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 e by the thousands -- the great and simple of the earth -- all in a spirit of wonder. Travelers e from every state of the Union, from every country in Europe and Asia.
From the depths of the canyon es 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 panion. 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．mon 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 createA
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(答案→)A
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”www..。
【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。