A
Elephant, horse and cow wastes could be sustainable sources for a key element needed to manufacture paper. It is good news for some nations where trees are scarce while animal wastes come in especially handy.
The idea for the unusual use of elephant, horse and cow wastes first came to mind when researcher Dr Alexander Bismarck noticed something strange about goat wastes while vacationing in Greece. He observed some goats eating summer-dry grass and came to an interesting conclusion about what they digest.
Dr Bismarck said, “I realized what comes out in the end is partially digested plant matter so there must be cellulose(纤维素) there”. Animals eat dry grass containing cellulose, chew it and digest it in their stomach and then produce wastes. Up to 40 percent of that wastes are cellulose, which is easily accessible. Therefore, making paper from the partially digested material would take much less energy than using raw wood. Additionally, it would require fewer chemical treatments.
This supply of raw material is plenty: parks in Africa that are home to hundreds of elephants produce tons of wastes every day, and enormous cattle farms in the US and Europe yield mountains of wastes.
In order to make paper, the material must be processed with special method. But it requires little because there is no need to break it down into small parts for use in paper, in contrast to conventional methods which need a lot of energy to break down wood.
Using wastes, we can reduce the number of steps needed in papermaking, simply because the animal already chewed the plant and attacked it with acid in their stomachs. You inexpensively produce a paper staff that has the same or even better properties than that from wood, with lower energy and chemical consumption.
【文章大意】本文是一篇说明文, 研究者发现, 大象、马、牛等的排泄物里含有大量纤维素, 可以用来造纸, 比用木头造纸更经济, 而且原料充足。
1. Why can animal wastes be used to make paper?
A. They will never run out.
B. They are easy to access.
C. They are partly digested.
D. They contain much cellulose.
【解析】选D。细节理解题。根据第一段第一句以及第三段可知, 纤维素是造纸必需的元素, 而动物粪便里含有40% 的纤维素, 由此判断, D选项符合题意。
2. What is the advantage of making paper from animal wastes?
A. It is more profitable.
B. It is energy-saving.
C. It needs less material.
D. It fits all parts of the world.
【解析】选B。细节理解题。根据第三段中“Therefore, making paper from the partially digested material would take much less energy than using raw wood. ”可知, 用动物的排泄物造纸可以比用木头造纸节省能源。故选B。
3. What is the probable explanation of the underlined word “attack”?
A. Treat. B. Mix. C. Clean. D. Protect.
【解析】选A。词义猜测题。根据最后一段第一句可知, 用动物排泄物造纸省却了用木头造纸必需的一些过程; 再根据上段第二句可知, 省却的这个过程就是将原料粉碎的过程, 也就是动物胃里的食物是经过咀嚼和用胃酸浸泡和腐蚀过的。由此推知画线部分的意义接近“处理”, 故选A。
【知识拓展】长难句分析
But it requires little because there is no need to break it down into small parts for use in paper, in contrast to conventional methods which need a lot of energy to break down wood.
分析: because至句子结尾为原因状语从句; 其中in contrast to至结尾为介词短语作状语; which引导定语从句, 修饰conventional methods。
译文: 但它(用动物粪便造纸)的要求很少, 因为不再需要把动物粪便分解成小的部分用于造纸, 而传统的方法则需要大量的能量来分解木材。
