考研英语试题1985-1999

1999年SectionIIIReadingComprehension

Directions:

Eachofthepassagesbelowisfollowedbysomequestions.Foreachquestion

therearefouranswersmarked[A],[B],[C]and[D].Readthepassages

carefullyandchoosethebestanswertoeachofthequestions.Thenmark

youransweronANSWERSHEET1byblackeningthecorrespondingletterin

thebracketswithapencil.(40points)

Text1

It'saroughworldoutthere.Stepoutsideandyoucouldbreakaleg

slippingonyourdoormat.Lightupthestoveandyoucouldburndownthe

house.Luckily,ifthedoormatorstovefailedtowarnofcomingdisaster,

asuccessfullawsuitmightcompensateyouforyourtroubles.Orsothe

thinkinghasgonesincetheearly1980s,whenjuriesbeganholdingmore

companiesliablefortheircustomers?misfortunes.

Feelingthreatened,companiesrespondedbywritingever-longer

warninglabels,tryingtoanticipateeverypossibleaccident.Today,

stepladderscarrylabelsseveralincheslongthatwarn,amongotherthings,

thatyoumight--surprise!--falloff.Thelabelonachild'sBatman

capecautionsthatthetoy“doesnotenableusertofly.”

Whilewarningsareoftenappropriateandnecessary一一thedangersof

druginteractions,forexample-andmanyarerequiredbystateorfederal

regulations,itisn'tclearthattheyactuallyprotectthemanufacturers

andsellersfromliabilityifacustomerisinjured.About50percentof

thecompanieslosewheninjuredcustomerstakethemtocourt.

Nowthetideappearstobeturning.Aspersonalinjuryclaimscontinue

asbefore,somecourtsarebeginningtosidewithdefendants,especially

incaseswhereawarninglabelprobablywouldn'thavechangedanything.

InMay,JulieNimmons,presidentofSchuttSportsinIllinois,

successfullyfoughtalawsuitinvolvingafootballplayerwhowas

paralyzedinagamewhilewearingaSchutthelmet."We'rereallysorry

hehasbecomeparalyzed,buthelmetsaren,tdesignedtopreventthose

kindsofinjuries,“saysNimmons.Thejuryagreedthatthenatureofthe

game,notthehelmet,wasthereasonfortheathlete'sinjury.Atthe

sametime,theAmericanLawInstitute一一agroupofjudges,lawyers,and

academicswhoserecommendationscarrysubstantialweight-issuednew

guidelinesfortortlawstatingthatcompaniesneednotwarncustomers

ofobviousdangersorbombardthemwithalengthylistofpossibleones.

uImportantinformationcangetburiedinaseaoftrivialities,“says

alawprofessoratCornelllawSchoolwhohelpeddraftthenewguidelines.

Ifthemoderateendofthelegalcommunityhasitsway,theinformation

onproductsmightactuallybeprovidedforthebenefitofcustomersand

notasprotectionagainstlegalliability.

51.Whatwerethingslikein1980swhenaccidentshappened?

[A]Customersmightberelievedoftheirdisastersthroughlawsuits.

[B]Injuredcustomerscouldexpectprotectionfromthelegalsystem.

[C]Companieswouldavoidbeingsuedbyprovidingnewwarnings.

[D]Juriestendedtofindfaultwiththecompensationscompanies

promised.

52.Manufacturersasmentionedinthepassagetendto.

[A]satisfycustomersbywritinglongwarningsonproducts

[B]becomehonestindescribingtheinadequaciesoftheirproducts

[C]makethebestuseoflabelstoavoidlegalliability

[D]feelobligedtoviewcustomers'safetyastheirfirstconcern

53.ThecaseofSchutthelmetdemonstratedthat.

[A]someinjuryclaimswerenolongersupportedbylaw

[B]helmetswerenotdesignedtopreventinjuries

[C]productlabelswouldeventuallybediscarded

[D]somesportsgamesmightlosepopularitywithathletes

54.TheauthorJsattitudetowardstheissueseemstobe.

[A]biased

[B]indifferent

[C]puzzling

[D]objective

Text2

InthefirstyearorsoofWebbusiness,mostoftheactionhasrevolved

aroundeffortstotaptheconsumermarket.Morerecently,astheWebproved

tobemorethanafashion,companieshavestartedtobuyandsellproducts

andserviceswithoneanother.Suchbusiness-to-businesssalesmakesense

becausebusinesspeopletypicallyknowwhatproductthey'relookingfor.

Nonetheless,manycompaniesstillhesitatetousetheWebbecauseof

doubtsaboutitsreliability."Businessesneedtofeeltheycantrust

thepathwaybetweenthemandthesupplier,“sayssenioranalystBlane

ErwinofForresterResearch.Somecompaniesarelimitingtheriskby

conductingonlinetransactionsonlywithestablishedbusinesspartners

whoaregivenaccesstothecompany?sprivateintranet.

AnothermajorshiftinthemodelforInternetcommerceconcernsthe

technologyavailableformarketing.Untilrecently,Internetmarketing

activitieshavefocusedonstrategiesto“pull”customersintosites.

Inthepastyear,however,softwarecompanieshavedevelopedtoolsthat

allowcompaniesto“push”informationdirectlyouttoconsumers,

transmittingmarketingmessagesdirectlytotargetedcustomers.Most

notably,thePointcastNetworkusesascreensavertodelivera

continuallyupdatedstreamofnewsandadvertisementstosubscribersJ

computermonitors.Subscriberscancustomizetheinformationtheywant

toreceiveandproceeddirectlytoacompany*sWebsite.Companiessuch

asVirtualVineyardsarealreadystartingtousesimilartechnologiesto

pushmessagestocustomersaboutspecialsales,productofferings,or

otherevents.ButpushtechnologyhasearnedthecontemptofmanyWebusers.

Onlineculturethinkshighlyofthenotionthattheinformationflowing

ontothescreencomestherebyspecificrequest.Oncecommercialpromotion

beginstofillthescreenuninvited,thedistinctionbetweentheWeband

televisionfades.ThatJsaprospectthathorrifiesNetpurists.

ButitishardlyinevitablethatcompaniesontheWebwillneedto

resorttopushstrategiestomakemoney.TheexamplesofVirtualVineyards,

Amazon,com,andotherpioneersshowthataWebsitesellingtherightkind

ofproductswiththerightmixofinteractivity,hospitality,andsecurity

willattractonlinecustomers.Andthecostofcomputingpowercontinues

tofreefall,whichisagoodsignforanyenterprisesettingupshopin

silicon.Peoplelookingback5or10yearsfromnowmaywellwonderwhy

sofewcompaniestooktheonlineplunge.

55.WelearnfromthebeginningofthepassagethatWebbusiness.

[A]hasbeenstrivingtoexpanditsmarket

[B]intendedtofollowafancifulfashion

[C]triedbutinvaintocontrolthemarket

[D]hasbeenboomingforoneyearorso

56.Speakingoftheonlinetechnologyavailableformarketing,theauthor

impliesthat.

[A]thetechnologyispopularwithmanyWebusers

[B]businesseshavefaithinthereliabilityofonlinetransactions

[C]thereisaradicalchangeinstrategy

[D]itisaccessiblelimitedlytoestablishedpartners

57.IntheviewofNetpurists,.

[A]thereshouldbenomarketingmessagesinonlineculture

[B]moneymakingshouldbegivenprioritytoontheWeb

[C]theWebshouldbeabletofunctionasthetelevisionset

[D]thereshouldbenoonlinecommercialinformationwithoutrequests

58.Welearnfromthelastparagraphthat.

[A]pushinginformationontheWebisessentialtoInternetcommerce

[B]interactivity,hospitalityandsecurityareimportanttoonline

customers

[C]leadingcompaniesbegantotaketheonlineplungedecadesago

[D]settingupshopsinsiliconisindependentofthecostofcomputing

power

Text3

Aninvisibleborderdividesthosearguingforcomputersinthe

classroomonthebehalfofstudents'careerprospectsandthosearguing

forcomputersintheclassroomforbroaderreasonsofradicaleducational

reform.Veryfewwritersonthesubjecthaveexploredthisdistinction

--indeed,contradiction-whichgoestotheheartofwhatiswrongwith

thecampaigntoputcomputersintheclassroom.

Aneducationthataimsatgettingastudentacertainkindofjobis

atechnicaleducation,justifiedforreasonsradicallydifferentfromwhy

educationisuniversallyrequiredbylaw.Itisnotsimplytoraise

everyonesjobprospectsthatallchildrenarelegallyrequiredtoattend

schoolintotheirteens.Rather,wehaveacertainconceptionofthe

Americancitizen,acharacterwhoisincompleteifhecannotcompetently

assesshowhislivelihoodandhappinessareaffectedbythingsoutside

ofhimself.Butthiswasnotalwaysthecase;beforeitwaslegally

requiredforallchildrentoattendschooluntilacertainage,itwas

widelyacceptedthatsomewerejustnotequippedbynaturetopursuethis

kindofeducation.Withoptimismcharacteristicofallindustrialized

countries,wecametoacceptthateveryoneisfittobeeducated.

Computer-educationadvocatesforsakethisoptimisticnotionfora

pessimismthatbetraystheirotherwisecheeryoutlook.Bankingonthe

confusionbetweeneducationalandvocationalreasonsforbringing

computersintoschools,computeredadvocatesoftenemphasizethejob

prospectsofgraduatesovertheireducationalachievement.

Therearesomegoodargumentsforatechnicaleducationgiventhe

rightkindofstudent.ManyEuropeanschoolsintroducetheconceptof

professionaltrainingearlyoninordertomakesurechildrenareproperly

equippedfortheprofessionstheywanttojoin.Itis,however,

presumptuoustoinsistthattherewillonlybesomanyjobsforsomany

scientists,somanybusinessmen,somanyaccountants.Besides,thisis

unlikelytoproducetheneedednumberofeverykindofprofessionalin

acountryaslargeasoursandwheretheeconomyisspreadoversomany

statesandinvolvessomanyinternationalcorporations.

But,forasmallgroupofstudents,professionaltrainingmightbe

thewaytogosincewell-developedskills,allotherfactorsbeingequal,

canbethedifferencebetweenhavingajobandnot.Ofcourse,thebasics

ofusinganycomputerthesedaysareverysimple.Itdoesnottakea

lifelongacquaintancetopickupvarioussoftwareprograms.Ifonewanted

tobecomeacomputerengineer,thatis,ofcourse,anentirelydifferent

story.Basiccomputerskillstake一一attheverylongest一一acoupleof

monthstolearn.Inanycase,basiccomputerskillsareonlycomplementary

tothehostofrealskillsthatarenecessarytobecominganykindof

professional.Itshouldbeobserved,ofcourse,thatnoschool,vocational

ornot,ishelpedbyaconfusionoveritspurpose.

59.Theauthorthinksthepresentrushtoputcomputersintheclassroom

is.

[A]far-reaching

[B]dubiouslyoriented

[C]self-contradictory

[D]radicallyreformatory

60.Thebeliefthateducationisindispensabletoallchildren.

[A]isindicativeofapessimismindisguise

[B]cameintobeingalongwiththearrivalofcomputers

[C]isdeeplyrootedinthemindsofcomputeredadvocates

[D]originatedfromtheoptimisticattitudeofindustrialized

countries

61.Itcouldbeinferredfromthepassagethatintheauthor?scountry

theEuropeanmodelofprofessionaltrainingis.

[A]dependentuponthestartingageofcandidates

[B]worthtryinginvarioussocialsections

[C]oflittlepracticalvalue

[D]attractivetoeverykindofprofessional

62.Accordingtotheauthor,basiccomputerskillsshouldbe.

[A]includedasanauxiliarycourseinschool

[B]highlightedinacquisitionofprofessionalqualifications

[C]masteredthroughalife-longcourse

[D]equallyemphasizedbyanyschool,vocationalorotherwise

Text4

WhenaScottishresearchteamstartledtheworldbyrevealing3months

agothatithadclonedanadultsheep,PresidentClintonmovedswiftly.

Declaringthathewasopposedtousingthisunusualanimalhusbandry

techniquetoclonehumans,heorderedthatfederalfundsnotbeusedfor

suchanexperiment--althoughnoonehadproposedtodoso-andasked

anindependentpanelofexpertschairedbyPrincetonPresidentHarold

ShapirotoreportbacktotheWhiteHousein90dayswithrecommendations

foranationalpolicyonhumancloning.Thatgroup一一theNational

BioethicsAdvisoryCommission(NBAC)--hasbeenworkingfeverishlyto

putitswisdomonpaper,andatameetingon17May,membersagreedon

anear-finaldraftoftheirrecommendations.

NBACwillaskthatClinton,s90-daybanonfederalfundsforhuman

cloningbeextendedindefinitely,andpossiblythatitbemadelaw.But

NBACmembersareplanningtowordtherecommendationnarrowlytoavoid

newrestrictionsonresearchthatinvolvesthecloningofhumanDNAor

cells一一routineinmolecularbiology.Thepanelhasnotyetreached

agreementonacrucialquestion,however,whethertorecommend

legislationthatwouldmakeitacrimeforprivatefundingtobeusedfor

humancloning.

Inadraftprefacetotherecommendations,discussedatthe17May

meeting,Shapirosuggestedthatthepanelhadfoundabroadconsensusthat

itwouldbemorallyunacceptabletoattempttocreateahumanchildby

adultnuclearcloning."Shapiroexplainedduringthemeetingthatthe

moraldoubtstemsmainlyfromfearsabouttherisktothehealthofthe

child.Thepaneltheninformallyacceptedseveralgeneralconclusions,

althoughsomedetailshavenotbeensettled.

NBACplanstocallforacontinuedbanonfederalgovernmentfunding

foranyattempttoclonebodycellnucleitocreateachild.Because

currentfederallawalreadyforbidstheuseoffederalfundstocreate

embryos(theearlieststageofhumanoffspringbeforebirth)forresearch

ortoknowinglyendangeranembryo?slife,NBACwillremainsilenton

embryoresearch.

NBACmembersalsoindicatedthattheywillappealtoprivatelyfunded

researchersandclinicsnottotrytoclonehumansbybodycellnuclear

transfer.Buttheyweredividedonwhethertogofurtherbycallingfor

afederallawthatwouldimposeacompletebanonhumancloning.Shapiro

andmostmembersfavoredanappealforsuchlegislation,butinaphone

interview,hesaidthisissuewasstill“upintheair.”

63.Wecanlearnfromthefirstparagraphthat.

[A]federalfundshavebeenusedinaprojecttoclonehumans

[B]theWhiteHouserespondedstronglytothenewsofcloning

[C]NBACwasauthorizedtocontrolthemisuseofcloningtechnique

[D]theWhiteHousehasgotthepanel?srecommendationsoncloning

64.Thepanelagreedonallofthefollowingexceptthat.

[A]thebanonfederalfundsforhumancloningshouldbemadealaw

[B]thecloningofhumanDNAisnottobeputundermorecontrol

[C]itiscriminaltouseprivatefundingforhumancloning

[D]itwouldbeagainstethicalvaluestocloneahumanbeing

65.NBACwillleavetheissueofembryoresearchundiscussedbecause

[A]embryoresearchisjustacurrentdevelopmentofcloning

[B]thehealthofthechildisnotthemainconcernofembryoresearch

[C]anembryo?slifewillnotbeendangeredinembryoresearch

[D]theissueisexplicitlystatedandsettledinthelaw

66.Itcanbeinferredfromthelastparagraphthat.

[A]someNBACmembershesitatetobanhumancloningcompletely

[B]alawbanninghumancloningistobepassedinnotime

[C]privatelyfundedresearcherswillrespondpositivelytoNBAC's

appeal

[D]theissueofhumancloningwillsoonbesettled

Text5

Science,inpractice,dependsfarlessontheexperimentsitprepares

thanonthepreparednessofthemindsofthemenwhowatchtheexperiments.

SirIsaacNewtonsupposedlydiscoveredgravitythroughthefallofan

apple.Appleshadbeenfallinginmanyplacesforcenturiesandthousands

ofpeoplehadseenthemfall.ButNewtonforyearshadbeencuriousabout

thecauseoftheorbitalmotionofthemoonandplanets.Whatkeptthem

inplace?Whydidn,ttheyfalloutofthesky?Thefactthattheapple

felldowntowardtheearthandnotupintothetreeansweredthequestion

hehadbeenaskinghimselfaboutthoselargerfruitsoftheheavens,the

moonandtheplanets.

Howmanymenwouldhaveconsideredthepossibilityofanapplefalling

upintothetree?Newtondidbecausehewasnottryingtopredictanything.

Hewasjustwondering.Hismindwasreadyfortheunpredictable.

Unpredictabilityispartoftheessentialnatureofresearch.Ifyou

don'thaveunpredictablethings,youdon,thaveresearch.Scientists

tendtoforgetthiswhenwritingtheircutanddriedreportsforthe

technicaljournals,buthistoryisfilledwithexamplesofit.

Intalkingtosomescientists,particularlyyoungerones,youmight

gathertheimpressionthattheyfindthe“scientificmethod”a

substituteforimaginativethought.I'veattendedresearchconferences

whereascientisthasbeenaskedwhathethinksabouttheadvisability

ofcontinuingacertainexperiment.Thescientisthasfrowned,lookedat

thegraphs,andsaid“thedataarestillinconclusive.“Weknow

that,“themenfromthebudgetofficehavesaid,“butwhatdoyouthink?

Isitworthwhilegoingon?Whatdoyouthinkwemightexpect?”The

scientisthasbeenshockedathavingevenbeenaskedtospeculate.

Whatthisamountsto,ofcourse,isthatthescientisthasbecomethe

victimofhisownwritings.Hehasputforwardunquestionedclaimsso

consistentlythathenotonlybelievesthemhimself,buthasconvinced

industrialandbusinessmanagementthattheyaretrue.Ifexperimentsare

plannedandcarriedoutaccordingtoplanasfaithfullyasthereports

inthesciencejournalsindicate,thenitisperfectlylogicalfor

managementtoexpectresearchtoproduceresultsmeasurableindollars

andcents.Itisentirelyreasonableforauditorstobelievethat

scientistswhoknowexactlywheretheyaregoingandhowtheywillget

thereshouldnotbedistractedbythenecessityofkeepingoneeyeonthe

cashregisterwhiletheothereyeisonthemicroscope.Nor,ifregularity

andconformitytoastandardpatternareasdesirabletothescientist

asthewritingofhispaperswouldappeartoreflect,ismanagementto

beblamedfordiscriminatingagainstthe“oddballs”amongresearchers

infavorofmoreconventionalthinkerswho“workwellwiththeteam.”

67.TheauthorwantstoprovewiththeexampleofIsaacNewtonthat

[A]inquiringmindsaremoreimportantthanscientificexperiments

[B]scienceadvanceswhenfruitfulresearchesareconducted

[C]scientistsseldomforgettheessentialnatureofresearch

[D]unpredictabilityweighslessthanpredictioninscientific

research

68.Theauthorassertsthatscientists.

[A]shouldn,treplaceuscientificmethodvwithimaginative

thought

[B]shouldn,tneglecttospeculateonunpredictablethings

[C]shouldwritemoreconcisereportsfortechnicaljournals

[D]shouldbeconfidentabouttheirresearchfindings

69.Itseemsthatsomeyoungscientists.

[A]haveakeeninterestinprediction

[B]oftenspeculateonthefuture

[C]thinkhighlyofcreativethinking

[D]sticktoascientificmethod”

70.Theauthorimpliesthattheresultsofscientificresearch.

[A]maynotbeasprofitableastheyareexpected

[B]canbemeasuredindollarsandcents

[C]relyonconformitytoastandardpattern

[D]aremostlyunderestimatedbymanagement

1999年SectionIII:ReadingComprehension(40points)

51.[B]52.[C]53.[A]54.[D]55.[A]

56.[C]57.[D]58.[B]59.[B]60.[D]

61.[C]62.[A]63.[B]64.[C]65.[D]

66.[A]67.[A]68.[B]69.[D]70.[A]

1998年SectionIIIReadingComprehension

Directions:

Eachofthepassagesbelowisfollowedbysomequestions.Foreachquestion

therearefouranswersmarked[A],[B],[C]and[D].Readthepassages

carefullyandchoosethebestanswertoeachofthequestions.Thenmark

youranswerontheANSWERSHEET1byblackeningthecorrespondingletter

inthebracketswithapencil.(40points)

Text1

Fewcreationsofbigtechnologycapturetheimaginationlikegiant

dams.Perhapsitishumankind'slongsufferingatthemercyoffloodand

droughtthatmakestheideaofforcingthewaterstodoourbiddingso

fascinating.Buttobefascinatedisalso,sometimes,tobeblind.Several

giantdamprojectsthreatentodomoreharmthangood.

Thelessonfromdamsisthatbigisnotalwaysbeautiful.Itdoesn't

helpthatbuildingabig,powerfuldamhasbecomeasymbolofachievement

fornationsandpeoplestrivingtoassertthemselves.Egypt'sleadership

intheArabworldwascementedbytheAswanHighDam.Turkey'sbidfor

FirstWorldstatusincludesthegiantAtaturkDam.

Butbigdamstendnottoworkasintended.TheAswanDam,forexample,

stoppedtheNilefloodingbutdeprivedEgyptofthefertilesiltthat

floodsleft-一allinreturnforagiantreservoirofdiseasewhichis

nowsofullofsiltthatitbarelygenerateselectricity.

Andyet,themythofcontrollingthewaterspersists.Thisweek,in

theheartofcivilizedEurope,SlovaksandHungariansstoppedjustshort

ofsendinginthetroopsintheircontentionoveradamontheDanube.

Thehugecomplexwillprobablyhavealltheusualproblemsofbigdams.

ButSlovakiaisbiddingforindependencefromtheCzechs,andnowneeds

adamtoproveitself.

Meanwhile,inIndia,theWorldBankhasgiventhego-aheadtotheeven

morewrong-headedNarmadaDam.Andthebankhasdonethiseventhoughits

advisorssaythedamwillcausehardshipforthepowerlessand

environmentaldestruction.Thebenefitsareforthepowerful,butthey

arefarfromguaranteed.

Proper,scientificstudyoftheimpactsofdamsandofthecostand

benefitsofcontrollingwatercanhelptoresolvetheseconflicts.

Hydroelectricpowerandfloodcontrolandirrigationarepossiblewithout

buildingmonsterdams.Butwhenyouaredealingwithmyths,itishard

tobeeitherproper,orscientific.Itistimethattheworldlearnedthe

lessonsofAswan.Youdon,tneedadamtobesaved.

51.ThethirdsentenceofParagraph1impliesthat.

[A]peoplewouldbehappyiftheyshuttheireyestoreality

[B]theblindcouldbehappierthanthesighted

[C]over-excitedpeopletendtoneglectvitalthings

[D]fascinationmakespeoplelosetheireyesight

52.InParagraph5,“thepowerlessvprobablyrefersto.

[A]areasshortofelectricity

[B]damswithoutpowersta