题目内容
The African elephant, the largest land animal remaining on earth , is of great importance to African ecosystem(生态系统). Unlike other animals, the African elephant is to a great extent the builder of its environment. As a big plant-eater, it largely shapes the forest-and-savanna(大草原)surroundings in which it lives, therefore setting the terms of existence for millions of other animals that live in its habitat(栖息地).
It is the elephant's great desire for food that makes it a disturber of the environment and an important builder of its habitat. In its continuous search for the 300 pounds of plants it must have every day, it kills small trees and underbushes, and pulls branches off big trees. This results in numerous open spaces in both deep tropical forests and in the woodlands that cover part of
the African savannas. In these open spaces are numerous plants in various stages of growth that attract a variety of other plant-eaters.
Take the rain forests for example. In their natural state, the spreading branches overhead shut out sunlight and prevent the growth of plants on the forest floor. By pulling down trees and eating plants, elephants make open spaces, allowing new plants to grow on the forest floor. In such situations, the forests become suitable for large hoofed plant-eaters to move around and for small plant-eaters to get their food as well.
What worries scientists now is that the African elephant has become an endangered species. If the elephant disappears, scientists say, many other animals will also disappear from vast areas of forest and savanna, greatly changing and worsening the whole ecosystem.
1.What is the passage mainly about?
A. Disappearance of African elephants.
B. Forests and savannas as habitats for African elephants.
C. The effect of African elephants' search for food.
D. The eating habit of African elephants.
2.What does the underlined phrase “setting the terms” most probably mean?
A. Fixing the time.
B. Worsening the state.
C. Improving the quality.
D. Deciding the conditions.
3.What do we know about the open spaces in the passage?
A. They result from the destruction of rain forests.
B. They provide food mainly for African elephants.
C. They are home to many endangered animals.
D. They are attractive to plant-eating animals of different kinds.
4.The passage is developed mainly by________.
A. showing the effect and then explaining the causes
B. pointing out similarities and differences
C. describing the changes in space order
D. giving examples
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Some students get so nervous before a test, they do poorly even if they know the material. Sian Beilock has studied these highly anxious test-takers.
Sian Beilock: “They start worrying about the consequences. They might even start worrying about whether this exam is going to prevent them from getting into the college they want. And when we worry, it actually uses up attention and memory resources. I talk about it as your cognitive horsepower that you could otherwise be using to focus on the exam.”
Professor Beilock and another researcher, Gerardo Ramirez, have developed a possible solution. Just before an exam, highly anxious test-takers spend ten minutes writing about their worries about the test.
Sain Beilock: “What we think happens is when students put it down on paper, they think about the worst that could happen and they reappraise the situation. They might realize it’s not as bad as they might think it was before and, in truth, it prevents these thoughts from appearing suddenly when they’re actually taking a test.”
The researchers tested the idea on a group of twenty anxious college students. They gave them two short math tests. After the first one, they asked the students to either sit quietly or write about their feelings about the upcoming second test.
The researchers added to the pressure. They told the students that those who did well on the second test would get money. They also told them that their performance would affect other students as part of a team effort.
Professor Beilock says those who sat quietly scored an average of twelve percent worse on the second test. But the students who had written about their fears improved their performance by an average of five percent.
Next, the researchers used younger students in a biology class. They told them before final exams either to write about their feelings or to think about things unrelated to the test.
Professor Beilock says highly anxious students who did the writing got an average grade of B+, compared to a B- for those who did not.
Sain Beilock: “What we showed is that for students who are highly test-anxious, who’d done our writing intervention, all of a sudden there was no relationship between test anxiety and performance. Those students most prone to worry were performing just as well as their classmates who don’t normally get nervous in these testing situations.”
But what if students do not have a chance to write about their fears immediately before an exam or presentation? Professor Beilock says students can try it themselves at home or in the library and still improve their performance.
Title: Overcoming test 1.______________ | |
Problem | Some students get nervous before a test, so they can’t do 2. __________ even if they know the material. |
Reason | 3.__________ about the consequences 4._________ them their attention and memory resources. |
Solution | Write down their worries to 5.________ the negative thoughts appearing suddenly. |
Results of the researches | College students: 6._______ with those sitting quietly, students writing about their fears improved their performance. |
Younger students: highly anxious students who did the writing instead of 7._______ things unrelated to the test got 8. _______ grades. | |
9.___________ ways to solve the problem | If students have no 10.________ to write about their fears immediately, they can try it themselves at home or in the library. |