高考英语二轮九十天强化训练：阅读理解57
阅读理解 (共15小题；每小题2分，满分30分)
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项A、B、C和D中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
A
Almost anyone who has read a travel brochure about Africa has heard of elephants getting drunk from the fruit of the marula tree. It is said that elephants can get drunk by eating the fermented (发酵) fruit rotting on the ground. Books have even been written to prove the truth of the phenomenon.
But a study published in the journal Physiological and Biochemical Zoology tells a very different story.
Steve Morris, a biologist at the University of Bristol in England and an author of the study, says there is nothing in the biology of either the African elephant or the marula fruit to support the stories. Morris says, “ people just want to believe in drunken elephants.”
The marula tree, a member of the same family as the mango, grows widely in Africa. Its sweet, yellow fruit is used for making jam, wine and beer. “The first mistake of the drunken-elephant theory is that it’s unlikely that an elephant would eat the fruit if it were rotten, ” Morris says. “Elephants eat the fruit right off the tree, not when it’s rotten on the ground, ” he explains.
Other experts add that if an elephant were to eat the fruit on the ground, it wouldn’t wait for the fruit to ferment. Michelle Gadd, an African wildlife specialist, says that elephants and many other animals, including birds and monkeys, are too fond of marula fruit to let it rot.
If fermented fruit on the ground is out of the question, so is the notion that the fruit could ferment in the stomach of elephants, according to the study authors. Food takes between 12 and 46 hours to pass through an elephant’s digestive system, the authors point out, which is not enough for the fruit to ferment.
Supposing that this happened, it’s still highly improbable that the food would produce enough alcohol to make an elephant drunk. Through calculations of body weight, elephant digestion rates, and other factors, the authors conclude that it would take about 1.9 litres of ethanol(乙醇) to make an elephant drunk.
56. We can learn from the passage that ________.
A. it is not easy to find marula fruit in the wild in Africa
B. African elephants don’t like to eat marula fruit at all
C. marula fruit can be made into food or drink consumed by people
D. birds and monkeys in Africa like to eat rotten marula fruit
57. According to Paragraph 6, marula fruit is likely to ferment ________.
A. in about 12 hours
B. in about 34 hours
C. between 12 and 46 hours
D. in more than 46 hours
58. According to Mr. Morris, which of the following is TRUE?
A. Elephants just eat the fruit right off the tree.
B. Elephants will not eat the fruit which is rotten.
C. The marula tree and the mango belong to different families.
D. There are several connections between Elephants and the marula fruit.
59 . What does the underlined word “this” in the last paragraph probably refer to ?
A. Elephants getting drunk.
B. Marula fruit fermenting in elephants’ stomachs.
C. Elephants eating rotten marula fruit.
D. Elephants eating marula trees directly.
57.【答案】D
【解析】根据本段中“Food takes between 12 and 46 hours to pass through an elephant’s digestive system, the authors point out, which is not enough for the fruit to ferment. ”可知答案。
【考点定位】考查推理判断能力。
58.【答案】B
【解析】根据第四段中“The first mistake of the drunken-elephant theory is that it’s unlikely that an elephant would eat the fruit if it were rotten, ” Morris says. “Elephants eat the fruit right off the tree, not when it’s rotten on the ground”一句可知。
【考点定位】考查细节理解。
59.【答案】B
【解析】“Supposing that this happened, it’s still highly improbable that the food would produce enough alcohol to make an elephant drunk.”这句话的意思是假设这种果实在大象体内能发酵，那它产生的乙醇也不足以使大象醉倒。
【考点定位】考查推理判断能力。
B篇Monarch Butterflies
One of the last West Coast homes of the Monarch butterfly，a type of insect（昆虫），may soon disappear．Strangely，it is in a town that calls itself Butterfly U．S．A，Pacific Grove, California．
The town of Pacific Grove loves the butterflies．Every year they have a parade（游行）and hundreds of children dress up as butterflies．Monarch butterflies are the town mascot．Tourism is very important，and many people come to see the butterflies．The butterflies are good for the development of the town．
In 1981 there were so many butterflies it looked like it was raining butterflies．Tens of thousands of Monarchs stayed on tree branches near Pacific Grove．Now there are not so many．
The building goes on a little bit at a time，and you don’t notice it day by day．Over time，you can see that there has been a lot of development．As new buildings go up，many trees are cut down．
This reduces the natural homes for the butterflies．
Monarchs travel hundreds of miles each year，returning to the same woods，often to the same trees．The female Monarchs need milkweed to lay their eggs；the males will follow the females．
Millions of Monarchs have traveled regularly along the same path for thousands of years．They start their trip in the mountains of Mexico and travel to the middle part of America．If the woods where the butterflies live are destroyed，the whole species（物种）could be lost．There have been Monarch butterflies along the coast of California for as long as man can remember，but no one is sure how much longer they will last．
50．Why are Monarch butterflies important to Pacific Grove？
A. They may disappear．
B. They come to stay every year．
C. They help develop the town’s tourism．
D. They give a name to Pacific Grove．
51．The underlined word “mascot”in Paragraph 2 probably refers to_________.
A. a new type of butterfly
B. an insect believed to bring good luck
C. a parade organized by Pacific Grove
D. a special dress for children in Pacific Grove
52．What problem do Monarch butterflies face now？
A. New buildings take up their living space．
B. There has been too much rain m recent years．
C. Their natural homes are destroyed by tourism．
D. They have tot travel a long distance to get home．
53．Where do Monarch butterflies start their trip to Pacific Grove？
A. From Central America．
B. From the West Coast．
C. From California．
D. From Mexico．
53 CBAD
阅读理解: A
The story begins with fishing.
Once a boy and his father went fishing before bass (a kind of special fish) season opened. They were fishing early in the evening, catching other fish with worms. Then the boy tied on a small silver lure (鱼饵) and put it into the lake. Suddenly he felt that something very big pulling on the lure. His father watched with admiration as the boy skillfully brought the fish beside the bank. Finally he lifted the tired fish from the water. It was the largest one he had ever seen, but it was a bass(the special fish).
The boy and his father looked at the big fish. The father lit a match and looked at his watch. It was 10 pm – two hours before the bass season opened. He looked at the fish, then at the boy. “You’ll have to put it back, son,” he said.
“Dad!” cried the boy, “There will be other fish,” said his father. “Not as big as this one,” cried the boy. He looked around the lake. No other fishermen or boats were in sight in the moonlight. He looked again at his father.
Even though no one had seen them, nor could anyone ever know what time he had caught the fish, the boy could tell from his father’s voice that the decision couldn’t be changed. He threw the huge bass into the black water. The big fish disappeared. The boy thought that he would never again see such a big fish.
That was 34 years ago. Today the boy is a successful architect in New York City. He often takes his own son and daughters to fish at the same place.
And he was right. He has never again caught such a large fish as the one he got that night long ago. But he does see that same fish … again and again … every time he has an ethical decision to make. For, as his father had taught him, ethics (伦理道德)are simple matters of right and wrong. It is only the practice of ethics that is difficult.
46. What happened when the big fish turned out to be a bass?
A. The boy threw the bass back into the water willingly.
B. The boy and his father discussed what to do with the big fish.
C. The father lit a match in order to check the time.
D. They worried other fishermen may discover what they had done.
47. From the text we know that the father _____.
A. disliked the huge fish B. was firm and stubborn
C. didn’t love his son D. always disagreed with his son
48. The successful architect went fishing with his children at the same place because _____.
A. they might catch a big fish there B. he was taught a moral lesson there
C. it was a most popular fishing spot D. their children enjoyed fishing there
49. What does the story imply?
A. An ethical decision is always easy to make.
B. It is easy to say something, but difficult to do.
C. It’s hard to tell right from wrong sometimes
D. Fishing can help one to make right decisions
参考答案46—49、CBBB
Froli Cat Dart
While cats require less attention compared to dogs, that doesn’t mean you can just leave them at home all day long. No sir, they too, need some level of attention and will have to keep themselves occupied mentally and physically too. Well, FroliCat Dart makes it possible. Just what is the FroliCat Dart all about? Well, for starters, this device delivers 360° rotation (旋转) that will project laser patterns on the floor, letting your feline (猫科动物) friend chase after it.
Portable USB Power Supply
With modern gadgets, running out of juice happens to some of us more often, simply because today’s devices seem to suck up more juice than before. That’s why the Portable USB Power Supply comes in handy, being a best emergency charger for cell phones and other devices. Capable of holding a charge for up to three months when in standby，it will ship with adapter tips that cater for a certain variety of cell phone brands.
Battery Powered Gloves
For those living in the northern hemisphere，we are pretty sure that you have already stocked up on your winter supplies to make sure you remain nice and warm throughout the upcoming freezing months. Well, wearing a pair of the Battery Powered Hand Warming Gloves is necessary so as to keep your palms and fingers warm. These gloves come with battery-powered integral (不可或缺的) heating elements which is capable of keeping your hands nice and warm for up to eight hours. It requires a quartet of AA batteries in each glove, and since both gloves are fully lined with a waterproof, breathable material, they might just come in handy during your next snowball fight. Too bad it comes only in one color-black.
60. How does FroliCat Dart work?
A. It can make cats run around your house.
B. It can project laser patterns to make cats chase.
C. It can make cats much sleepier than before.
D. It can provide food and drink for cats.
61. From the second paragraph, we know that________
A. Lack of power happens to some of us less often than before.
B. The adapter tips cater for all kinds of cell phone brands.
C. The Portable USB Power Supply can charge for some phones.
D. The Portable USB Power Supply can only last for three months.
62. Where do the Battery Powered Gloves sell well?
A. Iceland
B. India
C. Australia
D Singapore
【文章大意】本文是三篇广告。
60. 【答案】B
【解析】从第一则广告最后一句可知答案。
【考点定位】考查细节查找。
61.【答案】C
【解析】从第二则广告后面部分“---being a best emergency charger for cell phones and other devices. Capable of holding a charge for up to three months when in standby，it will ship with adapter tips that cater for a certain variety of cell phone brands.”可知答案。
阅读理解--------B
Be careful what you say around your dog. It might understand more than you think.
A border collie named Rico recognizes the names of about 200 objects, say researchers in Germany. The dog also appears to be able to learn new words as easily as a 3-year-old child. Its word-learning skills are as good as those of a parrot or chimpanzee(黑猩猩).
In one experiment, the researchers took all 200 items that Rico is supposed to know and divided them into 20 groups of 10 objects. Then the owner told the dog to go and fetch one of the items and bring it back. In four tests, Rico got 37 out of 40 commands right. As the dog couldn't see anyone to get clues, the scientists believe Rico must understand the meanings of certain words.
In another experiment, the scientists took one toy that Rico had never seen before and put it in a room with seven toys whose names the dog already knew. The owner then told Rico to fetch the object, using a word the dog had never heard before.
The correct object was chosen in seven out of l0 tests, suggesting that the dog had worked
out the answer by process of elimination(排除法). A month later, Rico remembered half of the new names, which is even more impressive.
Rico is thought to be smarter than the average dogs. For one thing, Rico is a border collie, a breed (品种)known for its mental abilities. In addition, the 9-year-old dog has been trained to fetch toys by their names since the age of nine months.
It's hard to know if all dogs understand at least some of the words we say. Even if they do, they can't talk back. Still, it wouldn't hurt to sweet-talk your dog every now and then. You might just get a big, wet kiss in return!
50. From paragraph 2 we know that __ .
A. animals are as clever as human beings
B. dogs are smarter than parrots and chimpanzees
C. chimpanzees have very good word-learning skills
D. dogs have similar ‘learning abilities’ as 3-year-old children
51. Both experiments show that .
A. Rico is smart enough to get all commands right
B. Rico can recognize different things including toys
C. Rico has developed the ability of learning mathematics
D. Rico won't forget the names of objects once recognizing them
52. Which of the following statements is true?
A. The purpose of the experiments is to show the border collie's mental abilities.
B. Rico has a better memory partly because of its proper early training.
C. The border collie is world-famous for recognizing objects.
D. Rico is born to understand its owner's commands.
53. What does the writer want to tell us?
A. To train your dog. B. To talk to your dog.
C. To be friendly to your dog. D. To be careful with your dog.
参考答案50—CBBC