There are an extremely large number of ants worldwide.Each individual (个体的) ant hardly weighs anything，but put together they weigh roughly the same as all of mankind.They also live nearly everywhere，except on frozen mountain tops and around the poles.For animals their size，ants have been astonishingly successful，largely due to their wonderful social behavior.
In colonies (群体) that range in size from a few hundred to tens of millions，they organize their lives with a clear division of labor.Even more amazing is how they achieve this level of organization.Where we use sound and sight to communicate，ants depend primarily on pheromones (外激素)，chemicals sent out by individuals and smelled or tasted by fellow members of their colony.When an ant finds food，it produces a pheromone that will lead others straight to where the food is.When an individual ant comes under attack or is dying，it sends out an alarm pheromone to warn the colony to prepare for a conflict as a defense unit.
In fact，when it comes to the art of war，ants have no equal.They are completely fearless and will readily take_on a creature much larger than themselves，attacking in large groups and overcoming their target.Such is their devotion to the common good of the colony that not only soldier ants but also worker ants will sacrifice their lives to help defeat an enemy.
Behaving in this selfless and devoted manner，these little creatures have survived on Earth for more than 140 million years，far longer than dinosaurs.Because they think as one，they have a collective (集体的) intelligence greater than you would expect from its individual parts.
文章大意：文章主要讲的是蚂蚁。单个的蚂蚁显得微不足道，但成群结队的蚂蚁却蕴含着巨大的力量。蚂蚁的数量之众，加起来可以与人类的重量相媲美。蚂蚁分布极为广泛，除了寒冷的山顶和两极地区，几乎到处都有它们的踪影。
12.We can learn from the passage that ants are ________.
A.not willing to share food
B.not found around the poles
C.more successful than all other animals
D.too many to achieve any level of organization
答案：B 细节理解题。根据第一段“They also live nearly everywhere，except on frozen mountain tops and around the poles.”可知答案，结冰的山顶和两极没有蚂蚁。
13.Ants can use pheromones for ________.
A.escape B.communication
C.warning enemies D.arranging labor
答案：B 细节理解题。根据第二段“Where we use sound and sight to communicate，ants depend primarily on pheromones(外激素)”可知，我们使用声音和视觉来交流，而蚂蚁却使用外激素。
14.What does the underlined expression “take on” in Paragraph 3 mean?
A.Accept. B.Employ.
C.Play with. D.Fight against.
答案：D 词义猜测题。根据“attacking in large groups and overcoming their target”可知，这里指与比自己大的敌人战斗。
15.Which of the following contributes most to the survival of ants?
A.Their behavior. B.Their size.
C.Their number. D.Their weight.
答案：A 推理判断题。根据第一段“largely due to their wonderful social behavior”和最后一段“Behaving in this selfless and devoted manner，...they think as one，they have a collective(集体的)intelligence greater”可知，蚂蚁之所以能够存活下来，是因为它们的社会行为。
(2015·江西省上饶市三模)
When Abraham Lincoln was young, he worked in a store. One day a woman came into the store and bought some things. They added up to two dollars and six and a quarter cents.
The bill was paid, and the woman was entirely satisfied. But the young storekeeper, not feeling quite sure as to the accuracy of his calculations, added up the things again. To his surprise he found that it should have been but two dollars.
“ I've made her pay six and a quarter cents more, ”said Abe, disturbed.
It was an unimportant thing, and many clerks would have forgotten it, but Abe was too conscientious for that.
“ The money must be paid back, ”he decided.
At night, he closed the store, and walked to the home of his customer. He explained the matter, paid over the six and a quarter cents, and returned satisfied.
Here is another story of young Lincoln's strict honesty. A woman entered the store and asked for half a pound of tea. The young clerk weighed it out. This was the last sale of the day.
The next morning, when beginning his duties, Abe discovered a fourounce weight on the scales. It flashed upon him at once that he had used this in the sale of the previous night, and so, of course, given his customers short weight. I am afraid that there are many country merchants who would not have been much worried by this discovery. But Abe weighed out the balance of the half pound, shut up the store, and carried it to the defrauded customer. I think my young readers will begin to see that the name so often given, in later times to President Lincoln, of “Honest Old Abe, ”was well deserved. A man who begins by strict honesty in his youth is not likely to change as he grows older, and mercantile honesty is some guarantee of political honesty.
