阅读理解部分
真题分析
一、推理题
1. “We had to be careful and not overdo it,” Edward admits. Now Caspar is at Oxford — which once looked unlikely because he is also slightly dyslexic （诵读困难）. In fact, when he was applying to Oxford, none of his school teachers thought he had a chance. “So then we did several thinking sessions,” his father says, “using my techniques and, when he went up for the exam, he did extremely well.” Soon after, Edward de Bone decided to write his latest book, “Teach Your Child How to Think”, in which he transforms the thinking skills he developed for brain-storming businessmen into informal exercises for parents and children to share.
38. It can be inferred from Paragraph 2 that Edward ______.
A） was prompted to study lateral thinking because his son was slightly dyslexic
B） once taught businessmen how to think before he wrote for parents and children
C） was likely to improve children's logic with his book
D） gave a description of lateral thinking several years after his son was born （99年）
2. For example, it is one thing to take the life of another in a fit of blind rage, but quite another to coldly plot and carry out the murder of one or more people in the style of a butcher. Thus, murder, like all other crimes, is a matter of relative degree. While it could be argued with some conviction that the criminal in the first instance should be merely isolated from society, such should not be the fate of the latter type murderer.
63. The author's response to those who urge the death penalty for all degrees of murder would most likely be ______.
A） negative B） friendly C） supportive D） hostile （99年）
3. For all the consumer interest, retailing in cyberspace was still a largely unprofitable business, however. Internet pioneer Amazon.com, which began selling books in 1995 and later branched into recorded music and videos, posted revenue of $153.7 million in the third quarter, up from $37.9 million in the same period of 1997. Overall, however, the company's loss widened to $45.2 million from $9.6 million; and analysts did not expect the company to turn a profit until 2001. Despite the great loss, Amazon.com had a stock market value of many billions, reflecting investors' optimism about the future of the industry.
49. It can be inferred from the passage that Amazon.com ______.
A） will probably make a profit in 2001
B） is making a profit now
C） is a company that sells books only
D） suffers a great loss on the stock market （00年）
4. A veteran driver, whose manners are faultless, told me it would help if motorists learn to filter correctly into traffic streams one at a time without causing the total blockages （堵塞） that give rise to bad temper. Unfortunately, modern motorists can't even learn to drive, let alone be well-mannered on the road. Years ago the experts warned us that the car-ownership explosion would demand a lot more give-and-take from all road users. It is high time for all of us to take this message to heart.
54. Experts have long pointed out that in the face of car-ownership explosion, ______.
A） drivers should be ready to yield to one another
B） road users should make more sacrifices
C） drivers should have more communication among themselves
D） drivers will suffer a great loss if they pay no respect to others （00年）
5. Because the United States is a highly active society, full of movement and change, people always seem to be on the go. In this highly charged atmosphere, Americans can sometimes seem brusque （无礼的） or impatient. They want to get to know you as quickly as possible and then move on to something else. Sometimes, early on, they will ask you questions that you may feel are very personal. No insult is intended; the questions usually grow out of their genuine interest or curiosity, and their impatience to get to the heart of the matter. And the same goes for you. If you do not understand certain American behavior or you want to know more about them, do not hesitate to ask them questions about themselves. Americans are usually eager to explain all about their country or anything “American” in which you may be interested. So much so in fact that you may become tired of listening. It doesn't matter, because Americans tend to be uncomfortable with silence during a conversation. They would rather talk about the weather or the latest sports scores, for example, than deal with silence.
On the other hand, don't expect Americans to be knowledgeable about international geography or world affairs, unless those subjects directly involve the United States. Because the United States is not surrounded by many other nations, some Americans tend to ignore the rest of the world.
49. It can be inferred from the passage that ______.
A） Americans' character is affected by their social and geographical environment
B） Americans want to participate in all kinds of activities
C） curiosity is characteristic of Americans
D） Americans do not know how to deal with silence （01年）
6. If there is one thing scientists hate to hear, it is that the game is over. Raised on the belief of an endless voyage of discovery, they recoil （畏缩） from the suggestion that most of the best things have already been located. If they have, today's scientists can hope to contribute no more than a few grace notes to the symphony of science.
66. The sentence “most of the best things have already been located” could mean ______.
A） most of the best things remain to be changed
B） most of the best things have already been changed
C） most secrets of the world have already been discovered
D） there have never been so many best things waiting to be discovered （01年）
7. When he’s not writing, Grisham devotes time to charitable causes, including mission trips with his church group. As a child he dreamt of becoming a professional baseball player, and now serves as the local Little League commissioner. He has built six ballfields on his property and hosts children from 26 Little League teams.
46. John Grisham is ________ at present.
A. a writer B. a lawyer C. a professional baseball player D. a congressman （02年）
50. It can be inferred from the passage that Grisham has built ballfields on his property ________.
A） to achieve his life’s goal as a professional baseball player
B） to coach children in baseball
C） to bring Grisham wealth
D） to provide facilities of baseball training. （02年）
8. One day at the Dessoto County courthouse, Grisham heard the horrifying testimony of a 12-year-old rape victim. He decided to write a novel exploring what would have happened if the girl’s father had murdered her attackers. He proceeded to get up every morning at 5 a.m. to work on the novel, called A Time to Kill, which was published in 1988. Grisham’s next novel, The Firm, was one of the biggest hits of 1991, spending 47 weeks on The New York Times bestseller list. Grisham lives with his wife and two children, dividing their time between their Victorian home on a 67-acre farm in Mississippi and a 204-acre plantation near Charlottesville, Virginia.
48. The story of the novel A Time to Kill would probably focus on ________.
A） how the girl was attacked B） the circumstances of the rape
C） how the girl’s father took revenge D） how the case of rape was settled （02年）
9. India is the proud steward of these 300 or so lions, which live primarily in a 560-square-mile sanctuary （保护区）. It took me a year and a half to get a permit to explore the entire Gir Forest---and no time at all to see why these lions became symbols of royalty and greatness. A tiger will hide in the forest unseen, but a lion stands its ground, curious and unafraid---lionhearted. Though they told me in subtle ways when I got too close, Gir’s lions allowed me unique glimpses into their lives during my three months in the forest. It’s odd to think that they are threatened by extinction; Gir has as many lions as it can hold－too many, in fact. With territory in short supply, lions move about near the boundary of the forest and even leave it altogether, often clashing with people. That’s one reason India is creating a second sanctuary. There are other pressing reasons: outbreaks of disease or natural disasters.
57. What impressed the author most when he went to watch the lions in the Gir Forest?
A） Their friendliness. B）Their size. C） Their intimacy. D） Their vitality （02年）
变换视角 / 换位思考
11. Sometimes practical-minded people miss the point of pure science in thinking only of its immediate application for economic rewards. Chemists responsible for many of the discoveries could hardly have anticipated that their findings would one day result in applications of such a practical nature as those directly related to life and death. The discovery of one bit of information opens the door to the discovery of another. Some discoveries seem so simple that one is amazed they were not made years ago; however, one should remember that the construction of the microscope had to precede the discovery of the cell. The host of scientists dedicating their lives to pure science are not apologetic （抱歉） about ignoring the practical side of their discoveries; they know from experience that most knowledge is eventually applied.
59. Which of the following statements does the author imply?
A） In science, it is not difficult to distinguish fact from fiction.
B） Practical-minded people can understand the meaning and objectives of pure science.
C） Scientists engaged in theoretical research should not be blamed for ignoring the practical side of their discoveries.
D） Today few people have any notions of the meaning of science. （99年）
12. It is all very well to blame traffic jams, the cost of petrol and the quick pace of modern life, but manners on the roads are becoming horrible. You might tolerate the rude and inconsiderate driver, but nowadays the well-mannered motorist is the exception to the rule. Perhaps the situation calls for a “Be Kind to Other Drivers” campaign, otherwise, it may get completely out of hand.
52. The sentence “You might tolerate the rude and inconsiderate driver, but nowadays the well-mannered motorist is the exception to the rule” implies that ______.
A） our society is unjust towards well-mannered motorists
B） rude drivers can be met only occasionally
C） nowadays impolite drivers constitute the majority of motorists
D） the well-mannered motorist cannot tolerate the rude driver （00年）
反话正说
13. Although the threat of global warming has been known to the world for decades and all countries and leaders agree that we need to deal with the problem, we also know that the effects of measures, especially harsh measures taken in some countries, would be nullified （抵消） if other countries do not control their emissions. Whereas the UN team on climate change has found that the emissions of carbon dioxide would have to be cut globally by 60% to stabilize the content of CO2, in the atmosphere, this path is not feasible for several reasons. Such deep cuts would cause a breakdown of the world economy. Important and populous （人口众多的） low- or medium- income countries are not yet willing to undertake legal commitments about their energy uses. In addition, the state of world technology would not yet permit us to make such a big leap.
55. What should all countries do to help solve the problem of global warming?
A） They should hold another world conference on climate change.
B） They should provide advanced technology.
C） They should replace all the harmful substances.
D） They should willingly undertake legal commitments about their energy uses. （99年）
14. For example, it is one thing to take the life of another in a fit of blind rage, but quite another to coldly plot and carry out the murder of one or more people in the style of a butcher. Thus, murder, like all other crimes, is a matter of relative degree. While it could be argued with some conviction that the criminal in the first instance should be merely isolated from society, such should not be the fate of the latter type murderer.
65. It can be inferred that the author thinks that ______.
A） the death penalty is the most controversial issue in the United States today
B） the second type murderers （in Paragraph 4） should be sentenced to death
C） the veto of the bill reestablishing the death penalty is of little importance
D） the value of the death penalty as a deterrent to crime is not to be debated （99年）
15. And yet the government cannot do what it must to end this problem. For any country, especially a developing Third World economy like Mexico's, the idea of barring from the capital city enough cars, closing enough factories and spending the necessary billions on public transportation is simply not an option. So when things get bad, as in the current emergency, Mexico takes half measures — prohibiting some more cars from circulating, stopping some factories from producing — that even its own officials concede aren't adequate.
44. The Mexican government takes half measures to solve the pollution problem because ______.
A） Mexican economy depends very much on cars and factories
B） it is not wise enough to come up with effective measures
C） Mexicans are able to adapt themselves to the current emergency
D） Mexicans enjoy playing dangerous games with their health （00年）
正话反说
16. Online doctors offering advice based on standardized symptoms are the most obvious example. Increasingly, however, remote diagnosis （tele-medicine） will be based on real physiological data from the actual patient. A group from the University of Kentucky has shown that by using an off-the-shelf （现成的） PDA （personal data assistance） such as a Palm Pilot plus a mobile phone, it is perfectly feasible to transmit a patient's vital signs over the telephone. With this kind of equipment in a first-aid kit （急救包）, the cry asking whether there was a doctor in the house could well be a thing of the past.
52. The sentence “the cry asking whether there was a doctor in the house could well be a thing of the past” means ______.
A） patients used to cry and ask if there was a doctor in the house
B） now people probably would not ask if there is a doctor in the house
C） patients are now still asking if there is a doctor in the house
D） in the past people often cried and asked if there was a doctor in the house （01年）
17. A key lesson of experience about what makes development effective is that a country’s capacity to use aid well depends heavily on its policies, institutions and management. Where a country scores well on these criteria, foreign assistance can be highly effective.
55. As can be gathered from the last paragraph, foreign aid _________.
A. may not be highly effective
B. is provided only when some criteria are met
C. alone makes development possible
D. is most effective for those countries lagging farthest behind （02年） | 
