Reading Comprehension Text 2
“The ancient Hawaiians were astronomers,” wrote Queen Liliuokalani, Hawaii’s last reigning monarch, in 1897. Star watchers were among the most esteemed members of Hawaiian society. Sadly, all is not well with astronomy in Hawaii today. Protests have erupted over construction of the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT), a giant observatory that promises to revolutionize humanity’s view of the cosmos.
At issue is the TMT’s planned location on Mauna Kea, a dormant volcano worshiped by some Hawaiians as the piko, that connects the Hawaiian Islands to the heavens. But Mauna Kea is also home to some of the world’s most powerful telescopes. Rested in the Pacific Ocean, Mauna Kea’s peak rises above the bulk of our planet’s dense atmosphere, where conditions allow telescopes to obtain images of unsurpassed clarity.
Opposition to telescopes on Mauna Kea is nothing new. A small but vocal group of Hawaiians and environmentalists have long viewed their presence as disrespect for sacred land and a painful reminder of the occupation of what was once a sovereign nation.
Some blame for the current controversy belongs to astronomers. In their eagerness to build bigger telescopes, they forgot that science is not the only way of understanding the world. They did not always prioritize the protection of Mauna Kea’s fragile ecosystems or its holiness to the island’s inhabitants. Hawaiian culture is not a relic of the past; it is a living culture undergoing a renaissance today.
Yet science has a cultural history, too, with roots going back to the dawn of civilization. The same curiosity to find what lies beyond the horizon that first brought early Polynesians to Hawaii’s shores inspires astronomers today to explore the heavens. Calls to disassemble all telescopes on Mauna Kea or to ban future development there ignore the reality that astronomy and Hawaiian culture both seek to answer big questions about who we are, where we come from and where we are going. Perhaps that is why we explore the starry skies, as if answering a primal calling to know ourselves and our true ancestral homes.
The astronomy community is making compromises to change its use of Mauna Kea. The TMT site was chosen to minimize the telescope’s visibility around the island and to avoid archaeological and environmental impact. To limit the number of telescopes on Mauna Kea, old ones will be removed at the end of their lifetimes and their sites returned to a natural state. There is no reason why everyone cannot be welcomed on Mauna Kea to embrace their cultural heritage and to study the stars.
26. Queen Liliuokalani’s remark in Paragraph 1 indicates
27. Mauna Kea is deemed as an ideal astronomical site due to
28. The construction of the TMT is opposed by some locals partly because
29. It can be inferred from Paragraph 5 that progress in today’s astronomy
30. The author’s attitude toward choosing Mauna Kea as the TMT site is one of
答案与解析 (Answers)
26. [B] the importance of astronomy in ancient Hawaiian society.
解析：第一段提到女王说古代夏威夷人就是天文学家，且观测者是社会中最受尊敬的成员，这说明了天文学在古代夏威夷社会的重要性。
27. [A] its geographical features.
解析：第二段提到冒纳凯亚火山山峰高出稠密的大气层，条件允许获得无与伦比的清晰图像，这些都属于其地理特征。
28. [B] it reminds them of a humiliating history.
解析：第三段指出，当地人将望远镜视为“a painful reminder of the occupation of what was once a sovereign nation”，即提醒他们那段被占领的屈辱历史。
29. [A] is fulfilling the dreams of ancient Hawaiians.
解析：第五段指出，早期波利尼西亚人来到夏威夷岸边的“同一种好奇心”激励着今天的天文学家探索上苍。天文学和夏威夷文化都在寻求关于“我们是谁”的大问题的答案，暗示了今天的进步正在实现古人的梦想。
30. [D] full approval.
解析：最后一段提到天文学界正在做出妥协，减少环境影响，并总结道“没有理由不欢迎每个人……既拥抱文化遗产又研究群星”，体现了作者对选址的全力支持和乐观态度。
核心长难句精解 (Highlighted Sentences)
1. 过去分词短语作状语：
"Rested in the Pacific Ocean, Mauna Kea’s peak rises above the bulk of our planet’s dense atmosphere, where conditions allow telescopes to obtain images of unsurpassed clarity."
【解析】Rested in... 是过去分词短语作状语。where 引导定语从句修饰 atmosphere，解释了地理位置带来的观测优势。unsurpassed clarity 是高频表达。
【翻译】冒纳凯亚火山坐落在太平洋中，其顶峰高耸于地球稠密大气层的主体之上，那里的条件使望远镜能够获得清晰度无与伦比的图像。
"Rested in the Pacific Ocean, Mauna Kea’s peak rises above the bulk of our planet’s dense atmosphere, where conditions allow telescopes to obtain images of unsurpassed clarity."
【解析】Rested in... 是过去分词短语作状语。where 引导定语从句修饰 atmosphere，解释了地理位置带来的观测优势。unsurpassed clarity 是高频表达。
【翻译】冒纳凯亚火山坐落在太平洋中，其顶峰高耸于地球稠密大气层的主体之上，那里的条件使望远镜能够获得清晰度无与伦比的图像。
2. 否定词引导的宾语从句：
"Calls to disassemble all telescopes... ignore the reality that astronomy and Hawaiian culture both seek to answer big questions about who we are, where we come from and where we are going."
【解析】ignore the reality that... 中 that 引导同位语从句。从句中包含了三个宾语从句作为介词 about 的宾语，形成排比，强调了科学与文化的共性。
【翻译】要求拆除所有望远镜的呼声忽视了这样一个现实：天文学和夏威夷文化都在寻求回答关于我们是谁、从哪里来以及往哪里去的重大问题。
"Calls to disassemble all telescopes... ignore the reality that astronomy and Hawaiian culture both seek to answer big questions about who we are, where we come from and where we are going."
【解析】ignore the reality that... 中 that 引导同位语从句。从句中包含了三个宾语从句作为介词 about 的宾语，形成排比，强调了科学与文化的共性。
【翻译】要求拆除所有望远镜的呼声忽视了这样一个现实：天文学和夏威夷文化都在寻求回答关于我们是谁、从哪里来以及往哪里去的重大问题。
3. 虚拟语气与比喻：
"Perhaps that is why we explore the starry skies, as if answering a primal calling to know ourselves and our true ancestral homes."
【解析】as if 引导虚拟语气，将科学探索比喻为对原始召唤的回应，提升了文章的哲理高度。
【翻译】或许这正是我们探索繁星闪烁的夜空的原因，仿佛在响应一种了解我们自身和真正的祖先家园的原始召唤。
"Perhaps that is why we explore the starry skies, as if answering a primal calling to know ourselves and our true ancestral homes."
【解析】as if 引导虚拟语气，将科学探索比喻为对原始召唤的回应，提升了文章的哲理高度。
【翻译】或许这正是我们探索繁星闪烁的夜空的原因，仿佛在响应一种了解我们自身和真正的祖先家园的原始召唤。