Question

Bill Gates, the founder of Microsoft and one of the richest people in the world, is now making efforts to reinvent （以新形式出现）the toilet. Gates has donated a big part of his wealth to charity. Now his charitable organization, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, is looking for future toilets that can improve the living conditions of millions of people.

The flush toilet （抽水马桶）we use today was invented in 1775. While it works well in getting rid of our waste, it also uses a lot of water and needs a costly sewage system（下水道排污系统）. Besides, it’s not necessarily practical for the developing world. In some developing countries, lack of toilets leads to poor hygiene（卫生），and that could kill people. According to the World Health Organization, 1.5 million children under the age of five die each year because of hygiene problems.

Last year, the Gates Foundation gave money to eight universities around the world and asked them to start inventing the toilet of tomorrow: a toilet that uses little or no water is cheap and easy to fix, and is safe and hygienic.

At the “ Reinvent the Toilet Fair（展销会）” competition recently held in Seattle, twenty-eight designs were displayed. The winners, from the California Institute of Technology（加州理工学院）, were awarded a $ 100,000 prize by the Gates Foundation.

“We couldn’t be happier with the response that we’ve gotten,” Bill Gates said at the event. Many of the new designs would not only greatly improve hygiene in the developing world, but also help change the dependence on traditional flush toilets in developed nations, he said.

1.What are disadvantages of the flush toilet we use today?

A. Wasting a lot of water and energy.

B. Washing a lot of water and needing a costly sewage system.

C. Spending too much time and energy.

D. Improving hygiene and environment.

2.How many designs were displayed at the “Reinvent the Toilet Fair”?

A. Eight. B. Eighty.

C. Eighteen. D. Twenty-eight.

3.What does the underlined word “that” refer to?

A. The flush toilet we use today.

B. The old toilet we used long ago.

C. Lack of toilets in some developing countries.

D. Lack of toilets leads to poor hygiene in some developing countries.

4.Which would be the best title for the passage?

A. Bill Gates of Microsoft B. Revolution （革命） of the toilet

C. Fair of the toilet D. Type of the toilet

 

Answer 1

1.B

2.D

3.D

4.B

【解析】

试题分析：短文大意：阅读短文可知，这篇段文字主要讲述了世界首富，微软的创始人，比尔盖茨为了改变传统厕所的弊端，投资鼓励研发新的节水马桶的故事。

1.While it works well in getting rid of our waste, it also uses a lot of water and needs a costly sewage system（下水道排污系统）. 描述，可知抽水马桶的不好之处是需要很多水和造价昂贵的污水处理系统。故选B。

2.At the “ Reinvent the Toilet Fair（展销会）” competition recently held in Seattle, twenty-eight designs were displayed. 描述，可知这个展销会上展出了28种设计。故选D。

3.In some developing countries, lack of toilets leads to poor hygiene（卫生）描述，可知这个词指代的是缺少在一些国家缺少厕所这个问题。故选D。

4.

考点：考查故事类阅读