In the 1970s, there was great optimism about earthquake prediction. A few so-called earthquake precursors had come to light, and there was even a theory (known as dilatancy) put forth to explain many of the phenomena that come before a large earthquake. A series of foreshocks is an example of a precursor. However, since foreshocks look just like any other earthquakes, they are not in themselves very useful in prediction. From all points around the globe, there are numerous anecdotal reports about other precursors, earthquake folklore, if you will.
Many widely reported earthquake precursors are related to groundwater. A few hours before a large earthquake, marked changes have been reported in the level or flow of wells and springs. Groundwater has also reportedly changed temperature, become cloudy, or acquired a bad taste. Occasionally, electrostatic phenomena such as earthquake lights (similar to St. Elmo’s fire that appears on ships during electrical storms) and changes in the local magnetic field have been reported. Anecdotal reports also persistently include the strange behavior of animals, which might be linked to electrostatic phenomena or foreshocks. Changes in strain and creep (silent tectonic motion, without accompanying earthquake) along a fault normally locked by friction could also be considered precursors.
In China in the 1970s, it became popular for people to predict earthquakes using “backyard” measurements such as the monitoring of well levels and observation of farm animals. At least one earthquake, the Haicheng quake in 1975, was successfully predicted and a town evacuated, providing that, at least in some cases, earthquake prediction is possible. The Haicheng earthquake had hundreds of foreshocks, making it an easier-than-average earthquake to predict. Groundwater changes and anomalous animal behavior were also reported (for example, hibernating snakes supposedly awoke and froze to death). In China, “evacuation” meant that compulsory outdoor movies were shown, so that when the quake did happen and the town was severely damaged, no one was killed. But Chinese seismologists missed predicting catastrophic Tangshan earthquake, in which at least 250,000 reportedly perished.
36. Which of the following is the best title for this passage?
37. The passage indicates that foreshocks are “not ... very useful” in predicting earthquake because they ______.
38. Which of the following could be considered a logical inconsistency in the passage?
39. The passage suggests that the Tangshan earthquake ______.
40. In Paragraph 3, the word “evacuation” is placed in quotations in order to ______.
问题1选项
A.The Effects of Earthquake on Groundwater.
B.The Search for Earthquake Precursors.
C.A Novel Theory of the Origin of Earthquakes.
D.A History of Chinese Earthquakes.
问题2选项
A.are exceptionally difficult to predict
B.are not part of the theory of dilatancy
C.interfere with electrostatic phenomena
D.are impossible to distinguish from earthquake themselves
问题3选项
A.The passage states that foreshocks are not useful predictors of earthquakes but then cites foreshocks as instrumental to predicting an earthquake.
B.The passage states that the Chinese are interested in predicting earthquakes but then says that they were devastated by the Tangshan earthquake.
C.The passage reports that animals behaved strangely before an earthquake but then attributes this behavior to electrostatic phenomena.
D.The passage suggests that both strain and creep could be considered earthquake precursors.
问题4选项
A.was caused by strain and creep
B.was preceded by several foreshocks
C.caused more damage than the Haicheng earthquake did
D.was anticipated by the theory of dilatancy
问题5选项
A.imply that an action was ineffective
B.emphasize the primitiveness of Chinese scientific methods
C.suggest that a certain practice was unconventional
D.underscore that an action was intended, but not implemented
第1题:B
第2题:D
第3题:B
第4题:C
第5题:D
36.【选项释义】
36. Which of the following is the best title for this passage? 36. 下面哪个选项是这篇文章的最佳题目？
A. The Effects of Earthquake on Groundwater. A. 地震对地下水的影响。
B. The Search for Earthquake Precursors. B. 寻找地震前兆。
C. A Novel Theory of the Origin of Earthquakes. C. 地震起源的新理论。
D. A History of Chinese Earthquakes. D. 中国地震史。
【考查点】主旨大意题。
【解题思路】首先，定位文章首尾段核心，第一段最后一句“如果你想知道的话，在全球各地，有许多关于其他地震前兆的轶事报道，即地震民间传说”，以及最后一段第一句“在20世纪70年代的中国，人们开始流行使用后院测量方法来预测地震，比如监测井位和观察农场动物”；然后看到文章行文结构，文章是总分结构，第一段引入地震前兆主题，下面两段对各种地震前兆的发现和预测进行阐述；综上所述，我们可知文章的关键词是foreshocks和precursor；所以文章的标题和地震前兆有关，B项正确。
【干扰项排除】
A、D选项只是文章的一部分，不全面，属于以偏概全；
C选项中的origin of earthquakes（地震起源）并没有提到，属于无中生有。
37.【选项释义】
37. The passage indicates that foreshocks are “not ... very useful” in predicting earthquake because they ______. 37. 这篇文章指出前震在预测地震方面“not ... very useful”，因为它们______。
A. are exceptionally difficult to predict A. 异常难以预测
B. are not part of the theory of dilatancy B. 不是膨胀理论的一部分
C. interfere with electrostatic phenomena C. 干扰静电现象
D. are impossible to distinguish from earthquake themselves D. 与地震本身是无法区分的
【考查点】事实细节题。
【解题思路】根据题干提供的信息定位到第一段倒数第二句“然而，由于前震看起来就像任何其他地震一样（foreshocks look just like any other earthquakes），它们本身在预测中并不是很有用（they are not in themselves very useful in prediction）”，从中可知，前震在预测地震方面不是很有用是因为，前震和地震没法区分，D项正确。
【干扰项排除】
A选项没有提到，属于无中生有；
B选项中的theory of dilatancy只是用来解释前震现象，并不是用来预测，属于曲解原文；
C选项中没有提到interfere，属于曲解原文。
38.【选项释义】
38. Which of the following could be considered a logical inconsistency in the passage? 38. 下列哪一项可以被认为是文章中逻辑上的不一致？
A. The passage states that foreshocks are not useful predictors of earthquakes but then cites foreshocks as instrumental to predicting an earthquake. A. 这篇文章指出前震并不能有效地预测地震，但随后又引用前震作为预测地震的工具。
B. The passage states that the Chinese are interested in predicting earthquakes but then says that they were devastated by the Tangshan earthquake. B. 这篇文章说中国人对预测地震很感兴趣，但后来又说他们被唐山地震摧毁了。
C. The passage reports that animals behaved strangely before an earthquake but then attributes this behavior to electrostatic phenomena. C. 这篇文章报道说，动物在地震前的行为很奇怪，但随后将这种行为归因于静电现象。
D. The passage suggests that both strain and creep could be considered earthquake precursors. D. 这篇文章表明应变和蠕变都可以被认为是地震前兆。
【考查点】推理判断题。
【解题思路】文章在第二段提到在20世纪70年代，中国人们对预测地震非常感兴趣且对预测地震十分乐观，可是文章最后一句却提到“但中国地震学家没有预测到唐山大地震”，这里存在逻辑不一致的问题，B项符合。
【干扰项排除】
A选项中的instrumental在文章没有体现，文章只是描述地震出现的一些现象，属于曲解原文；
C选项可以定位到第二段倒数第二句“有一些传闻也不断地报道动物的奇怪行为，这可能与静电现象或前震有关”可知，动物行为和静电现象并不矛盾，属于出处错位；
D选项定位第二段最后一句“沿着通常因摩擦而卡住的地质断层的应变和蠕变也可以被认为是地震前兆”，其上下文也没有表示逻辑上不一致的句子，所以该项也属于出处错位。
39.【选项释义】
39. The passage suggests that the Tangshan earthquake ______. 39. 这篇文章暗示唐山地震______。
A. was caused by strain and creep A. 是由应变和蠕变引起
B. was preceded by several foreshocks B. 发生了几次前震
C. caused more damage than the Haicheng earthquake did C. 造成的损失比海城地震还大
D. was anticipated by the theory of dilatancy D. 是用膨胀理论预测的
【考查点】推理判断题。
【解题思路】首先定位到Tangshan earthquake所在点，在文章最后一句“但中国地震学家没有预测到唐山大地震（missed predicting），据报道至少有25万人在那场地震中丧生”，可知唐山大地震没有预测到前震；然后看到上文，第二段第二句提到“1975年的海城地震被成功预测到了，一个城镇被疏散。”，综合理解可知，唐山地震没有任何预测，造成25万人丧生，这比海城地震造成了更大的损失，所以C项正确。
【干扰项排除】
A选项没有提到，属于无中生有；
B选项与原文相反，属于反向干扰；
D选项在文中已经提到了没有预测到，该项属于曲解原文。
40.【选项释义】
40. In Paragraph 3, the word “evacuation” is placed in quotations in order to ______. 40. 在第3段中，“疏散”一词被引用，以便______。
A. imply that an action was ineffective A. 暗示某个行动是无效的
B. emphasize the primitiveness of Chinese scientific methods B. 强调中国科学方法的原始性
C. suggest that a certain practice was unconventional C. 表明某种做法是非常规的
D. underscore that an action was intended, but not implemented D. 强调某个动作是有意的，但并没有实现
【考查点】推理判断题。
【解题思路】首先定位evacuation在文章最后一段倒数第二句“在中国，疏散意味着必须播放户外电影，所以当地震真的发生，城镇遭到严重破坏时，没有人死亡”，可知evacuation可以防止因地震使城镇遭到破坏时有人员因此死亡；然后结合最后一句“但中国地震学家没有预测到唐山大地震，据报道至少有25万人在那场地震中丧生”，该处用了But表示转折，所以evacuation打双引号是用来强调没有成功进行疏散，D项正确。
【干扰项排除】
A选项中的ineffective没有体现，属于曲解原文；
B选项中的Chinese scientific methods（中国科学方法）在文中没有提到，属于无中生有；
C选项中的unconventional没有体现，属于曲解原文。
