考研英语真题80-99年

1980年全国硕士研究生入学统一考试英语试题

SectionIUseofPrepositions

在所给的介词中选择一个适当的填入空白：(本大题共5分，每题£分)(注意：各题只能填

写一个答案，多填答案不得分)

to,at,insteadof,from,of,with,on,among,between,becauseof,about,forinto,withregard

to,over

1.Thefindingsarefarsatisfactory.

2.Weshalldividetheworkusresearchworkers.

3.Therainyseasoninthatcountryvaries3-4months.

4.Theyhaveneverheardsuchaninvention.

5.Wemustpayattentionthelatestdevelopmentofthesituation.

6.Thenewly-installedcontrolcomputerwillsoonbeputuse.

7.ThenewswhichIamgoingtotellyouisratherserious.

8.Theengineerseemedtoknowwhatthesignstood.

9.Themachinetoolwentoutofcontrolmishandling.

10.Don'tbesatisfiedwhatyouhaveachieved.

SectionIIVerbTenses

用所给动词的适当时态语态填入空白：(本大题共10分，第7题2分，其余各题均1分)渔

意：各题只能填写一个答案，多填答案不得分)

11.Thosewho'dliketovisittheexhibition(sign)yournameshere.

12.Agreatnumberofsmallpowerstations(setup)intheircountysinceliberation.

13.Heaskedmewhethermybrother(fly)toBeijing.

14.Hefellasleepimmediatelylastnight;hemust(be)verytired.

15.“Haveyoumovedintothenewflat?”

“Notyet.Therooms(paint).”

16.Thedirectorrecommendedthatshe(study)moreEnglishbeforegoingabroad.

17.Theteachertoldthemsincelight(travel)fasterthansound,lightning

(appear)togobeforethunder.

18.Howlongthey(dig)theditch?

19.Herefusedtotelluswhetherhe(undertake)thejob.

SectionIIIVerbForms

用所给动词的适当形式(不定式、分词、动名词)填入空白：(本大题共15分，每题4分)

(注意：各题只能填写一个答案，多填答案不得分)

20.Matteristhename(give)toeverythingwhichhasweightandoccupiesspace.

21.Ishallneverforget(meet)thelatePremierZhouduringhisinspectionofour

factory.

22.Iwonderifhecouldgetit(do)beforetomorrow.

23.Night(fall),wehurriedhome.

24.Abeamoflightwillnotbendroundcornersunless(make)todosowiththehelp

ofareflectingdevice.

25.Wewerebusy(get)thingsreadyforthetrialproductionwhenhephonedus.

26.Somemoleculesarelargeenough(see)undertheelectronicmicroscope.

27.Thefloordoesnotlooksobadwhen(sweep)clean.

28.(fail)severaltimes,theyneedsomeencouragement.

29.(catch)intherain,hewaswettotheskin.

SectionIVStructureandVocabulary

选择填空：(本大题共15分,每题1分)在每题下面的[A],[B],[C],[D]四个答案中,将你认

为最合适的答案画个“O”。(注意：各题只能填写一个答案，多填答案不得分)

EXAMPLE:

HemethathedecidedtoleaveonMonday.

[A]spokefB]said[C]talked[D]toldANSWER:[D]

30.Thistestanumberofmultiplechoicequestions.

[A]composesof[B|composesin|C]consistsof[D]consistsin

31.Shewritesasashersister.

[A]clear|B]moreclear[C]clearly[D|mostclearly

32.Ipreferthisdiagramthatone.

[A]than[B]morethanfC]ratherthan[D]to

33.Ihavebeenstudyinghereforfouryears,bynextsummerI.

[A]shallgraduate!B|shallbegraduated|C]shallbegraduating|D]shallhavegraduated

34.Hardlyhadhefinishedhisspeechtheaudiencestartedcheering.

[A]and[B]when[C]than[D]as

35.Iwishyoulikethat.

[A]don'ttalk[B]won'ttalk[C]wouldn'ttalk[D]nottotalk

36.Onlywhenyouhaveobtainedsufficientdatacometoasoundconclusion.

[A]canyou|B]wouldyou[C]youwill[D]youcan

37.Ifoundtoanswerallthequestionswithinthetimegiven.

[A]nopossibility[B]therewasimpossibility[C]impossible[D]itimpossible

38.Yougonow.It'sgettinglate.

[A]hadrather[Blwouldrather[C]hadbetter[D]wouldbetter

39.Hotmetalasitgrowscooler.

[A]contracts[B]reduces|C]condenses|D]compresses

40.Wooddoesnotconductelectricity;.

[AJsodoesn'trubber[B]alsodoesn'trubber[C]nordoesrubber[D]norrubberdoes

41.ComradeLibeinBeijingbecauseIsawhimintownonlyafewminutesago.

[A]mustn't[B]canHtC]maynot[D]isn'tableto

42.Iknowitisn'timportantbutIcan'thelpaboutit.

[A]buttothink[B]thinking[C]think[D]tothink

43.Themorewelookedatthepicture,.

|A]thelesswelikedit|B]welikeitless[C]betterwelikedit|D|itlookedbetter

44.Tosucceedinascientificresearchproject.

[A]oneneedstobepersistent[B]persistenceisneeded

[C]oneneedsbeapersistentperson

[D]persistenceiswhatoneneeds

SectionVError-detection

认辩错误：（本大题共5分，每题1分）下面句子中有四处划线部分，在你

认为是错误的一处画上（注意：各题只能填写一个答案，多填答案不得分）

EXAMPLE:

Itisverykindofyoutosupplymewithsomanyinformations.

ABCD

ANSWER:[D]

45.Neverbeforehassomanypeopleinourcountrybeeninterestedinathleticsports.

ABCD

46.ThoseofuswhoworkinthatchemicalplantshouldhavetheirlungsX-rayed.

ABCD

47.Afterthetrafficaccidenthelaidinbedfortwoweeks,waitingforhiswoundtoheal.

ABCD

48.Weadvicehimtogiveupsmokinganddoalotofexercises.

ABCD

49.Theprincipalreasonforthegreatnumberofsmokeisthattherearetoomanyfactories

ABCD

inthecity.

SectionVIChinese-EnglishTranslation

将下列句子译成英语：（本大题共20分，第1题2分，其余各题均3分）

50.水一煮沸请立即把开关关掉。

51.在八十年代，中国人民将以更大的步伐向前迈进。

52.我们都同意李同志已作出的决定。

53.这个结果比我们预期的要好得多。

54.在过去的三年中，在恢复我国国民经济方面做了大量的工作。

55.我们把英语作为学习西方先进科学技术的一种工具。

56.没有党的领导，我国的社会主义现代化是不可能实现的。

SectionVIIEnglish-ChineseTranslation

将下列短文译成汉语：（本大题30分）（文科各类专业译第1段，理、工、医、农、体各类

专业译第2段）

（1）

ThelifeofAlbertEinsteinisamodelinmanywaysforbothnaturalandpoliticalscientists.

Firstofall,healwaysemployedthescientificmethodofseekingtruthfromfacts.Hefirmly

believedasheputit,that“thereisnothingincomprehensibleabouttheuniverse,"andthrough

painstakingwork,explainedmanyofthephenomenathoughttobe“incomprehensible“inhisday.

Einsteinwasalsoneverafraidtoadmitmistakeswhenfactsprovedhistheorieswrong.

Second,Einstein'scontributionsshowedthegreatimportanceoftheoreticalworktoscientific

effort.Althoughhehimselfrarelyworkedinlaboratories,theconceptshedevelopedledtomany

ofthescientificadvanceswhichhaveshapedmoderntechnology.

Third,Einsteinbelievedverydeeplythatscientistsmusthaveamoralandsocial

consciousness.Inthisway,heprovidedinspirationforawholegenerationofscientistswho

becameactiveintheCommunistmovement.

Einsteinisoftenportrayedinbourgeoiswritingsasa“genius“whosetheoriesareso

complicatedthatnoonebutafewbestscientistscanunderstandthem.Buthehimselfrejectedthe

effortstoputhiminapositionfaraboveotherpeople.Hewaswellknownforhishumblemanner

andoftenstressedtointerviewersthathisaccomplishmentswouldcertainlyhavebeenachieved

byothershadheneverlived.

Actually,Einstein'stheoryofrelativityandhisotherscientificworksarenotthathardto

understandwithalittlestudy.ButbeyondlearningEinstein'stheories,hisoverallattitudetowards

scienceasatooltoliberatehumanityissomethingfromwhicheveryonecanandshouldlearn.

（2）

Betweennowandtheendofthecentury,therewillbemanyexcitingdevelopmentsandalso

manydifficultproblemstodealwith.Perhapsthemosturgentproblemistoprovideenoughfood.

Theworld'spopulationisexpectedtoreach7,000millionbytheyear2000,butalreadyscientists

haveproducednewandbettervarietiesofwheatandriceandanimal.Theyhavealsobeen

experimentingwithtechniquesofcultivatingplantsbyusingmixturesofchemicalcompoundsand

wateronly,andthentherewillbenoneedforordinarysoil.Anotherproblemwhichtheworldwill

faceistogetridofrefuse（废料）.Onesolutionistobumrefuseatveryhightemperaturesin

incinerators（焚化炉）.Adevelopmentofthis,whichmayproveveryusefulinthefuture,istouse

theseincineratorstogeneratesteampower.Infact,anynewsourceofenergywillbevery

welcome,asthereisalreadyashortageofpetroleum.Tosolvetheenergyproblem,scientistswill

probablyalsotrytomakemoreuseofsolarenergy.

Thepossibleeffectsofsomescientificfields,suchaslasersandcryogenics（低温学）,are

difficulttoimagineandbothalreadyhaveanumberofuses.Thesupercoolingeffectsofthe

cryogenicswhichconvertliquidhelium（液态氮）andothergasesinto“superfluids“andmetals

into“superconductors"，makingthemnon-resistanttoelectricity,couldchangetheworldina

numberofways.Thelaser,withitsbeamofstronglight,candrillaholeinadiamond,andyetcan

besowellcontrolledthatitcanbeusedindelicateeyeoperations.Thequestioniswhetheritwill

bemostusedforpeacefulpurposesorasadeadlyweapon.

Butperhapsthemostremarkabledevelopmentswilloccurinspaceflight.Oneofthe

difficultiesinthepasthasbeenthehighcost,butnowthespaceshuttleisbeingdeveloped,and

canbeusedalargenumberoftimesinsteadofonlyonce.Alreadymanhasbeentothemoon.

Perhapsbytheendofthecenturyhewillhavehadaclose-upviewofVenus（金星）orMars（火

星）.

1980年考研英语真题答案

SectionI:UseofPrepositions（5points）

fromamong

betweenof

toto,into

aboutfor

becauseofwith

SectionII:VerbTenses（10points）

signhavebeensetup

hadflownhavebeen

arebeingpaintedstudy

travels,appearshave...beendigging

wouldundertake

SectionIII:VerbForms（15points）

givenmeeting

50.Pleaseturnofftheswitch(switchoff)assoonasthewaterboils.

51.TheChinesepeoplewillfbrgeahead(marchon,marchonward,marchforward)withgreater

stridesin1980,s.

52.WeallagreetothedecisioncomradeLihasmade(made).

53.Theresultismuch(far)betterthanweexpected.

54.Duringthepastthreeyearsalot(ofwork)hasbeendoneintherecovery(restoration)ofour

nationaleconomy(inrecoveringournationaleconomy;inrestoringournationaleconomy).

55.WeuseEnglishasatoolinlearningWesternadvancedscienceandtechnology.

56.Itisimpossibletoaccomplish(carryout,fulfill,materialize)thesocialistmodernizationof

ourcountry(oursocialistmodernization)withouttheleadershipoftheParty.

SectionVII:English-ChineseTranslation(30points)

(1)

阿伯特•爱因斯坦的一生在许多方面，无论是对自然科学家，还是政治科学家，都是一

个范例。

首先，他总是运用从事实中寻求真理的地。正如他所说的，他坚信“关于宇宙没有东西

是不可知的，”并经过艰苦的劳动，了许多在他那个时代被认为是“不可知”的种种现象。

而且，当事实证明他的理论是错误的时候，爱因斯坦也从不害怕承认错误。

其次，爱因斯坦的贡献说明理论工作对科学成就的巨大的重要性。虽然他自己很少在实

验室工作，他所发展的各种概念使科学取得了许多进展，从而形成了现代技术。

第三，爱因斯坦深信科学家必须具有道德和社会意识。这样，他鼓舞了整个一代的科学

家，使他们积极参加共产主义运动。

爱因斯坦在资产阶级的笔下被描绘为一个“天才”，他的理论是如此地难于理解，以致

只有少数最杰出的科学家才能懂得。但是，他本人不同意别人把他高置于他人之上的那些做

法。他的谦逊态度是众所周知的，他常常对来访者强调说，如果没有他的话，别人也肯定能

够取得他那样的成就。

事实上，爱因斯坦的相对论以及他的其他科学论著稍加研究是不难懂得的。但是除了学

习爱因斯坦的理论外，他对于利用科学作为一种工具来解放人类的总的态度是每个人能够学

习的，而且也是应该学习的。

(2)

从现在到本世纪末，将有许多令人兴奋的发展，同样也有许多困难的问题，需要加以处

理。也许最为迫切的问题是提供足够的粮食。到2000年世界人口预期将达到70亿，但是科

学家们已经培育出各种小麦、稻谷和牲畜的优良品种。他们还在实验只用化合物和水的混合

剂来培植作物的技术，到那里就可不需一般的土壤了。世界将面对着的另一问题是处理废物。

有一个解决办法就是在焚化炉中用高温的废物烧掉。这种方法的一个新发展，可能在将来证

明极为有用，即是以这些焚火炉来产生蒸汽动力。事实是，任何新的能源都将是非常受欢迎

的，因为石油已感不足。要解决能源问题，科学家们也许会高潮更多地利用太阳能。

诸如激光学和低温学，某些科学领域的可能作用是难以想象的，它们两者已经有若干用

途。低温学的过冷作用将液态氮及某些气体变成“超流体”，将某些金属变成“超导体”，使

它们没有电阻，从而可以在好些方面改变世界面貌。激光，以它强烈的光束，可在金刚石上

钻孔,也可以很好地加以控制来进行难做的眼科手术。问题是它将被大量用于和平的目的呢，

还是用途致使的武器。

但最惊人的发展也许将出现在宇宙飞行方面。过去的困难之一在于代价太高。但现在航

天飞机正在发展，这种航天飞机可以使用多次而不是仅仅一次而已。人类已经到过月球。也

许到本世纪末人类对金星或火星等将有一个精细的观察.

1981年全国硕士研究生入学统一考试英语试题

SectionIStructureandVocabulary

Ineachquestion,decidewhichofthefivechoicesgivenwouldmostsuitablycompletethe

sentence.Circletheletterbeforeyourchoice.Onlyonechoiceistobecircled(14points)

EXAMPLE:

Theguestssaidthattheywouldn'tmind.

[A]tohavealittlelightmusic[B]havingalittlelightmusic[C]havealittlelightmusic[D]ifthey

havealittlelightmusic[E]thattheyhavealittlelightmusicANSWER:|B|

1.Shehasbeenworkinginthisfactory.

[A]after1968[B]in1968[C]since1968[D]for1968[E]until1968

2.Wecan'tunderstandwhyheavoidedtous.

[A]tospeak[B]speech[C]havingspoken[D]speaking[E]tohavespoken

3.Iaminterestedinyouhavetoldme.

[A]which|B|allthat|C|allwhat|D|that|E]everythingofwhich

4.Itisbecausesheistooinexperiencedshedoesnotknowhowtodealwiththe

situation.

[A]so[B]that[C]sothat[D]therefore[E]thatiswhy

5.Hewasafraidhewouldhavetoherinvitationtotheparty.

[A]refute[B]refuse[C]return[D]ignore[E]decline

6.Shewantstoknowwhetherthemeasureshavebeenagreed.

[AJto|B|with[C]about[D]upon[E]over

7.Sincesheisangry,we.

[A]hadbetterleavingheralone[B]shouldleaveheralone[C]mightaswellleaveheralone[D]

hadratherleaveheralone[E]mustleaveheralone

8.IwishItothemovieswithyoulastnight.

[A]went[B]didgo[C]couldgo[D]havegone[E]couldhavegone

9.Scarcelyhadtheysettledthemselvesintheirseatsinthetheatrethecurtainwent

up.

[A]than[B]when[C]before[D]assoonas[E]as

10.Writeclearlyyourteachercanunderstandyoucorrectly.

[AJsince[B]for[C]because[D]sothat[E]then

11.Ifthedoctorhadbeenavailable,thechild.

[A]wouldnotdie[B]wouldnothavedied[C]couldnotdie[D]couldnothavedied[E]shouldnot

havedied

12.Fdjustassoonrudelytoher.

[A]thatyouwon'tspeak[B]yournotspeaking[C]younotspeak[D]youhadn'tspoken[E]you

didn'tspeak

13.Tenyearshadelapsed.Ifoundshehad.

[A]alittlewhitehair[B]somewhitehair[C]muchwhitehair[DJafewwhitehair[E]afewwhite

hairs

14.Theelectricshaverbeforeitcanbeused.

[A]needsrepairing[B]requirestoberepaired[C]shouldbeinrepair[D]hastoberepairable[E]

mustrepair

SectionIIError-detection

Eachquestionconsistsofasentencewithfiveunderlinedparts(wordsorphrases).Thesepartsare

labeled[A],[B],[C],[D]and[E].Choosethepartofthesentencethatisincorrectandcirclethe

letterofyourchoice.Onlyonechoiceistobemarked.(8points)

EXAMPLE:

Wedjdtheresearchasgoodaswecould:howerver,itdidnotturnouttobe

ABCDE

satisfactory.

ANSWER:[B]

15.Thepresidentofthecollege,togetherwiththedeans,areplanningaconferenceforthe

ABCD

purposeoflayingdowncertainregulations.

E

16.Inordertoconvincethedirectortoagreewiththeirplan,theybroughtforthanumberof

ABC

reportswhichsupportedtheirargument.

DE

17.Hismethodofdoingresearchworkishardlyappreciated;hefeelsinferiorthanothers.

ABCDE

18.Aseriesofdebatesbetweenthelecturerswerescheduledforthenextweekend.

ABCDE

19.Theautomobileindustryismanufacturinganewtypeofamotorthatwillconsumeless

ABCD

gasolineandcausemuchlesspollution.

E

20.WhenhisplanearrivesontheairportinShanghai,IshallalreadyhaveleflforBeijing.

ABCDE

21.Theindustrialtrendisinthedirectionofmoremachinesand2sspeople.

ABCDE

22.Theworkerswerealreadytoworklongbeforehearrived.

ABCDE

SectionIIISentenceMaking

Combinethegivenwordsandphrasesintosentences.(4points)

EXAMPLE:

Hissons/he/theirgrandmother/tosee/justbeforehislastbirthday/take

ANSWER:

Justbeforehislastbirthdayhetookhissonstoseetheirgrandmother.

23.lastmonth/inEurope/travel/she/since

24.thedecision/asfinal/frankly/should/notconsider

25.tothestranger/talk/there/stand/awhileago/he

26.thiskindof/can/getusedto/1/never/food/eat

SectionIVVerbForms

Fillintheblankswiththeappropriateformsoftheverbgiveninparentheses.(14points)

EXAMPLE:

叮hose,“hesaid,(point)tothebooks(pile)onthedesk,"

(need)overtherenow.”

ANSWER:pointing:piled;areneeded

Thousandsofyears(pass)sincethen;butpeoplestill(like)

(tell)thestoryofLeonidasandthebravethreehundredwho(dedicate)theirlivesto

theircountry.

ANSWER:havepassed:like:totell;dedicated

27.Thepublicdemandedthattheprices(reduce).

28.Withtheguide(lead)theway,wesetoffonfootintothedarknight.

29.Ineedthatbookbadly.Ifyougotothebookshopthisafternoon,pleaseremember

(buy)acopyforme.

30.(arrive)homeatdaybreak,hefeltdeadtired.He(work)allnight.

31.(exhaust)byhiswork,helaydownonthebedtotakearest.

32.We'Hhavetotakearoundaboutcourse,fortheroad(repair).

33.Nodecision(make)aboutthatmatteryet.We(stillconsider)it.

34.(meet)Tomearliertoday,Idon'tneedtoseehimagain.

35.Ifyou(go)onatthepresentrate,you(use)upallthepetroleumbythe

endofthemonth.

36.Thebuildingissaid(destroy)inafiretwoyearsago.

37.Thecar(go)atthepresentspeeduntilitreachesthefootofthemountainatabout

teno'clocktonight.

SectionVClozeTest

Fillintheblankswithproperwords(10points)

Inrecentyearstelevisionhasbecomethemostpopularformofentertainment.Itdoesnot

lookasifitwillbe38popularintheworldofthefuture.Infactitlooksasiftelevision

willbecomemorepopularthanever.Newsystemsoftelevisionhavebeenmadepossible

39thediscoveryofthelaser.Alaserisabeamoflightthathasmanystrangequalities.By

usingalaser,itispossibletothroweverylargeandverycleartelevisionpictureson40a

screen.Thesepicturesmaybeaslargeasthreemeters41Manypeoplecouldwatchthis

kindoftelevisiontogether.

Laserbeamshavealsomadeverythintelevisionsets42Thesesetscanbehungon

thewallofaroomlikealargepicture.Anotherdevelopmentinthefuturewillbethree

dimensionaltelevision;thepicturewilllookmore'real'43itwillhavedepthaswellas

heightandlength.

Inthenearfutureyouwillbeabletobuyyourfavouritetelevisionprogrammesalready

44ontapes.Theywillbelikethetapes45areusedinsmallcassettetaperecorders

today.Youwillalsobeabletorecordtelevisionprogrammesandplaythem46later.The

laserbeamwillmake47possible.

SectionVIChinese-EnglishTranslation

TranslatethefollowingintoEnglish.(10points)

48.这门课我们越学越喜欢。

49.这家工厂只能供应我们所需要的百分之三十。

50.他们一直谈到入睡。

51.许多人以为电是燃料，但事实上并非如此。

52.我国的社会主义现代化是一项我们必须努力完成的任务。

SectionVIIEnglish-ChineseTranslation

ChooseoneofthefollowingthreepassagesandtranslateitintoChinese.(40points)

(1)

TheUnitedKingdomisamonarchical(君主政体的)State.Itisoneoftheindependent

membersoftheCommonwealth(theQueenisrecognizedasheadoftheCommonwealth),anda

memberoftheEuropeanCommunity.

TheoriginsandtraditionsoftheUnitedKingdomaretobefoundineachofthefourparts

thatmakeupthecountry:England,Wales,ScotlandandNorthernIreland.Englandwasunitedasa

kingdomathousandyearsago,andWalesbecamepartofthekingdomduringthemiddleages.

Thethrones(王位)ofEnglandandScotlandwereunitedin1603,andin1707legislationpassed

inthetwocountriesprovidedfortheestablishmentofasingleParliamentofGreatBritainwith

supremeauthoritybothinEnglandandWalesandinScotland.Irelandhadhadlinkswiththe

kingdomofEnglandsincethethirteenthcentury,andin1800thecreationoftheUnitedKingdom

wascompletedbyaunionjoiningtheIrishParliamenttothatofGreatBritain.In1922Southern

Ireland(nowtheIrishRepublic)becameaself-governingcountry.ThesixcountiesofNorthern

Irelandhadin1920beengiventheirownsubordinateParliament,andvotedtoremainwithinthe

UnitedKingdom.

TheUnitedKingdomParliamentatWestminsterinLondon——withanelectedchamber

comprisingmembersfromEnglish,Scottish,WelshandNorthernIrelandconstituencies(选举区)

——thereforerepresentspeoplesharingveryvariedbackgroundsandtraditions.Ithasultimate

authorityforgovernmentandlaw-making,butadministrativearrangementshavedevelopedin

suchawayastotakeaccountoftheparticularneedsofdifferentareas.

EnglandandWalesontheonehandandScotlandontheotherhavedifferentsystemsoflaw,

differentcourtsystems,differenteducationsystems,differentsystemsoflocalgovernmentand,

formostdomesticmatters,differentgovernmentdepartments.

(2)

Asmorepeopleliveclosertogether,andastheyusemachinestoproduceleisure,theyfind

thattheirleisure,andeventheirworkinghours,becomespoiltbyaby-productoftheirmachines

一namely,noise.Noiseisnowadaysinthenews;ithasacquiredpoliticalstatus,andpublic

opinionisdemanding,moreandmoreinsistently,thatsomethingmustbedoneaboutit.

Tocontrolnoiseistodemandmuchself-discipline(annoyancearisesoftenfromlackof

commoncourtesy),asenseofproportion(thereisusuallyaconflictofinterestifanoiseistobe

stopped),theexpenditureofmoney(anditisfarmoreeconomicaltodothisearlyratherthatlate),

andfinally,technicalknowledge.

Technicaldifficultiesoftenarisefromthesubjective-objectivenatureoftheproblem.Youcan

definetheexcessivespeedofamotor-carintermsofapointerreadingonaspeedometer.Butcan

youdefineexcessivenoiseinthesameway?Youfindthatwithanyexistingsimple“noise-meter”,

vehicleswhicharejudgedtobeequallynoisymayshowconsiderabledifferenceonthemeter.

Thoughtheidealcurefornoiseistostopitatitssource,thismayinmanycasesbe

impossible.Thenextremedyistoabsorbitonitswaytotheear.

Domesticnoisesmayperhapsbecontrolledbyforethoughtandcourtesy,andindustrial

noisesbygoodplanningandtechnicalimprovement.Butifwearegoingtoallowfast

motor-cyclesandheavydiesellorriestopasscontinuouslytroughresidentialandbusinessdistricts,

thecommunitymustdecideonthecontrolitneedstoexercise,fbrinthelongrunithasgottopay

forit.Andifanationistotakepartinmodernairtransport,itmustenterintointernational

agreementsonthenoisecontrolmeasuresitwillimposeatitsairports—andherethecostofany

realcontrolistobemeasuredinmillionsofdollars.

(3)

About350yearsagoGalileomadeatelescopeandlookedthroughitatthesun.Whathesaw

bothsurprisedandfrightenedhim,forhesawdarkspotsonthesunwhichatoncesuggestedto

himthatGodhadnotmadetheworldquiteasperfectashehadpreviouslybelieved.Hehesitated

tomakehisdiscoveryknown.Meanwhileotherscientistsnoticedthesamelackofsolarperfection

andproclaimed(宣布)thefact.

ButGalileocontinuedhisobservationsandwassoonrewardedwithanotherdiscovery.

Fixinghisattentiononasinglesunspot(太阳黑子)group,henoticedthatinafewdaysithad

movedinposition,justasifthesunitselfwereturning.Afterwardshefoundasunspotgroup

whichlivedlongenoughtodisappearfromviewonthewesternlimb(边缘)ofthesun,to

re-appearonitseasternlimb,andfinallytoregainitsoldposition.Thisledhimtoconcludethat

thesunitselfwasrotatingandthatthetimeittooktomakeonecompleteturnwasabout

twenty-fivetotwenty-sevendays.ActuallyweknowfromthedrawingswhichGalileomadeof

sunspotsthattheremusthavebeenquitealotofthematthetimeofhisobservationsintheyears

1611and1612.Ifhehadgoneonmakinghisdrawingsintheyearsthatimmediatelyfollowed,we

knowthathewouldalmostcertainlyhavenoticedthatsunspotswerebecomingfewerandsmaller.

Buthebecameinterestedinotherthingsandsohefailedtorecognizethatthereisakindof

long-termcycleinsunspotactivity,thesunspotsincreasinganddecreasingastheyearsgoon.

Laterthisdiscoveryofthesunspotactivitywasmadebyoneofthemostpatientobserv