历年考研英语阅读理解mp3(98-5)

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[00:06.01]1998 Passage5
[00:08.41]Scattered around the globe are more than
[00:10.82]100 small regions of isolated¹ volcanic² activity
[00:15.23]known to geologists³ as hot spots.
[00:18.86]Unlike most of the world's volcanoes,
[00:21.38]they are not always found at the boundaries
[00:23.80]of the great drifting plates
[00:25.50]that make up the earth's surface;
[00:28.23]on the contrary, many of them lie deep
[00:30.85]in the interior of a plate.
[00:33.58]Most of the hot spots move only slowly,
[00:36.90]and in some cases the movement of the plates
[00:39.52]past them has left trails of dead volcanoes.
[00:43.76]The hot spots and their volcanic trails are milestones
[00:47.09]that mark the passage of the plates.
[00:50.07]That the plates are moving is now beyond dispute.
[00:54.12]Africa and South America, for example,
[00:57.15]are moving away from each other as new material
[01:00.18]is injected into the sea floor between them.
[01:03.61]The complementary coastlines and certain geological features
[01:07.54]that seem to span the ocean are reminders⁴ of
[01:10.87]where the two continents were once joined.
[01:14.49]The relative motion of the plates carrying these continents
[01:18.33]has been constructed in detail,
[01:20.96]but the motion of one plate with respect to another
[01:24.09]cannot readily be translated into motion
[01:27.31]with respect to the earth's interior.
[01:30.14]It is not possible to determine
[01:32.05]whether both continents are moving in opposite directions
[01:35.55]or whether one continent is stationary
[01:37.57]and the other is drifting away from it.
[01:40.60]Hot spots, anchored in the deeper layers of the earth,
[01:44.02]provide the measuring instruments
[01:45.73]needed to resolve the question.
[01:48.56]From an analysis of the hot-spot population it appears
[01:52.08]that the African plate is stationary
[01:55.01]and that it has not moved
[01:56.16]during the past 30 million years.
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[02:00.00]The significance of hot spots is not confined to
[02:03.01]their role as a frame of reference.
[02:05.84]It now appears that they also have an important influence
[02:09.26]on the geophysical processes
[02:11.59]that propel the plates across the globe.
[02:14.77]When a continental⁵ plate comes to rest over a hot spot,
[02:18.59]the material rising from deeper layers creates a broad dome⁶.
[02:23.63]As the dome grows, it develops deep fissures⁷ (cracks);
[02:28.87]in at least a few cases the continent
[02:31.80]may break entirely⁸ along some of these fissures,
[02:34.93]so that the hot spot initiates⁹ the formation of a new ocean.
[02:39.66]Thus just as earlier theories
[02:41.78]have explained the mobility¹⁰ of the continents,
[02:44.40]so hot spots may explain their mutability (inconstancy).

1 isolated   

adj.与世隔绝的

参考例句：

• His bad behaviour was just an isolated incident. 他的不良行为只是个别事件。
• Patients with the disease should be isolated. 这种病的患者应予以隔离。

2 volcanic   

adj.火山的；象火山的；由火山引起的

参考例句：

• There have been several volcanic eruptions this year.今年火山爆发了好几次。
• Volcanic activity has created thermal springs and boiling mud pools.火山活动产生了温泉和沸腾的泥浆池。

3 geologists   

地质学家，地质学者( geologist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Geologists uncovered the hidden riches. 地质学家发现了地下的宝藏。
• Geologists study the structure of the rocks. 地质学家研究岩石结构。

4 reminders   

n.令人回忆起…的东西( reminder的名词复数 )；提醒…的东西；（告知该做某事的）通知单；提示信

参考例句：

• The film evokes chilling reminders of the war. 这部电影使人们回忆起战争的可怕场景。
• The strike has delayed the mailing of tax reminders. 罢工耽搁了催税单的投寄。

5 continental   

adj.大陆的，大陆性的，欧洲大陆的

参考例句：

• A continental climate is different from an insular one.大陆性气候不同于岛屿气候。
• The most ancient parts of the continental crust are 4000 million years old.大陆地壳最古老的部分有40亿年历史。

6 dome   

n.圆屋顶，拱顶

参考例句：

• The dome was supported by white marble columns.圆顶由白色大理石柱支撑着。
• They formed the dome with the tree's branches.他们用树枝搭成圆屋顶。

7 fissures   

n.狭长裂缝或裂隙( fissure的名词复数 )；裂伤；分歧；分裂v.裂开( fissure的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Rising molten rock flows out on the ocean floor and caps the fissures, trapping the water. 上升熔岩流到海底并堵住了裂隙，结果把海水封在里面。 来自辞典例句
• The French have held two colloquia and an international symposium on rock fissures. 法国已经开了两次岩石裂缝方面的报告会和一个国际会议。 来自辞典例句

8 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

9 initiates   

v.开始( initiate的第三人称单数 )；传授；发起；接纳新成员

参考例句：

• The booklet initiates us into the problems of living abroad. 这本小册子使我们对国外的生活情况有了初步了解。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Everybody initiates and receives messages in some form or other. 每个人都以各种不同的方式发出并接收信息。 来自辞典例句

10 mobility   

n.可动性，变动性，情感不定

参考例句：

• The difference in regional house prices acts as an obstacle to mobility of labour.不同地区房价的差异阻碍了劳动力的流动。
• Mobility is very important in guerrilla warfare.机动性在游击战中至关重要。