Earthquakes may rightly be ranked as one of the most destructive forces known to man: since records began to be written down, it has been estimated that earthquake-related fatalities have numbered in the millions, and that earthquake-related destruction has been beyond calculation. The greater part of such damage and loss of life has been due to collapse of buildings and the effects of rockslides, floods, fire, disease, tsunamis(gigantic sea waves), and other observable events resulting from earthquakes, rather than from the quakes themselves.
    The great majority of all earthquakes occur in two specific geographic areas. One such area covers the Pacific Ocean and its bordering landmasses. The other extends from the East Indies to the Atlas Mountains, including the Himalayas, Iran, Turkey, and the Alpine regions. It is in these two great belts or zones that ninety percent of all earthquakes take place; they may, however, happen anywhere at any time.
    This element of the unknown has for centuries added greatly to the dread and horror surrounding earthquakes, but in recent times there have been indications that earthquake forecast may be possible. By analyzing changes in animal behavior, patterns of movements in the earth's shell, variations in the earth's force of attraction, and the frequency with which minor earth shakes are observed, scientists have shown increasing success in expecting when and where earthquakes will strike. As a result, a worldwide earthquake warning network is already in operation and has helped to prepare for(and thus lessen)the vast destruction that might otherwise have been totally unexpected.
    It is doubtful that man will ever be able to control earthquakes and get rid of their destructiveness altogether, but as how and why earthquakes happen become better understood, man will become more and more able to deal with their possible damage before they occur.
单选题     Which of the following statements is true according to the passage? ______
 
【正确答案】 B
【答案解析】 细节判断题。根据文中第三段第二句话“scientists have shown increasing success in expecting when and where earthquakes will strike”可以知道，科学家对于地震发生的时间和地点的预测越来越成功了，由此可知地震预报正在改善，故B项正确。文中并没有提到地震的破坏力正在下降，A项错误。根据文章最后一段可以知道，人们现在还不确定以后是否能够完全控制地震并且不再受到地震的危害，因此C、D两项说法错误。
单选题     We can infer from the passage that quakes ______.
 
【正确答案】 B
【答案解析】 细节推断题。文章第二段说到了地震的高发地段，包括太平洋及其周围的大陆板块，以及东印度群岛和阿特拉斯山脉地区。由此可以知道：大部分地震都发生在海洋和山上，在这些地方，地震随时随地都可能会发生。因此B项正确，A项错误。在陆地上，地震是可以观察的到的，因此C项错误。虽然第一段最后一句话提到，相对于地震引起的其他灾难如房屋倒塌、岩石滑落等，很大一部分伤亡和损失不是由地震本身造成的，但是这并不代表地震本身不会直接造成伤亡。D项“地震基本上不直接造成伤亡”属于过度猜测。
单选题     The phrase 'this element of the unknown'(Paragraph 3)refers to ______.
 
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】 细节理解题。根据第三段第二句话“scientists have shown increasing success in expecting when and where earthquakes will strike”可以知道，预测地震是对地震发生的时间和地点的预测，因此地震发生的时间和地点就是上文所指的地震的未知要素。因此C项为正确答案。
单选题     Man's research on earthquake forecast at present is to ______.
 
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】 细节理解题。第三段最后一句话“As a result, a worldwide earthquake warning network is already in operation and has helped to prepare for(and thus lessen)the vast destruction that might otherwise have been totally unexpected”是对前文人类对地震预测研究意义的一个总结，由此可知预测的目的是提前做好准备，降低地震带来的巨大破坏，因此A项正确。
单选题     Which of the following describes the author's purpose in writing the passage? ______
 
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】 主旨态度题。文章开头讲的就是地震，从它引起的一系列危害到它的高发地段，之后谈到科学家们为了预测地震，减少地震带来危害所做出的努力和他们已经取得的进展，最后对监测地震的前景做了一个总结。整个描述过程都十分客观，作者并没有要质疑或是反对什么观点，只是想让读者了解与地震相关的内容。故A项正确。