Question

【题目】 The sixth mass extinction is not a worry for the future. It’s happening now，much faster than previously expected，and it's entirely our fault，according to a study puhlished Mooday.

Humans have already wiped out hundreds of species and pushed many more to the brink of extinction through wildlife trade，pollution，habitat loss and the use of toxic substances. The findings published in the scientific Journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences( PNAS)show that the rate at which species are dying out has accelerated in recent decades.

Gerardo Ceballos González，a professor of ecology at the National Autonomous University of Mexico and one of the authors of the study，said approximately 173 species went extinct between 2001 and 2014. “173 species is 25 times more extinct species than you would expect under the normal extinction rate. ”he told CNN in an email. He and his team found that in the past 100 years，more than 400 vertebrate(脊椎动物的)species went extinct. In the normal course of evolution，such extinctions would have taken up to 10，000 years，they said.

Mass extinctions are just as severe as their name suggests. There have been five mass extinction events in the Earth’s history，each wiping out between 70％and 95％of the species of plants，animals and microorganisms. The most recent，66 million years ago，saw dinosaurs disappear. The past events were caused by catastrophic changes of the environment，including massive volcanic eruptions or collision with an asteroid.

The sixth mass extinction the one happening now—is different：scientists say it’s caused by humans. The researchers also said the current coronavirus(冠状病毒)crisis shows people’s recklessness(鲁莽)towards nature can seriously hurt themselves. Many endangered species are dying in large numbers due to the trade in wild animals and plants.

【1】What does the underlined word“toxic”in Para. 2 mean?

A.PoisonousB.Useful

C.AlternativeD.Environment-friendly

【2】How does the writer convince readers of the seriousness of the mass extinctions?

A.By listing reliable statistics.

B.By imagining a picture of the extinctions.

C.By mentioning some news from CNN.

D.By explaining the history of the extinctions.

【3】What is the purpose of the last paragraph?

A.To tell the difference between the fifth and sixth extinction.

B.To explain the cause of the coronavirus crisis.

C.To warn humans to get rid of their wrong actions.

D.To show the writer’s concern about the endangered species.

【4】What does this article mainly talk about?

A.The changes of the environment do harm to wildlife.

B.The sixth mass extinction is much faster than expected.

C.Mass extinctions are just as severe as their name suggests.

D.The current coronavirus has arisen from the illegal trade.

Answer 1

【答案】

【1】A

【2】A

【3】C

【4】B

【解析】

这是一篇说明文。文章讲述了第六次大灭绝正在到来，且比我们想象的来得快。同时文章分析了产生第六次大灭绝的原因，即人类的行为。

【1】

词义猜测题。根据第二段第一句话，人类已经使数百种物种灭绝，并将更多物种推向灭绝的边缘的方式是通过野生动物贸易、污染、毁掉栖息地和toxic substances的使用。根据句意，此处应表示“有毒物质”的使用。A. Poisonous 有毒的；B. Useful 有用的；C. Alternative 供选择的D. Environment-friendly 环保的。通过分析，故选A项。

【2】

细节理解题。根据第三段Gerardo Ceballos González，a professor of ecology at the National Autonomous University of Mexico and one of the authors of the study，said approximately 173 species went extinct between 2001 and 2014. “173 species is 25 times more extinct species than you would expect under the normal extinction rate. ”he told CNN in an email. He and his team found that in the past 100 years，more than 400 vertebrate species went extinct. In the normal course of evolution，such extinctions would have taken up to 10，000 years，they said（墨西哥国立自治大学的生态学教授、该研究的作者之一Gerardo Ceballos Gonzalez表示，2001年至2014年间，大约有173个物种灭绝。173个物种的灭绝数量是正常灭绝率下的25倍。他在电子邮件中告诉CNN。他和他的团队发现,在过去的100年里,超过400种的脊椎动物物种灭绝。他们说，在正常的进化过程中，这样的灭绝会持续一万年之久）可知，作者通过列出可靠的统计数据，使读者相信大规模灭绝的严重性。故选A项。

【3】

推理判断题。根据最后一段The sixth mass extinction the one happening now—is different：Scientists say it’s caused by humans. The researchers also said the current coronavirus crisis shows people’s recklessness towards nature can seriously hurt themselves. Many endangered species are dying in large numbers due to the trade in wild animals and plants（现在正在发生的第六次大灭绝是不同的:科学家说它是由人类引起的。研究人员还表示,目前冠状病毒危机显示了人类对自然的鲁莽会严重伤害自己。由于野生动植物贸易，许多濒危物种正在大量死亡）可知，现在正在进行的第六次大灭绝和人类的错误行为有关。人类的活动导致了许多濒危物种正在大量死亡。最终人类也会伤害到自己。综合分析，最后一段的目的是警告人类去除他们的错误行为。故选C项。

【4】

主旨大意题。根据文章第一段The sixth mass extinction is not a worry for the future. It’s happening now，much faster than previously expected，and it's entirely our fault（第六次大灭绝并不是未来的担忧。它现在发生了，比之前预期的要快得多，完全是我们的错）可知，第六次大灭绝正在到来，而且比我们预期的还要快。再根据文章最后一段可知，第六次大灭绝是由人类造成的，并且最终会危害到人类。综合分析，本篇文章讲述的是由于人类行为导致的第六次大灭绝的到来，且比我们预期来的快。故选B项。