专八英语阅读理解精读50篇
专八阅读训练10篇(含答案)
精读原文：Passage 1 The Law to Keep the Oil Industry under ControlThe 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 (though these have already been raised); 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.【阅读练习题】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 off it is producing abroad.[D] develop more quickly than at present.Norwegian Government has tried to[A] encourage the off companies to discover new off sources.[B]prevent oil companies employing people from northern Norway.[C] help the oil companies solve many of their problems.[D] keep the off industry to something near its present size.—to the passage, the off 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.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.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 off as a threat to the Norwegian way of life.1-5BDCCBPassage 2 TV's HarmfulnessYes, but what did we use to do before there was television How often we hear statements like this!Television hasn't been with us all that long, but we are already beginning to forget what the world was like without it. Before we admitted the one-eyed monster into our homes, we never fond it difficult to occupy our spare time. We used to enjoy civilized pleasures. For instance, we used to have hobbies, we used to entertain our friends and be entertained by them, we used to go outside for our amusements to theatres, cinemas, restaurants and sporting events.We even used to read books and listen to music and broadcast talks occasionally. All that belongs to the past. Now all our free time is regulated by the goggle box. We rush home or gulp down our meals to be in time for this or that programme.We have even given up sitting at table and having a leisurely evening meal, exchanging the news of the day. A sandwich and a glass of beer will do一anything, providing it down't interfere with the programme. The monster demands and obtains absolute silence and attention.If any member of the family dares to open his mouth during a programme, he is quickly silenced.Whole generations are growing up addicted to the telly. Food is left uneaten, homework undone and sleep is lost.The telly is a universal pacifier. It is now standard practice for mother to keep the children quiet by putting them in the living-room and turning on the set.It doesn't matter that the children will watch rubbishy commercials or spectaclesof sadism and violence一so long as they are quiet.There is a limit to the amount of creative talent available in the world. Every day, television consumes vast quantities of creative work. That is why most of the programmes are so bad: it is impossible to keep pace with the demand and maintain high standards as well.When millions watch the same programmes, the whole world becomes a village, and society is reduced to the conditions which obtain in preliterate communities. We become utterly dependent on the two most primitive media of communication: pictures and the spoken word.Television encourages passive enjoyment. We become content with second-hand experiences. It is so easy to sit in our armchairs watching others working. Little by little, television cuts us off from the real world.We get so lazy, we choose to spend a fine day in semi-darkness, glued to our sets, rather than go out into the world itself. Television may be s splendid medium of communication, but it prevents us from communicating with each other.We only become aware how totally irrelevant television is to real living when we spend a holiday by the sea or in the mountains, far away from civilization. In quiet, natural surroundings, we quickly discover how little we miss the hypnotic tyranny of King Telly.【阅读词汇学习】is the biggest harm of TV[A] It deprives people of communication with the real world.[B]People become lazy.[C] People become dependent on second-hand experience.[D] TV consumes a large part of one' s life.what way can people forget TV[A] Far away from civilization.[B]To a mountain.[C] By the sea.[D] In quiet natural surroundings.does a mother usually do to keep her children quiet[A] Let them watch the set.[B]Put them in the living room.[C]Let them watch the rubbish.[D]Let them alone.does the first sentence in the first paragraph mean[A] We found it difficult to occupy our spare time.[B]We become addicted to TV[C] What we used to do is different from now.[D] We used to enjoy civilized pleasures.1-4ADABPassage 3 Strictly Ban smokingIf you smoke and you still don't believe that there's a definite link between smoking and bronchial troubles, heart disease and lung cancer, then you are certainly deceiving yourself. No one will accuse you of hypocrisy. Let us just say that you are suffering from a bad case of wishful thinking.This needn't make you too uncomfortable because you are in good company. Whenever the subject of smoking and health is raised, the governments of most countries hear no evil, see no evil and smell no evil. Admittedly, a few governments have taken timid measures.In Britain for instance, cigarette advertising has been banned on television. The conscience of the nation is appeased, while the population continues to puff its way to smoky, cancerous death.You don' t have to look very far to find out why the official reactions to medical findings have been so lukewarm. The answer is simply money. Tobacco is a wonderful commodity to tax. It' s almost like a tax on our daily bread.In tax revenue alone, the government of Britain collects enough from smokers to pay for its entire educational facilities. So while the authorities point out ever so discreetly that smoking may, conceivable, be harmful, it down't do to shout too loudly about it.This is surely the most short-sighted policy you could imagine. While money is eagerly collected in vast sums with one hand, it is paid out in increasingly vaster sums with the other. Enormous amounts are spent on cancer research and on efforts to cure people suffering from the disease.Countless valuable lives are lost. In the long run, there is no doubt that everybodywould be much better-off if smoking were banned altogether.Of course, we are not ready for such a drastic action. But if the governments of the world were honestly concerned about the welfare of their peoples, you'd think they'd conduct aggressive anti-smoking campaigns. Far from it! The tobacco industry is allowed to spend staggering sums on advertising.Its advertising is as insidious as it is dishonest. We are never shown pictures of real smokers coughing up their lungs early in the morning. That would never do. The advertisement always depict virile, clean-shaven young men. They suggest it is manly to smoke, even positively healthy!Smoking is associated with the great open-air life, with beautiful girls, true love and togetherness. What utter nonsense!For a start, governments could begin by banning all cigarette and tobacco advertising and should then conduct anti-smoking advertising campaigns of their own. Smoking should be banned in all public places like theatres, cinemas and restaurants. Great efforts should be made to inform young people especially of the dire consequences of taking up the habit. A horrific warning say, a picture of a death's head should be included in every packet of cigarettes that is sold. As individuals, we are、certainly weak, but if governments acted honestly and courageously, they could protect us from ourselves.【阅读练习题】do a few governments take timid measures toward smoking[A] because they are afraid of people.[B]Because diseases cost a lot.[C] Because they are afraid of the cutting down of their revenue.[D] Because they are afraid of manufacturers.tone of this passage is[A] critical.[B]ironical.[C]distaste.[D]amusmdoes the sentence "because you are in good company" mean[A] you are backed by the government.[B]You are not alone.[C] You have good colleagues.[D] Governments are blind to evils of smoking too.is the best title of this passage[A] World Governments should conduct serious campaigns against smoking.[B]World governments take timid measures against smoking.[C] smoking is the most important source of income to many countries.[D] tobacco industry spends a large sum of money on medical research. 1-4 CBDAPassage 4 On the President's ProgramPresident Arling has put his long awaited economic restructuring program before the Congress. It provides a coordinated program of investment credits, research grants, education reforms, and changes designed to make American industry more competitive. This is necessary to reverse economic slide into unemployment, lack of growth, and trade deficits that have plagued the economy for the past six years.The most liberal wing of the President' s party has called for stronger and more direct action.They want an incomes policy to check inflation while federal financing helps rebuild industry behind a wall of protective tariffs.The Republicans, however, decry even the modest, graduated tax increases in the President' s program.They want tax cuts and more open market. They say if federal money has to be injected into the economy, let it through defence spending.Both these alternatives ignore the unique nature of the economic problem before us. It is not simply a matter of markets or financing. The new technology allows vastly increased production for those able to master it.But it also threatens those who fail to adopt it with permanent second-class citizenship in the world economy. If an industry cannot lever itself up to the leading stage of technological advances, then it will not be able to compete effectively. If it cannot do this, no amount of government protectionism or access to foreign markets can keep it profitable for long.Without the profits and experience of technological excellence to reinvest, that industry can only fall still further behind its foreign competitors.So the crux is the technology and that is where the President' s program focused. The danger is not that a plan will not be passed, it is that the ideologues of right and left will distort the bill with amendments that will blur its focus on technology. The economic restructuring plan should be passed intact.If we fail to restructure our economy now, we may not get a second chance.【阅读练习题】focus of the President' s program is on[A]investment.[B]economy.[C] technology.}D} tax.is the requirement of the most liberal wing of the Democratic-party[A] They want a more direct action.[B]They want an incomes policy to check inflation.[C]They want to rebuild industry.[D]They want a wall of protective tariffs.is the editor' s attitude[A] support.[B]distaste.[C] Disapproval.[D] Compromise.danger to the plan lies in[A] the two parties'objection.[B]different idea of the two parties about the plan.[C] its passage.[D1 distortion.passage is[A] a review.[B]a preface.[C] a advertisement.[D1 an editorial.1-5 CAADDPassage 5 MulesAlthough the top men in smuggling business must work together, most of a syndicate's small fry, especially the mules, know only their immediate contacts. If caught there is little they can give away.A mule probably will not even know the name of the person who gives him his instructions, nor how to get in touch with him. Usually he even does not know the person to whom he has to make delivery.He will be told just to sit tight in a certain hotel or bar until someone contacts him. In this way if he is blown, coming through airport customs he cannot unwittingly lead agents to the next link in the chain.All the persons at the receiving end do is to hang around the airport among the waiting crowd, and see that the mule comes through safely. If he does not, he is dimply written off as a loss.To make identification of mules easier, several syndicates have devised their own "club ties" so that a mule wearing one can immediately be picked out.Mules often receive careful training before embarking on their first journey. One Beirut organization, for example, uses a room with three airline seats in it. There the trainee mules sit for hours on end wearing weighted smuggling vests beneath their clothes, so that they become accustomed to standing up after a long flight in a natural way, and without revealing what they are carrying.An outfit in Brussels maintained a comfortable apartment where the mules could relax and get a firm grip on themselves on the night before their first journey; they were helped to dress before setting out for the airport in the morning. More often than not a courier will not know precisely where he is going or what flight number isuntil he is actually handed his tickets at the airport.This prevents the careless boast in some bar or to a girl friend the night before.Mules occasionally run off with the goods to keep the profit themselves. As insurance against this, a syndicate often sends a high-up on the same plane to keep a wary eye on couriers, particularly new ones. Even then things can go badly wrong. One international currency smuggler who was having trouble getting money out of Britain was offered help by a group of men who said they were in a position to "fix thing"一for a fee of course. Foolishly, the smuggler agreed to accept their help.When he got to London's Heathrow Airport, he handed over to one of the men a black suitcase containing nearly $90,000 in cash, destined for Frankfurt. Just to keep an eye on things, the smuggler went along on the same plane. When they landed at Frankfurt he was handed back his suitcase.He beat a straight path to the men's toilet, opened the case, and found only old clothes. The courier had switched suitcase en route, but the smuggler could hardly run to the police and complain that "the man who was smuggling money out of England for me has stolen it."【阅读练习题】is a "mule"[A] A person who sends smuggling goods for a syndicate is called mule.[B]A person in charge of smuggling goods is called mule.[C] A person who makes delivery for a syndicate is called mule.[D] A person who receives instructions from a smuggler is called mule.sentence "if he is blown" in line (6) is closest in meaning to[A] if he is arrested.[B]if he is recognized, but not necessarily arrested.[C] if he is recognized and arrested.[D] if he runs away.does the author give an example in the last paragraph[A] To show how a smuggler is caught.[B]To show a smuggler is afraid of the police.[C] To show to keep a wary eye on couriers is useless.[D] To show mules may keep the profit for themselves.does a mule work[A] Jointly.[B]Independently.[C] consciously.[D] Separately.1-4 CBDDPassage 6 Contribution of CoeducationImagining being asked to spend twelve or so years of your life in a society which consisted only of members of own sex. How would you react Unless there was something definitely wrong with you, you wouldn't be too happy about it, to say the least. It is all the more surprising therefore that so many parents in the world choose to impose such abnormal conditions on their children conditions which they themselves wouldn't put up with for one minute!Any discussion of this topic is bound to question the aims of education. Stuffing children's heads full of knowledge is far from being foremost among them. One of the chief aims of educations is to equip future citizens with all they require to take their place in adult society.Now adult society is made up of men and women, so how can a segregated school possibly offer the right sort of preparation for itAnyone entering adult society after years of segregation can only be in for a shock.A co-educational school offers children nothing less than a true version of society in miniature. Boys and girls are given the opportunity to get to know each other, to learn to live together from their earliest years.They are put in a position where they can compare themselves with each other in terms of academic ability, athletic achievement and many of the extra-curricular activities which are part of school life.What a practical advantage it is(to give just a small example)to be able to put on a school play in which the male parts will be taken by boys and the female parts by girls! What nonsense co-education makes of the argument that boys are cleverer than girl or vice-versa.When segregated, boys and girls are made to feel that they are a race apart. Rivalry between the sexes is fostered.In a coeducational school, everything falls into its proper place. But perhaps the greatest contribution of co-education is the healthy attitude to life it encourages.Boys don't grow up believing that women are mysterious creatures一airy goddesses, more like book-illustrations to a fairy-tale, than human beings. Girls don't grow up imagining that men are romantic heroes.Years of living together at school dispel illusions of this kind. There are no goddesses with freckles, pigtails, piercing voices and inky fingers. There are no romantic heroes with knobbly knees, dirty fingernails and unkempt hair. The awkward stage of adolescence brings into sharp focus some of the physical and emotional problems involved in growing up. These can better be overcome in a co-educational environment.Segregated schools sometimes provide the right conditions for sexual deviation. This is hardly possible under a co-educational system. When the time comes for the pupils to leave school, they are fully prepared to enter society as well-adjusted adults.They have already had years of experience in coping with many of the problems that face men and women.【阅读练习题】is the best title for this passage[A] only co-education can be in harmony with society.[B]people are in great need of co-education.[C] any form of education other than co-education is simply unthinkable.[D] co-education has many features.does co-education offer to children[A] A society.[B]A true small model of society.[C] A real life.[D] 1}ue version of social condition.to the passage, what is one of the chief aims of education[A] It is for students to acquire knowledge.[B]It is to equip future citizens with scientific technology.[C] It is to equip future citizens with what is required in getting a position in society.[D] It is for students to get academic achievements.do boys and girls in co-education have no illusion about each other[A] They live together and know each other too well.[B]Years of living together at school dismiss such illusion.[C] co-education encourage them to have an healthy attitude toward life.[D] They are familiar with each other' s problems.CBCBPassage 7 Antarctica and EnvironmentAntarctica has actually become a kind of space station a unique observation post for detecting important changes in the world' s environment. Remote from major sources of pollution and the complex geological and ecological systems that prevail elsewhere, Antarctica makes possible scientific measurements that are often sharper and easier to interpret than those made in other parts of the world.Growing numbers of scientists therefore see Antarctica as a distant-early-warning sensor, where potentially dangerous global trends may be spotted before they show up to the north. One promising field of investigation is glaciology. Scholars from the United States, Switzerland, and France are pursuing seven separate but related projects that reflect their concern for the health of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet 一a concern they believe the world at large should share.The Transantarctic Mountain, some of them more than 14,000 feet high, divide the continent into two very different regions. The part of the continent to the "east" of the mountains is a high plateau covered by an ice sheet nearly two miles thick. "West" of the mountain, the half of the continent south of the Americas is also covered by an ice sheet, but there the ice rests on rock that is mostly well below sea level. If the West Antarctic Ice Sheet disappeared, the western part of the continent would be reduced to a sparse cluster of island.While ice and snow are obviously central to many environmental experiments, others focus on the mysterious "dry valley" of Antarctica, valleys that contain little ice or snow even in the depths of winter. Slashed through the mountains of southern Victoria Land, these valleys once held enormous glaciers that descended 9,000 feet from the polar plateau to the Ross Sea.Now the glaciers are gone,perhaps a casualty of the global warming trend during the 10,000 years since the ice age. Even the snow that falls in the dry valleys is blasted out by vicious winds that roars down from the polar plateau to the sea. Left bare are spectacular gorges, rippled fields of sand dunes, clusters of boulderssculptured into fantastic shapes by 100-mile-an-hour winds, and an aura of extraterrestrial desolation.Despite the unearthly aspect of the dry valleys, some scientists believe they may carry a message of hope of the verdant parts of the earth. Some scientists believe that in some cases the dry valleys may soak up pollutants faster than pollutants enter them.【阅读练习题】is the best title for this passage[A] Antarctica and environmental Problems.[B]Antarctica: Earth' s Early-Warning station.[C] Antarctica: a Unique Observation Post.[D] Antarctica: a Mysterious Place.would the result be if the West Antarctic Ice Sheet disappeared[A] The western part of the continent would be disappeared.[B]The western part of the continent would be reduced.[C] The western part of the continent would become scattered Islands.[D] The western part of the continent would be reduced to a cluster of Islands.are the Dry Valleys left bare[A] Vicious wind blasts the snow away.[B]It rarely snows.[C] Because of the global warming trend and fierce wind.[D] Sand dunes.of the following is true[A]The "Dry Valleys" have nothing left inside.[B]The "Dry Valleys" never held glaciers.[C]The "Dry Valleys"may carry a message of hope for the verdant.[D]The "Dry Valleys"are useless to scientists.ADCCPassage 8 The Neutrality of American in the Early World War IIThe establishment of the Third Reich influenced events in American history by starting a chain of events which culminated in war between Germany and the United States. The compete destruction of democracy, the persecution of Jews, the war on religion, the cruelty and barbarism of the Nazis, and especially the plans of Germany and her allies, Italy and Japan, for world conquest caused great indignation in this country and brought on fear of another world war.While speaking out against Hitler' s atrocities, the American people generally favored isolationist policies and neutrality.The Neutrality Acts of 1935 and 1936 prohibited trade with any belligerents or loans to them. In 1937 the President was empowered to declare an arms embargo in wars between nations at his discretion.American opinion began to change somewhat after President Roosevelt' s "quarantine the aggressor" speech at Chicago (1937) in which he severely criticized Hitler' s policies. Germany's seizure of Austria and the Munich Pact for the partition of Czechoslovakia (1938) also aroused the American people.The conquest of Czechoslovakia in March, 1939 was another rude awakening to the menace of the Third Reich. In August,1939 came the shock of the Nazi-soviet Pact and in September the attack on Poland and the outbreak of European war.The United States attempted to maintain neutrality in spite of sympathy for the democracies arrayed against the Third Reich. The Neutrality Act of 1939 repealed the arms embargo and permitted "cash and carry" exports of arms to belligerent nations. A strong national defense program was begun.A draft act was passed (1940) to strengthen the military services. A Lend Act (1941)authorized the President to sell, exchange, or lend materials to any country deemed necessary by him for the defense of the United States. Help was given to Britain by exchanging certain overage destroyers for the right to establish American bases in British territory in the Western Hemisphere. In August, 1940 President Roosevelt and Prime Minister Churchill met and issued the Atlantic Charter which proclaimed the kind of a world which should be established after the war.In December, 1941, Japan launched the unprovoked attack on the United States at Pearl Harbor.Immediately thereafter, Germany declared war on the United States.【阅读练习题】item occurring before 1937 that the author does not mention in his list of actions that alienatedthe American public was[A] the burning of the Reichstag.[B]German plans for conquest.[D] Nazi barbarism.[D] the persecution of religious groups.Lend-Lease Act was designed to[A] help the British.[B]strengthen the national defense of the United States.[C] promote the Atlantic Charter.[D] avenge Pearl Harbor.。
英语专业八级阅读及参考答案
英语专业八级阅读及参考答案Most earthquakes occur within the upper 15 miles of the earth's surface. But earthquakes can and d o occur at all depths to about 460 miles. Their number decreases as the depth increases. At about 460 miles one earthquake occurs only every few years. Near the surface earthquakes may run as hi gh as 100 in a month, but the yearly average does not vary much. In comparison with the total nu mber of earthquakes each year, the number of disastrous earthquakes is very small.The extent of the disaster in an earthquake depends on many factors. If you carefully build a t oy house with an erect set, it will still stand no matter how much you shake the table. But if you build a toy house with a pack of cards, a slight shake of the table will make it fall. An earthqua ke in Agadir, Morocco, was not strong enough to be recorded on distant instruments, but it comple tely destroyed the city. Many stronger earthquakes have done comparatively little damage. If a build ing is well constructed and built on solid ground, it will resist an earthquake. Most deaths in earth quakes have been due to faulty building construction or poor building sites. A third and very seriou s factor is panic. When people rush out into narrow streets, more deaths will result.The United Nations has played an important part in reducing the damage done by earthquakes. It has sent a team of experts to all countries known to be affected by earthquakes. Working with local geologists and engineers, the experts have studied the nature of the ground and the type of m ost practical building code for the local area. If followed, these suggestions will make disastrous ear thquakes almost a thing of the past.There is one type of earthquake disaster that little can be done about. This is the disaster caus ed by seismic sea waves, or tsunamis. (These are often called tidal waves, but the name is incorrec t. They have nothing to do with tides.) In certain areas, earthquakes take place beneath the sea. Th ese submarine earthquakes sometimes give rise to seismic sea waves. The waves are not noticeable out at sea because of their long wave length. But when they roll into harbors, they pile up into walls of water 6 to 60 feet high. The Japanese call them "tsunamis", meaning "harbor waves", becaus e they reach a sizable height only in harbors.Tsunamis travel fairly slowly, at speeds up to 500 miles an hour. An adequate warning system is in use to warn all shores likely to be reached by the waves. But this only enables people to le ave the threatened shores for higher ground. There is no way to stop the oncoming wave.1. Which of the following CANNOT be concluded from the passage?A. The number of earthquakes is closely related to depth.B. Roughly the same number of earthquakes occur each year.C. Earthquakes are impossible at depths over 460 miles.D. Earthquakes are most likely to occur near the surfaces.2. The destruction of Agadir is an example of ______.A. faulty building constructionB. an earthquake's strengthC. widespread panic in earthquakesD. ineffective instruments3. The United Nations' experts are supposed to______.A. construct strong buildingsB. put forward proposalsC. detect disastrous earthquakesD. monitor earthquakes4. The significance of the slow speed of tsunamis is that people may______.A. notice them out at seaB. find ways to stop themC. be warned early enoughD. develop warning systems参考答案：1~4 C A B C 1~5 ADBDC 6~10 ADBCA。
英语专业8级考试范文背诵50篇 Will Your Confidence be Affacted by External Factors
Will your confidence be affected by external factors? Requirements:The world is unequal: some people are wealthier, some men are more handsome, some women are more beautiful etc. As a result, we alwayls admire those who possess the qualities that we do not have and lack confidence in the presence of people who are superior to us in some respects. So will your confidence be affected by qualities in terms of appearance, wealth,peraonality,etc? Write an essay of about 400 words on the topic.Will Your Confidence Be Affected by External Factors?In the first part of your writing you should state your main argument, and in the second part you should support your argument with appropriate details. In the last part you should bring what you have written to an natural conclusion or make a summary.Marks will be awarded for content, organization, grammar and appropriateness. Failure to follow the above instructions may result in a loss of remarks.我教你写该话题可以有两种不同的观点，采用不同的立意：其一，自信会受到外在因素的影响，指出人的自信基于所拥有的财富，外貌和权力等;其二，论述自信是个人的心态问题，不应当受到外界的影响，论述即使没有财富及外貌上的优势也可以充满自信等。
英语专八阅读理解练习附答案
英语专八阅读理解练习附答案英语专八阅读理解练习附答案篇一Racket, din clamor, noise, whatever you want to call it, unwanted sound is America’s most widespread nuisance. But noise is more than just a nuisance. It constitutes a real and present danger topeople’s health. Day and night, at home, at work, and at play, noise can produce serious physical and psychological stress. No one is immune to this stress. Though we seem to adjust to noise by ignoring it, the ear, in fact, never closes and the body still responds—sometimes with extreme tension, as to a strange sound in the night. The annoyance we feel when faced with noise is the most common outward symptom of the stress building up inside→← us. Indeed, because irritability is so apparent, legislators have made public annoyance the basis of many noise abatement programs. The more subtle and more serious health hazards associated with stress caused by noise traditionally have been given much less attention. Nevertheless, when we are annoyed or made irritable by noise, we should consider these symptoms fair warning that other thing may be happening to us, some of which may be damaging to our health.Of many health hazards to noise, hearing loss is the most clearly observable and measurable by health professionals. The other hazards are harder to pin down. For many of us, there may be a risk that exposure to the stress of noise increases susceptibility to disease and infection. The more susceptible among us may experience noise as a complicating factor in heart problems and other diseases. Noisethat causes annoyance and irritability in health persons may have serious consequences for these already ill in mind or body.Noise affects us throughout our lives. For example, there areindications of effects on the unborn child when mothers are exposedto industrial and environmental noise. During infancy and childhood, youngsters exposed to high noise levels may have trouble falling asleep and obtaining necessary amounts of rest.Why, then, is there not greater alarm about these dangers? Perhaps it is because the link between noise and many disabilities or diseases has not yet been conclusively demonstrated. Perhaps it is because we tend to dismiss annoyance as a price to pay for living in the modern world. It may also be because we still think of hearing loss as only an occupational hazard.1.In Paragraph 1, the phrase immune to are used to mean ___.A.unaffected byB.hurt byC.unlikely to be seen byD.unknown by2.The author’s attitude toward noise would best be described as ___.A.unrealisticB.traditionalC.concernedD.hysterical3.Which of the following best states the main idea of the passage?A.Noise is a major problem; most people recognize its importance.B.Although noise can be annoying, it is not a major problem.C.Noise is a major problem and has not yet been recognized as such.D.Noise is a major problem about which nothing can be done.4.The author condemns noise essentially because it ___.A.is against the lawB.can make some people irritableC.is a nuisanceD.in a ganger to people’s health5.The author would probably consider research about the effects noise has on people to be ___.possible.C.a waste of moneyD.essential答案：ACCDD英语专八阅读理解练习附答案篇二Joy and sadness are experienced by people in all cultures around the world, but how can we tell when other people are happy or despondent? It turns out that the expression of many emotions may be universal. Smiling is apparently a universal sign of friendliness and approval. Baring the teeth in a hostile way, asnoted by Charles Darwin in the nineteenth century, may be a universe sign of anger. As the originator of the theory of evolution, Darwin believed that the universal recognition of facial expressions would have survival value. For example, facial expressions could signal the approach of enemies (or friends) in the absence of language.Most investigators concur that certain facial expressions suggest the same emotions in a people. Moreover, people in diverse cultures recognize the emotions manifested by the facial expressions. In classic research Paul Ekman took photographs of people exhibiting the emotions of anger, disgust, fear, happiness, and sadness. He then asked people around the world to indicate what emotions were being depicted in them. Those queried ranged from European college studentsto members of the Fore, a tribe that dwells in the New Guinea highlands. All groups including the Fore, who had almost no contact with Western culture, agreed on the portrayed emotions. The Fore also displayed familiar facial expressions when asked how they would respond if they were the characters in stories that called for basic emotional responses. Ekman and his colleagues morerecently obtained similar results in a study of ten cultures in which participants were permitted to report that multiple emotions were shown by facial expressions. The participants generally agreed on which two emotions were being shown and which emotion was more intense.Psychological researchers generally recognize that facial expressions reflect emotional states. Infact, various emotional states give rise to certain patterns of electrical activity in the facial muscles and in the brain. The facial-feedback hypothesis argues, however, that the causal relationship between emotions and facial expressions can also work in the opposite direction. According to this hypothesis, signals from the facial muscles ("feedback") are sent back to emotion centers of the brain, and so a person's facial expression can influence that person's emotional state.ConsiderDarwin's words: "The free expression by outward signs of an emotion intensifies it. On the otherhand, the repression, as far as possible, of all outward signs softens our emotions." Can smiling giverise to feelings of good will, for example, and frowning to anger?Psychological research has given rise to some interestingfindings concerning the facial-feedback hypothesis. Causing participants in experiments to smile, for example, leads them to report morepositive feelings and to rate cartoons (humorous drawingsof people or situations) as being morehumorous. When they are caused to frown, they rate cartoons as being more aggressive.What are the possible links between facial expressions and emotion? One link is arousal, which is the level of activity or preparedness for activity in an organism. Intense contraction of facial muscles,such as those used in signifying fear, heightens arousal. Self-perception of heightened arousal then leads to heightened emotional activity. Other links may involve changes in brain temperature and the release of neurotransmitters (substances that transmit nerve impulses.) The contraction of facial muscles both influences the internal emotional state and reflects it. Ekman has found that theso-called Duchenne smile, which is characterized by "crow's feet" wrinkles around the eyes and asubtle drop in the eye cover fold so that the skin above the eye moves down slightly toward theeyeball, can lead to pleasant feelings.Ekman's observation may be relevant to the British expression "keep a stiff upper lip" as are commendation for handling stress. It might be that a "stiff" lip suppresses emotional response-as long as the lip is not quivering with fear or tension. But when the emotion that leads to stiffening the lip is more intense, and involves strong muscle tension, facial feedback may heighten emotional response.1. The word despondent in the passage is closest in meaning toA curiousB unhappyC thoughtfulD uncertain2. The author mentions "Baring the teeth in a hostile way" in order toA differentiate one possible meaning of a particular facial expression from other meanings of itB upport Darwin's theory of evolutionC provide an example of a facial expression whose meaning is widely understoodD contrast a facial expression that is easily understood with other facial expressions3. The word concur in the passage is closest in meaning toA estimateB agreeC expectD understand4. According to paragraph 2, which of the following was true of the Fore people ofNew Guinea?A They did not want to be shown photographs.B They were famous for their story-telling skills.C They knew very little about Western culture.D They did not encourage the expression of emotions.5. According to the passage, what did Darwin believe would happen to human emotions that werenot expressed?A They would become less intense.B They would last longer than usual.C They would cause problems later.D They would become more negative.参考答案：B C B C A。
英语专八阅读理解精读训练附答案和解析-第13篇 The Neutrality of American
第13篇:The Neutrality of American精读原文：The Neutrality of American in the Early World War IIThe establishment of the Third Reich influenced events in American history by starting a chain of events which culminated in war between Germany and the United States. The compete destruction of democracy, the persecution of Jews, the war on religion, the cruelty and barbarism of the Nazis, and especially the plans of Germany and her allies, Italy and Japan, for world conquest caused great indignation in this country and brought on fear of another world war.While speaking out against Hitler' s atrocities, the American people generally favored isolationist policies and neutrality.The Neutrality Acts of 1935 and 1936 prohibited trade with any belligerents or loans to them. In 1937 the President was empowered to declare an arms embargo in wars between nations at his discretion.American opinion began to change somewhat after President Roosevelt' s "quarantine the aggressor" speech at Chicago (1937) in which he severely criticized Hitler' s policies. Germany's seizure of Austria and the Munich Pact for the partition of Czechoslovakia (1938) also aroused the American people.The conquest of Czechoslovakia in March, 1939 was another rude awakening to the menace of the Third Reich. In August,1939 came the shock of the Nazi-soviet Pact and in September the attack on Poland and the outbreak of European war.The United States attempted to maintain neutrality in spite of sympathyfor the democracies arrayed against the Third Reich. The Neutrality Act of 1939 repealed the arms embargo and permitted "cash and carry" exports of arms to belligerent nations. A strong national defense program was begun.A draft act was passed (1940) to strengthen the military services. A Lend Act (1941) authorized the President to sell, exchange, or lend materials to any country deemed necessary by him for the defense of the United States. Help was given to Britain by exchanging certain overage destroyers for the right to establish American bases in British territory in the Western Hemisphere. In August, 1940 President Roosevelt and Prime Minister Churchill met and issued the Atlantic Charter which proclaimed the kind of a world which should be established after the war.In December, 1941, Japan launched the unprovoked attack on the United States at Pearl Harbor.Immediately thereafter, Germany declared war on the United States.【阅读练习题】l.One item occurring before 1937 that the author does not mention in his list of actions that alienatedthe American public was[A] the burning of the Reichstag.[B]German plans for conquest.[D] Nazi barbarism.[D] the persecution of religious groups.2.The Lend-Lease Act was designed to[A] help the British.[B]strengthen the national defense of the United States.[C] promote the Atlantic Charter.[D] avenge Pearl Harbor.3.American Policy during the years 1935-1936 may be described as being[A] watchful.[B]isolationist.[C] peaceful.[D] indifferent.4.The Neutrality Act of 1939[A] permitted the selling of arms to belligerent nations.[B]antagonized Japan.[C] permitted the British to trade only with the Allies.[D] led to Lend-Lease Act.5.We entered the war against Germany[A] because Germany declared war.[B]because Japan was an ally of Germany.[C] after Germany had signed the Nazi-soviet Pact.[D] after peaceful efforts had failed.【答案详解】1.A帝国大厦焚毁，众所周知，这是纳粹希特勒精心策划的一次政治阴谋，旨在迫害德国共产党。
英语专八阅读理解精读训练附答案和解析- 第8篇 The Development of Cities
第8篇:The Development of Cities精读原文：The Development of CitiesMass transportation revised the social and economic fabric of the American city in three fundamental ways. It catalyzed physical expansion, it sorted out people and land uses, and it accelerated the inherentinstability of urban life. By opening vast areas of unoccupied land for residential expansion, the omnibuses, horse railways, commuter trains, and electric trolleys pulled settled regions outward two to four times more distant form city centers than they were in the premodern era. In 1850, for example, the borders of Boston lay scarcely two miles from the old business district; by the turn of the century the radius extended ten miles. Now those who could afford it could live far removed from the old city center and still commute there for work, shopping, and entertainment. The new accessibility of land around the periphery of almost every major city sparked an explosion of real estate development and fueled what we now know as urban sprawl. Between 1890 and 1920, for example, some 250,000 new residential lots were recorded within the borders of Chicago, most of them located in outlying areas.Over the same period, another 550,000 were plotted outside the city limits but within the metropolitan area. Anxious to take advantage of the possibilities of commuting, real estate developers added 800,000 potential building sites to the Chicago region in just thirty years一lots that could have housed five to six million people.Of course, many were never occupied; there was always a huge surplus of subdivided, but vacant,land around Chicago and other cities. These excesses underscore a feature of residential expansion related to the growth of mass transportation: urban sprawl was essentially unplanned. It was carried out by thousands of small investors who paid little heed to coordinated land use or to future land users.Those who purchased and prepared land for residential purposes, particularly land near or outside city borders where transit lines and middle-class inhabitants were anticipated, did so to create demand as much as to respond to it. Chicago is a prime example of this process. Real estate subdivision there proceeded much faster than population growth.【阅读练习题】1.With which of the following subjects is the passage mainly concerned?[A] Types of mass transportation.[B]Instability of urban life.[C] How supply and demand determine land use.[D] The effect of mass transportation on urban expansion.2.Why does the author mention both Boston and Chicago?[A] To demonstrate positive and negative effects of growth.{B]To exemplify cities with and without mass transportation.[C] To show mass transportation changed many cities.[D] To contrast their rate of growth.3.According to the passage, what was one disadvantage of residential expansion?[A] It was expensive.[B]It happened too slowly.[C] It was unplanned.[D] It created a demand for public transportation.4.The author mentions Chicago in the second paragraph as an example of a city,[A] that is large.[B]that is used as a model for land development.[C] where the development of land exceeded population growth.[D] with an excellent mass transportation system.【答案详解】1.D公共交通运输对城市扩展的影响。
英语专业八级考试阅读试题及答案详解
英语专业八级考试阅读试题及答案详解英语专业八级考试阅读试题及答案详解The Result of the Falling US DollarLike a ticking time bomb, the falling dollar has grabbed the attention of Japan and West Germany, forcing them to consider adopting economic polices the United States advocates. The U.S. gover____ent wants the dollar to fall because as the dollar declines in value against the yen and Deutsche mark, U.S. good bees cheaper. U.S. panies then sell more at home and abroad, and U.S. trade deficit declines. Cries for trade protection abate, and the global free-trade system is preserved.Then, the cheaper dollar makes it cheaper for many foreign investors to snap up U.S. stocks. That prompts heavy buying from abroad—especially from Japan. Also, if the trade picture is improving, that means U.S. panies eventually will be more petitive. Consequently, many investors are buying shares of export-orientedU.S. panies in anticipation of better profits in the next year or so. But that is a rather faddish notion right now; if corporate earnings are disappointing in interest rates, the stock market rally could stall.Improving U.S. petitiveness means a decline in another’s petitiveness.Japan and West Germany are verging on recession. Their export-oriented economies are facing major problems. Japan is worried about the damage the strong yen will do to Japanese trade. West Germany is also worried. Share prices in Frankfurt plummeted this past week. Bonn is thought to be considering a cut in interest rates to boost its economy.1. What is the main idea of this passage?[A] The impression of the falling U.S. dollar.[B] The result of the U.S. falling dollar.[C] The side effect of U.S. falling dollar.[D] Japan and West Germany are worried about U.S. falling dollar.2. What does the word “rally” mean.[A] prosperity. [B] decline. [C] richness. [D] import.3. Why are Japan and West Germany worried aboutthe falling dollar?[A] Because the falling dollar may cause inflation in their countries.[B] Because it may force them to sell a lot of U.S, stocks.[C] Because it may do damage to their trade.[D] Because it may make Japanese pany lesspetitive.4. If dollar-falling got out of hand, and the U.S. Federal Reserve might step in , what would happen?[A] The prosperity of the U.S. economy would disappear.[B] The U.S. economy might face serious problems.[C] Investors might lose confidence in U.S. investments.[D] Inflation could flare up.答案详解：1. B.美元下跌的结果。
英语专业八级考试阅读理解试题带答案
英语专业八级考试阅读理解试题带答案英语专业八级考试阅读理解试题带答案形成天才的决定因素应该是勤奋。
以下是店铺为大家搜索整理的英语专业八级考试阅读理解试题带答案，希望能给大家带来帮助!Cryptic ColoringCryptic coloring is by far the commonest use of color in the struggle for existence. It is employed for the purpose of attack (aggressive resemblance or anticryptic coloring ) as well as of defense (protective resemblance or procryptic coloring ). The fact that the same method concealment, may be used both for attack and defense has been well explained by T.Belt who suggests as an illustration the rapidity of movement which is also made use of by both pursuer and pursued, which is similarly raised to a maximum in both by the gradual dying out of the slowest through a series of generations.Cryptic coloring is commonly associated with other aids in the struggle for life. Thus well-concealed mammals and birds, when discovered, will generally endeavor to escape by speed and will often attempt to defend themselves actively. On the other hand, small animals which have no means of active defense, such as large, numbers of insects, frequently depend upon concealment alone. Protective resemblance is far commoner among animals than aggressive resemblance, in correspondence with the fact that predaceous forms are as a rule much larger and much less numerous than their prey. In the case of insectivorous Vertebrata and their prey such differences exist in an exaggerated form.Cryptic coloring, whether used for defense of attack, may be either general or special. In general resemblance the animal, inconsequence of its coloring, produces the same effect as its environment, but the conditions do not require any special adaptation of shape and outline. General resemblance is especially common among the animal inhabiting some uniformly colored expanse of the earth’s surface, such as an ocean or a desert. In the former, animals of all shapes are frequently protected by their transparent blue color, on the latter, equally diverse forms are defended by their sandy appearance. The effect of a uniform appearance may be produced by a combination of tints in startling contrast. Thus the black and white stripes of the zebra blend together at a little distance, and “their proportion is such as exactly to match the pale tint which arid ground possesses when seen by moonlight.” Special resemblance is far commoner than general and is the form which is usually met with on the diversified surface of the earth, on the shores, and in shallow water, as well as on the floating masses of algae on the surface of the ocean, such as the Sargasso Sea. In these environments the cryptic coloring of animals is usually aided by special modifications of shape, and by the instinct which leads them to assume particular attitudes. Complete stillness and the assumption of a certain attitude play an essential part in general resemblance on land; but in special resemblance the attitude is often highly specialized, and perhaps more important than any other element in the complex method by which concealment is effected.In special resemblance the combination of coloring, shape, and attitude is such as to produce a more or less exact resemblance to some one of the objects in the environment, such as a leaf of twig, a patch of lichen, a flake of bark. In all cases the resemblance is to some object which is of no interest to theenemy or prey respectively. The animal is not hidden from view by becoming indistinguishable from its background as in the case of general resemblance, but it is mistaken for some well-know object.seeking the interpretation of these most interesting and elaborate adaptations, attempts have been made along two lines. The first seeks to explain the effect as a result of the direct influence of the environment upon the individual (G.L.L.Buffon), or by the inherited effects of efforts and the use and disuse of parts (marck). The second believes that natural selection produced the result and afterwards maintained it by the survival of the best concealed in each generation.The former suggestion breaks down when the complex nature of numerous special resemblances is appreciated. Thus the arrangement of colors of many kinds into an appropriate pattern requires the cooperation of a suitable shape and the rigidly exact adoption of a certain elaborate attitude. The latter is instinctive and thus depends on the central nervous system. The cryptic effect is due to the exact cooperation of all these factors; and in the present state of science, the only possible hole of an interpretation lies in the theory of natural selection, which can accumulate any and every variation which tends toward survival.A few of the chief types of methods by which concealment is effected may be briefly described. The colors of large numbers of vertebrate animals are darkest on the back and become gradually lighter on the sides, passing into white on the belly. Abbot H. Thayer has suggested that this gradation obliterates the appearance of solidity, which is due to shadow.The color harmony, which is also essential to concealment, is produced because the back is of the same tint as theenvironment (e. g. earth), bathed in the cold blue-white of the sky, while the belly, being cold blue-white and bathed in shadow and yellow earth reflections produces the same effects. This method of neutralizing shadow for the purpose of concealment by increased lightness of tint was first suggested by E.B.Poulton in the case of a larva and a pupa, but he did not appreciate the great importance of the principle. In an analogous method an animal in front of a background of dark shadow may have part of its body obliterated by the existence of a dark tint, the remainder resembling, e.g., a part of a leaf. This method of rendering invisible any part which would interfere with the resemblance is well know in mimicry.1. The black and white stripes of the zebra are most useful form[A] hunters. [B] nocturnal predators[C] lions and tigers. [C] insectivorous Vertrbrata2. Aggressive resemblance occurs when[A] a predaceous attitude is assumed.[B] special resemblance is utilized.[C] an animal relies on speed.[D] an animal blends in with its background.3. Special resemblance differs from general resemblance in that the animal relies on[A] its ability to frighten its adversary. [B] speed.[C] its ability to assume an attitude. [D] mistaken identify4. The title below that best expresses the ides of this passage is[A] Cryptic coloration for Protection. [B] How Animals Survive.[C] The uses of Mimicry in Nature. [D] Resemblances of Animals.5. Of the following which is the least common?[A] protective resemblance. [B] General resemblance.[C] Aggressive resemblance. [D] Special resemblance.答案详解：1. B. 夜间活动的食肉动物。
专八英语阅读理解题及答案详解
专八英语阅读理解题及答案详解专八英语阅读理解题及答案详解在学习、工作或生活中，大家都跟阅读理解题打过交道吧，借助阅读理解题人们可以反映客观事物、表达思想感情、传递知识信息。
以下是店铺为大家整理的专八英语阅读理解题及答案详解，仅供参考，大家一起来看看吧。
专八英语阅读理解题及答案详解篇1The Military Is InThings have really changed. Not only is the military standing tall again, it is staging a remarkable comeback in the quantity and quality of the recruits it is attracting. Recruiters, once denounced by antiwar students as “baby killers” and barred from campuses, are welcomed ever at elite universities. ROTC (Reserve Officer’s Training Corps) programs, that faltered during the Viet Nam era, when protesters were fire bombing their headquarters, are flourishing again. The military academies are enjoying a steady increase in applications.Certainly, the depressed economy has increased the allure of the jobs, technical training and generous student loans offered by the military. Students know that if they go in and become, say, nuclear weapons specialists, they can come out and demand a salary of $60,000 a year. Military salaries, while not always competitive with those paid for comparable jobs in the private sector, are more than respectable, especially considering the wide array of benefits that are available: free medical service, room and board, and PX (Post Exchange) privileges. Monthly pay for a recruit is $574; for a sergeant with four years services it is $906; for a major with ten years’ service it is $2,305. The services’ slick $175 million-a-year advertising campaign promisingadventure and fulfillment has helped win over the TV generation. Kids are walking down the school hallways chanting ‘Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines,’ just like in the commercials. And many military officials feel that the key difference is the enhanced patriotism among the nation’s youth. There is a return to the view that the military is an honorable profession. The days of a judge telling a miscreant to join the Army or go to jail are over. Recruiting for all four services combined is running at 101%of authorized goals. And the retention rate is now so high, that the services are refusing some re-enlistment applications and reducing annual recruiting target.The military academics are also enjoying halcyon years, attracting more and better-qualified students. Compared to private colleges, where tuition and expenses have been climbing sharply, the service schools are a real bargain: not only is tuition free, but recruits get allowances of up to $500 a mouth. It is reported 12,300 applicants are for the 1,450 positions in this year’s freshman class. Military academies are now just as selective as any of the best universities in the country.Nationwide, ROTC enrollment exceeds 105,000,a 64% increase over the 1974 figure. In the mid 70’s, the ROTC students refused to wear their uniforms on campus because they suffered all sorts of ridicule, if they did. Now if they wear them to class no one looks at them twice. To them, Viet Nam is ancient history, something the old folks talk about.1. What is the main idea of this passage?[A] The Military is in [B] The Military is up[C] The Military is down [D] The Military is on2. What was the attitude of the students in 1970’s towards the military?[A] Approval. [B] Indifferent. [C] Distaste. [D] Scolding.3. The phras e “come out” is closest in meaning to[A] “become visible”. [B] “begin to grow”.[C] “be made public”. [D] “gain a certain position”.4. Which one of the following is NOT mentioned as a reason to attract students.[A] Free tuition. [B] Spacious room.[C] Considerate allowance. [D] Technical training.答案详解：1. A. 军队又吃香了。
专八英语阅读理解精读50篇
第1篇：TROUSER SUITThe European Court sides with Levi Strauss in its battle with TescoIT WAS a ruling that had consumers seething with anger and many a free trader crying foul. On November 20th the European Court of Justice decided that Tesco, a British supermarket chain, should not be allowed to import jeans made by America's Levi Strauss from outside the European Union and sell them at cut-rate prices without getting permission first from the jeans maker. Ironically, the ruling is based on an EU trademark directive that was designed to protect local, not American, manufacturers from price dumping. The idea is that any brand-owning firm should be allowed to position its goods and segment its markets as it sees fit: Levi's jeans, just like Gucci handbags, must be allowed to be expensive.Levi Strauss persuaded the court that, by selling its jeans cheaply alongside soap powder and bananas, Tesco was destroying the image and so the value of its brands--which could only lead to less innovation and, in the long run, would reduce consumer choice. Consumer groups and Tesco say that Levi's case is specious. The supermarket argues that it was just arbitraging the price differential between Levi's jeans sold in America and Europe--a service performed a million times a day in financial markets, and one that has led to real benefits for consumers. Tesco has been selling some 15,000 pairs of Levi's jeans a week, for about half the price they command in specialist stores approved by Levi Strauss. Christine Cross, Tesco's head of global non-food sourcing, says the ruling risks "creating a Fortress Europe with a vengeance".The debate will rage on, and has implications well beyond casual clothes (Levi Strauss was joined in its lawsuit by Zino Davidoff, a perfume maker). The question at its heart is not whether brands need to control how they are sold to protect their image, but whether it is the job of the courts to help them do this. Gucci, an Italian clothes label whose image was being destroyed by loose licensing and over-exposure in discount stores, saved itself not by resorting to the courts but by ending contracts with third-party suppliers, controlling its distribution better and opening its own stores. It is now hard to find cut-price Gucci anywhere.Brand experts argue that Levi Strauss, which has been losing market share to hipper rivals such as Diesel, is no longer strong enough to command premium prices. Left to market forces, so-so brands such as Levi's might well fade away and be replaced by fresher labels. With the courts protecting its prices, Levi Strauss may hang on for longer. But no court can help to make it a great brand again.注（1）：本文选自Economist; 11/24/2001, Vol. 361 Issue 8249, p58, 1/2p注（2）：本文习题命题模仿对象2001年真题text 5（其中因2001年真题text 5只有4个题目，所以本文第5题模仿参照对象为1999年Text 1的第4题。
英语专八阅读真题汇编(2000-2021)无答案打印版
英语专八阅读真题汇编(2000-2021)无答案打印版英语专业八级阅读历年真题汇编2021真题TEXT AThree hundred years ago news travelled by word of mouth or 1etter, and circulated in taverns and coffee houses in the form of pamphlets and newsletters．�DThe coffee houses particularly are．very roomy for a free conversation，and for reading at an easier rate all manner of printed news，‖noted one observer．Everything changed in 1833 when the first mass-audience newspaper, The New York Sun，pioneered the use of advertising to reduce the cost of news，thus giving advertisers access to a wider audience．The penny press，followed by radio and television，turned news from a two-way conversation into a one―way broadcast，with a relatively small number of firms controlling the media．Now, the news industry is returning to something closer to the coffee house．The internet is making news more participatory，social and diverse，reviving the discursive characteristics of\mass media．That will have profound effects on society and politics．In much of the world．the mass media are flourishing．Newspaper circulation rose globally by 6% between 2021 and 2021．But those global figures mask a sharp decline in readership in rich countries． Over the past decade，throughout the Western world，people have been giving up newspapers and TV news and keeping up with events in profoundly different ways．Most strikingly, ordinary people are increasingly involved in compiling，sharing，filtering，discussing and distributing news．Twitter lets people anywhere report what they are seeing．Classified documents are published in their thousands online．Mobile・phone footage of Arab uprisings and American tornadoes is posted on social-networking sites and shown on television newscasts．Social-networking sites help people find，discuss and share news with their friends．And it is not just readers who are challenging the media elite．Technology firms including Google，Facebook and Twitter have become important conduits of news．Celebrities and world leaders publish updates directly via socialnetworks；many countries now make raw data available through�Dopengovern ment‖initiatives．The internet lets people read newspapers or watch television channels from around the world．The web has allowed new providersof news，from individual bloggers to sites，to rise to prominence in a very short space of time．And it has made possible entirely new approaches to journalism，such as that practiced by WikiLeaks，which provides an anonymous way for whistleblowers to publish documents．The news agenda is no longer controlled by a few press barons and state outlets． In principle，every liberal should celebrate this．A more participatory and social news environment，with a remarkable diversity and range of news sources，is a good thing．The transformation of the news business is unstoppable，and attempts to reverse it are doomed to failure．As producers of new journalism，individuals can be scrupulous with facts and transparent with their sources．As consumers，they can be general in their tastes and demanding in their standards．And although this transformation does raise concerns，there is much to celebratein the noisy, diverse，vociferous，argumentative and stridently alive environment of the news business in the ages of the internet．The coffee house is back．Enjoy it． 11．According to the passage，what initiated the transformation of coffee-house news to mass-media news?A．The emergence of big mass media firms． B．The popularity of radioand television．C．The appearance of advertising in newspapers． D．The increasing number of newspaper readers．12．Which of the following statements best supports�DNow, the Hewsindustry is returning to something closer to the coffee house‖?A Newspaper circulation rose globally by 6％between 2021 and 2021．1B．People in the Western world are giving up newspapers and TVnews． C．Classified documents are published in their thousands online．D．More people are involved in finding，discussing and distributing news．13．According to the passage，which is NOT a role played by information technology? A．Challenging the traditional media．B．Planning the return to coffee-house news．C．Providing people with access to classified files． D．Giving ordinary people the chance to provide news．14．The author’S tone in the last paragraph towards new journalism is A．optimistic and cautious． B．supportive and skeptical． C．doubtful and reserved． D．ambiguous and cautious． 15．In�DThe coffee house is back‖，coffee house best symbolizes A．the changing characteristics of news audience． B．the more diversified means of news distribution． C．the participatory nature of news． D. the more varied sources of news． TEXT BParis is like pornography．You respond even if you don’t want to．Youturn a corner and see a vista，and your imagination bolts away。
专八阅读训练10篇(含答案)
精读原文：Passage 1 The Law to Keep the Oil Industry under ControlThe 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 (though these have already been raised); 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 andfishermen 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.【阅读练习题】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 off it is producing abroad.[D] develop more quickly than at present.2.The Norwegian Government has tried to[A] encourage the off companies to discover new off sources.[B]prevent oil companies employing people from northern Norway.[C] help the oil companies solve many of their problems.[D] keep the off industry to something near its present size.3.According to the passage, the off 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 off as a threat to the Norwegian way of life.1-5BDCCBPassage 2 TV's HarmfulnessYes, but what did we use to do before there was television? How often we hear statements like this!Television hasn't been with us all that long, but we are already beginning to forget what the world was like without it. Before we admitted the one-eyed monster into our homes, we never fond it difficult to occupy our spare time. We used to enjoy civilized pleasures. For instance, we used to have hobbies, we used to entertain our friends and be entertained by them, we used to go outside for our amusements to theatres, cinemas, restaurants and sporting events.We even used to read books and listen to music and broadcast talks occasionally. All that belongs to the past. Now all our free time is regulated by the goggle box. We rush home or gulp down our meals to be in time for this or that programme.We have even given up sitting at table and having a leisurely evening meal, exchanging the news of the day. A sandwich and a glass of beer will do一anything, providing it down't interfere with the programme. The monster demands and obtains absolute silence and attention.If any member of the family dares to open his mouth during a programme, he is quickly silenced.Whole generations are growing up addicted to the telly. Food is left uneaten, homework undone and sleep is lost.The telly is a universal pacifier. It is now standard practice for mother to keep the children quiet by putting them in the living-room and turning on the set.It doesn't matter that the children will watch rubbishy commercials or spectaclesof sadism and violence一so long as they are quiet.There is a limit to the amount of creative talent available in the world. Every day, television consumes vast quantities of creative work. That is why most of the programmes are so bad: it is impossible to keep pace with the demand and maintain high standards as well.When millions watch the same programmes, the whole world becomes a village, and society is reduced to the conditions which obtain in preliterate communities. We become utterly dependent on the two most primitive media of communication: pictures and the spoken word.Television encourages passive enjoyment. We become content with second-hand experiences. It is so easy to sit in our armchairs watching others working. Little by little, television cuts us off from the real world.We get so lazy, we choose to spend a fine day in semi-darkness, glued to our sets, rather than go out into the world itself. Television may be s splendid medium of communication, but it prevents us from communicating with each other.We only become aware how totally irrelevant television is to real living when we spend a holiday by the sea or in the mountains, far away from civilization. In quiet, natural surroundings, we quickly discover how little we miss the hypnotic tyranny of King Telly.【阅读词汇学习】1.What is the biggest harm of TV?[A] It deprives people of communication with the real world.[B]People become lazy.[C] People become dependent on second-hand experience.[D] TV consumes a large part of one' s life.2.In what way can people forget TV?[A] Far away from civilization.[B]To a mountain.[C] By the sea.[D] In quiet natural surroundings.3.What does a mother usually do to keep her children quiet?[A] Let them watch the set.[B]Put them in the living room.[C]Let them watch the rubbish.[D]Let them alone.4.What does the first sentence in the first paragraph mean?[A] We found it difficult to occupy our spare time.[B]We become addicted to TV[C] What we used to do is different from now.[D] We used to enjoy civilized pleasures.1-4ADABPassage 3 Strictly Ban smokingIf you smoke and you still don't believe that there's a definite link between smoking and bronchial troubles, heart disease and lung cancer, then you are certainly deceiving yourself. No one will accuse you of hypocrisy. Let us just say that you are suffering from a bad case of wishful thinking.This needn't make you too uncomfortable because you are in good company. Whenever the subject of smoking and health is raised, the governments of most countries hear no evil, see no evil and smell no evil. Admittedly, a few governments have taken timid measures.In Britain for instance, cigarette advertising has been banned on television. The conscience of the nation is appeased, while the population continues to puff its way to smoky, cancerous death.You don' t have to look very far to find out why the official reactions to medical findings have been so lukewarm. The answer is simply money. Tobacco is a wonderful commodity to tax. It' s almost like a tax on our daily bread.In tax revenue alone, the government of Britain collects enough from smokers to pay for its entire educational facilities. So while the authorities point out ever so discreetly that smoking may, conceivable, be harmful, it down't do to shout too loudly about it.This is surely the most short-sighted policy you could imagine. While money is eagerly collected in vast sums with one hand, it is paid out in increasingly vaster sums with the other. Enormous amounts are spent on cancer research and on efforts to cure people suffering from the disease.Countless valuable lives are lost. In the long run, there is no doubt that everybodywould be much better-off if smoking were banned altogether.Of course, we are not ready for such a drastic action. But if the governments of the world were honestly concerned about the welfare of their peoples, you'd think they'd conduct aggressive anti-smoking campaigns. Far from it! The tobacco industry is allowed to spend staggering sums on advertising.Its advertising is as insidious as it is dishonest. We are never shown pictures of real smokers coughing up their lungs early in the morning. That would never do. The advertisement always depict virile, clean-shaven young men. They suggest it is manly to smoke, even positively healthy!Smoking is associated with the great open-air life, with beautiful girls, true love and togetherness. What utter nonsense!For a start, governments could begin by banning all cigarette and tobacco advertising and should then conduct anti-smoking advertising campaigns of their own. Smoking should be banned in all public places like theatres, cinemas and restaurants. Great efforts should be made to inform young people especially of the dire consequences of taking up the habit. A horrific warning say, a picture of a death's head should be included in every packet of cigarettes that is sold. As individuals, we are、certainly weak, but if governments acted honestly and courageously, they could protect us from ourselves.【阅读练习题】1.Why do a few governments take timid measures toward smoking?[A] because they are afraid of people.[B]Because diseases cost a lot.[C] Because they are afraid of the cutting down of their revenue.[D] Because they are afraid of manufacturers.2.The tone of this passage is[A] critical.[B]ironical.[C]distaste.[D]amusm3.What does the sentence "because you are in good company" mean?[A] you are backed by the government.[B]You are not alone.[C] You have good colleagues.[D] Governments are blind to evils of smoking too.4.What is the best title of this passage?[A] World Governments should conduct serious campaigns against smoking.[B]World governments take timid measures against smoking.[C] smoking is the most important source of income to many countries.[D] tobacco industry spends a large sum of money on medical research. 1-4 CBDAPassage 4 On the President's ProgramPresident Arling has put his long awaited economic restructuring program before the Congress. It provides a coordinated program of investment credits, research grants, education reforms, and changes designed to make American industry more competitive. This is necessary to reverse economic slide into unemployment, lack of growth, and trade deficits that have plagued the economy for the past six years.The most liberal wing of the President' s party has called for stronger and more direct action.They want an incomes policy to check inflation while federal financing helps rebuild industry behind a wall of protective tariffs.The Republicans, however, decry even the modest, graduated tax increases in the President' s program.They want tax cuts and more open market. They say if federal money has to be injected into the economy, let it through defence spending.Both these alternatives ignore the unique nature of the economic problem before us. It is not simply a matter of markets or financing. The new technology allows vastly increased production for those able to master it.But it also threatens those who fail to adopt it with permanent second-class citizenship in the world economy. If an industry cannot lever itself up to the leading stage of technological advances, then it will not be able to compete effectively. If it cannot do this, no amount of government protectionism or access to foreign markets can keep it profitable for long.Without the profits and experience of technological excellence to reinvest, that industry can only fall still further behind its foreign competitors.So the crux is the technology and that is where the President' s program focused. The danger is not that a plan will not be passed, it is that the ideologues of right and left will distort the bill with amendments that will blur its focus on technology. The economic restructuring plan should be passed intact.If we fail to restructure our economy now, we may not get a second chance.【阅读练习题】1.The focus of the President' s program is on[A]investment.[B]economy.[C] technology.}D} tax.2.What is the requirement of the most liberal wing of the Democratic-party?[A] They want a more direct action.[B]They want an incomes policy to check inflation.[C]They want to rebuild industry.[D]They want a wall of protective tariffs.3.What is the editor' s attitude?[A] support.[B]distaste.[C] Disapproval.[D] Compromise.4.The danger to the plan lies in[A] the two parties'objection.[B]different idea of the two parties about the plan.[C] its passage.[D1 distortion.5.The passage is[A] a review.[B]a preface.[C] a advertisement.[D1 an editorial.1-5 CAADDPassage 5 MulesAlthough the top men in smuggling business must work together, most of a syndicate's small fry, especially the mules, know only their immediate contacts. If caught there is little they can give away.A mule probably will not even know the name of the person who gives him his instructions, nor how to get in touch with him. Usually he even does not know the person to whom he has to make delivery.He will be told just to sit tight in a certain hotel or bar until someone contacts him. In this way if he is blown, coming through airport customs he cannot unwittingly lead agents to the next link in the chain.All the persons at the receiving end do is to hang around the airport among the waiting crowd, and see that the mule comes through safely. If he does not, he is dimply written off as a loss.To make identification of mules easier, several syndicates have devised their own "club ties" so that a mule wearing one can immediately be picked out.Mules often receive careful training before embarking on their first journey. One Beirut organization, for example, uses a room with three airline seats in it. There the trainee mules sit for hours on end wearing weighted smuggling vests beneath their clothes, so that they become accustomed to standing up after a long flight in a natural way, and without revealing what they are carrying.An outfit in Brussels maintained a comfortable apartment where the mules could relax and get a firm grip on themselves on the night before their first journey; they were helped to dress before setting out for the airport in the morning. More often than not a courier will not know precisely where he is going or what flight number isuntil he is actually handed his tickets at the airport.This prevents the careless boast in some bar or to a girl friend the night before.Mules occasionally run off with the goods to keep the profit themselves. As insurance against this, a syndicate often sends a high-up on the same plane to keep a wary eye on couriers, particularly new ones. Even then things can go badly wrong. One international currency smuggler who was having trouble getting money out of Britain was offered help by a group of men who said they were in a position to "fix thing"一for a fee of course. Foolishly, the smuggler agreed to accept their help.When he got to London's Heathrow Airport, he handed over to one of the men a black suitcase containing nearly $90,000 in cash, destined for Frankfurt. Just to keep an eye on things, the smuggler went along on the same plane. When they landed at Frankfurt he was handed back his suitcase.He beat a straight path to the men's toilet, opened the case, and found only old clothes. The courier had switched suitcase en route, but the smuggler could hardly run to the police and complain that "the man who was smuggling money out of England for me has stolen it."【阅读练习题】1.What is a "mule"?[A] A person who sends smuggling goods for a syndicate is called mule.[B]A person in charge of smuggling goods is called mule.[C] A person who makes delivery for a syndicate is called mule.[D] A person who receives instructions from a smuggler is called mule.2.The sentence "if he is blown" in line (6) is closest in meaning to[A] if he is arrested.[B]if he is recognized, but not necessarily arrested.[C] if he is recognized and arrested.[D] if he runs away.3.Why does the author give an example in the last paragraph?[A] To show how a smuggler is caught.[B]To show a smuggler is afraid of the police.[C] To show to keep a wary eye on couriers is useless.[D] To show mules may keep the profit for themselves.4.how does a mule work?[A] Jointly.[B]Independently.[C] consciously.[D] Separately.1-4 CBDDPassage 6 Contribution of CoeducationImagining being asked to spend twelve or so years of your life in a society which consisted only of members of own sex. How would you react? Unless there was something definitely wrong with you, you wouldn't be too happy about it, to say the least. It is all the more surprising therefore that so many parents in the world choose to impose such abnormal conditions on their children conditions which they themselves wouldn't put up with for one minute!Any discussion of this topic is bound to question the aims of education. Stuffing children's heads full of knowledge is far from being foremost among them. One of the chief aims of educations is to equip future citizens with all they require to take their place in adult society.Now adult society is made up of men and women, so how can a segregated school possibly offer the right sort of preparation for it?Anyone entering adult society after years of segregation can only be in for a shock.A co-educational school offers children nothing less than a true version of society in miniature. Boys and girls are given the opportunity to get to know each other, to learn to live together from their earliest years.They are put in a position where they can compare themselves with each other in terms of academic ability, athletic achievement and many of the extra-curricular activities which are part of school life.What a practical advantage it is(to give just a small example)to be able to put on a school play in which the male parts will be taken by boys and the female parts by girls! What nonsense co-education makes of the argument that boys are cleverer than girl or vice-versa.When segregated, boys and girls are made to feel that they are a race apart. Rivalry between the sexes is fostered.In a coeducational school, everything falls into its proper place. But perhaps the greatest contribution of co-education is the healthy attitude to life it encourages.Boys don't grow up believing that women are mysterious creatures一airy goddesses, more like book-illustrations to a fairy-tale, than human beings. Girls don't grow up imagining that men are romantic heroes.Years of living together at school dispel illusions of this kind. There are no goddesses with freckles, pigtails, piercing voices and inky fingers. There are no romantic heroes with knobbly knees, dirty fingernails and unkempt hair. The awkward stage of adolescence brings into sharp focus some of the physical and emotional problems involved in growing up. These can better be overcome in a co-educational environment.Segregated schools sometimes provide the right conditions for sexual deviation. This is hardly possible under a co-educational system. When the time comes for the pupils to leave school, they are fully prepared to enter society as well-adjusted adults.They have already had years of experience in coping with many of the problems that face men and women.【阅读练习题】1.What is the best title for this passage?[A] only co-education can be in harmony with society.[B]people are in great need of co-education.[C] any form of education other than co-education is simply unthinkable.[D] co-education has many features.2.what does co-education offer to children?[A] A society.[B]A true small model of society.[C] A real life.[D] 1}ue version of social condition.3.According to the passage, what is one of the chief aims of education?[A] It is for students to acquire knowledge.[B]It is to equip future citizens with scientific technology.[C] It is to equip future citizens with what is required in getting a position in society.[D] It is for students to get academic achievements.4.Why do boys and girls in co-education have no illusion about each other?[A] They live together and know each other too well.[B]Years of living together at school dismiss such illusion.[C] co-education encourage them to have an healthy attitude toward life.[D] They are familiar with each other' s problems.CBCBPassage 7 Antarctica and EnvironmentAntarctica has actually become a kind of space station a unique observation post for detecting important changes in the world' s environment. Remote from major sources of pollution and the complex geological and ecological systems that prevail elsewhere, Antarctica makes possible scientific measurements that are often sharper and easier to interpret than those made in other parts of the world.Growing numbers of scientists therefore see Antarctica as a distant-early-warning sensor, where potentially dangerous global trends may be spotted before they show up to the north. One promising field of investigation is glaciology. Scholars from the United States, Switzerland, and France are pursuing seven separate but related projects that reflect their concern for the health of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet 一a concern they believe the world at large should share.The Transantarctic Mountain, some of them more than 14,000 feet high, divide the continent into two very different regions. The part of the continent to the "east" of the mountains is a high plateau covered by an ice sheet nearly two miles thick. "West" of the mountain, the half of the continent south of the Americas is also covered by an ice sheet, but there the ice rests on rock that is mostly well below sea level. If the West Antarctic Ice Sheet disappeared, the western part of the continent would be reduced to a sparse cluster of island.While ice and snow are obviously central to many environmental experiments, others focus on the mysterious "dry valley" of Antarctica, valleys that contain little ice or snow even in the depths of winter. Slashed through the mountains of southern Victoria Land, these valleys once held enormous glaciers that descended 9,000 feet from the polar plateau to the Ross Sea.Now the glaciers are gone,perhaps a casualty of the global warming trend during the 10,000 years since the ice age. Even the snow that falls in the dry valleys is blasted out by vicious winds that roars down from the polar plateau to the sea. Left bare are spectacular gorges, rippled fields of sand dunes, clusters of boulderssculptured into fantastic shapes by 100-mile-an-hour winds, and an aura of extraterrestrial desolation.Despite the unearthly aspect of the dry valleys, some scientists believe they may carry a message of hope of the verdant parts of the earth. Some scientists believe that in some cases the dry valleys may soak up pollutants faster than pollutants enter them.【阅读练习题】1.What is the best title for this passage?[A] Antarctica and environmental Problems.[B]Antarctica: Earth' s Early-Warning station.[C] Antarctica: a Unique Observation Post.[D] Antarctica: a Mysterious Place.2.What would the result be if the West Antarctic Ice Sheet disappeared?[A] The western part of the continent would be disappeared.[B]The western part of the continent would be reduced.[C] The western part of the continent would become scattered Islands.[D] The western part of the continent would be reduced to a cluster of Islands.3.Why are the Dry Valleys left bare?[A] Vicious wind blasts the snow away.[B]It rarely snows.[C] Because of the global warming trend and fierce wind.[D] Sand dunes.4.Which of the following is true?[A]The "Dry Valleys" have nothing left inside.[B]The "Dry Valleys" never held glaciers.[C]The "Dry Valleys"may carry a message of hope for the verdant.[D]The "Dry Valleys"are useless to scientists.ADCCPassage 8 The Neutrality of American in the Early World War IIThe establishment of the Third Reich influenced events in American history by starting a chain of events which culminated in war between Germany and the United States. The compete destruction of democracy, the persecution of Jews, the war on religion, the cruelty and barbarism of the Nazis, and especially the plans of Germany and her allies, Italy and Japan, for world conquest caused great indignation in this country and brought on fear of another world war.While speaking out against Hitler' s atrocities, the American people generally favored isolationist policies and neutrality.The Neutrality Acts of 1935 and 1936 prohibited trade with any belligerents or loans to them. In 1937 the President was empowered to declare an arms embargo in wars between nations at his discretion.American opinion began to change somewhat after President Roosevelt' s "quarantine the aggressor" speech at Chicago (1937) in which he severely criticized Hitler' s policies. Germany's seizure of Austria and the Munich Pact for the partition of Czechoslovakia (1938) also aroused the American people.The conquest of Czechoslovakia in March, 1939 was another rude awakening to the menace of the Third Reich. In August,1939 came the shock of the Nazi-soviet Pact and in September the attack on Poland and the outbreak of European war.The United States attempted to maintain neutrality in spite of sympathy for the democracies arrayed against the Third Reich. The Neutrality Act of 1939 repealed the arms embargo and permitted "cash and carry" exports of arms to belligerent nations. A strong national defense program was begun.A draft act was passed (1940) to strengthen the military services. A Lend Act (1941)authorized the President to sell, exchange, or lend materials to any country deemed necessary by him for the defense of the United States. Help was given to Britain by exchanging certain overage destroyers for the right to establish American bases in British territory in the Western Hemisphere. In August, 1940 President Roosevelt and Prime Minister Churchill met and issued the Atlantic Charter which proclaimed the kind of a world which should be established after the war.In December, 1941, Japan launched the unprovoked attack on the United States at Pearl Harbor.Immediately thereafter, Germany declared war on the United States.【阅读练习题】l.One item occurring before 1937 that the author does not mention in his list of actions that alienatedthe American public was[A] the burning of the Reichstag.[B]German plans for conquest.[D] Nazi barbarism.[D] the persecution of religious groups.2.The Lend-Lease Act was designed to[A] help the British.[B]strengthen the national defense of the United States.[C] promote the Atlantic Charter.[D] avenge Pearl Harbor.。
英语专八考试历年阅读理解练习及答案详解
英语专八考试历年阅读理解练习及答案详解英语专八考试历年阅读理解练习及答案详解天才就是这样，终身劳动，便成天才!以下是店铺为大家搜索整理的.英语专八考试历年阅读理解练习及答案详解，希望对正在关注的您有所帮助!In Britain, the old Road Traffic Act restricted speeds to 2 m.p.h. (miles per hour) in towns and 4 m.p.h. in the country. Later Parliament increased the speed limit to 14 m.p.h. But by 1903 the development of the car industry had made it necessary to raise the limit to 20 m.p.h. By 1930, however, the law was so widely ignored that speeding restrictions were done away with altogether. For five years motorists were free to drive at whatever speeds they likes. Then in 1935 the Road Traffic Act imposed a 30 m.p.h. speed limit in built-up areas, along with the introduction of driving tests and pedestrian crossing.Speeding is now the most common motoring offence in Britain. Offences for speeding fall into three classes: exceeding the limit on a restricted road, exceeding on any road the limit for the vehicle you are driving, and exceeding the 70 m.p.h. limit on any road. A restricted road is one where the street lamps are 200 yards apart, or more.The main controversy (争论) surrounding speeding laws is the extent of their safety value. The Ministry of Transport maintains that speed limits reduce accidents. It claims that when the 30 m.p.h. limit was introduced in 1935 there was a fall of 15 percent in fatal accidents. Likewise, when the 40 m.p.h. speed limit was imposed on a number of roads in London in the late fifties, there was a 28 percent reduction in serious accidents. There were also fewer casualties (伤亡) in the year after the 70m.p.h. motorway limit was imposed in 1966.In America, however, it is thought that the reduced accident figures are due rather to the increase in traffic density. This is why it has even been suggested that the present speed limits should be done away with completely, or that a guide should be given to inexperienced drivers and the speed limits made advisory, as is done in parts of the USA.Questions: (注意：答题尽量简短，超过10个词要扣分。
英语专八阅读理解精读训练附答案和解析- 第9篇 Holmes'Knowledge
第9篇:Holmes'Knowledge精读原文：Holmes'KnowledgeHis ignorance was as remarkable as his knowledge. Of contemporary literature, philosophy and politics he appeared to know next to nothing. Upon my quoting Thomas Carlyle, he inquired in the naivest way who he might be what he had done. My surprise reached a climax, however, when I found incidentally that he ignorant of the Copernican Theory and of the composition of the Solar system."You appear to be astonished,"Holmes said, smiling at my expression. "Now that I do know it I shall do my best to forget it. You see, I consider that a man's brain originally is like a little empty attic, and you have to stock it with such furniture as you choose: A fool takes in all the lumber of every sort that he comes across, so that the knowledge which might be useful to him gets crowded out, or at best jumbled up with a lot of other things, so that he has difficulty in laying his hand upon it. It is a mistake to think that the little room has elastic walls and can distend to any extent. Depend upon it, there comes a time when for every addition of knowledge you forget something that you know before. It is of the highest importance, therefore, not to have useless facts elbowing out the useful ones.""But the Solar System!"I protested."What the deuce is it to me?" he interrupted impatiently.One morning, I picked up a magazine from the table and attempted to while away the time with it, while my companion munched silently at his toast. One of the articles had a pencil mark at the heading, and I naturally began to run my eye through it.Its somewhat ambitious title was "The Book of Life,"and it attempted to show how much an observant man might learn by an accurate and systematic examination of all that came in his way. It struck me as being a remarkable mixture of shrewdness and of absurdity. The reasoning was close and intense, but the deduction appeared to me to be far-fetched and exaggerated. The writer claimed by a momentary expression, a twitch of a muscle or a glance of an eye, to fathom a man' s inmost thought.Deceit, according to him, was impossibility in the case of one trained to observation and analysis. His conclusions were as infallible as so many propositions of Euclid. So startling would his results appear to the uninitiated that until they learned the processes by which he had arrived atthem they might well consider him as a necromancer."From a drop of water,"said the writer, "a logician could infer the possibility of an Atlantic. So all life is a great chain, the nature of which is known whenever we are shown a single link of it. Like all other arts, the science of Deduction and Analysis is one which can be acquired by long and patient study, nor is life long enough to allow any mortal to attain the highest possible perfection in it."This smartly written piece of theory I could not accept until a succession of evidences justified it.【阅读练习题】1.What is the author' s attitude toward Holmes?[A]Praising.[B]Critical.[C]Ironical.[D}Distaste.2.What way did the author take to stick out Holmes'uniqueness?[A]By deduction.[B]By explanation.[C]By contrast.[D]By analysis.3.What was the Holmes'idea about knowledge-learning?[A]Learning what every body learned.[B]Learning what was useful to you.[C]Learning whatever you came across.[D]Learning what was different to you.4.What did the article mentioned in the passage talk about?[A]One may master the way of reasoning through observation.[B]One may become rather critical through observation and analysis.[C]One may become rather sharp through observation and analysis.[D]One may become practical through observation and analysis.【答案详解】1.A赞扬。
英语专八阅读
英语专八阅读He was an old man with a white beard and huge nose and hands. Long before the time during which we will know him, he was a doctor and drove a jaded white horse from house to house through the streets of Winesburg. Later he married a girl who had money. She had been left a large fertile farm when her father died. The girl was quiet, tall, and dark, and to many people she seemed very beautiful. Everyone in Winesburg wondered why she married the doctor. Within a year after the marriage she died.The knuckles of the doctor's hands were extraordinarily large. When the hands were closed they looked like clusters of unpainted wooden balls as large as walnuts fastened together by steel rods. He smoked a cob pipe and after his wife's death sat all day in his empty office close by a window that was covered with cobwebs. He never opened the window. Once on a hot day in August he tried but found it stuck fast and after that he forgot all about it.Winesburg had forgotten the old man, but in Doctor Reefy there were the seeds of something very fine. Alone in his musty office in the Heffner Block above the Paris Dry Goods Company's store, he worked ceaselessly, building up something that he himself destroyed. Little pyramids of truth he erected and after erecting knocked them down again that he might have the truths to erect other pyramids.Doctor Reefy was a tall man who had worn one suit of clothes for ten years. It was frayed at the sleeves and little holes had appeared at the knees and elbows. In the office he wore also a linen duster with huge pockets into which he continually stuffed scraps of paper. After some weeks the scraps of paper becamelittle hard round balls, and when the pockets were filled he dumped them out upon the floor. For ten years he had but one friend, another old man named John Spaniard who owned a tree nursery. Sometimes, in a playful mood, old Doctor Reefy took from his pockets a handful of the paper balls and threw them at the nursery man. "'That is to confound you, you blithering old sentimentalist," he cried, shaking with laughter.The story of Doctor Reefy and his courtship of the tall dark girl who became his wife and left her money to him is a very curious story. It is delicious, like the twisted little apples that grow in the orchards of Winesburg. In the fall one walks in the orchards and the ground is hard with frost underfoot. The apples have been taken from the trees by the pickers. They have been put in barrels and shipped to the cities where they will be eaten in apartments that are filled with books, magazines, furniture, and people. On the trees are only a few gnarled apples that the pickers have rejected. They look like the knuckles of Doctor Reefy’ s hands. One nibbles at themand they are delicious. Into a little round place at the side of the apple has been gathered all of its sweetness. One runs from tree to tree over the frosted ground picking the gnarled, twisted apples and filling his pockets with them. Only the few know the sweetness of the twisted apples.The girl and Doctor Reefy began their courtship on a summer afternoon. He was forty-five then and already he had begun the practice of filling his pockets with the scraps of paper that became hard balls and were thrown away. The habit had been formed as he sat in his buggy behind the jaded grey horse and went slowly along country roads. On the papers were written thoughts, ends of thoughts, beginnings of thoughts.One by one the mind of Doctor Reefy had made the thoughts. Out of many of them he formed a truth that arose gigantic in his mind. The truth clouded the world. It became terrible and then faded away and the little thoughts began again.The tall dark girl came to see Doctor Reefy because she was in the family way and had become frightened. She was in that condition because of a series of circumstances also curious.The death of her father and mother and the rich acres of land that had come down to her had set a train of suitors on her heels. For two years she saw suitors almost every evening. Except two they were all alike. They talked to her of passion and there was a strained eager quality in their voices and in their eyes when they looked at her. The two who were different were much unlike each other. One of them, a slender young man with white hands, the son of a jeweler in Winesburg, talked continually of virginity. When he was with her he was never off the subject. The other, a black-haired boy with large ears, said nothing at all but always managed to get her into the darkness, where he began to kiss her.For a time the tall dark girl thought she would marry the jeweler's son. For hours she sat in silence listening as he talked to her and then she began to be afraid of something. Beneath his talk of virginity she began to think there was a lust greater than in all the others. At times it seemed to her that as he talked he was holding her body in his hands. She imagined him turning it slowly about in the white hands and staring at it. At night she dreamed that he had bitten into her body and that his jaws were dripping. She had the dream three times, then she became in the family way to the one who said nothing at all but who in the moment of his passion actually did bite her shoulder so that fordays the marks of his teeth showed...-..-.After the tall dark girl came to know Doctor Reefy it seemed to her that she never wanted to leave him again. She went into his office one morning and without her saying anything he seemed to know what had happened to her.In the office of the doctor there was a woman, the wife of the man who kept the bookstore in Winesburg. Like all old-fashioned country practitioners, Doctor Reefy pulled teeth, and the woman who waited held a handkerchief to her teeth and groaned. Her husband was with her and when the tooth was taken out they both screamed and blood ran down on the woman's white dress. The tall dark girl did not pay any attention. When the woman and the man had gone the doctor smiled. "I will take you driving into the country with me," he said.For several weeks the tall dark girl and the doctor were together almost every day. The condition that had brought her to him passed in an illness, but she was like one who has discovered the sweetness of the twisted apples, she could not get her mind fixed again upon the round perfect fruit that is eaten in the city apartments. In the fall after the beginning of her acquaintanceship with him she married Doctor Reefy and in the following spring she died. During the winter he read to her all of the odds and ends of thoughts he had scribbled on the bits of paper. After he had read them he laughed and stuffed them away in his pockets to become round hard balls.1.According to the story Doctor Reefy’s life seems very ＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿.A. eccentricB. normalC. enjoyableD. optimistic2.The story tells us that the tall dark girl was in the family way. The phrase “in the family way” means＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿.A. troubledB. PregnantC. twistedD. cheated3.Doctor Reef lives a ＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿ life.A. happyB. miserableC. easy-goingD. reckless4. The tall dark girl’s ma rriage to Doctor Reef proves to bea ＿＿＿＿＿ one.A. transientB. understandableC. perfectD. funny5. Doctor Reef’s paper balls probably symbolize his ＿＿＿＿＿＿.A eagerness to shut himself away from societyB suppressed desire to communicate with peopleC optimism about lifeD cynical attitude towards life参考答案：A B B A B。
英语专八100篇精读荟萃(中级篇)
专业英语八级100篇精读荟萃（中级篇）Passage One (Violence Can Do Nothing to Diminish Race Prejudice) In some countries where racial prejudice is acute, violence has so come to be taken for granted as a means of solving differences, that it is not even questioned. There are countries where the white man imposes his rule by brute force; there are countries where the black man protests by setting fire to cities and by looting and pillaging. Important people on both sides, who would in other respects appear to be reasonable men, get up and calmly argue in favor of violence – as if it were a legitimate solution, like any other. What is really frightening, what really fills you with despair, is the realization that when it comes to the crunch, we have made no actual progress at all. We may wear collars and ties instead of war-paint, but our instincts remain basically unchanged. The whole of the recorded history of the human race, that tedious documentation of violence, has taught us absolutely nothing. We have still not learnt that violence never solves a problem but makes it more acute. The sheer horror, the bloodshed, the suffering mean nothing. No solution ever comes to light the morning after when we dismally contemplate the smoking ruins and wonder what hit us.The truly reasonable men who know where the solutions lie are finding it harder and herder to get a hearing. They are despised, mistrusted and even persecuted by their own kind because they advocate such apparently outrageous things as law enforcement. If half the energy that goes into violent acts were put to good use, if our efforts were directed at cleaning up the slums and ghettos, at improving living-standards and providing education and employment for all, we would have gone a long way to arriving at a solution. Our strength is sapped by having to mop up the mess that violence leaves in its wake. In a well-directed effort, it would not be impossible to fulfill the ideals of a stable social programme. The benefits that can be derived from constructive solutions are everywhere apparent in the world around us. Genuine and lasting solutions are always possible, providing we work within the framework of the law.Before we can even begin to contemplate peaceful co-existence between the races, we must appreciate each other‘s problems. And to do this, we must learn about them: it is a simple exercise in communication, in exchanging information. ‗Talk, talk, talk,‘ the advocates of violence say, ‗all you ever do is talk, and we are none the wiser.‘ It‘s rather like the story of the famous barrister who painstakingly explained his case to the judge. After listening to a lengthy argument the judge complained that after all this talk, he was none the wiser. ‗Possible, my lord,‘ the barrister replied, ‗none the wiser, but surely far better informed.‘Knowledge is the necessary prerequisite to wisdom: the knowledge that violence creates the evils it pretends to solve.1.What is the best title for this passage?[A] Advocating Violence.[B] Violence Can Do Nothing to Diminish Race Prejudice.[C] Important People on Both Sides See Violence As a Legitimate Solution.[D] The Instincts of Human Race Are Thirsty for Violence.2.Recorded history has taught us[A] violence never solves anything.[B] nothing.[C] the bloodshed means nothing.[D] everything.3.It can be inferred that truly reasonable men[A] can‘t get a hearing.[B] are looked down upon.[C] are persecuted.[D] Have difficulty in advocating law enforcement.4.―He was none the wiser‖ means[A] he was not at all wise in listening.[B] He was not at all wiser than nothing before.[C] He gains nothing after listening.[D] He makes no sense of the argument.5.According the author the best way to solve race prejudice is[A] law enforcement.[B] knowledge.[C] nonviolence.[D] Mopping up the violent mess.V ocabulary1.acute 严重的，剧烈的，敏锐的2.loot v.抢劫，掠夺；n.赃物3.pillage v.抢劫，掠夺4.crunch v.吱嘎吱嘎咬或嚼某物；n.碎裂声when it comes to the crunch = if/when the decisive moment comes. 当关键时刻来到时。
英语专八阅读理解精读训练-第3篇Advers Performertis the Community
第3篇:Advertisers Perform to the Community精读原文：Advertisers Perform a Useful Service to the CommunityAdvertisers tend to think big and perhaps this is why they're always coming in for criticism. Their critics seem to resent them because they have a flair for self-promotion and because they have so much money to throw around. It' s iniquitous,'they say, `that this entirely unproductive industry (if we can call it that) should absorb millions of pounds each year. It only goes to show how much profit the big companies are making. Why don' t they stop advertising and reduce the price of their goods? After all, it' s the consumer who paysw'The poor old consumer! He' d have to pay a great deal more if advertising didn't create mass markets for products. It is precisely because of the heavy advertising that consumer goods are so cheap. But we get the wrong idea if we think the only purpose of advertising is to sell goods. Another equally important function is to inform. A great deal of the knowledge we have about household goods derives largely from the advertisements we read.Advertisements introduce us to new products or remind us of the existence of ones we already know about. Supposing you wanted to buy a washing machine, it is more than likely you would obtain details regarding performance, price, etc., from an advertisement.Lots of people pretend that they never read advertisements, but this claim may be seriously doubted. It is hardly possible not to read advertisements these days. And what fun they often are, too! Just thinkwhat a railway station or a newspaper would be like without advertisements. Would you enjoy gazing at a blank wall or reading railway byelaws while waiting for a train? Would you like to read only closely printed columns of news in your daily paper? A cheerful, witty advertisement makes such a difference to a drab wall or a newspaper full of the daily ration of calamities.We must not forget, either, that advertising makes a positive contribution to our pockets. Newspapers, commercial radio and television companies could not subsist without this source of revenue. The fact that we pay so little for our daily paper, or can enjoy so many broadcast programmes is due entirely to the money spent by advertisers. Just think what a newspaper would cost if we had to pay its full price!Another thing we mustn't forget is the'small ads.'which are in virtually every newspaper and magazine. What a tremendously useful service they perform for the community! Just about anything can be accomplished throughthese columns. For instance, you can find a job, buy or sell a house, announce a birth, marriage or death in what used to be called the `hatch, match and dispatch'column but by far the most fascinating section is the personal or `agony'column. No other item in a newspaper provides such entertaining reading or offers such a deep insight into human nature. It' s the best advertisement for advertising there is!【阅读练习题】1.What is main idea of this passage?A. Advertisement.B. The benefits of advertisement.C. Advertisers perform a useful service to communities.D. The costs of advertisement.2.The attitude of the author toward advertisers isA. appreciative.B. trustworthy.C .critical.D. dissatisfactory.3.Why do the critics criticize advertisers?A. Because advertisers often brag.B. Because critics think advertisement is a "waste of money".C. Because customers are encouraged to buy more than necessary.D. Because customers pay more.4.Which of the following is Not True?A. Advertisement makes contribution to our pockets and we may know everythirB. We can buy what we want.C. Good quality products don't need to be advertised.D. Advertisement makes our life colorful.5.The passage isA. Narration.B. Description.C. Criticism.D. Argumentation.【答案详解】1.C.广告对社会的服务很有用。
专业英语八级-阅读理解(四)
专业英语八级-阅读理解(四)(总分：20.00，做题时间：90分钟)一、Text A(总题数：1，分数：5.00)Make That a DoubleA few years ago, it dawned on Zach Thomas that coffee didn't have enough caffeine. At the time, he was pulling all-nighters as a student at the United States Military Academy at West Point. By the time he became an instructor at the U.S. Army Ranger School in Fort Benning, Ga., he lived by a common saying at his school: "Sleep is a crutch." "I used to just drink a pot of coffee, but then you have to go to the bathroom 100 times during the day. If you could just get more caffeine in one cup, then that would be the best of both worlds," he says. In 2005 Thomas, now 30, founded Ranger Coffee, with a "hypercaffeinated" blend that contains double the caffeine of regular coffee, or about 300 milligrams per 12-ounce serving—the equivalent of six Diet Cokes. The small, Rockmart, Ga.-based company sells 1,700 bags of coffee a year, nearly half of them to troops stationed in Iraq.These days you don't have to be a war hero to be a caffeine addict. Everywhere you look, people are wired on caffeine or touting its benefits—or both. Tabloids run images of celebrities sipping Red Bull or toting Starbucks venti lattes; Dunkin' Donuts ads feature a coffee-swilling Rachael Ray, who moves so fast that she leaves tread marks on the floor. There's no shortage of ways to get your caffeine fix. Sales of energy drinks like Red Bull and Full Throttle have grown tenfold since 2001, and new ones enter the market weekly. Products that already have caffeine are adding more—in the past few months Diet Pepsi, Jolt and Mountain Dew have all rolled outextra-caffeinated versions. Novelty items, like caffeinated lip balm, caffeinated sunflower seeds, caffeinated beer and even caffeinated soap ("Tired of waking up and having to wait for your morning java to brew?") are also popping up in retail stores and nightclubs. In a spoof on this caffeine arms race, the site launched a "death by caffeine calculator" that shows a 180-pound adult would have to down 44 tall cups of Starbucks coffee before checking in to the big java house in the sky.Why do we need—or want—so much energy? Conventional wisdom says it's because we're sleeping less and working more. But government figures show that adults have averaged eight hours of sleep per night since the 1960s. Working hours, at least for men, have also remained constant: men with children have averaged about 43 hours of paid work per week for the past half century. Of course, that doesn't mean we don't feel more stressed. University of Maryland sociologist Suzanne Bianchi says working mothers' entry into the labor force means there's less downtime for families as a whole, with errands, housework and outings packed into a tight two-day weekend. As for the young and unattached, they may be getting plenty of sleep, but at irregular hours. They have more options than ever for 24/7 entertainment, from TV to the Internet to video-games. In fact, many of the novelty caffeine products are aimed at computer games who stage weekend-long "LAN parties" where no one sleeps.But for the general public, the trend is more about getting a legal high. "Caffeine is the world's most popular mood-altering drug," says David Schardt, senior nutritionist at the Center for science in the Public Interest. And companies have been banking on its addictive properties to bring repeat business. Caffeine can lift your mood, improve concentration, boost physical stamina and, as an active ingredient in Excedrin, help cure headaches. More than 50 percent of caffeine drinkers experience withdrawal symptoms when they stop.By most accounts, though, the stimulant is fairly safe. "There's nothing inherently wrong with being dependent on caffeine," says Roland Griffiths, a neuroscientist at the Johns HopkinsUniversity School of Medicine, as long as you don't overdose. For those accustomed to caffeine, a moderate intake is 200 to 300 milligrams per day—the equivalent of two to three cups of brewed coffee, one Starbucks tall coffee or 3.5 Red Bulls. Exceed 500 to 600 milligrams, and anxiety, nausea and heart palpitations can set in. Griffiths does worry about teenagers, who are drinking more caffeinated beverages: "I'm concerned that impressionable adolescents are exposed to marketing messages that promote caffeine as a performance enhancer will later turn to stronger drugs, like steroids or Ritalin or cocaine." More worrisome still is the glamorization of the 24/7 caffeine high. Even Rachael Ray occasionally needs her rest.（分数：5.00）(1).According to the passage, the following are the effects of caffeine with the EXCEPTION of ______.（分数：1.00）A.It can cure diseases. √B.It can change people's mood.C.It can increase physical strength.D.It can make people more concentrate解析：由第四段可知，咖啡因具有改变情绪(B)，使注意力集中(D)和增强体力(C)等作用。
英语专业八考试阅读理解
2011年英语专业八级考试阅读理解TEXT AWhenever we could, Joan and I look refuge in the streets of Gibraltar. The Englishman's home is his castle because he has not much choice. There is nowhere to sit in the streets of England, not even, after twilight, in the public gardens. The climate, very often, does not even permit him to walk outside. Naturally, he stays indoors and creates a cocoon of comfort. That was the way we lived in Leeds.These southern people, on the other hand, look outwards. The Gibraltarian home is, typically, a small and crowded apartment up several flights of dark and dirty stairs. In it, one, two or even three old people share a few ill-lit rooms with the young family. Once he has eaten, changed his clothes, embraced his wife, kissed his children and his parents, there is nothing to keep the southern man at home. He hurries out, taking even his breakfast coffee at his local bar. He comes home late for his afternoon meal after an appetitive hour at his cafe. He sleeps for an hour, dresses, goes out again and stays out until late at night. His wife does not miss him, for she is out, too –at the market in the morning and in the afternoon sitting with other mothers, baby-minding in the sun.The usual Gibraltarian home has no sitting-room, living-room or lounge. The parlour of our working-class houses would be an intolerable waste of space.Easy-chairs, sofas and such-like furniture are unknown. There are no bookshelves, because there are no books. Talking and drinking, as well as eating, are done on hard chairs round the dining-table, between a sideboard decorated with the best glasses and an inevitable display cabinet full of family treasures, photographs and souvenirs. The elaborate chandelier over this table proclaims it as the hub of the household and of the family. 'Hearth and home' makes very little sense in Gibraltar. One's home is one's town or village, and one's hearth is the sunshine.Our northern towns are dormitories with cubicles, by comparison. When we congregate –in the churches it used to be, now in the cinema, say, impersonally, or at public meetings, formally –we are scarcely ever man to man. Only in our pubs can you find the truly gregarious and communal spirit surviving, and in England even the pubs are divided along class lines.Along this Mediterranean coast, home is only a refuge and a retreat. The people live together in the open air – in the street, market-place. Down here, there is a far stronger feeling of community than we had ever known. In crowded and circumscribed Gibraltar, with its complicated inter-marriages, its identity of interests, its surviving sense of siege, one can see and feel an integrated society.To live in a tiny town with all the organization of a state, with Viceroy (总督), Premier, Parliament. Press and Pentagon, all in miniature, all within arm's reach, is an intensive course in civics. In such an environment, nothing can be hidden, for better or for worse. One's successes are seen and recognized; one's failures are immediately exposed. Social consciousness is at its strongest, with the result that there is a constant and firm pressure towards good social behaviour, towards courtesy and kindness. Gibraltar, with all its faults, isthe friendliest and most tolerant of places. Straight from the cynical anonymity of a big city, we luxuriated in its happy personalism. We look back on it, like all its exiled sons and daughters, with true affection.11. Which of the following best explains the differences in ways of living between theEnglish and the Gibraltarians?A. The family structure.B. Religious belief.C. The climate.D. Bating habit.12. The italicized part in the third paragraph implies that _____.A. English working-class homes are similar to Gibraltarian onesB. English working-class homes have spacious sitting-roomsC. English working-class homes waste a lot of spaceD. the English working-class parlour is intolerable in Gibraltar13. We learn from the description of the Gibraltarian home that it is _____.A. modernB. luxuriousC. starkD. simple14. There is a much stronger sense of _____ among the Gibraltarians.A. togethernessB. survivalC. identityD. leisure15. According to the passage, people in Gibraltar tend to be well-behaved because of thefollowing EXCEPT _____.A. the entirety of the state structureB. constant pressure from the stateC. the small size of the townD. transparency of occurrencesTEXT BFor office innovators, the unrealized dream of the "paperless" office is a classic example of high-tech hubris (傲慢). Today's office drone is drowning in more paper than ever before.But after decades of hype, American offices may finally be losing their paper obsession. The demand for paper used to outstrip the growth of the US economy, but the past two or three years have seen a marked slowdown in sales - despite a healthy economic scene.Analysts attribute the decline to such factors as advances in digital databases and communication systems. Escaping our craving for paper, however, will be anything but an easy affair."Old habits are hard to break." says Merilyn Dunn, a communications supplies director. "There are some functions that paper serves where a screen display doesn't work. Those functions are both its strength and its weakness."In the early to mid-'90s, a booming economy and improved desktop printers helped boost paper sales by 6 to 7 percent each year. The convenience of desktop printing allowed office workers to indulge in printing anything and everything at very little effort or cost.But now, the growth rate of paper sales in the United States is flattening by about half a percent each year. Between 2004 and 2005, Ms. Dunn says, plain white office paper will see less than a 4 percent growth rate, despite the strong overall economy. A primary reason for the change, says Dunn, is that for the first time ever, some 47 percent of the workforce entered the job market after computers had already been introduced to offices."We're finally seeing a reduction in the amount of paper being used per worker in the workplace." says John Maine, vice president of a pulp and paper economic consulting firm. "More information is being transmitted electronically, and more and more people are comfortable with the information residing only in electronic form without printing multiple backups."In addition, Mr. Maine points to the lackluster employment market for white-collar workers – the primary driver of office paper consumption – for the shift in paper usage.The real paradigm shift may be in the way paper is used. Since the advent of advanced and reliable office-network systems, data storage has moved away from paper archives. The secretarial art of "filing" is disappearing from job descriptions. Much of today's data may never leave its original digital format.The changing attitudes toward paper have finally caught the attention of paper companies, says Richard Harper, a researcher at Microsoft. "All of a sudden, the paper industry has started thinking. 'We need to learn more about the behavioural aspects of paper use.'" he says. "They had never asked, they'd just assumed that 70 million sheets would be bought per year as a literal function of economic growth."To reduce paper use, some companies are working to combine digital and paper capabilities. For example, Xerox Corp. is developing electronic paper: thin digital displays that respond to a stylus, like a pen on paper. Notations can be erased or saved digitally.Another idea, intelligent paper, comes from Anoto Group. It would allow notations made with a stylus on a page printed with a special magnetic ink to simultaneously appear on a computer screen.Even with such technological advances, the improved capabilities of digital storage continue to act against "paperlessness," argues Paul Saffo, a technology forecaster. In hisprophetic and metaphorical 1989 essay, "The Electronic Pinata (彩罐)", he suggests that the increasing amounts of electronic data necessarily require more paper.The information industry today is like a huge electronic pinata, composed of a thin paper crust surrounding an electronic core." Mr. Saffo wrote. The growing paper crust "is most noticeable, but the hidden electronic core that produces the crust is far larger – and growing more rapidly. The result is that we are becoming paperless, but we hardly notice at all."In the same way that digital innovations have increased paper consumption. Saffo says, so has video conferencing – with its promise of fewer in-person meetings – boosting business travel."That's one of the great ironies of the information age" Saffo says. "It's just common sense that the more you talk to someone by phone or computer, it inevitably leads to a face-to-face meeting. The best thing for the aviation industry was the Internet."16. What function does the second sentence in the first paragraph serve?A. It further explains high-tech hubris.B. It confirms the effect ofhigh-tech hubris.C. It offers a cause for high-tech hubris.D. It offers a contrast to high-tech hubris.17. Which of the following is NOT a reason for the slowdown in paper sales?A. Workforce with better computer skills.B. Slow growth of the USeconomy.C. Changing patterns in paper use .D. Changing employmenttrends.18. The two innovations by Xerox Corp. and Anoto Group feature _____.A. integrated use of paper and digital formB. a shift from paper to digital formC. the use of computer screenD. a new style of writing19. What does the author mean by "irony of the information age"?A. The dream of the "paperless" office will be realized.B. People usually prefer to have face-to-face meetings.C. More digital data use leads to greater paper use.D. Some people are opposed to video-conferencing.20. What is the author's attitude towards "paperlessness"?A. He reviews the situation from different perspectives.B. He agrees with some of the people quoted in the passage.C. He has a preference for digital innovations.D. He thinks airlines benefit most from the digital age.TEXT CWhen George Orwell wrote in 1941 that England was "the most class-ridden country under the sun", he was only partly right. Societies have always had their hierarchies, with some group perched at the top. In the Indian state of Bihar the Ranveer Sena, an upper-caste private army, even killed to stay there.By that measure class in Britain hardly seems entrenched (根深蒂固的). But in another way Orwell was right, and continues to be. As a new YouGov poll shows, Britons are surprisingly alert to class - both their own and that of others. And they still think class is sticky. According to the poll, 48% of people aged 30 or over say they expect to end up better off than their parents. But only 28% expect to end up in a different class. More than two-thirds think neither they nor their children will leave the class they were born into.What does this thing that people cannot escape consist of these days? And what do people look at when decoding which class someone belongs to? The most useful identifying markers, according to the poll, are occupation, address, accent and income, in that order. The fact that income comes fourth is revealing: though some of the habits and attitudes that class used to define arc more widely spread than they were. Class still indicates something less blunt than mere wealth.Occupation is the most trusted guide to class, but changes in the labour market have made that harder to read than when Orwell was writing. Manual workers have shrunk along with farming and heavy industry as a proportion of the workforce, while the number of people in white-collar jobs has surged. Despite this striking change, when they were asked to place themselves in a class, Brits in 2006 huddled in much the same categories as they did when they were asked in 1949. So, jobs, which were once a fairly reliable guide to class, have become misleading.A survey conducted earlier this year by Expertian shows how this convergence on similar types of work has blurred class boundaries. Expertian asked people in a number of different jobs to place themselves in the working class or the middle class. Secretaries, waiters and journalists were significantly more likely to think themselves middle-class than accountants, computer programmers or civil servants. Many new white-collar jobs offer no more autonomy or better prospects than old blue-collar ones. Yet despite the muddle over what the markers of class are these days, 71 % of those polled by YouGov still said they found it very or fairly easy to figure out which class others belong to.In addition to changes in the labour market, two other things have smudged the borders on the class map. First, since 1945 Britain has received large numbers of immigrants who donot fit easily into existing notions of class and may have their own pyramids to scramble up. The flow of new arrivals has increased since the late 1990s, multiplying this effect.Second, barriers to fame have been lowered. Britain's fast-growing ranks of celebrities –like David Beckham and his wife Victoria – form a kind of parallel aristocracy open to talent, or at least to those who are uninhibited enough to meet the requests of television producers. This too has made definitions more complicated.But many Brits, given the choice, still prefer to identify with the class they were born into rather than that which their jobs or income would suggest. This often entails pretending to be more humble than is actually the case: 22% of white-collar workers told YouGov that they consider themselves working class. Likewise, the Expertian survey found that one in ten adults who call themselves working class are among the richest asset-owners, and that over half a million households which earn more than $191,000 a year say they are working class. Pretending to be grander than income and occupation suggest is rarer, though it happens too.If class no longer describes a clear social, economic or even political status, is it worth paying any attention to? Possibly, yes. It is still in most cases closely correlated with educational attainment and career expectations.21. Why does the author say "...Orwell was right, and continues to be" (Paragraph Two)?A. Because there was stronger class consciousness in India.B. Because more people hope to end up in a higher class.C. Because people expect to gain more wealth than their parents.D. Because Britons are still conscious of their class status.22. "...class still indicates something less blunt than mere wealth" (Paragraph Three) means that_____.A. class is still defined by its own habits and attitudesB. class would refer to something more subtle than moneyC. people from different classes may have the same habits or attitudesD. income is unimportant in determining which class one belongs to23. Which of the following statements is INCORRECT?A. White-collar workers would place themselves in a different class.B. People with different jobs may place themselves in the same class.C. Occupation and class are no longer related with each other.D. Changes in the workforce have made it difficult to define class.24. Which of the following is NOT a cause to blur class distinction?A. Notions of class by immigrants.B. Changing trends of employment.C. Fewer types of work.D. Easy access to fame.25. When some successful white-collar workers choose to stay in the working class, it impliesthat they are _____.A. showing modestyB. showing self-respectC. expressing boastfulnessD. making anunderstatementTEXT DThe train was whirling onward with such dignity of motion that a glance from the window seemed simply to prove that plains of Texas were pouring eastward. Vast flats of green grass, dull-hued spaces of mesquite and cactus, little groups of frame houses, woods of light and tender trees, all were sweeping into the east, sweeping over the horizon, a precipice.A newly married pair had boarded this coach at San Antonio. The man's face was reddened from many days in the wind and sun, and a direct result of his new black clothes was that his brick-coloured hands were constantly performing in a most conscious fashion. From time to time he looked down respectfully at his attire. He sat with a hand on each knee, like a man waiting in a barber's shop. The glances he devoted to other passengers were furtive and shy.The bride was not pretty, nor was she very young. She wore a dress of blue cashmere, with small reservations of velvet here and there, and with steel buttons abounding. She continually twisted her head to regard her puff sleeves, very stiff, and high. They embarrassed her. It was quite apparent that she had cooked, and that she expected to cook, dutifully. The blushes caused by the careless scrutiny of some passengers as she had entered the car were strange to see upon this plain, under-class countenance, which was drawn in placid, almost emotionless lines.They were evidently very happy. "Ever been in a parlor-car before?" he asked, smiling with delight."No," she answered; "I never was. It's fine, ain't it?""Great! And then after a while we'll go forward to the dinner, and get a big lay-out. Fresh meal in the world. Charge a dollar.""Oh, do they?" cried the bride. "Charge a dollar? Why, that's too much – for us – ain't it, Jack?""Nor this trip, anyhow," he answered bravely. "We're going to go the whole thing."Later he explained to her about the trains. "You see, it's a thousand miles from one end of Texas to the other; and this runs right across it, and never stops but four times." He had the pride of an owner. He pointed out to her the dazzling fittings of the coach; and in truth her eyes opened wider and she contemplated the sea-green figured velvet, the shining brass, silver, and glass, the wood that gleamed as darkly brilliant as the surface of a pool of oil. At one end a bronze figure sturdily held a support for a separated chamber, and at convenient places on the ceiling were frescos in olive and silver.To the minds of the pair, their surroundings reflected the glory of their marriage that morning in San Antonio; this was the environment of their new estate; and the man's face in particular beamed with an elation that made him appear ridiculous to the Negro porter. This individual at times surveyed them from afar with an amused and superior grin. On other occasions he bullied them with skill in ways that did not make it exactly plain to them that they were being bullied. He subtly used all the manners of the most unconquerable kind of snobbery. He oppressed them. But of this oppression they had small knowledge, and they speedily forgot that infrequently a number of travelers covered them with stares of derisive enjoyment. Historically there was supposed to be something infinitely humorous in their situation."We are due in Yellow Sky at 3:42," he said, looking tenderly into her eyes."Oh, are we?" she said, as if she had not been aware of it. To evince (表现出) surprise at her husband's statement was part of her wifely amiability. She took from a pocket a little silver watch; and as she held it before her, and stared at it with a frown of attention, the new husband's face shone."I bought it in San Anion' from a friend of mine," he told her gleefully."It's seventeen minutes past twelve." she said, looking up at him with a kind of shy and clumsy coquetry (调情；卖俏). A passenger, noting this play, grew excessively sardonic, and winked at himself in one of the numerous mirrors.At last they went to the dining-car. Two rows of Negro waiters, in glowing white suits, surveyed their entrance with the interest, and also the equanimity (平静) of men who had been forewarned. The pair fell to the lot of a waiter who happened to feel pleasure in steering them through their meal. He viewed them with the manner of a fatherly pilot, his countenance radiant with benevolence. The patronage, entwined with the ordinary deference,was not plain to them. And yet, as they returned to their coach, they showed in their faces a sense of escape.26. The description of the couple's clothes and behaviour at the beginning of the passage seems toindicate that they had a sense of _____.A. secrecyB. elationC. superiorityD. awkwardness27. Which of the following adjectives best depicts the interior of the coach?A. Modern.B. Luxurious.C. Practical.D. Complex.28. Which of the following best describes the attitude of other people on the train towards thecouple?A. They regarded the couple as an object of fun.B. They expressed indifference towards thecouple.C. They were very curious about the couple.D. They showed friendliness towards thecouple.29. Which of the following contains a metaphor?A. ...like a man waiting in a barber's shop.B. ...his countenance radiant with benevolence.C. ...sweeping over the horizon, a precipice.D. ...as darkly brilliant as the surface of a poolof oil.30. We can infer from the last paragraph that in the dining-car _____.A. the waiters were snobbishB. the couple felt ill at easeC. the service was satisfactoryD. the couple enjoyed their dinner。
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第1篇：TROUSER SUITThe European Court sides with Levi Strauss in its battle with TescoIT WAS a ruling that had consumers seething with anger and many a free trader crying foul. On November 20th the European Court of Justice decided that Tesco, a British supermarket chain, should not be allowed to import jeans made by America's Levi Strauss from outside the European Union and sell them at cut-rate prices without getting permission first from the jeans maker. Ironically, the ruling is based on an EU trademark directive that was designed to protect local, not American, manufacturers from price dumping. The idea is that any brand-owning firm should be allowed to position its goods and segment its markets as it sees fit: Levi's jeans, just like Gucci handbags, must be allowed to be expensive.Levi Strauss persuaded the court that, by selling its jeans cheaply alongside soap powder and bananas, Tesco was destroying the image and so the value of its brands--which could only lead to less innovation and, in the long run, would reduce consumer choice. Consumer groups and Tesco say that Levi's case is specious. The supermarket argues that it was just arbitraging the price differential between Levi's jeans sold in America and Europe--a service performed a million times a day in financial markets, and one that has led to real benefits for consumers. Tesco has been selling some 15,000 pairs of Levi's jeans a week, for about half the price they command in specialist stores approved by Levi Strauss. Christine Cross, Tesco's head of global non-food sourcing, says the ruling risks "creating a Fortress Europe with a vengeance".The debate will rage on, and has implications well beyond casual clothes (Levi Strauss was joined in its lawsuit by Zino Davidoff, a perfume maker). The question at its heart is not whether brands need to control how they are sold to protect their image, but whether it is the job of the courts to help them do this. Gucci, an Italian clothes label whose image was being destroyed by loose licensing and over-exposure in discount stores, saved itself not by resorting to the courts but by ending contracts with third-party suppliers, controlling its distribution better and opening its own stores. It is now hard to find cut-price Gucci anywhere.Brand experts argue that Levi Strauss, which has been losing market share to hipper rivals such as Diesel, is no longer strong enough to command premium prices. Left to market forces, so-so brands such as Levi's might well fade away and be replaced by fresher labels. With the courts protecting its prices, Levi Strauss may hang on for longer. But no court can help to make it a great brand again.注（1）：本文选自Economist; 11/24/2001, Vol. 361 Issue 8249, p58, 1/2p注（2）：本文习题命题模仿对象2001年真题text 5（其中因2001年真题text 5只有4个题目，所以本文第5题模仿参照对象为1999年Text 1的第4题。
）1. Which of the following is not true according to Paragraph 1?[A]Consumers and free traders were very angry.[B]Only the Levi’s maker can decide the prices of the jeans.[C] The ruling has protected Levi’s from price dumping.[D] Levi’s jeans should be sold at a high price .2. Gucci’s success shows that _______.[A]Gucci has successfully saved its own image.[B] It has changed its fate with its own effort.[C]Opening its own stores is the key to success.[D] It should be the court’s duty to save its image.3. The word “specious”(line 12, paragraph 2) in the context probably means _______.[A]responsible for oneself[B] having too many doubts[C] not as it seems to be[D]raising misunderstanding4. According to the passage, the doomed fate of Levi’s is caused by such factors except that ________.[A]the rivals are competitive[B]it fails to command premium prices[C]market forces have their own rules[D]the court fails to give some help5. The author’s attitude towards Levi’s prospect seems to be _______.[A] biased[B] indifferent[C] puzzling[D] objective答案：B B C D D篇章剖析本文的结构形式为提出问题----分析问题。
在第一段首先提出问题,指出欧洲法庭对特易购超市做出的裁决。
第二段指出当事方对同一事件的不同看法和解释。
第三段指出争论的核心问题在于是否应该借助法庭达到一些商业目的，并以古奇（Gucci）为例说明答案为否定。
第四段对利维（Levi’s）的前景做出了评价和分析。
词汇注释adj.沸腾的, 火热的seethingfoul adj.下流的，粗俗的：segment v.分割innovation n.改革, 创新specious adj. 似是而非的; 似乎正确的，但实际却是谬误的arbitrage v. 套汇, 套利交易with a vengeance 猛烈地;极度地licensing n.注册登记discount n.折扣resort vi.求助, 诉诸premium n.额外费用, 奖金, 奖赏, 保险费, (货币兑现的)贴水难句突破1.Levi Strauss persuaded the court that, by selling its jeans cheaply alongside soap powder and bananas, Tesco was destroying the image and so the value of its brands--which could only lead to less innovation and, in the long run, would reduce consumer choice.主体句式：Levi Strauss persuaded that …结构分析：that之后是一个宾语从句；by之后的句子做伴随状语来修饰宾语从句；宾语从句中which又引导了一个非限制性定语从句。