Intheearly1960sWiltChamberlainwasoneofonlythreeplayersi...

问题详情：

In the early 1960s Wilt Chamberlain was one of only three players in the National Basketball Association（NBA）listed at over seven feet． If he had played last season， however， he would have been one of 42． The bodies playing major professional sports have changed dramatically over the years， and managers have been more than willing to adjust team uniforms to fit the growing numbers of bigger， longer frames．

    The trend in sports， though， may be obscuring an unrecognized reality： Americans have generally stopped growing． Though typically about two inches taller now than 140 years ago， today's people﹣especially those born to families who have lived in the U． S． for many generations﹣apparently reached their limit in the early 1960s． And they aren't likely to get any taller． "In the general population today， at this genetic， environmental level， we've pretty much gone as far as we can go，" says anthropologist William Cameron Chum﹣lea of Wright State University． In the case of NBA players， their increase in height appears to result from the increasingly common practice of recruiting players from all over the world．

    Growth， which rarely continues beyond the age of 20， demands calories and nutrients﹣notably， protein﹣﹣to feed expanding tissues． At the start of the 20th century， under﹣nutrition and childhood infections got in the way． But as diet and health improved， children and adolescents have， on average， increased in height by about an inch and a half every 20 years， a pattern known as the secular trend in height． Yet according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention， average height﹣﹣5'9" for men，5'4" for women﹣﹣hasn't really changed since 1960．

    Genetic maximums can change， but don't expect this to happen soon． Claire C． Gordon， senior anthropologist at the Army Research Center in Natick， Mass ensures that 90 percent of the uniforms and workstations fit recruits without alteration． She says that， unlike those for basketball， the length of military uniforms has not changed for some time． And if you need to predict human height in the near future to design a piece of equipment， Gordon says that by and large，"you could use today's data and feel fairly confident．"

（1）Wilt Chamberlain is cited as an example to　   　．

A． illustrate the change of height of NBA players．

B． show the popularity of NBA players in the U．S．

C． compare different generations of NBA players．

D． assess the achievements of famous NBA players．

（2）Which of the following plays a key role in body growth according to the text？　   　

A． Genetic modification．

B． Living standards．

C． Natural environment．

D． Daily exercise．

（3）We learn from the last paragraph that in the near future　   　．

A． the garment industry will reconsider the uniform size．

B． the design of military uniforms will remain unchanged．

C． genetic testing will be employed in selecting sportsmen．

D． the existing data of human height will still be applicable．

（4）The text intends to tell us that　   　．

A． the change of human height follows a cyclic pattern．

B． human height is becoming even more predictable．

C． Americans have reached their genetic growth limit．

D． the genetic pattern of Americans has altered．

【回答】

A   B   D   C

【分析】本文是一篇社会文化类阅读，文章介绍了美国人的身高已经达到了生长极限．

【解答】（1）A． 推理判断题．根据第一段中的"In the early 1960s Wilt Chamberlain was one of only three players in the National Basketball Association （NBA）listed at over seven feet． If he had played last season， however， he would have been one of 42． The bodies playing major professional sports have changed dramatically over the years"可知，在20世纪60年代早期，威尔特•张伯伦是NBA中仅有的三名身高超过7英尺的球员之一，然而，如果他上个赛季参加比赛，他就会成为42人中的一员，近年来，从事主要职业运动的运动员的身体发生了巨大的变化，由此可知，第一段引用威尔特•张伯伦的例子就是为了说明NBA球员身高的变化，故A项正确．

（2）B． 细节理解题．根据第三段中的"Growth， which rarely continues beyond the age of 20， demands calories and nutrients﹣notably， protein﹣﹣to feed expanding tissues． At the start of the 20th century， under﹣nutrition and childhood infections got in the way． But as diet and health improved， children and adolescents have， on average， increased in height by about an inch and a half every 20 years，"可知，身高的增长一般在20岁就停止了，而发育是需要卡路里和营养的，其中的蛋白质用来供给组织的生长，20世纪初，营养不良和儿童疾病阻碍了整体的发育，但随着饮食和健康状况的改善，儿童和青少年的身高平均每20年增加1.5英寸左右，由此可知，生活水平在身体发育中起着关键作用，故B项正确．

（3）D． 推理判断题．根据最后一段中的"And if you need to predict human height in the near future to design a piece of equipment， Gordon says that by and large， "you could use today's data and feel fairly confident．""可知，戈登说，如果你需要在不久的将来预测人类的身高来设计一个新设备，你可以使用今天的数据并会感到非常自信，由此可知，现在人类身高的数据仍然适用．故D项正确．

（4）C． 目的意图题．通读全文，特别是根据第二段中的"The trend in sports， though， may be obscuring an unrecognized reality： Americans have generally stopped growing． Though typically about two inches taller now than 140 years ago， today's people﹣especially those born to families who have lived in the U． S． for many generations﹣apparently reached their limit in the early 1960s． And they aren't likely to get any taller． "In the general population today， at this genetic， environmental level， we've pretty much gone as far as we can go，""可知，体育运动员的身高增加这一趋势可能掩盖了一个未被承认的事实：美国人的身高已经基本停止增长了，虽然现在的人通常比140年前高出约2英寸，但今天的人，特别是那些在美国生活了很多代的家庭所生的人，显然在20世纪60年代初达到了极限，而且他们不太可能再长高，在这个基因和环境的条件下，我们的身高已经达到极限了，由此可知，本文主要介绍的是美国人的身高已经达到了生长极限，故C项正确．

【点评】做这类题材阅读理解时要求考生对文章通读一遍，做题时结合原文和题目有针对*的找出相关语句进行仔细分析，结合选项选出正确*．推理判断题也是要在抓住关键句子的基础上合理的分析才能得出正确*，切忌胡乱猜测，一定要做到有理有据．

知识点：人物传记 故事类阅读

题型：阅读理解