限時(shí)閱讀訓(xùn)練11.doc

高二英語(yǔ)限時(shí)閱讀訓(xùn)練(十一)AWith petroleum reserve（石油儲(chǔ)量）decreasing, the search is on to replace gas with a cleaner, greener alternativeThough much eco-talk has centered on biofuels from corn and soybeans, the biofuel that looks more likely lo replace petroleum comes from a most unlikely source: algaeAlgae（藻類(lèi)）, like corn, soybeans, and other crops, grow through photosynthesis（光合作用）and can be processed into fuel oilHowever, they yield 30 times more energy than land crops such as soybeans, according to the USDepartment of EnergyMany algae species also can grow in saltwater and polluted waterwhile corn and soy require, arable land and fresh water that will be in short supply as the worlds population balloonsIf you replaced all the diesel（柴油）in the US with soy biodiesel, it would take half the land mass of the U.S. to grow those soybeans, says Matt Caspari, chief executive of Aurora Biofuels, a Berkeley, Calif-based private firm that specializes in algae oil technologyOn the other hand, the Energy Department says that if algae fuel replaced all the petroleum fuel in the United States, it would require l5,000 square miles, which is a few thousand miles larger that Maryland（12,407squaree miles）, the 42nd state in land areaAnother bonus: Because algae can be grown just about anywhere in a closed space, theyre being tested at several power plants across the nation as a carbon absorberSmokestack emissions （煙囪排放物）can be pumped directly into the ponds, feeding the algae while keeping greenhouse gases out of the atmosphereAlthough processing technology for algae fuelalso known as oilgae in some environmentalist circles is improving, its still years away from reaching your local gas pump its just a question of cost, because no large-scale facilities have been built yet, Caspari says56The underlined word yield in Paragraph 2 can be replaced by _Acontrol Bgive in Cgrow Dproduce57Compared with corn and soybeans, algae_Amay pollute water and soil Bprovide much less energyCcan grow in poor conditions Dneed more special care58According to Paragraph 3, one of the advantages of producing algae fuel is that _Ait can be used more widely Bit is more easy to produceCit needs much less land Dit costs much less money59What do we learn about algae from Paragraph 4?APeople can grow algae anywhere BAlgae help protect the environment.CFish can get more oxygen from algae. DAlgae product less wasteBBirds that are half-asleepwith one brain hemisphere (半球) alert and the other sleepingcontrol which side of the brain remains awake, according to a new study of sleeping ducks. Earlier studies have documented half-brain sleep in a wide range of birds. The brain hemispheres take turns sinking into the sleep stage characterized by slow brain waves. The eye controlled by the sleeping hemisphere keeps shut, while the wakeful hemispheres eye stays open and alert. Birds also can sleep with both hemispheres resting at once. Decades of studies of bird groups led researchers to predict extra alertness in the end-of-the-row sleepers which tend to be attacked more easily. Sure enough, the end birds tended to watch carefully on the side away from their companions. Ducks in the inner spots showed no preference for gaze direction. Also, birds napping at the end of the line depend on single-hemisphere sleep, rather than total relaxation, more often than inner ducks did. Turning 16 birds through the positions in a four-duck row, the researchers found that compared with 12 percent for birds in internal spots, outer birds half-asleep during some 32 percent of napping time. “We believe this is the first evidence for an animal behaviorally controlling sleep and wakefulness at the same time in different regions of the brain,” the researchers say. The results provide the best evidence for a long-standing assumption that single-hemisphere sleep evolved as creatures scanned for enemies. The preference for opening an eye on the lookout side could be widespread, he predicts. Hes seen it in a pair of birds napping side-by-side in the zoo and in a single pet bird sleeping by a mirror. The mirror-side eye closed as if the reflection were a companion and the other eye stayed open. Useful as half-sleeping might be, its only been found in birds and such water animals as dolphins, whales, and seals. Perhaps keeping one side of the brain awake allows a sleeping animal to surface occasionally to avoid drowning. Studies of birds may offer unique insights into sleep. Jerome M. Siegel of the UCLA says he wonders if birds half-brain sleep “is just the tip of the iceberg.” He supposes that more examples may turn up when we take a closer look at other species.60.According to the passage, birds often half sleep because _.A. their brain hemispheres take turns to restB. they have to watch out for possible attacksC. the two halves of their brain are differently structuredD. they have to constantly keep an eye on their companions61. What is implied about the example of a birds sleeping in front of a mirror?A. An imagined companion gives the bird a sense of security.B. Birds prefer to sleep in pairs for the sake of their security.C. The phenomenon of birds napping in pairs is widespread.D. A single pet bird enjoys seeing its own reflection in the mirror.62. While sleeping, some water animals tend to keep half awake in order to _.A. alert themselves to the approaching enemyB. emerge from water now and then to breatheC. be sensitive to the ever-changing environmentD. avoid being swept away by rapid currents63. By saying “just the tip of the iceberg”, Siegel suggests that _.A. half-brain sleep has something to do with icy weatherB. the mystery of half-brain sleep is close to being solvedC. most birds living in cold regions tend to be half sleepersD. half-brain sleep may exist among other speciesCWashington, November 1, 2012 (CNN) - After years of planning and months of campaigning, the most expensive presidential race in history comes down to a final five-day whirlwind(旋風(fēng)) of speeches and television ads in the eight states still up for grabs.President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney plan to hold virtually nonstop events between now and the Tuesday election considered too close to call.The focus is on battleground states worth 95 of the 270 electoral votes needed to win. Both sides are trying to close the deal with a decreasing number of uncommitted voters, while making sure supporters actually cast ballots.That means a game of campaign chess that started Thursday, with appearances by the candidates and their assistants as well as advertising dollars allocated to the places considered most vital to success.Concluding a race expected to cost more than $6 billion overall, Obama and Romney and their running mates will hit all the battleground states - Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Ohio, New Hampshire, Nevada, Virginia and Wisconsin. The campaigns also are unloading a blast of television ads and mailings that threaten to overwhelm voters already saturated with politicking. Perhaps no one said it better than 4-year-old Abigael Evans of Fort Collins, Colorado, who - according to NPR - cried after listening to more election coverage on the radio and told her mother: Im tired of Broncobama and Mitt Romney.64The underlined phrase “too close to call” probably means .Aa game that one side is obviously winning.Ba tie in which neither side seems likely to winCso close that you need not use a telephoneDa visit close to ones home state65What is the focus of the last -5 day campaigns for both presidential candidates?ATo make sure that their supporters understand their policies.BTo collect enough money for campaign ads. CTo paint their rival as black as possible.DTo win over the voters who have not decide which candidate to vote for.66The public generally feel about these last-days election efforts.AexcitedBdisappointed Cannoyed DrelievedDLoneliness has been linked to depression（抑郁）and other health problems. Now, a study says it can also spread. A friend of a lonely person was fifty-two percent more likely to develop feelings of loneliness. And a friend of that friend was twenty-five percent more likely to do the same. Earlier findings showed that happiness, obesity(肥胖) and the ability to stop smoking can also spread like infections within social groups. The findings all come from a major health study in the American town of Framingham, Massachusetts. The study began in 1948 to investigate the causes of heart disease. Since then, more tests have been added, including measures of loneliness and depression. The new findings involved more than five thousand people in the second generation of the Framingham Heart Study. The researchers examined friendship histories and reports of loneliness. The results established a pattern that spread as people reported fewer close friends. For example, loneliness can affect relationships between next-door neighbors. The loneliness spreads as neighbors who were close friends now spend less time together. The study also found that loneliness spreads more easily among women than men.The average person is said to experience feelings of loneliness about forty-eight days a year. The study found that having a lonely friend can add about seventeen days. But every additional friend can decrease loneliness by two and a half days.Lonely people become less and less trusting of others. This makes it more and more difficult for them to make friends and more likely that society wil