Question

If you want to cook something quickly, you heat it from both sides.That's what's happening to the West Antarctic ice sheet(南极洲西部冰盖)．A new study reveals that the area under the ice sheet is far hotter than previously thought, fed by an unexpected flow of geothermal energy (地热能)．While the CO₂  we send out heats the atmosphere above the continent, earth is melting its ice from below.

If you were to drill (钻)deep at some place on the continents, you would find that the temperature increases about 25℃ for every kilometer deep into the hole on average.Scientists call this the geothermal gradient (地热梯度)．Until recently, no one had drilled deeply enough through the West Antarctic ice to determine the geothermal gradient underground.For the new study, researchers drilled all the way through the ice and into the mud.They found that the geothermal gradient was about 200℃，which is several times the global average on continents.Few predicted this result, although it had been showed that the earth below the West Antarctic ice is unusually hot.

Even with the new discovery, though，we still don't know exactly where the heat is coming from.One interesting possibility is volcanoes, which are under the ice.As recently as 2013, scientists were still discovering volcanoes under the ice in the area, and there may be many more.

Some people say that these volcanoes, rather than man­made climate change, are responsible for melting the area's ice.While it's true that heat coming from within the earth, including heat related to volcanoes, makes the melting faster, it is just one contributor to the loss of the West Antarctic ice sheet－not the main cause.Today's study could help us understand how the whole system, including global warming, is melting the ice.

1.What's happening to the West Antarctic ice sheet?

A. The ice sheet is getting hotter and hotter.

B. It is heated from below rather than from above.

C. The ice sheet is producing a new kind of energy.

D. It is melting from both sides.

2.What can be learned from the second paragraph?

A. It was the first time that researchers had tried to measure geothermal gradients.

B. The geothermal gradient showed where the heat came from.

C. The result was beyond the researchers' expectations.

D. Researchers never knew the earth under the West Antarctic ice was hot.

3.The author would probably agree that ________.

A. the new discovery is unhelpful without a certain conclusion

B. no volcano has been found to support the

researchers' idea

C. volcanoes are the most important reason for the melting of the ice

D. global warming is surely one reason for the melting of the ice

4.What's the main idea of the passage?

A. The West Antarctic ice sheet is in danger.

B. Researchers are trying to stop global warming.

C. The West Antarctic ice sheet's melting will bring terrible consequences.

D. It has been known how to stop the melting of the West Antarctic ice sheet.

Answer

1.D

2.C

3.D

4.A

【解析】试题分析：本文主要介绍南极洲西部冰盖从上下两面同时融化，研究人员正在探索造成这种现象的原因。

1.2we send out heats the atmosphere above the continent, earth is melting us ice from below.”可知，如果你想快速烹调某种食物，就从两面加热它。这种情况正发生在南极洲西部冰盖……我们排放的二氧化碳在加热南极洲上空的大气层，与此同时，土地正从下面融化冰盖底部。由此可知，南极洲西部的冰盖正从上下两面同时融化。

2.

3.

4.

【名师点睛】

社会生活类阅读理解题备考方略

【题型说明】社会生活类阅读文章在高考中的出现频率较高。它涉及人们衣、食、住、行等方面的社会万象、生活经历、饮食、饮食与健康、休闲与娱乐、旅游、生态旅游、服装、住房等等内容。这类文章同学们读起来感觉轻松，试题做起来也比较得心应手。在高考阅读理解题中，这类文章属搭配类材料，所以，它的命题多数属于中低等难度的送分题，如事实细节题、计算题、识图题等。遇到这类文章时，我们一定要抓住得分机遇，尽量不要失分。

【答题方法】读这类文章要特别注意做好事实细节题。对于细节试题，同学们要先从题干中找到关键性词语，然后采用略读或跳读，快速在文章中寻找相关细节，找到后再把这一部分内容仔细阅读一遍，细心比较所给选项与文中细节的区别，在准确理解了细节的前提下，最终确定最佳答案。具体解题步骤如下：

1. 读题干：阅读题干，发现关键词和起主导作用的内容。一般情况下，问题出现的前后顺序与文章中细节和事实出现的先后顺序是一致的。

2. 找细节：阅读文章内容，寻找与题干相符合的具体细节。要注意的是，对作者使用的同义词或与之相关的词语和句子千万不能忽略。如：5.2we send out heats the atmosphere above the continent, earth is melting us ice from below.”可知，如果你想快速烹调某种食物，就从两面加热它。这种情况正发生在南极洲西部冰盖……我们排放的二氧化碳在加热南极洲上空的大气层，与此同时，土地正从下面融化冰盖底部。由此可知，南极洲西部的冰盖正从上下两面同时融化。

3. 巧答题：根据前两步所得到的信息回答问题。阅读问题所给的四个选项，检查文中的细节与哪一项相符。当题干中有诸如“NOT”或“except”时，同学们一定要特别小心，力求在文章中找到相关的有力证据。

考点：社会生活类阅读理解