单项选择
单项选择
Animal’s “Sixth Sense”
A tsunami was triggered by an earthquake in the Indian Ocean in December, 2004. It killed tens of thousands of people in Asia and East Africa. Wild animals, 1 , seem to have escaped that terrible tsunami. This phenomenon adds weight to notions that1 they possess a “sixth sense” for
2 , experts said.
Sri Lankan wildlife officials have said the giant waves that killed over 24,000 people along the Indian Ocean island’s coast clearly 3 wild beasts, with no dead animals found.
“No elephants arc dead, not 4 a dead rabbit. I think animals can 5 disaster. They have a sixth sense. They know when things are happening,” H. D. Ratnayake, deputy director of Sri Lanka’s Wildlife Department, said about one month after the tsunami attack. The 6 washed floodwaters up to 2 miles inland at Yala National Park in the ravaged southeast, Sri Lanka’s biggest wildlife 7 and home to hundreds of wild elephants and several leopards.
“There has been a lot of 8 evidence about dogs barking or birds migrating before volcanic eruptions or earthquakes. But it has not been proven,” said Matthew van Lierop, an animal behavior
9 at Johannesburg Zoo.
“There have been no＿ 10＿ studies because you can’t really test it in a lab or field setting2,” he told Reuters. Other authorities concurred with this 11 .
“Wildlife seem to be able to pick up certain 12 , especially birds … there are many reports of birds
detecting impending disasters,” said Clive Walker, who has written several books on African wildlife.
Animals 13 rely on the known senses such as smell or hearing to avoid danger slid as predators.
The notion of an animal “sixth sense” — or 14 other mythical power is an enduring one3 which the evidence on Sri Lanka’s ravaged coast is likely to add to.
The Romans saw owls 15 omens of impending disaster and many ancient cultures viewed elephants as sacred animals endowed with special power or attributes.
词汇：
tsunami / tsʊˈnɑmi / n．海啸
trigger / "trɪɡə(r) / v．引发，触发
ravaged / "rævidʒid / adj．被毁坏的
leopard / "lepəd / n．豹
eruption / ɪˈrʌpʃən / n．喷发
migrate / maɪ"ɡreɪt / v．迁移
volcanic / vɒlˈkænɪk / adj．火山的
concur / kən"kɜ:(r) / v．（with）同意，赞成
impending / ɪmˈpendɪŋ / adj．迫近的
predator / "predətə(r) / n．食肉动物
mythical / ˈmɪθɪkl / adj．神话般的
owl / aʊl / n．猫头鹰
omen / "əʊmən / n．预兆，征兆
endow / ɪn"daʊ / v．赋予
注释:
1. adds weight to notions that：更加相信……
2. field setting：field意为“实地，野外”， setting意为“环境”。 field setting可译为“野外环境”。
3. enduring one：由来已久的信念。 one指代在句首出现的， noiton enduring意为“持久的，永久的”。空12
A:route B:behavior C:principle D:phenomenon
Climate Change Poses Major Risks for Unprepared Cities
A new examination of urban policies has been 1 recently by Patricia Romero Lankao．She is a sociologist specializing in climate change and 2 development．She warns that many of the world’s fast-growing urban areas，especially in developing countries．will likely1 suffer from the impacts of changing climate．Her work also concludes that most cities are failing to 3 emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse 4 ．These gases are known to affect the atmosphere．”Climate change is a deeply local issue and poses profound threats to the growing cities of the world,” says Romero Lankao. ”But too few cities are developing effective strategies to 5 their residents."
Cities are 6 sources of greenhouse gases．And urban populations are likely to2 be among those most severely affected by future climate change. Lankao’s findings3 highlight ways in which city-residents are particularly vulnerable, and suggest policy interventions that could offer immediate and longer-term 7 ．
The locations and dense construction patterns of cities often place their populations at greater risk for natural disasters. Potential 8 associated with climate include storm surges4 and prolonged hot weather. Storm surges can flood coastal areas and prolonged hot weather can heat 9 paved cities5 more than surrounding areas．The impacts of such natural events can be more serious in an urban environment．For example，a prolonged heat wave can increase existing levels of air pollution，causing widespread health problems．Poorer neighborhoods that may 10 basic facilities such as drinking water or a dependable network of roads，are especially vulnerable to natural disasters．Many residents in poorer countries live in substandard housing 11 access to reliable drinking water，roads and basic services.
Local governments, 12 ,should take measures to protect their residents.”Unfortunately，they tend to move towards rhetoric 13 meaningful responses6, Romero Lankao writes, ” They don’t impose construction standards that could reduce heating and air conditioning needs. They don"t emphasize mass transit and reduce 14 use. In fact, many local governments are taking a hands—off approach7.” Thus, she urges them to change their 15 policies and to take strong steps to prevent the harmful effects of climate change on cities.
词汇：
vulnerable / "vʌlnərəbl / adj ．易受伤害的
infrastructure / "infrə,strʌktʃə / n ．基础设施
sociologist /,səusi"ɔlədʒist /n．社会学家
substandard / ,sʌb"stændəd / adj．标准以下的
dioxide / dai"ɔksaid / ．二氧化物
floodplain /"flʌdplein / n ．泛滥平原
注释：
1. likely：很可能，或许。在本句中用作副词。
2. be likely to：很可能。likely 在本句中是形容词，用作表语。
3. findings：调查结果
4. storm surges：风暴潮
5. paved cities：铺上沥青路面的城市
6. spring up：涌现
7. rhetoric . . . responses：修辞反应。这个词的意思是：（地方政府）话讲得很漂亮，但内容空洞。
8. a hands-off approach：一种不插手的政策
空14
A:train B:automobile C:bus D:bike
Better Solar Energy Systems: More Heat, More Light
Solar photovoltaic thermal energy systems1, or PVTs, generate both heat and electricity, but
1 now they2 haven’t been very good at the heat-generating part compared to a stand-alone3 solar thermal collector. That’s because they operate at low temperatures to cool crystalline silicon solar cells4, which5 lets the silicon generate more 2 but isn’t a very efficient way to gather heat.
That’s a problem of 3 . Good solar hot-water systems can harvest much more energy than a solar-electric system at a substantially lower 4 . And it，s also a space problem：photovoltaic cells can take up all the space on the roof, leaving little room6 for thermal applications.
In a pair of studies, Joshua Pearce, an associate professor of materials science and engineering, has devised a 5 in the form of a better PVT made with a different kind of silicon. His research collaborators are Kunal Girotra from ThinSilicon in California and Michael Pathak and Stephen Harrison from Queen’s University, Canada."
Most solar panels7 are made with crystalline silicon，you can also make solar cells out ofbut amorphous silicon8, 6 known as thin-film silicon9. They don’t create as much electricity,but they are lighter, flexible, and cheaper. And, because they 7 much less silicon, they have a greener footprint. Unfortunately，thin-film silicon solar cells are 8 to some bad-news physics in the form of the Staebler-Wronski effect10.
“That means that their efficiency 9 when you expose them to light — pretty much11 the worst possible effect12 for a solar cell,” Pearce explains，which is one of the 10 thin-film solar panels make up only a small fraction of the market.
However, Pearce and his team found away to engineer around13 the Staebler-Wronski effect by incorporating thin-film silicon in a new 11 of PVT. You don’t have to cool down thin-film silicon to make it work. In fact，Pearce’s group discovered that by heating it to solar-thermal operating temperatures14，near the boiling 12 of water, they could make thicker cells that largely 13 the Staebler-Wronski effect. When they applied the thin-film silicon directly to a solar thermal energy
14 , they also found that by baking the cell once a day，they 15 the solar cell’s electrical efficiency by over 10 percent.
词汇:
photovoltaic / ,fəʊtəʊvɒl"teɪɪk /n.光电的
silicon / "sɪlɪkən /n.硅
thermal / "θɜːməl /adj.热的，热量的
amorphous/ ə"mɔːfəs/ adj.非晶形的
crystalline / "krɪstə"laɪn /adj.晶体的
footprint/ "fʊtprɪnt/ n.足迹
注释：
1. solar photovoltaic thermal energy systems:太阳能光伏热能系统
2. they: 指代 solar photovoltaic thermal energy systems。
3. stand-alone:单机的
4. crystalline silicon solar cells:晶体硅太阳能电池
5. which:指前半句中的 to cool crystalline silicon solar cells 这件事
6. room:空间
7. solar panels:太阳能电池板
8. amorphous silicon：非晶硅
9. thin-film silicon:薄膜硅
10. Staebler-Wronski Effect: SWE 效应。在光的照射下，非晶桂氢的导电性短时间内显著衰退，这种特性被称为 SWE 效应。
11. pretty much:几乎
12. the worst possible effect：最可能坏的效应
13. engineer around:精心地设计以克服或绕过
14. solar-thermal operating temperatures:太阳热能操作温度空14
A:transformer B:adaptor C:transmitter D:collector
A Lucky Break
Actor Antonio Banderas is used to breaking bones, and it always seems to happen when he"s ___1___sport. In the film Play It to the Bone he___2___the part of a middleweight boxer alongside1 Woody Harrelson. ___3___the making of the film Harrelson___4___complaining that the fight___5___weren"t very convincing, so one day he suggested that he and Banderas should have a fight for real. The Spanish actor wasn"t___6___on the idea at first, but he was___7___ persuaded by his co-star to put on his gloves and climb into the boxing ring. However, when he realized how seriously his___8___was taking it all, he began to regret his decision to fight. And then in the third round, Harrelson hit Banderas___9___hard in the face that he actually broke his nose. His wife, actress Melanie Griffith, was furious that he had been playing "silly macho games". "She was right," confesses Banderas, "and I was a fool to___10___a risk like that in the middle of a movie."
He was___11___of the time2 he broke his leg during a football match in his native Malaga. He had always___12___of becoming a soccer star, of performing in front of a big crowd, but doctors told him his playing days were probably over. "That"s when I decided to take___13___ acting; I saw it as___14___way of performing, and achieving recognition. What happened to me on that football___15___was, you might say, my first lucky break."
middleweight / "mɪd(ə)lweɪt / n. 中量级拳击手
注释:
1. ... plays the part of a middleweight boxer alongside ... :……与……并肩，扮演一个中量级拳击手……
空14
A:further B:additional C:different D:another
A Lucky Break
Actor Antonio Banderas is used to breaking bones, and it always seems to happen when he"s ___1___sport. In the film Play It to the Bone he___2___the part of a middleweight boxer alongside1 Woody Harrelson. ___3___the making of the film Harrelson___4___complaining that the fight___5___weren"t very convincing, so one day he suggested that he and Banderas should have a fight for real. The Spanish actor wasn"t___6___on the idea at first, but he was___7___ persuaded by his co-star to put on his gloves and climb into the boxing ring. However, when he realized how seriously his___8___was taking it all, he began to regret his decision to fight. And then in the third round, Harrelson hit Banderas___9___hard in the face that he actually broke his nose. His wife, actress Melanie Griffith, was furious that he had been playing "silly macho games". "She was right," confesses Banderas, "and I was a fool to___10___a risk like that in the middle of a movie."
He was___11___of the time2 he broke his leg during a football match in his native Malaga. He had always___12___of becoming a soccer star, of performing in front of a big crowd, but doctors told him his playing days were probably over. "That"s when I decided to take___13___ acting; I saw it as___14___way of performing, and achieving recognition. What happened to me on that football___15___was, you might say, my first lucky break."
middleweight / "mɪd(ə)lweɪt / n. 中量级拳击手
注释:
1. ... plays the part of a middleweight boxer alongside ... :……与……并肩，扮演一个中量级拳击手……
空14
A:further B:additional C:different D:another
Look on The Bright Side
Do you ever wish you were more optimistic, someone who always (1) ______to be successful? Having someone around who always (2) ______the worst isn"t really a lot of (3) ______.We all know someone who sees a single cloud on a sunny day and says, "It looks (4) ______rain."But if you catch yourself thinking such things1, it"s important to do something (5) ______ it.
You can change your view of life, (6) ______to psychologists. It only takes a little effort, and you"ll find life more rewarding as a (7) ______. Optimism, they say, is partly about self-respect and confidence, but it"s also a more positive way of looking at life and all it has to (8) ______. Optimists are more (9) ______to start new projects and are generally more prepared to take risks2.
Upbringing is obviously very important in forming your (10) ______ to the world. Some people are brought up to (11) ______too much on others and grow up forever blaming other people when anything (12) ______wrong. Most optimists, on the (13) ______hand, have been brought up not to (14) ______failure as the end of the world一they just (15) ______with their lives.
词汇：
optimistic /ˌɒptɪˈmɪstɪk / adj．乐观的，乐观主义的
psychologist /saɪˈkɒlədʒɪst / n．心理学家
rewarding /rɪˈwɔ:dɪŋ / adj．有益的，值得的，有报酬的
upbringing /ˈʌpˌbrɪŋɪŋ /n．教养，养育，抚育
obviously / ˈɒbviəsli / adv．明显地，显然地
blame / bleɪm /v．责备，归咎于
注释：
1. …catch yourself thinking such things………发现自己在想这样的事情……
2. …are generally more prepared to take risks: ……通常更容易准备好去冒险空14
A:regard B:respect C:suppose D:think
A Lucky Break
Actor Antonio Banderas is used to breaking bones, and it always seems to happen when he"s ___1___sport. In the film Play It to the Bone he___2___the part of a middleweight boxer alongside1 Woody Harrelson. ___3___the making of the film Harrelson___4___complaining that the fight___5___weren"t very convincing, so one day he suggested that he and Banderas should have a fight for real. The Spanish actor wasn"t___6___on the idea at first, but he was___7___ persuaded by his co-star to put on his gloves and climb into the boxing ring. However, when he realized how seriously his___8___was taking it all, he began to regret his decision to fight. And then in the third round, Harrelson hit Banderas___9___hard in the face that he actually broke his nose. His wife, actress Melanie Griffith, was furious that he had been playing "silly macho games". "She was right," confesses Banderas, "and I was a fool to___10___a risk like that in the middle of a movie."
He was___11___of the time2 he broke his leg during a football match in his native Malaga. He had always___12___of becoming a soccer star, of performing in front of a big crowd, but doctors told him his playing days were probably over. "That"s when I decided to take___13___ acting; I saw it as___14___way of performing, and achieving recognition. What happened to me on that football___15___was, you might say, my first lucky break."
middleweight / "mɪd(ə)lweɪt / n. 中量级拳击手
注释:
1. ... plays the part of a middleweight boxer alongside ... :……与……并肩，扮演一个中量级拳击手……
空14
A:further B:additional C:different D:another
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