Question

Talking plants might sound like characters in a fairy tale. But recent scientific studies have shown that plants communicate with each other and with other living things in a surprising number of ways. To understand them, scientists say, we just have to learn their language. Farmers are especially interested in what plants have to say.

“Plants are able to communicate with all sorts of organisms (有机体). They can communicate with giant bacteria, with other plants and with insects. They do this chemically，” said Cahill, an Ecology Professor of the University of Alberta in Canada.

Plant scientists are just beginning to understand this chemical “language”. Cahill says studies have shown, for example, that plants can evaluate (评估) conditions in their immediate environment and take appropriate actions.  Plants have an ability, for example, to signal pain or discomfort caused by anything from temperature extremes to an insect attack. Jack Schultz, a professor of chemical ecology at the University of Missouri, says when a plant senses that it's being eaten, it cannot walk away from trouble; on the contrary, it will release a chemical vapor(蒸汽) that alerts other plants nearby.

“Their language is a chemical language, and it involves chemicals that move through the air that are easy to be changeable, and most of all are smells that we are familiar with，” Schultz explained.

“All plants responded to the attack by changing their chemistry to defend themselves，” Schultz recalled. “But we were quite surprised to find that nearby plants also changed their chemistry to defend themselves, even though they were not part of the experiment.”

Studies have also shown that plants under attack release pleasant chemicals. Those chemicals attract friendly insects that attack the pests eating the plant.

In the end, plants' ability to communicate their needs—and our ability to understand them—could help farmers reduce the use of poisonous chemicals, cut operating costs and limit damage to the environment.

1.The recent scientific studies have shown that plants can ______.

A．communicate with other living things in a chemical way

B．hardly react to any sudden change in temperature

C．use a very special chemica1 language which is familiar to us

D．respond to the attack by giving off poisonous chemicals

2.When being eaten by an insect, the plant will ________.

A．walk away from trouble

B．change its chemistry to kill the insect

C．release a chemical vapor to “ask” other plants for help

D．give off nice chemicals to attract friendly insects killing the pest

3.The underlined word “alert” most probably means “______”．

A．warn     B．protect

C．threaten D．allow

4.Which would be the best title for the passage?

A．Communication between Plants

B．A Chemical “Language”

C．Plants Can Talk

D．How Plants Protect Themselves

Answer

1.A

2.D

3.A

4.C

【解析】

试题分析：文章主要讲了植物能够与其他生物通过化学方式进行交流。当植物被昆虫吞食的时候，植物会释放一种化学蒸汽，这种化学蒸汽能够吸引有益的昆虫来袭击害虫。

1. A 细节理解题。根据文章第二段中的“Plants are able to communicate with all sorts of organisms (有机体)．..They do this chemically.”可知，植物能够与其他生物通过化学方式进行交流。

2. 细节理解题。根据文章第三段中的“when a plant senses that it’s being eaten...on the contrary，it will release a chemical vapor...”以及文章倒数第二段中的“Those chemicals attract friendly insects that attack the pests eating the plant.”可知，当植物被昆虫吞食的时候，植物会释放一种化学蒸汽，这种化学蒸汽能够吸引有益的昆虫来袭击害虫。

3. 词义猜测题。根据上下文语境可知，植物在遭受攻击时会释放一种化学物质，这种化学物质有两种功能，一是警示危险的存在，二是发出求助信息。由此可知，此处的alert应该意为“警示，警惕”，即warn。

4. 主旨大意题。通读全文可知，文章主要讲述了“植物的特殊语言”及其功能。C项既能概括文章的主题又生动风趣，尤其是talk一词充满了拟人化的幽默感。

考点：考查科学类阅读