第一节 阅读下列短文，从 A、B、C、D 四个选项中选出最佳选项。（每小题1.5分，共15分）
A 跨学科 数学
The Pythagorean theorem(勾股定理)，$a^2 + b^2 = c^2$，is a big maths idea. It tells us that in a right triangle, the square of the longest side is the sum of the squares of the other two sides.
In school, the Pythagorean theorem allows students to work out the length of the third side of a right triangle when the other two are known. In real life, it helps planes find the shortest way to fly. People who design buildings use this maths idea too.
When this idea first appeared, many people tried to show it was true in different ways, and there were about 370 different ways to do this. In 1927, a mathematician(数学家) named Elisha Loomis said that proving this with trigonometry(三角学) was impossible. His reason was that you can’t prove an idea is true by using the idea itself. However, a mathematician named Jason Zimba first proved it successfully in 2009. And the second proof was published six years later by mathematician Nuno Luzia. In 2022, two high school students, Ne’Kiya Jackson and Calcea Johnson, also found a way to prove the Pythagorean theorem based on trigonometry.
In March 2023, the two showed their work at a maths meeting. Publishing their findings was challenging, and they had to learn new skills. Encouraged by Zimba’s proof, they developed more proofs. One of them includes filling a large triangle with smaller triangles and using maths to find side lengths.
This amazed other mathematicians. Jackson and Johnson also left five proofs for others to explore, which give a starting point for more research. Their journey shows that exploring maths is timeless and exciting, and that the new way of thinking encourages more young mathematicians to be creative and challenges the usual rules.
（
B
）1. What is the main idea of Paragraph 2?
A. Showing how to find the longest side of a triangle.
B. Describing how the Pythagorean theorem is used in study and life.
C. Explaining why the Pythagorean theorem is difficult to prove.
D. Explaining why buildings are designed with the Pythagorean theorem.
（
D
）2. Why did Elisha Loomis think it was impossible to prove the theorem with trigonometry?
A. Because trigonometry is only for dealing with angles.
B. Because trigonometry was not well developed at that time.
C. Because mathematicians didn’t know much about triangles.
D. Because he believed that the same idea shouldn’t be used to prove itself.
（
A
）3. Who first proved the Pythagorean theorem with trigonometry?
A. Jason Zimba. B. Calcea Johnson. C. Nuno Luzia. D. Ne’Kiya Jackson.
（
C
）4. What does the underlined word “This” in Paragraph 4 refer to?
A. Sharing their ideas at a maths meeting.
B. Publishing their findings successfully.
C. The new way they used to prove the theorem.
D. Dividing a larger triangle into smaller ones.
（
A
）5. What can we learn from Paragraph 4?
A. New ways of thinking can lead to further development in maths.
B. The theorem has already been proved in the best way.
C. Exploring maths is less interesting than other school subjects.
D. Young people prefer learning skills to exploring new ideas.
