Question

    May 26, 2011—Cities and provinces along the Yangtze River in central China are struggling with the country’s worst drought in more than 50 years. Resource analysts say, the drought highlights(突出，强调) not only the impact of climate change, but also China’s long-lasting problem of lack of water and how it must balance that with the country’s enormous demand for energy and economic growth.

     Poyang Lake is the largest freshwater lake in China and is just one example of how serious the drought has become. The lake, which is located in Jiangxi Province along the Yangtze River, has become smaller to less than half its usual size, and the lack of water has had a major impact on nearby fishing and farming.

    With water levels so low, stretches of the Yangtze River have become impassable for cargo vessels(货轮), destroying supply chains that fuel factories along the river, and transport manufactured products and agricultural goods. Analysts say the river is used to transport about 100 billion tons of goods each year.

    There is a lot of hydropower(水力发电)in the Yangtze River basin. For example, the Three Gorges Dam and power production from those sources have gone down by 20 percent according to some estimates(估算值) as a result of this drought. Any company that relies on that power is feeling the impact. Some are even being forced to ration their power use, he said.

    According to Chinese state media, the drought has affected more than one million hectares of farmland in seven provinces in central China. Local government officials reportedly have fired more than 4, 000 cloud-seeding rockets into the sky to try to bring rain to dry regions along the river. The forecast, however, continues to be for little rain until at least next month.

64. What does the passage mainly talk about?

A. The Yangtze River.

B. The serious drought of the Yangtze River.

C. The negative effect of the drought along the Yangtze River.

D. The cause of the drought.

65. The areas along the Yangtze River haven’t had so serious a drought for _______.

A. 50 years                                        B. more than 50 years

C. 10 years                                      D. more than 20 years

66. Which of the following isn’t the cause of the drought?

A. The impact of climate change.

B. Long-time lack of water.

C. The increasing demand of energy and economy.

D. People’s attitude towards water.

67. What’s the meaning of the underlined word “ration” in Paragraph 4?

A. Increase.                 B. Limit.                C. Affect.                  D. Stop.

Answer 1

64.解析：选C。主旨大意题。纵观全文，我们可以看出文章主要涉及长江流域以及邻近地区的50多年一遇的干旱，对生产、物流、农渔业等的不利影响。

65.解析：选B。细节理解题。根据第一段Cities and provinces along the Yangtze River in central China are struggling with the country’s worst drought in more than 50 years. 可知。

66.解析：选D。推理判断题。根据第一段中. . . the drought highlights not only the impact of climate change, but also China’s long-lasting problem of lack of water and how it must balance that with the country’s enormous demand for energy and economic growth. 可知。

67.解析：选B。词义猜测题。因为干旱使长江流域的水电站受到很大影响，所以一些用电企业被限制电的使用。结合常识，不可能停止电的使用。故正确答案为B。