Question

What doomed the Titanic is well known, at least in outline. On a moonless night of April 15, 1912, the ship hit an iceberg in the North Atlantic ,with 1,500 lives lost.

A century later many people presented new theories to explain the real reason for the disaster. Now two new studies argue that rare states of nature played major roles in the disaster.

The first says Earth’s nearness to the Moon and the Sun — a proximity not matched in more than 1,000 years — resulted in record tides that help explain why the Titanic met with so much ice, including the fatal iceberg.

Recently, a team of researchers found an apparent explanation in the heavens. They discovered that Earth had come unusually close to the Sun and Moon that winter, enhancing their gravitational pulls on the ocean and producing record tides. The rare orbits took place between December 1911 and February 1912 — about two months before the disaster came about. The researchers suggest that the high tides refloated masses of icebergs traditionally stuck along the coastlines of Labrador and Newfoundland and sent them adrift into the North Atlantic shipping lanes.

And a second, put forward by a Titanic historian from Britain, contends that the icy waters created ideal conditions for an unusual type of mirage(海市蜃樓) that hid icebergs from lookouts whose duty was to watch carefully for  danger ahead and confused a nearby ship as to the liner’s identity, delaying rescue efforts for hours.

Most people know mirages as natural phenomena caused when hot air near the Earth’s surface bends light rays upward. In a desert, the effect prompts lost travelers to mistake patches of blue sky for pools of water. But another kind of mirage occurs when cold air bends light rays downward. In that case, observers can see objects and settings far over the horizon. The images often undergo quick distortions — not unlike the wavy reflections in a funhouse mirror.

Now, scholars of the Titanic are debating these new theories. Some have different opinions on it. Over all, though, many experts are applauding the fresh perspectives.  (words:353)

1.The underlined word "It" in the title probably refers to _______.

A．the Titanic         B．the record tide     C．the cause of the disaster   D．a(chǎn)n unusual mirage

2.According to Theory First, what was the right chain of causes leading to the Titanic’s disaster?

① record tides’ forming and icebergs’ being refloated

② icebergs’ being drifted into the North Atlantic shipping lanes

③the Earth’s strange closing to the Sun and the Moon

④increasing of the gravitational force on the ocean

A．①→②→③→④    B．③→④→①→②    C．④→③→②→①    D．②→③→④→①

3.According to Theory Second, the disaster happened to the Titanic mainly because______.

A．the freezing weather made the watcher not be able to watch clear

B．the mirage on the sea attracted the watcher and made him forget his work

C．the high tides drove the icebergs float so fast that the watcher didn’t respond to them

D．the mirage made the watcher not find icebergs and a nearby ship delay rescuing

4.What is the chief function of the sixth paragraph?

A．to infer the possibility of the mirage appearing

B．to explain to the readers the ways of the mirage forming

C．to summarize the various kinds of the mirage

D．to analyze the conditions of the mirage arising

5.This passage is organized generally in the pattern of________.

A．comparison and contrast                  B．time and events

C．conclusion and proof                    D．definition and classification（分類)）

 

Answer 1

【答案】

1.C

2.B

3.D

4.A

5.C

【解析】

試題分析：本文講述了泰坦尼克號沉沒的另外兩個原因，一個是因為地球，太陽，月亮的位置引起潮汛的變化，另外一個是海市蜃樓的出現(xiàn)。

1.C 推理題。根據(jù)文章第一行What doomed the Titanic is well known, at least in outline.說明It指的是泰坦尼克號，本文也正是說明泰坦尼克號沉沒的另外兩個原因。故C正確。

2.B 排序題。本題可以使用排除法。根據(jù)文章3,4段內(nèi)容可知，說明Earth had come unusually close to the Sun and Moon that winter是起因，就可以排除ACD項，故B正確。

3.D 推理題。根據(jù)第五段2,3，4行the icy waters created ideal conditions for an unusual type of mirage(海市蜃樓) that hid icebergs from lookouts whose duty was to watch carefully for  danger ahead and confused a nearby ship as to the liner’s identity, delaying rescue efforts for hours.說明海市蜃樓的出現(xiàn)讓這些負責(zé)安全的瞭望員沒有發(fā)現(xiàn)冰山也讓附近的一艘船沒有及時救援。故D正確。

4.A 段落大意題，根據(jù)本段最后In that case, observers can see objects and settings far over the horizon. The images often undergo quick distortions — not unlike the wavy reflections in a funhouse mirror. 主要分析的就是海市蜃樓出現(xiàn)的可能性，說明A項正確。

5.C 推理題。本文是通過提出證據(jù)來證明自己所提出的結(jié)論，是通過總結(jié)并舉例來組織全文的。故C項正確。

考點：考查社會知識類短文閱讀

點評：本文講述了泰坦尼克號沉沒的另外兩個原因，一個是因為地球，太陽，月亮的位置引起潮汛的變化，另外一個是海市蜃樓的出現(xiàn)。要求考生能夠準確把握每一段的中心思想，根據(jù)題目及選型的內(nèi)容結(jié)合文本信息作出合理的判斷和推理。