Passage Two Questions 26 to 30 are based on the following passage:
An important new industry, oil refining, grew after the Civil War. Crude oil, or petroleum1a dark, thick ooze（渗出物，分泌物）from the earthhad been known for hundreds of years. But little use had ever been made of it. In the 1850s Samuel M. Kier, a manufacturer in western Pennsylvania, began collecting the oil from local seepage2 and refining it into kerosene3. Refining, like smelting4, is a process of removing impurities5 from a raw material.
Kerosene was used to light lamps. It was a cheap substitute for whale oil, which was becoming harder to get. Soon there was a large demand for kerosene. People began to search for new supplies of petroleum.
The first oil well was drilled by E.L.Drake,a retired6 railroad conductor.In 1859he began drilling in Titusville,Pennsylvania.The so impractical7 and foolish that onlookers8 called itDrakes Folly9.But when he had drilled down about 70 feet,Drake struck oil.His well began to yield 20 barrels of crude oil a day.
News of Drakes success brought oil prospectors10 to the scene. By the early 1860s these wildcatters were drilling for black gold all over western Pennsylvania. The boom rivaled the California gold rush of 1848 in its excitement and Wild West atmosphere. And it brought far more wealth to the prospectors than any gold rush.
Crude oil could be refined into many products. For some years kerosene continued to be the principal one. It was sold in grocery stores and door-to-door. In the 1880s and 1890s refiners learned how to make other products such as waxes and lubricating oils. Petroleum was not then used to make gasoline or heating oil.
26.According to the passage, many people initially11 thought that E. L. Drake had made a mistake by .
A) moving Pennsylvania
B) retiring from his job
C) searching for oil
D) going on a whaling expedition
27.According to the passage, what is black gold?
A) gold ore B) stolen money C) whale oil D) crude oil
28.Why does the author mention the California gold rush?
A) To indicate the extent of United States mineral wealth.
B) To argue that gold was more valuable than oil.
C) To describe the mood when oil was first discovered.
D) To explain the need for an increased supply of gold.
29.The author mentions all of the following as possible products of crude oil EXCEPT.
A) gasoline B) kerosene C) wax D) plastic
30.What might be the best title for the passage?
A) Oil Refining: A Historical Perspective.
B) Kerosene Lamps: A Light in the Tunnel.
C) The California Gold Rush: Get Rich Quickly.
D) Private Property: Trespassers Will Be Prosecuted12.
内容概要:本文讲述的美国内战后进步起来的新兴工业--炼油业的有关状况。19世纪50年代一位名叫Samuel M. Kier的人初次炼出了煤油。它的出现取代了鲸油供大家电灯照明。E. L. Drake是第一个钻井成功的人。他的成功为将来很多的勘探者带来了取之不尽的财富。
26.C。
很多人开始时觉得E. L. Drake搜寻石油的做法是不对的。
细节辨析题，通过理解原文即可推理得知答案。
依据文章第三段对该事件的描述，得知E. L. Drake这位退休列车长试图在 Pennsylvania 的Titusville钻井，但旁观者觉得其行为非常不现实甚至非常愚蠢，直到他打到70英尺深处打出石油。因此，答案应是C。
27.D。
依据文章内容，black gold（黑色黄金）指的是原油。
细节辨析题，通过理解原文即可推理得知答案。
文章第一段第二句话对原油进行了明确的介绍：原油也叫石油，是地下的一种黑色渗出物。这里的黑色渗出物也就是第3段谈到的E. L. Drake试图开采的东西，即第4段所谓的black gold（黑色黄金）。因此，正确答案是D。
28.C。
作者提到加州的淘金热，目的是描述石油被初次发现时带给大家的激动情绪。
综合剖析推理题，通过理解原文即可推理得知答案。
文章第4段提到加州淘金热时，原文写道：The boom rivaled the California gold rush of 1848 in its excitement意思是说（当时大家投入开采黑色黄金的）热潮可以与1848年的加州淘金热相媲美。这显然是为了向读者描述石油被初次发现时带给大家的激动情绪，因此选C。
29.D。
作者在文中提到由原油生产出的商品不包含塑料。
细节辨析题，通过理解原文即可推理得知答案。
依据文章第一段就得知煤油（B. kerosene）是原油提炼出来的；再依据文章最后一段，得知汽油（A. gasoline）和蜡（C. wax）也是由原油生产而来，所以本题的正确答案应是D。
30.A。
可以作为本文题目的是：炼油的历史变迁。
综合剖析总结推论题，依据全文内容概括得出答案。
依据全文内容，本文主如果介绍炼油的历史，正确答案是A。选项B, C, D的中心词分别是煤油灯、加州淘金热、私有财产，显然都不妥。
