Question

One of the world's great natural wonders is in New Mexico, in the southwest of America. Nature has created huge moving hills of pure white sand. These sand dunes cover more than seventy­thousand hectares of desert.

It is one of the largest sand dune fields in the United States. The bright white sand dunes are always changing，always moving, like waves on the ocean.Driven by strong winds, the sand moves and covers everything in its path. It is like a huge sea of sand.

You may wonder how anything can live in this extreme environment of a white sand desert. There is not much rain.The heat in summer is intense. The sand lacks nutrients.Plants and animals struggle to survive. A few kinds of plants grow quickly to survive burial by the moving sand dunes. Several kinds of small animals have become white in color in order to hide in the sand.

More than five hundred thousand people visit White Sands each year. They climb on the dunes and observe the moving sea of sand.

White Sands is about twenty four kilometers southeast of the city of Alamogordo, New Mexico. In the visitor center at the entrance of the park, you can find out special activities and guided walks. You can drive about thirteen kilometers into the center of the dunes. It is like driving on a lonely white planet.Along the way there is information that tells about the natural history of White Sands.

You can also explore the dunes on foot, seeing some unusual and beautiful plants and flowers. Signs along the trail tell about the plants growing in the sand. You can even camp there overnight. But you must be careful. It is easy to get lost in the waves of moving sand especially during sandstorms. There is no water to drink. The temperature can rise to thirty eight degrees Celsius in summer. There is no shelter from the sun's rays.

White Sands is part of America's National Parks System, and it is just one of the unusual examples of America's natural and cultural treasures.

16．Which of the following plays a major role in making for the extreme environment?

A．Plants and animals.

B．Strong winds.

C．Intense heat and little rain.

D．Many people.

17．Walking on dunes, people will ________．

A．enjoy the beautiful sight of sand moving

B．see many kinds of white plants and animals

C．find out some special activities

D．get lost easily and quickly especially during storms

18．What do we know about White Sands from this passage?

A．It is one of the largest sand dune fields in the world.

B．You can get to know its natural history while driving in it.

C．The temperature here can rise to thirty­eight degrees Celsius any time.

D．You are not allowed to camp here overnight.

19．What is the main purpose of the passage?

A．To attract tourists to White Sands.

B．To describe the history of White Sands.

C．To introduce guided tours to White Sands.

D．To explain the power of nature at White Sands.

Answer 1

美國(guó)新墨西哥的白沙是世界自然奇觀，以其極端的環(huán)境和獨(dú)特的沙丘吸引著四面八方的游客。

16．C　細(xì)節(jié)理解題。根據(jù)第三段前三句的內(nèi)容可知形成這種極端環(huán)境的最主要的因素是酷熱和少雨。

17．A　細(xì)節(jié)理解題。根據(jù)第二段第二句以及倒數(shù)第二段第一句的內(nèi)容可知，走在沙丘上人們可以欣賞沙丘移動(dòng)的美景。

18．B　細(xì)節(jié)理解題。根據(jù)第五段的內(nèi)容可知開(kāi)車在白色沙丘上行駛時(shí)，你可以了解它的自然歷史。

19．A　寫(xiě)作目的題。文章第一段是概述，敘述了美國(guó)新墨西哥州的白沙這一世界自然奇觀，下文則是更為詳細(xì)的介紹，所以文章意在吸引游客游覽這個(gè)地方。