Wearetheproductsofevolution,andnotjustevolutionthatoccu...

問題詳情：

We are the products of evolution, and not just evolution that occurred billions of years ago. As scientists look deeper into our genes (基因), they are finding examples of human evolution in just the past few thousand years. People in Ethiopian highlands have adapted to living at high altitudes. Cattle -raising people in East Africa and northern Europe have gained a mutation (突變) that helps them digest milk as adults.

On Thursday in an article published in Cell, a team of researchers reported a new kind of adaptation - not to air or to food, but to the ocean. A group of sea-dwelling people in Southeast Asia have evolved into better divers. The Bajau, as these people are known, number in the hundreds of thousands in Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines. They have traditionally lived on houseboats; in recent times, they’ve also built houses on stilts (支柱) in coastal waters. “They are simply a stranger to the land,” said Redney C. Jubilado, a University of Hawaii researcher who studies the Bajau.

Dr. Jubilado first met the Bajau while growing up on Samal Island in the Philippines. They made a living as divers, spearfishing or harvesting shellfish. “We were so amazed that they could stay underwater much longer than us local islanders,” Dr. Jubilado said. “I could see them actually walking under the sea.”

In201, Melissa Ilardo, then a graduate student in genetics at the University of Copenhagen, heard about the Bajau. She wondered if centuries of diving could have led to the evolution of physical characteristics that made the task easier for them. “it seemed like the perfect chance for natural selection to act on a population,” said Dr. Ilardo. She also said there were likely a number of other genes that help the Bajau dive.

32. What does the author want to tell us by the examples in paragraph 1?

A. Environmental adaptation of cattle raisers.                 B. New knowledge of human evolution.

C. Recent findings of human origin.                              D. Significance of food selection.

33. Where do the Bajau build their houses?

A. In valleys.                      B. Near rivers.                    C. On the beach.                 D. Off the coast.

34. Why was the young Jubilado astonished at the Bajau?

A. They could walk on stilts all day.                              B. They had a superb way of fishing.

C. They could stay long underwater.                              D. They lived on both land and water.

35. What can be a suitable title for the text?

A. Bodies Remodeled for a Life at Sea                           B. Highlanders’ Survival Skills

C. Basic Methods of Genetic Research                            D. The World’s Best Divers

【回答】

32. B    33. D    34. C    35. A

【解析】

這是一篇說明文。最近一項對人類基因的研究發現，人類的進化不僅僅發生在數十億年前，而且最近幾千年也有。Bajau人因為靠海為生，他們的身體已經進化成更能適應海洋生活。

【32題詳解】

推理判斷題。根據第一段的we are the products of evolution, and not just evolution that occurred billions of years ago. As scientists look deeper into our genes, they are finding examples of human evolution in just the past few thousand years.(我們是進化的產物，而且不僅僅是數十億年前的產物。當科學家更深入的研究我們的基因時，他們發現了人類在過去幾千年進化的例子)可知，作者列舉第一段的例子是為了告訴我們關於人類進化的一個新資訊，那就是人類在最近幾千年也在進化。B. New knowledge of human evolution.(人類進化的新知識)符合以上說法，故選B項。

【33題詳解】

細節理解題。根據第二段的The Bajau, as these people are known, number in hundreds of thousands in Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines. They have traditionally live on houseboats; in recent times, they've also built houses on stilts in coastal waters.(這些人被稱為Bajau，在印度尼西亞、馬來西亞和菲律賓有數十萬人。他們一直住在船屋上；最近他們也把房子建在沿海水域的吊腳樓上)可知，Bajau把房子建在沿海區域。D. Off the coast.(沿海)符合以上說法，故選D項。

【34題詳解】

細節理解題。根據第三段的we were so amazed that they could stay underwater much longer than us local islanders.(我們很驚訝，他們在水下待的時間比我們當地的島民要長的多)可知，讓Jubilado感到吃驚的是Bajau人能在水下待更長的時間。C. They could stay long underwater. (他們能在水下待很長時間)符合以上說法，故選C項。

【35題詳解】

主旨大意題。根據文章的主要內容，尤其是第二段的On Thursday in an article published in Cell, a team of researchers reported a new kind of adaption-not to air or to food, but to the ocean.(週四，在《細胞》雜誌上發表的一篇文章中，一群研究人員報道了一種新的適應——不是空氣也不是食物，而是海洋)可知，本文主要講述了一種新的進化，即長期生活在海邊，靠海為生的生活方式，讓Bajau人的身體進化成更適應海洋生活。A. Bodies Remodeled for a Life at Sea.(身體為適應海洋生活而重塑)可以作為本文標題，故選A項。

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