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TPO 26
Energy and the Industrial Revolution
For years historians have sought to identify crucial elements in the eighteenth-century
rise in industry, technology, and economic power Known as the Industrial Revolution, and
many give prominence to the problem of energy. Until the eighteenth century, people
relied on energy derived from plants as well as animal and human muscle to provide
power Increased efficiency in the use of water and wind helped with such tasks as
pumping, milling, or sailing. However, by the eighteenth century, Great Britain in particular
was experiencing an energy shortage. Wood, the primary source of heat for homes and
industries and also used in the iron industry as processed charcoal, was diminishing in
supply. Great Britain had large amounts of coal; however, there were not yet efficient
means by which to produce mechanical energy or to power machinery. This was to occur
with progress in the development of the steam engine.
In the late 1700s James Watt designed an efficient and commercially viable steam
engine that was soon applied to a variety of industrial uses as it became cheaper to use.
The engine helped solve the problem of draining coal mines of groundwater and
increased the production of coal needed to power steam engines elsewhere. A rotary
engine attached to the steam engine enabled shafts to be turned and machines to be
driven, resulting in mills using steam power to spin and weave cotton. Since the steam
engine was fired by coal, the large mills did not need to be located by rivers, as had mills
that used water- driven machines. The shift to increased mechanization in cotton
production is apparent in the import of raw cotton and the sale of cotton goods. Between
1760 and 1850, the amount of raw cotton imported increased 230 times. Production of
British cotton goods increased sixtyfold, and cotton cloth became Great Britain’s most
important product, accounting for one-half of all exports. The success of the steam engine
resulted in increased demands for coal, and the consequent increase in coal production
was made possible as the steam-powered pumps drained water from the ever-deeper
coal seams found below the water table.
The availability of steam power and the demands for new machines facilitated the
transformation of the iron industry. Charcoal, made from wood and thus in limited supply,
was replaced with coal-derived coke (substance left after coal is heated) as steam-driven
bellows came into use for producing of raw iron. Impurities were burnt away with the use
of coke, producing a high-quality refined iron. Reduced cost was also instrumental in
developing steam-powered rolling mills capable of producing finished iron of various
shapes and sizes. The resulting boom in the iron industry expanded the annual iron output
by more than 170 times between 1740 and 1840, and by the 1850s Great Britain was
producing more tons of iron than the rest of the world combined. The developments in the
iron industry were in part a response to the demand for more machines and the
ever-widening use of higher-quality iron in other industries.
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Steam power and iron combined to revolutionize transport, which in turn had further
implications. Improvements in road construction and sailing had occurred, but shipping
heavy freight over land remained expensive, even with the use of rivers and canals
wherever possible. Parallel rails had long been used in mining operations to move bigger
loads, but horses were still the primary source of power. However, the arrival of the steam
engine initiated a complete transformation in rail transportation, entrenching and
expanding the Industrial Revolution. As transportation improved, distant and larger
markets within the nation could be reached, thereby encouraging the development of
larger factories to keep pace with increasing sales. Greater productivity and rising
demands provided entrepreneurs with profits that could be reinvested to take advantage
of new technologies to further expand capacity, or to seek alternative investment
opportunities. Also, the availability of jobs in railway construction attracted many rural
laborers accustomed to seasonal and temporary employment. When the work was
completed, many moved to other construction jobs or to factory work in cities and towns,
where they became part of an expanding working class.
Paragraph 1: For years historians have sought to identify crucial elements in the
eighteenth-century rise in industry, technology, and economic power Known as the
Industrial Revolution, and many give prominence to the 【problem of energy】. Until the
eighteenth century, people relied on energy derived from plants as well as animal and
human muscle to provide power Increased efficiency in the use of water and wind helped
with such tasks as pumping, milling, or sailing. However, by the eighteenth century, Great
Britain in particular was experiencing an energy shortage. Wood, the primary source of
heat for homes and industries and also used in the iron industry as processed charcoal,
was diminishing in supply. 【Great Britain had large amounts of coal】; however, there
were not yet efficient means by which to produce mechanical energy or to power
machinery. This was to occur with progress in the development of the steam engine.
1. Why does the author provide the information that “Great Britain had large amounts
of coal”?
○ To reject the claim that Britan was facing an energy shortage in the eighteenth
century
○ To explain why coal rahter than other energy resources became the primary
source of heat for homes and industries in eighteenth-century Britain
○ To indicate that Britain’s energy shortage was not the result of a lack of fuel
○ To explain wht coal mining became an important industry in nineteenth-century
2. What was “the problem of energy” that had to be solved to make the Industrial
Revolution of the eighteenth century possible?
○ Water and wind could not be used efficiently
○ There was no efficient way to power machinery
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○ Steam engines required large amounts of coal, which was in short supply
○ Neither humans nor animal were strong enough to provied the power required for
industrial application
Paragraph 2: In the late 1700s James Watt designed an efficient and commercially
viable steam engine that was soon applied to a variety of industrial uses as it became
cheaper to use. The engine helped solve the problem of draining coal mines of
groundwater and increased the production of coal needed to power steam engines
elsewhere. A rotary engine attached to the steam engine enabled shafts to be turned and
machines to be driven, resulting in mills using steam power to spin and weave cotton.
Since the steam engine was fired by coal, the large mills did not need to be located by
rivers, as had mills that used water- driven machines. The shift to increased
mechanization in cotton production is 【apparent】 in the import of raw cotton and the sale
of cotton goods. Between 1760 and 1850, the amount of raw cotton imported increased
230 times. Production of British cotton goods increased sixtyfold, and cotton cloth became
Great Britain’s most important product, accounting for one-half of all exports. The success
of the steam engine resulted in increased demands for coal, and the 【consequent】
increase in coal production was made possible as the steam-powered pumps drained
water from the ever-deeper coal seams found below the water table.
3. Which of the following is NOT mentioned in paragraph 2 as a development in
cotton mills brought about by Watt’s steam engine?
○ The importing og huge quantities of raw cotton by Britain
○ Increased mechanization
○ More possibilities for mill location
○ Smaller mills
4. The phrase “apparent in” in the passage is closest in meaning to
○ clearly seen to
○ aided by
○ associated with
○ followed by
5. According to paragraph 2, what was Britain’s most important export by 1850?
○ Raw cotton
○ Cotton cloth
○ Steam-powered pumps
○ Coal
6. The word “consequent” in the passage is closest in meaning to
○ resulting
○ encouraging
○ well documented
○ immediate
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7. What is the role of paragraph 2 in the passage as a whole?
○ It explains how by increasing the supply of raw materials from other countries,
British industries were able to reduce costs and increase production.
○ It explains how the production of mechanical energy and its benefits spread
quickly across countries that were linked commercially with Great Britain.
○ It demonstrates why development in a single industry could not have caused the
Industrial Revolution.
○ It illustrates why historians have assigned great importance to the issue of energy
in the rise of the Industrial Revolution.
Paragraph 3: The availability of steam power and the demands for new machines
facilitated the transformation of the iron industry. Charcoal, made from wood and thus in
limited supply, was replaced with coal-derived coke (substance left after coal is heated) as
steam-driven bellows came into use for producing of raw iron. Impurities were burnt away
with the use of coke, producing a high-quality refined iron. Reduced cost was also
instrumental in developing steam-powered rolling mills capable of producing finished iron
of various shapes and sizes. The resulting boom in the iron industry expanded the annual
iron output by more than 170 times between 1740 and 1840, and by the 1850s Great
Britain was producing more tons of iron than the rest of the world combined. The
developments in the iron industry were in part a response to the demand for more
machines and the ever-widening use of higher-quality iron in other industries.
8. According to paragraph 3, why was the use of coke important for the iron industry?
○ It helped make wood into charcoal.
○ It reduced the dependency on steam-powered machines used for the prodution of
iron.
○ It replaced charcoal in the prodution of raw and refined iron.
○ It powered the machine used to extract coal in coal mines.
9. According to paragraph 3, all of the following were true of the iron industry in Great
Britain during the 1800s EXCEPT:
○ Steam-driven bellows were used to produce raw iron.
○ By the 1850s Britain was the world’s largest producer of iron.
○ Steam-powered mills made it possible to produce iron of different shapes and
sizes.
○ Greater demand for higher-quality iron increased its price.
Paragraph 4: Steam power and iron combined to revolutionize transport, which in turn
had further implications. Improvements in road construction and sailing had occurred, but
shipping heavy freight over land remained expensive, even with the use of rivers and
canals wherever possible. Parallel rails had long been used in mining operations to move
bigger loads, but horses were still the primary source of power. However, the arrival of the
steam engine 【initiated】 a complete transformation in rail transportation, entrenching
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and expanding the Industrial Revolution. As transportation improved, distant and larger
markets within the nation could be reached, thereby encouraging the development of
larger factories to keep pace with increasing sales. Greater productivity and rising
demands provided entrepreneurs with profits that could be reinvested to take advantage
of new technologies to further expand capacity, or to seek alternative investment
opportunities. Also, the availability of jobs in railway construction attracted many rural
laborers 【accustomed to】 seasonal and temporary employment. When the work was
completed, many moved to other construction jobs or to factory work in cities and towns,
where they became part of an expanding working class.
10. The word “initiated” in the passage is closest in meaning to
○ anticipated
○ accelerated
○ spread
○ started
11. Paragraph 4 implies which of the following about the transformation in rail
transportation?
○ Because railway construction employed mostly rural laborers, unemployent
increased among urban workers.
○ It resulted in more trade within the country, but less trade with markers that could
be reached only by ocean shipping.
○ It made shipping freight overland to distant markets less expensive.
○ It resulted in higher wages for factory worker.
12. The phrase “accustomed to” in the passage is closest in meaning to
○ in need of
○ used to
○ tired of
○ encouraged by
13. Look at the four squares [■] that indicate where the following sentence could be
added to the passage.
Steam power and iron combined to revolutionize transport, which in turn had further
implications. Improvements in road construction and sailing had occurred, but shipping
heavy freight over land remained expensive, even with the use of rivers and canals
wherever possible. Parallel rails had long been used in mining operations to move bigger
loads, but horses were still the primary source of power. ■ However, the arrival of the
steam engine initiated a complete transformation in rail transportation, entrenching and
expanding the Industrial Revolution. ■As transportation improved, distant and larger
markets within the nation could be reached, thereby encouraging the development of
larger factories to keep pace with increasing sales. ■ Greater productivity and rising
demands provided entrepreneurs with profits that could be reinvested to take advantage
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of new technologies to further expand capacity, or to seek alternative investment
opportunities. ■ Also, the availability of jobs in railway construction attracted many rural
laborers accustomed to seasonal and temporary employment. When the work was
completed, many moved to other construction jobs or to factory work in cities and towns,
where they became part of an expanding working class.
The first steam-powered locomotives were slow but they rapidly improved in
speed and carrying capacity.
Where would the sentence best fit? Click on a square to add the sentence to the
passage.
14. Directions: An introductory sentence for a brief summary of the passage is
provided below. Complete the summary by selecting the THREE answer choices that
express the most important ideas in the passage. Some sentences do not belong in the
summary because they express ideas that are not presented in the passage or are minor
ideas in the passage. This question is worth 2 points.
The coming of the Industrial Revolution in eighteenth-century Britain depended
on the development of the steam engine to power machinery.
●
●
●
Answer Choices
○ For years, historians disregared the issue of energy as a major element in the rise
of Industrial Revolution and focused instead on technological developments and inceased
production.
○ The introdution and growth of steam-powered rail transport was a major factor in
Britain’s economic expansion during the Industrial Revolution.
○ An expansion of the Industrial Revolution outside Great Britain occurred when
British industries began to import raw cotton and high-quality iron.
○ By 1850, the use of steam power in Britain’s mills, mines, and iron industry made
Britain a world leader in the production of cotton cloth and iron.
○ Since the basice infrastructure was in place, the Industrial Revolution fueled itself
with enlarging markets requiring ever more expansion of factories and workforce.
○ By the end of the 1800s, railway construction attracted so many laborers that
factories could not find enough workers to keep up with increasing sales.
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答案:
1、C
2、B
3、D
4、A
5、B
6、A
7、D
8、C
9、D
10、D
11、C
12、B
13、B
14、BDE
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Survival of Plants and Animals in Desert Conditions
The harsh conditions in deserts are intolerable for most plants and animals. Despite
these conditions, however, many varieties of plants and animals have adapted to deserts
in a number of ways. Most plant tissues die if their water content falls too low: the nutrients
that feed plants are transmitted by water; water is a raw material in the vital process of
photosynthesis; and water regulates the temperature of a plant by its ability to absorb heat
and because water vapor lost to the atmosphere through the leaves helps to lower plant
temperatures. Water controls the volume of plant matter produced. The distribution of
plants within different areas of desert is also controlled by water. Some areas, because of
their soil texture, topographical position, or distance from rivers or groundwater, have
virtually no water available to plants, whereas others do.
The nature of plant life in deserts is also highly dependent on the fact that they have
to adapt to the prevailing aridity. There are two general classes of vegetation: long-lived
perennials, which may be succulent (water-storing) and are often dwarfed and woody, and
annuals or ephemerals, which have a short life cycle and may form a fairly dense stand
immediately after rain.
The ephemeral plants evade drought. Given a year of favorable precipitation, such
plants will develop vigorously and produce large numbers of flowers and fruit. This
replenishes the seed content of the desert soil. The seeds then lie dormant until the next
wet year, when the desert blooms again.
The perennial vegetation adjusts to the aridity by means of various avoidance
mechanisms. Most desert plants are probably best classified as xerophytes. They
possess drought-resisting adaptations: loss of water through the leaves is reduced by
means of dense hairs covering waxy leaf surfaces, by the closure of pores during the
hottest times to reduce water loss, and by the rolling up or shedding of leaves at the
beginning of the dry season. Some xerophytes, the succulents (including cacti), store
water in their structures. Another way of countering drought is to have a limited amount of
mass above ground and to have extensive root networks below ground. It is not unusual
for the roots of some desert perennials to extend downward more than ten meters. Some
plants are woody in type — an adaptation designed to prevent collapse of the plant tissue
when water stress produces wilting. Another class of desert plant is the phreatophyte.
These have adapted to the environment by the development of long taproots that
penetrate downward until they approach the assured water supply provided by
groundwater. Among these plants are the date palm, tamarisk, and mesquite. They
commonly grow near stream channels, springs, or on the margins of lakes.
Animals also have to adapt to desert conditions, and they may do it through two forms
of behavioral adaptation: they either escape or retreat. Escape involves such actions as
aestivation, a condition of prolonged dormancy, or torpor, during which animals reduce
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their metabolic rate and body temperature during the hot season or during very dry spells.
Seasonal migration is another form of escape, especially for large mammals or birds.
The term retreat is applied to the short-term escape behavior of desert animals, and it
usually assumes the pattern of a daily rhythm. Birds shelter in nests, rock overhangs,
trees, and dense shrubs to avoid the hottest hours of the day, while mammals like the
kangaroo rat burrow underground.
Some animals have behavioral, physiological, and morphological (structural)
adaptations that enable them to withstand extreme conditions. For example, the ostrich
has plumage th
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