Passage 3
　　Trees are useful to man in three very important ways: they provide him wood and other products, they give him shaded and they help to prevent drought and floods.
　　Unfortunately, in many parts of the world, man has not realized that the third of these services is the most important. In his eagerness to draw quick profit from the trees, he has cut them down in large numbers, only to find that with them he has lost the friends he had.
　　Two thousand years ago, a rich and powerful country cut down its trees to build warships, with which to gain itself an empire. It gained the empire but, without its trees, its soil became bare and poor. When the empire fell to pieces, the home country found itself faced by floods and starvation.
　　Even where a government realizes the importance of a plentiful supply of trees, it is difficult sometimes to make the people realize this. They cut down the trees but are too careless to plant and look after new trees. (80)So, unless the government has a good system of control, or can educate the people, the forests slowly disappear.
　　This does not only mean that there will be fewer trees. The results are even more serious: for where there are trees, their roots break the soil up, allowing the rain to sink in, and also bind the soil. This prevents the soil from being washed away. But where there are on trees, the rain falls on hard ground and flows away on the surface, and this causes floods and the rain carries away the rich topsoil in which crops grow. When all the topsoil is gone, nothing remains but worthless desert.
　　11. When there is a heavy rain, trees can help to prevent floods, as they can ______
　　A keep rain from falling down to soft ground
　　B cause the soil to allow rainwater to sink in
　　C make the topsoil stick together
　　D prevent the soil from being washed away
　　答案:B
　　本题考查的也是考生对细节的把握，答案对应于文章参见后一段第二句。
　　12. It’s very pitiful that ______
　　A man has cut down too many trees
　　B man is eager to profit from trees
　　C man hasn’t realizes the importance of trees to him
　　D man hasn’t found cut that he has lost all trees
　　答案:C
　　本题考查的也是考生对细节的把握，答案对应于文章第二段首句Unfortunately，in many parts of the world，man has not realized that the third“these services is the most important．very pitiful与Unfortunately相对应。
　　13. Two thousand years ago, a rich and powerful country met with floods and starvation because of ______
　　A the soil of the country became barren
　　B its empire fell
　　C it cut too many trees down
　　D the conquered land within its empire was poor and barren
　　答案:C
　　本题考查的也是考生对细节的把握，答案对应于文章第三段。这段中讲述了一个国家过渡砍树所造成的后果。
　　14. According to the passage, trees are useful to man mainly in three ways, the most important of which is that they can ______
　　A keep him from the hot sunshine
　　B prevent him from floods
　　C make him draw quick profit from them
　　D help him to keep from the attack of drought and floods
　　答案:D
　　题考查的是考生对细节的把握，答案对应于文章第二段首句，…man has not realized that the third of these services is the most important，答案D项刚好与之符合。
　　15. Sooner or later the forests will disappear ______
　　A if people don’t stop cutting trees
　　B unless a country has a plenty supply of trees
　　C unless all people the importance of planting trees and the government has good system of control.
　　D if man doesn’t stop cutting trees carelessly
　　答案:C
　　本题考查的也是考生对细节的把握，答案对应于文章第四段后一句。

学位英语:2014年学位英语考试报名考试大纲 冲刺必备试题