China Meteorological(气象的) Administration (CMA) issued a red alert(警报) — the highest in China’s four-tier weather warning system for extreme heat — for certain parts of China. Scientists believe this year’s heat wave is the strongest in China ever since the country started meteorological observations in 1961.

The high temperature caused drought in many parts of China, including Henan, one of the biggest food producers in the country, and many provinces alongside the Yangtze River. About 20 percent of Hubei is now experiencing drought, according to reports. The Henan provincial government issued a notice asking local governments to closely monitor the drought, and to divert(转移) water in a scientific manner. It also asked officials to exploit new water sources for people in drought areas.

__________ According to statistics from State Grid Corporation of China, electricity sales in Shanghai increased 38.41 percent in July, compared with the same period last year, and the figure rose to 40.24 percent in the first week of August. Many places recently announced plans to restrict companies with high power consumption. Experts said that the demand for electricity keeps increasing because of high temperature, which pushes high the electricity consumption at peak hours. In order to relieve the pressure of peak demand, governments encourage users to shift away from peak time usage of electricity.

Some tourist spots also closed because of the high temperature. Operator of the Giant Buddha of Leshan, one of the most important cultural treasures of China, announced on Sunday that it will close the feet area of the statue to tourists because of the high temperature. Meanwhile, management of Chishui waterfall in Zunyi City, Southwest China’s Guizhou Province, said on Saturday that it has closed the waterfall spot, because the upper stream of the waterfall has dried up due to high temperature.

The high temperature starts early, leaves late and lasts long, and this will become more and more obvious in the future. Such “new normality” poses challenges to China’s economic development. Something must be done to cope with those challenges.

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1.Why are officials asked to develop new water sources?

A To lower the high temperature.

B To eliminate the extreme heat.

C To improve the quality of water.

D To relieve the severe drought.

解析：选D。D 细节理解题。根据第二段第一句的“The high temperature caused drought in many parts of China”和最后一句的“it asked officials to exploit new water sources for people in drought areas”可知，极端高温引起的干旱使得河南粮食产量受到影响。针对河南高温少雨天气仍将持续这一情况，省防办要求各级各有关部门加强旱情监测研判、科学调度调配并开发新的水源。故选D。

2.Which of the following sentences can be put in the blank in the third paragraph?

A Residents tend to use the air conditioning to cool down.

B Many companies are ordered to shut down air conditioning.

C The high temperature is also pushing usage of electricity to a limit.

D The extreme heat, however, has a greater impact on people’s daily life.

解析：选C。C 推理判断题。文章第三段主要讲述了极端高温天气下的用电量猛增，并列举了一些数据进行佐证。因此C项的“高温也使用电量达到极限”符合文意。故选C。

3.The text mentions the impact of the extreme heat on all the following EXCEPT_______.

A agriculture

B transportation

C industry

D tourism

解析：选B。B 细节理解题。文章第二三四段分别介绍了高温天气对中国农业、工商业以及旅游业的影响，并没有提到对交通的影响。故选B。

4.If there were one more paragraph, the author would most probably talk about_______.

A the ways to cope with “new normality”

B the challenges China faces

C the reason for the high temperature

D the pace of economic growth

解析：选A。 A 推理判断题。根据最后一段最后一句的“Something must be done to cope with those challenges.”可知，这种持续的热浪在未来将成为“新常态”，而这种“新常态”对中国的经济发展构成了挑战，我们需要一些措施来应对这些挑战。因此可推测出作者下一段很可能会向我们介绍一些应对措施。故选A。