2021考研英语：新题型的答题分析
考研英语备考很多事情都要提上日程了，看看哪些是该注意的，下面由我为你精心准备了“2021考研英语：新题型的答题分析”，持续关注本站将可以持续获取更多的考试资讯!
2021考研英语：新题型的答题分析
一、弄清考查目的
新题型其实是阅读的一种补充：传统的阅读理解(由于它的分值较高，我们姑且称之为大阅读)是泛读，翻译是精读，新题型则是快速阅读。
快速阅读文章的特点往往是篇幅长、生词多，但由于考题本身相对简单，答题速度就要求很快，如果用做大阅读和翻译题的方法对付这种题型，势必陷入生词难句打击信心、手忙脚乱不知从何下手的窘境。
好在大纲已经告诉我们新题型主要考查"考生对诸如连贯性、一致性等语段特征以及文章结构的理解"，这就暗示我们要用适合新题型的解题方法，巧妙躲避掉众多"拦路虎"，从而大大提高解题的正确率。
二、避免常见错误
第一个错误是完全按照顺序作题
由于新题型是将文章结构补充完整，而且答案还是差额选择，做错一道题很容易造成"一错再错、步步都错"的严重后果，从三年的题目设置来看，第一道题或第一个选项不是很难读懂，就是陷阱太多，"全军覆没"往往就是因为第一道除了差错，后面很难拨乱反正。
第二个错误是试图看懂所有词句看懂所有词句
有三个问题：一是有些超纲词和习惯表达法真的很难看懂，二是考场上不可能有那么多时间，三是新题型并不要求我们这样做，所以试图看懂所有词句是错误的做题方法。
第三个错误是盲目相信词汇复现
错误选项或干扰选项往往都会用词汇复现这种手段欺骗我们，但是我们不要忘了词汇复现既能帮助我们找到答案，也能带我们掉入陷阱，关键是要对相关的句子做出正确的判断。
第四个错误是轻易尝试连蒙带猜
和所有题型一样，新题型里面包含送分题，实在做题困难也不能瞎蒙，要冷静地想办法做对一两道题，连蒙带猜很可能回导致全盘皆输。
三、掌握解题技巧
根据以上分析，我们在此提供一种简单可行的新题型解题办法--四招突围法，具体的做法是：
四、浏览选项
抓关键词浏览选项是指看选项的第一句话，抓关键词则是找出句子里面的主题词(主要是名词和动词)和信号词(比如人名、地名、连接词、数字等)，通过这些词我们往往能反推出文章里应该有的内容，如果能找到这样的内容，答案就会十分清楚，所以我建议把选项里的主题词和信号词找到并划记出来，接着再进行下一步。
五、找突破口
拿送分题一般来说，选项都会有主题词，但不一定有信号词，所以有信号词的选项往往就是突破口，而这些突破口其实就是所谓的"送分题"，从三套真题我们可以总结出每年都有一至两个送分题，一旦把这些送分题搞定，剩下的题不仅会跟着降低难度，而且会让我们感觉更有信心。
六、重点排查做出取舍
在接下来的题目当中，我们就可以按顺序做题了，这时我们要重点看看剩下的空格前后都有什么：如果是补充段落，则可能前后都要看;如果要补充的是段首句或小标题，则重点看空格后面;如果补充段尾句或小标题下面的内容，则重点看空格前面。那些有词汇复现的选项要么就是正确答案，要么就是干扰选项。
七、整体阅读
核实答案阅读整篇文章主要是检查文章的完整性和逻辑性，完整性和逻辑性较好则说明答案正确率较高，反之则较低，整体阅读因此也是一种重要的解题技巧。
2007-2016考研英语新题型归纳总结 （一） 考研英语新题型（七选五或排序题）虽然在分值中占比小，信息量大。但是在考研复习时，你仍然不能忽略它，阴沟里翻船的事常有，只有做好完全的准备，才能打赢考研这场持久战。今天小编为你汇总十年新题型词汇，希望对你复习新题型有所助益。 考研英语复习单词很重要，历年真题里出现的单词更是重要，最为重要。小伙伴们通常都是以四篇传统的大阅读为主要复习的重点，今天小编想送给各位考生的单词是大家容易忽略的一部分，历年真题新题型部分的单词，这一部分的单词也很关键，非常重要。 （一）2007年新题型词汇 Leisure 空闲的，休闲的 Collaborate 合作 figure out 弄清楚，理解 Authentic 真正的 transition 过渡 Clique 小圈子 Setback 挫折 Vaunted 大肆吹嘘的 start-up 开始阶段的 Foggy 朦胧的，模糊的 Unreadiness 未准备好的 Assign 分配 Periodically 定期地 Delay 延迟
Shortcomings 缺点Gratification 满足，满意Canned 录音的 Brainstorm 集思广益，风暴Passive 被动的，消极的Delicate 微妙的 Monotonous 单调的，枯燥的Fledgling 羽毛初长的雏鸟Stretch 一段时间 Naive 幼稚的 Bubble 泡沫，幻想 Conceive 构思 Endeavor 努力，尽力 Option 选择 Sustained 持续的 （二）2008年新题型词汇Draft 草稿 Substantiate 证明，证实Inevitable 不可避免的 Abrupt 突然的
2019年考研英语（二）真题及答案解析 Section I Use of English Directions: Read the following text. Choose the best word （s） for each numbered blank and mark A, B, C or D on the ANSWER SHEET. （10 points） Weighing yourself regularly is a wonderful way to stay aware of any significant weight fluctuations. 1 , when done too often, this habit can sometimes hurt more than it 2 . As for me, weighing myself every day caused me to shift my focus from being generally healthy and physically active to focusing 3 on the scale. That was had to my overall fitness goats. I had gained weight in the form of muscle mass, but thinking only of 4 the number on the scale, I altered my training program. That conflicted with how I needed to train to 5 my goals. I also found that weighing myself daily did not provide an accurate 6 of the hard work and progress I was making in the gym. It takes about three weeks to a month to notice any significant changes in your weight 7 altering your training program. The most 8 changes will be observed in skill level, strength and inches lost. For these 9 , I stopped weighing myself every day and switched to a bimonthly weighing schedule 10 . Since weight loss is not my goal, it is less important for me to 11 my weight each week. Weighing every other week allows me to observe and 12 any significant weight changes. That tells me whether I need to 13 my training program. I use my bimonthly weigh-in 14 to get information about my nutrition as well. If my training intensity remains the same, but I’m constantly 15 and dropping weight, this is a 16 that I need to increase my daily caloric intake. The 17 to stop weighing myself every day has done wonders for my overall health, fitness and well-being. I’m experiencing increased zeal for working out since I no longer carry the burden of a 18 morning weigh-in. I’ve also experienced greater success in achieving my specific fitness goals, 19 I’m training according to those goals, not the numbers on a scale. Rather than 20 over the scale, turn your focus to how you look, feel how your clothes fit and your overall energy level. 1.[A]Besides [B]Therefore [C]Otherwise [D]However 【答案】[C] However 【解析】此处考察逻辑关系。首段提出文章中心：定期称量自己是一种解任何显著的的体重波动的好方法。空格所在句指出：____，如果太频繁，这种习惯有时会造成损害。前文wonderful way（好方法）与后文hurt（损害）形成转折关系，故填入however（然而）。另外，however也是考研完形填空中的高频词。其他选项：therefore（因此），otherwise （否则）和besides（此外）此处不符合语境，故正确答案为[C] However。 2.[A]helps [B]cares [C]warns [D]reduces 【答案】[D] helps
2020考研英语新题型解题思路 下面以2011年考研英语新题型真题为例，为大家讲解考研英语新题型的解题思路。 第一步，浏览各个选项的首末句，在浏览过程中勾画出关键词。 这一步所需时间很短，不需要对词义进行理解。关键词包括逻辑关系类词、指代关系类词、数字人名地名。 指代关系包括： 1.第三人称代词：it，its，he，his，him，she，her，they，their(需要注意的是，不作为词汇线索：当这些代词指代本句话中的内容时;当it本身可以指代天气、时间并且可以做形式主语时。) 2.指示代词：this，that，these，those 3.both、all、each、either、neither等词汇。 4.比较类词汇：如same，identical，as，equal，such，similar，different，other，otherwise，else等。 这样我们在原文中划出的关键词为B段首句中的His，末句中的 Mr.Menand;C段首句中的Equally;D段首句中的such;E段首句中的this;F段首末句均出现Mr.Menand;G段末句中的LouisMenand。 第二步要从已知选项入手，结合词类进行排查。 2011年真题中给出的已知选项是段首的G和段中的E。 G出现在段首，所以寻找线索的话应该看其末句，关键词是一个人名，而且结合整句话可以看到他是首次被提到，按逻辑推理的话接下来应该是对这个人进行介绍或者是他的某些观点将被提及。浏览每段句首，只有[B]Hisconcern 和[F]concludesMrMenand相关，而F中的conclude涉及到的是这个人的总结，应该是出现在文章后部分，所以排除F选项。从E的首末句可以往E的前后推，E的首句中有thisseparation，那上文应该提及到separation或其同义词或词
2021考研英语新题型：熟词生义解析(2) 考研英语有许多题目组成，方便大家及时了解，下面为你精心准备了“2021考研英语新题型：熟词生义解析(2)”，持续关注本站将可以持续获取的考试资讯! 2021考研英语新题型：熟词生义解析(2) He visited the casino, lost the $20 and left. On his second visit he lost $800. The casino issued to him, as a good customer, a "Fun Card", which when used in the casino earns points for meals and drinks, and enables the casino to track the user’s gambling activities. For Williams, those activities become what he calls "electronic heroin".(2006，英语一) Issue 的词意较多，常见意思为“发布，发行”，issue 在本句中，译为发布，和一张娱乐卡和赌场这个场所搭配使用，不符合语境和措辞。本句中，issue熟词生义为“发给，供给”，本句句意为“威廉姆作为一名经常光顾的消费者，赌场发给威廉姆一张娱乐卡，此卡可以让威廉姆在赌场积攒积分，换取食物和饮料，同时，赌场也可以用娱乐卡追踪用户的赌博活动。 [F] For example, wholesale food and drink sales come to $268 billion in France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom in 2000-more than 40 percent of retail sales. Moreover, average overall margins are higher in wholesale than in retail wholesale demand from the food service sector
新题型大纲样题 一、七（六）选五 Directions: In the following text, some sentences have been removed. For Questions 41-45, choose the most suitable one from the list A-G to fit into each of the numbered blanks. There are two extra choices, which do not fit in any of the blanks. Mark your answers on ANSWER SHEET 1. (10 points) Long before Man lived on the Earth, there were fishes, reptiles, birds, insects, and some mammals. Although some of these animals were ancestors of kinds living today, others are now extinct, that is, they have no descendants alive now. 41) ________ Very occasionally the rocks show impression of skin, so that, apart from color, we can build up a reasonably accurate picture of an animal that died millions of years ago. The kind of rock in which the remains are found tells us much about the nature of the original land, often of the plants that grew on it, and even of its climate. 42) ________. Nearly all of the fossils that we know were preserved in rocks formed by water action, and most of these are of animals that lived in or near water. Thus it follows that there must be many kinds of mammals, birds, and insects of which we know nothing. 43) ________ There were also crab-like creatures, whose bodies were covered with a horny substance. The body segments each had two pairs of legs, one pair for walking on the sandy bottom, the other for swimming. The head was a kind of shield with a pair of compound eyes, often with thousands of lenses. They were usually an inch or two long but some were 2 feet. 44) ________. Of these, the ammonites are very interesting and important. They have a shell composed of many chambers, each representing a temporary home of the animal. As the young grew larger it grew a new chamber and sealed off the previous one. Thousands of these can be seen in the rocks on the Dorset Coast. 45) ________. About 75 million years ago the Age of Reptiles was over and most of the groups died out. The mammals quickly developed, and we can trace the evolution of many familiar animals such as the elephant and horse. Many of the later mammals, though now extinct, were known to primitive man and were featured by him in cave paintings and on bone carvings. [A]The shellfish have a long history in the rock and many different kinds are known. [B]Nevertheless, we know a great deal about many of them because their bones and shells have been preserved in the rocks as fossils. From them we can tell their size and shape, how they walked, the kind of food they ate. [C]The first animals with true backbones were the fishes, first known in the rocks of 375 million years ago. About 300 million years ago the amphibians, the animals able to live both on land and in water, appeared. They were giant, sometimes 8 feet long, and many of them lived in the swampy pools in which our coal seam, or layer, formed. The amphibians gave rise to the reptiles and for nearly 150 million years these were the principal forms of life on land, in the
Mba英语二写作历年真题及解析 2016年 Section IV Writing Part A 47。Directions： Suppose you won a translation contest and your friend，Jack，wrote an email to congratulate you and ask for advice on translation。Write him a reply to 1）thank him，and 2）give you advice You should write about 100 on the ANSWER SHEET。 Do not sign your own name at the end of the letter。Use Li Ming instead。 Do not write the address。（10 points） Part B 48。Directions： Write an essay based on the chart below。In your writing，you should 1）interpret the chart，and 2）give your comments。 You should write about 150 words on the ANSWER SHEET。（15 points）
Section IV Writing 47、 [参考范文] Dear Jack， Your letter of congratulations was received。Thank you for your nice words on my winning the c ontest。In the letter， you asked me about the skills to do translation，so the following are my a dvice for you。 Firstly， you should analyze the sentence structure， thus catching the meaning of the sentence。 Secondly， find the proper words to translate the meaning of the source language into the target l anguage。 Thirdly，revise your translation at least three times to check if there are any mistransl ations or missed meanings。 I hope my advice helpful。 Wish to see you soon。 Yours sincerely， Li Ming 第一段：写作内容需涵盖两点：写信目的，表明感谢来自朋友的祝贺;可以采用这样的表达方式：I’m writing to express my gratitude for your congratulation on my success in the translation contest. 第二段：写作内容应以建议为主体。在这个过程中可以把日常我们如何提高的方式写进正文，比如多加练习、多与外国人交流，多多接触国际事务等。本篇老师主要从这些方面进行论述，表达如下As regard to my experience, I would like to offer you some proposals i n this part. First and foremost, I strongly suggest you that you need to practice with painstaking effort in this field. What’s more, you had better have more communication with foreigners, which guarantees that you have a deep understanding of foreign culture. Last but not least, you are supposed to participate in some international events to accumulate a wealth of practical experience. 第三段：再次强调重申写信目的，如Thanks again and I do hope you could take my suggestions into consideration. I wish you have good luck and make a great success in your future study. 落款：Yours sincerely,特别提醒sincerely后面逗号不能丢;签名：Li Ming特别注意Ming 后面一定不能出现句点。 48、 [参考范文] Portrayed in the above pie chart is a survey of college students’ purposes of traveling。 The numb er of students who take traveling as a chance to see beautiful scenes accounts for 37%，while stu dents who would like to travel to relieve pressure from study take up 35 %。 There are several reasons behind the trend revealed in the above chart。To begin with， as the pr esent society is filled with fierce competition， most college students nowadays are under great pr essure to stand out among others or to lunch a decent job after graduation。Therefore， they tend to choose traveling as an outlet to relieve their stress。 Secondly，with the fast advancement of t he living standards of Chinese families， traveling is increasingly affordable to most college stude nts。 For this reason， students prefer to travel to see different views to enjoy themselves or to m ake some friends。 From my perspective， no matter what reason it is for， traveling is of great benefit for students 今年英语二作文的题目比较好写，因为标题和图示非常清晰明白。图表显示了某高校学生旅游目的调查, 考生分析原因的话也会很简单。下面分三段简要地说一下这三段应该怎么写。 第一段主要是描述图表。图表一目了然，数量词百分比也是大家熟悉的词汇，表述数据时，图中有四五组数据，由于字数的限制以及为了写作的便利可以突出较大比例的“欣赏风景”和“缓解压力”，注意引入百分比的表达方式。 第二段给出你的评论，主要写这种情况的原因。主要要结合图表描述的内容从两个方面写起。一方面为什么为了欣赏风景而旅行的目的占37%，另一方面为什么缓解压力会占到33%比例。 最后结尾段落可简要得出结论，这种现象并不奇怪，还将继续下去。
2018考研英语阅读理解新题型复习技巧 考研英语阅读真题怎么做，下面主要说说新题型的做题技巧，大家可以学习一下的一些经验，方便自己考研备考复习。 1.新题型的三类出现方式 新题型一共有三种题型，分别是： 题型1：选择搭配题：5空，在6，7个选项里以补充完整5空。这也就是所谓的七选五题型。 题型2：排序题：7，8个选项排序，已给2，3段的段落位置。 题型3：小标题或概括句：从6，7个选项中选出最恰当的5个标题填入文中空白处。 考试中所有出现的新题型都会从这三类里边出，或者是对它们进行变形（如10年的新题型，6选5）。在这几类题型里边，后两种题型是相对简单的，用我们阅读理解的一些方法就能搞定。 2.新题型复习要打好基础 新题型要想做对，还是要掌握一定的基础知识，建议大家先打好基础，这样子做新题型就不用很担心了。 推荐大家用北大博士吕升运主编的《考研圣经》，这本书把阅读文章中出现的大纲核心词汇和语法进行了详解，基础不好的人结合这
本书，可以很快的读懂文章，如果说能读懂文章，做题的正确率自然而然就会得到提高。 当然，如果说你的做题效率不高的话，可以跟着答案解析学习做题技巧，这样子就能很快的学会相关题型的做题技巧，那么做题正确率肯定会很快的得到提高的。 3.新题型复习重要注意的问题 ●要对数字敏感：我们对一些数字要敏感的，文章有时候是按照时间顺序，或者其它特定的顺序写的。有些时候你根本不用知道题目在说什么，就能够做对题。大家一定要对数字敏感，遇到白给分的题千万要拿住。 ●专有名词：如果你引入一个新的概念或者一个新的专有名词，那么你要先介绍它，这就不免在一个段落或连续的几个段落多次出现这个专有名词。所以对于反复出现的专有名词，往往是解题的关键。 ●基本做题思路：整体通读可以帮助你掌握整篇文章的中心主线，即文章的主题或者作者文中的态度倾向；精读就是要求你分段分层的理解文章和作者的旨意；在粗读和精读后，建议你自己设计几个问题来思考，这样更容易把握文章的脉络和结构进行细节分析。 下面系统推荐一下历届学长学姐大力推荐的考研英语一辅导书
2018考研英语一、二新题型及完型深度 解析 各位参加2015年考研考试的亲爱学子大家好，这次考试英语顺利的落下了帷幕，大家特别关心今年新题型和完形填空，我用一点时间讲讲新题型和完形填空的情况。 {C}一、{C}新题型考察简单 {C}1、{C}英语一：段落句子填空题 首先完形填空新题型纯粹是波澜不惊，他基本上保持了考研英语命题稳健的基本优点。今年在考试过程中，我们说不管是英语一还是英语二的题型，基本上让广大的考生考出自己的水平。 另外，今年的题型比较简单。比如说在2014年初考试的时候，英语一的新题型考到了培训，而这次新题型考的是常见的段落句子填空题。 这篇文章出题风格和往年不一样，往年往往是五个独立段落，或者是在某一段的最后一段出一道题，比如说42题、43题，都是在我们的段尾出题，但是41、44、45都是段落中间出的题，这一点在降低难度，而不是在提高难度。 这篇文章注意一下来自于马丁所著的一本书《阅读的方法》讲的是高级阅读技巧，这本书的第一单元就是这个。 以下是英语一新题型参考答案： 41题正确答案选的是C。非常简单，只要找到这篇文章只要对一下就全出来了。这里我们说最主要的是这句话，对于这句话我们41题选择的是C，在这里这个词它也可以对应后面的句子。 42题是E。你可以做进一步的推理，关于这个课文的重要。我们之所以选择E，因为E 空前的两句都重复了“推理”这样的字眼。还有E段的最后也提出了读者的推测。所以选择E。 43题是G。这个考点和去年的考点差不多。 44题是B。B选项的意思是因素。 45题是A。A具体描述了许多不同的阅读路径和方式，这是对45空前后的细化。 2、英语二：小标题题 对于英语二的新题型这次考的小标题题，这一点老师们和同学民都预测到了，而今天考的小标题题又是简单的。 这里说一下英语二的新题型。今年考的是要小标题题，这篇文章选自外国网站上的文章。他讲的是能够帮助你渡过困难时刻的一些古老的秘诀，能够帮助你渡过人生比较困难的时刻。 对于这篇文章相对来说比较简单，我们找到了这篇文章在网站上的出处，你会发现我们的命题人越来越中规中矩。我们知道命题人在很大的程度上要和全国160万的考生斗智斗勇，他不能有太多的把柄和错误被广大的考生抓住，所以你会发现今年的这篇文章在报刊上
2020年考研英语新题型排序题做题妙招 本文就来谈一下，如何备考考研英语新题型中的排序题，提高做题正确率。 根据考研大纲，排序题是在一篇长度约500-600词的文章中，各段落的原有顺序已被打乱，要求考生根据文章内容和结构将所列段落（7-8个）重新排序。其中的2-3个段落在文章中的位置已经给出。排序题强调的是对文章宏观结构和主题内容的把握，先从各段首尾句入手，重视首段作用，充分利用所给已知信息，便可以快速而正确地作答。下面，我们具体看一下在做排序题时需要注意的几个地方。 1、选项的首、尾句 每个自然段的段首和短尾必须给予足够的重视，因为段首或段尾的内容常常起到承上启下的作用。段首一般承接上文，或是引出本段将要论述的问题。段尾一般总结本段落内容，或是为下文要论述的问题作出暗示。 2、两个两个连 我们可以把内容特别密切的段落进行优先排序，两个两个进行连接，最后再将它们进行整合，这样可以节约做题时间。 3、从首、尾句词汇意义、逻辑关系上入手 以2011年考研真题为例， A选项段尾句Not surprisingly, up to half of all doctoral students in English drop out before getting their degrees.和C选项段首句Equally unsurprisingly,
only about half end up with professorships for which they entered graduate school.有两个表述需要注意，这就是not surprisingly和equally unsurprisingly,它们在语义上是顺承的关系，段落主要内容都是人文学科专业化所产生的问题。所以它们应该连在一起，而且是AC排序。 4、如何确定首段 排序题最需注意首段，因为首段会告诉我们文章要谈论的内容。但是，有时为了增加考试难度，首段的位置往往不会告知。那么，我们该怎么确定首段的位置呢？要记住首段的特点：开篇第一句话开始处一般不会出现表示逻辑关系的连词或是指代不明的代词。还是以2011年考研真题为例，如果考试中不告知G选项是首段，那么大家可以根据自己的知识储备判断出来吗？ [A] No disciplines have seized on professionalism with as much enthusiasm as the humanities. 具有首段特点。 [B] His concern is mainly with the humanities: Literature, languages, philosophy and so on.句中有不明指代词his,不具备首段特点，排除。 [C] Equally unsurprisingly, only about half end up with professorships for which they entered graduate school. There are simply too few posts.Equally同样的，肯定还有上文，不具有首段特点。 [D] One reason why it is hard to design and teach such
2017年考研英语（二）真题及答案解析（完 整版） 感谢：凯程洛老师提供真题。 2017年全国硕士研究生入学统一考试英语（二）试题及答案 SectionI Use of English Directions: Read the following text.Choose the best word(s)for each numbered blank and mark A,B,C or D on the ANSWER SHEET.(10points) People have speculated for centuries about a future without work.Today is no different, with academics,writers,and activists once again1that technology be replacing human workers. Some imagine that the coming work-free world will be defined by2.A few wealthy people will own all the capital,and the masses will struggle in an impoverished wasteland. A different and not mutually exclusive3holds that the future will be a wasteland of a different sort,one4by purposelessness:Without jobs to give their lives5,people will simply become lazy and depressed.6,today’s unemployed don’t seem to be havinga great time.One Gallup poll found that20percent of Americans who have been unemployed for at least a year report having depression,double the rate for7Americans.Also,some research suggests that the 8for rising rates of mortality,mental-health problems,and addicting9poorly-educated middle-aged people is shortage of well-paid jobs.Perhaps this is why many10the agonizing dullness of a jobless future. But it doesn’t11follow from findings like these that a world without work would be filled with unease.Such visions are based on the12of being unemployed in a society built on the concept of employment.In the13of work,a society designed with other ends in mind could14 strikingly different circumstanced for the future of labor and leisure.Today,the15of work may be a bit overblown.“Many jobs are boring,degrading,unhealthy,and a waste of human potential,”says John Danaher,a lecturer at the National University of Ireland in Galway. These days,because leisure time is relatively16for most workers,people use their free time to counterbalance the intellectual and emotional17of their jobs.“When I come home from a hard day’s work,I often feel18,”Danaher says,adding,“In a world in which I don’t have to work,I might feel rather different”—perhaps different enough to throw himself19a hobby or a
2010 Copying Birds May Save Aircraft Fuel Both Boeing and Airbus have trumpeted the efficiency of their newest aircraft. The 787 and 350 respectively . Their clever designs and lightweight composites certainly make a difference . But a group of researchers at Stanford University , led by Ilan Kroo , has suggested that airlines could take a more naturalistic approach to cutting jet-fuel use and it would not require them to buy new aircraft. The answer, says Dr Kroo , lies with birds . Since 1914, scientists have known that birds flying in formation-a V-shape-expend less energy. The air flowing over a bird ’w sings curls upwards behind the wingtips . a phenomenon known as upwash. Other birds flying in the upwash experience reduced drag, and spend less energy propelling themselves . Peter Lissaman, an aeronautics expert who was formerly at Caltech and the University of Southern California ,has suggested that a formation of 25 birds might enjoy a range increase of 71%. When applied to aircraft, the principles are not substantially different . Dr Kroo and his team modeled what would happen if three passenger jets departing from Los Angeles, San Francisco and I as Vegas were to assemble over Utah, assume an inverted V-formation occasionally change places so all could have a turn in the most favourable positions , and proceed to London. They found that the aircraft consumed as much as 15% less fuel (coupled with a reduction in carbon-dioxide output). Nitrogen-oxide emissions during the cruising portions of the flight fell by around a quarter. There are , of course , knots to be worked out . One consideration is safety , or at least the perception of it . Would passengers feel comfortable travelling in companion? Dr Kroo points out that the aircraft could be separated by several nautical miles , and would not be in the intimate groupings favoured by display teams like the Red Arrows , A passenger peering out of the window might not even see the other planes. Whether the separation distances involved would satisfy air-traffic-control regulations is another matter, although a working group at the International Civil Aviation Organisation has included the possibility of formation flying in a blueprint for new operational guidelines. It remains to be seen how weather conditions affect the air flows that make formation flight more efficient. In zones of increased turbulence, the planes ’wakes will decay more quickly and the effect will diminish. Dr Kroo says this is one of the areas his team will investigate further. It might also be hard for airlines to co-ordinate the departure times and destinations of passenger aircraft in a way that would allow them to gain from formation flight. Cargo aircraft, in contrast, might be easier to reschedule, as might routine military flight. As it happens, America ’asrmed forces are on the on case already. Earlier this year the country ’D sefence Advanced Research Projects Agency announced plans to pay Boeing to investigate formation flight, though the programme has yet to begin . There are reports that some