题文
A famous American John Muir said in 1898: “The Grand Canyon… as unearthly (神秘的) in the color and grandeur (壮观) of its architecture as if you had found it after death on some other star.” Like Muir, those of us who stand along the rim are prompted to wonder about the unearthliness and the forces that created and are still changing this place.After more than 100 years of studies, many things are still mysterious. Today visitors come by the thousands -- the great and simple of the earth -- all in a spirit of wonder. Travelers come from every state of the Union, from every country in Europe and Asia.
From the depths of the canyon comes welling silence. Seldom can you hear the roar of the river, for all sounds are swallowed in this gulf of space. “It makes one want to murmur.” A woman once whispered to her companion. This silence is not the silence of death; rather, it is a presence. It is like a great piece of music. But music made of man works up to a climax (高潮) and stops.
Now, visitors to the South Rim alone may number 18,000 in a single day. Some of that number will travel by mule train down Bright Angel Trail to the canyon's floor, cross the raging river by a suspension bridge (吊桥) and walk to the North Rim. Though the two rims face each other across only 12 miles, it is a journey of 214 miles by car from one to the other. Nor can you visit the North Rim except in summer; some 1,200 feet higher than the South Rim, it is snow covered much of the year except in July and August.
But there is no day that you may not visit the South Rim and find the sun warm on your face and the air perfumed with the incense (香气) of smoke from an Indian hearth (香炉). No wonder an American writer and journalist said, “I came here an atheist (无神论者), and departed a devout （虔诚的）believer.”
小题1:What is it that attracts so many travelers to the Canyon?A．The unearthliness and the grandeur of its architecture.B．The presence of American super stars.C．The saying made by American writers and journalists.D．The roaring of the river in the Canyon.小题2:What does the underlined word “simple” refer to?A．peaceful streamB．land surfaceC．common peopleD．tamed animals小题3:If you want to visit the North Rim from the South Rim, which of the following won’t be the way of traveling for you?A．By train.B．By animal.C．By car.D．On foot.小题4: The last sentence “I came here an atheist, and departed a devout believer.” implies that ______. A．natural wonders such as the Canyon have some effect on human activitiesB．all visitors to the Grand Canyon are God believersC．atheist can’t see the magnificence of the Grand CanyonD．the Grand Canyon is an unearthly sight that only God could create 题型：未知 难度：其他题型
答案
小题1:A
小题2:C
小题3:A
小题4:D
解析
小题1:短文第一段约翰缪尔所说的“科罗拉多大峡谷在色彩上神秘莫测，景观上是壮丽无比，只有在人死之后，在天堂里才能见到”，由此可知科罗拉多大峡谷吸引游客的是它的神秘和壮美。
小题2:此句意义是“今天来参观的游客数以千计，无论是伟人还是普通老百姓”。由前面的the great（伟人，大人物）联想猜测可知，the simple是“普通老百姓”。
小题3:由第四段可知：游客可骑骡子（by mule train）到峡谷底部，然后通过吊桥横过河，可走路支北边。南边与北边虽相距只有12英里，但如果乘车需绕道214 公里才能到达。由此可知乘坐火车不是旅行方式。
小题4:此句表面意义是：我来时是无神论，离开时却是一句虔诚的信徒。用此句来表达科罗拉多大峡谷是一个神奇的地方，只有上帝才能创造出如此神秘壮丽的景色。
考点
据考高分专家说，试题“A famous American Jo.....”主要考查你对 [政治经济类阅读 ]考点的理解。政治经济类阅读
政治经济类文章的概念：
要做好这类阅读，平时就要注意了解国内外发生的政治经济大事，掌握一定背景知识，对这类文章的叙述特点及内容安排有一定了解，还要扩展这方面的词汇。阅读这类文章，要抓住文章的核心，即文章整体和各段主要在说什么，也要注意段落之间的逻辑关系。
如何备考政治经济类阅读理解题：
【题型说明】政治经济类阅读文章是高考常选材料之一。该类文章时代气息浓郁，语言鲜活，但熟字新义词、超纲词及专业词语多，长句、难句多。政治类文章大多数是同学们感性趣的内容，读起来倒有似曾相识的感觉，经济类文章读起来就像是雾里看花，文章看完，一头雾水。再加之这类文章的命题侧重于词义猜测、推理判断和文章主旨，同学们对这类题材是望而生畏。
【备考策略】建立心理优势。针对不同体裁的文章，我们要采取相应的阅读方法和技巧。政治类文章多采用记叙文形式，我们可采取“顺读法”，以便抓关键语句，领会文章主旨；而经济类文章则多采用说明文形式，我们则可以采取“逆读法”，先读试题，再从文章中查找有用信息。若遇到的确难读的材料。千万不用着急，因为你觉得难，其他人也一定是同感。在高考前，我们就要有这种心理准备，高考试卷肯定有一、两篇难以阅读的材料。不过，我们平时可以有意识地从报刊杂志上找一些较难的阅读材料来阅读，以培养自己迎难而上的心理素质。
【答题方法】
1、寻找主干：
根据英语中五种基本句型结构，把句子中的主语、谓语、宾语、表语等主要成分找出来，其他成分如定语、状语、补语等则易于理解。找到了句子主干，句子的意思至少明白了一半。
2、剔除从句：
在一个长句中可能会出现若干个从句，在理解时，如果把各个从句剔除出来单独理解，然后把大意拼凑起来，整个长句的意思就会明白六、七分。
3、辨别分句：
一个长句如果是由几个并列、转折、递进、对比关系的分句组成，句中往往有表示这些分句关系的连接词，只要能弄清楚分句和分句之间的逻辑关系，再把各层分句的意思加以连贯，整个长句的句意基本上能跃然脑中。
4、寻找关键词：
如果一个句子看完，一点句意的感觉也没有，下下策就是抓住句中的关键词，通过关键词大体弄懂这个长句的意思。
