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Development of a widely accepted chronology for the arrival of humans has been equally difficult, and it was only with the development of optically stimulated luminescence dating that a human presence in Australia was confirmed at 53,000 to 60,000 years ago. Older dates for a human presence in Australia have now been shown to be erroneous . The importance of Australia as a separate natural laboratory in which to test extinction theories lies in the fact that humans arrived there much earlier than they arrived in the other continental areas (the Americas and northern Eurasia) that experienced substantial megafaunal extinction. What Miller et al. have shown is that the extinction of Genyornis occurred simultaneously across southeastern Australia (indeed probably right across the continent) about 50,000 years ago. This is very close to the presently accepted time of arrival of humans in Australia. It was also a period of modest climate change, well before the dramatic climatic fluctuations of the terminal Pleistocene. The data of Miller et al., therefore, support those who see human hunting rather than climate as causing the extinction of the megafauna. Genyornis was a ponderous bird, around 80 to 100 kg in weight, about twice as heavy as the living emu and cassowary. It was an inhabitant of Australias inland plains and some coastal regions, but its legs were relatively short and thick, suggestion that it was a slower runner than the emu. Proponents of humancaused extinction suggest that it is just such characteristics that made the megafauna vulnerable to human hunting. A new school of thought has recently established itself in the extinction debate. It advocates the idea that a combination of human impact and climate change was responsible for the extinction of the worlds megafauna. The new Genyornis data also weaken that argument, for the following reason. Fifty thousand years ago, Australia was experiencing mild cooling; 11,000 to 12,000 years ago, the Americas were experiencing rapid warming. These disparate climatic conditions, all coincident with megafaunal extinction, suggest that whatever was happening with climate, it was bad for the big animals. Under these conditions, the hybrid model becomes indistinguishable from the humancaused extinction model for the influence of climate becomes extremely weak, and only the arrival of humans is important in predicting extinction. 1. The last word “megafauna” in Paragraph 2 most probably means A birds. B plants. C big animals. D small animals. 2. Genyornis was vulnerable to human hunting because it was A a delicacy. B very weak. C very small in size. D clumsy. 3. How many models have been put forward for the extinction of Genyoris? A One. B Two. C Three. D Four. 4. That Australia experienced mild cooling and the Americas rapid warming suggests that A the climatic conditions were unfit for Genyornis to live. B Genyornis were highly adaptable to different climatic conditions. C The two climatic conditions were both bad for Genyornis. D The climatic conditions had nothing to do with the extinction of Genyoris. 5. The selection is mainly about A the debate over the time of the human presence in Australia. B the relationship between the human presence and magafaunal extinction. C the relationship between human activities and climatic changes. D the debate over factors causing megafaunal extinction.
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| 2. 难度：中等 | |
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An idea that started in Seattle's public library has spread throughout America and beyond. The concept is simple: help to build a sense of community in a city by getting everyone to read the same book at the same tome. In addition to encouraging reading as a pursuit (追求) to be enjoyed by all, the program allows strangers to communicate by discussing the book on the bus, as well as promoting reading as an experience to be shared in families and schools. The idea came from Seattle librarian Nancy Pearl who launched (发起）the "If All of Seattle Read the Same Book " project in 1998. Her original program used author visits, study guides and book discussion groups to bring people together with a book, but the idea has since expanded to many other American cities, and even to Hong Kong. In Chicago, the mayor(市长）appeared on television to announce the choice of To Kill a Mockingbird as the first book in the "One Book, One Chicago" program. As a result, reading clubs and neighbourhood groups sprang up around the city. Across the US, stories emerged of parents and children reading to each other at night and strangers chatting away on the bus about plot and character. The only problem arose in New York, where local readers could not decide on one book to represent the huge and diverse population. This may show that the idea works best in medium-sized cities or large towns, where a greater sense of unity(一致）can be achieved .Or it may show that New Yorkers rather missed the point ,putting all their energy And passion into the choice of the book rather than discussion about a book itself. Ultinatel was Nancy points out, the level of success is not measured by how many people read a book, but by how many people are enriched by the process. or have enjoyed speaking to someone with whom they would not otherwise have shared a word. 1. What is the purpose of the project launched by Nancy? A. To invite authors to guide readers. B. To encourage people to read and share. C. To involve people in community service. D. To promote the friendship between cities. 2..Why was it difficult for New Yorkers to carry out the project? A. They had little interest in reading. B. They were too busy to read a book. C. They came from many different backgrounds D. They lacked support from the local government 3. According to the passage, where would the project be more easily carried out? A. In large communities with little sense of unity B. In large cities where libraries are far from home C. In medium-sized cities with a diverse population D. In large towns where agreement can be quickly reached 4. The underlined words “shared a word” in Paragraph 5 probably mean A. exchanged ideas with each other B. discussed the meaning of a word C. gamed life experience D. used the same language 5. According to Nacy, the degree of students of the project is judged by the careful selection of a proper book the growing popularity of the writers C. the number of people who benefit from reading. D. the number of books that each person reads.
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