阅读理解
Bananas and apples continue to ripen after being picked. Cherries
and grapes do not. The difference between climacteric (后熟的) and non-climacteric fruits matters to fruit growers and
greengrocers, who must ensures their products are in excellent condition when
arriving at the marketplace. But how those differences originally came about
remains unclear.
In a paper in Biology Letters, Fukano Yuya and Tachiki Yuuya of
the University of Tokyo offer a suggestion. Fruits, they observe, exist to
solve a problem faced by all plants - how best to spread their progeny around.
Wrapping their seeds in a sugary flesh, to provide a tasty meal, serves as a
way to got animals to do this for them. They do, however, need to ensure their
fruits favour the animals most likely to do the distributing. They propose that
climacterism or non-climacterism is a way to achieve this. If ground-living
animals are the main distributors, then the continuing ripening of fallen fruit
is beneficial. If, by contrast, those distributors are tree-living or flying
animals, which can feed on unfallen fruit, then non-climacteric fruits will do
well.
To test their idea, the two researchers combed through 276 papers
about 80 sorts of fruits. They discovered 35 of these fruits were eaten by both
groups of animals. But of those where one group or the other were the dominant
consumers, 15 of the 19 eaten mainly by ground-living animals were climacteric.
Their assumption is strengthened by other evidence. They point out
non-climacteric fruits tend to have vivid colors which may help them stand out
amid the leaves, advertising their presence. Climacteric fruits are generally
better hidden, making them harder to spot until they have fallen to the ground.
(1)
What did the two researchers try to find out through their study?
A . What enables fruits to stay in perfect condition.
B . How some fruits stand out in the trees, but others fail.
C . How many animals play the role of distributors for fruits.
D . Why some fruits stop ripening when picked, and others don't.
(2)
What does the underlined word "progeny" in the second paragraph mean?
A . Later generations.
B . Hidden qualities.
C . Fresh fragrance.
D . Unknown disease.
(3)
What do we know about non-climacteric fruits?
A . Bananas definitely fall into the category.
B . They may appeal to flying birds.
C . They tend to remain hidden among leaves.
D . Ground-living animals generally feed on them.
(4)
What's the best title of this text?
A . The Condition of Products: What Greengrocers Care.
B . The Reproduction of Plants: Depending on Themselves.
C . The Evolution of Fruit: Finding the Right Distributors.
D . The Choice of Animals: Looking for bright-colored fruits.
答案: D
A
B
C