发布时间 : 星期三 文章剑桥雅思8-第三套试题-阅读部分-PASSAGE - 3更新完毕开始阅读
剑桥雅思8-第三套试题-阅读部分-PASSAGE 3-阅读真题原文部分:
READING PASSAGE 3
You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 27—40, which are based on Reading Passage 3 on the following pages. Questions 27-32
Reading Passage 3 has seven paragraphs, A-G.
Choose the correct heading for paragraphs B-G from the list of headings below. Write the correct number, i-x, in boxes 27-32 on your answer sheet.
List of Headings
i The biological clock ii Why dying is beneficial
iii The ageing process of men and women iv Prolonging your life v Limitations of life span
vi Modes of development of different species vii A stable life span despite improvements viii Energy consumption
ix Fundamental differences in ageing of objects and organisms x Repair of genetic material
Example Answer Paragraph A v
27 Paragraph B 28 Paragraph C 29 Paragraph D 30 Paragraph E 31 Paragraph F 32 Paragraph G
HOW DOES THE BIOLOGICAL CLOCK TICK?
A Our life span is restricted. Everyone accepts this as 'biologically' obvious. 'Nothing lives for ever!' However, in this statement we think of artificially produced, technical objects, products which are subjected to natural wear and tear during use. This leads to the result that at some time or other the object stops working and is unusable ('death' in the biological sense). But are the wear and tear and loss of function of technical objects and the death of living organisms really similar or comparable?
B Our 'dead' products are 'static', closed systems. It is always the basic material which constitutes the object and which, in the natural course of things, is worn down and becomes 'older'. Ageing in this case must occur according to the laws of physical chemistry and of thermodynamics. Although the same law holds for a living organism, the result of this law is not inexorable in the same way. At least as long as a biological system has the ability to renew itself it
could actually become older without ageing; an organism is an open, dynamic system through which new material continuously flows. Destruction of old material and formation of new material are thus in permanent dynamic equilibrium. The material of which the organism is formed changes continuously. Thus our bodies continuously exchange old substance for new, just like a spring which more or less maintains its form and movement, but in which the water molecules are always different.
C Thus ageing and death should not be seen as inevitable, particularly as the organism possesses many mechanisms for repair. It is not, in principle, necessary for a biological system to age and die. Nevertheless, a restricted life span, ageing, and then death are basic characteristics of life. The reason for this is easy to recognise: in nature, the existent organisms either adapt or are regularly replaced by new types. Because of changes in the genetic material (mutations) these have new characteristics and in the course of their individual lives they are tested for optimal or better adaptation to the environmental conditions. Immortality would disturb this system - it needs room for new and better life. This is the basic problem of evolution.
D Every organism has a life span which is highly characteristic. There are striking differences in life span between different species, but within one species the parameter is relatively constant. For example, the average duration of human life has hardly changed in thousands of years. Although more and more people attain an advanced age as a result of developments in medical care and better nutrition, the characteristic upper limit for most remains 80 years. A further argument against the simple wear and tear theory is the observation that the time within which organisms age lies between a few days (even a few hours for unicellular organisms) and several thousand years, as with mammoth trees.
E If a life span is a genetically determined biological characteristic, it is logically necessary to propose the existence of an internal clock, which in some way measures and controls the ageing process and which finally determines death as the last step in a fixed programme. Like the life span, the metabolic rate has for different organisms a fixed mathematical relationship to the body mass. In comparison to the life span this relationship is 'inverted': the larger the organism the lower its metabolic rate. Again this relationship is valid not only for birds, but also, similarly on average within the systematic unit, for all other organisms (plants, animals, unicellular organisms).
F Animals which behave 'frugally' with energy become particularly old, for example, crocodiles and tortoises. Parrots and birds of prey are often held chained up. Thus they are not able to 'experience life' and so they attain a high life span in captivity. Animals which save energy by hibernation or lethargy (e. g. bats or hedgehogs) live much longer than those which are always active. The metabolic rate of mice can be reduced by a very low consumption of food (hunger diet). They then may live twice as long as their well fed comrades. Women become distinctly (about 10 per cent) older than men. If you examine the metabolic rates of the two sexes you establish that the higher male metabolic rate roughly accounts for the lower male life span. That means that they live life 'energetically' - more intensively, but not for as long.
G It follows from the above that sparing use of energy reserves should tend to extend life. Extreme high performance sports may lead to optimal cardiovascular performance, but they quite certainly do not prolong life. Relaxation lowers metabolic rate, as does adequate sleep and in general an equable and balanced personality. Each of us can develop his or her own 'energy saving programme' with a little self-observation, critical self-control and, above all, logical
consistency. Experience will show that to live in this way not only increases the life span but is also very healthy. This final aspect should not be forgotten. Questions 33-36
Complete the notes below.
Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer. Write your answers in boxes 33-36 on your answer sheet.
? Objects age in accordance with principles of 33?????? and of 34?????? ? Through mutations, organisms can 35 ?????? better to the environment ? 36 ?????? would pose a serious problem for the theory of evolution Questions 37-40
Do the following statements agree with the views of the writer in Reading Passage 3? In boxes 37-40 on your answer sheet, write
YES if the statement agrees with the views of the writer NO if the statement contradicts the views of the writer
NOT GIVEN if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this
37 The wear and tear theory applies to both artificial objects and biological systems. 38 In principle, it is possible for a biological system to become older without ageing. 39 Within seven years, about 90 per cent of a human body is replaced as new. 40 Conserving energy may help to extend a human's life.
READING PASSAGE 3
篇章结构 体裁 说明文
主题 生物钟如何工作? 结构 A段：万物都有损耗
B段：物品变旧与生物衰老的本质区别 C段：死亡的原理
D段：人类的平均寿命大致恒定 E段：生物钟控制寿命 F段：能量消耗是关键
G段：节约能耗可以延年益寿
解题地图
难度系数：★★★★
解题顺序：LIST OF HEADINGS→NOTE COMPLETION→YES/NO/NOT GIVEN
友情提示：本文的YES/NO/NOTGIVEN可以利用题干中出现的以下表达来猜测答案，一定要记住这些表达一般是选YES或TRUE的标志： possible/probable/likely seem to/appear to may/could / can
not all/not always/not necessarily 必背词汇
1. life span寿命
Captivity vastly reduces the life span of whales. 圈养大大缩短了鲸鱼的寿命。
The life span of human being has been considerably prolonged thanks to the advances in medicine.
由于医学的进步，人类的寿命被大大延长了。 2. artificial adj. 人工的(adv. artificially) artificial light人造光 artificial fertilizer化肥 an artificial smile一抹假笑
Food prices are being kept artificially low. 食品价格被人为控制得很低。 3. wear and tear磨损
Check the equipment for wear and tear. 看看机器的磨损情况。 4. static adj. 静止的，静态的
Economists predict that house prices will remain static for a long period.
经济学家预测房价会在很长一段时间内保持稳定。
A static image appeared on the screen. 屏幕上出现了一幅静态图像。 5. inexorable adj. 无情的，不可阻挡的
Nothing stops the inexorable decline of Britain's manufacturing industry.
什么也阻止不了英国制造业的无情衰退。
The police found their precautions useless before the seemingly inexorable rise in crime. 犯罪率疯狂增长，警察发现他们的预防措施不起作用。 6. equilibrium n. 均衡：平静
The government is anxious not to upset the economic equilibrium. 政府渴望着不去打破经济的平衡。
She struggled to recover her equilibrium. 她努力想恢复平静。 7. mechanism n. 机制，原理
When a person is ill, the body's natural defense mechanisms come into operation. 当人生病时，身体的天然防御系统就开始运作。
The mechanism of the brain is yet to be further explored. 大脑机制还有待进一步探究。 8. existent adj. 存在的
In the existent circumstances，it is impossible. 在现有环境中，这是不可能的。 They made an attempt to refine the existent system to make it more efficient. 他们努力尝试改善现存体系以使其更有效率。 9. optimal adj. 最佳的，最理想的
They made comparisons between every possible choice in order to make the optimal choice. 他们对每个可能选项都进行了对比以便做出最佳选择。 the optimal growth temperature最适合生长的温度 10. parameter n. 参数，系数
The inquiry has to stay within the parameters laid down by Congress. 调查必须在国会设定好的范围内展开。 11. internal adj. 内部的，内在的，国内的
We have no interest in interfering in the internal affairs of other countries. 我们无意干涉别国内政。
There's to be an internal inquiry into the whole affair. 针对整个事件将会进行内部调查。 12. frugal adj. 节俭的，朴素的