
Family life, too, was different. The father’s word was law, and all activities were around the family rather than the individual. Fred found the food too simple at first. Also, he missed having a car.
“Back home, you pick up some friends in a car and go out and have a good time. In Germany, you walk, but you soon learn to like it.”
At the same time, in America, Mike, a friendly German boy, was also forming his idea. “I suppose I should criticize② American schools,” he says. “It is far too easy by our level. But I have to say that I like it very much. In Germany we do nothing but study. Here we take part in many outside activities. I think that maybe your schools are better in training for citizens. There ought to be some middle ground between the two.”
Notes:
① respectfully adv. 尊敬地，谦恭地
② criticize vt. 批评，责备
Choose the best answers according to the above:
小题1:This year __ teenagers will take part in the exchange programme between America and other countries.| A．twenty-three hundred | B．thirteen hundred | | C．over three thousand | D．less than two thousand |
小题2:The whole exchange programme is mainly to __.| A．help teenagers in other countries know the real America | | B．send students in America to travel in Germany | | C．let students learn something about other countries | | D．have teenagers learn new languages |
小题3:What is particular in America schools is that __.| A．there is some middle ground between the two teaching buildings. | | B．there are a lot of outside activities | | C．students usually take fourteen subjects in all | | D．students go outside to enjoy themselves in a car |
小题4:After experiencing the American school life, Mike thought __.| A．a better education should include something good from both American and Germany | | B．German schools trained students to be better citizens | | C．American schools were not as good as German schools | | D．the easy life in the American school was more helpful to students |
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