第四部分：任务型阅读(共10小题；每小题1分，满分10分)

请认真阅读下列短文，并根据所读内容在文章后表格中的空格里填入一个最恰当的单词。

注意：请将答案写在答题卡上相应题号的横线上。每个空格只填1个单词。

For more than twenty years scientists have been seeking to understand the mystery of the‘‘sixth sense"of direction．By trying out ideas and solving problems one by one，they are now getting closer to one answer．

One funny idea is that animals might have a built-in compass(指南针)．

Our earth itself is a big magnet(磁体)．So a little magnetic needle that swings freely lines

itself with the big earth magnet to point north and south．When people discovered that idea about athousand years ago and invented the compass，it allowed sailors to navigate (航海)on oceanvoyages, even under

cloudy skies.

 Actuallly the idea of the living compass came just from observing animals in nature．

 Many birds migrate twice a year between their summer homes and winter homes．Some of them fly for thousands of kilometers and mostly at night．Experiments have shown that some birds can recognize star patterns．But they can keep on course even under cloudy skies．How can they do that?

A common bird that does not migrate but is great at finding its way home is the homing pigeon．Not all pigeons can find their way home．Those that can are very good at it，and they have been widely studied．

One interesting experiment was to attach little magnets to the birds’ heads to block their

magnetic sense—just as a loud radio can keep you from hearing a call to dinner．On sunny days, that did not fool the pigeons．Evidently they can use the sun to tell which way they are going．But on cloudy days，the pigeons with magnets could not find their way．It was as if the magnets had blocked their magnetic sense．

Similar experiments with the same kind of results were done with honeybees．These insects also seem to have a special sense ot direction．

In spite of the experiments，the idea of an animal compass seemed pretty extraordinary．How

would an animal get the magnetic stuff for a compass.

An answer came from an unexpected source．A scientist was studying bacteria that live in the

mud of ponds and marshes．He found accidentally little rod-like bacteria that all swam together in

one direction—north．

Further study showed that each little bacterium had a chain of dense particles inside，which

proved magnetic．The bacteria had made themselves into little magnets that could line up with the

earth’s magnet．

The big news was that a living thing，even a simple bacterium，can make magnetite．That led

to a search to see whether animals might have it.. By using a special instrument called magnetometer，scientists were able to find magnetite in bees and birds，and even in fish．In each

animal，except for the bee．the magnetic stuff was always in or closer to the brain．

Thus．the idea of a built—in animal compass began to seem reasonable．

Earthquakes may rightly be ranked as one of the most destructive forces known to man: since records began to be written down, it has been estimated that earthquake-related fatalities (????) have numbered in the millions, and that earthquake-related destruction has been beyond calculation. The greater part of such damage and loss of life had been due to collapse of buildings and the effects of rockslides, floods, fire, disease, tsunamis, and other observable events resulting from earthquakes, rather than from quakes themselves.

The great majority of all earthquakes occur in two specific geographic areas. One such area covers the Pacific Ocean and its bordering landmasses. The other extends from the East Indians to the Atlas Mountains, including the Himalayas, Iran, Turkey and the Alpine regions. It is in these two great belts or zones that ninety percent of all earthquakes take place; they may, however, happen anywhere at any time.

This element of unknown has for centuries added greatly to the dead and horror surrounding earthquakes, but in recent times there have been indications that earthquake forecast may be possible. By analyzing changes in animal behavior, patterns of movements in the earth's shell, variations in the earth's force of attraction, and the frequency with which minor earth shakes are observed, scientists have shown increasing success in expecting when and where earthquakes will strike. As a result, a worldwide earthquake warning network is already in operation and has helped to prepare for (and thus lessen) the vast destruction that might otherwise have been totally unexpected.

It is doubtful that man will ever be able to control earthquakes and get rid of their destructiveness altogether, but as how and why earthquakes happen become better understood, man will become more and more able to deal with their possible damage before they occur.

60. Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?

A. Earthquakes destruction is declining.

B. Man is capable of conquering earthquakes.

C. Man is no longer fearful of earthquakes.

D. Earthquake forecast is improving.

61. We can infer from the passage that quakes _______ .

A. mostly strike in oceans and mountains

B. may happen anywhere at any time

C. are unperceivable in masses of land

D. are hardly the direct cause of fatalities

62. The underlined phrase "This element of unknown" in Paragraph 3 refers to__.

A. the extension of earthquake zones

B. the percentage of earthquake occurrences

C. when and where earthquakes may occur

D. what big damage earthquakes may cause

63. Man's research on earthquake forecast at present is to _________ .

A. lower the frequency of earthquakes

B. release the energy that causes earthquakes

C. reduce the loss from earthquake disasters

D. analyze the relationship between different earthquakes

An earthquake happens when two plates rub (碰撞) together. The earth plates travel in different directions and at different speeds. If one plate is slowly forced underneath the other,  pressure builds up until the plates break apart. This process causes the ground to move. It is an earthquake. In other words, earthquakes are the shaking of the earth’s surface caused by the earth’s rocky outer layer as a result of the energy stored within the earth. The strain within the rocks is suddenly released (释放).
The damage an earthquake causes depends on where it is and the time it is happening. If an unpopulated region is struck, there will be low loss of life or property. If it hits a large city, there may be many injuries and much destruction. Many of the areas at risk are largely populated now. Major earthquakes hitting those areas today could produce terrible damage.
Actually, there are several million small earth-quakes every year. Large earthquakes such as the 1964 Alaska quake that measured 9.2 on the Richter scale, cause millions of dollars in damage. In the last 500 years, millions of people have been killed by earthquakes around the world — including 240,000 in the 1976 Tangshan earthquake in China.
A 60-second or less earthquake can cause devastation（毁坏） that continues for years after the first tremor (小震). In 1972, a series of severe earthquakes struck Managua, Nicaragua. Fifteen years later, the city still looked the way it had a week after the earthquake hit, because the country did not have the necessary money to rebuild it.
The shaking of the earth is sometimes not the greatest disaster. It is in the ensuing fires and floods that often the greatest damage occurs. In the 1906 earthquake, it was the fires caused after it that did the majority of the damage. An earthquake can also destroy dams high above a city or valleys, causing floods to sweep down and sweep away everything in their path.
【小题1】Which of the following is the main idea of the first paragraph?

阅读下面的短文，然后按照要求写一篇150词左右的英语短文。
【阅读材料】
A Thirsty World
Three-fourths of the earth’s surface is covered by water, some of which is frozen and most of which is salty. In fact, less than one percent left for all the living things.
Now fresh water is becoming scare, but more and more is needed because of the increasing number of people. Some industries also use amounts of fresh water in the production of things such as steel, paper, and rubber. These factories have polluted water flow into rivers without making it clean. What’s more, people in the city have much dirtied water piped into ditches after cooking every day.
Scientists estimate that the need for fresh water will have doubled by the year 2003. This means that we must find new ways of saving it or producing it. Some nations have worked on the problem and are already sharing their information with others. They are trying to keep their rivers from being polluted. Deep wells are also being dug, and rainwater is being collected in huge artificial lakes. In one way or another, they hope to provide enough water to satisfy the needs of their people. For example, one important wayof producing water is to distill(用蒸馏法提取) it from sea water. After the salt has been removed, sea water can be used not only for drinking but also for industry and irrigation. However, the equipment for distillation process is very expensive. Distilled water might be as dear as gold if pollution goes on.
[写作内容]
1.      概括短文的内容要点，该部分的字数大约30；
2.      就”环境污染的原因与控制”这个主题发表你的看法，至少包括以下的内容要点，该部分的字数大约120；
a)      环境污染是由什么原因引起的？简单地举例子说明。
b)     为了解决污染问题，国家政府部门应该做些什么？
c)      为了解决污染问题，公民做些什么？
d)     为了解决污染问题，我们学生应该做些什么？
【写作要求】
可以利用实例或其他论述方法支持你的论点，也可以参照阅读材料的内容，但不得直接引用阅读材料中的句子。

Flying over a desert area in an airplane, two scientists looked down with trained eyes at trees and bushes. After an hour’s flight one of the scientists wrote in his book, “Look here for probable metal. ” Scientists in another airplane, flying over a mountain area, sent a message to other scientists on the ground, “Gold possible. ” Walking across hilly ground, four scientists reported, “This ground should be searched for metal. ” From an airplane over a hilly wasteland a scientist sent back by radio one word, “Uranium. ”

None of the scientists had X-ray eyes:  They had no magic power of looking down below the earth’s surface. They were merely putting to use one of the newest methods of locating minerals in the ground. . . trees and plants as signs that certain minerals may lie beneath the ground on which the trees and plants are growing.

This newest method of searching for minerals is based on the fact that minerals deep in the earth may affect the kind of bushes and trees that grow in the surface.

At Watson Bar Greek, a brook(小溪) six thousand feet high in the mountains of British Columbia, Canada, a mineral search group gathered bags of tree seeds. Boxes were filled with small branches from the trees. Roots were dug out and put into boxes. Each bag and box was carefully marked. In a scientific laboratory the parts of the forest trees were burned to ashes and tested. Each small part was examined to learn whether there were minerals in it.

Study of the roots, branches, and seeds showed no silver. But there were small amounts of gold in the roots and a little less gold in the branches and seeds. The seeds growing nearest to the tree trunks had more gold than those growing on the ends of the branches.

71. Scientists were flying over a desert or a hilly wasteland or a mountain area in order to search for_______in the ground.

A. gold                                              B. silver

C. metals                                           D. minerals

72. The scientists were searching for minerals by using_______ .

A. X-ray                                            B. magic power

C. a special instrument                 D. trained eyes

73. Which of the following is NOT mentioned as part of a tree that can help find minerals?

A. Leaves.                                        B. Roots.

C. Branches.                                      D. Seeds.

74. The study of trees, branches and roots shows that_______ .

A. there were larger amounts of gold in the branches than in the seeds

B. there were smaller amounts of gold in the roots than in the branches

C. there were less amounts of gold in the seeds growing on the ends of branches than seeds growing nearest to the tree trunks

D. there was more gold in the branches than in the roots

75. Which is the best title suggested below?

A. Scientists Searching for Metals with Special Power

B. New Methods of Searching for Minerals

C. Gold Could Be Found by Trees and Plants

D. A New Method of Searching for Minerals—Using Trees and Plants