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Oceanography has been defined as “The application of all sciences to the study of the sea”.
Before the nineteen century, scientists with an interest in the sea were few and far between. Certainly Newton considered some theoretical aspects of it in his writings, but he was reluctant to go to sea to further his work.
For most people the sea was remote, and with the exception of early intercontinental travelers or others who earned a living from the sea, there was little reason to ask many questions about it, let alone to ask what lay beneath the surface. The first time that question “What is at the bottom of the oceans?” had tobe answered with any commercial consequence was when the laying of a telegraph cable from Europe to America was proposed. The had to know the depth profile(起伏形狀)of the route to estimate the length of cable that had to be , and with the exception of early intercontinental travelers or others who earned a living from the sea, there was little reason to ask many questions about it, let alone to ask whatlay beneath the surface. The first time that question “What is at the bottom of the oceans?” had to be answered with any commercial consequence was when the laying of a telegraph cable from Europe to America was proposed. The engineers had to know the depth profile(起伏形狀)of the route to estimate the length of cable that had to be manufactured.
It was to Maury of the US Navy that the Atlantic Telegraph Company turned, in 1853, for information on this matter. In the 1840s, Maury had been responsible for encouraging voyages during which soundings(測身) were taken to investigate the depths of the North Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Later, some of his findings aroused much popular interest in his book The Physical Geography of the Sea.
The cable was laid, but not until 1866 was the connection made permanent and reliable. At the early attempts, the cable failed and when it was taken out for repairs it was found to be covered in living growths, afact which defied contemporary scientific opinion that there was no life in the deeper parts of the sea.
Within a few years oceanography was under way. In 1872 Thomson led a scientific expedition(考察), which lasted for four years and brought home thousands of samples from the sea. Their classification and analysis occupied scientists for years and led to a five-volume report, the last volume being published in 1895.
練習題：
Choose correct answers to the question:
1. The proposal to lay a telegraph cable from Europe to America made oceanographic studies take on ______.
A. an academic aspect
B. a military aspect
C. a business aspect
D. an international aspect
2. It was ______ that asked Maury for help in oceanographic studies.
A. the American Navy
B. some early intercontinental travelers
C. those who earned a living from the sea
D. the company which proposed to lay an undersea cable
3. The aim of the voyages Maury was responsible for in the 1840s was ______.
A. to make some sounding experiments in the oceans
B. to collect samples of sea plants and animals
C. to estimate the length of cable that was needed
D. to measure the depths of the two oceans
4. “Defied” in the 5th paragraph probably means “______”.
A. doubted
B. gave proof to
C. challenged
D. agreed to
5. This passage is mainly about ______.
A. the beginnings of oceanography
B. the laying of the first undersea cable
C. the investigation of ocean depths
D. the early intercontinental communications
答案解析1.[C] 亊實判斷題。文章第3段第2句提到，這個問題的解答是具有商業結果的。C中的business為原文中commercial 同義改寫，故選C。
2.[D] 細節題。文章第4段首句為一個強調句，強調的是賓語。題幹也是一個強調句型，但強調的是主語。如果把原文的強調句型改為一般的句型，就知道向Maury尋求幫助的是the Atlantic Telegraph Company.故答案為D。A是Maury的`工作單位，可以排除;原文只提到對於一些早期的穿越洲際的旅行家和依靠海洋維持生計的人，海洋並不遙遠，故B、C與題意不符。
3.[D] 亊實判斷題。文章第4段提到，19世紀40年代，Maury負責推動進行測深工作的海上航行，以此來探測北大西洋與太平洋的深度.故選D。
4.[C] 詞義推斷題。當時的科學觀點是海洋較深的地方不存在生命，而事實上在電纜表面發現了活的生物.由此可知這一亊實對當時的科學觀點提出質疑，故答案為C。
5.[A] 主旨題。通讀全文可知，oceanography(海洋學)是全文的中心詞，本文主要講述海洋學是如何起步的，故答案為A 。B、C只表述了原文中個別細節，並非主題;D跟全文無關。
