Question

Think about the longest elevator ride that you’ve ever taken. Whether you rose five or 100 floors, it probably took less than a few minutes. Now imagine riding in an elevator higher and higher as it climbs for nearly a day. When you reach the top floor, prepare for views that are really out of this world. You’ll be in space!

Space elevators might sound like a crazy idea, but they’re something scientists have been working on for decades.

At the moment, riding in a capsule is the only way ordinary people can get to and from space. But those rides are very expensive---about $ 25 million per person per flight. Now scientists are making efforts to reduce the expense of those rides.

Researchers are still figuring out the details about how a space elevator might work. One idea is stretching a very long cable — more than 37,000 kilometers — up to space from the earth’s equator (赤道). Objects in space above the equator orbit (绕……的轨道飞行) the earth at the same speed that our planet turns. A weight on the end of the cable would stretch it tight. An elevator tied to the cable could use it to climb up and down.

The only problem is that besides being long, this cable must also be very strong. Storms, including hurricanes might break it. One way to solve this problem is to stretch the cable from the moon instead of from the earth. Airplanes designed to climb higher than a typical jet might take off from the earth and link up with the cable, which would be held in place by the pull of gravity from the earth. An elevator car waiting there would then take riders the rest of the way to the moon. Fueled by solar power, the elevator could transport people and materials without much expense or effort per ride.

1.The first paragraph is presented by _____.

A. asking questions

B. analyzing causes

C. giving an example

D. making a comparison

2.Why have scientists been working on space elevators?

A. To make trips to space cheaper.

B. To help astronauts do research in space.

C. To find a more convenient way to the moon.

D. To prove an assumption which seems crazy.

3. The underlined word “it” in Paragraph 3 refers to _____.

A. the  weight

B. the cable

C. an object in space

D. the equator

4. What may make the cable stay in place on the moon?

A. The elevator car on the moon.

B. The elevator fastened to the cable.

C. The pull of gravity from the earth.

D. The speed of the moon orbiting the earth.

Answer

1.D

2.A

3.B

4.C

【解析】

试题分析：本文属于科普说明文，介绍了人们发明的能够进入太空的电梯，以及这种电梯的工作原理。

1.D 推理判断题。根据第一段2、3句Whether you rose five or 100 floors, it probably took less than a few minutes. Now imagine riding in an elevator higher and higher as it climbs for nearly a day.可知作者把坐电梯5到100层的时间和做电梯做了一天的时间比较，说明这种电梯很长。所以作者通过比较的方法组织了第一段内容。并不是提问、分析和举例。故D正确。

2.A 细节理解题。根据第三段最后一句Now scientists are making efforts to reduce the expense of those rides.可知科学家真正努力的解决的问题就是减低费用，使之更便宜。故A正确。

3.B 词义猜测题。根据本句An elevator tied to the cable could use it to climb up and down.一个电梯连接到cable上然后在用这个cable爬上爬下。所以本句中的it指代the cable。故B正确。

4.C 推理判断题。根据最后一段第四句Airplanes designed to climb higher than a typical jet might take off from the earth and link up with the cable, which would be held in place by the pull of gravity from the earth.本句中的which指代先行词the cable，指cable被地球引力拉着不离开地球。故C正确。

【名师点睛】

推理判断题在高考中占很大的比重，学生在此类题型中也失分最多。推理判断题要求考生考虑文中信息并在通篇理解文章的基础上领会作者的言外之意，弦外之音做出合理的推理和判断。

（一）、理解定义。判断是对已知的事实仔细评价之后做出的合理决定。推理是对事实的内涵所做的陈述或以事实为依据对未知所做的陈述。注意无论是判断还是推理都是以已知事实为依据。 （二）、推理题常见的提问形式。常以infer，imply，indicate，suggest，conclude，learn，intend，mean，describe，purpose等词提问。或含有表推测的情态动词，如can，could，might，would等和其他表示可能性的动词，如probably，most likely等。

（三）、具体策略

1.通过辨认细节的技巧，找到相关的事实或证据，对这些事实或证据进行分析和评价，在此基础上再作决定。切记：推断是以文章提供的事实为依据，而不是凭空想象，更不是读者自己的意愿。

2.借助常识。在推理判断题中，我们平时积累的一些常识通常会派上用场。一篇关于通信发展史的阅读最为典型。A. The postal service has over the years become faster. B. The postal service has over the years become slower. 大家都应知道交通越来越发达，邮电业当然是faster. 此篇还涉及到有关发邮件的常识，如果同学们有这个common sense，就如鱼得水了。

3. 务必要用排除法。排除法在此类题型中发挥着不可磨灭的作用。根据在文章中找到的事实依据和常识排除错误信息，再排除和文章中一词不差的信息(文章里的原句不会是推理判断出来的结果，但通过同义词或句型转换过的选项有可能是正确答案)，最后再排除无关或偏离信息，正确答案就不言而喻了。

4.词句段篇，相互交融。词的理解要放在句子里，句子的理解要靠段，段的理解也离不开篇。单独说floor谁都知道是什么意思，但…she was floored to see her own name and address inside the cover，in her own handwriting…这个语境里是surprised的意思。因此不能独立地看某个词或某句话。此外，学生对一词多义或一些习语的积累也是很有必要的，这就要靠同学们课下多下工夫了。

5.平时扩大词汇量的同时也要注意学习词的深刻内涵。从措辞去寻找文章的感情色彩，猜测作者的态度或写作意图。现举一简单的例子。

When the phone finally rang，he leaped from the edge of his chair and grabbed for it.从这几个词我们能形象地看出他等电话之久，紧张迫不及待的心情，同时也说明电话之重要，这正是作者的真正意图。

考点：考查科普说明文阅读