1995年10月托福阅读全真试题

Questions 1-13

Atmospheric pressure can support a column of water up to
10 meters high. But plants can move water much higher, the
sequoia tree can pump water to its very top, more than 100
meters above the ground. Until the end of the nineteenth century,
the movement of water in trees and other tall plants
was a mystery. Some botanists hypothesized that the living
cells of plants acted as pumps, But many experiments demonstrated
that the stems of plants in which all the cells are killed
can still move water to appreciable heights. Other explanations
for the movement of water in plants have been based on root
pressure, a push on the water from the roots at the bottom of
the plant. But root pressure is not nearly great enough to push
water to the tops of tall trees. Furthermore, the conifers,
which are among the tallest trees, have unusually low root
pressures.

If water is not pumped to the top of a tall tree, and if it
is not pushed to the top of a tall tree, then we may ask, How
does it get there? According to the currently accepted cohesion
-tension theory, water is pulled there. The pull on a rising
column of water in a plant results from the evaporation of
water at the top of the plant. As water is lost from the surface of
the leaves, a negative pressure, or tension, is created. The
evaporated water is replaced by water moving from inside the plant
in unbroken columns that extend from the top of a plant to its
roots. The same forces that create surface tension in any
sample of water are responsible for the maintenance of these
unbroken columns of water. When water is confined in tubes of
very small bore, the forces of cohesion (the attraction between
water molecules) are so great that the strength of a column
of water compares with the strength of a steel wire of
the same diameter. This cohesive strength permits columns of
water to be pulled to great heights without being broken.

1. How many theories does the author mention?

(A) One
(B) Two
(C) Three
(D) Four

2. The passage answers which of the following questions?

(A) What is the effect of atmospheric pressure on foliage?
(B) When do dead cells harm plant growth?
(C) How does water get to the tops of trees?
(D) Why is root pressure weak?

3. The word "demonstrated" in line 7 is closest in meaning to

(A) ignored
(B) showed
(C) disguised
(D) distinguished

4. What do the experiments mentioned in lines 7-9 prove?

(A) Plant stems die when deprived of water
(B) Cells in plant stems do not pump water
(C) Plants cannot move water to high altitudes
(D) Plant cells regulate pressure within stems

5.How do botanists know that root pressure is not the only force that moves water in plants?

(A) Some very tall trees have weak root pressure.
(B) Root pressures decrease in winter.
(C) Plants can live after their roots die.
(D) Water in a plant's roots is not connected to water in its stem.

6. Which of the following statements does the passage support?

(A) Water is pushed to the tops of trees.
(B) Botanists have proven that living cells act as pumps.
(C) Atmospheric pressure draws water to the tops of tall trees.
(D) Botanists have changed their theories of how water moves in plants.

7. The word "it" in line 16 refers to

(A) top
(B) tree
(C) water
(D) cohesion-tension theory.

8. The word "there" in line 18 refers to

(A) treetops
(B) roots
(C) water columns
(D) tubes

9. What causes the tension that draws water up a plant?

(A) Humidity
(B) Plant growth
(C) Root pressure
(D) Evaporation

10. The word "extend" in line24 is closest in meaning to

(A) stretch
(B) branch
(C) increase
(D) rotate

11. According to the passage, why does water travel through plants in unbroken columns?

(A) Root pressure moves the water very rapidly.
(B) The attraction between water molecules in strong.
(C) The living cells of plants push the water molecules together.
(D) Atmospheric pressure supports the columns.

12.Why does the author mention steel wire in line 30?

(A) To illustrate another means of pulling water
(B) To demonstrate why wood is a good building material
(C) To indicate the size of a column of water
(D) To emphasize the strength of cohesive forces in water

13.Where in the passage does the author give an example of a plant with low root pressure?

(A) Lines3-4
(B) Lines5-7
(C) Lines10-11
(D) Lines12-13