London: It’s well known that Charles Darwin’s famous theory of evolution annoyed many people because it was against the Biblical view of creation. But few know that it also created problems for Darwin at home with his deeply religious wife, Emma.
“Darwin held back the publication of On the Origin of Species to avoid offending (触怒) his wife,” says Ruth Padel, the naturalist’s great – great – granddaughter. “Emma told him that he seemed to be putting God further and further off”, Padel says in her north London home. “But they talked it through, and Emma once said, ‘Don’t change any of your ideas for fear of hurting me.’”
As the world celebrates the 200th birthday of the man who changed scientific thought forever and the 150th anniversary of his book today, even his opponents admitted he was a giant figure.
Though opposition to his theory continues, it is the elegant explanation of how species evolutes through natural selection that makes his 200th birthday such a major event.
More than 300 celebrations have been planned in Britain alone, where Darwin's face graces (使增光)the 10-pound bill along with that of Queen Elizabeth II.
Shrewsbury, the central England town where Darwin was born and raised, is holding a month-long festival for its most famous son. Down House, his former home near London, will hold a permanent exhibition recreating some of his most famous experiments.
Many more events have been planned all over the world.
What would he be doing if he were alive today? Padel thinks he would properly be studying DNA and the immune system.
【小题1】The main purpose of the author is .A．to say something about Darwin and his wifeB．to introduce Charles Darwin and his theory of evolutionC．to sing high praise for the book On the Origin of SpeciesD．to report some celebrations of Darwin’s 200th birthday and the 150th anniversary of his books【小题2】Which of the statements is NOT true based on the passage?A．Everyone agrees with Darwin now.B．Darwin was brought up in Shrewsbury.C．Emma was not really fond of his theory.D．Darwin was very interested in living things.【小题3】The underlined phrase “held back” in the second paragraph probably means .A．prevented fromB．kept a secretC．cared aboutD．put off【小题4】It can be inferred that the passage is most probably .A．a scientific reportB．a news reportC．an English positionD．a textD
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(答案→)D
解析：文章报道达尔文出生200周年以及《物种起源》出版150周年的纪念活动。
【小题1】主旨大意题。通读全文可知文章是报道达尔文出生200周年以及《物种起源》出版150周年的纪念活动的。
【小题2】细节题。根据第四段第一行Though opposition to his theory continues，可知还是有人发对他的理论。
【小题3】猜测词义题。根据上下文可知她的妻子是一位教徒。达尔文的理论与教义是完全相反的，所以为了不触怒妻子，他应该是对妻子保密。
【小题4】推理题。根据文章开头的London，可知这是一篇报道，那么应该出现在报纸上。