《2025年星火英语Spark巅峰训练八年级人教版》

DAY 2 阅读理解 A 人与自然(自然生态) | 说明文 | 词数: 226+130 | 难度: ★★★★☆ | 建议用时: 8 min | 答案: P9
In a new study, the scientists estimated(估计) the number of the world's ants is about 20 000 trillion(万亿)!
That means for every human, there are nearly 2.5 million ants. If you put all the ants on a scale(秤), they'd weigh more than all the wild birds and mammals(哺乳动物) on Earth.
How did they count such a big number? In the past, many scientists counted ants in different areas. They collected fallen leaves and soil(泥土) and dried them to force the ants to come out for counting. Based on 465 studies, the new study made the estimation.
According to Wang Runxi, one of the researchers, the number and living places of ants can be valuable predictors(预报性的事物) of environmental changes.
"Ants play an important role in the environment," Wang told Science and Technology Daily. "They help make the soil soft, spread seeds, break down things and form a part of the food chain. They are everywhere on Earth except for the coldest places."
"Compared with big animals, little ants are more sensitive(敏感的)to environmental changes," Wang added. Most ants live in warm places. But in recent years, ants have been moving toward the North Pole and the South Pole because of global warming. Changes in forests also affect the number of ants. For example, too many trees are cut down.
1. What does Paragraph 3 mainly tell us?
A. The number of ants.
B. The areas where ants live.
C. The importance of ants.
D. The way of counting ants.
2. 新考点·代词指代 What does the underlined word "They" refer to?
A. Ants.
B. Humans.
C. Areas.
D. Changes.
3. Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
A. Based on 465 studies, the new study made the estimation.
B. In the past, many scientists counted ants in different areas.
C. The ants are everywhere on Earth except for the warmest places.
D. Little ants are more sensitive to environmental changes than big animals.
4. Where can we probably read the passage?
A. In a diary.
B. In a magazine.
C. In a novel.
D. In an invitation.

答案： 1.D 主旨大意题。通读第三段,尤其是第一句"How did they count such a big number?"可知,第三段主要告诉我们科学家统计蚂蚁数量的方式。
2.A 代词指代题。由画线单词所在句的上一句中的 Ants play an important role in the environment 可推断,此处是指蚂蚁对环境的重要作用,故 They 指代的是蚂蚁。
3.C 细节理解题。由第五段中的"They are everywhere on Earth except for the coldest places."可知,除了最冷的地方蚂蚁在地球上无处不在,故 C 项的表述错误。
4.B 推理判断题。本文主要介绍了一项对于蚂蚁数量的统计结果以及蚂蚁数量和居住地所反映的环境变化。由此可推断,我们可能会在杂志上看到这篇文章。