2020-2021学年福建省福州市某校高一（上）期中英语试卷第二部分：阅读理解（共两节，满分30分）第一节 （共4小题；每题2分，总分20分）阅读下列短文，从每题所给的4个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项。1. A company has just launched（发起） what it calls the worlds first free standardized English test recently. Anyone can take the test for free. The new exam is called the EFSET， which is short for Education First Standardized English Test. The company， Education First， is known by the letters EF.It is reported that there are two billion English language learners worldwide. Many of them are interested in attending an American college or university. To do so， foreign students need to take the Test of English as a Foreign Languagebetter known as TOEFL. However， many foreigners are not rich enough to take the TOEFL. In addition， testtakers often have to travel overnight to reach an official testing site. The World Bank says an average Cambodian worker earns only about 1，000 per year. The cost of taking the TOEFL is about 17.5 percent of the average workers yearly wage.It is not just individuals who find the test pricey. Some governments also find it too expensive. Whats more， not everyone needs official results from the TOEFL or IELTSthe International English Language Testing System. In the future， its likely that the government may use the EFSET to test millions of employees and students.Experts believe that the EFSET meets the highest value in language testing. It uses special computer software that makes the questions easier or harder， depending on ones performance. The EFSET measures all the English learners levels while the IELTS and TOEFL only measure learners levels from intermediate（中等的） to advanced. The EFSET is unique in the sense that it gives free online access to anyone interested in measuring their English level.There is a 50minute and a twohour version of the test， which its developers are calling the EFSET Plus. Both versions test only reading and listening skills. Its hopeful that speaking and writing skills will be tested in the future. The IELTS and the TOEFL still use humans to rate the speaking and writing sections. Its a huge deal for students who are in areas where they cant get to the TOEFL or the IELTS. However， it is too early to know whether the EFSET results are acceptable for colleges and universities in America.（1）Why do many foreign students take the TOEFL？_A . To learn English well.B . To be admitted to key universities.C . To receive further education in America.D . To find good jobs and earn much money.（2）What can we infer from Paragraph 2？_A .The cost of taking the TOEFL is very high.B . Only rich people can take the TOEFL.C . There are many official testing sites for the TOEFL around the world.D . Few of the students in Cambodia can afford to take the TOEFL.（3）What can we learn about the EFSET？_A . It is similar to the TOEFL and the IELTS.B . Everybody with different English levels can take it for free.C . It tests the skills of reading， listening， writing and speaking.D . American universities accept the EFSET results for admission. 2. Record fires sweeping across the Amazon this month have been catching global headlines as scientists and environmental groups are worried that they will worsen climate change and threaten biodiversity（生物多样性）.Asthe largest rainforest in the world, the Amazon is often called the lungs of the world. It is also home to about 3 million species of plants and animals, and 1 million local people. The vast lands of rainforest play an important role in the worlds ecosystem because they take in heat instead of it being reflected back into the atmosphere. They also store carbom dioxide （二氧化碳） and produce oxygen, making sure that less carbon is given off, _ the effects of climate change.Anyforest destroyed is a threat to biodiversity and the people who use that biodiversity, Thomas Lovejoy, an ecologist at George Mason University told National Geographic. The shocking threat is that a lot of carbon goes into the atmosphere, he stressed. Facing the global climate change, we cannot afford more damage to a major source of oxygen and biodiversity. The Amazon must be protected, U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres said.Datafrom the National Institute for Space Research （INPE） show that the number of forest fires in Brazil quickly increased by 82 percent from January to August this year from a year ago. A total of 71,497 forest fires were recorded in the country in the first eight months of 2019, up from 39,194 in the same period in 2018, INPE said. Its reported that the forest areas in the Brazilian Amazon have decreased something between 20 and 30 percent compared to the last 12 months, Carlos Nobre, a researcher at the University of Sao Paulo, told German broadcaster Deutsche Welle.Brazil owns about 60 percent of the Amazon rainforest, whose drop could have severe results for global climate and rai