In July 1994 Jupiter, the largest planet in our solar system, was struck by 21 pieces of a comet(彗星). When the fragment(碎片)landed in the southern part of the giant planet, the explosions were watched by scientists here on earth. But what if our own planet was hit by a comet?
The year is 2094. It has been announced that a comet is heading towards the Earth. Most of it will miss our plant, but two fragments will probably hit the southern part of the Earth. The news has caused panic.
On 17 July, a fragment four kilometers wide enters the Earth’s atmosphere with a huge explosion. About half of the fragment is destroyed. But the major part survives and hits the South Atlantic at 200 times the speed of sound. The sea boils and an enormous wave is created and spreads. The wall of water rushes towards southern Africa at 800 kilometers an hour. Cities on the African coast are totally destroyed and millions of people are drowned. The wave moves into the Indian Ocean and heads towards Asia.
Millions of people are already dead in the southern part of the Earth, but the north won’t escape for long. Tons of broken pieces are thrown into the atmosphere by the explosions. As the sun is hidden by clouds of dust, temperatures around the world fall to almost zero. Crops are ruined. Wars break out as countries fight for food. A year later civilization has collapsed. No more than 10 million people have survived.
Could it really happen? In fact, it has already happened more than once in the history of the Earth. The dinosaurs(恐龍)were on the Earth for over 160 million years. Then 65 million years ago they suddenly disappeared. Many scientists believe that the Earth was hit by a space fragment. The dinosaurs couldn’t survive in the cold climate that followed and they became extinct. Will we meet the same end?
【小題1】Which of the following is NOT TRUE according to the author’s description of the disaster in 2094?

A.The whole world becomes extremely cold.
B.All the coastal cities in African are destroyed.
C.The whole mankind becomes extinct.
D.The visit of the comet results in wars.
【小題2】Why does the author mention dinosaurs at the end of the passage?
A.Because they could only live in the warm climate.
B.Because they once ruled the Earth.
C.Because their extinction shows future disasters.
D.Because dinosaurs and humans never live in the same age.
【小題3】In writing the passage, the author intends to_________.
A.give an accurate description of the possible disaster in the future
B.prove that humans will sooner or later be destroyed
C.tell the historical development of the Earth
D.warn of a possible disaster in the future
【小題4】It can be concluded that the passage is most probably part of a(n)________.
A.terror story B.news report
C.research paper D.a(chǎn)rticle of popular science


【小題1】C
【小題2】C
【小題3】D
【小題4】D

解析試題分析:木星1994年7月遭到彗星的撞擊而發(fā)生爆炸,這被地球上的科學(xué)家觀察到了。如果地球被彗星撞到會發(fā)生什么呢?文章預(yù)測了2094年彗星的碎片撞擊地球的南半球帶來的后果。
【小題1】根據(jù)第三段“Cities on the African coast are totally destroyed”和第四段“temperatures around the world fall to almost zero...Wars break out as countries fight for food.”可知,A、B、D正確,人類不會滅絕,故選C。
【小題2】根據(jù)最后一段“Could it really happen? In fact, it has already happened more than once in the history of the Earth. Then 65 million years ago they suddenly disappeared. Many scientists believe that the Earth was hit by a space fragment. The dinosaurs couldn’t survive in the cold climate that followed and they became extinct.”可知,作者提到恐龍是為了預(yù)言地球未來的命運(yùn)。故選C。
【小題3】根據(jù)最后一段“The dinosaurs couldn’t survive in the cold climate that followed and they became extinct. Will we meet the same end?”可知,作者用恐龍滅絕的歷史來警告未來可能發(fā)生的災(zāi)難。故選D。
【小題4】文章講述的是未來可能發(fā)生的災(zāi)難,根據(jù)第一段“the explosions were watched by scientists...”可知,文章與科學(xué)有關(guān),作者提出了幾個疑問,說明是未被證明的預(yù)言、推測,不屬于論文的范疇。A恐怖故事;B新聞報(bào)道;C研究論文;D科普讀物。故選D。
考點(diǎn):科普類短文閱讀

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