Directions: Read the following passages carefully and choose the best answer from the four choices marked A, B, C and D. Questions 1 to 5 are based on the same passage.
The crop circles you will see as part of the Crop Circle Connector web site are actual events that have taken place in crop fields worldwide. This web site is literally the largest crop circle site on the Internet. On this site you will find information to cater for all your needs including an international crop circle database.
In the UK farmers recall simple circles appearing on their land for generations. The British media first reported on the circles in the early 1980s. By 1990 crop circles had exploded into the public mind as the new phenomenon changed from simple circular patterns into huge and complex, geometric formations. The crop circles are a worldwide phenomenon and each year new reports come from an ever increasing number of countries. However, the main
concentration of events are to be found in Southern England, many around ancient sites such as Stonehenge, Avebury and Silbury Hill. Although there are many theories as to their creation, none have been able to explain satisfactorily exactly how the circles are made. But, perhaps some of the most persuasive evidence comes in the form of videotaped footage showing small bright balls of white light in and around the crop circles. Many of these lights have been filmed in broad daylight and the objects seem to move with purpose and intelligence. Could this hint at a possible link between them and the formation of crop circles?
Scientific analysis has been carried out on plant samples taken from the crop circles. The work done suggests that some sort of microwave energy effect is involved in the circle making process. Crop circle researchers are increasingly being asked to use creative and innovative thought as part of their investigative process. Some current field research uses meditation, lights and musical sounds in an effort to communicate new patterns into the fields as the circles phenomenon has been seen to interact with the human mind.
Whatever the crop circles are, they have perplexed and inspired people worldwide. For those involved it has changed their lives forever, with the growing realization that we live in a world that is infinitely more complex and mysterious than we could have imagined.
This web site is dedicated to bringing you the very latest and most comprehensive crop circle news and information. We incorporate reports on all the new formations with top quality photographs from some of the foremost researchers and photographers. 1.
B. In the 1990s.
C. During the recent years.
D. Many hundred years ago. 2.
The author's purpose in writing this essay is to ________________.
A. tell readers that we live in a complex and mysterious world
B. show how mysterious the crop circles are
C. persuade people to pay a visit to England
D. introduce this web site to people 3.
Researchers use many creative methods to communicate new patterns of circles except ________________. A. meditation B. lights
C. musical sounds
D. calculation 4.
According to the passage, which of the following statements is NOT true?
A. The crop circles appear on farmland.
B. The crop circles are a world-wide phenomenon.
When were the crop circles first reported? A. In the early 1980s.
C. Plant samples taken from the crop circles were analyzed by researchers.
D. Scientists get satisfactory explanations about how the circles are made. 5.
The author's attitude towards the crop circles is ________________. A. subjective
B. objective
C. indifferent
D. worried
Questions 6 to 10 are based on the same passage.
Japan's famed cherry trees have carried the hearts of a nation for centuries but they will soon enjoy another honor—their seeds being launched into outer space.
The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has approved a project to send the seeds of cherry trees to the Japanese laboratory at the International Space Station, officials said Tuesday. Japan Manned Space Systems Corp., a Tokyo-based
private-sector consortium of 55 companies, organized the cherry seeds' half-a-year stay in space in part to see whether or how microgravity would affect them.
\travel in space on our behalf as few ordinary people can go now,\Manned Space Systems spokeswoman Yuko Otake said. Cherry trees' annual springtime blooming is a time for nationwide enjoyment in Japan, where friends and colleagues hold picnics to enjoy the short-lived beauty of the blossoms.
The space project will send lily and violet seeds along with the seeds from 10 cherry trees, including three designated by the government as natural treasures and praised as producing Japan's most beautiful blossoms.
One of the three ancient trees, named Takizakura, or \cherry blossoms,\
in bloom in the small northern town of Miharu.
Elementary school pupils in Miharu will pick some 200 fallen seeds in June or July for the space project. The town will share the returned seeds with research institutions.
\gone to space, we hope to use them to promote tourism here while drawing children's interest in science,\said.
The town will also plant some seeds, he said. \that our tree was selected among many cherry blossoms that represent Japan,\
The seeds will be lifted off into space around October and are expected to return to Earth early next year.
Japan has an increasingly ambitious space program and last month began to set up its first space laboratory, which was launched on the US space shuttle Endeavour. 6.
Why have Japanese sent the seeds of cherry trees to outer space?
A. Because they love cherry trees very much.
B. Because they want to see whether cherry tress can bloom in space.
C. Because they want to see whether or how microgravity would affect cherry trees.
D. Because they want to produce more beautiful cherry blossoms. 7.
B. A private corporation.
C. The Japanese Government.
D. The official of Hirata. 8.
What will be sent into space with the seeds of cherry trees? Who organized the space project?
A. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.
A. The seeds of lily and lotus.
B. The seeds of lily and violet.
C. The seeds of violet and rose.
D. The seeds of violet and plum. 9.
B. The tourists in Miharu.
C. The citizens of Miharu.
D. Some experts from research institutions.
10. The attitude the official Sadafumi Hirata holds towards the
space project is ________________. A. indifferent
B. disbelieving
C. pleased
D. critical
Questions 11 to 15 are based on the same passage.
South Korean scientists say they have engineered four beagles (比格犬) that glow red using cloning techniques that could help develop cures for human diseases.
The four dogs, all named \—a combination of the words \—look like typical beagles by daylight. But they glow red under ultraviolet light.
Seoul National University professor Lee Byeong-chun, head of the research team, called them the world's first transgenic dogs carrying fluorescent genes, an achievement that goes beyond just the glowing creation.
Who will pick fallen cherry seeds in Miharu? A. The elementary school students.
新课标大学英语单元测试_参考答案
