The skin which covers the tips of the fingers and thumbs is crossed by numerous ridges (隆起) arranged in different patterns. These patterns are permanent from birth and remain exactly the same throughout a person's life, even when the skin bees wrinkled and cracked as a result of old age. Such patterns are never passed on from parents to children, and no one in the world has the same patterns as anyone else. Even identical twins have different sets of fingerprints. As a result, fingerprints offer a most useful and foolproof way of identifying people. Any ridged part of the hand and the foot may be used as a means of identification, but finger impressions are usually preferred since they can be taken easily and quickly.
Fingerprints are classified in the ways: by general shapes and contours(轮廓), by the finger positions of the pattern-types, and by size (often measured by counting the ridges in the loops). Every set of fingerprints has different “ridge characteristics” (i. e. the print of each separate finger is different from that of all the other fingers), which belong to one of four basic groups: arches, loops, whorls and posites. All fingerprints can then be divided into 1, 024 groups. By using details in the patterns above, these 1, 024 groups can be further divided into thousands of smaller groups, thus making it possible to find a particular set of fingerprints in a few minutes.
【小题1】According to this passage, the true statement about human fingerprints is that .A．people's fingerprints sometimes can be passed on from parents to childrenB．people’s fingerprints are unique but identical twins may have the same fingerprintsC．using fingerprints is the only way to identify peopleD．people's fingerprints will not change in all their lives【小题2】We prefer to use fingerprints to identify people because .A．we can never find the same set of fingerprints among human beingsB．finger impressions can be taken easily and quicklyC．fingerprints offer a most useful and foolproof way of identifying peopleD．all of the above【小题3】The word “foolproof” (Line 7, Para. 1) most probably means .A．that is permanent B．that is acceptableC．that can not go wrong D．that is not foolish【小题4】About the classification of fingerprints, which is TRUE? .A．Fingerprints can be classified in three waysB．All fingerprints can be divided into 1, 024 groups and can not be divided furtherC．It is not easy to find a particular set of fingerprints in a short timeD．People can not classify the fingerprints in an effective wayD
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(答案→)D
解析：本文介绍了人的指纹，在人的一生中指纹是永远不变的，所以指纹也成了很多是用来识别的方法，同时文章还介绍了指纹的分类方法等知识。
【小题1】D 细节题。根据第一段2,3行These patterns are permanent from birth and remain exactly the same throughout a person's life说明人的指纹是永久不变的。故D项正确。
【小题2】D 细节题。根据第一段后6行内容Such patterns are never passed on from parents to children, and no one in the world has the same patterns as anyone else. Even identical twins have different sets of fingerprints. As a result, fingerprints offer a most useful and foolproof way of identifying people. Any ridged part of the hand and the foot may be used as a means of identification, but finger impressions are usually preferred since they can be taken easily and quickly.说明ABC的三种表达都是人们使用指纹的原因，故D项正确。
【小题3】C 推理题。根据5,6,7行no one in the world has the same patterns as anyone else. Even identical twins have different sets of fingerprints. As a result, fingerprints offer a most useful and foolproof way说明人的指纹终生不变，是一种不会出错的辨别人的方式，故C项正确。
【小题4】A 细节题。根据第二段前3行Fingerprints are classified in the ways: by general shapes and contours(轮廓), by the finger positions of the pattern-types, and by size (often measured by counting the ridges in the loops).说明我们可以使用3种方法来分类，故A项正确。