Question

Popeye the Sailor first became a popular cartoon in the 1930s.The sailor in that cartoon ate lots of spinach to make him strong. People watched him, and they began to buy and eat a lot more spinach. Popeye helped sell 33 percent more spinach than before! Spinach became a necessary part of many people’s diets. Even some children who hated the taste began to eat the vegetable.

Many people thought that the iron in spinach made Popeye strong, but this is not true. Spinach does not have any more iron than any other green vegetable.

People only thought spinach had a lot of iron because the people who studied the food made a mistake. In the 1890s, a group of people studied what was inside vegetables. This group said that spinach had ten times more iron than it did. The group wrote the number wrong, and everyone accepted it.

Today, we know that the little iron that is in spinach cannot make a difference in how strong a person is. However, spinach does have something else which the body needs—folic acid.

It is interesting to point out that folic acid can help make a person strong. Maybe it was really the folic acid that made Popeye strong all along.   

1. A good title for this reading passage is______.

A. Popeye the Sailor                                      B. The Truth About Spinach

C.A Mistake with Numbers                                     D. Folic Acid Makes You Strong

2. Why did many people eat spinach after they saw Popeye the Sailor?

A. They thought spinach made them strong.

B. They thought Popeye was funny.

C. Spinach had a lot of iron.

D. People liked folic acid.

3.A research group told people that spinach______.

A. made Popeye strong

B. was a green vegetable

C. had less iron than other green vegetables

D. had more iron than other green vegetables

4.The reading passage says that perhaps Popeye got his strength from______.

A. iron                         B. folic acid                 C. spinach          D. exercise

5.Folic acid is ______.

A. something in food                   B. a vegetable  C. dangerous  D. a certain kind of spinach

Answer

1.B

2.A

3.D

4.B

5.A

【解析】

试题分析：从二十世纪三十年代动画片《大力水手》的播映以来，菠菜成了人们餐桌上必不可少的一道菜，人们都认为菠菜所含的铁会赋予人力量。事实上，菠菜里含的铁并不比别的蔬菜多，只是菠菜中的叶酸才能够使人身体强壮，在本文中作者揭示了这一事实。

1.B主旨大意题。文章开头提出《大力水手》的播映使得人们一致认为菠菜会给人神奇的力量，然后下文指出this is not true.，接下来作者讲述了有关菠菜的事实，由此可知文章中心内容是纠正人们对于菠菜错误的认识，故答案选B。

2.A推理判断题。动画片中的大力水手吃了菠菜后会力大无穷，看过这个动画片的人们也把菠菜当成了他们餐桌上一道必不可少的菜，由此推断人们认为菠菜真的会让他们身体强壮，所以选A。

3.D细节理解题。根据文章第三段This group said that spinach had ten times more iron than it did. The group wrote the number wrong, and everyone accepted it.可知研究人员提出了菠菜比其他绿色蔬菜含铁更多的观点，答案选D。

4.B细节理解题。根据文章末段It is interesting to point out that folic acid can help make a person strong. Maybe it was really the folic acid that made Popeye strong all along. 可知叶酸会给人提供能量，或许大力水手的力量就是由此而来的，故答案选B。

5.A推理判断题。根据文章第四段spinach does have something else which the body needs—folic acid.可知folic acid（叶酸）是存在于菠菜中的，由此推断答案选A。

考点：考查科学知识类短文阅读。