Question

【题目】As sea levels climb, even Washington, D. C. could see more frequent and widespread flooding at high tide.

Strong storms and high winds sometimes bring floods to coastal areas. But cities and towns along the US East Coast are flooding even in calm and sunny weather. Among them is Maryland’s capital Annapolis. Tourists there must sometimes walk through water flooding downtown streets surrounding the habor. Sometimes water covers roads in Atlantic City, N. J. Even the yards and basements of coastal homes near New York City sometimes flood.

All are suffering from this trend—normal high tides surpass (超过) a rising sea level.

Sea levels have climbed, on average, about 20 centimeters (8 inches) over the past 135 years. And a sharp increase in tide flooding is one of the more visible impacts affecting many coastal areas, notes William Sweet, an oceanographer.

Sweet and his co-workers recently analyzed data from 45 tide gauges (计量表) along the US coasts. These tools record the changing heights of tides as they rise and fall. From these data, Sweet’s team calculated the number of : “troublesome floods” in various coastal cities. These floods, Sweet explains, typically occur when water level is about 30 centimeters (1foot) above the historic level of the highest tides. In June 2014, the team reported finding a growing rise in these flooding events.

In Charleston, S.C. from 1957 to 1963, the city experienced troublesome floods an average of 4. 6 days per year. Bur from 2007 to 2013, the occurring rate of troublesome floods jumped five times. Annapolis city was even more serious. From1957 to 1963，troublesome floods were roughly 3. 8 days per year. From 2007 to 2013, the average was 10 times higher- 39. 3days a year.

“Over the next few decades, climate change probably drives sea levels even higher,” Sweet says. “So today’s flooding problems promise to become only more widespread and frequent.”

【1】What is Paragraph 2 mainly developed by?

A. Making comparisons.

B. Analyzing causes.

C. Using examples.

D. Following time order.

【2】Why are more flooding problems caused?

A. Because the river levels have been climbing.

B. Because climate has changed over the years,

C. Because the weather conditions are not stable.

D. Because people are living too close to harbors.

【3】What can it be inferred according to data in Paragraph 5?

A. There has been a growing rise in these analyzed flooding events.

B. The changes of heights of tides are usually in a small range.

C. The floods in coastal cities often occur when water level is above1foot.

D. The number of troublesome floods gradually gets less.

【4】What is the text mainly about?

A. Sweet’s team.

B. A flood research.

C. The US East Coast.

D. American oceanographers.

Answer 1

【答案】

【1】C

【2】B

【3】A

【4】B

【解析】 健康环保类阅读。作者通过这篇文章向我们说明了随着海平面上升，洪水发生的更频繁，更广泛，并列举了洪水带来的灾难。科学家们对洪水问题的研究，说明了气候变化对洪水的影响．

【1】C

细节理解题，根据第二段“Tourists there must sometimes walk through water flooding downtown streets surrounding the habor．Sometimes water covers roads in Atlantic City，N．J．Even the yards and basements of coastal homes near New York City sometimes flood”可知本段是通过举例子来说明强风暴所带来的影响，故选C

【2】B

细节理解题，根据最后一段“Over the next few decades，climate change probably drives sea levels even higher，"Sweet says．"So today's flooding problems promise to become only more widespread and frequent．"”可知近年来洪水对我们造成了很多问题是因为气候变化，故选B

【3】A

推理判断题，根据第五段Bur from 2007to 2013，the occurring rate of troublesome floods jumped five times．Annapolis city was even more serious．From 1957to 1963，troublesome floods were roughly 3.8days per year．From 2007to 2013，the average was 10times higher---39.3days a year．可知本段是通过列举一些数据向我们分析了洪水发生的事件在不断增加，故选A．

【4】B

主旨大意题。，前四段主要描述了随着海平面的上上升，洪水发生的更频繁，同时也给洪沿海地共造成了灾难。针对此，许多科学家对洪水问题进行研究。分析全文可知，本文是关于洪水的研究，故选B．