It is nice to know what the weather will be like when we plan a trip. Do you kno

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It is nice to know what the weather will be like when we plan a trip. Do you know anything about the history of weather? Don’t look at the sky. Don’t look for old weather reports. Looking at the tree rings is more important. Correct weather reports date back only one century, but some trees can provide an exact record of weather even further back.
It is natural that a tree would grow best in a climate with plenty of sunlight and rainfall. It is also expected that little sunlight or rainfall would reduce the growth of a tree. The change from a favorable to an unfavorable climate can be found out by the reading pattern of rings in a tree trunk. To find out the weather of ten years ago, you can count the rings of a tree trunk from the outside to the inside. If the tenth ring is far from the other rings, then it is certain that plenty of sunny and rainy weather occurred. If the rings are close together, then the climate was bad for the tree.
Studying trees is important not only for the history of weather, but also for the history of man. In an area of New Mexico you can find only sand — no trees or people. However, many centuries ago a large population lived there. They left suddenly. Why?
A scientist studied the pattern of the rings of dead trees that had grown there. He made up his mind that the people had to leave because they had cut down all the trees. Trees were necessary to make fires and buildings. So, after the people destroyed the trees, they had to move.
In this example studying tree rings uncovered an exciting fact about the history of man.
小题1:We can find out the weather of five years ago by counting the rings of a tree trunk ____.

A．from the left to the right

B．from the right to the left

C．from the inside to the outside

D．from the outside to the inside

小题2:If the ring was far from the others, we can conclude that the weather of that year was ______.

A．bad

B．sunny

C．favorable

D．rainy

小题3:By studying the rings of dead trees in an area of New Mexico, the scientist found _______.

A．why the people had to leave

B．where the people had to go

C．what the people had to eat

D．how the people left

小题4:The ancient people usually lived where there were plenty of trees mainly because ______.

A．trees provided an exact record of weather for research

B．trees could supply them with fruit and food to live on

C．trees could supply them with shades

D．trees were materials for fires and buildings

小题5:By giving the example of an area of New Mexico, the author tries to prove .

A．trees can’t live in the area without population

B．that studying trees is important for the history of man and weather.

C．what the real relation is between tree rings and the history of man and weather

D．the history of man is important for the history of trees

答案

小题1:D
小题2:C
小题3:A
小题4:D
小题5:B

解析

试题分析：你知道天气的历史吗？由于树木的生长依靠阳光和水分，通过观察树木的年轮，我们可以了解到当地的提天气状况。而且，观察树木的年轮不仅可以了解天气，还可以了解人类的历史。
小题1:根据第二段“To find out the weather of ten years ago, you can count the rings of a tree trunk from the outside to the inside.”可知，从外向里观察树木的年轮，如果年轮之间间隔较大，说明阳光、水分充足，故选D。
小题2:根据第二段“The change from a favorable to an unfavorable climate can be found out by the reading pattern of rings in a tree trunk. ...If the tenth ring is far from the other rings, then it is certain that plenty of sunny and rainy weather occurred.”可知，年轮之间间隔距离较大，说明树木生长环境较好，阳光、水分充足，故选C。
小题3:根据第四段“the people had to leave because they had cut down all the trees. ...So, after the people destroyed the trees, they had to move.”可知，通过研究树木，科学家找到了当地人离开那里的原因，故选A。
小题4:根据第三地“Trees were necessary to make fires and buildings.”可知，树木是生活和建造房屋的原材料，古时候的人们通常生活在又很多树木的地方，故选D。
小题5:根据第三段“Studying trees is important not only for the history of weather, but also for the history of man.”可知，研究树木不仅可以了解当时的天气状况，还能了解人类的历史，作者通过举例来验证这个道理，故选B。

举一反三

Can you imagine learning by playing games. To be sure, only children experienced some things differently from those with sisters and brothers. Many feel more pressure to succeed. They also tend to look only to their parents as role models in the absence of brothers and sisters.
In India, 10-year-old Saviraj Sankpal founded a support group for the tiny minority of only children. Among other things, the group does volunteer work to counter (or be against) the myth that they are not responsible. "People think we"re treated too kindly and ruined," says Sankpal, a computer engineering student. "But I"d like to remind them how lonely it can get."
Most only children, however, say they wish for sisters or brothers only when it comes to caring for aging, unhealthy parents. Britain"s David Emerson, coauthor of the book The Only Child, says that such a person bears terrible burden in having to make all the decisions alone. Emerson knows from experience: After his father died, he chose to move his elderly mother from their family home, where she was vulnerable to (or easy to be attacked by) house breakers, to a new one with more security." The move was quite hard on her, and she might feel that I pushed her into it," he says,". After all, I am left with that responsibility."
In the future, more and more only children will likely face similar choices. With working mothers increasing, many families are finding they simply don"t have the time, money or energy to have more than one child. As only children become common, perhaps the world will realize that the Charge made against them is unjust.
小题1:It can be inferred from the passage that the author"s attitude towards only children is _______.

A．ironic

B．objective

C．unfriendly

D．unjust

小题2:It can be inferred from the passage that only children"s parents should ___________.

A．found a support group for their only children

B．do volunteer work to help their only children

C．let their only children make all the decisions alone

D．set good examples for their only children

小题3:Emerson decided to move his elderly mother to a new house because he ___________.

A．is the only one who cares about her

B．doesn"t want to leave her alone

C．wants to share the responsibility with her

D．is worried about her safety

小题4:It is quite usual now for a working mother to ____________.

A．spend all her time and money on her only child

B．be responsible for bringing up her only child

C．have and bring up only one child

D．devote all her energy to her job

小题5:The main idea of the passage is that ________.

A．only children are ruined and irresponsible

B．only children have to face many challenges

C．most only children want to have brothers and sisters

D．most only children share their responsibility with their parents

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Many people think of the brain as a mystery. They don"t know much about intelligence and how it works. When they do think about what intelligence is, many people believe that a person is born smart, average, or dumb — and stays that way in the whole life. But new research shows that the brain is more like a muscle — it changes and gets stronger when you use it. And scientists have been able to show just how the brain grows and gets stronger when you learn.
Everyone knows that when you lift weights, your muscles get bigger and you get stronger. A person who can"t lift 20 pounds when he/she starts exercising can get strong enough to lift 100 pounds after working out for a long time. That"s because the muscles become larger and stronger with exercise. And when you stop exercising, the muscles shrink and you get weaker. That"s why people say “Use it or lose it！”
But most people don"t know that when they practice and learn new things, parts of their brain change and get larger a lot like muscles do when they exercise. Inside the cortex (皮层) of the brain are billions of tiny nerve cells, called neurons. The nerve cells have branches connecting them to other cells in a complicated network. Communication between these brain cells is what allows us to think and solve problems. When you learn new things, these tiny connections in the brain actually multiply and get stronger. The more you challenge your mind to learn, the more your brain cells grow. Then, things that you once found very hard or even impossible to do — like speaking a foreign language or doing algebra (代数) — seem to become easy after learning them for a period of time. The result is a stronger, smarter brain.
Scientists started thinking that the human brain could develop and change when they studied animals" brains. They found out that animals that lived in a challenging environment were more “perspicacious” — they were better at solving problems and learning new things.
小题1:According to the first paragraph，________.

A．the function of our brain is like that of the muscle

B．until now it"s impossible to explain the brain"s mystery

C．many people believe one"s intelligence is naturally determined

D．one"s brain grows stronger as the age increases

小题2:Training muscles is compared to ________.

A．using the brain

B．connecting things in your brain

C．lifting weights

D．doing research about the brain

小题3:What is Paragraph 3 mainly about_________?
The complex structure of the brain.
B. How changes in the muscles affect the brain.
C. The importance of the brain.
D. How the brain becomes stronger by learning new things.
小题4:What does the underlined word “perspicacious” in the last paragraph probably mean_________?

A．Strong.

B．Smart.

C．Popular.

D．Active.

小题5:The paragraph that follows the passage will most probably talk about _______.

A．the differences between animals’ brains and humans’ brains

B．the relation between human brains and muscles

C．scientists’ findings about animals’ brains

D．how to make your brain smarter through self-development

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Rising levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere are a major cause of climate change, and now a new study has confirmed that atmosphere CO₂ is also affecting the ocean chemistry and potentially harming sea life.
Montana State University scientist Robert Dore has been researching the water in the Pacific Ocean for almost two decades. “We’ve been going to the same spot in the Pacific Ocean, and we try and characterize long-term change in the open ocean environment. And one of the key things that we measure is CO₂ levels. And we’ve been able to record this increasing quantity of atmosphere CO₂ into the ocean.”
Scientists expected that as atmosphere CO₂ increased, more and more of the carbon dioxide would be absorbed into the ocean, affecting the chemical balance of the sea water, with a potentially harmful impact on shellfish and coral in particular.
“As carbon dioxide dissolves in the water or seawater in this case, it forms a weak acid, carbonic acid,” Dore explains. “And therefore, as the concentration of CO₂ in the atmosphere goes up and that exchanges with the surface seawater, it drives the pH down, and makes it more acidic.”
The seawater samples Dore and his colleagues have analyzed confirm what the theory predicts.
The effect was particular striking at about 250 meters down, and again at 500 meters. Dore and his colleagues came up with two possible explanations. It could be that surface water picked up CO₂ and then moved to those depths. Or there could be a biological explanation.
“It’s important to realize that the oceans are really becoming acidic. And it can have negative impacts on a whole variety of sea life from fish to coral. It’s potentially catastrophic.”
小题1:What can be the best title of the passage?

A．Scientist Researching Seawater

B．Sea Life Facing Danger

C．Oceans Becoming More Acidic

D．Climate Change Affecting Seawater

小题2:With the increase of atmospheric CO₂, _______.

A．more corals will appear in the sea

B．the chemical balance of the seawater is affected

C．the surface water is becoming warmer

D．the pH of the ocean out here has been increasing

小题3:Which of the following shows the process of the impact of atmospheric CO2 on sea life?
a. Sea life is endangered.
b. CO₂ goes into the surface water.
c. The ocean chemistry is affected.
d. CO₂ decreases the pH and makes the seawater more acidic.
e. CO₂ levels in the atmosphere go up.

A．a→b→c→d→e	B．e→b→c→d→a
C．a→e→b→c→d	D．e→d→c→b→a

小题4:Scientist Robert Dore came to the conclusion based on_______.

A．the expectation of other scientists

B．some former theory

C．his research and analysis

D．a major cause of climate change

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Humans might be the most highly-evolved species on the planet, but most animals possess skills we can only dream of having. Imagine how much electricity we could save if we could see in the dark the way cats do. Imagine leaping from tree to tree like a monkey. Giraffes, which are otherwise calm and good-natured, sleep only 4.6 hours a day.
We realized a long, long time ago that nature provides the best blueprint for invention. We’ve borrowed canals from beavers and reflectors from cat’s eyes. Although the words “bionics”(仿生学) became popular only after the 1960s, history shows that nature has always provided ideas on solving everyday problems. Our archives(档案) don’t go back to the time of Leonardo da Vinci and his bird-like flying machines, but we can take you to the late 19th century, where we applied those same principles for building our first practical airplanes.
To prepare for their flight at Kitty Hawk, the Wright brothers studied the movements of pigeons to figure out how they stayed high up when they were heavier than air. Their success inspired scores of successors to improve on the airplane by studying various aspects of nature. One of Orville Wright’s pupils caught and stuffed seagulls to examine their wingspan. Meanwhile, two French inventors examined spinning sycamore(梧桐) seeds in an effort to apply those same motions, reversed, to a helicopter .
Some examples are more obvious than others. The outside of the airplane designed by the Wright brothers looks like a minimalistic(简单抽象艺术) structure. On the other hand, Barney Connett’s fish submarine actually looks like a fish.
Some bio-inspired concepts have yet to be invented. In the 1960s, the US Army commissioned several university professors to conduct research on the motor skills animals in hope of applying those same abilities to tanks. Tanks that run like horses or jump like grasshoppers(蚂蚱)-sounds shocking, doesn’t it? But imagine how life would change if we could achieve that.
小题1:“Cats”, “monkeys” and “giraffes” mentioned in paragraph 1 are examples to show______.

A．they are highly-evolved species as humans

B．animals have skills that humans do not possess

C．humans can learn animals’ skills

D．they are skillful in different ways

小题2:What happened after the Wright brothers’ success?

A．People carried out a systematic study on pigeons.

B．People studied more animals and plants to develop the airplane.

C．People could fly their airplane for fun.

D．People kept their airplane at a French gallery.

小题3:Which of the following is true about the research carried out by the US Army?

A．It has cost a large sum of money.

B．It has changed our life.

C．It has improved the abilities of tanks

D．It has not succeeded yet.

小题4:What does the writer want to tell in the passage?

A．many inventions get ideas from nature.

B．Some animals possess unique skills.

C．People should protect nature.

D．Bionics is far from perfect

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Many parents take on the role of being their children’s preschool teacher and the responsibility of readying them for kindergarten. To achieve this goal, it is important for parents to introduce a variety of subjects in a positive and playful manner.
“Learning should not be forced,”says Marion Godwin, who has taught first grade in Moorestown, N. J. for more than 30 years.“ It should be taught according to what they know and do best—and that is‘ play’. When teaching them, play games and have fun with the subject. And parents should always be looking for‘teachable moments’.”
“You want a child to be a lifelong learner, so you want to show them learning is everywhere,”she says.“If parents take the time to lay a strong educational foundation, their children will keep building on it.”
Introduce children to science with hands-on activities that interest them, such as growing plants from seeds, discussing animals and how to care for pets, and observing the chemical changes that occur during cooking”, she says.
“Sorting activities, simple patterns and counting games are a great way to teach children the basics of math, and taking them on field trips, singing songs and reciting rhymes also are ways to prepare them for the first day of school”, she says.
“I think children are naturals when it comes to computers,” she says.“Let them play educational games on the computer and teach them how to type their first names using the keyboard. When they are more familiar with using the computer, let them find pictures of animals and places on the web. ”
“Don’t criticize the child,” she says. “You can’t force them to learn something. If they don’t get something right, so what? Smile and be happy and make the experience joyful. Parents need to understand that if a child gets something wrong, they may think something is wrong with them. Keep working with them and when they get the right answer make sure you tell them how hard they worked to get the correct answer. ”
小题1:Marion Godwin tells us that we should teach the children according to their_____ .

A．subjects and needs

B．level and interest

C．teachable moments

D．strong educational foundation

小题2:According to Godwin, children should ____________________ .

A．keep a pet each and care for it

B．do some cooking every day

C．learn science with interesting hand-on activities

D．learn from the farmers and grow plants from seeds

小题3:In Godwin’s opinion, children should be encouraged to_________ .

A．learn all by themselves

B．play more computer games

C．learn to type their first names

D．learn online under instructions

小题4:What’s the best title of the passage?

A．How to prepare your children for kindergarten

B．Learning should not be forced

C．How to be a lifelong learner

D．Learning is everywhere

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