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专题限时训练(二十二) [科普知识型阅读理解(一)]

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A

The forces that make Japan one of the world's most earthquake-prone(有地震倾向的) countries could become part of its long-term energy solution.

Water from deep below the ground at Japan's tens of thousands of hot springs could be used to produce electricity.Although Japanese high-tech companies are leaders in geothermal(地热的) technology and export it, its use is limited in the nation.

“Japan should no doubt make use of its resources of geothermal energy，” said Yoshiyasu Takefuji, a leading researcher of thermal-electric power production.

The disastrous earthquake and tsunami on March 11, 2011 caused a reaction against atomic power, which previously made up 30 per cent of Japan's energy needs, and increased interest in alternative energies, which account for only 8 per cent.

Artist Yoko Ono has called on Japan to explore its natural energy, following the example of Iceland which uses renewable energy for more than 80 per cent of its needs.

For now, geothermal energy makes up less than 1 per cent of the energy needs in Japan, which has for decades relied heavily on fossil fuels and atomic power.

The biggest problem to geothermal energy is the high initial cost of the exploration and constructing the factories.Another problem is that Japan's potentially best sites are already being developed for tourism or are located within national parks where construction is forbidden.

“We can't even dig 10cm inside national parks，” said Shigeto Yamada of Fuji Electric, adding that regulations protecting nature would need to be relaxed for geothermal energy to grow.

Researcher Hideaki Matsui said, “Producing electricity using hot springs is a decades-long project.We also have to think about what to do for now as energy supplies will decline in the short term.”

The Earth Policy Institute in Washington, the US, believed Japan could produce 80，000 megawatts(兆瓦)and meet more than half its electricity needs with geothermal technology.

Japanese giants such as Toshiba are already global leaders in geothermal technology, with a 70 per cent market share.In 2010, Fuji Electric built the world's largest geothermal factory in New Zealand.

1. What would be the best title for the text? A．Alternative energies in Japan

B．The world's largest geothermal plant

C．Japan takes the lead in geothermal technology D．Japan thinks of geothermal energy

2. What percentage of Japan's energy needs is geothermal energy?

A．About 8%. B．Below 1%. C．Around 30%. D．Over 80%.

3. According to Shigeto Yamada, the growth of geothermal power in Japan needs ________．

A．a change of rules B．financial support C．local people's help D．high technology

4. Geothermal energy is considered as a long-term programme by ________． A．Yoshiyasu Takefuji B．Hideaki Matsui C．Shigeto Yamada D．Yoko Ono

5. It can be learned from the last two paragraphs that ________． A．the world's biggest geothermal plant was built by America B．Japan will not export its geothermal technology C．the potential of Japan's geothermal energy is great D．it is hard to find geothermal energy in Japan

B

A blind baby is doubly handicapped. Not only is it unable to see, but because it cannot receive the visual stimulus(刺激)from its environment that a sighted child does, it is likely to be slow in intellectual development. Now the ten-month-old son of Dr and Mrs Dennis Daughters is the subject of an unusual psychological experiment designed to prevent a lag(滞后)in the learning process. With the aid of a sonar-type electronic that he wears on his head, infant(婴儿) Dennis is learning to identify the people and objects in the world around him by means of echoes(回声)．

The device is an improvement of the “Sonicguide”， an instrument produced by Telesensory Systems, Inc., of Palo Alto, Calif, and used by blind adults in addition to a sane or guide dog. As adapted for Dennis, it consists of a battery-powered system about the size of a half dollar that is on a headgear. A transmitter sends out an ultrasonic(超声的) pulse that creates an 80 degree cone of sound at 6 feet. Echoes from objects within the cone are perceived (felt) as sounds that vary in pitch(音调) and volume(音量) with the size and distance of the object.

The closer an object is, the lower the pitch, and the larger the object, the louder the signal. Hard surfaces produce a sharp ping, while soft ones send back signals with a slightly fuzzy quality. An object slightly to the right of Dennis' sends back a louder sound to his right ear than to the left. Thus, by simply moving his head right and left and up and down, he can not only locate an object but also get some notion of its shape and size, thanks to the varying qualities of sounds reaching his ears as the cone of ultrasound(超声波) passes its_edge. Dennis likes to use the device to play a kind of peek-a-boo with his mother. Standing on his knee and facing her directly, he receives a strong signal in both ears. By turning his head away, he makes her seem to disappear. “From the first time he wore it，” says

Mrs Daughters, “it was like a light going on in his head.”

What remains to be determined is how well the device will help Dennis cope with his surroundings as he begins to walk and venture further into his environment.

Meanwhile, Telesensory, Inc., is working on the development of sonar(声呐) device with somewhat the same sensitivity as Dennis' for use by school-age children.

1. Dr and Mrs Daughters' research is directed to ________． A．helping the blind to see and learn as well as others B．benefiting the learning process of blind children C．solving blind children's psychological problems D．finding out how children develop intellectually

2. Infant Dennis becomes the subject of the experiment most probably because ________．

A．he already lags behind the sighted children B．he leads a life as normal as any other children C．he is at the early stage of the learning process D．he has the aid of a sonar-type electronic device 3. What can we learn about infant Dennis' device?

A．It's the first design that was designed for blind adults. B．Its battery is as small as a half-dollar coin. C．It is functionally similar to a sane or guide dog. D．It has been improved by Telesensory Systems, Inc.

4. In the third paragraph, “its edge” refers to “________”． A．the edge of an object B．the edge of the device

C．the boundary of Dennis' movement D．the boundary of the pitch

5. What is Telesensory Systems, Inc. most likely to think about infant Dennis' device?

A．It had better be used by blind children from school age. B．It needs improving for use in a complicated environment. C．It may not be so suitable for the blind adults. D．It benefits blind children in terms of learning.

C

A great invention by an 18-year-old high school student grew out of a simple problem most teenagers meet with.

“I'm a teenager and I have a cellphone and my cellphone battery always dies, so I was really looking for a way to improve energy storage，” Eesha Khare said on Tuesday. “That's how I came across supercapacitors.”

The teenager from California, who graduated from high school last week, won a $50，000 prize on May 17, 2013 at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair for creating a device that can store enough energy to charge a cellphone in 20 to 30 seconds.

“It charges very quickly and can store a lot of energy，” Khare said. “The cool thing is that it's a lot thinner than one hair.”