高考8——科普知识
（时间：分钟）
维A1 阅读理解(每题2分，满分分)
高考曾用材料：2012大纲全国卷ⅡB篇
选材相似度：★★★
设题相似度：★★★
难度系数：★★★★★
Scientists
at
Royal Holloway，University
of London and
Queen Mary，University
of London
have discovered that bees learn to fly the shortest possible route between flowers even if they discover the flowers in a different order.Bees are effectively solving the “traveling salesman problem”，and they are the first creatures found to do this.
The traveling salesman must find the shortest route that allows him to visit all locations on his route.Computers solve it by comparing the length of all possible routes and choosing the shortest，and it can keep computers busy for days.However，bees solve it without computer assistance using a brain the size of grass seed.
Dr.Nigel Raine，from the School of Biological Sciences at Royal Holloway explains，“Bees solve traveling salesman problems every day.They visit flowers at multiple locations and because bees use lots of energy to fly，they find a route which keeps flying to a minimum.”
The team used the computer to control artificial flowers to test whether bees would follow a route defined by the order in which they discovered the flowers or if they would find the shortest route.After exploring the location of the flowers，bees quickly learned to fly the shortest route.
As well as improving our understanding of how bees move around the landscape pollinating crops and wild flowers，this research，which is due to be published in The American Naturalist，has other applications.Our lifestyle relies on networks such as traffic on the roads，information flow on the Web and business supply chains.By understanding how bees can solve their problems with such a tiny brain，we can improve our management of these everyday networks without needing lots of computer time.Dr.Raine adds，“Despite their tiny brains bees are capable of extraordinary feats of behavior.We need to understand how they can solve the traveling salesman problem without a computer.”
Note：
pollinate vt.授粉
【语篇解读】 英国的科学家发现，蜜峰在花丛中飞行时，总是能够找到最近的路线，这个“销售员旅行难题”即使电脑也需要好几天才能解决。 1．What would be the best title of the passage?
A． Bees help salesmen travel
B．Troybrained bees solve a complex mathematical problem
C．How bees discover the flowers
D．How to solve the “traveling salesman problem”
答案 B [主旨大意题。“销售员旅行难题”用计算机也得需要几天才能解决，而蜜峰毫不费力地就能在花丛中找到最近的飞行路线，故B项作为文章的标题最贴切、生动。]
2．We may infer from the second paragraph that the “traveling salesman problem” ________.
A．can be solved by a computer easily
B．can't even be solved by a computer
C．can puzzle both people and computers
D．remains to be solved by scientists
答案 C [细节理解题。根据第二段可知，销售员在出发之前必须找到合适的路线，这个“销售员旅行难题”即使电脑也需要好几天才能解决。]
3．The main purpose of the last paragraph is to ________.
A．provide further proof for the research
B．tell us how bees can fly the shortest route between flowers
C．tell us how the research about bees' flying route was conducted
D．explain the significance of the research
答案 D [推理判断题。最后一段说明了蜜峰飞行路线研究的意义和目的，是为了帮助我们在实际生活中更好地节省时间和精力。]
4．It can be concluded from the passage that ________.
A．all creatures are smarter than computers
B．the research about bees' flying route can be applied to many fields
C．our networks are more complex than bees' ones
D．with the help of the computer we can find out how bees can solve the “traveling salesman problem”
答案 B [推理判断题。根据最后一段可以推断出对蜜峰飞行路线的研究可以应用到其他领域中。]
维A2 阅读理解(每题2分，满分分)
高考曾用材料：2012新课标全国卷D篇
选材相似度：★★★★
设题相似度：★★★
难度系数：★★★★★
If the salinity of ocean waters is analyzed，it is found to vary only slightly from place to place.Nevertheless，some of these small changes are important.There are three basic processes that cause a change in oceanic salinity.One of these is the subtraction of water from the ocean by means of evaporation—conversion of liquid water to water vapor.In this manner the salinity is increased，since the salts stay behind.If this is carried to the extreme，of course，white crystals of salt would be left behind.
The opposite of evaporation is precipitation，such as rain，by which water is added to the ocean.Here the ocean is being diluted so that the salinity is decreased.This may occur in areas of high rainfall or in coastal regions where rivers flow into the ocean.Thus salinity may be increased by the subtraction of water by evaporation，or decreased by the addition of fresh water by precipitation or runoff.
Normally，in tropical regions where the sun is very strong，the ocean salinity is somewhat higher than it is in other parts of the world where there is not as much evaporation.Similarly，in coastal regions where rivers dilute the sea，salinity is somewhat lower than in other oceanic areas.
A third process by which salinity may be altered is associated with the formation and melting of sea ice.When sea water is frozen，the dissolved materials are left behind.In this manner，sea water directly beneath freshly formed sea ice has a higher salinity than it did before the ice appeared.Of course，when this ice melts，it will tend to decrease the salinity of the surrounding water.
In the Weddell Sea Antarctica，the densest water in the oceans is formed as a result of this freezing process，which increases the salinity of cold water.This heavy water sinks and is found in the deeper portions of the oceans of the world.
Notes：
salinity n．盐度 ②conversion n．转化 ③dilute vt.淡化
【语篇解读】 本文是说明文。全文首先说明了为什么海水的含盐量很高，接着又说明了世界各地海水的含盐量是不一样的，例如降雨量小的地方含盐量高，而降雨量大的地方含盐量低。海水的含盐量也与海水的蒸发量以及结冰程度有关。
1． What does the underlined word in the first paragraph mean?
A．Escape.
B．Decrease.
C．Pollution.
D．Increase.
答案 B [猜测词义题。由画线词语所在句子可知，“evaluation”与画线词语的意义相关，蒸发后海水量一定会“减少”。]
2．Generally speaking，where has the higher salinity in the world?
A．The tropical regions.
B．The polar region.
C．The temperate zone.
D．The frigid zone.
答案 A [细节理解题。由第三段第一句“Normally，in tropical regions where the sun is very strong，the ocean salinity is somewhat higher than it is in other parts of the world where there is not as much evaporation.”可知，通常热带地区的海水盐度较高，因为那里海水的蒸发量大。]
3．Which of the following statements is RIGHT?
A．The salinity of ocean waters is the same from place to place.
B．If the change of the salinity of ocean waters is small，it always doesn't matter.
C．Rain can lower the salinity of ocean waters.
D．When the sea ice is formed，the salinity of ocean waters is lower.
答案 C [细节理解题。由第二段第一句“The opposite of evaporation is precipitation，such as rain，by which water is added to the ocean.”可知，雨水可以降低海水的盐度。]
4．Which of the following can be the best title for this passage?
A．Ocean Waters
B．The Changeable Ocean Waters
C．How to analyze the Salinity of Ocean Waters
D．The Salinity of Ocean Waters
答案 B [主旨大意题。文章主要介绍了影响海水盐度的三种因素：蒸发、稀释以及冰山的形成和消融。]
维B 短文改错(每题1.5分，满分15分)
下面文中共有10处错误，每句中最多有两处。
注意：1.每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；
2．只允许修改10处，多者(从第11处起)不计分。
One day a lady sees a mouse running across her kitchen floor.She was very afraid of mouses，so she ran out of the house and went into a shop there mousetraps were sold.The shopkeeper said to her，“Put some cheese in it，you will soon catch that mouse.” The lady went to home with her mousetrap.But when she looked in her cupboard，she could not find some cheese in it.She did not want to go back to the shop，unless it was too late.She cut a picture of some cheese out of a magazine and put it in the trap.In her surprise，the picture of cheese was quite successfully！When the lady came down to the kitchen a next morning she found a picture of a mouse in the trap beside the picture of the cheese!
答案
One day a lady a mouse running across her kitchen floor.She was very afraid of ，so she ran out of the house and went into a shop
mousetraps were sold.The shopkeeper said to her，“Put some cheese in it， you will soon catch that mouse.”The lady went to home with her mousetrap.But when she looked in her cupboard，she could not find
cheese in it.She did not want to go back to the shop， it was too late.She cut a picture of some cheese out of a magazine and put it in the trap. her surprise，the picture of cheese was quite
！When the lady came down to the kitchen next morning she found a picture of a mouse in the trap beside the picture of the cheese！