Antarctica is known for being a vast land of ice and snow, a place too cold for most life. Despite this, the continent is slowly starting to turn warm. According to the Guardian, the Antarctic has registered a new high temperature for the first time on record, prompting fears of climate instability in the world's iciest place.
On Feb 9, Brazilian researchers at Seymour Island reported a temperature of 20.75℃ on the icy continent of Antarctica. It was almost a full degree higher than the previous re- cord of 19. 8℃ , taken on Signy Island in January 1982.
This record — breaking reading was taken at a monitoring station in the northern part of Antarctica. According to Brazilian soil scientist Carlos Schaefer, the temperature was documented during a 20-year-long research project. The focus of this project is to study the effect that climate change has on the permafrost(永久冻土) within the region. Permafrost is soil that stays frozen for at least two years. Although this is a first record high for Antarctica, Schaefer stressed that “We can't use this to anticipate climatic changes in the future. It's simply a signal that something different is happening in that area.”
But in fact, the last high temperature reading was in the 19℃range. These higher temperatures can cause ice and glaciers in Antarctic regions to melt. The Antarctic peninsula—the long finger of land that stretches towards Argentina—is most dramatically affected. Scientists saw glaciers that have retreated by more than 100 meters in Discovery Bay where the snow melted in little more than a week, leaving dark exposed rock. This melted ice leads to a rise in sea levels that can threaten the safety of coastal areas. It's believed to be behind an alarming decline of more than 50 percent in chinstrap penguin(帽带企鹅) colonies, which are dependent on sea ice.
Like American writer Ernest Hemingway once said, “The Earth is a fine place and worth fighting for.” We should do everything we can to help save our planet. Otherwise, it may become too hot for us to fix.
1.What did Brazilian researchers report on Feb 9?
A.Seymour Island is the warmest region in the Antarctic.
B.Antarctica hit a record high temperature of 20. 75℃.
C.The average temperature of Antarctica ranges from 19. 8°C to 20. 75℃.
D.Antarctica's new record temperature is a full degree higher than the previous decade.
2.What's the main purpose of the 20-year-long research project?
A.To predict possible climatic change in the future.
B.To monitor Antarctica's contributions to world climate change.
C.To explain why the permafrost may cause glaciers to melt.
D.To examine how the permafrost is influenced by climate change.
3.What does the underlined word “retreated” probably mean?
A.moved backward. B.increased in size.
C.covered a certain area. D.stretched in an opposite direction.
4.According to the text, the melted glacier may lead to .
A.the pollution of ocean water B.the release of various viruses
C.threats to penguin habitats D.disappearances of coastal cities
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题
Antarctica is known for being a vast land of ice and snow, a place too cold for most life. Despite this, the continent is slowly starting to turn warm. According to the Guardian, the Antarctic has registered a new high temperature for the first time on record, prompting fears of climate instability in the world's iciest place.
On Feb 9, Brazilian researchers at Seymour Island reported a temperature of 20.75℃ on the icy continent of Antarctica. It was almost a full degree higher than the previous re- cord of 19. 8℃ , taken on Signy Island in January 1982.
This record — breaking reading was taken at a monitoring station in the northern part of Antarctica. According to Brazilian soil scientist Carlos Schaefer, the temperature was documented during a 20-year-long research project. The focus of this project is to study the effect that climate change has on the permafrost(永久冻土) within the region. Permafrost is soil that stays frozen for at least two years. Although this is a first record high for Antarctica, Schaefer stressed that “We can't use this to anticipate climatic changes in the future. It's simply a signal that something different is happening in that area.”
But in fact, the last high temperature reading was in the 19℃range. These higher temperatures can cause ice and glaciers in Antarctic regions to melt. The Antarctic peninsula—the long finger of land that stretches towards Argentina—is most dramatically affected. Scientists saw glaciers that have retreated by more than 100 meters in Discovery Bay where the snow melted in little more than a week, leaving dark exposed rock. This melted ice leads to a rise in sea levels that can threaten the safety of coastal areas. It's believed to be behind an alarming decline of more than 50 percent in chinstrap penguin(帽带企鹅) colonies, which are dependent on sea ice.
Like American writer Ernest Hemingway once said, “The Earth is a fine place and worth fighting for.” We should do everything we can to help save our planet. Otherwise, it may become too hot for us to fix.
1.What did Brazilian researchers report on Feb 9?
A.Seymour Island is the warmest region in the Antarctic.
B.Antarctica hit a record high temperature of 20. 75℃.
C.The average temperature of Antarctica ranges from 19. 8°C to 20. 75℃.
D.Antarctica's new record temperature is a full degree higher than the previous decade.
2.What's the main purpose of the 20-year-long research project?
A.To predict possible climatic change in the future.
B.To monitor Antarctica's contributions to world climate change.
C.To explain why the permafrost may cause glaciers to melt.
D.To examine how the permafrost is influenced by climate change.
3.What does the underlined word “retreated” probably mean?
A.moved backward. B.increased in size.
C.covered a certain area. D.stretched in an opposite direction.
4.According to the text, the melted glacier may lead to .
A.the pollution of ocean water B.the release of various viruses
C.threats to penguin habitats D.disappearances of coastal cities
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
Today we know Antarctica as an extreme environment containing ice and snow. But new research provides evidence that the area was very different in the past.
The evidence was found inside a piece of earth sediment(沉积物) collected by researchers from a depth of about 30 meters below the ocean floor off the coast of Antarctica. In the sediment, they found forest soil estimated to be about 90 million years old. This would have been in the Cretaceous Period, when dinosaurs were the main land animals.
Johann Klages is a geologist, working in the Institute's Helmholtz Center for Polar and Marine Research in Germany. He said an examination showed that the material formed on land, not in the ocean.
The researchers estimate that the area – about 900 kilometers from the South Pole – had average yearly temperatures of about 12 to 13 degrees Celsius. During the warmest summer months, average temperatures likely reached between 20 to 25 degrees Celsius. The average yearly temperature in that area is about 40 degrees below zero Celsius.
The examination results showed “a dense network of roots that spread through the entire soil layer,” the Helmholtz Center said in a statement.
The dark brownish-gray soil included fine dirt particles and hard clay, as well as substances linked to at least 65 different kinds of plants, the study found. Klages put that the plants included trees, ferns and flowering plants and while no animal remains were found, there were likely dinosaurs, flying reptiles and many insects in the environment.
The researchers said that the rainforest environment in Antarctica was especially surprising because each year, the area experiences a four-month polar night when there is no sunlight to fuel plant life.
1.According to the passage, we can learn that ________.
A.dinosaurs were from Antarctica
B.Antarctica was always extremely cold
C.the ocean floor is made up of sediment
D.the area has been experiencing climate changes
2.What surprised the researchers?
A.No animals left.
B.No fertilizer to fuel plants.
C.Roots spreading through the soil.
D.The rainforest experiencing polar night.
3.Which column is the passage probably from?
A.Science. B.Entertainment. C.Society. D.Fiction.
4.What can be a suitable title for the text?
A.Antarctica, Once a Warm Rainforest
B.Earth Sediment Found in Antarctica
C.Antarctica - an Extreme Environment
D.New Antarctica Found by Researchers
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
Far from the land of Antarctica, a huge shelf of ice meets the ocean. At the underside of the shelf there lives a small fish, the Antarctic cod.
For forty years scientists have been curious about that fish. How does it live where most fish would freeze to death? It must have some secret. The Antarctic is not a comfortable place to work and research has been slow. Now it seems we have an answer.
Research was begun by cutting holes in the ice and catching the fish. Scientists studied the fish’s blood and measured its freezing point.
The fish were taken from seawater that had a temperature of -1.88℃ and many tiny pieces of ice floating in it. The blood of the fish did not begin to freeze until its temperature was lowered to -2.05℃. That small difference is enough for the fish to live at the freezing temperature of the ice-salt mixture.
The scientists’ next research job was clear: Find out what in the fish’s blood kept it from freezing. Their search led to some really strange thing made up of a protein(蛋白质) never before seen in the blood of a fish. When it was removed, the blood froze at seawater temperature. When it was put back, the blood again had its antifreeze quality and a lowered freezing point.
Study showed that it is an unusual kind of protein. It has many small sugar molecules(分子) held in special positions within each big protein molecules. Because of its sugar content, it is called a glycoprotein. So it has come to be called the antifreeze fish glycoprotein, or AFGP.
49. What is the text mainly about?
A. The terrible conditions in the Antarctic. B. A special fish living in freezing waters.
C. The ice shelf around Antarctic. D. Protection of the Antarctic cod.
50. Why can the Antarctic cod live at the freezing temperature?
A. The seawater has a temperature of -1.88℃.
B. It loves to live in the ice-salt mixture.
C. A special protein keeps it from freezing.
D. Its blood has a temperature lower than -2.05℃.
51. What does the underlined word “it” in Paragraph 5 refer to?
A. A type of ice-salt mixture. B. A newly found protein.
C. Fish blood. D. Sugar molecule.
52. What does “glycol” in the underlined word “glycoprotein” in the last paragraph mean?
A. sugar B. ice C. blood D. molecule
高三英语阅读理解简单题查看答案及解析
Far from the land of Antarctica (南极洲), a huge shelf of ice meets the ocean. At the underside of the shelf there lives a small fish, the Antarctic cod.
For forty years scientists have been curious about that fish. How does it live where most fish would freeze to death? It must have some secret. The Antarctic is not a comfortable place to work and research has been slow. Now it seems we have an answer.
Research was begun by cutting holes in the ice and catching the fish. Scientists studied the fish’s blood and measured its freezing point.
The fish were taken from seawater that had a temperature of -1.88℃ and many tiny pieces of ice floating in it. The blood of the fish did not begin to freeze until its temperature was lowered to -2.05℃. That small difference is enough for the fish to live at the freezing temperature of the ice-salt mixture.
The scientists’ next research job was clear: Find out what in the fish’s blood kept it from freezing. Their search led to some really strange thing made up of a protein (蛋白质) never before seen in the blood of a fish. When it was removed, the blood froze at seawater temperature. When it was put back, the blood again had its antifreeze quality and a lowered freezing point.
Study showed that it is an unusual kind of protein. It has many small sugar molecules (分子) held in special positions within each big protein molecule. Because of its sugar content, it is called a glycoprotein. So it has come to be called the antifreeze fish glycoprotein, or AFGP.
1.What is the text mainly about?
A．The terrible conditions in the Antarctic.
B．A special fish living in freezing waters.
C．The ice shelf around Antarctica.
D．Protection of the Antarctic cod.
2.Why can the Antarctic cod live at the freezing temperature?
A．The seawater has a temperature of - l.88℃
B．It loves to live in the ice-salt mixture.
C．A special protein keeps it from freezing.
D．Its blood has a temperature lower than -2.05℃
3.What does the underlined word “it” in Paragraph 5 refer to?
A．A type of ice-salt mixture. B．A newly found protein
C．Fish blood. D．Sugar molecule.
4.What does “glyco-” in the underlined word “glycoprotein” in the last paragraph mean?
A．sugar B．ice C．blood D．molecule
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
Far from the land of Antarctica (南极洲), a huge shelf of ice meets the ocean. At the underside of the shelf there lives a small fish, the Antarctic cod.
For forty years scientists have been curious about that fish. How does it live where most fish would freeze to death? It must have some secret. The Antarctic is not a comfortable place to work and research has been slow. Now it seems we have an answer. Research was begun by cutting holes in the ice and catching the fish. Scientists studied the fish’s blood and measured its freezing point. The fish were taken from seawater that had a temperature of -1.88°C and many tiny pieces of ice floating in it. The blood of the fish did not begin to freeze until its temperature was lowered to -2.05°C. That small difference is enough for the fish to live at the freezing temperature of the ice-salt mixture.
The scientists’ next research job was clear: Find out what in the fish’s blood kept it from freezing. Their search led to some really strange thing made up of a protein (蛋白质) never before seen in the blood of a fish. When it was removed, the blood froze at seawater temperature. When it was put back, the blood again had its antifreeze quality and a lowered freezing point.
Study showed that it is an unusual kind of protein. It has many small sugar molecules held in special positions within each big protein molecule. Because of its sugar content, it is called a glycoprotein. So it has come to be called the antifreeze fish glycoprotein, or AFGP.
1. What is the text mainly about?
A. The terrible conditions in the Antarctic. B. A special fish living in freezing waters.
C. The ice shelf around Antarctica. D. Protection of the Antarctic cod.
2.Why can the Antarctic cod live at the freezing temperature?
A. The seawater has a temperature of -1.88°C. B. it loves to live in the ice-salt mixture
C. A special protein keeps it from freezing.
D. Its blood has a temperature lower than -2.05°C.
3.What does the underlined word “it” in Paragraph 5 refer to?
A. A type of ice-salt mixture. B. A newly found protein.
C. Fish blood. D. Sugar molecule.
4.What does “glyco-” in the underlined word “glycoprotein” in the last paragraph mean?
A. sugar B. ice C. blood D. molecule
高三英语阅读理解困难题查看答案及解析
Far from the land of Antarctica(南极洲), a huge shelf of ice meets the ocean. At the underside of the shelf there lives a small fish, the Antarctic cod.
For forty years scientists have been curious about that fish. How does it live where most fish would freeze to death? It must have some secret. The Antarctic is not a comfortable place to work and research has been slow. Now it seems we have an answer.
Research was begun by cutting holes in the ice and catching the fish. Scientists studied the fish’s blood and measured its freezing point.
The fish were taken from seawater that had a temperature of -1.88℃ and many tiny pieces of ice floating in it. The blood of the fish did not begin to freeze until its temperature was lowered to -2.05℃. That small difference is enough for the fish to live at the freezing temperature of the ice-salt mixture.
The scientists’ next research job was clear: Find out what in the fish’s blood kept it from freezing. Their search led to some really strange thing made up of a protein(蛋白质) never before seen in the blood of a fish. When it was removed, the blood froze at seawater temperature. When it was put back, the blood again had its antifreeze quality and a lowered freezing point.
Study showed that it is an unusual kind of protein. It has many small sugar molecules(分子) held in special positions within each big protein molecule. Because of its sugar content. It is called a glycoprotein. So it has come to be called the antifreeze fish glycoprotein. Or AFGP.
1.What is the text mainly about?
A. The terrible conditions in the Antarctic.
B. A special fish living in freezing waters.
C. The ice shelf around Antarctica.
D. Protection of the Antarctic cod.
2.Why can the Antarctic cod live at the freezing temperature?
A. The seawater has a temperature of -1.88℃.
B. It loves to live in the ice-salt mixture.
C. A special protein keeps it from freezing.
D. Its blood has a temperature lower than -2.05℃.
3.What does the underlined word “it” in Paragraph 5 refer to?
A. A type of ice-salt mixture. B. A newly found protein.
C. Fish blood. D. Sugar molecule.
4.What does “glycol-” in the underlined word “glycoprotein” in the last paragraph mean?
A. sugar B. ice C. blood D. molecule
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
Far from the land of Antarctica(南极洲), a huge shelf of ice meets the ocean. At the underside of the shelf there lives a small fish, the Antarctic cod.
For forty years scientists have been curious about that fish. How does it live where most fish would freeze to death? It must have some secret. The Antarctic is not a comfortable place to work and research has been slow. Now it seems we have an answer.
Research was begun by cutting holes in the ice and catching the fish. Scientists studied the fish’s blood and measured its freezing point.
The fish were taken from seawater that had a temperature of -1.88℃ and many tiny pieces of ice floating in it. The blood of the fish did not begin to freeze until its temperature was lowered to -2.05℃. That small difference is enough for the fish to live at the freezing temperature of the ice-salt mixture.
The scientists’ next research job was clear: Find out what in the fish’s blood kept it from freezing. Their search led to some really strange thing made up of a protein(蛋白质) never before seen in the blood of a fish. When it was removed, the blood froze at seawater temperature. When it was put back, the blood again had its antifreeze quality and a lowered freezing point.
Study showed that it is an unusual kind of protein. It has many small sugar molecules(分子) held in special positions within each big protein molecule. Because of its sugar content. It is called a glycoprotein. So it has come to be called the antifreeze fish glycoprotein. Or AFGP.
1.What is the text mainly about?
| A．The terrible conditions in the Antarctic. |
| B．A special fish living in freezing waters. |
| C．The ice shelf around Antarctica. |
| D．Protection of the Antarctic cod. |
2.Why can the Antarctic cod live at the freezing temperature?
| A．The seawater has a temperature of -1.88℃. |
| B．It loves to live in the ice-salt mixture. |
| C．A special protein keeps it from freezing. |
| D．Its blood has a temperature lower than -2.05℃. |
3.What does the underlined word “it” in Paragraph 5 refer to?
| A．A type of ice-salt mixture. | B．A newly found protein. |
| C．Fish blood. | D．Sugar molecule. |
4.What does “glycol-” in the underlined word “glycoprotein” in the last paragraph mean?
| A．sugar | B．ice | C．blood | D．molecule |
高三英语阅读理解简单题查看答案及解析
Antarctica holds 90% of the world’s ice, and most of its fresh water (70%) is in a frozen ________.
A. state B. condition C. situation D. solution
高三英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析
America is well known for being a melting pot of different ethnic groups and cultures, but nowhere is this diversity more pronounced than in Queens, New York.
Here, second-generation Puerto Ricans live alongside third-generation Greeks and first-generation Koreans, all united by a common feeling of pride in their American identity. However, they are also proud and curious about their ancestral roots. National Geographic’s Genographic Project, also known as the Human Family Tree, set out to trace the origins by examining their genetic makeup using a simple DNA test. What interested them more was something that intrigues us all: the history of our recent ancestry. One recurring theme among immigrants seems to be the hard work and sacrifices that went into building a new life, and how their descendants now feel a duty to honor that effort by working hard too. Here is one Queens resident’s story.
Richard, 38
My great-grandfather Tomas came to America from Poland when he was fifteen. His mother had died, and his father remarried. Tomas didn’t like his stepmother, so he ran away to Belgium, where he boarded a ship to America—without a ticket. Arriving in America with nothing, he got a job on the railroads in California. Then one day he saw an announcement in a newspaper that was read by immigrants. It was from his brother in New York who was also seeking his fortune in America and was looking for him. Tomas got in touch and they had an emotional reunion in New York, where Tomas subsequently settled. This is the story that my grandmother has passed down to us, to my parents, and all my aunts and uncles. She is an amazing woman and I suppose: the one who holds us all together. She’s actually quite forgetful now, but she never forgets family details. What that has meant is that all of us have a strong family bond and a strong sense of belonging to a group that has struggled and fought together to steered here.
1.What is special about Queens?
A.Conflicting ethnic minorities live here.
B.Many foreigners like to travel to this place.
C.The pronunciation varies from person to person.
D.Many different people and cultures are gathering here.
2.What does the “one recurring theme” in paragraph 2 refer to?
A.A sad experience. B.A common subject.
C.An unknown topic. D.An unusual quality.
3.Which of the following can best describe Tomas?
A.Brave and independent. B.Tough and honest.
C.Talented and persistent. D.Kind and hard-working.
4.What can we know about the immigrants from the text?
A.They are ashamed of their roots.
B.They feel attached to their family.
C.They can’t fit in with the new surroundings.
D.They are less interested in recent generations.
高三英语阅读理解困难题查看答案及解析
Across the bridge and _______a vast carpet of green land stands the King’s college, the largest and most beautiful building in Cambridge.
A．beyond B．beneath C．along D．off
高三英语单项填空简单题查看答案及解析