The idea of being able to walk on water has long interested humans greatly. Sadly, biological facts prevent us ever accomplishing such a thing without artificial aid --- we simply weigh too much, and all our mass pushes down through our relatively small feet, resulting in a lot of pressure that makes us sink.
However, several types of animals can walk on water. One of the most interesting is the common basilisk Basilicus basilicus, a lizard（蜥蜴）native to Central and South America. It can run across water for a distance of several meters, avoiding getting wet by rapidly hitting the water’s surface with its feet. The lizard will take as many as 20 steps per second to keep moving forward. For humans to do this, we’ll need huge feet that we could bring up to our ears in order to create adequate “hitting.”
But fortunately there is an alternative: cornflour. By adding enough of this common thickening agent to water (and it does take a lot), you can create a “non-Newtonian” liquid that doesn’t behave like normal water. Now if the surface of the water is hit hard enough, particles（粒子）in the water group together for a moment to make the surface hard. Move quickly enough and put enough force into each step, and you really can walk across the surface of an adequately thick liquid of cornflour.
Fun though all this may sound, it’s still rather messy and better read about in theory than carried out in practice. If you must do it, then keep the water wings handy in case you start to sink --- and take a shower afterward!
【小題1】Walking on water hasn’t become a reality mainly because humans _______.
| A．are not interested in it |
| B．have biological limitations |
| C．have not invented proper tools |
| D．are afraid to make an attempt |
| A．It is light enough to walk on water. |
| B．Its huge feet enable it to stay above water. |
| C．It can run across water at a certain speed |
| D．Its unique skin keeps it from getting wet in water |
| A．To create a thick liquid. |
| B．To turn the water into solid. |
| C．To help the liquid behave normally. |
| D．To enable the water to move rapidly. |
| A．It is risky but beneficial. |
| B．It is interesting and worth trying |
| C．It is crazy and cannot become a reality |
| D．It is impractical; though theoretically possible |
【小題1】B
【小題2】C
【小題3】A
【小題4】D
解析試題分析：
人類有一個一直感興趣但一直未能實現(xiàn)的愿望：水上行走。不能實現(xiàn)的原因是“生物性局限”。本文主要介紹了一種理論上可行實際上難以實現(xiàn)的人類水上行走的方法：借助玉米粉（cornflour）增加水面濃度。
【小題1】細節(jié)題。從第一段Sadly, biological facts prevent us ever accomplishing such a thing without artificial aid …可知，人類至今不能在水面行走是“生物”原因。選擇B。
【小題2】細節(jié)題。從第二段It can run across water for a distance of several meters, avoiding getting wet by rapidly hitting the water’s surface with its feet.一句可知，這種蜥蜴能在水面行走是因為速度快（每秒鐘達到20步）。選擇 C。
【小題3】細節(jié)題。第三段this common thickening agent明確這是一種“常見的增稠劑”。選擇A。
【小題4】推斷題。從第二段it does take a lot，最后一段it’s still rather messy and better read about in theory than carried out in practice. 等句推斷，借助增稠劑實現(xiàn)人類在水面行走，理論上可行但真正實現(xiàn)很難做到。選擇D項。
考點：說明文。
閱讀快車系列答案科目：高中英語 來源： 題型：單選題
Two new studies suggest that modern running shoes could increase the risk of injuries to runners.
One study involved sixty-eight healthy young women and men who ran at least twenty-four kilometers a week. The runners were observed on a treadmill machine (跑步機). Sometimes they wore running shoes. Other times they ran barefoot (赤腳).
Researchers from the JKM Technologies company in Virginia, the University of Virginia and the University of Colorado did the study.
They found that running shoes create more stress that could damage knees, hips and ankle joints than running barefoot. They observed that the effect was even greater than the effect reported earlier for walking in high heels.
The study appeared in the official scientific journal of The American Academy of Physical Medicine.
The other study appeared in the journal Nature. It compared runners in the United States and Kenya. The researchers were from Harvard University in Massachusetts, Moi University in Kenya and the University of Glasgow in Scotland.
They divided the runners into three groups. One group had always run shoeless. Another group had always run with shoes. And the third group had changed to shoeless running.
Runners who wear shoes usually come down heel first. That puts great force on the back of the foot. But the study found that barefoot runners generally land on the front or middle of their foot. That way they ease into their landing and avoid striking their heel.
Harvard’s Daniel Lieberman led the study. He says the way most running shoes are designed may explain why those who wear them land on their heels. The heel of the shoe is bigger and heavier than other parts of the shoe, so it would seem more likely to come down first. Also, the heel generally has thick material under it to soften landings.
But the researchers do not suggest that runners immediately start running barefoot. They say it takes some training. And there can be risks, like running when your feet are too cold to feel if you get injured.
The study was partly supported by Vibram, which makes a kind of footwear that it says is like running barefoot. The findings have gotten a lot of attention. But the researchers say there are many problems in the way the press has reported in their paper. So they have tried to explain their findings on a Harvard Website.
【小題1】What’s the main idea of the passage?
| A．Walking in high heels could cause less serious effects than running barefoot. |
| B．Two new discoveries encourage people to run in high heels. |
| C．Running in shoes is partly good to runners. |
| D．Two new studies prove running without shoes is beneficial to runners in most cases. |
| A．Toes. | B．Hips. | C．Feet. | D．Legs. |
| A．The way that we run by landing on the front or middle of our foot could avoid damaging our heel. |
| B．We should start running barefoot in no time. |
| C．Running in modern running shoes could cause more serious effects than running in high heels. |
| D．We won’t be injured if we run barefoot. |
| A．Persuasive. | B．Negative. | C．Objective. | D．Supportive |
| A．Business. | B．Science. | C．Health. | D．Entertainment. |
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科目：高中英語 來源： 題型：閱讀理解
An experiment was carried out at British school into the performance of new pupils. At the start of the year, the pupils were each given a rating, ranging from “excellent prospect” to “unlikely to do well”. These were totally untrue ratings and did not reflect how well the pupils had previously performed. However, these ratings were given to the teachers. At the end of the year, the experimenters compared the pupils’ performance with the ratings. Despite their real abilities, there was an astonishingly high connection between performance and ratings. It seems that people perform as well as we expect them to.
The Self-fulfilling Effect is also known as the Pygmalion Effect. This comes from an old Greek story. The story was also the basis of George Bernard Shaw’s play “Pygmalion”, later turned into the musical “My Fair Lady”. In Shaw’s play, Professor Henry Higgins claims he can turn a Cockney flower girl, Eliza Doolittle into a duchess. But, as Eliza herself points out to Higgins’ friend Pickering, it isn’t what she learns or does that determines whether she will become a duchess, but how she’s treated.
The implication (含義) of the Pygmalion Effect for leaders and managers is massive. It means that the performance of your team depends less on them than it does on you. The performance you get from people is no more or less than what you expect, which means you must always expect the best. As Goethe said, “Treat a man as he is and he will remain as he is. Treat a man as he can and should be and he will become as he can and should be.”
【小題1】The underlined word “rating” in Paragraph 1 can be replaced by “_________”.
| A．program | B．regulation |
| C．correction | D．classification |
| A．A new scientific experiment. |
| B．The Self-fulfilling Effect. |
| C．Shaw’s play “Pygmalion”. |
| D．An improved teaching method. |
| A．try out a new teaching method |
| B．pick out the most excellent pupils |
| C．learn if expectations affect performance |
| D．give each pupil a proper rating |
| A．Strict training from Higgins. |
| B．Her own strong will and hard work. |
| C．The proper way she was regarded |
| D．Warm encouragement from Pickering. |
| A．I’m sure you can make it |
| B．I will help you any time |
| C．It is as easy as pie |
| D．It doesn’t matter if you fail |
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科目：高中英語 來源： 題型：閱讀理解
Worried about how many calories you will get in that piece of pizza, chocolate cake or bag of chips? A new iPhone application (應用程序) MealSnap may help. Users just need to take a picture of the meal with the phone, and it will give a calorie read-out almost immediately.
MealSnap was developed by DailyBurn, a health social network that focuses on helping its users lead healthier lifestyles. It has created several other health and diet-related iPhone applications. The application gives users a quick reply. To do that, it matches the taken picture to a databank (數(shù)據(jù)庫) with the calorie information of nearly 500,000 kinds of food. Users then get the range of calories for the meal that is photographed.
We started with something simple—an apple. A couple of minutes later, the application replied that it was an apple and between 64 and 96 calories. More impressive was the reply we received after sending a photo of a mixed salad bowl. MealSnap replied that the bowl contained “yellow rice with corn, boiled eggs and beans” and that the food was between 532 and 789 calories.
Mr. Smith, director of DailyBurn, said that usual calorie counting needed a long time, but that the application made it easier to know the calories in food. That is why it is so popular among those who are trying hard to lose weight.
In addition, MealSnap can act as a food diary. No need to write down what they’ve eaten, the photoes will be stored. The users can keep a visual log (視覺的記錄). Mr. Smith said, “it’s like a food journey, but easier. All you do is to take the picture. The simple act of recording something can cause a psychological (心理的) change that can help people on their health journey. Knowing the calorie range makes me think more about what I’m eating.”
【小題1】 The purpose of DailyBurn is to________.
| A．help people find ways to lose weight |
| B．make iPhone more popular |
| C．persuade people to buy iPhone products |
| D．help people have a healthy life |
| A．MealSnap is only useful for simple things. |
| B．The result of MealSnap isn’t always right. |
| C．MealSnap can also tell what the food is. |
| D．MealSnap needs a long time to show the calorie range. |
| A．It has been put into the market. |
| B．People will have a physical change by using it. |
| C．It’s popular because it was developed by DailyBurn. |
| D．People have to link iPhone with the Internet to use it. |
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科目：高中英語 來源： 題型：閱讀理解
With petroleum reserves (石油儲量) decreasing，the search is on to replace gas with a cleaner，greener alternative.Though much eco－talk has centered on biofuels from corn and soybeans，the biofuel that looks more likely to replace petroleum comes from a most unlikely source：algae (藻類)．
Algae，like corn，soybeans，and other crops，grow via photosynthesis (光合作用) and can be processed into fuel oil.However，they yield 30 times more energy than land crops such as soybeans，according to the U．S.Department of Energy.Many algae species also can grow in saltwater and polluted water－while corn and soy require arable land and fresh water that will be in short supply as the world's population balloons.
“If you replaced all the diesel (柴油) in the U．S.with soy biodiesel，it would take half the land mass of the U．S.to grow those soybeans，”says Matt Caspari，chief executive of Aurora Biofuels，a Berkeley，Calif.－based private firm that specializes in algae oil technology.On the other hand，the Energy Department says that if algae fuel replaced all the petroleum fuel in the United States，it would require 15,000 square miles，which is a few thousand miles larger that Maryland (12,407 square miles)，the 42nd state in land area.
Another bonus：Because algae can be grown just about anywhere in a closed space，they 're being tested at several power plants across the nation as a carbon absorber.Smokestack emissions (煙囪排放物) can be pumped directly into the ponds，feeding the algae while keeping greenhouse gases out of the atmosphere.
Although processing technology for algae fuel—also known as “oilgae” in some environmentalist circles—is improving，it's still years away from reaching your local gas pump.“It's just a question of cost，because no large－scale facilities have been built yet，” Caspari says.
【小題1】The underlined word “yield” in Paragraph 2 can be replaced by “________”．
| A．control | B．require |
| C．produce | D．grow |
| A．may pollute water and soil |
| B．can grow in poor conditions |
| C．provide much less energy |
| D．need more special care |
| A．it can be used more widely |
| B．it is more easy to produce |
| C．it needs much less land |
| D．it costs much less money |
| A．Algae help protect the environment. |
| B．People can grow algae anywhere. |
| C．Fish can get more oxygen from algae. |
| D．Algae produce less waste. |
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科目：高中英語 來源： 題型：閱讀理解
Astronomy is the oldest science known to man. Thousands of years ago man looked at the stars and wondered about the heavens. But man was limited by what he could see with his eyes alone.
The Greeks studied astronomy over 2,000 years ago. They could see the size, color, and brightness of a star. They could see its place in the sky. They watched the stars move as the seasons changed. But the Greeks had no tools to help themselves study the heavens.
Each new tool added to the field of astronomy helped man reach out into space. They did not know that the planet called Saturn(土星) had rings around it. Their sight was so limited that they could not see all the planets. In the early 1700s, people thought there were only six planets. Nepture(海王星), the last of eight planets to be discovered, was not seen until 1846.
Before the spectroscope(分光鏡), man did not know what kind of gases was in the sun or other stars. Without the radio telescope, we didn’t know that radio noises came from far out in space.
Today, astronomy is a growing science. We had learned more in the last fifty years than in the whole history of astronomy.
【小題1】. Thousands of years ago, people observed the stars with the limitation of their _____.
| A．eyesight | B．land |
| C．wealth | D．knowledge |
| A．know what the stars were made of |
| B．not see their places in the sky |
| C．help themselves study the heavens |
| D．watch the stars move as the seasons changed |
| A．telescopes | B．spectroscopes |
| C．radio telescopes | D．spaceships |
| A．Astronomy is the oldest science that humans have known. |
| B．Astronomy is developing fast with the help of technology. |
| C．In the early 1700s, people didn’t know the existence of Neptune. |
| D．Over 2,000 years ago, the Greeks knew the planet Saturn had rings around it. |
| A．tools used in astronomy |
| B．the development of astronomy in the last 50 years |
| C．Greeks’ achievements in astronomy |
| D．new tools and the development of astronomy |
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科目：高中英語 來源： 題型：閱讀理解
Most damagingly, anger weakens a person’s ability to think clearly and keep control over his behaviour. The angry person loses objectivity in evaluating the emotional significance of the person or situation that arouses his anger.
Not everyone experiences anger in the same way; what angers one person may amuse another. The specific expression of anger also differs from person to person based on biological and cultural forces. In contemporary culture, physical expressions of anger are generally considered too socially harmful to be tolerated. We no longer regard duels (決斗) as an appropriate expression of anger resulting from one person’s awareness of insulting behaviour on the part of another.
Anger can be identified in the brain, where the electrical activity changes. Under most conditions EEG (腦電圖) measures of electrical activity show balanced activity between the right and left prefrontal (額葉前部) areas. Behaviourally this corresponds to the general even-handed disposition (意向) that most of us possess most of the time. But when we are angry the EEG of the right and left prefrontal areas aren’t balanced and, as a result of this, we’re likely to react. And our behavioural response to anger is different from our response to other emotions, whether positive or negative.
Most positive emotions are associated with approach behaviour: we move closer to people we like. Most negative emotions, in contrast, are associated with avoidance behaviour: we move away from people and things that we dislike or that make us anxious. But anger is an exception to this pattern. The angrier we are, the more likely we are to move towards the object of our anger. This corresponds to what psychologists refer to as of ensive anger: the angry person moves closer in order to influence and control the person or situation causing his anger. This approach-and-confront behaviour is accompanied by a leftward prefrontal asymmetry (不對稱) of EEG activity. Interestingly, this asymmetry lessens if the angry person can experience empathy (同感) towards the individual who is bringing forth the angry response. In defensive anger, in contrast, the EEG asymmetry is directed to the right and the angry person feels helpless in the face of the anger-inspiring situation.
【小題1】The “duels” example in Paragraph 2 proves that the expression of anger ________.
| A．usually has a biological basis |
| B．varies among people |
| C．is socially and culturally shaped |
| D．influences one’s thinking and evaluation |
| A．Balanced electrical activity can be spotted. |
| B．Unbalanced patterns are found in prefrontal areas. |
| C．Electrical activity corresponds to one’s behaviour. |
| D．Electrical activity agrees with one’s disposition. |
| A．Approaching the source of anger. |
| B．Trying to control what is disliked. |
| C．Moving away from what is disliked. |
| D．Feeling helpless in the face of anger. |
| A．How anger differs from other emotions. |
| B．How anger relates to other emotions. |
| C．Behavioural responses to anger. |
| D．Behavioural patterns of anger. |
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科目：高中英語 來源： 題型：閱讀理解
Seven species of carp(鯉魚) native to Asia have been introduced into United States waters in recent decades, but it's four in particular－bighead, black, grass and silver－that worry ecologists, biologists, fishers and policymakers alike. Introduced in the southeast to help control weeds and parasites in aquaculture (水產養(yǎng)殖) operations, these fish soon spread up the Mississippi River system where they have been crowding out native fish populations not used to competing with such aggressive invaders. The carps' presence in such numbers is also harming water quality and killing off sensitive species.
Asian carp are strong to jump over barriers such as low dams. They lay hundreds of thousands of eggs at a time and spread into new habitat quickly and easily. Also, flooding has helped the fish expand into previously unattainable water bodies. And fishers using young carp as live bait have also helped the fish's spread, as they have boats going through locks up and down the Mississippi.
The federal government considers the Asian carps to be annoying species and encourages and supports “active control” by natural resources management agencies. Federal and state governments have spent millions in tax dollars to prevent the carp from making their way into the Great Lakes, but an underwater electric fence constructed to keep them out has not worked as well as hoped, and policymakers are reviewing other options now.
In the meantime, state and federal agencies are monitoring the Mississippi and its branches for Asian carp and testing various barrier technologies to prevent their further spread. For instance, the National Park Service is cooperating with the state of Minnesota's Department of Natural Resources to construct new dams that are high enough to prevent Asian carp from jumping over. The Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee has funded DNA monitoring in potentially affected water bodies whereby researchers can determine whether the troublesome fish are present just by the biological footprints they leave behind. Individuals can do their part by not transporting fish, bait or even water from one water body to another, and by emptying and washing boats before moving them between different water bodies.
【小題1】Asian carp have been introduced to the USA in order to ________.
| A．improve water quality |
| B．help sensitive species |
| C．control the number of native fishes |
| D．control the ecosystem in aquaculture |
| A．testing various barrier technologies |
| B．construction of an underwater electric fence |
| C．Emptying and washing boats before using them. |
| D．monitoring the Mississippi and its branches for Asian carp |
| A．aquaculture operations are dangerous to the water bodies |
| B．scientific technology is useless in preventing Asian carp spreading |
| C．both the state and the individuals can make efforts to keep out Asian carp |
| D．Asian carp have successfully invaded the Mississippi and the Great Lakes |
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科目：高中英語 來源： 題型：閱讀理解
Using too much water or throwing rubbish into our rivers are clear ways that humans can put our water supply in danger, but we also affect our water supply in less obvious ways. You may wonder how paving(鋪砌) a road can lead to less useable fresh water. A major part of the water we use every day is groundwater. Groundwater does not come from lakes or rivers.It comes from underground. The more roads and parking lots we pave, the less water can flow into the ground to become groundwater.
Human activity is not responsible for all water shortages. Drier climates are of course more likely to have droughts than areas with more rainfall，but in any case, good management can help to make sure there is enough water to meet our basic needs.
Thinking about the way we use water every day can make a big difference, too. In the United States, a family of four can use 1.5 tons of water a day! This shows how much we depend on water to live，but there's a lot we can do to lower the number.
You can take steps to save water in your home.To start with, use the same glass for your drinking water all day. Wash it only once a day. Run your dishwasher only when it is full. Help your parents fix any leaks in your home. You can even help to keep our water supply clean by recycling batteries instead of throwing them away.
【小題1】Which of the following is most likely to lead to less groundwater?
| A．Using river water. | B．Throwing batteries away. |
| C．Paving parking lots. | D．Throwing rubbish into lakes. |
| A．All water shortages are due to human behavior. |
| B．It takes a lot of effort to meet our water needs. |
| C．There is much we can do to reduce family size. |
| D．The average family in America makes proper use of water. |
| A．show us how to fix leaks at home |
| B．tell us how to run a dishwasher |
| C．prove what drinking glass is best for us |
| D．suggest what we do to save water at home |
| A．why paving roads reduces our water |
| B．how much we depend on water to live |
| C．why droughts occur more in dry climates |
| D．how human activity affects our water supply |
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