Question

【題目】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.

“Energy independence” and its rhetorical (修辭的) companion “energy security” are, however, slippery concepts that are rarely though through. What is it 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 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(禁止) to oil exploration and production in the name of environmental protection. To what extent are Americans really willing to endure the environmental impacts of domestic 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 maintain its economy. When that flow is interrupted, we feel the pain in short supplies and higher prices, At the same time, we derive(得到，獲得) 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.

C. It will bring oil prices down.

B. It ensures national security.

D. It has long been everyone’s dream.

【2】Why does America rely heavily on oil imports?

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

B. Its own oil reserves are quickly running out.

C. It wants to keep its own environment intact.

D. Its own oil production falls short of demand.

【3】What is the author’s purpose in writing the passage?

A. To arouse Americans’ awareness of the energy crisis.

B. To stress the importance of energy conservation.

C. To explain the increase of international oil trade.

D. To justify(證明… 有理的) America’s dependence on oil imports.

Answer 1

【答案】

【1】A

【2】C

【3】D

【解析】

試題分析：能源是世界各地的人們都會談?wù)摰降膯栴}。各個國家都想實(shí)現(xiàn)能源獨(dú)立，美國也不例外。但是，美國的能源嚴(yán)重依賴進(jìn)口。美國這樣做是有原因的，美國需要能源來維持經(jīng)濟(jì)的運(yùn)轉(zhuǎn)；美國所需要的能源不會全部依靠國產(chǎn)，因為美國更看重對環(huán)境的保護(hù)；進(jìn)行能源交易能夠提高經(jīng)濟(jì)效率。

【1】A 細(xì)節(jié)理解題。根據(jù)第一段“because energy independence has been the dream of American president for decades”可知，能源獨(dú)立一直都是美國的夢想，說明能源獨(dú)立對美國很有吸引力，故選A。

【2】C 細(xì)節(jié)理解題。根據(jù)第五段第一句“they don’t really want to produce all their own oil”可知，美國只生產(chǎn)部分石油，其余依靠進(jìn)口；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，美國為了保護(hù)環(huán)境，禁止大面積開采石油，由此可知，美國國內(nèi)的石油供應(yīng)不足，只能依賴進(jìn)口，故選C。

【3】D 推理判斷題。根據(jù)第三段“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能源依賴進(jìn)口的原因，故選D。