2000年春季高考英语—第一卷III(D)

D

　Fish Ears Tell Fish Tales

　Fish have ears. Really. They're quite small and have no opening to the outside world carrying sound through the body. For the past seven years, Simon Thorrold, a university professor, has been examining fish ears, small round ear bones called otoliths.

　As fish grow, so do their otoliths. Each day, their otoliths gain a ring of calcium¹ carbonate(碳酸钙).By looking through a microscope(显微镜)and counting these rings, Thorrold can determine the exact age of a young fish. As a fish gets older, its otoliths no longer get daily rings. Instead, they get yearly² rings, which can also be counted, giving information about the fish's age, just like the growth³ rings of a tree.

　Ring counting is nothing new to fish scientists. But Thorrold has turned to a new direction. They're examining the chemical elements⁴(元素)of each otolith ring.

　The daily ring gives us the time, but chemistry tells us about the environment in which the fish swam on any given day. These elements tell us about the chemistry of the water that the fish was in. It also says something about water temperature, which determines how much of these elements will gather within each otolith ring.

　Thorrold can tell, for example, if a fish spent time in the open ocean before entering the less salty water of coastal⁵ areas. He can basically⁶ tell where fish are spending their time at any given stage of history.

　In tne case of the Atlantic croaker, a popular saltwater food fish, Thorrold and his assistant have successfully⁷ followed the travelling of young fish from mid-ocean to the coast, a journey of many hundreds of miles.

　This is important to managers in the fish industry, who know nearly nothing about the whereabouts of the young fish for most food fish in the ocean. Eager to learn about his technology, fish scientists are now lending Thorrold their ears.

63. What can we learn about fish ears from the text?

　A. They are small soft rings.

　B. They are not seen from the outside.

　C. They are openings only on food fish.

　D. They are not used to receive sound.

64. Why does the writer compare the fish to trees?

　A. Trees gain a growth ring each day.

　B. Trees also have otoliths.

　C. Their growth rings are very small.

　D. They both have growth rings.

65. Why is it important to study the chemistry of otolith rings?

　A. The elements of the otoliths can tell the history of the sea.

　B. Chemical contents of otoliths can tell how fast fish can swim.

　C. We can know more about fish and their living environment.

　D. Scientists can know exactly how old a fish is.

66. How would you understand “fish scientists are now lending their ears”?

　A. They are very interested in Thorrold's research findings⁸.

　B. They want to know where they can find fish.

　C. They lend their fish for chemical studies.

　D. They wonder if Thorrold can find growth rings from their ears.　 

1 calcium   

n.钙(化学符号Ca)

参考例句：

• We need calcium to make bones.我们需要钙来壮骨。
• Calcium is found most abundantly in milk.奶含钙最丰富。

2 yearly   

adj.每年的，一年一度的；adv.一年一次地

参考例句：

• The flower show is a yearly event in our town.我们镇上的花展一年举行一次。
• The yearly rental of her house is 2400 yuan.她这房子年租金是2400元。

3 growth   

n.生长，栽培

参考例句：

• All living things depend on the sun for their growth.万物靠太阳生长。
• Youth is the time of physical growth.青年时期是长身体的时期。

4 elements   

原理，基础； 要素（旧时认为土、空气、火和水是构成一切物质的四大要素）( element的名词复数 )； （化学）元素； 基础； 成分

参考例句：

• Oxygen is one of the basic elements of substance. 氧是物质的基本元素之一。
• A language teacher should initiate pupils into the elements of grammar. 语言老师应该把基本语法教给学生。

5 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

6 basically   

adv.基本上，从根本上说

参考例句：

• His heart is basically sound.他的心脏基本上健康。
• Basically I agree with your plan.我基本上同意你的计划。

7 successfully   

adv.圆满地；顺利地；成功地

参考例句：

• The meeting passed off successfully.会议开得很成功。
• At last we successfully put through the business deal.最终我们成功地完成了这桩交易。

8 findings   

n.发现物( finding的名词复数 )；调查（或研究）的结果；（陪审团的）裁决

参考例句：

• It behoves us to study these findings carefully. 我们理应认真研究这些发现。
• Their findings have been widely disseminated . 他们的研究成果已经广为传播。