10．Heredity is not the only thing that influences our color．Where we live and how we live after we are born are important too．Our skin color depends to a great extent on how much sunshine we get．
During the cold winter months，people keep themselves covered．A group of light-colored people will all seem to be pretty much the same color in these months．But when summer arrives and they go to the eaches，some will tan darkly，some will tan lightly and a few will not tan at all．Each one has inherited a different ability to tan．
Centuries ago，most of the people in Europe were peasants and had to work in the fields all day．Noblemen，on the other hand，did not have to work．They stayed indoors and remained pale．You could always tell a nobleman from a peasant because the peasant had a tan．
During the Industrial Revolution things changed．Farmers left their fields and went to work in factories，mines，and mills．Working for long hours in dingy-lit factories and mines made their skins pale．Wealthy people，however，could afford to travel to sunny countries．They had the leisure to lie around on the beaches and get a tan．Having a tan became a sign of wealth．
In Western Europe and North America pale skin is no longer desirable．Instead of bleaching themselves white with lemonjuice，many women spend their time under a sunlamp．The desire for a quick tan has led to the nvention of pills and lotion （乳液） that darken the skin artificially without exposure to sunlight．These pills and lotions can be bought by anyone at any drugstore．A rich man can spend hundreds of dollars on a vacation in the sunny West India and get his suntan there．But his lowest-paid clerk can have what looks like the same tan out of a bottle of a few cents．
So there are three answers to the question"Where does our color come from？"It comes from the genes we inherit．It comes from the conditions in which we live．And it can come from a bottle that we buy at the drugstore on the corner．
56．What can we infer from the passage？D
A．In Western Europe and North America pale skin is no longer desirable．
B．In the past，English peasants had the same tan as the noblemen．
C．The more we lie on the beach，the more tanned our skins get．
D．At one time people needed a tan skin to show they were wealthy．
57．What does the word"tan"in Paragraph 2best mean？D
A．Getting thirsty．
B．Getting tired．
C．Getting hot．
D．Getting brown．
58．How many different ways do western people use to give their skin a tan？B
A．Two．
B．Three．
C．Four．
D．Five．
59．What is the passage mainly about？C
A．Our skin color depends on how much sunshine we get．
B．Our skin color changes with the conditions in which we live．
C．Our skin color depends on where and how we live besides heredity．
D．People's attitude towards their skin color changes with time and people．
分析 這是一篇科普短語類閱讀．告訴我們：遺傳不是唯一影響我們膚色的因素，我們皮膚的顏色在很大程度上取決于我們受到陽光照射的強度．那么我們的顏色來自何處？來自于我們遺傳的基因，來自于我們生活的條件；來自于藥店某個角落處的一瓶藥．
解答 56．答案：D 推理判斷題，根據(jù)題干閱讀短文可以推斷出什么？閱讀短文第三段可以找到相關(guān)信息Wealthy people，however，could afford to travel to sunny countries．They had the leisure to lie around on the beaches and get a tan．Having a tan became a sign of wealth．從中可以推斷出：有錢的人可以去陽光充足的國家旅行．他們有閑躺在海灘并把皮膚曬成棕褐色． 曬成棕褐色成了財富的象征．故選：D．
57．答案：D 語義猜測題，根據(jù)短文第二段可以知道：冬天人們窩得嚴實，好像皮膚顏色是一樣的．但是，夏天人們?nèi)ズ�，他們一定會曬到太陽，結(jié)合下文
some will tan lightly and a few will not tan at all．有的人很容易曬成…，有的根本不會曬成…推知tan的意思為棕褐色．故選：D．
58．答案：B細節(jié)理解題，閱讀短文第四段可以知道：有三種方法讓皮膚曬成棕褐色．1．many women spend their time under a sunlamp．2．the invention of pills and lotion （乳液） that darken the skin artificially without exposure to sunlight 3．A rich man can spend hundreds of dollars on a vacation in the sunny West India and get his suntan there．故選：B．
59．答案：C主旨題，閱讀短文第一段Heredity is not the only thing that influences our color．Where we live and how we live after we are born are important too．Our skin color depends to a great extent on how much sunshine we get．可以知道：遺傳不是影響我們膚色的唯一因素，我們出生的地方和生活方式也很重要，我們的膚色很大程度上取決于我們獲得了多少陽光．接下來是圍繞第一段的話題進行闡述的．故選：C．
點評 首先通讀全文，了解文章大意，然后弄清題干意思，對照短文信息確定正確答案．
