考研阅读真题

英语阅读真题1986-2012

1986年全国硕士研究生入学统一考试英语试题

Text1

Thereareagreatmanycareersinwhichtheincreasingemphasisison

specialization.Youfindthesecareersinengineering,inproduction,in

statisticalwork,andinteaching.Butthereisanincreasingdemandforpeople

whoareableTotakeingreatareaataglance,peoplewhoperhapsdonotknow

toomuchaboutanyonefield.Thereis,inotherwords,ademandforpeople

whoarecapableofseeing

theforestratherthanthetrees,ofmakinggeneraljudgments.Wecancallthese

people"generalists.〃Andthese"generalists"areparticularlyneededfor

positionsin

administration,whereitistheirjobtoseethatotherpeopledothework,

wherethey

havetoplanforotherpeople,toorganizeotherpeople*swork,tobeginit

andjudge

it.

Thespecialistunderstandsonefield;hisconcerniswithtechniqueandtools.

He

isa“trained"man;andhiseducationalbackgroundisproperlytechnicalor

professional.Thegeneralist-andespeciallytheadministrator-dealswith

people;

hisconcerniswithleadership,withplanning,andwithdirectiongiving.He

isan

“educated"man;andthehumanitiesarehisstrongestfoundation.Veryrarely

isa

specialistcapableofbeinganadministrator.Andveryrarelyisagood

generalistalso

agoodspecialistinparticularfield.Anyorganizationneedsbothkindsof

people,

thoughdifferentorganizationsneedthemindifferentproportions.Itisyour

taskto

findout,duringyourtrainingperiod,intowhichofthetwokindsofjobsyou

fit,and

toplanyourcareeraccordingly.

Yourfirstjobmayturnouttobetherightjobforyou一一butthisispure

accident.

Certainlyyoushouldnotchangejobsconstantlyorpeoplewillbecome

suspiciousof

yourabilitytoholdanyjob.Atthesametimeyoumustnotlookuponthefirst

jobas

thefinaljob;itisprimarilyatrainingjob,anopportunitytounderstand

yourselfand

yourfitnessforbeinganemployee.

26.Thereisanincreasingdemandfor.

[A]allroundpeopleintheirownfields

[B]peoplewhosejobistoorganizeotherpeople，swork

[C]generalistswhoseeducationalbackgroundiseithertechnicalor

professional

[D]specialistswhosechiefconcernistoprovideadministrativeguidanceto

others

27.Thespecialistis_______.

[A]amanwhosejobistotrainotherpeople

[B]amanwhohasbeentrainedinmorethanonefields

EC]amanwhocanseetheforestratherthanthetrees

[D]amanwhoseconcernismainlywithtechnicalorprofessionalmatters

28.Theadministratoris.

[A]a〃trained"manwhoismoreaspecialistthanageneralist

[B]amanwhoseesthetreesaswellastheforest

[C]amanwhoisverystronginthehumanities

[D]amanwhoisan"educated"specialist

29.Duringyourtrainingperiod,itisimportant.

[A]totrytobeageneralist

[B]tochooseaprofitablejob

[C]tofindanorganizationwhichfitsyou

[D]todecidewhetheryouarefittobeaspecialistorageneralist

30.Aman'sfirstjob.

[A]isnevertherightjobforhim

[B]shouldnotberegardedashisfinaljob

[C]shouldnotbechangedorpeoplewillbecomesuspiciousofhisabilityto

holdanyjob

[D]isprimarilyanopportunitytofithimselfforhisfinaljob

Test2

Atthebottomoftheworldliesamightycontinentstillwrappedinthe

IceAge

and,untilrecenttimes,unknowntoman.Itisagreatlandmasswithmountain

rangeswhoseextentandelevationarestilluncertain.Muchofthecontinent

isa

completeblankonourmaps.Manhasexplored,onfoot,lessthanonepercent

ofits

area.AntarcticadiffersfundamentallyfromtheArcticregions.TheArcticis

anocean,

coveredwithdriftingpackediceandhemmedinbythelandmassesofEurope,

Asia,

andNorthAmerica.TheAntarcticisacontinentalmostaslargeasEuropeand

Australiacombined,centeredroughlyontheSouthPoleandsurroundedbythe

most

unobstructedwaterareasoftheworld-theAtlantic,Pacific,andIndian

Oceans.

Thecontinentalicesheetismorethantwomileshighinitscentre,thus,the

air

overtheAntarcticisfarmorerefrigeratedthanitisovertheArcticregions.

Thiscold

aircurrentfromthelandissoforcefulthatitmakesthenearbyseasthe

stormiestin

theworldandrendersunlivablethoseregionswhosecounterpartsatthe

oppositeend

oftheglobeareinhabited.Thus,morethanamillionpersonslivewithin2,000

miles

oftheNorthPoleinanareathatincludesmostofAlaska,Siberia,and

Scandinavia一一

aregionrichinforestandminingindustries.Apartfromahandfulofweather

stations,withinthesamedistanceoftheSouthPolethereisnotasingletree,

industry,

orsettlement.

31.Thebesttitleforthisselectionwouldbe.

[A]Iceland

[B]LandofOpportunity

EC]TheUnknownContinent

[D]UtopiaatLast

32.Atthetimethisarticlewaswritten,ourknowledgeofAntarcticawas

[A]verylimited

[B]vast

[C]fairlyrich

[D]nonexistent

33.Antarcticaisborderedbythe.

[A]PacificOcean

[B]IndianOcean

[C]AtlanticOcean

[D]Allthree

34.TheAntarcticismadeuninhabitableprimarilyby.

[A]coldair

[B]calmseas

[C]ice

[D]lackofknowledgeaboutthecontinent

35.Accordingtothisarticle.

[A]2,000peopleliveontheAntarcticContinent

[B]amillionpeoplelivewithin2,000milesoftheSouthPole

[C]weatherconditionswithina2,000mileradiusoftheSouthPolemake

settlementsimpractical

[D]onlyahandfulofnativesinhabitAntarctica

1987年全国硕士研究生入学统一考试英语试题

Eachofthreepassagesbelowisfollowedbyfivequestions.Foreach

questionthere

arefouranswers,readthepassagecarefullyandchoosethebestanswer

toeachof

thequestion.PutyourchoiceintheANSWERSHEET.(15points)

Text1

Forcenturiesmendreamedofachievingverticalflight.In400A.D.Chinese

childrenplayedwithafan-liketoythatspunupwardsandfellbacktoearth

as

rotationceased.LeonardodaVinciconceivethefirstmechanical

apparatus,calleda

“Helix,〃whichcouldcarrymanstraightup,butwasonlyadesignandwas

never

tested.

Theancient-dreamwasfinallyrealizedin1940whenaRussianengineer

piloted

astrangelookingcraftofsteeltubingwitharotatingfanontop.Itrose

awkwardly

andverticallyintotheairfromastandingstart,hoveredafewfeetabove

theground,

wentsidewaysandbackwards,andthensettledbacktoearth.Thevehicle

wascalled

ahelicopter.

Imaginationswerefired.Mendreamedofgoingtoworkintheirownpersonal

helicopters.Peopleanticipatethatverticalflighttransportswouldcarry

millionsof

passengersasdotheairlinersoftoday.Suchfantasticexpectationswere

notfulfilled.

Thehelicopterhasnowbecomeanextremelyusefulmachine.Itexcelsin

militarymissions,carryingtroops,gunsandstrategicinstrumentswhere

other

aircraftcannotgo.Corporationsusethemasairborneoffices,many

metropolitan

areasusetheminpolicework,constructionandloggingcompaniesemploy

themin

variousadvantageousways,engineersusethemforsiteselectionand

surveying,and

oilcompaniesusethemasthebestwaytomakeoffshoreandremotework

stations

accessibletocrewsandsupplies.Anyurgentmissiontoahard-to-get-to

placeisa

likelytaskforahelicopter.Amongtheirothermultitudeofused:deliver

people

acrosstown,flytoandfromairports,assistinrescuework,andaidin

thesearchfor

missingorwantedpersons.

11.Peopleexpectthat.

[A]theairlinersoftodaywouldeventuallybereplacedbyhelicopters

[B]helicopterswouldsomedaybeabletotransportlargenumberofpeople

fromplacetoplaceasairlinersarenowdoing

[C]theimaginationsfiredbytheRussianengineer'sinventionwouldbecome

a

realityinthefuture

[D]theirfantasticexpectationsabouthelicopterscouldbefulfilledby

airliners

oftoday

12.Helicoptersworkwiththeaidof.

[A]acombinationofrotatingdevicesinfrontandontop

[B]arotatingdevicetopside

[C]onerotatingfaninthecenteroftheaircraftandothersateachend

[D]arotatingfanunderneathforlifting

13.Whatissaidaboutthedevelopmentofthehelicopter?

[A]Helicoptershaveonlybeenworkedonbymansince1940.

[B]Chinesechildrenwerethefirsttoachieveflightinhelicopters.

[C]Helicopterswereconsideredmoredangerousthantheearlyairplanes.

[D]Somepeoplethoughttheywouldbecomewidelyusedbyaverage

individuals.

14.Howhastheuseofhelicoptersdeveloped?

[A]Theyhavebeenwidelyusedforvariouspurposes.

[B]Theyaretakingtheplaceofhigh-flyingjets.

[C]Theyareusedforrescuework.

[D]Theyarenowusedexclusivelyforcommercialprojects.

15.Underwhatconditionsarehelicoptersfoundtobeabsolutelyessential?

[A]Foroverseaspassengertransportation.

[B]Forextremelyhighaltitudeflights.

[C]Forhigh-speedtransportation.

[D]Forurgentmissiontoplacesinaccessibletootherkindsofcraft.

Text2

InancientGreeceathleticfestivalswereveryimportantandhadstrong

religious

associations.TheOlympianathleticfestivalheldeveryfouryearsinhonor

ofZeus,

kingoftheOlympianGods,eventuallylostitslocalcharacter,became

firsta

nationaleventandthen,aftertherulesagainstforeigncompetitorshad

been

abolished,international.NooneknowsexactlyhowfarbacktheOlympic

Gamesgo,

butsomeofficialrecordsdatefrom776B.C.ThegamestookplaceinAugust

onthe

plainbyMountOlympus.Manythousandsofspectatorsgatheredfromall

partsof

Greece,butnomarriedwomanwasadmittedevenasaspectator.Slaves,women

and

dishonoredpersonswerenotallowedtocompete.Theexactsequenceof

events

uncertain,buteventsincludedboy"sgymnastics,boxing,wrestling,horse

racingand

fieldevents,thoughtherewerefewersportsinvolvedthaninthemodern

Olympic

Games.

OnthelastdayoftheGames,allthewinnerswerehonoredbyhavingaring

of

holyoliveleavesplacedontheirheads.Sogreatwasthehonorthatthe

winnerofthe

footracegavehisnametotheyearofhisvictory.AlthoughOlympicwinners

receivednoprizemoney,theywere,infact,richlyrewardedbytheirstate

authorities.

Howtheirresultscomparedwithmodernstandards,weunfortunatelyhave

nomeans

oftelling.

Afteranuninterruptedhistoryofalmost1,200years,theGameswere

suspendedbytheRomansin394A.D.Theycontinuedforsuchalongtime

because

peoplebelievedinthephilosophybehindtheOlympics:theideathata

healthybody

producedahealthymind,andthatthespiritofcompetitioninsportsand

gameswas

preferabletothecompetitionthatcausedwars.Itwasover1,500years

before

anothersuchinternationalathleticgatheringtookplaceinAthensin1896.

Nowadays,theGamesareheldindifferentcountriesinturn.Thehost

country

providesvastfacilities,includingastadium,swimmingpoolsandliving

accommodation,butcompetingcourtierspaytheirownathletes，expenses.

TheOlympicsstartwiththearrivalinthestadiumofatorch,lightedon

Mount

Olympusbythesun'srays.Itiscarriedbyasuccessionofrunnerstothe

stadium.

ThetorchsymbolizedthecontinuationoftheancientGreekathleticideals,

andit

burnsthroughouttheGamesuntiltheclosingceremony.Thewell-known

Olympic

flag,however,isamodernconception:thefiveinterlockingrings

symbolizethe

unitingofallfivecontinentsparticipatingintheGames.

16.InancientGreece,theOlympicGames.

[A]weremerelynationalathleticfestivals

[B]wereinthenatureofanationaleventwithastrongreligiouscolour

[C]hadruleswhichputforeignparticipantsinadisadvantageousposition

[D]wereprimarilynationaleventswithfewforeignparticipants

17.IntheearlydaysofancientOlympicGames.

[A]onlymaleGreekathleteswereallowedtoparticipateinthegames

[B]allGreeks,irrespectiveofsex,religionorsocialstatus,were

allowedtotake

part

[C]allGreeks,withtheexceptionofwomen,wereallowedtocompetein

Games

rD]

LallmaleGreekswerequalifiedtocompeteintheGames

18

1•TheorderofathleticeventsattheancientOlympics.

rA

Lhasnotdefinitelybeenestablished

rBu

Lvariedaccordingtothenumberofforeigncompetitors

rc

LwasdecidedbyZeus,inwhosehonortheGameswereheld

rDu

Lwasconsideredunimportant

19

1.Modernathletes，resultscannotbecomparedwiththoseofancient

runners

because.

[A]theGreekshadnomeansofrecordingtheresults

[B]theyaremuchbetter

[C]detailssuchasthetimewerenotrecordedinthepast

[D]theyaremuchworse

20.Nowadays,theathletes，expensesarepaidfor.

[A]outoftheprizemoneyofthewinners

[B]outofthefundsraisedbythecompetingnations

[C]bytheathletesthemselves

[D]bycontributions

Text3

Insciencethemeaningoftheword"explain"sufferswithcivilization，s

every

stepinsearchofreality.Sciencecannotreallyexplainelectricity,

magnetism,and

gravitation;theireffectscanbemeasuredandpredicted,butoftheir

naturenomore

isknowntothemodernscientistthantoThaleswhofirstlookedintothe

natureof

theelectrificationofamber,ahardye11owish-browngum.Most

contemporary

physicistsrejectthenotionthatmancaneverdiscoverwhatthese

mysteriousforces

“really〃are."Electricity,“BertrandRussellsays,〃isnotathing,like

St.Paul's

Cathedral;itisawayinwhichthingsbehave.Whenwehavetoldhowthings

behave

whentheyareelectrified,andunderwhatcircumstancestheyare

electrified,wehave

toldallthereistotell.Untilrecentlyscientistswouldhave

disapprovedofsuchan

idea.Aristotle,forexample,whosenaturalsciencedominatedWestern

thoughtfor

twothousandyears,believedthatmancouldarriveatanunderstandingof

realityby

reasoningfromself-evidentprinciples.Hefelt,forexample,thatitis

aself-evident

principlethateverythingintheuniversehasitsproperplace,henceone

candeduce

thatobjectsfalltothegroundbecausethat'swheretheybelong,andsmoke

goesup

becausethat，swhereitbelongs.ThegoalofAristoteliansciencewasto

explainwhy

thingshappen.ModernsciencewasbornwhenGalileobegantryingtoexplain

how

thingshappenandthusoriginatedthemethodofcontrolledexperimentwhich

now

formsthebasisofscientificinvestigation.

21.Theaimofcontrolledscientificexperimentsis.

[A]toexplainwhythingshappen

[B]toexplainhowthingshappen

[C]todescribeself-evidentprinciples

[D]tosupportAristotelianscience

22.Whatprinciplesmostinfluencedscientificthoughtfortwothousand

years?

[A]thespeculationsofThales

[B]theforcesofelectricity,magnetism,andgravity

[C]Aristotle，snaturalscience

[D]Galileo,sdiscoveries

23.BertrandRusselTsnotionaboutelectricityis.

[A]disapprovedofbymostmodernscientists

[B]inagreementwithAristotle，stheoryofself-evidentprinciples

[C]inagreementwithscientificinvestigationdirectedtoward〃how〃

things

happen

[D]inagreementwithscientificinvestigationdirectedtoward〃why〃

things

happen

24.Thepassagesaysthatuntilrecentlyscientistsdisagreedwiththeidea

[A]thattherearemysteriousforcesintheuniverse

[B]thatmancannotdiscoverwhatforces"really"are

[C]thatthereareself-evidentprinciples

[D]thatwecandiscoverwhythingsbehaveastheydo

25.Modernsciencecameintobeing.

[A]whenthemethodofcontrolledexperimentwasfirstintroduced

[B]whenGalileosucceededinexplaininghowthingshappen

[C]whenAristotelianscientisttriedtoexplainwhythingshappen

[D]whenscientistswereabletoacquireanunderstandingofrealityof

reasoning

1988年全国硕士研究生入学统一考试英语试题

SectionII:ReadingComprehension

Eachofthethreepassagesbelowisfollowedbysomequestions.Foreach

question

therearefouranswers.Readthepassagescarefullyandchosethebestanswer

to

eachofthequestions.PutyourchoiceintheANSWERSHEET.(20points)

Text1

Itdoesn，tcomeasasurprisetoyoutorealizethatitmakesnodifference

what

youreadorstudyifyoucan，trememberit.Youjustwasteyourvaluabletime.

Maybeyouhavealreadydiscoveredsomecleverwaystokeepyourselffrom

forgetting.

Onedependableaidthatdoeshelpyourememberwhatyoustudyistohavea

specificpurposeorreasonforreading.Yourememberbetterwhatyoureadwhen

you

knowwhyyou'rereading.

Whydoesaclerkinastoregoawayandleaveyouwhenyourreplytoheroffer

tohelpis,〃No,thankyou.I'mjustlooking"?Bothyouandsheknowthatif

you

aren，tsurewhatyouwant,youarenotlikelytofindit.Butsupposeyousay

instead,

〃Yes,thankyou.Iwantapairofsunglasses.，zShesays,“Rightthisway,

please.

Andyouandsheareoff-botheagertolookforexactlywhatyouwant.

It'squitethesamewithyourstudying.Ifyouchoseabookatrandom,“just

looking"fornothinginparticular,youarelikelytogetjustthat-nothing.

Butifyou

doknowwhatyouwant,andifyouhavetherightbook,youarealmostsureto

getit.

Yourreasonswillvary;theywillincludereadingorstudying〃tofindoutmore

aboutz，,〃tounderstandthereasonsfor","tofindouthow〃.Agoodstudenthas

aclear

purposeorreasonforwhatheisdoing.

Thisisthewayitworks.Beforeyoustarttostudy,yousaytoyourself

somethinglikethis,〃IwanttoknowwhyStephenVincentBenethappenedtowrite

aboutAmerica.I'mreadingthisarticletofindout.Or,〃I'mgoingtoskim

thisstory

toseewhatlifewaslikeinmedievalEngland.z/Becauseyouknowwhyyouare

readingorstudying,yourelatetheinformationtoyourpurposeandremember

it

better.

Readingisnotonesingleactivity.Atleasttwoimportantprocessesgoonat

the

sametime.Asyouread,youtakeinideasrapidlyandaccurately.Butatthe

same

timeyouexpressyourownideastoyourselfasyoureacttowhatyouread.You

have

akindofmentalconversationwiththeauthor.Ifyouexpressedyourideas

orally,

theymightsoundlikethis:〃Yes,Iagree.That'smyopiniontoo.z/or"Ummrnm,

I

thoughtthatrecordwasbrokenmuchearlier.I'dbettercheckthosedates,“

or"But

therearesomeotherfactstobeconsidered!z/Youdon，tjustsittheretaking

inideas

-youdosomethingelse,andthatsomethingelseisveryimportant.

Thisadditionalprocessofthinkingaboutwhatyoureadincludesevaluating

it,

relatingittowhatyoualreadyknow,andusingitforyourownpurposes.In

other

words,agoodreaderisacriticalreader.Onepartofcriticalreading,as

youhave

discovered,isdistinguishingbetweenfactsandopinions.Factscanbechecked

by

evidence.Opinionsareone，sownpersonalreactions.

Anotherpartofcriticalreadingisjudgingsources.Stillanotherpartis

drawing

accurateinferences.

16.Ifyoucannotrememberwhatyoureadorstudy,.

[A]itisnosurprise

[B]itmeansyouhavenotreallylearnedanything

[C]itmeansyouhavenotchosentherightbook

[D]yourealizeitisofnoimportance

17.Beforeyoustartreading,itisimportant.

[A]tomakesurewhyyouarereading

[B]torelatetheinformationtoyourpurpose

[C]torememberwhatyouread

[D]tochooseaninterestingbook

18.Readingactivityinvolves.

[A]onlytwosimultaneousprocesses

[B]primarilylearningaboutideasandevaluatingthemcritically

[C]merelydistinguishingbetweenfactsandopinions

[D]mainlydrawingaccurateinferences

19.Agoodreaderisonewho.

[A]relateswhathereadstohisownknowledgeaboutthesubjectmatter

[B]doeslotsofthinkinginhisreading

[C]takesacriticalattitudeinhisreading

[D]isabletocheckthefactspresentedagainstwhathehasalreadyknown

Text2

Ifyouliveinalargecity,youarequitefamiliarwithsomeoftheproblems

of

noise,butbecauseofsomeofitsharmfuleffects,youmaynotbeawareofthe

extent

ofitsinfluenceonhumanbehavior.Althougheveryonemoreorlessknowswhat

noiseis,i.e.,itissoundsthatonewouldrathernothear,itisperhapsbest

todefineit

morepreciselyforscientificpurposes.Onesuchdefinitionisthatnoiseis

sounds

thatareunrelatedtothetaskathand.Thusstimulithatatonetimemight

be

consideredrelevantwillatanothertimebeconsiderednoise,dependingonwhat

one

isdoingatthemoment.Inrecentyearstherehasbeenagreatdealofinterest

inthe

effectsofnoiseonhumanbehavior,andconceptssuchas"noisepollution"have

arisen,togetherwithmovementstoreducenoise.

Exposuretoloudnoisescandefinitelyproduceapartialorcompletelossof

hearing,dependingontheintensity,duration,andfrequencycompositionof

the

noise.Manyjobspresentnoisehazards,suchasworkinginfactoriesandaround

jet

aircraft,drivingfarmtractors,andworking(orsitting)inmusichallswhere

rock

bandsareplaying.Ingeneral,continuousexposuretosoundsofover80decibels

(a

measureoftheloudnessofsound)canbeconsidereddangerous.Decibelvalues

correspondtovarioussounds.Soundsaboveabout85decibelsmay,ifexposure

is

forasufficientperiodoftime,producesignificanthearingloss.Actualloss

will

dependupontheparticularfrequenciestowhichoneisexposed,andwhether

the

soundiscontinuousorintermittent.

Noisecanhaveunexpectedharmfuleffectsonperformanceofcertainkindsof

tasks,forinstance,ifoneisperformingawatchkeepingtaskthatrequires

vigilance,

inwhichheisresponsiblefordetectingweaksignalsofsomekind(e.g.,

watchinga

radarscreenfortheappearanceofaircraft).

Communicatingwithotherpeopleisunfavorablyaffectedbynoise.Ifyouhave

riddenintherearofajettransport,youmayhavenoticedthatitwasdifficult

to

carryonaconversationatfirst,andthat,eventually,youadjustedthe

loudnessof

yourspeechtocompensatefortheeffect.Theproblemisnoise.

20.Noisediffersfromsoundinthat.

[A]itissoundsthatinterferewiththetaskbeingdone

[B]itisaspecialtypeofloudsound

[C]itisusuallyunavoidableinbigcities

[D]itcanbedefinedmorepreciselythanthelatter

21.Oneoftheharmfuleffectso