Fomafi英语六级阅读理解练习题(五)

1、生命中,不断地有人离开或进入。于是,看见的,看不见的;记住的,遗忘了。生命中,不断地有得到和失落。于是,看不见的,看见了;遗忘的,记住了。然而,看不见的,是不是就等于不存在?记住的,是不是永远不会消失?英语六级阅读理解练习题(五温馨提示:帮考网外语免费练习题,如需完整题库请登录 In todays world, insurance plays a vital role in the economic and social welfare of the entire population. The wish to guard against dangers to life and propert

2、y is basic to human nature. By using various kinds of insurance, society has been able to reduce the effects of such hazards.Nowhere is insurance more important than in the management of a business. In many instances, losses in a small firm can mean the difference between growth and failure, vitalit

3、y and stagnation (停滞.Very few small businesses have even a portion of the financial resources available to larger enterprises. Frequently, they must operate on a very slight margin if they hope to stay in business. And thus, they are particularly sensitive to unexpected losses.Without enough insuran

4、ce, what happens to such a firm when the owner dies or is suddenly disabled? When a fire breaks out and destroys the firms building or stock? When an employee is found to have stolen company funds? When a customer is awarded a liability judgment for an accident? Too often, the business is forced to

5、the wall, its future operations drastically curbed; sometimes, it is damaged beyond repair, its ability to continue completely crushed.Almost always, a small businessman would find it impossible to handle the full burden of his potential risk. The amount of money he would have to set aside to cover

6、possible losses would leave him nothing, or almost nothing, to run his business with. If loss were to occur which he could repair by using his reserve fund, what assurance would he have that another lossthe same kind or differentmight not occur next week, next month? But then he would have no reserv

7、e fund and little likelihood of staying in business at all.1. This selection deals mainly with_.A. the relation between insurance and societyB. accidents and lossesC. business failuresD. the importance of insurance to business2. In Paragraph 3,“forced to the wall” means “_”。A. driven to despairB. st

8、aying in a strong positionC. doing wellD. climbing up3. The author thinks that_.A. accidents always happenB. a businessman should take risksC. businesses should have adequate insuranceD. insurance is a social welfare project4. Adequate insurance will do all of the following EXCEPT that it will_.A. f

9、ree some business fundsB. add to benefits for employeesC. relieve some management problemsD. provide for unexpected incidents5. The word “curbed” in Paragraph 3 is nearest in meaning to_.A. checkedB. advancedC. expandedD. disturbed答案:1. D 2. A 3. C 4. B 5. APlastics are materials which are softened

10、by heat and set into lasting form when shaped in a mold. Some are natural; some are semi-synthetic(半合成的, the result of chemical action on natural substance; some are synthetic, built up from the constituents of oil or coal. All are based on the chemistry of carbon, with its capacity for forming chai

11、ns. The molecules that compose them (monomers link together in the setting or curing(硫化 process to form chains (polymers, which give plastics their flexible strength. Some plastics retain their ability to be softened and reshaped; like wax, they are thermoplastic. Others set permanently in the shape

12、s they are given by heat and pressure; like eggs, they are thermosetting.From industrial beginnings in the nineteenth century, plastics have struggled through a hundred and twenty years of glory, failure, disrepute and suspicion on the slow road to public acceptance. Now, at last, one can positively

13、 say that plastics are appreciated and enjoyed for what they are; that they make modern life richer, more comfortable and convenient, and also more fun. Plastics are warm materials, sympathetic to the human touch, and their transformation into things that come into contact with human beings is entir

14、ely appropriate.The fact that there are plastic antiques comes as a shock to most people. How can a material that seems so essentially twentieth century, and one that is so much associated with cheap, disposable products, has a history at all? It is a young technology, and a great part of the fun of

15、 collecting plastics is that beautiful pieces of historical interest can still be found very cheaply.1. The word “sympathetic” in Paragraph 2 most probably means_.A. harmfulB. agreeableC. pitifulD. sorry2. It can be concluded from this passage that_.A. plastics are synthetic materialsB. plastics won

16、 public acceptance 120 years agoC. plastics are very harmful in modern lifeD. plastics are cheap as antiques3. Which of the following is essential to create any type of plastics?A. Carbon.B. Eggs.C. Oil.D. Coal.4. Plastics that harden into permanent shapes are called_.A. chainedB. thermoplasticC. sy

17、ntheticD. thermosetting5. Which of the following is the best title for the passage?A. The Importance of Plastics in the Nineteenth Century.B. Why People Are Suspicious of Plastics.C. The Development of Plastics as a Modern Material.D. How Plastics Are Manufactured.答案:1. B 2. D 3. A 4. D 5. CDuring t

18、he nineteenth and twentieth centuries, migrations have taken place within_1_ countries; the cities with their industries have attracted people away from the country. The possibility of earning a fixed_2_in a factory or office was more attractive than the possibility of staying on the farm and having

19、 ones work _3 _b y frost, storms, or droughts. Furthermore, the development of agricultural machinery made it possible for fewer people to do the same _4_of work.Thus, at the same time when the industrial revolution made it possible to produce goods more_5_and more quickly in factories, agricultural

20、 revolution also took place. Instead of leaving fields empty every third year, farmers began to plant clover or some other crop that would_6_the soil. Instead of using only animal fertilizer, farmers began to use chemical fertilizers to keep the soil rich. These methods have enabled French farmers,

21、for example, to get five times as much wheat as was _7_ from the same land two centuries ago.In many countries farmers find it more _8_to raise only one crop or one kind of animal. They choose the kind that gives the best results. Then they sell all that they produce, instead of trying to grow a lit

22、tle of everything and consume what they grow. This is a more feasible type of _9_because modern methods and machinery are adapted to specific animals and specific crops. Therefore, it would be too expensive to do all the work by hand, or to buy the_10_needed for several different kinds of farming.A.

23、 salary E. deserted I. equivalent M. destroyedB. freely F. operation J. enrich N. certainC. profitable G.amount K. fruitful O. cheaplyD. obtained H. payment L. equipment答案:1. N 2. A 3. M 4. G 5. O 6. J 7. D 8. C 9. F 10. LA gift of the gods. According to an old Greek myth, Prometheus and his brother

24、, Epimetheus, heroes of a race of giants called the Titans, were given the task of creating man. Epimetheus was also to provide all the animals with means of defense or flight. To some he gave courage, strength, and claws with which to fight, and to others long legs, nimble feet, or wings with which

25、 to escape. So lavish (慷慨的 was he with these gifts to the lower animals that he had nothing left to give to man. Prometheus, however, was determined that man should not be neglected and so, according to the myth, he gained access to heaven and lighted his torch at the chariot of the sun. Returning t

26、o earth, he presented fire to man,and with this gift came mans dominion over all the earth.The first cook. It took a long time, however, to learn how to use this gift. For centuries men lived like wild animals. Their food consisted of nuts, herbs, fruit, and the flesh of animals. Cooking was unknown

27、, and when a wild animal was captured, the savage tore it apart and ate the raw flesh. According to one legend, a hunter, after a long tramp, succeeded in catching a rabbit. On his way home he found a smoldering (缓慢燃烧的 fire which had been started by lightning. Throwing his rabbit on a log, he lay do

28、wn and went to sleep. When he awoke, he found that his rabbit had fallen into the fire. In attempting to rescue it, the savage got some of the juice of the roasted rabbit on his fingers. By instinct, he put his burnt fingers to his mouth, and the taste was so pleasing that he immediately finished th

29、e rabbit, and this is how man learned to cook.Reduction of metals. Ages later, man began to use fire to make metals and to form them into spears and hatchets for hunting and fighting. The alchemists, as we know, used fire in their attempts to change the base metals into gold, and today fires are bur

30、ning in many furnaces producing, if not gold, metals of far greater value to the progress of civilization. Copper, bronze, iron, and steel, produced by fire,have been the stepping stones of mans progress through the ages. The chemistry involved in the extraction, purification, and alloying of metals

31、 is so interesting and of such great importance that volumes have been written on this subject.Heating homes. We are so accustomed to living in heated homes that it is only when something goes wrong with the furnace that we give any thought to the blessed fire. To the savage shivering in his cave, h

32、owever, a fire was a real blessing, even if it did fill his eyes with smoke. Keeping the home fires burningwas a difficult task for the American Indian, who delegated this to his wife. Woe be to the squaw (印第安女子或妻子 who let the fire go out. In the wintertime, the fire was built on the ground in the c

33、enter of the tent, which had a small hole in the top to act as a smokestack. Even the palaces of the wealthy in the Middle Ages were cold and damp, the fireplaces being so inefficient that only a portion of one room could be heated at a time. Not until a comparatively recent date (1742 were stoves i

34、nvented, and furnaces were unknown even when your grandfather was a boy.How fires are started and stopped. You have learned that burning is rapid oxidation which gives off light and heat. In order to start a fire, three conditions are necessary:(1 something to burn; (2 something to support the combu

35、stion; and (3 a means of lighting the fuel (raising it to its kindling temperature。 Having lived all his life in a home where the furnace is kept burning all winter, the average person seldom thinks of the difficulty of starting a fire.To get some idea of the difficulty of starting fires, imagine yo

36、urself shipwrecked like Robinson Crusoe upon an uninhabited island. To build a fire, the first condition would be met by collecting some wood. The second condition would be no problem as air is always present to support combustion. The third condition, raising the fuel to its kindling temperature, w

37、ould offer a real difficulty. Two methods have been used. The first is to employ the heat of friction caused by rubbing two dry sticks together. This sounds simple, but much skill and practice are essential to the success of this operation. The second method is to make sparks by striking two pieces

38、of flint (极硬的东西,燧石 together. This may work if the operator is persistent and if his fuel is sufficiently fine and dry. But before he succeeds in getting a fire started by either method, our Robinson Crusoe will do some thinking about the usefulness of the common match.Poison matches. There are two k

39、inds of phosphorus used in making matches, white and red. White phosphorus has an advantage and a disadvantage. White phosphorus is cheaper and, at one time, its use was quite common. White phosphorus is poisonous, however, and for this reason its use in making matches is prohibited by law in nearly

40、 all civilized countries. Men working in match factories which used white phosphorus were subject to a disease which caused the jaw bones to decay. The danger of small children beingpoisoned by these matches is also evident.Fortunately， chemists have discovered a method of making a form of phosphoru

41、s which is not poisonous. When white phosphorus is gently heated for several hours in a closed vessel from which air is excluded， it slowly changes in color and the no-poisonous red phosphorus is formed. In addition to the fact that it is not poisonous， red phosphorus has other advantages. Its kindl

42、ing temperature is much higher than that of the white variety， and this makes red phosphorus less dangerous to ship and to store. Another method of making phosphorus safe for use in matches is to combine it with sulphur. To do this， the two elements are mixed and heated in the absence of air. The ph

43、osphorus sulphide， which is formed， is not poisonous. 1. With the help of his brother， Prometheus succeeded in presenting fire to man. 2. Fire gave man an advantage over other animals. 3. Man learned to cook by accident. 4. In the Middle Ages even the palaces of the wealthy were cold because wood wa

44、s much too expensive. 5. In striking a match， friction raises the phosphorus compound in the tip to the kindling temperature. 6. Red phosphorus is the only means of making phosphorus safe. 7. Fire has played an important role in the progress of civilization. 8. The small hole in the top of the Ameri

45、can Indian tent was used as a_. 9. Employees in match factories used to suffer from a disease_the jaw bones. 10. Air is needed to start a fire because it_. 答案： 答案：I. N 2. Y 3. Y 4. N 5. NG 6. N 7. Y 8. smokestack 9. which decayed 10. supports combustion Laziness is a sin（罪）， everyone knows that. We

46、have probably all had lectures pointing out that laziness is immoral， that it is wasteful， and that lazy people will never amount to anything in life. But laziness can be more harmful than that， and it is often caused by more complex reasons rather than simple wish to avoid work. Some people who app

47、ear to be lazy are suffering from much more serious problems. They may be so distrustful of their fellow workers that they are unable to join in any group task for fear of ridicule or of having their idea stolen. These people who seem lazy may be ruined by a fear of failure that prevents fruitful wo

48、rk. Or other sorts of fantasies （幻想） may prevent work; some people are so busy planning， sometimes planning great deals of fantastic achievements that they are unable to deal with whatever “lesser” work is on hand. Still other people are not avoiding work; strictly speaking， they are merely procrast

49、inating rescheduling their day. Laziness can actually be helpful. Like procrastinators， some people may look lazy when they are really thinking， planning， researching. We should all remember that great scientific discoveries occurred by chance. Newton wasnt working in the orchard when the apple hit

50、him and he devised the theory of gravity. All of us would like to have someone “lazy” build the car or stove we buy， particularly if that “laziness” were caused by the workers taking time to check each step of his work and to do his job right. And sometimes， being “lazy”that is， taking time off for

51、a restis good for the overworked students or executives. Taking a rest can be particularly helpful to the athlete who is trying too hard or the doctor whos simply working himself overtime too many evenings at the clinic. So be careful when youre tempted to call someone lazy. That person may be think

52、ing， resting， or planning his or her next work. 1. The main idea of this passage is that_. A. laziness is a moral sin B. there are advantages and disadvantages in being lazy C. laziness is the sign of deep-seated emotion problems D. lazy people do more careful work 2. The passage states that_. A. la

53、ziness is a disease B. laziness is more beneficial than harmful C. a good definition of laziness is emotional illness D. some people appear lazy because they are insecure 3. Which of the following conclusions does the passage support？ A. Most of the time laziness is a virtue. B. Most assembly worker

54、s are lazy. C. The word laziness is sometimes applied incorrectly. D. Most insecure people are lazy. 4. As used in this passage， the word “devised”（Para. 2） means_. A. understood B. wrote C. made D. proved 5. Being lazy may be good for_. A. doctors B. athletes C. executives D. those who overwork the

55、mselves 答案： 答案：1. B 2. D 3. C 4. C 5. D What do we think with？ Only the brain？ Hardly. The brain is like a telephone exchange. It is the switchboard， but not the whole system. Its function is to receive incoming signals， make proper connection， and send the messages through to their destination. For

56、 efficient service， the body must function as a whole. But where is the “mind”？ Is it in the brain？ Or perhaps in the nervous system？ After all， can we say that the mind is in any particular place？ It is not a thing， like a leg， or even the brain. It is a function， an activity. Aristotle， twenty-thr

57、ee hundred years ago， observed that the mind was to the body what cutting was to the ax. When the ax is not in use， there is no cutting. So with the mind. “Mind，” said Charles H. Woolbert， “is what the body is doing. ” If this activity is necessary for thinking， it is also necessary for carrying tho

58、ught from one person to another. Observe how people go about the business of ordinary conversation. If you have never done this painstakingly， you have a surprise in store， for good conversationalists are almost constantly in motion. Their heads are continually nodding and shaking sometimes so vigorousl