英语泛读教程4 快速阅读

Unit 1 P91Let's address the question of whether speed reading is even a desirable goal. I am an avid fiction reader. Consciously or unconsciously, readers of fiction appreciate the beauty in good writing. Occasionally I will read a passage or sentence over to be impressed by the opening sentences of Ernest Hemingway's The Old Man and the Sea, The Dark, and Herman.If I was a determined speed reader, I would never have the time to appreciate these beautiful passages. And I'd never have the time to savor the development of a character like Rhett Butler, the Great Gatsby or Captain Ahab. Good writers must be read carefully and thoughtfully to be fully appreciated.To carry the question of the need for rapid reading a bit further, let's consider the technical or educational material most of us must read for our jobs. If you work in a technical field －and most business and professional people do －you'd better read slowly and carefully. Almost all businesses today are subject to federal regulations to some degree. If you must read the Federal Register, the Code of Federal Regulations, the OSHA Handbook or other technical materials related directly to your job, I'd urge you to take your time. A misreading could be costly or damaging to your firm. On the other hand, newspapers, news magazines and other publications should be read with some degree of speed. Here's where a general knowledge of speed reading techniques might be useful. Especially since that is the most common type of reading we do.Anyone can improve their reading efficiently. To do so, you must learn some basic techniques and then consciously apply them. Perhaps an expensive course would help you, but an inexpensive paperback and concentrated practice might provide as much long-term benefit. In any case, you lose nothing by trying the self-help approach.( 306 words )1. From the passage we can know that the author is _________.( A )(a) an enthusiastic reader of fiction (b) an unenthusiastic reader of fiction(c) a speed reader of fiction (d) an indifferent reader of fiction2. Hemingway's writing is mentioned in the passage to show that _________.( A )(a) some writing should be read carefully(b) some writing should be read quickly(c) one has to understand the full meaning of a written piece(d) one doesn't have to understand the full meaning of a written piece3. Technical materials should be read carefully because _________. ( D )(a) they are usually difficult to understand (b) they are related to federal regulations(c) they are an uncommon type of reading (d) a misreading may do harm to your work4.One type of printed material the author thinks can be read quickly is ________. ( C )(a) a business letter (b) a dictionary (c) a news magazine (d) a poem5. The author advises people eager to improve their reading speed to ________.( C )(a) attend an intensive course (b) read a cheap paperback before enrolling in a course(c) teach themselves by practice with a cheap paperback (d) read books on basic speed reading techniques2The school is a complex social structure, existing in its own right yet surrounded by other groups which to some extent control and influence it. Individuals in a school are subject to a variety of pressures both within the school and outside it. What are these influences, and where do they originate?There are four major elements which produce and receive influences: the teacher, the child, the school itselfand the outer community. These four elements will influence and be influenced by each other at many levels in a variety of ways. The teacher, for example, brings into the school all his own habits of mind, attitudes, beliefs, values, ways of doing things and seeing the world which he has inherited from the society in which he was brought up. These factors will influence the children, the school and the community outside. The child brings into the school everything which he has learned in his family －habits, attitudes, beliefs, etc. －and the teacher and the school will respond to these. The school itself is a social organization with special requirements of behaviour, influenced by the generally accepted values and traditions of education, built up over the years. Both the child and the teacher must adapt themselves to these. The school influences the wider community around it, both by producing the manpower with the skills needed by society, and by shaping the beliefs and attitudes of the young entering society. As for the community, it influences the actual organization of the school through such groups as governors, parent-teacher associations, administrators, etc., and in a less formal way, it is represented by those working in the school, the children, the teachers and servicing staff.With all these factors in mind, it is obvious that schools may differ greatly according to the nature of the community which they serve. Every area has its own geographical, economic and historical character which may be reflected in the school. For example, a school serving a community which is dominated by one major industry may need to organize itself according to the expectations of job opportunities which will be available to the children as they leave to find work. A school in a remote rural area may be slanted in a different direction. Similarly, the presence in the neighbourhood of one particular social class, race or religion may be reflected in the school.(396 words)6. By saying “the school is a complex social structure,” the author means that ______. ( D )(a) the school exists in a complex society(b) the school is organized in much the same way that the society is organized(c) the school is always controlled by influential individuals(d) the school is always influenced by the people within and without7. According to the author, the teacher __________. ( C )(a) is the educator and will never be influenced by the children(b) always rejects the generally accepted values and traditions of education(c) influences the children and is influenced by them at the same time(d) should not bring his own habits of mind and values into the school8. The school does all the following except __________. ( D )(a) helping children form their outlook and values of life (b) teaching children skills needed in society(c) setting special requirements of behavior (d) producing groups of governors9. The last sentence of the second paragraph implies that the community ________. ( D )(a) influences the school through social groups.(b) organizes various social groups.(c) represents the people in the school.(d) influences the school through people both inside and outside the school.10. From the passage we may draw the conclusion that _________. ( C )(a) the four elements often influence the social structure(b) the four elements are always inseparable(c) the four elements always affect each other(d) the four elements dominate the major industry in the community3Young people should have the right to control and direct their own learning, that is, to decide what they want to learn, and when, where, how, how much, how fast, and with what help they want to learn it. To be still more specific, I want them to have the right to decide if, when, how much, and by whom they want to be taught and the right to decide whether they want to learn in a school and if so which one and for how much of the time.No human right, except the right to life itself, is more fundamental than this. A person's freedom of learning is part of his freedom of thought, even more basic than his freedom of speech. If we take from someone his right to decide what he will be curious about, we destroy his freedom of thought. We say, in effect, you must think not about what interests and concerns you, but about what interests and concerns us.This right of each of us to control our own learning is now in danger. When we put into our laws the highly authoritarian notion that someone should and could decide what all young people were to learn and beyond that, could do whatever might seem necessary (which now includes dosing them with drugs) to compel them to learn it, we took a long step down a very steep and dangerous path. The requirement that a child go to school, for about six hours a day, 180 days a year, for about ten years, whether or not he learns anything there, whether or not he already knows it or could learn it faster or better somewhere else, is such a gross violation of civil liberties that few adults would stand for it. But the child who resists is treated as a criminal. With this requirement we created an industry, an army of people whose whole work was to tell young people what they had to learn and to try to make them learn it. Some of these people, wanting to exercise even more power over others, or to be even more “helpful,” are now beginning to say, “If compulsory education is good for children, why wouldn't it be good for everyone? If it is a good thing, how can there be too much of it?”They are beginning to talk, as one man did on a nationwide TV show, about “womb-to-tomb”schooling. If hours of homework every night are good for the young, why wouldn't they be good for us all －they would keep us away from the TV set and other frivolous pursuits. Some group of experts, somewhere, would be glad to decide what we all ought to know and then very so often check up on us to make sure we knew it －with, of course, appropriate penalties if we did not.(481 words)11. According to the passage, it is most fundamental that young people should have the freedom of _______. ( C )(a) speech (b) thought (c) learning (d) curiosity12. The passage implies that _______. ( B )(a) the right of controlling one's own learning is not a human right(b) some people are doing the kind of learning which they do not want(c) interest plays an important role in learning(d) learning is becoming more and more dangerous13. The current compulsory education system for children ________ most adults. ( C )(a) works well with (b) is not liked by (c) is accepted by (d) is understood by14. A child who resists the current system is likely _______.( D )(a) to be sent to prison (b) to be dismissed from school(c) to be all right (d) to be regarded as a bad child15. The phrase “womb-to-tomb” schooling probably means that _______. ( A )(a) learning is from young to old (b) learning is disastrous(c) learning is unnecessary (d) learning is not always helpfulUnit 2 P271The greatest results in life are usually attained by simple means, and the exercise of ordinary qualities. The common life of every day, with its cares, necessities, and duties, affords ample opportunity for acquiring experience of the best kind; and its most beaten paths provide the true worker with abundant scope for effort and room for self-improvement. The road of human welfare lies along the old highway of steadfast well-doing; and they who are the most persistent, and work in the truest spirit, will usually be the most successful.Fortune has often been blamed for her blindness; but fortune is not so blind as men are. Those who look into practical life will find that fortune is usually on the side of the industrious, as the winds and waves are on the side of the best navigators. In the pursuit of even the highest branches of human inquiry, the commoner qualities are found the most useful －such as common sense, attention, application, and perseverance.Genius may not be necessary, though even genius of the highest sort does not disdain the use of these ordinary qualities. The very greatest men have been among the least believers in the power of genius, and as worldly wise and persevering as successful men of the commoner sort. Some have even defined genius to be only common sense intensified. A distinguished teacher and president of a college spoke of it as the power of making efforts. John Foster held it to be the power of lighting one’s own fire. Buffon said of genius, “it is patience”.Newton’s was unquestionably a min d of the very highest order, and yet, when asked by what means he had worked out his extraordinary discoveries, he modestly answered, “By always thinking unto them.” At another time he thus expressed his method of study: “I keep the subject continually bef ore me, and wait till the first dawnings open slowly by little and little into a full and clear light.” It was in Newton’s case, as in every other, only by diligent application and perseverance that his great reputation was achieved. Even his recreation consisted in change of study, laying down one subject to take up another. To Dr. Bentley he said: “If I have done the public any service, it is due to nothing but industry and patient thought.”( 388 words )1.According to the author, the most important qualities for success are __________. ( C )(a) ample opportunities for experiences of daily life (b) effort and room for self-improvement(c) persistence and good work (d) daily cares, necessities and duties2. The second paragraph mainly tells us that __________.( C )(a) fortune is blind (b) men are blind(c) fortune helps the industrious (d) common qualities make people successful3. Genius is understood by great men as all the following except __________. ( A )(a) luck (b) the power of making efforts (c) the power of lighting one’s own fire(d) patience4.Newton thought that he had made discoveries by ___________. ( C )(a) waiting patiently (b) constant thinking (c) industry and patient thought (d) change of study5. The passage discusses ___________. ( D )(a) the importance of thinking (b) the existence of genius(c) the value of success (d) the significance of perseverance2“Dear Abby”. With th ese two words, millions of letters have begun their outpourings of anxiety and concern, seeking an answer to emotional or family problems. The letters are addressed to Abigail Van Buren, one of the most influential sources of social advice in the United St ates. The newspaper advice column “Dear Abby” appears in more than 1 000 newspapers, and over the years has tried to give answers to people seeking help with such topics as marriage, troublesome children, sex, work, religion, problems with drugs and so on.There is another “agony aunt” advice columnist in the United States who is equally popular and successful. Her name is Ann Landers, and she is regarded as the most widely syndicated newspaper columnist in the world. The Ann Landers column has an estimated readership of 90 million, and appears in more than 1 200 newspapers.A World Almanac Poll once found that the Chicago-based advice columnist was the most influential woman in the United States.Are these two popular and powerful advice columnists in competition? The ironic and fascinating fact behind their work is that they are twin sisters. “Dear Abby” or Abigail Van Buren is in fact Pauline Esther Friedman. Ann Landers is her twin sister, Esther “Eppie” Friedman.They were born in Sioux City, Iowa on J uly 4, American Independence Day, in 1918. In 1955, Esther “Eppie” Friedman took over the Ann Landers advice column in the Chicago-Sun newspaper, and kept the columnist’s name.A year later in San Francisco, and inspired by Eppie’s example, her twin siste r Pauline approached the editor of the San Francisco Chronicle and said she felt she could do a better job than the existing advice columnist. The editor said to writer some sample columns and he would look at them. The rest is history.While “Dear Abby” often contains sharper and wittier ripostes to readers, both sisters support basic family values and often refer their readers to psychiatrists, doctors, psychologists or clergymen for further help.Pauline Friedman took the name Abigail from the Christian Bible Old Testament. Abigail was a prophet in the Book of Samuel. It was said of her, “Blessed are thou, and blessed is thy advice, O Abigail.” “Van Buren” comes from the eighth president of the United States, Martin Van Buren. His name was selected because of its aristocratic, old family ring. Pauline Friedman married husband Morton Phillips in 1939 and lives in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, where she is a wife, mother and grandmother.(413 words)6. Both Abigail Van Buren and Ann Landers are _________. ( B )(a) newspaper reporters (b) newspaper advice columnists(c) advice seekers regarding family problems (d) Chicago-based writers7. According to the passage, Abigail Van Buren and Ann Landers ___________. ( B )(a) compete with each other fiercely (b) were born on the same day(c) worked for the same newspapers (d) started as advice columnists the same year8. Which of the following is Not true? ( D )(a) Abby is Abigail Van Buren. (b) Abigail Van Buren is Pauline Esther Friedman.(c) Esther “Eppie” Friedman is Ann Landers.(d) Ann Landers works for the Chicago-Sun newspaper.9. Both Ann and Abby support family values that are ___________. ( A )(a) traditional (b) radical (c) conventional (d) conservative10.The name Abigail Van Buren ___________. ( D )(a) is from a character in the Bible (b) is after a U.S. president(c) is that of a prophet (d) makes use of a Biblical story and a historical personage3Yhudi Menuhin, who died in Berlin on March 12, 1999, at the age of 82, was a child prodigy who fulfilled his promise to become one of the world’s foremost violinists before extending his range to teaching and conducting.The gently spoken U.S.-born virtuoso became as renowned for his devotion to humane causes as for his mastery of the violin.The spotlight has been on him since his debut at seven in 1924. By the time he was 13, he had performed in Paris, London and New York. In Berl in, his performance prompted physicist Albert Einstein to exclaim, “Now Iknow there is a God in Heaven.”Reportedly the world’s highest paid musician in the 1930s, his striving for perfection made him a legend. Menuhin said the violin made its own demand s, “Almost like a pagan goddess, exacting a certain tribute.”When he was 38, one New York newspaper wrote, “The freshness and unique purity of his playing is exhilarating. No other violinist has such speaking eloquence in the tone alone.”He gave up public violin performances in his 70s. His hearing was a little impaired by then and he had taken on many more interests. But his conducting was still full of energy and his travel schedule grueling.“I feel that what I’ve learned in music I can apply to a w ide repertoire, which is fun because I am exploring new terrain,” he said in an interview at the time of his 80th birthday.“But I feel no desire now to spend hours working away again at something which I myself in the past and other people can play far b etter than I can now. I don’t see the point.”A British citizen since 1985 and a life peer since 1993 －Baron Menuhin of Stoke d’Abernon in the County of Surrey －he had a school in England and an academy in Switzerland for young musicians, whom he often conducts.He has also helped found various musical festivals, held the Nehru Peace Prize and was a goodwill ambassador for UNESCO.While pursuing interests such as the environment, organic farming, alternative medicine, education and the plight of gypsies, he sticks to a long-standing healthy diet and yoga.“I don’t squander my energies. Keep myself in fairly good trim. I stand on my head every morning. Conducting is a wonderful exercise because it uses every faculty,” he says.(395 words)11. Menuhin began his career as _________. ( B )(a) a child prodigy (b) a violinist (c) a teacher (d) a conductor12. The public was first attracted to Menuhin when he _________. ( A )(a) gave his first musical performance (b) was 13 years old(c) was praised by Einstein (d) became the highest paid musician13. In his 70s, Menuhin ___________.( B )(a) continued to give violin performances in public (b) was still busy travelling around(c) concentrated on conducting (d) had impaired his hearing14. Which of the following is Not mentioned in the passage?( D )(a) Menuhin became a British subject in 1980s. (b) Menuhin was made a baron in 1990s.(c) Menuhin ran some schools for young musicians. (d) Menuhin tried to succeed in every field and all the time.15. The above passage discusses ___________. ( D )(a) how Menuhin worked hard to succeed (b) the legend of Menuhin(c) Menuhin as a musician (d) Menuhin as a successful violinist and a statesmanUnit 3 P461I think about two specific people when I think of feeling inferior. Both are journalists of considerable stature. Whenever I come across them I seem locked into a way of behaving I don't like, a way that sheepishly acknowledges my inferiority and their superiority.I feel smaller and younger, hesitant, careful about risking or offering strong opinions on anything. I watch carefully to see how they will react to what I say and I am conscious of trying to say things they will approve of. Then when I leave one of them, in the car on the way home, I cuss at myself for being that way; “Dammit, why can't you be at ease around him? Why do you have to slip into that routine of ‘I know you don't like me very well, so I won't take up too much of your t ime?'”I think they are superior to me and I don't like them for it. I think they know I'm inferior to them and I want them to say something to ease that. But that's the irrational part that is not my responsibility.When I get right down to it, I really think they are better at what they do...and here I pause. Are they any better at what they do than I am at what they do? Or are they better at what they do than I am at what I do? Perhaps that's the point at which I begin to feel inferior, when I try and measure up to what they are or to a picture our society has of what a good journalist should be. They fit that picture; I can't always see myself fitting that picture, therefore, I'm inferior.I am. I am. I am. Not inferior. Not superior. I just am. Falling into either one of those traps is a comparative, competitive thing that keeps me hidden from myself and keeps my own best resources from being available to the other person involved as well. It is self-defeating.I think I can beat that by kicking back and listening to myself, gaining a sense of my own center. It means coming to someone with my strengths and my weakness.(367 words)1. The journalists who made me feel inferior are __________. ( C )(a) much aged (b) exceptionally tall (c) very influential and highly admired (d) very satirical2. When I meet them, I __________. ( B )(a) am not aware of what I am saying (b) am nervous about their response(c) never express my opinion directly (d) believe they are in good terms and speak freely with them3. It is not suggested in the article that I__________. ( B )(a) had expected them to take initiative to ease the tension(b) can do better once I take up their work(c) have used the wrong measurement so that I feel inferior(d) have been liable to show my weak points when I feel inferior4.According to the author, it is self-defeating to _________. ( D )(a) flatter others (b) isolate oneself from others(c) express one's idea directly and compete with others (d) keep one's merits not being observed by others5. In the author's view, to overcome inferiority, a person should________. ( C )(a) overestimate himself (b) underestimate himself (c) look at himself as he is (d) expose his strengths only2I get jumpy inside when I get jealous and I find it hard to control that. At first I try to avoid it, try to pretend it's not there. Mostly that works for me; my jealous feelings are fleeting things anyway. They never last very long.I know that jealousy is real and I don't want to deny it in me, but I don't like the physical feeling it gives me. I sometimes like the feelings behind the jealousy and being made to feel jealous. It says to me that I care enough,like someone enough to be moved in that way. It means that I am still in touch with someone in a relationship and that the relationship is important to me, whether it's a male friend or a woman.When I am jealous it's as if someone was intruding on some private territory. But once I understand what's happening I can talk about it with the people involved and understand it's not threatening to my relationship, it seems okay. It seems like me giving permission to come into something that is personal and private. It can start out to be very private, but that can be negotiated.Sometimes I wish I could talk about it more with the person that causes me to be jealous, but sometimes I don't think that's a way I should be and I don't talk about it. Anyhow, jealousy is real and I don't want to hide it. Sometimes I don't want to talk about it because the person I'm dealing with is not important enough for me to spend the time and energy it would take to straighten things out. If it's someone I care about and am going to be spending more time with, I think I can and would talk about what's bothering me.When I get down to it, I think my jealousy has to do with low self-esteem, low self-concept or feeling inadequate. Mostly it's built around insecurity. But I don't know if I'll ever become that secure as to not experience some jealousy. I don't want anyone to be that meaningless to me. It seems kind of dangerous to me to be that sure.(367 words)6. As for the author, jealousy ________. ( D )(a) is totally beyond his control (b) is under his control(c) doesn't do him any good (d) keeps him in touch with others7. Which of the following statements is true concerning the author's idea about jealousy?( C )(a) Jealousy always makes him feel so terrible that he wants to get rid of it right away.(b) Jealousy is a completely private matter.(c) Sometimes jealousy doesn't affect his relationship with others.(d) Jealousy is not communicable.8. When he gets jealous, sometimes he will _________. ( C )(a) refuse to talk about it (b) try to hide it from others(c) talk about it with someone who can help him sort things out (d) discuss about it with his friends9. In the author's view, __________. ( B )(a) it's effective to talk with the person who makes him jealous (b) it's not sensible to hide jealousy(c) jealousy is real and preventable (d) it's meaningless to feel jealous10. What can be inferred from the author's narration? ( A )(a) He often has a low opinion of himself.(b) He gets jealous whenever he feels secure.(c) He will try to correct his jealousy whenever possible.(d) He has a clear and correct understanding of others' opinion about him.3Depression robs people of happiness, and sometimes of their lives. But according to psychiatrist Randolph Nesse, depression-like symptoms in apes and monkeys, the closet living models of our early forebears, suggest that depression is not a uniquely human －or even a modern －illness. More important, some features of the illness, such as lack of motivation, may have actually helped our simian ancestors survive some tough situations. For this reason, these once adaptive features have been passed on to us.Why, Nesse asks, hasn't natural selection screened out genes that make us so susceptible, especially to a disease that strikes during the prime childbearing years?His answer: because those same genes, once upon a time, did help us to survive. “Low energy, for instance,。