专四阅读理解练习3

合集下载

英语专业四级阅读理解

passage 1Two years ago this month, Doubleday published a historical thriller with an announced first printing of 85,000 and high hopes that a little-known writer named Dan Brown would catch on with the general public.“We surely expected to have a huge success, but I don’t think anyone dreamed it would become a historic publication,”(1) says Stephen Rubin, president and publisher of the Doubleday Broadway Publishing Group.If the Harry Potter books stand as the essential popular read for young people, then The Da Vinci Code has captured the crown for grown-ups. A word-of-mouth sensation from the moment it came out, Brown’s controversial mix of storytelling and speculation(2) remains high on best-seller lists even as it begins its third year since publication.Twenty-five million books, in 44 languages, are in print worldwide and no end is in sight. Booksellers expect The Da Vinci Code to remain a best-seller well into 2005. A planned film version by Oscar-winning director Ron Howard should bring in even more readers. And at a time when consumers are supposedly minding their budgets, sales for the $24.95 hardcover have been so good that Doubleday still has set no date for a paperback.(3)“It’s been our No. 1 fiction book for two years in a row, and I can’t remember another time that happened,”said Bob Wietrak, vice president of merchandising for Barnes & Noble Inc. “People come into our store all the time and ask for it or ask for books that are like it.”Thanks to The Da Vinci Code, about the only books that seem able to keep up are Brown’s previous novels.(4) Deception Point, first released in 2001, now has 3.7 million copies in print, according to Simon & Schuster, Brown’s previous publisher. Angels and Demons, published in 2000 and featuring “Da Vinci” protagonist Robert Langdon, has more than 8 million copies in print.The unprecedented success of The Da Vinci Code has been helped by wide access, with the book on sale everywhere from Wal-Mart to airports to supermarkets, often proving more popular than the mass market paperbacks available at the same outlets.The Da Vinci Code has also thrived(5) during a time when both literary and commercial novels struggled, when a tight economy, competition from other media and election-year tensions drove the public to nonfiction works or away from books altogether. Publishers and booksellers say Brown’s novel has worked by combining narrative excitement and provocative—and disputed—historical detail.1. When The Da Vinci Code was first published, DoubledayA. hoped that it would become a historic publication.B. only expected to sell no more than 85,000 copies.C. had great confidence in the book and its author.D. announced a conservative printing of the book.2. The Da Vinci Code caused dispute most aboutA.its theme.B. its writing style.C. Dan Brown’s popularity.D. the historical details in the book.3. Doubleday only sells the hardcover The Da Vinci Code becauseA. the consumers are supposed to control their budgets.B. the price of the paperbacks is too low for great profits.C. the book is so popular that readers don’t mind the price.D. the film version is expected to be more popular than the book.4. Angels and Demons sold well becauseA. it has the same protagonist as The Da Vinci Code.B. it was published earlier than The Da Vinci Code.C. it was Dan Brown’s first story.D. it was written by Dan Brown.5. According to the last paragraph, during the time of tight economy,A. people were easily distracted by other media.B. The Da Vinci Code was an exceptional success.C. literary novels had to fight against commercial ones for market.D. the public had no other choice of entertainment but nonfiction works.passage2The University in Transformation, edited by Australian futurists Sohail Inayatullah and Jennifer Gidley, presents some 20 highly varied outlooks on tomorrow’s universities by writers representing both Western and non-Western perspectives. Their essays raise a broad range of issues, questioning nearly every key assumption we have about higher education today.The most widely discussed alternative to the traditional campus is the Internet University—a voluntary community to scholars/teachers physically scattered throughout a country or around the world but all linked in cyberspace. A computerized university could have many advantages,(6)such as easy scheduling ,efficient delivery of lectures to thousands or even millions of students at once, and ready access for students everywhere to the resources of all the world’s great libraries.Yet the Internet University poses dangers, too(6). For example, a line of franchised courseware, produced by a few superstar teachers(7D), marketed under the brand name of a famous institution, and heavily advertised, might eventually come to dominate the global education market, warns sociology professor Peter Manicas of the University of Hawaii at Manoa. Besides enforcing a rigidly standardized curriculum(7C), such a “college education in a box”could undersell the offerings of many traditional brick and mortar institutions, effectively driving them out of business and throwing thousands of career academics out of work(7B), note Australian communications professors David Rooney and Greg Hearn.On the other hand, while global connectivity seems highly likely to play some significant role in future higher education, that does not mean greater uniformity in course content—or other dangers—will necessarily follow. Counter-movements are also at work.Many in academia, including scholars contributing to this volume, are questioning the fundamental mission of university education. What if, for instance, instead of receiving primarily technical training and building their individual careers,(8) university students and professors could focus their learning and research efforts on existing problems in their local communities and the world? Feminist scholar Ivana Milojevic dares to dream what a university might become “if we believed that child care workers and teachers in early childhood education should be one of the highest (rather than lowest) paid professionals?”Co-editor Jennifer Gidley shows how tomorrow’s university faculty, instead of giving lectures and conducting independent research, may take on three new roles.Some would act as brokers, assembling customized degree-credit programs for individual students by mixing and matching the best course offerings available from institutions all around the world. A second group, mentors, would function much like today’s faculty advisers, but are likely to be working with many more students outside their own academic specialty. This would require them to constantly be learning from their students as well as instructing them.(79)A third new role for faculty, and in Gidley’s view the most challenging and rewarding of all, would be as meaning-makers: charismatic sages and practitioners leading groups of students/colleagues in collaborative efforts to find spiritual as well as rational and technological solutions to specific real-world problems.Moreover, there seems little reason to suppose that any one form of university must necessarily drive out all other options. Students may be “enrolled”in courses offered at virtual campuses on the Internet, between —or even during—sessions at a real world problem focused institution.As co-editor Sohail Inayatullah points out in his introduction, no future is inevitable, and the very act of imagining and thinking through alternative possibilities can directly affect how thoughtfully, creatively and urgently even a dominant technology is adapted and applied. Even in academia, the future belongs to those who care enough to work their visions into practical, sustainable realities.6. When the book reviewer discusses the Internet University,A. he is in favor of it.B. his view is balanced.C. he is slightly critical of itD. he is strongly critical of it.7. Which of the following is NOT seen as a potential danger of the Internet University?A. Internet based courses may be less costly than traditional ones.B. Teachers in traditional institutions may lose their jobs.C. Internet based courseware may lack variety in course content.D. The Internet University may produce teachers with a lot of publicity.8. According to the review, what is the fundamental mission of traditional university education?A. Knowledge learning and career building.B. Learning how to solve existing social problems.C. Researching into solutions to current world problems.D. Combining research efforts of teachers and students in learning.9. Judging from the three new roles envisioned for tomorrow’s university faculty, university teachersA. are required to conduct more independent research.B. are required to offer more courses to their students.C. are supposed to assume more demanding duties.D. are supposed to supervise more students in their specialty10. Which category of writing does the review belong to?A. NarrationB. DescriptionC. PersuasionD. Exposition.。

英语专四模拟试题及答案

英语专四模拟试题及答案一、听力理解（Part I Listening Comprehension）Section A: Talk1. A) The speaker will discuss the importance of effective communication.B) The speaker will talk about the challenges of adapting to a new culture.C) The speaker will share personal experiences of studying abroad.D) The speaker will explain the benefits of learning a second language.2. A) To improve their language skills.B) To experience a different educational system.C) To explore new cultures and societies.D) To make new friends and expand their social network.Section B: Conversation3. What is the main topic of the conversation?A) Planning a trip to a foreign country.B) Discussing the difficulties of language learning.C) Talking about the advantages of working abroad.D) Sharing experiences of cultural exchange.4. Why does the woman suggest taking a language course?A) To prepare for a job interview.B) To enhance her travel experience.C) To meet new people.D) To improve her language proficiency.Section C: News Broadcast5. What is the news report mainly about?A) A recent scientific discovery.B) A new policy implemented by the government.C) A significant event in the sports world.D) A cultural festival celebrated around the world.6. What is the purpose of the policy mentioned in the news?A) To promote international trade.B) To encourage environmental protection.C) To improve public health.D) To support education and research.二、语言知识运用（Part II Language Knowledge Use）7-14. 完形填空：阅读下面的短文，从每题所给的四个选项中，选出最佳选项。

英语专业四级阅读理解考试题及答案解析

英语专业四级阅读理解考试题及答案解析英语专业四级阅读理解考试题及答案解析韩愈说过这样一句话：“业精于勤荒于嬉，行成于思毁于随””。

天才就是无止境刻苦勤奋的努力。

成绩优与良;才思浓与淡，都是由勤奋注定的。

以下是店铺为大家搜索整理的英语专业四级阅读理解考试题及答案解析，希望对正在关注的您有所帮助!As the merchant class expanded in the eighteenth?century North American Colonies, the silversmithand the coppersmith businesses rose to serve it.Only a few silversmiths were available in New Yorkor Boston in the late seventeenth century, but in theeighteenth century they could be found in all majorcolonial cities. No other colonial artisans rivaled thesilversmiths’ prestige. They handled the mostexpensive materials and possessed direct connections to prosperous colonial merchants. Theirproducts, primarily silver plates and bowls, reflected their exalted status and testified to theircustomers’ prominence. Silver stood as one of the surest ways to store wealth at a time beforeneighborhood banks existed. Unlike the silver coins from which they were made, silver articleswere readily identifiable. Often formed to individual specifications, they always carried thesilversmith’s distinctive markings and consequently could be traced and retrieved.Customers generally secure the silver for the silver object they ordered. They saved coins, tookthem to smiths, and discussed the type of pieces they desired. Silversmiths complied with theserequests by melting the money in a small furnace, adding a bit of copper to form a strongeralloy, and casting the alloy in rectangular blocks. They hammered these ingots to theappropriate thickness by hand, shaped them and pressed designs into them for adornment.Engraving was alsodone by hand. In addition to plates and bowls, some customers soughtmore intricate products, such as silver teapots. These were made by shaping or casting partsseparately and then soldering them together. Colonial coppersmithing also come of age in theearly eighteenth century and prospered in northern cities. Copper’s ability to conduct heatefficiently and to resist corrosion contributed to its attractiveness. But because it wasexpensive in colonial America, coppersmiths were never very numerous. Virtually all copperworked by Smiths was imported as sheets or obtained by recycling old copper goods. Copperwas used for practical items, but it was not admired for its beauty. Coppersmiths employed it tofashion pots and kettles for the home. They shaped it in much the same manner as silver ormelted it in a foundry with lead or tin. They also mixed it with zinc to make brass for maritimeand scientific instruments.?1、According to the passage, which of the following eighteenth century developments had strongimpact on silversmithsA. A decrease in the cost of silver.B. The invention of heat efficient furnaces.C. The growing economic prosperity of colonial merchants.D. The development of new tools used to shape silver.2.In colonial America, where did silversmiths usually obtain the material to make silver articles? ?A. From their own mines.B. From importers.C. From other silversmiths.D. From customers.3.The passage mentions all of the following as uses for copper in Colonial America EXCEPT ______A. cooking potsB. scientific instrumentsC. musical instrumentsD. maritime instruments4.According to the passage, silversmiths and coppersmiths in colonial America were similar inwhich of the following waysA. The amount of social prestige they had.B. The way they shaped the metal they worked with. ?C. The cost of the goods they made.D. The practicality of the goods they made.参考答案：1. C) 根据文章第一句“As the merchant classexpanded in the eighteenth?century North AmericanColonies,...”可知，随着在十八世纪的北美殖民地商人阶级膨胀起来，也就是说那时的商人财富有了很大的发展，银匠铜匠们有机会发挥他们的.专长了，这与选项C正好相符。

专四英语考试阅读理解练习题

专四英语考试阅读理解练习题A controversy erupted in the scientific community in early 1998 over the use of DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid ) fingerprinting in criminal investigations. DNA fingerprinting was introduced in 1987 as a method to identify individuals based on a pattern seen in their DNA, the molecule of which genes are made. DNA is present in every cell of the body except red blood cells. DNA fingerprinting has been used successfully invarious ways, such as to determine paternity where it is not clear who the father of a particular child is. However, it is in the area of criminal investigations that DNA fingerprinting has potentially powerful and controversial uses.DNA fingerprinting and other DNA analysis techniques have revolutionized criminal investigations by giving investigators powerful new tools in the attempt to trove guilt, not just establish innocence. When used in criminal investigations, a DNA fingerprint pattern from a suspect is compared with a DNA fingerprint pattern obtained from such material as hairs or blood found at the scene of a crime. A match between the two DNA samples can be used as evidence to convict a suspect.The controversy in 1998 stemmed form a report published in December 1991 by population geneticists Richard C. Lewontin of Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass., and Daniel L. Hartl called into question the methods to calculate how likely it is that a match between two DNA fingerprints might occur by chance alone. In particular, they arguedthat the current method cannot properly determine the likelihood thattwo DNA samples will match because they came from the same individual rather than simply from two different individuals who are members of the same ethnic group. Lewontin and Hartl called for better surveys of DNA patterns methods are adequate.In response to their criticisms, population geneticists Ranajit Chakraborty of the University of Texas in Dallas and Kenneth K.Kidd of Yale University in New Haven, Conn., argued that enough data are already available to show that the methods currently being used are adequate. In January 1998, however, the federal Bureau of Investigation and laboratories that conduct DNA tests announced that they would collect additional DNA samples form various ethnic groups in an attempt to resolve some of these questions. And, in April, aNational Academy of Sciences called for strict standards and system of accreditation for DNA testing laboratories.1. Before DNA fingerprinting is used, suspects____.A.would have to leave their fingerprints for further investigationsB.would have to submit evidence for their innocenceC.could easily escape conviction of guiltD.cold be convicted of guilt as well2. DNA fingerprinting can be unreliable when ____.A.the methods used for blood- cell calculation are not accurateB.two different individuals of the same ethnic group may have the same DNA fingerprinting patternC.a match is by chance left with fingerprints that happen to belong to two different individualsD.two different individuals leave two DNA samples.3. To geneticists like Lewontin and Hartl, the current method____.A.is not so convincing as to exclude the likelihood that two DNA samples can never come from two individualsB.is arguable because two individuals of the same ethnic group are likely to have the same DNA pattern.C.Is not based on adequate scientific theory of geneticsD.Is theoretically contradictory to what they have been studying4. The attitude of the Federal Bereau of Investigation showsthat ____.A.enough data are yet to be collected form various ethnic groups to confirm the unlikelihood of two DNA samples coming from twoindividual membersB.enough data of DNA samples should be collected to confirm that only DNA samples form the same person can matchC.enough data are yet to be collected from various ethnic groups to determine the likelihood of two different DNA samples coming form the same personD.additional samples from various ethnic groups should be collected to determine that two DNA samples are unlikely to come from the same person5. .National Academy of Sciences holds the stance that ____.A.DNA testing should be systematizedB.Only authorized laboratories can conduct DNA testingC.The academy only is authorized to work out standards for testingD.The academy has the right to accredit laboratories for DNA testing答案： CBABB。

2023年英语专四考试阅读备考练习题及答案

2023年英语专四考试阅读备考练习题及答案2023年英语专四考试阅读备考练习题及答案莫等闲，白了少年头，空悲切。

以下是我为大家搜寻整理的2023年英语专四考试阅读备考练习题及答案，期望对正在关注的您有所帮忙!更多精彩内容请准时关注我们应届毕业生考试网!Most of us are taught to pay attention to what is saidthe words. Words do provide us with some information, but meanings are derived from so many other sources that it would hinder our effectiveness as a partner to a relationship to rely too heavily on words alone. Words are used to describe only a small part of the many ideas we associate with any given message. Sometimes we can gain insight into some of those associations if we listen for more than words. We dont always say what we mean or mean what we say. Sometimes our words dont mean anything except Im letting off some steam. I dont really want you to pay close attention to what Im saying. Just pay attention to what Im feeling. Mostly we mean several things at once. A person wanting to purchase a house says to the current owner, This step has to be fixed before Ill buy. The owner says, Its been like that for years. Actually, the step hasnt been like that for years, but the unspoken message is: I dont want to fix it. We put up with it. Why cant you? The search for a more expansive view of meaning can be developed of examining a message in terms of who said it, when it occurred, the related conditions or situation, and how it was said.When a message occurs can also reveal associated meaning.Let us assume two couples do exactly the same amount of kissing and arguing. But one couple always kisses after an argument and the other couple always argues after a kiss. The ordering of the behaviors may mean a great deal more than the frequency of the behavior. A friends unusually docile behavior may only be understood by noting that it was preceded by situations that required an abnormal amount of assertiveness. Some responses may be directly linked to a developing pattern of responses and defy logic. For example, a person who says No! to a serials of charges like Youre dumb, Youre lazy, and Youre dishonest, may also say No! and try to justify his or her response if the next statement is And youre good looking.We would do well to listen for how messages are presented. The words, If sure has been nice to have you over, can be said with emphasis and excitement or ritualistically. The phrase can be said once or repeated several times. And the meanings we associate with the phrase will change accordingly. Sometimes if we say something infrequently it assumes more importance; sometimes the more we say something the less importance it assumes.1. Effective communication is rendered possible between two conversing partners, if ___.A.they use proper words to carry their ideas.B.they both speak truly of their own feelings.C.they try to understand each others ideas beyond words.D.they are capable of associating meaning with their words.2. Im letting off some steam in paragraph 1 means___.A.Im just calling your attention.B.Im just kidding.C.Im just saying the opposite.D.Im just giving off some sound.3. The house-owners example shows that he actually means___.A.the step has been like that for years.B.he doesnt think it necessary to fix the step.C.the condition of the step is only a minor fault.D.the cost involved in the fixing should be shared.4. Some responses and behaviors may appear very illogical, but are justifiable if___.A.linked to an abnormal amount of assertiveness.B.seen as ones habitual pattern of behavior.C.taken as part of an ordering sequenceD.expressed to a series of charges.5. The word ritualistically in the last paragraph equals something done___.A.without true intention.B.light-heartedly.C.in a way of ceremony.D.with less emphasis.答案：DBABC文档内容到此结束，欢迎大家下载、修改、丰富并分享给更多有需要的人。

英语专四阅读理解训练及答案解析

英语专四阅读理解训练及答案解析英语专四阅读理解训练及答案解析在英语越来越普及的21世纪，学好英语成了大学生的首要目标。

为帮助大学生掌握好英语知识，以下是店铺为大家搜索整理的英语专四阅读理解训练及答案解析，希望能对大家有所帮助!The discovery of the Antarctic not only proved one of the most interesting of all geographical adventures, but created what might be called “the heroic age of Antarctic exploration”. By their tremendous heroism, men such as Shakleton, Scott, and Amundsen caused a new continent to emerge from the shadows, and yet that heroic age, little more than a century old, is already passing. Modern science and inventions are revolutionizing the endurance, future journeys into these icy wastes will probably depend on motor vehicles equipped with caterpillar traction rather than on the dogs that earlier discoverers found so invaluable and hardly comparable.Few realize that this Antarctic continent is almost equal in size to South America, and enormous field of work awaits geographers and prospectors. The coasts of this continent remain to be accurately charted, and the maping of the whole of the interior presents a formidable task to the cartographers who undertake the work. Once their labors are completed, it will be possible to prospect the vast natural resources which scientists believe will furnish one of the largest treasure hoards of metals and minerals the world has yet known, and almost inexhaustible sources of copper, coal, uranium, and many other ores will become available to man. Such discoveries will usher in an era of practical exploitation of the Antarctic wastes.The polar darkness which hides this continent for the sixwinter months will be defeated by huge batteries of light, and make possible the establishing of air-fields for the future inter-continental air services by making these areas as light as day. Present flying routes will be completely changed, for the Antarctic refueling bases will make flights from Australia to South America comparatively easy over the 5,000 miles journey.The climate is not likely to offer an insuperable problem, for the explorer Admiral Byrd has shown that the climate is possible even for men completely untrained for expeditions into those frozen wastes. Some of his parties were men who had never seen snow before, and yet he records that they survived the rigors of the Antarctic climate comfortably, so that, provided that the appropriate installations are made, we may assume that human beings from all countries could live there safely. Byrd even affirms that it is probably the most healthy climate in the world, for the intense cold of thousands of years has sterilize this continent, and rendered it absolutely germfree, with the consequences that ordinary and extraordinary sickness and diseases from which man suffers in other zones with different climates are here utterly unknown. There exist no problems of conservation and preservation of food supplies, for the latter keep indefinitely without any signs of deterioration ; it may even be that later generations will come to regard the Antarctic as the natural storehouse for the whole world.Plans are already on foot to set up permanent bases on the shores of this continent, and what so few years ago was regarded as a “dead continent” now promises to be a most active center of human life and endeavor.1.When did man begin to explore the Antarctic?A.About 100years ago.B.In this century.C.At the beginning of the 19th century.D.In 1798.2.What must the explorers be, even though they have modern equipment and techniques?A.Brave and toughB.Stubborn and arrogant.C.Well-liked and humorous.D.Stout and smart.3.The most healthy climate in the world is___.A.in South America.B.in the Arctic Region.C.in the Antarctic Continent.D.in the Atlantic Ocean.4.What kind of metals and minerals can we find in the Antarctic?A.Magnetite, coal and ores.B.Copper, coal and uranium.C.Silver, natural gas and uranium.D.Aluminum, copper and natural gas.5.What is planned for the continent?A.Building dams along the coasts.B.Setting up several summer resorts along the coasts.C.Mapping the coast and whole territory.D.Setting up permanent bases on the coasts.答案：BDCBA词汇讲解1. comparatively比较地,相当地,多少All this was comparatively slow until, with the coming of science, the tempo was suddenly raised.所有这些发展都比较缓慢，直到出现了科学，其速度才突然加快。

专四阅读真题及答案

专四阅读真题及答案In this section there are three passages followed by ten multiple choice questions. For each multiple choice question, there are four suggested answers marked A, B, C and D. Choose the one that you think is the best answer and mark your answers on ANSWER SHEET TWO. PASSAGE ONE(1)When I was twenty-seven years old, I was a mining-broker's clerk in San Francisco, and an expert in all the details of stock traffic. I was alone in the world, and had nothing to depend upon but my wits and a clean reputation; but these were setting my feet in the road to eventual fortune, and I was content with the prospect. My time was my own after the afternoon board, Saturdays, and I was accustomed to putting it in on a little sail-boat on the bay. One day I ventured too far, and was carried out to sea. Just at nightfall, when hope was about gone, I was picked up by a small ship which was bound for London. It was a long and stormy voyage, and they made me work my passage without pay, as a common sailor. When I stepped ashore in London my clothes were ragged and shabby, and I had only a dollar in my pocket. This money fed and sheltered me twenty-four hours. During the next twenty-four I went without food and shelter.(2)About ten o'clock on the following morning, dirty and hungry, I was dragging myself along Portland Place, when a child that was passing, towed by a nurse-maid, tossed a big pear -minus one bite - into the gutter. I stopped, of course, and fastened my desiring eye on that muddy treasure. My mouth watered for it, my stomach craved it, my whole being, begged for it. But every time I made a move to get it some passing eye detected my purpose, and of course I straightened up then, and looked indifferent and pretended that I hadn't been thinking about the pear at all. This same thing kept happening and happening, and I couldn't get the pear.(3)I was just getting desperate enough to brave all the shame, and to seize it, when a window behind me was raised, and a gentleman spoke out of it, saying: "Step in here, please."(4)I was admitted by a man servant, and shown into a sumptuous room where a couple of elderly gentlemen were sitting. They sent away the servant, and made me sit down. They had just finished their breakfast, and the sight of the remains of it almost overpowered me. I could hardly keep my wits together in the presence of that food, but as I was not asked to sample it, I had to bear my trouble as best as I could.(5)Now, something had been happening there a little before, which I did not know anything about until a good many days afterwards, but Iwill tell you about it now. Those two old brothers had been having a pretty hot argument a couple of days before, and had ended by agreeing to decide it by a bet, which is the English way of settling everything.(6)You will remember that the Bank of England once issued two notes of a million pounds each, to be used for a special purpose connected with some public transaction with a foreign country. For some reason or other only one of these had been used and canceled; the other still lay in the vaults of the Bank. Well, the brothers, chatting along, happened to get to wondering what might be the fate of a perfectly honest and intelligent stranger who should be turned adrift in London without a friend, and with no money but that million-pound bank-note, and no way to account for his being in possession of it. Brother A said he would starve to death; Brother B said he wouldn't. Brother A said he couldn't offer it at a bank or anywhere else, because he would be arrested on the spot. So they went on disputing till Brother B said he would bet twenty thousand pounds that the man would live thirty days, anyway, on that million, and keep out of jail, too. Brother A took him up. Brother B went down to the Bank and bought that note. Then he dictated a letter, which one of his clerks wrote out in a beautiful round hand, and then the two brothers sat at the window a whole day watching for the right man to give it to. (7)I finally became the pick of them.41. In Para. 1, the phrase "set my feet" probably means___________. A. put me aside B. start my journey C. prepare me D. let me walk42. It can be concluded from Para. 2 that___________.A. the man wanted to maintain dignity though starvedB. the man could not get a proper chance to eat the pearC. the man did not really want the pear since it was dirtyD. it was very difficult for the man to get the pear43. Compared with Brother A, Brother B was more ___________ towards the effect of the one-million-pound bank-note on a total stranger. A. neutral B. negative C. reserved D. positivePASSAGE TWO(1)The concept of peace is a very important one in cultures all over the world. Think about how we greet people. In some languages, the phrases for greetings contain the word for peace. In some cultures we greet people by shaking hands or with another gesture to show that we are not carrying weapons—that we come in peace. And there are certain symbols which people in very different cultures recognize as representing peace. Let's look at a few of them.The dove(2)The dove has been a symbol of peace and innocence for thousands of years in many different cultures. In ancient Greek mythology it was a symbol of love and the renewal of life. In ancient Japan a dove carrying a sword symbolized the end of war.(3)There was a tradition in Europe that if a dove flew around a house where someone was dying then their soul would be at peace. And there are legends which say that the devil can turn himself into any bird except for a dove. In Christian art, the dove was used to symbolize the Holy Ghost and was often painted above Christ's head.(4)But it was Pablo Picasso who made the dove a modern symbol of peace when he used it on a poster for the World Peace Congress in 1949.The rainbow(5)The rainbow is another ancient and universal symbol, often representing the connection between human beings and their gods. In Greek mythology it was associated with Iris, the goddess who brought messages from the gods on Mount Olympus. In Scandinavian mythology the rainbow was a bridge between the gods and the earth. In the Bible a rainbow showed Noah that the Biblical flood was finally over, and that God had forgiven his people. In the Chinese tradition, the rainbow is a common symbol for marriage because the colours represent the union of yin and yang. Nowadays the rainbow is used by many popularmovements for peace and the environment, representing the possibility of a better world in the future and promising sunshine after the rain.Mistletoe(6)This plant was sacred in many cultures, generally representing peace and love. Most people know of the tradition of kissing under the mistletoe at Christmas time, which probably comes from Scandinavian mythology. The goddess Freya's son was killed by an arrow made of mistletoe, so, in honour of him, she declared that it would always be a symbol of peace. It was often hung in doorways as a sign of friendship.(7)The ancient Druids believed that hanging mistletoe in your doorway protected you from evil spirits. Tribes would stop fighting for a period of time if they found a tree with mistletoe. But you will never see mistletoe in a Christian church - it is banned because of its associations with pagan religion and superstition.The olive branch(8)The olive tree has always been a valuable source of food and oil. In Greek mythology, the goddess Athena gave the olive tree to the people of Athens, who showed their gratitude by naming the city after her. But no one knows for sure when or why it began to symbolize peace. There is probably a connection with ancient Greece. Wars between states were suspended during the Olympic Games, and the winners were givencrowns of olive branches. The symbolism may come from the fact that the olive tree takes a long time to produce fruit, so olives could only be cultivated successfully in long periods of peace. Whatever the history, the olive branch is a part of many modern flags symbolizing peace and unity. One well-known example is the United Nations symbol.The ankh(9)The ankh is an ancient symbol which was adopted by the hippie movement in the 1960s to represent peace and love. It was found in many Asian cultures, but is generally associated with ancient Egypt. It represented life and immortality. Egyptians were buried with an ankh, so that they could continue to live in the "afterworld". The symbol was also found along the sides of the Nile, which gave life to the people. They believed that the ankh could control the flow of the river and make sure that there was always enough water.44. Which of the following is the best title for the passage? A. Concept of Peace. B. Origin of Peace Symbols. C. Popular Peace Symbols.D. Cultural Difference of Peace.45. The rainbow represents the connection between human beings and their gods in all the following countriesEXCEPT___________. A. Sweden B. Greece C. Finland D. China46. In North Europe mistletoe was often hung in doorways to indicate___________. A. friendship B. love C. kinship D. honour47. The origin of the ankh can date back to___________. A. the Nile B. the "afterworld" C. the hippie movement D. ancient EgyptPASSAGE THREE(1)Two sides almost never change: That you can manipulate people into self-sufficiency and that you can punish them into good citizenship.(2)The first manifests itself in our tireless search for the magical level at which welfare grants are big enough to meet basic needs but small enough to make low-paid work attractive. The second has us looking to the criminal justice system to cure behavior that is as much as anything the result of despair.(7)Not only can we never find the "perfect" punishment, our search for optimum penalties is complicated by our desire for fairness: to let the punishment fit the crime. The problem is that almost any punishment - even the disgrace of being charged with a crime - is sufficient to deter the middle class, while for members of the underclass, probation may be translated as "I beat it."(8)So how can you use the system - welfare or criminal justice - to produce the behavior we want? The answer, I suspect is: You can't.(9)We keep trying to use welfare and prison to change people - to make them think and behave the way we do - when the truth is the incentives work only for those who already think the way we do: who view today's action with an eye on the future.(10)We will take lowly work (if that is all that's available) because we believe we can make bad jobs work for us. We avoid crime not because we are better people but because we see getting caught as afuture-wrecking disaster. We are guided by a belief that good things will happen for us in the future if we take proper care of the present. Even under the worst of circumstances, we believe we are in control of our lives.(11)And we have trouble understanding that not everybody believes as we believe. The welfare rolls, the prisons and the mean streets of our cities are full of people who have given up on their(3)The welfare example is well known. We don't want poor people to live in squalor or their children to be malnourished. But we also don't want to subsidize the indolence of people who are too lazy to work. The first impulse leads us to provide housing, food stamps, medical care and a cash stipend for families in need. The second gets us to think about "workforce".(4)We've been thinking about it for two reasons: the "nanny" problems of two high-ranking government officials (who hired undocumented foreigners as household helpers, presumably because they couldn't find Americans to do the work) and President Clinton's proposal to put a two-year limit on welfare.(5)Maybe something useful will come of Clinton's idea, but I'm not all that hopeful. It looks to me like one more example of trying to manipulate people into taking care of themselves.(6)On the criminal justice side, we hope to make punishment tough enough to discourage crime but not so tough as to clog our prisons with relatively minor offenders. Too short a sentence, we fear, will create contempt for the law. Too long a sentence will take up costly space better used for the violent and unremorseful.(7)Not only can we never find the "perfect" punishment, our search for optimum penalties is complicated by our desire for fairness: to let the punishment fit the crime. The problem is that almost any punishment - even the disgrace of being charged with a crime - is sufficient to deter the middle class, while for members of the underclass, probation may be translated as "I beat it."(8)So how can you use the system - welfare or criminal justice - to produce the behavior we want? The answer, I suspect is: You can't.(9)We keep trying to use welfare and prison to change people - to make them think and behave the way we do - when the truth is the incentives work only for those who already think the way we do: who view today's action with an eye on the future.(10)We will take lowly work (if that is all that's available) because we believe we can make bad jobs work for us. We avoid crime not because we are better people but because we see getting caught as afuture-wrecking disaster. We are guided by a belief that good things will happen for us in the future if we take proper care of the present. Even under the worst of circumstances, we believe we are in control of our lives.(11)And we have trouble understanding that not everybody believes as we believe. The welfare rolls, the prisons and the mean streets of our cities are full of people who have given up on their future. Without hope for the future, hard work at a low-paid job makes no sense. Working hard in school, or pleasing a boss, or avoiding pregnancy makes no sense. The deadly disease is hopelessness. The lawlessness and poverty are only the obvious symptoms.(12)I'm not advocating that we stop looking for incentives to move poor people toward self-sufficiency or that we stop punishing people forcriminal behavior. There will always be some people who need help and some who deserve to be in jail.(13)All I'm saying is that the long-term answer both to welfare and the crime that plagues our communities is not to fine tune the welfare and criminal justice systems but to prevent our children from getting the disease of despair.(14)If we encourage our young people to believe in the future, and give them solid evidence for believing, we'll find both crime and poverty shrinking to manageable proportions.48. What is the author's attitude towards Clinton's proposal to welfare? A. Pessimistic. B. Optimistic. C. Suspicious. D. Sarcastic.49. It can be inferred from Para. 7 that optimum penaltiesare___________to the underclass. A. useless B. hopeless C. frightening D. humiliating50. Which of the following is the most appropriate title for the passage?A. Lawlessness and Poverty.B. Criminal Justice System.C. Welfare Grants.D. Disease of Despair.SECTION B SHORT ANSWER QUESTIONSIn this section there are five short answer questions based on the passages in Section A. Answer the questions with NO more than TEN words in the space provided on ANSWER SHEET TWO. PASSAGE ONE51. In Para. 4, what does the man mean by saying "I had to bear my trouble"?52. What can be inferred from the last sentence of the passage?PASSAGE TWO53. Why does the UN use the olive branch in its symbol?PASSAGE THREE54. According to the author, what balance should we keep in welfare?55. What does the author mean by saying "Even under the worst of circumstances, we believe we are in control of our lives" (Para. 10)?参考答案PART V READING COMPREHENSION41-50: BADBD ADCBD51.Keep wits together in the presence of that food.52.The author was given the million-pound bank-note.53.It symbolizes peace and unity.54.Meeting basic needs and making low-paid work.55.Good things will happen by taking care of the present.。

专四阅读理解训练8篇

英语专四阅读预测题（1）As many as one thousand years ago in the Southwest, the Hopi and Zuni Indians of North America were building with adobe－sun baked brick plastered with mud. Their homes looked remarkably like modern apartment houses. Some were four stories high and contained quarters for perhaps a thousand people, along with store rooms for grain and other goods. These buildings were usually put up against cliffs, both to make construction easier and for defense against enemies. They were really villages in themselves, as later Spanish explorers must have realized since they called them "pueblos", which is Spanish for town.The people of the pueblos raised what are called"the three sisters" - corn, beans, and squash. They made excellent pottery and wove marvelous baskets, some so fine that they could hold water. The Southwest has always been a dry country, where water is scarce. The Hopi and Zuni brought water from streams to their fields and gardens through irrigation ditches. Water was so important that it played a major role in their religion. They developed elaborate ceremonies and religious rituals to bring rain.The way of life of less settled groups was simpler and more strongly influenced by nature. Small tribes such as the Shoshone and Ute wandered the dry and mountainous lands between the Rocky Mountains and the Pacific Ocean. They gathered seeds and hunted small animals such as small rabbits and snakes. In the Far North the ancestors of today’s Inuit hunted seals, walruses, and the great whales. They lived right on the frozen seas in shelters called igloos built of blocks of packed snow. When summer came, they fished for salmon and hunted the lordly caribou.The Cheyenne, Pawnee, and Sioux tribes, known as the Plains Indians, lived on the grasslands between the Rocky Mountains and the Mississippi River. They hunted bison, commonly called the buffalo. Its meat was the chief food of these tribes, and its hide was used to make their clothing and covering of their tents and tipis.16. What does the passage mainly discuss?A. The architecture of early American Indian buildings.B. The movement of American Indians across North America.C. Ceremonies and rituals of American Indians.D. The way of life of American Indian tribes in early North America.17. It can be inferred from the passage that the dwellings of the Hopi and Zuni were______.A. very smallB. highly advancedC. difficult to defendD. quickly constructed专业四级阅读练习（2）Human beings have used tools for a very long time. In some parts of the world you can still find tools that people used more than two million years ago. They made these tools by hitting one stone against another. In this way, they broke off pieces from one of the stones. These chips of stone were usually sharp on one side. People used them for cutting meat and skin from dead animals, and also for making other tools out of wood.Human beings needed to use tools because they did not have sharp teeth like other meat eating animals, such as lions and tigers. Tools helped people to get food more easily. Working with tools also helped to develop human intelligence. The human brain grew bigger, and human beings began to invent more and more tools and machines. The stone chip was one of the first tools that people used, and perhaps it is the most important. Some scientists say that it was the key to success of mankind.24. The stone chip is thought to be the most important tool because it ______.A. was one of the first toolsB. developed human capabilitiesC. led to the invention of machinesD. was crucial to the development of mankind25. At the end of the passage the author seems to suggest that life in future is ______.A. disastrousB. unpredictableC. excitingD. colorful英语专四阅读预测题（3）About 5,000 years ago, the Egyptians and other people in the Near East began to use pictures as kind of writing. They drew simple pictures or signs to represent things and ideas, and also to represent the sounds of their language. The signs these people used became a kind of alphabet.The Egyptians used to record information and to tell stories by putting picture writing and pictures together. When animportant person died, scenes and stories from his life were painted and carved on the walls of the place where he was buried. Some of these pictures are like modern comic strip stories. It has been said that Egypt is the home of the comic strip. But, for the Egyptians, pictures still had magic power. So they did not try to make their way of writing simple. The ordinary people could not understand it.By the year 1,000 BC, people who lived in the area around the Mediterranean Sea had developed a simpler system of writing. The signs they used were very easy to write, and there were fewer of them than in the Egyptian system. This was because each sign, or letter, represented only one sound in their language. The Greeks developed this system and formed the letters of the Greek alphabet. The Romans copied the idea, and the Roman alphabet is now used all over the world.These days, we can write down a story, or record information, without using pictures. But we still need pictures of all kinds: drawing, photographs, signs and diagrams. We find them everywhere: in books and newspapers, in the street, and on the walls of the places where we live and work. Pictures help us to understand and remember things more easily, and they can make a story much more interesting.27. Pictures of animals were painted on the walls of caves in France and Spain because______.A. the hunters wanted to see the picturesB. the painters were animal loversC. the painters wanted to show imaginationD. the pictures were thought to be helpful28. The Greek alphabet was simpler than the Egyptian system for all the following reasons EXCEPT that______.A. the former was easy to writeB. there were fewer signs in the formerC. the former was easy to pronounceD. each sign stood for only one sound29. Which of the following statements is TRUE?A. The Egyptian signs later became a particular alphabet.B. The Egyptians liked to write comic strip stories.C. The Roman alphabet was developed from the Egyptian one.D. The Greeks copied their writing system from the Egyptians.30. In the last paragraph, the author thinks that pictures ______.A. should be made comprehensibleB. should be made interestingC. are of much use in our lifeD. have disappeared from our life英语专四阅读预测题（4）There are many theories about the beginning of drama in ancient Greece. The one most widely accepted today is based on the assumption that drama evolved from ritual. The argument for this view goes as follows. In the beginning, human beings viewed the natural forces of the world, even the seasonal changes, as unpredictable, and they sought through various means, to control these unknown and feared powers. Those measures which appeared to bring the desired results were then retained and repeated until they hardened into fixed rituals. Eventually stories arose which explained or veiled the mysteries of the rites. As time passed some rituals were abandoned, but the stories, later called myths, persisted and provided material for art and drama.Those who believed that drama evolved out of ritual also argue that those rites contained the seed of theater because music, dance, masks, and costumes were almost always used. Furthermore, a suitable site had to be provided for performances, and when the entire community did not participate, a clear division was usually made between the "acting area" and the "auditorium". In addition, there were performers, and, since considerable importance was attached to avoiding mistakes in the enactment of rites, religious leaders usually assumed that task. Wearing masks and costumes, they often impersonated other people, animals, or supernatural beings, and mimed the desired effect-success in hunt or battle, the coming rain, the revival of the Sun-as an actor might. Eventually such dramatic representations were separated from religious activities.Another theory traces the theater’s origin from the human interest in storytelling. According to this view, tales (about the hunt, war, or other feats) are gradually elaborated, at first through the use of impersonation, action, and dialogue by a narrator and then through the assumption of each of the roles by a different person. A closely related theory traces theater to those dances that are primarily rhythmical and gymnastic or that are imitations of animal movements and sounds.22. What does the passage mainly discuss?A. The origins of theater.B. The role of ritual in modern dance.C. The importance of storytelling.D. The variety of early religious activities.23. What aspect of drama does the author discuss in the first paragraph?A. The reason drama is often unpredictable.B. The seasons in which dramas were performed.C. The connection between myths and dramatic plots.D. The importance of costumes in early drama.24. Which of the following is NOT mentioned as a common element of theater and ritual?A. Dance.B. Costumes.C. Music.D. Magic.25. According to the passage, what is the main difference between ritual and drama?A. Ritual uses music whereas drama does not.B. Ritual is shorter than drama.C. Ritual requires fewer performers than drama.D. Ritual has a religious purpose and drama does not.26. The passage supports which of the following statements?A. No one really knows how the theater began.B. Myths are no longer represented dramatically.C. Storytelling is an important part of dance.D. Dramatic activities require the use of costumes.英语专四阅读预测题（5）Most earthquakes occur within the upper 15 miles of the earth's surface. But earthquakes can and do occur at all depths to about 460 miles. Their number decreases as the depth increases. At about 460 miles one earthquake occurs only every few years. Near the surface earthquakes may run as high as 100 in a month, but the yearly average does not vary much. In comparison with the total number of earthquakes each year, the number of disastrous earthquakes is very small.The extent of the disaster in an earthquake depends on many factors. If you carefully build a toy house with an erect set, it will still stand no matter how much you shake the table. But if you build a toy house with a pack of cards, a slight shake of the table will make it fall. An earthquake in Agadir, Morocco, was not strong enough to be recorded on distant instruments, but it completely destroyed the city. Many stronger earthquakes have done comparatively little damage. If a building is well constructed and built on solid ground, it will resist an earthquake. Most deaths in earthquakes have been due to faulty building construction or poor building sites. A third and very serious factor is panic. When people rush out into narrow streets, more deaths will result.The United Nations has played an important part in reducing the damage done by earthquakes. It has sent a team of experts to all countries known to be affected by earthquakes. Working with local geologists and engineers, the experts have studied the nature of the ground and the type of most practical building code for the local area. If followed, these suggestions will make disastrous earthquakes almost a thing of the past.There is one type of earthquake disaster that little can be done about. This is the disaster caused by seismic sea waves, or tsunamis. (These are often called tidal waves, but the name is incorrect. They have nothing to do with tides.) In certain areas, earthquakes take place beneath the sea. These submarine earthquakes sometimes give rise to seismic sea waves. The waves are not noticeable out at sea because of their long wave length. But when they roll into harbors, they pile up into walls of water 6 to 60 feet high. The Japanese call them "tsunamis", meaning "harbor waves", because they reach a sizable height only in harbors.Tsunamis travel fairly slowly, at speeds up to 500 miles an hour. An adequate warning system is in use to warn all shores likely to be reached by the waves. But this only enables people to leave the threatened shores for higher ground. There is no way to stop the oncoming wave.18. Which of the following CANNOT be concluded from the passage?A. The number of earthquakes is closely related to depth.B. Roughly the same number of earthquakes occur each year.C. Earthquakes are impossible at depths over 460 miles.D. Earthquakes are most likely to occur near the surfaces.19. The destruction of Agadir is an example of ______.A. faulty building constructionB. an earthquake's strengthC. widespread panic in earthquakesD. ineffective instruments20. The United Nations' experts are supposed to______.A. construct strong buildingsB. put forward proposalsC. detect disastrous earthquakesD. monitor earthquakes21. The significance of the slow speed of tsunamis is that people may______.A. notice them out at seaB. find ways to stop themC. be warned early enoughD. develop warning systems英语TEM4阅读理解模拟题（6）It was the worst tragedy in maritime (航海的) history, six times more deadly than the Titanic.When the German cruise ship Wilhelm Gustloff was hit by torpedoes (鱼雷) fired from a Russian submarine in the final winter of World War II, more than 10,000 people - mostly women, children and old people fleeing the final Red Army push into Nazi Germany - were packed aboard. An ice storm had turned the decks into frozen sheets that sent hundreds of families sliding into the sea as the ship tilted andbegan to go down. Others desperately tried to put lifeboats down. Some who succeeded fought offthose in the water who had the strength to try to claw their way aboard. Most people froze immediately. Tll never forget the screams," says Christa Ntitzmann, 87, one of the 1,200 survivors. She recalls watching the ship, brightly lit, slipping into its dark grave - and into seeming nothingness, rarely mentioned for more than half a century.Now Germanys Nobel Prize-winning author Gtinter Grass has revived the memory of the 9,000 dead, including more than 4,000 children - with his latest novel Crab Walk, published last month. The book, which will be out in English next year, doesnt dwell on the sinking; its heroine is a pregnant young woman who survives the catastrophe only to say later: "Nobody wanted to hear about it, not here in the West (of Germany) and not at all in the East." The reason was obvious. As Grass put it in a recent interview with the weekly Die Woche: "Because the crimes we Germans are responsible for were and are so dominant, we didn\’t have the energy left to tell of our own sufferings.The long silence about the sinking of the Wilhelm Gustloff was probably unavoi dable - and necessary. By unreservedly owning up to their countrys monstrous crimes in the Second World War, Germans have managed to win acceptance abroad, marginalize ( 使...不得势) the neo- Nazis at home and make peace with their neighbors. Todays unified Germany is more prosperous and stable than at any time in its long, troubled history. For that, a half century of willful forgetting about painful memories like the German Titanic was perhaps a reasonable price to pay. But even the most politically correct Germans believe that they ye now earned the right to discuss the full historical record. Not to equate German suffering with that of its victims, but simply to acknowledge a terrible tragedy.21、Why does the author say the sinking of the Wilhelm Gustloff was the worst tragedy in maritime history?A) It was attacked by Russian torpedoes. B) Most of its passengers were frozen to death.C) Its victims were mostly women and children. D) It caused the largest number of casualties.22、Hundreds of families dropped into the sea whenA) a strong ice storm tilted the ship B) the cruise ship sank all of a suddenC) the badly damaged ship leaned toward one side D) the frightened passengers fought desperately for lifeboats23、The Wilhelm Gustloff tragedy was little talked about for more than half a century because GermansA) were eager,to win international acceptance B) felt guilty for their crimes in World War IIC)~ad been pressured to keep silent about it D) were afraid of offending their neighbors24、How does Gunter Grass revive the memory of the Wilhelm Gustloff tragedy?A) By presenting the horrible scene of the torpedo attack. B) By describing the ships sinking in great detail.C) By giving an interview to the weekly Die Woche. D) By depicting the survival of a young pregnant woman.25、It can be learned from the passage that Germans no longer think thatA) they will be misunderstood if they talk about the Wilhelm Gustloff tragedyB) the Wilhelm Gustloff tragedy is a reasonable price to pay for the nations past misdeedsC) Germany is responsible for the horrible crimes it committed in World War IID) it-is wrong to equate their sufferings with those of other countries英语专四阅读预测题（7）Certainly no creature in the sea is odder than the common sea cucumber. All living creature，especially human beings，have their peculiarities，but everything about the little sea cucumber seems unusual. What else can be said about a bizarre animal that，among other eccentricities，eats mud，feeds almost continuously day and night but can live without eating for long periods，and can be poisonous but is considered supremely edible by gourmets？For some fifty million years，despite all its eccentricities，the sea cucumber has subsisted on its diet of mud. It is adaptable enough to live attached to rocks by its tube feet，under rocks in shallow water，or on the surface of mud flats. Common in cool water on both Atlantic and Pacific shores，it has the abilityto suck up mud or sand and digest whatever nutrients are present.Sea cucumbers come in a variety of colors，ranging from black to reddish brown to sand color and nearly white. One form even has vivid purple tentacles. Usually the creatures are cucumber shaped-hence their name-and because they are typically rock inhabitants，this shape，combined with flexibility，enables them to squeeze into crevices where they are safe from predators and ocean currents.Although they have voracious appetites，eating day and night，sea cucumbers have the capacity to become quiescent and live at a low metabolic rate-feeding sparingly or not at all for long periods，so that the marine organisms that provide their food have a chance to multiply. If it were not for this faculty，they would devour all the food available in a short time and would probably starve themselves out of existence.But the most spectacular thing about the sea cucumber is the way it defends itself. Its major enemies are fish and crabs，when attacked，it squirts all its internal organs into water. It also casts off attached structures such as tentacles. The sea cucumber will eviscerate and regenerate itself if it is attacked or even touched；it will do the same if the surrounding water temperature is too high or if the water becomes too polluted.1. According to the passage，why is the shape of sea cucumbers important？A. It helps them to digest their food.B. It helps them to protect themselves from danger.C. It makes it easier for them to move through the mud.D. It makes them attractive to fish.2. The fourth paragraph of the passage primarily discusses______.A. the reproduction of sea cucumbersB. the food sources of sea cucumbersC. the eating habits of sea cucumbersD. threats to sea cucumbers' existence3. What can be inferred about the defence mechanisms of the sea cucumber？A. They are very sensitive to surrounding stimuli.B. They are almost useless.C. They require group cooperation.D. They are similar to those of most sea creatures.4. Which of the following would NOT cause a sea cucumber to release its internal organs into the water？A. A touchB. FoodC. Unusually warm waterD. Poll ution.TEM4阅读模拟练习预测题（8）Municipal sewage is of relatively recent origin as a pollutant. It was first brought topublic attention in the 19th century by a London physician who showed that the city's cholera outbreak had been caused by just one contaminated well. Even though the contamination of drinking water by disease germs has been nearly eliminated in this country, hundreds of communities are still discharging raw sewage into streams and rivers. When we consider that this sewage contains effluents fro m toilets, hospitals, laundries,industrial plants, etc., then the potential of the pollutants as a health hazard is apparent.The problem of municipal sewage disposal is complicated by the fact that, years ago, mostcities combined their storm and waste disposal sewers. Many of these combined systems work well, but others cannot cope with sudden heavy rains. When such storms occur, water mixed with sewage may flood and disable treatment plants unless bypassed, untreated, into a stream. In either case, the people may have little protection for several days from these wastes that may contain disease germs. Evenif adequately treated to eliminate the health hazard, sewage is aestheticallyundesirable because of odors and colors produced. Detergents have posed a particular disposal problem. Although there is no indication that they are injurious to health, they can cause foaming, which can clog treatment plants and, at the least, spoil the scenic beauty of streams. Rural and suburban residents should be aware that septic tanks and cesspools are a potential source of pollution to ground water supplies. This is especially true in thesuburban areas with a high population density and with no municipal sewage disposal and treatment system available. In some areas, sewage disposal is accomplished by cesspools. Soil research is furnishing guidelines for more effective and safer use of systems such as these.1. This passage is concerned primarily with the _____ .A. problems of waste disposalB. dangers of drinking from wellsC. turbidity of polluted waterD. outbreak of cholera 2. The author mentions the London cholera epidemic to _____ .A. prove that the city refused to deal with pollutionB. prove that medical science once knew little about pollutionC. introduce the idea of contaminated water suppliesD. recall a historical fact3. In densely populated suburban areas, a danger exits from _____ . A. streams that do not flow directly to open bodies of water B. cesspools and septic tanks that contaminate water supplies C. storm and waste disposal sewers that have been combined D. the undesirable odors of sewage4. In developing the main point, the author makes use of _____ . A. scientific arguments B. convincing testimony C. common sense observations D. analogy （1）D B（2）D B（3）D C A C（4）A C D D A（5）C A B C（6）D C B D A（7）B C A B（8）A C B C Before the mid 1860's, the impact of the railroads in the United States was limited, in the sense that the tracks ended at this Missouri River, approximately the center of the country. At the point the trains turned their freight, mail, and passengers over to steamboats, wagons, and stagecoaches. This meant that wagon freighting, stage coaching, and steam boating did not come to an end when the first train appeared; rather they became supplements or feeders. Each new “end of track” became a center for animal drawn or waterborne transportation. The major effect of the railroad was to shorten the distance that had to be covered by the older, slower, and more costly means. Wagon freighters continued operating throughout the 1870’s and 1880’s and into the 1890’s. Although over constantly shrinking routes, and coaches and wagons continued to crisscross the West wherever the rails had not yet been laid. The beginning of a major change was foreshadowed in the later 1860’s, when the Union Pacific Railroad at last began to build westward from the Central Plains city of Omaha to meet the Central Pacific Railroad advancing eastward from California through the formidable barrier of the Sierra Nevada. Although President Abraham Lincoln signed the original Pacific Railroad bill in 1862 and a revised, financially much more generous version in 1864, little construction was completed until 1865 on the Central Pacific and 1866 on the Union Pacific. The primary reason was skepticism that a Railroad built through so challenging and thinly settled a stretch of desert, mountain, and semiarid plain could pay a profit. In the words of an eco nomist, this was a case of “premature enterprise”, where not only the cost of construction but also the very high risk deterred private investment. In discussing the Pacific Railroad bill, the chair of the congressional committee bluntly stated that without government subsidy no one would undertake so unpromising a venture; yet it was a national necessity to link East and West together. 16. The author refers to the impact of railroads before the late 1860's as “limited” because ____.A. the track did not take the direct route from one city to the nextB. passengers and freight had to transfer to other modes of transportation to reach western destinationsC. passengers preferred stagecoachesD. railroad travel was quite expensive17. What can be inferred about coaches and wagon freighters as the railroad expanded?A. They developed competing routes.B. Their drivers refused to work for the railroads.C. They began to specialize in private investment.D. There were insufficient numbers of trained people to operate them.18. Why does the author mention the Sierra Nevada in line 17?A. To argue that a more direct route to the West could have been taken.B. To identify a historically significant mountain range in the West.C. To point out the location of a serious train accident.D. To give an example of an obstacle faced by the central pacific.19. The word “subsidy” in line 27 is closest in meaning to ____.A. persuasionB. financingC. explanationD. penalty 16. B17. D18. D19. B。

专业英语四级(阅读)模拟试卷3(题后含答案及解析)

专业英语四级（阅读）模拟试卷3(题后含答案及解析)题型有：1.5%. Much of the debt that students are taking on is provided or guaranteed by the government. Imposing write-offs on all taxpayers to benefit those with the best job prospects is unfair; and ripping up contracts between borrowers and private lenders is usually a bad idea. That said, student-loan systems in America and elsewhere are often badly designed for an extended period of high unemployment. In contrast to the housing crash, the risk from student debt is not of a sudden explosion in losses but of gradual financial suffocation. The pressure needs to be eased. One option is to change the bankruptcy laws. In America, Britain and elsewhere, these treat student debt as a special case: unlike other forms of debt, it cannot be wiped out. If student debt is not to bound existing graduates and put off future ones, the rules could be changed so that it is dischargeable in bankruptcy. Yet the reasoning behind the current bankruptcy provisions is logical enough; education is an asset that cannot be repossessed and that keeps on benefiting the individual through his or her lifetime. Some worry that graduates would rush to declare bankruptcy, handing losses to taxpayers. So a second option is preferable. Many countries, America included, have designed student debt primarily as a mortgage-like obligation: it is repaid to a fixed schedule. Other places, like Britain and Australia, make student-loan repayments contingent(依情况而定的)on reaching an income threshold so that the prospect of taking on debt is more acceptable to people from poorer backgrounds. That approach makes sense, especially when jobs are scarce. Barack Obama this week proposed to limit loan payments for some struggling American graduates to 10% of discretionary(任意的)income and forgive outstanding debt after 20 years. Income-based repayment ought to become the norm. Both changes would lead to a repricing of student debt. That would be a bad thing for taxpayers, but a good thing overall. If such information were made public, other useful data would follow—on the average financial returns to graduates of specific subjects, for example. Those studying less profitable subjects would have to pay more, or be subsidised more. It would be a controversial approach, but a more educated one.5．We can learn from the first two paragraphs that_____.A．high unemployment rates make it hard for students to get loansB．rising university fees is a valid way to balance the student loansC．student indebtedness has become an increasingly tricky issueD．credit quality has been improved including student debts正确答案：C解析：推理题。

2023专四答案 (3)

2023专四答案一、听力理解第一篇题目：Why does the man want to change his major?答案：Because he is not enjoying his major and wants to pursue a different field.解析：在听力中，男人提到了他正在学习的专业不是他喜欢的，并想追求另一个领域。

因此，他想要改变他的专业。

第二篇题目：What does the woman suggest the man do?答案：The woman suggests the man take a break from work and go on a trip.解析：听力中，女人建议男人休息一下，去旅行一番。

因此，她建议男人休息一段时间，并去旅行。

第三篇题目：What does the professor think about the new textbook?答案：The professor thinks the new textbook is too complicated and not suitable for the course.解析：教授认为新教材过于复杂，不适合这门课程。

因此，教授认为新教材太复杂，不适合这门课程。

二、阅读理解第一篇标题：The Benefits of Planting Trees正文：植树的好处是很多的。

首先，树木能够吸收二氧化碳并释放氧气，帮助净化空气。

此外，树木还能防止土壤侵蚀，改善水源质量，并提供遮荫和凉爽的环境。

此外，树木对于野生动物和鸟类的栖息也是至关重要的。

总之，植树对于我们的环境和生态系统有着很多积极的影响。

第二篇标题：The Impact of Plastic Waste on the Environment正文：塑料废物对环境的影响是巨大的。

大量的塑料垃圾会进入海洋，对海洋生物造成严重威胁。

此外，塑料废物需要很长时间才能分解，使得垃圾的处理变得非常困难。

英语专四阅读理解练习题附答案详解.docx

英语专四阅读理解练习题附答案详解ThreeEnglishdictionariespublishedrecentlyalllayclai mtopossessinga “ new ” feature・TheBBCEnglishDictionarycontainsbackgroundin formationonl, OOOpeopleandplacesproniinentinthenewssi ncel988;theOxfo rdAdvaneed Learner，sD ictionary:Encycloped icEditioni stheOALDpl usencyclop edicentrie s;theLongm anDictiona ryofEnglis hLanguagea ndCulturei stheLDOCEp luscultura 1 informati on.Theke yfactistha tallthreed ictionarie scanbeseen tohaveadis tinctly “ cu ltural ” asw ellaslangu agelearnin gcontent. T hatbeingsa id,thewayi nwhichthey approachth eculturale lementisno tidentical ,makingdir ectcompari sonsbetwee nthethreed ifficult・Whilether ei ssomecom mongroundb etweenthee ncyclopedi c/cultural entriesfor theOxforda ndLongmand ictionarie s,thereisa cleardiffe rence・ Oxfo rdlaysclai mtobeingen cyclopedic oncontentw hereasLong mandistinc tlyconcentratesonthe languagean dcuItureof theEnglish 璋peakingwo rid・ TheOxf orddiction arycanther eforestandmorevigoro usscrutiny forcultura lbiasthant heLongmanp ublication becausethe latterdoes nothesitat eaboutview ingtherest oftheworld fromthecul turalpersp ectivesoft heEnglish 目覃peakingwor Id.Thecult uralobject ivesoftheB BCdictiona ryareintur nmoredisti netstilL B asedonanan alysisofov er70millio nwordsreco rdedfromth eBBCWorldS erviceandN ationalPub licRadioof Washington overaperio doffouryea. rs, theirl, OOObriefen cyclopedic entriesare basedonpeo pleandplac esthathave featuredin thenewsrec ently.Thei ntendeduse rtheyhavei nmindisare gularliste nertotheWo rldServicewhowillhav eareasonab lestandard ofEnglisha. ndadevelop edskillinl isteningco mprehensio n.Inreal ity,though ,theBBCdic tionarywil lbepurchas edbyafarwi derrangeof lan guagele arners, asw illtheothe rtwodictio naries・Wewillbefaced withasitua tionwherem anyoftheus ersofthese dictionari eswillatth everyleasthavedistin ctsocio 冃責ul turalpersp ectivesand mayhavewor ldviewswhi charetotal lyopposeda ndevenhost iletothose oftheWest. Advancedie arnersform thiskindof background willnotonl yevaluatea dictionary onhowuser 鴨riendlyiti sbutwillal sohavedefi niteviewsa boutthesco peandappro priateness ofthevario ussocio 嘖ul turalentri es.1.W ha tfeaturese t sap ar tthe threedicti onariesdis cussedinth epassagefr omtraditio nalones?A.Thecombi nationoftw odictionar iesintoone ・B.Thene wapproacht odef iningw ords・C.T heinclusio nofcultura Icontent・D.Theincr easeinthen umberofent ries.2.T heLongmand ictionaryi smorelikel ytobecriti cizedforcu lturalprej udicebecau se _________ ・A.itsscop eofcultura lentriesgo esbeyondth ecultureof theEnglish 目覃peakingwo ridB.i tp ayslittlea ttentionto thecultura lcontentof thenon 目昏ngl ish 目覃peakin gcountriesC.itview stheworldp urelyfromt hestandpoi ntoftheEng lish 目覃peaki ngpeopleD.itfailst odistingui shlanguage fromcultur einitsencyclopedicen tries3.I tisimplied inthelastp aragraphth at, inappro achingsoci o 嘖ulturalc ontentinad ictionary, socialthou ghtshouldb egivento ____________________ ・A.t helanguage levelsofit susersB.thenumbero fitsprospe ctivepurch asersC.t hedifferen ttastesofi tsusersD . thevariou sculturalb ackgrounds ofitsusersl.C）根据文章第一段可知新出版的这三本字典都有一个新的特征那就是，根据第二段第一句“ Theke yfactistha tallthreed ictionarie scanbeseen tohaveadis tinctly “ cu ltural ” asw ellaslangu agelearnin gcontent”，除了语言学习的内容外又增加了有关“文化方面”的内容，因此选项C为正确答案。

2023年专四阅读理解

专四阅读理解预热（1）People have been paintingpictures for at least 30,000 years. The earliest pictures were painted by people who hunt edanimals. They used to paint pictures of the animals they wanted to catch and kill. Pictures of thiskind have been found on the walls of caves in France and Spain. No one knows why they werepainted there. Perhaps the painters t hought that their pictures would help them to catch theseanimals. Or perhaps human beings have always wanted to tell stories in pictures.About 5,000 years ago, the Egyptians and other people in the Near East began to use pictures askind of writing. T hey drew simple pictures or signs to represent things and ideas, and also torepresent the sounds of their language. The signs these people used became a kind ofalphabet.The Egyptians used to record information and to tell stories by putting picture writing andpictures together. When an important person died, scenes and stories from his life w ere paintedand carved on the walls of the place where he was buried. Some of these pictures are like moderncomic strip stories. It has been said that Egypt is the home of the comic strip. But, for theEgyptians, pictures still had ma gic power. So they did not try to make their way of writing simple.The ordinary people could not understand it.By the year 1,000 BC, people who lived in the area around the Mediterranean Sea had developed asimpler system of writing. The signs they used were very easy to write, and there were fewer ofthem than in the Egyptian system. This was because each sign, or letter, represented only onesound in their language. The Greeks developed this syst em and formed the letters of the Greekalphabet. The Romans copied the idea, and the Roman alphabet is now used all over the world.These days, we can write down a story, or record information, without using pictures. But we stillneed pictures of all kinds: drawing, photographs, signs and diagrams. We find them everywhere: inbooks and newspapers, in the st reet, and on the walls of the places where we live and work.Pictures help us to understand and remember things m ore easily, and they can make a storymuch more interesting.1. Pictures of animals were painted on the walls of caves in France and Spain because ______.A. the hunters wanted to see the picturesB. the painters were animal loversC. the painters wanted to show imaginationD. the pictures were thought to be helpful2. The Greek alphabet was simpler than the Egyptian system for all the following reasons EXCEPT that ______.A. the former was easy to writeB. there were fewer signs in the formerC. the former was easy to pronounceD. each sign stood for only one sound3. Which of the following statements is TRUEA. The Egyptian signs later became a particular alphabet.B. The Egyptians liked to write comic?strip stories.C. The Roman alphabet was developed from the Egyptian one.D. The Greeks copied their writing system from the Egyptians.4. In the last paragraph, the author thinks that pictures ______.A. should be made comprehensibleB. should be made interestingC. are of much use in our lifeD. have disappeared from our life专四阅读理解预热（2）As the merchant class expandedin the eighteenth century in North American Colonies, the silversmith and the cop persmithbusinesses rose to serve it. Only a few silversmiths were available in New York or Boston in the lateseven teenth century, but in the eighteenth century they could be found in all major colonial cities.No other colonial artisans rivaled the silversmiths’ prestige. They handled the most expensivematerials and possessed direct connectio ns to prosperous colonial merchants. Their products,primarily silver plates and bowls, reflected their exalted status and testified to their customers’prominence.Silver stood as one of the surest ways to store wealth at a time before neighborhoodbanks existed. Unlike the silve r coins from which they were made, silver articles were readilyidentifiable. Often formed to individual specificati ons, they always carried the silversmith’s distinctivemarkings and consequently could be traced and retrieved. Customers generally secure the silverfor the silver object they ordered. They saved coins, took them to smiths, and discussed the typeof pieces they desired. Si lversmiths complied with these requests by melting the money in a smallfurnace, adding a bit of copper to form a stronger alloy, and casting the alloy in rectangular blocks.They hammered these ingots to the appropriate thickness by hand, shaped them and presseddesigns into them for adornment. Engraving was also done by hand. In addition to plates andbowls, some customers sought more intricate products, such as silver teapots. These were madeby sh aping or casting parts separately and then soldering them together. Colonial coppersmith alsocome of age in the ea rly eighteenth century and prospered in northern cities. Coppers ability toconduct heat efficiently and to resist corrosion contributed to its attractiveness. But because it wasexpen sive in colonial America, coppersmiths were never very numerous. Virtually all copper workedby Smiths was imp orted as sheets or obtained by recycling old copper goods. Copper was usedfor practical items, but it was not admi red for its beauty. Coppersmiths employed it to fashion potsand kettles for the home. They shaped it in much the s ame manner as silver or melted it in afoundry with lead or tin. They also mixed it with zinc to make brass for mari time and scientificinstruments.1.According to the passage, which of the following eighteenth century developments had strongimpact on silvers mithsA. A decrease in the cost of silver.B. The invention of heat efficient furnaces.C. The growing economic prosperity of colonial merchants.D. The development of new tools used to shape silver.2.In colonial America, where did silversmiths usually obtain the material to make silver articlesA. From their own mines.B. From importers.C. From other silversmiths.D. From customers.3.The passage mentions all of the following as uses for copper in Colonial America EXCEPT ______.A. cooking potsB. scientific instrumentsC. musical instrumentsD. maritime instruments4.According to the passage, silversmiths and coppersmiths in colonial America were similar in whichof the follow ing waysA. The amount of social prestige they had.B. The way they shaped the metal they worked with.C. The cost of the goods they made.D. The practicality of the goods they made专四阅读理解预热（3）On January 10,1962, anenormous piece of glacier broke away and tumbled down the side of a mountain in Peru. A mereseven minutes later, when cascading ice finally came to a stop ten miles down the mountain; it hadtaken the l ives of 4,000 people.This disaster is one of the most “devastating”examples of a very common event: an avalanche ofsnow or ice. Because it is extremely cold at very high altitudes, snow rarely melts. It just keepspiling up higher and higher. Glaciers are eventually created when the weight of thesnow is so greatthat the lower layers are pressed into solid ice. But most avalanches occur long before thishappen s. As snow accumulates on a steep slope, it reaches a critical point at which the slightestvibration will send it slidi ng into the valley below.Even an avalanche of light power can be dangerous, but the Peruvian catastrophe was particularlyterrible because it was caused by a heavy layer of ice. It is estimated that the ice that broke offweighed three million tons. As it cra shed down the steep mountainside like a gigantic snow plough,it swept up trees, boulders and tons of topsoil, and completely crushed and destroyed the sixvillages that lay in its path.At present there is no way to predict or avoid such enormous avalanches, but, luckily, they arevery rare. Scientists are constantly studying the smaller, more common avalanches, to try tounderstand what causes them. In the future, perhaps dangerous masses of snow and ice can befound and removed before they take human lives.1. The first paragraph catches the reader's attention with a _____.A. First hand reportB. dramatic descriptionC. tall taleD. vivid world picture2. In this passage "devastating" means ______.A. violently ruinousB. spectacularly interestingC. stunningD. unpleasant3. The passage is mostly about ______.A. avalanchesB. glaciersC. PeruD. Mountains专四阅读理解预热（4）Three English dictionariespublished recently all lay claim to possessing a “ne w” feature. The BBC English Dic tionary containsbackground information on 1,000 people and places prominent in the news since 1988; theOxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary: Encyclopedic Edition is the OALD plus encyclopedic entries;the Longman Dictionary of English La nguage and Culture is the LDOCE plus cultural information.The key fact is that all three dictionaries can be seen to have a distinctly “cultural” as well aslanguage learning content. That being said, the way in which they approach the cultural element isnot identical, making direct compa risons between the three difficult.While there is some common ground between the encyclopedic/cultural entries for the Oxford andLongman dictio naries, there is a clear difference. Oxford lays claim to being encyclopedic oncontent whereas Longman distinctly concentrates on the language and culture of the English-speaking world. The Oxford dictionary can therefore stan d more vigorous scrutiny for cultural biasthan the Longman publication because the latter does not hesitate about viewing the rest of theworld from the cultural perspectives of the English-speaking world. The cultural objectives of theBBC dictionary are in turn more distinct still. Based on an analysis of over 70 million words recordedfrom t he BBC World Service and National Public Radio of Washington over a period of four years,their 1,000 brief ency clopedic entries are based on people and places that have featured in thenews recently. The intended user they hav e in mind is a regular listener to the World Ser vice whowill have a reasonable standard of English and a develope d skill in listening comprehension.In reality, though, the BBC dictionary will be purchased by a far wider range of language learners,as will the other two dictionaries. We will be faced with a situation where many of the users of thesedictionaries will at the very le ast have distinct socio-cultural perspectives and may have world viewswhich are tot ally opposed and even hostileto those of the West. Advanced learners form this kindof background will not only evaluate a dictionary on how u ser-friendly it is but will also have definiteviews about the scope and appropriateness of the various socio-cultural entries.1. What feature sets apart the three dictionaries discussed in the passage from traditional ones?A. The combination of two dictionaries into one.B. The new approach to defining words.C. The inclusion of cultural content.D. The increase in the number of entries.2. The Longman dictionary is more likely to be criticized for cultural prejudice because ______.A. its scope of cultural entries goes beyond the culture of the English-speaking worldB. it pays little attention to the cultural content of the non-English-speaking countriesC. it views the world purely from the standpoint of the English-speaking peopleD. it fails to distinguish language from culture in its encyclopedic entries3. It is implied in the last paragraph that, in approaching socio-cultural content in a dictionary, socialthought should be given to ___ ___.A. the language levels of its usersB. the number of its prospective purchasersC. the different tastes of its usersD. the various cultural backgrounds of its users专四阅读理解预热（5）There are some earth phenomenayou can count on, but the magnetic field, someday is not of them. It fluctuates in strength, driftsfrom its axis, and every few 100,000 years undergo, dramatic polarity reversal—a period whenNorth Pole becomes South Pole and South Pole becomes North Pole. But how is the fieldgenerated, and why is it so unstable?Groundbreaking research by two French geophysicists promises to shed some light on themystery. Using 80 meter s of deep sea sediment core, they have obtained measurements ofmagnetic-field intensity that span 11 polarity rev ersals and four million years. The analysis revealsthat intensity appears to fluctuate with a clear, well-defined rhyt hm. Although the strength of themagnetic field varies irregularly during the short term, there seems to be an inevit able long termdecline preceding each polarity reversal. When the poles flip—a process that takes several hundredthousand years—the magnetic field rapidly regains its strength and the cycle is repeated.The results have caused a stir among geophysicists. The magnetic field is though t to originatefrom molten iron in the outer core,3000 kilometers beneath the earth's surface. By studyingmineral grains found in material ranging from rocks to cla y articles, previous researchers havealready been able to identify reversals dating back 170 million years, includin g the most recentswitch 730,000 year s ago. How and why they occur, however, has been widely debated. Severalt heories link polarity flips to external disasters such as meteor impacts. But Peter Olson, ageophysicist at the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, says this is unlikely if the Frenchresearchers are right. In fact, Olson says intensi ty that predictably declines from one reversal to thenext contradicts 90 percent of the models currently under study . If the results prove to be validgeophysicists will have a new theory to guide them in their quest to understand the earth's innerphysics. It certainly points the direction for future research.1. Which of the following titles is most appropriate to the passage?A. Polarity Reversal: A Fantastic Phenomenon of Nature.B. Measurement of the Earth's Magnetic-Field Intensity.C. Formation of the Two Poles of the Earth.D. A New Approach to the study of Geophysics.2. What have the two French geophysicists discovered in their research?A. Some regularity in the changes of the earth's magnetic field.B. Some causes of the fluctuation of the earth's magnetic field.C. The origin of the earth's magnetic field.D. The frequency of polarity reversals.3. The French geophysicists' study is different from currently prevailing theories in ______.A. its identification of the origin of the earth's magnetic fieldB. the way the earth's magnetic intensity is measuredC. its explanation of the shift in the earth's polarityD. the way the earth's fluctuation rhythm is defined4. In Peter Olson's opinion the French experiment ______.A. is likely to direct further research in the inner physics of the earthB. has successfully solved the mystery of polarity reversalsC. is certain to help predict external disastersD. has caused great confusion among the world's geophysicists专四阅读理解预热（6）Migration is usually defined as"permanent or semi-permanent change o f residence"."This broad definition, of course, would include a move across the street or a cross a city. Ourconcern is with mov ement between nations, not with internal migration within nations, althoughsuch movements often exceed internat ional movements in volume. Today, the motives of peoplewho move short distances are very similar to those of int ernational migrants".Students of human migration speak of "push" and "pull" factors, which influence an individual'sdecision to move f rom one place to another. Push factors are associated with the place of origin. Apush factor can be as simple and mild a matter as difficulty in finding a suitable job, or as traumaticas war, or sever e famine. Obviously, refugees who leave their homes with guns pointed at theirheads are motivated almost entirely by push factors (although pul l factors do in fluency theirchoice of destination).Pull factors are those associated with the place of destination. Most of these are economic, such asbetter job oppor tunities or the availability of good land to farm. The latter was an important factorin attracting settlers to the Unite d States during the 19th century. In general, pull factors add upto an apparently better chance for a good life and m aterial well-being than is offered by the placeof origin. When there is a choice between several attractive potential destinations, the decidingfactor might be a non-economic consideration such as the presence of relatives, friends, or at leastfellow countrymen already established in the new place who are willing to help the newcomerssettle in. Considerations of this sort lead to the development of migration flow.Besides push and pull factors, there are what the sociologists call "intervening obstacles". Even ifpush and/or pull factors are very strong they still may b e outweighed by intervening obstacles,such as the distance of the move, th e trouble and cost of moving, the difficulty of entering thenew country, and the problems likely to be encountered on arrival.The decision to move is also influenced by "personal factors" of the potential migrant. The samepush-pull factors and obstacles operate differently on different people, sometimes because they areat different stages of their lives, o r just because of their varying abilities and personalities. Theprospect of packing up everything and moving to a n ew and perhaps very strange environmentmay app ear interesting and challenging to an unmarried young man and appallingly difficult to aslightly older man with a wife and small kids. Similarly, the need to learn a new language andcustoms may excite one person and frighten another.Regardless of why people move, migration of large numbers of people causes conflict. The UnitedStates and other western countries have experienced adjustment problems with each new wave ofimmigrants. The newest arrivals are usually given the lowest paid jobs and are resented by nativepeople who may have to compete with them for th ose jobs. It has usually taken several decadesfor each group to be accepted into the mainstream of society in the h ost country.1. The author thinks that pull factors ______.A. are all related to economic considerationsB. are not as decisive as push factorsC. include a range of considerationsD. are more important than push factors2. People's decisions to migrate might be influenced by all the following EXCEPT ______.A. personality’sB. educationC. marital statusD. abilities3. The purpose of the passage is to discuss ______.A. the problems of international migrantsB. the motives of international migrantsC. migration inside the countryD. migration between countries专四阅读理解预热（7）What we know of prenataldevelopment makes all this attempt made by a mother to mold the character of her unbo rn childby studying poetry, art, or mathematics during pregnancy seem utterly impossible. How couldsuch extrem ely complex influences pass from the mother to the child? There is no connectionbetween their nervous systems. Even the blood vessels of mother and child do not join directly.An emotional shock to the mother will affect her c hild, because it changes the activity of her glandsand so the chemistry her blood. Any chemical change in the mot her’s blood will affect the child forbetter or worse. But we can not see how a looking for mathematics or poetic genius can bedissolved in blood and produce a similar liking or genius in the child.In our discussion of instincts we saw that there was reason to believe that whatever we inheritmust be of some ver y simple sort rather than any complicated or very definite kind of behavior. Itis certain that no one inherits knowle dge of mathematics. It may be, however, that children inheritmore or less of a rather general ability that we may call intelligence. If very intelligent childrenbecome deeply interested in mathematics, they will probably make a su ccess of that study.As for musical ability, it may be that what is inherited is an especially sensitive ear, a peculiarstructure of the hand s or the vocal organs connections between nerves and muscles that make itcomparatively easy to learn the movem ents a musician must execute, and particularly vigorousemotions. If these factors are all organized around music, t he child may become a musician. Thesame factors, in other circumstance might be organized about some other ce nter of interest. Therich emotional equipment might find expression in poetry. The capable fingers might develop s kill insurgery. It is not the knowledge of music that is inherited, then nor even the love of it, but acertain bodily str ucture that makes it comparatively easy to acquire musical knowledge and skill.Whether that ability shall be direct ed toward music or some other undertaking may be decidedentirely by forces in the environment in which a child grows up.1. Which of the following statements is not true?A. Some mothers try to influence their unborn children by studying art and other subjects duringtheir pregnancy.B. It is utterly impossible for us to learn anything about prenatal development.C. The blood vessels of mother and child do not join directly.D. There are no connection between mother’s nervous systems and her unborn child’s.2. A mother will affect her unborn baby on the condition that ____.A. she is emotionally shockedB. she has a good knowledge of inheritanceC. she takes part in all kind of activitiesD. she sticks to studying3. According to the passage, a child may inherit____.A. everything from his motherB. a knowledge of mathematicsC. a rather general ability that we call intelligenceD. her mother’s musical ability4. If a child inherits something from his mother, such as an especially sensitive ear, a peculiarstructure of the hand s or of the vocal organs, he will ____.A. surely become musicianB. mostly become a poetC. possibly become a teacherD. become a musician on the condition that all these factors are organized around music5. Which of the following is the best title for the passage?A. Role of Inheritance.B. An Unborn Child.C. Function of instincts.D. Inherited Talents.1. It is not who rules us __ is important, but how he rules us.A. whatB. thatC./D. which2. More than one student___ ever been to the Great Wall.A. haveB. hasC. hadD. was3. As you worked late last night, you __ have come this morning.A. needn'tB. shouldn'tC. can'tD. mustn't4. If only the committee __ the regulations and put them into effect as possible.A. approveB. will approveC. can approveD. would approve5. We were to__ the school bus to get to the museum, but it was broken, so we had to take thesubway.A. takeB. have takenC. to be takingD. to have been taking6. The policeman declared that the blow on the victim's head __ from behind.A. should have been madeB. must have been madeC. would have been madeD. ought to have been made7. It is not his illness___ much as idleness that ruined him so much.A. thatB. asC. soD. very8. The teacher told us nothing __ difficult if we put our hearts into it.A. isB. wasC. will beD. were9. Whether or not the next plan will yield any positive results __ to be seen.A. remainB. remainsC. is remainedD. have remained10. She could not have believed it, but that she___ it.A. had seenB. seeC. sawD. would see11. A dark suit is preferable __ a light one for evening wear.A. toB. thanC. forD. against12. He knows little of physics, and __ of math.A. even moreB. still lessC. no lessD. still more13. Which of the following adverbs can NOT be used to complete "it is___ too difficult"?A. ratherB. muchC. farD. quite14. Which of the following is INCORRECT?A. We know what each other thinks.B. They know one another's weak points.C. None of the books is interesting:D. He didn't stay there so long as she.15. "I was going to see the film, but he reminded me of seeing it before." The sentence means thatA. he reminded me to see the film, and I would go to see it.B. I was about to see the film, but he reminded me that I had seen it before.C. I wouldn't remember to see the film if he didn't remind me.D. I forget that I have seen the film before if he didn't remind me.16. Get to the point, don't __ about the bush.A. beatB. hitC. blowD. strike17. He holds that education should place more __ on logic thinking, and education of emotion is oflittle use.A. importanceB. significanceC. stressD. emphasis18. Tom wasn't paid because he was the __ secretary of the association.A. honorableB. honorC. honoredD. honorary19. Her letter was in such a casual scrawl, and in such pale ink, that it was __A. unintelligibleB. vagueC. ambiguousD. illegible20. Because of the___ of its ideas, the book was in wide circulation both at home and abroad.A. originalityB. subjectivityC. generalityD. ambiguity21. The juvenile delinquent was released in ___ of his good behavior.A. caseB. wayC. viewD. event22. People who live in small towns often seem more friendly than those living in __ populatedareas.A. denselyB. intenselyC. abundantlyD. extremely23. If you find this item too difficult to ____, it is advisable to leave as it is and move on to thenext one.A. work outB. work onC. work forD. work at24. We are doing this work in the ___ of reforms in the economic, social and cultural spheres.A. contextB. contestC. pretextD. texture25. In our team, no person ___ Tom could finish this tough task in such a short time.A. better thanB. rather thanC. other thanD. more than26. The city is an important railroad __ and industrial and convention center.A. conjunctionB. networkC. junctionD. link27. A qualified teacher should have good manners and __ knowledge.A. extensiveB. expansiveC. intensiveD. expensive28. It is reported that many people were hurt when the two busesA. bumpedB. crashedC. collidedD. struck29. Californians and New Englanders speak the same language and __ by the same federal laws.A. standB. conformC. abideD. sustain30. The meeting was ___ over by the mayor to discuss the tax raise in the city.A. presumedB. propelledC. presidedD. pricked[B]【译文】谁来管理我们并不重要, 重要的是他如何管理我们。

2023英语专四考试精选阅读试题及答案

2023英语专四考试精选阅读试题及答案2023英语专四考试精选阅读试题及答案Open up most fashion magazines and you will see incredibly thin models with impossible hair and wearing unreasonably expensive, impracticably styled clothes. But shouldn't clothes be fortably durable and make a principle of being simple for the individual who wears them? Why are we constantly told that we need to buy new clothes and add fresh pieces to our collection?Fashions change year after year so lots of people can make piles of money. If folks are convinced that they need a different look each season, that thisyear's sweater's length and shoes style are important, they can be persuaded to buy. The fashion industry would have you ignore your shortings and just make you feel beautiful and happy. In fact it is not only a phenomenon we can find in people's dressing.Fashion controls our lives. Fashion controls what we wear, what we eat, what we drink, the way we cut our hair, the makeup We buy and use, the color of the cars we drive. Fashion even controls our ideas.Where does fashion e from? Often the reasons are quite logical. Scientists and historians study the fashions of the past and discover the secrets of each fashion.When girls see an attractive guy, their blood pressure rises and their lips bee redder. That's why guys think that girls wearing lipstick are beautiful.Why do guys shave their heads? In the past soldiers shaved their heads to kill the insects that lived in their hair. Now guys shave their heads so that they look strong and masculine, like soldiers.And finally, fashion makes you feel good, doesn't it? When you are dressed in the latest style, dancing to the most fashionable music, after watching the latest hit film, you feel great, don't you?1. What's the author's viewpoint about the models and their hairstyles and clothes?A. Unbiased.B. Indifferent.C. Critical.D. Appreciative.2. It is indicated by the author that clothes should beA. fortable and durable.B. new and fresh.C. expensive and fashionable.D. simple and unique3. The fashion industry makes profits byA. selling the products at high prices.B. creating a need in you.C. helping you get rid of your shortings.D. making you look more beautiful.4. The author thinks what has been found about fashions by the scientists and the. historians isA. incredible.B. amazing.C. reasonable.D. creative.5. The passage mentions the advantages of fashion EXCEPT thatA. it can help promote technological development.B. it enables people to remain up-to-date.C. it can create more job opportunities for people.D. it can make people achieve a great feeling.【答案解析】1.[C]观点态度题。

2015 年英语专业四级阅读理解passage 3(翻译)

2015年专业四级英语真题（翻译）Passage 3（翻译）The war on smoking, now five decades old and counting, is one of the nation's greatest public health success stories - but not for everyone.As a whole, the country has made amazing progress. In 1964, four in ten adults in the US smoked; today fewer than two in ten do. But some states - Kentucky, South Dakota and Alabama to name just a few - seem to have missed the message that smoking is deadly.Their failure is the greatest disappointment in an effort to save lives that was started on Jan. 11, 1964, by the first Surgeon General's Report on Smoking and Health. Its finding that smoking is a cause of lung cancer and other diseases was major news then. The hazards of smoking were just starting to emerge.The report led to cigarette warning labels, a ban on TV ads and eventually an anti-smoking movement that shifted the nation's attitude on smoking. Then, smokers were cool. Today, many are outcasts, rejected by restaurants, bars, public buildings and even their own workplaces. Millions of lives have been saved.The formula for success is no longer guesswork: Adopt tough warning labels, air public service ads, fund smoking cessation programs and impose smoke-free laws. But the surest way to prevent smoking, particularly among price-sensitive teens, is to raise taxes. If you can stop them from smoking, you've won the war. Few people start smokingafter turning 19.The real-life evidence of taxing power is powerful. The 10 states with the lowest adult smoking rates slap an average tax of $2.42 on every pack -- three times the average tax in the states with the highest smoking rates.New York has the highest cigarette tax in the country, at $4.35 per pack, and just 12 percent of teens smoke, far below the national average of 18 percent. Compare that with Kentucky, where taxes are low (60 cents), smoking restrictions are weak and the teen smoking rate is double New York's. Other low-tax states have similarly dismal records.Enemies of high tobacco taxes cling to the tired argument that they fall disproportionately on the poor. True, but so do the deadly effects of smoking, far worse than a tax. The effect of the taxes is amplified further when the revenue is used to fund initiatives that help smokers quit or persuade teens not to start.Anti-smoking forces have plenty to celebrate this week, having helped avoid 8 million premature deaths in the past 50 years. But as long as 3,000 adolescents and teens take their first puff each day, the war is not won.禁烟斗争已经持续了50年，而且还在持续，它是美国最伟大的公共卫生成功案例之一——但并非对每个人都是如此。

专业英语四级(阅读理解)模拟试卷3(题后含答案及解析)

专业英语四级（阅读理解）模拟试卷3(题后含答案及解析)题型有：1.71 million couples divorced last year, with those in big cities such as Beijing and Shanghai accounting for the most. “China’s youngsters are facing more seductions, including Internet dating and one-night stands, so they need agreements to protect themselves,”Wang Zhiguo, chief marriage consultant at the country’s largest matchmaking website , says. “Pre-marital agreements show that people are becoming more mature when talking about love and marriage,”he says. According to Xiao, they first appeared at the beginning of 1990. In 1992, his young neighbor’s fiancee demanded half of their properties if they divorced. It triggered heated debate in Xiao’s neighborhood. Wang believes such agreements are another manifestation of a market-oriented economy and while he views it positively, psychological consultant Sun Yueran from the Shangde Psychological Consultancy says they do more harm than good. “This (making prenuptial agreements) is just like treating marriage like a business. It betrays a basic distrust in the relationship. A marriage is more than a list of do’s and don’ts.”26．What can you write into a prenuptial marital agreement?A．Anything you like.B．Provisions by laws.C．All requirements agreed upon by the two parties.D．Jokes.正确答案：B解析：细节题。

专四阅读和完型第三套模拟题

专四第三套阅读和完型模拟题及答案解析Part III 完型填空If you were to begin a now job tomorrow, you would bring with you some basic strengths and weakness. Success or _31_ in your work would depend, to _32_ great extent, _33_ your ability to use your strengths and weaknesses to the best advantage. _34_ the utmost importance is your attitude. A person _35_ begins a job convinced that he isn't going to like it or is _36_ that he is going to ail is exhibiting a weakness which can only hinder his success. On the other hand, a person who is secure _37_ his belief that he is probably as capable _38_ doing the work as anyone else and who is willing to make a cheerful attempt _39_ it possesses a certain strength of purpose. The chances are that he will do well. _40_ the prerequisite skills for a particular job is strength. Lacking those skills is obviously a weakness. A bookkeeper who can’t add or a carpenter who can’t cut a straight line with a saw _41_ hopeless cases.This book has been designed to help you capitalize _42_ the strength and overcome the _43_ that you bring to the job of learning. But in groups to measure your development, you must first _44_ stock of where you stand bow. _45_ we get further along in the book, we’ll be _46_ in some detail with specific processes for developing and strengthening _47_ skills. However, _48_ begin with, you should pause _49_ examine your present strengths and weaknesses in three areas that are critical to your success or failure in school: your _50_, your reading and communication kills, and your study habits.31 A. improvement B. victory C. failure D. achievement32 A. a B. the C. some D. certain33 A. in B. on C. of D. to34 A. Out of B. Of C. To D. Into35 A. who B. what C. that D. which36 A . ensure B. certain C. sure D. surely37 A. onto B. to C. off D. in38 A. to B. at C. of D. for39 A. near B. on C. by D. at40 A. Have B. Had C. Having D. Had been41 A. being B. been C. are D. is42 A. except B. but C. for D. on43 A. idea B. weakness C. strengh D. advantage44 A. make B. take C. do D. five45 A. as B. till C. over D. out46 A. deal B. dealt C. be dealt D. dealing47 A. learnt B. learned C. learning D. learn48 A. around B. to C. from D. beside49 A. to B. onto C. into D. with50 A. intelligence B. work C. attitude D. weaknessPart V 阅读理解Text A:I lost my sight when I was four years old by falling off a box car in a freight yard in Atlantic City and landing on my head. Now I am thirty two. I can vaguely remember the brightness of sunshine and what color red is. It would be wonderful to see again, but a calamity can do strange things to people. It occurred to me the other day that I might not have come to love life as I do if I hadn't been blind. I believe in life now. I am not so sure that I would have believed in it so deeply, otherwise. I don't mean that I would prefer to go without my eyes. I simply mean that the loss of them made me appreciate the more what I had left.Life, I believe, asks a continuous series of adjustments to reality. The more readily a person is able to make these adjustments, the more meaningful his own private world becomes. The adjustment is never easy. I was bewildered and afraid. But I was lucky. My parents and my teachers saw something in me--a potential to live, you might call it--which I didn't see, and they made me want to fight it out with blindness.The hardest lesson I had to learn was to believe in myself. That was basic. If I hadn't been able to do that, I would have collapsed and become a chair rocker on the front porch for the rest of my life. When I say belief in myself I am not talking about simply the kind of self confidence that helps me down an unfamiliar staircase alone. That is part of it. But I mean something bigger than that: an assurance that I am, despite imperfections, a real, positive person; that somewhere in the sweeping, intricate pattern of people there is a special place where I can make myself fit.It took me years to discover and strengthen this assurance. It had to start with the most elementary things. Once a man gave me an indoor baseball. I thought he was mocking me and I was hurt. "I can't use this." I said. "Take it with you," he urged me, "and roll it around." The words stuck in my head. "Roll it around! "By rolling the ball I could hear where it went. This gave me an idea how to achieve a goal I had thought impossible: playing baseball. At Philadelphia's Overbrook School for the Blind I invented a successful variation of baseball. We called it ground ball.All my life I have set ahead of me a series of goals and then tried to reach them, one at a time. I had to learn my limitations. It was no good to try for something I knew at the start was wildly out of reach because that only invited the bitterness of failure. I would fail sometimes anyway but on the average I made progress.1. We can learn from the beginning of the passage thatA. the author lost his sight because of a car crash.B. the author wouldn't love life if the disaster didn't happen.C. the disaster made the author appreciate what he had.D. the disaster strengthened the author's desire to see.2. What's the most difficult thing for the author?A. How to adjust himself to reality.B. Building up assurance that he can find his place in life.C. Learning to manage his life alone.D. To find a special work that suits the author.3. According to the context, "a chair rocker on the front porch" in paragraph 3 means that the authorA. would sit in a rocking chair and enjoy his life.B. was paralyzed and stayed in a rocking chair.C. would lose his will to struggle against difficulties.D. would sit in a chair and stay at home.4. According to the passage, the baseball and encouragement offered by the manA. hurt the author's feeling.B. gave the author a deep impression.C. directly led to the invention of ground ball.D. inspired the author.5. According to the passage, which of the following is CORRECT?A. The author set goals for himself but only invited failure most of the time.B. The author suggested not trying something beyond one's ability at the beginning.C. The bitterness of failure prevented the author from trying something out of reach.D. Because of his limitations, the author tried to reach one goal at a time.Text B:I have known very few writers, but those I have known, and whom I respected, confess at once that they have little idea where they are going when they first set pen to paper. They have acharacter, perhaps two; they are in that condition of eager discomfort which passes for inspiration; all admit radical changes of destination once the joumey has begun; one, to my certain knowledge, spent nine months on a novel about Kashmir, then reset the whole thing in the Scottish Highlands. I never heard of anyone making a "skeleton", as we were taught at school. In the breaking and remaking, in the timing, interweaving, beginning afresh, the writer comes to discern things in his material which were not consciously in his mind when he began.This organic process, often leading to moments of extraordinary self-discovery, is of an indescribable fascination. A blurred image appears, he adds a brushstroke and another, and it is gone; but something was there, and he will not rest till he has captured it. Sometimes the'yeast within a writer outlives a book he has written. I have heard of writers who read nothing but their own books, like adolescents they stand before the mirror, and still cannot fathom the exact outline of the vision before them. For the same reason, writers talk interminably about their own books, winkling out hidden meanings, superimposing new ones, begging response from those around them.Of course a writer doing this is misunderstood: he might as well try to explain a crime or a love affair. He is also. Incidentally, an unforgivable bore. This temptation to cover the distance between himself and the reader, to study his image in the sight of those who do not know him, can be his undoing: he has begun to write to please.A young English writer made the pertinent observation a year or two back that the talent goes into the first draft, and the art into the drafts that follow. For this reason also the writer, like any other artist, has no resting place, no crowd or movement in which he may take comfort, no judgment from outside which can replace the judgment from within. A writer makes order out of the anarchy of his heart; he submits himself to a more ruthless discipline than any critic dreamed of, and when he flirts with fame, he is taking time off from living with himself, from the search for what his world contains at its inmost point.1. The writers that the author is familiar with confess that they wouldA. work out the ending of a novel in advance.B. follow the writing methods learned at school.C. remodel the main character in writing.D. make changes to the stories they first construct.2. According to the passage, the process of writingA. depends on skillful planning.B. is predictable and methodological.C. depends on the writers'experiences.D. is disorderly and unsystematic.3. The word "undoing" in the third paragraph probably suggestsA. success.B. happiness.C. failure.D. sorrow.4. According to the passage, the writer has no resting place becauseA. he is not clear about what he will write at the beginning.B. he should constantly edit his work to make it perfect.C. he has to face a lot of responses given by readers.D. he should add brushstrokes to the appearing blurred images.5. Which of the following statements about writers is TRUE according to the last paragraph?A. They have little ideas before they start writing.B. Their talent goes into all their drafts.C. It does harm to their writing when they flirt with fame.D. They try to increase communication with readers.Text C:The simple act of surrendering a telephone number to a store clerk may not seem harmful—so much so that many consumers do it with no questions asked. Yet that one action can set in motion a cascade of silent events, as that data point is acquired, analyzed, categorized,stored and sold over and over again. Future attacks on your privacy may come from anywhere, from anyone with money to purchase that phone number you surrendered. If you doubt the multiplier effect, consider your e-mail inbox. If it's loaded with spam, it's undoubtedly because at some point in time you unknowingly surrendered your e-mall to the wrong Web site.Do you think your telephone number or address is handled differently? A cottage industry of small companies with names you've probably never heard of—like Acxiom or Merlin—buy and sell your personal information the way other commodities like corn or cattle futures are bartered. You may think your cell phone is unlisted, but if you've ever ordered a pizza, it might not be. Merlin is one of many commercial data brokers that advertises sale of unlisted phone numbers compiled from various sources—including pizza delivery companies. These unintended, unpredictable consequences that flow from simple actions make privacy issues difficult to grasp, and grapple with.In a larger sense, privacy also is often cast as a tale of "Big Brother"—the government is watching you or An big corporation is watching you. But privacy issues don't necessarily involve large faceless institutions: A spouse takes a casual glance at her husband's Blackberry, aco-worker looks at e-mall over your shoulder or a friend glances at a cell phone text message from the next seat on the bus. while very little of this is news to anyone—people are now well aware there are video cameras and Internet cookies everywhere—there is abundant evidence that people live their lives ignorant of the monitoring, assuming a mythical level of privacy. People write e-mails and type instant messages they never expect anyone to see. Just ask Mark Foley or even Bill Gates, whose e-mails were a cornerstone of the Justice Department's antitrust case against Microsoft.And polls and studies have repeatedly shown that Americans are indifferent to privacy concerns. The general defense for such indifference is summed up a single phrase: "I have nothing to hide." If you have nothing to hide, why shouldn't the government be able to peek at your phone records, your wife see your e-mail or a company send you junk mail? It's a powerful argument, one that privacy advocates spend considerable time discussing and strategizing over.It is hard to deny, however, that people behave different when they're being watched. And it is also impossible to deny that Americans are now being watched more than at any time in history.1. In the first paragraph, the telephone number is cited to showA. many customers didn't keep their privacy confidential.B. it is harmful to give a store clerk a telephone number.C. careless disposal of personal information can be harmful.D. customers should inquire its use when giving telephone numbers to others.2. What do companies like Acxiom and Merlin do?A. Compile telephone directories for businessmen.B. Collect and sell personal information to make a profit.C. Trade commodities like corn on the market.D. Crack down crimes like stealing private information.3. From Paragraph 3, we learn thatA. cases of privacy intrusion happen only in large institutions.B. people are quite aware of how their privacy is intruded.C. it is not privacy intrusion when a wife glances at her husband's cell phone.D. Bill Gates' email messages were cited as evidence against him.。

专四阅读理解练习题

专四阅读理解练习题专四阅读理解练习题California is a land of variety and contrast. Almost every type of physical land feature, sort of arctic ice fields and tropical jungles can be found within its borders. Sharply contrasting types of land often lie very close to one another.People living in Bakersfield, for instance, can visit the Pacific Ocean and the coastal plain, the fertile San Joaquin Valley, the arid Mojave Desert, and the high Sierra Nevada, all within a radius of about 100 miles. In other areas it is possible to go snow skiing in the morning and surfing in the evening of the same day, without having to travel long distance.Contrast abounds in California. The highest point in the United States (outside Alaska ) is in California, and so is the lowest point (including Alaska). Mount Whitney, 14,494 feet above sea level, is separated from Death Valley, 282 feet below sea level, by a distance of only 100 miles. The two areas have a difference in altitude of almost three miles.California has deep, clear mountain lakes like Lake Tahoe, the deepest in the country, but it also has shallow, salty desert lakes. It has Lake Tulainyo, 12,020 feet above sea level, and the lowest lake in the country, the Salton Sea, 236 feet below sea level. Some of its lakes, like Owens Lake in Death Valley, are not lakes at all: they are dried瞮p lake beds. In addition to mountains, lakes, valleys, deserts, and plateaus, California has its Pacific coastline, stretching longer than the coastlines of Oregon and Washington combined.1. Which of the following is the lowest point in the United States?A. Lake Tulainyo.B. Mojave desert.C. Death Valley.D. The Salton Sea.2. Where is the highest point in the United States located?A. Lake Tahoe.B. Sierra Nevada.C. Mount Whitney.D. Alaska.3. How far away is Death Valley from Mount Whitney?A. About 3 miles.B. Only 100 miles.C. 282 feet.D. 14,494 feet.4. Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the passage as being within a radius of about 100 miles of Bakersfield?A. The Pacific Ocean.B. San Joaquin Valley.C. Mojave Desert.D. Oregon and Washington.5. Which statement best demonstrates that California is a land of variety and contrastA. The highest lake in California is Lake Tulainyo.B. It is possible to go surfing and snow skiing in some parts of California without having to travel long distance.C. Sierra Nevada, San Joaquin Valley, Mojave Desert and the Pacific Ocean all lie within a radius of about 100 miles.D. Owens Lake, in Death Valley, is not really a lake at all.。

英语专四阅读练习及答案

英语专四阅读练习及答案2018英语专四阅读练习及答案汇总应届毕业生网店铺为大家整理了2018英语专四阅读练习及答案5篇汇总，供各位考生参考。

成长与家庭危机Parents are often upset when their children praise the homes of their friends and regard it as a slur (诋毁) on their own cooking, or cleaning, or furniture, and often are foolish enough to let the adolescents see that they are annoyed. They may even accuse them of disloyalty, or make some spiteful remark about the friends' parents. Such a loss of dignity and descent into childish behavior on the part of the adults deeply shocks the adolescents, and makes them resolve that in future they will not talk to their parents about the place or people they visit. Before very long the parents will be complaining that the child is so secretive and never tells them anything, but they seldom realize that they have brought this on themselves.Disillusionment with the parents, however good and adequate they may be both as parents and as individuals, is to some degree inevitable. Most children have such a high ideal of their parents, unless the parents themselves have been unsatisfactory, that it can, hardly hope to stand up to a realistic evaluation. Parents would be greatly surprised and deeply touched if they realized how much belief their children usually have in their character and infallibility, and how much this faith means to a child. If parents were prepared for this adolescent reaction, and realized that it was a sign that the child was growing up and developing valuable powers of observation andindependent judgment they would not be so hurt, and therefore would not drive the child into opposition by resenting and resisting it.The adolescent, with his passion for sincerity, always respects a parent who admits that he is wrong, or ignorant, or even that he has been unfair or unjust. What the child cannot forgive is the parent's refusal to admit these charges if the child knows them to be true.Victorian parents believed that they kept their dignity by retreating behind an unreasoning authoritarian attitude; in fact they did nothing of the kind, but children were then too cowed to let them know how they really felt. Today we tend to go to the other extreme, but on the whole this is a healthier attitude both for the child and the parent. It is always wiser and safer to face up to reality, however painful it may be at the moment.1. According to the passage, children would arouse parents' disappointment forA. admiring their friends' homes.B. talking back to their parents.C. complaining home-made dishes.D. making some spiteful remark.2. When adolescents feel disillusion with their parents, it means that theyA. feel disappointed with their parents.B. are developing into maturity.C. just want to hurt their parents.D. are expressing their discontentment.3. Adolescents in Victorian timesA. had shown more respect for parents than today.B. always answered back to deal with the problem.C. admired the authoritarian attitude of their parents.D. were too afraid to tell what they really thought.4. What is the tone of the passage?A. Critical.B. Humorous.C. Serious.D. Ambiguous.5. What does this passage mainly discuss?A. Children will become more and more mature when growing up.B. Parents have to change their ways in educating their children.C. The conflicts between parents and their children are inevitable.D. Parents have made mistakes in communication with children.答案解析：1.[A]细节判断题。

1、下载文档前请自行甄别文档内容的完整性，平台不提供额外的编辑、内容补充、找答案等附加服务。
2、"仅部分预览"的文档,不可在线预览部分如存在完整性等问题,可反馈申请退款(可完整预览的文档不适用该条件!)。
3、如文档侵犯您的权益，请联系客服反馈,我们会尽快为您处理(人工客服工作时间：9:00-18:30)。

专四阅读理解练习3
Glacier National Park in Montana shares boundaries with Canada, an American Indian reservation, and a national forest. Along the North Fork of the Flathead River, the park also borders about 17,000 acres of private lands that are currently used for ranching, timber, and agriculture. This land is an important part of the habitat and migratory routes for several endangered species that frequent the park. These private lands are essentially the only ones available for development in the region.
With encouragement from the park, local landowners initiated a land use planning effort to guide the future of the North Fork. The park is a partner in an inter local agreement that calls for resource managing agencies to work together and with the more than 400 private owners in the area. A draft plan has been prepared, with objective of maintaining traditional economic uses but limiting new development that would damage park resources. Voluntary action by landowners, in cooperation with the park and the county, is helping to restrict small lot subdivisions, maintain wildlife corridors, and minimize any harmful impact on the environment.
The willingness of local landowners to participate in this protection effort may have been stimulated by concerns that congress would impose a legislative solution. Nevertheless, many local residents want to retain the existing character of the area. Meetings between park officials and landowners have led to a dramatically improved understanding of all concerns.
1. The passage mainly discusses______.
A. the endangered species in Glacier National Park
B. the protection of lands surrounding Glacier National Park
C. conservation laws imposed by the state of Montana
D. conservation laws imposed by Congress
2. Why are the private lands surrounding Glacier National Park so important?
A. They function as a hunting preserve.
B. They are restricted to government use.
C. They are heavily populated.
D. They contain natural habitats of threatened species.
3. The relationship between park officials and neighboring landowners may best be described as______.
A. indifferent
B. intimate
C. cooperative
D. disappointing
4. It can be inferred from the passage that a major interest of the officials of Glacier National Park is to______.
A. limit land development around the park
B. establish a new park in Montana
C. influence national legislation
D. settle border disputes with Canada
■填空答案■
答案：
1. B) 这是一道主旨题。

通过阅读文章可知，为了保护冰川国家公园的濒危物种和资源，公园当局和地方土地所有者制订了限制土地使用计划，故答案为B。

2. D) 这是一道细节题。

根据第一段第三句“This land is an important part of the habitat and migratory routes for several endangered species that frequent the park.”（这片土地是非常重要的，因为这里是几种经常光顾此公园的濒危物种的栖息地和迁徙路线。

）可知选项D为正确答案。

3. C) 根据第二段可知，公园当局和地方土地所有者密切合作来保护资源，因此他们的关系是"cooperative" (合作性的)。

4. A) 这是一道推理题。

根据第二段第三句和阅读全文，我们很容易就可以得到这样一个信息：为了保护自然资源和濒危物种，公园管理者限制那些会破坏资源的土地开发。

因此选项A为正确答案。