Question

    Compared with cars, bicycles truly have many advantages. Riding bikes not only does good to people's health but also makes it possible to move easily past heavy traffic.

So, here comes James Starley, a British inventor and producer who is widely considered to be the father of the bicycle industry. His inventions and improvements made the bicycle available for wide spread.

James Starley was born on April 21, 1831. In his early years, he worked in the Coventry Sewing Machine(缝纫机) Company. And there, Starley tried to work out improvements to the early sewing machines, and his own invention, “The European" really helped a lot.

In 1868, Starley saw his first bicycle, a French velocipede(脚踏两轮车), weighing as much as 160 pounds. The two—wheeled, rider—propelled(人驱动的) wooden bicycle required the rider to use his own feet to move the bicycle along. In 1869, the Coventry Sewing Machine Company decided to produce bicycles based on a worker, Rowley B. Turner's suggestion. What Starley first managed to do is cut off part of the weight of the velocipedes. Then, he invented the Coventry Model, and he won his place as the father of the modern bicycle. Next, Starley invented the Ariel bicycle.

In 1870, he went into business for himself. The Ariel, his lightweight all metal bicycle was first sold in 1871, to be the first true bicycle. It was the first two—wheeled self—propelled bicycle.

Later, Starley introduced what was to be his greatest contribution (贡献) to the bicycle development. His Tangent bicycle, introduced in 1874, made the wheels far stronger than earlier models. Putting all of the earlier advantages into one four—wheeled machine, Starley next produced the Salvo which was believed to be his creative masterpiece.

Though auto(机动的) industry has been rapidly developed, bicycles are still playing a important role in people's daily transportation.

根据短文内容选择最佳答案。

1.The underlined word "masterpiece" in the passage means “       ” in Chinese.

A.杰作 B.策划者 C.推广

2.       was Starley's greatest contribution to the bicycle development.

A.The Coventry Model B.The Tangent bicycle C.The Salvo

3.Starley's earliest aim(目标) to deal with bicycles was       .

A.to make the velocipedes lighter than before

B.to change the two—wheeled, rider propelled wooden bicycle into a self—propelled one

C.to produce a bicycle out of metal

4.Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A.The Coventry Sewing Machine Company decided to produce bicycles because Starley was talented in inventing bicycles.

B.Starley didn't invent the Ariel bicycle until he went into business for himself.

C.Starley made efforts to improve the early sewing machines and he made it.

5.The passage is mainly about       .

A.how bicycles have changed people's daily lives

B.how Starley invented and improved bicycles

C.how many kinds of bicycles Starley invented

Answer

1.A

2.B

3.A

4.C

5.B

【解析】

这篇短文给我们介绍了自行车之父——James Starley，他的发明以及对早期自行车的改进使自行车得以广泛使用，即使在汽车工业快速发展的今天，自行车仍发挥着重要的作用。

1.词义猜测题。这一段介绍了Starley对自行车发展做出的贡献，单词所在的句子 “Starley next produced the Salvo which was believed to be his creative masterpiece.” “Starley接下来生产了Salvo，它被认为是他有创造力的……”，这个发明让自行车得以进一步的发展，因此masterpiece意思应该是“杰作”，故选A。

2.细节理解题。根据短文第六段 “Later, Starley introduced what was to be his greatest contribution (贡献) to the bicycle development. His Tangent bicycle, introduced in 1874, made the wheels far stronger than earlier models.”可知，Starley对自行车最大的贡献是他在1874年推出的切线型自行车。故选B。

3.细节理解题。根据短文第四段 “What Starley first managed to do is cut off part of the weight of the velocipedes.”可知，一开始Starley想要减轻自行车的重量。故选A。

4.推理判断题。根据短文第三段 “And there, Starley tried to work out improvements to the early sewing machines, and his own invention, “The European" really helped a lot.”可知，Starley对早期缝纫机的改良是很有帮助的，C选项符合语境，故选C。根据短文第四段 “In 1869, the Coventry Sewing Machine Company decided to produce bicycles based on a worker, Rowley B. Turner's suggestion.”可知，Coventry公司决定生产自行车是一个工人的提议，与Starley没有关系，故A不对。根据第四段 “Next, Starley invented the Ariel bicycle.”以及第五段 “In 1870, he went into business for himself.”可知，Ariel自行车是在Starley自己做生意之前就有的，故B不对。

5.主旨大意题。根据短文第二段 “So, here comes James Starley, a British inventor and producer who is widely considered to be the father of the bicycle industry. His inventions and improvements made the bicycle available for wide spread.”可知，这篇短文主要讲述了自行车之父Starley对自行车的发明和改良。故选B。