托福阅读模拟试题及答案卷四.docx

1、托福阅读模拟试题及答案卷四2021年托福阅读模拟试题及答案（卷四） 托福阅读文本：The Homestead Act of 1862 gave heads of families or individuals aged twenty-one or older theright to own 160 acres of public land in the western United States after five years of residence andimprovement. This law was intended to provide land for small farmer

2、s and to prevent land frombeing bought for resale at a profit or being owned by large landholders. An early amendment tothe act even prevented husbands and wives from filing separate claims. The West, land reformershad assumed, would soon contain many 160-acre family farms.They were doomed to disapp

3、ointment. Most landless Americans were too poor to becomefarmers even when they could obtain land without cost. The expense of moving a family to theever-receding frontier exceeded the means of many, and the cost of tools, draft animals, a wagon,a well, fencing, and of building the simplest house, m

4、ight come to $1,000 a formidable barrier.As for the industrial workers for whom the free land was supposed to provide a safety valve,they had neither the skills nor the inclination to become farmers. Homesteaders usually came fromdistricts not far removed from frontier conditions. And despite the in

5、tent of the law, speculatorsoften managed to obtain large tracts. They hired people to stake out claims, falsely swear that theyhad fulfilled the conditions laid down in the law for obtaining legal title, and then deed the landover to their employers.Furthermore, 160 acres were not enough for raisin

6、g livestock or for the kind of commercialagriculture that was developing west of the Mississippi. The national government made a feebleattempt to make larger holdings available to homesteaders by passing the Timber Culture Act of1873, which permitted individuals to claim an additional 160 acres if t

7、hey would agree to plant aquarter of it in trees within ten years. This law proved helpful to some farmers in the largelytreeless states of Kansas, Nebraska, and the Dakotas. Nevertheless, fewer than 25 percent of the245,000 who took up land under theAct obtained final title to the property.托福阅读题目：1

8、. Which aspect of the Homestead Act of 1862 does the passage mainly discuss?(A) How it transformed the western United States into a place of small farms(B) Why it was an improvement over previous attempts at land reform(C) Why it did not achieve its aim to provide land for small farmers(D) How it fa

9、iled in the largely treeless states of Kansas, Nebraska, and the Dakotas2.An amendment added to the Homestead Act of 1862 specified that(A) five years of residence was required for landownership(B) husbands and wives could not file separate claims(C) the price of 160 acres of land was $1,000(D) land

10、 could not be resold for a profit3. The word formidable in line 12 is closest in meaning to(A) obvious(B) predictable(C) difficult(D) manageable4. It can be inferred that the safety valve in line 13 refers to(A) a new kind of machinery(B) an alternative for urban workers(C) an area in a factory(D) a

11、 procedure designed to protect workers5. The word intent in line 15 is closest in meaning to(A) purpose(B) power(C) effect(D) invention6.According to the passage , why did the government pass the Timber CultureAct of 1873?(A) to make larger tracts of land available to small farmers(B) to settle Kans

12、as, Nebraska, and the Dakotas(C) to encourage land speculation west of the Mississippi(D) to increase the variety of trees growing in the western states7. The word they in line 23 refers to(A) larger holdings(B) individuals(C) 160 acres(D) trees8. According to the passage , how many of the farmers w

13、ho settled land under the Timber CultureAct of 1873 received final title to the property?(A) fewer than 25%(B) more than 160(C) 10% per year(D) 245,0009. The passage mentions all of the following as reasons the Homestead Act of 1862 did notachieve its aims EXCEPT:(A) Most landless Americans could no

14、t afford the necessary tools and provisions.(B) Industrial workers lacked the necessary farming skills.(C) The farms were too large for single families to operate successfully.(D) Homesteaders usually came from areas relatively close to the frontier.10. Which of the following can be inferred from th

15、e passage about the Timber Culture Act of1873?(A) It especially helped farmers with large holdings of land.(B) It was most important to farmers living in states that had plenty of trees.(C) The majority of farmers did not benefit significantly from it.(D) The majority of farmers did not need the ext

16、ra 160 acres it provided.托福阅读答案：CBCDAABACC托福阅读文本：Naturalists and casual observers alike have been struck by the special relationship betweensquirrels and acorns (the seeds of oak trees). Ecologists, though, cannot observe these energeticmammals scurrying up and down oak trees and eating and burying

17、acorns without wonderingabout their complex relationship with trees. Are squirrels dispersers and planters of oak forests orpesky seed predators? The answer is not simple. Squirrels may devour many acorns, but by storingand failing to recover up to 74 percent of them as they do when seeds are abunda

18、nt, these arborealrodents can also aid regeneration and dispersal of the oaks.Their destructive powers are well documented. According to one report, squirrels destroyedtens of thousands of fallen acorns from an oak stand on the University of Indiana campus. Aprofessor there estimated that each of th

19、e large white oaks had produced between two and eightthousand acorns, but within weeks of seed maturity, hardly an intact acorn could be found amongthe fallen leaves.Deer, turkey, wild pigs, and bears also feed heavily on acorns, but do not store them, and aretherefore of no benefit to the trees. Fl

20、ying squirrels, chipmunks, and mice are also unlikely topromote tree dispersal, as they often store seeds in tree cavities andunderground burrows. Onlysquirrels whose behavior of caching (hiding) acorns below the leaf litter often promotesuccessful germination of acorns, and perhaps blue jays, impor

21、tant long-distance dispersers, seemto help oaks spread and reproduce.Among squirrels, though, there is a particularly puzzling behavior pattern. Squirrelspry offthe caps of acorns, bite through the shells to get at the nutritious inner kernels,and then discardthem half-eaten. The ground under toweri

22、ng oaks is often littered with thousands of half-eatenacorns, each one only bitten from the top. Why would any animal waste so much time and energyand risk exposure to such predators as red-tail hawks only to leave a large part of each acornuneaten? While research is not conclusive at this point, on

23、e thing that is certain is that squirrels dohide some of the uneaten portions, and these acorn halves, many of which contain the seeds, maylater germinate.托福阅读题目：1. What does the passage mainly discuss?(A) The ecology of oak trees(B) Factors that determine the feeding habits of Squirrels(C) Various

24、species of animals that promote the dispersal of tree seeds(D) The relationship between squirrels and oak trees2. The word they in line 7 refers to(A) oak forests(B) acorns(C) squirrels(D) predators3.According to the passage , what do squirrels do when large quantities of acorns are available?(A) Th

25、ey do not store acorns.(B) They eat more than 74 percent of available acorns.(C) They do not retrieve all the acorns that they have stored.(D) They hide acorns in tree cavities.4. The word estimated in line 11 is closest in meaning to(A) commented(B) judged(C) observed(D) discovered5. Why does the a

26、uthor mention the University of Indiana campus in line 10 -11?(A) to provide evidence that intact acorns are hard to find under oak trees(B) to indicate a place where squirrels can aid seed dispersal of oaks(C) to argue in favor of additional studies concerning the destructive force of squirrels(D)

27、to support the claim that squirrels can do great damage to oak stands6. It can be inferred from paragraph 3 that chipmunks do not aid in the dispersal of oak treesbecause(A) they store their acorns where they cannot germinate(B) they consume most of their stored acorns(C) their stored acorns are loc

28、ated and consumed by other species(D) they cannot travel the long distance required for dispersal7.According to the passage , which of the following do squirrels and blue jays have in common?(A) They travel long distances to obtain acorns.(B) They promote the reproduction of oak trees.(C) They bury

29、acorns under fallen leaves.(D) They store large quantities of acorns.8. The phrase pry off in line 21 is closest in meaning to(A) swallow(B) remove(C) squeeze(D) locate9. The word littered in line 22 is closest in meaning to(A) covered(B) displayed(C) fertilized(D) planted10. According to the passag

30、e , scientists cannot explain which of the following aspects of squirrelbehavior?(A) Where squirrels store their acorn caches(B) Why squirrels prefer acorns over other seeds(C) Why squirrels eat only a portion of each acorn they retrieve(D) Why squirrels prefer acorns from a particular species of oak trees托福阅读答案：DCCBD DBBAC托福阅读文本：Scientists have discovered that for the last 160,000 years, at least, there has been a consistentrelationship between the amount of carbon dioxide in the air and the average temperature of theplanet. The importance of carbon dioxide in regulating the Earths temper