Few realize that this Antarctic continent is almost equal in size to South America, and enormous field of work awaits geographers and prospectors. The coasts of this continent remain to be accurately charted, and the maping of the whole of the interior presents a formidable task to the cartographers who undertake the work. Once their labors are completed, it will be possible to prospect the vast natural resources which scientists believe will furnish one of the largest treasure hoards of metals and minerals the world has yet known, and almost inexhaustible sources of copper, coal, uranium, and many other ores will become available to man. Such discoveries will usher in an era of practical exploitation of the Antarctic wastes.

　　The polar darkness which hides this continent for the six winter months will be defeated by huge batteries of light, and make possible the establishing of air-fields for the future inter-continental air services by making these areas as light as day. Present flying routes will be completely changed, for the Antarctic refueling bases will make flights from Australia to South America comparatively easy over the 5,000 miles journey.

　　The climate is not likely to offer an insuperable problem, for the explorer Admiral Byrd has shown that the climate is possible even for men completely untrained for expeditions into those frozen wastes. Some of his parties were men who had never seen snow before, and yet he records that they survived the rigors of the Antarctic climate comfortably, so that, provided that the appropriate installations are made, we may assume that human beings from all countries could live there safely. Byrd even affirms that it is probably the most healthy climate in the world, for the intense cold of thousands of years has sterilize this continent, and rendered it absolutely germfree, with the consequences that ordinary and extraordinary sickness and diseases from which man suffers in other zones with different climates are here utterly unknown. There exist no problems of conservation and preservation of food supplies, for the latter keep indefinitely without any signs of deterioration; it may even be that later generations will come to regard the Antarctic as the natural storehouse for the whole world.

　　Plans are already on foot to set up permanent bases on the shores of this continent, and what so few years ago was regarded as a “dead continent” now promises to be a most active center of human life and endeavor.

　　1.When did man begin to explore the Antarctic?

　　A.About 100years ago.

　　B.In this century.

　　C.At the beginning of the 19th century.

　　D.In 1798.

　　2.What must the explorers be, even though they have modern equipment and techniques?

　　A.Brave and tough

　　B.Stubborn and arrogant.

　　C.Well-liked and humorous.

　　D.Stout and smart.

　　3.The most healthy climate in the world is___.

　　A.in South America.

　　B.in the Arctic Region.

　　C.in the Antarctic Continent.

　　D.in the Atlantic Ocean.

　　4.What kind of metals and minerals can we find in the Antarctic?

　　A.Magnetite, coal and ores.

　　B.Copper, coal and uranium.

　　C.Silver, natural gas and uranium.

　　D.Aluminum, copper and natural gas.

　　5.What is planned for the continent?

　　A.Building dams along the coasts.

　　B.Setting up several summer resorts along the coasts.

　　C.Mapping the coast and whole territory.

　　D.Setting up permanent bases on the coasts.

　　六級閱讀理解強化練習答案：

　　AACBD

　　六級閱讀理解強化練習2：

　　Let children learn to judge their own work. A child learning to talk does not learn by being corrected all the time; if corrected too much, he will stop talking. He notices a thousand times a day the difference between the languages he uses and the language those around him use. Bit by bit, he makes the necessary changes to make his language like other people. In the same way, when children learn to do all the other things they learn to do without being taught-to walk, run, climb, whistle, ride a bicycle-compare those performances with those of more skilled people, and slowly make the needed changes. But in school we never give a child a chance to find out his own mistakes for himself, let alone correct them. We do it all for him. We act as if we thought that he would never notice a mistake unless it was pointed out to him, or correct it unless he was made to. Soon he becomes dependent on the teacher. Let him do it himself. Let him work out, with the help of other children if he wants it, what this word says, what answer is to that problem, whether this is a good way of saying or doing this or not.

　　If it is a matter of right answers, as it may be in mathematics or science, give him the answer book. Let him correct his own papers. Why should we teachers waste time on such routine work? Our job should be to help the child when he tells us that he can’t find the way to get the right answer. Let’s end this nonsense of grades, exams, marks, Let us throw them all out, and let the children learn what all educated persons must some day learn, how to measure their own understanding, how to know what they know or do not know.

　　Let them get on with this job in the way that seems sensible to them. With our help as school teachers if they ask for it. The idea that there is a body of knowledge to be learnt at school and used for the rest of one’s life is nonsense in a world as complicated and rapidly changing as ours. Anxious parents and teachers say, “But suppose they fail to learn something essential they will need to get in the world?” Don’t worry! If it is essential, they will go out into the world and learn it.

　　1.What does the author think is the best way for children to learn things?

　　A.by copying what other people do.

　　B.by making mistakes and having them corrected.

　　C.by listening to explanations from skilled people.

　　D.by asking a great many questions.

　　2.What does the author think teachers do which they should not do?

　　A.They give children correct answers.

　　B.They point out children’s mistakes to them.

　　C.They allow children to mark their own work.

　　D.They encourage children to mark to copy from one another.

　　3.The passage suggests that learning to speak and learning to ride a bicycle are___.

　　A.not really important skills.

　　B.more important than other skills.

　　C.basically different from learning adult skills.

　　D.basically the same as learning other skills.

　　4.Exams, grades, and marks should be abolished because children’s progress should only be estimated by___.

　　A.educated persons.

　　B.the children themselves.

　　C.teachers.

　　D.parents.

　　5.The author fears that children will grow up into adults while being___.

　　A.too independent of others.

　　B.too critical of themselves.

　　C.incapable to think for themselves.

　　D.incapable to use basic skills.

　　六級閱讀理解強化練習答案：

　　ABDBC