2014年4月27日托福考前冲刺题(二)

　　Questions 1-9

　　The ocean bottom ---- a region nearly 2.5 times greater than the total land area of the　Earth ---- is a vast frontier that even today is largely unexplored and uncharted. Until　about a century ago, the deep-ocean floor was completely inaccessible, hidden beneath　waters averaging over 3,600 meters deep. Totally without light and subjected to intense(5) pressures hundreds of times greater than at the Earth's surface, the deep-ocean bottom　is a hostile environment to humans, in some ways as forbidding and remote as the void　of outer space.

　　Although researchers have taken samples of deep-ocean rocks and sediments for　over a century, the first detailed global investigation of the ocean bottom did not(10) actually start until 1968, with the beginning of the National Science Foundation's Deep　Sea Drilling Project (DSDP). Using techniques first developed for the offshore oil and　gas industry. the DSDP's drill ship, the Glomar Challenger, was able to maintain a　steady position on the ocean's surface and drill in very deep waters, extracting samples　of sediments and rock from the ocean floor.(15) The Glomar Challenger completed 96 voyages in a 15-year research program that　ended in November 1983. During this time, the vessel logged 600,000 kilometers and　took almost 20,000 core samples of seabed sediments and rocks at 624 drilling sites　around the world. The Glomar Challenger's core samples have allowed geologists　to reconstruct what the planet looked like hundreds of millions of years ago and to　(20) calculate what it will probably look like millions of years in the future. Today, largely　on the strength of evidence gathered during the Glomar Challenger's voyages, nearly　all earth scientists agree on the theories of plate tectonics and continental drift that　explain many of the geological processes that shape the Earth.

　　The cores of sediment drilled by the Glomar Challenger have also yielded　(25) information critical to understanding the world's past climates. Deep-ocean sediments　provide a climatic record stretching back hundreds of millions of years, because they　are largely isolated from the mechanical erosion and the intense chemical and biological　activity that rapidly destroy much land-based evidence of past climates. This record has　already provided insights into the patterns and causes of past climatic change---　information that may be used to predict future climates.

　　1. The author refers to the ocean bottom as a　"frontier" in line 2 because it

　　(A) is not a popular area for scientific research

　　(B) contains a wide variety of life forms

　　(C) attracts courageous explorers

　　(D) is an unknown territory

　　2. The word "inaccessible" in line 3 is closest in　meaning to

　　(A) unrecognizable

　　(B) unreachable

　　(C) unusable

　　(D) unsafe

　　3. The author mentions outer space in line 7 because.

　　(A) the Earth's climate millions of years ago was　similar to conditions in outer space

　　(B) it is similar to the ocean floor in being alien to　the human environment

　　(C) rock formations in outer space are similar to　those found on the ocean floor

　　(D) techniques used by scientists to explore outer　space were similar to those used in ocean　exploration

　　4. Which of the following is true of the Glomar　Challenger?

　　(A) It is a type of submarine.

　　(B) It is an ongoing project.

　　(C) It has gone on over 100 voyages.

　　(D) It made its first DSDP voyage in 1968.

　　5. The word "extracting " in line 13 is closest in　meaning to

　　(A) breaking

　　(B) locating

　　(C) removing

　　(D) analyzing

　　6. The Deep Sea Drilling Project was significant　because it was

　　(A) an attempt to find new sources of oil and gas

　　(B) the first extensive exploration of the ocean　bottom

　　(C) composed of geologists from all over the world

　　(D) funded entirely by the gas and oil industry

　　7. The word "strength" in line 21 is closest in　meaning to

　　(A) basis

　　(B) purpose

　　(C) discovery

　　(D) endurance

　　8. The word "they " in line 26 refers to

　　(A) years

　　(B) climates

　　(C) sediments

　　(D) cores

　　9. Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the　passage as being a result of the Deep Sea Drilling　Project?

　　(A) Geologists were able to determine the Earth's　appearance hundreds of millions of years ago.

　　(B) Two geological theories became more widely　accepted by scientists.

　　(C) Information was revealed about the Earth's past　climatic changes.

　　(D) Geologists observed forms of marine life never　before seen.