题目内容
Empty Deserts
In the 19th century Americans from the eastern states moved out west to settle in the rich new lands along the Pacific coast. The most difficult part of their trip was crossing the “Great American Desert in the western part of the United States by horse and wagon.
The western desert can be very dangerous. There is little water and there are few trees. But the desert also has scenery of great beauty. Tall towers of red and yellow stone rise sharply from the flat sandy valley floor. The scene has been photographed many times and appears in movies and in TV.
In Arizona, man made dams across the Colorado River have made two large lakes in the middle of the dry desert country. At Lake Powell, the red stone arch of Rainbow Bridge rises high above the blue lake.
There are few roads. Many areas of Lake Powell’s shore can only be reached by boat or on foot. But hikers in this empty desert land sometimes find very old native American pictures, painted on the rocks.
In Death Valley, California, the summer temperature rises to 130 degrees. There is less than two inches of rain each year. Death Valley is the lowest place in America---- 925 meters below sea level. In the 1800s, many travelers died when they tried to cross this waterless valley in the terrible heat.
Although the desert is dry and seems empty, there is plenty of life if you look closely. Small insects, snakes and rats have learned how to live in the desert heat. They live under ground and come out at night, when it is cool. Plants such as cacti need very little water. When it does rain in the desert (sometimes only once or twice a year), plants grow quickly, and flowers open in a single day. For a short time, the desert is covered with brilliant colors.
【小题1】In the 19th century, Americans moved from the east to the west because they ______.
| A．enjoy the trip | B．wanted to make their home there |
| C．wanted to find new grassland there | D．had no water to drink |
| A．the western desert is a good place for people to live in |
| B．there is little water but there are many trees in the desert |
| C．the desert is dangerous but it is full of life |
| D．till now, people know little about the desert |
| A．on foot | B．by boat | C．by car | D．by plane |
| A．illness | B．high temperature |
| C．cold weather | D．poisonous water |
| A．if they move about | B．if they cannot make holes underground |
| C．if they come out at night | D．if they drink much water |
【小题1】B
【小题2】C
【小题3】A
【小题4】B
【小题5】B
解析
In the 19th century, Americans from the eastern states moved out west to settle in the rich new lands along the Pacific Coast. The most difficult part of their trip was crossing “the Great American Desert” in the western part of the United States by horse and wagon.
The western desert can be very dangerous. There is little water and there are few trees. But the desert also has scenery of great beauty. Tall towers of red and yellow stone rise sharply from the flat, sandy valley floor. The scene has been photographed many times and appears in movies and on TV.
In Arizona, man-made dams across the Colorado River have made two large lakes in the middle of the dry desert country. At Lake Powell, the red stone arch of Rainbow Bridge rises high above the blue lake.
There are few roads. Many areas of Lake Powell’s shore can only be reached by boat or on foot. But hikers in this empty desert land sometimes find very old native American pictures, painted on the rocks.
In Death Valley, California, the summer temperature rises to 130°F—165°F. There is less than inches of rain each year. Death Valley is the lowest place in America---925 metres below sea level. In the 1800s, many travelers died when they tried to cross this waterless valley in the terrible heat.
Although the desert is dry and seems empty, there is plenty of life if you look closely. Snakes and rats have learned how to live in the desert heat. They live underground and come out at night, when it is cool. Plants such as cacti need very little water. When it does rain in the desert (sometimes only once or twice a year), plants grow quickly, and flowers open in a single day. For a short time, the desert is covered with brilliant (very bright) colours.
【小题1】In the 19th century, Americans moved from east to west because they .
| A．enjoyed the trip | B．wanted to make their home there |
| C．wanted to find new grassland there | D．had no water to drink |
| A．the western desert is a good place for people to live in |
| B．there is little water but there are many trees in the desert |
| C．the desert is dangerous but it is full of beauty |
| D．till now, people know little about the desert |
| A．illness | B．high temperature |
| C．cold weather | D．poisonous water |
| A．if they move about | B．if they can’t make holes underground |
| C．if they come out at night | D．if they drink much water |
The oldest stone buildings in the world are the pyramids. __66__. There are over eighty of them scattered along the banks of the Nile, some of which are different in shape from the true pyramids. The most famous of these are the “step” pyramid and “ Bent ”pyramid.
Some of the pyramids still look much the same as they must have done when they were built thousands of years ago. Most of the damage suffered by the others has been at the hands of men who were looking for treasure or, more often, for stone to use in modern buildings.__67__. These are good reasons why they can still be seen today, but perhaps the most important is that they were planned to last forever. __68__. However, there are no writings or pictures to show us how the Egyptians planned or built the pyramids themselves. __69__. Nevertheless, by examining the actual pyramids and various tools which have been found, archaeologists have formed a fairly clear picture of them.
One thing is certain: there must have been months of careful planning before they could begin to build. __70__. You may think this would have been easy with miles and miles of empty desert around, but a pyramid could not be built just anywhere. Certain rules had to be followed, and certain problems had to be overcome.
|
A．The dry climate of Egypt has helped to preserve the pyramids, and their very shape have made them less likely to fall into ruin. |
|
B．It is practically certain that plans were made for the building of the pyramids because the plans of other large works have fortunately been preserved. |
|
C．The first thing they had to do was to choose a suitable place. |
|
D．Consequently, we are only able to guess at the methods used. |
E. Many people were killed while building the pyramids.
F. They have stood for nearly 5,000 years, and it seems likely that they will
continue to stand for thousands of years yet.
G. It takes workers twenty years to build the Pyramids.