Question

Today’s world is full of plastic goods, from water bottles to car parts. We make plastic toys, toothbrushes, and shopping bags. Plastic is so useful that it’s hard to imagine life without it, but it has not been around that long.

The first plastic was invented in 1869. That’s when American John Wesley Hyatt made a form of plastic from a plant material called cellulose. Before long, his discovery was used to make combs, eyeglasses, buttons, and film.

In the 1900s, petroleum products such as oil replaced cellulose. New kinds of plastic were discovered in the 1950s, and that’s when the real boom began. People started to use plastic in many fields instead of the old materials. Plastics quickly replace paper, glass, metal, and wood in a growing number of products. In 1960, the United States made 6 billion pounds of plastic. By 1988, the output had grown to 50 billion pounds. These days, almost 10 percent of the oil America uses every year is turned into plastic. That’s 2 million barrels of oil a day.

Most of the plastic ever made still exists. Unlike wood, metal, and paper, plastic does not break down easily. Some people think plastic will never break down. Others say it may take 500 or 1,000 years. No one knows for sure because it has been around for too short a time. But if George Washington had used plastic water bottles in the 1700s, those bottles would probably still be around.

Although plastic lasts a long time, we don’t keep plastic products very long. We use them and throw them away. Only about 5 percent of plastic is recycled. A huge amount of it ends up floating in the ocean. Then seabirds, seals, turtles, whales and fish eat it. Scientists often find sea animals that have starved（饿）to death with their stomachs full of plastic. And every time it rains, more trash from city streets flushes into the sea. Much of that trash is plastic.

What can we do about plastic? First, be aware. Oil takes millions of years to form. Should we use up this precious fuel to make flimsy shopping bags that are used once and thrown away? Should any animal pay for our convenience with its life? Each person’s actions can make a difference. It’s time to act now.

1.What can we know about plastic?

A. Plastic is now widely used in every area of our daily life.

B. America holds the leading position in the world-wide use of plastic.

C. Plastic can last for more than 300 years and will never break down.

D. About 95% of plastic is used once and then thrown away.

2.Which detail supports the idea that plastic can be dangerous?

A. Animals starve to death after eating plastic.

B. Much of that trash is plastic.

C. About 10 percent of the oil we use every year is made into plastic.

D. John Wesley Hyatt made the first plastic from cellulose.

3.The underlined word “replace” in paragraph 3 means “______”.

A. Take the charge of    B. Increase in value    C. Take the place of    D. Decrease in value

4.What might be written in the following paragraph?

A. Reasons about why we should use less plastic.

B. Criticism on those who make and buy plastic.

C. Tips for using plastic in the environmental friendly way.

D. Difference between using plastic and other materials.

5.What’s the best title of the passage?

A. Amazing Plastic.    B. Dangerous Plastic.    C. Useless Plastic.    D. New Plastic

Answer

1.D

2.A

3.C

4.C

5.B

【解析】短文介绍了塑料的发明与使用，给人们的生活带来极大的便利，由于塑料长时间不能腐烂，会造成环境污染，给人类和动物造成极大的危害。建议大家都行动起来，对垃圾袋进行循环利用，加入到保护环境的行列之中。

1.细节理解题。根据短文倒数第二段中的句子“Although plastic lasts a long time, we don’t keep plastic products very long. We use them and throw them away. Only about 5 percent of plastic is recycled.”可知，。只有大约5%的塑料被回收。也就大约95%的塑料被使用一次，然后就被扔掉了。故答案为D。

2.细节理解题。题干询问哪一个细节支持塑料可能是危险的想法？A. Animals starve to death after eating plastic. 动物们吃了塑料后饿死了。B. Much of that trash is plastic. 大部分垃圾是塑料。C. About 10 percent of the oil we use every year is made into plastic. 每年大约10%的石油被制成塑料。D. John Wesley Hyatt made the first plastic from cellulose. John Wesley Hyatt用纤维素制造了第一种塑料。故答案选A。

3.词义猜测题。A. Take the charge of 掌管；B. Increase in value增值，升值；C. Take the place of代替；D. Decrease in value减值，价值降低。replace是以“re-”为前缀，表示“再”，“又”如：re-read（再读一次），retell（复述）recycle（回收利用），re重新 + place 放 → 重新放 → 复职，引申为代替。因此推测replace的意思为“代替，取代”，答案为C。

4.细节推理题。A. Reasons about why we should use less plastic. 为什么我们应该使用更少的塑料的原因。B. Criticism on those who make and buy plastic. 批评那些制造和购买塑料的人。C. Tips for using plastic in the environmental friendly way. 使用环保塑料的窍门。D. Difference between using plastic and other materials. 使用塑料和其他材料的差别。根据短文最后一段中的句子“Should we use up this precious fuel to make flimsy shopping bags that are used once and thrown away? Should any animal pay for our convenience with its life?”我们是不是应该用这种珍贵的燃料来制造一次性扔掉的薄的购物袋？动物应该用它的生命为我们的生活提供便利吗？因此有必要对垃圾袋进行科学的循环利用，掌握一些小窍门，故答案为C。

5.标题归纳题。A. Amazing Plastic. 令人惊奇的塑料；B. Dangerous Plastic. 危险的塑料；C. Useless Plastic. 无用的塑料；D. New Plastic新塑料。短文介绍了塑料的发明与使用，给人们的生活带来极大的便利，由于塑料长时间不能腐烂，造成环境污染，给人类和动物造成极大的危害，故答案选B。