【2014·新课标全国卷Ⅰ 】阅读理解B
Passenger pigeons(旅鸽)once flew over much of the United States in unbelievable numbers.Written accounts from the 18th and 19th centuries described flocks(群)so large that they darkened the sky for hours.
It was calculated that when its population reached its highest point, there were more than 3 billion passenger pigeonsa number equal to 24 to 40 percent of the total bird population in the United States, making it perhaps the most abundant birds in the world.Even as late as 1870 when their numbers had already become smaller, a flock believed to be 1 mile wide and 320 miles (about 515 kilometers) long was seen near Cincinnati.
Sadly, the abundance of passenger pigeons may have been their undoing.Where the birds were abundant, people believed there was an everlasting supply and killed them by the thousands.Commercial hunters attracted them to small clearings with grain, waited until pigeons had settled to feed, then threw large nets over them, taking hundreds at a time.The birds were shipped to large cities and sold in restaurants.
By the closing decades of the 19th century, the hardwood forests where passenger pigeons nested had been damaged by Americans' need for wood, which scattered(驱散)the flocks and forced the birds to go farther north, where cold temperatures and spring storms contributed to their decline.Soon the great flocks were gone, never to be seen again.
In 1897, the state of Michigan passed a law prohibiting the killing of passenger pigeons, but by then, no sizable flocks had been seen in the state for 10 years.The last confirmed wild pigeon in the United States was shot by a boy in Pike County, Ohio, in 1900.For a time, a few birds survived under human care.The last of them, known affectionately as Martha, died at the Cincinnati Zoological Garden in September 1, 1914.
【试题分析】 据记载，在18世纪及19世纪，美国有大量的旅鸽。本文描述了这一期间旅鸽的生存状况。
1. In the 18th and early 19th centuries, passenger pigeons________.
A.were the biggest bird in the world
B.lived mainly in the south of America
C.did great harm to the natural environment
D.were the largest population in the US
解析：细节理解题。根据第一段第二句的信息可知，在18世纪及19世纪早期，美国旅鸽的数量很大。
答案：D
2. The underlined word “undoing” probably refers to the pigeons________.
A.escape B.ruin
C.liberation D.evolution
解析：词义猜测题。根据第三段第二句中的“...people believed there was an everlasting supply and killed them by the thousands.”可知，人们认为旅鸽数量极大，因此大量捕杀它们，所以正是由于旅鸽数量大才导致它们被捕杀，故可推知该词的意思是“损坏，破坏”之意。
答案：B
3.What was the main reason for people to kill passenger pigeons?
A.To seek pleasure.
B.To save other birds.
C.To make money.
D.To protect crops.
解析：细节理解题。根据第三段最后一句“The birds were shipped to large cities and sold in restaurants.”可知，他们捕杀旅鸽的原因是为了赚钱。
答案：C
4. What can we infer about the law passed in Michigan?
A.It was ignored by the public.
B.It was declared too late.
C.It was unfair.
D.It was strict.
解析：推理判断题。根据最后一段第一句可知，虽然密歇根州制定了法律，但是到那个时候，已经不能见到大量的旅鸽了，这说明法律制定及宣布得太迟。
答案：B
【2014·新课标全国卷Ⅰ 】阅读理解C
A typical lion tamer (驯兽师) in people's mind is an entertainer holding a whip (鞭子)and a chair.The whip gets all of the attention , but it's mostly for show.In reality , it's the chair that does the important work.When a lion tamer holds a chair in front of the lion's face , the lion tries to focus on all four legs of the chair at the same time.With its focus divided , the lion becomes confused and is unsure about what to do next.When faced with so many options , the lion chooses to freeze and wait instead of attacking the man holding the chair.
How often do you find yourself in the same position as the lion ? How often do you have something you want to achieve (e.g.lose weight , start a business , travel more )only to end up confused by all of the options in front of you and never make progress ?
This upsets me to no end because while all the experts are busy debating about which option is best, the people who want to improve their lives are left confused by all of the conflicting information.The end result is that we feel like we can't focus or that we're focused on the wrong things , and so we take less action , make less progress , and stay the same when we could be improving.
It doesn't have to be that way.Anytime you find the world waving a chair in your face , remember this：All you need to do is focus on one thing.You just need to get started.Starting before you feel ready is one of the habits of successful people.If you have somewhere you want to go , something you want to accomplish , someone you want to become....take immediate action.If you're clear about where you want to go , the rest of the world will either help you get there or get out the way.
