toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
第一套
1. 植物的传播
随着 temperature 的变化，在北美和欧洲的植物随着时间的推移往北边扩展，如果某些植物
因为不能适应或者种子无法传播到北方，就有灭绝的危险。而后有人工的参与帮助这些植物
北移。
北美的植物也分为南北，把现在的情况和上一次冰河世纪 Ice Age 结束后的情况做对比，现
在的推移速度比冰河世纪之后的那段时间快很多。
题目：句子转话题，关于 ecotype 对植物的影响。
原文：环境变化和迁移过程中植物会改变 ecotype，会有 different characteristic…然后这些植
物的后代 offspring 就有可能在得到遗传后，具有对它生存有害的 characteristic。
词汇题：
Essence
Adequate
Because they are often highly competitive, invasive plant species are altering the plant
composition of ecosystems and changing their structure and function over large landscape areas.
In addition, the fine fuels they often add increases fire frequency in many areas and leads to
increased dominance by invasive species and further degradation. Climate change is exacerbating
these changes by altering the amount and seasonal distribution of precipitation seasonal
temperature patterns in ways that often favor the invasive species. These types of changes, to
which ecosystems are highly sensitive, will have a substantial regional impact in many areas.
We use models to predict how expected climate change will change the distribution of individual
plant species. Predictions for individual species, however, are not sufficient to help us predict
how their cumulative effects may drive changes in ecosystems, particularly changes in ecosystem
structure and function. Changes in weather and climate can also have both individual and
cumulative effects on ecosystems that can further facilitate the expansion and abundance of
invasive plant species. Increases in invasive plant species usually results in a loss of services from
the affected ecosystems. In many cases, these changes could even lead to ecosystem collapse
over large landscape areas over the long term. Because so little is known about how climate
change will facilitate invasive plants and their subsequent impact on ecosystems, it is only
through adequate, detailed monitoring that we will be able to follow and recognize these
changes.
In the West, in particular, a warming climate will often lead to an upward alleviation migration of
plant species. Because of the rapidity of expected changes in climate, individuals of a native plant
species may be lost from their lower-elevation limits faster than they will be able to migrate
upward and establish into newly created habitat. This will result in stressed communities with
fewer plant species distributed over large areas of the landscape. As ecosystems become
simplified, their trophic levels are truncated and their trophic interactions reduced.
Such ecosystems potentially have an increase in the quantity of unused resources. These stressed
communities thus become more open and their resources more available for the invasion and
establishment of invasive plant species. These invaders may also be better adapted than native
species to the new environmental conditions resulting from climate change. An exception might
be native species of plants that can migrate from adjacent areas or regions into locations where
they previously were excluded by climate as the new locations become more suitable. The
1
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
greater the change, the more likely this facilitation of invades will be. In addition to climate
change are the species of invaders involved, the effects of the interactions of their species
composition on the ecosystems, and the disturbance patterns those ecosystems are experiencing.
On landscape scales, these ecosystem spatial and temporal variabilities have major effects on
ecosystem susceptibility to invasive species. Climate change and associated vegetation change
interacting with invasive species are also increasingly leading to large wildfires that can further
facilitate the establishment of additional invasive plant species.
1. The word “exacerbating” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. deteriorating
B. excavating
C. accelerating
D. converting
2. How does the climate affect the ecosystems?
3. The word “facilitate” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. fertilize
B. boost
C. deter
D. embellish
4. The word “adequate” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. adaptive
B. faint
C. sufficient
D. scanty
5. What is the result of the warming climate?
6. The word “truncated” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. shortened
B. removed
C. transformed
D. vanish
7. Why do the invaders have a better adaptation than the native plants?
8. In addition to climate change, what are other causes of the spread of the plants?
参考答案：
1. A
2. Climate change is exacerbating these changes by altering the amount and seasonal distribution
of precipitation seasonal temperature patterns in ways that often favor the invasive species.
3. B
4. C
5. This will result in stressed communities with fewer plant species distributed over large areas of
the landscape.
6. A
7. Because the spread of the invaders is the result of the climate change.
8. The effects of the interactions of their species composition on the ecosystems; the disturbance
patterns those ecosystems; the vegetation change.
2
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
2. 贸易关系
关于中东地区在 Bronze Age 期间的贸易是如何逐步发展起来的，说本来那里的国家都喜欢
打仗，然后一些 great states 之间开始寻求稳定的外交关系，开始发展贸易了。慢慢的贸易
越来越发达，人们都偏爱别的国家的东西，举例说打开一个商人的箱子，里面都会装着不同
国家的特产（有题，问文章为什么要提商人的箱子。答案：为了举例说明）
。然后又举例说，
两个国家本来老是打来打去，直到一个国王跟另一个国家签订了一个协定（有题，问这个协
定起什么作用，句子里面也提到了这份协定），发现贸易比战争好的多，两个国家为了贸易
而 integration，但相互依存度太大。还有就是随着贸易的发展，人们发展了更有效于贸易的
alphabet（有题，问这个 alphabet 的特点。答案：它比原来的更 elegant 什么的）。
然后说了更好地跟 great states 作贸易，其他地区的文化刻意去迎合他们的文化，于是 great
states 的文化传播开了，举了一个 seaborne 的城市 U 作例子，说贸易导致了文化的交融，
不同信仰的人居住在城市 U 的不同地区。然后又否定了这种现象（句子简化题，原文：随
着文化的传播，越往外走文化越被削弱，最终导致了这些文化的瓦解。拖句子有点绕，不得
不回去看了下文章，有一句说海运的发展使得陆运不再必要，应该是错的，文章并没有比较
海运和陆运）
。
后来加入了一些不怀好意的国家，使这个贸易关系被破坏。
The Bronze Age is the second part of the three-age system (Stone Age, Bronze Age, and Iron Age)
for classifying and studying prehistoric societies, particularly the ancient societies of the
Mediterranean and Near East. More broadly, the Bronze Age of any culture is the period during
which the most advanced metalworking (at least in systematic and widespread use) in that
culture uses bronze. This could either be based on the local smelting of copper and tin from ores,
or trading for bronze from production areas elsewhere. Copper/tin ores are rare, as reflected in
the fact that there were no tin bronzes in western Asia before 3000 BC. Bronze Age cultures
flourished in prehistory. Some cultures developed extensive written records during their Bronze
Ages.
In some areas of the world the Bronze Age followed the Neolithic age. However, in many parts of
sub-Saharan Africa, the Neolithic age was directly followed by the Iron Age. In some parts of the
world, a Copper Age followed the Neolithic Age and preceded the Bronze Age.
The place and time of the invention of bronze are controversial. It is possible that bronzing was
invented independently in the Maikop culture in the North Caucasus as far back as the mid 4th
millennium BC, which would make them the makers of the oldest known bronze; but others date
the same Maikop artifacts to the mid 3rd millennium BCE. However, the Maikop culture only had
arsenic bronze, which is a naturally occurring alloy. Tin bronze, which developed later, requires
more sophisticated production techniques; tin has to be mined (mainly as the tin ore cassiterite)
and smelted separately, then added to molten copper to make the bronze alloy.
In Mesopotamia, the Bronze Age begins at about 2900 BCE in the late Uruk period, spanning the
Early Dynastic period of Sumer, the Akkadian Empire, the Old Babylonian and Old Assyrian
periods and the period of Kassite hegemony. In Ancient Egypt, the Bronze Age begins in the
Protodynastic period, c. 3150 BCE.
The Aegean Bronze Age begins around 3000 BC, when civilizations first established a far-ranging
3
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
tradenetwork. This network imported tin and charcoal to Cyprus, where copper was mined and
alloyed with the tin to produce bronze. Bronze objects were then exported far and wide, and
supported the trade. Knowledge of navigation was well developed at this time, and reached a
peak of skill not exceeded (except perhaps by Polynesian sailors) until 1730 CE when the
invention of the chronometer enabled the precise determination of longitude. The Minoan
civilization based in Knossos appears to have coordinated and defended its Bronze Age trade.
In Central Europe, the early Bronze Age Unetice culture (1800–1600 BCE) includes numerous
smaller groups like the Straubing, Adlerberg and Hatvan cultures. Some very rich burials, such as
the one located at Leubingen with grave gifts crafted from gold, point to an increase of social
stratification already present in the Unetice culture. All in all, cemeteries of this period are rare
and of small size. The Unetice culture is followed by the middle Bronze Age (1600–1200 BCE)
Tumulus culture, which is characterised by inhumation burials in tumuli (barrows).
The late Bronze Age Urnfield culture, (1300–700 BCE) is characterized by cremation burials. It
includes the Lusatian culture in eastern Germany and Poland (1300–500 BCE) that continues into
the Iron Age. The Central European Bronze Age is followed by the Iron Age Hallstatt culture
(700–450 BCE).
1. What is the feature of the Bronze Age?
2. The word “flourished” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. prosperous
B. effective
C. originate
D. bloom
3. The word “extensive” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. expansive
B. abundant
C. intensive
D. penetrating
4. The word “controversial” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. disputable
B. false
C. acataleptic
D. infantile
5. The word “exceeded” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. function
B. withdrawal
C. surpass
D. deform
6. What can be indicated from the grave gifts?
参考答案：
1. It is the period during which the most advanced metalworking in that culture uses bronze.
2. A
3. B
4. A
5. C
6. An increase of social stratification already present in the Unetice culture.
4
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
3. 美国著名作曲家
关于美国一个作曲家（music composer）Charles Ive，讲他如何从默默无闻的作曲家变成了
传奇作曲家。文章说他很有天赋，他从小受到父亲影响而学习音乐，后来进入 Yale 的 music
学校就读，但是毕业后担心自己的作品不会被认可，所以面对 career 的选择时，他没有选
择音乐，因为他不想为了生存创作他不想做的音乐。毕业之后他选择了保险业务员作为
career，空余时间，例如 night，vacation，自己躲起来作曲（有题，问他什么时候作曲）。但
他慢慢觉得如果自己的作品不被人知道，太对不起他们了，所以尝试了很多方法让他们为世
人所知，先把作品投给制作人，都被拒绝了。
还花钱请一些艺人演奏的自己的作品（有题），但都没引起什么巨大的反应，让他感到失败
和挫折。
之后他就自己出钱把他的作品出版，送给图书馆和需要的人，以此扩大影响，得到了一些同
道中人的认可（有题，问他在图书馆派谱子有什么效果）
。直到一个什么 C 作品出版，被 JK
演奏了才终于赢得荣誉，一夕成名，评论家的评价很高，到了 65 岁才被人发现他的成就（有
题，问他的歌什么时候受欢迎）
。
这位作曲家的灵感和独特的峰哥来源于什么圣歌合唱和那种派对上的艺人，different tone
and pitch，他觉得这才是美国的传统。别的艺术家和他不一样，因为当时评论家和人们普遍
喜欢欧洲的风格，所以别的艺术家都会把一些很美国风格的段落尽量修改成欧洲风格（有题，
问不像这位大师，别的作曲家是怎样的）
，而他创作的 source 是美国的普通的生活，类似于
乡村音乐，而其他作曲家都在模仿欧洲的古典音乐。
最后一段说了这位大师的童年，说他童年就受到 American music 的影响。
词汇题：cluster=group
Charles Edward Ives was born in Danbury, Connecticut, on October 20, 1874. His father George
was a famed bandmaster of the town known for his sometimes radical performance ideas. The
young Ives, having learned piano and organ, composed original material as a teen and played for
his nearby church.
Ives went on to attend Yale University where he studied under Horatio Parker, who made it clear
that he expected his pupil to follow traditional classical music forms. Near the start of his
schooling Ives was emotionally crushed by the death of his father from a stroke, yet he managed
to graduate and went on to live in New York City, working as an insurance clerk and doing
composition on the side.
Ultimately becoming a wealthy business owner, he started his own insurance firm Ives & Co. in
1907, which would later morph, with partner Julian Myrick, into Ives & Myrick. In June of the
following year Ives wed book lover and transcendentalist Harmony Twichell, who further inspired
his creativity. The two adopted a child in the following decade.
Ives crafted musical works into the 1910s and was particularly prolific during this era, as seen
5
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
with compositions like the "Robert Browning Overture" and "Holidays Symphony" and shorter,
eerily evocative pieces like "The Unanswered Question" and "Central Park in the Dark." His 114
Songs, published in 1922, traversed a range of musical genres; Ives sent out the collection, along
with 1921'sConcord Sonata, for no charge. He'd also hired musicians to rehearse his works while
generally remaining outside of the classical/art music world.
In 1918, having pushed himself far too hard, Ives had a severe heart attack that curtailed his
activities. He eventually found that he had lost the spirit to compose anew and by 1930 had
retired from his business. He then attended to overseeing the further distribution and editing of
his earlier music, nurturing creative relationships as well. And he continued to etch out the
composition known as the Universe Symphony, which had a primordial scope and explored vast,
grand connections to something greater.
Ives's work, while at times relying on European Romanticism, incorporated a variety of musical
forms into final pieces that were beautiful yet also dissonant and unsettling with what could be
interpreted as open-minded, layered takes on particular ideas. He utilized quotations from
well-known songs and allowed musicians to play freestyle in certain sections of his compositions,
and as such his work was often greeted with puzzlement and/or rejected. Nonetheless, his style
was a precursor to the avant-grade productions that were to become more popular later in the
century, and he found ardent supporters among composers like Gustav Mahler, Nicolas Slominsky
and Bernard Herrmann. Ives was particularly well-regarded during his later years and won the
1948 Pulitzer Prize for his Symphony No. 3, which had its premiere with the Boston Symphony
Orchestra.
1. The word “radical” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. crucial
B. unique
C. aggressive
D. independent
2. What is the influence of the death of his father?
3. The word “prolific” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. productive
B. excellent
C. talented
D. obsessed
4. The word “curtailed” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. ceased
B. reduced
C. suspended
D. altered
5. What are the gains of Ives’s retirement?
6. What is the core style of Ives’s music?
7. What is the status of Ives in the field of music?
参考答案：
1. C
2. Ives felt aching grieved, but he did not knock down by the accident.
3. A
6
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
4. B
5. He attended to overseeing the further distribution and editing of his earlier music, nurturing
creative relationships as well.
6. Freestyle.
7. His style was a precursor to the avant-grade productions that were to become more popular
later in the century, and Ives was particularly well-regarded during his later years and won the
1948 Pulitzer Prize for his Symphony No. 3.
第二套
1. 埃及金字塔
第一段：讲述了某个地方最早的金字塔（有 except 题，答案：在 Djoser 的统治后衰弱）
第二段：提到了为啥是那个样子，因为只有这个样子才能承受这么大的重量（有题）。
第四段：大概讲述了现在的科学家，根据现有的金字塔规模来推算当时的人力和物力需求，
反推出当时中央集权可以倾全国之力来建这个东西。
最后一段：提到了金字塔的一致倾斜角度（52.5 度）及其原因（主要是让死去的法老王可以
跟着太阳光的方向从天国走下来之类的）
。
词汇题：
precise=exact
end=purpose
innumerable=countless
account for=explain
The Mesopotamians built the earliest pyramidal structures, called ziggurats. Since they were
constructed of sun-dried mud-brick, little remains of them. Ziggurats were built by the Sumerians,
Babylonians, Elamites, Akkadians, and Assyrians. Each ziggurat was part of a temple complex
which included other buildings. The precursors of the ziggurat were raised platforms that date
from the fourth millennium BC. The Mesopotamian ziggurats dated from near the end of the
Early Dynastic Period to the 6th century BC.
Built in receding tiers upon a rectangular, oval, or square platform, the ziggurat was a pyramidal
structure with a flat top. Sun-baked bricks made up the core of the ziggurat with facings of fired
bricks on the outside. The facings were often glazed in different colors and may have had
astrological significance. Kings sometimes had their names engraved on these glazed bricks. The
number of tiers ranged from two to seven. It is assumed that they had shrines at the top, but
there is no archaeological evidence for this and the only textual evidence is from Herodotus.
Access to the shrine would have been by a series of ramps on one side of the ziggurat or by a
spiral ramp from base to summit. The Mesopotamian ziggurats were not places for public
worship or ceremonies but were believed to be dwelling places for the gods. Only priests were
permitted on the ziggurat or in the rooms at its base, and it was their responsibility to care for
the gods and attend to their needs.
The earliest known Egyptian pyramids are found at Saqqara, northwest of Memphis. The earliest
among these is the Step Pyramid of Djoser (constructed 2630 BCE–2611 BCE). This pyramid and
its surrounding complex were designed by the architect Imhotep, and are generally considered to
be the world's oldest monumental structures constructed of dressed masonry. Prior to the
7
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
construction of this pyramid, those with sufficient means were buried in bench-like structures
known as mastabas. Imhotep is credited with being the first to conceive the notion of stacking
mastabas on top of each other, creating an edifice composed of a number of "steps" that
decreased in size towards its apex. The resulting structure was designed to serve as a gigantic
stairway by which the soul of the deceased pharaoh could ascend to the heavens. Such was the
importance of Imhotep's achievement that he was deified by later Egyptians.
The most prolific pyramid-building phase coincided with the greatest degree of absolutist
pharaonic rule. It was during this time that the most famous pyramids, those near Giza, were
built. Over time, as authority became less centralized, the ability and willingness to harness the
resources required for construction on a massive scale decreased, and later pyramids were
smaller, less well-built and often hastily constructed.
While it is generally agreed that pyramids were burial monuments, there is continued
disagreement on the particular theological principles that might have given rise to them. One
theory is that they were designed as a type of "resurrection machine." The Egyptians believed the
dark area of the night sky around which the stars appear to revolve was the physical gateway into
the heavens. One of the narrow shafts that extend from the main burial chamber through the
entire body of the Great Pyramid points directly towards the center of this part of the sky. This
suggests the pyramid may have been designed to serve as a means to magically launch the
deceased pharaoh's soul directly into the abode of the gods.
Each monarch built his own pyramid in which his mummified body might be preserved for
eternity away from human view and sacrilege. As a result of the lack of sophisticated machinery,
the construction of each pyramid took many years and required measureless amounts of building
materials and labor. Entrance into a pyramid is through an opening in the northern wall. A small
passage, traversing lesser chambers, leads to the sepulchral room deep beneath the surface.
Stone blocks forming a gable divert the weight of the great masonry masses over these chambers.
Though the pyramids were usually built of rough stone blocks laid up in horizontal courses, many
were constructed of mud bricks with a stone casing.
The three pyramids of Giza near Cairo, all of the IV dynasty, are the largest and finest of their kind.
The Great Pyramid of Khufu or Cheops (begun c.2680 B.C.) was designated one of the Seven
Wonders of the World and is the largest pyramid ever built. A solid mass of limestone blocks
covering 13 acres (5.3 hectares), it was originally 756 ft (230 m) along each side of its base and
482 ft (147 m) high. It has several passages, two large chambers in addition to one beneath the
ground level, and two small air chambers for ventilation.
1. Who is the founder of the earliest ziggurats?
2. The word “engraved” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. sculpture
B. exist
C. defuse
D. entitle
3. In the culture of Mesopotamians, what is the function of ziggurats?
4. Why did the structure design to be pyramid?
5. The word “deified” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. worshiped
B. defined
C. denote
8
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
D. esteemed
6. The word “prolific” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. sublime
B. spectacular
C. productive
D. incredible
7. What can be inferred from the relationship between pyramid-building and pharaonic rule?
8. Why does the author mention that "resurrection machine"?
9. What lead to the long-time period of construction of pyramid?
参考答案：
1. The Mesopotamians.
2. A
3. They were believed to be dwelling places for the gods.
4. Stacking mastabas on top of each other, creating an edifice composed of a number of "steps"
that decreased in size towards its apex.
5. A
6. C
7. Authority centralization is of vital importance in that time.
8. The Egyptians believed the dark area of the night sky around which the stars appear to revolve
was the physical gateway into the heavens.
9. The lack of sophisticated machinery.
2. 大平原的气候
北美大平原的天气变化（厄尔尼诺和拉尼娜）
第一段：介绍背景，一般天气都是会有更替变化的，但是北美大平原的天气有时候会 get
stuck，有时候是持续干旱，有时候又持续降雨（有句子改写题）。
第二段：讲到历史上大平原的诡异天气带来的后果的一些具体案例，当中出现了几个年份，
几次洪水，几次干旱，还有 1930 年代出现的干旱还有森林大火（这个细节在之后的一道
except 题里面考到了）
。
第三段：开始解释为啥会出现这种诡异的天气状况，原因是几千英里以外的 Peru 附近的太
平洋的温度。大平原地区的天气与这个地方的温度有一种联系，有句子插入题，题干是，当
温度高的时候，降雨就增加，当温度低的时候，就干旱，就插在此处，方法，抽象 vs 具体，
答案：第四个）
。
第四段：厄尔尼诺现象。太平洋温暖洋流使太平洋蒸发量上升，水蒸气增多，引起了气流的
disturbance（关键细节）
。同时 the Gulf of Mexico 反过来，形成 low pressure。
Low pressure sucks
in moist，然后导致 great plains 下雨。
第五段：拉尼娜现象。太平洋温度下降，同样引起气流的 disturbance（关键细节，与厄尔
尼诺的比较）
。同时 the Gulf of Mexico 形成高气压，把宝贵的湿气往两个方向吹了，一个往
9
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
北吹到了加拿大，而 the Gulf of Mexico 的湿气就吹到了 Atlantic Pacific。
（有题，题干问的是
the Gulf of Mexico 的湿气去了哪里了，这道题很容易误选了加拿大。关键在于先定位出 the
Gulf of Mexico 的湿气，排除原文的第一个方向）。
其他题目：
以下哪个不是大平原诡异天气的后果。1. forest fires 2. droughts 3. floods 4. snowfalls（答案选
4）
全文结构题：organization of the passage
答案：先介绍了一种现象，然后解释形成这种现象的 processes。
词汇题：
by and large=for the most part
brew=develop
catastrophic=disastrous
massive=huge
North America possesses a multitude of diverse regional climates as a consequence of its
vastness, its topography, and it is being surrounded by oceans and seas with widely varying
thermal characteristics. The North American region as analyzed here extends latitudinally from
approximately the Arctic Circle to the Tropic of Cancer and longitudinally from the Aleutian
Islands in the west to the Canadian maritime province in the east. The regional atmospheric
circulation is dominated by disturbances (waves) in the upper-level westerly winds. The
development of these waves defines the position of the main upper-level jet stream over the
continent and thus the position of the so-called Polar Front at the surface, which generally
separates colder, drier air to the north from warmer, moister air to the south.
In the colder half of the year, the position of the Polar Front can vary greatly, from southern
Canada to the southern reaches of the United States. Such large shifts in the Polar Front are
associated with long, high-amplitude waves that often cause one part of the continent to
experience warm, moist, southerly airflow while another part experiences a blast of dry and cold
Arctic air (meridional flow). These conditions may persist for lengthy periods because of the
typically slow movement of these longer waves.
At other times, however (mainly in the fall and spring), shorter, weaker waves move more quickly
across the continent-producing highly variable weather with rapidly changing, but not extremely
high or low, temperatures and short wet and dry periods. In the summer, the Polar Front retreats
well into Canada, for the most part, and two oceanic semi-permanent high-pressure systems tend
to dominate the North American weather; as a result, there typically are fewer and weaker
synoptic-scale disturbances in the westerlies. In summer and autumn, tropical storms of Atlantic,
Caribbean, or Gulf of Mexico origin occasionally impact the Atlantic and Gulf coasts.
Analyses of annual near-surface North American air temperatures show trends toward increasing
temperatures over most of the continent. Temperature increases over land are greatest over an
area extending from north. These increases range mainly from 1-2°C/100 years. Decreases in
annual temperature on the order of 1°C/100 years are observed along the Gulf coast and on the
order of 0.5°C/100 years off the northeast coast of Canada. Sea-surface temperatures appear to
have warmed off both the west and east coasts of the continent, especially in the Gulf of Alaska.
10
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
Records reveal temperatures increasing through the 1920s and 1930s, peaking around 1940, and
then gradually decreasing through the early 1970s. From this point through the late 1980s,
temperatures increased to levels similar to the 1940 era; they have remained mainly above
normal since. The more recent warmth has been accompanied by relatively high amounts of
precipitation, unlike the dry and warm 1930s. The value of the overall linear trend for 1901-96 is
0.57°C/100 years, a trend significant at better than the 99% confidence level.
1. The word “maritime” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. oceanic
B. terrestrial
C. prairie
D. fringe
2. What elements lead to the diverse regional climate in North America?
3. Why does the climate in different part of North America vary from each other so much?
4. The word “retreat” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. expand
B. detour
C. reverse
D. convert
5. What is the purpose of using the example of the Gulf of Alaska?
6. What is the trend of temperature change between 1970s and 1980s?
参考答案：
1. A
2. The continent’s vastness, topography, and its being surrounded by oceans and seas with widely
varying thermal characteristics.
3. In the colder half of the year, the position of the Polar Front can vary greatly.
4. C
5. Sea-surface temperatures appear to have warmed off both the west and east coasts of the
continent.
6. Increasing trend.
3. 人的体温
第一段：生物需要把体内的热量散发到外界，从而降温。因此，身体的温度并非内外一致。
体表温度要比体内温度低，
这样才可以让温度先从体内传到体表，然后才从体表传到外界（有
题，问体内外温度的问题，答案是体内温度要比体外温度高，其实就是原文的反推）。
第二段：以人体为例，介绍了体内温度和热量的来源，每部分的温度并不一样，腹部和胸部
虽然占的地方不多，但是由于这些地方有很重要的 organs，发热量却占到了人体的大部分，
如果加上大脑，那么占的比例就更高了。此时提出了两个概念 core 和 shell（有修辞目的题，
问作者为何提到了这些器官的发热量。答案是选最后一个“为了说明少部分器官占了人体大
部分的发热量。”第一个选项“说明器官之间的发热量是不同的”是迷惑选项。因为原文的重
点并不是比较各种器官的发热量，而是强调 percentage 的问题；还有题问：core 怎么降温？
我选的是通过血液把 heat 传到了 shell）
。
11
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
第三段：介绍人体散热的过程，当中提到了血液的流动，artery 动脉把热量从 core 的重要器
官带到体表 shell，然后静脉 vein 把冷却之后的血液带回体内（有题，问这个血液流动的细
节）
。
第四段：介绍人体的发热量会因为不同情况而变化，运动的时候大部分热量来自肌肉。然后
讲了肌肉如何发热和散热的细节。休息的时候发热量也会有变化。
第五段：提到了人体如果突然遇到环境的改变，例如从很热的外进进入空调很冷的房间，会
突然失去大量的热量。失去的热量很重要，因为这种热量相当于一个人休息三个小时所需要
的热量。
词汇题：
uniform=invariable
considerably=greatly
provided=if
significant=important
roughly=approximately
The circadian rhythm of core body temperature (CBT) is a well-documented physiological
phenomenon. Already in 1842, Gierse had shown that his own oral temperature revealed a
maximum temperature in the early evening and a minimum in the early morning hours with a
maximum-minimum range of 0.9 °C. It had been assumed for a long time that muscular activity
(exercise) and digestive processes were the most important factors for generation of the CBT
rhythm. Aschoff and his colleagues systematically explored the causes of this rhythm. He showed
that the circadian rhythm of CBT is determined both by changes in heat production and changes
in heat loss, and concluded that heat production undergoes a circadian rhythm which is phase
advanced by 1.2h with respect to the circadian rhythm of heat loss. when heat production
surpasses heat loss, CBT increases—transport of heat needs time.
Therefore, when we want to explain changes in CBT we need to know the relationship between
heat production and heat loss. Under resting conditions, heat production depends mainly on the
metabolic activity of inner organs such as liver, intestines, kidneys, heart in the
abdominal/thoracic cavity, and the brain, together producing ca. 70% of the entire resting
metabolic rate of the human body. However, this “core” heat is generated in only 8% of the body
mass with a surrounding skin surface of only about 0.3m2 (surface to volume=0.1). The proximal
skin surface is not ideally shaped: too flat for good heat transfer to the environment. This means,
that even in a comfortable thermoneutral environment, heat has to be transferred from the core
to parts of the body with better heat transfer capacities, namely to the extremities (surface to
volume coefficient e. g. of fingers= 2.2) . These distal parts of the body have ideal (round) surface
shapes for good heat transfer properties to the environment. Blood is the main medium for
transporting heat from the core to distal skin regions (convectively), driven and distributed by the
cardiovascular system.
The human body consists therefore of two compartments, the heat producing core, and the heat
loss regulating shell. CBT (especially in the brain) is homeostatically regulated, and the shell is
poikilothermic (having body temperature that varies with the environment) and therefore largely
dependent on environmental conditions. The shell serves as a kind of thermal protector for the
core. When the air is cold, the shell is large, whereas in a warm environment it is small. This
autonomically regulated mechanism of shell size occurs via constriction or dilatation of peripheral
12
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
blood vessels, mainly of smooth muscles in arterioles, as well as smooth muscles in arteriovenous
anastomoses in distal skin regions. There is substantial evidence indicating that homeostatic
control of CBT is mediated by a hierarchically organized set of neuronal mechanisms, with the
anterior hypothalamic/preoptic areas at the top of the hierarchy. In addition to the homeostatic
principle, a projection from the circadian pacemaker to the preoptic areas serves the circadian
modulation of CBT.
Changes in shell size also take place when the underlying endogenous circadian CBT rhythm is
regulated. This has been studied under controlled environmental conditions, where external
influences (masking) are minimized, in the so-called constant routine protocol. It has been shown
that distal skin temperature rises in the evening, whereas heat production, proximal skin
temperature and CBT decline—in the morning the inverse happens (see figure, right panel). The
circadian rhythm in heat production (measured by indirect calorimetry), as well as heart rate (a
correlate of heat production), is phase advanced with respect to CBT and heat loss, as shown
originally by Aschoff. A crucial role for the heat loss effect or system in the evening appears to be
the nocturnally secreted pineal hormone melatonin. Melatonin initiates not only distal
vasodilatation, but also sleepiness. After lights off, and even before sleep onset, an additional
phenomenon can be observed. Both distal and proximal skin temperatures increase rapidly to a
similar level, due to relaxation (withdrawal of the sympathetic vasoconstrictor tonus). This means
there is a complete loss of the core/shell principle during sleep. However, this increase in skin
temperatures does not lead to efficient heat loss, because cardiac output is decreased in
parallel—CBT declines very slowly under temperate environmental conditions.
1. The phrase “with respect to” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. regard to
B. defer to
C. on the basis of
D. determined to
2. Both Gierse and Aschoff made contribution to the CBT, what is the relationship between their
founding?
3. According to paragraph 2, which part of the body is ideally shaped for good heat transfer to
the environment?
4. The word “distal” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. dismal
B. terminal
C. topmost
D. medial
5. The word “mediated” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. measured
B. ceased
C. conciliate
D. mortgage
6. What is the relationship between the core and the shell?
7. The word “endogenous” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. intrinsic
B. overlapping
C. explicit
D. covert
13
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
8. What is the situation of the body temperature in the morning?
参考答案：
1. A
2. Gierse did an experiment on himself and assumed the generation of the CBT rhythm; Aschoff
systematically explored the causes of this rhythm.
3. The extremities.
4. B
5. C
6. The shell serves as a kind of thermal protector for the core.
7. A
8. Proximal skin temperature and CBT increase.
第三套
1. 15 世纪欧洲羊毛纺织对经济的影响
第一段说 15 世纪欧洲羊毛经济发生了很大的改变，主要从城郊转移到了农村（rural），因为
农村的人工费比较便宜所以从来就都转移到了 rural 去发展，城市的工人啊，成本啊都被控
制了。在农村可以找 farmer 啊等临时工什么的。农村很便宜，因为大家都做散工，有时间
就做，没时间就不做，所以成本很低。投资者就可以很随意的去找他们想找的人做，很
flexible，说意大利就是个例子；说意大利出口很多东西到英国，还有一个啥国家记不住了（有
题）
。
第二段说德国一些地方开始流行把作坊转移到农村；
第三段说西班牙，西班牙某个地方特别适合发展畜牧业，很适合养羊，光 castle 这个地方，
就有超过 30 万的羊（在最后总结题中有关于 castle 的选项，不选，因为这个地方仅仅是西
班牙的一个区域）
。凭借优越的自然条件，西班牙成为了重要的 raw material 的出口国。
第四段说英国，相对于西班牙，英国却成为了做重要的成品国。说英国主要是把羊毛加工成
了衣服然后出口，尤其是伦敦成为了这一切的中心。伦敦汇集了商人做这个出口衣服生意，
后来政府跟着一起搞，于是为后来英国能够称霸欧洲奠定了基础。然后说这种经济模式的优
势，首先资本家可以控制卖衣服的时间，二是因为农村人口可以没事闲的发动全家老少，一
起做衣服，利用了闲散劳动力，然后因为英国有了 water power，使工人能更在同样的时间
内产出更多的产品（有题，答说英国用一个 new 技术去怎么羊毛了；还有题，问这种技术
使得衣服怎么了，答案：羊毛变重了）。
结尾说为了要保留以前老的那种工艺，所以就须年轻人从学徒做起。但是从学徒转到大师是
很困难的。有一题就是问 govern 或者是统治阶级是通过什么方式来限制年轻人发展（文章
里有一句为了神马使每个人都得到工作啊，保留传统手工艺啊）然后选项记得两个：一个就
是从学徒变大师比较难，另一个就是什么不让年轻人开店。
Between 1450 and 1800, textile production was second only to agriculture in economic
importance. It employed more people and produced more profit than any other manufactured
14
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
product. Production and trade existed at two levels. Everywhere peasants and villagers turned
locally grown wool and flax into fabric and clothing for themselves and their neighbors. The cloth
they produced was of poor quality and not designed for export to distant markets. On top of this
local market sat a large and lucrative luxury trade in silk, wool, linen, and (eventually) cotton
fabric, the most important of which were heavy woolens. The customers for these fabrics were
wealthy landowners, government and church officials, merchants, financiers, aristocrats, and
master craftsmen in Europe, Asia and the Levant.
Most important of all the textile industries was the trade in raw wool and wool fabric. Sheep
raising abounded everywhere. In the fifteenth century, the best fleeces came from England. In
the sixteenth century, Spanish merino sheep knocked English sheep into second place. French
sheep were considered to produce the third best wool. Two types of wool fabric were produced
in Europe—woolens and worsteds. Of the two, the market for woolens was by far the larger.
In the fifteenth century, textile manufacturing was an urban industry, controlled by wealthy
merchants (drapers) who purchased raw wool, had it turned into cloth, and then sold it, often to
other craftsmen who performed the final finishing steps, including dyeing and teaseling. These
were capital-intensive crafts, and cloth merchants often preferred not to be involved in them.
Before the seventeenth century, most English cloth was dyed and finished in Holland. In England,
in addition to merchants who only bought and sold, clothiers, themselves often master weavers,
controlled a great deal of the woolen trade.
In the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, textile workers dominated the population of towns like
Venice and Leiden. By the sixteenth century, however, merchants had discovered that they could
avoid the high wages, labor shortages, and quality controls imposed by urban guilds and
governments by hiring peasants to do manufacturing work in their homes. Urban merchants
continued to control production, but much of the work force was spread out through the
countryside. Alternately referred to as the putting-out system, cottage manufacturing, and the
Verlag system, merchants (Verlagers) found they could save money (rural workers could work for
less because they produced much of their own food) and increase production at the same time.
Trained cottage workers could be as skilled as urban workers, but many alternated farming and
manufacturing and produced goods of lesser quality. The high-end woolen trade remained
important, but many merchants began to reorient their businesses away from the luxury market
and toward lower-quality, lower-priced, and more rapidly produced goods.
The building of fulling mills (first mentioned in accounts c. 1000) that beat the woven cloth with
hammers raised by water wheels to replace the labor-intensive hand (or foot) fulling provided
another incentive for merchants to put work out into the countryside and was a major
determinant of the location of woolen production. In the eighteenth century, when merchants
expanded employment to increase production, many rural villages became as much, or even
more, dependent on the textile industry as they were on farming. Following the lead of Franklin
Mendels, historians now call this intensification of cottage industry proto-industrialization to
distinguish it from its earlier, perhaps more benign, manifestation, when cottage workers toiled
fewer hours and produced goods for local markets.
1. The word “lucrative” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. wasteful
B. scarce
C. profitable
D. noble
2. According to the competition of the sheep in different countries in the sixteenth century, what
can we imply?
15
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
3. Where is the core area of the textile manufacturing in the fifteenth century?
4. Why did the merchants move the mill from urban area to rural area?
5. What is the benefit the shift?
6. The word “reorient” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. accommodate
B. navigate
C. locate
D. accumulate
7. The word “distinguish” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. select
B. absorb
C. extinct
D. differentiate
参考答案:
1. C
2. The market for woolens is larger.
3. In the fifteenth century, textile manufacturing was an urban industry, controlled by wealthy
merchants.
4. The merchants could avoid the high wages, labor shortages, and quality controls imposed by
urban guilds and governments by hiring peasants to do manufacturing work in their homes.
5. Rural workers could work for less and increase production at the same time.
6. A
7. D
2. 讲人们如何 definite a concept
首先小篇幅介绍了之前的理论，人们通过总结出一类事物的共性来建立他的 concept，比如
bachelor，这个概念包括三个特点（features）--成年人、男性、未婚。所以当我们看见一个
人，发现他具备这三个特点，我们就会把他归类为 bachelor，但是有个人就怀疑是不是所有
的都可以通过设定几个 feature 来定义。他觉得不能，他认为比如一些 natural concept（有
题）
，如家具。
之后重点介绍了用得更多的 prototype 理论，这种理论关注 essential 的特点。虽然有些物品
不具备这个特点，我们仍然会把它归类为这一类（有题，句意转换，说这种理论描述了概念
的核心，但是人们在理解它时也知道有 implication 这个概念下的很多东西 is different from
prototype）
。比如为什么人们看到 bird 就想到 fly，即使知道有的鸟不会飞，又说人们觉得
sparrow 啊什么的比 penguin 更像鸟（有题，为啥你觉得 sparrow 更像鸟）
后半部分说这两个理论其实可以 reconcile。在联想一个 concept 的时候我们可以先想到它的
prototype，然后 features 作为补充，后面举了 boy 的例子，阐述该怎么运用不同理论。比如
tell the boy from the different one 该用什么，而联想起一个具体的 boy 就该用 prototype 的理
论了（有题）
。
16
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
最后介绍了一个方法，即 examples（有题，这段在讲啥）更好地定义了不同事物。
Just as thoughts are composed of more basic, word-sized concepts, so these word-sized
concepts—known as lexical concepts—are generally thought to be composed of even more basic
concepts. In this section, we look at different proposals about the structure of lexical concepts.
In one way or another, all theories regarding the structure of concepts are developments of, or
reactions to, the classical theory of concepts. According to the classical theory, a lexical concept C
has definitional structure in that it is composed of simpler concepts that express necessary and
sufficient conditions for falling under C. The stock example is the concept bachelor, which is
traditionally said to have the constituents unmarried and man. If the example is taken at face
value, the idea is that something falls under bachelor if it is an unmarried man and only if it is an
unmarried man. According to the classical theory, lexical concepts generally will exhibit this same
sort of definitional structure. This includes such philosophically interesting concepts as truth,
goodness, freedom, and justice.
Before turning to other theories of conceptual structure, it's worth pausing to see what's so
appealing about classical or definitional structure. Much of its appeal comes from the way it
offers unified treatments of concept acquisition, categorization, and reference determination. In
each case, the crucial work is being done by the very same components. Concept acquisition can
be understood as a process in which new complex concepts are created by assembling their
definitional constituents. Categorization can be understood as a psychological process in which a
complex concept is matched to a target item by checking to see if each and every one of its
definitional constituents applies to the target. And reference determination, we've already seen,
is a matter of whether the definitional constituents do apply to the target.
What other type of structure could they have? A non-classical alternative that emerged in the
1970s is the prototype theory. According to this theory, a lexical concept C doesn't have
definitional structure but has probabilistic structure in that something falls under C just in case it
satisfies a sufficient number of properties encoded by C's constituents. The prototype theory has
its philosophical roots in Wittgenstein's (1953/1958) famous remark that the things covered by a
term often share a family resemblance, and it has its psychological roots in Eleanor Rosch's
experimental treatment of much the same idea (Rosch & Mervis 1975, Rosch 1978). The
prototype theory is especially at home in dealing with the typicality effects that were left
unexplained by the classical theory. One standard strategy is to maintain that, on the prototype
theory, categorization is to be understood as a similarity comparison process, where similarity is
computed as a function of the number of constituents that two concepts hold in common. On
this model, the reason apples are judged to be more typical than plums is that the concept APPLE
shares more of its constituents with FRUIT. Likewise, this is why apples are judged to be a kind of
fruit faster than plums are.
The prototype theory does well in accounting for a variety of psychological phenomena and it
helps to explain why definitions may be so hard to produce. But the prototype theory has its own
problems and limitations. One is that its treatment of categorization works best for quick and
unreflective judgments. Yet when it comes to more reflective judgments, people go beyond the
outcome of a similarity comparison. If asked whether a dog that is surgically altered to look like a
raccoon is a dog or a raccoon, the answer for most of us, and even for children, is that it is
remains a dog (see Keil 1989, Gelman 2003 for discussion). Another criticism that has been raised
against taking concepts to have prototype structure concerns compositionality. When a patently
complex concept has a prototype structure, it often has emergent properties, ones that don't
derive from the prototypes of its constituents (e.g., PET FISH encodes properties such as brightly
colored, which have no basis in the prototype structure for either PET or FISH). Further, many
patently complex concepts don't even have a prototype structure (e.g., CHAIRS THAT WERE
PURCHASED ON A WEDNESDAY) (Fodor & Lepore 1996, Fodor 1998; for responses to the
17
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
arguments from compositionality, see Prinz 2002, Robbins 2002, Hampton & Jönsson 2011).
One general solution that addresses all of these problems is to hold that a prototype constitutes
just part of the structure of a concept. In addition, concepts have conceptual cores, which specify
the information relevant to more considered judgments and which underwrite compositional
processes. Of course, this just raises the question of what sort of structure conceptual cores have.
One common suggestion is that conceptual cores have classical structure (Osherson & Smith
1981, Landau 1982). This won't do, however, since it just raises once again most of the problems
associated with the classical theory (Laurence & Margolis 1999).
1. What is the purpose of the example of the concept bachelor?
2. The word “assembling” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. gathering
B. separating
C. dividing
D. splitting
3. According to the paragraph 3, what is the meaning of the target?
4. The word “resemblance” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. density
B. similarity
C. dejection
D. sediment
5. What is the reason that apples are judged to be a kind of fruit faster than plums are?
6. What is the limitation of the prototype theory?
7. The word “derive” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. origin
B. scatter
C. descend
D. loop
8. The word “associated with” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. company with
B. related to
C. cease to
D. comply with
参考答案：
1. To illustrate the classical theory of concepts.
2. A
3. Categorization can be understood as a psychological process in which a complex concept is
matched to a target item by checking to see if each and every one of its definitional constituents
applies to the target.
4. B
5. The concept APPLE shares more of its constituents with FRUIT.
6. One is that its treatment of categorization works best for quick and unreflective judgments.
Another criticism that has been raised against taking concepts to have prototype structure
concerns compositionality.
7. A
18
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
8. B
3. 一个古代文明体：哈拉夫。
说他们 half agriculture（dry，不灌溉），还养牲口（发现有个小神像是牛还是什么）他们制
造瓷器，和其他 culture 的人们 trade，然后说这种瓷器 neat/repetitive/tiny/精致。最后说这
个文明体是 tribal，然后还讲了 tribal 的特性。
词汇题：
fragmentary=incomplete
sought-after=desired
concede=accept as true
prime=superior
dynamic=active
emergence=rise
manageable=easy to handle
reconcile=bring together
segregate=separate
unambiguous=clear
The Halaf culure, is a prehistoric period which lasted between about 6100 and 5500 BCE. The
period is a continuous development out of the earlier Pottery Neolithic and is located primarily in
south-eastern Turkey, Syria, and northern Iraq, although Halaf-influenced material is found
throughout Greater Mesopotamia.
While the period is named after the site of Tell Halaf in north Syria, excavated by Max von
Oppenheim between 1911 and 1927, the earliest Halaf period material was excavated by John
Garstang in 1908 at the site of Sakce Gözü, then in Syria but now part of Turkey. Small amounts of
Halaf material was also excavated in 1913 by Leonard Woolley at Carchemish, on the
Turkish/Syrian border. However, the most important site for the Halaf tradition was the site of Tell
Arpachiyah, now located in the suburbs of Mosul, Iraq.
The site is located near the city of Ra's al-'Ayn in the fertile valley of the Khabur River (Nahr
al-Khabur), close to the modern border with Turkey. The name Tell Halaf is a local
Aramaicplacename, tell meaning "hill", and Tell Halaf meaning "made of former city"; what its
original inhabitants called their settlement is not known. It was discovered in 1899 by Baron Max
von Oppenheim, a German diplomat, while he was surveying the area to build the Baghdad
Railway. At the time, Syria was under the rule of the Ottoman Empire. He returned to excavate
the site from 1911 to 1913 and then again 1929, now under French stewardship following the
creation of modern Syria. Oppenheim took many of the artifacts found to Berlin. In 2006, new
Syro-German excavations have started under the direction of Lutz Martin (Vorderasiatisches
Museum Berlin), Abd al-Masih Bagdo (Directorate of Antiquities Hassake), Jörg Becker (University
of Halle) and Mirko Novák (University of Bern).
Von Oppenheim founded the Tell Halaf museum in Berlin to house his discoveries from the site.
The museum was wrecked in a massive aerial bombardment in World War II, and many of the
irreplaceable artifacts were damaged or destroyed, in what is considered one of the worst losses
to have occurred in Near Eastern archaeology. However, eighty cubic meters of basalt fragments
were later rescued and stored away in thePergamon Museum. In 2001, a restoration project
commenced in Germany has made some headway in reconstructing many of the damaged
artifacts. This project has now been completed.
The Halaf period was succeeded by the Halaf-Ubaid Transitional period (~5500 - 5200 cal. BCE)
19
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
and then by the Ubaid period (~5200 - 4000 cal. BCE).
Although no Halaf settlement has been extensively excavated some buildings have been
excavated: the tholoi of Tell Arpachiyah, circular domed structures approached through long
rectangular anterooms. Only a few of these structures were ever excavated. They were
constructed of mud-brick sometimes on stone foundations and may have been for ritual use (one
contained a large number of female figurines). Other circular buildings were probably just
houses.
The best known, most characteristic pottery of Tell Halaf, called Halaf ware, produced by
specialist potters, can be painted, sometimes using more than two colors (called polychrome)
with geometric and animal motifs. Other types of Halaf pottery are known, including unpainted,
cooking ware and ware with burnished surfaces. There are many theories about why the
distinctive pottery style developed.
The theory is that the pottery came about due to regional copying and that it was exchanged as a
prestige item between local elites is now disputed. The polychrome painted Halaf pottery has
been proposed to be a "trade pottery"—pottery produced for export—however, the
predominance of locally produced painted pottery in all areas of Halaf sites including potters
settlement questions that theory.
Halaf pottery has been found in other parts of northern Mesopotamia, such as at Nineveh and
Tepe Gawra, Chagar Bazar and at many sites in Anatolia (Turkey) suggesting that it was widely
used in the region. In addition, the Halaf communities made female figurines of partially baked
clay and stone and stamp seals of stone, (see also impression seal). The seals are thought to mark
the development of concepts of personal property, as similar seals were used for this purpose in
later times. The Halaf people used tools made of stone and clay. Copper was also known, but was
not used for tools.
1. The word “excavated” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. buried
B. repacked
C. unearthed
D. emerged
2. The word “fertile” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. remote
B. barren
C. abundant
D. rural
3. What is the windfall brought by the building of the Baghdad Railway?
4. The word “wrecked” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. damaged
B. rebuild
C. deformed
D. removed
5. What actions have been take to remedy the destruction of the Tell Halaf museum?
6. The word “specialist” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. professional
B. familiar
20
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
C. amateurish
D. dilettante
7. The word “disputed” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. overturned
B. controversial
C. renovated
D. eroded
参考答案：
1. C
2. C
3. Tell Halaf was discovered.
4. A
5. Eighty cubic meters of basalt fragments were later rescued and stored away in the Pergamon
Museum. In 2001, a restoration project commenced in Germany has made some headway in
reconstructing many of the damaged artifacts.
6. A
7. B
第四套
1. 一个 paradox
太阳比从前热了，照理说过去的地球应该很冷，但事实是地球从前也没有冷多少，分析原因。
温室气体 trap 了热量，地球自身有一个维持 stability 的 system， 后面还说了生物可以调节
气候。记得的这些好像都有设题。
Earth’s temperature depends on the balance between energy entering and leavingthe planet’s
system. When incoming energy from the sun is absorbed by the Earth system, Earth warms.
When the sun’s energy is reflected back into space, Earth avoids warming. When energy is
released back into space, Earth cools. Many factors, both natural and human, can cause changes
in Earth’s energy balance.
Scientists have pieced together a picture of Earth’s climate, dating back hundreds of thousands of
years, by analyzing a number of indirect measures of climate such as ice cores, tree rings, glacier
lengths, pollen remains, and ocean sediments, and by studying changes in Earth’s orbit around
the sun.
The historical record shows that the climate system varies naturally over a wide range of time
scales. In general, climate changes prior to the Industrial Revolution in the 1700s can be
explained by natural causes, such as changes in solar energy, volcanic eruptions, and natural
changes in greenhouse gas (GHG) concentrations.
Recent climate changes, however, cannot be explained by natural causes alone. Research
indicates that natural causes are very unlikely to explain most observed warming, especially
warming since the mid-20th century. Rather, human activities can very likely explain most of that
warming.
When sunlight reaches Earth’s surface, it can either be reflected back into space or absorbed by
Earth. Once absorbed, the planet releases some of the energy back into the atmosphere as heat
(also called infrared radiation). Greenhouse gases (GHGs) like water vapor (H 2O), carbon dioxide
(CO2), and methane (CH4) absorb energy, slowing or preventing the loss of heat to space. In this
way, GHGs act like a blanket, making Earth warmer than it would otherwise be. This process is
21
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
commonly known as the “greenhouse effect”.
In the distant past (prior to about 10,000 years ago), CO2 levels tended to track the glacial cycles.
During warm “interglacial” periods, CO2 levels have been higher. During cool ‘glacial’ periods, CO2
levels have been lower. This is because the heating or cooling of Earth’s surface can cause
changes in greenhouse gas concentrations. These changes often act as a positive feedback,
amplifying existing temperature changes.
Since the Industrial Revolution began around 1750, human activities have contributed
substantially to climate change by adding CO2 and other heat-trapping gases to the atmosphere.
These greenhouse gas emissions have increased the greenhouse effect and caused Earth’s surface
temperature to rise. The primary human activity affecting the amount and rate of climate change
is greenhouse gas emissions from the burning of fossil fuels.
1. What are the two factors determining Earth’s temperature?
2. The word “released” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. public
B. emit
C. refresh
D. intake
3. What is the demarcation point of the different cause of the climate change?
4. What is the process of “greenhouse effect”?
5. The word “amplifying” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. modifying
B. regulating
C. magnifying
D. revising
6. What is the most significant impact to the climate change caused by human beings?
参考答案：
1. Earth’s temperature depends on the balance between energy entering and leavingthe planet’s
system.
2. B
3. The Industrial Revolution.
4. Sunlight reaches Earth’s surface, it can be absorbed by Earth. The planet releases some of the
energy back into the atmosphere as heat. Greenhouse gases absorb energy, slowing or
preventing the loss of heat to space.
5. C
6. The burning of fossil fuels.
2. 城市的发展，从迁移到农业形成到有一些非农业的城镇形成。
The original settlements that grew into cities were usually built as trading centers or as forts to
defend strategic locations. For this reason, most major cities are on rivers or harbors, or at the
junction of important overland routes.
Early cities that developed strong military forces added to their territory, wealth, and importance
by conquest. Favorably located settlements often became large and prosperous through
commerce. Some, such as Athens, became centers of culture.
22
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
Some cities owe their importance to religion. Many ancient cities began as centers of worship.
The city of Rome survived the collapse of the Roman Empire because it was the capital of
Western Christendom. Mecca and Jerusalem owe their continued existence to the fact that they
are religious shrines.
Some modern cities owe their development to the fact that they were planned and built as
national capitals. Examples are Washington, D.C.; Canberra, Australia; New Delhi, India; and
Brasília, Brazil. Climate is another important factor; the cities of Florida, for instance, owe much
of their growth to the state's attractive climate.
The huge city of today is the creation of the Industrial Revolution. Factories were built in
communities that had good transportation and were near raw materials and sources of power.
Factories attracted workers, and the availability of workers in turn attracted more industry. At the
same time, as agricultural productivity steadily increased, farm land and labor were released for
other uses.
The earliest cities were in Asia, Africa, and along the warm coasts of the Mediterranean. Many of
these cities have long since disappeared. Some—such as Troy—have been rediscovered by
archeologists.
The ancient cities of Greece and Italy had the political power of nations. Some ancient cities, such
as Carthage, in northern Africa, were completely destroyed by rival powers, while others declined
after being plundered by barbarian invaders in the early Christian Era. Many of the early cities,
however, still exist and have been continually occupied since their founding.
In the early Middle Ages, most European cities were religious centers with little power or political
importance. However, with the breakup of feudalism and the revival of trade, cities again became
important. Genoa, Venice, Pisa, Hamburg, Bremen, and a number of other cities became
independent states, much like the ancient city-states. With the rise of nationalism after the
Renaissance, cities lost much of their political power, but continued to gain in economic
importance.
Colonial America was largely rural. In 1750, there were only five cities with populations of more
than 12,000—Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Newport (Rhode Island), and Charleston (South
Carolina). Even by 1830 less than 7 per cent of the people were living in cities. Then came the
period of canal and railway building, industrial expansion and the mass immigration, all of them
lead to the rapid growth of cities. By about 1920, more than half the nation's people lived in cities.
The pattern of city growth changed after World War II, however, with suburbs increasing in size
much more rapidly than cities; many cities, in fact, lost population.
1. The word “prosperous” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. progressive
B. productive
C. flourishing
D. tribal
2. According to the paragraph 3, why does the author mention the city of Rome?
3. What is the relation of factory and workers?
4. The word “plundered” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. grab
B. plouch
23
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
C. issued
D. reclaimed
5. What impact does nationalism have on the country?
6. What are the factors accounting for the rapid growth of the cities?
参考答案：
1. C
2. To illustrate that some cities owe their importance to religion.
3. Factories attracted workers, and the availability of workers in turn attracted more industry.
4. A
5. With the rise of nationalism after the Renaissance, cities lost much of their political power, but
continued to gain in economic importance.
6. The period of canal and railway building, industrial expansion, and mass immigration.
3. 鸟类的歌声。
雄性鸟类通过歌声声称自己的领地拒绝其他雄性鸟类的到来，然后在自己的领地 mating，
和雌雄鸟类共同生活。后面说了领地有的只是用来 mating 的，有的是用来生活和 mating 的。
歌声也分种类，有的歌声也有恐吓作用。
In most bird species, male birds court the female of the species. They often set up nests, put on
dramatic visual displays, and, of course, sing their little hearts out attempting to woo the object
of their affection. Birds' mating songs tend to be longer and more lyrical than other basic calls.
The female birds generally watch and listen to the male birds and pick the one they like best.
There is a strong evolutionary reason for females to choose the male with the best display and
song. First, a male who can provide a good nest means security for the baby birds which
translates into a higher survival rate. This can be achieved either by building a better nest,
choosing a superior location for the nest, or both.
In the springtime, males will be at their brightest and most colorful. This is the time of year when
they are truly spectacular for birdwatchers and especially for the females. Vivid feather color is a
strong indicator of a bird’s health. Given two males birds of the same species, the one with the
brighter coloration is almost certainly healthier and is very likely eating a richer diet. Brighter
colors, then translate into a better provider for the baby birds. If the male is healthier and better
able to forage and bring food back to the nest, the baby birds will grow faster and become
stronger and able to leave the nest sooner.
The courtship song is one of the most important tools a male bird has to convince a female bird
that he is her soulmate. Recent studies have reinforced this and even shed more light on the
details of just what it is about the male bird’s song that is most appealing to the female. Sandra
Vehrencamp, a professor of neurobiology and behavior at Cornell University, has made a
particular study of bird songs and calls and the way in which other birds react to the singing. She
notes that many bird mating calls are very physically demanding and says, "You really have to be
in top-notch shape to produce these elements well." Sloppy singers had trouble attracting
females. Of the banded wren in Central America she noted that the females generally were
faithful to their mates, but in those cases where the females were unfaithful, in every case, she
said, the male chosen for a fling “always had better song quality, so we know females pay
attention to fine song structure." Male birds often compete for females during the mating season
by singing.
24
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
It’s not just the song itself that matters, but also the location from which the male chooses to
sing. Researchers from the University of Antwerp and Eötvös University discovered that males
who chose singing locations that were closer to the ground formed mating pairs earlier in the
season than those singing from loftier perches. The researchers found that the lower singing
positions correlated with other risk-taking behaviors from the male birds. Because the lower
positions were more exposed and easier targets for predators, these males were demonstrating
that they could survive more challenging conditions than could birds which did not dare brave
the lower locations while singing. Inferior specimens that tried to sing from lower, more exposed
locations, the researchers surmised, would more often fall victim to predation and be removed
from the breeding population.
1. The word “lyrical” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. poetic
B. literary
C. literate
D. emotional
2. What is the reason for females to choose the male with the best display and song?
3. The word “forage” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. cultivate
B. seek
C. harbor
D. store
4. The word “convince” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. mate
B. feed
C. court
D. flatter
5. What is the meaning of Sandra Vehrencamp’s saying "You really have to be in top-notch shape
to produce these elements well."?
6. The word “sloppy” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. cursory
B. slow
C. dull
D. shrewd
7. What is the advantage of the lower position?
参考答案：
1. D
2. A male who can provide a good nest means security for the baby birds, and this can be
achieved either by building a better nest, choosing a superior location for the nest.
3. B
4. C
5. Bird mating calls are very physically demanding.
6. A
7. The lower positions were more exposed and easier targets for predators.
25
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
第五套
1. poikilotherms（冷热血动物）
动物分为冷血动物，恒温动物和时而恒温时而不恒温的动物三类。冷血动物像两栖动物，蛇，
鳄鱼之类的，它们在寒冷中不用太多新城代谢保持体温，在温暖中加快新城代谢，因此所需
食物少，可以生活在恒温动物不能生存的恶劣环境中。但是它们进行激烈运动时靠无氧代谢，
体内产生的乳酸会使其疲劳，所以它们静待机会捕食猎物，争取一击而中。冷血动物的缺点
是体积不能太大，否则太阳辐射不够温暖它们的。这样的好处是比较容易找到栖身之所。科
学家因此推断恐龙不可能是冷血动物。但是另一些科学家说，正是因为体积大，它们表面积
相对体积较小，散热慢，可能是冷血动物。小体积的冷血动物只能在春末，夏，秋等温度稍
高的时候出来活动。大体积的冷血动物比如乌龟，活动的时间范围长些，因为体积大，对环
境温度改变体温产生 buffer 作用。
问题一. 冷血动物为什么静待机会捕食而不是追捕？
二科学家觉得恐龙是不是冷血动物？
词汇题有
suspend----float
virtually----nearly
deflect----direction
potential----possible
replenish
dramatically
A poikilotherm is an organism whose internal temperature varies considerably. It is the opposite
of a homeotherm, an organism which maintains thermal homeostasis. Usually the variation is a
consequence of variation in theambient environmental temperature. Many terrestrial
ectotherms are poikilothermic. However some ectotherms remain in temperature-constant
environments to the point that they are actually able to maintain a constant internal temperature
(i.e. are homeothermic). It is this distinction that often makes the term "poikilotherm" more
useful than the vernacular "cold-blooded", which is sometimes used to refer to ectotherms more
generally. Poikilothermic animals include types of vertebrate animals, specifically fish,
amphibians, and reptiles, as well as a large number of invertebrate animals. The Naked mole rat
is the only mammal that is currently thought to be poikilothermic.
Some adaptations are behavioral. Lizards and snakes bask in the sun in the early morning and late
evening, and seek shelter around noon.
Termite mounds are usually oriented in a north-south direction so that they absorb as much heat
as possible around dawn and dusk and minimise heat absorption around noon.
Tuna are able to warm their entire bodies through a heat exchange mechanism called the rete
mirabile, which helps keep heat inside the body, and minimises the loss of heat through the gills.
They also have their swimming muscles near the center of their bodies instead of near the
surface, which minimises heat loss.
Gigantothermy means using a low ratio of surface area to volume to minimise heat loss, such as
in sea turtles. It is comparatively easy for a poikilotherm to accumulate enough energy to
reproduce. Poikilotherms at the same trophic level often have much shorter generations than
homeotherms: weeks rather than years. Such applies even to animals with similar ecological roles
such as cats and snakes.
26
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
This difference in energy requirement also means that a given food source can support a greater
density of poikilothermic animals than homeothermic animals. This is reflected in the
predator-prey ratio which is usually higher in poikilothermic fauna compared to homeothermic
ones. However, when homeotherms and poikilotherms have similar niches, and compete, the
homeotherm can often drive poikilothermic competitors to extinction, because homeotherms
can gather food for a greater fraction of each day.
Poikilotherms succeed in some habitats, such as islands and hot deserts, or distinct bioregions
(such as the small bioregions of the Amazon basin). These biomes often do not have enough food
to support a viable breeding population of homeothermic animals. In these habitats,
poikilotherms such as large lizards, crabs and frogs supplant homeotherms such as birds and
mammals.
In medicine, loss of normal thermoregulation in humans is referred to as "poikilothermia". This is
usually seen with sedative and hypnotic drugs or in 'compartment syndrome'. For example,
barbiturates, ethanol, and chloral hydrate may precipitate this effect. REM sleep is also
considered a poikilothermic state in humans.
1. Why is the term "poikilotherm" more useful than the vernacular "cold-blooded"?
2. The word “oriented” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. moved
B. adjusted
C. navigated
D. located
3. The word “accumulate” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. assemble
B. accommodate
C. assign
D. append
4. Why do poikilotherms succeed in islands and hot deserts?
5. The word “supplant” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. replace
B. alter
C. compensate
D. offset
6. The word “precipitate” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. subside
B. prescribe
C. participate
D. degrade
参考答案：
1. Poikilotherm remains in temperature-constant environments to the point that they are
actually able to maintain a constant internal temperature.
2. B
3. A
4. These areas often do not have enough food to support a viable breeding population of
homeothermic animals.
5. A
27
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
6. A
2. How do animals make themselves heard？
热带森林里的树木，叶子阻挡声音的传播。各种动物发出声音为了使自己被 receiptor 听到
不被 predator 听到。原始热带森林的动物很多，很吵，体型小的动物很难让自己被听到。ct
这种动物把叶子挖个洞，自己在中间舞动，使得叶子跟着自己一起振动，就像现代人的扩音
器一样。它们这样吸引远处的异性前来交配。一种蛙会寻找合适的有水的树洞，自己半浸没
在水里舞动发生。时间对于声音传播的远近也有影响。晚上，黎明，傍晚声音传播得远，
。
因此，对于晚上休息的动物来说，黎明和傍晚传播声音租有效。鸟类就是在黎明和傍晚 sing
最 high。同时，捕食者也在此时定位那些吵闹的猎物。每种动物都有特定的声调。频率高的
叫声比低吼有效。
Animals have developed a variety of strategies for dealing with increasing noise pollution in their
habitats. It is known, for example, that many urban birds sing at a high pitch to differentiate their
song from the low-frequency sound of road traffic. However, as scientists from the Max Planck
Institute for Ornithology discovered, this is just a useful side effect. The real reason for this
behavior is that songs at a higher pitch are also automatically louder. The birds can make
themselves heard far better in city noise by increasing the volume of their song than by raising its
frequency.
Despite the numerous unfavorable environmental conditions they encounter there, many wild
animals have colonized cities as a new habitat. In cities they must deal with greater numbers of
humans and with more light and noise pollution than they encounter in rural settings. However,
the urban habitat also offers certain advantages, for example a more abundant supply of food
and new breeding options. Many animals have thus adapted surprisingly well to city life.
To attract mating partners and defend their territories, urban robins sing in the latter night when
the traffic noise decreases after the evening rush. Many other bird species, including blackbirds,
sing in urban environments at a higher pitch. So their song is easier to detect in the
lower-frequency traffic noise.
However, as a group of scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology in Seewiesen and
Radolfzell has discovered, this is just half the truth. They studied urban blackbirds in the city of
Vienna and country blackbirds in the nearby Vienna Woods. Additionally, they raised birds by
hand at the Max Planck Institute and investigated the correlations between the frequency and
amplitude of their song under controlled conditions. It emerged from this research that the
animals were able to produce higher tones at higher amplitudes. In the city, blackbirds sing
preferably at these high frequencies that they can produce particularly loudly.
In a further step, the researchers examined which effect is better suited to avoiding the acoustic
masking by traffic noise: the higher frequency or the higher amplitude that results from it. "The
higher volume of the higher-pitched song is more effective than the higher frequency," says
Erwin Nemeth, first author of the study. "So we assume that the increased volume is the main
cause of the higher frequency singing by city birds." Henrik Brumm, the leader of the research
team, adds: "By actively selecting high-frequency sounds, the city birds can increase their
capacity to sing loudly and in this way counteract the acoustic masking of their song by the
ambient noise."
1. What is the attitude of the author to the high pitch song of the birds?
28
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
2. The word “encounter” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. interrupt
B. overlap
C. come across
D. distinguish
3. The word “colonized” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. extend
B. withstand
C. transmit
D. diminish
4. What can the birds benefit from the urban habitat?
5. What is the reason of the birds singing in the latter night?
6. What is the attitude of the scientists from the Max Planck Institute towards the high tones of
the birds?
7. The word “counteract” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. vanish
B. offset
C. confront
D. rescue
参考答案：
1. They think it is just a useful side effect.
2. C
3. A
4. A more abundant supply of food and new breeding options.
5. To attract mating partners and defend their territories.
6. The animals are able to produce higher tones at higher amplitudes.
7. B
3. Thermal
关于海水深度与光照的关系。说光大部分在表面就被吸收了，所以会引起两个现象。第一个
是说光合作用只能在浅水进行，所以氧气只有在表面部分才比较充足，其中说到一个动物晚
上获取营养，白天返回深水躲避天敌。第二个是说对海水温度不同的影响，温度造成水的密
度的改变，温水通常在表面 vertical 的流动。在两极和在赤道也不同，因为在赤道会每年有
两次洋流，把含矿物质多的深水和表面的富氧暖水交换，所以在那里生物种类比较多。
A thermal column (or thermal) is a column of rising air in the lower altitudes of the Earth's
atmosphere. Thermals are created by the uneven heating of the Earth's surface from solar
radiation, and are an example of convection, specifically atmospheric convection. The Sun warms
the ground, which in turn warms the air directly above it. Dark earth, urban areas and roadways
are good sources of thermals.
The warmer air near the surface expands, becoming less dense than the surrounding air mass.
The mass of lighter air rises, and as it does, it cools due to its expansion in the lower pressure of
the higher altitude. It stops rising when it has cooled to the same temperature as the surrounding
air. Associated with a thermal is a downward flow surrounding the thermal column. The
29
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
downward moving exterior is caused by colder air being displaced at the top of the thermal.
The size and strength of thermals are influenced by the properties of the lower atmosphere (the
troposphere). Generally, when the air is cold, bubbles of warm air are formed by the ground
heating the air above it and can rise like a hot air balloon. The air is then said to be unstable. If
there is a warm layer of air higher up, an inversion can prevent thermals from rising high and the
air is said to be stable.
Thermals are often indicated by the presence of visible cumulus clouds at the apex of the thermal.
When a steady wind is present, thermals and their respective cumulus clouds can align in rows
oriented with wind direction, sometimes referred to as "cloud streets" by soaring and glider
pilots. Cumulus clouds are formed by the rising air in a thermal as it ascends and cools, until the
water vapor in the air begins to condense into visible droplets. The condensing water releases
latent heat energy allowing the air to rise higher. Very unstable air can reach the level of free
convection and thus rise to great heights condensing large quantities of water and so forming
showers or even thunderstorms.
Thermals are one of the many sources of lift used by soaring birds and gliders to soar.
1. The word “uneven” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. unequal
B. invisible
C. uncontrollable
D. unrelated
2. How does the sun influence the air on the earth?
3. When does the lighter air stop rising?
4. The word “dense” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. divided
B. collective
C. intensive
D. rare
5. How does the ground have impact on the thermals?
6. The word “respective” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. valued
B. admired
C. each
D. divisive
7. The word “ascends” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. rise
B. decrease
C. tour
D. reverse
参考答案：
1. A
2. The Sun warms the ground, which in turn warms the air directly above it.
3. When it has cooled to the same temperature as the surrounding air.
30
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
4. C
5. The size and strength of thermals are influenced by the properties of the lower atmosphere,
when the air is cold, bubbles of warm air are formed by the ground heating the air above it and
can rise like a hot air balloon.
6. C
7. A
第六套
1. 深海生物研究。
有个欧洲人参加了爱琴海 Aegean sea research ship，然后做了一个渔网来捕捞海底的生物。
他做了 1300 英尺深的探索，发现下面的水中动物分了 8 层。他就断定在 1800 尺下面没有
生物了。说这个说法很多人都相信。然后说，他这个不是最可笑的说法，曾有两个人，一个
人说海底全是冰，忽视了冰要浮在水面上。还有个人说海底下面是密度很大的压缩水导致物
质不能生存，忽略了水不能压缩的情况。接着说其实有个人早在第一个人之前就证明了水底
是有动物的，他做过另一个实验，在另一个海搜索，其实已经比第一个人探索的深了。第一
个人的实验错的原因是：1 是因为爱琴海是比较特殊的海底生物比较少的海。2 忽视了海底
的鱼比较小的问题，那个人的渔网太大而且有洞，导致海底的鱼都跑了。
The deep sea begins below about 200 m, where sunlight becomes inadequate for photosynthesis.
From there to about 1,000 m, the mesopelagic or "twilight" zone, sunlight continues to decrease
until it is gone altogether. This faint light is deep blue in color because all the other colors of light
are absorbed at depth. The deepest ocean waters below 1,000 m are as black as night as far as
sunlight is concerned. And yet, there IS some light. People who dive deep in a submersible are
often mesmerized by an incredible "light show" of floating, swirling, zooming flashes of light. This
is bioluminescence, a chemical reaction in a microbe or animal body that creates light without
heat, and it is very common. This light is low compared to sunlight, so animals here—as well as
those in the mesopelagic zone—need special sensory adaptations. Many deep-sea fish such as
the stout blacksmelt have very large eyes to capture what little light exists. Other animals such as
tripodfishes are essentially blind and instead rely on other, enhanced senses including smell,
touch and vibration.
In the deepest parts of the ocean, hydrostatic pressure becomes one of the most important
environmental factors affecting deep sea life. Pressure increases 1 atmosphere (atm) for each 10
m in depth. The deep sea varies in depth from 200 m to about 11,000 m, therefore pressure
ranges from 20 atm to more than 1,100 atm. High pressures can cause air pockets, such as in fish
swim bladders, to be crushed, but it does not compress water itself very much. Instead, high
pressure distorts complex biomolecules—especially membranes and proteins—upon which all
life depends. Indeed, many food companies now use high pressure to sterilize their products such
as packaged meats.
Life appears to cope with pressure effects on biomolecules in two ways. First, their membranes
and proteins have pressure-resistant structures that work by mechanisms not yet fully
understood, but which also mean their biomolecules do not work well under low pressure in
shallow waters. Second, some organisms may use "piezolytes" (from the Greek "piezin" for
pressure). These are small organic molecules recently discovered that somehow prevent pressure
from distorting large biomolecules. One of these piezolytes is trimethylamine oxide (TMAO). This
molecule is familiar to most people because it gives rise to the fishy smell of marine fish and
shrimp. TMAO is found at low levels in shallow marine fish and shrimp that humans routinely eat,
but TMAO levels increase linearly with depth and pressure in other species. Really deep fish,
including some grenadiers which humans are now fishing, smell much more fishy.
31
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
Except in polar waters, the difference in temperature between the euphotic, or sunlit, zone near
the surface and the deep sea can be dramatic because of thermoclines, or the separation of
water layers of differing temperatures. In the tropics, for example, a layer of warm water over
20°C floats on top of the cold, dense deeper water. In most parts of the deep sea, the water
temperature is more uniform and constant. With the exception of hydrothermalmal vent
communities where hot water is emitted into the cold waters, the deep sea temperature remains
between about -1 to about +4°C. However, water never freezes in the deep sea (note that,
because of salt, seawater freezes at -1.8°C). Life in the deep is thought to adapt to this intense
cold in the same ways that shallow marine life does in the polar seas. This is by having "loose"
flexible proteins and unsaturated membranes which do not stiffen up in the cold. However, there
is a trade off: loose membranes and proteins of cold-adapted organisms readily fall apart at
higher temperatures.
Deep sea creatures have evolved some fascinating feeding mechanisms because food is scarce in
these zones. In the absence of photosynthesis, most food consists of detritus—the decaying
remains of microbes, algae, plants and animals from the upper zones of the ocean—and other
organisms in the deep. The corpses of large animals such as whales that sink to the bottom
provide infrequent but enormous feasts for deep sea animals and are consumed by a variety of
species. This includes jawless fish such as hagfish, which burrow into carcasses, quickly
consuming them from the inside out; scavenger sharks; crabs; and a newly discovered group of
worms (called Osedax, meaning bone-eater) which grow root-like structures into the bone
marrow!
Some species, such as the deep sea anglerfish and the viperfish, are also equipped with a long,
thin modified dorsal fin on their heads tipped with a photophore lit with bioluminescence used to
lure prey. Many of these fish don't expend much energy swimming in search of food; rather they
remain in one place and ambush their prey using clever adaptations such as these lures. Others,
such as rattails or grenadiers, cruise slowly over the seafloor listening and smelling for food
sources failing from above, which they engulf with their large mouths.
1. The word “mesmerized” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. scared
B. obsessed
C. disgusted
D. addicted
2. In order to capture light, what methods do deep ocean creatures apply?
3. The word “sterilize” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. alter
B. reform
C. disinfect
D. distort
4. Why does TMAO so familiar to people?
5. Why does water never freeze in the deep sea?
6. The word “trade off” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. balance
B. dilemma
C. deadlock
D. rite
32
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
7. What will happen if there is no photosynthesis?
8. The word “ambush” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. greet
B. attack
C. lurk
D. allure
9. The word “cruise” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. march
B. wander
C. bruise
D. chorus
参考答案：
1. B
2. Many deep-sea fish such as the stout blacksmelt have very large eyes to capture what little
light exists. Other animals such as tripodfishes are essentially blind and instead rely on other,
enhanced senses including smell, touch and vibration.
3. C
4. Because it gives rise to the fishy smell of marine fish and shrimp.
5. Because of salt, seawater freezes at -1.8°C.
6. A
7. Most food consists of detritus—the decaying remains of microbes, algae, plants and animals
from the upper zones of the ocean—and other organisms in the deep.
8. C
9. B
2. 生物多样性。
讲生物多样性对 ecosystem 的平衡是否有好处，给了很多例子，但是结论是 biodiversity 对
ecosystem 的发展是否有好处仍然有待商榷。
We continue to lose species and genetic diversity locally, nationally, and planet-wide. In deciding
priorities for conservation, there is an urgent need for criteria that help us to recognize losses
with potentially serious consequences. It would be naïve to assume that species-poor ecosystems
are always malfunctioning; some of the world's most extensive and ancient ecosystems--boreal
forests, bogs, and heathlands--contain few species. For both species-rich and species-poor
ecosystems, we need to establish whether current losses in biodiversity are likely to seriously
impair functioning and reduce benefits to humans. This problem is serious enough that the
United States and the United Kingdom have invested recently in costly ventures specifically
designed to test experimentally the consequences of reduced diversity on ecosystems.
The view that "biodiversity begets superior ecosystem function" is not shared by all ecologists. As
early as 1982, Leps et al. had suggested that ecosystem processes were determined primarily by
the functional characteristics of component organisms rather than their number. The same
conclusion was drawn by MacGillivray et al. who showed that differences between five adjacent
ecosystems in northern England in their responses to frost, drought, and burning were
predictable from the functional traits of the dominant plants but were independent of plant
diversity.
The evidence presented by Wardle et al. is particularly compelling because it involves an
33
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
extensive study of ecosystem properties on 50 relatively pristine forested islands of varied size
and plant biodiversity. It is clearly shown that a suite of ecosystem properties--including higher
microbial biomass, high litter quality, and more rapid rates of litter decomposition and nitrogen
mineralization--coincide with the lower botanical diversity and the earlier successional state of
the vegetation on larger islands (both consequences of the higher incidence of lightning strikes
and more frequent fire history of larger islands). On small islands, succession proceeds
uninterrupted to more species-rich vegetation, but here the dominant plants, Picea abies and
Empetrum hermaphroditum, are extremely stress tolerant and produce litter of poor quality,
thereby slowing the rates of ecosystem processes. This strongly supports the contention of
MacGillivray et al.1 that it is the biological characteristics of the dominant plants rather than
their number that control ecosystem productivity and biogeochemistry.
It could be argued that the tide is turning against the notion of high biodiversity as a controller of
ecosystem function and insurance against ecological collapse. However, such a stance would be
as premature as that of the commentators who rapidly embraced early evidence of its supposed
benefits. It is obvious that for all ecosystems a point could be reached at which further loss of key
species could impair functioning and usefulness to humans. The most immediate problem is to
identify irreplaceable species and functional types and to discover whether there are situations in
which ecosystem viability depends on unusually high biodiversity. We might speculate that high
biodiversity may be vitally important in structurally diverse ecosystems such as layered forests or
in ecosystems that experience drastic fluctuations on a seasonal or longer time scale (for example,
flooded forests, lake shores, and semi-arid ecosystems).
What lessons can be learned from the recent history of research on the significance of
biodiversity? First, I suspect that we need a more integrated approach with greater input from
those scientists with specialist knowledge of the functional biology and resource dynamics of key
plants and animals. Both laboratory experiments and studies of natural ecosystems must be
informed by knowledge of resource dynamics and should be designed as tests of predictions on
the basis of the functional attributes of component plants and animals.
Perhaps most important of all, we should reconnect recent endeavors on the functional
significance of biodiversity with an older and extensive literature on the mechanisms controlling
biodiversity itself. This would be to reassert a more Darwinian perspective in which high
species-richness is viewed not as an attribute of certain ecosystems but instead as a function of
population processes associated with special circumstances that hover precariously between two
different forces for extinction (extreme habitat conditions and competitive dominance). So far,
neither evolutionary theory nor empirical studies have presented convincing evidence that
species diversity and ecosystem function are consistently and causally connected.
1. The word “malfunctioning” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. broken
B. detuning
C. peril
D. unusual
2. The word “impair” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. defend
B. harm
C. maintain
D. service
3. Why does the author mention Leps et al. and MacGillivray et al.?
34
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
4. Why is the conclusion given by Wardle et al. so convincing?
5. The word “dominant” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. local
B. invasive
C. primary
D. menial
6. What is the attitude of the author to the role of high biodiversity?
7. The word “integrated” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. accurate
B. comprehensive
C. upscale
D. general
8. How do we understand the Darwinian perspective when speaking of the high species-richness?
9. The word “empirical” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. experiential
B. realistic
C. imperial
D. immortal
参考答案：
1. A
2. B
3. To imply that the view that "biodiversity begets superior ecosystem function" is not correct.
4. Because it involves an extensive study of ecosystem properties on 50 relatively pristine
forested islands of varied size and plant biodiversity.
5. C
6. High biodiversity may be vitally important in structurally diverse ecosystems such as layered
forests or in ecosystems.
7. B
8. It is a function of population processes associated with special circumstances.
9. A
3.说有个美国小城干旱缺水。
一般城内使用水利设施采水，城外自己打井。水源来自附近雪山。但是由于 global warming，
使得山上的积雪变少，山上有个湖以前水很多，现在只有一点点了。然后说农民完全依赖于
灌溉系统。但是用水分配不是按照比例来的，而是按照一个绝对的水量数值。但是这个数值
是某个雨水丰富的年份采集的，在多数年份，水根本不够分。然后说山上水少了就可能产生
冲突，分水的原则是先来后到，但是先来的农民都在下游，这些农民去了水上游，后来的农
民的地就更没法采水了。上游农民一冲动就会截流，下游农民就可以起诉 sue。
Roughly 75 percent of California’s precipitation falls in the winter, north of Sacramento. However,
the greatest demand for water comes during the spring and summer from users south of
Sacramento. California relies on snowpack in the Sierra Nevada mountains for water supply
during these dry months. Rising temperatures, potentially exacerbated by decreased
precipitation, could lead to severe reductions in the snowpack and make water shortages more
35
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
common in the future.
By the end of the century, if global warming emissions continue unabated, statewide annual
average temperatures are expected to rise into the higher warming range (8-10.5°f). This
temperature rise will lead to more precipitation falling as rain instead of snow, and the snow that
does fall will melt earlier, thus decreasing the spring snowpack in the Sierra Nevada by as much
as 90 percent. This would pose extreme challenges to water managers, hamper hydropower
generation, and nearly eliminate skiing and other snow-related recreational activities. However, if
global warming emissions are significantly curbed and temperature increases are kept in the
lower warming range, the losses in snowpack are expected to be only half as great.
As global warming continues, decreasing snowmelt and spring stream flows, coupled with
increasing demand for water resulting from a growing population and a hotter climate, will likely
lead to more water shortages. By the end of the century, if temperature increase reaches the
medium warming range (5.5 to 8°f) and precipitation decreases, spring stream flow could decline
up to 30 percent. Agricultural areas are expected to be hard hit, with farmers able to access
about 25 percent less water than they need.
Managing the consequences of global warming will require new infrastructure and major
changes in the institutions that govern California water resources. As more winter precipitation
falls as rain instead of snow, water managers will have to balance the need to fill constructed
reservoirs for water supply with the need to maintain reservoir space for winter flood control.
Because most global warming emissions remain in the atmosphere for decades or centuries, the
choices we make today greatly influence the climate our children and grandchildren inherit. We
have the technology to increase energy efficiency and significantly reduce emissions from energy
and land use. We must act now to avoid the dangerous consequences of global warming and help
ensure a high quality of life for future generations.
1. The word “exacerbated” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. accelerate
B. deteriorate
C. exact
D. excavate
2. The word “hamper” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. dredge
B. impress
C. vary
D. prevent
2. The word “eliminate” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. remove
B. subside
C. rechannel
D. wipe
4. What are the possible causes of the water shortage?
5. The word “access” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. apply
B. approach
C. own
D. realize
36
toefl.100.com 100教育独家机经（阅读） 针对2014年3月托福考试
6. The word “inherit” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. proceed
B. succeed
C. acquire
D. obtain
参考答案：
1. B
2. D
3. A
4. The global warming; the increasing demand for water.
5. A
6. B
37