A
For thousands of years, humans have built cities.Some of our oldest cities have managed to maintain pieces of their original characteristics while others have disappeared completely.
One of these lost cities belonged to the Anasazi people who lived in Chaco Canyon in New Mexico.They built houses along the river that ran through the valley.For nearly 300 years, the Chaco Canyon was the population centre of many desert cities.Now nothing is left of this busy city but ruins.Scientists think that drought may have made the Anasazi's food hard to get or that some kind of disease killed off many of the people.However, no one knows for sure what happened to the people of the Chaco Canyon.Another lost city sits high atop the Andes Mountains in Peru: the city of Machu Picchu.It was once among the most powerful cities in South America.It was home to the Incan emperor.In 1527, its citizens packed up their belongings and moved for unknown reasons.Scientists guess that smallpox, a disease brought by European explorers, was the cause of Machu Picchu's downfall.Today, tourists from all over the world climb thousands of steep stone steps to view the ruins of this once great city.Yet another city that is no more was called Pompeii.This was one of the wealthiest cities of ancient Italy.This beautiful seaside city was a lively centre of trade.However, a storm of lava, smoke, and ash from Mt.Vesuvius buried the city of Pompeii, putting an end to its prosperity.Scientists have studied the ruins of Pompeii, which led to new discoveries about ancient civilizations of Europe.
Humans have always built cities as centres for trade, business, and family life.Cities that have been lost provide information about the past, helping to inform our future.By studying lost cities, we can learn how to preserve our current cities.
【语篇解读】 本文是一篇说明文。文章介绍了三座古城消失的原因和结果。希望通过研究这些已经消失的城市，可以学习如何保护我们现在的城市。
1．Machu Picchu was once among the most powerful cities in South America because ．
A．it was the centre of the Inca Empire
B．it was located high atop the Andes Mountains
C．it was founded by powerful European explorers
D．it is visited by numerous visitors throughout the world
A [细节理解题。根据第二段中“It was once among the most powerful cities in South America.It was home to the Incan emperor.”可知，Machu Picchu曾经是南美洲最有影响力的城市之一，因为它是印加王国所在地，是印加帝国的中心。故选A。]
2．The writer introduces the three lost cities mainly by ．
A．making a comparison
B．stating causes and effects
C．expressing his own opinions
D．listing numbers and examples
B [推理判断题。第二段中提到城市Chaco Canyon消失的原因“Scientists think that drought may have made the Anasazi's food hard to get or that some kind of disease killed off many of the people.(科学家们认为，干旱可能导致阿纳萨齐人难以获得食物，或者某种疾病夺去了很多人的生命。)”；关于城市Machu Picchu消失的原因“Scientists guess that smallpox, a disease brought by European explorers，was the cause of Machu Picchu's downfall.(科学家们猜测由欧洲探险家带来的天花是Machu Picchu衰败的原因。)”；关于意大利的城市Pompeii消失的原因“a storm of lava, smoke, and ash from Mt.Vesuvius buried the city of Pompeii, putting an end to its prosperity.(来自维苏威火山的岩浆、烟雾和火山灰掩埋了庞贝城，终结了它的繁荣。)”由此可以推断，文章是通过陈述三座古城消失的原因和结果来介绍它们的。故选B。]
3．What message does the author want to convey in the last paragraph?
A．We should set up powerful cities for a competitive world.
B．We should pass on certain customs of ancient civilizations.
C．We should figure out how to protect our cities from disease and starvation.
D．We should learn from the past to ensure that we do not lose cities in the future.
D [细节理解题。根据文章最后一段中“Cities that have been lost provide information about the past, helping to inform our future.By studying lost cities, we can learn how to preserve our current cities.(已经消失的城市提供了关于过去的信息，帮助了解我们的未来。通过研究消失的城市，我们可以学习如何保护我们现在的城市。)”可知，我们应该从这些已经消失的城市中吸取教训，以确保我们在未来不会失去现在的城市。故选D。]
