2014中考英语阅读理解及答案：吃西瓜

　　阅读理解专项练习50-17

　　A

　　When I was a kid in Minnesota, watermelon was expensive. One of my fathers friends, Bernie, was a rich businessman, who owned a large store in St. Paul.

　　Every summer, when the first watermelons arrived, Bernie would call. Dad and I would go to Bernies place. Wed sit on the edge of the dock(码头), feet dangling(摇晃), and got ready for a big meal.

　　Bernie would take his knife, cut our first watermelon, hand us both a big piece and sit down next to us. Then wed bury our faces in watermelon, eating only the heartthe reddest, juiciest, firmest, sweetest, most seed-free partand throw away the rest.

　　Bernie was my fathers idea of a rich man. I always thought it was because he was such a successful businessman. Years later, I realized that it was not Bernies wealth itself but his way of dealing with it that my father liked. Bernie knew how to stop working, get together with friends and eat only the heart of the watermelon.

　　What I learned from Bernie is that being rich is a state of mind. Some of us, no matter how much money we have, will never be free enough to eat only the heart of the watermelon. If you dont take the time to dangle your feet over the dock and enjoy lifes small pleasure, your work is probably hurting your life.

　　For many years, I forgot that lesson Id learned as a kid on the loading dock. I was too busy making all the money I could.

　　Well, Ive relearned it. I hope I have time left to enjoy the success of others and to take pleasure in the day. Thats the heart of the watermelon. I have learned again to throw t he rest away.

　　46. We learned from the second paragraph that the writer and his father were feeling ______.

　　A. relaxed B. worried C. hungry D. proud

　　47. How did the writer and his father eat the watermelon?

　　A. They ate it in a polite way. B. They only ate its best part.

　　C. They ate every part of it. D. They shared only one piece.

　　48. In the eyes of the writers father, Bernie ______.

　　A. was just a rich businessman B. worked hard all the time

　　C. lived a rich but healthy life D. knew how to make money

　　49. The underlined part the heart of the watermelon in the last paragraph refers to ______.

　　A. the best part of the watermelon B. the writers busy life

　　C. the writers decision of making money D. the writers hope of enjoying life

　　50. It can be learne d from the passage that ______.

　　A. one has to work hard to reach his goal B. a friend in need is a friend in deed

　　C. watermelon is the healthiest fruit D. one should keep work-life balance

　　【主旨大意】作者孩提时，父亲的朋友每年在西瓜初熟时邀请他们吃西瓜，吃西瓜时只吃最好的地方。通过这件事作者懂得了享受生活的真谛。在作者忙于挣钱时，他再一次想到了享受生活的真谛。

　　46.A 主旨大意题。根据第二段整体意思，可看得出来作者和他的父亲是很放松的心情，故选C。

　　47. B细节理解题。根据第三段的第二句话中eating only the heart----the reddest, juiciest, firmest, sweetest, most seed-free part-----and throw away the rest.可判断选B。

　　48. C细节理解题。根据第四段第一句和第三句，可判断选C。

　　49. D主旨大意题。根据最后两段，可判断选D。

　　50. D主旨大意题。根据整篇文章的意思，可判断选D。

　　B

　　When the Audet family turns on the lights at Blue Farm, they are using electricity that comes from cowscow manure (粪肥), to be specific.

　　Cows produce a lot of wastes. One cow can create 30 gallons of wastes each day. Now imagine t he output of over 1,000 cows at Blue Farm. Thats really a big amount.

　　When farmers clean their barns, they put the wastes in a big heap, and spread some of them on their fields for fertilizer(肥料). But now places like Blue Spruce Farm have a new way of using cow wastes. They use them to produce electricity.

　　Heres how it works: A big machine moves back and forth cleaning the barn floor. The cows arent bothered, says Marie Audet. They are animals of habit; they get used to it, and just lift one foot and then another to let it go by.

　　The machine pushes the manure into a big 600-gallon tank like a small swimming pool. The tank is called a digester (化粪池) because what happens there is just like what happens inside a cow: Bacteria(细菌) get to work and continue to digest the manure.

　　Methane gas (甲烷、沼气)in the atmosphere is known as a greenhouse gas because it keeps heat just like a greenhouse does, causing our planet to warm up. Thats an environmental concern. But the digester has a good result. Its gas is kept and used to power electric generators (发电机).

　　At Blue Farm, the generators make enough electricity to power 400 homes. The Audet family sells the extra electricity they cant use themselves.

　　51. We learn from the text that the Audet family is using cow wastes to ______.

　　A. make electricity B. produce fertilizer C. build their farm D. feed the cows

　　52. How are the cow wastes collected into the digester at Blue Farm?

　　A. Marie Audet does the work B. The job is done by machine

　　C. The cows lift the cow wastes D. Bacteria get to work on them

　　53. According to the passage, which of the following is changed into electricity?

　　A. The power of moving water. B. The heat of burning coal.

　　C. The power of sunlight. D. The heat of the methane gas

　　54. The new way of using cow wastes at Blue Farm might be best described as ______.

　　A. reducing B. saving C. recycling D. changing

　　55. What is the main purpose for writing the passage?

　　A. To introduce a new way o f making electri city B. To explain how a new energy works better

　　C. To show a new rebuilding plan for a big farm D. To explain the reasons for green house effect

　　【主旨大意】Blue Farm 农场用牛的粪便来发电。即循环利用资源，又节约能源。

　　51.C 细节理解题。根据第一段和第三段的最后一句，可判断选C。

　　52. D细节理解题。根据第四段的第一句话Hows it works:A big machine moves back and forth cleaning the barn floor.可判断选D。

　　53. B主旨大意题。根据整篇文章的描述，可判断选B。

　　54. A主旨大意题。根据前三段和最后一段，可判断选A。

　　55. C主旨大意题。根据整篇文章的内容可推断选C。