综合题8.0分
英语

3.阅读下列短文,从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中,选出最佳选项,并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

  “Plants were expected to get larger with increased carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, but changes in temperature, humidity and nutrient availability seem to have trumped the benefits of increased carbon dioxide,” said researchers from the National University of Singapore.

  45 percent of the species studied now reach smaller adult sizes than they did in the past. The researchers pointed out that warmer temperatures and changing habitats, caused by climate change, are possible reasons for shrinking creatures.

  “We do not yet know the mechanisms involved, or why some organism are getting smaller while others are unaffected,” the researchers said. “Until we understand more, we could be risking negative consequences that we can't yet quantify.”

  The change was big in cold­blooded animals. Only two decades of warmer temperatures were enough to make reptiles(爬行动物)smaller. An increase of 1 degree centigrade caused nearly a 10 percent increase in metabolism(新陈代谢). Greater use of energy resulted in tiny tortoises and little lizards. Fish are smaller now too. Though overfishing has played a part in reducing numbers, experiments show that warmer temperatures also stop fish growth. There is a recent report on warmer temperatures' negative effects on plankton(浮游生物), the base of the marine ecosystem.

  Warm­blooded animals weren't immune from the size change caused by climate change. Many birds are now smaller. Mammals have been miniaturized too. Soay sheep are thinner. Red deer are weaker. And polar bears are smaller, compared with historical records. This is not the first time this has happened in Earth's history.

  55 million years ago, a warming event similar to the current climate change caused bees, spiders and ants to shrink by 50 to 75 percent over several thousand years. That event happened over a long time than the current climate change.

  The speed of modern climate change could mean organisms may not respond or adapt quickly enough, especially those with long generation times. So, it is likely that more negative influences of climate change will be shown in future.

(1)Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?

A. Why do some species become smaller?

B. How does temperature change in Earth's history?

C. Climate change has many negative effects

D. Species become smaller as climate warms

(2)The underlined word “trumped” in the first paragraph can be replaced by ________.

A. beaten

B. increased

C. strengthened

D. equaled

(3)Researchers from the National University of Singapore believe that ________.

A. too many studies on animals' size have been done

B. all the animals on the earth have become smaller

C. how climate change affects animals' size has not been found clearly

D. climate change has more negative effects on warm­blooded animals

(4)What can we learn from the passage?

A. Bird have suffered more from climate change than fish.

B. Climate change have even affected plankton negatively.

C. Cold­blooded animals become smaller because of the lack of food.

D. The warming event has never happened in Earth' s history before.

正确答案及相关解析

正确答案

(1)D

(2)A

(3)C

(4)B

解析

(1)标题归纳题。从全文内容概括可知D项正确。

(2)词义猜测题。从第一段第一句 Plants were expected to get larger with increased carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, but changes in temperature, humidity and nutrient availability seem to have trumped the benefits of increased carbon dioxide, ...可知A项正确。

(3)细节理解题。从第三段内容 “We do not yet know the mechanisms involved, or why some organism are getting smaller while others are unaffected,” the researchers said. “Until we...”可知。

(4)推理判断题。从第四段最后一句 There is a recent report on warmer temperatures' negative effects on plankton(浮游生物), the base of...可知。