英语专业四级考试阅读理解训练(一)

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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.。

阅读理解〉《专业四级阅读测试1》

阅读理解《专业四级阅读测试1》测试类别:阅读理解试题级别:专四英语试题级别:专四英语Nobody‟s Watching MeI am a foot taller than Napoleon and twice the weight of Twiggy; on my only visit to a beautician, the woman said she found my face a challenge. Yet despite these social disadvantages I feel cheerful, happy, confident and secure.I work for a daily newspaper and so get to a lot of places I would otherwise never see. This year I went to Ascot to write about the people there. I saw something there that made me realize the stupidity of trying to conform,of trying to be better than anyone else. There was a small, plump woman, all dressed up—— huge hat, dress with pink butterflies, long white gloves. She also had a shooting stick. But because she was so plump, when she sat on the stick it went deep into the ground and she couldn‟t pull it out. She tugged and tugged, tears of rage in her eyes. When the final tug brought it out, s he crashed with it to the ground.”I saw her walk away. Her day had been ruined. She had made a fool of herself in public— she had impressed nobody. In her own sad, red eyes she was a failure.I remember well when I was like that, in the days before I learned that nobody really cared what you do . . . I remember the pain of my first dance, something that is always meant to be a wonderful occasion for a girl . . . There was a fashion then for diamante (人造钻石) ear-rings, and I wore them so often practicing for the big night that I got two great sores on my ears and had to put sticking-plaster on them. Perhaps it was this that made nobody want to dance with me. Whatever it was, there I sat for four hours and 43 minutes. When I came home, I told my parents that I had a marvelous time and that my feet were sore from dancing. They were pleased at my success and they went to bed happily, but l went to my room and tore the bits of sticking-plaster off my ears and felt forlorn and disconsolate.The beautician found the writer’s face a `challenge’, which means____.A. she thought it was a challenge to have such a face repairedB. she thought it was a challenge to deal with such a faceC. the writer‟s face challenged the beautician‟sD. it was a challenge to find the writer‟s faceIn the second paragraph, the word `plump’ can be replaced by which word?A. Heavy.B. Slim.C. Ugly.D. Stout.According to the writer, what was the main reason for the failure ofher first dance?A. She was too shy and kept quiet.B. She was not attractive.C. She wore diamante earring.D. She was not in fashion.The Virus HuntersThe mouth of the Amazon River has long been a starting place for hunters going to the jungles of Brazil. In recent years it has been, too, the headquarters for a middle-aged American couple who hunt the smallest living things and perhaps the most deadly——viruses. Dr Causey and his wife have discovered more new types and more old ones in new places than all of the other search teams.Dr. Causey insists that the couple‟s success is due more to the number of viruses in the forests of the Amazon than to the skill he and his wife have developed during their eighteen years of work in Brazil.“We have found the loveliest diseases right in our backyard,” he told me one day as we walked through a light rain along a jungle trail.“Oh, these viruses are here all right. There is in the jungle a great poolof disease which is carried in the blood of animals and birds. Some of the diseases can be caught by people. It may be that we shall find that the jungle is a great center of virus disease and that it overflows from here to other parts of the world. It may be that birds carry the viruses to far countries. It may be that some viruses which presently reproduce in man without making him ill, may change and become deadly to him.…Viruses waiting for a disease,‟ they are sometimes called. This is just an idea, you understand. We do not know, but it is important that we find out, and the first step in finding out is to learn what viruses there are in the jungles.”There is a Brazilian story about the beginn ing of the world which goes: “When God was making the world hetried to keep everything in balance. When he made a desert, he provided it with some green places. When he made a land that was beautiful, he gave it storms and other terrible things caused by the weather. Where the earth was rich below the surface, it was also made hard to live on, where the land could be farmed, the weather was made too hot or too cold or too dry. Where there was enough water, God made it so that there should sometimes be too much water.“But in one place God made a land that was rich, where everything grew easily. Where it was not too hot and certainly not too cold, where animals were plentiful and fruit hung from the trees all the year round.”“The angels looked at this loveliness and were jealous of man. They askedGod if this was not too beautiful, too much like heaven, this valley of the Amazon.” And God said, “True, this land looks like heaven, but wait until you see what happens to man when he tries to live in it.”When Dr. Causey said, “We have found the loveliest diseases right inour backyard,” he meant____.A. new viruses have just been discoveredB. his discovery was a bit frighteningC. he and his wife were surrounded by harmful virusesD. his job was exciting“Viruses waiting for a disease” refers to____.A. those viruses carried in the blood of animalsB. some viruses which are at present harmless to manC. the viruses that reproduce in man without making him illD. the still-not-yet-discovered viruses in the jungleWhen the author cited the Brazilian legend he was____.A. trying to add a little humorB. trying to illustrate his earlier pointC. simply jokingD. being religiousThe year 1400 opened with more peacefulness than usual in England. Only a few months before, Richard II, weak, wicked, and treacherous,had been deposed(废黜),and Herry IV declared king in his stead. But it was only a seeming peacefulness, lasting for but a little while; for though King Herry proved himself a just and a merciful man——as justice and mercy went with the men of iron of those days——and though he did not care to shed blood needlessly, there were many noble families who had been benefited by King Richard during his reign, and who had lost somewhat of their power and prestige from the coming in of the new king.Among these were a number of great lords who had been degraded from their former titles and estates, from which degradation King Richard had lifted them. They planned to fall upon King Herry and his followers and to massacre(屠杀)them during a great tournament(中世纪的马上比武大会) which was being held at Oxford. And they might have succeeded had not one of their own members betrayed them.But Herry did not appear at the lists; whereupon, knowing that he had been lodging at Windsor with only a few attendants, the conspirators marched there against him. In the meantime, the king had been warned of the plot, so that instead of finding him in the royal castle, they discovered through their scouts that he had hurried to London, and that he was marching against them at the head of a considerable army. So nothing was left but flight. One and another, they were all caught and some killed. Those few who found friends faithful and bold enough to afford them shelter dragged those friends down in their own ruin.Why did the nobles wish to kill Herry?A. Herry had taken away power given to them by Richard.B. Herry was weak, wicked, and treacherous.C. Herry had needlessly killed members of their families.D. Herry had killed King Richard.How did King Herry find out about the plot?A. His scouts discovered it.B. He saw the conspirators coming.C. One of the conspirators told him.D. He found a copy of the conspirators‟plan.What does the author seem to think of King Herry?A. He was the best king England had ever had.B. He was unfair and cowardly.C. He was just as evil as King Richard.D. He was a better ruler than King Richard.Although the United States cherishes the tradition it is a nation of small towns and wide open spaces, only one in every eight Americans now lives on a farm. The recent population trend has been a double one, toward both urbanization and suburbanization. Metropolitan areas have grown explosively in the past decade, and nearly half this increase has been in the suburbs. With the rapid growth of cities has come equally rapid decentralization. The flight of Americans from the central city to the suburbs constitutes one of the greatest migrations of modern times; quite residential sections outside cities have become conglomerations of streets, split-level houses, and shopping centers.This spurt of suburban expansion, however, does not alter the basic fact that the United States has become one of the most urban nations on the face of the earth. Census Bureau figures show that the rural population has been shrinking steadily since 1830. When the United States became a nation it had no large cities at all; today some fifty cities have population of more than 258,000. Mammoth complexes of cities are developing in the area of the East Coast and the east north-central states, on the Pacific and Gulf coasts, and near the shores of the Great Lakes. Some sociologists now regard the entire 600-mile stretch between Boston and Washington D.C.——an area holding a fifth of the country‟s population——as one vast city or, as they call it, megalopolis.The author says that trends are toward the____.A. growth of cities and shrinking of suburban areasB. growth of both rural and suburban areasC. growth of urban and suburban areasD. growth of suburban areas and shrinking of citiesDecentralization is best defined as ____.A. movement from the central city to rural areasB. movement from the central city to the suburbsC. disorderly expansion of the central cityD. shrinking of metropolitanOne aspect of the recent population trend is the____.A. development of complexes of citiesB. increasingly great distance between citiesC. transformation of cities into suburbsD. growth of many small townsA need for beauty, lightness, corrosion resistance, or other specific propertiesmust be present before plastic can be considered as competitors of brick, window glass, cement, cast iron, or steel, since volumetric prices are so low for thelast substance and for wood. It is not particularly unfortunate that plastics do not appear economical for every use. There is no reason why industry should want to replace wood, brick, concrete, and metals when the latter are adequate andinexpensive. Too much has been written about the coming “Plastics and Light Metal Age,” which is prophesized as the successor to the Stone Age, the Bronze Age, and the Iron Age. In the historical sequence of these earlier periods, there is logic in the quantitative sense; one age gave way to another when the use of anew material exceeded in quantity that of its predecessor. For the plastics andlight metals, however, a different picture presents itself; less than 3,000,000 tons of all these materials are being produced annually, while steel productionexceeded 90,000,000 tons last year and will probably not recede to less than 60,000,000 tons for many years. This is still the Iron Age or rather the Steel Age.The writer considers that the Bronze Age succeeded the Stone Age because____.A. there was a scarcity of wood and other building materialsB. bronze was less expensive than stoneC. stone was no longer availableD. more bronze than stone came into useThe writer regards the change to a “Plastic and Light Metal Age” in the near future as____.A. necessaryB. desirableC. improbableD. logicalThe title that best expresses the idea of this passage is____.A. New Uses for PlasticsB. How One Age Succeeds AnotherC. Advantages of PlasticsD. Limitations on the Use of Plastics。

英语专业四级考试阅读理解冲刺题

英语专业四级考试阅读理解冲刺题(1)（附答案）Computers monitor everything in Singapore from soil composition to location of manholes ．At the airport At the airport，， it took just 15 seconds for the computerized immigration system to scan and approve my passport ．It takes only one minute to be checked into a public hospital ．By 1998By 1998，， almost every household will be wired for interactive cable TV and the Internet ， the global computer network network．．Shoppers Shoppers will will will be be be able able able to to to view view view and and and pay for pay for pay for products products products electronically electronically electronically．．A A 24-hour community 24-hour community 24-hour community telecomputing network will telecomputing network will allow allow users users users to to to communicate communicate communicate with with with elected elected elected representatives and representatives and representatives and retrieve retrieve retrieve information information information about about about government government government services services services．．It is all part of the government of the government‘‘s plan to transform the nation into what it calls the “Intelligent Island Intelligent Island”．”．”．In so many ways ， Singapore has elevated the concept of efficiency to a kind of national ideology ．For the past ten years years，， Singapore Singapore’’s work force was rated the best in the world-ahead of Japan and the U ．S ．-in terms of productivity ， skill and attitude by the Business Environment Risk Intelligence service ．Behind the Behind the ““Singapore miracle Singapore miracle”” is a man Richard Nixon described as one of “the ablest leaders I have met ，”，” one one who who，， “in other times and other places places，， might have attained the world stature stature of of a Churchill Churchill．”．”．” Lee Lee Kuan Yew led Singapore ‘s struggle for independence in the 1950s ， serving as Prime Minister from 1959 until 1990．Today Today （（19951995），），）， at 71 at 71 at 71，， he has has nominally nominally nominally retired retired retired to to to the the the office office office of of of Senior Senior Senior Minister Minister Minister，， where where he he he continues continues continues to to to influence influence influence his his his country country country’’s s future future future．．Lee Lee offered offered companies tax breaks ， political stability political stability，， cheap labor and strike-free environment ．Nearly 90 percent of Singaporean adults now own their own homes and thanks to strict adherence to the principle of merit merit，， personal opportunities abound abound．．“If you ‘ve got talent and work hard hard，， you can be anything here here，，” says a Malaysian-born woman who holds a high-level civil-service position ．Lee likes to boast that Singapore has avoided the the ““moral breakdown breakdown”” of Western countries countries．．He attributes his nation nation’’s s success to success to success to strong strong strong family family family ties ties ties，， a reliance a reliance on on on education education education as as as the the the engine of engine of engine of advancement advancement advancement and and and social social social philosophy philosophy philosophy that that that he he he claims claims is superior to America is superior to America‘‘s ．In an interview with Reader Reader’’s Digest Digest，， he said that the United States has “lost its bearings bearings””by emphasizing individual rights at the expense of society society．．“An ethical society society，，” he said said，， “is one which matches human rights with responsibilities responsibilities．．”1．What characterizes Singapore ‘s advancement is its___s advancement is its___．．A ．computer monitoring computer monitoring．．B ．work efficiency work efficiency．．C ．high productivity high productivity．．D ．value on ethics value on ethics．．2．From Nixon From Nixon’’s perspective s perspective，， Lee is___ Lee is___．．A ．almost as great as Churchill ．B ．not as great as Churchill ．C ．only second to Churchill in being a leader ．D ．just as great as Churchill ．3．In the last paragraph In the last paragraph，， “lost its bearings lost its bearings”” may mean___ may mean___．．A ．become impatient become impatient．．B ．failed to find the right position ．C ．lost its foundation lost its foundation．．D ．grown band-mannered grown band-mannered．．4．“．“You can be anything here You can be anything here ”（”（Paragraph 5Paragraph 5Paragraph 5）） may be paraphrased as___．A ．You can hope for a very bright prospect ．B ．You may be able to do anything needed ．C ．You can choose any job as you like ．D ．You will become an outstanding worker ．5．In Singapore In Singapore，， the concept of efficiency___．A ．has been emphasized throughout the country ．B ．has become an essential quality for citizens to aim at ．C ．is brought forward by the government in order to compete with America ．D ．is known as the basis for building the “Intelligent Island Intelligent Island．”．”．”答案：答案：DDBAB DDBAB英语专业四级考试阅读理解模拟题(2)（附答案）Before the Before the mid mid mid 186018601860’’s ， the the impact of impact of impact of the the the railroads in railroads in railroads in the the the United States United States United States was limited was limited was limited，， in in the the the sense sense sense that that that the the the tracks tracks ended ended at at this this Missouri Missouri Missouri River River River，， approximately approximately the the center center of of the country. country. At At the the point point the the trains trains trains turned turned turned their their their freight freight freight，， mail mail，， and passengers over to steamboats ， wagons wagons，， and stagecoaches. This meant that wagon freighting ， stagecoaching stagecoaching，， andsteamboating steamboating did did did not not not come come come to to to an an an end end end when when when the the the first first first train train train appeared; appeared; appeared; rather rather rather they they they became became became supplements supplements supplements or or or feeders. feeders. feeders. Each Each Each new new new ““end of track 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 slower，， and more costly means. Wagon freighters continued operating throughout throughout the the the 187018701870’’s s and and and 188018801880’’s s and and and into into into the the the 189018901890’’s. s. Although Although Although over over over constantly constantly constantly shrinking shrinking shrinking routes routes routes，， and and coaches coaches coaches and and and wagons wagons continued to crisscross the West wherever the rails had not yet been laid. The beginning of a major change was foreshadowed in in the the the later later later 186018601860’’s ， when when the the the Union Union Union Pacific Pacific Pacific Railroad Railroad Railroad at at at last last last began began began to to to build build build westward westward westward from from from the the the Central Central Central Plains Plains Plains city city city of of of Omaha Omaha to meet the Central Central Pacific Pacific Pacific Railroad Railroad Railroad advancing advancing advancing eastward eastward eastward from from California California through through through the the formidable formidable barrier barrier barrier of of the Sierra Sierra Nevada. Nevada. Although President Abraham Lincoln signed the original Pacific Railroad bill in 1862 and a revised ， financially much more generous generous version version in 18641864，， little construction construction was was completed completed until 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 mountain，， and semiarid plain could pay a profit. In the words of an economist economist，， this was a case of of ““premature enterprise enterprise”，”， where not only the cost of construction but also the very high risk deterred private investment. In discussing the Pacific Railroad bill bill，， thechair 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.1. The author refers to the impact of railroads before the late 1860’s as s as ““limited 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 expensive2. 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.3. 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.4. The word 4. The word ““subsidy subsidy”” in line 27 is closest in meaning to _____ 。

专业英语四级(社会生活类阅读理解)模拟试卷1(题后含答案及解析)

专业英语四级（社会生活类阅读理解）模拟试卷1(题后含答案及解析)题型有： 5. READING COMPREHENSIONPART V READING COMPREHENSION (25 MIN)Directions: In this section there are four passages followed by questions or unfinished statements, each with four suggested answers marked A, B, C and D. Choose the one that you think is the best answer.Made was a tall, handsome 22-year-old Balinese man who was in love with one girl but expected to marry another. His stepmother had arranged everything —he would wed a distant relation and bring the two families closer together. Made had two choices. He could either marry the girl he did not love, or he could go against the wishes of his parents and be expelled from his village. Actually he had another choice, one which none of his family foresaw. One day his friends found him slumped in a coma on his bed after he had consumed two litres of a powerful insecticide. For more than 60 years the tropical Indonesian island of Bali has been portrayed to the outside world as a heavenly paradise where a strong culture and sense of community protect its inhabitants from the rigors of the modern world. It is an image supported by many millions of dollars from the international hotel community which provides luxury accommodation and facilities for nearly a million foreign visitors now travelling annually to the holiday island. Yet behind the marketing hype lies another story —one which exists in stark contrast to the sun, sand and sea “dream”. The truth is that the lives of Bali’s 2.7 million local inhabitants are often marked by poverty, suffering and family strife. Ketut is a 22-year-old maid who works part-time for an expatriate resident in Ubud, in the centre of the island. Her husband works as a driver for a white-water rafting company which provides day trips to tourists. “Sometimes I have no money for my baby because my husband gambles all his wages.” The husband’s father, unfamiliar with Western support systems, combats his son’s behaviour by calling in the dukun, a spiritual “healer” who makes offerings to the “bad” spirits at play in his mind.1．You would expect to find this passage in______.A．a newspaperB．an advertisementC．a travel brochureD．a book正确答案：A解析：推理题。

英语专业四级阅读理解模拟练习

英语专业四级阅读理解模拟练习在英语专业四级考试中，阅读理解是一个重要的部分。

为了帮助大家更好地备考，本文将提供一份英语专业四级阅读理解模拟练习，希望能帮助大家提升阅读理解能力。

Passage OneQuestions 1-3 are based on the following passage.Tokyo, the capital of Japan, is a city that never sleeps. Its bustling streets, neon lights, and lively atmosphere make it a popular destination for tourists from all over the world. However, Tokyo is not just a city for sightseeing; it is also a major center for business, finance, and technology.1. What is Tokyo known for?2. What makes Tokyo a popular destination for tourists?3. Besides tourism, what other industries thrive in Tokyo?Passage TwoQuestions 4-6 are based on the following passage.Scientists have recently discovered a new species of bird in the Amazon rainforest. This small, brightly colored bird has a unique song and is only found in a small region in Brazil. The discovery of this bird is significant as it adds to the biodiversity of the rainforest and highlights the importance of conservation efforts.4. Where was the new bird species discovered?5. What is unique about this bird species?6. What is the significance of this discovery?Passage ThreeQuestions 7-9 are based on the following passage.The field of artificial intelligence (AI) is advancing rapidly. With the development of machine learning and deep learning algorithms, AI has made great strides in various industries, such as healthcare, finance, and transportation. AI has the potential to revolutionize these industries and greatly improve efficiency and accuracy.7. What is the current state of AI?8. How has AI impacted industries?9. What is the potential of AI in the future?Passage FourQuestions 10-12 are based on the following passage.Climate change is a pressing issue that affects the entire planet. Rising global temperatures, melting ice caps, and extreme weather events are just some of the consequences of climate change. It is crucial for individuals, communities, and governments to take action to mitigate the effects of climate change and transition to more sustainable practices.10. What are some of the consequences of climate change?11. Who should take action to address climate change?12. What measures can be taken to mitigate the effects of climate change?Passage FiveQuestions 13-15 are based on the following passage.The importance of lifelong learning cannot be overstated. In today's rapidly changing world, acquiring new knowledge and skills is crucial for personal and professional growth. Lifelong learning can be in the form of formal education, online courses, or self-directed study. It allows individuals to adapt to new challenges and stay relevant in their chosen fields.13. Why is lifelong learning important?14. What are some forms of lifelong learning?15. How does lifelong learning benefit individuals?以上是一份英语专业四级阅读理解模拟练习，希望能对大家的备考有所帮助。

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1(题后含答案及解析)

专业英语四级（阅读）模拟试卷1(题后含答案及解析)题型有：1.4 million children out of the picture altogether. Equally worryingly, the consultation insists that any new poverty measure must resonate with the public. The latest British Social Attitudes survey shows just how widespread negative views of vulnerable groups in society are, but also makes clear that much of this shift in public opinion has been caused by current and previous government policies. So, should we expect better measures of child poverty as a result of the consultation? Not better for the children growing up in low-income families for sure. And given the broader costs to society of child poverty, not better for anyone else—except, perhaps, a government that we suspect may be trying to avoid being held to account.1．What will NOT lead vulnerable families to poverty according to the first paragraph?A．Sharp decline in tax credits.B．A three-year freeze in child benefit.C．Increasing unemployment benefits.D．The adoption of RPI instead of CPI.正确答案：D解析：细节题。

专四英语阅读题

专四英语阅读题专四英语阅读题下面是店铺给大家提供的.专业四级的英语阅读题及答案，欢迎大家参考练习!第一篇：What we know of prenatal development makes all this attempt made by a mother to mold the character of her unborn child by studying poetry, art, or mathematics during pregnancy seem utterly impossible. How could such extremely complex influences pass from the mother to the child? There is no connection between their nervous systems. Even the blood vessels of mother and child do not join directly. An emotional shock to the mother will affect her child, because it changes the activity of her glands and so the chemistry her blood. Any chemical change in the mother's blood will affect the child for better or worse. But we can not see how a looking for mathematics or poetic genius can be dissolved 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 inherit must be of some very simple sort rather than any complicated or very definite kind of behavior. It is certain that no one inherits a knowledge of mathematics. It may be, however, that children inherit more or less of a rather general ability that we may call intelligence. If very intelligent children become deeply interested in mathematics, they will probably make a success of that study.As for musical ability, it may be that what is inherited is an especially sensitive ear, a peculiar structure of the hands or the vocal organs connections between nerves and muscles that makeit comparatively easy to learn the movements a musician must execute, and particularly vigorous emotions. If these factors are all organized around music, the child may become a musician. The same factors, in other circumstance might be organized about some other center of interest. The rich emotional equipment might find expression in poetry. The capable fingers might develop skill in surgery. It is not the knowledge of music that is inherited, then nor even the love of it, but a certain bodily structure that makes it comparatively easy to acquire musical knowledge and skill. Whether that ability shall be directed toward music or some other undertaking may be decided entirely 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 during their 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 peculiar structure of the hands 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 T alents第二篇：The case for college has been accepted without question for more than a generation. All high school graduates ought to go, says conventional wisdom and statistical evidence, because college will help them earn more money, become "better" people, and learn to be more responsible citizens than those who don't go.But college has never been able to work its magic for everyone. And now that close to half our high school graduates are attending, those who don't fit the pattern are becoming more numerous, and more obvious. College graduates are selling shoes and driving taxis; college students interfere with each other's experiments and write false letters of recommendation in the intense competition for admission to graduate school. Other find no stimulation in their studies, and drop out—often encouraged by college administrators.Some observers say the fault is with the young people themselves—they are spoiled and they are expecting too much.But that is a condemnation of the students as a whole, and doesn't explain all campus unhappiness. Others blame the state of the world, and they are partly right. We have been told that young people have to go to college because our economy can't absorb an army of untrained eighteen-year-olds. But disappointed graduates are learning that it can no longer absorb an army of trained twenty-two-year-olds, either.Some adventuresome educators and watchers have openly begun to suggest that college may not be the best, the proper, the only place for every young person after the completion of high school. We may have been looking at all those surveys and statistics upside down, it seems, and through the rosy glow of our own remembered college experiences. Perhaps college doesn't make people intelligent, ambitious, happy, liberal, or quick to learn things—may it is just the other way around, and intelligent, ambitious, happy, liberal, quick-learning people are merely the ones who have been attracted to college in the first place. And perhaps all those successful college graduates would have been successful whether they had gone to college or not. This is heresy to those of us who have been brought up to believe that if a little schooling is good, more has to be much better. But contrary evidence is beginning to mount up.1.According to the author, ___.A.people used to question the value of college education.B.people used to have full confidence in higher education.C.all high school graduates went to college.D.very few high school graduates chose to go to college.2.In the 2nd paragraph, "those who don't fit the pattern" refer to___.A.high school graduates who aren't suitable for collegeeducation.B.college graduates who are selling shoes and driving taxis.C.college students who aren't any better for their higher education.D.high school graduates who failed to be admitted to college.3.The dropout rate of college students seems to go up because___.A.young people are disappointed with the conventional way of teaching at college.B.many people are required to join the army.C.young people have little motivation in pursuing a higher education.D.young people don't like the intense competition for admission to graduate school.4.According to the passage, the problems of college education partly originate in the fact that___.A.society cannot provide enough jobs for properly trained graduates.B.High school graduates do not fit the pattern of college education.C.Too many students have to earn their own living.D.College administrators encourage students to drop out.5.In this passage the author argues that___.A.more and more evidence shows college education may not be the best thing for high school graduates.B.College education is not enough if one wants to be successful.C.College education benefits only the intelligent, ambitious, and quick-learning people.D.Intelligent people may learn quicker if they don't go tocollege.>>>>>>参考答案<<<<<<第一篇：BACDA第二篇：BCCAA。

大学英语专四阅读题型辅导练习优选份

大学英语专四阅读题型辅导练习优选份大学英语专四阅读题型辅导练习 1Very old people do raise moral problems for almost everyone who es in contact with them. Their values―this can't be repeated too often―are not necessarily our values. Physical fort, cleanness and order are not necessarily the most important things. The social services from time to time find themselves faced with a flat with decaying food covered by small worms, and an old person lying alone in bed, taking no notice of the worms. But is it interfering with personal freedom to insist that they go to live with some of their relatives so that they might be taken better care of? Some social workers, the ones who clear up the worms, think we are in danger of carrying this concept of personal freedom to the point where serious risks are being taken with the health and safety of the old.Indeed, the old can be easily hurt or harmed. The body is like a car, it needs more mechanical maintenance as it gets older. You can carry this parison right through to the provision of spare parts. But never forget that such operations are painful experiences, however good the results. And at what point should you cease totreat the old body? Is it morally right to try to push off death by pursuing the development of drugs to excite the forgetful old mind and to activate(激活) the old body, knowing that it is designed to die? You cannot ask doctors or scientists to decide, because so long as they can see the technical opportunities, they will feel bound to give them a try, on the principle that while there's life, there's hope.When you talk to the old people, however, you are forced to the conclusion that whether age is happy or unpleasant depends less on money or on health than it does on your ability to have fun.1. It is implied in Paragraph 1 that______.A. very old people enjoy living with their relativesB. social services have nothing to do with very old peopleC. very old people would like to live alone so that they can have more personal freedomD. very old people are able to keep their rooms very clean2. Some social workers think that______.A. health and safety are more important than personal freedomB. personal freedom is more important than health andsafetyC. old people should keep their rooms cleanD. one should not take the risk of dealing with old people3. In the author's opinion, ______.A. the human body can't be pared to a carB. the older a person, the more care he needsC. too much emphasis has been put on old people's valuesD. it is easy to provide spare parts for old people4. The word “it" in the last paragraph refers to______.A. the conclusion you have e toB. your talk to the old peopleC. whether age is happy or unpleasantD. one's money or one's health5. The author thinks that______.A. medical decisions for old people should be left to the doctorsB. old people can enjoy a happy life only if they are very richC. the opinion that we should try every means possible to save old people is doubtfulD. it is always morally right to treat old people and push off death答案：1. C2. A3. B4. C5. C。

专业英语四级(人物传记类阅读理解)模拟试卷1(题后含答案及解析)

专业英语四级（人物传记类阅读理解）模拟试卷1(题后含答案及解析)题型有： 5. READING COMPREHENSIONPART V READING COMPREHENSION (25 MIN)Directions: In this section there are four passages followed by questions or unfinished statements, each with four suggested answers marked A, B, C and D. Choose the one that you think is the best answer.One of the most intriguing stories of the Russian Revolution concerns the identity of Anastasia, the youngest daughter of Czar Nicholas II. During his reign over Russia, the Czar had planned to revoke many of the harsh laws established by previous czars. Some workers and peasants, however, clamored for more rapid social reform. In 1918 a group of these people, known as Bolsheviks, overthrew the government. On July 17 or 18, they murdered the Czar and what was thought to be his entire family. Although witnesses vouched that all the members of the Czar’s family had been executed, there were rumors suggesting that Anastasia had survived. Over the years, a number of women claimed to be Grand Duchess Anastasia. Perhaps the best known claimant was Anastasia Tschai-kovsky, who was also known as Anna Anderson. In 1920, eighteen months after the Czar’s execution, this terrified young woman was rescued from drowning in a Berlin river. She spent two years in a hospital, where she attempted to reclaim her health and shattered mind. The doctors and nurses thought that she resembled Anastasia and questioned her about her background. She disclaimed any connection with the Czar’s family. Eight years later, though, she claimed that she was Anastasia. She said that she had been rescued by two Russian soldiers after the Czar and the rest of her family had been killed. Two brothers named Tschaikovsky had carried her into Romania. She had married one of the brothers, who had taken her to Berlin and left her there, penniless and without a vocation. Unable to invoke the aid of her mother’s family in Germany, she had tried to drown herself. During the next few years, scores of the Czar’s relatives, ex-servants, and acquaintances interviewed her. Many of these people said that her looks and mannerisms were evocative of the Anastasia that they had known. Her grandmother and other relatives denied that she was the real Anastasia, however. Tired of being accused of fraud, Anastasia immigrated to the United States in 1928 and took the name Anna Anderson. She still wished to prove that she was Anastasia, though, and returned to Germany in 1933 to bring suit against her mother’s family. There she declaimed to the court, asserting that she was indeed Anastasia and deserved her inheritance. In 1957, the court decided that it could neither confirm nor deny Anastasia’s identity. Al-though we will probably never know whether this woman was the Grand Duchess Anastasia, her search to establish her identity has beenthe subject of numerous books, plays, and movies.1．According to the passage,______.A．Anastasia is still alive.B．Anastasia is the only child of Czar Nicholas II.C．Many have tried to claim the identity of Anastasia.D．Anastasia died in an execution.正确答案：C解析：细节题。

专四英语阅读练习含答案

专四英语阅读练习含答案（一）People have been painting pictures for at least30,000 years. The earliest pictures were painted bypeople who hunted animals. They used to paintpictures of the animals they wanted to catch and kill.Pictures of this kind have been found on the walls ofcaves in France and Spain. No one knows why theywere painted there. Perhaps the painters thoughtthat their pictures would help them to catch theseanimals. Or perhaps human beings have always wanted to tell st ories in pictures.About 5,000 years ago, the Egyptians and other people in the Near East began to use picturesas kind of writing. They drew simple pictures or signs to represent things and ideas, and also torepresent the sounds of their language. Th.The Egyptians used to re signs these people used became a kindof alphabet ecord information and to tell stories by putting picture writingand pictures together. When an important person died, scenes and stories from his life werepainted and carved on the walls of the place where he was buried. Some of the stories. It has been said that Egypt is strip se pictures arelike modern comic.But, for the Egyptians, pictures still had magic p the home of the comic strip ower. So they did not try to make their way ofwriting simple. The ordinary pe it.understand ople could not By the year 1,000 BC, people who lived in the area around the Mediterranean Sea haddeveloped a simpler system of writing. The signs they used were very easy to write, and therewere fewer of them than in the Egyptian system. This was because each sign, or letter,represented only one sound in their langua alp ge. The Greeks developed this system and formedthe letters of the Greek isnow used all habet. The Romans copied the idea, and theRoman alphabetover the world.These days, we can write down a story, or record information, without using pictures. But westill need pictures of all kinds: drawing, photographs, signs and diagrams. We find themeverywhere: in books and newspapers, in the street, und and on the walls of the places where welive and work. Pictures help us toand remember things more easily, and they canmake a story much erstand more interesting.?1. Pictures of animals were painted on the walls of caves in France and Spainbecause ?___ ___?.?．A. the hunters wanted to see the pictures?B. the painters were animal lovers?C. the painters wanted to show imagination?D. the pictures were thought to be helpful? was simpler than the Egyptian system for all the follo alphabet2. The Greek wing reasonsEXCEPT that ?______.A. the former was easy to write?B. there were fewer signs in the former?C. the former was easy to pronounce?D. each sign stood for only one sound?3. Which of the following statements is TRUE??.?A. The Egyptian signs later became a particular alphabet stories.?B. The Egyptians liked to write comic?strip was developed from the Egyptian one.?C. The Roman alphabet D. The Greeks copied their writing system from the Egyptians.?4. In the last paragraph, the author thinks that pictures ?______?.??comprehensible A. should be madeB. should be made interesting?C. are of much use in our life?D. have disappeared from our life参考答案：1. D) 根据文章第一段第五行“Perhaps the paintersthoughtthat their pictures would help them to catchthese animals.”可知古代人以为在墙上画画会对他们有所帮助，故选项D为正确答案。

(完整版)大学英语专业四级阅读理解模拟试题(含答案)(01)

PART V READING COMPREHENSION [25 MIN]In this section there are four passages followed by questions or unfinished statements, each with four suggested answers marked A, B, C and D. Choose the one that you think is the best answer.TEXT AWe can begin our discussion of "population as global issue" with what most persons mean when they discuss "the population problem": too many people on earth and a too rapid increase in the number added each year. The facts are not in dispute, It was quite right to employ the analogy that likened demographic growth to "a long, thin powder fuse that burns steadily and haltingly until it finally reaches the charge and explodes."To understand the current situation, which is characterized by rapid increases in population, it is necessary to understand the history of population trends. Rapid growth is a comparatively recent phenomenon. Looking back at the 8,000 years of demographic history, we find that populations have been virtually stable or growing very slightly for most of human history. For most of our ancestors, life was hard, often nasty, and very short. There was high fertility in most places, but this was usually balanced by high mortality. For most of human history, it was seldom the case that one in ten persons would live past forty, while infancy and childhood were especially risky periods. Often, societies were in clear danger of extinction because death rates could exceed their birthrates. Thus, the population problem throughout most of history was how to prevent extinction of the human race.This pattern is important to notice. Not only does it put the current problems of demographic growth into a historical perspective, but it suggests that the cause of rapid increase in population in recent years is not a sudden enthusiasm for more children, but an improvement in the conditions that traditionally have caused high mortality.Demographic history can be divided into two major periods: a time of long, slow growth which extended from about 8,000 BC.till approximately AD. 1650. In the first period of some 9600 years, the population increased from some 8 million to 500 million in 1650. Between 1650 and the present, the population has increased from 500 million to more than 4 billion. And it is estimated that by the year 2000 there will be 6.2 billion people throughout the world. One way to appreciate this dramatic difference in such abstract numbers is to reduce the time frame to something that is more manageable. Between 8000BC and 1650, an average of only 50,000 persons was being added annually to the world's population each year. At present, this number is added every six hours. The increase is about 80,000,000 persons annually.1.Which of the following demographic growth pattern is most suitable for the long thin powder fuse analogy?A.A virtually stable or slightly decreasing period and then a sudden explosion of population.B.A slow growth for a long time and then a period of rapid, dramatic increase.C.Too many people on earth and a few rapid increase in the number added each year.D.A long period when death rates exceeds birthrates and then a short period with higher fertility and lowermortality.2.During the first period of demographic history, societies were often in danger of extinction because___.A.only one in ten persons could live past 40.B.there was higher mortality than fertility in most places.C.it was too dangerous to have babies due to the poor conditions.D.our ancestors had little enthusiasm for more children.3.Which statement is true about population increase?A.There might be an increase of 2.2 billion persons from now to the year 2000.B.About 50,000 babies are born every six hours at present.C.Between 8000 BC and the present, the population increase is about 80,000,000 persons each year.D.The population increased faster between 8000BC and 1650 than between 1650 and the present.4.The author of the passage intends to___.A.warn people against the population explosion in the near future.pare the demographic growth pattern in the past with that after 1650.C.find out the cause for rapid increase in population in recent years.D.present us a clear and complete picture of the demographic growth.5.The word "demographic" in the first paragraph means___.A.statistics of human.B.surroundings study.C.accumulation of human.D.development of human.TEXT BChinese Americans today have higher incomes than Americans in general and higher occupational status. The Chinese have risen to this position despite some of the harshest discrimination and violence faced by any immigrants to the United States in the history of this country. Long confined to a narrow range of occupations they succeeded in those occupations and then spread out into other areas in later years, when opportunities finally opened up for them. Today much of the Chinese prosperity is due to the simple fact that they work more and have more (usually better) education than others. Almost one out of five Chinese families has three or more income earners compared to one out of thirteen for Puerto Ricans, one out of ten among American Indians, and one out of eight among Whites. When the Chinese advantages in working and educational are held constant, they have no advantage over other Americans. That is in a Chinese Family with a given number of people working and with a given amount of education by the head of the family, the income is not only about average for such families, and offer a little less than average.While Chinese Americans as a group are prosperous and well-educated Chinatowns are pockets of poverty, and illiteracy is much higher among the Chinese than among Americans in general. Those paradoxes are due to sharp internal differences. Descendants of the Chinese Americans who emigrated long ago from Toishan Province have maintained Chinese values and have added acculturation to American society with remarkable success. More recent Hong Kong Chinese are from more diverse cultural origins, and acquired western values and styles in Hong Kong, without having acquired the skills to proper and support those aspirations in the American economy. Foreign-born Chinese men in the United States are one-fourth lower incomes than native-born Chinese even though the foreign-born have been in the United States an average of seventeen years. While the older Hong Kong Chinese work tenaciously to sustain and advance themselves, the Hong Kong Chinese youths often react with resentment and antisocial behavior, including terrorism and murder. The need to maintain tourism in Chinatown causes the Chinese leaders to mute or downplay these problems as much as possible.6.According to the passage, today, Chinese Americans owe their prosperity to___.A.their diligence and better education than others.B.their support of American government.C.their fight against discriminations.D.advantages in working only.7.The passage is mainly concerned with___.A.chinese Americans today.B.social status of Chinese Americans today.C.incomes and occupational status of Chinese Americans today.D.problems of Chinese Americans today.8.Chinatowns are pockets of poverty, as is probably associated with___.A.most descendants of Chinese Americans are rebelling.B.most descendants of Chinese Americans are illiterate.C.sharp internal difference between Chinese coming from different cultural backgrounds.D.only a few Chinese Americans are rich.9.Which of the following statements is not true according to this articleA.As part of the minority, Chinese Americans are still experiencing discrimination in American today.B.Nowadays, Chinese Americans are working in wider fields.C.Foreign-born Chinese earn lower income than native-born Chinese Americans with the similar advantagesin the U.S.D.None of the above.10.According to the author, which of the following can best describe the older Hong Kong Chinese and theyoungerA.Tenacious; rebellion.B.Conservative; open-minded.C.Out-of-date; fashionable.D.Obedient; disobedient.TEXT CA 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 in various 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 argued that the current method cannot properly determine the likelihood that two 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, a National Academy of Sciences called for strict standards and system of accreditation for DNA testing laboratories.11.efore 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 well12.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.13.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 twoindividualsB.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 studying14.The attitude of the Federal Bereau of Investigation shows that ____.A.enough data are yet to be collected form various ethnic groups to confirm the unlikelihood of two DNAsamples coming from two individual membersB.enough data of DNA samples should be collected to confirm that only DNA samples form the same personcan matchC.enough data are yet to be collected from various ethnic groups to determine the likelihood of two differentDNA samples coming form the same personD.additional samples from various ethnic groups should be collected to determine that two DNA samples areunlikely to come from the same person15.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 testingTEXT DMost of us are taught to pay attention to what is said—the 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 don't always say what we mean or mean what we say. Sometimes our words don't mean anything except " I'm letting off some steam. I don't really want you to pay close attention to what I'm saying. Just pay attention to what I'm 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 I'll buy." The owner says, " It's been like that for years." Actually, the step hasn't been like that for years, but the unspoken message is: " I don't want to fix it. We put up with it. Why can't 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 friend's 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 "You're dumb," "You're lazy," and "You're dishonest," may also say "No!" and try to justify his or her response if the next statement is "And you're 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.16.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 other's ideas beyond words.D.they are capable of associating meaning with their words.17."I'm letting off some steam" in paragraph 1 means___.A.I'm just calling your attention.B.I'm just kidding.C.I'm just saying the opposite.D.I'm just giving off some sound.18.The house-owner's example shows that he actually means___.A.the step has been like that for years.B.he doesn't 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.19.Some responses and behaviors may appear very illogical, but are justifiable if___.A.linked to an abnormal amount of assertiveness.B.seen as one's habitual pattern of behavior.C.taken as part of an ordering sequence.D.expressed to a series of charges.20.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： 1-5 ABADA 6-10 ACCCA 11-15 CBABB 16-20 DBABC。

四级阅读理解精炼习题及参考答案

四级阅读理解精炼习题及参考答案参考答案：Ⅰ. 1. T 2. T 3. T 4. FⅡ. Not totally, they offer more luxurious services,longer hours. 译文：在临东京湾的时髦地区出现了奇特的仿古式场景。

它是一个温泉疗养中心, 里面逼真地模拟了日本江户末年街道、小餐馆、商店的情景, 那些年日本尚未因外来力量的冲击而发生改变。

这个名为“江户温泉神话”的浴场是董事长中村勇夫多年的梦想。

中村勇夫惋惜战后日*化的美国化及其对东京的影响。

“过去我们告诉国外游客到京都去体味和享受古朴的日本, ”中村说:“如今他们可以来这里。

”在日本的黄金时代温泉浴行业有前景的想法已经得到映证。

现在人们甚至用一个专门的词——— iyashi-sangyo , 即治疗产业, 来表示这一行业。

该行业通过提供各种服务来缓解日本似乎无止尽的经济衰退引起的焦虑。

其中包括: 熏香、按摩和短期的田间劳作, 但这些都不及温泉受欢迎, 温泉的治疗效果已是久负盛名。

日本是火山群岛, 有三万多处然温泉和三千多处大多分布在乡间小旅馆里的温泉胜地。

中村建设中的这家浴场规模和排场都是史无前例的, 是一座位于东京市中心的具有乡村风情的庞大的浴室和主题公园。

另外还有两家温泉疗养中心正在建设中, 其中一家造价比中村浴场的四千六百万美元几乎高出三倍。

在一所大学研究温泉文化的教授松田忠德说, 在市中心快速矗立起的这些庞大的设施, 暗示人们对经济的焦虑“已经一触即发”, 而投资者们想从中渔利。

东京新的浴场和传统的澡堂大同小异。

在一般的澡堂, 客人花4 美元用普通的水洗刷一下, 午夜打烊时, 他们就得离开。

东京所有新建的浴场都要用抽自地下1 700 米深处的真正的矿物温泉水。

他们提供每次最低消费为20 美元的时间更长、更舒适的服务。

尽管这股建设热潮中存在风险, 但是在日本温泉浴行业似乎充满了商机: 现有的温泉浴场每年接待3 亿白天来访的客人。

专业英语四级阅读模拟试卷202

专业英语四级阅读模拟试卷202全文共3篇示例，供读者参考篇1Professional English CET-4 Reading Practice Test 202Part I Reading Comprehension (40 points)Directions: There are four reading passages in this part. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A, B, C and D. You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet with a single line through the center.Passage 1Humans have been altering the world's ecosystems for thousands of years. Usually, changes have happened at a relatively slow pace, giving other creatures time to adapt. However, in the last 300 years, human activity has caused much more rapid and extensive alterations in the natural world. The rapid rate of change is causing problems for many species and ecosystems. The extinction rate of species is now 100 to 1000times greater than the rate before human beings began altering the environment.The rapid rate of extinction has been caused mainly by the destruction of habitats. Habitat can be destroyed in many ways, such as logging, mining, farming, and urban expansion. The expansion of farming and urbanization has meant that many habitats are fragmented into much smaller areas. Small areas of habitat, which may be too small to support a viable population, have a high risk of disappearing altogether. Moreover, the removal of a single species may have implications for many others. A species does not live in isolation; instead, it occupies a web of interactions with other species. Humans have the ability to greatly affect other species by removing just one of the members of an ecosystem.1. According to the passage, how does the rate of extinction now compare with the rate before human beings began altering the environment?A. It has decreased significantly.B. It has increased slightly.C. It has remained the same.D. It has increased substantially.2. What is the main cause of the rapid rate of extinction mentioned in the passage?A. Overpopulation of certain species.B. Pollution of ecosystems.C. Destruction of habitats.D. Climate change.3. Why are habitats being fragmented into smaller areas?A. Due to natural causes.B. Because of the expansion of farming and urbanization.C. To enable easier access for humans.D. To facilitate the breeding of species.4. What is the implication of the removal of a single species from an ecosystem?A. It has no impact on the remaining species.B. It leads to the eventual extinction of all species.C. It disrupts the web of interactions within the ecosystem.D. It improves the overall health of the ecosystem.Passage 2Symbiotic relationships are common in nature, with many species relying on each other for survival. One example of symbiosis is the relationship between the clownfish and the sea anemone. The clownfish is able to live among the sea anemone's tentacles without being harmed by its venomous sting. In turn, the clownfish protects the sea anemone from predators, such as butterflyfish, that feed on them. This mutually beneficial relationship is known as mutualism, where both species benefit from the interaction.Another example of symbiosis is the relationship between bees and flowers. Bees pollinate flowers as they collect nectar for food. Pollination is essential for the reproduction of many plant species, making bees important pollinators. In return, the flowers provide the bees with nectar, which is their main source of energy. This relationship is an example of mutualism as well, where both bees and flowers benefit from the interaction.5. What is the main idea of the passage?A. The importance of symbiotic relationships in nature.B. The competition between species for resources.C. The dangers of venomous marine life.D. The impact of pollution on ecosystems.6. What is mutualism?A. A symbiotic relationship where one species benefits at the expense of another.B. A relationship where both species benefit from the interaction.C. A relationship where one species preys on another for survival.D. A relationship where both species are harmed by the interaction.7. Why are bees important pollinators?A. They collect nectar for food.B. They protect flowers from predators.C. They reproduce plant species.D. They provide energy for the flowers.8. What does the clownfish do to protect the sea anemone?A. It feeds on the sea anemone's predators.B. It lives among the sea anemone's tentacles.C. It competes with the sea anemone for food.D. It creates barriers around the sea anemone.Part II Vocabulary and Structure (10 points)Directions: There are thirty incomplete sentences in this part. For each sentence, there are four choices marked A, B, C and D. Choose the one that best completes the sentence and mark the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet with a single line through the center.9. If the weather ___, we will have to postpone the picnic.A. will not improveB. does not improveC. did not improveD. has not improved10. The company apologized for the inconvenience ___ by the delay.A. causesB. causedC. causeD. causing11. He ___ have forgotten his phone, as he never leaves home without it.A. mightB. couldC. mustD. should12. The new law will go into ___ next month.A. affectB. effectC. affectsD. effectedPart III Reading Comprehension (50 points)Directions: There are four reading passages in this part. Each passage is followed by 5-10 questions. For each question, there are four choices marked A, B, C and D. You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet with a single line through the center.Passage 1The James Bay Hydroelectric Project in Canada is one of the largest and most controversial hydroelectric projects in the world. The project involves the construction of numerous dams and power stations on rivers flowing into James Bay, a southern extension of the Hudson Bay. The project was initiated by the government of Quebec in the 1970s and was completed in 1984.One of the main reasons for the construction of the James Bay Project was to provide electricity to Quebec and decrease the province's reliance on fossil fuels. The project has a total generating capacity of over 16,000 MW, making it one of the largest hydroelectric systems in the world. However, the project has been criticized for its impact on the environment and local communities. The flooding of large areas of land for the construction of dams has led to the displacement of First Nations communities and the destruction of traditional territories.13. Where is the James Bay Hydroelectric Project located?A. Hudson Bay.B. The southern extension of James Bay.C. Quebec.D. Canada.14. When was the James Bay Project completed?A. 1970s.B. 1984.C. 1990s.D. 2000s.15. What is one of the main reasons for the construction of the James Bay Project?A. To decrease the province's reliance on fossil fuels.B. To increase the province's reliance on fossil fuels.C. To flood large areas of land.D. To displace First Nations communities.16. How much total generating capacity does the James Bay Project have?A. Over 16,000 MW.B. Less than 10,000 MW.C. Over 20,000 MW.D. Less than 5,000 MW.17. What has been a criticism of the James Bay Project?A. Its impact on the environment and local communities.B. Its use of renewable energy sources.C. Its positive effects on traditional territories.D. Its decrease in greenhouse gas emissions.Passage 2Astrology is the study of how the positions of the stars and planets can affect human behavior and events. The practice of astrology has been around for thousands of years, with roots in ancient Babylon, Egypt, and Greece. Astrologers believe that the positions of celestial bodies at the time of a person's birth can influence their personality, relationships, and future.There are twelve zodiac signs in Western astrology, each associated with different personality traits and characteristics. For example, individuals born under the sign of Leo are believed to be confident and charismatic, while those born under the sign of Pisces are thought to be compassionate and creative. The movements of the planets are also thought to influence events on Earth and can be used to predict future trends and developments.18. What is astrology?A. The study of how the positions of the stars and planets can affect human behavior and events.B. The study of ancient civilizations.C. The study of celestial bodies.D. The study of psychology.19. How long has the practice of astrology been around?A. Hundreds of years.B. Thousands of years.C. Millions of years.D. Billions of years.20. What do astrologers believe can influence a person's personality and future?A. Their job.B. Their education.C. The positions of celestial bodies at the time of their birth.D. Their family background.21. How many zodiac signs are there in Western astrology?A. Four.B. Six.C. Eight.D. Twelve.22. What are Leo and Pisces examples of in astrology?A. Zodiac symbols.B. Planets.C. Stars.D. Constellations.Part IV Translation (10 points)Directions: There are five sentences in this part. Translate them into English and write your translation on the Answer Sheet.23. 为了保护海洋生态系统，我们需要采取行动。

四级阅读理解练习

四级阅读理解练习阅读理解是英语四级考试的重要部分，可以帮助学生提高阅读理解能力，扩展词汇量，培养分析和推理能力。

本文将为您提供一些四级阅读理解练习。

希望对大家备考英语四级有所帮助。

阅读理解一：It's quite rare to see what's known as "angel hair" poking out from the edges of clouds, and rarer still to find it on the ground as a fine deposit of ice needles beside a blue sky. Ice needles form when there is enough moisture in the air, and the temperature drops below freezing point but not low enough to form solid ice crystals. This creates conditions which allow ice needles to grow.A French scientist, Gabriel Voisin, made a study of ice needles. He wrote: "there is no doubt that you can experience an ambiance (atmosphere) which has produced ice needles either by day or by night. The phenomenon is fascinating, especially when you touch the tuft, the product of the atmosphere’s fairy collaboration."Is there an equivalent phenomenon when the sun is shining and there are ice needles? Willows with "fairy hair" seem to answer the question. If you look at one, you will probably see that each branch has a patch of white hair among the brown, and the hair is powdered for several centimeters or a foot down the branch. Wedges of the white powder fall to the ground as the weight becomes too great. You might have no doubt that hoar-frost had made the hair, but it is not frost, nor any other chemical that can easily be found.问题1：What are ice needles?问题2：According to the passage, what produces the "tuft"?问题3：What name does the author give the white powder on willow branches?阅读理解二：It’s well-known that in China, most married couples live with their parents. This tradition, known as “xiaozi,” is deeply rooted in Chinese culture. The tradition of xiaozi signifies the importance of maintaining close family relationships and filial piety, or respect for and obedience to one's parents and ancestors.In Chinese culture, living with parents not only means providing financial support to them but also taking care of their daily needs. It is considered a way of expressing gratitude and a sense of responsibility towards one's parents for raising and supporting them throughout their lives.However, with the rapid development of society and changing social values, the traditional way of living with parents is gradually undergoing changes. More and more young couples are choosing to live separately from their parents after marriage, seeking independence and space. This change is particularly prominent in big cities where young people pursue careers and personal development.The decision to live separately from parents is often influenced by a desire for privacy, freedom, and individuality. Young couples want to establish their own family rules and create a space that reflects their personallifestyle and values. They also want to avoid potential conflicts and tensions that can arise from living in close quarters with their parents.Additionally, the rising cost of living and changing socioeconomic factors have made it more challenging for young couples to afford a separate living space within their means. This has also contributed to the trend of living separately from parents.It is worth mentioning that while living separately from parents has its advantages, it can also be accompanied by challenges such as increased financial burden, childcare responsibilities, and limited support from extended family members. Therefore, it is essential for young couples to carefully consider their own circumstances and make informed decisions about living arrangements after marriage.问题1：What is the traditional way of living for married couples in China called?问题2：What are the reasons for more young couples choosing to live separately from their parents?问题3：What challenges can arise from living separately from parents?。

专业英语四级阅读练习

专业英语四级阅读练习专业英语四级阅读练习盛年不重来，一日难再晨。

及时当勉励，岁月不待人。

以下是店铺为大家搜索整理的专业英语四级阅读练习，以下是店铺精心整理的专业英语四级阅读练习，希望能够帮助到大家。

专业英语四级阅读练习篇1Text BIn English, along a stretch of the north-east coast which gently curves from Northumberland to the estuary of the river Tees, there was a spot, typical of many on that coast, where sea-coal collected richly and effortlessly. This coal was a coarse powder, clean and brilliant. It seemed to bear little resemblance to the large, filthy lumps put onto the fire. Although it was coal, it was perfectly clean and it was silently deposited at high tide in a glittering carpet a kilometer long for the local community to gather up.The great needed for sea-coaling expeditions was a curious and traditionally proven assortment which never varied from community to community along the entire north-east coastline. Sacks were essential to put the coal in, and string to tie the neck of each sack when it was full. A wooden rake was used to scrape the coal from the beach. The only alternative to the rake was a flat piece of board held in the hand. A flat, broad shovel to lift the raked coal into the bags, completed the portable hardware.But the most crucial item of equipment was a bicycle, a special kind of rusty, stripped-down model which was the symbol of the sea-coaling craft. A lady’s bike was no good because it lacked a crossbar, and that was an essential element in transporting sea-coal. One full sack could be slung through thetr iangular frame of a man’s bike, another over the crossbar and, sometime, even a third on top of that. The beauty of the metal bar against the full, wet sacks forced excess water out of the coal while it was being wheeled home. On a good day, the path to the beach was generally a double snail track of water that had been forced from each end of a trail of coal sacks.70. The difference between the two types of coal was that sea coal _____.A. burnt better.B. was cheaper.C. was more finely-grained.D. came in big pieces.正确答案是71. Certain equipment was used because _____.A. the people were very traditional.B. it could be made by the communities.C. it had proved to be practical.D. the communities had curious habits.正确答案是72. To carry three sacks of coal on a bicycle it was necessary to _____.A. put one of them on the saddle.B. balance them all on the crossbar.C. balance two on the crossbar.D. remove the excess liquid.正确答案是73. By using the bicycle _____.A. the collection could ride home.B. coal could be moved easily over the sand.C. the collection could sell more coal.D. excess liquid could be removed.专业英语四级阅读练习篇2More surprising, perhaps, than the current difficulties of traditional marriage is the fact that marriage itself is alive and thriving. As Skolnick notes, Americans are a marrying people: relative to Europeans, more of us marry and we marry at a younger age. Moreover, after a decline in the early 1970s, the rate of marriage in the United States is now increasing. Even the divorce rate needs to be taken in this pro- marriage context: some 80 percent of divorced individuals remarry. Thus, marriage remains by far the preferred way of life for the vast majority of the people in our society.What has changed more than marriage is the nuclear family. Twenty- five years ago, the typical American family consisted of the husband, the wife, and two or three children. Now, there are many marriages in whichcouples have decided not to have any children, and there are many marriages where at least some of the children are from the wife’s previous marriage, or the husband’s, or both. Sometimes these children spend all of their time with one parent from the former marriage; sometimes they are shared between the two former spouses .Thus, one can find every type of tamely arrangement. There are marriages without children; marriages with children from only the present marriages; marriages with“full - time”children from both the present and former marriages; marriages with“full- time”children from the present marriage and“part- time”childrenfrom former marriages. There are stepfathers, stepmothers, half- brothers and half-sisters. It is not all that unusual for a child to have four parents and eight grandparents! These are enormous changes from the traditional nuclear family.But even so, even in the midst of all this, there remains one constant: most Americans spend most of their adult lives married.练习题：Choose correct answers to the question:1.By calling Americans a marrying people the writer means that ________.A.Americans are more traditional than EuropeansB More Americans prefer marriage and at a younger age than EuropeanC.most divorced individuals remarryD.marriage is the most important part of American life2.From the first paragraph we can know that ____A.traditional marriage now runs into difficultyB.marriage rate has been rising since the 1970C.marriage rate in Europe is rather lowD.European marry when they are quite old3.Which of the following can be presented as the picture of today’s Am erican families?A. There are no nuclear families any more.B. A family usually consists of only a husband ,a wife and two or three childrenC. a child usually has four grandparentsD. Many types of family rearrangements have become socially acceptable.4. “Part-time ”children ____A.do part-time job to earn their livingB.spend all of their time with one parent from the previous marriageC.are shared between the two former spousesD.are quite unusual even in the U.S.A5.Even though great changes have taken place in the structure of American families, ________ .A. the functions of marriage remain unchangedB. most Americans prefer a second marriageC. the vast majority of Americans still have faith in marriageD. nuclear family is alive and thriving答案1.[B] 事实细节题。

大学英语专业四级阅读理解模拟试题(含答案)(01)(可编辑修改word版)

PART V READING COMPREHENSION [25 MIN]In this section there are four passages followed by questions or unfinished statements, each with four suggested answers marked A, B, C and D. Choose the one that you think is the best answer.TEXT AWe can begin our discussion of "population as global issue" with what most persons mean when they discuss "the population problem": too many people on earth and a too rapid increase in the number added each year. The facts are not in dispute, It was quite right to employ the analogy that likened demographic growth to "a long, thin powder fuse that burns steadily and haltingly until it finally reaches the charge and explodes."To understand the current situation, which is characterized by rapid increases in population, it is necessary to understand the history of population trends. Rapid growth is a comparatively recent phenomenon. Looking back at the 8,000 years of demographic history, we find that populations have been virtually stable or growing very slightly for most of human history. For most of our ancestors, life was hard, often nasty, and very short. There was high fertility in most places, but this was usually balanced by high mortality. For most of human history, it was seldom the case that one in ten persons would live past forty, while infancy and childhood were especially risky periods. Often, societies were in clear danger of extinction because death rates could exceed their birthrates. Thus, the population problem throughout most of history was how to prevent extinction of the human race.This pattern is important to notice. Not only does it put the current problems of demographic growth into a historical perspective, but it suggests that the cause of rapid increase in population in recent years is not a sudden enthusiasm for more children, but an improvement in the conditions that traditionally have caused high mortality.Demographic history can be divided into two major periods: a time of long, slow growth which extended from about 8,000 BC.till approximately AD. 1650. In the first period of some 9600 years, the population increased from some 8 million to 500 million in 1650. Between 1650 and the present, the population has increased from 500 million to more than 4 billion. And it is estimated that by the year 2000 there will be 6.2 billion people throughout the world. One way to appreciate this dramatic difference in such abstract numbers is to reduce the time frame to something that is more manageable. Between 8000BC and 1650, an average of only 50,000 persons was being added annually to the world's population each year. At present, this number is added every six hours. The increase is about 80,000,000 persons annually.1.Which of the following demographic growth pattern is most suitable for the long thin powder fuse analogy?A.A virtually stable or slightly decreasing period and then a sudden explosion of population.B.A slow growth for a long time and then a period of rapid, dramatic increase.C.Too many people on earth and a few rapid increase in the number added each year.D.A long period when death rates exceeds birthrates and then a short period with higher fertility and lowermortality.2.During the first period of demographic history, societies were often in danger of extinction because .A.only one in ten persons could live past 40.B.there was higher mortality than fertility in most places.C.it was too dangerous to have babies due to the poor conditions.D.our ancestors had little enthusiasm for more children.3.Which statement is true about population increase?A.There might be an increase of 2.2 billion persons from now to the year 2000.B.About 50,000 babies are born every six hours at present.C.Between 8000 BC and the present, the population increase is about 80,000,000 persons each year.D.The population increased faster between 8000BC and 1650 than between 1650 and the present.4.The author of the passage intends to .A.warn people against the population explosion in the near future.pare the demographic growth pattern in the past with that after 1650.C.find out the cause for rapid increase in population in recent years.D.present us a clear and complete picture of the demographic growth.5.The word "demographic" in the first paragraph means .A.statistics of human.B.surroundings study.C.accumulation of human.D.development of human.TEXT BChinese Americans today have higher incomes than Americans in general and higher occupational status. The Chinese have risen to this position despite some of the harshest discrimination and violence faced by any immigrants to the United States in the history of this country. Long confined to a narrow range of occupations they succeeded in those occupations and then spread out into other areas in later years, when opportunities finally opened up for them. Today much of the Chinese prosperity is due to the simple fact that they work more and have more (usually better) education than others. Almost one out of five Chinese families has three or more income earners compared to one out of thirteen for Puerto Ricans, one out of ten among American Indians, and one out of eight among Whites. When the Chinese advantages in working and educational are held constant, they have no advantage over other Americans. That is in a Chinese Family with a given number of people working and with a given amount of education by the head of the family, the income is not only about average for such families, and offer a little less than average.While Chinese Americans as a group are prosperous and well-educated Chinatowns are pockets of poverty, and illiteracy is much higher among the Chinese than among Americans in general. Those paradoxes are due to sharp internal differences. Descendants of the Chinese Americans who emigrated long ago from Toishan Province have maintained Chinese values and have added acculturation to American society with remarkable success. More recent Hong Kong Chinese are from more diverse cultural origins, and acquired western values and styles in Hong Kong, without having acquired the skills to proper and support those aspirations in the American economy. Foreign-born Chinese men in the United States are one-fourth lower incomes than native-born Chinese even though the foreign-born have been in the United States an average of seventeen years. While the older Hong Kong Chinese work tenaciously to sustain and advance themselves, the Hong Kong Chinese youths often react with resentment and antisocial behavior, including terrorism and murder. The need to maintain tourism in Chinatown causes the Chinese leaders to mute or downplay these problems as much as possible.6.According to the passage, today, Chinese Americans owe their prosperity to .A.their diligence and better education than others.B.their support of American government.C.their fight against discriminations.D.advantages in working only.7.The passage is mainly concerned with .A.chinese Americans today.B.social status of Chinese Americans today.C.incomes and occupational status of Chinese Americans today.D.problems of Chinese Americans today.8.Chinatowns are pockets of poverty, as is probably associated with .A.most descendants of Chinese Americans are rebelling.B.most descendants of Chinese Americans are illiterate.C.sharp internal difference between Chinese coming from different cultural backgrounds.D.only a few Chinese Americans are rich.9.Which of the following statements is not true according to this articleA.As part of the minority, Chinese Americans are still experiencing discrimination in American today.B.Nowadays, Chinese Americans are working in wider fields.C.Foreign-born Chinese earn lower income than native-born Chinese Americans with the similar advantagesin the U.S.D.None of the above.10.According to the author, which of the following can best describe the older Hong Kong Chinese and theyoungerA.Tenacious; rebellion.B.Conservative; open-minded.C.Out-of-date; fashionable.D.Obedient; disobedient.TEXT CA 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 in various 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 argued that the current method cannot properly determine the likelihood that two 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, a National Academy of Sciences called for strict standards and system of accreditation for DNA testing laboratories.11.efore 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 well12.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.13.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 twoindividualsB.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 studying14.The attitude of the Federal Bereau of Investigation shows that .A.enough data are yet to be collected form various ethnic groups to confirm the unlikelihood of two DNAsamples coming from two individual membersB.enough data of DNA samples should be collected to confirm that only DNA samples form the same personcan matchC.enough data are yet to be collected from various ethnic groups to determine the likelihood of two differentDNA samples coming form the same personD.additional samples from various ethnic groups should be collected to determine that two DNA samples areunlikely to come from the same person15.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 testingTEXT DMost of us are taught to pay attention to what is said—the 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 don't always say what we mean or mean what we say. Sometimes our words don't mean anything except " I'm letting off some steam. I don't really want you to pay close attention to what I'm saying. Just pay attention to what I'm 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 I'll buy." The owner says, " It's been like that for years." Actually, the step hasn't been like that for years, but the unspoken message is: " I don't want to fix it. We put up with it. Why can't 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 friend's 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 "You're dumb," "You're lazy," and "You're dishonest," may also say "No!" and try to justify his or her response if the next statement is "And you're 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.16.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 other's ideas beyond words.D.they are capable of associating meaning with their words.17."I'm letting off some steam" in paragraph 1 means .A.I'm just calling your attention.B.I'm just kidding.C.I'm just saying the opposite.D.I'm just giving off some sound.18.The house-owner's example shows that he actually means .A.the step has been like that for years.B.he doesn't 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.19.Some responses and behaviors may appear very illogical, but are justifiable if .A.linked to an abnormal amount of assertiveness.B.seen as one's habitual pattern of behavior.C.taken as part of an ordering sequence.D.expressed to a series of charges.20.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：1-5 ABADA 6-10 ACCCA 11-15 CBABB 16-20 DBABC。

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英语专业四级考试阅读理解训练（一）Passage OneComputers monitor everything in Singapore from soil composition to location of manholes. At the airport, it took just 15 seconds for the computerized immigration system to scan and approve my passport. It takes only one minute to be checked into a public hospital.By 1998, almost every household will be wired for interactive cable TV and the Internet, the global computer network. Shoppers will be able to view and pay for products electronically. A 24-hour community telecomputing network will allow users to communicate with elected representatives and retrieve information about government services. It is all part of the government’s plan to transform the nation into what it calls the ―Intelligent Island‖.In so many ways, Singapore has elevated the concept of efficiency to a kind of national ideology. For the past ten years, Singapore’s work force was rated the best in the world—ahead of Japan and the U. S. –In terms of productivity, skill and attitude by the Business Environment Risk Intelligence service.Behind the ―Singapore miracle‖ is a man Richard Nixon described as one of ―the ablest leaders I have met,‖ one who, ―in other times and other places, might have attained the world stature of a Churchill.‖ Lee Kuan Yew led Sing apore’s struggle for independence in the 1950s, serving as Prime Minister from 1959 until 1990. Today (1995), at 71, he has nominally retired to the office of Senior Minister, where he continues to influence his country’s future. Lee offered companies tax breaks, political stability, cheap labor and strike-free environment.Nearly 90 percent of Singaporean adults now own their own homes and thanks to strict adherence to the principle of merit, personal opportunities abound. ―If you’ve got talent and work hard, you can be anything here,‖ says a Malaysian-born woman who holds a high-level civil-service position.Lee likes to boast that Singapore has avoided the ―moral breakdown‖ of Western countries. He attributes his nation’s success to strong family ties, a reliance on education as the engine of advancement and social philosophy that he claims is superior to America’s.In an interview with Reader’s Digest, he said that the United States has ―lost its bearings‖ by emphasizing individual rights at the expense of society. ―An ethical society,‖ he said, ―is one which matches human rights with responsibilities.‖1. What characterizes Singapore’s advancement is its___.A. computer monitoringB. work efficiencyC. high productivityD. value on ethics2. Fr om Nixon’s perspective, Lee is___.A. almost as great as ChurchillB. not as great as ChurchillC. only second to Churchill in being a leaderD. just as great as Churchill3. In the last paragraph, ―lost its bearings‖ may mean___.A. become impatientB. failed to find the right positionC. lost its foundationD. grown band-mannered4. ―Y ou can be anything here‖（Paragraph 5）may be paraphrased as___.A. Y ou can hope for a very bright prospect.B. Y ou may be able to do anything needed.C. Y ou can choose any job as you like.D. Y ou will become an outstanding worker.5. In Singapore, the concept of efficiency___.A. has been emphasized throughout the country.B. has become an essential quality for citizens to aim at.C. is brought forward by the government in order to compete with America.D. is known as the basis for building the ―Intelligent Island.‖Passage TwoWhat we know of prenatal development makes all this attempt made by a mother to mold the character of her unborn child by studying poetry, art, or mathematics during pregnancy seem utterly impossible. How could such extremely complex influences pass from the mother to the child？There is no connection between their nervous systems. Even the blood vessels of mother and child do not join directly. An emotional shock to the mother will affect her child, because it changes the activity of her glands and so the chemistry her blood. Any chemical change in the mother’s blood will affect the child for better or worse. But we can not see how a looking for mathematics or poetic genius can be dissolved 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 inherit must be of some very simple sort rather than any complicated or very definite kind of behavior. It is certain that no one inherits a knowledge of mathematics. It may be, however, that children inherit more or less of a rather general ability that we may call intelligence. If very intelligent children become deeply interested in mathematics, they will probably make a success of that study.As for musical ability, it may be that what is inherited is an especially sensitive ear, a peculiar structure of the hands or the vocal organs connections between nerves and muscles that make it comparatively easy to learn the movements a musician must execute, and particularly vigorous emotions. If these factors are all organized around music, the child may become a musician. The same factors, in other circumstance might be organized about some other center of interest. The rich emotional equipment might find expression in poetry. The capable fingers might develop skill in surgery. It is not the knowledge of music that is inherited, then nor even the love of it, but a certain bodily structure that makes it comparatively easy to acquire musical knowledge and skill. Whether that ability shall be directed toward music or some other undertaking may be decided entirely 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 during theirpregnancy.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 peculiar structure of the hands 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 TalentsPassage ThreeThe case for college has been accepted without question for more than a generation. All high school graduates ought to go, says conventional wisdom and statistical evidence, because college will help themearn more money, become ―better‖ people, and learn to be more responsible citizens than those who don’t go.But college has never been able to work its magic for everyone. And now that close to half our high school graduates are attending, those who don’t fit the pattern are becoming more numerous, and more obvious. College graduates are selling shoes and driving taxis; college students interfere with each other’s experiments and write false letters of recommendation in the intense competition for admission to graduate school. Others find no stimulation in their studies, and drop out—often encouraged by college administrators.Some observers say the fault is with the young people themselves—they are spoiled and they are expecting too much. But that is a condemnation of the students as a whole, and doesn’t explain all campus unhappiness. Others blame the state of the world, and they are partly right. We have been told that young people have to go to college because our economy can’t absorb an army of untrained eighteen-year-olds. But disappointed graduates are learning that it can no longer absorb an army of trained twenty-two-year-olds, either.Some adventuresome educators and watchers have openly begun to suggest that college may not be the best, the proper, the only place for every young person after the completion of high school. We may have been looking at all those surveys and statistics upside down, it seems, and through the rosy glow of our own remembered college experiences. Perhaps college doesn’t make people intelligent, ambitious, happy, liberal, or quick to learn things—may it is just the other way around, and intelligent, ambitious, happy, liberal, quick-learning people are merely the ones who have been attracted to college in the first place. And perhaps all those successful college graduates would have been successful whether they had gone to college or not. This is heresy to those of us who have been brought up to believe that if a little schooling is good, more has to be much better. But contrary evidence is beginning to mount up.1. According to the author, ___.A. people used to question the value of college education.B. people used to have full confidence in higher education.C. all high school graduates went to college.D. very few high school graduates chose to go to college.2. In the 2nd paragraph, ―those who don’t fit the pattern‖ refer to___.A. high school graduates who aren’t suitable for college educationB. college graduates who are selling shoes and driving taxisC. college students who aren’t any better for their higher educationD. high school graduates who failed to be admitted to college3. The dropout rate of college students seems to go up because___.A. young people are disappointed with the conventional way of teaching at collegeB. many people are required to join the armyC. young people have little motivation in pursuing a higher educationD. young people don’t like the intense competition for admis sion to graduate school4. According to the passage, the problems of college education partly originate in the fact that___.A. society cannot provide enough jobs for properly trained graduatesB. high school graduates do not fit the pattern of college educationC. too many students have to earn their own livingD. college administrators encourage students to drop out5. In this passage the author argues that___.A. more and more evidence shows college education may not be the best thing for high school graduates.B. College education is not enough if one wants to be successful.C. College education benefits only the intelligent, ambitious, and quick-learning people.D. Intelligent people may learn quicker if they don’t go to college.Passage FourRacket, din clamor, noise, whatever you want to call it, unwanted sound is America’s most widespread nuisance. But noise is more than just a nuisance. It constitutes a real and present danger to people’s health. Day and night, at home, at work, and at play, noise can produce serious physical and psychological stress. No one is immune to this stress. Though we seem to adjust to noise by ignoring it, the ear, in fact, never closes and the body still responds—sometimes with extreme tension, as to a strange sound in the night.The annoyance we feel when faced with noise is the most common outward symptom of the stress building up inside us. Indeed, because irritability is so apparent, legislators have made public annoyance the basis of many noise abatement programs. The more subtle and more serious health hazards associated with stress caused by noise traditionally have been given much less attention. Nevertheless, when we are annoyed or made irritable by noise, we should consider these symptoms fair warning that other thing may be happening to us, some of which may be damaging to our health.Of many health hazards to noise, hearing loss is the most clearly observable and measurable by health professionals. The other hazards are harder to pin down. For many of us, there may be a risk that exposure to the stress of noise increases susceptibility to disease and infection. The more susceptible among us may experience noise as a complicating factor in heart problems and other diseases. Noise that causes annoyance and irritability in health persons may have serious consequences for these already ill in mind or body.Noise affects us throughout our lives. For example, there are indications of effects on the unborn child when mothers are exposed to industrial and environmental noise. During infancy and childhood, youngsters exposed to high noise levels may have trouble falling asleep and obtaining necessary amounts of rest.Why, then, is there not greater alarm about these dangers？Perhaps it is because the link between noise and many disabilities or diseases has not yet been conclusively demonstrated. Perhaps it is because we tend to dismiss annoyance as a price to pay for living in the modern world. It may also be because we still think of hearing loss as only an occupational hazard.1. In Paragraph 1, the phrase ―immune to‖ are used to mean ___.A. unaffected byB. hurt byC. unlikely to be seen byD. unknown by2. The author’s attitude toward noise would best be described as ___.A. unrealisticB. traditionalC. concernedD. hysterical3. Which of the following best states the main idea of the passage？A. Noise is a major problem; most people recognize its importance.B. Although noise can be annoying, it is not a major problem.C. Noise is a major problem and has not yet been recognized as such.D. Noise is a major problem about which nothing can be done.4. The author condemns noise essentially because it ___.A. is against the lawB. can make some people irritableC. is a nuisanceD. in a ganger to people’s health5. The author would probably consider research about the effects noise has on people to be ___.A. unimportantB. impossible.C. a waste of moneyD. essentialPassage FiveMost of us are taught to pay attention to what is said—the 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 thoseassociations if we listen for more than words. We don’t always say what we mean or mean what we say. Sometimes our wor ds don’t mean anything except ―I’m letting off some steam. I don’t really want you to pay close attention to what I’m saying. Just pay attention to what I’m 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 I’ll buy.‖ The owner says, ―It’s been like that for years.‖ Actually, the step hasn’t been like that for years, but the unspoken message is: ―I don’t want to fix it. We put up with it. Why can’t 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 friend’s unusually doci le 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 ―Y ou’re dumb,‖ ―Y ou’re lazy,‖ and ―Y ou’re dishonest,‖ may also say ―No!‖ and try to justify his or her response if the next statement is ―And you’re 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 other’s ideas beyond words.D. they are capable of associating meaning with their words.2. ―I’m letting off some steam‖ in paragraph 1 means___.A. I’m just calling your attention.B. I’m just kidding.C. I’m just saying the opposite.D. I’m just giving off some sound.3. The house-owner’s example shows that he actually means___.A. the step has been like that for years.B. he doesn’t think it necessary t o 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 assertivenessB. seen as one’s habitual pattern of behaviorC. taken as part of an ordering sequenceD. expressed to a series of charges5. The word ―ritualistically‖ in the last paragraph equals something done___.A. without true intentionB. light-heartedlyC. in a way of ceremonyD. with less emphasis。