Question

For years and years people have been saying that railways are dead. “We can do without railways,” people say—as if cars and planes have made railways unnecessary. We all keep hearing that trains are slow, lose money and are dying. But this is far from the truth. In these days of expensive oil, railways have become highly competitive with cars and planes. If you want to carry people or goods from place to place, they are cheaper than planes. And they have much in common with planes. A plane goes in a straight line and so does a railway. What is more, a railway takes you from the heart of a city center. It doesn’t stop you as a car does on crowded roads. And no plane or car can ever carry as many goods as one train does.

Far from being dead, railways are much alive. Modern railway lines give you a comfortable journey. Where else can you eat well, sleep comfortably, feel safe and enjoy the scene while you are traveling at the same time? And we are only the beginning, for we have just entered the age of super-fast trains, which are traveling 150 miles an hour and more. Soon we will be wondering why we spent so much on highways and planes we can’t fly in because we don’t have enough money to buy the oil.

1.The writer thinks that railways are much alive because________.

A. They are cheaper and more convenient.

B. There aren’t any planes or cars.

C. We can have a comfortable journey.

D. We feel dangerous on highways.

2.According to the writer, which of the following is NOT true?

A. It is cheaper to travel by train than by plane.

B. The railway station is usually at the center of the city.

C. When you get off a plane you will find yourself right in the city center.

D. No car or plane can carry as many goods as train.

3.What does the underline word competitive prefer to?

A. 参与性的    B. 性价比高的    C. 竞争性的    D. 对比性的

4.The best title for this passage may be _________.

A. Which is the Best, Train, Car or Plane?

B. Railway, not the End, but the Beginning

C. Trains are More Competitive than Cars or Planes

D. Oh, Super-fast Trains

Answer

1.C

2.C

3.C

4.B

【解析】很多人都觉得因为有了汽车和飞机，铁路就成了没有必要的了，会慢慢“死”去。但是作者不这么认为。铁路有自身的很多优点，是其他交通方式比不了的，因此它不会死去，反而充满活力。

1.细节理解题。根据短文第一段的内容可知，作者觉得，相比其他的交通方式，铁路有他自己的优点。再根据短文第二段中Far from being dead, railways are much alive. Modern railway lines give you a comfortable journey可知，作者觉得铁路不但没有死去，反而充满生命力，现代的铁路可以给我们一次舒适的旅行。由此可知应选C。

2.推理判断题。根据短文第一段中What is more, a railway takes you from the heart of a city center可知，火车可以带我们到城市的中心，言外之意是飞机不会把你带到市中心，因此C选项是错误的。根据they are cheaper than planes可知A符合文意；根据What is more, a railway takes you from the heart of a city center可知B符合文意；根据no plane or car can ever carry as many goods as one train does可知D符合文意。

3.词义猜测题。根据划线单词所在的句子But this is far from the truth. In these days of expensive oil, railways have become highly competitive with cars and planes和文意可知，很多人都觉得因为有了汽车和飞机，铁路就是没有必要的了，但是作者不这么认为，在高油价的今天，铁路和汽车、飞机是有竞争性的。competitive竞争性的，意思就是铁路可以和汽车、飞机去竞争。故应选C。

4.主旨大意题。这篇短文中作者介绍了他对铁路发展的观点，很多人都觉得因为有了汽车和飞机，铁路就会慢慢“死去”，但是作者却不这么认为，他觉得铁路有自身的很多优点，因此铁路不会“结束”，反而铁路的发展现在只是一个开始。故B选项这个题目最为合适。

点睛：这篇短文的中心非常明显，短文的第一段But这个词是一个关键词，在它之后作者陈述了自己的观点，也是文章的中心。了解了文章的中心，对于我们做题就有了指向性，例如第2小题，这个推理判断题，我们知道了作者的观点是认为铁路是有很多优点的，A、B和D三个选项都是铁路的优点，符合文章的内容，而C选项是不符合文意的。再如第4小题，A和D不符合文意，C选项铁路不仅和汽车、飞机有竞争性，还有highway高铁等其他交通方式。而且文章的开头先列举了很多人对铁路的反面观点，因此B选项的这个标题，可以一下否定人们的这个错误观点，非常醒目，吸引人。故B是最佳答案。