Back in old times, people had little knowledge about the universe and nature. Th
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Back in old times, people had little knowledge about the universe and nature. Things we now consider to be common sense were mysteries to our ancestors.
Over the years, major breakthroughs have been made in science and many phenomena have been explained. But still, there are always questions we can"t yet answer, and The Guardian has listed some of them.
1. What makes us human?
Just looking at your DNA won"t tell you - human DNA is 99 percent identical to that of the chimpanzee and, believe it or not, 50 percent identical to a banana"s! A lot of the things we once thought were unique about us - language and tool use, recognizing ourselves in the mirror and so on – have since been seen in other animals. Perhaps it"s our culture that makes the difference or maybe our ability to use fire. It"s also possible that our capacity (能力) for co-operation and our trading skills are what make us unique.
2. Why do we dream?
Given the fact that we spend around a third of our lives sleeping, shouldn"t we know everything about it? Unfortunately, scientists are still searching for a complete explanation of what happens when we sleep and why we dream.
Austrian psychologist Sigmund Freud believed dreams were the expressions of wishes that we can"t fulfill in our real lives. Others have wondered whether dreams are just random "noise" coming from a sleeping brain.
3. Could we someday live forever?
Apart from accidents, most people die because of diseases that can be treated and aging. And since many diseases, such as diabetes（糖尿病） and cancer, are diseases of aging, treating aging itself could be the key to extending our lives.
Our knowledge of what causes us to age - and what allows some animals to live longer than others - is expanding rapidly. And though we haven"t quite worked out all the details, we"ve worked out some pieces of the puzzles such as DNA damage and metabolism (新陈代谢), which are all leading to the invention of drugs that can slow down the aging process.
If we"re lucky enough to lengthen our lives, we might even get to see the day when all of these questions are answered.
小题1:The main point of the passage is ______.| A．to inform people of the knowledge about the universe and nature | | B．to introduce major breakthroughs that have been made in science | | C．to present some questions we can"t yet answer | | D．to explain what were once mysteries to our ancestors |
小题2:Chimpanzees and bananas are mentioned as examples to prove that ______.| A．human beings are actually not different from other animals | | B．animals have completely different DNA from that of plants | | C．both animals and plants share the same amount of DNA | | D．DNA alone is not good enough to make humans different |
小题3:The underlined word "identical" is closest in meaning to ______.| A．mysterious | B．unique | C．advanced | D．same |
小题4:Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?| A．What were mysteries to our ancestors are considered to be common sense now. | | B．Now we know much more about dreams than our ancestors did in the past. | | C．With the invention of new drugs people can possibly live even longer. | | D．If all the diseases can be treated people can theoretically live forever. |
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答案
小题1:C
小题2:D
小题3:D
小题4:C |
解析
试题解析：本文讲述了一些到现在为止科学还不能做出解释的几个问题。
小题1:C主旨大意题。通读全文和根据第二段随后点题句：But still, there are always questions we can"t yet answer, and The Guardian has listed some of them.所以C正确。
小题2:D细节推理题。根据第一个问题第一句话：Just looking at your DNA won"t tell you - human DNA is 99 percent identical to that of the chimpanzee and, believe it or not, 50 percent identical to a banana"s!仅 看你的DNA是不能辨别出你的，因为人类的DNA是百分之99与黑猩猩相同，信不信由你，百分之50和香蕉是相同的！所以D正确。
小题3:D词义猜测题。根据全句Just looking at your DNA won"t tell you - human DNA is 99 percent identical to that of the chimpanzee and, believe it or not, 50 percent identical to a banana"s!仅 看你的DNA是不能辨别出你的，因为人类的DNA是百分之99与黑猩猩相同，信不信由你，百分之50和香蕉是相同的！和下文内容，所以D正确。
小题4:C细节理解题。根据倒数第二段最后And though we haven"t quite worked out all the details, we"ve worked out some pieces of the puzzles such as DNA damage and metabolism (新陈代谢), which are all leading to the invention of drugs that can slow down the aging process.尽管我们还没有解决所有的细节，但我们已经解决了部分的困惑，像DNA的损害和新陈代谢，这导致了减缓我们衰老的药的发明，所以C正确。 |
举一反三
WELLINGTON, September 19 (Xinhua) -- If your teenage son won"t get out of bed in the morning, then take comfort from the fact that he might be sleeping his way to a healthier future, according to a new research from New Zealand.
Researchers in human nutrition at the University of Otago have found that teenage boys who sleep less have more body fat when compared to girls, for whom lack of sleep has no noticeable effect on their body fat ratios.
The study of 386 boys and 299 girls aged 15 to 18 found that average-sized 16-year-old boy weighing 69.5 kg and 176 cm tall, who slept for eight hours a day, had a waist size l.8 cm bigger and l.6 kg, or 9 percent, more body fat than the average-sized boy who slept 10 hours a day.
"The boys who slept eight hours a day would also have l.8 kg more lean (bone and muscle) mass compared to the boys who slept 10 hours, but that"s only a 1.4-percent increase, compared to the 9- percent increase seen in body fat," said lead researcher from the Department of Human Nutrition, Dr. Paula Skidmore.
"Our results suggest that for older teenage boys, making sure that they get enough sleep may help to maintain a healthier body. It seems to be that, within reason, the more sleep the better for boys," Skidmore said in a statement Thursday.
"It was unexpected that we did not find the same result in girls, who may actually be more aware of their diet and more in tune with a healthier lifestyle."
The researchers ruled out the effects of food choice and number of screens, such as televisions, games and consoles, which the teenagers had in their bedrooms.
小题1:What"s the research really about?| A．Boys and girls. | B．Food and weight. | C．Sleep and health. | D．Screens and fat. |
小题2:What"s the result of less sleep for teenage boys?| A．Bigger waist and more fat in the body. | | B．An increase in weight and height. | | C．More concerned with their diet. | | D．A decrease in bone and muscle. |
小题3:From the sixth paragraph we can infer that ______.| A．girls usually sleep less and have healthier lifestyles than boys | | B．the researchers expected to see the same result in girls | | C．peoples" diet has a great effect on their health | | D．boys are usually lazier than girls |
小题4:Who would be the most pleased to hear the news?| A．Teachers. | B．Girls. | C．Parents. . | D．Boys. |
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I give two examples as to why intelligent life may not actually exist, though I admit that for me, or even for a physicist who devoted his or her entire life to researching and studying the universe, it"s shocking to claim that completely no life exists elsewhere.
Keeping that in mind, I"d just like to consider conditions elsewhere in the known universe. You really only need to look at our own solar system or the Earth at certain periods in its own history to appreciate that most places are much worse and much less suitable for life than our mild, watery globe.
So far, space scientists have discovered about seventy planets outside the solar. But it appears that if you wish to have a planet suitable for life, you just have to be very lucky, and the more advanced the life is, the luckier you"ll have to be. I"m by no means a space observer, but I can recognize some particularly fortunate breaks we"ve had on the Earth. For example:
We are, to a degree, at the right distance from the perfect type of star, the one that is big enough to radiate a huge amount of energy, but not so big as to bum itself out quickly. Had our sun been ten times as huge, it would have burnt out completely after only ten million years, instead of ten billion and surely we would not exist. Too near, everything on the Earth would have boiled and withered away; any further, everything would have frozen over.
The universe is a surprising place, and our existence within it is a wonder. If a long and unimaginably complex sequence of events dating back 4.6 billion years or so hadn"t happened in a particular manner at a particular time --if, to take just one example, the dinosaurs hadn"t been wiped out by a meteor(流星)--we might still be a few centimeters long, with whisker(胡须) and a tail, and you"ll be reading this in a cave somewhere.
小题1:What"s the best title for this passage?| A．No Life Exists out of the Earth | | B．Seventy Planets Discovered | | C．A Place Full of Wonders | | D．Perfect Conditions for Life |
小题2:What makes the Earth more suitable for life than other planets in the solar system?| A．The Earth is the only planet that can receive energy from the sun. | | B．The sun is at the right distance from us and in proper size. | | C．The distance between the planets was neither too long nor too near. | | D．The dinosaurs were no longer a threat to the Earth. |
小题3:What does the underlined phrase "withered away" in the 4th paragraph mean?| A．Exploded. | B．Expanded. | C．Floated away. | D．Dried and died. |
小题4:Where does the text probably come from?| A．A history book. | B．A magazine. | C．A science fiction. | D．A famous novel. |
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U.S. Bottled Water Sales Are Booming Again Despite Opposition
Despite organized anti-bottled-water campaigns across the country and a noisy debate about bottled water’s environmental impact, Americans are buying more bottled water than ever.
Why do so many people seem to think they should have any input on what other American’s choose to buy or do?
If they want to buy bottled water, let them.
If they want to eat fast food, let them.
If they want to smoke pot, let them.
— Barackalypse
People just get tired of paying for others’ bad behavior. If many people eat excessive fast food, you pay higher insurance premiums. If many people frequently buy bottled water, your trash bills go up and landfills fill up quickly.
It’s about personal responsibility, which really should be a cornerstone of libertarianism.
— Bdbr
So? This is the price you pay to live in a free society. You want to control the life of another just so you can save a few bucks? What would you say when someone do the same to you?
— Norman619
Defend selfish pricks all you like; I’m just glad there are still people who still believe personal responsibility is a good and decent thing. We make your life cheaper and less bothersome.
— Yoyo
What a waste of money! It’s fine when you’re on the road and you need a cold drink, but people who buy cases of bottled water for home are completely crazy.
— Agmlauncher
I wish we all can find a way to improve things and benefit from this. The environment needs a lot of help but businesses will always work on what people would need and demand. Is this part of the balance? Hope we can find better ways.
— Skipweis
小题1:What can we know about bottled water in America?| A．Americans are consuming more bottled water than tap. | | B．US bottled water sales have increased for the first time. | | C．Activists in several regions have been fighting against it. | | D．Some people worry about its bad effect on the environment. |
小题2:Who would agree with Barackalypse on this matter?| A．Bdbr. | B．Norman619. | C．Yoyo. | D．Agmlauncher. |
小题3:According to the text, Agmlauncher is _____ bottled water.| A．partly supportive of | B．extremely against | | C．strongly in favor of | D．not concerned about |
小题4:Which of the following statements goes with Skipweis’ opinion?| A．The environment is emphasized too much. | | B．It’s impossible for people to find a better way. | | C．Business is not totally responsible for the problem. | | D．At present we can’t benefit from bottled water at all. |
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Every English learner hopes to find a patient native speaker who will politely correct mistakes and teach him some useful new vocabulary. But native speakers can be hard to find. If you’re having trouble communicating in English, American situation comedies are one good way to help.
They can not only give you a lot of information about American culture, but also offer some useful daily expressions. Watching them will help you enlarge your vocabulary and teach you correct language usage in different situations. Best of all, situation comedies are a fun way to learn.
The Apprentice
The American reality (现实) TV show is hosted by the famous businessman Donald Trump. It’s based on the idea of the final job interview for the final job. The show picks 16 people to compete for a job with Trump’s business. Those who fail their weekly tasks have to meet with Trump. They have to explain why they should not be fired (解雇).
The Apprentice is useful for English students who want to learn how to make up a persuasive (令人信服的) argument. For example, rather than say “I think I did a good job”, one may also learn to throw off the possibility of uncertainty by saying, “I did a good job.”
Desperate Housewives (DH)
Desperate Housewives is set in an invented American town, Wisteria Lane. It follows a group of middle-aged women as they go through their daily family lives. But in fact, those women live a life of lies, secrets, criminal (犯罪的) acts, and mystery.
This program is good at expressing the funny life of American neighbors. And, it’s the perfect comedy series for foreign learners wanting to see how to hold a relaxed daily conversation.
Another reason for watching DH is to learn some expressions American families use that are not in your English language textbooks. For example, the mothers often use words such as “sport” and “you guys” to speak about their kids.
小题1:According to the passage, The Apprentice and DH are introduced because _____.| A．they are now the most popular programs | | B．they are helpful in English learning | | C．they are advertised for English beginners | | D．they are enjoyed by most young people |
小题2:Through watching the two American comedy series, English learners can do the following EXCEPT _____.| A．communicate with native speakers | | B．know about American culture | | C．pick up English daily expressions | | D．learn more English words |
小题3:In the author’s opinion, learning English through TV series is _____.| A．common | B．difficult | C．enjoyable | D．possible |
小题4:We can learn from the passage that The Apprentice _____.| A．tells a story of school life | B．is about real life | | C．has 15 actors | D．is about some businessmen |
小题5:Which of the following statements about DH can we get from the introduction?| A．The story happens in a village of America. | | B．The housewives join in the same job interview. | | C．The women in the American town lead a life full of sadness. | | D．It does well in describing an interesting neighborhood in America. |
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Jiang Nan, a full-time mother in Beijing, keeps a dozen or so cloth bags at home, carefully selecting one or two before heading out to get groceries. "Most of them were giveaways from advertising marketing campaigns, but others had been handed out in the street by various environmental protection organizations," she explained.
Since June 2008 China has forbidden the production, sale and usage of plastic bags thinner than 0.025 millimeter (毫米), and retailers (零售商) are not allowed to provide free plastic bags to their customers, no matter how thick they are.
Many Chinese consumers like Jiang have learned to refuse plastic bags whenever possible in their shopping. "A plastic bag may only cost a few jiao, but it"s more about how bad they are for the environment," Jiang said.
The plastic ban is for the most part well carried out in big cities, and has been obviously effective in reducing white waste. On the first anniversary of the plastic ban Global Village of Beijing, an NGO environmental organization, shows that during the year of the ban the consumption of plastic bags fell by about 40 billion pieces in chain supermarkets alone, saving more than 1.2 million tons of petrol.
However, enforcement (实施) shows rather less muscle in smaller cities, towns and countryside. In a remote town like Lichuan, the awareness of environmental protection is not as strong as that in big cities. Street vendors (街头小贩) worry that they are likely to lose customers if they charge them for plastic bags. Seeing no significance in the issue, local government often turn a blind eye to banned bag trade in the market.
There are still those who don"t have an interest in living green. Cui Lin, another Beijinger, often forgets to bring a cloth bag when shopping, and has to buy plastic bags. "Anyway I think plastic bags are neater and cleaner, and I don"t mind paying a couple more jiao," he shrugged.
Mrs Yu, a vegetable vendor in Lichuan County, Jiangxi Province, recalled that before plastic bags became popular in the early 1990s, Chinese people always carried a bamboo basket when they visited the market. "Plastic bags are more convenient," she comments, and her view might be that of the tens of millions of people in the nation who still cling to plastic bags, paid or free. This is suggested by her trade where piles of plastic bags are still passed out every day.
小题1: In Paragraph 1, the writer uses Jiang Nan"s case to __________.| A．introduce a topic | B．tell a story | | C．describe a person | D．offer an argument |
小题2:How did Jiang Nan get her cloth bags? | A．She bought them at a low price. | | B．She borrowed them from her relatives. | | C．She got them for free. | | D．She made them herself. |
小题3:Which is NOT the reason why some people still use plastic bags when shopping?| A．Cloth bags are difficult to get and heavy to carry. | | B．People"s awareness of environmental protection is not strong enough. | | C．People don"t mind paying a couple more jiao for plastic bags. | | D．Street vendors worry that they are likely to lose customers if they charge them. |
小题4:What does the underlined phrase “cling to” in the last paragraph mean?| A．stop using | B．continue to use | C．stay close to | D．hold tightly |
小题5:What message does the writer mostly convey in the passage? | A．To reduce white waste is urgent. | | B．The plastic bag ban has achieved great success. | | C．There is still a long way to go for the plastic bag ban. | | D．People"s awareness of environmental protection should be stressed. |
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