Question

【題目】Half of the world’s population lives in areas affected by Asian monsoons（季風(fēng)）, but monsoons are difficult to predict. American researchers have put together a 700-year record of the rainy seasons, which is expected to provide guidance for experts making weather predictions.

Every summer, moist（潮濕的）air masses, known as monsoon, produce large quantities of rainfall in India, East Asia, Indonesia, Northern Australia and East Africa, which are pulled in by a high pressure area over the Indian Ocean and a low pressure area to the south.

According to Edward Cook, a weather expert at Columbia University in New York, the complex nature of the climate systems across Asia makes monsoons hard to predict. In addition, climate records for the area date to 1950, too recent and not detailed enough to be of much use. Therefore, he and a team of researchers spent more than fifteen years travelling across Asia locating trees old enough to provide long-term records. They measured the rings（年輪）or circles, inside the trunks of thousands of ancient trees at more than 300 sites.

Rainfall has a direct link to the growth and width of rings on some kinds of trees. The researchers developed a document—a Monsoon Asia Drought Atlas（地圖集）. It shows the effect of monsoons over seven centuries, beginning in the 1300s.

Professor Cook says the tree-ring records show periods of wet and dry conditions. “If the monsoon basically fails or is very weak one year, the trees affected by the monsoon at that location might put on a very narrow ring. But if the monsoon is very strong, the trees affected by that monsoon might put on a wide ring for that year. So, the wide and narrow ring widths of the tree chronology（年表）that we developed in Asia provide us with a measure of monsoon variability. ” Armed with such a sweeping set of data, researchers say they now can begin to refine climate computer models for predicting the behavior of monsoons.

“There has been widespread famine and starvation and human dying in the past in large droughts. And on the other hand, if the monsoon is particularly heavy, it can cause extensive flooding,” said Eugene Wahl, a scientist who is with America’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s paleoclimate（古氣侯）branch studying weather patterns over the history of the Earth. “So, to get a knowledge of what the regional moisture patterns have been, dryness and wetness over such a long period of time in great detail, I would call it a kind of victory for climate science.”

【1】What’s the passage mainly about?

A．A breakthrough in monsoon prediction.

B．The necessity of weather forecast.

C．The achievements of Edward Cook.

D．The effects of Asian monsoons.

【2】It is difficult for experts to predict Asian monsoons because______.

A．it is hard to keep long-term climate records

B．they are formed under complex climate systems

C．they influence many nations

D．there is heavy rainfall in Asia

【3】What can be inferred from the passage?

A．The trees affected by monsoon grow fast if the monsoon is weak.

B．The Monsoon Asia Drought Atlas has a monsoon record for about 1,300 years.

C．Long and detailed climate records can offer useful information for monsoon research.

D．The rainfall might be low although the monsoon is strong in monsoon-

affected areas.

【4】According to Professor Cook, the rings of the trees_________.

A．determine the regional climate

B．have a great influence on the regional climate

C．offer people information about the regional climate

D．reflect all kinds of regional climate information

【5】What do we know about the research according to Eugene Wahl?

A．It will help people prevent droughts and floods.

B．It should include information about human life in the past.

C．It has analysed moisture models worldwide.

D．It is a great achievement in climate science.

【6】Which of the following best describes the tone of this passage?

A．Friendly. B．Pessimistic.

C．Humorous. D．Matter-of-fact.

Answer 1

【答案】

【1】A

【2】B

【3】C

【4】C

【5】D

【6】D

【解析】

試題分析：試題分析：本文主要講述了一半的世界人口都在被亞洲季風(fēng)所影響，而季風(fēng)也是難以預(yù)測的。美國研究員收集700年的美國雨季紀錄信息，為氣象專家進行天氣預(yù)測提供指導(dǎo)。而美國的氣象專家Edward Cook認為，復(fù)雜的亞洲氣象系統(tǒng)使得季風(fēng)難以預(yù)測，而且自1950年的氣象紀錄不足以充分利用。所以，他和一對研究員用了十五年的時間穿過亞洲定位樹齡老的樹提供長期的紀錄。研究表明季風(fēng)弱的地方，樹齡比較窄，如果臺風(fēng)比較強，樹齡比較寬。

【1】主旨推斷題。根據(jù)最后一自然段最后一句話So, to get a knowledge of what the regional moisture patterns have been, dryness and wetness over such a long period of time in great detail, I would call it a kind of victory for climate science.”可知：本文主要講述了科學(xué)研究在季風(fēng)預(yù)測方面的突破。故選A。

【2】細節(jié)題。根據(jù)第三自然段the complex nature of the climate systems across Asia makes monsoons hard to predict. 意思是：亞洲復(fù)雜的自然天氣系統(tǒng)使得季風(fēng)很難預(yù)測。故選B。

【3】推斷題。根據(jù)第三自然段第二句In addition, climate records for the area date to 1950, too recent and not detailed enough to be of much use.意思是：另外，自1950年開始在該地區(qū)的天氣紀錄，由于時間在近期和不夠詳細，使得紀錄不足以使用。可知長期和詳細的天氣紀錄能夠為季風(fēng)研究提供有用的信息。故選C。

【4】細節(jié)題。由第五自然段Professor Cook says the tree-ring records show periods of wet and dry conditions 意思是：Cook 教授，認為樹齡紀錄顯示了潮濕和干燥的情況�？芍獦潺g對地區(qū)天氣狀況提供信息。故選C。

【5】推斷題。由最后一自然段So, to get a knowledge of what the regional moisture patterns have been, dryness and wetness over such a long period of time in great detail, I would call it a kind of victory for climate science.”意思是：學(xué)習(xí)和了解地區(qū)的潮濕狀況的干燥和濕潤，在一個長時間的階段和以很詳細的狀況，我把它認為是氣象科學(xué)的一種成功�？芍�在氣象科學(xué)方面是一個很大的成就。故選D。

【6】推斷題。全文主要講述了亞洲季風(fēng)的預(yù)測情況，預(yù)測本可以根據(jù)700多年的雨季紀錄情況，但是由于自然天氣系統(tǒng)的復(fù)雜，僅憑短期和不夠詳細的天氣紀錄情況，是不夠充分的。后在氣象專家Edward Cook和他的研究團隊的研究之下，研究人員根據(jù)紀錄下的樹齡情況，逐步分析和預(yù)測天氣情況。所以整篇文章是以事實為基調(diào)的。故選D。