大学英语四级阅读理解试题及答案

1、大学英语四级阅读理解试题及答案（二）六 As the pace of life continues to increase ，we are fast losing the art of relaxation. Once you are in the habit of rushing through lift,being on the go from morning till night, it is hard to slow down。 But relaxation is essential for a healthy mind and body。Stress is an natural pa

2、rt of everyday lift and there is no way to avoid it。 In fact ,it is not the bad thing it is often supposed推想，料想 to be 。A certain amount of stress is vital to provide motivation adn give purpose to life。 It is only when the stress gets out of control that it can lead to poor performance and ill healt

3、h.The amount of stress a person can withstand depends very much on the individual。 Some people are not afraid of stress，and such characters are obviously prime material for managerial responsibilities。 Others lose heart at the first signs of unusual difficulties。 When exposed to stress，in whatever f

4、orm,we react both chemically and physically. In fact we make choice between ”fight” or ”flight" and in more primitive days the choice made the difference between life or death。 The crises we meet today are unlikely to be so extreme，but however little the stress，it involves the same response。 It

5、 is when such a reaction lasts long,through continued exposure to stress，that health becomes endangered.Such serious conditions as high blood pressure and heart disease have established links with stress。Since we cannot remove stress from our lives（it would be unwise to do so even if we could)，we ne

6、ed to find ways to deal with it。1。People are finding less and less time for relaxing themselves because_。a。they do not know how to enjoy themselvesb.they do not believe that relaxation is important for healthc。they are travelling fast all the timed。they are becoming busier with their work2.According

7、 to the writer ,the most important character for a good manager is his _。a。not fearing stressb.knowing the art of relaxationc。high sense of responsibilityd。having control over performance3.Which of the follwing statements is ture？a。We can find some ways to avoid stressb.Stress is always harmful to p

8、eoplec。It is easy to change the hagit of keeping oneself busy with work。d。Different people can withstand different amounts of stress4.In Paragraph 3, ”such a reaction" refers back to_.a.”making a choice between flight or fight'”b.”reaction to stress both chemically and physically”c。”respond

9、ing to crises quickly”d."losing heart at the signs difficulties”5.In the last sentence of the passage,”do so ” refers to _。a."expose ourselves to stress"b。"find ways to deal with stress”c。”remove stress from our lives”d."established links between diseases and stress"答案：

10、dadbc七 In the 1960s, many young Americans were dissatisfied with American society。 They wanted to end the Vietnam War and to make all of the people in the U.S。 epual。 Some of them decided to ”drop out” of American society and form their own societies . They formed utopian communities ， which they ca

11、lled "communes,” where they could follow their philosophy of ”do your own thing.” A group of artists founded a commune in southern Colorado called "Drop City。" Following the ideas of philosopher and architect Buckminster Fuller they built domeshaped houses from pieces of old cars. Oth

12、er groups， such as author Ken Kesey's Merry Pranksters, the followers fo San Francisco poet Steve Gakin， and a group that called itself the Hog Farm， lived in old school huses and traveled around the United States. The Hog Farm become famous when they helped organize the Woodstock Rock Festival

13、in 1969。 Steve Gaskin's followers tried to settle down on a farm in Tennessee， but they had to leave when some members of the gruop were arrested for growing marijuana.Not all communes believed in the philosophy of ”do you own thing,” however . Twin Oaks ， a commune founded in Virgiania in the l

14、ate 1960s, was based on the ideas of psychologist B.F.Skinner. The people who lived at Twin Oaks were carefully controlled by Skinner's "conditioning” techniques to do things that were good for the community. In 1972, Italian architect Paolo Soleri began to build Arcosanti, a utopian city A

15、rizsona where 2500 people will live closely together in one large building called an "archology” Soleri believes that people must live closely together so that they will all become one.1。Why did some young Americans decide to ”drop out” of scoiety during the 1960s?a。They were not satisfied with

16、 American society。b.They wanted to grow marijuana。c。They wanted to go to the Vietnam War.d.They did not want all people to be equal。2.Where did the members of the Hog Farm commune live？a。In dome-shaped houseb.In old school husesc.On a farm inTennesseed.In an archology in Arizona3。Who gave the people

17、 of Drop City the idea to bulid domeshaped house?a.Paolo Solerib。B。G.Skinnerc.Steve Gaskind。Buckminster Fuller4.What was the Twin Oaks commune base on ？a.The philosophy of "do your own thing"b.Virginaia in the late 1960sc.The ideas of psychologistd.The belief that people must live closely

18、togerher.5。What is an ”archology"？a.A person who studies archaeologyb.A large building where people live closely togetherc。A city in A rizonad。A technique to contorl people答案:abdcb八 There are two factors which determine an individual's intelligence。 The first is the sort of brain he is born

19、 with。 Human brains differ considerably， some being more capable than others. But no matter how good a brain he has to begin with, an individual will have a low order of intelligence unless he has opportunities to learn. So the second factor is what happens to the individualthe sort of environment i

20、n which he is reared。 If an individual is handicapped envionmentally ，it is likely that his brain will fail to develop and he will never attain the level of intelligence of which he is capable。The importance of environment in determining an individuals intellingence can be demonstrated by the case h

21、istory of the identical twins， Peter and Mark X. Being identical, the twins had identical brains at birth, and their growth processes were the same. When the twins were three months old , their parents died， and they were placed in separate foster homes. Peter was reated by parents of low intelligen

22、ce in an isolatedcommunity with poor educational pooprtunities。Mark was reared inthe home of well-to-do parents who had been to college. He was read to as a child , sent to good schools， and given every opportunity to be stimulated intellectually。This enviromental difference continued until the twin

23、s were in their late teens， when they were giben tesets to measure their intelligence. Mark's I。Q. was 125, twentyfive points higher than the average and fully forty points higher than his identical brother. Given equal opportunities , the twins ， having identical brains,would have tested at rou

24、ghly the same level。1。This selection can best be titled_。a.Measuring Your Intelligenceb。Intelligence and Environmentc。The Case of Peter and Markd。How the brain Influences Intelligence2.The beststatement of the main idea of this passage is that _。a.human brains differ considerablyb。the brain a person

25、 is born with is improtant in determining his intelligencec。environment is crucial in determining a person's intelligenced. persons having identical brains will have roughly the same intelligence3。According to the passage ， the average I.Q.is _.a。85b。100c。110d。1254。The case history of the twins

26、appears to support the conclusion that _.a.individual with identical brains seldom test at same levelb.an individual's intelligence is determined only by his enviromentc。lack of opportunity blocks the growth of intelligenced。changes of enviroment produce changes in the structure of the brain5.Th

27、is passage suggests that an individual s I.Q._。a.can be predicted at birthb.stays the same throuthout his lifec。can be increased by educationd.is determined by his childhood答案：bcbcc九 As she walked round the huge department store，Edith reflected how difficult it was to choose a suitable Christmas pre

28、sent for her father。She wish that he was as easy to please as her mother, who was always delighted with perfumeBesides，shoppong at this time of the year was a most disgreeable experience :people trod on your toes,poked you with their elbows and almost knocked you overin their haste to get to a barga

29、in ahead of you。Partly to have a rest， Edith paused in front of a counter where some attracive ties were on display. ”They are real silk，" the assistant assured her, trying to tempt her。 ”Worth double the price." But edit knew from past experience that her choice of ties hardly ever please

30、d her father.She moved on reluctantly and then quite by chance， stopped where a small crowd of man had gathered round a counter。 She found some good quality pipes on sale-and the prices were very reasonable. Edith did not hesitate for long ： although her father only smoked a pipe occasionally, she k

31、new that this was a present which was bund to please him.When she got home,with her small wellchosen present concealed in her handbag, her parents were already at the supper table。 Her mother was in an especially cheerful mood， "Your father has at last to decided to stop smoking.” She informed

32、her daughter。1。Ediths father _。a.did not like presentb。never got presentc。preferred tiesd.was difficult to choose a present for2。The assistant spoke to Edith because she seemed_。a。attractiveb。interested in tiesc.tiredd.in need of comfort3.Edith stopped at the next counter_。a.puroselyb。suddenlyc.unwi

33、llinglyd。accidentally4.Ediths father smoked a pipe_.a。when he was obligedb.on social occasionsc。from time to timed.when he was delighted5。Shopping was very disagreeable at that time of the year because_.a。coustomers trod on each others toesb。coustomers poked each other with their elbowsc.customers k

34、nocked each otherd.customers were doing their shopping in a great hurry答案：dbdcdResearch by the University of Exeter1 has revealed that ants have a big impact on their local environment as a result of their activity as "ecosystem engineers” and predators(食肉动物）. The study, published in the Journa

35、l of Animal Ecology， found that ants have two distinct（显著的）effects on their local environment。 Firstly, through moving of soil by nest building2 activity and by collecting food they affect the level of nutrients（营养物）in the soil。 This can indirectly impact the local populations of many animal groups，

36、 from decomposers(腐生物,分解体）to species much higher up the food chain。 Secondly， they prey（捕食） on a wide range of other animals， including larger prey which can be attacked by vast numbers of ant workers。 Dirk Sanders， an author of the study from the universitys Centre for Ecology and Conservation， sai

37、d： "Ants are very effective predators which thrive in huge numbers。 Theyre also very territorial3 and very aggressive， defending their resources and territory against other predators. All of this means they have a strong influence on their surrounding area。” ”In this research， we studied for th

38、e first time how big this impact is and the subtleties（微妙) of it. What we found is that despite being predators, their presence can also lead to an increase in density and diversity of other animal groups4. They genuinely play a key role in the local environment， having a big influence on the grassl

39、and food web,” Sanders said。 The study, carried out in Germany， studied the impact of the presence of different combinations and densities of black garden ants and common red ants, both species which can be found across Europe， including in the UK。 It found that a low density of ants in an area incr

40、eased the diversity and density of other animals in the local area， particularly the density of herbivores(食草动物) and decomposers。 At higher densities ants had no or the opposite effect， showing that predation is counteracting the positive influence. Dr Frank van Veen， another author on the study， sa

41、id： "What we find is that the impact of ants on soil nutrient levels has a positive effect on animal groups at low levels， but as the number of ants increases， their predatory impacts have the bigger effect - thereby counteracting the positive influence via ecosystem engineering." Ants are

42、 important components of ecosystems not only because they constitute a great part of the animal biomass5 （生物量) but also because they act as ecosystem engineers。 Ant biodiversity6（生物多样性)is incredibly high and these organisms are highly responsive（敏感的，易受影响的） to human impact, which obviously reduces it

43、s richness。 However， it is not clear how such disturbance damages the maintenance of ant services to the ecosystem7Ants are important in below ground processes8 through the alteration of the physical and chemical environment and through their effects on plants, microorganisms, and other soil organis

44、msThe standardized educational or psychological tests, which are widely used to aid in selecting, assigning or promoting students, employees and military personnel， have been the target of recent attacks in books, magazines， the daily press, and even in Congress. The target is wrong， for， in attacki

45、ng the tests, critics divert attention from the fault that lies with ill-informed or incompetent users。 The tests themselves are merely tools。 Whether the results will be valuable, meaningless， or even misleading depends partly upon the tool itself but largely upon the user. All informed predictions

46、 of future performance are based upon some knowledge of relevant past performance. How well the predictions will be validated by later performance depends upon the amount, reliability and appropriateness of the information used and on the skill and wisdom with which it is interpreted。 Anyone who kee

47、ps careful score knows that the information available is always incomplete and that the predictions are always subject to error。 Standardized tests should be considered in this context： they provide a quick, objective method of getting some kind of information about what a person has learned， the sk

48、ills he has developed， or the kind of person he is。 The information so obtained has， qualitatively， the same advantages and shortcomings as other kinds of information. Whether to use tests， other kinds of information, or both in a particular situation depends, therefore， upon the empirical evidence

49、concerning comparative validity and upon such factors as cost and availability。 In general, the tests work most effectively when the traits or qualities to be measured can be most precisely defined ( for example, ability to do well in a particular course of training program ) and least effectively w

50、hen what is to be measured or predicted cannot be well defined， for example, personality or creativity。 Properly used, they provide a rapid means of getting comparable information about many people。 Sometimes they identify students whose high potential has not been previously recognized。The modern s

51、ailing ship was developed by a man who never went to sea. He was Prince Henry of Portugal，the younger son of the Partuguese king and an English princess. Prince Henry lived in the fifteenth century。As a boy he became devoted to the sea,and he dedicated himself to improving the design of ships and th

52、e methods of sailing them.In 1416,when he was twentytwo,Henry founded a school for mariners， to which he invited everyone who could help himJewish astronomers,Italian and Spanish sailors, and Arab mathematicians and map makers who knew to use the crude compass of the day and could improve it。 Henry&

53、#39;s goal was to design and equip vessels that would be capable of making long ocean voyages without having to hug the shore.The caravel carried more sail and was longer and slimmer than any ship then made,yet was tough enough to withstand gales at sea。He also developed the carrack,which was a slow

54、er ship，but one that was capable of carrying more cargo。To Prince Henry the world owes credit for development of craft that made oceanic exploration possible。He lives in history as Henry the Navigator.The modern sailing ship was developed by a man who never went to sea。 He was Prince Henry of Portug

55、al，the younger son of the Partuguese king and an English princess。 Prince Henry lived in the fifteenth century。As a boy he became devoted to the sea,and he dedicated himself to improving the design of ships and the methods of sailing them.In 1416，when he was twentytwo，Henry founded a school for mari

56、ners， to which he invited everyone who could help himJewish astronomers,Italian and Spanish sailors, and Arab mathematicians and map makers who knew to use the crude compass of the day and could improve it. Henrys goal was to design and equip vessels that would be capable of making long ocean voyage

57、s without having to hug the shore。The caravel carried more sail and was longer and slimmer than any ship then made，yet was tough enough to withstand gales at sea.He also developed the carrack，which was a slower ship，but one that was capable of carrying more cargo.To Prince Henry the world owes credi

58、t for development of craft that made oceanic exploration possible。He lives in history as Henry the Navigator。十 Now let us look at how we read. When we read a printed text, our eyes move across a page in short, jerky movement。 We recognize words usually when our eyes are still when they fixate. Each time they fixate， we see a group of words. This is known as the recognition span or the visual span. The length of time