Question

People talk about energy everywhere. Green energy, for example. Then, energy independence. It has a nice ring to it. Doesn’t it? If you think so, you’re not alone, because energy independence has been the dream of American president for decades, and never more so than in the past few years, when the most recent oil price shock has been partly responsible for kicking off the great recession(經(jīng)濟(jì)衰退).

"Energy independence" and its rhetorical(修辭的) companion "energy security" are, however, unreliable concepts that are rarely thought through. What is it that we want independence from, exactly?

Most people would probably say that they want to be independent from imported oil. But there are reasons that we buy all that oil from elsewhere.

The first reason is that we need it to keep our economy running. Yes, there is a trickle(涓涓細(xì)流) of biofuel(生物燃料) available, and more may become available, but most biofuels cause economic waste and environmental destruction.

Second, Americans have basically decided that they don’t really want to produce all their own oil. They value the environmental quality they preserve over their oil imports from abroad. Vast areas of the United States are off-limits to oil exploration and production in the name of environmental protection. To what extent are Americans really willing to tolerate the environmental influence of domestic(國(guó)內(nèi)的) energy production in order to cut back imports?

Third, there are benefits to trade. It allows for economic efficiency, and when we buy things from places that have lower production costs than we do, we benefit. And although you don’t read about this much, the United States is also a large exporter of oil products, selling about 2 million barrels of petroleum products per day to about 90 countries.

There is no question that the United States imports a great deal of energy and, in fact, relies on that steady flow to keep its economy stable. When that flow is interrupted, we feel the pain in short supplies and higher prices. At the same time, we get massive economic benefits when we buy the most affordable energy on the world market and when we engage in energy trade around the world.

1.What does the author say about energy independence for America?

A. It sounds very attractive.

B. It ensures national security.

C. It will bring oil prices down.

D. It will protect the environment.

2.Why does America rely heavily on oil imports?

A. It wants to expand its storage of raw oil.

B. Its own oil reserves are quickly running out.

C. Its own oil production falls short of demand.

D. It wants to keep its own environment untouched.

3.What does the author say about oil trade?

A. It improves economic efficiency.

B. It makes for economic recession.

C. It brings benefit only to the sellers.

D. It saves the cost of oil exploration.

4.What is the author’s purpose in writing the passage?

A. To explain the increase of international oil trade.

B. To raise Americans' awareness of the energy crisis.

C. To argue for America’s dependence on oil imports.

D. To stress the importance of energy protection.

 

Answer 1

1.A

2.D

3.A

4.C

【解析】

試題分析：能源是世界各地的人們都會(huì)談?wù)摰降膯栴}。各個(gè)國(guó)家都想實(shí)現(xiàn)能源獨(dú)立，美國(guó)也不例外。但是，美國(guó)的能源嚴(yán)重依賴進(jìn)口。美國(guó)這樣做是有原因的，美國(guó)需要能源來維持經(jīng)濟(jì)的運(yùn)轉(zhuǎn)；美國(guó)所需要的能源不會(huì)全部依靠國(guó)產(chǎn)，因?yàn)槊绹?guó)更看重對(duì)環(huán)境的保護(hù)；進(jìn)行能源交易能夠提高經(jīng)濟(jì)效率。

1.because energy independence has been the dream of American president for decades”可知，能源獨(dú)立一直都是美國(guó)的夢(mèng)想，說明能源獨(dú)立對(duì)美國(guó)很有吸引力，故選A。

2.they don’t really want to produce all their own oil”可知，美國(guó)只生產(chǎn)部分石油，其余依靠進(jìn)口，排除D；根據(jù)第五段“Vast areas of the United States are off-limits to oil exploration and production in the name of environmental protection.”可知，美國(guó)為了保護(hù)環(huán)境，禁止大面積開采石油，由此可知，美國(guó)國(guó)內(nèi)的石油供應(yīng)不足，只能依賴進(jìn)口，故選D。

3.there are benefits to trade. It allows for economic efficiency”可知，石油交易會(huì)帶來一定的好處，它有助于提高經(jīng)濟(jì)效率，故選A。

4.But there are reasons that we buy all that oil from elsewhere.”和下面三段的首句“The first reason is that we need it to keep our economy running. ...Second, Americans have basically decided that they don’t really want to produce all their own oil. ...Third, there are benefits to trade. It allows for economic efficiency...”及最后一段“At the same time, we get massive economic benefits when we buy the most affordable energy on the world”可知，文章主要講的是美國(guó)能源依賴進(jìn)口的原因，故選C。

考點(diǎn)：社會(huì)類短文閱讀