第一篇：2012年職稱英語理工類閱讀理解新增文章(翻譯)

2012年職稱英語理工類翻譯

新增文章

閱讀理解（6篇）

第六篇 Making Light of1 Sleep 第十九篇 Graphene's Superstrength1 *第三＋八篇 “Life Form Found” on Saturn's Titan *第四十篇 Teaching Math, Teaching Anxiety +第四＋五篇 Teaching Math, Teaching Anxiety +第四十六篇Ants Have Big Impact on Environment as “Ecosystem Engineers” 注：

1、+表示A級文章；*表示B即文章；其他為C級文章

2、閱讀理解 3、2012年詞匯部分與2011年教材相比未作任何變化

理工類C級 第六篇 不要太在意睡眠

我們每個人的大腦里都有一個像我們床邊的鬧鐘一樣的生物鐘。人腦里的生物鐘24小時走一圈，這一圈也就是一次完整的晝夜節律，正是這個節律決定了我們吃飯、睡覺和起床的時間。

青春期時，人的生物鐘在定時方面會發生變化，生物鐘會提前。這時，青少年會比以前睡得晚，所以當你媽媽告訴你該睡覺時，你的生物鐘可能會讓你多推遲幾小時，并且電腦或電視光線可能會導致你熬夜到更晚。

生物鐘的這種變化對青少年說是正常的，但熬夜到太晚會打亂你生物鐘與晝夜時間循環之間的平衡，這樣就會帶來一些問題，例如：早晨很難按時起床。位于美國羅得州布郎大學睡眠方面的研究員Mary Carskadon說：“當青少年睡眠不足時會打不起精神，這將影響到他們心情、學習和思考問題的狀態?！?/p>

其實生物鐘與鬧鐘一樣，也是可調的，事實上，生物鐘每天都在進行著自我調節，其方式就是通過你眼睛接收到光線的變化。

很早之前，科學家就知道了晝夜光線強弱的變化對生物鐘調節起到了重要的作用，長久以來，研究者們認為眼睛所接受到的平衡生物鐘的光信號同樣作用于人類的視覺系統。

但最近幾年的研究發現，人類眼睛有兩個感光系統，一個是視覺系統，而另一個是感知晝夜的系統。

第十九篇 石墨烯的超強力量

當今重大科學技術均以“微型”來呈現，新手機和個人電腦每年都在變得更小，這就意味著電子設備要求內部零件更小，工程師們正在尋求制造這些零件的方法，他們逐漸把目光投向了石墨烯——一種由碳元素構成的超薄材料。這種材料將改變電子設備的未來。

今年的諾貝爾物理學獎頒發給了來自英國曼切斯特大學的Andre Geim和Kostya Novoselov，以表彰他們對石墨烯的發現。Novoselov說：“石墨烯不僅小，而且它是世界上所能找到的最薄材料?！彼阉Q作“神奇材料”。石墨烯極薄，25 000片石墨烯疊放在一起才與一張普通白紙一樣厚。如果把一片石墨烯放在手指上，你根本就不會發現，因為你沒辦法看到它。

碳是宇宙中最多的一種元素，已知的生命體中都含有碳。石墨烯一個只有一個碳原子厚度的單層。你不用費心尋找石墨烯，它就在我們身邊。

如果你想得到這種高技術材料，一支筆、一張紙和一小段膠條就足夠了。用鉛筆在紙上涂黑一片區域，將膠條粘在上面，當你拉開膠條你會發現它粘起了很薄的一片鉛筆涂的陰影，這一片陰影就叫做石墨烯，一種世界上最軟的礦物質。

現在，再將膠條粘上另外一張紙上，把它拉起來，你會得到更薄的一層。想象一下當你重復做，直到在紙上得到最薄的一層物質，這層物質只有一個原子的厚度，你根本無法看到。石墨是由一層層的石墨烯組成的，所以當你得到最薄的一層時，你已經找到了石墨烯。

理工類B級 第三十八篇 土衛六上發現了生命跡象

科學家們說，在土衛六上發現了外星生命跡象并宣布了這一發現。美國國家航空航天局(NASA)的研究者們對卡西尼號探測器所傳回來的數據進行了分析，數據表明，土星衛星中最大的一顆衛星有以甲烷為基礎的生命的存在跡象。

據報道，科學家們已經找到了在土衛六高濃度氫氣大氣層里“呼吸”的原始外星生命的線索。

他們認為，氫氣在到達布滿甲烷河流湖泊的土衛六類似行星一樣的表層前就已經被吸收了。這就證明在這個不及半個地球大小的衛星表面有某種微生物在依靠氫氣生存。

美國國家航空航天局的科學家Chris Mckay說，“我們提出有氫氣的消耗，是由于它是土衛六上生命賴以生存的顯而易見的氣體，就像我們地球上用氧氣呼吸一樣。如果這些跡象最終證明是生命的跡象，它會加倍令人興奮，因為它會代表完全不同于地球上水基生命的第二種生命?！?/p>

時至今日，盡管地球上的依賴液體水的微生物在甲烷里生長良好或把它作為廢物排出，科學家在任何地方都沒有探測到這種生命的形式。在土衛六上，絕對溫度達到90度(相當于攝氏-273．15度)，依賴于甲烷的微生物不得不用某種液

體物質作為生存的介質，這種液體不是水，水在土衛六上會凍成冰塊，不能融化。我們知道，冰塊太冷不能維持生命。

科學家們原指望太陽與大氣層中的化學物質相互作用會在土衛六上產生一層乙炔。但卡西尼號在它的表面沒有探測到乙炔。

Mark Allen是美國宇航局土衛六項目組的主要負責人，他說道，既然在土衛六的表面沒有探測到乙炔，那就充分說明上面沒有生物。

Allen說：“科學界的保守主義者們建議，要做出土衛六上有生物的結論，首先必須對土衛六上所有沒有生物的觀點做出回應；要排除土衛六上可能沒有生物的觀點，我們任重道遠。極為可能的是，一種化學過程而非生物學能解釋這些結果?！?/p>

第四十篇 教數學，教焦慮

在最新一項關于小學生學數學的研究中，芝加哥大學的心理學家Sian Beilock和Susan Levine 發現，女教師的想法和女學生的學習之間有著驚人的聯系：如果女教師對自己的數學能力感到焦慮，她的女學生很可能認為男孩子數學比女孩學得更好。

“如果一直由對數學有焦慮的女教師教授數學，就會對她們的數學成績產生雪球效應”，Levine說。換言之，女孩子們最后從老師那里獲得的是對數學的焦慮。該研究表明，如果女孩子們在一個認為男孩比女孩數學好的環境中成長，那么她們的數學可能會不如在更自信的狀態下學得好。

如同學生，教師也會覺得某些學科難學和難教，這就是研究者所言的“焦慮”：不自在或擔心。

此研究發現，教師對數學的焦慮能夠傳染給她的女學生們。該研究的研究對象包括65個女孩，52個男孩和17位在中西部教一二年級的教師。學生們在學年的開始和結束時都進行數學測試，研究者們比較得分。

研究者們測試學生是否認為數學明星一定會是男孩。然后研究者們測試教師，試圖找出哪些教師對數學感到焦慮，研究者們問教師們當碰到數學問題諸如閱讀銷售清單時的感受，如果一位教師一看到銷售清單的數字就感到緊張，那么她很可能對數學存在焦慮。

平均來說，教師的焦慮不會影響到男孩子。但是，一般說來，如果教女孩子的教師有數學焦慮癥，那么女孩子們在學年結束時測試得分比其他的女孩要低。另外，在關于是否認為數學明星應該是男孩的測試中，有20個女孩認為男孩數學比女孩好，這20個女孩的老師都是女性，且都患有數學焦慮癥。

來自密蘇里大學的心理學家David Geary說“這是一個有趣的研究，但是這只是初步結果，需要用更大的調查樣本進行重復驗證”。

理工類A級 第四十五篇 小而聰明

12月14日，美國國家航空航天局發射了一個體積小而威力大的望遠鏡，它的名字叫“WISE”(聰明)，大約只有一個垃圾盒子那么寬。你可千萬不要輕視這個小東西，WISE可是一款高強數碼相機，它將在人類已知的宇宙里拍攝任何你所能想到的天體，包括小行星、那些只能看到微弱的光和因燃燒而無法觀察到的天體，以及自行星和恒星誕生以來的巨大塵埃云。

Ned Wright是主持WISE項目的科學家，他說：“我十分興奮，因為我們就要看到以前從未看到過的那部分宇宙”。

到達宇宙空間后，WISE由于受極地軌道重力作用，一直在圍繞地球旋轉。(這意味著，每轉一圈，它就離南極和北極靠近)。它的鏡頭是向外的，遠離地球。每11分鐘WISE就會抓拍天空一個不同的部分。六個月之后，它將把整個天空拍攝完畢。

然而，WISE拍攝的相片不會像我們日常的數碼相片。WISE是Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer(廣域紅外戡測探測器)的縮寫。正如名字所示，WISE能拍到發出紅外線輻射物體的相片。

輻射是波浪狀行進的一種能量。人能看到的光，包括大家熟悉的、在彩虹里看到的光譜就是射線的一個例子。當普通的數碼相機給一棵樹照相時，它能接收到樹反射回來的、可見的光波。光波通過鏡頭進入到相機里，相機對它進行加工，然后把圖像合成。

紅外線的波長比可見光長，所以，普通的數碼相機捕捉不到他們，人眼也看不到這種射線。盡管人們看不到，人的皮膚能感受到較長紅外線帶來的溫暖。

這就是為什么WISE能捕捉到其他望遠鏡看不到的物體的主要原因。宇宙中，不是所有的東西都以可見光的方式呈現出來。例如，小行星是在太空中漂浮的大巖石，但是小行星吸收射到他們表面的大部分光。他們不能反射光，所以要看到他們很困難。但他們卻釋放出紅外線，所以，象WISE這樣的紅外線望遠鏡才能夠捕捉到它們的圖像。WISE的任務就是拍攝成千上萬的小行星圖像。

WISE的另一任務是為另外一種太空深處的天體一褐矮星拍照。這種天體是“失敗的”恒星，它們是一些不夠大，不能像太陽的能量那樣啟動相同的反應。褐矮星只能縮小和冷卻。他們發出的光如此之微弱，人們根本看不到，但是在紅外頻譜中，它們是發光的。

第四十六篇 螞蟻作為“生態系統工程師”對環境影響巨大

?？怂固卮髮W所做的研究表明，螞蟻作為“生態系統工程師”和食肉動物的行為對當地的環境影響巨大。該研究發表在動物生態雜志上，它表明螞蟻對當地的環境有兩大顯著的影響。

第一，通過筑巢而挪動土壤或采集食物，螞蟻影響土壤的營養水平。這可間接影響當地從腐生物到食物鏈高層的許多動物種群的數量。

第二，它們捕食的動物種類很多，包括那些被大量工蟻攻擊的大獵物。

Dirk Sanders是該大學生態和保護中心所做的此項研究的作者，他說：“螞蟻是高效的食肉動物，而且能大量繁殖。它們具有很強的領地意識，并且會竭盡全力對抗其他的食肉動物來保衛自己的領地。所有這些都意味著螞蟻對周圍環境影響巨大。”

“在該研究中，我們第一次對螞蟻帶來的影響程度及微妙程度進行研究。所得的發現是：盡管是食肉動物，螞蟻的出現能促使其他動物族群在數量和品種上的增長。并對當地的環境起到切實重要的作用，對大草原的食物鏈影響巨大。”Sanders說。

該研究在德國進行，它對花園黑螞蟻和一般的紅螞蟻在不同混合程度和不同密度下的影響力進行研究。黑螞蟻和紅螞蟻在整個歐洲包括英國都能找到。研究發現，一個地區的螞蟻密度小，而其他動物尤其是食草動物和腐生物的數量和種類會增多。如果螞蟻的密度大，就不可能產生同樣的影響，或者產生相反的影響，這表明，螞蟻的掠食活動會抵消螞蟻給環境帶來的積極影響。

Dr Frank van Veen是本研究的另一作者，他說：“我們的發現是：如果螞蟻的數量少，其對土壤的營養水平的影響會對動物族群產生積極的效果。但是如果螞蟻的數量增加，其捕食的影響會達到最大化，因此會抵消螞蟻通過生態工程給環境帶來的積極影響”。

螞蟻是生態系統的重要組成部分，不僅因為它占有很大部分的生物量，而且因為其作為生態系統工程師的角色。螞蟻具有難以想象的多樣性，但極易受人類的影響，這就使它的多樣性有顯著的減少。然而，科學家還不清楚人類對螞蟻這種干擾如何破壞螞蟻對生態系統的維護作用。螞蟻通過變動物理的和化學的環境，通過對植物、微生物和其他土壤生物的影響而對生態環境起至關重要的作用。

第四十五篇 小而聰明

12月14日，美國國家航空航天局發射了一個體積小而威力大的望遠鏡，它的名字叫“WISE”（聰明），大約只有一個垃圾盒子那么寬。你可千萬不要輕視這個小東西，WISE可是一款商強數碼相機，它將在人類已知的宇宙里拍攝任何你所能想到的天體，包括小行星、那些只能看到微弱的光和因燃燒而無法觀察的天體，以及自行星和恒星誕生以來的巨大塵埃云。

Ned Wright是主持WISE項目的科學家，他說：“我十分興奮，因為我們就要看到以前從未看到過的那部分宇宙”。

到達宇宙空間后，WISE由于受極地軌道重力作用，一直在圍繞地球旋轉。（這意味著，每轉一圈，它就離南極和北極靠近）。它的鏡頭是向外的，遠離地球。每11分鐘WISE就會抓拍天空一個不同的部分。六個月之后，它將把整個天空拍攝完畢。

然而，WISE拍攝的相片不會像我們日常的數碼相片。WISE是Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer（廣域紅外勘測探測器）的縮寫。正如名字所示，WISE能拍到發出紅外線輻射物體的相片。

輻射是波浪狀行進的一種能量。人能看到的光，包括大家熟悉的、在彩虹里看到的光譜就是射線的一個例子。當普通的數碼相機給一棵樹照相時，它能接收到樹反射回來的、可見的光波。光波通過鏡頭進入到相機里，相機對它進行加工，然后把圖像合成。

紅外線的波長比可見光長，所以，普通的數碼相機捕捉不到他們，人眼也看不到這種射線。盡管人們看不到，人的皮膚能感受到較長紅外線帶來的溫暖。

這就是為什么WISE能捕捉到其他望遠鏡看不到的物體的主要原因。宇宙中，不是所有的東西都以可見光的方式呈現出來。例如，小行星是在太空中漂浮的大巖石，但是小行星吸收射到他們表面的大部分光。他們不能反射光，所以要看到他們很困難。但他們卻釋放出紅外線，所以，像WISE這樣的紅外線望遠鏡才能夠捕捉到它們的圖像。WISE的任務就是拍攝成千上萬的小行星圖像。

WISE的另一任務是為另外一種太空深處的天體一褐矮星拍照。這種天體是“失敗的”恒星，它們是一些不夠大，不能像太陽的能量那樣啟動相同的反應。褐矮星只能縮小和冷卻。他們發出的光如此之微弱，人們根本看不到，但是在線外頻譜中，它們是發光的。

第四十六篇 螞蟻作為“生態系統工程師”對環境影響巨大

?？怂固卮髮W所做的研究表明，螞蟻作為“生態系統工程師”和食肉動物的行為對當地的環境影響巨大。該研究發表在動物生態雜志上，它表明螞蟻對當地的環境有兩大顯著的影響。

第一，通過筑巢而挪動土壤或采集食物，螞蟻影響土壤的營養水平。這可間接影響當地從腐生物到食物鏈高層的許多動物種群的數量。

第二，它們捕食的動物種類很多，包括那些被大量工蟻攻擊的大獵物。Dirk Sanders是該大學生態和保護中心所做的此項研究的作者，他說：“螞蟻是高效的食肉動物，而且能大量繁殖。它們具有很強的領地意識，并且會竭盡全力對抗其他的食肉動物來保衛自己的領地。所有這些都意味著螞蟻對周圍環境影響巨大。”

“在該研究中，我們第一次對螞蟻帶來的影響程度及微妙程度進行研究。所得到的發現是：盡管是食肉動物，螞蟻的出現能促使其他動物族群在數量和品種上的增長。并對當地的環境起到切實重要的作用，對大草原的食物鏈影響巨大。”Sanders說。

該研究在德國進行，它對花園黑螞蟻和一般的紅螞蟻在不同混合程度和不同密度下的影響力進行研究。黑螞蟻和紅螞蟻在整個歐洲包括英國都能找到。研究發現，一個地區的螞蟻密度小，而其他動物尤其是食草動物和腐生物的數量和種類會增多。如果螞蟻的密度大，就不可能產生同樣的影響，或者產生相反的影響，這表明，螞蟻的掠食活動會抵消螞蟻給環境帶來的積極影響。

Dr Frank van Veen是本研究的另一作者，他說：“我們的發現是：如果螞蟻的數量少，其對土壤的營養水平的影響會對動物族群產生積極的效果。如果螞蟻的數量增加，其捕食的影響會達到最大化，因此會抵消螞蟻通過生態工程給環境帶來的積極影響?！?/p>

螞蟻是生態系統的重要組成部分，不僅因為它占有很大部分的生物量，而且

因為其作為生態系統工程師的角色。螞蟻具有難以想象的多樣性，但極易受人類的影響，這就使它的多樣性有顯著的減少。然而，科學家還不消楚人類對螞蟻這種干擾如何破壞螞蟻對生態系統的維護作用。螞蟻通過變動物理的和化學的環境，通過對植物、微生物和其他土壤生物的影響而對生態環境起至關重要的作用。

2012年職稱英語理工、綜合和衛生教材（電子版已經發布，歡迎下載）

第二篇：2012年職稱英語理工類新增文章(帶習題翻譯)

2012年職稱英語理工類

新增文章

閱讀理解（6篇）

…… …… …… ……3頁

第六篇 Making Light of1 Sleep 第十九篇 Graphene's Superstrength*第三＋八篇 “Life Form Found” on Saturn's Titan *第四十篇 Teaching Math, Teaching Anxiety +第四＋五篇 Teaching Math, Teaching Anxiety +第四十六篇Ants Have Big Impact on Environment as “Ecosystem Engineers”

完形填空（6篇）

…… …… …… ……20頁

第三篇 Germs on Banknotes

第十篇 Chicken Soup for the Soul：Comfort Food Fights Loneliness *第十一篇 Climate Change Poses Major Risks for Unprepared Cities *第十二篇 Free Statins With Fast Food Could Neutralize Heart Risk +第十三篇 Solar Power without Solar Cells +第十五篇 “Liquefaction” Key to Much of Japanese Earthquake Damage

注：

1、+表示A級文章；*表示B即文章；其他為C級文章；

2、閱讀理解，請參見第3頁；完形填空，請參見第20頁； 3、2012年詞匯部分與2011年教材相比未作任何變化。

閱讀理解

第六篇 Making Light of1 Sleep All we have a clock located inside our brains.Similar to your bedside alarm clock，your internal clock2 runs on a 24-hour cycle.This cycle，called a circadian rhythm，helps control when you wake，when you eat and when you sleep.Somewhere around puberty，something happens in the timing of the biological clock.The clock pushes forward，so adolescents and teenagers are unable to fall asleep as early as they used to.When your mother tells you it's time for bed，your body may be pushing you to stay 3 upfor several hours more.And the light coming from your computer screen or TV could be pushing you to stay up even later.This shift is natural for teenagers.But staying up very late and sleeping late can get your body's clock out of sync with the cycle of light and dark5.It can also make it hard to get out of bed in the morning and may bring other problems，too.Teenagers are put in a kind of a gray cloud6 when they don't get enough sleep，says Mary Carskadon，a sleep researcher at Brown University in Providence，RI.It affects their mood and their ability to think and learn.But just like your alarm clock，your internal clock can be reset.In fact，it automatically resets itself every day.How? By using the light it gets through your eyes.Scientists have known for a long time that the light of day and the dark of night play important roles in setting our internal clocks.For years，researchers thought that the signals that synchronize the body's clock8 were handled through the same pathways that we use to see.But recent discoveries show that the human eye has two separate light-sensing systems.One system allows us to see.The second system tells our body whether it's day or night.詞匯：

circadian/s3:'keidi?n/ adj.晝夜節奏的，生理節奏的 adolescent/?d?u'les?nt/ n．青少年；adj．青少年的 puberty/ 'pju:b?ti/ n．發育；青春期 sync/si?k/ n.（口語）同步；和諧，協調

synchronize/'si?kr?naiz / V.（使）同時發生；（使）同步

注釋：

1.make light of ：輕視，不在乎。例如： We should not make light of their achievements．我們不應當低估他們的成就。

2.your internal clock ：指的是第一句中的a clock located inside our brains，也即是第二段第一句中的the biological clock（生物鐘）。3.stay up：不睡覺，熬夜

4.This shift：這種調整。指上文所描述的由于生理時間的變化青少年上床時間越來越晚的現 象。

5.get your body's clock out of sync with the cycle of light and dark ：打亂了你的生物鐘與

晝夜時間循環之間的平衡

6.gray cloud ：提不起精神的狀態

7.Brown University in Providence，RI：位于美國羅得島州普羅維登斯的布朗大學。RI是Rhode Island（羅得島）的首字母縮寫；Providence 是羅得島州的首府。布朗大學是美國一流大學，創建于1764 年，是世界聞名的美國“常春藤聯盟”（還包括哈佛大學、耶魯大學、普林斯頓大學、布朗大學、哥倫比亞大學、賓夕法尼亞大學、達特茅斯大學和康奈爾大學）中的一員。8.the signals that synchronize the body's clock：平衡生物鐘的光信號

練習：.The clock located inside our brains is similar to our bedside alarm clock because A it controls when we wake，when we eat and when we sleep.B it has a cycle of 24 hours.C it is a cycle also called circadian rhythm.D it can alarm any time during 24 hours.2.What is implied in the second paragraph? A Young children's biological clock has the same rhythm with that of the teenagers.B People after puberty begin to go to bed earlier due to the change of the biological clock.C Children before puberty tend to fall asleep earlier at night than adolescents.D Teenagers go to bed later than they used to due to the light from the computer screen.3.In the third paragraph the author wants to tell the reader that A it is natural for teenagers to stay up late and get up late.B staying up late has a bad effect on teenagers' ability to think and learn.C during puberty most teenagers experience a kind of gray cloud.D it is hard for teenagers to get out of bed in the morning.4.Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the fourth and fifth paragraphs? A Our biological clock resets itself automatically.B light gets through our eyes and resets our biological clock.C Our internal clock as well as the alarm clock can be reset automatically.D Our internal clock，like the alarm clock，can be reset.5.According to the last two paragraphs，what did the previous researchers think about the human eye's light-sensing system? A The human eye had two light-sensing systems.B The human eye had one light-sensing system.C The human eye could sense the light of day more quickly than the dark of night.D The human eye could reset our internal clocks in accordance with the alarm clocks.答案與題解：

1.B 第一段第二句提供了答案。句中的your internal clock 即指a clock located inside our Brains。2.C 第二段主要內容是告訴讀者，過了青春期（puberty），由于生物鐘節奏的變化，青少年（adolescents and teenagers）比以前要晚睡幾小時。所以C是該段所隱含的內容。3.B 第三段的最后一句直接給出了答案。

4.C 根據第四和第五段的內容，鬧鐘和生物鐘都可以重新設定時間，但生物鐘能通過眼睛接

受的日光來自動調節生理節奏。所以A、B和D都是這兩段中所述內容，C是正確選擇，因為鬧鐘不能自動重新設定時間。

5.B 問題使用的是過去時，問的是研究者在最新發現（recent discoveries）之前對眼睛感光系統的認識，即，the signals that synchronize the body's clock were handled through the same pathways that we use to see（眼睛所接受到的平衡生物鐘的光信號同樣作用于人類的視覺系 統），也就是說，研究者之前認為人類的眼睛只有一個感光系統。但最新發現卻是，人的眼睛有兩個感光系統。

第十九篇

Graphene's Superstrength1

Big technology comes in tiny packages.New cell phones and personal computers get smaller every year，which means these electronics require even smaller components on the inside.Engineers are looking for creative ways to build these components，and they've turned their

2eyes to graphene，a superthin material，made of carbon，that could change the future of electronics.This year's Nobel Prize for Physics has been awarded to Andre Geim and Kostya Novoselov from the University of Manchester4，UK.for the discovery of graphene.Graphene isn't just small, it's“the thinnest possible material in this world，” says Novoselov.He calls it a“wonder material.”It's so thin that you would need to stack about 25,000 sheets just to make a pile as thick as a piece of ordinary white paper.If you were to hold a sheet of graphene in your fingers，you'd have no idea because you wouldn't be able to see it.Carbon is one of the most abundant elements in the universe.Every known kind of life contains carbon.Graphene is a sheet of carbon，but only one atom thick.You don't have to look far to find grapheme —it's all around you.If you want this high-tech wonderstuff6，all you need is a pencil，paper and a little adhesive tape.Use the pencil to shade a small area on the paper, and then apply a small piece of adhesive tape over the area7.When you pull up the tape，you'll see that it pulls up a thin layer of some of the shading from your pencil.That layer is called graphite，one of the softest minerals in the world.Now stick the same piece of tape on another sheet of paper and pull the tape up —there should be an even thinner layer，this time left on the paper.Now imagine that you do this over and over，until you get the thinnest possible layer of material on the paper.This layer would be only one atom thick，and you wouldn't be able to see it.Graphite is made of layers of graphene，so when you get to the thinnest possible layer，you've found graphene.詞匯：

graphene/ 'gr?fi:n/ n．石墨烯

abundant/?’b?nd?nt / adj．豐富的，充裕的 atom/ '?t?m/n．原子

adhesive/ ?d'hi:siv/ n．膠粘劑； adj.黏著的 stack/st?k/ v．使成堆，堆放 graphite / 'gr?fait / n．石墨

注釋：

51.superstrength：超強的力量。該詞是一個合成詞，由兩部分組成，super（超級的）和strength（力量）。2.superthin：超薄。見注釋1。

3.Nobel Prize for Physics ：諾貝爾物理學獎

4.the University of Manchester：曼徹斯特大學。這是一所位于英國曼徹斯特市的公立研究型大學，創建于1851 年。

5.If you were to hold a sheet of graphene in your fingers：句子使用的是虛擬語氣，因為不可能將幾乎肉眼看不到的石墨烯放在指尖上。

6.wonderstuff：神奇物。該詞為合成詞，由wonder（神奇）和stuff（東西）兩個詞構成。wonderstuff 指的是第二段提到的wonder material。

7.apply a small piece of adhesive tape over? ：將一小片膠帶敷在??上。

練習：.What would change the future of electronics according to engineers? A Big technology.B Creative ways.C Graphene.D Both A and B.2.According to the second and third paragraphs，what is true of graphene? A It can be used to make paper.B It is possible to see it with our naked eye.C It is easy to find graphene.D It is possibly the thickest material in the world.3.Which of the following can be used to replace the word “apply”in paragraph 4? A request.B polish.C use.D put.4.Which of the following is NOT meant in the last two paragraphs? A Graphene is made of graphite，one of the softest materials in the world.B Graphite is made of layers of graphene，the thinnest material in the world.C When we get to the thinnest possible layer of graphite，we find graphene.D With a pencil，a sheet of paper and a piece of adhesive tape，we can find graphene.5.Graphene's superstrength lies in the fact that A It is the thinnest material in the world.B It is made of the most abundant elements in the world.C It can help to make electronic components smaller.D It helps engineers to produce more sensitive electronic products.答案與題解：

1.C 第一段最后一句提供了答案：工程師將眼光投向石墨烯，一種由碳原子組成的超薄材料，這種材料能夠改變電子產品的未來。

2.C 第二段倒數第二句告訴我們，25,000 層石墨烯才能堆砌成一張普通白紙的厚度，這是為了說明石墨烯是多么的薄，而不是說它可以用來造紙，所以A不是正確答案。第三段最后一句說明石墨烯就在我們周圍，因此C是答案。B和D的表述內容都與該兩段內容不符合。

3.D apply...over：將??涂（敷）在??上。

4.A 最后兩段告訴我們，用一張紙，一支鉛筆和一片膠帶就能找到石墨烯；無數層石墨烯構成石墨，當鉛筆留在紙上的石墨被膠帶剝離到最薄一層時，我們就得到了石墨烯。因此只有A不是最后兩段的表述內容。

5.C 第一段提供了答案。隨著電子產品越來越小，需要更小的電子組件（components)，而石墨烯作為最薄的材料可以幫助工程師實現這一目標。這就是石墨烯力量所在。

*第三＋八篇 “Life Form Found” on Saturn's Titan

Scientists say they have discovered hints of alien life1 on the Saturn's moon2.The discovery of a sort of life was announced after researchers at the US space agency,NASA,analyzed data from spacecraft Cassini,which pointed to,the existence of methane-based form of life on Saturn's biggest moon.Scientists have reportedly discovered clues showing primitive alien beings are“breathing” in Titan's dense atmosphere filled with hydrogen.They argue that hydrogen gets absorbed before hitting Titan's planet-like surface covered with methane lakes and rivers.This,they say,points to the existence of some“bugs”5 consuming the hydrogen at the surface of the moon less than half the size of the Earth.“We suggested hydrogen consumption because it's the obvious gas for life to consume on Titan,similar to the way we consume oxygen on Earth,”says NASA scientist Chris McKay.“If these signs do turn out to be a sign of life,it would be doubly exciting because it would represent a second form of life independent from water-based life on Earth.” To date,scientists have not yet detected this form of life anywhere,though there are liquid-water-based microorganisms on Earth that grow well on methane or produce it as a waste product.On Titan, where temperatures are around 90 Kelvin6(minus 290 degrees Farenheit),a methanebased organism would have to use a substance that is liquid as its medium for living processes, but not water itself.Water is frozen solid on Titan's surface and much too cold to support life as we know it.Scientists had expected the Sun's interactions with chemicals in the atmosphere to produce a coating of acetylene on Titan's surface.But Cassini detected no acetylene on the surface.The absence of detectable acetylene on the Titan's surface can very well have a non-biological explanation,said Mark Allen,a principal investigator7 of the NASA Titan team.“Scientific conservatism suggests that a biological explanation should be the last choice after all non-biological explanations are addressed,”Allen said.“We have a lot of work to do to rule out8 possible non-biological explanations.It is more likely that a chemical process,without biology,can explain these results.” 詞匯：

Saturn /'s?t?n/ n．土星 methane/'mi:θein/ n．甲烷，沼氣 Titan/'tait?n/ n．土衛六 acetylene/?'setili:n/ n．乙炔 alien/'eilj?n/ n．外星人；adj．外星球的；相異的 conservatism/k?n's?:v?tiz?m/ n．保守主義,守舊

3注釋：

1.hints of alien life：外星生命跡象。

2.the Saturn's moon：指土衛六（Titan)。土衛六又稱泰坦星，是土星衛星中最大的一顆。3.NASA：美國國家航空航天局的縮寫，全稱是： National Aeronautics and Space Administration。4.spacecraft Cassini：卡西尼號探測器，以出生于意大利的法國天文學家卡西尼的名字命名，其任務是環繞土星飛行，對土星及其大氣、光環、衛星和磁場進行深人考察。1997 年10 月15日，重六噸的“卡西尼”號星際探測器被發射飛往土星的軌道。這是上世紀發射的最后一艘行星際探測的大飛船。“卡西尼”號用了將近七年時間，在2004 年7月1日飛達土星軌道。5.bugs：微生物。非正式口語表達，所以使用了引號。

6.Kelvin：可翻譯成“絕對溫度”。Kelvin Scale，絕對溫標，開氏溫標，是由Kelvin 勛爵于19世紀中葉發明的溫度計量方法，其零度相當于攝氏一273.15“ C，被認為是宇宙中最低溫度。這種溫度計量方法多為科學家使用。

7.principal investigator：研究項目負責人 8.rule out：排除??的可能性

練習：.What have scientists found about Saturn? A They have found a new moon orbiting Saturn.B They have found methane-based life on Saturn.C They have found methane-based life on Titan.D They have found earthlike life on a Saturn's moon.2.What do scientists say about Titan? A There are life clues there.B There is acetylene there.C Water on Titan exists in the form of ice.D Rivers and lakes there contain life formls.3.To date,scientists have not yet detected this form of life.(paragraph 5)What does”this form of life“ refer to? A Water-based life.B Methane-based life.C Liquid-water-based microorganisms.D Gas-based life.4.What can be inferred from what Allen said? A Scientists have different arguments over whether there is life on Titan.B Scientists all agree that there is life on Titan.C Scientists all suggest that a biological explanation is reasonable.D Scientists all agree that a non-biological chemical reaction is a possible explanation.5.Which of the following can replace the title of this passage? A Earthlike Living Beings Found on Titan.B Finding of One More Moon of Saturn.C Titan,a New Satellite Found.D A different Life Form, a Possibility.答案與題解： 1.C 短文的第一段提供了答案。該段告訴讀者，科學家在土星的衛星土衛六（Titan）上發現了生命的跡象，這些生命的存在是以甲烷為基礎的。

2.A根據第二段“Scientists have reportedly discovered clues showing primitive alien beings are 'breathing' in Titan's dense atmosphere filled with hydrogen.”，說明土衛六（Titan）有生命跡象。因此A是答案。

3.B this form of life 指的是土衛六（Titan）上以甲烷為生命基礎呼吸氫氣的生物，即該文討論的主題。

4.A科學家至今對土衛六是否存在生物有不同的觀點和解釋。Allen 說要做出土衛六上有生

物的結論，首先必須對Titan 上沒有生物的觀點做出回應；要排除土衛六上可能沒有生物的觀點，我們還須付出努力。所以只有A是正確選擇。

5.D該短文的主題是，科學家在土衛六（Titan）上發現了一種與地球生物不同的生命形式的跡象，即以甲烷為生命基礎呼吸氫氣的生物，但科學家還未能最后驗證這一發現。第四段中的一個句子能夠揭示該短文的主題：“If these signs do turn out to be a sign of life, it would bedoubly exciting because it would represent a second form of life independent from water-based life on Earth.”

*第四十篇 Teaching Math, Teaching Anxiety In a new study about the way kids learn math in elementary school, the psychologists at the University of Chicagol1 Sian Beilock and Susan Levine found a surprising relationship between what female teachers think and what female students learn:If a female teacher is uncomfortable with her own math skills, then her female students are more likely to believe that boys are better than girls at math.”If these girls keep getting math-anxious female teachers in later grades, it may create a snowball effect on their math achievement3 said Levine.In other words,girls may end up learning math anxiety from their teachers.The study suggests that if these girls grow up believing that boys are better at math than girls are,then these girls may not do as well as they would have if they were more confident.Just as students find certain subjects to be difficult, teachers can find certain subjects to be difficult to learn--and teach.The subject of math can be particularly difficult for everyone.Researchers use the word “anxiety” to describe such feelings: anxiety is uneasiness or worry.The new study found that when a teacher has anxiety about math, that feeling can influence how her female students feel about math.The study involved 65 girls,52 boys and 17 first-and second-grade teachers in elementary schools in the Midwest.The students took math achievement tests at the beginning and end of the school year, and the researchers compared the scores.The researchers also gave the students tests to tell whether the students believed that a math superstar had to be a boy.Then the researchers turned to the teachers:To find out which teachers were anxious about math,the researchers asked the teachers how they felt at times when they came across math, such as when reading a sales receipt.A teacher who got nervous looking at the numbers on a sales receipt, for example,was probably anxious about math.Boys,on average,were unaffected by a teacher's anxiety.On average,girls with math-anxious teachers scored lower on the end-of-the-year math tests than other girls in the study did.Plus,on the test showing whether someone thought a math superstar had to be a boy,20 girls showed feeling that boys would be better at math--and all of these girls had been taught by female teachers who had math anxiety.54“This is an interesting study,but the results need to be interpreted as preliminary and in need of replication with a larger sample,” said David Geary,a psychologist at the University of Missouri7 in Columbia.詞匯：

snowball /'sn?ub?:l/雪球；滾雪球式增長的事 replication/repli'kei??n/ n ．重復，復現 superstar/'sju:p?sta:/ n．超級明星

練習：

1.University of Chicago：芝加哥大學。位于美國伊利諾伊州芝加哥市，是世界一流的私立大學，創建于1891 年。

2.keep getting math-anxious female teachers：一直由對數學有焦慮感的女教師教授數學。此處getting是having的意思，math-anxious指的是上文中提到的對數學沒有自信的心理狀態。另見第三段最后一句對anxiety的解釋。

3.snowball effect on their math achievement：在數學成就上的雪球效應。其含義是：在數學上越來越沒有信心。

4.end up learning math anxiety from their teachers：最后從老師那里獲得的是對數學的焦慮。End up doing something：最終會做某事 5.sales receipt：銷售清單

6.in need of replication with a larger sample：需要用更大的調查樣本進行重復驗證。replication 在量化實證研究中的意思是“重復（實驗）”。

7.the University of Missouri：密蘇里大學。位于密蘇里州，是美國一所公立研究型大學，創建于1839年。

練習：

1.What is the result of the research at the University of Chicago,according to the first paragraph? A Girls comfortable with their own math skills are better than boys at math.B Girls uncomfortable with their own math skills are not as good as boys at math.C Female teachers' math skills have influence over girl students' math skills.D Female teachers' confidence in their math skills is related to girl's math skills.2.What is implied in the third paragraph? A Math teachers,like math learners,do not like the subject due to its difficulty.B A difficult subject like math may affect teachers' confidence in teaching the subject.C Teachers are more anxious teaching math than their students learning math.D Math is so difficult that no teachers like to teach it.3.According to the experiment,those teachers were probably anxious about math when they felt A nervous memorizing the numbers of a sales receipt.B helpless saving the numbers of a sales receipt.C uneasy reading the numbers of a sales receipt.D hopeless filling in the numbers of a sales report.4.The sixth paragraph tells us that the research findings A prove a strong link between female teachers' math anxiety and their female students' math achievements.B show that male students are less likely to be affected by their math anxiety than female students.C provide strong evidence that math superstars are more likely to be males than females.D discover a strong link between teachers' math anxiety and their students' math achievements.5.David Geary thinks that A the study is interesting but it is based on unreliable research process.B the research results need to be retested based on a larger sample.C the research results need to be reinterpreted to be meaningful.D the study is well based and produces significant results.答案與題解：

1.D 該段告訴我們女教師的想法（what female teachers think）和女學生的學習（what female students learn）之間有很大的關聯度，也就是說，女教師如果對自己的數學技能沒有自信，她的女學生很可能相信男孩子會在數學方面超過女孩子。

2.B 第三段的大意是，數學對任何人來說都可能有難度（The subject of math can be particularly difficult for everyone)，如同學生，教師也會覺得數學難學和難教，這就是研究者所言的焦慮。所以，可以推斷，作者是要告訴我們，教師會因為數學這門學科的難度而對教授該課程不自信。其他選項都不是該段所要表達的內容。

3.C 第五段第三句“To find out which teachers were anxious about math, the researchers asked the teachers how they felt at times when they came across math,such as when reading a sales receipt”指出了答案。memorizing the numbers；意為“記住數字”；saving the numbers意為“保存數字”；filling in the numbers意為“陸續編入數字”，而且文中沒有提到a sales report；它們均不是答案。

4.A 短文的第六段是對前一段所述調查數據結果的討論，即，男學生較少受對數學有焦慮感的教師影響，而那些數學成績較低的女生都有對數學有焦慮感的教師（girls with math-anxious teachers scored lower on the end-of-the-year math tests)，而且，所有認為男生數學肯定比女生強的女生，其數學教師都是有數學焦慮感的女教師（all of these girls had been taught by female teachers who had math anxiety.)。D所以不是正確的選擇，因為只提到teachers 和students,而不是female teachers 和female students。

5.B 根據David Geary的說法，實驗結果還是初步的（preliminary)，需要更大的樣本對其進行重復驗證（in need of replication with a larger sample)。他沒有認為該實驗的過程不可靠，所以A不是正確選項；他認為實驗樣本不夠大，所以D也不是正確選項。

+第四＋五篇 Small But Wise On December 14,NASA1 blasted a small but mighty telescope into space.The telescope is called WISE and is about as wide around as a trashcan.Don't let its small size fool you:WISE has a powerful digital camera, and it will be taking pictures of some the wildest objects in the known universe,including asteroids,faint stars,blazing galaxies and giant clouds of dust where planets and stars are born.“I'm very excited because we're going to be seeing parts of the universe that we haven't seen

3before,”said Ned Wright, a scientist who directs the WISE project.Since arriving in space,the WISE telescope has been circling the Earth,held by gravity in a polar orbit4(this means it crosses close to the north and south poles with each lap5).Its camera is pointed outward,away from the Earth,and WISE will snap a picture of a different part of the sky every 11 minutes.After six months it will have taken pictures across the entire sky.The pictures taken by WISE won't be like everyday digital photographs,however.WISE stands for“Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer.”As its name suggests,the WISE camera takes pictures of features that give off infrared radiation6.Radiation is energy that travels as a wave.Visible light, including the familiar spectrum of light that becomes visible in a rainbow,is an example of radiation.When an ordinary digital camera takes a picture of a tree,for example,it receives the waves of visible light that are reflected off the tree.When these waves enter the camera through the lens,they're processed by the camera,which then puts the image together.Waves of infrared radiation are longer than waves of visible light, so ordinary digital cameras don't see them,and neither do the eyes of human beings.Although invisible to the eye,longer infrared radiation can be detected as warmth by the skin.That's a key idea to why WISE will be able to see things other telescopes can't.Not everything in the universe shows up in visible light.Asteroids,for example,are giant rocks that float through space 一but they absorb most of the light that reaches them.They don't reflect light,so they're difficult to see.But they do give off infrared radiation, so an infrared telescope like WISE will be able to produce images of them.During its mission WISE will take pictures of hundreds of thousands of asteroids.Brown dwarfs are another kind of deep-space object that will show up in WISE's pictures.These objects are“failed” stars 一which means they are not massive enough to jump start9 the same kind of reactions that power stars such as the sun.Instead,brown dwarfs simply shrink and cool down.They're so dim that they're almost impossible to see with visible light, but in the infrared spectrum they glow.詞匯：

trashcan / 'tr??,k?n/n．垃圾箱 infrared/'infr?'red/ adj．紅外線 asteroid/'?st?r?id/ n.小行星 dwarf/dw?:f/ n.矮星 注釋：

1.NASA（美國國家航空航天局）是縮寫詞，全稱是National Aeronautics and Space Administration 2.the wildest objects ：任何你能想象得到的天體。wild 有“未被人馴養的”“荒唐的”“離奇的” 87

意思。

3.faint stars, blazing galaxies：指的是那些只能看到微弱的光和因燃燒而無法觀察到的天體。4.polar orbit：極地軌道。指軌道平面與赤道面夾角為90的人造地球衛星軌道。人造衛星運行時能到達南北極區上空，即衛星能飛經全球范圍的上空。需要在全球范圍內進行觀測和應用的氣象衛星、導航衛星、地球資源衛星等都采用這種軌道。5.lap：一圈。原指競賽場的一圈或游泳池的一個來回，如： She overtook the other runners on the last lap.她最后一圈超過了其他參賽者。6.infrared radiation：紅外線輻射

7.spectrum of light：光譜，即，光輻射的波長分布區域。

8.Brown dwarfs：褐矮星。褐矮星非常暗淡，很難發現它們，要確定它們的大小就更加困難。9.jump start: 啟動 練習：.What is so special about WISE? A It is small in size but carries a large camera.B It is as small as a trashcan.C Its digital camera can help astronomers to see the unknown space.D Never before has a telescope carried a digital camera in space.2.Which is NOT the synonym for the word “snap” in the third paragraph? A make.B shoot.C take D photograph.3.The camera on WISE A is no different from an ordinary camera.B does not see infrared radiation while the ordinary camera does.C catches the infrared radiation while the ordinary camera does not.D reflects light that human eyes can see.4.Which of the following is NOT correct about“asteroids” according to paragraph 7? A Asteroids float through space giving off visible light.B Asteroids do not reflect light that reaches them.C It is difficult to take asteroids' pictures by ordinary cameras, D The WISE telescope can take pictures of asteroids 5.What is implied in the last paragraph? A Brown dwarfs give off visible light.B Brown dwarfs give off infrared radiation.C Brown dwarfs are power stars like the sun.D Brown dwarfs are impossible to see with the WISE telescope.答案與題解：

1.C 短文的第一和第二段提供了答案。WISE 的特殊之處就在于，雖然體積小，但它的數碼相機能拍到任何天體，所以能夠幫助天文學家觀測到宇宙空間中（in the known universe）的未知天文現象。其他選項都不是短文表達的意思。

2.A snap 是個多義詞，可以解釋為“拍照”，更為確切的意思是“拍快照”。這里shoot, take 和photograph 都是snap 的同義詞。

3.C 短文第六段和第四段提供了答案。人類的肉眼和普通相機看到的光是visible lights，看不見。

紅外線輻射（infrared radiation)，而WISE 的相機能夠看到。

4.A 短文第七段第二句說并非所有的宇宙中的物體都會發出可見光，比如asteroids，所以A是正確選項。其他選項的內容都可以在該段中找到。5.B 最后一段的第一句說，褐矮星能出現在WISE 照片中，根據上文對WISE 望遠鏡的描述只有WISE 望遠鏡才能拍到紅外線射線，所以B是正確選擇。

+第四十六篇

Ants Have Big Impact on Environment as “Ecosystem Engineers”

Research by the University of Exeter has revealed that ants have a big impact on their local environment as a result of their activity as “ecosystem engineers” and predators.The study, published in the Journal of Animal Ecology, found that ants have two distinct effects on their local environment.Firstly, through moving of soil by nest building activity and by collecting food they affect the level of nutrients in the soil.This can indirectly impact the local populations of many animal groups, from decomposers to species much higher up the food chain.Secondly, they prey on a wide range of other animals, including larger prey which can be attacked by vast numbers of ant workers.Dirk Sanders, an author of the study from the university's Centre for Ecology and Conservation, said:“Ants are very effective predators which thrive in huge numbers.They're also very territorial and very aggressive, defending their resources and territory against other predators.All of this means they have a strong influence on their surrounding area.”

“In this research, we studied for the first time how big this impact is and the subtleties of it.What we found is that despite being predators, their presence can also lead to an increase in density and diversity of other animal groups4.They genuinely play a key role in the local environment, having a big influence on the grassland food web,” Sanders said.The study, carried out in Germany, studied the impact of the presence of different combinations and densities of black garden ants and common red ants, both species which can be found across Europe, including in the UK.It found that a low density of ants in an area increased the diversity and density of other animals in the local area, particularly the density of herbivores and decomposers.At higher densities ants had no or the opposite effect, showing that predation is counteracting the positive influence.Dr Frank van Veen, another author on the study, said:“What we find is that the impact of ants on soil nutrient levels has a positive effect on animal groups at low levels, but as the number of ants increases, their predatory impacts have the bigger effect — thereby counteracting the positive influence via ecosystem engineering.”

Ants are important components of ecosystems not only because they constitute a great part of the animal biomass5 but also because they act as ecosystem engineers.Ant biodiversity6 is incredibly high and these organisms are highly responsive to human impact, which obviously reduces its richness.However, it is not clear how such disturbance damages the maintenance of ant services to the ecosystem． Ants are important in below ground processes8 through the alteration of the physical and chemical environment and through their effects on plants, microorganisms, and other soil organisms.詞匯：

predator /' pred?t?/ n．食肉動物

nutrient/' nju:tri?nt/ n ．營養物；adj．營養的

32decomposer/,di:k?m'p?uz?/ n．腐生物；分解體 prey/prei/ v．捕食；n．被捕食的動物 subtlety/ 's?tlti/ n，微妙，精妙 herbivore/ 'h?:biv?: / n ．食草動物

注釋：

1.the University of Exeter ：?？怂固卮髮W。1851 年建校，位于英國西南部重要商業中心?？怂固厥校怯膫鹘y大學之一。2.nest building ：筑巢

3.territorial ：領地的。在此用來形容螞蟻的本性，即具有很強的領地意識，并且會竭盡全力保衛自己的領地。

4.an increase in density and diversity of other animal groups ：其他動物群體在數量和品種上的增長。

5.biomass ：物質名詞，由bio和mass 兩部分組成，意為“生物量”“生物質”。6.biodiversity ：物質名詞，由bio和diversity 兩部分組成，意為“生物多樣性”。7.the maintenance of ant services to the ecosystem ：螞蟻對生態系統的維護作用。8.below ground processes ：土壤下面的（工作）過程，即影響生態環境的過程。練習：.Why are ants compared to ecosystem engineers? A Because they build their own nests.B Because they collect food.C Because their activity affects the environment.D Because they are predators.2.As predators, ants A prey on small as well as large animals.B collect nutritious food from the soil C collect food as decomposers.D prey on species much higher up the food chain.3.Dir Sanders' study centered on how ants A can manage to thrive in huge numbers.B defend their resources and territory against other predators.C attack those invading animals for survival.D produce such a big impact on the environment.4.What does paragraph 6 tell us? A Ants bring about a negative influence to an area when their population is small.B Ants bring about a positive influence to an area when their population is small.C Ants' predation counteracts the positive influence they may have on an area.D At higher density, ants produce a positive influence on an area.5.What still remains unclear about ants, according to the last paragraph? A What roles do ants play in the ecosystem in which they live? B How do ants affect the animal diversity in a given ecosystem? C How do human activities affect ants' influence on a given ecosystem? D How do ants alter the physical and chemical environment? 答案與題解：

1.C 短文的第一段提供了答案。A不是正確答案，因為并不是因為螞蟻會筑巢才被譽為生態系統工程師，而是因為它們筑巢和獲取食物的方式改變了土壤的營養水平，為整個食物鏈提供了很好的生態環境

（見第二段）。

2.A答案能夠從短文的第三段直接找到。該段告訴我們，螞蟻的掠食范圍很廣，甚至包括比它們體積更大的動物（larger animals)。prey 在這里的意思是“捕獵，捕食”，作為動詞，后面跟介詞on或upon。

3.D Dirk Sanders說：“In this research, we studied for the first time how big this impact is and the subtleties of it.”（第五段）所以，D是正確選擇。句中the subtleties of it 的意思是：螞蟻對環境影響的精妙之處。

4.B 短文第六段第二句的大概意思是，螞蟻數量?。╝ low density of ants）的話，能使其他動物的品種和數量增加（increased the diversity and density of other animals），從而給環境帶來積極影響；第三句說，如果螞蟻的數量大（At higher densities），就不可能產生同樣的影響，或者是相反的影響，這表明，螞蟻的掠食活動會抵銷螞蟻給環境帶來的積極影響。第七段Dr Frank van Veen 表達了大體相同的內容。

5.C 最后一段的第二和第三句提供了答案。第二句告訴我們，螞蟻極易受人類的影響（these organisms are highly responsive to human impact），第三句告訴我們，科學家還不清楚人類對螞蟻這種干擾如何破壞螞蟻對生態系統的維護作用（”it is not clear how such disturbance damages the maintenance of ant services to the ecosystem.”）。

完形填空

第三篇 Germs on Banknotes People in different countries use different types of 1 yuan in China, pesos in Mexico, pounds in the United Kingdom, dollars in the United States, Australia and New Zealand.They may use 2 currencies, but these countries, and probably all countries, still have one thing 1in common: Germs on the banknotes.Scientists have been studying the germs on money for well over2 100 years.At the turn of the 20th 3 , some researchers began to suspect that germs living on money could spread disease.Most studies of germy money have looked at the germs on the currency 4 one country.In a new study, Frank Vriesekoopand other researchers compared the germ populations found on bills of different 5.Vriesekoop is a microbiologist at the University of Ballarat in Australia.He led the study, which compared the germ populations found on money 6 from 10 nations.The scientists studied 1,280 banknotes in total;all came from places where people buy food, like supermarkets street vendors and cafes, 7 those businesses often rely on cash.Overall, the Australian dollars hosted the fewest live bacteria----no more than 10 per square centimeter.Chinese yuan had the most----about 100 per square centimeter.Most of the germs on money probably would not cause harm.What we call “paper” money usually isn't made from paper.The U.S.dollar, for example, is printed on fabric that is mostly 8.Different countries may use different 9 to print their money.Some of the currencies studied by Vriesekoop and his 10 such as the American dollar were made from cotton.Others were made from polymers.The three 11 with the lowest numbers of bacteria were all printed on polymers.They included the Australian dollar, the New Zealand dollar and some Mexican pesos.3

4The other currencies were printed on fabric made 12 of cotton.Fewer germs lived on the polymer notes.This connection suggests that 13 have a harder time staying alive on polymer surfaces.Scientists need to do more studies to understand how germs live on money-----and whether or not we need to be concerned.Vnesekoop is now starting a study that will 14 the amounts of time bacteria can stay alive on different types of bills.Whatever Vriesekoop finds, the fact remains: Paper money harbors germs We should wash our 15 after touching it;after all5, you never know where your money 's been.Or what's living on it 詞匯：

pesos/pi:s?vs/ n ．比索 bacterium /k?k'ti?ri?m/ n ．細菌（單數）germ/d??:m/ n．病菌 bacteria /b?kti?ri?／細菌（復數）

banknote/b??kn?vt/ n．紙幣 centimeter/senti,mi:t?。/ n．厘米

microbiologist /,maikr?v,bai?l?d?ist/n.微生 polymer/p?lim? / n.［高分子」聚合物 物學家 harbor/ha:b?/ v．懷有，藏有 vendor/vend?I/n．小販

注釋：

1.have one thing in common ：有一個共同點

2.well over ：大大超過

3.Frank Vriesekoop : Frank Vriesekoop 博士是巴拉瑞特大學的食品微生物學家，他率領一個全球研究小組對至少10個國家的紙幣展開了分析。他的研究結果是：相對于比較落后貧窮的國家，富裕發達國家的紙幣所攜帶的病菌較少。重要的是，世界各地紙幣上的病菌數量都沒有達到令人擔心的程度。研究還發現紙幣使用的年限和材質對紙幣的污染程度也有影響。

4.University of Ballarat in Australia：澳大利亞巴拉瑞特大學。該校建立于1994年，位于維多利亞省的巴拉瑞特市。5.after all：畢竟

練習: 1.A coins B money C cheques D loans 2.A different B clean C hard D foreign 3.A anniversary B year C decade D century 4.A along B with C within D outside 5.A countries B areas C regions D provinces 6.A delivered B borrowed C gathered D designed 7.A because B though C when D where 8.A plastic B rubber C cotton D paper 9.A languages B colors C substances D materials 10.A family B team C advisor D boss 11.A expenses B banks

C statements

D currencies 12.A nearly B mostly 13.A dirt B water

C likely D merely

C germs D oil

D command D clothes 14.A compare B connect C conduct 15.A arms B hands C face 答案與題解: 1.B 冒號后面說的是各國使用錢幣的名稱:“yuan in China，pesos in Mexico，pounds in the United Kingdom，dollars in the United States，Aus往'alia and New Zealand”，所以填人的詞必 定與這些錢幣有關，而且應該是錢幣的總括詞。因此選 money 最為恰當。coins 是“硬幣”，cheques 是“支票”，loans是“貸款”，它們都不會是答案。

2.A 本題的句子說的是:雖然各國使用的紙幣各不相同，它們有一個共同點，那就是紙幣上 有病菌。四個選項中 different 是答案。

3.D 選century 最合理。選 anniversary(周年)，year(年)或decade都不合邏輯。4.C 本段第二句提供了解答本題的線索。Frank Vriesekoop 的研究與以前的科學家的研究不同，他比較了各國錢幣上的病菌數量，在他之前的科學家的研究范圍局限于一個國家的紙幣。四個選項中只有 within 表達“在(一個國家)里”的意思。

5.A 經過第四題選詞的思索過程，本題的形容詞很自然會在 different 之后用 countries，指不同的國家。

6.C 上一句說 Vriesekoop 比較不同國家紙幣攜帶病菌的數量。本題的句子明確指出他對比 的紙幣涉及十個國家。四個選項中只有 gathered(收集)與上下文的意思相匹配。7.A 填詞所在的句子與前面的主句存在因果關系。為什么要從食品店和食品攤收集紙幣

呢?因為這些地方常要用現金支付。本題答案是 because。8.C fabric 是“織物”，其制作原料不會是 plastic(塑料)或 rubber(橡膠)。選 paper 也不對，因為本句是說明紙幣的制作原料通常不是紙。制作 fabric 的原料是 cotton(棉花)，這是合 乎常理的。而且該段倒數第二句也提供了答案。所以答案是 cotton。

9.D 本段說紙幣的材料一般不是紙，通常是用棉花織物或高分子聚合物制作的。所以選擇

materials(材料、原料)是正確的。

10.B 本題應當選 team。與 family(家庭成員)，advisor(顧問)或 boss(老板)合作研究不是 沒有可能，但總有些離譜。與團隊合作研究比較合理。

11.D 本段第二句提供了線索，它列出三種紙幣，即 the Australian dollar，the New Zealand dollar 和 some Mexican pesos。選 currencies 是最合理的。另外三個選項都不合適;expenses 是“支出”，banks 是“銀行”，statements 是“賬單”。12.B 本題只有選 mostly，上下文意思才連貫。13.C 前一句說用高分子聚合物制作的錢幣含菌數量較少。本題的句子接著分析說，在高分子聚合物上存活較難。誰存活較難？當然是病菌。本題答案是germs0 dirt, water 和oil 是 非生物，不存在生存的問題。

14.A 四個選項填入句子后，句子成了： “?compare/connect/conduct/command the amounts of time bacteria can stay alive on different types of bills”, 很明顯；connect（連接）/conduct（實 施）/command（控制）amounts of time是無法成立的。只有compare(比較）不同紙幣上病菌存活的時間才是Vriesekoop 要研究的新課題。

15.B人們通常是用手接觸紙幣的。所以接觸紙幣后要洗手。答案是hands。

第十篇 Chicken Soup for the Soul：Comfort Food Fights Loneliness Mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese, may be bad for your arteries． 1 according to a study in Psychological Science, they’re good for your heart and 2 ．The study focuses on “comfort food” and how it makes people feel． “For me 3 ,food has always played a big role in my family,” says Jordan Troisi, a graduate student at the University of Buffalo, and lead author on the study．The study came out of the research program of his co—author Shira Gabriel．It has 4 non-human things that may affect human emotions．Some people reduce loneliness by bonding with their 5 TV show, building virtual relationships with a pop song singer or looking at pictures of loved ones．Troisi and Gabriel wondered if comfort food could have the same effect 6 making people think of their nearest and dearest.In one experiment, in order to make 7 feel lonely, the researchers had them write for six minutes about a fight with someone close to them．Others were given an emotionally neutral writing assignment.Then, some people in each 8 wrote about the experience of eating a comfort food and others wrote about eating a new food． 9 ,the researchers had participants 10 questions about their levels of loneliness．

Writing about a fight with a close person made people feel lonely．But people who were generally 11 in their relationships would feel less lonely by writing about a comfort food．”We have found that comfort foods are consistently associated with those close to us．“says Troisi．”Thinking about or consuming these foods later then serves as a reminder of those close others．“In 12 essays on comfort food, many people wrote about the 13 of eating food with family and friends.In another experiment, 14 chicken soup in the lab made people think more about relationships, but only if they considered chicken soup to be a comfort

food．This was a question they had been asked long before the experiment, along with many other questions, so they wouldn’t remember it.Throughout everyone’s daily lives they experience stress, often associated with our 15 with others,” Troisi says．“Comfort food Can be an easy remedy for loneliness． 詞匯：

mashed /m??t/ adj．被搗成糊漿的 macaroni/ macaroni/ n．通心粉 cheese / t?i:z / n．奶酪

artery/ artery / n．動脈

assignment / ?'sainm?nt / n．指定作業 reminder / reminder/ n．起提醒作用的東西 remedy /remedy/ n．治療方法，藥物 virtual/'v?:t?u?l/ adj．虛擬的 注釋：

1.comfort food：爽心食品

2.graduate student：研究生

3.The University of Buffalo：布法羅大學，建校于1846 年，位于水牛城（Buffalo City)，屬于紐約州立大學，因此稱為紐約州立大學水牛城分校。4.lead author：首席作者

5.their nearest and dearest：他們最接近和最親愛的人 6.levels of loneliness：孤獨程度 7.only if: 只有（在??情況下）

8.Throughout everyone's daily lives：在每一個人的日常生活中。through 有“貫穿”的意思。練習：

1．A but B if C though D while 2．A personality B movement C emotions D will 3．A privately B usefully C awfully D personally 4．A looked for B looked at C looked after D looked up 5．A favorite B trustful C boring D annoying 6．A with B on C by D at 7．A professors B participants C assistants D scientists 8．A group B class C section D part 9．A Previously B Formally C Initially D Finally 10．A remember B explain C rewrite D complete 11．A sad B secure C shy D angry 12．A your B our C his D their 13．A accident B harm C experience D model 14．A eating B exchanging C buying D keeping l 5．A expressions B estimation C cooperation D connections 答案與題解：

l.A本句前半句說土豆泥、通心粉等對血管有害（bad)，后半句說這些食物對心臟有利(good)。很明顯，前半句與后半句意思相反，所以要選轉折連接詞but加以連接。

2.C 根據常識判斷，吃土豆泥不會對personality（性格）.movement（移動）或will（意志力）產生有利影響。隨后的文章，多處提到吃爽心食品（favorite food）有助于排解孤獨感。所以選emotions 是正確的。

3.D本題的答案是personally0 For me personally（就我個人而言）與下文的意思很連貫。privately（私下地）、usefully（有用地）或awfully（可怕地）與下文的意思搭不上，所以不會是答案。4.B 本題的答案是looked at0。“looked at non-human things” 相當于“studied（研究）nonhuman things”，與上下文的意思很匹配。looked for（尋找）、looked after（照顧）和looked up（查找）與下文的意思搭配不上。

5.A本句的意思是：人們為了排解孤獨感，常常把自己和電視劇、流行歌曲歌手等等聯系起 來。選項中有四個形容詞，應該選哪一個形容詞去修飾TV shows 呢？應該選褒義的形容

詞： favorite（喜愛的）或trustful(可信任的）。但對電視劇來說談不上信任的問題。favorite 最合理，是本題答案。

6.C 上一句說到，人們為了排解孤獨感，常常把自己和喜愛的電視劇、流行歌曲歌手等等聯 系起來。于是Troisi 和Gabriel 想，通過吃爽心食品讓他們想起親近的人，是不是也能產生 同樣的排解孤獨感的效果呢？四個介詞中只有by的詞義是“通過”。其余三個介詞在含義

上都不合適。

7.B 選professors（教授）、assistants（助手）或scientists（科學家）不合常理，科學家選實驗對象時不會選他們。participants(參與者）是本題的答案。

8.A本題應該選group，指每一組的參與者。用class（班級）, section（部門）或part（部分）在意義上顯然都不合適。

9.D 本段敘述試驗的幾個步驟。第一步要一部分受試者描寫與親人的爭斗，其他受試者寫 情感上中性的話題。第二步（文中用then 加以連接）將上述兩組受試者中的每一組再一分 為二，一些人描寫吃爽心食品的經歷，另一些人描寫吃新食品的經歷。接下來應該是第三步 了。從四個選項中尋找，只有Finally 最合適，原來第三步就是最后一步了。

1O.D 實驗的最后一步是受試者被要求書面回答10個問題。complete 是答案。要求他們 remember（記住）、delete（刪除）或rewrite（重寫）questions 都不合乎邏輯。

11.B 與親近的人爭吵會引發孤獨感，但是，一般說來，人們的關系若是通常處于什么狀態，通過寫出他們吃爽心食物的經歷會降低他們的孤獨感呢？一定不會是sad、shy或angry，答案應該是secure（穩定的）。

12.D 修飾essays 的所有格代詞在人稱與數上要與they 一致，所以their 是答案。

13.C “eating food with family and friends” 是一種experience（經歷），不會是一個accident（事故）、harm（危害）或model（樣式）。很明顯，experience 是本題的答案。

14.A 文章中幾次提到吃爽心食物有助于緩解孤獨感。所以本題選eating 是很自然的。其他 三個選項，exchanging（交換）、buying（買）或keeping（保留）若填入句子中，與后面的賓語chicken soup in the lab 連用，意思上說不通。

15.D 本題的答案是connections。其他三個選項在意思上都不合適。

*第十一篇 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 likely 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 to be among those most severely affected by future climate change.Lankao’s findings 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 surges and prolonged hot weather.Storm surges can flood coastal areas and prolonged hot weather can heat 9 paved cities 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 responses, 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 approach.” Thus, she urges them to change their 15 policies and to take strong steps to prevent the harmful effects of climate change on cities.詞匯：

vulnerable / 'v?ln?r?bl / adj ．易受傷害的

infrastructure / 'infr?,str?kt?? / n ．基礎設施 sociologist /,s?usi'?l?d?ist /n．社會學家 substandard / ,s?b'st?nd?d / adj．標準以下的 dioxide / dai'?ksaid / ．二氧化物

floodplain /'fl?dplein / n ．泛濫平原

注釋：

1.likely：很可能，或許。在本句中用作副詞。

2.be likely to：很可能。likely 在本句中是形容詞，用作表語。3.findings：調查結果

4.storm surges：風暴潮

5.paved cities：鋪上瀝青路面的城市 6.spring up：涌現

7.rhetoric...responses：修辭反應。這個詞的意思是：（地方政府）話講得很漂亮，但內容空洞。8.a hands-off approach：一種不插手的政策

練習：

1．A carry along B carried away C carried out D carried back 2．A economic B industrial C rural D urban 3．A reduce B increase C study D measure

4．A crops B gases C fruits D Plant5 5．A educate B evaluate C protect D identify 6．A doubtful B possible C repeatable D major 7．A uses B chances C cures D benefits 8．A threats B interests C functions D differences 9．A locally B heavily C suddenly D mildly l0．A provide B improve C lack D update 11．A without B with C in D on 12．A moreover B therefore C however D though 13．A other than B more than C less than D rather than 14．A train B automobile C bus D bike 15．A idle B smart C busy D secure 答案與題解：

1.C 本題的答案是carried out（執行；完成）。“A new examination of urban policies has been carried out” 意思上配得上。carried along（攜帶）、carried away（運走）和carried back（運回）與下文的意思搭配不上。

2.D通篇文章討論的是氣候變化對城市的影響及其應對措施，并沒有涉及economic（經濟 的）、industrial（工業的）和rural（農村的）的話題。所以，這三個選項不可能是答案，urban才是答案。

3.A前面一句談到，發展中國家的飛速成長的城市備受氣候變化的折磨。本句緊接上一句 的意思，大多數城市沒有做到減少二氧化碳的排放量。四個選項中，要選reduce。4.B 減少的不僅是二氧化碳，還有greenhouse gases（溫室氣體）。gases 是答案。5.C 城市應該采取有效的措施應對氣候變化。采取措施的目的當然是為了保護城市居民?？墒荓ankao 發現這樣做的城市太少了。本題選protect 最合適。

6.D前面說到大多數城市沒有做到減少或控制二氧化碳的排放量。這說明“Cities are major sources of greenhouse gases”（城市是溫室氣體的主要來源），不會是doubtful sources（不能確定的來源）, possible sources（可能的來源），更不會是repeatable sources（不斷重復的來源）。7.D城市居民最易受氣候變化的傷害，所以 Lankao 建議地方政府要進行政策介入以降低居 民因氣候變化受到的傷害，而這會帶來立即的和長期的益處。因此，uses、chances 和cures 可以排除。benefits（益處）才是答案。

8.A 由climate change 引發的storm surges 和prolonged hot weather 給城市居民造成傷害。interests、functions 和differences 這三個詞與storm surges 和prolonged hot weather 造成的傷害掛不上號，不會是答案。storm surges 和prolonged hot weather 對城市居民會構成威脅。因此threats 才是答案。

9.B 為什么prolonged hot weather 對城市居民造成的傷害超過對其周邊地區居民造成的傷 害？因為城市道路是大量鋪設瀝青的道路。heavily 是答案。其他三個選項不符合上述意 思。

10.C 貧窮社區更易受到傷害，句子給出有關基礎設施的各個方面。貧窮社區的基礎設施一 定是不盡如人意的。所以要選lack。

1LA貧窮國家許多人住在不符合標準的房子里。下面提到reliable thinking water、roads 和 basic services 這些基礎設施，從上下文判斷，貧窮居民不會享有這些基礎設施。所以選 without 比較合理。

12.B 本題的答案是therefore。上文說的是氣候變化給城鎮居民帶來的種種問題。下文說的 是地方政府應該采取相應的對策以保護城鎮居民。兩部分的敘述是一種因果關系，所以要 選therefore。

13.D rhetoric responses（言辭反應，即用言語予以搪塞的反應）和meaningful responses（有 意義的反應）是兩種截然不同的反應。地方政府的反應是前者還是后者？隨后的句子，特 別是a hands-off approach，說明地方政府作出的是rhetoric responses，而不是meaningful responses。所以本題要選rather than（而不是）。14.B 句中的“?emphasize mass transit”提示，要減少的運輸工具不會是大眾交通工具，因此選項中的train 和bus便可排除。bike 是人力驅動，不會釋放二氧化碳，也可排除。答案是automobile。私人汽車排放大量的二氧化碳，是城市主要的污染源之一。15.A “..many local governments are taking a hands-off approach” 中的a hands-off approach 提示，Lankao 敦促地方政府改變的一定是他們無所作為（idle)的政策。idle 是正確的選擇。

*第十二篇 Free Statins With Fast Food Could Neutralize Heart Risk Fast food outlets could provide statin drugs free of 1 so that customers can reduce the heart disease dangers of fatty food, researchers at Imperial College London 2 in a new study．

Statins reduce the 3 of unhealthy ”LDL” cholesterol in the blood.A wealth of trial data has proven them to be highly effective at lowering a person’s heart attack 4.In a paper published in the American Journal of Cardiology，Dr Darrel Francis and colleagues calculate that the reduction in heart attack risk offered by a statin is 5 to offset the increase in heart attack risk from 6 a cheeseburger and drinking a milkshake．

Dr Francis，from the National Heart and Lung Institute at Imperial College London，who is the senior author of the study, said:”Statins don’t cut out a11 of the 7 effects of cheeseburgers and French fries．It’s better to avoid fatty food altogether．But we’ve worked out that in terms of your 8 of having a heart attack.Taking a statin can reduce your risk to more or less the same 9 as a fast food meal increases it.” “It’s ironic that people are free to take as many unhealthv condiments in fast food outlets as they 10 , but statins, which are beneficial to heart health, have to be prescribed.It makes sense to make risk-reducing statins available just as easily as the unhealthy condiments that are l 1 free of charge．It would cost less than 5 pence per 1 2 一not much different to a sachet of sugar.” Dr Francis said．

When people engage in risky behaviours like driving or smoking, they’re encouraged to take 13 that lower their risk, 1ike 14 a seatbelt or choosing cigarettes with filters.Taking a statin is a rational way of 1 5 some of the risks of eating a fatty meal． 詞匯：

statin/'st? tIn!n．降膽固醇藥物 outlet/'autlit/ n．銷售點

cholesterol/ k?'lest?r?l / n．膽固醇 offset /,?f'set/ V.抵消，補償

cheeseburger/ 't?i:z,b?:ɡ? / n．芝士漢堡包 milkshake!'milk?eik / n．奶昔 condiment /'k?ndim?nt]!n ．調味品

sachet /'s?t?ei / ii ．小袋，小包 rational / 'r???n?l / adj．合理的

注釋：

1.Fast food outlets could provide statin drugs: 句中的could 是一種委婉表達建議的用詞，意為“可以”。

2.Imperial College London: 帝國理工學院。該學院于1907 年由城市和行會學校、皇家礦業學校以及皇家科學學院合并組成。學院于2007 年7月正式脫離倫敦大學成為一所獨立大學。提供本科和研究生教育，共有四個學院，工程學院、醫學院、自然科學院和生命科學院

3.LDL cholesterol: 低密度脂蛋白膽固醇。LDL是low density lipoprotein（低密度脂蛋白）的縮寫形式。

4.a wealth of trial data: 大量的試驗數據。a wealth of意為“大量的，許多”。5.American Journal of Cardiology: 美國心臟病學雜志 6.French fries:炸薯條

7.It makes sense...: make sense 意為“說得通，合情合理”。

8.a sachet of sugar: 一小袋糖?？觳偷暌话銈溆写牵╋嬁Х然驘崮痰念櫩兔赓M取用。練習：

1．A change B charge C chain D chance 2．A trust B decide C suggest D calculate 3．A number B amount C volume D product 4．A frequency B treatment C diagnosis D risk 5．A severe B enough C weak D active 6．A buying B preparing C eating D cooking 7．A unhealthy B strong C different D doubtful 8．A examination B suffering C determination D possibility 9．A degree B dimension C angle D range 10．A use B hate C reject D like 11．A transported B provided C preserved D convened 12．A cook B patient C customer D visitor 1 3．A measures B care C advantages D turns 14．A buying B wearing C cleaning D changing 1 5．A increasing B finding C lowering D taking 答案與題解：

1.B本文介紹說，吃漢堡包等快餐食品容易引發心臟病，而服用statin能降低心臟病發作的 風險，一正一負正好抵消。statin 價格便宜，文章建議快餐店像免費供應調味品那樣免費供 應statin0 free of charge 是固定搭配，意為“免費”。選擇charge 是對的。

2.C 本題要選suggest，因為其他三個選項在意思上都不合適。此外，本句主句的謂語動詞用了could(provide)，委婉地含有“建議”的意思。所以suggest 是個不二的選擇。

3.B 與降低unhealthy “LDL” cholesterol 搭配的一定是amount（量），而不可能是number（數字）、volume（體積）或product（乘積）。

4.D從上下文判斷，要降低（lower）的當然是risk。lower frequency（降低頻率）、lower treatment（降低治療）或lower diagnosis（降低診斷）與上下文的意思都不匹配。

5.B 本句表達的意思是：Dr Darrel Francis 在他的論文中說，經過計算，一粒statin 降低心臟病發作的風險足以抵消吃一個奶酪漢堡包和喝一杯奶昔所增加的患心臟病的風險。所以本題的答案是enough。

6.C 顧客不可能在快餐店里preparing cheeseburger 或cooking cheeseburger，而buying

cheeseburger不會增加心臟病風險。所以，只有eating cheeseburger 才合乎上下文的意思。7.A從上下文判斷，被cut out（去除）的effects一定是unhealthy effects，所以，unhealthy是本題的答案。

8.D本句中的in terms of 意為“就??而言”，要與后半句“一正一負相互抵消”的意思相匹配，所以只能是“就患心臟病的可能性而言”。possibility 是答案。

9.A本句的意思與第五題的意思相同，即statin降低心臟病發作的風險與快餐增加的心臟病 的風險在程度（degree）上大致相當。如果選擇其他三個選項，意思變成了，“尺寸(dimension）上、角度（angle）上或范圍（range）上大致相當”，就說不通了。

1O.D 填詞所在的句子的意思告訴我們，具有諷刺意味的一點是：顧客可以隨心所欲地免費享用不健康的調味品。as one likes 是固定用法，意為“隨某人所愿，隨某人所喜歡”。所以，like 是答案。其余三個選項用在本句中都不合適。11.B transported（運輸）、preserved（保存）或converted（轉換）填人句子中，意思都不順。只有填入provided（提供）符合句意。provided 是答案。

12.C 到快餐店去就餐的人當然是customer。

13.A 為了降低開車和吸煙的風險，人們被鼓勵要采取一些安全措施。作者借此說明為了降低食用快餐的風險，我們也要采取措施。根據這層意思，選擇measures是正確的。take measure的意思是“采取措施”。其他三個選項都不合適：take care是“注意，小心”，take advantage 是“利用”，take turns 是“輪流，依次”。

14.B 本題很明顯要選wearing，因為上下文的意思是“系上安全帶”。buying a seatbelt, cleaning a seatbelt和changing a seatbelt都與上下文的意思相去太遠。

15.C通篇文章都在闡述statin能降低患心臟病的風險。所以，lowering（降低）是答案。+第十三篇 Solar Power without Solar Cells A dramatic and surprising magnetic effect of light discovered by University of Michigan researchers could lead to solar power without traditional semiconductor-based solar cells.The researchers found a way to make an “optical 1 ,” said Stephen Rand, a professor in the departments of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Physics and Applied Physics.Light has electric and magnetic components.Until now, scientists thought the 2 of the magnetic field were so weak that they could be ignored.What Rand and his colleagues found is that at the right intensity, when light is traveling through a material that does not conduct electricity, the light field can generate magnetic effects that are 100 million times stronger than 3 expected.4 these circumstances, the magnetic effects develop strength equivalent to a strong electric effect.“This could lead to a new kind of solar cell without semiconductors and without absorption to produce charge separation,” Rand said.“In solar cells, the 5 goes into a material, gets absorbed and creates heat.Here, we expect to have a very low heat load2.Instead of the light being absorbed, energy is stored in the magnetic moment3.Intense magnetization can be induced by intense light and then it is ultimately capable of providing a capacitive power 6.”What makes this possible is a previously undetected brand of “optical rectification4,” says William Fisher, a doctoral student in applied physics.In traditional optical rectification, light's electric field causes a charge separation, or a pulling 7 of the positive and negative charges in a material.This sets up a voltage, similar to 8 in a battery.Rand and Fisher found that under the right circumstances and in right types of materials, the light's magnetic field can also create optical rectification.The light must be shone through7 a 9 that does not 10 electricity, such as glass.And it must be focused to an intensity of 10 million watts per square centimeter8.Sunlight isn't this intense on its own, 6

5but new materials are being sought that would work at lower intensities, Fisher said.9“In our most recent paper, we show that incoherent light like sunlight is theoretically almost as.11 in producing charge separation as laser light is,” Fisher said.This new 12 could make solar power cheaper, the researchers say.They predict that with improved materials they could achieve 10 percent efficiency in 13 solar power to useable energy.That's equivalent to today's commercial-grade solar cells.“To manufacture 14 solar cells, you have to do extensive semiconductor processing,” Fisher said.“All we would need are lenses to focus the light and a fiber to guide it.Glass works for 15.It's already made in bulk, and it doesn't require as much processing.Transparent ceramics might be even better.”

詞匯：

optical / '?ptik?l / adj．光學的 incoherent /, ink?u’hi?r?nt/ adj．非相干的 capacitive / k?'p?sitiv/ adj.電容（量）的 semiconductor /,semik?n’d?kt?／ n．半導體 rectification /, rektifi'kei??n/ n．改正，修正 ceramics / si' r?miks／ n．陶瓷

注釋：

1.University of Michigan：密歇根大學。建校于1817 年，是美國名列前茅的公立大學，擁有優良的師資和頂尖的商學院、法學院、醫學院和工學院。2.heat load：熱負荷

3.magnetic moment：磁矩

4.optical rectification：光學校正

5.doctoral student：博士生

6.positive and negative charges：正電荷與負電荷

7.shone through：shone是shine的過去式。shine through是“（光）通過”。

8.an intensity of 10 million watts per square centimeter：每平方厘米一千萬瓦特的強度 9.incoherent light：非相干光

10.It's already made in bulk：它（指玻璃）已大量生產。in bulk 是“大量，成批”。

練習：

1.A microscope B instrument C fiber D battery 2.A modifications B effects C applications D results 3.A frequently B privately C previously D formally 4.A Under B At C On D Over 5.A light B electricity C chemical D magnetism 6.A plant B equipment C source D line 7.A down B up C together D apart 8.A this B that C those D it 9.A material B lens C meter D detector 10.A produce B convey C use D conduct 11.A remote B poor C effective D rare 12.A prototype B skill C technique D miracle 13.A converting B obtaining C delivering D transmitting 14.A compact B modern C durable D handy 15.A others B some C all D both

答案與題解：

1.D第一段說密歇根大學發現，光所產生的巨大磁效應有望用于太陽能發電，從而取代傳統的半導體太陽能電池。因此本題的正確選項應該是battery。optical battery是“光電池”。

optical microscope（光學顯微鏡）、optical instrument（光學儀器）或optical fiber（光纖）與第一段的意思沒有聯系。

2.B 選擇本題的答案的依據還是要回到第一段。第一段第一句的起始詞語是“A dramatic and surprising magnetic effect of light“。本篇文章中心議題是用magnetic effect of light開發新型的太陽能電池。而以前的科學家認為magnetic effect of light太微弱，不值得去關注它。因此，本題選effects與上下文的意思很連貫。

3.C 本句的意思是：當光通過一種絕緣材料時，光場產生的磁效應比以前想象的要強一億倍。previously是當然的選擇。其他三個選項填入句子中，意思不合邏輯：frequently（頻繁地）/privately（私下地）/formerly（正式地）expected。

4.A under these circumstances 是固定詞組，意為“在這種情況下”。也可以說in these circumstances，而at、on或over 都不與circumstances 連用。

5.A通篇文章談的是光產生的磁效應，所以在太陽能電池中，當然是光進入某種材料起作用。答案是選項A。

6.C 密歇根大學的科學家發現太陽光產生強烈的磁效應，再轉換為電，所以磁效應是產生電的源泉（source）。power plant（發電廠）、power equipment（電力設備）或power line（輸電線）與上文的意思接不上。

7.D or 在本句的意思是“即”，后面的詞語是解釋專業術語charge separation（電荷分離）。選apart與pushing構成pushing apart。pushing apart 的意思相當于separation。所以本題的答案是D。8.B 從上下文判斷，要填人的代詞是替代前面的voltage。根據英語語法，替代單數名詞的代詞要用that，替代復數名詞的代詞要用those。voltage 是單數，所以that 是答案。

9.A從本句句末的such as glass 判斷，要填入的詞一定是包括glass 的概括詞。因此，只有選項material 符合這個條件。而且第三、四段也都提到光磁場效應是由光通過一個不導電的材料（material）而產生的。

10.D 答案的根據可以在第三段中找到。原句是：”What Rand and his colleagues found is that at the right intensity, when light is traveling through a material that does not conduct electricity, the light field can generate magnetic effects that are 100 million times stronger than previously expected.”選項conduct 是答案。11.C 激光通過特定材料時能產生charge separation。密歇根大學科學家發現，陽光通過特定材料時也像激光一樣能產生charge separation。如果charge separation 是remote、poor 或rare，密歇根大學科學家所說的利用光磁場效應開發新型的太陽能電池就不可能成立。所以答案是effective。12.C 說這種樣機（this prototype）、技巧（this skill）或這一奇跡（this miracle）能降低太陽能的價格，似乎離題太遠。只有用這一技術（this technology）概括上一段的意思才準確。因此本題答案是technology。

13.A 科學家預測，通過改進材料，可使太陽能轉化成可用能源的效率達到10%。本題的答案是converting。而obtaining（得到）、delivering（輸送）和transmitting（發射）與“能量轉換”掛不上號。

14.B 通篇文章沒有談到新型太陽能電池是compact（緊湊小型的）、durable（耐用的）或handy（使用便利的），所以不會是答案。選modern是合理的，因為密歇根大學科學家研發的不用半導體的太陽能電池是先進的。

15.D 答案是both，指代的是上一句的“to focus the light and a fiber to guide it”這兩點。

+第十五篇 “Liquefaction” Key to Much of Japanese Earthquake Damage

The massive subduction zone earthquake in Japan caused a significant level of soil

“liquefaction”2 that has surprised researchers with its 1 severity, a new analysis shows.“We've seen localized3 examples of soil liquefaction as extreme as this before, but the distance and 2 of damage in Japan were unusually severe,” said Scott Ashford, a professor of geotechnical engineering4 at Oregon State University5.“Entire structures were tilted and sinking into the sediments,” Ashford said.“The shifts in soil destroyed water, drain and gas pipelines6, crippling the utilities and infrastructure these communities need to 3.We saw some places that sank as much as four feet.”

7Some degree of soil liquefaction is common in almost any major earthquake.It's a phenomenon in which soils soaked with water, particularly recent sediments or sand, can lose much of their 4 and flow during an earthquake.This can allow structures to shift or sink or 5.But most earthquakes are much 6 than the recent event in Japan, Ashford said.The length of the Japanese earthquake, as much as five minutes, may force researchers to reconsider the extent of liquefaction damage possibly occurring in situations such as this.“With such a long-lasting earthquake, we saw 7 structures that might have been okay after 30 seconds just continued to sink and tilt as the shaking continued for several more minutes,” he said.“And it was clear that younger sediments, and especially areas built on 8 filled ground, are much more vulnerable.” The data provided by analyzing the Japanese earthquake, researchers said, should make it possible to improve the understanding of this soil 9 and better prepare for it in the future.Ashford said it was critical for the team to collect the information quickly, 10 damage was removed in the recovery efforts9.“There's no doubt that we'll learn things from what happened in Japan10 that11 will help us to reduce risks in other similar 11 ,” Ashford said.“Future construction in some places may make more use of techniques known to reduce liquefaction, such as better compaction to make soils dense, or use of reinforcing stone columns.” Ashford pointed out that northern California have younger soils vulnerable to liquefaction---on the coast, near river deposits or in areas with filled ground.The “young” sediments, in geologic terms, may be those 12 within the past 10,000 years or more.In Oregon, for instance, that describes much of downtown Portland, the Portland International Airport and other cities.Anything 13 a river and old flood plains is a suspect12, and the Oregon Department of Transportation has already concluded that 1,100 bridges in the state are at risk from an earthquake.Fewer than 15 percent of them have been reinforced to 14 collapse.Japan has suffered tremendous losses in the March 11 earthquake, but Japanese construction 15 helped prevent many buildings from collapse---even as they tilted and sank into the ground.詞匯：

subduction /s?b'd?k??n/ n．俯沖 sediment /'sedim?nt/ n．沉積；沉淀物

liquefaction /likwi'f?k??n/ n．液化 infrastructure /'Infr?,str?kt??/ n．基礎設施

8geotecnical /d?i?u'teknik?l] adj．巖土技術 compaction /k?m'p?k??n/ n．壓緊的 vulnerable /'v?ln?r?bl/ ad]．易受傷害的

注釋：

1.subduction zone：俯沖帶。亦稱下降帶、潛沒帶、消亡帶。板塊構造說認為，當大洋板塊移動并與大陸板塊相遇時，由于大洋板塊巖石密度較大，地位也低，便俯沖到大陸板塊之下，這一俯沖部分叫做俯沖帶。俯沖帶兩側板塊會聚邊界稱會聚邊緣（convergent boundary)。俯沖帶上面反映震源活動的地帶稱“貝尼奧夫地震帶（Benioff seismic zone)“。

2.soil ”liquefaction“：土壤液化。土壤液化現象是指由于孔隙水壓力上升，有效應力減小所導致的土壤從固態到液態的變化，飽水的疏松的粉、細砂土在振動作用下突然破壞而呈現液 態的現象。

3.localized：小范圍的

4.geotechnical engineering：巖土工程。

5.Oregon State University：俄勒岡州立大學，建校于1858年，位于美國俄勒岡州科瓦利斯，全校設11個學院，80多個專業，尤以農科和工程最為突出。2008年俄勒岡州立大學的核能工程專業在全美大學中排名第9名。

6.water, drain and gas pipelines：自來水管道、排水管道和煤氣管道?！眞ater, drain and gaspipelines” 即“water pipelines, drain pipelines and gas pipelines“。7.some degree of soil liquefaction：某種程度的土壤液化

8.to reconsider the extent of liquefaction damage possibly occurring in situations such as this：本句的意思是：重新審視類似這次（持續時間長的）地震中因土壤液化而可能造成的毀壞的規 模。

9.recovery efforts：重建工作

10.that we'll learn things from what happened in Japan：我們將從日本的地震中學到很多東西。該句是同位語從句，說出前半句no doubt的內容。

11.that：that引導的是定語從句，修辭前半句中的things。12.suspect：被懷疑對象。文中指的是那些疑似危險的土壤。

練習：

1.A．internal B.different C.difficult D.widespread 2.A．volume B.length C.extent D.width 3.A．function B.repair C.build D.remove 4.A．durability B.strength C.ability D.property 5.A．ascend B.compact C.collapse D.recover 6.A．shorter B.longer C.simpler D.stranger 7.A．when B.what C.how D.which 8.A．occasionally B.frequently C.specially D.recently 9.A．development B.phenomenon C.formation D.composition 10.A．unless B.until C.after D.before 11.A．findings B.locations C.events D.sources 12.A．delivered B.deposited C.destroyed D.detached 13.A．near B.from C.inside D.over 14.A．prevent B.accelerate C.predict D.detect 15.A．styles B.sites C.costs D.standards

答案與題解：

1.D前文說到日本的俯沖帶地震是massive（巨大的），而且砂土液化到達一個significant level。根據上述描述，選widespread（分布廣泛的）修飾severity是正確的。其他三個選項與severity搭配后，意思接不上。

2.C 本句由but連接并列的兩個分句組成。第一個分句說以前也發生過地震引發的砂土液化的現象，但涉及范圍較小。第二個分句通過but語氣一轉，說這次地震造成的破壞是罕見的。很顯然，選extent(程度)與distance（距離，范圍）合用說明破壞的程度和范圍是符合上下文的意思的。

3.A 在“The shifts in soil destroyed water, sewer and gas pipelines, crippling the utilities and infrastructure these communities need to?”中，”these communities need to...”是定語從句，指代utilities和infrastructure的關系代詞which在定語從句中起賓語作用，被省略了。need 后面的動詞不定式的邏輯主語是which，也就是utilities and infrastructure。從意思上看，這 些社區需要這些公用事業設備和基礎設施起功能作用（function)。選function是對的。其他選項都不合適。

4.B 浸了水的砂土，特別是新近的沉積土、沙土等失去的不會是durability（耐用性）和ability（能力），也不會是泛泛的property（性質），而是strength（強度）。5.C 浸了水的砂土強度降低或消失。砂土隨水流動，就會引發建筑物移位（shift）或下沉(sink)。再發展下去，建筑物就會倒塌（collapse)。collapse是答案。若選擇ascend（上升）、compact(壓實)或recover（復原），意思與上文接不上。

6.A 地震持續的時間一般為數十秒。這次日本地震的時間長達5分鐘。所以本題要填入的詞應該是shorter，說明大多數地震的持續時間比它短。

7.C 從意思上看，選how是正確的。when structures、what structures或which structures意思明顯不通。

8.D 第三段第二句出現“particularly recent sediment?“。recent sediment浸水后就失去了強度。這提示了本題要選recently，因為建立在新近填就的土壤上的建筑物是最易受到傷害的。

9.B 分析日本大地震得出的數據不會令科學家獲得有關soil development（土壤發展）、soil formation（土壤形成）soil composition（土壤構成）這些方面的知識。若選phenomenon，意思就是科學家的研究分析有助于他們了解到土壤浸水后的這類現象，以便做好防備，對付 未來可能發生的同類現象。上下文意思很連貫，因此phenomenon是正確的選項。

1O.D 選unless、until或after都不合邏輯。本題句子的意思是：重建工作首先要清理廢墟，這樣地震現場就被破壞了。所以科學家要趕在重建工作開始之前收集好地震資料。before是答案。

11.C 本句的意思是：科學家無疑會從日本大地震中學到不少東西，從而有助于減低今后發生類似的地震時的風險。四個選項中只有events合適。similar events指的是“類似的地震事 件”。若選findings（調查結果）、locations（地點）或sources（來源），句子的意思就不對。12.B 本句解釋“young”這個詞在地質學中的含義。句中的those指代sediments?！眣oung“ sediments指那些年代少于或略超過一萬年的sediments。deposit是“沉積”，與句子意思匹配，是答案。其他三個選項，詞義離題很遠，只是詞形與deposit有點相似，起干擾作用而已，它們不是答案。

13.A 上一段說，younger soils是非常脆弱的。本句的anything指的是soils。哪些地方的soils是疑似高危對象呢？如果指soils from/inside/over river and old flood plains是不合常理的。正確的選擇應該是near，靠近河流和原洪泛區的土壤才是危險地區。因此near是答案。14.A 加固危橋的目的是為了防止坍塌。選項prevent是答案。

15.D 在3月11日的日本大地震中，震區的建筑物傾斜、下沉，但沒有倒塌。建筑上的什么因素起到了防塌的作用呢？當然不會是construction styles（建筑風格）、construction sites（建 筑工地）或construction facilities（建筑設備）。日本的construction standards（建筑標準）才是防塌的關鍵因素。因此standards是答案。

第六篇

不要太在意睡眠

我們每個人的大腦里都有一個像我們床邊的鬧鐘一樣的生物鐘。人腦里的生物鐘24小時走一圈，這一圈也就是一次完整的晝夜節律，正是這個節律決定了我們吃飯、睡覺和起床的時間。

青春期時，人的生物鐘在定時方面會發生變化，生物鐘會提前。這時，青少年會比以前睡得晚，所以當你媽媽告訴你該睡覺時，你的生物鐘可能會讓你多推遲幾小時，并且電腦或電視光線可能會導致你熬夜到更晚。

生物鐘的這種變化對青少年說是正常的，但熬夜到太晚會打亂你生物鐘與晝夜時間循環之間的平衡，這樣就會帶來一些問題，例如：早晨很難按時起床。位于美國羅得州布郎大學睡眠方面的研究員Mary Carskadon說：“當青少年睡眠不足時會打不起精神，這將影響到他們心情、學習和思考問題的狀態?！?/p>

其實生物鐘與鬧鐘一樣，也是可調的，事實上，生物鐘每天都在進行著自我調節，其方式就是通過你眼睛接收到光線的變化。

很早之前，科學家就知道了晝夜光線強弱的變化對生物鐘調節起到了重要的作用，長久以來，研究者們認為眼睛所接受到的平衡生物鐘的光信號同樣作用于人類的視覺系統。

但最近幾年的研究發現，人類眼睛有兩個感光系統，一個是視覺系統，而另一個是感知晝夜的系統。第十九篇

石墨烯的超強力量

當今重大科學技術均以“微型”來呈現，新手機和個人電腦每年都在變得更小，這就意味著電子設備要求內部零件更小，工程師們正在尋求制造這些零件的方法，他們逐漸把目光投向了石墨烯——一種由碳元素構成的超薄材料。這種材料將改變電子設備的未來。

今年的諾貝爾物理學獎頒發給了來自英國曼切斯特大學的Andre Geim和Kostya Novoselov，以表彰他們對石墨烯的發現。Novoselov說：“石墨烯不僅小，而且它是世界上所能找到的最薄材料?！彼阉Q作“神奇材料”。石墨烯極薄，25 000片石墨烯疊放在一起才與一張普通白紙一樣厚。如果把一片石墨烯放在手指上，你根本就不會發現，因為你沒辦法看到它。

碳是宇宙中最多的一種元素，已知的生命體中都含有碳。石墨烯一個只有一個碳原子厚度的單層。你不用費心尋找石墨烯，它就在我們身邊。

如果你想得到這種高技術材料，一支筆、一張紙和一小段膠條就足夠了。用鉛筆在紙上涂黑一片區域，將膠條粘在上面，當你拉開膠條你會發現它粘起了很薄的一片鉛筆涂的陰影，這一片陰影就叫做石墨烯，一種世界上最軟的礦物質。

現在，再將膠條粘上另外一張紙上，把它拉起來，你會得到更薄的一層。想象一下當你重復做，直到在紙上得到最薄的一層物質，這層物質只有一個原子的厚度，你根本無法看到。石墨是由一層層的石墨烯組成的，所以當你得到最薄的一層時，你已經找到了石墨烯。

第三十八篇

土衛六上發現了生命跡象

科學家們說，在土衛六上發現了外星生命跡象并宣布了這一發現。美國國家航空航天局(NASA)的研究者們對卡西尼號探測器所傳回來的數據進行了分析，數據表明，土星衛星中最大的一顆衛星有以甲烷為基礎的生命的存在跡象。

據報道，科學家們已經找到了在土衛六高濃度氫氣大氣層里“呼吸”的原始外星生命的線索。

他們認為，氫氣在到達布滿甲烷河流湖泊的土衛六類似行星一樣的表層前就已經被吸收了。這就證明在這個不及半個地球大小的衛星表面有某種微生物在依靠氫氣生存。

美國國家航空航天局的科學家Chris Mckay說，“我們提出有氫氣的消耗，是由于它是土衛六上生命賴以生存的顯而易見的氣體，就像我們地球上用氧氣呼吸一樣。如果這些跡象最終證明是生命的跡象，它會加倍令人興奮，因為它會代表完全不同于地球上水基生命的第二種生命?！?/p>

時至今日，盡管地球上的依賴液體水的微生物在甲烷里生長良好或把它作為廢物排出，科學家在任何地方都沒有探測到這種生命的形式。在土衛六上，絕對溫度達到90度(相當于攝氏-273．15度)，依賴于甲烷的微生物不得不用某種液體物質作為生存的介質，這種液體不是水，水在土衛六上會凍成冰塊，不能融化。我們知道，冰塊太冷不能維持生命。

科學家們原指望太陽與大氣層中的化學物質相互作用會在土衛六上產生一層乙炔。但卡西尼號在它的表面沒有探測到乙炔。

Mark Allen是美國宇航局土衛六項目組的主要負責人，他說道，既然在土衛六的表面沒有探測到乙炔，那就充分說明上面沒有生物。

Allen說：“科學界的保守主義者們建議，要做出土衛六上有生物的結論，首先必須對土衛六上所有沒有生物的觀點做出回應；要排除土衛六上可能沒有生物的觀點，我們任重道遠。極為可能的是，一種化學過程而非生物學能解釋這些結果。”

第四十篇

教數學，教焦慮

在最新一項關于小學生學數學的研究中，芝加哥大學的心理學家Sian Beilock和Susan Levine 發現，女教師的想法和女學生的學習之間有著驚人的聯系：如果女教師對自己的數學能力感到焦慮，她的女學生很可能認為男孩子數學比女孩學得更好。

”如果一直由對數學有焦慮的女教師教授數學，就會對她們的數學成績產生雪球效應“，Levine說。換言之，女孩子們最后從老師那里獲得的是對數學的焦慮。該研究表明，如果女孩子們在一個認為男孩比女孩數學好的環境中成長，那么她們的數學可能會不如在更自信的狀態下學得好。

如同學生，教師也會覺得某些學科難學和難教，這就是研究者所言的”焦慮“：不自在或擔心。

此研究發現，教師對數學的焦慮能夠傳染給她的女學生們。該研究的研究對象包括65個女孩，52個男孩和17位在中西部教一二年級的教師。學生們在學年的開始和結束時都進行數學測試，研究者們比較得分。

研究者們測試學生是否認為數學明星一定會是男孩。然后研究者們測試教師，試圖找出哪些教師對數學感到焦慮，研究者們問教師們當碰到數學問題諸如閱讀銷售清單時的感受，如果一位教師一看到銷售清單的數字就感到緊張，那么她很可能對數學存在焦慮。

平均來說，教師的焦慮不會影響到男孩子。但是，一般說來，如果教女孩子的教師有數學焦慮癥，那么女孩子們在學年結束時測試得分比其他的女孩要低。另外，在關于是否認為數學明星應該是男孩的測試中，有20個女孩認為男孩數學比女孩好，這20個女孩的老師都是女性，且都患有數學焦慮癥。

來自密蘇里大學的心理學家David Geary說”這是一個有趣的研究，但是這只是初步結果，需要用更大的調查樣本進行重復驗證"。

譯文：

第四十五篇

小而聰明

12月14日，美國國家航空航天局發射了一個體積小而威力大的望遠鏡，它的名字叫“WISE”（聰明），大約只有一個垃圾盒子那么寬。你可千萬不要輕視這個小東西，WISE可是一款商強數碼相機，它將在人類已知的宇宙里拍攝任何你所能想到的天體，包括小行星、那些只能看到微弱的光和因燃燒而無法觀察的天體，以及自行星和恒星誕生以來的巨大塵埃云。

Ned Wright是主持WISE項目的科學家，他說：“我十分興奮，因為我們就要看到以前從未看到過的那部分宇宙”。

到達宇宙空間后，WISE由于受極地軌道重力作用，一直在圍繞地球旋轉。（這意味著，每轉一圈，它就離南極和北極靠近）。它的鏡頭是向外的，遠離地球。每11分鐘WISE就會抓拍天空一個不同的部分。六個月之后，它將把整個天空拍攝完畢。

然而，WISE拍攝的相片不會像我們日常的數碼相片。WISE是Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer（廣域紅外勘測探測器）的縮寫。正如名字所示，WISE能拍到發出紅外線輻射物體的相片。

輻射是波浪狀行進的一種能量。人能看到的光，包括大家熟悉的、在彩虹里看到的光譜就是射線的一個例子。當普通的數碼相機給一棵樹照相時，它能接收到樹反射回來的、可見的光波。光波通過鏡頭進入到相機里，相機對它進行加工，然后把圖像合成。

紅外線的波長比可見光長，所以，普通的數碼相機捕捉不到他們，人眼也看不到這種射線。盡管人們看不到，人的皮膚能感受到較長紅外線帶來的溫暖。

這就是為什么WISE能捕捉到其他望遠鏡看不到的物體的主要原因。宇宙中，不是所有的東西都以可見光的方式呈現出來。例如，小行星是在太空中漂浮的大巖石，但是小行星吸收射到他們表面的大部分光。他們不能反射光，所以要看到他們很困難。但他們卻釋放出紅外線，所以，像WISE這樣的紅外線望遠鏡才能夠捕捉到它們的圖像。WISE的任務就是拍攝成千上萬的小行星圖像。

WISE的另一任務是為另外一種太空深處的天體一褐矮星拍照。這種天體是“失敗的”恒星，它們是一些不夠大，不能像太陽的能量那樣啟動相同的反應。褐矮星只能縮小和冷卻。他們發出的光如此之微弱，人們根本看不到，但是在線外頻譜中，它們是發光的。

譯文：

第四十六篇

螞蟻作為“生態系統工程師”對環境影響巨大

?？怂固卮髮W所做的研究表明，螞蟻作為“生態系統工程師”和食肉動物的行為對當地的環境影響巨大。該研究發表在動物生態雜志上，它表明螞蟻對當地的環境有兩大顯著的影響。

第一，通過筑巢而挪動土壤或采集食物，螞蟻影響土壤的營養水平。這可間接影響當地從腐生物到食物鏈高層的許多動物種群的數量。

第二，它們捕食的動物種類很多，包括那些被大量工蟻攻擊的大獵物。

Dirk Sanders是該大學生態和保護中心所做的此項研究的作者，他說：“螞蟻是高效的食肉動物，而且能大量繁殖。它們具有很強的領地意識，并且會竭盡全力對抗其他的食肉動物來保衛自己的領地。所有這些都意味著螞蟻對周圍環境影響巨大?！?/p>

“在該研究中，我們第一次對螞蟻帶來的影響程度及微妙程度進行研究。所得到的發現是：盡管是食肉動物，螞蟻的出現能促使其他動物族群在數量和品種上的增長。并對當地的環境起到切實重要的作用，對大草原的食物鏈影響巨大?！盨anders說。

該研究在德國進行，它對花園黑螞蟻和一般的紅螞蟻在不同混合程度和不同密度下的影響力進行研究。黑螞蟻和紅螞蟻在整個歐洲包括英國都能找到。研究發現，一個地區的螞蟻密度小，而其他動物尤其是食草動物和腐生物的數量和種類會增多。如果螞蟻的密度大，就不可能產生同樣的影響，或者產生相反的影響，這表明，螞蟻的掠食活動會抵消螞蟻給環境帶來的積極影響。Dr Frank van Veen是本研究的另一作者，他說：“我們的發現是：如果螞蟻的數量少，其對土壤的營養水平的影響會對動物族群產生積極的效果。如果螞蟻的數量增加，其捕食的影響會達到最大化，因此會抵消螞蟻通過生態工程給環境帶來的積極影響。” 螞蟻是生態系統的重要組成部分，不僅因為它占有很大部分的生物量，而且因為其作為生態系統工程師的角色。螞蟻具有難以想象的多樣性，但極易受人類的影響，這就使它的多樣性有顯著的減少。然而，科學家還不消楚人類對螞蟻這種干擾如何破壞螞蟻對生態系統的維護作用。螞蟻通過變動物理的和化學的環境，通過對植物、微生物和其他土壤生物的影響而對生態環境起至關重要的作用。

第十五篇 “液化”是日本地震破壞的關鍵

一份分析報告表明，在日本，巨大的俯沖帶地震致使土壤液化的程度之嚴重，范圍之廣令研究者們著實吃了一驚。

“我們以前也看到過這么嚴重的小范圍的土壤液化現象，但是，日本的破壞程度范圍之廣是極為嚴重的。所有結構都傾斜了并陷到沉淀物中，土壤中的斷層摧毀了自來水管、排水和煤氣管道，社區的公共和基礎設施陷于癱瘓。我們看到有些地區下陷了四英尺”。來自俄勒岡州立大學巖土工程系的Scott Ashford說到。

幾乎任何大地震都會帶來某種程度的土壤液化。這種現象是由于地震中浸滿了水的土壤，尤其剛沉淀下來的沉淀物或細砂土在振動作用下突然失去支撐的力量而呈現液態變化。從而導致地面建筑物移動、下沉或倒塌。

“然而，多數地震比起最近日本發生的地震持續時間都短的多”。Ashford說道。日本發生的地震持續了五分鐘，這就促使研究者們重新審視類似這次(持續時間長的)地震中液化可能造成的毀壞規模。

“由于地震持續時間長，我們看到以前的地震持續30秒時地面建筑物仍舊完好無損，如果震動再延續幾分鐘，建筑物就會繼續下沉或傾斜，很明顯，那些建造在新近填就的地面上的建筑物最易受到傷害。”Ashford講到。

研究者們對日本地震作出了分析并得出數據，這些數據能大大提高人們了解土壤浸水后的這類現象，以便做好防備，對付未來可能發生的同類現象。Ashford認為，重建工作首先要清理廢墟，這樣地震現場就被破壞了。所以科學家必須要趕在重建工作開始之前收集好地震資料。

“毋庸置疑，我們從日本地震中學到的東西有助于在將來類似的情況中降低風險。一些地方的建筑物會更多應用液化減少技術，如加強土壤的夯實或用石柱加固”。Ashford說。

Ashford指出，北加利福尼亞州那些沿岸的、距離河口堆積物較近或填充的土壤易于受到液化的侵害?！澳贻p”的沉淀物這個詞在地質學中是指那些年代少于或略超過一萬年的沉淀物。比如，在俄勒岡州，它指的是Portland市區的大部分地區、Portland國際機場和其他城市。

凡是在河流和泛濫平原附近地區的土壤很有可能是危險的。俄勒岡交通部斷定，該州的1100座橋梁如發生地震會有危險。只有不到15％的橋梁得到了加固以防坍塌。日本在3月11日的地震中損失慘重，但是震區的建筑物傾斜、下沉，卻沒有倒塌，日本的建筑標準功不可沒。

第十三篇 沒有太陽能電池的太陽能

密歇根大學的研究著們發現，光所產生的巨大磁效應有望用于太陽能發電，從而取代傳統的半導體太陽能電池。

Stephen Rand是電力工程和計算機科學系以及物理和應用物理系的教授，他講道：“研究者們找到了制造光電池的方法”

光具有電磁成分。而以前的科學家認為電磁光太微弱，不值得去關注。Rand和他的同事的發現是，在適當的強度下，當光通過一個不導電的物質，光場產生的磁效應比以前想象的要大一億倍。在這種情況下，光磁效應所釋放的能量堪比強電效應。

“這有可能開發出不用半導體或不用吸入電荷分離的新型太陽能電池，太陽能電池是利用光射入一種材料，吸收和產生熱量。而目前我們期望有一種非常低的熱負荷來取代用磁矩吸收光源，儲存能量。強光可以誘導強磁力，強磁力最終能夠發電”。Rand教授說?！笆怪蔀榭赡艿氖?，之前有一種探測不到的叫光學矯正的電光”。應用物理學的博士生William Fisher如是說。在傳統的光學矯正中，光電場致使電荷分離或把材料中的正負電荷分開，這就具有像電池一樣的電壓了。

Rand和Fisher發現，如果周圍的環境合適并且材料適合，光磁場也可能產生光學矯正。光必須穿過像玻璃一樣的不導電物質。并且聚集的電量為每平方厘米一千萬瓦。太陽光自己沒有那么強，但是正在尋找的新型材料能夠在低電流狀態下完成工作。

Fisher說：“在我們最近的論文中，我們表明，像太陽這樣的非相干光，理論上能夠像激光一樣產生電荷分離。”

研究者們斷言，這項新技術能使太陽能降低成本，他們預測，一旦使用改進的材料，太陽能可轉換成可用能量，其轉換率可達10％。這等同于當下商用的太陽能電池。

目前要生產太陽能電池，必須要進行大量的半導體的加工，而我們將來所需要的只是聚光的透鏡和導入光線的纖維。玻璃能起到以上雙重的作用。它已被大量生產，而且不大需要太多的加工。如使用透明陶瓷會更好。

第十二篇 快餐加免費降膽固醇藥物可以降低罹患心臟病的風險

倫敦帝國理工學院的研究者們在一項新研究中建議，快餐店可以免費供應降膽固醇藥物以此降低顧客食用油膩食品罹患心臟病的風險。

降膽固醇藥物能減少不健康的低密度脂蛋白膽固醇在血液中的含量。大量的試驗數據已經證明，降膽固醇藥能有效降低罹患心臟病的風險。

在《美國心臟病學雜志》發表的一篇論文里，Darrel Francis博士和他的同事們估訂，一粒降膽固醇藥降低的罹患心臟病的風險，足以抵消食用漢堡和飲用奶昔所提高的罹患心臟病的風險。

Francis博士來自帝國理工學院的國家心肺學院，是本次研究的資深發起人。他認為：“降膽固醇藥物不能消除所有漢堡和炸土豆條帶來的不健康的影響，最好遠離所有油膩食物。但是，就罹患心臟病的幾率而言，我們得出這樣的結論：服用降膽固醇藥物降低心臟病發作的風險與快餐增加的患心臟病的風險在程度上大致相當?！?/p>

“具有諷刺意味的是，人們在快餐店里可以隨意拿取對健康有害的調味包，但是對健康有利的降膽固醇藥物卻是處方藥。既然對健康有害的調味包可以隨意免費拿取，那么降低心臟病發作的降膽固醇藥物免費隨意拿取也是合理的。在每個顧客身上都花不了5便士，也就是一小袋糖的價格”，Francis博士說道。

當人們從事諸如駕駛和吸煙等危險行為時，別人會鼓勵他們系安全帶或選擇有過濾嘴的香煙以降低風險。服用降膽固醇藥物是降低油膩食物引發的心臟病發作風險的理性做法。

第十一篇

氣候變化給不備城市帶來重大風險

最近，Patricia Romero Lankao對市政方針進行了全新的審查。她是一個社會學家，專門研究氣候變化和城市發展。她警告說，世界上許多快速發展的城市地區，尤其在發展中國家，很可能會由于氣候變化的影響而遭殃。她的著作也斷定，大多數城市沒有做到減排二氧化碳和其他溫室氣體，而眾所周知，這些氣體妨礙大氣層?！皻夂蜃兓且粋€嚴重的區域問題，對世界上發展中的城市帶來了嚴重的危害，但是，幾乎沒有城市研發有效的策略來保護當地居民”。

城市是溫室氣體的主要來源，城市人口很有可能受到未來環境變化的影響最大。Lankao的發現強調了城市居民受到傷害最大的一些方面，所以她建議出臺干預政策，此舉可以給居民帶來短期的和長期的益處。

城市的位置以及城市建設的密集常常會使居民在應對自然災害時面臨更大的危險。與氣候有關的潛在威脅有風暴潮和炎熱天氣的延長等。風暴潮可以淹沒港口地區，而炎熱天氣的延長使得大量鋪設瀝青路面的城市比周邊地區的溫度大大提高。這自然現象給城市帶來的影響尤為嚴重。比如，熱浪的延長會加劇空氣污染，從而導致大面積的居民健康問題。貧窮社區可能由于缺乏如飲用水和可靠的公路系統這樣基本的設施，而在自然災害來臨時遭受更大的影響。許多貧窮國家的居民住在不符合標準的房子里，沒有安全的飲用水、交通設施和其他基礎服務設施。

因此，當地政府應該采取措施來保護他們的居民?！安恍业氖?，政府對此事的反應僅僅局限于作秀而不是有意義的作為，他們不嚴格執行能夠減少供熱和空調需要的建筑標準，事實上，許多當地政府對此袖手旁觀?！盧omero Lankao說。因此，她敦促政府改變不作為的政策，采取強制措施預防氣候變化對城市帶來的不利影響。

第十篇

心靈雞湯：爽心食品排解孤獨感

土豆泥，通心粉和奶酪可能對動脈血管有害，但是，據《心理科學》一項研究表明，它們對心臟有利并且能抑制不利情緒。其研究對象是爽心食品，目的是探究人們對爽心食品的感覺。

“就我而言，食品在我的家庭一直是比較關注的問題”，Jordan Troisi如是說。他是布法羅大學的研究生并且是本次研究的首席作者。該研究出自于他與Shira Gabriel合作的一個研究項目。它關注的是可能影響人類情感的物質的東西。有些人用諸如綁定喜愛的電視節目，和流行音樂歌手建立虛擬的關系或瀏覽親人的照片來排遣孤獨。Troisi和Gabriel想知道爽心食品是否能通過使人們想到他們最親近和最愛的人，同樣達到排遣孤獨的效果。

在一個實驗中，為使參與者感覺孤獨，研究者讓他們用六分鐘的時間描寫一次與最親近的人吵架的經歷。而要求另外一些人寫一個情感中性的作業。然后，每一組的一些人描寫食用爽心食品的經歷；而其他的人描寫食用新食品的經歷。最后，研究者讓參與者書面回答關于孤獨程度的問題。

描寫與親人吵架的經歷使人感到孤獨。但是，一般來說，人們的關系若處于穩定狀態，通過描寫他們吃爽心食品的經歷會排遣一些孤獨感。Troisi說道：“我們已經得出這樣的結論：爽心食品與我們的親人密切相連，想一想或之后真正食用這種食品會提醒人們注意到他們的親人。”在所有關于爽心食品 的文章中，許多人都描述了與家人和朋友共同進餐的經歷。

在另外一個實驗中，在實驗喝雞湯令人想到和其他人的關系，但是，這只有在他們把雞湯認為是爽心食品的時候才會發生。參與者被要求回答這個問題和許多其他問題是在這個實驗很久以前，因此他們不會記得。

“在每一個人的日常生活中，都會經歷緊張，而這往往與人際關系有關，爽心食品可能是排遣孤獨的便利食品”。Troisi如是說。

第三篇 紙幣上的病菌

不同國家的人們使用不同種類的紙幣：中國用元，墨西哥用比索，英國用英鎊，美國用美元、澳大利亞用澳元、新西蘭用新西蘭元。這些國家的紙幣形狀也可能不一致，但所有國家的紙幣都具有一個共同點：紙幣上有病菌。

一百多年以來，科學家們對紙幣上病菌的研究從未停止過。在二十世紀初期，一些研究人員開始懷疑寄附于紙幣上的病菌極有可能傳播疾病。

對紙幣上病菌的研究大多著眼于某一國家的紙幣。Frank Vriesekoop博士和其他研究人員進行了一項新的研究，即比較不同國家紙幣上的病菌總數。

Frank Vriesekoop博士是巴拉瑞特大學的食品微生物學家，他率領一個全球研究小組對至少10個國家的紙幣上的病菌展開了分析。科學家們總共分析了1，280張紙幣：所有紙幣來自于人們購買食物的地方，如超市、街頭小販和咖啡廳，因為人們在那些地方往往會使用紙幣。

總體來說，澳元中的活病菌最少，每平方厘米只有10個；中國人民幣的病菌最多，大約每平方厘米100個。紙幣上的病菌大多不會有危害。

我們所說的“紙幣”通常不是紙做的。例如，美元是印在一種棉織物上。不同的國家可能會用不同的材料印制貨幣。Vriesekoop和他的研究團隊所分析的貨幣中有的是棉制品，比如美元。其他的是由聚合物所制成的。

有三種紙幣上的病菌的數量最少，它們是澳元、新西蘭元和墨西哥比索，而且它們都是印在聚合物上。

其他的紙幣都是印在高棉制品上。而用聚合物印制的紙幣上的病菌較少。這種關系表明，病菌在聚合物的表面上更難以存活?？茖W家們若想搞清楚病菌是怎樣在紙幣上生存的以及我們是否需要重視這些病菌，需要做更多的研究。Vriesekoop目前所做的研究就是比較在不同類型的紙幣上病菌存活的時間。

無論Vriesekoop的研究有何發現，毋庸置疑的是：紙幣含有病菌。我們接觸紙幣后應立即洗手。畢竟，你永遠不會知道你的紙幣的來源，或者上面有什么東西。

第三篇：2011年職稱英語理工類閱讀理解新增篇目[范文]

2011年職稱英語理工類閱讀理解

新增文章篇目(名師押題)第二篇 World Crude Oil Production May Peak a Decade Earlier Than Some Predict 第六篇 Waving With Light *第三十四篇 Batteries Built by Viruses *第三十八篇 Longer Lives for Wild Elephants +第四十五篇 Some People Do Not Taste Salt Like Others +第四十六篇 Marvelous Metamaterials

注：

1、+表示A級文章；*表示B即文章；其他為C級文章； 2、2011年詞匯部分與2010年教材相比未作任何變化。

第二篇

World Crude Oil Production May Peak a Decade Earlier Than Some Predict

In a finding that may speed efforts to conserve oil, scientists in Kuwait predict that world conventional crude oil production will peak in 2014.This prediction is almost a decade earlier than some other predictions．Their study is in ACS’ Energy1＆Fuels．

Ibrahim Nashawi and colleagues point out that rapid growth in global oil consumption has sparked a growing interest in predicting “peak oil”．“Peak oil ”is the point where oil production reaches a maximum and then declines.Scientists have developed several models to forecast this point, and some put the date at 2020 or

2later.One of the most famous forecast models is called the Hubbert model.It assumes

3that global oil production will follow a bell shaped curve.A related concept is 4that of “Peak Oil.” The term “Peal Oil” indicates the moment in which world wide production Will peak, afterwards to start on irreversible decline．

The Hubbert model accurately predicted that oil production would peak in the United States in 1970.The model has since gained in popularity and has been used to forecast oil production worldwide． However, recent studies show that the model is insufficient to account for more complex oil production cycles of some countries．Those cycles can be heavily influenced by technology changes, politics, and other factors, the scientists say.The new study describes development of a new version of the Hubbert model that provides a more realistic and accurate oil production forecast．Using the new model, the scientists evaluated the oil production trends of 47 major oil-producing

6countries, which supply most of the world’s conventional crude oil． They estimated that worldwide conventional crude oil production will peak in 2014, years earlier

7than anticipated.The scientists also showed that the world's oil reserves are being reduced at a rate of 2.1 percent a year.The new model could help inform energy-related decisions and public policy debate, they suggest.詞匯：

Conserve v． 保護，保存 crude oil原油

spark v．閃耀；激發；鼓舞 curve n．曲線

irreversible adj．不可逆的，不可改變的 insufficient adj.充分的，不足的

注釋：

1．ACS' Energy & Fuels：ACS是American Chemical Society(美國化學學會)的縮寫。該學會成立于l876年，現已成為世界最大的科技協會。多年來，ACS一直致力于為全球化學研究機構、企業及個人提供高品質的文獻資訊及服務。ACS出版的期刊有34種，這些期刊在化學領域中是被引用次數最多的化學期刊，Energy＆Fuels即是其中一本。

2．the Hubbert model：赫伯特模型是美國地質學家M．King Hubbert于1956年創建的，這是一個隨時間增長的模型，Hubbert將其引入油氣田開發，經推導使其成為一個可以預測油氣田累積產量、瞬時產量、年產量和可采儲量等多項開發指標的多功能預測模型。3．a bell shaped curve：鐘形曲線

4．that of peak oil：that指代concept。5．account for：說明，解釋

6．conventional crude oil：常規原油

7．oil reserves：石油儲量。通常使用復數形式reserves。

練習：

1．Which of the following is closest in meaning to the word “sparked” appearing in paragraph 2? A．flashed B．stimulated C．changed D．ended 2．The term “a bell shaped curve” appearing in paragraph 2 indicates that global oil production will A．take the shape of a flat curve． B．keep growing． C．keep declining．

D．start to decline after global oil production peaks． 3．Which of the following is NOT true of the Hubbert model? A．It successfully predicted that oil production peaked in the U．S．in l 970． B．It has been used to predict oil production in many countries．

C．It is insufficient to explain oil production cycles in some countries． D．It provides a very realistic and accurate oil production．

4．What is the major achievement of the new study mentioned in the last paragraph? A．It predicts global oil production will peak in 2014． B．It predicts oil production will decline in 47 countries． C．It confirms further the effectiveness of the Hubbert model． D．It discovers a new trend of Worldwide oil production． 5．Who develop the new version of the Hubbert model? A．American scientists． B．Kuwaiti scientists． C．British scientists．

D．Scientists of 47 major oil-producing countries．

答案與題解：

1．B spark一詞做及物動詞使用時有“發動”、“激發”的意思，在此意為stimulated，即“引發”，這個句子的意思是：全球石油消費的快速增長已引發了對“石油峰值”預測的興趣。2．D此句接下來的句子中所提到的a related concept即是與a bell shaped curve相關的概念，也就是說，接下來的這個句子對a bell shaped curve做了解釋，即世界石油生產達到最大峰值后將下降。

3．D 文章的第三段告訴我們，Hubbert預測模型精確地預測到美國石油生產于1970年將達到峰值。這一模型自受到公認后，已用于預測世界石油生產。第四段說，這一模型對于某些國家更加復雜的石油生產周期而言，其計算尚不充分。這些生產周期受到技術的改變、政策和其他因素的很大影響。所以，A、B和C都是對Hubbert模型的正確說明。

4．A選項

8、C和D所述內容均未在文章中提到。最后一段告訴我們，科學家使用新的模型評估了47個主要的產油國家的石油生產趨勢，并預計全球常規原油生產到2014年將達最高峰值。所以，A是答案。

5．B 短文第一段的第一個句子提供了答案。

第六篇

Waving With Light In the Sierra Madre mountain range of west central Mexico, the native Huichol 2people live much the way their ancestors did--without electricity.That’s because

3it’s too expensive to string power lines to the remote mountain areas where they live.To help support themselves, the Huichol create beautiful artwork.They sell their art in cities hundreds of miles away from their villages.And without electricity--at home or on the road, they can only work during daylight hours.When it gets dark, they must stop whatever they’re doing.Now, a team of scientists, designers, and architects is using new technologies to provide the Huichol with light after the sun sets．The scientists’ technique involves weaving tiny electronic crystals into fabrics that can be made into clothes, bags, or other items.By collecting the sun’s energy during the day, these lightweight fabrics provide bright white light at night．Their inventors have named the fabrics “Portable Lights.” Portable Lights have the potential to transform the lives of people without electricity around the world, says project leader Sheila Kennedy．

“Our invention,” Kennedy says, “came from seeing how we could transform technology we saw every day in the United States and move it into new markets for people who didn't have a lot of money．” At the core of Portable Light technology are devices called high-brightness

6light-emitting diodes，or HB LEDs．These tiny lights appear in digital clocks，televisions，and streetlights．

LEDs are completely different from the light bulbs．Most of those glass bulbs belong to a type called incandescent lights．Inside，electricity heats a metal coil to about 2，200 degrees Celsius．At that temperature，bulbs give off light we can see．

Ninety percent of energy produced by incandescent lights, however, is heat——and invisible．With all that wasted energy, bulbs burn out quickly．They are also easily broken．

LEDs，on the other hand，are like tiny pieces of rock made up of molecules that are arranged in a crystal structure．When an electric current passes through an LED，the crystal structure produces light．Unlike incandescent bulbs, they Can produce light of various colors．Within an LED, the type of molecules and their particular arrangement determines what color is produced．

詞匯：

Portable adj．輕便的，手提式的

light—emitting diode(LED)發光二極管 bulb n．燈泡；球狀物 incandescent adj．白灼的 coil n．線圈，卷，圈

molecule n．分子

注釋：

1．Sierra Madre mountain range of west central Mexico：墨西哥中西部的馬德雷山脈o Sierra；一詞在西班牙語中本身就包含了“山脈”的意思，確切地說是“呈齒狀起伏的山脈”，因為在西班牙語中Sierra有“鋸子”的意思。2．Huichol people：維克人。他們是居住在墨西哥中西部地區馬德雷山脈的土著印地安人。該地區山路崎嶇，所以西班牙人未涉足于此，墨西哥文化也沒能影響維克人的土著文化。據估計，維克印地安人現僅存約一萬人。3．string power lines：架設輸電線。

4．Now，a team of scientists?is usin9：a team of scientists可以視作單數，也可以視作復數。本句用作單數，所以后接的謂語動詞是is。

5．At the core of：此處the core of意為the basic or most important part of(最重要的部分)。

6．At the core of Portable Light technology are devices called high—brightness light—emitting diodes, or HB LEDs：本句是倒裝句，主語是“devices called high—brightness light—emitting diodes，or HB LEDs”，謂語動詞是“are”。high．brightness light．emitting diodes可譯為“高亮度發光二極管。

練習：

1．To make a living, the Huichol create artwork and A．sell it to tourists in their villages．

B．sell it in cities far away from their villages． C．display it in their village museum．

D．keep it in their homes to attract tourists． 2．Why can Portable Lights emit light? A．Electronic crystals are woven into fabrics．

B．Items such as clothes and bags are used to carry lights． C．The sun's energy is collected during the day． D．All of the above．

3．What does Sheila Kennedy say about Portable Lights? A．This invention can change the lives of people，both rich and poor． B．They are widely used in the United States．

C．Portable Lights can help poor people around the world to get light． D．They are expensive to make but easy to carry．

4．What is the most important part of the Portable Light technology? A．HB LEDs B．Glass Bulbs．

C．Incandescent lights． D．Heated metal coils．

5．LEDs are different from light bulbs in that A．LEDs are incandescent lights while light bulbs are not． B．LEDs have a metal coil while light bulbs have not． C．LEDs emit colored light while most light bulbs don't．

D．LEDs are made up of tiny pieces of rock while light bulbs are not．

答案與題解：

1．B 短文的第一段提供了答案，該段告訴我們，維克人為了謀生，制作工藝品，并到幾百英里以外的城市去銷售。

2．D文章的第二和第三段包括了A、B和C所述內容。所以D是答案。

3．C 短文的第四和第五段提供了答案。短文第四段的句子說了Potable Lights可以在世界范圍內改變窮鄉僻壤用不上電的人們的生活，C準確地表達了這層意思，所以是答案0 A不是答案，說Potable Lights能改變富人窮人的生活，不符合原文的意思。短文沒有提及Portable Lights在美國使用，也沒有說Portable Lights是否花費很大。所以B和D都不是答案。4．A第六段的第一句提供了答案。Portable Lights技術的最主要部分是high—brightness light—emitting diodes，即高亮度發光二極管。

5．C短文的第六段對light bulbs進行了描述。第二句中的those glass bulbs即指第一句中的light bulbs。因此，LEDs不是incandescent lights(白熾燈)，也沒有金屬絲。所以A和B均是錯誤的選擇。最后一段的第一個句子LEDs，on the other hand，are like tiny pieces of rock made up of molecules that are arranged in a crystal structure中的like pieces of rock，不等于 pieces。

*第三十四篇

Batteries Built by Viruses What do chicken pox，the common cold, the flu，and AIDS have in common? They’re all disease caused by viruses，tiny microorganisms that can pass from person to

1person．It's no wonder that when most people think about viruses, finding ways t0 2steer clear of viruses is what's on people's minds． Not everyone runs from the tiny disease carders, though．In Cambridge, 4Massachusetts, scientists have discovered that some viruses can be helpful in an unusual way．They are putting viruses to work, teaching them to build some of the world's smallest rechargeable batteries．

Viruses and batteries may seem like an unusual pair，but they're not so strange

5for engineer Angela Belcher，who first came up with the idea．At the Massachusetts Institute of Technology(MIT)in Cambridge, she and her collaborators bring together different areas of science in new ways．In the case of the virus-built batteries, the scientists combine what they know about biology, technology and production techniques． Belcher's team includes Paula Hammond，who helps put together the tiny batteries, and Yet-Ming Chiang，an expert on how to store energy in the form of a battery．“We’re working on things we traditionally don’t associate with nature．” says Hammond． Many batteries are already pretty small．You can hold A．C and D batteries in your hand．The coin—like batteries that power watches are often smaller than a penny．However。every year，new electronic devices like personal music players or cell phones get smaller than the year before．As these devices shrink, ordinary batteries won't be small enough to fit inside．

The ideal battery will store a lot of energy in a small package．Right now，Belcher's model battery，a metallic disk completely built by viruses，looks like a regular watch battery．But inside，its components are very small—so tiny you can only see them with a powerful microscope．

How small are these battery parts? To get some idea of the size，pluck one hair from your head．Place your hair on a piece of white paper and try to see how wide your hair is—pretty thin，right? Although the width of each person's hair is a bit different，you could probably fit about l o of these virus—built battery parts，side to side，across one hair．These microbatteries may change the way we look at 7viruses．

詞匯：

chicken pox水痘

microorganism n．微生物 metallic adj．金屬的

collaborator n．合作者，協作者 pluck v．拔，摘，采

注釋：

1．no wonder：不足為奇的，難怪 2．steer clear of：避開，繞開 3．though：意思為“然而，可是”。在句中使用時通常放在句末。4．Cambridge，Massachusetts：馬薩諸塞州的劍橋市。本文第三段提到的the Massachusetts Institute of Technology(MIT)in Cambridge即指坐落于劍橋市的麻省理工學院。麻省理工學院于1861年由著名自然科學家威廉·巴羅吉杰斯創立。這是美國的一所私立研究型大學，培養高級科技人才和管理人才，是以理工科為主的、世界一流的綜合性大學。5．came up with：提出

6．A，C and D batteries：A、C、D均為電池型號。

7．These microbatteries may change the way we look at viruses：這些微型電池可能會改變我們看待病毒的方式。作者想表達的意思是：人們一直認為病毒有害無益，現在病毒可用來制作電池，人們對病毒的看法可能會因此而發生變化。

練習：

1．According to the first paragraph，people try to A．kill microorganisms related to chicken pox，the flu，etc． B．keep themselves away from viruses because they are invisible．

C．stay away from viruses because they are causes of various diseases． D．cure themselves of virus—related diseases by taking medicines． 2．What is Belcher's team doing at present? A．It is finding ways to get rid of viruses．． B．It is mass—producing microbatteries． C．It is making batteries with viruses． D．It is analyzing virus genes．

3．What expression below is opposite in meaning to the word “shrink” appearing in paragraph 5？ A．Broaden． B．Spread． C．Extend． D．Expand：

4.Which of the following is true of Belcher's battery mentioned in paragraph 6？ A．It is made of metal．

B．It is a kind of watch battery．

C．It can only be seen with a microscope．

D．It is a metallic disk with viruses inside it． 5.How tiny is one battery part? A．Its width is one tenth of a hair． B．It equals the width of a hair． C．It is as thin as a piece of paper． D．Its width is too tiny to measure．

答案與題解：

1．C短文第一段的大致意思是，許多疾病都由病毒引起，諸如水痘、感冒和艾滋病，所以人們想盡辦法躲避病毒。這是C所表達的意思。A不是正確選擇，因為文章并沒有說人們想

方設法去殺死病毒。B的后半句的內容(病毒肉眼看不見)和D的內容(吃藥治療病毒引起的疾病)文中沒有提到.2．C短文的第二段明確提供了答案。

3．D 根據上下文，shrink在此的意思是“收縮”，即“縮小”。所以，它的反義詞是expand(增大，擴張)。C不是正確選擇，因為extend的意思是become longer，即“延伸”或“加長”。A的意思是“加寬”，也不是答案。B的意思是“伸展，展開”，在一定的上下文里也可以做shrink的反義詞，但在第五段這個語境里，B不是最佳選擇。

4．D第六段第二句中提到的metallic disk是指“金屬圓盤”，它是微型電池的外形，其內部是由病毒構成的電池部件。微型電池不是由金屬組成的，所以A不是答案。本段提到，這種電池looks like a regular watch battery，與手表里電池外形相似，但并不等同手表電池，所以B也不是正確選擇。文章只是說電池的部件(但并沒有說整個電池)小到只能用顯微鏡才能看到，所以C也不是正確的選擇。D才是第六段所要表達的主要內容，因此是答案。

5．A 短文最后一段的第四句(“you could probably fit about lo of these virus-built battery parts，side to side，across one hair”)提供了本題的答案。

*第三十八篇

Longer Lives for Wild Elephants Most people think of zoos as safe places for animals，where struggles such as difficulty finding food and avoiding predators don't exist.Without such problems，lanimals in zoos should live to a ripe old age． But mat may not be true for the largest land animals on Earth.Scientists have known that elephants in zoos often suffer from poor health．They develop diseases，joint problems and behavior changes．Sometimes．they even become infertile．or unable to have babies．

To learn more about how captivity affects elephants, a team of international scientists compared the life spans of female elephants born in zoos with female elephants living outdoors in their native lands．Zoos keep detailed records of all the animals in their care，documenting factors such as birth dates，illnesses，weight and death．These records made it possible for the researchers to analyze 40 years of data on 800 African and Asian elephants in zoos across Europe．The scientists compared the life spans of the zoo．born elephants with the life spans of thousands

3of female wild elephants in Africa and Asian elephants that work in logging camps，over approximately the same time period．

The team found that female African elephants born in zoos lived an average of l 6.9 years．Their wild counterparts who died of natural causes lived an average of 56 years——more than three times as long．Female Asian elephants followed a similar pattern．In zoos, they lived l 8．9 s years, while those in the logging camps lived 41.7 years．

Scientists don't yet know why wild elephants seem to fare so much better than their zoo-raised counterparts．Georgia Mason，a biologist at the University of Guelph

4in Canada who led the study, thinks stress and obesity may be to blame．Zoo elephants don't get the same kind of exercise they would in the wild，and most are very fat．Elephant social lives are also much different in zoos than in the wild，where they live in large herds and family groups．

Another finding from the study showed that Asian elephants born in zoos were more likely to die early than Asian elephants captured in the wild and brought to zoos．Mason suggests stress in the mothers in zoos might cause them to have babies that are less likely to survive．

The study raises some questions about acquiring more elephants to keep in zoos．While some threatened and endangered species living in zoos reproduce successfully and maintain healthy populations，that doesn't appear to be the case with elephants．“Currently，zoos al e net consumers of elephants，not net producers，” Mason says．

詞匯：

Predator n．食肉動物 Ripe adj．成熟的

Infertile adj．不生育的 Captivity n．監禁；束縛

Fare v．過活，生活

Obesity adj．過度肥胖；肥胖癥

注釋： 1．1ive to a ripe old age：這是一種固定用法，意思是live to an age that is considered to be very old(長壽，高壽)。

2．be true for：或者be true of：對??適用。短文中第二段第一句：But that may not be true for the largest land animals on Earth．這里，作為主語的that指的是第一段所陳述的內容。這個句子要傳達的意思是：動物園對其他動物來說是一個安棲之地，而對大象來說卻不然。

3．logging camps：伐木場。Loggin9作為名詞，意思是：伐木業。

4．stress and obesity may be to blame：壓力和肥胖是問題的根源。be to blame：該受責備，應承擔責任。

練習：

1．According to the first two paragraphs，unlike other zoo animals，zoo elephants A．have difficulty eating food． B．1ive to a ripe old age．

C：are not afraid of predators． D．develop health problems．

2．Which of the following about the international scientists' research on the life spans of elephants is NOT true?(See paragraph 3)? A．They compared zoo elephants with wild elephants．

B．They kept detailed records of all the elephants in their care． C．They analyzed the records of the elephants kept in zoos．

D．The zoo-born elephants they studied are kept in European zoos． 3．What do the scientists find in their research? A．Female elephants live longer than male elephants．

B．Female zoo elephants live longer than their wild counterparts．

C．Female zoo elephants die much earlier than their wild counterparts． D．Elephants in zoos and those in the wild enjoy the same long life spans． 4．What are the possible causes of stress and obesity zoo—raised elephants generally suffer from? A．They do not like living in herds． B．They do not get enough exercise．

C．They do not live with their families． D．Both B and C．

5．Which of the following does the author suggest in the last paragraph? A．It may not be a wise policy to keep elephants in the zoo． B．Elephants are no longer an endangered species．

C．Zoo-born elephants should be looked after more carefully． D．Zoos should keep more animals except elephants．

答案與題解：

1．D短文的第一段告訴我們，人們通常認為動物園內的動物沒有獵食的困難，也不受其他 獵食動物的威脅，所以一般壽命較長。但第一段并沒有提及大象。第二段則說，動物園內的大象卻不然，它們面臨很多健康問題。所以，除了D以外，其他選項均不符合這兩段內容。

2．B 第三段告訴我們，動物園，而不是這些研究人員，保存了所有園內動物的詳細相關信息。所以應該選擇8。其他三個選項均能在該段中找到相關內容。

3．C短文的第四段提供了答案。該段告訴我們，野生的雌性大象的平均壽命是動物園里的雌性大象平均壽命的3倍還多。

4．D短文的第五段提供了答案。該段第三句的意思是：動物園里的大象不像野生大象那樣活動，因此非常肥胖。他們也不像野生大象那樣過著群居的生活，即live in herds and family groups。

5．A短文通篇陳述了大象在動物園內的生存問題，最后一段是全文的總結。該段第一句指出，對動物園大象的研究向人們提出了一個問題：是否應該將更多的大象關進動物園。該段還重復了第一、第二段的觀點：其他動物在動物園能夠很好地繁衍生息，而大象卻不能。所以，A是正確選擇。B、C、D均沒有在文中被提及。

+第四十五篇

Some People Do Not Taste Salt Like Others Low—salt foods may be harder for some people to like than others，according

lto a study by a Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences food scientist．The research indicates that genetic factors influence some of the difference in the levels of salt we like to eat．

Those conclusions are important because recent，well—publicized efforts to

2reduce the salt content in food have left many people struggling to accept fare

3that simply does not taste as good to them as it does to others，pointed out John

4Hayes，assistant professor of food science，who was lead investigator 0n the study． Diets high in salt Can increase the risk of high blood pressure and stroke．That is why public health experts and food companies are working together on ways to help consumers lower salt intake through foods that are enjoyable to eat．This study increases understanding of salt preference and consumption． The research involved 87 carefully screened participants who sampled salty foods

5such as soup and chips，on multiple occasions，spread out over weeks．Test subjects were 45：men and 42 women, reportedly healthy，ranging in age from 20 t0 40 years．The sample was composed of individuals who were not actively modifying their dietary intake and did not smoke cigarettes．They rated the intensity of taste on a commonly used scientific scale，ranging from barely detectable to strongest sensation of any kind．

“Most of us like the taste of salt．However，some individuals eat more salt，both because they like the taste of saltiness more，and also because it is needed to block other unpleasant tastes in food,” said Hayes.“Supertasters, people who experience tastes more intensely, consume more salt than nontasters do.Snack foods have saltiness as their primary flavor, and at least for these foods, more is better, so the supertasters seem to like them more.” However, supertasters also need higher levels of salt to block unpleasant bitter tastes in foods such as cheese，Hayes noted．“For example，cheese is a wonderful blend of dairy flavors from fermented milk，but also bitter tastes from ripening that are blocked by salt，” he said．“A supertaster finds low-salt cheese unpleasant

6because the bitterness is too pronounced．”

Hayes cited research done more than 75 years ago by a chemist named Fox and a geneticist named Blakeslee，showing that individuals differ in their ability to taste certain chemicals．As a result，Hayes explained，we know that a wide range in taste acuity exists，and this variation is as normal as variations in eye and hair color．

“Some people，called supertasters，describe bitter compounds as being extremely bitter，while others，called nontasters，find these same bitter compounds to be tasteless or only weakly bitter．”he said．“Response to bitter compounds is one of many ways to identify biological differences in food preference because 7supertastin is not limited to bitterness．(476)

詞匯：

Publicize v．引起公眾對?的注意；(用廣告)宣傳

Dietary adj．飲食的；規定食物的 Ferment v．(使)發酵 Geneticist n．遺傳學家 Acuity n．敏銳；尖銳

注釋：

1．Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences：即Penn State University--College of Agricultural Sciences賓州州立大學農學院。Penn是Pennsylvania的縮寫，是美國賓夕法尼亞州名。賓州州立大學建于1855年：在全國共有24個分校。在句中，Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences用作定語，修飾food scientist。

2．Well-publicized efforts to reduce the salt content in food：大力宣傳減少食物含鹽量的做法

3．1eft many people struggling to accept fare that simply does not taste as good to them as it does to others：使得許多人努力去接受適合其他人而不適合他們口味的食物。fare相當于food。

4．1ead investigator：研發項目負責人

5．?carefully screened participants who sampled salty foods as soup and chips．on multiple occasion，spread out over weeks：??經過仔細篩選的實驗參與者，他們在幾周內的不同時間里品嘗了湯和薯條等含鹽食物。

6．too pronounced：此處pronounced為形容詞，意為very noticeable，conspicuous(明顯的，顯著的)。

7．supertasting：超重味感

練習：

1．In paragraph 2，John Hayes points out that A．it is good to health to eat food without salt． B．many people reject low—salt food completely．

C．many people accept low—salt tasteless food reluctantly D．food with reduced salt tastes better． 2．The fourth paragraph describes briefly A．how to select subjects and what to do in the research． B．how to identify supertasters and nontasters．

C．why to limit the number of subjects to 87 persons． D．why to select more male subjects than female ones． 3.The article argues that supertasters A．1ike the；taste of saltiness to block sweet tastes in food． B．1ike snack foods as saltiness is their primary flavor．

C．consume less salt because they don t like intensive tastes． D．1ike to share salty cheese with nontasters．

4.Which of the following applies to supertasters in terms of bitter taste? A．They like bitterness in foods as well as saltiness．

B．They like high．salt cheese as it has intense bitter taste． C．They prefer high—salt cheese．which tastes less bitter．． D.They prefer high-salt cheese as it is good to health．

5.What message do the last two paragraphs carry? A．Taste acuity is genetically determined．

B．Taste acuity is developed over time after birth． C．Taste acuity is related to one's eye and hair color． D．Taste acuity is still a mysterious subject in science．

答案與題解：

1．C 根據短文的第二段內容，很多人因為食物中的含鹽量降低，所以必須做出很大努力(struggling)去適應，而低鹽食物對于他們來說，口味很不好(fare that simply does not taste?good to them)。選項C有accept reluctantly(勉強接受)表達了這層意思，所以是正確的選擇。A、B、D三個選項均是錯誤的。

2．A第四段介紹了科學家是如何設計這項研究的，它包含了研究對象的人數、性別、人選條件、咸度味感分級表等。選項A概括了這方面的內容，所以是答案。而選項B、C、D所述內容均不符合該段的意思。

3．B 短文的第五段提供了答案o supertaster在這里的意思是：口味重的人，在本文中，nontaster是其反義詞，即，口味清談的人。該段告訴我們，口味重的人消耗更多的鹽；因為快餐食品的主要味道就是咸味，而且咸度越高，口味越好，所以口味重的人對快餐較為偏愛。選項B表達了上述內容，所以是答案。

4．C 短文第六段提供了答案。該段告訴我們，奶酪發酵會產生苦味，supertasters不喜歡苦味，而高含鹽量可以蓋住奶酪里的昔味，這是他們偏愛高鹽奶酪的原因。所以，只有C是正確選擇。

5．A 文章第七段中，Hayes引用了75年前一位遺傳學專家的實驗。從這項實驗中，Hayes得出的結論是，Taste acuity(味覺敏度)上的差異與他們頭發和眼睛的顏色上的差異是同一類現象，也就是說，都是與生俱來的。第八段又說，這是一種biological difference(生物差異)，所以A是答案。B說味覺敏度是后天形成的，顯然與作者的結論相左0℃說味覺敏度的差異與頭發和眼睛的顏色上的差異有關，顯然是錯誤的。D的內容在最后兩段都沒有提到，所以不會是答案。

+第四十六篇

Marvelous Metamaterials 1 Invisibility cloaks would have remained impossible，forever locked in science

2fiction．had it not been for the development of metamaterials.In Greek, “meta” means beyond, and metamaterials car do things beyond what we see in the natural world—like shuffle light waves around an object，and then bring them back 3together．If scientists ever manage to build a full—fledged invisibility cloak，it will probably be made of metamaterials．

“We are creating materials that don't exist in nature, and that have a physical phenomenon that doesn't exist in nature,” says engineer Dentcho Genov.“That is the most exciting thing.” Genov designs and builds metamaterials--such as those used in cloaking--at Louisiana Tech University in Ruston, Louisiana.An invisibility cloak will probably not be the first major accomplishment to come from the field of metamaterials．Other applications are just as excitin9．In many labs，for example，scientists are working on building a hyperlens．A lens is a device——usually made of glass——that can change the direction of light waves．Lenses are used in microscopes and cameras to focus light，thus allowing a researcher to see small things or a photographer to capture image of things that are far away．

A hyperlens，however，would be made of metamaterials．And since metamaterial s can do things with light that ordinary materials can't，the hyperlens would be a powerful t001．A hyperlens would allow researchers to see things at the smallest scale imaginable—as small as the wavelength of visible light． Genov points out that the science of metamaterials is driven by the imagination：If someone call think of an idea for a new behavior for fight，then the engineers can find a way to design a device using metamaterials．“We need people who can imagine,” he says．

Since 2006，many laboratories have been exploring other kinds of metamaterials that don't involve just visible light．In fact，scientists are finding that almost any kind of wave may respond to metamaterials． At the Polytechnic University of Valencia in Spain．Jose Sanchez-Dehesa is working with acoustics, or the science of sound．Just as an invisibility cloak shuffles waves of light，an “acoustic” cloak would shuffle waves of sound in a way that's not found in nature．In an orchestra hall, for example．an acoustic cloak could redirect the sound waves——so someone sitting behind a column would hear the same concert as the rest of the audience．without distortion．

Sanchez-Dehesa，an engineer，recently showed that it's possible to build such an acoustic cloak，though he doubts we'11 see one any time soon．“In principle，it is possible,” he says，but it might be impossible to make one, he adds．

Other scientists are looking into ways to use larger metamaterials as shields

6around islands or oil rigs as protection from tsunamis．A tsunami is a giant．destructive wave．The metamaterial would redirect the tsunami around the rig or island．and the wave would resume its ioumey on the other side without causing any harm．

詞匯：

Cloak n．斗篷，披風 Metamaterial n．超材料

full—fledged adj．完全成熟的，完全合格的 Hyperlens n．超透鏡 Acoustics n．聲學 Tsunami n.海震，海嘯

注釋：

1．Invisibility cloaks：隱形衣。在《哈利·波特與死亡圣器》(Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows)一書中，哈利通過鄧布利多的轉交繼承了他父親的隱形衣。該書是英國女作家J．K．羅琳創作的哈利·波特系列小說的第7部。

2．?had it not been for the development of metamaterials：??如果超材料尚未得到開發的話。該句使用的是虛擬過去時的倒裝結構。虛擬過去時表示與過去事實相反的假設；因為是倒裝結構，所以將情態動詞had提到主語之前。如使用正常語序，該句可寫為．．．．if it had not been for the development of metamaterials．

3．“meta” means beyond．and metamaterials can do things beyond what we see in the natural world—like shuffle light waves around an object and then bring them back together：“meta”的詞義是“超越”，metamaterials(超材料)能做出我們在自然界看不到的事情，例如將光波移動到某個物體周圍，然后將光波全部收回。

4．Louisiana Tech University in Ruston，Louisiana：路易斯安那理工大學，位于路易斯安那州拉斯頓市。該校為公立大學，1894年建校，是美國最為重要的研究型大學之一。5．the Polytechnic University of Valencia in Spain：瓦倫西亞理工大學，位于西班牙東南部的瓦倫西亞市，該校建于l968年。． 6．oil rigs：石油鉆塔

練習：

1．What is true for metamaterials? A．They will always remain in science fiction． B．They are already a reality． C．They are nonexistent in nature．

D．Scientists begin to use them to build invisible cloaks． 2．A hyperlens is a more powerful tool than a traditional lens A．as it can allow scientists to see small things．

B．as it can help photographers to capture images far away． C．even if it is made of ordinary materials．

D．as it can help scientists to see even the wavelengths of visible light． 3．Scientists at the Polytechnic University of Valencia try to invent A．an acoustic cloak that can shuffle waves of light． B．an invisible cloak that can shuffle waves of sound． C．an acoustic cloak that can shuffle waves of sound． D．a cloak that is made of materials found in nature． 4．According to Sdnchez—Dehesa，A．it is of great possibility to build an acoustic cloak soon．

B．it is possible to build an acoustic cloak in theory but far from．reality． C．it is totally impossible to build an acoustic cloak.D．it is theoretically impractical to build an acoustic cloak．

5．What ways are some scientists looking into to protect the island and oil；rig from tsunamis?(Read the last paragraph．

A．Surround them with metamaterials as protective shields．

B．Stopping the tsunami with metamaterials hours before it reaches them． C．Building them with larger metamaterials to keep away tsunamis．

D．Using the equipment made of metamaterials to forecast arrival of a tsunami．

答案與題解：

1．C A不是正確答案，因為短文一開始的句子使用了虛擬語態，句子的意思是：如果超材料尚未得到開發的話??。也就是說，科學家已經在研發超材料。短文的后面部分也進一步提到科學家正致力于超材料的開發。但是因為超材料尚未研發成功，科學家更沒有開始使用超材料來制造隱身衣，所以B和D也不是正確選擇。第二段的第一句提供了答案。

2．D A、B所述功效均是第三段中普通的lens能夠達到的功效，所以不是正確選擇。Hyperlens不是用普通材料制成，所以C也是錯誤選擇。短文第四段對hyperlens做了描述，結合第四段內容可以得到D選項提供的結論。3．C 短文的第七段提供了答案。該段的大意是：瓦倫西亞理工大學的研究者Jose Sanchez．-Dehesa試圖研發acoustic cloak，其原理與invisible cloak相同，只是acoustic cloak移動聲波(shuffle waves of sound)，而不是移動光波(shuffle waves of light)。所以，只有C是正確的選擇。

4．B 短文的第八段提供了答案。工程師Sanchez-Dehesa認為，成功開發acoustic cloak在理論上是可能的，但他對是否能成功表現出懷疑。

5．A 短文的最后一段告訴我們，科學家也在研究如何將超材料應用于抵御海嘯的襲擊。可以在島嶼周圍使用超材料作為防護(shields)，因為超材料可以讓海嘯改變行走方向(redirect tsunarni)。A表達了這層意思，所以是答案。文章沒有說，在海嘯到達之前數小時用超材料將海嘯檔住，B不是答案。文章沒有建議用超材料建造海島和石油鉆塔，C不是答案。D的內容是用超材料制作海嘯預警器，文章中沒有提及，也不是答案。

第四篇：2014職稱英語新增文章——理工類B級完美版

2014職稱英語教材理工類B級新增文章

一、閱讀判斷

第8篇：What Is a Dream?（B級）

What Is a Dream?

For centuries, people have wondered about the strange things that they dream about.Some psychologists say that this nighttime activity of the mind has no special meaning.Others, however, think that dreams are an important part of our lives.In fact, many experts believe that dreams can tell us about a person's mind and emotions.Before modem times, many people thought that dreams contained messages from God.It was only in the twentieth century that people started to study dreams in a scientific way.The Austrian psychologist, Sigmund Freud, was probably the first person to study dreams scientifically.In his famous book, The interpretation of Dreams(1900), Freud wrote that dreams are an expressions of a person's wishes.He believed that dreams allow people to express the feelings, thoughts, and fears that they are afraid to express in real life.The Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung was once a student of Freud' s.Jung, however, had a different idea about dreams.Jung believed that the purpose of a dream was to communicate a message to the dreamer.He thought people could learn more about themselves by thinking about their dreams.For example, people who dream about falling may learn that they have too high an opinion of themselves.On the other hand, people who dream about being heroes may learn that they think too little of themselves.Modem-day psychologists continue to develop theories about dreams.For example, psychologist William Domhoff from the University of California, Santa Cruz, believes that dreams are tightly linked to a person's daily life, thoughts, and behavior.A criminal, for example, might dream about crime.Dornhoff believes that there is a connection between dreams and age.His research shows that children do not dream as much as adults.According to Domhoff, dreaming is a mental skill that needs time to develop.He has also found a link between dreams and gender.His studies show that the dreams of men and women are different.For example, the people in men's dreams are often other men, and the dreams often involve fighting.This is not true of women's dreams.3 Domhoff found this gender difference in the dreams of people from 11 cultures around the world, including both modem and traditional ones.Can dreams help us understand ourselves? Psychologists continue to try to answer this question in different ways.However, one thing they agree on this: If you dream that something terrible is going to occur,you shouldn't panic.The dream may have meaning, but it does not mean that some terrible event will actually take place.It's important to remember that the world of dreams is not the real world.詞匯：

psychologist n.心理學家 psychiatrist n.精神病學家（醫生）Austrian adj.奧地利的 gender n.性別

注釋：

1.SigmundFreud西格蒙德.費洛伊德(1856-1939)，猶太人，奧地利精神病醫生及精神分析學家。精神分析學派的創始人。他認為被壓抑的欲望絕大部分是屬于性的，性的擾亂是精神病的根本原因。著有《性學三論》《夢的釋義》《圖騰與禁忌》《日常生活的心理病理學》《精神分析引論》《精神分析引論新編》等

2.Carl Jung:卡爾.榮格，瑞士著名精神分析專家，分析心理學的創始人

3.For example.the people in men’s dreams are often other men，and the dreams often involve fighting.This is not true of women’s dreams.例如，男人做夢會夢到男人，并且常與打斗有關;女人做夢與男人則不同。

練習：

1.Not everyone agrees that dreams are meaningful.A.Right B.Wrong C.Not mentioned

2.According to Freud,people dream about things that they cannot talk about.A.Right B.Wrong C.Not mentioned

3.Jung believed that dreams did not help one to understand oneself.A.Right B.Wrong C.Not mentioned

4.In the past,people believed that dreams involved emotions.A.Right B.Wrong C.Not mentioned

5.According to Dornhoff,babies do not have the same ability to dream as adults do.A.Right B.Wrong C.Not mentioned

6.Men and women dream about different things.A.Right B.Wrong C.Not mentioned

7.Scientists agree that dreams predict the future.A.Right B.Wrong C.Not mentioned

1.A這句話恰好表達了本文第一段的意思。即有些心理學家認為，人腦睡眠中的活動沒有特別意義;而有些人則認為，夢可以揭示人的思維和情感。.2.A第三段的最后一句講的是弗洛伊德認為夢反映了人們在現實情況下害怕表達的情感、想法或恐懼。此句與本敘述一致。

3.B第四段的第二句和第三句：Jung believed that the purpose of a dream was to communicate a message to the dreamer.(榮格認為夢的用途是向做夢者傳遞一個信息)He thought people could learn more about themselves by thinking about their dreams.(他認為人們通過思考所做的夢能夠更好地了解自己)。他給出了兩個例子來說明他的論點。

4.C文中沒有提及。

5.A依據第六段，Domhoff研究得出：嬰兒不像成人做那么多的夢，做夢是一種需要時間提高的技能。這就說明了嬰兒不具備成人做夢的能力。

6.A本文第七段講述了做夢與性別的關系。第二句更指出男人和女人做的夢是不同的。

7.B最后一段的倒數第二句講的是：夢可能會有意義，但并不表示一些恐怖事情就一定會發生。因而不能預測未來。

譯文：

什么是夢？

許多世紀以來，人們都對他們夢到的奇異事情感到疑惑。一些心理學家認為，這種大腦的夜間活動并沒有特殊含義。另一些人則認為，夢是生命中重要的一部分。實際上，許多專家認為，夢能揭示人的心理和情感活動。

近代以前，很多人認為夢傳遞的是上帝的信息。直到20世紀，人們才開始從科學的角度研究夢。奧地利心理學家西格蒙德·弗洛伊德或許是第一個用科學的方法研究夢的人。在他的著作《夢的解析》(1900)中，弗洛伊德寫道，夢是一個人愿望的表達。他認為夢打開了一扇窗，讓人們得以表達在生活中不敢表達的情感、思想和恐懼。

瑞士精神病學家卡爾·榮格曾是弗洛伊德的學生，但他對夢的看法與弗洛伊德不同。他認為，做夢的目的是要給做夢的人傳遞一種信息。而人們想想自已做的夢，便能對自己有一個更深刻的了解。比如，如果夢到從高處墜落，那么他應該反思自己是不是白視過高。反過來，如果夢中自己成了英雄，應該想想平時可能太看低自己了。

現代心理學家還在繼續發展關于夢的理論，來自位于圣克魯茲的加利福尼亞大學的威廉·多姆霍夫就是其中一位。他認為，夢境和一個人的日常生活、思想和行為都緊密相關，比方說，一個罪犯就可能夢到犯罪。

多姆霍夫還認為，夢和年齡也有關系。他的研究表明，孩子不像成人做夢做的那么多。他認為，做夢也是一項心理機能，也需要隨著年齡增長而發展。多姆霍夫還發現夢和性別之間的關系。通過研究，他發現男性和女性的夢境常常是不同的。例 如，在男性夢境中出現的通常是其他男性，而且常與打斗有關，而女性的夢境則不是這樣。多姆霍夫通過研究包括來自現代文化以及傳統文化背景在內的11種不同文化背景的人群夢境中的性別差異得出了上述結論。

夢能幫助我們更好地理解自己嗎？心理學家還在嘗試通過不同方式來解答這個問題，不過，有一件事他們是意見一致的：如果你夢到有不好的事要發生，不要慌張。夢可能會有意義，但也不意味著你夢到的一些恐怖事情就一定會發生。要記住，夢中的世界并不是真實的世界。

第10篇：The Biology of Music（B級）

The Biology of Music

Humans use music as a powerful way to communicate.It may also play an important role in love.But what is music, and how does it work its magic? Science does not yet have all the answers.What are two things that make humans different from animals? One is language, and the other is music.It is true that some animals can sing(and many birds sing.better than a lot of people).However,the songs of animals, such as birds and whales, are very limited.It is also true that humans, not animals ,have developed musical instruments.Music is strange stuff.It is clearly different from language.However, people can use music to communicate things--especially their emotions.When music is combined with speech in a song, it is a very powerful form of communication.But, biologically speaking, what is music?

If music is truly different from speech, then we should process music and language in different parts of the brain.The scientific evidence suggests that this is true.Sometimes people who suffer brain damage lose their ability to process language.However, they don't automatically lose their musical abilities.For example, Vissarion Shebalin, a Russian composer, had a stroke in 1953.It injured the left side of his brain.He could no longer speak or understand speech.He could, however, still compose music until his death ten years later.On the other hand, sometimes strokes cause people to lose their musical ability, but they can still speak and understand speech.This shows that the brain processes music and language separately.By studying the physical effects of music on the body, scientists have also learned a lot about how music influences the emotions.But why does music have such a strong effect on us? That is a harder question to answer.Geoffrey Miller, a researcher at University College, London, thinks that music and love have a strong connection.Music requires special talent, practice, and physical ability.That's why it may be a way of showing your fitness to be someone's.mate.For example, singing in tune or playing a musical instrument requires fine muscular control.You also need a good memory to remember the notes.And playing or singing those notes correctly suggests that your hearing is in excellent condition.Finally ,when a man sings to the woman he loves(or vice versa), it may be a way of showing off.However ,Miller's theory still doesn't explain why certain combinations of sounds influence our emotions so deeply.For scientists, this is clearly an area that needs further research.詞匯：

automatically adv.自動地

note n．音符 stroke n．中風

注釋：

1.It is also true that humans，not animals，have developed musical instruments：人研制出了樂器，而動物則不能。develop：研制，例如：Scientists are developing new drugs to treat cancer.科學家們正在研發新藥用以治療癌癥。

練習：

1.Humans,but not animals, can sing.A Right B Wrong C Not mentioned

2.People can use music to communicate their emotions.A Right B Wrong C Not mentioned.3.We use the same part of the brain for music and language.A Right B Wrong C Not mentioned

4.Geoffery Miler has done research on music and emotions.A Right B Wrong C Not mentioned

5.It's hard for humans to compose music.A Right B Wrong C Not mentioned

6.Memory is not an important part in singing in tune.A Right B Wrong C Not mentioned

7.Scientists does not know all the answers about the effects of music on humans.A Right B Wrong C Not mentioned

答案與題解：

1.B 第二段的第三句：It is true that some animals can sing(and many birds sing better than a lot of people).可以看出有些動物會唱歌，而不只人類會唱歌。

2.A第三段的第三句：However，people can use music to communicate things—especially their emotions.這句清楚表明，人們可以用音樂來表達情感。

3.B第四段說明：科學證明人們用大腦的不同區域處理語言和音樂。在第五段，作者用Vissarion Shebalin的例子進一步說明人腦處理語言和音樂的位置不同，Shebalin中風以后不能講話也聽不懂別人的話，但他卻能創作樂曲。

4.A 第六段的第四句：Geoffrey Miller，a researcher at University College，London，thinks that music and love have a strong connection.這句說明Miller對音樂和愛(情感)的關系進行了研究，他得出的結論是：音樂和愛有密切的關聯。

5.C文中沒有提及創作樂曲是否困難。

6.B第六段有一句：You also need a good memory to remember the notes.此句說明必須具備好的記憶力記音符才能唱得符合調子。

7.A最后一段講的是：科學家們需要做更多的研究才能解釋為什么有些聲音影響我們的情感會如此之深。也就是說，科學家不能全部解釋音樂對人類的影響。譯文：第十篇 音樂生物學

人們把音樂作為一種高效的交流方式，在愛情中它也可能會起到重要的作用。但是音樂是什么？它又是如何起到神奇的效果？科學界還沒有給出答案。

哪兩項事物使得人類不同于動物？一個是語言，另一個是音樂。當然一些動物會唱歌(并且許多鳥唱得比很多人都好聽)，但是，動物的歌聲是有限的，比如鳥類和鯨魚。同樣，是人類而不是動物開發出了樂器。

音樂是個奇怪的東西，它與語言有明顯的不同。但是，人們能夠用音樂去傳達——尤其是情感。當音樂與歌曲中的語言結合在一起的時候，它就是一種強有力的表達方式。但是，從生物學來講，音樂是什么？

如果音樂與語言真的不同，那么我們應該在大腦的不同區域內對音樂和語言進行加工處理，科學證據也證實了這一點。

有時，受過腦損傷的人會喪失他們處理語言的能力。但是，他們不會自動地丟失音樂才能。比如，維沙翁·舍巴林，一位蘇聯作曲家，在1953年得了中風。他的大腦的左半邊受到損害，他再也不能說話或是理解別人的話，但是他仍然能夠譜曲，直到十年后他離開人世。另一方面，中風有時會使人們喪失音樂能力，但是他們仍然能夠說話也能聽懂別人的話。這就說明大腦是分別加了處理音樂和語言的。通過研究音樂在人身體上的物理效應，科學家也了解到許多關于音樂是如何影響情感的。但是，為什么音樂對我們有如此強烈的影響？這是一個更難回答的問題。倫敦大學學院的研究員杰弗里·米勒認為音樂和愛有緊密的關，音樂需要特殊才能、練習和體能。這也許是一種方式讓你展示你適合做某人的伴侶。比如，按調唱歌或者彈奏樂器需要有很好的肌肉控制力。你也需要有好的記憶力來記住音符。能正確地演奏或者唱出這些音符也證明你的聽力也非常好。所以，當一個男人唱給他心愛的女人時(反之亦然)音樂就可能成為一種展示的方式。

然而，米勒的理論仍然不能解釋為什么聲音的特定結合可以深深地影響我們的情感。對于科學家來說，這顯然是一個需要深入研究的領域。

二、閱讀理解

第29篇：I'll Be Bach（B級）

I'll Be Bach

Composer David Cope is the inventor of a computer program that writes original works of classical music.It took Cope 30 years to develop the software.Now most people can't tell the difference between music by the famous German composer J.S.Bach(1685-1750)and the Bach-like compositions from Cope's computer.It all started in 1980 in the United States, when Cope was trying to write an opera.He was having trouble thinking of new melodies, so he wrote a computer program to create the melodies.At first this music was not easy to listen to.What did Cope do? He began to rethink how human beings compose music.He realized that composers' brains work like big databases.First, they take in all the music that they have ever heard.Then they take out the music that they dislike.Finally, they make new music from what is left.According to Cope, only the great composers are able to create the database accurately, remember it, and form new musical patterns from it.Cope built a huge database of existing music.He began with hundreds of works by Bach.The software analyzed the data: it broke it down into smaller pieces and looked for patterns.It then combined the pieces into new patterns;Before long,the program could compose short Bach-like works.They weren't good, but it was a start.Cope knew he had more work todo-he had a whole opera to write.He continued to improve the software.Soon it could analyze more.complex music.He also added many other composers, including his own work, to the database.，A few years later, Cope's computer program, called “Emmy”, was ready to help him with his opera.The process required a lot of collaboration between the composer and Emmy.Cope listened to the computer's musical ideas and used the ones that he liked.With Emmy, the opera took only two weeks to finish.It was called Cradle Falling, and it was a great success!Cope received some of the best reviews of his career, but no one knew exactly how he had composed the work.Since that first opera, Emmy has written thousands of compositions.Cope still gives Emmy feedback on what he likes and doesn't like of her music ,but she is doing most of the hard work of composing these days!

詞匯：

original adj．有獨創性的 collaboration n．合作 review n．評論

feedback n．反饋

注釋：

1.J.S.Bach：約翰?塞巴斯蒂安?巴赫(德語：Johann Sebastian Bach，1685年3月31日--1750年7月28日)，巴洛克時期的德國作曲家，杰出的管風琴、小提琴、大鍵琴演奏家，同作曲家亨德爾和泰勒曼齊名。巴赫被普遍認為是音樂史上最重要的作曲家之一，并被尊稱為“西方‘現代音樂’之父”，也是西方文化史上最重要的人物之一。

練習：

l.The music composed by David cope is about

A classical music.B pop music.C drama.D country music.2.By developing a computer software, David Cope aimed A to be like Bach.B to study Bach.C to write an opera.D to create a musical database

3.What did Cope realize about a great composer's brain?

A It forms new musical patterns all by itself.B It writes a computer program.C It can recognize any music patterns.D It creates an accurate database.4.Who is Emmy?

A a database

B a computer software

C a composer who helped David D an opera

5.We can infer from the passage that

A David Cope is a computer programmer.B David Cope loves music.C Bach's music helped him a lot.D Emmy did much more work than a composer.答案與題解：

1.A第一段的第一句：David Cope發明了一個可以編寫出古典音樂的電腦軟件。

2.c從第二段的第一句可以看出，David編寫電腦軟件的目的是寫歌劇。A、B和D都屬于創作歌劇的一部分。

3.D第二段的后半部分講的是偉大的歌劇作者與一般的歌劇作者的不同之處是通過對數據進行準確的構建、記憶而后創作出新的音樂形式。

4.B從第五段第一句可知Emmy是一計算機軟件。’

5.D從本文第一句可知David是一個作曲家，不是計算機程序員，所以排除A;B、C內容沒有提及;從本文的第五段和第六段可知，Emmy大大提高了David的創作速度，最后一句，大部分困難的工作都由Emmy來做，所以作曲家只干一小部分工作。

譯文：我也能成為巴赫

作曲家大衛·科普發明了一個電腦軟件，它能寫出古典音樂的原創作品。科普花了30年才完成這個軟件，現在科普的電腦寫出的作品與德國注明作曲家J.S.巴赫寫的作品很相似，很少有人能分辨出其中的不同。

這一切始于1980年的美國，那時科普正在寫一部戲劇，但是他無法創作出新的旋律，于是他編寫了一個電腦軟件來幫他編曲。最開始的時候，軟件寫出的樂曲并不動聽。科普是怎么做的呢？他開始重新考慮人們作曲的方式。他認識到作曲家的大腦就像一個大數據庫，他們先是吸收他們聽過的所有音樂，然后去除他們不喜歡的，最后再根據留下的音樂來創作出新的旋律?？破照J為，只有偉大的作曲家才能建立好數據庫，并能熟記于心，從而創造出新的音樂。

科普根據現有的音樂建立了龐大的數據庫，最開始的時候，數據庫包含了幾百部巴赫的作品?？破盏能浖⑦@些數據進行分析：首先它將音樂拆解成小的片段，從中找出固定模式，然后將片段組合成新的模式。不久，這個軟件就能夠寫出和巴赫風格很像的小曲子。它們并不完美，但這只是個開始。

科普知道，他要做的還有很多——他得寫出一整部歌劇。他進一步完善他的軟件，不久他就能夠寫出更復雜的音樂了。他還在數據庫中加入了一些其他作曲家的作品，其中也包括他自己的作品。

幾年后，科普的軟件“艾米”已經能夠幫助他創作歌劇了。創作過程需要作曲家和艾米共同配合?？破振雎牥讓懗龅囊魳菲?，從中選取他認為好的。有了艾米的幫助，科普只用了兩個星期就完成這部歌劇，叫做《搖籃墜落》。演出獲得巨大成功，科普也得到了他有生以來最高的評價，但是沒有人知道他究竟是怎樣創作出這部歌劇的。

從那以后，艾米已經寫了上千部作品?？破宅F在依然會給艾米反饋，告訴她自己哪些音樂是他喜歡的，哪些是不喜歡的，但是現在大部分艱巨的工作是由艾米來完成的。

三、補全短文

第10篇： How Deafness Makes It Easier to Hear（B級）

How Deafness Makes It Easier to Hear

Most people think of Beethoven's hearing loss as an obstacle to composing music.However, he produced his most powerful works in the last decade of his life when he was completely deaf.This is one of the most glorious cases of the triumph of will over adversity, but his biographer, Maynard Solomon, takes a different view.l.In his deaf world Beethoven could experiment, free from the sounds of the outside world, free to create new forms and harmonies.Hearing loss does not seem to affect the musical ability of musicians who become deaf.They continue to “hear” music with as much, or greater, accuracy than if they were actually hearing it being played.2.He described a fascinating phenomenon that happened within three months:“my former musical experiences began to play back to me.I couldn't differentiate between what I heard and real hearing.After many years, it is still rewarding to listen to these playbacks, to 'hear' music which is new to me and to find many quiet accompaniments for ali of my moods.”

How is it that the world we see, touch, hear, and smell is both “out there” and at the same time within us? There is no better example of this connection between external stimulus and internal perception than the cochlear implant.3.However,it might be possible to use the brain's remarkable power to make sense of the electrical signals the implant produces.When Michael Edgar first “switched on” his cochlear implant, the sounds he heard were not at all Clear.Gradually, with much hard work, he began to identify everyday sounds.For example,“ The insistent ringing of the telephone became clear almost at once.”

The primary purpose of the implant is to allow communication with others.When people spoke to Eagar, he heard their voices “coming through like a long-distance telephone call on a poor connection.” But when it came to his beloved music, the implant was of no help.4.He said, “I play the piano as I used to and hear it in my head at the same time.The movement of my fingers and the feel of the keys give added ' clarity' to hearing in my head.”

Cochlear implants allow the deaf to hear again in a way that is not perfect, but which can change their lives.5.Even the most amazing cochlear implants would have been useless to Beethoven as he composed his Ninth Symphony at the end of his life.注釋：

1.the triumph of will over adversity:the successful overcoming of difficulty through determination用意志力戰勝不幸

2.I couldn't differentiate between what/heard and real hearing: 我無法區別真正聽到的和曾經聽過的聲音。

3.cochlear implant:a device, surgically placed in the ear, that changes sounds into electric signals 人工耳蝸;耳蝸植入

4.But when it came to his beloved mumble,flag, implant was of no help.但是，當聽到鐘愛的音樂時，人工耳蝸就毫無用處(我不用人工耳蝸就能聽出來)。

5.The movement of my fingers and the feel of the keys give added clarity to hearing in my head:我手指的移動以及對琴鍵的感覺使我聽到的聲音在腦海里更加清晰

練習：

A.No man-made device could replace the ability to hear.B.When he wanted to appreciate music,Eagar played the piano.C.Still, as Michael Eagar discovered, when it comes to musical harmonies,hearing is irrelevant.D.Michael Eagar, who died in 2003,became deaf at the age of 21.E.Beethoven produced his most wonderful works after he became deaf.F.Solomon argues that Beethoven's deafness “heightened” his achievement as a composer.答案與題解：

1.F本段的開頭講：貝多芬的例子是一個意志力戰勝失聰的極好的例子。但是，他的傳記作家Maynard Solomon卻持不同的意見。貝多芬的失聰不是一種災難;相反，對他成為作曲家起到了促進作用。后一句解釋了失聰是如何使貝多芬更好地創作。

2.D該句是本段的開頭，根據后一句：他描述了在3個月之內發生的奇妙的現象：我之前的音樂經歷開始在腦中回放。再有后一句的what I heard and real hearing可以判定D是恰當的。

3.A依據前一句：只有人工耳蝸才能使外部刺激和內心感知聯系起來(失聰的人通過人工耳蝸聽到外部的聲音)。人工耳蝸就是一種man-made device，后一句也是在講人工耳蝸的功能。所以A是對的。

4.B依據后一句的play the piano呼應When he wanted to appreciate music.Eagar played the piano，可以斷定答案為B。

5.C前一句講人工耳蝸的作用：它能使失聰的人聽到聲音，盡管不完美，但改變了他們的生活;Still表示轉折，該句承上啟下，雖然人工耳蝸能幫助失聰的人，但 談到音樂的和聲時聽力就無關緊要了(聽力不起作用)。所以后一句講貝多芬在他生命的最后時刻創作第九交響曲時，無論多么完美的人工耳蝸對他來說都沒有用。

譯文：第十篇 如何讓失聰的人更容易聽見

大多數人把貝多芬的聽力受損看作是他作曲的障礙。然而，他的最有力量的作品正是在他人生的最后十年里創作出來的，那時他完全失聰。

這是最值得稱道的用意志戰勝不幸的案例之一，但是他的傳記作家梅納德·所羅門卻持不同的觀點。梅納德認為，貝多芬的失聰“促進了他作為作曲家的成就，在他完全失聰的世界里，他能擺脫外在世界聲音的干擾，自由地創作新的表現形式與和聲?！?/p>

聽力受損似乎不會影響失聰的音樂家的音樂才能。他們能繼續“聽見”音樂，與他們能真正聽見音樂相比，他們“聽”得同樣準確，甚至更準確。

2003年去世的邁克爾·伊加，在他21歲時失聰。他曾經描繪過一幅發生在三個月內的迷人的事情：“我之前的音樂經歷開始在腦中回放，我無法區別真正聽到的和曾經聽過的東西。許多年以后，聽到這些回放，“聽見”對我來說是新鮮的音樂，為我所有的情緒找到伴唱仍然是有所收益的。”

內心的感受？把外在刺激和內在感知相結合的最好的例子就是耳蝸植入。沒有任何人工的裝置能代替聽覺能力，但是，利用大腦非凡的能力來理解植入物產生的電信號還是有可能的。

當邁克爾·伊加最先“開啟”題的人工耳蝸時，他聽到的聲音一點都不清楚。經過艱苦的努力，他漸漸地開始辨認出日常的聲音，比如他說道“持續的電話響聲幾乎是立刻就變得清晰了。”

耳蝸植入最主要的目的就是能夠與人交流。當人們與伊加交談時，他能聽到他們的聲音“像是從接觸不良的長途電話中傳來的”。但是當聽他鐘愛的音樂時，耳蝸植入就毫無用處。每當伊加想要欣賞音樂時，他就開始彈鋼琴。他說“我像往常那樣彈奏鋼琴，同一時間在頭腦中就聽見它。我手指的移動以及對琴鍵的感覺使得頭腦中聽到的聲音更加“清晰”。

耳蝸植入讓耳聰的人以一種不完美的方式再次聽見聲音，但是它改變了他們的生活。盡管如此，正如邁克爾·伊加發現的那樣，當涉及到音樂和聲時，聽力就無關緊要了。甚至最完美的耳蝸植入對貝多芬在他生命的最后階段創作第九交響曲也毫無用處。

第五篇：2012職稱英語理工科新增閱讀理解文章

第六篇 Making Light of1 Sleep................................................................................................1 第十九篇 Graphene's Superstrength1........................................................................................3 *第三＋八篇 “Life Form Found“ on Saturn's Titan....................................................................5 *第四十篇 Teaching Math，Teaching Anxiety...........................................................................8 +第四＋五篇 Small But Wise....................................................................................................11 +第四十六篇 Ants Have Big Impact on Environment as“Ecosystem Engineers”....................14

第六篇 Making Light of1 Sleep All we have a clock located inside our brains.Similar to your bedside alarm clock，your internal clock2 runs on a 24-hour cycle.This cycle，called a circadian rhythm，helps control when you wake，when you eat and when you sleep.Somewhere around puberty，something happens in the timing of the biological clock.The clock pushes forward，so adolescents and teenagers are unable to fall asleep as early as they used to.When your mother tells you it's time for bed，your body may be pushing you to stay up3 for several hours more.And the light coming from your computer screen or TV could be pushing you to stay up even later.This shift4 is natural for teenagers.But staying up very late and sleeping late can get your body's clock out of sync with the cycle of light and dark5.It can also make it hard to get out of bed in the morning and may bring other problems，too.Teenagers are put in a kind of a gray cloud6 when they don't get enough sleep，says Mary Carskadon，a sleep researcher at Brown University in Providence，RI7.It affects their mood and their ability to think and learn.But just like your alarm clock，your internal clock can be reset.In fact，it automatically resets itself every day.How? By using the light it gets through your eyes.Scientists have known for a long time that the light of day and the dark of night play important roles in setting our internal clocks.For years，researchers thought that the signals that synchronize the body's clock8 were handled through the same pathways that we use to see.But recent discoveries show that the human eye has two separate light-sensing systems.One system allows us to see.The second system tells our body whether it's day or night.詞匯：

circadian/s3:'keidi?n/ adj.晝夜節奏的，生理節奏的 adolescent/?d?u'les?nt/ n．青少年；adj．青少年的 puberty/ 'pju:b?ti/ n．發育；青春期

sync/si?k/ n.（口語）同步；和諧，協調 synchronize/'si?kr?naiz / V.（使）同時發生；（使）同步

注釋：

1.make light of ：輕視，不在乎。例如： We should not make light of their achievements．我們不應當低估他們的成就。

2.your internal clock ：指的是第一句中的a clock located inside our brains，也即是第二段第一句中的the biological clock（生物鐘）。

3.stay up：不睡覺，熬夜

4.This shift：這種調整。指上文所描述的由于生理時間的變化青少年上床時間越來越晚的現象。

5.get your body's clock out of sync with the cycle of light and dark ：打亂了你的生物鐘與晝夜時間循環之間的平衡

6.gray cloud ：提不起精神的狀態

7.Brown University in Providence，RI：位于美國羅得島州普羅維登斯的布朗大學。RI是Rhode Island（羅得島）的首字母縮寫；Providence 是羅得島州的首府。布朗大學是美國一流大學，創建于1764 年，是世界聞名的美國“常春藤聯盟”（還包括哈佛大學、耶魯大學、普林斯頓大學、布朗大學、哥倫比亞大學、賓夕法尼亞大學、達特茅斯大學和康奈爾大學）中的一員。8.the signals that synchronize the body's clock：平衡生物鐘的光信號

不要太在意睡眠

我們每個人的大腦里都有一個像我們床邊的鬧鐘一樣的生物鐘。人腦里的生物鐘24小時走一圈，這一圈也就是一次完整的晝夜節律，正是這個節律決定了我們吃飯、睡覺和起床的時間。

青春期時，人的生物鐘在定時方面會發生變化，生物鐘會提前。這時，青少年會比以前睡得晚，所以當你媽媽告訴你該睡覺時，你的生物鐘可能會讓你多推遲幾小時，并且電腦或電視光線可能會導致你熬夜到更晚。

生物鐘的這種變化對青少年說是正常的，但熬夜到太晚會打亂你生物鐘與晝夜時間循環之間的平衡，這樣就會帶來一些問題，例如：早晨很難按時起床。位于美國羅得州布郎大學睡眠方面的研究員Mary Carskadon說：“當青少年睡眠不足時會打不起精神，這將影響到他們心情、學習和思考問題的狀態?！?/p>

其實生物鐘與鬧鐘一樣，也是可調的，事實上，生物鐘每天都在進行著自我調節，其方式就是通過你眼睛接收到光線的變化。

很早之前，科學家就知道了晝夜光線強弱的變化對生物鐘調節起到了重要的作用，長久以來，研究者們認為眼睛所接受到的平衡生物鐘的光信號同樣作用于人類的視覺系統。

但最近幾年的研究發現，人類眼睛有兩個感光系統，一個是視覺系統，而另一個是感知晝夜的系統。

練習：.The clock located inside our brains is similar to our bedside alarm clock because A it controls when we wake，when we eat and when we sleep.B it has a cycle of 24 hours.C it is a cycle also called circadian rhythm.D it can alarm any time during 24 hours.2.What is implied in the second paragraph? A Young children's biological clock has the same rhythm with that of the teenagers.B People after puberty begin to go to bed earlier due to the change of the biological clock.C Children before puberty tend to fall asleep earlier at night than adolescents.D Teenagers go to bed later than they used to due to the light from the computer screen.3.In the third paragraph the author wants to tell the reader that A it is natural for teenagers to stay up late and get up late.B staying up late has a bad effect on teenagers' ability to think and learn.C during puberty most teenagers experience a kind of gray cloud.D it is hard for teenagers to get out of bed in the morning.4.Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the fourth and fifth paragraphs? A Our biological clock resets itself automatically.B light gets through our eyes and resets our biological clock.C Our internal clock as well as the alarm clock can be reset automatically.D Our internal clock，like the alarm clock，can be reset.5.According to the last two paragraphs，what did the previous researchers think about the human eye's light-sensing system? A The human eye had two light-sensing systems.B The human eye had one light-sensing system.C The human eye could sense the light of day more quickly than the dark of night.D The human eye could reset our internal clocks in accordance with the alarm clocks.答案與題解：

1.B 第一段第二句提供了答案。句中的your internal clock 即指a clock located inside our Brains。

2.C 第二段主要內容是告訴讀者，過了青春期（puberty），由于生物鐘節奏的變化，青少年（adolescents and teenagers）比以前要晚睡幾小時。所以C是該段所隱含的內容。3.B 第三段的最后一句直接給出了答案。

4.C 根據第四和第五段的內容，鬧鐘和生物鐘都可以重新設定時間，但生物鐘能通過眼睛接受的日光來自動調節生理節奏。所以A、B和D都是這兩段中所述內容，C是正確選擇，因為鬧鐘不能自動重新設定時間。

5.B 問題使用的是過去時，問的是研究者在最新發現（recent discoveries）之前對眼睛感光系統的認識，即，the signals that synchronize the body's clock were handled through the same pathways that we use to see（眼睛所接受到的平衡生物鐘的光信號同樣作用于人類的視覺系統），也就是說，研究者之前認為人類的眼睛只有一個感光系統。但最新發現卻是，人的眼睛有兩個感光系統。

第十九篇 Graphene's Superstrength1 Big technology comes in tiny packages.New cell phones and personal computers get smaller every year，which means these electronics require even smaller components on the inside.Engineers are looking for creative ways to build these components，and they've turned their eyes to graphene，a superthin2 material，made of carbon，that could change the future of electronics.This year's Nobel Prize for Physics3 has been awarded to Andre Geim and Kostya Novoselov from the University of Manchester4，UK.for the discovery of graphene.Graphene isn't just small, it's“the thinnest possible material in this world，”says Novoselov.He calls it a“wonder material.”It's so thin that you would need to stack about 25,000 sheets just to make a pile as thick as a piece of ordinary white paper.If you were to hold a sheet of graphene in your fingers5，you'd have no idea because you wouldn't be able to see it.Carbon is one of the most abundant elements in the universe.Every known kind of life contains carbon.Graphene is a sheet of carbon，but only one atom thick.You don't have to look far to find grapheme —it's all around you.If you want this high-tech wonderstuff6，all you need is a pencil，paper and a little adhesive tape.Use the pencil to shade a small area on the paper, and then apply a small piece of adhesive

tape over the area7.When you pull up the tape，you'll see that it pulls up a thin layer of some of the shading from your pencil.That layer is called graphite，one of the softest minerals in the world.Now stick the same piece of tape on another sheet of paper and pull the tape up —there should be an even thinner layer，this time left on the paper.Now imagine that you do this over and over，until you get the thinnest possible layer of material on the paper.This layer would be only one atom thick，and you wouldn't be able to see it.Graphite is made of layers of graphene，so when you get to the thinnest possible layer，you've found graphene.詞匯：

graphene/ 'gr?fi:n/ n．石墨烯

abundant/?’b?nd?nt / adj．豐富的，充裕的 atom/ '?t?m/n．原子

adhesive/ ?d'hi:siv/ n．膠粘劑； adj.黏著的 stack/st?k/ v．使成堆，堆放 graphite / 'gr?fait / n．石墨

注釋：

1.superstrength：超強的力量。該詞是一個合成詞，由兩部分組成，super（超級的）和strength（力量）。2.superthin：超薄。見注釋1。

3.Nobel Prize for Physics ：諾貝爾物理學獎

4.the University of Manchester：曼徹斯特大學。這是一所位于英國曼徹斯特市的公立研究型大學，創建于1851 年。

5.If you were to hold a sheet of graphene in your fingers：句子使用的是虛擬語氣，因為不可能將幾乎肉眼看不到的石墨烯放在指尖上。

6.wonderstuff：神奇物。該詞為合成詞，由wonder（神奇）和stuff（東西）兩個詞構成。wonderstuff 指的是第二段提到的wonder material。

7.apply a small piece of adhesive tape over… ：將一小片膠帶敷在……上。

石墨烯的超強力量

當今重大科學技術均以“微型”來呈現，新手機和個人電腦每年都在變得更小，這就意味著電子設備要求內部零件更小，工程師們正在尋求制造這些零件的方法，他們逐漸把目光投向了石墨烯——一種由碳元素構成的超薄材料。這種材料將改變電子設備的未來。

今年的諾貝爾物理學獎頒發給了來自英國曼切斯特大學的Andre Geim和Kostya Novoselov，以表彰他們對石墨烯的發現。Novoselov說：“石墨烯不僅小，而且它是世界上所能找到的最薄材料?！彼阉Q作“神奇材料”。石墨烯極薄，25 000片石墨烯疊放在一起才與一張普通白紙一樣厚。如果把一片石墨烯放在手指上，你根本就不會發現，因為你沒辦法看到它。

碳是宇宙中最多的一種元素，已知的生命體中都含有碳。石墨烯一個只有一個碳原子厚度的單層。你不用費心尋找石墨烯，它就在我們身邊。

如果你想得到這種高技術材料，一支筆、一張紙和一小段膠條就足夠了。用鉛筆在紙上涂黑一片區域，將膠條粘在上面，當你拉開膠條你會發現它粘起了很薄的一片鉛筆涂的陰影，這一片陰影就叫做石墨烯，一種世界上最軟的礦物質。

現在，再將膠條粘上另外一張紙上，把它拉起來，你會得到更薄的一層。想象一下當你重復做，直到在紙上得到最薄的一層物質，這層物質只有一個原子的厚度，你根本無法看到。石墨是由一層層的石墨烯組成的，所以當你得到最薄的一層時，你已經找到了石墨烯。

練習：.What would change the future of electronics according to engineers? A Big technology.B Creative ways.C Graphene.D Both A and B.2.According to the second and third paragraphs，what is true of graphene? A It can be used to make paper.B It is possible to see it with our naked eye.C It is easy to find graphene.D It is possibly the thickest material in the world.3.Which of the following can be used to replace the word “apply”in paragraph 4? A request.B polish.C use.D put.4.Which of the following is NOT meant in the last two paragraphs? A Graphene is made of graphite，one of the softest materials in the world.B Graphite is made of layers of graphene，the thinnest material in the world.C When we get to the thinnest possible layer of graphite，we find graphene.D With a pencil，a sheet of paper and a piece of adhesive tape，we can find graphene.5.Graphene's superstrength lies in the fact that A It is the thinnest material in the world.B It is made of the most abundant elements in the world.C It can help to make electronic components smaller.D It helps engineers to produce more sensitive electronic products.答案與題解：

1.C 第一段最后一句提供了答案：工程師將眼光投向石墨烯，一種由碳原子組成的超薄材料，這種材料能夠改變電子產品的未來。

2.C 第二段倒數第二句告訴我們，25,000 層石墨烯才能堆砌成一張普通白紙的厚度，這是為了說明石墨烯是多么的薄，而不是說它可以用來造紙，所以A不是正確答案。第三段最后一句說明石墨烯就在我們周圍，因此C是答案。B和D的表述內容都與該兩段內容不符合。3.D apply...over：將……涂（敷）在……上。

4.A 最后兩段告訴我們，用一張紙，一支鉛筆和一片膠帶就能找到石墨烯；無數層石墨烯構成石墨，當鉛筆留在紙上的石墨被膠帶剝離到最薄一層時，我們就得到了石墨烯。因此只有A不是最后兩段的表述內容。5.C 第一段提供了答案。隨著電子產品越來越小，需要更小的電子組件（components），而石墨烯作為最薄的材料可以幫助工程師實現這一目標。這就是石墨烯力量所在。

*第三＋八篇 “Life Form Found“ on Saturn's Titan Scientists say they have discovered hints of alien life1 on the Saturn's moon2.The discovery

of a sort of life was announced after researchers at the US space agency,NASA3,analyzed data from spacecraft Cassini4,which pointed to，the existence of methane-based form of life on Saturn's biggest moon.Scientists have reportedly discovered clues showing primitive alien beings are“breathing” in Titan's dense atmosphere filled with hydrogen.They argue that hydrogen gets absorbed before hitting Titan's planet-like surface covered with methane lakes and rivers.This，they say，points to the existence of some“bugs”5 consuming the hydrogen at the surface of the moon less than half the size of the Earth.“We suggested hydrogen consumption because it's the obvious gas for life to consume on Titan，similar to the way we consume oxygen on Earth，”says NASA scientist Chris McKay.“If these signs do turn out to be a sign of life，it would be doubly exciting because it would represent a second form of life independent from water-based life on Earth.” To date，scientists have not yet detected this form of life anywhere，though there are liquid-water-based microorganisms on Earth that grow well on methane or produce it as a waste product.On Titan, where temperatures are around 90 Kelvin6(minus 290 degrees Farenheit)，a methanebased organism would have to use a substance that is liquid as its medium for living processes, but not water itself.Water is frozen solid on Titan's surface and much too cold to support life as we know it.Scientists had expected the Sun's interactions with chemicals in the atmosphere to produce a coating of acetylene on Titan's surface.But Cassini detected no acetylene on the surface.The absence of detectable acetylene on the Titan's surface can very well have a non-biological explanation，said Mark Allen，a principal investigator7 of the NASA Titan team.“Scientific conservatism suggests that a biological explanation should be the last choice after all non-biological explanations are addressed，”Allen said.“We have a lot of work to do to rule out8 possible non-biological explanations.It is more likely that a chemical process，without biology，can explain these results.” 詞匯：

Saturn /'s?t?n/ n．土星

methane/'mi:θein/ n．甲烷，沼氣 Titan/'tait?n/ n．土衛六

acetylene/?'setili:n/ n．乙炔 alien/'eilj?n/ n．外星人；adj．外星球的；相異的 conservatism/k?n's?:v?tiz?m/ n．保守主義,守舊

注釋：

1.hints of alien life：外星生命跡象。

2.the Saturn's moon：指土衛六（Titan)。土衛六又稱泰坦星，是土星衛星中最大的一顆。3.NASA：美國國家航空航天局的縮寫，全稱是： National Aeronautics and Space Administration。4.spacecraft Cassini：卡西尼號探測器，以出生于意大利的法國天文學家卡西尼的名字命名，其任務是環繞土星飛行，對土星及其大氣、光環、衛星和磁場進行深人考察。1997 年10 月15日，重六噸的“卡西尼”號星際探測器被發射飛往土星的軌道。這是上世紀發射的最后一艘行星際探測的大飛船?！翱ㄎ髂帷碧栍昧藢⒔吣陼r間，在2004 年7月1日飛達土星軌道。5.bugs：微生物。非正式口語表達，所以使用了引號。

6.Kelvin：可翻譯成“絕對溫度”。Kelvin Scale，絕對溫標，開氏溫標，是由Kelvin 勛爵于19世紀中葉發明的溫度計量方法，其零度相當于攝氏一273.15“ C，被認為是宇宙中最低溫度。這種溫度計量方法多為科學家使用。

7.principal investigator：研究項目負責人 8.rule out：排除……的可能性

土衛六上發現了生命跡象

科學家們說，在土衛六上發現了外星生命跡象并宣布了這一發現。美國國家航空航天局(NASA)的研究者們對卡西尼號探測器所傳回來的數據進行了分析，數據表明，土星衛星中最大的一顆衛星有以甲烷為基礎的生命的存在跡象。

據報道，科學家們已經找到了在土衛六高濃度氫氣大氣層里“呼吸”的原始外星生命的線索。

他們認為，氫氣在到達布滿甲烷河流湖泊的土衛六類似行星一樣的表層前就已經被吸收了。這就證明在這個不及半個地球大小的衛星表面有某種微生物在依靠氫氣生存。

美國國家航空航天局的科學家Chris Mckay說，“我們提出有氫氣的消耗，是由于它是土衛六上生命賴以生存的顯而易見的氣體，就像我們地球上用氧氣呼吸一樣。如果這些跡象最終證明是生命的跡象，它會加倍令人興奮，因為它會代表完全不同于地球上水基生命的第二種生命?！?/p>

時至今日，盡管地球上的依賴液體水的微生物在甲烷里生長良好或把它作為廢物排出，科學家在任何地方都沒有探測到這種生命的形式。在土衛六上，絕對溫度達到90度(相當于攝氏-273．15度)，依賴于甲烷的微生物不得不用某種液體物質作為生存的介質，這種液體不是水，水在土衛六上會凍成冰塊，不能融化。我們知道，冰塊太冷不能維持生命。

科學家們原指望太陽與大氣層中的化學物質相互作用會在土衛六上產生一層乙炔。但卡西尼號在它的表面沒有探測到乙炔。

Mark Allen是美國宇航局土衛六項目組的主要負責人，他說道，既然在土衛六的表面沒有探測到乙炔，那就充分說明上面沒有生物。

Allen說：“科學界的保守主義者們建議，要做出土衛六上有生物的結論，首先必須對土衛六上所有沒有生物的觀點做出回應；要排除土衛六上可能沒有生物的觀點，我們任重道遠。極為可能的是，一種化學過程而非生物學能解釋這些結果?！?/p>

練習：.What have scientists found about Saturn? A They have found a new moon orbiting Saturn.B They have found methane-based life on Saturn.C They have found methane-based life on Titan.D They have found earthlike life on a Saturn's moon.2.What do scientists say about Titan? A There are life clues there.B There is acetylene there.C Water on Titan exists in the form of ice.D Rivers and lakes there contain life formls.3.To date，scientists have not yet detected this form of life.(paragraph 5)What does”this form of life“ refer to? A Water-based life.B Methane-based life.C Liquid-water-based microorganisms.D Gas-based life.4.What can be inferred from what Allen said? A Scientists have different arguments over whether there is life on Titan.B Scientists all agree that there is life on Titan.C Scientists all suggest that a biological explanation is reasonable.D Scientists all agree that a non-biological chemical reaction is a possible explanation.5.Which of the following can replace the title of this passage? A Earthlike Living Beings Found on Titan.B Finding of One More Moon of Saturn.C Titan a New Satellite Found.D A different Life Form, a Possibility.答案與題解：

1.C 短文的第一段提供了答案。該段告訴讀者，科學家在土星的衛星土衛六（Titan）上發現了生命的跡象，這些生命的存在是以甲烷為基礎的。

2.A根據第二段“Scientists have reportedly discovered clues showing primitive alien beings are 'breathing' in Titan's dense atmosphere filled with hydrogen.”，說明土衛六（Titan）有生命跡象。因此A是答案。3.B this form of life 指的是土衛六（Titan）上以甲烷為生命基礎呼吸氫氣的生物，即該文討論的主題。4.A科學家至今對土衛六是否存在生物有不同的觀點和解釋。Allen 說要做出土衛六上有生物的結論，首先必須對Titan 上沒有生物的觀點做出回應；要排除土衛六上可能沒有生物的觀點，我們還須付出努力。所以只有A是正確選擇。

5.D該短文的主題是，科學家在土衛六（Titan）上發現了一種與地球生物不同的生命形式的跡象，即以甲烷為生命基礎呼吸氫氣的生物，但科學家還未能最后驗證這一發現。第四段中的一個句子能夠揭示該短文的主題：“If these signs do turn out to be a sign of life, it would bedoubly exciting because it would represent a second form of life independent from water-based life on Earth.”

*第四十篇 Teaching Math，Teaching Anxiety In a new study about the way kids learn math in elementary school, the psychologists at the University of Chicagol1 Sian Beilock and Susan Levine found a surprising relationship between what female teachers think and what female students learn:If a female teacher is uncomfortable with her own math skills, then her female students are more likely to believe that boys are better than girls at math.”If these girls keep getting math-anxious female teachers2 in later grades, it may create a snowball effect on their math achievement3 said Levine.In other words girls may end up learning math anxiety from their teachers4.The study suggests that if these girls grow up believing that boys are better at math than girls are then these girls may not do as well as they would have if they were more confident.Just as students find certain subjects to be difficult, teachers can find certain subjects to be difficult to learn--and teach.The subject of math can be particularly difficult for everyone.Researchers use the word “anxiety” to describe such feelings: anxiety is uneasiness or worry.The new study found that when a teacher has anxiety about math, that feeling can influence how her female students feel about math.The study involved 65 girls,52 boys and 17 first-and second-grade teachers in elementary schools in the Midwest.The students took math achievement

tests at the beginning and end of the school year, and the researchers compared the scores.The researchers also gave the students tests to tell whether the students believed that a math superstar had to be a boy.Then the researchers turned to the teachers:To find out which teachers were anxious about math,the researchers asked the teachers how they felt at times when they came across math, such as when reading a sales receipt5.A teacher who got nervous looking at the numbers on a sales receipt, for example,was probably anxious about math.Boys,on average,were unaffected by a teacher's anxiety.On average,girls with math-anxious teachers scored lower on the end-of-the-year math tests than other girls in the study did.Plus,on the test showing whether someone thought a math superstar had to be a boy,20 girls showed feeling that boys would be better at math--and all of these girls had been taught by female teachers who had math anxiety.“This is an interesting study,but the results need to be interpreted as preliminary and in need of replication with a larger sample6,” said David Geary,a psychologist at the University of Missouri7 in Columbia.詞匯：

snowball /'sn?ub?:l/雪球；滾雪球式增長的事

replication/repli'kei??n/ n ．重復，復現 superstar/'sju:p?sta:/ n．超級明星

注釋：

1.University of Chicago：芝加哥大學。位于美國伊利諾伊州芝加哥市，是世界一流的私立大學，創建于1891 年。

2.keep getting math-anxious female teachers：一直由對數學有焦慮感的女教師教授數學。此處getting是having的意思，math-anxious指的是上文中提到的對數學沒有自信的心理狀態。另見第三段最后一句對anxiety的解釋。

3.snowball effect on their math achievement：在數學成就上的雪球效應。其含義是：在數學上越來越沒有信心。

4.end up learning math anxiety from their teachers：最后從老師那里獲得的是對數學的焦慮。End up doing something：最終會做某事 5.sales receipt：銷售清單

6.in need of replication with a larger sample：需要用更大的調查樣本進行重復驗證。replication在量化實證研究中的意思是“重復（實驗）”。

7.the University of Missouri：密蘇里大學。位于密蘇里州，是美國一所公立研究型大學，創建于1839年。

教數學，教焦慮

在最新一項關于小學生學數學的研究中，芝加哥大學的心理學家Sian Beilock和Susan Levine 發現，女教師的想法和女學生的學習之間有著驚人的聯系：如果女教師對自己的數學能力感到焦慮，她的女學生很可能認為男孩子數學比女孩學得更好。

“如果一直由對數學有焦慮的女教師教授數學，就會對她們的數學成績產生雪球效應”，Levine說。換言之，女孩子們最后從老師那里獲得的是對數學的焦慮。該研究表明，如果女孩子們在一個認為男孩比女孩數學好的環境中成長，那么她們的數學可能會不如在更自信的狀態下學得好。

如同學生，教師也會覺得某些學科難學和難教，這就是研究者所言的“焦慮”：不自在或擔心。

此研究發現，教師對數學的焦慮能夠傳染給她的女學生們。該研究的研究對象包括65個女孩，52個男孩和17位在中西部教一二年級的教師。學生們在學年的開始和結束時都進行數學測試，研究者們比較得分。

研究者們測試學生是否認為數學明星一定會是男孩。然后研究者們測試教師，試圖找出哪些教師對數學感到焦慮，研究者們問教師們當碰到數學問題諸如閱讀銷售清單時的感受，如果一位教師一看到銷售清單的數字就感到緊張，那么她很可能對數學存在焦慮。

平均來說，教師的焦慮不會影響到男孩子。但是，一般說來，如果教女孩子的教師有數學焦慮癥，那么女孩子們在學年結束時測試得分比其他的女孩要低。另外，在關于是否認為數學明星應該是男孩的測試中，有20個女孩認為男孩數學比女孩好，這20個女孩的老師都是女性，且都患有數學焦慮癥。

來自密蘇里大學的心理學家David Geary說“這是一個有趣的研究，但是這只是初步結果，需要用更大的調查樣本進行重復驗證”。

練習：

1.What is the result of the research at the University of Chicago,according to the first paragraph? A Girls comfortable with their own math skills are better than boys at math.B Girls uncomfortable with their own math skills are not as good as boys at math.C Female teachers' math skills have influence over girl students' math skills.D Female teachers' confidence in their math skills is related to girl's math skills.2.What is implied in the third paragraph? A Math teachers,like math learners,do not like the subject due to its difficulty.B A difficult subject like math may affect teachers' confidence in teaching the subject.C Teachers are more anxious teaching math than their students learning math.D Math is so difficult that no teachers like to teach it.3.According to the experiment,those teachers were probably anxious about math when they felt A nervous memorizing the numbers of a sales receipt.B helpless saving the numbers of a sales receipt.C uneasy reading the numbers of a sales receipt.D hopeless filling in the numbers of a sales report.4.The sixth paragraph tells us that the research findings A prove a strong link between female teachers' math anxiety and their female students' math achievements.B show that male students are less likely to be affected by their math anxiety than female students.C Provide strong evidence that math superstars are more likely to be males than females.D Discover a strong link between teachers' math anxiety and their students' math achievements.5.David Geary thinks that A the study is interesting but it is based on unreliable research process.B the research results need to be retested based on a larger sample.C the research results need to be reinterpreted to be meaningful.D the study is well based and produces significant results.答案與題解：

1.D 該段告訴我們女教師的想法（what female teachers think）和女學生的學習（what female students learn）

之間有很大的關聯度，也就是說，女教師如果對自己的數學技能沒有自信，她的女學生很可能相信男孩子會在數學方面超過女孩子。

2.B 第三段的大意是，數學對任何人來說都可能有難度（The subject of math can be particularly difficult for everyone)，如同學生，教師也會覺得數學難學和難教，這就是研究者所言的焦慮。所以，可以推斷，作者是要告訴我們，教師會因為數學這門學科的難度而對教授該課程不自信。其他選項都不是該段所要表達的內容。

3.C 第五段第三句“To find out which teachers were anxious about math, the researchers asked the teachers how they felt at times when they came across math，such as when reading a sales receipt”指出了答案。memorizing the numbers；意為“記住數字”；saving the numbers意為“保存數字”；filling in the numbers意為“陸續編入數字”，而且文中沒有提到a sales report；它們均不是答案。

4.A 短文的第六段是對前一段所述調查數據結果的討論，即，男學生較少受對數學有焦慮感的教師影響，而那些數學成績較低的女生都有對數學有焦慮感的教師（girls with math-anxious teachers scored lower on the end-of-the-year math tests)，而且，所有認為男生數學肯定比女生強的女生，其數學教師都是有數學焦慮感的女教師（all of these girls had been taught by female teachers who had math anxiety.)。D所以不是正確的選擇，因為只提到teachers 和students,而不是female teachers 和female students。

5.B 根據David Geary的說法，實驗結果還是初步的（preliminary)，需要更大的樣本對其進行重復驗證（in need of replication with a larger sample)。他沒有認為該實驗的過程不可靠，所以A不是正確選項；他認為實驗樣本不夠大，所以D也不是正確選項。

+第四＋五篇 Small But Wise On December 14,NASA1 blasted a small but mighty telescope into space.The telescope is called WISE and is about as wide around as a trashcan.Don't let its small size fool you:WISE has a powerful digital camera, and it will be taking pictures of some the wildest objects2 in the known universe,including asteroids,faint stars,blazing galaxies3 and giant clouds of dust where planets and stars are born.“I'm very excited because we're going to be seeing parts of the universe that we haven't seen before,”said Ned Wright, a scientist who directs the WISE project.Since arriving in space,the WISE telescope has been circling the Earth,held by gravity in a polar orbit4(this means it crosses close to the north and south poles with each lap5).Its camera is pointed outward,away from the Earth,and WISE will snap a picture of a different part of the sky every 11 minutes.After six months it will have taken pictures across the entire sky.The pictures taken by WISE won't be like everyday digital photographs,however.WISE stands for“Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer.”As its name suggests,the WISE camera takes pictures of features that give off infrared radiation6.Radiation is energy that travels as a wave.Visible light, including the familiar spectrum of light7 that becomes visible in a rainbow,is an example of radiation.When an ordinary digital camera takes a picture of a tree,for example,it receives the waves of visible light that are reflected off the tree.When these waves enter the camera through the lens,they're processed by the camera,which then puts the image together.Waves of infrared radiation are longer than waves of visible light, so ordinary digital cameras don't see them,and neither do the eyes of human beings.Although invisible to the eye,longer infrared radiation can be detected as warmth by the skin.That's a key idea to why WISE will be able to see things other telescopes can't.Not everything in the universe shows up in visible light.Asteroids,for example,are giant rocks that float through space 一but they absorb most of the light that reaches them.They don't reflect light,so they're difficult to see.But they do give off infrared radiation, so an infrared telescope like WISE will be able to produce images of them.During its mission WISE will take pictures of hundreds of thousands of asteroids.Brown dwarfs8 are another kind of deep-space object that will show up in WISE's pictures.These objects are“failed” stars 一which means they are not massive enough to jump start9 the same kind of reactions that power stars such as the sun.Instead,brown dwarfs simply shrink and cool down.They're so dim that they're almost impossible to see with visible light, but in the infrared spectrum they glow.詞匯：

trashcan / 'tr??,k?n/n．垃圾箱 infrared/'infr?'red/ adj．紅外線 asteroid/'?st?r?id/ n.小行星 dwarf/dw?:f/ n.矮星

注釋：

1.NASA（美國國家航空航天局）是縮寫詞，全稱是National Aeronautics and Space Administration 2.the wildest objects ：任何你能想象得到的天體。wild 有“未被人馴養的”“荒唐的”“離奇的”意思。3.faint stars, blazing galaxies：指的是那些只能看到微弱的光和因燃燒而無法觀察到的天體。

4.polar orbit：極地軌道。指軌道平面與赤道面夾角為90的人造地球衛星軌道。人造衛星運行時能到達南北極區上空，即衛星能飛經全球范圍的上空。需要在全球范圍內進行觀測和應用的氣象衛星、導航衛星、地球資源衛星等都采用這種軌道。

5.lap：一圈。原指競賽場的一圈或游泳池的一個來回，如： She overtook the other runners on the last lap.她最后一圈超過了其他參賽者。6.infrared radiation：紅外線輻射

7.spectrum of light：光譜，即，光輻射的波長分布區域。

8.Brown dwarfs：褐矮星。褐矮星非常暗淡，很難發現它們，要確定它們的大小就更加困難。9.jump start: 啟動。

小而聰明

12月14日，美國國家航空航天局發射了一個體積小而威力大的望遠鏡，它的名字叫“WISE”(聰明)，大約只有一個垃圾盒子那么寬。你可千萬不要輕視這個小東西，WISE可是一款高強數碼相機，它將在人類已知的宇宙里拍攝任何你所能想到的天體，包括小行星、那些只能看到微弱的光和因燃燒而無法觀察到的天體，以及自行星和恒星誕生以來的巨大塵埃云。

Ned Wright是主持WISE項目的科學家，他說：“我十分興奮，因為我們就要看到以前從未看到過的那部分宇宙”。

到達宇宙空間后，WISE由于受極地軌道重力作用，一直在圍繞地球旋轉。(這意味著，每轉一圈，它就離南極和北極靠近)。它的鏡頭是向外的，遠離地球。每11分鐘WISE就會抓拍天空一個不同的部分。六個月之后，它將把整個天空拍攝完畢。

然而，WISE拍攝的相片不會像我們日常的數碼相片。WISE是Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer(廣域紅外勘測探測器)的縮寫。正如名字所示，WISE能拍到發出紅外線輻射物體的相片。

輻射是波浪狀行進的一種能量。人能看到的光，包括大家熟悉的、在彩虹里看到的光譜就是射線的一個例子。當普通的數碼相機給一棵樹照相時，它能接收到樹反射回來的、可見的光波。光波通過鏡頭進入到相機里，相機對它進行加工，然后把圖像合成。

紅外線的波長比可見光長，所以，普通的數碼相機捕捉不到他們，人眼也看不到這種射線。盡管人們看不到，人的皮膚能感受到較長紅外線帶來的溫暖。

這就是為什么WISE能捕捉到其他望遠鏡看不到的物體的主要原因。宇宙中，不是所有的東西都以可見光的方式呈現出來。例如，小行星是在太空中漂浮的大巖石，但是小行星吸收射到他們表面的大部分光。他們不能反射光，所以要看到他們很困難。但他們卻釋放出紅外線，所以，象WISE這樣的紅外線望遠鏡才能夠捕捉到它們的圖像。WISE的任務就是拍攝成千上萬的小行星圖像。

WISE的另一任務是為另外一種太空深處的天體一褐矮星拍照。這種天體是“失敗的”恒星，它們是一些不夠大，不能像太陽的能量那樣啟動相同的反應。褐矮星只能縮小和冷卻。他們發出的光如此之微弱，人們根本看不到，但是在紅外頻譜中，它們是發光的。

練習：.What is so special about WISE? A It is small in size but carries a large camera.B It is as small as a trashcan.C Its digital camera can help astronomers to see the unknown space.D Never before has a telescope carried a digital camera in space.2.Which is NOT the synonym for the word “snap” in the third paragraph? A make.B shoot.C take D photograph.3.The camera on WISE A is no different from an ordinary camera.B does not see infrared radiation while the ordinary camera does.C catches the infrared radiation while the ordinary camera does not.D reflects light that human eyes can see.4.Which of the following is NOT correct about“asteroids” according to paragraph 7? A Asteroids float through space giving off visible light.B Asteroids do not reflect light that reaches them.C It is difficult to take asteroids' pictures by ordinary cameras, D The WISE telescope can take pictures of asteroids 5.What is implied in the last paragraph? A Brown dwarfs give off visible light.B Brown dwarfs give off infrared radiation.C Brown dwarfs are power stars like the sun.D Brown dwarfs are impossible to see with the WISE telescope.答案與題解：

1.C 短文的第一和第二段提供了答案。WISE 的特殊之處就在于，雖然體積小，但它的數碼相機能拍到任何天體，所以能夠幫助天文學家觀測到宇宙空間中（in the known universe）的未知天文現象。其他選項都不是短文表達的意思。

2.A snap 是個多義詞，可以解釋為“拍照”，更為確切的意思是“拍快照”。這里shoot, take 和photograph 都是snap 的同義詞。

3.C 短文第六段和第四段提供了答案。人類的肉眼和普通相機看到的光是visible lights，看不見紅外線輻射（infrared radiation)，而WISE 的相機能夠看到。

4.A 短文第七段第二句說并非所有的宇宙中的物體都會發出可見光，比如asteroids，所以A是正確選項。其他選項的內容都可以在該段中找到。

5.B 最后一段的第一句說，褐矮星能出現在WISE 照片中，根據上文對WISE 望遠鏡的描述只有WISE 望遠鏡才能拍到紅外線射線，所以B是正確選擇。

+第四十六篇 Ants Have Big Impact on Environment as“Ecosystem Engineers”

Research by the University of Exeter1 has revealed that ants have a big impact on their local environment as a result of their activity as “ecosystem engineers” and predators.The study, published in the Journal of Animal Ecology, found that ants have two distinct effects on their local environment.Firstly, through moving of soil by nest building2 activity and by collecting food they affect the level of nutrients in the soil.This can indirectly impact the local populations of many animal groups, from decomposers to species much higher up the food chain.Secondly, they prey on a wide range of other animals, including larger prey which can be attacked by vast numbers of ant workers.Dirk Sanders, an author of the study from the university's Centre for Ecology and Conservation, said:“Ants are very effective predators which thrive in huge numbers.They're also very territorial3 and very aggressive, defending their resources and territory against other predators.All of this means they have a strong influence on their surrounding area.”

“In this research, we studied for the first time how big this impact is and the subtleties of it.What we found is that despite being predators, their presence can also lead to an increase in density and diversity of other animal groups4.They genuinely play a key role in the local environment, having a big influence on the grassland food web,” Sanders said.The study, carried out in Germany, studied the impact of the presence of different combinations and densities of black garden ants and common red ants, both species which can be found across Europe, including in the UK.It found that a low density of ants in an area increased the diversity and density of other animals in the local area, particularly the density of herbivores and decomposers.At higher densities ants had no or the opposite effect, showing that predation is counteracting the positive influence.Dr Frank van Veen, another author on the study, said:“What we find is that the impact of ants on soil nutrient levels has a positive effect on animal groups at low levels, but as the number of ants increases, their predatory impacts have the bigger effect — thereby counteracting the positive influence via ecosystem engineering.”

Ants are important components of ecosystems not only because they constitute a great part of the animal biomass5 but also because they act as ecosystem engineers.Ant biodiversity6 is incredibly high and these organisms are highly responsive to human impact, which obviously reduces its richness.However, it is not clear how such disturbance damages the maintenance of ant services to the ecosystem． Ants are important in below ground processes8 through the

alteration of the physical and chemical environment and through their effects on plants, microorganisms, and other soil organisms.詞匯：

predator /' pred?t?/ n．食肉動物

nutrient/' nju:tri?nt/ n ．營養物；adj．營養的 decomposer/,di:k?m'p?uz?/ n．腐生物；分解體 prey/prei/ v．捕食；n．被捕食的動物 subtlety/ 's?tlti/ n，微妙，精妙 herbivore/ 'h?:biv?: / n ．食草動物

注釋：

1.the University of Exeter ：?？怂固卮髮W。1851 年建校，位于英國西南部重要商業中心埃克斯特市，是英國著名的傳統大學之一。2.nest building ：筑巢

3.territorial：領地的。在此用來形容螞蟻的本性，即具有很強的領地意識，并且會竭盡全力保衛自己的領地。4.an increase in density and diversity of other animal groups ：其他動物群體在數量和品種上的增長。5.biomass ：物質名詞，由bio和mass 兩部分組成，意為“生物量”“生物質”。6.biodiversity ：物質名詞，由bio和diversity 兩部分組成，意為“生物多樣性”。7.the maintenance of ant services to the ecosystem ：螞蟻對生態系統的維護作用。8.below ground processes ：土壤下面的（工作）過程，即影響生態環境的過程。

螞蟻作為“生態系統工程師”對環境影響巨大

?？怂固卮髮W所做的研究表明，螞蟻作為“生態系統工程師”和食肉動物的行為對當地的環境影響巨大。該研究發表在動物生態雜志上，它表明螞蟻對當地的環境有兩大顯著的影響。

第一，通過筑巢而挪動土壤或采集食物，螞蟻影響土壤的營養水平。這可間接影響當地從腐生物到食物鏈高層的許多動物種群的數量。

第二，它們捕食的動物種類很多，包括那些被大量工蟻攻擊的大獵物。

Dirk Sanders是該大學生態和保護中心所做的此項研究的作者，他說：“螞蟻是高效的食肉動物，而且能大量繁殖。它們具有很強的領地意識，并且會竭盡全力對抗其他的食肉動物來保衛自己的領地。所有這些都意味著螞蟻對周圍環境影響巨大?！?/p>

“在該研究中，我們第一次對螞蟻帶來的影響程度及微妙程度進行研究。所得的發現是：盡管是食肉動物，螞蟻的出現能促使其他動物族群在數量和品種上的增長。并對當地的環境起到切實重要的作用，對大草原的食物鏈影響巨大?！盨anders說。

該研究在德國進行，它對花園黑螞蟻和一般的紅螞蟻在不同混合程度和不同密度下的影響力進行研究。黑螞蟻和紅螞蟻在整個歐洲包括英國都能找到。研究發現，一個地區的螞蟻密度小，而其他動物尤其是食草動物和腐生物的數量和種類會增多。如果螞蟻的密度大，就不可能產生同樣的影響，或者產生相反的影響，這表明，螞蟻的掠食活動會抵消螞蟻給環境帶來的積極影響。

Dr Frank van Veen是本研究的另一作者，他說：“我們的發現是：如果螞蟻的數量少，其對土壤的營養水平的影響會對動物族群產生積極的效果。但是如果螞蟻的數量增加，其捕食的影響會達到最大化，因此會抵消螞蟻通過生態工程給環境帶來的積極影響”。

螞蟻是生態系統的重要組成部分，不僅因為它占有很大部分的生物量，而且因為其作為生態系統工程師的角色。螞蟻具有難以想象的多樣性，但極易受人類的影響，這就使它的多樣性有顯著的減少。然而，科學家還不清楚人類對螞蟻這種干擾如何破壞螞蟻對生態系統的維護作用。螞蟻通過變動物理的和化學的環境，通過對植物、微生物和其他土壤生物的影響

而對生態環境起至關重要的作用。

練習：.Why are ants compared to ecosystem engineers? A Because they build their own nests.B Because they collect food.C Because their activity affects the environment.D Because they are predators.2.As predators, ants A prey on small as well as large animals.B collect nutritious food from the soil C collect food as decomposers.D prey on species much higher up the food chain.3.Dir Sanders' study centered on how ants A can manage to thrive in huge numbers.B defend their resources and territory against other predators.C attack those invading animals for survival.D produce such a big impact on the environment.4.What does paragraph 6 tell us? A Ants bring about a negative influence to an area when their population is small.B Ants bring about a positive influence to an area when their population is small.C Ants' predation counteracts the positive influence they may have on an area.D At higher density, ants produce a positive influence on an area.5.What still remains unclear about ants, according to the last paragraph? A What roles do ants play in the ecosystem in which they live? B How do ants affect the animal diversity in a given ecosystem? C How do human activities affect ants' influence on a given ecosystem? D How do ants alter the physical and chemical environment? 答案與題解：

1.C 短文的第一段提供了答案。A不是正確答案，因為并不是因為螞蟻會筑巢才被譽為生態系統工程師，而是因為它們筑巢和獲取食物的方式改變了土壤的營養水平，為整個食物鏈提供了很好的生態環境（見第二段）。

2.A答案能夠從短文的第三段直接找到。該段告訴我們，螞蟻的掠食范圍很廣，甚至包括比它們體積更大的動物（larger animals）。prey 在這里的意思是“捕獵，捕食”，作為動詞，后面跟介詞on或upon。3.D Dirk Sanders說：“In this research, we studied for the first time how big this impact is and the subtleties of it.”（第五段）所以，D是正確選擇。句中the subtleties of it 的意思是：螞蟻對環境影響的精妙之處。4.B 短文第六段第二句的大概意思是，螞蟻數量?。╝ low density of ants）的話，能使其他動物的品種和數量增加（increased the diversity and density of other animals），從而給環境帶來積極影響；第三句說，如果螞蟻的數量大（At higher densities），就不可能產生同樣的影響，或者是相反的影響，這表明，螞蟻的掠食活動會抵銷螞蟻給環境帶來的積極影響。第七段Dr Frank van Veen 表達了大體相同的內容。

5.C 最后一段的第二和第三句提供了答案。第二句告訴我們，螞蟻極易受人類的影響（these organisms are highly responsive to human impact），第三句告訴我們，科學家還不清楚人類對螞蟻這種干擾如何破壞螞蟻對生態系統的維護作用（“it is not clear how such disturbance damages the maintenance of ant services to the ecosystem.”）。