2018年可锐考研英语阅读专项练习
2018年可锐考研英语经典阅读试题
2018年可锐考研英语经典阅读试题（五）[物理学]The use of heat pumps has been held back largely by skepticism about advertisers’claims that heat pumps can provide as many as two units of thermal energy for each unit of electrical energy used, thus apparently contradicting the principle of energy conservation.Heat pumps circulate a fluid refrigerant that cycles alternatively from its liquid phase to its vapor phase in a closed loop. The refrigerant, starting as a low-temperature, low-pressure vapor, enters a compressor driven by an electric motor. The refrigerant leaves the compressor as a hot, dense vapor and flows through a heat exchanger called the condenser, which transfers heat from the refrigerant to a body of air. Now the refrigerant, as a high-pressure, cooled liquid, confronts a flow restriction which causes the pressure to drop. As the pressure falls, the refrigerant expands and partially vaporizes, becoming chilled. It then passes through a second heat exchanger, the evaporator, which transfers heat from the air to the refrigerant, reducing the temperature of this second body of air. Of the two heat exchangers, one is located inside, and the other one outside the house, so each is in contact with a different body of air: room air and outside air, respectively.The flow direction of refrigerant through a heat pump is controlled by valves. When the refrigerant flow is reversed, the heat exchangers switch function. This flow-reversal capability allows heat pumps either to heat or cool room air.Now, if under certain conditions a heat pump puts out more thermal energy than it consumes in electrical energy, has the law of energy conservation been challenged? No, not even remotely: the additional input of thermal energy into the circulating refrigerant via the evaporator accounts for the difference in the energy equation.Unfortunately there is one real problem. The heating capacity of a heat pump decreases as the outdoor temperature falls. The drop in capacity is caused by the lessening amount of refrigerant mass moved through the compressor at one time. The heating capacity is proportional to this mass flow rate: the less the mass of refrigerant being compressed, the less the thermal load it can transfer through the heat-pump cycle. The volume flow rate of refrigerant vapor through the single-speed rotary compressor used in heat pumps is approximately constant. But cold refrigerant vapor entering a compressor is at lower pressure than warmer vapor. Therefore, the mass of cold refrigerant —and thus the thermal energy it carries —is less than if the refrigerant vapor were warmer before compression.Here, then, lies a genuine drawback of heat pumps: in extremely cold climates —where the most heat is needed —heat pumps are least able to supply enough heat.1. The primary purpose of the text is to[A] explain the differences in the working of a heat pump when the outdoor temperature changes.[B] contrast the heating and the cooling modes of heat pumps.[C] describe heat pumps, their use, and factors affecting their use.[D] advocate the more widespread use of heat pumps.2. The author resolves the question of whether heat pumps run counter to the principle of energy conservation by[A] carefully qualifying the meaning of that principle.[B] pointing out a factual effort in the statement that gives rise to this question.[C] supplying additional relevant facts.[D] denying the relevance of that principle to heat pumps.3. It can be inferred from the text that, in the course of a heating season, the heating capacity of a heat pump is greatest when[A] heating is least essential.[B] electricity rates are lowest.[C] its compressor runs the fastest.[D] outdoor temperatures hold steady.4. If the author’s assessment of the use of heat pumps is correct, which of the following best expresses the lesson that advertisers should learn from this case?[A] Do not make exaggerated claims about the products you are trying to promote.[B] Focus your advertising campaign on vague analogies and veiled implications instead of on facts.[C] Do not use facts in your advertising that will strain the prospective client’s ability to believe.[D] Do not assume in your advertising that the prospective clients know even the mostelementary scientific principles.5. The text suggests that heat pumps would be used more widely if[A] they could also be used as air conditioners.[B] they could be moved around to supply heat where it is most needed.[C] their heat output could be thermostatically controlled.[D] people appreciated the role of the evaporator in the energy equation.[历史学]Traditionally, the study of history has had fixed boundaries and focal points —periods, countries, dramatic events, and great leaders. It also has had clear and firm notions of scholarly procedure: how one inquires into a historical problem, how one presents and documents one’s findings, what constitutes admissible and adequate proof.Anyone who has followed recent historical literature can testify to the revolution that is taking place in historical studies. The currently fashionable subjects come directly from the sociology catalog: childhood, work, leisure. The new subjects are accompanied by new methods. Where history once was primarily narrative, it is now entirely analytic. The old questions “What happened?”and “How did it happen?”have given way to the question “Why did it happen?”Prominent among the methods used to answer the question “Why”is psychoanalysis, and its use has given rise to psychohistory.Psychohistory does not merely use psychological explanations in historical contexts. Historians have always used such explanations when they were appropriate and when there was sufficient evidence for them. But this pragmatic use of psychology is not what psychohistorians intend. They are committed, not just to psychology in general, but to Freudian psychoanalysis. This commitment precludes a commitment to history as historians have always understood it. Psychohistory derives its “facts”not from history, the detailed records of events and their consequences, but from psychoanalysis of the individuals who made history, and deduces its theories not from this or that instance in their lives, but from a view of human nature that transcends history. It denies the basic criterion of historical evidence: that evidence be publicly accessible to, and therefore assessable by, all historians. And it violates the basic tenet of historical method: that historians be alert to the negative instances that would refute their theses. Psychohistorians, convinced of the absolute rightness of their own theories, are also convinced that theirs is the “deepest”explanation of any event, that other explanations fall short of the truth.Psychohistory is not content to violate the discipline of history ; it also violates the past itself. It denies to the past an integrity and will of its own, in which people acted out of a variety of motives and in which events had a multiplicity of causes and effects. It imposes upon the past the same determinism that it imposes upon the present, thus robbing people and events of their individuality and of their complexity. Instead of respecting the particularity of the past, it assimilates all events, past and present, into a single deterministic schema that is presumed to be true at all times and in all circumstances.1. Which of the following best states the main point of the text?[A] The approach of psychohistorians to historical study is currently in vogue even though it lacks the rigor and verifiability of traditional historical method.[B] Traditional historians can benefit from studying the techniques and findings of psychohistorians.[C] Areas of sociological study such as childhood and work are of little interest to traditional historians.[D] The psychological assessment of an individual’s behavior and attitudes is more informative than the details of his or her daily life.2. The author mentions which of the following as a characteristic of the practice of psychohistorians?[A] The lives of historical figures are presented in episodic rather than narrative form.[B] Archives used by psychohistorians to gather material are not accessible to other scholars.[C] Past and current events are all placed within the same deterministic diagram.[D] Events in the adult life of a historical figure are seen to be more consequential than are those in the childhood of the figure.3. The author of the text suggests that psychohistorians view history primarily as[A] a report of events, causes, and effects that is generally accepted by historians but which is, for the most part, unverifiable.[B] an episodic account that lacks cohesion because records of the role of childhood, work, and leisure in the lives of historical figures are rare.[C] an uncharted sea of seemingly unexplainable events that have meaning only when examined as discrete units.[D] a record the way in which a closed set of immutable psychological laws seems to have shaped events.4. The author of the text puts the word “deepest”in quotation marks most probably in order to[A] signal her reservations about the accuracy of psychohistorians’claims for their work.[B] draw attention to a contradiction in the psychohistorians’method.[C] emphasize the major difference between the traditional historians’method and that of psychohistorians.[D] disassociate her opinion of the psychohistorians’claims from her opinion of their method.5. In presenting her analysis, the author does all of the following EXCEPT.[A] Make general statements without reference to specific examples.[B] Describe some of the criteria employed by traditional historians.[C] Question the adequacy of the psychohistorians’interpretation of events.[D] Point out inconsistencies in the psychohistorians’application of their methods.。
2018年可锐考研英语经典阅读试题
2018年可锐考研英语经典阅读试题（一）[经济学类]Recent years have brought minority-owned businesses in the United States unprecedented opportunities —as well as new and significant risks. Civil rights activists have long argued that one of the principal reasons why Blacks, Hispanics, and other minority groups have difficulty establishing themselves in business is that they lack access to the sizable orders and subcontracts that are generated by large companies. Now Congress, in apparent agreement, has required by law that businesses awarded federal contracts of more than $500,000 do their best to find minority subcontractors and record their efforts to do so on forms filed with the government. Indeed, some federal and local agencies have gone so far as to set specific percentage goals for apportioning parts of public works contracts to minority enterprises.Corporate response appears to have been substantial. According to figures collected in 1977, the total of corporate contracts with minority businesses rose from $77 million in 1972 to $1.1 billion in 1977. The projected total of corporate contracts with minority businesses for the early 1980’s is estimated to be over 53 billion per year with no letup anticipated in the next decade.Promising as it is for minority businesses, this increased patronage poses dangers for them, too. First, minority firms risk expanding too fast and overextending themselves financially, since most are small concerns and, unlike large businesses, they often need to make substantial investments in new plants, staff, equipment, and the like in order to perform work subcontracted to them. If, thereafter, their subcontracts are for some reason reduced, such firms can face potentially crippling fixed expenses. The world of corporate purchasing can be frustrating for small entrepreneurs who get requests for elaborate formal estimates and bids. Both consume valuable time and resources, and a small company’s efforts must soon result in orders, or both the morale and the financial health of the business will suffer.A second risk is that White-owned companies may seek to cash in on the increasing apportionments through formation of joint ventures with minority-owned concerns. Of course, in many instances there are legitimate reasons for joint ventures; clearly, White and minority enterprises can team up to acquire business that neither could acquire alone. But civil rights groups and minority business owners have complained to Congress about minorities being set up as “fronts”with White backing, rather than being accepted as full partners in legitimate joint ventures.Third, a minority enterprise that secures the business of one large corporate customer often run the danger of becoming- and remaining-dependent. Even in the best of circumstances, fierce competition from larger, more established companies makes it difficult for small concerns to broaden their customer bases: when such firms have nearly guaranteed orders from a single corporate benefactor, they may truly have to struggle against complacency arising from their current success.1. The primary purpose of the text is to[A] present a commonplace idea and its inaccuracies.[B] describe a situation and its potential drawbacks.[C] propose a temporary solution to a problem.[D] analyze a frequent source of disagreement.2. The text suggests that the failure of a large business to have its bids for subcontracts result quickly in orders might causes it to[A] experience frustration but not serious financial harm.[B] face potentially crippling fixed expenses.[C] have to record its efforts on forms filed with the government.[D] increase its spending with minority subcontractors.3. It can be inferred from the text that, compared with the requirements of law, the percentage goals set by “some federal and local agencies”are[A] more popular with large corporations.[B] more concrete.[C] less controversial.[D] less expensive to enforce.4. Which of the following, if true, would most weaken the author’s assertion that, in the 1970’s, corporate response to federal requirements was substantial?[A] Corporate contracts with minority-owned businesses totaled $2 billion in 1979.[B] Between 1970 and 1972, corporate contracts with minority-owned businesses declined by 25 percent.[C] The figures collected in 1977 underrepresented the extent of corporate contracts with minority-owned businesses.[D] The $1.1 billion represented the same percentage of total corporate spending in 1977 asdid $77 million in 1972.5. The author would most likely agree with which of the following statements about corporate response to working with minority subcontractors?[A] Annoyed by the proliferation of “front”organizations, corporations are likely to reduce their efforts to work with minority-owned subcontractors in the near future.[B] Although corporations showed considerable interest in working with minority businesses in the 1970’s, their aversion to government paperwork made them reluctant to pursue many government contracts.[C] The significant response of corporations in the 1970’s is likely to be sustained and conceivably be increased throughout the 1980’s.[D] Although corporations are eager to cooperate with minority-owned businesses, a shortage of capital in the 1970’s made substantial response impossible.二．The fossil remains of the first flying vertebrates, the pterosaurs, have intrigued paleontologists for more than two centuries. How such large creatures, which weighed in some cases as much as a piloted hang-glider and had wingspans from 8 to 12 meters, solved the problems of powered flight, and exactly what these creatures were —reptiles or birds —are among the questions scientists have puzzled over.Perhaps the least controversial assertion about the pterosaurs is that they were reptiles. Their skulls, pelvises, and hind feet are reptilian. The anatomy of their wings suggests that they did not evolve into the class of birds. In pterosaurs a greatly elongated fourth finger of each forelimb supported a winglike membrane. The other fingers were short and reptilian, with sharpclaws. In birds the second finger is the principal strut of the wing, which consists primarily of feathers. If the pterosaurs walked on all fours, the three short fingers may have been employed for grasping. When a pterosaur walked or remained stationary, the fourth finger, and with it the wing, could only turn upward in an extended inverted V shape along each side of the animal’s body.The pterosaurs resembled both birds and bats in their overall structure and proportions. This is not surprising because the design of any flying vertebrate is subject to aerodynamic constraints. Both the pterosaurs and the birds have hollow bones, a feature that represents a savings in weight. In the birds, however, these bones are reinforced more massively by internal struts.Although scales typically cover reptiles, the pterosaurs probably had hairy coats. T. H. Huxley reasoned that flying vertebrates must have been warm-blooded because flying implies a high rate of metabolism, which in turn implies a high internal temperature. Huxley speculated that a coatof hair would insulate against loss of body heat and might streamline the body to reduce drag in flight. The recent discovery of a pterosaur specimen covered in long, dense, and relatively thick hairlike fossil material was the first clear evidence that his reasoning was correct.Efforts to explain how the pterosaurs became airborne have led to suggestions that they launched themselves by jumping from cliffs, by dropping from trees, or even by rising into light winds from the crests of waves. Each hypothesis has its difficulties. The first wrongly assumes that the pterosaurs’hind feet resembled a bat’s and could serve as hooks by which the animal could hang in preparation for flight. The second hypothesis seems unlikely because large pterosaurs could not have landed in trees without damaging their wings. The third calls for high waves to channel updrafts. The wind that made such waves however, might have been too strong for the pterosaurs to control their flight once airborne.1. It can be inferred from the text that scientist now generally agree that the[A] enormous wingspan of the pterosaurs enabled them to fly great distances.[B] structure of the skeleton of the pterosaurs suggests a close evolutionary relationship to bats.[C] fossil remains of the pterosaurs reveal how they solved the problem of powered flight.[D] pterosaurs were reptiles.2. The author views the idea that the pterosaurs became airborne by rising into light winds created by waves as[A] revolutionary.[B] unlikely.[C] unassailable.[D] probable.3. According to the text, the skeleton of a pterosaur can be distinguished from that of a bird by the[A] size of its wingspan.[B] presence of hollow spaces in its bones.[C] anatomic origin of its wing strut.[D] presence of hooklike projections on its hind feet.4. The ideas attributed to T. H. Huxley in the text suggest that he would most likely agree with which of the following statements?[A] An animal’s brain size has little bearing on its ability to master complex behaviors.[B] An animal’s appearance is often influenced by environmental requirements and physical capabilities.[C] Animals within a given family group are unlikely to change their appearance dramatically over a period of time.[D] The origin of flight in vertebrates was an accidental development rather than the outcome of specialization or adaptation.5. Which of the following best describes the organization of the last paragraph of the text?[A] New evidence is introduced to support a traditional point of view.[B] Three explanations for a phenomenon are presented and each is disputed by means of specific information.[C] Three hypotheses are outlined and evidence supporting each is given.[D] Recent discoveries are described and their implications for future study are projected.。
2018年可锐考研第一轮复习之英语阅读
2018年可锐考研第一轮复习之英语阅读（一）Until about five years ago, the very idea that peptide hormonesmight be made anywhere in the brain besides the hypothalamus was astounding.Peptide hormones, scientists thought, were made by endocrine glands and thehypothalamus was thought to be the brains’only endocrinegland. What is more, because peptide hormones cannot cross the blood-brainbarrier, researchers believed that they never got to any part of the brainother than the hypothalamus, where they were simply produced and then releasedinto the bloodstream. But these beliefs about peptide hormones were questioned aslaboratory after laboratory found that antiserums to peptide hormones, wheninjected into the brain, bind in places other than the hypothalamus, indicatingthat either the hormones or substances that cross-react with the antiserums arepresent. The immunological method of detecting peptide hormones by means ofantiserums, however, is imprecise. Cross-reactions are possible and this methodcannot determine whether the substances detected by the antiserums really arethe hormones, or merely close relatives. Furthermore, this method cannot beused to determine the location in the body where the detected substances areactually produced. New techniques of molecular biology, however, provide a way toanswer these questions. It is possible to make specific complementary DNA’s that canserve as molecular probes seek out the messenger RNA’s of thepeptide hormones. If brain cells are making the hormones, the cells will containthese mRNA’s. If the products the brain cells make resemble the hormones butare not identical to them, then the c DNA’s should still bindto these mRNA’s, but should not bind as tightly as they would to m RNA’s for thetrue hormones. The cells containing these mRNA’s can then beisolated and their mRNA’s decoded to determine just what their protein products are and howclosely the products resemble the true peptide hormones. The molecular approach to detecting peptide hormones using cDNAprobes should also be much faster than the immunological method because it cantake years of tedious purifications to isolate peptide hormones and thendevelop antiserums to them. Roberts, expressing the sentiment of manyresearchers, states: “I was trained as an endocrinologist. But it became clear to me thatthe field of endocrinology needed molecular biology input. The process ofgrinding out protein purifications is just too slow.”If, as the initial tests with cDNA probes suggest, peptide hormonesreally are made in brain in areas other than the hypothalamus, a theory must bedeveloped that explains their function in the brain. Some have suggested thatthe hormones are all growth regulators, but Rosen’s work on rat brainsindicates that this cannot be true. A number of other researchers propose thatthey might be used for intercellular communication in the brain.1.Which of the following titles best summarizes the text?[A] Is Molecular Biology the Key to Understanding Intercellular Communicationin the Brain?[B] Molecular Biology: Can Researchers Exploit Its Techniques to SynthesizePeptide Hormones?[C] The Advantages and Disadvantages of the Immunological Approach to DetectingPeptide Hormones. [D] Peptide Hormones: How Scientists Are Attempting to Solve Problems of TheirDetection and to Understand Their Function?2.The text suggests that a substance detected in the brain by use of antiserumsto peptide hormones may [A] have been stored in the brain for a long period of time. [B]play no role in the functioning of the brain. [C] have been produced in some part of the body other than the brain. [D] have escaped detection by molecular methods.3.According to the text, confirmation of the belief that peptide hormones arecreated in the brain in areas other than the hypothalamus would forcescientists to [A] reject the theory that peptide hormones are made by endocrine glands. [B] revise their beliefs about the ability of antiserums to detect peptidehormones. [C] invent techniques that would allow them to locate accurately brain cellsthat produce peptide hormones. [D] develop a theory that account for the role played by peptide hormones inthe brain.4.Which of the following is mentioned in the text as a drawback of theimmunological method of detecting peptide hormones? [A] It cannot be used to detect the presence of growth regulators in the brain. [B] It cannot distinguish between the peptide hormones and substances that arevery similar to them. [C] It uses antiserums that are unable to cross the blood-brain barrier. [D] It involves a purification process that requires extensive training inendocrinology.5.The idea that the field of endocrinology can gain from developments inmolecular biology is regarded by Roberts with [A] incredulity. [B] derision. [C] indifference.[D] enthusiasm.[答案与考点解析]1.【答案】D 【考点解析】这是一道中心主旨题。
2018年可锐考研英语阅读真题范文
2018年可锐考研英语阅读真题范文（七）Don’t shoot the messengerThey poison the mind and corrupt the morals of the young, who waste their time sitting on sofas immersed in dangerous fantasy worlds. That, at least, was the charge levelled against novels during the 18th century by critics worried about the impact of a new medium on young people. Today the idea that novels can harm people sounds daft. And that is surely how history will judge modern criticism of video games, which are accused of turning young people into violent criminals. This week European justice ministers met to discuss how best to restrict the sale of violent games to children. Some countries, such as Germany, believe the answer is to ban some games altogether. That is going too far. Criticism of games is merely the latest example of a tendency to demonise new and unfamiliar forms of entertainment. In 1816 waltzing was condemned as a fatal contagion that encouraged promiscuity; in 1910 films were denounced as an evil pure and simple, destructive of social interchange in the 1950s rock ’n’roll music was said to turn young people into devil worshippers and comic books were accused of turning children into drug addicts and criminals. In each case the pattern is the same: young people adopt a new form of entertainment, older people are spooked by its unfamiliarity and condemn it, but eventually the young grow up and the new medium becomes accepted-at which point another example appears and the cycle begins again. The opposition to video games is founded on the mistaken belief that most gamers are children. In fact, twothirds of gamers are over 18 and the average gamer is around 30. But the assumption that gamers are mostly children leads to a double standard. Violent films are permitted and the notion that some films are unsuitable for children is generally understood. Yet different rules are applied to games. Aren’t games different because they are interactive? It is true that video games can make people feel excited or aggressive, but so do many sports. There is no evidence that videogaming causes longterm aggression. Games ought to be agerated, just as films are, and retailers should not sell adultrated games to children any more than they should sell them adultrated films. Ratings schemes are already in place, and in some countries restrictions on the sale of adultrated games to minors have the force of law. Oddly enough, Hillary Clinton, one of the politicians who has led the criticism of the gaming industry in America, has recently come round to this view. Last month she emphasised the need for parents to pay more attention to game ratings and called on the industry, retailers and parents to work together. But this week some European politicians seemed to be moving in the other direction: the Netherlands may follow Germany, for example, in banning some games outright. Not all adults wish to play violent games, just as not all of them enjoy violent movies. But they should be free to do so if they wish.二．Doughnut adjust your setHAVE you ever seen anything on television that made you shout or shake your fist in anger at the screen? Televisions are, of course, unable to respond to such reactions. But that could beabout to change. Controlling your television and other home entertainment devices using voice commands or gestures is starting to become possible thanks to a new generation of controllers.Consider, for example, the controller that went on sale last month with Nintendo’s Wii games console. In place of the usual combination of buttons and joysticks, the Wii has a motionsensitive controller. The console can determine how the controller is moving in space and what it is pointing at, and uses that information to control what is happening on screen. Depending on the game, the controller becomes a warrior’s sword or a golf club.For some games, the controller connects up via a cable to a second, smaller handset called the Nunchuk after the weapon favoured by Bruce Lee in his martial arts movies . It is then possible to use one controller for movement, and the other to fire weapons or use items. The number of buttons on both controllers has been reduced to a minimum, as Nintendo hopes to draw in new customers who find existing games consoles too complicated. But whether the Wii will introduce a generation of grandmothers to the joys of karate games remains to be seen.This living room overload is likely to get worse as telecoms operators launch a new generation of television over broadband services, using a technology called IPTV. This will make possible thousands of channels, downloadable programs and films, plus messaging, internet access and games. It will also involve the biggest and most complicated controllers ever seen. The experience isn’t as good as it could be, says Michael Cai of Parks Associates, a consultancy. So some companies believe a new approach is needed.Other companies have looked at using speech based controllers in the living room. One firm, Promptu, developed a voice control system for American cable operators and tested it in conjunction with Motorola, which makes set top boxes. But it has now decided to reposition the technology as a voice based navigation system for mobile phones. A simpler approach is taken by the In Voca voice activated remote control. It is a universal remote control that can recognise 50 separate commands spoken by up to four separate users, from lower volume to Cartoon Network .A recent entry to the field is Apple Computer, a firm renowned for designing elegant, easy to use products. In 2007 it will launch a new device, called the iTV, that acts as a bridge between a television and a computer. It has a deliberately simple remote control that, like Apple’s iconic iPod music player, involves just one button and one wheel. Steve Jobs, the company’s boss, boasts that it is very Apple . Might his company be the one to solve the remote control confusion?三．Behind the bleeding edgeMANKIND’S progress in developing new gizmos is often referred to as the march of technology . That conjures up images of constant and relentless forward movement orchestrated with military precision. In reality, technological progress is rather less orderly. Some technologies do indeed improve at such a predictable pace that they obey simple formulae such as Moore’s law, which acts as a battle plan for the semiconductor industry. Other technologies proceed by painful lurches-think of third generation mobile phones, or new versions of Microsoft Windows. And there are some cases, particularly in the developing world, when technological progress takes the form of a leapfrog.Such leapfrogging involves adopting a new technology directly, and skipping over the earlier, inferior versions of it that came before. By far the best known example is that of mobile phones in the developing world. Fixed line networks are poor or non existent in many developing countries, so people have leapfrogged straight to mobile phones instead. The number of mobile phones now far outstrips the number of fixed line telephones in China, India and sub Saharan Africa.There are other examples. Incandescent light bulbs, introduced in the late 1870s, are slowly being displaced in the developed world by more energy efficient lightemitting diodes , in applications from traffic lights to domestic lighting. LEDs could, however, have an even greater impact in parts of the developing world that lack mains power and electric lighting altogether. LEDs’greater energy efficiency makes it possible to run them from batteries charged by solar panels during the day.Being behind the bleeding edge of technological development can sometimes be a good thing, in short. It means that early versions of a technology, which may be buggy, unreliable or otherwise inferior, can be avoided. America, for example, was the first country to adopt colour television, which explains why American television still looks so bad today: other countries came to the technology later and adopted technically superior standards.The lesson to be drawn from all of this is that it is wrong to assume that developing countries will follow the same technological course as developed nations. Having skipped fixed line telephones, some parts of the world may well skip desktop computers in favour of portable devices, for example. Entire economies may even leapfrog from agriculture straight to hightech industries. That is what happened in Israel, which went from citrus farming to microchips; India, similarly, is doing its best to jump straight to a hightech service economy.Those who anticipate and facilitate leapfrogging can prosper as a result. Those who fail to see it coming risk being jumped over. Kodak, for example, hit by the sudden rise of digital cameras in the developed world, wrongly assumed that it would still be able to sell old fashioned film and film cameras in China instead. But the emerging Chinese middle classes leapfrogged straight to digital cameras-and even those are now outnumbered by camera phones.。
2018年可锐考研英语复习阅读练习题
2018年可锐考研英语复习阅读练习题（五）The eradication of poverty is a shared responsibility for the international community—indeed，a moral imperative.This task has become no less urgent in the last decade，in spite of rapid economic growth in many parts of the world.While the percentage of the world‘s population living on less than $1 per day has fallen from 28.3%to 24.0%between 1987 and 1998，population growth has kept the absolute number of poor steady at some 1.2 billion.If we take a higher cutoff point of $2 per day，the poor have increased by 250 million over the same time period，encompassing 2.8 billion people，or almost half of the world’s population.Nor do World Bank projections lend undivided hope for the future.Under the“business as usual”scenario，the number of poor on the $1 per day scale will not change during the projection period up to 2008.However，should policy measures be taken to boost economic growth and make the growth process more inclusive to the poor，the World Bank reckons that 500 million people could be brought out of extreme poverty by 2008.Even under this more optimistic scenario，Latin America and the Caribbean，and especially Sub-Saharan Africa would see little，if any，progress.The same pattern emerges under the higher cutoff point of $2 per day. In the light of these dire statistics and projections，it is easy to appreciate the growing public concern that not enough is being done to address poverty and poverty-related social illnesses，such as poor work conditions，a lack of respect for human rights，and natural resource degradation.Indeed，such concerns have been vented with increasing frustration，including at the Ministerial Conference of the WTO in Seattle last year，and more recently at the joint spring meeting of the IMF and the World Bank. One problem facing governments in poverty-stricken countries，civil society，and international organizations is that poverty is a multidimensional problem with no simple solution—not least because of its sheer scale.The causes and expressions of poverty are not the same everywhere，although some common terms can often be found，including a lack of access to education，basic health care，and unequal distribution of productive assets。
2018年可锐考研英语阅读真题范文
2018年可锐考研英语阅读真题范文（四）Microsoft brings instant chat to TV screen,through gamesMicrosoft planned to announce today that it will make its Windows Live Messenger service available on its Xbox 360 game consoles, bringing instant messaging from the computer to the television.The move was meant to help Microsoft stay ahead of Sony, its chief rival in the electronic games business, in delivering the richest online experience for game players. It is also an element of Microsofts overall strategy to connect people across PCs, televisions and mobile devices like cellphones.More than 200 million people use Windows Live Messenger to chat with friends, family members and colleagues. Separately, more than six million Xbox 360 owners are connected to the companys Xbox Live online community, an enhancement that lets people with broadband Internet connections communicate with one another.In the second week of May, those two worlds will begin to converge. Xbox Live members will be able to link their gamertag ,the online identity they use within the Xbox community, to an existing Windows Live Messenger account. Players will then be able to chat with their instant messaging contacts using a virtual on screen keyboard or a USB keyboard plugged into the game machine.Microsoft executives said they hoped to offer voice chat between Xbox and Live Messenger users later this year.We feel this is a huge step in driving social networking further into the family room by allowing Xbox 360 users to IM directly from their couch, said John Rodman, Microsofts group manager for the Xbox 360, in a telephone interview last week. Now you dont have to manage two separate groups of friends online.Microsoft and Sony are battling to dominate the high end of the console gaming market. In years past, game consoles stood out from one another mostly by their game offerings. But now it appears that top game publishers like Electronic Arts will release most of their biggest games for both the Xbox 360 and Sonys PlayStation 3.As a result, Microsoft and Sony are attempting to differentiate their game machines with other features, like film playback capabilities and online services.Microsoft has been ahead of Sony in online console game playing, but last month Sony announced that it was developing a new Internet service called PlayStation Home that could surpass some elements of Xbox Live. The instant messaging feature appears to be one part of Microsofts response.二．From Genes to GMOsToday, genes can be isolated, identified, and cloned, then inserted into other organisms to alter their traits. The process is called genetic engineering. For this technology to develop, a few tools were necessary. In the 1970s, scientists isolated bacterial plasmids. These are hula hoop shaped double stranded units of DNA that can be moved easily from one cell to another. They also discovered scissors, called restriction enzymes for cutting the DNA into predictable, reproducible patterns. These enzymes are used to snip apart plasmids at very specific DNA sequences, leaving free ends that can be rejoined as the scientist chooses. Restriction enzymes occur in bacteria as part of a natural defense mechanism to guard against invading viruses. Many different types are now available, each cutting DNA at a different sequence of base pairs.Once a plasmid is snipped open, a foreign piece of DNA, cut by the same enzyme scissors, can be taped, end to end, into the plasmid using another enzyme, DNA ligase. This is the glue that sticks all the pieces together. The new plasmid is inserted back into a cell, where numerous copies can be made. Introduction of specific genetic material into rapidly reproducing target bacteria can turn the cells into miniature factories for production of useful substances. For example, when the Exxon Valdez oil freighter ran aground in 1989 and spilled thirty eight million liters of oil, oil eating bacteria, created in just this manner, were used in the cleanup operation. The oil was broken down five times faster with help from the genetically modified organisms .Plasmid technology has also been developed for moving targeted genetic material into plants. In this technique, scientists use the plasmid from a bacterium that causes tumors on plants. In nature, this bacterium transfers genetic material into plant tissues by releasing plasmids onto damaged plant cells. The plasmids enter the plant tissue and produce a swelling, or tumor. Because of this special ability to invade plant tissue, these tumor inducing plasmids are now used routinely as taxi cabs to carry target genes into a wide variety of plant cells, including, for example, corn. The European corn borer is a common pest in this economically valuable crop. When pesticides are used against them, timing is critical. If sprayed too late, the corn borer will already have made a home inside the corn stem and will not be killed. CIBA Research was the first company to develop what has become commonly known as Bt corn. It contains genes that allow it to resist infestation by the corn borer. The Bt genes came from a bacterium called Bacillus thuring ensis . It produces a protein called Bt protoxin. When an insect larva eats these bacteria, the toxin contained in the bacterium attaches to the insect s gut and makes holes in it, and the larva starves to death. Bt corn can be grown using less pesticide, and sometimes even no pesticide.三．Seychelles: A president in paradiseBEST known as a destination for honeymooners in search of perfect white beaches andswaying palms, the Seychelles islands rarely make any sort of headlines. Few tourists would even have noticed the presidential election on July 30th, in which James Michel, leader of the Seychelles Peoples Progressive Front, was returned with 54% of the ballot. For Mr. Michel, it was the first time he had faced the islands 62,000 odd voters, having been promoted from vice president two years ago by his predecessor, Albert René, who had ruled the islands for 27 years since taking power in a coup in 1977.To the casual eye, Seychelles seems both fortunate and well governed. The 115 islands, most of them uninhabited, cover a mere 445 square kilometers of the Indian Ocean, north of Madagascar, and enjoy several advantages over most of the rest of Africa. The weather is never extreme. There is no malaria. The islanders have free education and health care. Their multiracial society is pretty harmonious. With GDP at around $8,000 a head, there is almost no discernible poverty.But this standard of living has come at a cost: the IMF says its public debt is too high and may be unsustainable. Mr. Michels main opposition, the Seychelles National Party, which scored 46% in the elections, claims that Seychelles, per person, is the worlds most indebted country; with some $590m of external debt for just 82,000 people, it is certainly one of them. A black market in foreign currency already exists as speculation persists that the government, unable to meet its obligations, may be forced to devalue. Basic consumer goods sometimes run out. If, as the IMF predicts, GDP falls by over 1% this year, Mr. Michel may find his next five years in power more testing than he had hoped.The country needs more ways of making money. In the cold war, it was easy. The Seychelles played each side off against the other, remaining a member of the Commonwealth as well as the Non Aligned Movement and taking military aid from the Soviet Union while leasing a satellite tracking station to the Americans. Since those streams of revenue dried up, the main Seychellois streams of revenue have been from tourism-leasing land to foreign hoteliers-and from tuna: the government earns about $200m a year from selling tuna fishing licenses to Spain, France and South Korea.But conflict in the Middle East has brought Seychelles an unexpected bonus: Western warships stop off in the islands, which offer rest and recreation. The soldiers and sailors scuba dive, sail and drink Seybrew, the local beer-and pay for it all in hard currency.。
2018年可锐考研英语阅读专项练习
2018年可锐考研英语阅读专项练习（三）It is often claimed that nuclear energy is something we cannot do without. We live in a consumer society, where there is an enormous demand for commercial products of all kinds. Moreover, an increase in industrial production is considered to be one solution to the problem of mass unemployment. Such an increase presumes an abundant and cheap energy supply many people believe that nuclear energy provides an inexhaustible and economical source of power and that it is therefore essential for an industrially developing society. There are a number of other advantages in the use of nuclear energy. Firstly, nuclear power, except for accidents, is clean. A further advantage is that a nuclear power station can be run and maintained by relatively few technical and administrative staff. The nuclear reactor represents an enormous step in our scientific evolution and, whatever the antinuclear group says, it is wrong to expect a return to more primitive sources of fuel. However, opponents of nuclear energy point out that nuclear power stations bring a direct threat not only to the environment but also to civil liberties.Furthermore, it is questionable whether ultimately unclear power is a cheap source of energy. There have, for example, been very costly accidents in America, in Britain and, of course, in Russia. The possibility of increases in the cost of uranium in addition to the cost of greater safety provisions could price nuclear power out of the market. In the long run, environmentalists argue, nuclear energy may bring about the destruction of the human race. Thus, if we wish to survive, we cannot afford nuclear energy. In spite of the case against nuclear energy outlined above, nuclear energy programmers are expanding. Such an expansion assumes a continual growth in industrial production and consumer demands. However, it is doubtful whether this growth will or can continue. Having weighed up the arguments on both sides, it seems there are good economic and ecological reasons for sources of energy other than nuclear power.The writer’s attitude toward nuclear energy is _____ .A.negativeB.favorableC.tolerantD.indifferentSome people claim that nuclear energy is essential because _____ .A.it can meet the growing demand of an industrially developing societyB.it represents an enormous step forward in our scientific evolutionC.it provides a perfect solution to mass unemploymentD.nuclear power stations can be run and maintained by relatively few technical and administrative staffWhich of the following statements does the writer support?A.Nuclear energy is something we cannot do without.B.The demand for commercial products will not necessarily keep increasing.C.Uranium is a good source of energy for economic and ecological reasons.D.Greater safety provisions can bring about the expansion of nuclear energy programs.The function of the last sentence is to _____ .A.advance the final argumentB.reverse previously expressed thoughtsC.reflect the writer’s attitudeD.show the disadvantages of nuclear powerThat an ecological crisis confronts humankind is now so central to our thinking that the notion that human beings adapt to their natural environment seems obvious. But ecological interpretations of world history are surprisingly recent. Sociologists, in attempting to classify societies, have looked increasingly to a people’s relationshipwith their natural environment and, provide food, clothing, and shelter. Human beings meet these needs in a wide variety of environments, including deserts, rain forests, grasslands, and so on. Such environments are part of ecosystem, acomplex web of interdependencies among organisms, communities of organisms, and the natural habital. Some societal variation derives from the different demands made by different ecosystems. Customs and ways of life that would be adaptive in one ecosystem would be maladaptive in another.We confront a habitat and evolve a mode of existence not so much as lone individuals, but cooperatively as larger social units. Social organization and technology are our chief adaptive mechanisms. Social organization develops as we create stable, ordered relationships and become infused with common cultural traits. Much depends on whether or not our values, norms, beliefs and institutions favor or foreclose new avenues of adaption. Likewise, technology-the applicationof knowledge for practical eds-allows us to harness and change aspects of our environment. In its broadest sense, technology entails the practical arts and skills of human society. As technology has become more advanced, we have gained access to greater amounts of non human energy. In turen, new sources of energy have allowed our cultures to expand and change. Other changes follow as well.The author points out that differences in peopls’s ways of life come from _____ .A.their cultural traditionsB.their adaptions to the environmentC.their demands for natural resourcesD.their notions about the environmentDifferent ways of life exist among different peoples because of _____ .A.their adaptive valueB.their distinctive valueck of better technologyD.mutual isolationSocial organizations and technology develop as a result of people’s _____ .A.adaptation to the environmentB.attempt to change natureC.efforts to create peaceful societiesD.desire to create bigger societiesThe ultimate goal in developing technology is for people to _____ .A.get practical skills and artsB.obtain greater amounts of energyC.effect social changesD.create new cultures。
2018年可锐考研英语阅读专练模拟题
2018年可锐考研英语阅读专练模拟题（一）Faces, like fingerprints, are unique. Did you ever wonder how it is possible for us to recognize people? Even a skilled writer probably could not describe all the features that make one face different from another. Yet a very young child-or even an animal, such as a pigeon-can learn to recognize faces. We all take this ability for granted.We also tell people apart by how they behave. When we talk about someone s personality, we mean the ways in which he or she acts, speaks, thinks and feels that make that individual different from others.Like the human face, human personality is very complex. But describing someone s personality in words is somewhat easier than describing his face. if you were asked to describe what anice facelooked like, you probably would have a difficult time doing so. But if you were asked to describe anice person,you might begin to think about someone who was kind, considerate, friendly, warm,and so forth.There are many words to describe how a person thinks, feels and acts. Gordon all ports, an American psychologist, found nearly 18 000 English words characterizing differences in people s behavior. And many of us use this information as a basis for describing, or typing, his personality. Bookworms, conservatives, military types-people are described with such terms.People have always tried totypeeach other. Actors in early Greek drama wore masks to show the audience whether they played the villain sor the hero s role. In fact, the wordspersonandpersonalitycome from the Latin persona, meaningmask.Today, most television and movie actors do not wear masks. But we can easily tell thegood guysfrom thebad guysbecause the two types differ in appearance as well as in actions.61. The main idea of this passage is .A)how to distinguish people s facesB)how to describe people s personalityC)how to distinguish people both inward and outwardD)how to differ good persons from bad persons62. The author is most probably a .A) behavioristB) psychologistC) writerD) sociologist63. Which of the following is NOT true?A) Different people may have different personalities.B) People differ from each in appearance.C) People can learn to recognize faces.D) People can describe all the features of others.64. The reason why it is easier to describe a person s personality in words than his face is that .A) a person s face is more complex than his personalityB) a person s personality is easily distinguishedC) people s personalities are very alikeD) many words are available when people try to describe one s personality65. We learn from the passage that people classify a person into certain type according to .A) his way of acting and thinkingB) his way of speaking and behavingC) his learning and behaviorD) his physical appearance and his personality答案：1.C 2.B 3.D 4.D 5.DMost young people enjoy some form of physical activity. It may be walking, cycling or swimming, or in winter, skating or skiing. it may be a game of some kind football, hockey, golf, of tennis, it may be mountaineering.Those who have a passion for climbing high and difficult mountains are often looked upon with astonishment. Why are men and women willing to suffer cold and hardship, and to take risks on high mountains? This astonishment is caused probably by the difference between mountaineering and other forms of activity to which men give their leisure.Mountaineering is a sport and not a game. There are no man-made rules, as there re for such games as golf and football. There are, of course, rules of a different kind which it would be dangerous to ignore, but it is this freedom from man-made rules that makes mountaineering attractive to many people. Those who climb mountains are free to use their own methods. If we compare mountaineering and other more familiar sports, we might think that one big difference is that mountaineering is not a team game . We should be mistaken in this. There are, it is true, no matches between teams of climbers, but when climbers are on a rock face linked by a rope on which their lives may depend, there is obviously teamwork.The mountain climber knows that he may have to fight forces that are stronger and more powerful than man. He has to fight the forces of nature. His sport requires high mental and physical qualities.A mountain climber continues to improve in skill year after year. A skier is probably past his best by the age of thirty, and most international tennis champions are in their early twenties. But it is no unusual for a man of fifty or sixty to climb the highest mountains in the Alps. They may take more time than younger men, but they probably climb with more skill and less waste of effort, and they certainly experience equal enjoyment.66. Mountaineering is a sport which involves .A) hardshipC) physical riskB) coldD) all of the above67. The main difference between a sport and a game lies in .A) uniformC) rulesB) activityD) skills68. Mountaineering is also a team sport because .A)it involves rulesB)it involves matches between teamsC)it requires mental and physical qualitiesD)mountaineers depend on each other while climbing69. Which of the following is NOT true?A) Mountaineers compete against each other.B) Mountaineers compete against other teams.C) Mountaineers compete against nature.D) Mountaineers compete against international standard.70. What is the best title for the passage?A) MountaineeringB) Mountain ClimbersC) Mountaineering is Different from Golf and FootballD) Mountaineering Is More Dangerous Than Other Sports 答案：1.D 2.C 3.D 4.C 5.A。
2018年可锐考研英语阅读实战练习题
2018年可锐考研英语阅读实战练习题（一）The purpose of an interview is to find out if your goals and the goals of an organization are compatible.Other goals of the interview are：to answer questions successfully，obtain any additional information needed to make a decision，accent your special strengths，establish a positive relationship，show confidence，and to sell yourself.Based on these goals，place yourself in the role of the interviewer and develop anticipated questions and answers to three categories：company data，personal data，and specific job data.You also develop questions which you will ask to determine how well your career goals match the needs of the organization.These questions include both those you would ask before a job offer and those you would ask after a job offer. Prior to the interview，acquaint yourself with the laws pertaining to job discrimination.This knowledge will enhance your chances of being considered on an equal standing with other applicants. To develop confidence，adequately prepare for the interview.Focus on how you can best serve the organization to which you are applying.Then rehearse until the rough edges are smoothed and you sound convincing to those with whom you have practiced. Since the interview will center on you，proper self-management process is divided into four stages：the before stage，the greeting stage，the consultation stage，and the departure stage.The before stage includes writing a confirmation letter，concentrating on appearance and nonverbal communication，developing your portfolio，anticipating questions with positive responses，and arriving early.The greeting stage includes greeting everyone courteously，using waiting-room smarts，using your time wisely，and applying proper protocol when meeting the interviewer.The consultation stage includes responsiveness and enthusiasm，knowing when to interject key points，showing sincerity，highlighting your strengths，and listening intently.The departure stage includes leaving on a positive note，expressing appreciation，expressing interest，leaving promptly，and making notes immediately after departure. To save time and money and offer convenience to prospective employees and employers，video taping and satellite videophones may become a common method of interviewing.Being at ease in front of a camera would be important for these types of interviews.Following the interview，write thank-you letters to each person who interviewed you and to those who helped you get the interview.When invited for a second interview，go prepared by using your notes and feedback from the interview to zero in on what the company wants.If the company doesn‘t respond in two weeks，call back or write a follow-up letter.You may get turned down.If so，try to find out why as a means of self-improvement. Following a job offer，take a few days to consider all elements and then call or write a letter either accepting or declining the offer-—whichever is appropriate.If you accept and you are presently employed，write an effective letter of resignation，departing on a positive note.1.The word“compatible”in the first sentence probably means____. [A] in agreement [B] in conflict [C] complementary [D] practicable2.The writer advises you to familiarize yourself with the laws concerning job discrimination so that ____. [A] you can show your prospective employer you have a wide range of knowledge [B] you stand on equal chance of being hired with other applicants to the job [C] you will refuse to give answers to any questions against the current laws [D] you know how to behave within the limit of laws at the interview3.At which stage should you emphasize your qualifications for the job? [A] The before stage. [B] The greeting stage. [C] The consultation stage. [D] The departure stage.4.If you are given a secondinterview，it is most important for you to____. [A] write a thank-you letter to each person who interviewed you last time [B] find out exactly what the company wants of you [C] learn from the last interview and improve yourself [D] consider all the elements that are important for the job 5.The passage is mainly concerned with____. [A] how to manage an interview [B] how to apply for a job vacancy [C] how an applicant should behave during an interview [D] how to make your private goal compatible with those of an organization1.[A] 该词意为：相容的，相一致的。
2018年可锐考研英语复习阅读练习题
2018年可锐考研英语复习阅读练习题（四）The existence of both racial and sexual discrimination in employment is well documented，and policymakers and responsible employers are particularly sensitive to the plight of the black female employee on the theory that she is doubly the victim of discrimination.That there exist differences in income between whites and blacks is clear，but it is not so clear that these differences are solely the result of racial discrimination in employment.The two groups differ in productivity，so basic economics dictates that their incomes will differ. To obtain a true measure of the effect of racial discrimination in employment it is necessary to adjust the gross black/white income ratio for these productivity factors.White women in urban areas have a higher educational level than black women and can be expected to receive larger incomes.Moreover，State distribution of residence is important because blacks are overrepresented in the South，where wage rates are typically lower than elsewhere and where racial differentials in income are greater.Also，blacks are over-represented in large cities，and incomes of blacks would be greater if blacks were distributed among cities of different sizes in the same manner as whites. After standardization for the productivity factors，the income of black urban women is estimated to be between 108 and 125 percent of the income of white women.This indicates that productivity factors more than account for the actual white/black income differential for women.Despite their greater education，white women’s actual average income is only 2 to 5 percent higher than that of black women in the North.Unlike the situation of men，the evidence indicates that the money income of black urban women was as great as，or greater than，that of whites of similar productivity in the North，and probably in the United States as a whole. At least two possible hypotheses may explain why the adjustment for productivity more than accounts for the observed income differential for women.First，there may be more discrimination against black men than against black women.The different occupational structures for men and women give some indication why this could be the case.Second，the data are consistent with the hypothesis that the intensity of discrimination against women differs little between whites and blacks.Therefore，racial discrimination adds little to effects of existing sex discrimination.These findings suggest that a black woman does not necessarily suffer relatively more discrimination in the labor market than does a white woman.Rather，for women，the effects of sexual discrimination are so pervasive that the effects of racial discrimination are negligible. 1.The primary purpose of the passage is to____.[A] explain the reasons for the existence of income differentials between men and women[B] show that racial discrimination against black women in employment is less important than sexual discrimination [C] explore the ways in which productivity factors influence the earning power of black workers [D] sketch a history of racial and sexual discrimination against black and female workers in the labor market 2.The difference between income levels for black and white women is____. [A] less than that for black and white men [B] greater than that for black and white men [C] greater since black women are subject to more discrimination [D] smaller since women can only do low-paying jobs 3.Which of the following best describes the logical relationship between the two hypotheses presented in the fourth paragraph? [A] They may both be true since each phenomenon could contribute to the observed differential. [B] They are contradictory，and if one is proved to be correct，the other is proved incorrect. [C] They are independent of eachother，and it is hard to establish any relationship between them. [D] The two hypotheses are logically connected so that it is impossible to prove either one to be true without also proving the other to be true. 4.If the second hypothesis mentioned by the author is correct，a general lessening of discrimination against women should lead to a ____. [A] higher white/black income ratio for women [B] lower white/black income ratio for women[C] lower female/male income ratio [D] increase in the productivity of women5.The author’s attitude toward racial and sexual discrimination in employment is one of____.[A] apology [B] concern [C] indifference [D] indignation 1.[B] 文章最后一段是作者的结论，这段提到两个假设，一是对男性黑人的歧视可能比对女性黑人的歧视更严重;二是对妇女的歧视在黑人和白人之间没有多大区别。
2018年可锐考研英语阅读模拟试题及名师解析
2018年可锐考研英语阅读模拟试题及名师解析第一篇：2018年可锐考研英语阅读模拟试题及名师解析2018年可锐考研英语阅读模拟试题及名师解析（七）Do you rememberall those years when scientists argued that smoking would kill us but thedoubters insisted that we didn’t know for sure? That the evidence was inconclusive, the scienceuncertain? That the antismoking lobby was out to destroy our way of life andthe government should stay out of the way? Lots of Americans bought thatnonsense, and over three decades, some 10 million smokers went to early graves。
There are upsetting parallels today, as scientists in one waveafter another try to awaken us to the growing threat of global warming.Thelatest was a panel from the National Academy of Sciences, enlisted by the WhiteHouse, to tell us that the Earth’s atmosphere is definitely warming and that the problem is largelyman-made.The clear message is that we should get moving to protest ourselves.The president of the National Academy, Bruce Alberts, added this key point inthe preface to the panel’s report: “Science never has all the answers。
2018年可锐考研英语阅读理解精选
2018年可锐考研英语阅读理解精选（四）Text4The bride and groom, a guitar-wielding rock vixen and a muscle-rippling dragon-slayer, make an odd couple-so it is hardly surprising that nobody expected their marriage. But on December 2nd the video-game companies behind "Guitar Hero" and "World of Warcraft", Activision and Vivendi Games respectively, announced plans for an elaborate merger. Vivendi, a French media group, will pool its games unit, plus $1.7 billion in cash, with Activision; the combined entity will then offer to buy back shares from Activision shareholders, raising Vivendi’s stake in the resulting firm to as much as 68%.Activision’s boss, Bobby Kotick, will remain at the helm of the new company, to be known as Activision Blizzard in recognition of Vivendi’s main gaming asset: its subsidiary Blizzard Entertainment, the firm behind "World of Warcraft", an online swords-and-sorcery game with 9.3m subscribers. The deal was unexpected, but makes excellent strategic sense, says Piers Harding-Rolls of Screen Digest, a consultancy. Activision has long coveted "World of Warcraft", and Vivendi gets a bigger games division and Activision’s talented management team to run it. As well as making sense for both parties, the $18.9 billion deal-the biggest ever in the video-games industry-says a lot about the trends now shaping the business.The first is a push into new markets, especially online multiplayer games, which are particularly popular in Asia, and "casual" games that appeal to people who do not regard themselves as gamers. "World of Warcraft" is the world’s most popular online subscription-based game and is hugely lucrative. Blizzard will have revenues of $1.1 billion this year and operating profits of $520m. "World of Warcraft" is really "a social network with many entertainment components," says Mr Kotick.Similarly, he argues, "Guitar Hero" and other games that use new kinds of controller, rather than the usual buttons and joysticks, are broadening the appeal of gaming by emphasising its social aspects, since they are easy to pick up and can be played with friends. Social gaming, says Mr Kotick, is "the most powerful trend" building new audiences for the industry. He is clearly excited at the prospect of using Blizzard’s expertise to launch an online version of "Guitar Hero" for Asian markets. Online music games such as "Audition Online", which started in South Korea, are "massive in Asia," says Mr Harding-Rolls.A second trend is media groups’increasing interest in gaming. Vivendi owns Universal Music, one of the "big four" record labels. As the record industry’s sales decline, it makes sense to move into gaming, a younger, faster-growing medium with plenty of cross-marketing opportunities. Other media groups are going the same way. Last year Viacom, an American media giant, acquired Harmonix, the company that originally created "Guitar Hero". It has been promoting its new game, "Rock Band", using its MTV music channel. Viacom has also created online virtual worlds that tie in with several of its television programmes, such as "Laguna Beach" and "Pimp My Ride". Disney bought Club Penguin, a virtual world for children, in August. AndTime Warner is involved in gaming via its Warner Bros Home Entertainment division, which publishes its own titles and last month bought TT Games, the British firm behind the "Lego Star Wars" games.1. The merger of these two companies are out of expection because_____.[A] they aim to design marriage games which sound really weird.[B] It is difficult for big companies of two different nations to end up in successful cooperation.[C] Their games are by no means similar to each other in terms of their styles.[D] It would be illegal for them to buy back the shares.2. Why Piers Harding-Rolls thinks this marriage has strategic sense?[A] Activision has been longing to cooperate with "World of Warcraft".[B] Vivendi could get bigger portion and better management resources from Activision.[C] This deal is beneficial to both sides for they can combine their talents to make various games.[D] This deal make them become decisive factor of this industry’s trend in the future.3. The word "lucrative" most probably means_____.[A] profitable[B] luxurious[C] entertaining[D] populous4. The first trend shaping the industry is _____.[A] pushing people online to develop their own games.[B] building new audiences for the new network of games.[C] promoting games with new kinds of controller.[D] expanding the reign of traditional games and creating new market.5.From the two trends we can infer that_____.[A] this merger is a great success because it goes along with both trends.[B] this deal can strengthen both parties to surpass the other media giants..[C] this allied group is powerful enough to shape the industry’s trends.[D] it is indeed of strategic sense to have initiate and carry out the merger篇章剖析：本篇文章讲述了两个游戏公司Activision和Vivendi的联姻。
2018年可锐考研英语复习阅读练习题
2018年可锐考研英语复习阅读练习题（七）“This is not the type of place where this happens，”city council president George Carlton told a reporter，after the horror became public in his hometown，Sylacauga，Ala. He echoed what was said in Jasper，Texas，a year ago. Few people then had ever heard of Jasper. A week ago，even fewer could have pointed out Sylacauga on a map. A tiny city of 13，000，halfway between Birmingham and Montgomery，Sylacauga was known for its white marble quarries，textile mills and ice-cream factory. But last week Sylacauga，like Jasper，became a chapter in the recent history of hatred. According to police，Steven Eric Mullins，25，and Charles Monroe Butler Jr.，21，plotted for two weeks to murder Billy Jack Gaither，39. On Feb. 19，they arranged to meet him at a Sylacauga bar and lured him to a secluded area. There they beat him and dumped him into the trunk of his car. They then drove about 15 miles to Peckerwood Creek in Coosa County. There，says Coosa County Sheriff s Deputy Al Bradley，“they took him out of the trunk，took an ax handle and beat him to death.”They set two old tires aflame，says Bradley，“then they put the body on the fire.”They did it all，the deputy says，because Gaither was gay. Gaither s death has become a rallying point for gay-rights organizations and state legislators pushing a bill that would extend Alabama s three-year-old hate-crimes law beyond race，color，religion and national origin to cover crimes related to sexual orientation as well. “It s unfortunate that somebody had to lose his life in order for this legislation to pick up momentum here in the state of Alabama，”says state Representative Alvin Holmes，who failed to get the original law amended when it was passed in 1996. Holmes filed for extending the law after Matthew Shepard，a gay student，was beaten and left to die on a fence in Wyoming last October，an incident that sparked national outrage. Even Wyoming failed to pass hate-crime legislation in the wake of the Shepard lynching. Like Shepard，Gaither did not hesitate to admit being gay，though he adhered quietly to Sylacauga s Southern dispositions. And friends dispute Mullins and Butler s allegations that a sexual proposition incited the murder. Gaither s brother Randy told CNN：“Regardless of his personal life or anything，he doesn t deserve to be killed for this.”“The message people are getting is that gay people are second-class citizens，”says Tracey Conaty，spokesperson for the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force. Before Gaither s murder，activists were planning a major national pro-gay offensive. From March 21 to March 27，the task force will launch its “Equality Begins at Home”campaign，with 250 grass-roots events in all 50 states aimed at passing anti-gay-bashing legislation. Says Conaty：“These laws reflect the conscience of a community and send an important message.”The March events，says Urvashi Vaid，director of the task force s policy institute，will involve straight people concerned about neighbors denied basic human rights. Adds Vaid：“It s more than just a gay thing.”注：本文选自By Sylvester Monroe Time; 03/15/99，Vol. 153 Issue 10，p47，2/3p，3c，1bw 注：本文习题命题模仿对象2003年真题Text 4 1. What is implied in the first two paragraphs? [A] there are many murders in the recent history of hatred [B]the murder also happened in Jasper one year ago [C] it is another case of the gay being tortured to death [D]the city council president comes from Sylacauga 2. The author uses the example of Matthew Shepard to show that ________.[A] it is difficult to extend the hate-crime legislation [B]people want to extend the hate-crime law [C]the gays are really in a terrible fix [D] people are indifferent tothe gay student 3. Alvin Holmes‘attitude toward the gay victims is _________.[A]indifferent [B]sympathetic [C]outrageous [D]considerate 4. Similar to Matthew Shepard，Gaither‘s death ________. [A]aroused people‘s sympathy for the gay [B] sharpened people‘s awareness [C]gave legislation some momentum [D]failed to have any change in the legislation 5. The text intends to express the idea that __________. [A] people should be concerned about their gay neighbors [B]the gay people shouldn‘t be regarded as second-class citizens [C] the legislation for the gay still has a long way to go [D]more pro-gay campaigns should be launched 答案：CABDC 篇章剖析本文采用提出问题——分析问题的模式。
2018年可锐考研第一轮复习之英语阅读
2018年可锐考研第一轮复习之英语阅读（六）The intensive work of materials scientists and solid-statephysicists has given rise to a class of solids known as amorphous metallicalloys or glassy metals. There is a growing interest among theoretical andapplied researchers alike in the structural properties of these materials. When a molten metal or metallic alloy is cooled to a solid, acrystalline structure is formed that depends on the particular alloycomposition. In contrast, molten nonmetallic glass-forming materials whencooled do not assume a crystalline structure, but instead retain a structuresomewhat like that of the liquid —an amorphous structure. At room temperature the natural long-termtendency for both types of materials is to assume the crystalline structure.The difference between the two is in the kinetics or rate of formation of thecrystalline structure which is controlled by factors such as the nature of thechemical bonding and the ease with which atoms move relative to each other.Thus, in metals, the kinetics favors rapid formation of a crystallinesstructure whereas in nonmetallic glasses the rate of formation is so slow thatalmost any cooling rate is sufficient to result in an amorphous structure. Forglassy metals to be formed, the molten metal must be cooled extremely rapidlyso that crystallization is suppressed. The structure of glassy metals is thought to be similar to that ofliquid metals. One of the first attempts to model the structure of a liquid wasthat by the late J. D. Bernal of the University of London, who packed hardspheres into a rubber vessel in such a way as to obtain the maximum possibledensity. The resulting dense, random-packed structure was the basis for manyattempts to model the structure of glassy metals. Calculations of the density of alloys based on Bernal-type models ofthe alloys metal component agree fairly well with the experimentally determinedvalues from measurements on alloys consisting of a noble metal together with ametalloid such as alloys of palladium and silicon or alloys consisting of ironphosphors, and carbon, although small discrepancies remained. One differencebetween real alloys and the hard spheres area in Bernal models is that thecomponents of an alloy have different size, so that models based on two sizesof spheres are more appropriate for a binary alloy for example. The smallermetalloid atoms of the alloys might fit into holes in the dense random-packedstructure of the larger metal atoms. One of the most promising properties of glassy metals is their highstrength combined with high malleability. In usual materials, one finds aninverse relation between the two properties, whereas for many practicalapplications simultaneous presence of both properties is desirable. Oneresidual obstacle to practical applications that is likely to be overcome isthe fact that glassy metals will crystallize at relatively low temperatureswhen heated slightly.1.The author is primarily concerned with discussing [A] crystalline solids and their behavior at different temperatures. [B] molten materials and the kinetics of the formation of theircrystalline structure. [C] glassy metals and their structural characteristics. [D] metallic alloys and problems in determining their density.2.The author’s attitude toward the prospects for the economic utilization ofglassy metals is one of [A] disinterest. [B] impatience. [C] optimism. [D] apprehension.3.According to the text, which of the following determines thecrystalline structure of a metallic alloy? [A] At what rate the molten alloy is cooled. [B] How rapid the rate of formation of the crystalline phase is. [C] How the different-sized atoms fit into a dense random-packedstructure. [D] What the alloy consists of and in what ratios.4.Which of the following best describes the relationship between thestructure of liquid metals and the structure of glassy metals, as it ispresented in the text? [A] The latter is an illustrative example of the former. [B] The latter is a large-scale version of the former.[C] The former is a structural elaboration of the latter. [D] The former is a fair approximation of the latter.5.It can be inferred from the text that, theoretically, moltennonmetallic glasses assume a crystalline structure rather than an amorphousstructure only if they are cooled [A] very evenly, regardless of the rate. [B] rapidly, followed by gentle heating. [C] very slowly. [D] to room temperature.[答案与考点解析]1.【答案】C 【考点解析】本题是一道中心主旨题。
2018年可锐考研英语复习阅读练习题
2018年可锐考研英语复习阅读练习题（六）The Norwegian Government is doing its best to keep the oil industry under control. A new law limits exploration to an area south of the southern end of the long coastline; production limits have been laid down ; and oil companies have not been allowed to employ more than a limited number of foreign workers. But the oil industry has a way of getting over such problems，and few people believe that the Government will be able to hold things back for long. As on Norwegian politician said last week：“We will soon be changed beyond all recognition.”Ever since the war，the Government has been carrying out a programme of development in the area north of the Arctic Circle. During the past few years this programme has had a great deal of success：Tromso has been built up into a local capital with a university，a large hospital and a healthy industry. But the oil industry has already started to draw people south，and within a few years the whole northern policy could be in ruins. The effects of the oil industry would not be limited to the north，however. With nearly 100 percent employment，everyone can see a situation developing in which the service industries and the tourist industry will lose more of their workers to the oil industry. Some smaller industries might even disappear altogether when it becomes cheaper to buy goods from abroad. The real argument over oil is its threat to the Norwegian way of life. Farmers and fishermen do not make up most of the population，but they are an important part of it，because Norwegians see in them many of the qualities that they regard with pride as essentially Norwegian. And it is the farmers and the fishermen who are most critical of the oil industry because of the damage that it might cause to the countryside and to the sea.1.The Norwegian Government would prefer the oil industry to [A] provide more jobs for foreign workers. [B] slow down the rate of its development. [C] sell the oil it is producing abroad. [D] develop more quickly than at present.2.The Norwegian Government has tried to [A] encourage the oil companies to discover new oil sources.[B] prevent oil companies employing people from northern Norway. [C] help the oil companies solve many of their problems. [D] keep the oil industry to something near its present size. 3.According to the passage，the oil industry might lead northern Norway to [A] the development of industry. [B] a growth in population. [C] the failure of the development programme. [D] the development of new towns. 4.In the south，one effect to the development of the oil industry might be [A] a large reduction on unemployment. [B] a growth in the tourist industry. [C] a reduction in the number of existing industries. [D] the development of a number of service industries.5.Norwegian farmers and fishermen have an important influence because [A] they form such a large part of Norwegian ideal. [B] their lives and values represent the Norwegian ideal. [C] their work is so useful to the rest of Norwegian society. [D] they regard oil as a threat to the Norwegian way of life. Vocabulary 1.Norwegian 挪威的;挪威人 2.coastline 海岸线 3.recognition 承认;认识;赞赏 4.countryside 乡下;乡民二In the following article, some sentences have been removed. For Questions 1-5, choose the most suitable one from the list A—G to fit into each of the numbered blank. There are two extra choices, which do not fit in any of the gaps. A new volcano was being born. The volcano in the cornfield grew until it was bigger than the cornfield! 1) People called the volcano the Little Monster because it grew so fast. Scientists came from all over the world to study it and watch it grow. It is not often that people get a chance to watch a volcano from the very beginning. Most of the volcanoes have been here for a very long time. Some have been here so long that now they are cold. They are called dead volcanoes. They have stopped throwing out fire and melted rock and smoke. It is safe to walk on them. Farms are plowed on the quiet slopes, and people have built houses there. Some volcanoes have stopped throwing out hot rock, but they still smoke a little now and then. They are sleeping volcanoes. Sometime they may wake up .2) Today volcanoes are not so dangerous for people as they were a long time ago. Now we know more about why volcanoes do what they do, and we can usually tell when they are going to do it. 3) People used to think dragons under the earth caused volcanoes. They said the smoke that puffed above the ground was the dragon s breath. They said the earthquakes were caused by the dragon s moving around down in the earth. Now we know that this is not true. Another thing we know about volcanoes is that they don t happen just anywhere. 4) Scientists know where these places are, and maps have been made to let everybody know. There are different kinds of volcanoes. Some explode so violently that the rock goes high into the air and falls miles away. A volcano may shoot out ashes so high that they float all the way around the world. They have made the sunsets green and the snow purple. 5)One very tall volcano stays fiery red at the top all the time. It is lucky that the volcano is near the ocean. Sailors can use it for a lighthouse. [A]Other volcanoes are more gentle. The hot lava rises in their cones and overflows, rolling slowly down the mountainside, where it becomes cool and hard.[B] Black smoke puffed out. Hot ashes fell like black snowflakes. Hot rock and fire and lava shot out. [C]Smoke puffed up, and rock started popping up out of a crack that opened in the ground. [D]A volcano named Vesuvius slept for a thousand years. But it woke up and threw out so much hot melted rock that it buried the buildings of two cities. [E]Before a sleeping volcano wakes up, it usually makes a noise like faraway thunder, and the ground shakes in small earthquakes. People are warned and have time to get away safely. [F]A volcano starts from a hole in the ground from which hot rock and smoke and steam come out. Far, far under the ground it is so hot that rock melts. This hot melted rock, or lava, is sometimes pushed out of the earth through a hole or a crack in the ground. The steam inside the earth pushes the rock out. [G]There are certain places under the earth where the rock is broken in a way that lets the steam and hot rock escape to the outside more easily.答案及详解1.B。
2018年可锐考研英语阅读真题范文
2018年可锐考研英语阅读真题范文（三）When the cure is not worth the costThanks to research by the National Institutes of Health and academic scientists during the last three decades, we now have proven treatments for depression, addiction and other mental disorders. But all too often clinicians do not use them.Without financial incentives to provide treatments that are known to work, many mental health professionals stick with what they know, or pick up on the latest fad, or even introduce their own untested innovations—which in turn are spread by testimonials and credulous news media coverage.Take the well known approach featured on the cable TV reality show “Intervention”aimed at getting addicts and alcoholics into treatment. Here, the family and sometimes the employer gather with a counselor, confront the addict and threaten to shun him or fire him if he doesn’t enter a rehabilitation center. A 1999 study compared this style of intervention —which can backfire and lead to broken families—to a less confrontational approach known as “community reinforcement and family training,”which is aimed at helping the family nurture the addict’s own motivation.More than twice as many families succeeded in getting their loved ones into treatment with the gentler approach than with standard intervention . But no reality shows push the less dramatic method, and it is difficult to find clinicians who use it.Similarly, one of the most common approaches to alcoholism treatment involves having counselors and fellow alcoholics confront patients and force them to identify themselves as alcoholics. But research finds that the more a counselor confronts, the more a patient drinks and the more likely he is to drop out of treatment. And no association between accepting the label “alcoholic”and quitting drinking has been found. Counselor empathy—not confrontation—is connected with recovery.According to a review by the Institute of Medicine in 2006, only 10.5 percent of alcoholics received “care consistent with scientific knowledge”of the disorder; similarly, 43 percent of children in psychiatric hospitals are given antipsychotic medication despite not suffering from psychosis. Tough boot camps for troubled teenagers—which have been proven to be ineffective and potentially harmful—thrive, while “multisystemic family therapy,”which effectively treats teenagers at home, is available only through the juvenile justice system.If we want to provide genuine help for the 33 million Americans with mental health and drug problems, giving more no strings attached money to providers via insurance mandates is not the answer. It is dangerous to blindly bolster useless and even harmful treatments while failing to support proven therapies. Coverage must be tied to outcomes and evidence. And payment should be dependent, at least in part, on health improvements, not just services received. Weneed parity in evidence based treatment, not just in coverage.二．Limited resourcesIt‘s been nearly a week since Canadian pet food manufacturer Menu Foods Inc. recalled some 60 million cans and pouches of wet food linked to the deaths of at least 15 cats and one dog, yet authorities still can‘t explain exactly what went wrong. Some critics and animal lovers are honing in on what they see as lax regulation of the $15 billion pet food industry in the United States.There‘s almost a void there, says Bob Vetere, president of the American Pet Product Manufacturers Association. There is no real pet food department of any federal agency.Technically, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is responsible for ensuring that pet foods, like human foods, are safe to eat, truthfully labeled and produced under sanitary conditions. But on Tuesday, FDA officials admitted that the regulation of pet food takes a back seat to its regulatory obligations of other food and drug sectors, and that inspections of pet food processing plants are done only on a for cause basis.There are limited resources, said David Elder, director of the Office of Surveillance and Compliance in the FDA‘s Center for Veterinary Medicine in Rockville, Md. Elder added that inspections of companion animals food products are based on risk , which means that the processing plant in Emporia, Kans., where the tainted food was manufactured, had never been inspected by government officials until after consumers started complaining about pets dying of kidney failure. The Emporia plant remains open and continues to produce new food, according to a Menu Foods spokesperson, who adds that safety tests are being done around the clock.The chief executive of Menu Foods told the Associated Press on Wednesday that the company is looking at one unnamed ingredient as the possible cause of the renal failure. The FDA has previously said the investigation is focusing on possibly contaminated wheat gluten, a common ingredient in pet foods. FDA inspectors have been sent to Menu Foods plants in Kansas and New Jersey.The industry insists their products are absolutely safe. Pet foods are the highest regulated product you‘ll find in the grocery store, says Duane Ekedahl, president of the Pet Food Institute , an industry trade association representing the interests of 20 member companies whose products make up about 97 percent of the dog and cat food produced in the United States. While serious, the Menu Foods recall shouldn‘t be blown out of proportion, says Ekedahl, who points out that the recalled food accounts for less then 2 percent of the overall market. He adds that every pet food company conducts extensive tests, both of incoming raw materials and of finished products. On Tuesday, PFI issued a statement claiming that All cat and dog food products on store shelves are safe. The recall is now complete and all suspected products have been removed fromthe stream of commerce.三．A fuzzy pictureTHIS is a really exciting time-a new era is starting, says Peter Bazalgette, the chief creative officer of Endemol, the television company behind Big Brother and other popular shows. He is referring to the upsurge of interest in mobile television, a nascent industry at the intersection of telecoms and media which offers new opportunities to device makers, content producers and mobile network operators.Already, many mobile operators offer a selection of television channels or individual shows, which are streamed across their third generation networks. In South Korea, television is also sent to mobile phones via satellite and terrestrial broadcast networks, which is far more efficient than sending video across mobile networks. In Europe, the Italian arm of 3, a mobile operator, recently acquired Canale 7, a television channel, with a view to launching mobile TV broadcasts in Italy in the second half of 2006.Meanwhile, Apple Computer, which launched a video capable version of its iPod portable music player in October, is striking deals with television networks to expand the range of shows that can be purchased for viewing on the device, including Lost , Desperate Housewives and Law Order .Despite all this activity, however, the prospects for mobile TV are unclear. For a start, nobody really knows if consumers will pay for it, though surveys suggest they like the idea. Informa, a consultancy, says there will be 125m mobile TV users by 2010. But many other mobile technologies inspired high hopes and then failed to live up to expectations. And even if people do want TV on the move, there is further uncertainty in two areas: technology and business models.At the moment, mobile TV is mostly streamed over 3G networks. But sending an individual data stream to each viewer is inefficient and will be unsustainable in the long run if mobile TV takes off. So the general consensus is that 3G streaming is a prelude to the construction of dedicated mobile TV broadcast networks, which transmit digital TV signals on entirely different frequencies to those used for voice and data. There are three main standards: DVBH, favoured in Europe; DMB, which has been adopted in South Korea and Japan; and MediaFLO, which is being rolled out in America. Watching TV using any of these technologies requires a TV capable handset, of course.In contrast, watching downloaded TV programmes on an iPod or other portable video player is already possible today. And unlike a programme streamed over 3G or broadcast via a dedicated mobile TV network, shows stored on an iPod can be watched on an underground train or inregions with patchy network coverage. That suggests that some shows better suit the download model, while others are better suited to real time transmission. The two approaches will probably coexist.Just as there are several competing mobile TV technologies, there are also many possible business models. Mobile operators might choose to build their own mobile TV broadcast networks; or they could form a consortium and build a shared network; or existing broadcasters could build such networks.The big question is whether the broadcasters and mobile operators can agree how to divide the spoils, assuming there are any. Broadcasters own the content, but mobile operators generally control the handsets, and they do not always see eye to eye. In South Korea, a consortium of broadcasters launched a free to air DMB network last month, but the country’s mobile operators were reluctant to provide their users with handsets able to receive the broadcasts, since they were unwilling to undermine the prospects for their own subscription based mobile TV services.Then there is the question of who will fund the production of mobile TV content: broadcasters, operators or advertisers? Again, the answer is probably all of the above .。
2018年可锐考研英语阅读模拟试题精选
2018年可锐考研英语阅读模拟试题精选（一）People are, on the whole, poor at considering background information when making individual decisions. At first glance this might seem like a strength that 1 the ability to make judgments which are unbiased by 2 factors. But Dr. Uri Simonsohn speculated that an inability to consider the big 3 was leading decision-makers to be biased by the daily samples of information they were working with. 4 , he theorised that a judge 5 of appearing too soft 6 crime might be more likely to send someone to prison 7 he had already sentenced five or six other defendants only to forced community service on that day. To 8 this idea, he turned to the university-admissions process. In theory, the 9 of an applicant should not depend on the few others 10 randomly for interview during the same day, but Dr. Simonsohn suspected the truth was 11 . He studied the results of 9,323 MBA interviews 12 by 31 admissions officers. The interviewers had 13 applicants on a scale of one to five. This scale 14 numerous factors into consideration. The scores were 15 used in conjunction with an applicant’s score on the Graduate Management Admission Test, or GMAT, a standardized exam which is 16 out of 800 points, to make a decision on whether to accept him or her. Dr. Simonsohn found if the score of the previous candidate in a daily series of interviewees was 0.75 points or more higher than that of the one 17 that, then the score for the next applicant would 18 by an average of 0.075 points. This might sound small, but to 19 the effects of such a decrease a candidate could need 30 more GMAT points than would otherwise have been 20 . 1. [A]grants [B]submits [C]transmits [D]delivers 2. [A]minor [B]objective [C]crucial [D] external 3. [A]issue [B]vision[C]picture [D]external 4. [A] For example [B] On average [C]In principle [D]Above all5. [A]fond [B]fearful [C]capable [D] thoughtless6. [A] in [B] on [C]to [D] for7. [A] if [B] until [C] though [D] unless8. [A] promote [B] emphasize [C]share [D]test9.[A] decision [B] quality [C] status [D] success 10. [A] chosen [B] studied [C] found [D] identified 11. [A] exceptional [B] defensible [C] replaceable [D] otherwise 12. [A] inspired [B] expressed [C] conducted [D] secured 13. [A] assigned [B] rated [C] matched [D] arranged 14. [A] put [B] got [C] gave [D] took 15. [A] instead [B] then [C] ever [D] rather 16. [A] selected [B] passed [C] marked [D] introduced 17. [A] before [B] after [C] above [D] below 18. [A] jump [B] float [C] drop [D] fluctuate 19. [A] achieve [B] undo [C] maintain [D] disregard 20. [A] promising [B] possible [C] necessary [D] helpfulSection I Use of English 1. A. grants 2. D. external 3. C. picture 4.A. For example 5.B. fearful 6. B. on 7. A. if 8. D. test 9. D. success 10. A. chosen 11. D. otherwise 12.C. conducted 13. B. rated 14.D. took 15. B. then 16. C. marked 17. A. before 18. C. drop 19. B. undo 20. C. necessaryThose who welcomed the railway saw it as more than a rapid and comfortable means of passing. They actually saw it as afactor in world peace. They did not foresee that the railway would be just one more means for the rapid movement of aggressive armies. None of them foresaw that themore weare together-the more chances there are of war. Any boy or girl who is one of a large family knows that. Whenever any new invention is put forward, those for it and those against it can always find medical men to approve or condemn. The anti-railway group produced doctors who said that tunnels would be most dangerous to public health: they would produce colds, catarrhs and consumptions. The deafening noise and the glare of the engine fire, would have a bad effect on the nerves. Further, being moved through the air at a high speed would do grave injury to delicate lungs. In those with high blood-pressure, the movement of the train might produce apoplexy . The sudden plunging of a train into the darkness of a tunnel, and the equally sudden rush into full daylight, would cause great damage to eyesight. But the pro-railway group was of course able to produce equally famous medical men to say just the opposite. They said that the speed and swing of the train would equalize the circulation, promote digestion, tranquilize the nerves, and ensure good sleep. The actual rolling-stock was anything but comfortable. If it was a test of endurance to sit for four hours outside a coach in rain, or inside in dirty air, the railway offered little more in the way of comfort. Certainly the first-class carriages had cushioned seats; but the second-class had only narrow bare boards, while the third-class had nothing at all; no seats and no roof; they were just open trucks. So that third-class passengers gained nothing from the few mode except speed. In the matter of comfort, indeed they lost; they did, on the coaches, have a seat, but now they had to stand all the way, which gave opportunities to the comic press. This kind of thing: A man was seen yesterday buying a third-class ticket for the new London and Birmingham Railway. The state of his mind is being enquired into. A writer in the early days of railways wrote feelingly of both second-and third-class carriages. He made the suggestion that the directors of the railways must have sent all over the world to find the hardest possible wood. Of the open third-class trucks he said that they had the peculiar property of meeting the rain from whatever quarter it came. He described them as horizontal shower-baths, from whose searching power there was no escape. 1. All boys and girls in large families know that . A) a boy and a girl usually fight when they are together B) people tend to be together more than they used to be C) a lot of people being together makes fights likely D) Railway leads the world to peace 2. According to those who welcomed the railway, the railway itself should include all the following except .A) the railway enables people travel fast B) the railway brings comfort to peopleC) the railway makes the world peaceful D) the railway leads the world to war as well.3. According to the anti-railway group, all the followings are true but . A) tunnels are dangerous to public health B) the noise and the glare of the engine fire may affect people s nerves C) the rapid speed through the air does damage to people s lungs D) to those with high blood-pressure, the rapid speed of the train causes them to die4. We may safely conclude that . A) the author belongs to the anti-railway group B) the author belongs to the for-railway group C) the author speaks highly of the railway D) the author may never take train because of its potential dangers5. What is the tone of this passage? A)Practical B)Satirical C)Humorous D)Exaggerated Passage 4 1.C 2.D 3.D 4.A 5.CIn 1960-1961, Chad harvested 9800 tons of cotton seed for the first time in its history, and put out the flag a little too soon. The efforts of the authorities to get the peasants back to work, asthey had slacked off a great deal the previous year during independence celebrations, largely contributed to it. Also, rains were well spaced, and continued through the whole month of October. If the 1961-1962 total is back to the region of 45000 tons, it is mostly because efforts slackened again and sowing was started too late. The average date of sowing is about July 1st. If this date is simply moved up fifteen or twenty days, 30000 to 60000 tons of cotton are gained, depending on the year. The peasant in Chad sows his millet first, and it is hard to criticize this instinctive priority given to his daily bread. An essential reason for his lateness with sowing cotton is that at the time when he should leave to prepare the fields he has just barely sold the cotton of the previous season. The work required to sow, in great heat, is psychologically far more difficult if one s pockets are full of money. The date of cotton sales should therefore be moved forward as much as possible, and purchases of equipment and draught animals encouraged. Peasants should also be encouraged to save money, to help them through the difficult period between harvests. If necessary they should be forced to do so, by having the payments for cotton given to them in installments . The last payment would be made after proof that the peasant has planted before the deadline, the date being advanced to the end of June. Those who have done so would receive extra money whereas the last planters would not receive their last payment until later. Only the first steps are hard, because once work has started the peasants continue willingly on their way. Educational campaigns among the peasants will play an essential role in this basic advance, early sowing, on which all the others depend. It is not a matter of controlling the peasants. Each peasant will remain master of his fields. One could, however, suggest the need for the time being of kind but firm rule, which, as long as it cannot be realized by the people, should at least be for the people. 1. In 1960-1961, Chad had a good harvest of cotton because . A) the government greatly encouraged peasants B) rains favored the growth of cotton C) Chad gained independence in the previous year D) Both A)and B) 2. We learn from the passage that the date of sowing cotton is usually .A) on June 15th B) on July 15th C) on July 1st D) on July 20th 3. As used in the third sentence of the second paragraph,daily breadrefers to . A) breakfast B)bread and butter C)rice D)millet 4. In order to help them through the difficult time between harvests the peasants have to . A) sell cotton in advance B) be encouraged to save money C) sow cotton in time D) plant millet first 5. Which of the following is NOT true? A) Educational campaigns are very important to early sowing. B) Of all the advances that the writer hopes for, early sowing is the most important. C) Peasants should remain the masters of their fields. D) Government might as well make good and firm rule for peasants. Passage 5 1.D 2.C 3.D 4.B 5.B。
2018年可锐考研英语阅读文章精选
2018年可锐考研英语阅读文章精选（一）LSD Acid tests麦角酸二乙基酰胺迷幻药之考验Research into hallucinogenic drugs begins to shake off decades of taboo迷幻药物的研究开始摆脱几十年来的禁忌THE psychedelic era of the 1960s is remembered for its music, its art and, of course, itsdrugs.20世纪60年代是一个让人产生迷幻的年代，这个时代因它的音乐，它的艺术，当然还有它的毒品而被人记得。
Its science is somewhat further down the list.而那个时候的科学在某种程度上则不太被人们熟知。
But before the rise of the counterculture, researchers had been studying LSD as a treatmentfor everything from alcoholism to obsessive-compulsive disorder , with promisingresults.不过在反传统文化兴趣之前，随着有价值的研究成果的出现，研究者们则正在研究LSD 作为一种治疗从酗酒到强迫症的方法。
Timothy Leary, a psychologist at Harvard University, was one of the best-known workers inthe field, but it was also he who was widely blamed for discrediting it, by his unconventionalresearch methods and his lax handling of drugs.哈佛大学的心理学家蒂莫西?利瑞就是该领域最为知名的人士之一，不过他也因为其非传统的研究方法和他对对药物不严格的处理而让这个药物声名狼藉，进而广受诟病。
2018年可锐考研英语阅读真题范文
2018年可锐考研英语阅读真题范文（九）Senate inquiry in loan case is studying stock transferAn Education Department official and financial aid directors at three universities received stock in a student loan company from the company s current president in what may have been a violation of securities law, Senate aides looking into the transactions say.In various documents that have been turned over to staff members working for Senator Edward M. Kennedy, the president of the company described the transfers as gifts. But at least one recipient of the shares has said he paid for the stock.Because the executive, Fabrizio Balestri of Student Loan Xpress, had acquired the shares in a private placement of stock that restricts how it can be transferred, the gifts-or sale-may have run afoul of federal securities laws, said Mr. Kennedy, the Massachusetts Democrat who heads the Senate education committee. Yesterday he called on federal regulators to investigate the transactions.The senator s staff has been investigating relations between loan companies and universities. The disclosures last week that the financial aid administrators owned the stock have prompted concerns that they had an incentive to steer students to the loan company. The government official helped oversee lenders in the federal student loan program.The documents describing the transfers of stock as gifts were signed by Mr. Balestri and his wife. They contradict what one financial aid director said in an interview last week. That official, Lawrence Burt of the University of Texas at Austin, said he had paid $1,000 for 1,500 shares. Mr. Burt could not be reached for comment last night.Mr. Balestri transferred stock not only to Mr. Burt but also to David Charlow, financial aid director for Columbia s undergraduate college and its engineering school; Catherine Thomas, director of financial aid at the University of Southern California; and Matteo Fontana, general manager in a unit of the Office of Federal Student Aid at the Department of Education. In recent days, all four have been put on leave by their employers.Senate aides said that for each $10,000 in the private placement, investors had received 10,000 shares and 5,000 warrants, or options to purchase additional stock before a certain date, in Education Lending Group, which was then the parent of Student Loan Xpress. Mr. Balestri obtained $80,000 worth of stock and kept none of it, according to the documents. In a personal list called memorandums of gift , he wrote that he gave away 80,000 shares to 16 people on Dec. 31, 2001. That was one day before he began work at the company as its president.The 2001 private placement raised $3.7 million for Education Lending and was authorized by that company s chief executive, Robert deRose. At the time, the stock was trading between $1 and $2 a share. It is not clear who purchased the rest of the shares or whether anyone else at thecompany had knowledge of Mr. Balestri s transfers.violationn.违反, 违背, 妨碍, 侵害, [体]违例afoula.冲撞的，纠缠的ad.冲突着, 碰撞着securities law证券法steerv.驾驶，掌舵[真题例句] Much of the language used to describe monetary policy, such as steering the economy to a soft landing or a touch on the brakes , makes it sound like a precise science.[1997年阅读5][例句精译] 很多用来描述货币政策的词，如引导经济软着陆、经济刹车，使货币政策听起来像是一门精确的科学。
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2018年可锐考研英语阅读专项练习（二）Thanks to slumping markets, investment banks are shedding many of their highly-paid traders. When markets recover, the banks might be tempted to replace them with rather cheaper talent. One alternative has been around for a while but has yet to catch on: autonomous trading agents-computers programmed to act like the human version without such pesky costs as holidays, lunch breaks or bonuses. Program trading has, of course, been done before; some blamed the 1987 stockmarket crash on computers instructed with simple decision-making rules. But robots can be smarter than that.Dave Cliff, a researcher at Hewlett-Packard Laboratories in Bristol, England, has been creating trading robots for seven years. In computer simulations he lets them evolve genetically , and so allows them to adapt and fit models of real-world financial markets. His experiments have suggested that a redesign of some markets could lead to greater efficiency. Last year, a research group at IBM showed that Mr Cliff’s artificial traders could consistently beat the human variety, in various kinds of market. Nearly all take the shape of an auction. One well-known type is the English auction, familiar to patrons of the salesrooms of Christie’s and Sotheby’s, where sellers keep mum on their offer price, and buyers increase their bids by stages until only one remains.At the other extreme is the Dutch auction, familiar to 17th-century tulip-traders in the Netherlands as well as to bidders for American Treasury bonds. Here, buyers remain silent, and a seller reduces his price until it is accepted. Most markets for shares, commodities, foreign exchange and derivatives are a hybrid of these two types: buyers and sellers can announce their bid or offer prices at any time, and deals are constantly being closed, a so-called continuous double auction .Mr Cliff’s novel idea was to apply his evolutionary computer programs to marketplaces themselves. Why not, he thought, try and see what types of auction would let traders converge most quickly towards an equilibrium price? The results were surprising. In his models, auctions that let buyers and sellers bid at any time like most of today’s financial exchanges were less efficient than ones that required relatively more bids from either buyers or sellers. These evolved auctions also withstood big market shocks, such as crashes and panics, better than today’s real-world versions. Mr Cliff’s most recent results, which will be presented in Sydney, Australia, on December 10th, show that the best type of auction for any market depends crucially on even slight differences in the number of buyers and sellers. Bank of America has been investigating these new auctions, along with robotic traders, for possible use in electronic exchanges. The hope is that today’s financial auctions and online marketplaces might work better by becoming more like their English and Dutch forebears. But what to call such multi-ethnic hybrids? Here’s introducing the Cliffhanger .1. The passage is mainly__________.A. a review of two kinds of auctionsB. an introduction of trading robotsC. a survey of the trading marketD. about trading alternatives2. Which of the following is true according to the text?A. David’s robot traders have now been used in real-world markets.B. Robot traders can evolve like creatures.C. There is room for improvement in efficiency in trading markets.D. The English auction is the most popular trading form.3. If you were trading American Treasury bonds, you would most likely take the trading form of ___________.A. the English auctionB. the continuous double auctionC. the Dutch auctionD. the evolved auction4. We can infer from the text that______________.A. existing auctions can not withstand market shocksB. the Dutch auction is better than the continuous double auctionC. it’s hard for traders to reach an equilibrium priceD. the best type of auction takes place when the number of the buyers is equal to that of sellers5. Toward robot traders, the writer’s attitude can be said to be__________.A. biasedB. objectiveC. pessimisticD. OptimisticOpen-outcry trading is supposed to be a quaint, outdated practice, rapidly being replaced by sleeker, cheaper electronic systems. Try telling that to the New York Mercantile Exchange , the world’s largest commodities exchange. On November 1st the NYMEX opened an open-outcry pit in Dublin to handle Brent crude futures, the benchmark contract for pricing two-thirds of the world’s oil.The NYMEX is trying to snatch liquidity from London’s International Petroleum Exchange , which trades the most Brent contracts; the New York exchange has hitherto concentrated on West Texas Intermediate, an American benchmark grade. The new pit is a response to the IPE’s efforts to modernise. On the same day as NYMEX traders started shouting Brent prices in Dublin, the IPE did away with its morning open-outcry session: now such trades must be electronic, or done in the pit after lunch.The New York exchange claims that customers, such as hedge funds or energy companies, prefer open-outcry because it allows for more liquidity. Although most other exchanges are heading in the opposite direction, in commodity markets such as the NYMEX, pressure from locals --self-employed traders--is helping to prop up open-outcry, although some reckon that customers pay up to five times as much as with electronic systems. Even the IPE has no plans to abolish its floor. Only last month it signed a lease, lasting until 2011, for its trading floor in London.Dublin’s new pit is showing promise , says Rob Laughlin, a trader with Man Financial, despite a few technical glitches. On its first day it handled 5,726 lots of Brent , over a third of the volume in the IPE’s new morning electronic session. By the year’s end, predicts Mr Laughlin, it should be clear whether the venture will be viable. It would stand a better chance if it moved to London. It may yet: it started in Ireland because regulatory approval could be obtained faster there than in Britain.Ultimately, having both exchanges offering similar contracts will be unsustainable. Stealing liquidity from an established market leader, as the NYMEX is trying to do, is a hard task. Eurex, Europe’s largest futures exchange, set up shop in Chicago this year, intending to grab American Treasury-bond contracts from the Chicago Board of Trade. It has made little headway. And the NYMEX has dabbled in Brent contracts before, without success.Given the importance of liquidity in exchanges, why do the IPE and the NYMEX not band together? There have been merger talks before, and something might yet happen. Some say thatthe freewheeling NYMEX and the more staid IPE could never mix. For now, in any case, the two exchanges will slug it out--across the Irish Sea as well as across the Atlantic.1. The NYMEX and IPE are___________.A. both using open outcry trading as a major trading formB. partners that are reciprocal in their business activitiesC. rivals that are competing in the oil trading marketD. both taking efforts to modernize their trading practice2. According to the author, one of the reasons that the NYMEX takes open-outcry trading is__________.A. the preference of its customersB. the standard practice of energy exchangeC. the long tradition of this trading practiceD. the nostalgic feeling it arouses3. The word glitches most probably means_________.A. backwardnessB. disappointmentsC. engineersD. problems4. From Paragraph 4 we can infer that_________.A. trading volume in the IPE’s new morning electronic session is fallingB. London is a better business location for energy exchanges than DublinC. Britain’s regulators are less efficient than those of IrelandD. the Dublin pit of the NYMEX will be more prosperous next year5. We can draw a conclusion from the text that___________.A. it’s very unlikely that the NYMEX and the IPE could combine their businessesB. the NYMEX will fail in Ireland as many precedents have shownC. the two energy exchanges will figure out a way to cooperate with each otherD. the market environment for both energy exchanges is getting better。