考研英語閱讀真題及答案
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1991年考研英語閱讀真題及答案解析
Section II Reading Comprehension
Each of the passages below is followed by some questions. For each question four answers are given. Read the passages carefully and choose the best answer to each of the questions. Put your choice in the ANSWER SHEET. (30 points)
Text 1
A wise man once said that the only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing. So, as a police officer, I have some urgent things to say to good people.
Day after day my men and I struggle to hold back a tidal wave of crime. Something has gone terribly wrong with our once-proud American way of life. It has happened in the area of values. A key ingredient is disappearing, and I think I know what it is: accountability.
Accountability isn’t hard to define. It means that every person is responsible for his or her actions and liable for their consequences.
Of the many values that hold civilization together -- honesty, kindness, and so on -- accountability may be the most important of all. Without it, there can be no respect, no trust, no law -- and, ultimately, no society.
My job as a police officer is to impose accountability on people who refuse, or have never learned, to impose it on themselves. But as every policeman knows, external controls on people’s behavior are far less effective than internal restraints such as guilt, shame and embarrassment.
Fortunately there are still communities -- smaller towns, usually -- where schools maintain discipline and where parents hold up standards that proclaim: “In this family certain things are not tolerated -- they simply are not done!”
Yet more and more, especially in our larger cities and suburbs, these inner restraints are loosening. Your typical robber has none. He considers your property his property; he takes what he wants, including your life if you enrage him.
The main cause of this break-down is a radical shift in attitudes. Thirty years ago, if a crime was committed, society was considered the victim. Now, in a shocking reversal, it’s the criminal who is considered victimized: by his underprivileged upbringing, by the school that didn’t teach him to read, by the church that failed to reach him with moral guidance, by the parents who didn’t provide a stable home.
I don’t believe it. Many others in equally disadvantaged circumstances choose not to engage in criminal activities. If we free the criminal, even partly, from accountability, we become a society of endless excuses where no one accepts responsibility for anything.
We in America desperately need more people who believe that the person who commits a crime is the one responsible for it.
31. What the wise man said suggests that ________.
[A] it’s unnecessary for good people to do anything in face of evil
[B] it’s certain that evil will prevail if good men do nothing about it
[C] it’s only natural for virtue to defeat evil
[D] it’s desirable for good men to keep away from evil
32. According to the author, if a person is found guilty of a crime, ________.
[A] society is to be held responsible
[B] modern civilization is responsible for it
[C] the criminal himself should bear the blame
[D] the standards of living should be improved
33. Compared with those in small towns, people in large cities have ________.
[A] less self-discipline
[B] better sense of discipline
[C] more mutual respect
[D] less effective government
34. The writer is sorry to have noticed that ________.
[A] people in large cities tend to excuse criminals
[B] people in small towns still stick to old discipline and standards
[C] today’s society lacks sympathy for people in difficulty
[D] people in disadvantaged circumstances are engaged in criminal activities
35. The key point of the passage is that ________.
[A] stricter discipline should be maintained in schools and families
[B] more good examples should be set for people to follow
[C] more restrictions should be imposed on people’s behavior
[D] more people should accept the value of accountability
Text 2
The period of adolescence, i.e., the period between childhood and adulthood, may be long or short, depending on social expectations and on society’s definition as to what constitutes maturity and adulthood. In primitive societies adolescence is frequently a relatively short period of time, while in industrial societies with patterns of prolonged education coupled with laws against child labor, the period of adolescence is much longer and may include most of the second decade of one’s life. Furthermore, the length of the adolescent period and the definition of adulthood status may change in a given society as social and economic conditions change. Examples of this type of change are the disappearance of the frontier in the latter part of the nineteenth century in the United States, and more universally, the industrialization of an agricultural society.
In modern society, ceremonies for adolescence have lost their formal recognition and symbolic significance and there no longer is agreement as to what constitutes initiation ceremonies. Social ones have been replaced by a sequence of steps that lead to increased recognition and social status. For example, grade school graduation, high school graduation and college graduation constitute such a sequence, and while each step implies certain behavioral changes and social recognition, the significance of each depends on the socio-economic status and the educational ambition of the individual. Ceremonies for adolescence have also been replaced by legal definitions of status roles, rights, privileges and responsibilities. It is during the nine years from the twelfth birthday to the twenty-first that the protective and restrictive aspects of childhood and minor status are removed and adult privileges and responsibilities are granted. The twelve-year-old is no longer considered a child and has to pay full fare for train, airplane, theater and movie tickets. Basically, the individual at this age loses childhood privileges without gaining significant adult rights. At the age of sixteen the adolescent is granted certain adult rights which increases his social status by providing him with more freedom and choices. He now can obtain a driver’s license; he can leave public schools; and he can work without the restrictions of child labor laws. At the age of eighteen the law provides adult responsibilities as well as rights; the young man can now be a soldier, but he also can marry without parental permission. At the age of twenty-one the individual obtains his full legal rights as an adult. He now can vote, he can buy liquor, he can enter into financial contracts, and he is entitled to run for public office. No additional basic rights are acquired as a function of age after majority status has been attained. None of these legal provisions determine at what point adulthood has been reached but they do point to the prolonged period of adolescence.
36. The period of adolescence is much longer in industrial societies because ________.
[A] the definition of maturity has changed
[B] the industrialized society is more developed
[C] more education is provided and laws against child labor are made
[D] ceremonies for adolescence have lost their formal recognition and symbolic significance
37. Former social ceremonies that used to mark adolescence have given place to ________.
[A] graduations from schools and colleges
[B] social recognition
[C] socio-economic status
[D] certain behavioral changes
38. No one can expect to fully enjoy the adulthood privileges until he is ________.
[A] eleven years old
[B] sixteen years old
[C] twenty-one years old
[D] between twelve and twenty-one years old
39. Starting from 22, ________.
[A] one will obtain more basic rights
[B] the older one becomes, the more basic rights he will have
[C] one won’t get more basic rights than when he is 21
[D] one will enjoy more rights granted by society
40. According to the passage, it is true that ________.
[A] in the late 19th century in the United States the dividing line between adolescence and adulthood no longer existed
[B] no one can marry without the permission of his parents until the age of twenty-one
[C] one is considered to have reached adulthood when he has a driver’s license
[D] one is not free from the restrictions of child labor laws until he can join the army
Text 3
Most growing plants contain much more water than all other materials combined. C. R. Barnes has suggested that it is as proper to term the plant a water structure as to call a house composed mainly of brick a brick building. Certain it is that all essential processes of plant growth and development occur in water. The mineral elements from the soil that are usable by the plant must be dissolved in the soil solution before they can be taken into the root. They are carried to all parts of the growing plant and are built into essential plant materials while in a dissolved state. The carbon dioxide (CO2) from the air may enter the leaf as a gas but is dissolved in water in the leaf before it is combined with a part of the water to form simple sugars -- the base material from which the plant body is mainly built. Actively growing plant parts are generally 75 to 90 percent water. Structural parts of plants, such as woody stems no longer actively growing, may have much less water than growing tissues.
The actual amount of water in the plant at any one time, however, is only a very small part of what passes through it during its development. The processes of photosynthesis, by which carbon dioxide and water are combined -- in the presence of chlorophyll (葉綠素) and with energy derived from light -- to form sugars, require that carbon dioxide from the air enter the plant. This occurs mainly in the leaves. The leaf surface is not solid but contains great numbers of minute openings, through which the carbon dioxide enters. The same structure that permits the one gas to enter the leaf, however, permits another gas -- water vapor -- to be lost from it. Since carbon dioxide is present in the air only in trace quantities (3 to 4 parts in 10,000 parts of air) and water vapor is near saturation in the air spaces within the leaf (at 80℉, saturated air would contain about 186 parts of water vapor in 10,000 parts of air), the total amount of water vapor lost is many times the carbon dioxide intake. Actually, because of wind and other factors, the loss of water in proportion to carbon dioxide intake may be even greater than the relative concentrations of the two gases. Also, not all of the carbon dioxide that enters the leaf is synthesized into carbohydrates (碳水化合物).
41. A growing plant needs water for all of the following except ________.
[A] forming sugars
[B] sustaining woody stems
[C] keeping green
[D] producing carbon dioxide
42. The essential function of photosynthesis in terms of plant needs is ________.
[A] to form sugars
[B] to derive energy from light
[C] to preserve water
[D] to combine carbon dioxide with water
43. The second paragraph uses facts to develop the essential idea that ________.
[A] a plant efficiently utilizes most of the water it absorbs
[B] carbon dioxide is the essential substance needed for plant development
[C] a plant needs more water than is found in its composition
[D] the stronger the wind, the more the water vapor loss
44. According to the passage, which of the following statements is TRUE?
[A] The mineral elements will not be absorbed by the plant unless they are dissolved in its root.
[B] The woody stems contain more water than the leaves.
[C] Air existing around the leaf is found to be saturated.
[D] Only part of the carbon dioxide in the plants is synthesized.
45. This passage is mainly about ________.
[A] the functions of carbon dioxide and water
[B] the role of water in a growing plant
[C] the process of simple sugar formation
[D] the synthesis of water with carbon dioxide
答案解析
Section II: Reading Comprehension (30 points)
31.[B]32.[C]33.[A]34.[A]35.[D]
36.[C]37.[A]38.[C]39.[C]40.[A]
41.[D]42.[A]43.[C]44.[D]45.[B]
1990年考研英語閱讀真題及答案解析
Section II Reading Comprehension
Each of the three passages below is followed by some questions. For each question there are four answers. Read the passages carefully and choose the best answer to each of the questions. Put your choice in the ANSWER SHEET. (20 points)
Text 1
In May 1989, space shuttle “Atlantis” released in outer space the space probe “Megallan,” which is now on her 15-month and one-billion-kilometer flight to Venus. A new phase in space exploration has begun.
The planet Venus is only slightly smaller than Earth; it is the only other object in the solar system, in fact, that even comes close to earth’s size. Venus has a similar density, so it is probably made of approximately the same stuff, and it has an atmosphere, complete with clouds. It is also the closest planet to earth, and thus the most similar in distance from the sun. In short, Venus seems to justify its long-held nickname of “earth’s twin.”
The surface temperature of Venus reaches some 900F. Added to that is an atmospheric pressure about 90 times Earth’s: High overhead in the carbon dioxide (CO2) that passes for air is a layer of clouds, perhaps 10 to 20 miles thick, whose little drops consist mostly of sulfuric acid (H2SO4). Water is all but nonexistent.
Born with so many fundamental similarities to earth, how did Venus get to be so radically different: It is not just an academic matter. For all its extremes, Venus is a valuable laboratory for researchers studying the weather and climate of earth. It has no earth’s oceans, so the heat transport and other mechanisms are greatly simplified. In addition, the planet Venus takes 243 earth-days to turn once on its axis, so incoming heat from the sun is added and distributed at a more leisurely, observable pace.
16. Venus is similar to Earth in ________.
[A] size and density
[B] distance from the sun
[C] having atmosphere
[D] all of the above
17. The greatest value in studying Venus should be to ________.
[A] allow us to visit there
[B] understand Earth better
[C] find a new source of energy
[D] promote a new space program
18. The main idea of this passage is about ________.
[A] problems of space travel
[B] scientific methods in space exploration
[C] the importance of Venus to Earth
[D] conditions on Venus
Text 2
Tourists were surprised to see a woman driving a huge orange tractor down one of Rome’s main avenues. Italy’s political leaders and some of its male union chiefs are said to have been even more puzzled to see that the tractor was followed by about 200,000 women in a parading procession that took more than three hours to snake through central Rome.
Shouting slogans, waving flags and dancing to drumbeats, the women had come to the capital from all over Italy to demonstrate for “a job for each of us, a different type of job, and a society without violence.” So far, action to improve women’s opportunities in employment has been the province of collective industrial bargaining. “But there is a growing awareness that this is not enough,” says a researcher on female labor at the government-funded Institute for the Development of Professional Training for Workers.
Women, who constitute 52 per cent of Italy’s population, today represent only 35 per cent of Italy’s total workforce and 33 per cent of the total number of Italians with jobs. However, their presence in the workplace is growing. The employment of women is expanding considerably in services, next to the public administration and commerce as their principal workplace. Official statistics also show that women have also made significant strides in self-employment. More and more women are going into business for themselves. Many young women are turning to business because of the growing overall in employment. It is also a fact that today many prejudices have disappeared, so that banks and other financial institutes make judgments on purely business considerations without caring if it is a man or a woman.
Such changes are occurring in the professions too. The number of women doctors, dentists, lawyers, engineers and university professors increased two to three fold. Some of the changes are immediately visible. For example, women have appeared on the scene for the first time as state police, railway workers and street cleaners.
However, the present situation is far from satisfactory though some progress has been made. A breakthrough in equal opportunities for women is now demanded.
19. The expression “snake through central Rome” probably means “to move ________
[A] quietly through central Rome.”
[B] violently through central Rome.”
[C] in a long winding line through central Rome.”
[D] at a leisurely pace through central Rome.”
20. Which of the following statements is NOT true?
[A] There are more women than men in Italy.
[B] In Italy, women are chiefly employed in services.
[C] In Italy, women are still at a disadvantage in employment.
[D] In Italy, about two-thirds of the jobs are held by men.
21. About 200,000 women in Rome demonstrated for ________.
[A] more job opportunities
[B] a greater variety of jobs
[C] “equal job, equal pay”
[D] both A and B
22. The best title for this passage would be ________.
[A] The Role of Women is Society
[B] Women Demonstrate for Equality in Employment
[C] Women as Self-employed Professionals
[D] Women and the Jobs Market
Text 3
The old idea that talented children “burn themselves out” in the early years, and, therefore, are subjected to failure and at worst, mental illness is unfounded. As a matter of fact, the outstanding thing that happens to bright kids is that they are very likely to grow into bright adults.
To find this out, l, 500 gifted persons were followed up to their thirty-fifth year with these results:
On adult intelligence tests, they scored as high as they had as children. They were, as a group, in good health, physically and mentally. 84 per cent of their group were married and seemed content with their lives.
About 70 per cent had graduated from college, though only 30 per cent had graduated with honors. A few had even dropped out, but nearly half of these had returned to graduate. Of the men, 80 per cent were in one of the professions or in business management or semiprofessional jobs. The women who had remained single had office, business, or professional occupations.
The group had published 90 books and 1,500 articles in scientific, scholarly, and literary magazines and had collected more than 100 patents.
In a material way they did not do badly either. Average income was considerably higher among the gifted people, especially the men, than for the country as a whole, despite their comparative youth.
In fact, far from being strange, most of the gifted were turning their early promise into practical reality.
23. The old idea that talented children “burn themselves out” in the early years is ________.
[A] true in all senses
[B] refuted by the author
[C] medically proven
[D] a belief of the author
24. The survey of bright children was made to ________.
[A] find out what had happened to talented children when they became adults
[B] prove that talented children “burn themselves out” in the early years
[C] discover the percentage of those mentally ill among the gifted
[D] prove that talented children never burn themselves out
25. Intelligence tests showed that ________.
[A] bright children were unlikely to be mentally healthy
[B] between childhood and adulthood there was a considerable loss of intelligence
[C] talented children were most likely to become gifted adults
[D] when talented children grew into adults, they made low scores
答案解析
Section II: Reading Comprehension (20 points)
16.[D]17.[B]18.[C]19.[C]20.[B]
21.[D]22.[B]23.[B]24.[A]25.[C]
1989年考研英語閱讀真題及答案解析
Section II Reading Comprehension
Each of the three passages below is followed by some questions. For each question there are four answers. Read the passages carefully and choose the best answer to each of the questions. Put your choice in the ANSWER SHEET. (20 points)
Text 1
A scientist once said: “I have concluded that the earth is being visited by intelligently controlled vehicles from outer space.”
If we take this as a reasonable explanation for UFOs (unidentified flying objects), questions immediately come up.
“Why don’t they get in touch with us, then? Why don’t they land right on the White House lawn and declare themselves?” people asked.
In reply, scientists say that, while this may be what we want, it may not necessarily be what they want.
“The most likely explanation, it seems to me,” said Dr. Mead, “is that they are simply watching what we are up to -- that responsible society outside our solar system is keeping an eye on us to see that we don’t set in motion a chain reaction that might have unexpected effects for outside our solar system.”
Opinions from other scientists might go like this: “Why should they want to get in touch with us? We may feel we’re more important than we really are! They may want to observe us only and not interfere with the development of our civilization. They may not care if we see them but they also may not care to say ‘hello’.”
Some scientists have also suggested that Earth is a kind of zoo or wildlife reserve. Just as we set aside wilderness areas and wildlife reserves to allow animals and growing things to develop naturally while we observe them, so perhaps Earth was set aside ages ago for the same purpose.
Are we being observed by intelligent beings from other civilizations in the universe? Are they watching our progress in space travel? Do we live in a gigantic “zoo” observed by our “keepers,” but having no communication with them?
Never before in our history have we had to confront ideas like these. The simple fact is that we, who have always regarded ourselves as supreme in the universe, may not be so. Now we have to recognize that, among the stars in the heavens, there may very well be worlds inhabited by beings who are to us as we are to ants.
16. People who ask the question “Why don’t they get in touch with us... and declare themselves?” think that ________.
[A] there are no such things as UFOs
[B] UFOs are visitors from solar system
[C] there’s no reason for UFOs sooner or later
[D] we are bound to see UFOs sooner or later
17. According to Dr. Mead, the attitude of beings from outer space toward us is one of ________.
[A] unfriendliness
[B] suspicion
[C] superiority
[D] hostility
18. The tone of the writer is that of ________.
[A] doubt
[B] warning
[C] indifference
[D] criticism
Text 2
The use of the motor is becoming more and more widespread in the twentieth century; as an increasing number of countries develop both technically and economically, so a larger proportion of the world’s population is able to buy and use a car. Possessing a car gives a much greater degree of mobility, enabling the driver to move around freely. The owner of a car is no longer forced to rely on public transport and is, therefore, not compelled to work locally. He can choose from different jobs and probably changes his work more frequently as he is not restricted to a choice within a small radius. Travelling to work by car is also more comfortable than having to use public transport; the driver can adjust the heating in winter and the air conditioning in the summer to suit his own needs and preference. There is no irritation caused by waiting for trains, buses or underground trains, standing in long patient queues, or sitting on windy platforms, for as long as half an hour sometimes. With the building of good, fast motorways long distances can be covered rapidly and pleasantly. For the first time in this century also, many people are now able to enjoy their leisure time to the full by making trips to the country or seaside at the weekends, instead of being confined to their immediate neighbourhood. This feeling of independence, and the freedom to go where you please, is perhaps the greatest advantage of the car.
When considering the drawbacks, perhaps pollution is of prime importance. As more and more cars are produced and used, so the emission from their exhaust-pipes contains an ever larger volume of poisonous gas. Some of the contents of this gas, such as lead, not only pollute the atmosphere but cause actual harm to the health of people. Many of the minor illnesses of modern industrial society, headaches, tiredness, and stomach upsets are thought to arise from breathing polluted air; doctors’ surgeries are full of people suffering from illnesses caused by pollution. It is also becoming increasingly difficult to deal with the problem of traffic in towns; most of the important cities of the world suffer from traffic congestion. In fact any advantage gained in comfort is often cancelled out in city driving by the frustration caused by traffic jams: endless queues of cars crawling one after another through all the main streets. As an increasing number of traffic regulation schemes are devised, the poor bewildered driver finds himself diverted and forced into one-way systems which cause even greater delays than the traffic jams they are supposed to prevent. The mounting cost of petrol and the increased license fees and road tax all add to the driver’s worries. In fact, he must sometimes wonder if the motor car is such a blessing and not just a menace.
19. More and more people can afford to buy and use cars because ________.
[A] an increasing number of cars are being produced
[B] the cost of cars is getting cheaper with the development of technology
[C] lots of countries have become more developed
[D] the use of cars has proved to be more economical
20. The advantages of having a car are best experienced in the driver’s ________.
[A] freedom in choosing his job
[B] comfort during the travels
[C] enjoyment of his leisure time
[D] feeling of self-reliance
21. What is considered by the writer as the greatest menace to the people caused by the widespread use of motor cars?
[A] air pollution
[B] traffic jams
[C] fatal diseases
[D] high cost
Text 3
Manners nowadays in metropolitan cities like London are practically non-existent. It is nothing for a big, strong schoolboy to elbow an elderly woman aside in the dash for the last remaining seat on the tube or bus, much less stand up and offer his seat to her, as he ought. In fact, it is saddening to note that if a man does offer his seat to an older woman, it is nearly always a Continental man or one from the older generation.
This question of giving up seats in public transport is much argued about by young men, who say that, since women have claimed equality, they no longer deserve to be treated with courtesy and that those who go out to work should take their turn in the rat race like anyone else. Women have never claimed to be physically as strong as men. Even if it is not agreed, however, that young men should stand up for younger women, the fact remains that courtesy should be shown to the old, the sick and the burdened. Are we really so lost to all ideals of unselfishness that we can sit there indifferently reading the paper or a book, saying to ourselves “First come, first served,” while a grey-haired woman, a mother with a young child or a cripple stands? Yet this is all too often seen.
Conditions in travel are really very hard on everyone, we know, but hardship is surely no excuse. Sometimes one wonders what would have been the behaviour of these stout young men in a packed refugee train or a train on its way to a prison-camp during the War. Would they have considered it only right and their proper due to keep the best places for themselves then?
Older people, tired and irritable from a day’s work, are not angels, either -- far from it. Many a brisk argument or an insulting quarrel breaks out as the weary queues push and shove each other to get on buses and tubes. One cannot commend this, of course, but one does feel there is just a little more excuse.
If cities are to remain pleasant places to live in at all, however, it seems imperative, not only that communications in transport should be improved, but also that communication between human beings should be kept smooth and polite. All over cities, it seems that people are too tired and too rushed to be polite. Shop assistants won’t bother to assist, taxi drivers growl at each other as they dash dangerously round corners, bus conductor pull the bell before their desperate passengers have had time to get on or off the bus, and so on and so on. It seems to us that it is up to the young and strong to do their small part to stop such deterioration.
22. From what you have read, would you expect manners to improve among people ________?
[A] who are physically weak or crippled
[B] who once lived in a prison-camp during the War
[C] who live in big modern cities
[D] who live only in metropolitan cities
23. What is the writer’s opinion concerning courteous manners towards women?
[A] Now that women have claimed equality, they no longer need to be treated differently from men.
[B] It is generally considered old-fashioned for young men to give up their seats to young women.
[C] “Lady First” should be universally practiced.
[D] Special consideration ought to be shown them.
24. According to the author communication between human beings would be smoother if ________.
[A] people were more considerate towards each other
[B] people were not so tired and irritable
[C] women were treated with more courtesy
[D] public transport could be improved
25. What is the possible meaning of the word “deterioration” in the last paragraph?
[A] worsening of general situation
[B] lowering of moral standards
[C] declining of physical constitution
[D] spreading of evil conduct
答案解析
II: Reading Comprehension (20 points)
16.[A]17.[B]18.[D]19.[C]20.[D]
21.[A]22.[C]23.[D]24.[A]25.[B]
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