2018年成人学位英语考试：阅读理解练习（三）
2018年成人学位英语考试马上开始，小编为各位参加成人学位英语考试的考生整理了一些阅读理解的练习，各位考生赶紧练起来吧！
It is the world's fourth-most-important food crop, after maize, wheat and rice. It provides more calories, more quickly, using less land and in a wider range of climates than any other plant.It is, of course, the potato.
The United Nations has hoped that greater awareness of the merits of potatoes will contribute to the achievement of its Millennium Development Goals, by helping to reduce poverty and promote economic development.
The potato promoted economic development by supporting the Industrial Revolution in England in the 19th century. It provided a cheap source of calories and was easy to cultivate, so it liberated workers from the land.Potatoes became popular in the north of England, as people there specialized in livestock farming and domestic industry, while farmers in the south concentrated on wheat production. By a happy accident, the concent ratedindustrial activity in the regions where coal was readily available, and a potato-driven population boom provided ample workers for the new factories. Friedrich Engels even declared that the potato was the equal of iron for its"historically revolutionary role".
In the form of French fries, served alongside burgers and Coca-Cola,potatoes are now a symbol of globallization. This is quite a change given the skepticism which first greeted them on their arrival in the Old World in the 16th century. They were variously thought to be fit only for animals, to be associated with the devil or to be poisonous. They took hold in 18th-century Europe only when war and famine meant there was nothing else to eat; people then realized just how useful and reliable they were. As Adam Smith, one of the potato's many admirers, observed at the time, "The very general use which is made of potatoes in these kingdoms as food for man is a convincing proof that the prejudices of a nation, with regard to diet, however deeply rooted,are by no means unconquerable." Mashed, fried, boiled and roast, a humble potato changed the world, and people everywhere should celebrate it.
(1)Paragraph 3 mainly describes
A.why the potato became popular in the north of England
B.why the potato was important in England's population growth
C.how the potato contributed to England's industrial development
D.how the potato helped improve England's working conditions
参考答案：C
解题思路：这是一道段落主旨题。见第三段全段。
(2)Friedrich Engels's words show that he
A.thought highly of the potato
B.took the potato too seriously
C.underestimated the role of the potato
D.lacked the basic knowledge of the potato
参考答案：A
解题思路：这是一道细节题。见第三段最后一句。
(3)Europeans began to eatpotatoes in the 18th century because
A.there was a serious food shortage
B.they realized that potatoes tasted good
C.food safety had been greatly improved
D.eating potatoes had become fashionable
参考答案：A
解题思路：这是一道细节题。最后一段第四句。
(4)What Adam Smith said couldbe used to demonstrate the potato's
A.general use
B.main features
C.success story
D.bright future
参考答案：C
解题思路：由最后两句话“亚当•斯密说：“在这些国家土豆被普遍用作人们的食物足以说明一个国家在饮食方面的偏见，不管多么根深蒂固，也不是不可改变的。”不管是做成土豆泥、炸土豆、煮土豆还是烤土豆，小小的土豆改变了世界，为此人们应该庆幸。”可知是选C。
(5) The best title for the passage is
A.2008--the Potato's New Mission
B.In Praise of the Potato
C.The History of the Potato
D.The Potato and Globalization
参考答案：B
解题思路：这是一道主旨题。要求读者掌握全文的中心思想。
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