托福阅读真题+题目+答案：Hydroculture

托福阅读真题+题目+答案：Hydroculture

Reading Paragraph 1

The world is in the middle of a food crisis. Opinions differ as to its severity, but most accept that the crisis is real and potentially poses a major threat to the health and food supply of a large proportion of the global population. The roots of the crisis are diverse, but among them are two primary factors. The first of these is changing weather patterns and extreme weather events. Simply put, a number of previously productive agricultural regions are no longer as fertile as they once were because of the weather. And second, many farmers have found that they can get a better return growing biofuels than raising crops. As a result, large areas of valuable cropland are no longer being used for this end. Conventional agriculture is ill-suited to solve the food crisis, but hydroculture might be a potential solution.

1. The word severity in paragraph 1 most likely means

a. Conversion

b. Deployment

c. Opportunity

d. Seriousness

2. What does the author say about the food crisis in paragraph 1?

a. It could be solved by limiting the global production and use of biofuels

b. Its causes are related to a reduction in farms growing crops

c. Its main effect is that major agricultural regions have become less fertile

d. It has already had a major impact on the health of the world’s population

3. The phrase this end in paragraph 1 refers to

a. Large areas

b. Raising crops

c. Growing biofuels

d. Many farmers

Reading Paragraph 2

As its name suggests, hydroculture typically involves growing plants in nutrient-rich water rather than in soil. Hydroponics is the most widely-known method of hydroculture. Some believe it has significant potential to reduce the impact of the food crisis by allowing farmers to produce large quantities of food in a sustainable and cost-effective way. In a typical hydroponic system, crops are grown indoors in controlled environments. The plants grow in containers filled with water and the nutrients that they need to thrive. These nutrients vary depending on the crop being grown but typically include nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus, calcium, iron, zinc, and copper, among other trace elements. A light source provides the energy the sun would usually deliver.

4. What does the author say about hydroponics in paragraph 2?

a. The food crisis will be greater without food from hydroponic farms

b. Food that has been grown hydroponically costs less than all other food

c. The goal of hydroponic farms is to produce food in a sustainable way

d. Hydroponically-grown plants need a source of water, energy, and food

Reading Paragraph 3

In so-called static systems, the nutrient solution is changed or replaced either according to a schedule or when the plants require it. In continuous-flow systems, the nutrient solution flows constantly past the roots of the plants. Although it may seem like a technologically sophisticated form of agriculture, scientists have been experimenting with hydroculture since at least 1627. Early experiments showed that plants grow best when raised in water that is rich in various nutrients rather than in distilled water. By the early decades of the twentieth century, the concept of hydroponics was becoming more widely known and some commercial applications of the technology were even in place. These days, even NASA, the US government agency in charge of space missions, is researching hydroponics.

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