理工类B级阅读理解
Can you hear This ?
When something creates a sound wave in a room or an auditorium (礼堂)，listeners hear the sound wave directly from the source. They also hear the reflections as the sound bounces off the walls , floor ,and ceiling . These are called the reflected wave or reverberant (反射的) sound , which can be heard even after the sound is no longer coming from the source .
The reverberation time of an auditorium is determined by the volume or interior size of the auditorium .It is also determined by how well or how poorly the walls , ceiling, floor , and contents of the room (including the people ) absorb sound. There is no ideal reverberation time .The full-sound performance of music such as Wagner operas or Mahler symphonies should have a long reverberation time . The light ,rapid musical passages of Bach or Mozart need a reverberation time somewhere between .
Acoustic problems often are caused by poor auditorium design .Smooth , curved (弯曲的)reflecting surfaces create large reflections . Parallel (平行的)walls reflect sound back and forth, creating a rapid ,repetitive pulsing(有节奏的跳动)effect. Large pillars (柱)and corners can cause acoustic shadows as the sound waves try to pass around the object . Some of these problems can be solved by using absorbers and relectors to change the reverberation time of a room .For example , hanging large reflectors , called clouds , over the performers will allow some sound frequencies to reflect and others to pass yo achieve a pleasing mixture of sound.
1.This Passage is mainly about
A sound waves and their acoustic effect .
B the types of music orchestras play
C walls of an auditorium
D the design of an auditorium
2.Wagner operas and Mahler symphonies sound fuller in an auditorium with
~ 2 / 3 ~
A a short reverberation time
B a long reverberation time
C an intermediate reverberation time
D no reverberation time
3.This passage suggests that a good auditorium should
A achieve a pleasing mixture of sound
B get rid of all reflections
C not have absorbers.
D have smooth surfaces
4.Large pillars and corners may
A make sound rich and full
B be cures for sound problems
C be sources of sound problems
D function as well as clouds
5.The word “acoustic “in the last paragraph has something to do with
A performance B Music
C sound D noise
Smart Window
Windows not only let light in to cut down an electricity use for lighting，but the light coming through the window also provides heat.However，windows are not something people typically associate with being a cutting edge1 technology.Researchers are now working on new technologies that enable a window to quickly change from clear to dark and anywhere in between with a flip of a switch2.
“It took us a long time to figure out what a window really is,” says Claes Granqvist.He’s a professor of solid-state physics at Uppsala University in Sweden3.“It’s contact with the outside world.You have to have visual contact with the surrounding world to feel well.” So，windows and natural light are important for improving the way people feel when they’re stuck indoors.
Yet，windows are the weak link in a building when it comes to energy and temperature control.In the winter，cold air leaks in.When it’s hot and sunny，sunlight streams in.All of this sunlight carries lots of heat and energy.And all of this extra heat forces people to turn ontheir air conditioners.Producing blasts of cold air，which can feel so refreshing，actually suck up enormous amounts of electricity in buildings around the world.
Windows have been a major focus of energy research for a long time. Over the years，scientists have come up with a variety of strategies for coating，glazing，and layering windows to make them more energy efficient.Smart windows go a step further.They use chromogenic technologies which involve changes of color.
Electrochromic windows use electricity to change color.For example，a sheet of glass coated with thin layers of chemical compound such as tungsten oxide works a bit like a battery.Tungsten oxide is clear when an electric charge is applied and dark when the charge is removed，that is，when the amount of voltage is decreased，the window darkens until it’s completely dark after all electricity is taken away.So applying a voltage determines whether the window looks clear or dark.
One important feature that makes a smart window so smart is that it has a sort of “memory.” All it takes is a small jolt of voltage to turn the window from one state to the other.Then，it stays that way.Transitions take anywhere from 10 seconds to a few minutes，depending on the size of the window.The development of smart windows could mean that massive air conditioning systems may no longer need.“In the future,” Granqvist says,“our buildings may look different.”
练习：
1. Which of the following statements does not indicate the importance of windows as described in the first two paragraphs?
A Windows can change from clear to dark to save energy.
B Windows help to save energy by letting light in.
C Windows help to save energy by providing heat.
D Windows enable people to have contact with the outside world.
2. When are windows the weak link in a building?
A In the cold winter.
B In the hot summer.
C When air conditioners are turned on.
D Both A and B.
3. What are smart windows，according to Paragraph 4?
A Windows that are coated.
B Windows that are glazed.
C Windows the color of which can be changed.
D Windows that have many layers.
4. To make electrochromic windows change color，what is applied to the window glass?
A Electricity.
B Tungsten oxide.
C A battery.
D A voltage.
5. What will he the benefit if the research on smart windows turns out to be successful，according to the last paragraph?
A The buildings will look different.
B Windows can be as large as you want.
C We may not need air conditioners any more.
D They are less expensive than traditional windows.
词汇：
flip n.& v.用手指轻弹，轻击
tungsten oxide 氧化钨
air conditioner 空调 (器)
jolt n.& v.震摇，颠簸，晃动
refreshing adj.使人清爽的
electrochromic adj.电致变色的
glaze v.装玻璃，用玻璃覆盖
voltage n.电压
chromogenic adj.发色的
air conditioning 空调，空调系统
注释：
1. cutting edge：本意为“(刀片的)刃口，刀刃”;比喻意为“最先进的，科技含量最高的”。
2. anywhere in between witha flip of a switch：就在开或关的一霎那。
3. Uppsala University in Sweden：瑞典的乌普萨拉大学。乌普萨拉是瑞典东部一座城市，位于斯德哥尔摩的西北方向。
答案与题解：
1. A 第一段告诉我们窗户因为让阳光进入房间，并且为房间提供热源，所以节约了能源。第二段说，窗户使人们能接触外部世界。所以B、C和D都说明了窗户的重要性。第一段最后一句说，研究者正在实验能让窗户变换亮度，但并没有说已经实验成功，所以A是错误的说法，是正确选择。
2. D 短文第三段的.第一句说：windows are the weak link in a building，接下来是对这句话分寒冬和炎夏做了说明。所以D是正确选择。
3. C 第四段告诉我们，多年来，科学家已研究出多种通过窗户节能的办法，而smart windows 使用的技术使窗户能变换颜色。所以C是正确选择。
4. B 第五段第二句提供了答案。a sheet of glass coated with thin layers of chemical compound such as tungsten oxide中的coated是“涂上一层薄薄的……”的意思。
5. C 短文最后一段的第五句提供了答案。
理工类B级完形填空
Warmer Climate Will Bake Tropical Bugs
Global warming could cook tropical insects, with unpredictable knock-on effects, say researchers who warn that rising temperatures also
(51) tropical frogs, lizards (蜥蜴).
Temperatures are (52) to increase much faster in temperate and polar regions than in the tropics. But no-one had looked at how warming would affect insects and other cold-blooded animals (53) had evolved in tropical regions with little temperature variation.
Curtis Deutsch at the University of California at Los Angeles and colleagues analysed data (54)insect survival and reproduction for 38 species in different ecosystems, and then estimated how these values would (55) with predictions of climate change for the 21st century.
The team found that the reproductive (56) of tropical insects tends to peak very close to the temperatures where they normally live, but (57) sharply at higher temperatures. This means that cranking up the heat only a small amount can exert a heavy toll, leaving insects unable to reproduce (58) enough to keep up their numbers.
Temperature tolerance
Temperate insects reproduce well over a broader range, and do not live as (59) to their thermal limit, so they can reproduce successfully when their climate warms more than in the tropics.
“Tropical insects do very well in a narrow band of temperatures, but move them above that (60) and they die,” says team member Josh Tewksbury of the University of Washington in Seattle.
The heart of the (61) is temperature tolerance. emperate-zone insects have evolved to survive the much broader temperature swings of seasonal climates, than have their tropical relatives.
The (62) appears worse for animals that live in hot stable climate of the lower levels of tropical forests. Lizards in clear areas can find shade to cool down, but those living in the forest are already in the (63), and there’s not much they can do to get cooler, Deutsch says.
Too few tropical insects have been studied so far to (64) if any particular group will be particularly hard-hit, says Tewksbury. Insects play important (65) in forest ecology, including pollination, and eating detritus to recycle carbon.
The team are now starting to evaluate how temperature affects ecological interactions of insects with other species, including crops such as African corn.
Journal reference: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0709472105)
Climate Change – Want to know more about global warming: the science, impacts and political debate? Visit our continually updated special report.
Endangered species – Learn more about the conservation battle in our comprehensive special report.
参考答案：
51. threaten 52. expected 53. that 54. On 55. change
56. rate 57 drops 58 fast 59 close 60. range
61. problem 62. effect 63. shade 64 tell 65. roles
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