歷史地理類閱讀理解題探究

吳靜

歷史地理類文章一般涉及某個國家、地區、河流、山脈、海洋、城鎮等的地理位置以及與之相關的社會生活、政治經濟、人文歷史、自然資源、文化習俗、文化遺產、環境保護等方面的情況，相當一部分文章還附有圖表以供理解或選擇。文章選材來源于某些國家的名勝或歷史事件；命題以細節題為主，有一定的主觀推斷題，涉及一定的地理常識或歷史知識。

閱讀史地類

閱讀史地類文章時，要重點弄清楚各個地名、人名之間的相互關系和各個國家、地區或城鎮之間的地理方位。

例1 2015年高考湖南卷B

In its early history， Chicago had floods frequently， especially in the spring， making the streets so muddy that people， horses， and carts got stuck. An old joke that was popular at the time went something like this： A man is stuck up to his waist in a muddy Chicago street. Asked if he needs help， he replies， “No， thanks. Ive got a good horse under me.”

The city planner decided to build an underground drainage （排水） system， but there simply wasnt enough difference between the height of the ground level and the water level. The only two options were to lower the Chicago River or raise the city.

An engineer named Ellis Chesbrough convinced me the city that it had no choice but to build the pipes above ground and then cover them with dirt. This raised the level of the citys streets by as much as 12 feet.

This of course created a new problem： dirt practically buried the first floors of every building in Chicago. Building owners were faced with a choice： either change the first floors of their buildings into basements， and the second stories into main floors， or hoist the entire buildings to meet the new street level. Small wood-frame buildings could be lifted fairly easily. But what about large， heavy structures like Tremont Hotel， which was a six-story brick building？

Thats where George Pullman came in. He had developed some house-moving skills successfully. To lift a big structure like the Tremont Hotel， Pullman would place thousands of jackscrews （螺旋千斤頂） beneath the buildings foundation. One man was assigned to operate each section of roughly 10 jackscrews. At Pullmans signal each man turned his jackscrew the same amount at the same time， thereby raising the building slowly and evenly. Astonishingly， the Tremont Hotel stay open during the entire operation， and many of its guests didnt even notice anything was happening. Some people like to say that every problem has a solution. But in Chicagos early history， every engineering solution seemed to create a new problem. Now that Chicagos waste water was draining efficiently into the Chicago River， the citys next step was to clean the polluted river.

61. The author mentions the joke to show .

A. horses were fairly useful in Chicago

B. Chicagos streets were extremely muddy

C. Chicago was very dangerous in the spring

D. the Chicago people were particularly humorous

62. The city planners were convinced by Ellis Chesbrough to .

A. get rid of the street dirt

B. lower the Chicago River

C. fight against heavy floods

D. build the pipes above ground

63. The underlined word “hoist” in paragraph 4 means “ ”.

A. change B. lift C. repair D. decorate

64. What can we conclude about the moving operation of the Tremont Hotel？

A. It went on smoothly as intended.

B. It interrupted the business of the hotel.

C. It involved Pullman turning ten jackscrews.

D. It separated the building from its foundation.

65. The passage is mainly about the early Chicagos .

A. popular life styles and their influences

B. environmental disasters and their causes

C. engineering problems and their solutions

D. successful businessmen and their achievements

解析 本文講述了芝加哥城的市政建設問題和改造方案。主要是考查上下文理解和對文章細節的把握，明白作者的構思在文章中給出的自己想法和觀點以及對文章的總結。例如最后一段：Some people like to say that every problem has a solution. But in Chicagos early history， every engineering solution seemed to create a new problem. Now that Chicagos waste water was draining efficiently into the Chicago River， the citys next step was to clean the polluted river.可知作者覺得所有的解決方案在解決了原有的問題后都會產生新的問題。這是對文章的一個總結。

61.B。細節推理題。根據文章的第一段第一句話：In early history， Chicago had floors frequently， especially in the spring， making the streets so muddy that people， horses， and carts got stuck.可知芝加哥因為洪水經常泛濫導致大街上總是泥濘不堪，行人，馬和車全部都堵在路上。所以作者提及那個玩笑是為了突出芝加哥這一特點，故選B。

62.D。細節理解題。根據第三段第一句話：An engineer named Eill Chesbrough convinced the city that it had no choice but to build the pipes above ground and then cover them with dirt.可知以Eill Chesbrough為首的人們認為應該在地上鋪設排水管道，故選D。

63.B。細節推理題。根據后文：Small wood-frame building could be lifted fairly easily.可知另一種方法就是將建筑升高。故選B。

64.A。細節推理題。根據倒數第二段中的倒數第二句話At Pullmans signal each man turned his jackscrew the same amount at the same time， thereby raising the building slowly and evenly“在Pullman的指導下，每個人同時抬起他們手中的千斤頂，因此建筑就被慢慢地、平整地抬起來了”，可知A項正確。

65.C。主旨大意題。文章的第一段就提出芝加哥城所存在的問題，接下來的段落討論了解決這個問題的方法，最后一段講到這些方法雖然解決了當前的問題，但是會產生一些新的問題有待解決。文章主要講述的是市政工程的問題與解決辦法，故選C。

自然與環保類

自然與環保的話題是高考備受關注的一個熱點問題，各地的閱讀理解試題中幾乎都有一篇這方面的文章。有的關于環境問題討論，有的關于人類對于環境的影響，有的關于探討自然環境的發展規律等。在命題上多以判斷題、綜合分析題和推理判斷題為主。

例2 2015年高考陜西卷C

The production of coffee beans is a huge， profitable business， but， unfortunately， full-sun production is taking over the industry and bringing about a lot of damage. The change in how coffee is grown from shade-grown production to full-sun production endangers the very existence of certain animals and birds， and even disturbs the worlds ecological balance.

On a local level， the damage of the forest required by full-sun fields affects the areas birds and animals. The shade of the forest trees provides a home for birds and other species （物種） that depend on the trees flowers and fruits. Full-sun coffee growers destroy this forest home. As a result， many species are quickly dying out.

On a more global level， the destruction of the rainforest for full-sun coffee fields also threatens （威脅） human life. Medical research often makes use of the forests plant and animal life， and the destruction of such species could prevent researchers from finding cures for certain diseases. In addition， new coffee-growing techniques are poisoning the water locally， and eventually the worlds groundwater.

Both locally and globally， the continued spread of full-sun coffee plantations （種植園） could mean the destruction of the rainforest ecology. The loss of shade trees is already causing a slight change in the worlds climate， and studies show that loss of oxygen-giving trees also leads to air pollution and global warming. Moreover， the new growing techniques are contributing to acidic （酸性的） soil conditions.

It is obvious that the way much coffee is grown affects many aspects of life， from the local environment to the global ecology. But consumers do have a choice. They can purchase shade-grown coffee whenever possible， although at a higher cost. The future health of the planet and mankind is surely worth more than an inexpensive cup of coffee.

54. What can we learn about full-sun coffee production from paragraph 4？

A. It limits the spread of new growing techniques.

B. It leads to air pollution and global warming.

C. It slows down the loss of shade trees.

D. It improves local soil conditions.

55. The purpose of the text is to .

A. entertain B. advertise

C. instruct D. persuade

56. Where does this text probably come from？

A. An agricultural magazine.

B. A medical journal.

C. An engineering textbook.

D. A tourist guide.

57. Which of the following shows the structure of the whole text？

解析 文章介紹陽光充足的咖啡生產給環境和生態帶來的種種危害，呼吁人們不要購買這種咖啡，而要買對環境有利的產品。

54. B。細節理解題。根據文章第四段的句子：The loss of shade trees is already causing a slight change in the worlds climate， and studies show that loss of oxygen-giving trees also leads to air pollution and global warming.可知陽光充足的咖啡生產會帶來空氣污染和全球氣候變暖，故選B。

55. D。寫作意圖題。根據文章最后一段的句子：But consumers do have a choice. They can purchase shade-grown coffee whenever possible， although at a higher cost.可知作者的意圖是勸說人們購買陰涼處種植的咖啡，這樣對環境是有好處的，故選D。

56. A。推理判斷題。文章介紹陽光充足的咖啡生產給生態帶來的破壞。幾個選項中，這樣的內容出自一本農業雜志最有可能，故選A。

57. A。文章結構題。文章第一段介紹陽光充足的咖啡生產的話題，二、三、四段介紹了陽光充足的咖啡生產帶來的破壞，第五段說服人們去購買對環境有利的陰涼處種植的咖啡，所以是總分總的結構，故選A。

點撥 這篇文章篇幅適中，對閱讀能力的考查比較全面，除了理解大意和細節，還需要適當的推理，如判斷文章的出處、作者的意圖和文章的結構。這些不是某個句子可以體現的，要對文章有整體把握。