2014考研英語:閱讀經典試題及詳解(二)_跨考網
2014考研英語:閱讀經典試題及詳解(二)
The fossil remains of the first flying vertebrates, the pterosaurs, have intrigued paleontologists for more than two centuries. How such large creatures, which weighed in some cases as much as a piloted hang-glider and had wingspans from 8 to 12 meters, solved the problems of powered flight, and exactly what these creatures were — reptiles or birds — are among the questions scientists have puzzled over.
Perhaps the least controversial assertion about the pterosaurs is that they were reptiles. Their skulls, pelvises, and hind feet are reptilian. The anatomy of their wings suggests that they did not evolve into the class of birds. In pterosaurs a greatly elongated fourth finger of each forelimb supported a winglike membrane. The other fingers were short and reptilian, with sharpclaws. In birds the second finger is the principal strut of the wing, which consists primarily of feathers. If the pterosaurs walked on all fours, the three short fingers may have been employed for grasping. When a pterosaur walked or remained stationary, the fourth finger, and with it the wing, could only turn upward in an extended inverted V shape along each side of the animal’s body.
The pterosaurs resembled both birds and bats in their overall structure and proportions. This is not surprising because the design of any flying vertebrate is subject to aerodynamic constraints. Both the pterosaurs and the birds have hollow bones, a feature that represents a savings in weight. In the birds, however, these bones are reinforced more massively by internal struts.
Although scales typically cover reptiles, the pterosaurs probably had hairy coats. T. H. Huxley reasoned that flying vertebrates must have been warm-blooded because flying implies a high rate of metabolism, which in turn implies a high internal temperature. Huxley speculated that a coat of hair would insulate against loss of body heat and might streamline the body to reduce drag in flight. The recent discovery of a pterosaur specimen covered in long, dense, and relatively thick hairlike fossil material was the first clear evidence that his reasoning was correct.
Efforts to explain how the pterosaurs became airborne have led to suggestions that they launched themselves by jumping from cliffs, by dropping from trees, or even by rising into light winds from the crests of waves. Each hypothesis has its difficulties. The first wrongly assumes that the pterosaurs’ hind feet resembled a bat’s and could serve as hooks by which the animal could hang in preparation for flight. The second hypothesis seems unlikely because large pterosaurs could not have landed in trees without damaging their wings. The third calls for high waves to channel updrafts. The wind that made such waves however, might have been too strong for the pterosaurs to control their flight once airborne.
2022考研初復試已經接近尾聲,考研學子全面進入2023屆備考,跨考為23考研的考生準備了10大課包全程準備、全年復習備考計劃、目標院校專業(yè)輔導、全真復試模擬練習和全程針對性指導;2023考研的小伙伴針也已經開始擇校和復習了,跨考考研暢學5.0版本全新升級,無論你在校在家都可以更自如的完成你的考研復習,暑假集訓營帶來了院校專業(yè)初步選擇,明確方向;考研備考全年規(guī)劃,核心知識點入門;個性化制定備考方案,助你贏在起跑線,早出發(fā)一點離成功就更近一點!
考研院校專業(yè)選擇和考研復習計劃 | |||
2023備考學習 | 2023線上線下隨時學習 | 34所自劃線院??佳袕驮嚪謹稻€匯總 | |
2022考研復試最全信息整理 | 全國各招生院??佳袕驮嚪謹稻€匯總 | ||
2023全日制封閉訓練 | 全國各招生院??佳姓{劑信息匯總 | ||
2023考研先知 | 考研考試科目有哪些? | 如何正確看待考研分數線? | |
不同院校相同專業(yè)如何選擇更適合自己的 | 從就業(yè)說考研如何擇專業(yè)? | ||
手把手教你如何選專業(yè)? | 高校研究生教育各學科門類排行榜 |
相關推薦
跨考考研課程
班型 | 定向班型 | 開班時間 | 高定班 | 標準班 | 課程介紹 | 咨詢 |
秋季集訓 | 沖刺班 | 9.10-12.20 | 168000 | 24800起 | 小班面授+專業(yè)課1對1+專業(yè)課定向輔導+協(xié)議加強課程(高定班)+專屬規(guī)劃答疑(高定班)+精細化答疑+復試資源(高定班)+復試課包(高定班)+復試指導(高定班)+復試班主任1v1服務(高定班)+復試面授密訓(高定班)+復試1v1(高定班) | |
2023集訓暢學 | 非定向(政英班/數政英班) | 每月20日 | 22800起(協(xié)議班) | 13800起 | 先行階在線課程+基礎階在線課程+強化階在線課程+真題階在線課程+沖刺階在線課程+專業(yè)課針對性一對一課程+班主任全程督學服務+全程規(guī)劃體系+全程測試體系+全程精細化答疑+擇校擇專業(yè)能力定位體系+全年關鍵環(huán)節(jié)指導體系+初試加強課+初試專屬服務+復試全科標準班服務 |