Joshua Plotnik and his colleagues carried out...

Joshua Plotnik and his colleagues carried out the tests on six 12-45-year-old Asian elephants living in the grounds of a hotel in northern Thailand. The buckets containing the seeds were not clear enough to see through and had a lid with small holes to let the smell out. In experiments, the elephants chose the greater quantity of seeds in each pair, regardless of the quantity of seeds presented. The accuracy of the prediction was better when the difference between each pair increased.

This is thought to be the first time that an animal is able to use its sense of smell to make a simple calculation of whether one of two quantities is more or less than another-the most basic form of math.

Many animal species have shown an ability to tell apart between more and less when presented with different amounts of food. But they have used vision to discriminate. Dogs have been unable to show they can perform the same trick in tests of their abilities to smell.

For an elephant this ability could be very important. Elephants often travel long distances to find better-quality food and water, which can differ according to seasonal availability, changes to their environment, and a risk they could be attacked by humans. The best performers were able to get it right more than 80 per cent of the time.

The scientists suggest that male elephants are better at the task because they need to eat more food, making it more important that their sense of smell is keener. Males also have to sniff out females in heat over long distances in order to reproduce.

They say that while elephants do use vision, particularly in close contexts where they react to each other’s body language, they use it mainly to match their more powerful senses-hearing, smell and touch.

That elephants have a powerful sense of smell is perhaps unsurprising. They have more genes related to smell than any other animal: 2,000 compared to around 800 for a dog.

1.What special ability do elephants have?

A.Use their trunks to find different smells.

B.Distinguish between more and less food.

C.Smell the differences of food quality.

D.Per form the basic math calculation.

2.What does the underlined word “discriminate” mean?

A.Choose. B.Indicate.

C.Measure. D.Distinguish.

3.Why do elephants often travel long distances?

A.To find where the better food is.

B.To find where humans wait to attack them.

C.To find where the environment has changed.

D.To find where they can adapt to the climate.

4.What is the best title for the text?

A.Elephants can do simple math puzzles

B.Elephants can “count” with their trunks

C.Elephants can smell the quality of food

D.Elephants can use vision to communicate

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

54. Extensive tests have been ________ on the patient.

高三英语单项填空简单题查看答案及解析

American kids are taking more tests than ever before, and they're stressed out. Is help on the way? Just the sight of a test booklet makes some kids sweat. For others, it is a blank answer sheet. Then there are the dreaded words, "Take out your Number 2 pencil." All these fill 10-year-old Chelsea Logo with fear. "I start to tap my pencil on the desk," says the fifth grader from Toluca Lake Elementary, near Los Angeles, California. "Then I feel the butterflies in my stomach."

Chelsea is not alone. In a recent survey by Kids Health£.org, more than 70% of kids aged 9 to 13 said they worry about tests. It's no wonder. Across the United States, public schools give more than 250 million standardized tests each year.

Why do kids have to take so many tests? The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law requires that students in grades 3 through 8 be tested each year. The law's goal is for all students to be at grade level by 2014. Students must pass the tests and meet other requirements or their schools may be shut down.

The U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan wants to change NCLB. But that doesn't mean he favors getting rid of tests. Duncan believes tests should be used mainly to evaluate kids' strengths and weaknesses. Tests, Duncan says, should not be used to punish kids or their schools for failure. "The goal is to focus on great teaching and learning," Duncan said.

Under NCLB, each state sets its own standards for students to meet. The result, Duncan says, is that states are making the tests easier. To fix this problem, 48 states are now working together to create common standards. "I want to set a high bar for kids, " Duncan says, "so they'll be in great shape to achieve their dreams."

Like them or not, tests are here to stay. So how can you handle test nerves? Schools are teaching students to relax through. deep breathing. and stretching (伸展运动) . In Oakland, California, Principal Zarina Ahmad of Piedmont Avenue Elementary leads her students in a cheer to get them excited about learning.

"Kids are under high pressure," says Ahmad. "There has to be time for kids to be kids. Still, we need tests to help us assess what students have yet to learn."

1.The underlined part "the butterflies in my stomach" can be replaced by　　 .

A.　 nervous　 B. guilty　　 C. exciting　　 D. proud

2. According to the passage, the NCLB law 　　　 .

A. is focusing on teaching methods in schools

B. is requiring schools to make the tests more difficult

C. is trying to make schools be responsible for students

D. aims to evaluate kids' strengths and weaknesses by means of tests

3. We can learn from the last two paragraphs that 　　　　 .

A. it's possible to get rid of tests

B. schools have no good way to deal with students' stress

C. tests help assess what students have to learn

D. schools are aware of students' stress caused by tests

4.What would be the best title of the passage?

A. Why kids are more stressed than before?

B. Kids' tips for test success

C. How to deal with test stress

D. Put kids to the standardized test

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

The Healing

Jim and his wife, Connie, were shocked by the loss of their four-month-old son—Joshua, whose life was taken by SIDS—sudden infant death syndrome.

Thirty hours ago, Jim drove to the baby-sitter’s home to ________ Joshua. It was a ________ trip, like the one he made five days every week. He arrived, and little Joshua could not be ________  from his nap. The next few hours were a time of life and death: the racing ambulance, swift-moving doctors and nurse. But 12 hours later, at Children’s Hospital, ________ the doctors had exhausted（用尽） all ________, little Joshua was gone. Yes, they wanted ________ of Joshua’s usable organs to be donated. That was not a ________ decision for Jim and Connie, a loving and ________ couple.

The next morning dawned and many things had to be arranged. Telephone calls and funeral plans. ________ one point Jim realized he needed a ________.When Jim settled into the chair ________ the barber’s, he began to ________  the past hours, trying to ________ some sense of it all. ________ had Joshua, their first-born, the child they had waited so long for, been taken so soon….He had ________ begun his life. The question kept coming, and the pain in Jim’s heart just ________ him.

While talking with the barber, Jim mentioned the organ donations, looking at his watch, “They are transplanting one of his heart valves（瓣膜）right now.”

The ________ stopped and stood motionless. Finally she spoke, but it was only a whisper. “You’re not going to believe this. But about an hour ago the customer sitting in this chair wanted me to hurry  ________ she could get to Children’s Hospital. She ________ here so full of joy. Her prayers had been answered. Today her baby granddaughter is receiving a ________ needed transplant—a heart valve.”

Jim’s healing began.

1.A. pick out               B. pick up           C. set out                             D. set up

2.A. routine                B. annual                     C. average                            D. difficult

3.A. called                            B. disturbed               C. awakened                        D. survived

4.A. though                 B. since                       C. because                           D. as

5.A. medicine             B. strength                  C. attempts                          D. spirits

6.A. part                      B. few                    C. some                       D. wise

7.A. giving                       B. tiring                         C. boring                    D. thinking

8.A. Of                    B. In                C. On                        D. At

9.A. haircut                     B. break                        C. donation                          D. decision

10.A. with                   B. at                   C. by                     D. near

11.A. decide on                  B. reflect on               C. keep on                           D. focus on

12.A. get                B. take                           C. hold                                  D. make

13.A. How                              B. Why           C. Whether                          D. If

14.A. barely                      B. nearly                   C. seldom                    D. almost

15.A. covered         B. drew            C. enveloped                       D. choked

16.A. hairdresser            B. customer           C. father               D. parent

17.A. since                  B. as                 C. so                          D. and

18.A. arrived           B. left              C. stayed               D. sat

19.A. desperately      B. deadly       C. clearly                D. obviously

高三英语完型填空中等难度题查看答案及解析

Kincaid looked at his watch: eight-seventeen. The truck started on the second try, and he backed out, shifted gears, and moved slowly down the alley under hazy sun. Through the streets of Bellingham he went, heading south on Washington 11, running along the coast of Puget Sound for a few miles, then following the highway as it swung east a little before meeting U.S Route 20.

Turning into the sun, he began the long, winding drive through the Cascades. He liked this country and felt unpressed stopping now and then to make notes about interesting possibilities for future expeditions or to shoot what he called “memory snapshots.” The purpose of these causal photographs was to remind him of places he might want to visit again and approach more seriously. In later afternoon he turned north at Spokane, picking up U.S Route 2, which would take him halfway across the northern United States to Duluth, Minnesota.

He wished for the thousandth time in his life that he had a dog, a golden retriever, maybe, for travels like this and to keep him company at home. But he was frequently away; overseas much of the time and it would not be fair to the animal. Still, he thought about it anyway. In a few years he would be getting too old for the hard fieldwork. “I must get a dog then.” He said to himself.

Drives like this always put him into a sentimental mood. The dog was part of it. Robert Kincaid was alone as it’s possible to be – an only child, parents both dead, distant relatives who had lost track of him and he of them, no close friends.

He thought about Marian. She had left him nine years ago after five years of marriage. He was fifty–two now, that would make her just under forty. Marian had dreams of becoming a musician, a folksinger. She knew all of the Weavers’ songs and sang them pretty well in the coffeehouse of Seattle. When he was home in the old days, he drove her to the shows and sat in the audience while she sang.

His long absences – two or three months sometimes – were hard on the marriage. He knew that. She was aware of what he did when they decided to get married, and both of them had a vague (not clear) sense that it could all be handled somehow. It couldn’t when he came from photographing a story in Iceland and, she was gone. The note read, “Robert, it didn’t work out, I left you the Harmony guitar. Stay in touch.”

He didn’t stay in touch. Neither did she. He signed the divorce papers when they arrived a year later and caught a plane for Australia the next day. She had asked for nothing except her freedom.

1.Which route is the right one taken by Kincaid?

A. Bellingham – Washington 11 – Puget Sound – U.S Route 20 – U.S Route 2 – Duluth

B. U.S. Route 2 – Bellingham – Washington 11 – Puget Sound – U.S Route 20 – Duluth

C. U.S. Route 2 – U.S Route 20 – Duluth – Bellingham – Washington 11

D. Bellingham – Washington 11 –U.S. Route 2 –U.S Route 20 –Duluth

2.Which statement is true according to the passage?

A. Kincaid’s parents were dead and he only kept in touch with some distant relatives.

B. Kincaid would have had a dog if he hadn’t been away from home too much.

C. Kincaid used to have a golden retriever.

D. Kincaid needed a dog in doing his hard fieldwork.

3.Why did Kincaid stop to take photos while driving?

A. To write “memory snapshots”.

B. To remind himself of places he might want to visit again.

C. To avoid forgetting the way back.

D. To shoot beautiful scenery along the road.

4.What can you know about Marian?

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

The man took out a knife and made a mark ____ his sword was dropped, confusing the passengers on board.

A.from where B.what C.on which D.where

高三英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析

245. After work, the young man and his colleagues went to the nearest _____ and sat down at the table for a grand dinner.

高三英语单项填空简单题查看答案及解析

Mr. Baker thinks his own inconvenience and _________ of his fellow colleagues are the only thing that the government should deal with.

A. whoever     B. someone     C. that      D. any

高三英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析

Jeremy Kerr, a researcher at the University of Ottawa in Canada, and his colleagues analyzed more than 400,000 observations of bumblebee species collected in North America and Europe from 1975 to 2010. When the researchers recorded the locations of these bee populations, they found that many of the 67 species analyzed were moving northward from their southern limits while the northern edges of the bees’ ranges are staying in place. What it results in is obvious.

Bees have been paid more attention to in recent years, with populations of honeybees and bumblebees obviously declining in some parts of Europe. Previously, attention on the decline of bee populations has focused on causes including habitat loss, pesticide use and the spread of bee parasites(寄生虫). But the work by Kerr’s team found something different.

"For every species, there is one or two species declining and others that are not moving at all," says Kerr. This shift has also been observed in other species, such as butterflies. But due to a new cause — the rise of temperatures instead of total pesticide use, a change in land use or parasites, bumblebees — unlike butterflies — have failed to extend the northern boundaries of their ranges into the territory that is now habitable for them, so bumblebee species across Europe and North America are declining rapidly, the latest study led by Kerr’s team finds. "Our data suggest that the new factor plays a leading, or perhaps the leading, role in this trend," says Kerr.

"This study shows that a fourth factor is also beginning to affect it. It is likely that the combined stresses from all of these pressures will have destructive impacts on bumblebees in the not-too-distant future," says Dave Goulson, a bee researcher at the University of Sussex, Brighton, UK.

Exactly what can be done to help bumblebees is not clear. Kerr’s team suggests that relocating colonies might be an answer but Goulson says that because the insects are mobile they are capable of moving northwards if there is suitable habitat available.

1.What does the move of the bees’ southern limits lead to?

A. The birth of new bee species.

B. The rise of the bees’ population.

C. The evolution of the bees.

D. The reduction of the bees’ habitat.

2.What’s the new cause of bee populations’ declining according to Kerr?

A. Habitat loss.

B. Pesticide use.

C. Climate change.

D. The spread of bee parasites.

3.Which statement may Goulson agree with?

A. Relocating bumblebees isn’t much good.

B. The findings of Kerr’s study are doubtful.

C. The future of bumblebees is still promising.

D. Knowing bumblebees’ living habits is the most urgent.

4.What kind of writing is this passage?

A. A book review.

B. An announcement.

C. A scientific report.

D. An official report.

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

B

Data processing is a series of operations carried out on data on the purpose of getting information． ________ ．the information is the end or the output．The operations ________with different tools．Apart from a computer，the brain is ________ a data processing tool．Like a mini PC，the brain controls all bodily and mental________　 ，as well as processes data．________apples and oranges differ in looks，feel，smell and taste，the brain can tell their differences．

There are three________ of processing data．In manual data processing，simple tools such as pencil are used．Electromechanical data one uses electrically operated machines．________ of the types of machines used are desk calculators and typewriters．Electronic data one uses computers processing data at a very high speed．

1.A．Since　　　　　　 B．Ever　　　　　　 C．Then　　　　　　　　 D．Therefore

2.A．preferred　　　 B．performed　　　 C．provided　　　　　 D．practised

3.A．simply　　　　　 B．even　　　　　　 C．also　　　　　　　　 D．yet

4.A．illnesses　　　 B．disorders　　　 C．functions　　　　 D．credit

5.A．As if　　　　　　 B．While　　　　　　 C．If only　　　　　　 D．In that

6.A．collections　　 B．levels　　　　　 C．effects　　　　　　 D．tools

7.A．Examples　　　　 B．Features　　　　 C．Substances　　　　 D．Contents

高三英语完形填空中等难度题查看答案及解析