Ocean animals have been getting bigger over the last half-billion years. Not a little bigger. Not even a lot bigger. They have mushroomed gigantically, scientists now conclude.
Their new finding lends support for something known as “Cope’s rule.” It holds that animals tend to evolve into species that are much larger than their distant ancestors. This hypothesis(假说)takes its name from the 19th century paleontologist Edward Drinker Cope. While studying fossils(化石), he was the first to notice this trend.
Noel Heim is a paleontologist at Stanford University in Palo Alto, Calif. He also is a co-author of the new study. His team compared the body size of animals between the Cambrian Period and modern times. This was a span of 542 million years. The animals studied included species from more than 17,000 genera. They ranged from ancient trilobites, plesiosaurs (extinct reptiles with a long neck and flippers) and many less familiar creatures to today’s whales and clams.
Ocean animals today are an average of 150 times larger than they were during the Cambrian, Heim’s group reports. The smallest animals alive today — tiny crustaceans called ostracods — are only about one-tenth the size of the Cambrian’s tiniest animals. But today’s largest ocean animals — whales — are more than 100,000 times bigger than the biggest in the Cambrian.
“Classes of animals that were already big … tended to live longer,” Heim says. They also tended to change more than classes of animals that were small did.
The size gains in ocean animals are much larger than would be expected by chance, saysJonathan Payne. He’s a co-author who also works at Stanford.
The scientists don’t know what drives the trend. One possibility is an arms race(军备竞赛)between predators and prey. The idea here is that larger animals are less likely to become some other animals’ meal. Another possibility has to do with oxygen. Land animals evolved from species that started in the ocean. Some of these land animals eventually returned to the ocean. And they kept the ability to breathe oxygen-rich air. That may have made it easier for them to outgrow animals that had to filter(过滤)their oxygen out of the water.What current animals may best illustrate “mushroomed” in paragraph one?
| A．Plesiosaurs. | B．Ostracods. |
| C．Whales. | D．African Elephants. |
What is the third paragraph mainly about?
| A．The result of the study. |
| B．The participants of the study. |
| C．The significance of the study. |
| D．The targeted animals of the study. |
The ocean animals’ change in size ______.
| A．is determined by environment |
| B．cannot be predicted by any factor |
| C．is fully explained by the new study |
| D．relates to the size of their ancestors |
In the last paragraph, the explanations for the trend suggest that ______.
| A．bigger animals will never be eaten |
| B．land animal can get oxygen more easily |
| C．oxygen is important to all ocean animals |
| D．land animals can grow bigger than ocean animals |
The first time my father and I ever went fishing became a family legend(传奇故事). We spent hours waiting for a bite. The sun was bursting with fire. We were hot, sticky, and mad that the fish refused to suck up our night crawlers(蚯蚓).
Being only seven years old, I observed that perhaps the worms were the problem. Maybe the night crawlers only moved at night, and now they were just lying there motionless on the hook. Dad ignored my assessment of the situation.
We began to pack up to leave. As we headed back to our truck, we heard tires spinning in the distance. Getting into our truck was tough. Having sat in the boiling sun for six hours, the seats were blistering. Naturally, I was wearing shorts.
I shifted from side to side in the seat so as not to cook my bottom. While driving out we saw a truck with a boat trailer and boat that was stuck in the mud. That explained the sound of spinning tires we’d heard.
Being a nice guy, my dad helped pull the man from the mud. In return, this fellow gave Dad some fish for being a Good Samaritan. As Dad climbed back into our truck with a brown bag full of fish, we waved goodbye to our newfound friend.
On the drive home, we agreed to take in the fish as if we had caught them. We were sure there was no way for Mom to know the difference. It was just a little white lie.
We arrived home hot, sweaty, and smelly, and went to clean up while Mom prepared the fish. We made a big deal out of the fact that we had already cleaned them and put them in the bag so as not to make a mess.
After showering, Dad and I met in the hall and exchanged conspiratorial grins(心照不宣的笑). Sitting down to freshly fried fish, we started eating happily and went on about how good something tasted that we had actually caught ourselves. Mother looked suitably impressed.
As we got up to do the dishes, Mom cleared her throat. “I just have one question of you two great fishermen,” she said. We looked at her expectantly, thinking we had another opportunity to delight her with our great fishing ability. With a tiny smile, Mom asked, “How was it again that you two managed to not only clean your fish, but also freeze them before you got home.”Why didn’t the fish eat our night crawlers?
| A．The weather was too hot. |
| B．The reason was not clear. |
| C．The fish were not hungry. |
| D．The fish only ate night crawlers alive. |
Dad was called a Good Samaritan for______.
| A．taking in the fish |
| B．helping a stranger |
| C．showing great strength |
| D．making friends with a stranger |
Mom smiled at the end because she ______.
| A．was amused by the little white lie |
| B．was satisfied with their fishing ability |
| C．was impressed that the fish were clean and frozen |
| D．was delighted that she did not need to deal with the mess |
Why did the fishing become a family legend?
| A．They caught a lot of fish. |
| B．They cooperated well in telling the lie. |
| C．They chose to benefit a stranger rather than themselves. |
| D．They make themselves a fool in front of the mother since they lied. |
阅读下面短文，从短文后所给各题的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
I will never forget the night in 1946 when disaster and difficulty visited our home.
My brother, George, came home from football practice and fell ______ with temperature of 40C. After an ______, the doctor informed us that it was polio. Polio was well known in Webster Groves, Missouri, having killed and ______ many children there.
The doctor felt duty-bound(义不容辞的）to inform George of the ______ truth. “I hate to tell you this, son” he said, “but the polio is so bad that you will probably never ______ again without a limp(跛行), and your left arm will be useless.”
George had always ______ himself as a championship wrestler in his senior year after just missing it as a junior. ______ able to speak, George whispered: “Doctor...”
“Yes,” said the doctor ______the bed. “What is it, my boy?”
“Go to hell(见鬼去吧),” said George in a voice filled with ______.
The doctor seemed shocked, but you see, Mom and Dad ______ us that just like you would never like someone else come into your house with an axe and break up your furniture, you should never let a ______ thought come into your mind and break up your dreams.
The next day, the nurse walked into George’s room to find him lying flat on his _____ on the floor.
“What’s going on in here?” asked the ______ nurse.
“I’m walking.” George ______ replied.
Sometimes it would take George 20 minutes just to get out of the chair, but he ______ any offers of help. I remember seeing him lift a tennis ball with as much ______ as a healthy man would need to lift a 100-pound barbell.
I also remember seeing him, six months later, step out on the mat as captain of the ______ team. George’s return from the horrible effects of polio was written about in ______ all over the state of Missouri. No one had ever been known to ______ so quickly or so completely from this disease. He had been through hell and he came out of it with a ______ as strong as steel.
A．ill B．asleep C．senseless D．silent
A．assessment B．analysis C．examination D．investigation
A．seized B．disabled C．injured D．discouraged
A．terrible B．simple C．unpleasant D．scientific
A．stand B．wrestle C．practice D．walk
A．dressed B．defended C．pictured D．awarded
A．Barely B．Well C．Finally D．Not
A．making up B．staring at C．turning to D．leaning over
A．anxiety B．determination C．admiration D．pride
A．comforted B．warned C．taught D．reminded
A．positive B．pleasant C．damaging D．disturbing
A．face B．head C．side D．knees
A．curious B．shocked C．amused D．sensitive
A．briefly B．firmly C．gently D．calmly
A．considered B．accepted C．refused D．missed
A．effort B．enthusiasm C．time D．energy
A．football B．wrestling C．weightlifting D．tennis
A．essays B．books C．magazines D．newspapers
A．flee B．arise C．recover D．survive
A．feeling B．desire C．body D．soul
There has been a reduction in crime in our city this year; ________ last year, far fewer crimes were committed.
| A．in return for | B．in terms of |
| C．in addition to | D．in comparison with |
There are lots of rules about good manners, but the ________ idea behind them all is this: Treat people the way you wish they would treat you.
| A．fundamental | B．conventional |
| C．controversial | D．original |
It is the custom for people to bow to one another in Japan. When Fred visited that country he bowed too, even though he felt ________ doing it.
| A．innocent | B．awkward | C．elegant | D．stressful |
A talent agent ________ Christi’s parents to let him appear in commercials. He thought Christi had the potential of being a very good model and making a lot of money.
| A．appealed to | B．relied on |
| C．picked out | D．called on |
Liz has ________ her smoking to only three cigarettes a day, but her final goal is to quit smoking.
| A．put down | B．set down | C．cut down | D．turned down |
Don’t ________ when you fill out a job application. If you were a store clerk, for instance, don’t say you were the manager.
| A．accelerate | B．withdraw | C．compromise | D．exaggerate |
Jane was the only one who ________ all the conditions; she was of the required age, height and color.
| A．improved | B．fulfilled | C．produced | D．described |
The old man fell down the front steps, knocked his head, and lost ________; when he woke up, he was back in his house.
| A．consciousness | B．balance |
| C．confidence | D．contact |
假如你是李华，你的朋友Tom邀请你下周去他们学校参加文化交流活动并向外国朋友介绍中国的传统绘画。但你忙于准备高考，不得不谢绝邀请。请根据下面的要点用英语写一封信：
1.谢绝邀请； 2.说明理由； 3.推荐朋友May参加，并说明原因。
注意：1.词数100左右；
2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；
3.信的开头和结尾已为你写好（不计入总词数）
Dear Tom,
Thank you very much for your invitation.
Best wishes.
Yours sincerely,
Li Hua
短文改错（共10小题；每小题1分，满分10分）
下面短文中有10处语言错误。请在有错误的地方增加、删除或修改某个单词。
增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号（∧），并在其下面写上该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线（＼）划掉。
修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写上修改后的词。
注意：1. 每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；
2. 只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。
Last weekend we go mountain climbing. Even the heavy rain in the morning could not prevent us going. Set off very early, we went along an extreme narrow road, all in high spirits. On every side of the road was green fields and some farm houses. We could hear the sound of the rain and our footsteps mixing with our laughter. At noon we reached the top of the mountain. That surprised us most there was the beauty of scenes. After having short rest there and sharing with the food we had brought, we started going down. It rained even harder. We were wet to the skin, and we still sang and laughed happily.
阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容（每空1词）或括号内单词的正确形式。
Freeflyers: Modem Skydivers
Have you experienced the thrilling sport—freeflying? Imagine falling towards the planet Earth at awesome speed of 300 kilometers per hour. You start your fall from over four kilometers above the Earth. And you have less than one minute before you pull your parachute (降落伞）cord. You are falling
fast that just turning your head can send you off
a different direction. This is the wild side of a sport that has not found its limit—freeflying.
Freeflying (base) on the more traditional skydiving,
of which are eye-catching. However, it is more terrifying to watch freeflyers create formations and movements. Freeflyers,
the name suggests, enjoy the more spontaneous(即兴的）thrill of doing their own things.
The wildest trip for a freeflyers is falling ‘head down’. Falling ‘head first’ requires a great deal of control, which means (travel) not only fast but also steadily. Even the
(slight) movement has a great effect on your direction.
They wear the amusing jumpsuits, strange helmets and smaller parachutes. (actual), their parachutes are about one quarter the size of the traditional skydiver’s parachutes. It is only in the last few years
freeflying has gained any real public acceptance.
I lost my sight when I was four years old by falling off a box car in a freight（货物）yard in Atlantic City and landing on my head. Now I am thirty-two. I can still the brightness of sunshine. It would be to see again, but a can do strange things to people. I don’t mean that I would prefer to go without my eyes. I simply mean that the of them made me more what I had.
Life, I believe, asks a continuous series of adjustmentsto reality. The more quickly a person is able to make these adjustments, the more his own private world becomes. The adjustment is never . I was totally confused and afraid. But I was lucky. My parents and my teachers saw something in me—the to live—which I didn’t see, and they made me want to against blindness.
The hardest I had to learn was to believe in myself. I am not talking about simply the kind of that helps me down an unfamiliar staircase alone. That is part of it. But I mean something bigger than that: the confidence that I am, despite being imperfect, a real, person; that there is a special place where I can make myself fit.
It took me years to discover and this confidence. It had to start with the simplest things. Once a man gave me an indoor baseball. I thought he was making fun of me and I was hurt. “I can’t use this.” I said. “Take it with you,” he me, “and roll it around.” The words in my head. “Roll it around!” By rolling the ball I could hear where it went. This gave me an idea how to achieve a goal I had thought : playing baseball. At Philadelphia’s Overbrook School for the Blind I a successful variation of baseball and I called it ground ball.
All my life I have set ahead of me a series of goals and then tried to reach them, one at a time. I had to be clear about my . It was no good trying for something that I knew at the start was wildly out of reach that only invited the bitterness of failure. I would sometimes anyway but on the average I made progress.
A．remember B．affect C．measure D．bring
A．possible B．wonderful C．hopeful D．reasonable
A．question B．mistake C．disaster D．situation
A．importance B．value C．loss D．attention
A．record B．expect C．offer D．appreciate
A．natural B．modern C．meaningful D．challenging
A．necessary B．easy C．difficult D．practical
A．right B．plan C．place D．potential
A．guard B．hit C．argue D．fight
A．game B．skill C．lesson D．knowledge
A．self-control B．self-confidence C．self-defense D．self-improvement
A．modest B．energetic C．generous D．positive
A．strengthen B．express C．share D．destroy
A．urged B．blamed C．respected D．admired
A．held B．stuck C．bothered D．knocked
A．important B．specific C．common D．impossible
A．invented B．confirmed C．checked D．noticed
A．interest B．limitation C．experience D．responsibility
A．once B．unless C．because D．though
A．fail B．try C．act D．continue
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