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  3. In describing the way a seafloor disturbance such as movement along a fault reshapes the sea surface into a tsunami, mode

In describing the way a seafloor disturbance such as movement along a fault reshapes the sea surface into a tsunami, mode

admin2011-01-17  67
问题             In describing the way a seafloor disturbance such as movement along a fault
       reshapes the sea surface into a tsunami, modelers assume the sea-surface
       displacement is identical to that of the ocean bottom, but direct measurements
Line    of seafloor motion have never been available. Researchers presently use an
(5)      idealized model of the quake: they assume that the crustal plates slip past one
       another along a simple, rectangular plane. As modelers scramble to guide
       tsunami survey teams immediately after an earthquake, only the orientation of
       the assumed fault plane and the quake’s location, magnitude and depth can be
       interpreted from the seismic data alone.
(10)        As all other parameters must be estimated, this first simulation frequently
       underestimates inundation, which can signify that the initial tsunami height was
       also understated when the single-plane fault model distributes seismic energy
       over too large an area.  Analyses of seismic data cannot resolve energy
       distribution patterns any shorter than the seismic waves themselves, which
(15)     extend for several hundred kilometers, but long after the tsunami strikes land,
       modelers can work backward from records of run-up and additional earthquake
       data to refine the tsunami’s initial height. For example, months of aftershocks
       eventually reveal patterns of seismic energy that are concentrated in regions
       much smaller than the original, single-plane fault model assumed. When seismic
(20)     energy is focused in a smaller area, the vertical motion of the seafloor-and
       therefore the initial tsunami height-is greater. Satisfactory simulations are
       difficult, but improve immeasurably scientists’ ability to make better
       predictions.
           Propagation of the tsunami transports seismic energy away from the
(25)     earthquake site through undulations of the water, just as shaking moves the
       energy through the earth. At this point, the wave height is so small compared
       with both the wavelength and the water depth that researchers can apply linear
       wave theory, which predicts that the velocity of tsunami increases with the
       depth of the water and the length of the wave. This dependence of wave speed
(30)     on water depth means that refraction by bumps and grooves on the seafloor can
       shift the wave’s direction, especially as it travels into shallow water. In
       particular, wave fronts tend to align parallel to the shoreline so that they wrap
       around a protruding headland before smashing into it with greatly focused
       incident energy. At the same time, each individual wave must also slow down
(35)     because of the decreasing water depth, so they begin to overtake one another,
       decreasing the distance between them in a process called shoaling. Refraction
       and shoaling squeeze the same amount of energy into a smaller volume of water,
       creating higher waves and faster currents. In the last stage of evolution,
       inundation and run-up, in which a tsunami may run ashore as a breaking wave or
(40)     a wall of water or a tide-like flood, the wave height is now so large that it is
       difficult to assess the complicated interaction between the water and the shoreline.
The primary function of the passage as a whole is to
选项 A、introduce a new explanation of a physical phenomenon
B、explain how a physical phenomenon is measured and described
C、illustrate the limitations of applying mathematics to complicated physical phenomena
D、indicate the direction that research into a particular physical phenomenon should take
E、clarify the differences between an old explanation of a physical phenomenon and a new model of it
答案B
解析
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