高考英语二轮九十天强化训练：阅读理解60
第一节 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A、B、C和D项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
A
Grandma celebrated her fifty-third birthday just weeks before grandpa died of cancer in 1965. Although his passing was very difficult for her, I think their shared struggle to make his life longer taught grandma that good health was not to be taken forgranted, and she made up her mind to live the rest of her own life as fully and as long as she could. One day, when she announced to attend lessons at the Fred Astaire Dance Studio in Portland, Oregon, where she lived, we rolled our eyes in embarrassment and helplessly wished she would just stay home and bake cookies as normal grandmothers did. Many years filled with countless dance lessons passed before we learned to appreciate the wonder of having a dancing grandma.
I suppose grandma's primary motivation for wanting to learn to dance was social. She had been a shy girl, always very tall and heavy, and had married into grandpa's quiet lifestyle before developing any elegance or confidence in her personal appearance. Dancing, on the other hand, filled her life with flash lights, wonderful parties, beautiful dresses, handsome young dance instructors, and the challenge of learning. Although the weekly dance lessons did not change her ample, two-hundred-pound figure, grandma surprised everyone with energetic performances on the dance floor, which soon gave her as much elegance and confidence as any Miss American competitor.
Having taken weekly dance lessons for years, my grandma learned various dances easily and was soon participating in dancing matches all over the Northwest. When I was fourteen, grandma proudly invited me to watch her compete in one of these matches to be held in the grand ballroom of the Red Lion Inn. My attitude was still unenthusiastic at that point, but to make her happy, my mother and I attended the match. As if to prove me wrong, grandma made a wonderful showing in every event she entered. I thought she was truly the queen of the ball during the dance, and my thoughts were shared by the judges a short time later when she was awarded a gold cup for her outstanding performance.
26. What did grandma learn from grandpa's death?
A. Good health was not there for everyone.
B. She should take dance lessons.
C. She had to struggle to live a better life.
D. She should wear beautiful dresses.
【答案】
【解析】good health was not to be taken forgranted，对于大家来说好的健康已经不在了，故选A。
27. How did the author's family feel when Grandma decided to take dance lessons?
A. Hopeless.
B. Helpless.
C. Embarrassed.
D. Proud.
【答案】【解析】we rolled our eyes in embarrassment可知作者的家人都感到尴尬，故选C。
28. Normal grandmas usually ________ in the author's point of view?
A. took dance lessons
B. did some exercises at home
C. took care of grandchildren at home
D. did some housework at home
【答案】【解析】she would just stay home and bake cookies as normal grandmothers did.在作者眼中祖母就是能在家做做家务，故选D。
29. The author felt ______ when he was invited to watch grandma's match.
A. happy
B. proud
C. excited
D. uninterested
【答案】【解析】My attitude was still unenthusiastic at that point,作者对于祖母的邀请他去看比赛感到没有兴趣，故选D。
30. The text is mainly about
A. my grandma's confidence
B. my dancing grandma
C. my grandma's dancing
D. my grandma's gold cup
【答案】【解析】
C6 [2012·浙江卷]
Easter(复活节)is still a great day for worship, candy in baskets and running around the yard finding eggs, but every year it gets quite a bit worse for bunnies.
And no, not because the kids like to pull their ears. The culprit is climate change, and some researchers found that rising temperatures are having harmful effects on at least five species of rabbit in the US.
Take the Lower Keys Marsh rabbit, for instance. An endangered species that lives in the Lower Florida Keys, this species of cottontail is a great swimmer—it lives on the islands！—but it is already severely affected by development and now by rising sea levels. According to the Center for Biological Diversity, an ocean level rise of only 0.6 meters will send these guys jumping to higher ground and a 0.9meter rise would wipe out their habitat(栖息地)completely.
The snowshoe hare, on the other hand, has a color issue. Most of these rabbits change their fur color from white in the wintertime to brown in the summer, each designed to give them better cover from predators(捕食者). As the number of days with snow decreases all across the country, however, more and more bunnies are being left in white fur during brown dirt days of both fall and spring, making them an easier mark for predators. Researchers know that the color change is controlled by the number of hours of sunlight, but whether the rabbit will be able to adapt quick enough to survive is a big question. The National Wildlife Federation has reported that hunters have noticed their numbers are already markedly down.
American pikas or rock rabbits, a relative of rabbits and hares, might be the first of these species to go extinct due to climate change. About 78 inches long, pikas live high in the cool, damp mountains west of the Rocky Mountains. As global temperatures rise, they would naturally migrate(迁移) to higher ground—but they already occupy the mountaintops. They can't go any higher. The National Wildlife Federation reports that they might not be able to stand the new temperatures as their habitat heats up.
The volcano rabbit has the same problem. These rabbits live on the slopes of volcanoes in Mexico, and recent studies have shown that the lower range of their habitat has already shifted upward about 700 meters, but there are not suitable plants for them to move higher, so they are stuck in the middle. Scientists are concerned about their populations.
Native to the US, pygmy rabbits weigh less than 1 pound and live in the American West. They are believed to be the smallest rabbits in the world. Their habitats have been destroyed by development. Several populations, such as the Columbia Basin pygmy, almost went extinct and were saved by zoo breeding programs. Pygmy rabbits also rely on winter cover by digging tunnels through the snow to escape predators, but lesser snowfall is leaving them exposed.
All of this gives new meaning to dressing up in a giant bunny costume this Easter.
41．The writer mentions Easter at the beginning of the passage in order to ________.
A．show the importance of Easter Day
B．introduce the issue about bunnies
C．remind people of Easter traditions
D．discuss the relationship between Easter and bunnies
42．The word “culprit”(Paragraph 2)is closest in meaning to ________.
A．criminal
B．judge
C．victim
D．producer
43．According to the passage, some rabbits can now be easily discovered by predators because they ________.
A．are exposed to more skillful hunters
B．have moved to habitats with fewer plants
C．haven't adapted themselves to climate change
D．can't change their fur color into white in the fall and the spring
44．The problem faced by volcano rabbits and rock rabbits is that ________.
A．both are affected by less snow
B．both are affected by rising sea levels
C．neither can find enough food
D．neither can migrate to higher places
45．Which best describes the writer's tone in the passage?
A．Approving.
B．Concerned.
C．Enthusiastic.
D．Doubtful.
【要点综述】复活节的兔子，本应该是很喜庆的动物，但是现状却是由于气候变化，很多兔子面临着灭绝的危险，那么它们到底有着怎么样的困境呢？让我们读文章去了解一下吧。
41. B 推理判断题。从文章第一段…gets quite a bit worse for bunnies和第二段And no, not because the kids like…等知，第一段提到复活节的目的在于引出下文中关于兔子的话题，故应该选B项。
42. A 词义猜测题。从文章第二段And no, not because the kids like…和…is climate change…，以及下文多次提到的兔子们遭受到的困境可知，这里culprit表示“罪魁祸首，灾难制造者”的含义，所以词义同A项。
43. C 推理判断题。从第二段知，受气候的影响，兔子们遇到了困境。比如第三段提到的Lower Keys Marsh rabbit(湿地兔)和第四段提到的the snowshoe hare(雪兔)都反映出它们对环境变化的不适应，这才是造成它们受困的原因，所以选C项。
44. D 细节理解题。从第五段…they would naturally migrate(迁移) to higher ground—but they…They
can’t go any higher…和第六段…but there are not suitable plants for them to move higher…知，这两种兔子濒临灭绝的原因在于它们都无法进一步向高地迁徙。所以选D项。
45. B 观点态度题。从第一段…gets quite a bit worse for bunnies，以及全文字里行间作者对于兔子遭遇的表述可以看出，作者对于有些兔子濒临灭绝的现状表现出了关心和担忧，所以选B项。
C6[2012·山东卷]
The Pacific island nation of Nauru used to be a beautiful place. Now it is an ecological disaster area. Nauru's heartbreaking story could have one good consequence—other countries might learn from its mistakes.
For thousands of years, Polynesian people lived on the remote island of Nauru, far from western civilization. The first European to arrive was John Fearn in 1798. He was the British captain of the Hunter, a whaling ship. He called the island Pleasant Island.
However, because it was very remote, Nauru had little communication with Europeans at first. Then whaling ships and other traders began to visit, bringing guns and alcohol. These elements destroyed the social balance of the twelve family groups on the island. A tenyear civil war started, which reduced the population from 1,400 to 900.
Nauru's real troubles began in 1899 when a British mining company discovered phosphate(磷酸盐) on the island. In fact, it found that the island of Nauru was nearly all phosphate, which is a very important fertilizer for farming. The company began mining the phosphate.
A phosphate mine is not a hole in the ground; it is a stripmine. When a company stripmines, it removes the top layer of soil. Then it takes away the material it wants. Stripmining totally destroys the land. Gradually, the lovely island of Nauru started to look like the moon.
In 1968, Nauru became one of the richest countries in the world. Every year the government received millions and millions of dollars for its phosphate.
Unfortunately, the leaders invested the money unwisely and lost millions of dollars. In addition, they used millions more dollars for personal expenses. Soon people realized that they had a terrible problem—their phosphate was running out. Ninety percent of their island was destroyed and they had nothing. By 2000, Nauru was almost financially ruined. Experts say that it would take approximately $433,600,000 and more than 20 years to repair the island. This will probably never happen.
56. What might be the author's purpose in writing the text?
A. To seek help for Nauru's problems.
B. To give a warning to other countries.
C. To show the importance of money.
D. To tell a heartbreaking story of a war.
57. What was Nauru like before the Europeans came?
A. Rich and powerful.
B. Modern and open.
C. Peaceful and attractive.
D. Greedy and aggressive.
58. The ecological disaster in Nauru resulted from
________.
A. soil pollution
B. phosphate overmining
C. farming activity
D. whale hunting
59. Which of the following was a cause of Nauru's financial problem?
A. Its leaders misused the money.
B. It spent too much repairing the island.
C. Its phosphate mining cost much money.
D. It lost millions of dollars in the civil war.
60. What can we learn about Nauru from the last paragraph?
A. The ecological damage is difficult to repair.
B. The leaders will take the experts' words seriously.
C. The island was abandoned by the Nauruans.
D. The phosphate mines were destroyed.
【要点综述】文章主要讲述了太平洋岛国瑙鲁如何从一个环境优美的天堂岛变成一个生态失衡、满目疮痍的小岛。
56. B 写作意图题。由文章第一段的“Now it is an ecological disaster area. Nauru's heartbreaking story could have one good consequence—other countries might learn from its mistakes.”可以看出，作者的目的是给当前很多只注重发展经济而忽略环境保护的国家一个警告。故选B。
57. C 细节理解题。从第一段提到的“太平洋上的国家瑙鲁岛曾经是一个美丽的地方”看出，瑙鲁岛attractive；由第二段第一句以及第三段第一句可知，上千年来，瑙鲁岛的人们生活在偏远的小岛上，过着平静的生活。故选C。
58. B 细节理解题。由最后一段的“Soon people realized that they had a terrible problem－their phosphate was running out. Ninety percent of their island was destroyed and they had nothing.”可以看出“磷酸盐逐渐减少，开采殆尽”。由此可以看出，“磷酸盐的过量开采”导致了生态灾难。故选B。
59. A 细节理解题。由最后一段的“Unfortunately, the leaders invested the money unwisely and lost millions of dollars. In addition, they used millions more dollars for personal expenses. ”看出，是领导人不正确使用资金导致了财政问题。故选A。
60. A 推理判断题。文章最后告诉我们：Experts say that it would take approximately $433,600,000 and more than 20 years to repair the island，也就是说：瑙鲁岛上的生态损失弥补起来需要大量的资金和时间，即选项所说的“修复起来很难”。故选A。
When I was growing up, I had an old neighbor named Doctor Gibbs. He didn't look like any doctor I'd ever known. He never yelled at us for playing in his yard, but was always very kind.
When Doctor Gibbs wasn't saving lives, he was planting trees. He had some interesting theories about planting trees. He believed in the principle:
"No pain, no gain". He hardly watered his new trees, an attitude which flew in the face of conventional wisdom.
Once I asked why and he told me that watering plants spoiled them because it made them grow weaker. He said you had to make things tough for the trees so that only the strongest could survive.
He talked about how watering trees made them develop shallow roots and how, if they were not watered, trees would grow deep roots in search of water.
So, instead of watering his trees every morning, he'd beat them with a rolled-up newspaper. I asked him why he did that, and he said it was to get the tree's attention.
Doctor Gibbs died a couple of years after I left home. Every now and then, I walked by his house and looked at the trees that I'd watched him plant some 25 years ago. They were tall and strong.
I planted a couple of trees myself a few years ago. Two years of attending these trees meant they grew up weak. Whenever a cold wind blew, their branches trembled. Adversity seemed to benefit Doctor Gibb's trees in ways comfort and ease never could.
Every night before I go to bed, I check on my two sons. I often pray that their lives will be easy. But lately I've been thinking that it's time to change my prayer. I know my children are going to encounter hardship. There's always a cold wind blowing somewhere. What we need to do is to pray for deep roots, so when the rains fall and the winds blow, we won't be torn apart.
31. With the trees planted, Doctor Gibbs often______.
A. paid little attention to them
B. talked to them to get their attention
C. kept watering them every morning
D. beat them to make them grow deep roots
【答案】
【解析】He hardly watered his new trees,他没有给树浇过水，也就是他没有关注过它们。故选A。
32. What does the author think of the way Doctor Gibbs planted trees?
A. Original and reasonable.
B. Strange and harmful.
C. Interesting and funny.
D. Cruel and unacceptable.
【答案】【解析】I walked by his house and looked at the trees that I'd watched him plant some 25 years ago. They were tall and strong.因为Doctor Gibbs种的树长的又高又粗壮，所以可推测作者认为他的做法是新颖和合理的，故选A。
33. What does the underlined word "Adversity" mean in the seventh paragraph?
A. Bad weather.
B. Lack of moisture.
C. Enough care or attention.
D. Difficult living conditions.
【答案】【解析】if they were not watered, trees would grow deep roots in search of water.可知比较难的条件，故选D。
34. Which prayer does the author wish for his sons?
A. Have an easy life, without too much to worry about.
B. Meet people like Dr Gibbs in the future.
C. Have good luck, encountering less hardship in their life.
D. Be able to stand the rain and wind in their lives.
【答案】【解析】I know my children are going to encounter hardship.祈祷儿子在人生中能够经历风雨，故选D。
35. Which of the following is the best title for the article?
A. Deep roots count
B. Prayers for my sons
C. Doctor Gibbs and his trees
D. Trees need no water
【答案】【解析】What we need to do is to pray for deep roots及deep roots在文章中多次出现，用它来表明数要扎深根人们要经历风雨才能更坚强，故选A。