Section
2---Unit 12 Animals
The
Fastest Animals on Land, in the Sea, and in the Air
If
there were Animal Olympic Games, there would have to be three separate gold
medals for speed. On land, a cheetah would sprint across the finish line first
at a speed of 120 km/hr. In the sea, a sailfish would swim smoothly to victory
at 110 km/hr. In the air, a peregrine falcon would blow away the competition by
diving at 320 km/hr. These are the fastest animals on Earth.
Cheetahs
are truly built for speed. Their large nostrils and lungs take in more air when
their breathing increases from 60 to 150 breaths per minute during a chase.
Their long tails allow them to make sharp turns, and their spines work like
springs. Light bones and strong muscles make them as quick as lightning.
Their
speed is what makes cheetahs great hunters on the plains of Africa. To catch
their prey, they can accelerate from zero to 110 km/hr in three seconds. That's
quicker than a Ferrari, one of the fastest cars in the world!
In
the water, sailfish rule. They're not only the fastest but also the
weirdest-looking. They're about three meters long and have sharp sword-like
beaks and tall, sail-shaped fins. Their speed and ability to jump high above
the water has made them a popular challenge in sportfishing.
Peregrine
falcons are the fastest creatures in the air. With black feathers on their
heads, they look like they are wearing racing helmets. At over 300 km/hr, the
falcon knocks its prey out cold in midair, then turns to grab the falling bird.
Where
do humans rank in this speed competition? With an average running speed of 25
km/hr, we might only tie in a race with hippos or elephants. It is a good thing
that the Olympic Games only include humans.
  | accelerate | 第五級 | [動詞] 加快;增長 |
| | average | 第二級 | [形容詞] 平均的; [動詞] 算出...的平均數;使平衡; 平均為; [名詞] 平均;平均數 |
| | bones | 第二級 | [名詞] bone(骨頭) 的複數 |
| | breathing | 第三級 | [動詞] breathe(呼吸) 的現在分詞 |
| | breaths | 第三級 | [名詞] breath(呼吸,氣息;微風) 的複數 |
| | challenge | 第二級 | [動詞] 對...提出異議; [名詞] 挑戰;艱鉅的事 |
| | chase | 第二級 | [動詞] 追; [名詞] 追逐;追擊 |
| | competition | 第四級 | [名詞] 競爭,角逐 |
| | creatures | 第三級 | [名詞] creature(生物;動物) 的複數 |
| | diving | 第三級 | [動詞] dive(跳水) 的現在分詞 |
| | feathers | 第三級 | [名詞] feather(羽毛) 的複數 |
| | fins | 第六級 | [名詞] fin(鰭;鰭狀物) 的複數 |
| | gold | 第二級 | [形容詞] 金製的; [名詞] 黃金 |
| | grab | 第三級 | [動詞] 攫取,抓取; [名詞] 攫取,霸佔 |
| | helmets | 第三級 | [名詞] helmet(盔;頭盔;鋼盔;帽盔;安全帽) 的複數 |
| | hippos | 第二級 | [名詞] hippo(河馬) 的複數 |
| | humans | 第二級 | [名詞] human(人) 的複數 |
| | hunters | 第二級 | [名詞] hunter(獵人) 的複數 |
| | include | 第二級 | [動詞] 包含 |
| | increases | 第二級 | [動詞] increase(增加) 的第三人稱單數現在式; [名詞] increase(增加;增強) 的複數 |
| | lightning | 第三級 | [名詞] 閃電 |
| | lungs | 第三級 | [名詞] lung(肺,肺臟) 的複數 |
| | medals | 第三級 | [名詞] medal(獎章,紀念章,勳章) 的複數 |
| | meters | 第二級 | [名詞] meter(公尺;計量器) 的複數 |
| | muscles | 第三級 | [名詞] muscle(肌;肌肉) 的複數 |
| | nostrils | 第六級 | [名詞] nostril(鼻孔) 的複數 |
| | per | 第二級 | [介系詞] 經,由;每;按照 |
| | plains | 第二級 | [名詞] plain(平原) 的複數 |
| | prey | 第五級 | [動詞] 捕食;掠奪; [名詞] 被捕食的動物;犧牲者 |
| | rank | 第三級 | [動詞] 把...分等;把...評級; [名詞] 等級;地位,身分 |
| | sail | 第二級 | [動詞] 航行; [名詞] 帆,篷;帆狀物;船隻 |
| | separate | 第二級 | [形容詞] 單獨的,個別的; [動詞] 分隔 |
| | smoothly | 第二級 | [形容詞] smooth(平滑的,光滑的;平坦的) 的衍生的副詞 |
| | speed | 第二級 | [動詞] 加速;促進; [名詞] 速度 |
| | spines | 第五級 | [名詞] spine(脊柱;書脊;骨氣) 的複數 |
| | swim | 第二級 | [動詞] 游泳; [名詞] 游泳;暈眩,眼花;潮流 |
| | sword | 第三級 | [名詞] 劍,刀 |
| | truly | 第二級 | [形容詞] true(真實的;正確的) 的衍生的副詞 |
| | victory | 第二級 | [名詞] 勝利 |
| | weirdest | 第五級 | [形容詞] weird(怪誕的) 的最高級 |
Reading Comprehension
( ) 1. What is the main idea of the first
paragraph?
(A) To introduce
the first Animal Olympic Games
(B) To introduce
the three fastest animals on Earth
(C) To show that
the sailfish is the fastest animal in the world
(D) To compare
the speed of three different animals
( ) 2. What does the writer compare the speed
of cheetahs to?
(A) He compares
them to breathing.
(B) He compares
them to an automobile.
(C) He compares
them to great African hunters.
(D) He compares
them to spines that work like springs.
( ) 3. Why are sailfish considered a popular
challenge in sportfishing?
(A) Their meat
is delicious.
(B) They're
quite huge and their beaks are like swords.
(C) They are
fast and jump high above the water.
(D) They can
dive at more than 300 kilometers per hour.
( ) 4. What does the last sentence of the
article mean?
(A) The Olympics
should include animals.
(B) Humans
shouldn't compete with animals for speed.
(C) If animals
could compete in the Olympics, humans would lose.
(D) If a human raced a hippo or an elephant, the human would win.
| | article | 第二級 | [名詞] 文章;報導；論文;物件;條款 |
| | automobile | 第三級 | [名詞] 汽車 |
| | breathing | 第三級 | [動詞] breathe(呼吸) 的現在分詞 |
| | challenge | 第二級 | [動詞] 對...提出異議; [名詞] 挑戰;艱鉅的事 |
| | compare | 第二級 | [動詞] 比較 |
| | compares | 第二級 | [動詞] compare(比較) 的第三人稱單數現在式 |
| | compete | 第三級 | [動詞] 競爭;對抗 |
| | considered | 第二級 | [動詞] consider(考慮) 的過去式及過去分詞 |
| | delicious | 第二級 | [形容詞] 好吃的 |
| | dive | 第三級 | [動詞] 跳水; [名詞] 俯衝,急劇下降 |
| | hippo | 第二級 | [名詞] 河馬 |
| | huge | 第二級 | [形容詞] 巨大的 |
| | human | 第二級 | [形容詞] 人類的; [名詞] 人 |
| | humans | 第二級 | [名詞] human(人) 的複數 |
| | hunters | 第二級 | [名詞] hunter(獵人) 的複數 |
| | include | 第二級 | [動詞] 包含 |
| | introduce | 第二級 | [動詞] 介紹 |
| | kilometers | 第三級 | [名詞] kilometer(公里) 的複數 |
| | paragraph | 第四級 | [名詞] (文章的)段,節 |
| | per | 第二級 | [介系詞] 經,由;每;按照 |
| | speed | 第二級 | [動詞] 加速;促進; [名詞] 速度 |
| | spines | 第五級 | [名詞] spine(脊柱;書脊;骨氣) 的複數 |
| | swords | 第三級 | [名詞] sword(劍,刀) 的複數 |
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