Question

    The Cosmic Crisp—a new super-sweet variety of apple that can reportedly last longer than a year in the refrigerator—is expected to hit grocery stores in the US this week.

The Cosmic Crisp’s release comes after two decades of development and some three years of planting apple trees. Washington state farmers have exclusive growing rights for one decade, according to local media KIMA. The apple, developed by Washington State University‟s fruit tree breeding program and first cultivated in 1997, is said to have a “remarkably firm and crisp texture” and be surprisingly sweet, making it an excellent eating apple, according to its website.

The fruit, a cross between the Enterprise and Honeycrisp apple varieties, was bred to feature “naturally higher levels of acidity and sugar”, so much so that one can use less sugar while baking, researchers claim. They also say that it‟s “naturally slow to brown when cut and maintains its texture and flavor in storage for more than a year.”

Its name stems from the tiny bright dots on the apple‟s otherwise darker red skin. Tasters said the flecks reminded them of “outer space and the cosmos,” Cosmic Crisp‟s website noted. Just over 450,000 40lb boxes of the cosmic Crisp crop were expected to be shipped to retailers across the US on Sunday, according to the Spokane-based Spokesman-Review.

The producers hope the shipments will grow to 2.1m boxes in 2020. For those who can‟t wait for their local grocery store to stock them, four apples were retailing for $39 online over the weekend.

The initial 600,000 Cosmic Crisp trees were sold to farmers in 2017, researchers reportedly said. Since then, more than 10m Cosmic Crisp trees were planted, Kate Evans, who heads the university‟s Pome Fruit Breeding Program, told the Spokesman-Review.

1.How long can the new apples last?

A.They can last shorter than three years. B.They can last longer than a year.

C.They can last a year. D.They can last one decade.

2.What is the third paragraph mainly about?

A.The features of the Cosmic Crisp. B.The way of planting the Cosmic Crisp.

C.The cost of planting the Cosmic Crisp. D.The shape of the Cosmic Crisp.

3.What does the underlined word “flecks” mean?

A.Flavour. B.Red skin.

C.The tiny bright dots. D.Stars.

4.What is the author’s attitude towards this Cosmic Crisp?

A.Pessimistic. B.Disapproving.

C.Subjective. D.Objective.

Answer

1.B

2.A

3.C

4.D

【解析】

本文是一篇新闻报道。主要介绍一种新型的超甜苹果“宇宙脆（Cosmic Crisp）”。

1.细节理解题。根据文章第一段The Cosmic Crisp—a new super-sweet variety of apple that can reportedly last longer than a year in the refrigerator—is expected to hit grocery stores in the US this week. 宇宙脆— 一种新型的超级甜苹果在冰箱里可以保存一年以上，这种超级甜苹果将于本周在美国的杂货店上市。由此可知这种苹果可以保存一年以上，故选B。

2.主旨大意题。根据第三段The fruit, a cross between the Enterprise and Honeycrisp apple varieties, was bred to feature “naturally higher levels of acidity and sugar”, so much so that one can use less sugar while baking, researchers claim. They also say that it‟s “naturally slow to brown when cut and maintains its texture and flavor in storage for more than a year.”研究人员称，这种苹果是苹果企业品种和蜜酥苹果品种的杂交品种，其特点是“自然酸度和糖分较高”，因此人们在烘焙时可以少用糖分。他们还说，它“切割时自然会变褐，并在一年多的贮藏中保持其质地和风味。所以第三段主要是关于这种苹果的特点，故选A。

3.词义猜测题。从第四段的第一句话Its name stems from the tiny bright dots on the apple’s otherwise darker red skin. 它的名字来源于苹果暗红色表皮上的小亮点。而下文说the flecks让品尝者想到了外太空和宇宙，由此推断flecks就是指这些小亮点，故选C。

4.推理判断题。全文都在客观地介绍“宇宙脆（Cosmic Crisp）”这种新型的超甜苹果，包括苹果的特点，保存时间等等。所以判断出作者对于Cosmic Crisp的态度是客观的。故选D。