PartIIReadingComprehension
(35minutes)
Directions:Thereare4passagesinthispart.Eachpassageisfollowedbysomequestionsorunfinishedstatements.ForeachofthemtherearefourchoicesmarkedA),B),C)andD).YoushoulddecideonthebestchoiceandmarkthecorrespondingletterontheAnswerSheetwithasinglelinethroughthecenter.
PassageOne
Questions21to25arebasedonthefollowingpassage.
Unlesswespendmoneytospotandpreventasteroids(小行星)now,onemightcrashintoEarthanddestroylifeasweknowit,saysomescientists.
Asteroidsarebiggerversionsofthemeteoroids(流星)thatraceacrossthenightsky.MostorbitthesunfarfromEarthanddon’tthreatenus.ButtherearealsothousandsofasteroidswhoseorbitsputthemonacollisioncoursewithEarth.
Buy$50millionworthofnewtelescopesrightnow.Thenspend$10millionayearforthenext25yearstolocatemostofthespacerocks.Bythetimewespotafatalone,thescientistssay,we’llhaveawaytochangeitscourse.
Somescientistsfavorpushingasteroidsoffcoursewithnuclearweapons.Butthecostwouldn’tbecheap.
Isitworthit?Twothingsexpertsconsiderwhenjudginganyriskre:1)Howlikelytheeventis;and2)Howbadtheconsequencesiftheeventoccurs.ExpertsthinkanasteroidbigenoughtodestroylotsoflifemightstrikeEarthonceevery500,000years.Soundsprettyrare—butifonedidfall,itwouldbetheendoftheworld.“Ifwedon’ttakecareofthesebigasteroids,they’lltakecareofus,”saysonescientist.“It’sthatsimple.”
Thecure,though,mightbeworsethanthedisease.DowereallywantfleetsofnuclearweaponssittingaroundonEarth?“Theworldhaslesstofearfromdoomsday(毁灭性的)rocksthanfromagreatnuclearfleetsetagainstthem,”saidaNewYorkTimesarticle.
21.Whatdoesthepassagesayaboutasteroidsandmeteoroids?
A)Theyareheavenlybodiesdifferentincomposition.
B)Theyareheavenlybodiessimilarinnature.
C)Therearemoreasteroidsthanmeteoroids.
D)Asteroidsaremoremysteriousthanmeteoroids.
22.WhatdoscientistssayaboutthecollisionofanasteroidwithEarth?
A)Itisveryunlikelybutthedangerexists.
B)Suchacollisionmightoccuronceevery25years.
C)CollisionsofsmallerasteroidswithEarthoccurmoreoftenthanexpected.
D)It’sstilltooearlytosaywhethersuchacollisionmightoccur.
23.Whatdopeoplethinkofthesuggestionofusingnuclearweaponstoalterthecoursesofasteroids?
A)Itsoundspracticalbutitmaynotsolvetheproblem.
B)Itmaycreatemoreproblemsthanitmightsolve.
C)ItisawasteofmoneybecauseacollisionofasteroidswithEarthisveryunlikely.
D)Furtherresearchshouldbedonebeforeitisprovedapplicable.
24.Wecanconcludefromthepassagethat________.
A)whilepushingasteroidsoffcoursenuclearweaponswoulddestroytheworld
B)asteroidsracingacrossthenightskyarelikelytohitEarthinthenearfuture
C)theworryaboutasteroidscanbelefttofuturegenerationssinceitisunlikelytohappeninourlifetime
D)workablesolutionsstillhavetobefoundtopreventacollisionofasteroidswithEarth
25.Whichofthefollowingbestdescribestheauthor’stoneinthispassage?
A)Optimistic.B)Critical.C)Objective.D)Arbitrary.
PassageTwo
Questions26to30arebasedonthefollowingpassage.
Believeitornot,opticalillusion(错觉)cancuthighwaycrashes.
Japanisacaseinpoint.Ithasreducedautomobilecrashesonsomeroadsbynearly75percentusingasimpleopticalillusion.Bentstripes,calledchevrons(人字形),paintedontheroadsmakedriversthinkthattheyaredrivingfasterthantheyreallyare,andthusdriversslowdown.
NowtheAmericanAutomobileAssociationFoundationforTrafficSafetyinWashingtonD.C.isplanningtorepeatJapan’ssuccess.Startingnextyear,thefoundationwillpaintchevronsandotherpatternsofstripesonselectedroadsaroundthecountrytotesthowwellthepatternsreducehighwaycrashes.
Excessivespeedplaysamajorroleinasmuchasonefifthofallfataltrafficaccidents,accordingtothefoundation.Tohelpreducethoseaccidents,thefoundationwillconductitstestsinareaswherespeed-relatedhazardsarethegreatest梒urves,extitslopes,trafficcircles,andbridges.
Somestudiessuggestthatstraight,horizontalbarspaintedacrossroadscaninitiallycuttheaveragespeedofdriversinhalf.However,trafficoftenreturnstofullspeedwithinmonthsasdriversbecomeusedtoseeingthepaintedbars.
Chevrons,scientistssay,notonlygivedriverstheimpressionthattheyaredrivingfasterthantheyreallyarebutalsomakealaneappeartobenarrower.Theresultisalongerlastingreductioninhighwayspedandthenumberoftrafficaccidents.
26.Thepassagemainlydiscusses________.
A)anewwayofhighwayspeedcontrol
B)anewpatternforpaintinghighways
C)anewapproachtotrainingdrivers
D)anewtypeofopticalillusion考试大论坛
27.Onroadspaintedwithchevrons,driverstendtofeelthat________.
A)theyshouldavoidspeed-relatedhazards
B)theyaredrivinginthewronglane
C)theyshouldslowdowntheirspeed
D)theyareapproachingthespeedlimit
28.Theadvantageofchevronsoverstraight,horizontalbarsisthattheformer________.
A)cankeepdriversawake
B)cancutroadaccidentsinhalf
C)willhavealongereffectondrivers
D)willlookmoreattractive
29.TheAmericanAutomobileAssociationFoundationforTrafficSafetyplansto________.
A)tryouttheJapanesemethodincertainareas
B)changetheroadsignsacrossthecountry
C)replacestraight,horizontalbarswithchevrons
D)repeattheJapaneseroadpatterns
30.Whatdoestheauthorsayaboutstraight,horizontalbarspaintedacrossroads?
A)TheyarefallingoutofuseintheUnitedStates.
B)Theytendtobeignoredbydriversinashortperiodoftime.
C)Theyareapplicableonlyonbroadroads.
D)Theycannotbeappliedsuccessfullytotrafficcircles.
PassageThree
Questions31to35arebasedonthefollowingpassage.
Amtrak(美国铁路客运公司)wasexperiencingadownswinginridership(客运量)alongthelinescomprisingitsrailsystem.OfmajorconcerntoAmtrakanditsadvertisingagencyDDBNeedham,werethelong-distancewesternrouteswhereridershiphadbeendecliningsignificantly.]Atonetime,trainsweretheonlypracticalwaytocrossthevastareasofthewest.Trainswerefast,veryluxurious,andquiteconvenientcomparedtootherformsoftransportationexistingatthetime.However,timeschangeandtheautomobilebecameAmerica’sstandardofconvenience.Also,airtravelhadeasilyestablisheditselfasthefastestmethodoftravelinggreatdistances.Therefore,thetaskforDDBNeedhamwastoencourageconsumerstoconsiderotheraspectsoftraintravelinordertochangetheirattitudesandincreasethelikelihoodthattrainswouldbeconsideredfortravelinthewest.
Twoportionsofthetotalmarketweretargeted:1)anxiousfliers—thoseconcernedwithsafety,relaxation,andcleanlinessand2)travel-lovers—thoseviewingthemselvesasrelaxed,casual,andinterestedinthetravelexperienceaspartoftheirvacation.Theagencythendevelopedacampaignthatfocusedontravelexperiencessuchasfreedom,escape,relaxation,andenjoymentofthegreatwesternoutdoors.Itstressedexperiencesgainedbyusingthetrainsandportrayedwesterntraintripsaswonderfuladventures.
Advertisementsshowedpicturesofthebeautifulscenerythatcouldbeenjoyedalongsomeofthemorefamouswesternroutesandemphasizedtheromanticnamesofsomeofthesetrains(EmpireBuilder,etc.).Theseadswerestrategicallyplacedamongfamily-oriented
TVshowsandprogramsinvolvingnatureandAmericainordertomosteffectivelyreachtargetaudiences.Resultswereimpressive.TheEmpireBuilder,whichwasfocusedoninonead,enjoyeda15percentincreaseinprofitsonitsChicagotoSeattleroute.
31.What’stheauthor’spurposeinwritingthispassage?
A)Toshowtheinabilityoftrainstocompetewithplaneswithrespecttospeedandconvenience.
B)TostresstheinfluenceoftheautomobileonAmerica’sstandardofconvenience.
C)Toemphasizethefunctionoftravelagenciesinmarketpromotion.
D)Toillustratetheimportantroleofpersuasivecommunicationinchangingconsumerattitudes.
32.ItcanbeinferredfromthepassagethatthedropinAmtrakridershipwasduetothefactthat________.
A)trainswerenotsuitableforshortdistancepassengertransportation
B)trainswerenotthefastestandmostconvenientformoftransportation
C)trainswerenotasfastandconvenientastheyusedtobe
D)trainscouldnotcompetewithplanesintermsofluxuryandconvenience
33.Toencourageconsumerstotravelbytrain,DDBNeedhamemphasized________.
A)thefreedomandconvenienceprovidedontrains
B)thepracticalaspectsoftraintravel
C)theadventurousaspectsoftraintrips
D)thesafetyandcleanlinessoftraintrips
34.Thetrainadswereplacedamongfamily-orientedTVprogramsinvolvingnatureandAmericabecause________.
A)theycouldfocusonmeaningfultravelexperiences
B)theycouldincreasetheeffectivenessoftheTVprograms
C)theirprofitscouldbeincreasedbysome15percent
D)mosttravel-loversandnervousflierswerebelievedtobeamongtheaudiences
35.Accordingtothepassage,theEmpireBuilderenjoyedanincreaseinridershipandprofitsbecause________.
A)theattractivenessofitsnameandroutewaseffectivelyadvertised
B)itprovidedanexcitingtravelexperience
C)itspassengerscouldenjoythegreatwesternoutdoors
D)itwaswidelyadvertisedinnewspapersandmagazinesinChicagoandSeattle
PassageFour
Questions36to40arebasedonthefollowingpassage.
Whydoescramgobadfasterthanbutter?Someresearchersthinktheyhavetheanswer,anditcomesdowntothestructureofthefood,notitschemicalcomposition—afinding
thatcouldhelpridsomeprocessedfoodsofchemicalpreservatives.
Creamandbuttercontainprettymuchthesamesubstances,sowhycreamshouldsourmuchfasterhasbeenamystery.Bothareemulsions—tinyglobules(小球体)ofoneliquidevenlydistributedthroughoutanother.Thedifferenceliesinwhat’sintheglobulesandwhat’sinthesurroundingliquid,saysBrocklehurst,wholedtheinvestigation.
Incream,fattyglobulesdriftaboutinaseaofwater.Inbutter,globulesofawaterysolutionarelockedawayinaseaoffat.Thebacteriawhichmakethefoodgobadprefertoliveinthewateryregionsofthemixture.“Thismeansthatincream,thebacteriaarefreetogrowthroughoutthemixture,”hesays.
Whenthesituationisreversed,thebacteriaarelockedawayincompartments(隔仓室)burieddeepintheseaoffat.Trappedinthisway,individualcoloniescannotspreadandrapidlyrunoutofnutrients(养料).Theyalsoslowlypoisonthemselveswiththeirwasteproducts.“Inbutter,yougetaself-limitingsystemwhichstopsthebacteriagrowing,”saysBrocklehurst.
Theresearchersarealreadyworkingwithfoodcompanieskeentoseeiftheirproductscanbemaderesistanttobacterialattackthroughalterationstothefood’sstructure.Brocklehurstbelievesitwillbepossibletomaketheemulsionsusedinsaladcream,forinstance,morelikethatinbutter.Thekeywillbetodothiswhilekeepingthesaladcreamliquidandnotturningitintoasolidlump.
36.ThesignificanceofBrocklehurst’sresearchisthat________.
A)itsuggestedawaytokeepsomefoodsfreshwithoutpreservatives
B)itdiscoveredtinyglobulesinbothcreamandbutter
C)itrevealedthesecretofhowbacteriamultiplyincreamandbutter
D)itfoundthatcreamandbuttersharethesamechemicalcomposition
37.Accordingtotheresearchers,creamsoursfastthanbutterbecausebacteria________.
A)aremoreevenlydistributedincream
B)multiplymoreeasilyincreamthaninbutter
C)liveonlessfatincreamthaninbutter
D)producelesswasteincreamthaninbutter
38.AccordingtoBrocklehurst,wecankeepcreamfreshby________.
A)removingitsfat
B)killingthebacteria
C)reducingitswatercontent
D)alteringitsstructure
39.Theword“colonies”(Line2,Para.4)refersto________.
A)tinyglobules
B)wateryregions
C)bacteriacommunities
D)littlecompartments
40.Commercialapplicationoftheresearchfindingwillbepossibleifsaladcreamcanbemaderesistanttobacterialattack________.
A)byvaryingitschemicalcomposition
B)byturningitintoasolidlump
C)whilekeepingitsstructureunchanged
D)whileretainingitsliquidform
Unit2
21.B22.A23.B24.D25.C
26.A27.C28.C29.A30.B
31.D32.B33.C34.D35.A
36.A37.B38.D39.C40.D
新东方英语四级：http://edu.21cn.com/kcnet1820/
新东方英语四级：http://edu.21cn.com/kcnet1820/
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