Tommy says they found only five，but these slowwilting lines can produce more than normal
soybeans under drought conditions.The team is now doing field tests.The first breeding line is
expected to be released next year for use by private seed companies and public soybean breeders.
Scientists are also working on other crop plants that either use less water or use it better，or both.
56．The scientists are developing the crop plants because________.
A．traditional crop plants can’t grow under dry conditions
B．only biotechnology could lead to a success in this area
C．irrigating fields has used almost 60% of our freshwater
D．we need new crops to save more water than ever before
57．From the passage we know that Tommy Carter________.
A．is now teaching at five universities
B．organized Team Drought in 1981
C．once went to China to study soybeans
D．discovered the genetic material of soybeans
58．According to the passage，the five examples from Asia need less water under drought
conditions because________.
A．soybeans have been grown in Asia for thousands of years
B．the germplasms are different from those of American soybeans
C．the history of soybeans growing in America is only a century
D．the problem of water shortages in Asia is much more serious
59．What will the writer most probably write about next?
A．Some other research on crops that use less water.
B．The conclusion that less water is needed for soybeans.
C．More information about Tommy Carter’s new soybeans.
D．The reason why the climate changes have taken place.
60．The passage is mainly talking about________.
A．conventional methods of plants breeding
B．efforts to develop crops using less water
C．the history of soybeans growing in China
D．what some scientists do to change the climate
B
Science and technology students in China and the US have a long way to go before they can develop
a deep understanding of scientific reasoning，researchers have found.
As part of a research to compare science education in China and the US，Lei Bao，a professor from
the Department of Physics of the Ohio State University，gave 5,760 freshmen in three US and four
Chinese universities two tests to evaluate content knowledge and another to assess scientific reasoning.
Though Chinese students did better than their US counterparts in the first two tests that emphasized
on learning facts，both groups “scored relatively poorly” on the third test，designed to assess their
ability to systematically explore a problem，the results showed.
Lei Bao said that the finding challenges conventional wisdom，which holds that teaching science
facts will improve Students’ reasoning ability.“Our study shows that，contrary to what many people
would expect，even when students are thoroughly taught the facts，they don’t necessarily develop
the reasoning skills they need to succeed，” Bao said.“Because students need both knowledge
and reasoning，we need to explore teaching methods that target both.”
The current education systems and assessment of China and the US do not emphasize on deep
understanding of scientific reasoning in the disciplines of science，technology，engineering and
mathematics (STEM)，the study concluded.
Bao explained that reasoning is a good skill for everyone to possess—not just scientists and
engineers.The general public also need good reasoning skills in order to correctly interpret scientific
findings and think rationally.STEM students need to excel__at scientific reasoning in order to handle
openended realworld tasks in their future careers in science and engineering.
How to boost scientific reasoning？The study suggests that educators must go beyond teaching
science facts if they hope to boost students’ reasoning ability.Bao points to inquirybased learning，
where students work in groups，question teachers and design their own investigations.This teaching
technique is growing in popularity worldwide.
61．According to the research，we know that________.
A．Chinese students and their US counterparts did poorly in the first two tests
B．Chinese students did better than their US counterparts in all the three tests
C．Chinese students did better than their US counterparts in the first two tests
D．US students did better than their Chinese counterparts in the third test
62．The conventional wisdom holds that________.
A．the more facts students are taught，the more reasoning skills they will acquire
B．the general public also need reasoning skills to interpret scientific findings
C．to boost students’reasoning ability，educators must explore teaching methods
D．the current education systems are harmful to improve students’ reasoning ability
63．Based on the study，what will be done to improve students’reasoning ability?
A．To improve teaching techniques.
B．To better students’learning conditions.
C．To teach students more science facts.
D．To offer students more tests.
64．The underlined phrase “excel at” in Paragraph 6 probably means________.
A．be worse at B．be better at
C．he enthusiastic about D．be inferior to
65．Which of the following is correct according to the passage?
A．Little needs to be done to develop students’reasoning ability in the US.
B．Only scientists and engineers need reasoning abilities.
C．Two tests were carried out to evaluate students’scientific reasoning.
D．Inquirybased learning is a good way to boost students’reasoning ability.
C
Alice watched from her brother’s New Orleans house as Hurricane Katrina split trees，broke
windows，and swallowed cars，including her own.A few miles away，her best friend，Pat，
also a nurse，was supervising patients in the highrisk hospital when the river banks broke.For
the next six days，Pat and her crew lived there until a rescue boat picked them up.
Both of them were evacuated__to safer parts of the States.Weeks later，they，like thousands
of others，returned to find their homes uninhabitable，their jobs gone.
The following spring，as she was rebuilding her life，Alice contacted an information centre for
returning residents.When asked if she would head a desperately needed clinic，Alice said she’d
do it，but only with Pat.It took Pat less than five minutes to say yes.And after consulting with her children，
she offered her damaged home as the new clinic.