2020年高考英语阅读理解科普环保类专练(附答案)

2020年高考英语阅读理解科普环保类专练（附答案）

一、阅读理解（共10题；共82分）

1.阅读理解

Water is very important to living things. Without water there can be no life on the earth. All animals and

plants need water. Man also needs water. We need water to drink, to cook our food and to clean ourselves.

Water is needed in offices, factories and schools. Water is needed everywhere.

There is water in seas, rivers and lakes. Water is found almost everywhere. Even in the desert part of the

world, there is some water in the air. You can't see or feel it when it is a part of the air. The water in the seas,

rivers and lakes is a liquid, the water in the air is a gas, and we call it water vapor (蒸汽).

Clouds are made of water. They may be made of very small drops of water. They may also be made of snow

crystals(结晶体). Snow crystals are very small crystals of ice. Ice is frozen water. It is a solid. There can be snow

and ice everywhere in winter.

Water may be a solid or a liquid or a gas. When it is a solid, it may be as hard as a stone. When it is a liquid,

you can drink it. When it is a gas, you can not see or feel it.

（1）Where can we find water?

A. We can find water when it turns into vapor. B. Water can be found almost everywhere.

C. We can find water in deserts here and there. D. Water is found only in seas and rivers.

（2）Clouds are made of .

A. seas, rivers and lakes B. blocks of ice

C. solid, liquid and gas D. very small drops of water or snow crystals

（3）Water has three states(状态) .

A. ice, snow and air B. solid, vapor, snow

C. solid, liquid and gas D. drops of water, blocks of ice and crystals of water

（4）We can drink water when it is .

A. a liquid B. a solid C. in the air D. turned into ice

2.阅读理解

Words and the way we use them offer a rare window on social and cultural trends. Kory Stamper and Peter

Sokolowski know that better than most.

The Merriam-Webster(韦氏词典) lexicographers(词典编纂者) are part of a team that edits the dictionary. In

a recent interview, Sokolowski and Stamper talked about their job and what the way we use words says about us

collectively.

So to know more about them, observers of the language, maybe we should start with some background.

What is a lexicographer?

Sokolowski: A lexicographer is a person who writes or edits a dictionary. The job of a dictionary editor is to

prepare and present research about language. One of our former editors-in- chief said, "Tell the truth about

words," and that sums it up for me.

What do you guys do all day?

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Stamper: The two main duties of a lexicographer are reading and defining. We read everything: books,

journals, blogs, phone books, take-out menus, and so on. What we're looking for are words that catch our eye.

We record the context of these words and information about the sources. Those records are added to a

database, and they are the raw material we use in writing definitions.

When we are writing or revising a dictionary, most of our time is spent defining. We define a word according

to how it is used in the recorded context, deciding whether the usage has been covered by our dictionary. Once

this is done, you look at the new words and new senses and draft a definition.

Drafting definitions requires some training, some experience and a lot of concentration. It's very, very quiet

on the editorial floor.

How closely do the most looked-up words on your online dictionary seem to be related to the news or

trends?

Stamper: When our dictionary went online back in 1996, we could see for the first time which were the most

looked-up words in English: Affect, effect and ubiquitous were the top words. It was fascinating to us-dictionary

editors spend so much time writing definitions but never could have known if anyone ever read them. We could

follow what people were thinking about according to what words they were looking up. Thanks to our online

dictionary, we had data.

（1）What do lexicographers do?

A. They collect as many words as they can and edit them into a dictionary.

B. They interview as many people as they can to collect new words.

C. They do research about language and edit the truth about words.

D. They make deep studies of social and cultural trends.

（2）What's the function of lexicographers' records during their reading?

A. The records show how large the dictionary is.

B. The records contain what kind of things they read.

C. The records are the main things to add to the database.

D. The records offer the raw material to the editors.

（3）Which of the following is the correct order of a lexicographer defining a word?

a. Write a draft of the definition.

b. Conclude the usage of the word.

c. Pay attention to the new words and new senses.

d. Decide whether the usage has been covered.

A. adbc B. dbac C. bdca D. cbda

（4）What does this passage mainly talk about?

A. Observers of the language. B. Process of making a dictionary.

C. Development of language. D. Experience of editing new words.

3.阅读理解

I love our kitchen. It's one of the most used parts of our home. About 9 years ago we updated our kitchen and

got all new collections. At the time I didn't really do a lot of research on the functions of the equipment and I

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really wish I had. There were so many different choices on the market and I ended up buying some that I didn't

really like all that much and now that it's time to update them again, I'll be more careful with the ones I choose.

I've had my eye on KitchenAid for a while, especially the new KitchenAid equipment at BestBuy. The new

KitchenAid equipment at Best Buy has a cook-like quality without the premium price that you might expect to

pay, so it won't cost you a fortune. The equipment has a professionally inspired design that is a perfect balance

of good taste and functionality.

With the new KitchenAid equipment you will find cooking more optional and flexible, which contributes to

your amazing performance while preparing a meal. Its five-door fridge offers organized storage and easier access

to food.

I love these new collections and I can't think of a better time to update your kitchen than right now, because

when you buy now at Best Buy you will get 18 months financing or 5% rewards on major equipment and free

delivery on purchases over $399. To learn more about how to transform your kitchen with the new KitchenAid

collections, be sure to visit .

（1）What is the author's regret for her last update of the kitchen?

A. She didn't buy the latest equipment.

B. She spent little time studying how they work.

C. She purchased something she didn't like at all.

D. She didn't make full use of the kitchen.

（2）The underlined word "premium" in paragraph 2 can best be replaced by _____.

A. favorable B. reasonable C. high D. special

（3）Why is the author most impressed by the products of KitchenAid equipment?

A. They can save electricity. B. The fridge has a large storage.

C. The price is very low. D. They make cooking easy.

（4）What is the purpose of this text?

A. To recommend some kitchen equipment. B. To introduce a website.

C. To compare prices of some goods. D. To describe a fridge.

4.阅读理解

We all know that listening to music can soothe emotional pain, but Taylor Swift, Jay-Z and Alicia Keys can also

ease physical pain, according to a study of children and teenagers who had major surgery.

The research was carried out because of a very personal experience. Sunitha Suresh was a college student

when her grandmother had major surgery and was put in intensive care (重症监护). This meant her family

couldn't always be with her. They decided to put her favorite music on an iPod so she could listen around the

clock.

It was very calming, Suresh says. “She knew that someone who loved her had left that music for her and she

was in a familiar place.”

Suresh could see that the music relaxed her grandmother and made her feel less anxious, but she wondered if

she also felt less pain. That would make sense, because anxiety can make people more sensitive to pain. At the

time Suresh was majoring in biomedical engineering with a minor (兼修) in music cognition (认知) at

Northwestern University where her father, Santhanam Suresh, is a professor of pediatrics (儿科).

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So the father and daughter decided to do a study. And since Dr Suresh works with children, they decided to

look at how music chosen by the children themselves might affect their tolerance for pain.

It was a small study, involving 60 patients between 9 and 14 years old. All the patients were undergoing big

operations that required them to stay in the hospital for at least a couple of days. Right after surgery, patients

received narcotics (麻醉药) to control pain. The next day they were divided into three groups. One group heard

30 minutes of music of their choice, one heard 30 minutes of stories of their choice and one listened to 30

minutes of silence via noise canceling headphones.

After a 30-minute session, the children who listened to music or books reduced their pain burden by 1 point

on a 10-point scale. Sunitha Suresh says it's equal to taking an over-the-counter pain medication like Advil or

Tylenol.

The findings suggest that doctors may be able to use less pain medication for their pediatric patients. And

that's a good thing, says Santhanam Suresh, as children are smaller and are more likely to suffer side effects. So

the less pain medication, he says, the better.

（1）What does the underlined word “soothe” in Paragraph 1 mean?

A. reduce B. influence C. stop D. ignore

（2）What inspired Sunitha Suresh to do the research on the effects of music?

A. Her father's study into music cognition. B. Her grandmother's experience of recovery.

C. A book that claims anxiety can reduce pain. D. Her desire to find a way to help patients relieve pain.

（3）During the research, all the participants _______.

A. were under twelve years old B. received narcotics to control pain after big operations

C. were required to stay in the hospital for a couple of months D. were divided into 3 groups to listen to

the same music

（4）What did Suresh and her father find out from their research?

A. Listening to books didn't reduce the children's pain burden at all. B. Music was even more effective

than pain medication for the children.

C. Listening to music did reduce the children's pain burden to a great extent. D. The longer the children

listened to music, the less pain they felt.

（5）The findings are especially important for children because ________.

A. they are more sensitive to music than adults B. they can easily get addicted to pain medication

C. they usually don't like taking pain medication D. they are more likely to suffer side effects of pain

medication

5.阅读理解

There are lots of insects that farmers hate. But there also are some they like. They protect crops against

damage from other insects. A good example is the lady beetle, which is also known as the ladybug(瓢虫)．

Lady beetles are a natural control for aphids(蚜虫). Lady beetles are red, orange or black. They often have

black spots, though some have light colored spots. Different kinds of lady beetles have different numbers of

spots. There are lady beetles with four, five, seven and fourteen spots.

Many of the well-known kinds of lady beetles come from Asia or Europe. They now are common throughout

the United States.

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American scientists imported one kind of lady beetle, the multicolored Asian lady beetle, as early as 1916.

They released them as an attempt to control some kinds of insects. Over the years, the beetle has become

established, possibly helped by some that arrived with imported plants on ships.

Experts say over 450 kinds of lady beetles are found in North America. Some are native to the area. Others

have been brought from other places. Almost all are helpful to farmers.

The Asian lady beetles now in the United States probably came from Japan. The Asian lady beetle eats aphids

that damage crops like soybeans, fruits and berries.

In the southern United States, Asian lady beetles have reduced the need for farmers to use reskilling poisons

on pecan trees. This popular tree nut suffers from aphids and other pests that the lady beetles eat.

But some people say the Asian lady beetle has itself become a pest. They worry that the lady beetles may eat

their late autumn fruit crops.

Experts say Asian lady beetles may appear in large numbers in some years. But they say the insects are too

helpful to be considered as pests.

（1）What do ladybugs look like?

A. All kinds of ladybugs are of the same color. B. Most of them are red, orange or black.

C. They each have the same number of spots on them. D. Most of them have fourteen spots.

（2）Asian ladybugs have been in the United States for______.

A. nine decades B. hundreds of years C. half a century D. a century

（3）According to the passage the following statements are supported EXCEPT________.

A. there are more than 450 kinds of ladybugs in North America, including native ones B. only some

imported ladybugs are helpful to the local plants

C. soybeans, fruits and berries are favorites of aphids. D. pecan trees are common in the south of America

（4）According to the experts, ladybugs are________.

A. more helpful than considered as pets B. more pests than helpful insects

C. helpful as well as destructive D. are more destructive than helpful

6.阅读理解

Physics is a different world now. Will there ever be another Einstein?

Scientists say a new Einstein will appear, but it may take a long time. After all, more than 200 years separated

Einstein from his nearest rival (对手) , Isaac Newton. Many physicists say the next Einstein hasn't been born yet,

or is only a baby now. That's because the searching for a unified(统一的) theory that would explain all the forces

of nature has pushed current mathematics to its limits. New math must be created before the problem can be

solved.

But researchers say there are many other factors working against another Einstein appearing anytime soon.

For one thing, physics is quite a different field today. In Einstein's day, there were a few thousand physicists

worldwide, and fewer theoreticians. Education is different, too. One extremely important aspect of Einstein's

training that failed to be considered is the philosophy he read as a teenager. It taught him how to think

theoretically about space and time.

And he was a skilled musician. The interplay between music and math is well known. Einstein would fiercely

play his violin as a way to think through a knotty physics problem.

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Today, universities have produced millions of physicists. There aren't many jobs in science for them, so they

go to Wall Street and Silicon Valley to apply their analytical skills to more practical and rewarding efforts.

Besides, those who stay in science don't work alone. It's very difficult to imagine an independent person like

Einstein ever tolerating this.

（1）Which of the following best explains the reason that the next Einstein hasn't been born yet?

A. Education today doesn't pay enough attention to philosophy teaching. B. We don't know who will be

another Einstein among newly-born babies.

C. There were more physicists in Einstein's time than today. D. Math today is limited and cannot help the

further development of physics.

（2）One of the reasons that made Einstein a great scientist is _________.

A. the philosophy he read in his teens B. the lack of physicists in his day

C. the knowledge learnt from Isaac Newton D. his decision of not working at Wall Street

（3）The underlined word “knotty” here probably means________.

A. interesting and useful B. important and meaningful

C. difficult and puzzling D. realistic and hard

（4）From Paragraphs 3 and 4, how many reasons does the writer give to explain that another Einstein hasn't

appeared?

A. One. B. Two. C. Three. D. Four.

7.阅读理解

For many people who live in cities, parks are an important landscape. They provide a place for people to relax

and play sports, as well as a shelter from the often severe environment of a city. What people often overlook is

that parks also provide considerable environmental benefits.

One benefit of parks is that plants absorb carbon dioxide and give off oxygen. According to one study, an acre

of trees can absorb the same amount of carbon dioxide that a typical car emits in 11,000 miles of driving. Parks

also make cities cooler. Scientists have long noted what is called the Urban Heat Island Effect: building materials

such as metal and concrete (混凝土) absorb much more of the sun's heat and release it much more quickly than

trees and grass. Because city landscapes contain so much of these building materials, cities are usually warmer

than surrounding rural areas. Parks and other green spaces help to lessen the Urban Heat Island Effect.

Unfortunately, many cities cannot easily create more parks. However, cities could benefit from many of the

positive effects of parks by encouraging citizens to create another type of green space: rooftop gardens. While

most people would not think of starting a garden on their roof, human beings have been planting gardens on

rooftops for thousands of years. Some rooftop gardens are simple container gardens that anyone can create

with the investment (投资) of a few hundred dollars and a few hours of work.

Rooftop gardens provide many of the same benefits as other urban parks and garden spaces, but without

taking up the much-needed land. In the summer, rooftop gardens prevent buildings from absorbing heat from

the sun, which can significantly reduce cooling bills. In the winter, gardens help control the heat that materials

like brick and concrete release so quickly, leading to savings on heating bills. Rooftop vegetables and herb

gardens can also provide fresh food for city settlers, making their diets healthier. Rooftop gardens are not only

something everyone can enjoy but also a smart environmental investment.

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（1）The underlined word “emits” in the second paragraph probably means _________.

A. takes up B. gives out C. carries away D. breathes in

（2）Which of the following contributes to the Urban Heat Island Effect?

A. More rooftop gardens. B. More trees and grass.

C. More parking lots. D. More building materials.

（3）When it comes to rooftop gardens, what can be inferred from the passage?

A. They make people much happier. B. They provide more benefits from urban parks.

C. They help to save money and keep a healthy diet. D. They have become very popular in recent years.

（4）What's the author's attitude towards rooftop gardens?

A. Supportive. B. Doubtful. C. Critical. D. Objective.

8.阅读理解

A team of engineers at Harvard University has been inspired by Nature to create the first robotic fly. The

mechanical fly has become a platform for a series of new high-tech integrated systems. Designed to do what a

fly does naturally, the tiny machine is the size of a fat housefly. Its mini wings allow it to stay in the air and

perform controlled flight tasks.

“It's extremely important for us to think about this as a whole system and not just the sum of a bunch of

individual components (元件),” said Robert Wood, the Harvard engineering professor who has been working on

the robotic fly project for over a decade. A few years ago, his team got the go-ahead to start piecing together the

components. “The added difficulty with a project like this is that actually none of those components are off the

shelf and so we have to develop them all on our own,” he said.

They engineered a series of systems to start and drive the robotic fly. “The seemingly simple system which

just moves the wings has a number of interdependencies on the individual components, each of which

individually has to perform well, but then has to be matched well to everything it's connected to,” said Wood.

The flight device was built into a set of power, computation, sensing and control systems. Wood says the success

of the project proves that the flying robot with these tiny components can be built and manufactured.

While this first robotic flyer is linked to a small, off-board power source, the goal is eventually to equip it with

a built-in power source, so that it might someday perform data-gathering work at rescue sites, in farmers' fields

or on the battlefield. “Basically it should be able to take off, land and fly around,” he said.

Wood says the design offers a new way to study flight mechanics and control at insect-scale. Yet, the power,

sensing and computation technologies on board could have much broader applications. “You can start thinking

about using them to answer open scientific questions, you know, to study biology in ways that would be difficult

with the animals, but using these robots instead,” he said. “So there are a lot of technologies and open

interesting scientific questions that are really what drives us on a day to day basis.”

（1）The robotic fly project has been conducted __________.

A. just by accident B. within a decade

C. just by a professor D. for more than ten years

（2）The difficulty the team of engineers met with while making the robotic fly was that __________.

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A. they had no model in their mind B. they did not have sufficient time

C. they had no ready-made components D. they could not assemble the components

（3）Which of the following can be learned from the passage?

A. The robotic flyer is designed to learn about insects.

B. Animals are not allowed in biological experiments.

C. There used to be few ways to study how insects fly.

D. Wood's design can replace animals in some experiments.

（4）Which of the following might be the best title of the passage?

A. Father of Robotic Fly B. Inspiration from Engineering Science

C. Robotic Fly Imitates Real Life Insect D. Harvard Breaks Through in Insect Study

9.阅读理解

On a college camping trip, curiosity about waves and sand caused Rob Thieler to study shorelines around the

world. Thirty years later and now a U.S. Geological Survey research geologist, Thieler, is combining science and

smartphone technology to help study an endangered bird, the Atlantic Coast piping plover.

The piping plover is a shorebird that breeds（繁殖）along the Atlantic Coast, the Great Lakesand the Great

Plains. Rising sea levels associated with climate change, as well as increased development in their beach habitats（栖息地）, threaten the species（物种）. To help track changes in piping plover habitats, Thieler developed a

free app called iPlover in 2012. This is a marked change from the typical way scientists collect data, which

involves gathering information using specialized equipment or writing in notebooks and then putting into

spreadsheets.

Since releasing iPlover, scientists have gathered data across 1500 km of breeding range. Thatequals about a

third of the distance across the U.S., which is a large area to cover for only two thousand breeding pairs of piping

plovers on the east coast. Instead of having to travel and spend days at each site, a number of cooperators in the

field use the app to collect and send data, allowing scientists to gather data more efficiently. It also allows them

to collect data at the same time during each breeding season, providing a better picture of changes that happen

over longer periods of time. And fast, centralized access means scientists can look at data quickly to get a

real-time idea of where and how piping plovers are using their habitats.

While iPlover is used by trained field staff, other apps like the U. S. Geological Survey'sweb-based

“iCoast—Did the Coast Change?” invite citizen scientists to identify coastal changes by comparing

bird's-eye-view photographs taken before and after storms. All the information scientists and citizen scientists

alike collect helps federal and state agencies create policyplans for addressing climate change impacts (影响)

worldwide.

（1）What can we know about the piping plover?

A. Its behaviour is changing. B. Its habitat is growing bigger.

C. Its living environment is becoming worse. D. Its breeding is limited to the Atlantic Coast.

（2）Why did Thieler develop iPlover?

A. To study shorelines across America. B. To advance information technology.

C. To find out global climate change. D. To monitor changes of piping plover habitats.

（3）Which of the following benefits the shorebirds?

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A. The camping equipment. B. Research on smartphones.

C. The changeable coast. D. Progress in technology.

（4）What would be the best title of the text?

A. Protecting Endangered Shorebirds B. Rob Thieler, a Creative Scientist

C. IPlover, Tool for Training Field Staff D. Differences Between IPlover and ICoast

10.阅读理解

When someone is happy, can you smell it?

You can usually tell when someone is happy based on seeing them smile, hearing them laugh or perhaps from

receiving a big hug. But can you also smell their happiness? Surprising new research suggests that happiness

does indeed have a scent, and that the experience of happiness can be transmitted through smell, reports

.

For the study, 12 young men were shown videos meant to bring about a variety of emotions while

researchers gathered sweat samples from them. All of the men were healthy and none of them were drug users

or smokers, and all were asked to abstain from drinking or eating smelly foods during the study period.

Those sweat samples were then given to 36 equally healthy young women to smell, while researchers

monitored their reactions. Only women were selected to smell the samples, apparently because previous

research has shown that women have a better sense of smell than men and are also more sensitive to emotional

signaling—though it's unclear why only men were chosen to produce the scents.

Researchers found that the behavior of the women after smelling the scents—particularly their facial

expressions—indicated a relationship between the emotional states of the men who produced the sweat and

the women who sniffed them.

“Human sweat produced when a person is happy brings about a state similar to happiness in somebody who

breathes this smell,” said study co-author Gun Semin, a professor at Koc University in Turkey.

This is a fascinating finding because it not only means that happiness does have a scent, but that the scent is

capable of transmitting the emotion to others. The study also found that other emotions, such as fear, seem to

carry a scent too. This ensures previous research suggesting that some negative emotions have a smell, but it is

the first time this has proved to be true of positive feelings.

Researchers have yet to isolate(分离) exactly what the chemical compound for the happiness smell is, but

you might imagine what the potential applications for such a finding could be. Happiness perfumes, for instance,

could be invented. Scent therapies（香味疗法）could also be developed to help people through depression or

anxiety.

Perhaps the most surprising result of the study, however, is our broadened understanding of how emotions

get communicated, and also how our own emotions are potentially managed through our social context and the

emotional states of those around us.

（1）What is the main finding of the new research?

A. Pleasant feelings can be smelt out. B. Negative emotions have a smell.

C. Men produce more sweats. D. Women have a better sense of smell.

（2）The underlined part “abstain from” in Paragraph 3 probably means _________.

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A. continue B. practice C. avoid D. try

（3）What is the application value of the new research?

A. Perfumes could help people understand each other.

B. Some smells could be created to improve our appearance.

C. Perfumes could be produced to cure physical diseases.

D. Some smells could be developed to better our mood.

（4）We can learn from the last paragraph that .

A. happiness comes from a scent of sweat

B. social surroundings can influence our emotions

C. people need more emotional communication

D. positive energy can deepen understanding

答案

1.

（1）B（2）D（3）C（4）A 2.

（1）C（2）D（3）C（4）A

3.

（1）B（2）C（3）D（4）A 4.

（1）A（2）B（3）B（4）C（5）D

5.

（1）B（2）A（3）B（4）A 6.

（1）D（2）A（3）C（4）C

7.

（1）B（2）D（3）C（4）A 8.

（1）D（2）C（3）D（4）C

9.

（1）C（2）D（3）D（4）A 10.

（1）A（2）C（3）B（4）D

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