Question

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（恐龙）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?

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.

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.

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

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. article of popular science

 

Answer 1

【答案】

 

1.C

2.C

3.D

4.D

【解析】

试题分析：木星1994年7月遭到彗星的撞击而发生爆炸，这被地球上的科学家观察到了。如果地球被彗星撞到会发生什么呢？文章预测了2094年彗星的碎片撞击地球的南半球带来的后果。

1.根据第三段“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正确，人类不会灭绝，故选C。

2.根据最后一段“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，作者提到恐龙是为了预言地球未来的命运。故选C。

3.根据最后一段“The dinosaurs couldn’t survive in the cold climate that followed and they became extinct. Will we meet the same end?”可知，作者用恐龙灭绝的历史来警告未来可能发生的灾难。故选D。

4.文章讲述的是未来可能发生的灾难，根据第一段“the explosions were watched by scientists...”可知，文章与科学有关，作者提出了几个疑问，说明是未被证明的预言、推测，不属于论文的范畴。A恐怖故事；B新闻报道；C研究论文；D科普读物。故选D。

考点：科普类短文阅读