雅思阅读-练习十二及答案解析.doc

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1、雅思阅读-练习十二及答案解析(总分：40.00，做题时间：90 分钟)一、Reading passage 1li(总题数：2，分数：14.00)You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 1-14, which are based on Reading Passage 1 below.*Doing It for the KidsA The defining moment of Vicky Yaylors postdoc came when she met an eight-year-old girl in a primary school. “

2、1 asked her, What do you think about science? and she said straight out, Men are scientists ,“ recalls Taylor. “But Im a scientist, I saidand that totally changed her perception.“B Taylor, an endocrinologist, is taking part in a scheme that pays researchers at Imperial College London to spend half t

3、heir time teaching in local schools. INSPIRE (Innovative Scheme for Post-docs in Research and Education), now halfway through its trial period, is a response to fears that science teaching in the United Kingdom is in crisis. The number of science students in UK schools and universities has fallen in

4、 most subjects over the past decade, eroding the supply of science teachers (see graphic). Some 800 new physics teachers were needed in 2000, but only 200 signed up for teacher training. Similar shortages and trends are seen in the United States, and when vacancies are filled, the teachers are less

5、and less likely to have any science training.C INSPIRE is trying to reverse this trend. In collaboration with the pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline, it offers three-year contracts to postdoctoral researchers, combined with a teacher-training course. Richard Sykes, former chairman of GlaxoSmithK

6、line and current rector of Imperial College, is the driving force behind the scheme, which began in September 2002. Since joining Imperial in 2001, he has become concerned by the shrinking pool of science applicants.D Sykes believes that INSPIRE can shape the next generation of scientists while they

7、 are still in the classroom. He had the contacts and clout to bring together drug-industry cash, academic expertise and government support to make it happen. Although INSPIREs future funding is not yet secure, Sykes believes the scheme could be reproduced in universities and schools around the count

8、ry.E Why encourage active scientists, not just graduates, to become teachers? Sykess response is blunt. “Most people who teach science havent even been properly educated in it. As kids get older they become more sophisticated and ask more sophisticated questionsand if they dont get answers, they giv

9、e up. “ Postdocs have the experience, background and depth of understanding to give them those answers, he claims.F All the INSPIRE postdocs agree that their experience allows them to act as role models, give careers advice, and talk about how science is used in the wider world. But there are some p

10、ractical benefits too. Jenny Litten is a pig-nutrition researcher at Imperial Colleges campus in Wye, Kent, and is finishing her first year with INSPIRE. Sometimes the piglets in her research are stillborn, so she dissected one of these animals for a crowd of 60 pupils. The teacher she was working w

11、ith had a physics background, and would never have done the dissection himself, explains Litten. “Its a different experience for the kids, because not many secondary schools demonstrate dissection any more,“ she says.G After three years, the INSPIRE postdocs can either continue their research or swi

12、tch to teaching. None of the original recruits has decided yet. But even if they stay in research, the schools they work in will still have benefited. Each school gets 40,000 (US $75,000) from GlaxoSmithKline to kick-start a bid to become a specialist science college, a move that attracts increased

13、government funding for equipment and staff. The schools spread these benefits by running evening classes, or introducing younger children to science. Taylors moment with the little girl happened during an outreach visit to a local primary school.H Plant scientist Steven Cook was among the first INSP

14、IRE recruits. He says that if they become teachers they are more likely to work with older pupils who have chosen to study science. He saw INSPIRE as a route into teaching that allowed them to continue research projects while earning almost three times as much as trainee teachers. But juggling two j

15、obs is a challenge. Even though their time should be split evenly between teaching and research, all the postdocs say that studying for a teaching qualification eats into their research time. It is virtually impossible to go to a conference if it happens during a teaching block, says Taylor.I Cook s

16、ays his research adviser is totally supportive of the scheme, not least because he gets a free half-postdoc for three years. Even though Cooks research has progressed slowly, he believes that having completed his teacher training he will be able to devote more time to the lab. It is certainly vital

17、to have a supportive lab group: “The team is very adaptable, so the research can continue even when Im not here,“ says Litten. “Its a guaranteed bit of funding for three years, whereas a lot of postdoc jobs might only be for a year,“ says David Chestnut, a laser physicist in his first year with INSP

18、IRE. He is undecided about his future, but says that he enjoys teaching and is picking up transferable skills. “Its certainly noticeable in public speaking. I went to a conference a couple of weeks ago where I was much more confident,“ he says.J Taylor is candid that she saw this as a way to boost h

19、er chances of getting a university lectureship. “The one thing I didnt have was a teaching qualification,“ she says. She points out that the UK government is pushing for all new lecturers to have a formal teaching qualification by 2006. “And if you want to learn teaching skills, its better to go to

20、where the proper teaching is happening, which is in school,“ she says. INSPIRE allows her to get a teaching qualification without dropping her research, and gives her an alternative career option that is easier to fit a family around. “Its still a problem for female researchers to take a career brea

21、k to have kids,“ she says.K With only six postdoc-teachers so far, can INSPIRE make a real difference? Taylor thinks so. “If you just inspire one Nobel prizewinner then its been worth itwhere would we be if Einstein had opted for English instead of science?“ she says. “At first, our interest in INSP

22、IRE was the money,“ admits Ralph James, head of science at St Gregorys High School in London, where Taylor teaches, but he was surprised by how much difference the postdocs made to practical lessons. “If its a success then it could be a model to be adopted elsewhere,“ he adds.L The University of Lee

23、ds is launching an equivalent scheme in September. Oeri Nursaw, head of the universitys city and regional office, is coordinating the scheme. She hopes that it will yield more applications for Leedss mathematics and science courses. And, she adds, going into schools is good for researchers: “Teachin

24、g will give them a better understanding of their subject.“ It took Leeds two years to get going, but Nursaw thinks other universities could get a programmer started in less than a year.M Shirley Ann Jackson, president of the American Association for the Advancement o Science, has campaigned for simi

25、lar outreach efforts in the United States for more than two years. She argues that university or industry researchers could make significant teaching contribution during the school year and focus on their research in the summer.N The key is money: everyone likes these initiatives, but nobody wants t

26、o pay for them. After receiving government funding during its first year, INSPIREs future is looking shaky. Imperial is now funding the postdocs research themselves, which Sykes says is unsustainable. Despite support from Britains science minister, David Sainsbury, Sykes says that “the good intentio

27、ns just get lost in the bureaucratic machine. Kafka had nothing on this.“ The dual nature of a postdocs work means that the government departments responsible for research and education each pass the buck, he adds. There wont be a shortage of applicants. In its first year, the scheme attracted moreO

28、 than 50 applications from Imperial for just three positions. All six postdocs say that they would recommend the scheme to anyone interested in teaching, and the schools remain keen. “The students have really warmed to the fact that these people are actually using science for something useful,“ says

29、 Gareth Cross, a teacher at Stewards School in Harlow, and one of the science teachers involved. “And on top of that, they can bring a little bit of awe and wonder into the classroom.“（分数：7.00）(1).Steven Cook（分数：1.00）填空项 1:_(2).Ralph James（分数：1.00）填空项 1:_(3).Richard Sykes（分数：1.00）填空项 1:_(4).Jenny Li

30、tten（分数：1.00）填空项 1:_(5).Ceri Nursaw（分数：1.00）填空项 1:_(6).Vicky Taylor（分数：1.00）填空项 1:_(7).David Chestnut（分数：1.00）填空项 1:_Questions 8-14Look at the following researchers and the list of statements according to INSPIRE below.Match each researcher with the correct statement regarding INSPIRE.Write the corr

31、ect letter A-J in boxes 8-14 on your answer sheet.List of StatementsA. University could recruit more candidates for teaching some curriculums.B. Innovation in teaching pattern could be copied in other places.C. Scientists could find the way to combine teaching task and research.D. Scientists could o

32、ffer accurate knowledge to those students when they are young.E. It is incompatible for scientists to do some research while give a lesson to students.F. Scientists could earn more money in their own research areas.G. It may help teachers to bring new knowledge in courses.H. Lack of applicants becom

33、es a big problem.I. Scientists could receive more rewards than before.J. It means a relatively short term of financial stability for those scientists.（分数：7.00）(1).Steven Cook（分数：1.00）填空项 1:_(2).Ralph James（分数：1.00）填空项 1:_(3).Richard Sykes（分数：1.00）填空项 1:_(4).Jenny Litten（分数：1.00）填空项 1:_(5).Ceri Nursa

34、w（分数：1.00）填空项 1:_(6).Vicky Taylor（分数：1.00）填空项 1:_(7).David Chestnut（分数：1.00）填空项 1:_二、Reading passage 2(总题数：2，分数：13.00)You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 15-27, which are based on Reading Passage 2 below.*Buried Cities of the RainforestIn a letter to his wife sent on May 29, 1925, Percy F

35、awcett, an English adventurer, reported that he was about to depart on an expedition into previously unexplored areas of the Amazon jungle in central Brazil. His goal was to find a hidden city that he referred to as “Z.“ It was Fawcetts last contact with the outside worldhe disappeared without a tra

36、ceand whether he succumbed to disease, human violence or animal attack is still unknown.Now, more than 80 years later, anthropologist Michael Heckenberger of the University of Florida and his team, in collaboration with local indigenous people called the Kuikuro, Brazilian scholars and a group of ar

37、chaeologists, have discovered the remains of pre-Columbian settlements in the Upper Xingu region of the Amazon rainforest in Brazils Mato Grosso state, the same area where Fawcett disappeared. Fawcett may not have been right about the existence of a city, but the recent discovery of the settlements2

38、8 in all, estimated to have had a combined population of more than 50,000is helping to overturn the long-held theory that the Amazon rainforest in unsuited to human habitation.Other discoveries are also softening the Amazons hostile reputation. In recent years, researchers have found indications tha

39、t about 1,200 years ago, natives were able to tame large areas of the worlds largest rainforest and transform its poor soil into lush orchards and fields that could feed tens of thousands of people. This is one of the prerequisites for the potential development of any highly developed urban society.

40、The Amazons rainforests cover approximately 2.3 million square milesan area about twice the size of Indiaand are home to the worlds richest plant and animal communities. But paradoxically, the soils here are highly acidic and contain few nutrients. About 10 percent of the rainforests nutrients can b

41、e found in the soil; the rest are bound up in plants and animals. Only plants that are perfectly adapted to draw their nutrients from the closed cycle of life and death here can survive in the reddish or yellowish earth that dominates this area. They take up nutrients and minerals from dead plants a

42、nd animals before the rain can wash them away.But some parts of the forest contain plots of Amazonian dark earth, also known at terra preta, which contains elevated levels of nutrients and organic matter perfect for agriculture in areas otherwise unsuitable for growing crops. The soila result of ref

43、use piles usually including charcoal, fish bones, pottery fragments, animal bones, aches and excrement-most likely correlates with important societal and cultural changes in the Amazon that allowed for the development of larger towns and villages.This fertile soil is as deep as six and a half feet i

44、n fields sometimes as large as 50 acres. Researchers estimate that as much as 1 percent of the Amazon rainforest is covered with it. The fertile pockets are concentrated near river-banks, and some of these areas are still in use for growing crops, which develop at least twice as fast here as they do

45、 in other soils. One of the many miracles of terra preta is that it does not become depleted but retains its fertility for years.Most of the plots are between 500 and 2,500 years 01d, and some researchers suspect that inhabitants of the area created and spread the rich soil intentionally. By exploit

46、ing terra pretos extreme fertility, natives were able to put their previous existence as nomads behind them. Instead they settled in villages, surrounding themselves with green fields and groves of bountiful fruit trees.Ancient Cities, Destroyed and ForgottenEduardo Neves, an archaeologist at the Un

47、iversity of Sac Paulo in Brazil, has been studying these vanished cultures for 17 years, and from his discoveries in the Amazon forests, he is convinced that Amazon forests, he is convinced that the jungle was relatively densely populated between 500 and 1,000 years ago. He suggests that at least fi

48、ve or six million people may have lived in the rainforest during that period.Settlements comprised more than 1,000 people, Neves believes, yet the inhabitants left no mark on the archaeological record in the form of towns and buildings. In a region where stone was not available, they could build tem

49、ples from wood, and as a result, the buildings would have long since rotted in the humid tropical climate. But in more than 100 locations in the region where the Rio Negro flows into the Amazon, Neves has found smaller relics of long-lost cultures. Among the finds are ceramic objects, including decorat