A new paper published in Environmental Research Letters has some warning news for people living in the lower 48 states: You may be at risk from river flooding and not even know it until the water starts to rise.
In fact, the study, estimates of present and future flood risk in the United States, found that 41 million U. S. residents are at risk from flooding along rivers. That’s three times more than current estimates based on the flood maps produced by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) , which primarily maps the areas at risk for 1-in-100-year floods in populous (人口众多的) river basins.
Why does the big difference come into being? As always, it’s all about the data. Generally, FEMA prioritizes risk-assessment areas based on their population; reserving expensive field-work methodologies (研究方法) for the more populous river basins, but many other rivers have not yet been mapped at all.
The size of the USA means that flood maps made in this way are incomplete. It would be too expensive and time-consuming to survey every river basin in America. The national-scale flood maps produced by FEMA leave the flood risk of many parts of the country unaccounted for.
For this research, scientists from The Nature Conservancy adopted a pioneering methodology that avoids the defects of the FEMA approach, where individual catchments (流域) are studied by making use of big data. The study used a new high-resolution model, produced by the flood-mapping organization Fathom, which copies floods on all rivers across the entire continental United States.
“We were all surprised by how many people are actually exposed to freshwater flooding in the USA,” said Oliver Wing, lead researcher on the study and a PhD student at the University of Bristol. “It’s particularly worrisome considering that most of these people aren’t even aware of the risk they face. This study helps fill that critical information gap.”
1.What did the new paper intend to tell readers?
A.The mistakes made by FEMA.
B.The serious situation of the flood.
C.The populous river basins of the USA.
D.The unseen risk of the flood in the USA.
2.Why is the map produced by FEMA incomplete?
A.It’s dangerous to research all the rivers.
B.The size of the USA is too big.
C.It ignores less populous rivers.
D.The efficiency of making it is low.
3.What does the underlined word “defects” in paragraph 5 mean?
A.Shortcomings. B.Potential.
C.Consumption. D.Contributions.
4.What attitude does Oliver Wing have to the study?
A.Critical. B.Supportive.
C.Cautious. D.Uncaring.
高二英语阅读理解中等难度题
A new paper published in Environmental Research Letters has some warning news for people living in the lower 48 states: You may be at risk from river flooding and not even know it until the water starts to rise.
In fact, the study, estimates of present and future flood risk in the United States, found that 41 million U. S. residents are at risk from flooding along rivers. That’s three times more than current estimates based on the flood maps produced by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) , which primarily maps the areas at risk for 1-in-100-year floods in populous (人口众多的) river basins.
Why does the big difference come into being? As always, it’s all about the data. Generally, FEMA prioritizes risk-assessment areas based on their population; reserving expensive field-work methodologies (研究方法) for the more populous river basins, but many other rivers have not yet been mapped at all.
The size of the USA means that flood maps made in this way are incomplete. It would be too expensive and time-consuming to survey every river basin in America. The national-scale flood maps produced by FEMA leave the flood risk of many parts of the country unaccounted for.
For this research, scientists from The Nature Conservancy adopted a pioneering methodology that avoids the defects of the FEMA approach, where individual catchments (流域) are studied by making use of big data. The study used a new high-resolution model, produced by the flood-mapping organization Fathom, which copies floods on all rivers across the entire continental United States.
“We were all surprised by how many people are actually exposed to freshwater flooding in the USA,” said Oliver Wing, lead researcher on the study and a PhD student at the University of Bristol. “It’s particularly worrisome considering that most of these people aren’t even aware of the risk they face. This study helps fill that critical information gap.”
1.What did the new paper intend to tell readers?
A.The mistakes made by FEMA.
B.The serious situation of the flood.
C.The populous river basins of the USA.
D.The unseen risk of the flood in the USA.
2.Why is the map produced by FEMA incomplete?
A.It’s dangerous to research all the rivers.
B.The size of the USA is too big.
C.It ignores less populous rivers.
D.The efficiency of making it is low.
3.What does the underlined word “defects” in paragraph 5 mean?
A.Shortcomings. B.Potential.
C.Consumption. D.Contributions.
4.What attitude does Oliver Wing have to the study?
A.Critical. B.Supportive.
C.Cautious. D.Uncaring.
高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
Research by Scotland Yard published in a London newspaper, has proven that knife crime in London is a serious non – white phenomenon, with 165 of the 225 under- 18s accused of knife crime in the past three months being from the black or other non – white groups．
According to Scotland Yard, only 60 of the 225 crimes were white．Despite being a small minority of the knife holding criminals, whites did, however, make up the single largest group of victims of knife crime．
According to the Scotland Yard report, whites made up 222 of the 637 victims of knife crime over the last three months．This number could probably be higher, as 292 victims were not identified by race．
This month Scotland Yard Deputy Commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson suggested knife crime has replaced drug selling as the top concern for London police．
Sir Paul said so as he announced a specialist knife crime unit to deal with teenagers carrying knives in the capital．It will use a team of 75 specialist officers to find criminal group members and their supporters．
Detective Inspector, George Rhoden, president of the National Organisation of Black Law Enforcement Executives said, “In the black community we have all noticed that there is major concern about gun and knife crime．Clearly we are not the only part of the community affected by the problem of children who have no fathers, but parental responsibility should be of major concern.”
Around 59 percent of black Caribbean children and 54 percent of mixed – race youngsters are looked after by a lone parent．In the white British population, the number is 22 percent．
1.From the above, we can see that ________in knife crimes in London．
A．there are more whites than blacks as victims
B．there are more blacks than whites as victims
C．blacks make up the smallest group of criminals
D．blacks make up the second largest group of criminals
2.What Sir Paul Stephenson said suggests that________．
A．drug selling has replaced knife crime as the top concern for London police
B．drug selling had been the top concern for London police in the past
C．knife crime used to be the top concern for London police
D．London police now pay no attention to drug selling
3.What measure has the government taken to deal with the problem of knife crime?
A．Punishing the parents of teenagers carrying knives．
B．Arresting the teenagers carrying knives．
C．Forming a specialist knife crime unit．
D．Fining the teenagers carrying knives．
4.According to George Rhoden, which of the following factors contributes to so many young blacks turning to crime?
A．That they are poorly educated．
B．That they are influenced by their fathers．
C．That many of them come from incomplete families．
D．That their parents are too busy to take care of them．
高二英语阅读理解简单题查看答案及解析
A nice warm cup of tea a day might keep glaucoma (青光眼) at bay,according to new research published in the British Journal of Ophthalmology.
Risk of developing glaucoma — one of the leading causes of blindness around the world that currently affects nearly 58 million people — might be lowered by drinking hot tea daily. The disease causes fluid to build up inside the eye that puts pressure onto the optic nerve (视神经). Previous research said that caffeine (咖啡因) might prevent this build-up but the new findings showed that drinking decaffeinated and caffeinated coffee, iced caffeinated tea and caffeinated sodas had no effect on glaucoma risk.
In the new study, researchers looked at the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey for the 2005 — 2006 year of 10,000 adults and children. The data is from interviews with the patients, their physical exams and blood tests. That specific year also included eye tests for glaucoma in 1678 adults and showed that about 5% had the disease. Those patients were asked how many caffeinated and decaffeinated drinks they consumed during that year and how often. The results of the questionnaire showed that those who drank hot tea daily were 74% less likely to develop glaucoma than their peers who didn’t.
“Tea has long been recognized to have various chemicals that contribute to lowering the risk of heart disease, cancer and diabetes,” the researchers said. But further study is needed to determine if things like the size of the cup,type of tea and length of brew (冲泡) time influence the results.
1.What can we learn about glaucoma?
A. It can be cured by drinking hot tea daily.
B. It is a great threat to people’s eyesight.
C. It affects nearly 58 million people yearly.
D. It is caused by too much pressure on the eyes.
2.What did previous research find?
A. Drinking coffee reduces glaucoma risk.
B. Iced tea has no effect on glaucoma risk.
C. Caffeine does good to glaucoma patients.
D. Caffeine causes fluid to build up in the eyes.
3.How was the new study carried out?
A. By interviewing patients.
B. By testing participants’ eyes.
C. By handing out questionnaires.
D. By studying data from previous studies.
4.What does the underlined phrase “those patients” in Paragraph 3 refer to?
A. The 10,000 adults. B. The 1,678 adults.
C. The 5% adults. D. The 74% adults.
高二英语阅读理解困难题查看答案及解析
In a paper published in the journey Science Advance, researchers describe how Matabele ants, a species of large ant known for attacking termite colonies (白蚁群落), will, after the battle, pick up injured fellow soldiers and carry them back to the nest where they can recover.
The paper is the latest in a growing body of research that this form of helping behavior, previously observed in some mammals and birds, may not require complex emotion, and may, therefore, be far more widespread in nature than previously thought.
“Here we have an example of an individual saving another individual,” says lead researcher Erik Frank who conducted the research. “We can be quite certain that the ants don’t know why they are doing what they are doing.”
It’s a behavior that pays off for the colony. Our classic conception of worker ants is that they are essentially abandoned, but Mr. Frank and his colleagues calculated that the practice of rescuing nest mates results in a colony size that is a 28.7 percent larger than it would be had the ants left their fellow soldiers for dead.
“These injured ants are able to recover from their injuries, ” says Frank. “They are essential for the safety and the betterment of the colony. ”
When a Matabele ant is injured, as often happens during battles with termites, its body will give off two smelly chemicals that tell other ants to carry it back to the nest. Indeed, the researchers found that using these chemicals to seek help from uninjured ants will effectively activate the rescue behavior, supporting their theory that the ants were acting on pure instinct(本能), not more complex emotions.
“The more we study rescue behavior in ants and other animals, the more we are going to realize that it’s not just limited to the species we’ve observed so far, ” says Karen Hollis, a professor at Mount Holyoke College, mentioning studies that found that dolphins help other injured dolphins to the surface for air, capuchin monkeys defend each other during intergroup battles, and rats free other rats that are trapped.
1.What does Frank say about Matabele ants’ helping behavior?
A. It proves they can feel sympathy. B. It exists only in some individuals.
C. It happens only termite colonies. D. It is something they were born with
2.How will the helping behavior benefit the ants?
A. It will expand the size of the colony.
B. It will help them catch more termites.
C. It will improve their fighting abilities.
D. It will help them escape enemies’ attacks.
3.How can Matabele ants know one needs rescuing?
A. Through its special noise. B. Though the smell of its blood.
C. Through its chemical signals. D. Though the search after a battle
4.What is the main purpose of the text?
A. To promote research on ants. B. To describe termites’ battles.
C. To introduce a new species. D. To report a research result
高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
1.It is a new term in today’s tourism industry. But in an age of growing environmental awareness, it is not too difficult for us to imagine and understand this new form of holiday.
Ecotourism, which is considered as a kind of responsible tourism, is typically defined as travel to places where special and unusual plants, animals and cultural heritages are the main attractions.2.Therefore, some natural and cultural spots also form a part of ecotourism.
Ecotourism is developing at great speed. According to a recent report by the World Tourism Organization, ecotourism in recent years has enjoyed an annual growth of about 5% worldwide.3.They included bird watching, hiking, diving, photography and taking part in various kinds of local cultural events.
4.However, it looks like some smaller towns and country areas may well become the new destinations for people to visit tomorrow because they are rich in ecological, cultural and historical resource.
Ecotourism has been gaining increasing recognition and popularity mainly for the relaxing, natural and vivid experience it offers to tourists. People are attracted to nature and long to be close to it. However, a conflict between nature and human beings is unavoidable.5..
A. The definition of ecotourism is beyond words.
B. It takes ecology and culture into consideration.
C. You may not be very familiar with “ecotourism”.
D. More than 80 activities have been listed for ecotourism.
E. People can have great fun enjoying nature through ecotourism.
F. Big cities are still the major places that attract tourists in our society today.
G How to protect natural resources while taking advantage of them is of great importance.
高二英语其他题简单题查看答案及解析
Researchers in Britain are driving the environmental movement to a new level. A team from the University of Warwick has built what it calls the world’s first completely environmentally friendly Formula Three racing car.
The car is made mainly of renewable materials, like plants and vegetables. The structure around the car is made from natural plant fibers and potatoes. The steering wheel(方向盘) is made from root vegetables like carrots. The engine uses bio-fuel made from vegetable oil and waste chocolate.
The new racing car is extremely fast. The car has a top speed of two hundred fifteen kilometers an hour. And it can go from zero to ninety-five kilometers an hour in just two and a half seconds. The racing car meets all of the Formula Three racing requirements except for its biodiesel(生物柴油) engine.
Automobile racing is one of the most widely watched sports in the world. But it is also considered one of the least friendly sports to the environment. Racing cars burn a lot of fuel, and create a lot of air pollution. In recent years, the racing industry has taken steps to protect the environment. More racing companies are now producing cars that use less energy. These cars produce less pollution than cars that depend on traditional fuel, like gasoline.
Last month, the new racing car was set to run in its first competitive race at the Formula Three Championship Final at Brands Hatch. It would have been the first biodiesel-powered car to race at Formula Three. Current Formula Three rules let only gasoline-powered car to compete. Officials needed permission from all of the Formula Three racers for the biodiesel-powered car to compete. They were unable to contact one of the drivers, so the new racing car didn’t appear in the event. In test runs, the new racing car was the fifth fastest among the Formula Three race cars. Supporters are hoping to have the fuel problem solved in time to compete in the next season.
1.. What’s the second paragraph mainly about?
A. What materials the new racing car is made of.
B. Why researchers built the new racing car.
C. The characteristics of the new racing car.
D. The process of the new racing car being designed.
2..According to the passage, the _________ of the new racing car doesn’t meet the Formula Three racing
requirements.
A. speed B. appearance C. weight D. engine
3.. It can be inferred from the passage that __________.
A. the new racing car is the first environmentally friendly car
B. automobile racing could be forbidden in the near future
C. many people like to watch automobile racing
D. the new racing car will be allowed to compete in the next season of Formula Three racing
4.. In recent years, racing companies are producing cars that __________.
A. burn more fuel B. go more quickly
C. produce less pollution D. cost less money
5..Why didn’t the new racing car compete at the Formula Three Championship Final last month?
A. Because the new racing car still needs testing.
B. Because officials needed each racer’s permission but failed to contact one.
C. Because there’re some technical problems to be solved.
D. Because few drivers think it is fast enough.
高二英语阅读理解简单题查看答案及解析
A new research has uncovered that culture is a determining factor when interpreting facial emotions．The study reveals that in cultures where emotional control is the standard，such as Japan，focus is placed on the eyes to interpret emotions．Whereas in cultures where emotion is openly expressed，such as the United States，the focus is on the mouth to interpret emotion．
“These findings go against the popular theory that the facial expressions of basic emotions can be universally recognized，”said University of Alberta researcher Dr．Takahiko Masuda．“A person's culture plays a very strong role in determining how they will read emotions and needs to be considered when interpreting facial expression．"
These cultural differences are even noticeable in computer emoticons (情感符号)，which are used to convey a writer’s emotions over email and text messaging．The Japanese emoticons for happiness and sadness vary in terms of how the eyes are drawn，while American emoticons vary with the direction of the mouth．In the United States the emoticons ：) and ：--) show a happy face，whereas the emoticons ：( or ：--( show a sad face．However，Japanese tend to use the symbol (＾-＾) to indicate a happy face，and ( ；_；) to indicate a sad face．
“We think it is quite interesting and appropriate that a culture tends to mask its emotions． The Japanese would focus on a person's eyes when determining emotion，as eyes tend to be quite subtle (微妙的)，”said Masuda．“In the United States, where open emotion is quite common，it makes sense to focus on the mouth, which is the most expressive feature on a person's face．”
60．The text mainly tells us that______．
A. cultural differences are expressed in emotions
B. culture is the key to interpreting facial emotions
C. different emoticons are preferred in different cultures，
D．people from different cultures express emotions differently
61．If a Japanese wants to detect whether a smile is, true or false，he will probably______．
A. read the whole face B. focus on the mouth
C. look into the eyes D. judge by the voice
62．People used to believe that___________．
A．some facial expressions of emotions were too complex to be recognized
B．people in the world interpreted basic emotions in different ways
C．people could only recognize the facial expressions of basic emotions；
D．people all’ over the world understood basic emotions in the same way
63．The computer emoticons used by the Americans show that_____________．
A．they express their feelings openly
B．they tend to control their emotions
C．they are good at conveying their emotions
D．they use simpler emoticons to show their feelings
高二英语阅读理解简单题查看答案及解析
A new research has uncovered that culture is a determining factor when interpreting facial emotions．The study reveals that in cultures where emotional control is the standard，such as Japan，focus is placed on the eyes to interpret emotions．Whereas in cultures where emotion is openly expressed，such as the United States，the focus is on the mouth to interpret emotion．
“These findings go against the popular theory that the facial expressions of basic emotions can be universally recognized，”said University of Alberta researcher Dr．Takahiko Masuda．“A person's culture plays a very strong role in determining how they will read emotions and needs to be considered when interpreting facial expression．"
These cultural differences are even noticeable in computer emoticons (情感符号)，which are used to convey a writer’s emotions over email and text messaging．The Japanese emoticons for happiness and sadness vary in terms of how the eyes are drawn，while American emoticons vary with the direction of the mouth．In the United States the emoticons ：) and ：--) show a happy face，whereas the emoticons ：( or ：--( show a sad face．However，Japanese tend to use the symbol (＾-＾) to indicate a happy face，and ( ；_；) to indicate a sad face．
“We think it is quite interesting and appropriate that a culture tends to mask its emotions． The Japanese would focus on a person's eyes when determining emotion，as eyes tend to be quite subtle (微妙的)，”said Masuda．“In the United States, where open emotion is quite common，it makes sense to focus on the mouth, which is the most expressive feature on a person's face．”
1.The text mainly tells us that______．
A. cultural differences are expressed in emotions
B. culture is the key to interpreting facial emotions
C. different emoticons are preferred in different cultures，
D．people from different cultures express emotions differently
2.If a Japanese wants to detect whether a smile is, true or false，he will probably______．
A. read the whole face B. focus on the mouth
C. look into the eyes D. judge by the voice
3.People used to believe that___________．
A．some facial expressions of emotions were too complex to be recognized
B．people in the world interpreted basic emotions in different ways
C．people could only recognize the facial expressions of basic emotions；
D．people all’ over the world understood basic emotions in the same way
4.The computer emoticons used by the Americans show that_____________．
A．they express their feelings openly
B．they tend to control their emotions
C．they are good at conveying their emotions
D．they use simpler emoticons to show their feelings
高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
New research has found that animals have memories, too — , they might be much cleverer than we thought.
A. in other words B. above all
C. in many ways D. all in all
高二英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析
Parents are often amazed at how fast their child grows and develops. New research has determined that the ability to quantify may develop much sooner than most parents realize.
Kristy Vanmarle, professor of the University of Missouri, has determined that contrary to what previous studies have shown, infants（婴儿）are able to quantify substances（物质）—like sand or water—as early as 10 months. As long as the difference between the two substances is large enough, infants will choose the larger amount, especially when it comes to food.
With the assistance of her team researchers, Vanmarle tested the quantifying skills of babies by presenting them with two cups: one containing a small amount of food, and one containing a larger amount. Consistently, the babies chose the larger amount.
“Several studies throughout the last 15 years have shown that infants are very good at telling how many objects they see; however, infants don’t seem to count things like water or sand,” Vanmarle said. “What we’re saying is that they can quantify substances; it’s just much harder. The infants can see how much food goes into each cup and compare that in their memories. They decide which amount is larger, and they almost always select the larger one.”
“This information further refutes（驳斥）the long-held idea that babies know nothing of the world,” Vanmarle said.
“Since psychologists have begun studying infants with sensitive measures, we’ve discovered a lot of early abilities. I think for parents, it should be exciting to know that there’s somebody in there that has some fundamental and basic knowledge of the world, and that knowledge is guiding their development,” Vanmarle said.
In the future, Vanmarle says this kind of study could be linked to a child’s progress in math-related skills, although programs marketed to increase those abilities, such as “Baby Einstein,” still have mixed reviews when it comes to academic study.
1. The quantifying ability refers to the ability to ________.
A. choose between different substances B. describe the quantity of something
C. get much knowledge of the world D. obtain math-related skills
2. What is mainly talked about in Paragraph 4?
A. The process of doing research. B. The final choice of infants.
C. The scientific findings. D. The observation of infants’ behavior.
3. Babies choose the larger amount of food ________.
A. through their natural abilities B. with the help of parents
C. on personal preference D. by saying numbers
4.We can learn from the text that ________.
A. some parents don’t care about their kids
B. scholars disagree on baby-training programs
C. little research has been done on infants
D. people used to think the world is known to babies
5.What’s the best title of the text?
A. Unique Quantifying Methods B. Amazing Baby-training Ideas
C. Early Human Abilities D. Breakthrough in Baby Studies
高二英语阅读理解简单题查看答案及解析