发布时间 : 星期五 文章湖南省衡阳八中、永州四中2017届新高三文理科实验班暑期第一次联考英语试卷更新完毕开始阅读0c7f0a4bf524ccbff0218451
衡阳八中永州四中2016年下期高三年级实验班第一次联考
英语
一、听力
二、阅读理解 第一部分
A
An article published recently in the scientific journal Nature is shedding new light on an important, but so far little has been appreciated, aspect of human evolution. In this article, Professors Dennis Bramble, and Daniel Lieberman suggest that the ability to run was a decisive factor in the development of our species. According to the two scientists, humans possess a number of anatomical（人体结构的）features that make them surprisingly good runners. “We are very confident that strong selection for running，which came at the expense of the historical ability to live in trees-was helpful in the origin of the modern human body form,” says Bramble, a biology professor at the University of Utah.
Traditional thinking up to now has been that the upright body form of modern humans has come about as a result of the ability to walk, and that running is simply a by-product of walking. Furthermore, humans have usually been regarded as poor runners compared to such animals as dogs, horses or antelopes. However, this is only true if we consider fast running over short distances. Even Olympic athlete can hardly run as fast as a horse can gallop, and can only keep up a top speed for fifteen seconds or so. Horses and antelopes, on the other hand, can run at top speed for several minutes, clearly outperforming us in this respect. But when it comes to long-distance running, humans do astonishingly well. They can maintain a steady pace for miles, and their overall speed compares favorably with that of horses or dogs.
Bramble and Lieberman examined twenty-six anatomical features found in humans. One of the most interesting of these is the nuchal ligament（颈背的韧带）. When we run, it is this ligament that prevents our head from pitching back and forth or from side to side. Therefore, we are able to run with steady heads held high. The nuchal ligament is not found in any other surviving primates（灵长类动物）, although the fossil（化石）record shows that Homo erectus, an early human species that walked upright, much as we do, also had one. Then there are our Achilles tendons（跟腱）at the backs of our legs, which have nothing to do with walking. When we run, these tendons behave like springs, helping to push us forward. Furthermore, we have low, wide shoulders, virtually disconnected from our skulls (the bony part of the head), another anatomical adaptation which allows us to run more efficiently.
But what evolutionary advantage is gained from being good long-distance runners? One assumption is that this ability may have permitted early humans to obtain food more effectively. “What these features and fossil facts appear to be telling us is that running evolved in order for our direct ancestors to compete with other carnivores (animals that eat meat) for access to the protein needed to grow the big brains that we enjoy today.” says Lieberman.
21.We can learn from the passage that the human ability to run _______. A. was only recently described in a scientific journal B. played an important part in human evolution
C. was considered more natural than the ability to live in trees D. contributed to the form of human language
22.According to the second paragraph, humans _______
A. are better runners than most other animals
B. are not good at running short distances
C. compare unfavorably with horses and dogs D. are poor long-distance runners
23.It appears that the nuchal ligament _______.
A. enables us to run with steady heads B. is found in modern primates only C. prevents the head from being held high D. is a unique feature of carnivores
24.The passage does NOT tell us that _______
A. early humans had an advantage in obtaining food thanks to the running ability B. fossils help us better understand human evolution.
C. our Achilles tendons are an adaptation for running efficiently D. big brains may have been evolved for running long-distance
B
“My work is done.” Those words were some of the last penned by George Eastman. He included them in his suicide note. They mark an ignoble end to a noble life, the leave taking of a truly great man. The same words could now be said for the company he left behind. Actually, the Eastman Kodak Company is through. It has been mismanaged financially, technologically and competitively. For 20 years, its leaders have foolishly spent down the patrimony of a century’s prosperity. One of America’s bedrock brands is about to disappear, the Kodak moment has passed.
But George Eastman is not how he died, and the Eastman Kodak Company is not how it is being killed. Though the ends be needless and premature, they must not be allowed to overshadow the greatness that came before. Few companies have done so much good for so many people, or defined and lifted so profoundly the spirit of a nation and perhaps the world. It is impossible to understand the 20th Century without recognizing the role of the Eastman Kodak Company.
Kodak served mankind through entertainment, science, national defense and the stockpiling of family memories. Kodak took us to the top of Mount Suribachi and to the Sea of Tranquility. It introduced us to the merry old Land of Oz and to stars from Charlie Chaplin to John Wayne, and Elizabeth Taylor to Tom Hanks. It showed us the shot that killed President Kennedy, and his brother bleeding out on a kitchen floor, and a fallen Martin Luther King Jr. on the hard balcony of a Memphis motel. When that sailor kissed the nurse, and when the spy planes saw missiles in Cuba, Kodak was the eyes of a nation. From the deck of the Missouri to the grandeur of Monument Valley, Kodak took us there. Virtually every significant image of the 20th Century is a gift to posterity（繁荣） from the Eastman Kodak Company.
In an era of easy digital photography, when we can take a picture of anything at any time, we cannot imagine what life was like before George Eastman brought photography to people. Yes, there were photographers, and for ly large sums of money they would take stilted（不自然的） pictures in studios and formal settings. But most people couldn’t afford photographs, and so all they had to remember distant loved ones, or earlier times of their lives, was memory. Children could not know what their parents had looked like as young people, grandparents far away might never learn what their grandchildren looked like. Eastman Kodak allowed memory to move from the uncertainty of recollection, to the permanence of a photograph. But it wasn’t just people whose features were savable; it was events, the sacred and precious times that families cherish. The Kodak moment, was humanity’s moment.
And it wasn’t just people whose features were savable; it was events, the precious times that families cherish. Kodak let the fleeting moments of birthdays and weddings, picnics and parties, be preserved and saved. It allowed for the creation of the most egalitarian art form. Lovers could take one another’s pictures, children were
photographed walking out the door on the first day of school, the person releasing the shutter decided what was worth recording, and hundreds of millions of such decisions were made. And for centuries to come, those long dead will smile and dance and communicate to their unborn progeny（子孙）. Family history will be not only names on paper, but smiles on faces.
The cash flow not just provided thousands of people with job, but also allowed the company’s founder to engage in some of the most generous charity in America’s history. Not just in Kodak’s home city of Rochester, New York, but in Tuskegee and London, and at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He bankrolled（资助） two historically black colleges, fixed the teeth of Europe’s poor, and quietly did good wherever he could. While doing good, Kodak did very well. Over all the years, all the Kodakers over all the years are essential parts of that monumental legacy. They prospered a great company, but they – with that company – blessed the world. That is what we should remember about the Eastman Kodak Company. Like its founder, we should remember how it lived, not how it died. History will forget the small men who have scuttled this company. But history will never forget Kodak.
25. According to the passage, which of the following is to blame for the fall of Kodak? A. The invention of easy digital photography B. The poor management of the company C. The early death of George Eastman
D. The quick rise of its business competitors
26. It can be learnt from the passage that George Eastman . A. died a natural death of old age.
B. happened to be on the spot when President Kennedy was shot dead.
C. set up his company in the capital of the US before setting up its branches all over the world.
D. was not only interested in commercial profits, but also in the improvement of other people’s lives.
27．Before George Eastman brought photography to people,. A. no photos has ever been taken of people or events B. photos were very expensive and mostly taken indoors
C. painting was the only way for people to keep a record of their ancestors. D. grandparents never knew what their grandchildren looked like.
28．The person releasing the shutter (Paragraph 5) was the one . A. who took the photograph
B. who wanted to have a photo taken
C. whose decisions shaped the Eastman Kodak Company D. whose smiles could long be seen by their children
C
“Your son is one of the sickest kids we’ve ever had in intensive care,” was what the nurse said to me after we had arrived in an ambulance, 20 minutes from Kingston Hospital to the Evelina in Westminster. The journey was the longest of my life. I had been told that my six-month-old son, my friend, my whole heart, was going to die. And I spent the whole time in the blue-lit vehicle wondering how on earth I would lift my wife from the black hole she was about to be plunged (投入) into.
The nurse who gave me that bad news was to become a great friend. She told me that the noise my son was making in the back of the ambulance was the sound that babies made before they died. There were many more
horrible words and terms. But my son survived.
It wasn’t just George who endured. In the three weeks of his hospital stay, I slept 20 hours in total. My wife hardly slept. I lost over two stone in weight in the five days he was in intensive care. And we’ve been treating him for three years now. I have collapsed 20 times—the fear, the anxiety and exhaustion. Even now, we wake at least five times a night, often staying awake to treat him for as long as an hour.
My son has Type 1 diabetes (糖尿病). It’s a little known condition. George had a simple, everyday virus. It caused his immune system to attack his pancreas. Now he needs constant insulin (胰岛素) to stay alive. I wanted to raise awareness for George’s condition. I wondered how I could do it. I’ve run a couple of marathons. But a marathon was never really going to get people’s attention the way I hoped. Two marathons, back to back? Maybe three? Could I do it? How much could I endure?
I started running at the age of 19 when I thought my heart was broken. I couldn’t cope with the pain and I went for a run. I kept on going for a run. Each time I came back, it would hurt a bit less. It wasn’t so long before I had completely forgotten about my broken heart. But I couldn’t stop running. I found that any stress, frustration, anxiety would reduce when I went out on the road.
When we finally brought my son home from hospital, my wife told me I had to go for a run. She knew that I had not allowed myself to show the emotions I’d been feeling. I fought very hard not to break. It was my worst nightmare (噩梦) playing out, but it was also my wife’s. I did not want them to see the fear that I was feeling. When I got back from that first run, my wife simply said “Better?” and it was.
I’m often asked how I motivate myself for running such distances. They assume I think about my son. But I can’t really. If I did, I would weep the whole way round. The hard part of endurance running is mental. It’s strange to choose an event that you will never win. The race will always be larger than the individual. And if you don’t respect the distance, you will pay for it. The biggest mistake any long distance runner makes is to think about the finish line. Each time you do, the body falls apart. Actually, the brain falls apart.
I know I can run two marathons. I also know that the third marathon will break me. And I will be staring at another sort of black hole. It will be then that I think of my son, and all that he endured and continues to endure every day. I know that I will start to think of giving up, the pain will be so great. My brain will fall to bits and my body will too. So I will picture my son. And I’ll remember that he didn’t give up. He never gives up. Why should I?
29.Having heard what the nurse said to him, the writer must have felt . A.desperate and fearful B.special and different C.bitter and lonely D.disturbed and annoyed
30.The writer says he has collapsed 20 times because . A.long distances of marathon made him worn out B.he has to stay awake every night to care for his son
C.treating a sick son needs great efforts physically and mentally
D.his son’s condition is becoming more and more serious than expected
31.According to Paragraph 4, the writer’s running marathon aims at . A.improving his son’s immune system B.receiving encouragement from the public C.raising awareness of his son’s rare disease
D.making himself strong enough to stand great pain
D