48. Which of the following statements is not true?

A. As things remain unchanging, this small amount of fresh water is still enough for us.

B. Our need for water is becoming larger and larger.

C. There will be no water shortage in the future.

D. We should take steps to deal with the water shortage problem.

47. A study of the art works has proved that most people--prefer to use the right hand when one hand is needed.

A. in 93% of the countries　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. in most historical periods

C. five thousand years ago　　　　　　　　　 D. no matter when and where　　　

C

The world is not only hungry, but it is also thirsty for water. This may seem strange to you, since nearly 70 percent of the earth’s surface is covered with water. But about 97 percent of this huge amount is sea water, or salt water. Man can only drink and use the other 3 percent-the fresh water from rivers, lakes, underground, and other sources. And we cannot even use all of that, because some of it is in the form of icebergs and glacier (冰川). Even worse, some of it has been polluted.

However, as things stand today, this small amount of fresh water is still enough for us. But our need for water is increasing rapidly-almost day by day. Only if we take steps to deal with this problem now can we avoid a severe worldwide water shortage later on.

We all have to learn how to stop wasting our valuable water. One of the first steps is to develop ways of reusing it.

Today in most large cities, water is used only once and then sent out into a sewer system (下水道). From there it returns to the sea or runs into underground storage tanks. But it’s possible to pipe used water to a purifying plant. There it can be treated with chemicals so that it can be used again, just as if it were fresh from a spring.

But even if every large city purified and reused its water, we still would not have enough. All we’d have to do make use of the vast reserves of sea water in the world is to remove the salt.

If we take these steps we’ll be in no danger of drying up.

46. The second theory suggests that a number of people have developed right-handedness as a result of

A. the studies they looked at.　　　　　　　 B. the research they did.

C. the pressures they experienced.　　　　 D. the art works they saw.

45. According to the text, some people believe that the right hand is often preferred because

A. it is easier to hold things in the right hand.

B. man's knowledge of the world supports it.

C. the right hand is stronger than the left

D. the human body has this special need.　　

44. In which of the following sentences ‘stand’ has the same meaning in this passage?

A. He could hardly stand.　　　　　　　　　　 B. This house stands the test of time.

C. The train stood for an hour.　　　　　　 D. He stands in terrible danger.　　 　　　

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B

　　　 It is common knowledge that modern man prefers to use his right hand when doing anything requiring one hand. There are mainly two types of theories that try to explain the development of right hand preference in man. The first theory holds that the human body itself needs the preference of one hand over the other. The second type of theory suggests that pressures from society or from the living conditions (or both) lead to the high increase of right hand preference in man. This theory is supported by human and animal studies that tried to change hand preferences.

　　　 Unfortunately, there are few written records throughout history which can prove those theories about hand preferences. There are, however, other things which can be used to study this matter. Nearly all cultures(文化) have art forms showing human beings in various activities. We might expect that such drawings and paintings would tell us what the artist actually observed in his culture about hand use.

　　　 From a study of more than 5,000 years of art works, including 1,180 examples of paintings and drawings we know that in 93% of the cases the right hand was used regardless of which period or which area was examined.

43. The best title would be ________.

A. Frost Save Crops　　　　　　　　　　 B. Ice Battle

C. Ice Can Be Nice　　　　　　　　　　　 D. Ice Is Good　　　　　　　　　　

42. Ice can save plants rather than destroy them on condition that they are _______.

A. sprayed regularly　　　　　　　　　　 B. quickly frozen

C. strong enough　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. used to frost

41. If the ice became entirely frozen and dry, suppose what might happen.

A. The plants might be frozen to death.

B. The plants might benefit from it.

C. It might save the plants.

D. It might make the plants grow slowly　　　　　　　　　　

39. A. though　　　　 B. because　　　　　　 C. when　　　 D. until