2021年广东省阳江市公共英语五级(笔试)模拟考试(含答案)

2021年广东省阳江市公共英语五级(笔试)模拟考试(含答案)学校:________班级:________姓名:________考号:________

一、1.ListeningComprehension(15题)1.Peoplelikethechangesintheorganizationofthecompany.

A.TrueB.Fasle

2.Chainsmakelearningflexible.

A.TrueB.Fasle

3.Do-it-YourselfhasbecomeoneofMrMiller'shobbies.

A.RightB.Wrong

4.PartA

Directions:Youwillhearatalk.Asyoulisten,answerQuestions1-10bycirclingTRUEorFALSE.YouwillhearthetalkONLYONCE.Younowhave1minutetoreadQuestions1-10.

听力原文：Hello，everyone．TodayIwillintroduceyouthelearningchainsinBritain．Herethechainsrefertoschoolslinkedtogetheraspartofagroup．Theycanofferstudentsmanypracticaladvantages．

Whenpeopleareaskedtonamealanguageschool，moreoftenthannot．theythinkofoneofthelargeinternationalchainsofschools．Somearevastlanguageteachingorganizationswithschoolsinmanydifferentcountriesandmayteachjustonelanguage．

Oneofthemainstrengthsofthesechainsisthefactthattheirnameisfamiliartopeopleallovertheworld．Thiscanbeabigadvantageintheconfusingworldoflanguagelearning．Moststudentsarebewilderedbythelargechoiceofschoolsandcoursesonoffer．bothathomeandabroad．andsomanyprefertochooseaschoolwhichhasafamiliarnameandanestablishedreputation．Chainschoolsknowthis，andpartoftheirsuccessisduetoeffectivemarketingandadvertising，whichhelpstokeeptheirnamewell-known．

Butchainschoolsshouldnotbedismissedbyseriousstudentsjustbecausetheyuseclevermarketingtechniques．Theyhaveotherimportantstrengthenswhichcanprovideadvantagestostudents．Aschoolisonlyasgoodasitsteachersandfacilities，andmanychainsofferveryhighstandardsinboth．Morechainsrequirethattheirteachershaveinternationallyrecognizedqualificationsandamaximumamountofteachingexperience．Itisimportantforchainstomaintainthesestandardsatallschools．becausethereputationofthewholechaincanbeaffectedifoneschoolperformsbadly．

Studentsalsobenefitfromthestandardizedstructureofchains．Mostchainsusethesametextbooksinalltheirschools．andoftentheyproducetheirowncourseworkmaterials．Theyalsoorganizetheircoursesinthesamewaywhichmeansthatstartingdatesandcourselengthsareusuallythesameatallschools．

Forstudents,oneofthemainadvantagesofthisstandardizedstructureissimplicity．IfyoucannotdecidewhethertostudyintheU.S.orBritain．forexample，mostchainsallowstudentstostarttheirlanguagecourseatoneschoolandcontinueatanother，sotheycanexperiencedifferentregionsordifferentcountries，aspartofthesamestudytrip．

Chainschoolstendtobelargerthansinglecenterschools，whichcanalsohaveadvantagesforstudents．Withlargernumbersofstudents．schooladministratorscanachieveabettermixtureofnationalitiesinclassrooms．Thismeansthatstudentscanavoidbeingwithotherstudentswhospeaktheirlanguage．Thisgivesthemthechancetomeetstudentsfromothercountries，andtopracticetheirEnglishwiththem．

Somechainsofferstudentsaverysimplebookingandenrolmentprocedurewhichisalsouseful．Applicationformsandenrolmentproceduresarethesameforallschools，sostudentsneedonlysupplytheirdetailsonce．Studentsmayfindthattheycanbooktheircourseabroadthrougharepresentativeofachainschoolintheirowntownorcity．Otherchainsofferacentralizedbookingfacility，sostudentsonlyhavetocontactonecentertomakeabookinganywhereintheworld．

Chainschoolsoftenoperateindifferentlocations，whereasasingleschoolislikelytobebasedpermanentlyinonebuilding．Manychainschoolsoperatetemporaryschools，particularlyduringthesummerholidays．InBritain，theyoftenusesecondaryschoolpremiseswhichareemptyduringtheschoolholidays．

StudyingEnglishinanEnglish-speakingcountryisthemosteffectivewaytolearnthelanguage，butformanystudentsthisisonlyonestageoftheirlearningcareer．MoststudentsstartlearningEnglishintheirowncountryandtheywillprobablywanttocontinuelearningoncetheyreturnfrom

A.RightB.Wrong

5.Whataretheshoppinggoodsthatarebasicallyconsideredthesame?

A.Thosethatsatisfysimilarneedsoftheconsumer.

B.Thosethatconsumersdon'tcarewheretobuy.

C.Thosethatconsumersspendmuchtimelookingfor.

D.Thosethatcanbefoundeverywhere.

6.Inwhataspectsdoesthespeakerthinkalloftheseculturalchangesarestrengthened?

7.PartC

Directions:Youwillhearatalk.Asyoulisten,answerthequestionsorcompletethenotesinyourtestbookletforQuestions21-30bywritingNOTMORETHANTHREEwordsinthespaceprovidedontheright.YouwillhearthetalkTWICE.

Younowhave1minutetoreadQuestions21-30.

听力原文：Inyouruniversitywork．youwillbeexpectedtogiveoralpresentationsintheform.ofreportsorsimplyintheformsofanswerstoquestions．Thereareseveralthingsyouoraldotomakeyouroralpresentationsclearandeasytounderstand．

Thefundamentalpointtorealizeisthatspeechandwritingaredifferent．Ifyouwanttobebestunderstood．youcan'tsimplyreadyourwrittenreportaloud．Thebiggestdifferencebetweenspokenandwrittenlanguageisthatreaderscanlookbackovertheprintedwordswhentheydon'tunderstand．Inspokenlanguage，however，listenerscan'tgobackandcheckthewords．Theycanrelyonlyonmemory．Sothefirstprincipletokeepinmindwhenyou'replanningtospeakinpublicisthatyouhavetohelpthelistener'smemory．Thismeansthatanoralreportcan'tdeliverinformationasrapidlyasawrittenreport．Thatis，youcan'thaveasmanypiecesofnewinformationpackedintothesamenumberofwords，becausetheywillcomeattoofastarateforthelistenertounderstand．

Inanoralreport，therateofdeliveryhastobeslower．Oneofthebestwaystohelpyouraudienceissimplytospeakslowly．Manypeoplespeaktoofastwhentheyspeaktoagroup．Thisisamistake，especiallyifyouhaveaforeignaccent，becauseitmakeslisteningmoredifficult．Beyondthesimpletechniqueofspeakingmoreslowlywhenyouspeakbeforeagroup，therearewaysoforganizingyourpresentationthatcanhelpthelistenerbeclearandunderstandyourmainpoints．

Theorganizationofyourtalkshouldallowenoughtimeforthelistenertothinkbothbeforeandaftereachnewidea．Thepurposeofthetimebeforethenewinformationistogivetheaudienceachancetounderstandthebackgroundclearly．Knowledgeofthebackground，orsettingoftheinformation，makesitmucheasiertoanticipatewhatkindofinformationiscomingnext．Ifthenewinformationoccurstooearly，withoutenoughbackground，thelistenersshouldnotbepreparedwithenoughbackgroundtobeabletopredictwhat'scoming．

I'vebeendescribingthetimeforthinkingbeforethenewinformation．It'salsoimportanttoprovidetimeforthinkingafterthenewinformation．Thisthinkingtimeallowslistenerstofittheideaintotheirgeneralknowledgeofthesubject．Thinkingtimegivesthelistenerachancetomakesurethattheideawasunderstoodbeforegoingontothenextnewidea．

Therearethreegeneralwaystogivethelistenertimeforthinkingandtimeafterapointofnewinformation．Onewayissimplytopause．Amomentofsilencegivesthelistenertimetotakeinthenewinformation，butthereareotherways．Asecondmethodistouseaparaphrase．Thatis，yousaythesamething，butindifferentwords．Thisparaphrase，orrepetitionoftheidea，helpsthelistenerstofixthethoughtintheirmemory．Athirdwaytogivethelistenertimetothinkistousewordsthatdon'tmeanmuch．Thesearewordsthatconveynoinformation，butjustfillintime．Forinstance，youmightsaysomethinglike“asI'vebeensaying”or“andsoforth”and“andsoon”．Thatkindofexpressiondoesn'treallysayanything．It'sjustmadeofwhatwecall“fillerwords”．Thewordshavenorealmeaning．buttheydoperform.ausefulfunction．sincetheyallowthelistenertimetothink．

Insummary，then，weknowthatorallanguageshoulddeliverinformationataslowerratethanyoucanuseinwrittenlanguage．Newinformationshouldbepresentedmoregradually．Thinkingtimeshouldbeprovidedbothbeforeandaftereachimportantnewitem．Thetimebeforeistoprovideabackgroundsothatthelistenerscanhaveachancetoanticipat

8.WhereisLowTillFarmingbecomingpopular?

A.Inareaswithfewweedsandunwantedplants.

B.Inareaswithasevereshortageofwater.

C.Inareaslackinginchemicalfertilizer.

D.Inareasdependentonimportedfood.

9.PartB

Directions:Youwillhear3conversationsortalksandyoumustanswerthequestionsbychoosingA,B,CorD.YouwillheartherecordingONLYONCE.

听力原文：W：Jim，thankgoodnessyou'vearrived．Theclasspresentationstartedhalfanhourago，andIwasjustbeginningtopanic．

M：I'msorryforbeinglate，Alice.Thismorninghasbeenarealmess．Ididn'tthinkIwasgoingtomakeithereatall．

W：Whyareyoulate?Ourpresentationdependsonthosegraphsyouareholding．

M：Yes，Iknow．I'lltellyouaboutitlater．First，let'sseehowwearedoingfortime．Twogroupsarestillaheadofus，aren'tthey?Thepresentationsonthefightsoftheconsumerandtheanalysisofthestockmarket．ThatmeansI'vegottwentyminutestosortout．

W：Youlookcold．Whathappened?

M：I'vebeenstandingoutsideinarctictemperaturesforoveranhourwaitingforabus．

W：Overanhour?ButIthoughtyourapartmentwasonlyatenminutebusridetocampus．

M：Innormalconditions，butthebuswasdelayedbecauseoftheweather，andwhenIstoppedinadrugstoretocallhomeforaride，thebuswentby．Asluckwouldhaveittherewasnooneathome，soIhadtowaitanotherforty-fiveminutesforthenextbus．

W：That'sMurphy'sLaw，isn'tit?Whatdiditsay?Ifanythingcangowrong，itwill．Well，we'vestillgottwentyminutestogetourwitstogether．

Whatisthewoman'stoneofvoicewhenshefirstseestheman?

A.Frustrated.B.Relieved.C.Sarcastic.D.Apologetic.

10.PartC

Directions:Youwillhearatalk.Asyoulisten,answerthequestionsorcompletethenotesinyourtestbookletforQuestions21-30bywritingNOTMORETHANTHREEwordsinthespaceprovidedontheright.YouwillhearthetalkTWICE.

Younowhave1minutetoreadQuestions21-30.

听力原文：Asyouknow,manybigchangeshappenedafterChristopherColumbusandotherEuropeanscametotheAmericas500yearsago.TodayI'mgoingtotalkaboutachangeintheworlddietthewaypeoplecookedandate.Fivehundredyearsago,therewasabigchangeinthedietofpeopleallovertheworld.

Let'stalkaboutthedietinEurope500yearsago.Oneimportantfoodwasmeat.Europeansatemanykindsofmeat,includingbeef,lamb,goat,andpork.Europeansalsoatedairyproducts,milkandcheesemadefromthemilkofcowsandgoats.TheEuropeansateseveraldifferentgrains:Mostpeopleatewheat,andsomepeopleaterice,whichcamefirstfromAsia.

Now,let'slookatthedietintheAmericasabout500yearsago.ThedietofthenativeAmericanwasquitedifferentfromthedietoftheEuropeans.ThisisbecausetheEuropeanmeats,dairyproducts,andgrainsdidn'texistintheAmericas.However,thenativeAmericansatesomefoodthatdidn'texistinEurope.ThenativeAmericansatedifferentvegetables,suchaspotatoesandtomatoes.Theyatedifferentgrains,suchascorn.Theyatedifferentmeat,suchasturkeyandotherwildbirds.Theyalsousedspicessuchaschocolateandhotchilipeppers.NoneofthesefoodsexistedinEurope500yearsago.

Nowlet'stalkaboutthebigchangeintheworlddiet500yearsago,afterColumbusandtheEuropeanswenttotheAmericas.

AfterEuropeanswenttotheAmericas,thedietofthenativeAmericanschangedalot.WhentheEuropeanswenttotheAmericas,theytookmanynewkindsoffoodwiththem.TheEuropeansgavesomeofthefood,themeat,dairyproducts,andgrainstothenativeAmericansandthenthenativeAmericansstartedtousetheEuropeanfoodintheircooking.Asaresult,thedietintheAmerica'stodayisverydifferentfromtheirdiet500yearsago.Forexample,ifyougotoacountrylikeMexico,youcanseethatthetraditionalMexicanfoodusesalotofbeef,pork,cheese,wheat,andrice,allfoodsthatcamefromEuropewithColumbus.

AftertheEuropeansreturnedtoEuropefromtheAmericas,therewasalsoabigchangeinthedietofpeopleinEuropeandtherestoftheworld.WhentheEuropeansreturnedtoEurope,theytookmanynewkindsoffoodbackfromtheAmericas.Theytookbackthevegetables,grains,andspicesthattheyfoundintheAmericas.Littlebylittle,peoplealloverEuropestartedusingthenewfoodsintheircooking,andthenthefoodsspreadaroundtheworldtoAfrica,theMiddleEastandAsia.

Someofthenewfoodspreadveryquicklyaroundtheworld.Oneexampleisthechilipepper.Youmaybesurprisedtoknowthat500yearsago,thechilipepperdidn'texistinmanycountriesthatarefamoustodayfortheirhotandspicyfoodmadewithchilies.Actually,wethinkthatthefirstchilipepperwastakentoSpainbyColumbusin1493,whenhereturnedfromtheAmericas.Afteronly100years,chilipeppershadspreadallaroundtheworld.Theygroweasilyinwarmweather.TheonlyplacethatthechilipepperdidnotbecomepopularwasNorthernEurope,probablybecauseitistoocoldtogrowchilipepperseasily.

Althoughchilipeppersspreadquickly,otherfoodsfromtheAmericasspreadveryslowly.Potatoesareagoodexample.Ittookabout250yearsforthepotatoestospreadaroundtheworld.ThereasonittooksolongisthatEuropeansthoughtthatpotatoeswerepoisonous.ThepotatolookedalotlikeaverypoisonousplantthatgrewinEurope.Peoplewereafraidtoeatpotatoes!Foralongtime,peopleonlyusedpotatoestof

11.PeopleinRussiaarealsofamousfortheirlongevity.

A.TrueB.Fasle

12.WhendidtheWomen'sMovementbeginintheU.S.A.?

13.HowdidEmilyDickinsondifferfromWaltWhitman?

A.Shepublishedpoemsfrequently.

B.Sheseldomlefthome.

C.Shelivedinanearlierera.

D.Shespokeadifferentlanguage.

14.Whatdoesthetalkmainlyconcern?

15.Whatwouldhappentoastudentifhisemployerreportshisimproperbehavior?

A.Hewouldbefired.

B.Hewouldnotgethispay.

C.Hewouldnotgetanotherjob.

D.Hewouldbefined.

二、2.UseofEnglish(10题)16.(46)

17.

【C9】

18.(33)

19.(39)

20.

【C12】

21.(49)

22.

【C20】

23.(43)

24.

【C18】

25.(35)

三、3.ReadingComprehension(15题)26.

Whichofthefollowingbestsummarizesthetext?

A.AstheUNhesitates，thepoortakeaction．

B.ProgressinenvironmentalprotectionhasbeenmadesincetheRioSummit．

C.Climatechangescannolongerbeneglected．

D.Thedeclineofearth'slife-supportsystemshasbeenhalted．

27.(69)

28.PartC

Directions:Answerquestions71-80byreferringtothefollowinggames.

Note:AnswereachquestionbychoosingA,BorCandmarkitonANSWERSHEET1.Somechoicesmayberequiredmorethanonce.

Answerquestions71～80byreferringtothefollowinggames.

Note:AnswereachquestionbychoosingA,B,CorDandmarkitonANSWERSHEET1.Somechoicesmayberequiredmorethanonce.

Whichschool...

isnotforboys?71.______

haswonthenationalaward?72.______

ownsmostfull-timefacultymemberswhoholdaPh.D.orterminaldegreeintheirfield?73.______

hasagoodreputationforwhattheydoforsomespecialpersons?74.______

hasalimitintheageforthosewhowillliveoncampus?75.______

putemphasisondevelopingstudents'verbaltalents?76.______

doesnotofferanyscholarships?77.______

providesstudentswithvocationaltraining?78.______

combinesliberalartswithprofessionalstudiesandpromotesservicetoothers?79.______

appliesadvanceddevicestoteaching?80.______

AEllesmereCollegeisoneofthefastest-growingindependentschoolsinthecountryoverthepasttwoyears,withpupils'numberrisingbyalmost20%.Thegrowthhasledtoa$1millioninvestmentprogramin1999andthebuildingofanewlowerschoolforboysandgirlsagedninetothirteen.Thenewlowerschoolwillbethelargestsinglebuildingprojectatthecollegesinceitsfoundationin1884.

Intheseniorschool,two-thirdsofthepupilsareboarders,andboardingisavailablefromtheageof11.Thesixthform.isstrongwithover120pupils;thereisanexceptionallywide-rangeofA-levelsubjectsonofferandtheCollegehaspioneeredtheuseofvideoconferencingtechnologyasawayofimprovingitscurriculum.MicrosoftOfficequailficationsarealsoavailableinthesixthform.

TheCollegeissetinextensivegroundsinthebeautifulNorthShropshireLakeDistrict.Facilitiesareexcellenfandvarious,andincludemanysportsfields,sixall-weathertenniscourts,indoorandoutdoorshootingranges,anine-holegolfcourseandapurpose-builttheater.TheCollegesailingclubhasboatswithinwalkingdistanceonWhitemere.

ThemajorityofthedaypupilsattheCollegeenjoytheCollegebusservicewhichcoversaverywidearea.BoardingthroughouttheSchoolhasbenefitedfromarecentmultimillionpoundrefurbishmentwhichhasdoneawaywithdormitoriesinfavorofmodem,comfortablerooms,thelargestsleepingsix,butmostsleepingtwoorone.

Academicstandardsarehighforaschoolwithabroadentryrange.Manyscholarshipsareawardedacrossarangeoftalents,buttheemphasisofanEllesmereeducationisfirmlyonbreadthwitheachpupilachievinghisorherfullpotential,whateverthatmaybe.Recentpupilsuccessesrangefrominternationalhonorsinshooting,fencingandcanoeingtoarecentleaver'selection--afteronlyoneyearasanundergraduate--toanExhibitioninchemistryatJesusCollege,Oxford.TheCollegehasanationalreputationforthequalityofitsdyslexiaprovision.

BThechoiceoftherightschoolforyoursonordaughterisimportant.Forover100yearsEdgehillCollegehasproudlypreparedindependently-mindedyoungpeopletotaketheirplaceinaworldofrapidlyadvancingtechnology.

Thefoundationsofasoundeducationarelaiddownearlyinlife.Edgehilldoesthiswithinthefriendlywallsofitsprepschool.Learningthroughenjoymentbeginsattheageofthreeandcontinuestothepointwherepupilscanproceedsmoothlyandconfidentlyintoseniorschool.

Entrytotheprepschoolis

29.(75)

30.

Whichofthefollowingistrueaccordingtothetext?

A.TheHartspreferapublicuniversitytoaprivateone.

B.Itismucheasiertopaythetuitionatpresent.

C.Allstudentscangettheaidpackage.

D.Traditionalscholarshipsarestillattractivetosomefamilies.

31.

Theword"tarnish"(line4,paragraph4)mostprobablymeans______.

A.affectB.warnC.troubleD.stain

32.

Accordingtothepassage,theauthorfelt______togiveRaoulaholidaytip.

A.excitedB.delightedC.embarrassedD.forced

33.

WhichofthestatementsisNOTtrue?

A.Astronautshaveagoodjobwhichdemandshigh.

B.ThedivorcerateinNASAisverylow.

C.TheNASAastronautsmostlyfindfriendsfromamongtheirwork.

D.Thereisnoyoungermaninhistwentiesinthespaceship.

34.

Themainpointofthepassageisthatspecialprotectivelaborlawsforwomenworkersare______.

A.unnecessarybecausemostworkersarewellprotectedbyexistinglaborlaws

B.harmfultotheeconomicinterestsofwomenworkerswhileofferingthemlittleornoactualprotection

C.notworthpreservingeventhoughtheydorepresentahardwonlegacyofthelabormovement

D.controversialbecausemaleworkersreceivelessprotectionthantheyrequire

35.(68)

36.(67)

37.(79)

38.PartB

Directions:Inthefollowingarticlesomeparagraphshavebeenremoved.ForQuestions66-70,choosethemostsuitableparagraphfromthelistA-Ftofitintoeachofthenumberedgaps.Thereisoneparagraphwhichdoesnotfitinanyofthegaps.MarkyouranswersonANSWERSHEET1.

Inthefollowingarticlesomeparagraphshavebeenremoved.ForQuestions66～70,choosethemostsuitableparagraphfromthelistA～Ftofitintoeachofthenumberedgaps.Thereisoneparagraphwhichdoesnotfitinanyofthegaps.

A．Therearedifferentformulasfortheexchangeofglancesdependingonwherethemeetingtakesplace.

B．Inthesubwayorbuswherelongridesinveryclosecircumstancesareanecessity,wemaybehardputtofindsomewayofnotstaring.Wesneakglances,butlookawaybeforeoureyescanlock.Ifwelookwithanunfocusedglancethatmissestheeyesandsettlesonthehead．themouth,thebodyforanyplacebuttheeyesisanacceptablelookingspotfortheunfocusedglance.

C．Actuallyinthiswaywearesaying,inbodylanguage,“Iknowyouarethere,”andamomentlaterweadd,“ButIwouldnotdreamofintrudingonyourprivacy.”

D．Itisthetechniqueweuseforanyunusualsituationwheretoolongastarewouldbeembarrassing.Whenweseeaninterracialcouple,wealsousethistechnique.Wemightuseitwhenweseeamanwithanunusualbeard,withextralonghair,withoutlandishclothes,oragirlwithaminimalminiskirtmayattractthislook-and-away．

E．ForthispassingencounterDr.ErvingGoffmaninbehavior.inpublicplacessaysthatthequicklookandtheloweringoftheeyesisbodylanguagefor,“Itrustyou.Iamnotafraidofyou.”

F．Sometimestherulesarehardtofollow,particularlyifoneofthetwopeoplewearsdarkglasses.

Withunfamiliarhumanbeings,whenweacknowledgetheirhumanness,wemustavoidstaringatthem,andyetwemustalsoavoidignoringthem.Tomakethemintopeopleratherthanobjects,weuseadeliberateandpoliteinattention.Welookatthemlongenoughto,makeitquiteclearthatweseethem,andthenweimmediatelylookaway.

66．______

Theimportantthinginsuchanexchangeisthatwedonotcatchtheeyeofonewhomwearerecognizingasaperson.Welookathimwithoutlockingglances,andthenweimmediatelylookaway.Recognitionisnotpermitted.

67．______

Ifyoupasssomeoneinthestreet,youmayeyetheoncomingpersonuntilyouareabouteightfeetapart,thenyoumustlookawayasyoupass.Beforetheeight-footdistanceisreached,eachwillsignalinwhichdirectionhewillpass.Thisisdonewithabrieflookinthatdirection.Eachwillveerslightlyandthepassingisdonesmoothly.

68．______

Tostrengthenthissignal,youlookdirectlyattheother'sfacebeforelookingaway.

69．______

Itbecomesimpossibletodiscoverjustwhattheyaredoing.Aretheylookingatyoutoolong,toointently?Aretheylookingatyouatall?Thepersonwearingtheglassesfeelsprotectedandassumesthathecanstarewithoutbeingnoticedinhisstaring.However,thisisaself-deception.Totheotherperson,darkglassesseemtoindicatethatthewearerisalwaysstaringathim.

Weoftenusethislook-awaytechniquewhenwemeetfamouspeople.Wewanttoassurethemwearerespectingtheirprivacyandthatwewouldnotdreamofstaringatthem.Thesameistrueofthecrippledorphysicallyhandicapped.Welookbriefandthenlookawaybeforethestarecanbesaidtobeastare.

70．______

Ofcourse,theoppositeisalsotrue.Ifwewishtoputapersondown,wemaydosobystaringlongerthanisacceptablypolite.Insteadofdroppingourgazeswhenwelockglances,wecontinuetostare.Thepersonwhodisapprovesof

39.PartA

Directions:ReadthefollowingtextsandanswerthequestionswhichaccompanythembychoosingA,B,CorD.MarkyouranswersonANSWERSHEET1.

TodayTVaudiencesallovertheworldareaccustomedtothesightofAmericanastronautsintip-topcondition,withfairhair,crew-cuts,goodteeth,anuncomplicatedsenseofhumourandaseverelylimitednon-technicalvocabulary.

Whatmarksoutanastronautfromhisearthboundfellowhumanbeingsissomethingofadifficultproblem.Shouldyouwishtointerviewhim,youmustapplybeforehand,andyoumustbepreparedforalongishwait,evenifyourapplicationmeetswithsuccess.Itis.inanycase,outofthequestiontointerviewanastronautabouthisfamilylifeorpersonalactivities,becausealltheastronautshavecontractswithanAmericanmagazineunderconditionsforbiddinganyunauthorizeddisclosuresabouttheirprivatelives.

Certainobviousqualifiesareneeded.Anyonewhowouldbeaspacemanmustbeinperfecthealth,musthavepowersofconcentration(sinceworkinsideaspacecraftisexceptionallydemanding)andmusthaveconsiderablecourage.Again,space-workcallsfordedication.Courageanddedicationareparticularlyessential.Inthewell-knowncaseoftheChallengersevencrewmemberslosttheirlivesinspacebecauseofthefaultyequipmentintheshuttle.Anothermustbeoutstandingscientificexpertise.Itgoeswithoutsayingthattheyallhavetohaveprofessionalaeronauticalqualificationsandexperience.

Astrikingfeatureoftheastronautsistheirages.Fortheyoungerman,inhistwenties,say,spaceisout.OnlyoneofthefiftymenworkingforNASAin1970wasunder30.TheoldestastronauttodateisAlanShepard,America'sfirstmaninspace,who,atnearlyfifty,wasalsothemanwhocaptainedApollo13.Theaverageageisthelatethirties.ThecrewmembersofApollo11wereallbornwellbeforetheSecondWorldWar.In1986theChallengerastronautshadanaverageageof39.Therangewasfrom35to46.

Inasocietywheremaritalcontinuityisnotalwaysexhibited,theastronauts'recordinthisrespecthitsyouintheeye.OfallthemarriedmeninNASAgroup,onlytwoorthreearedivorcedfromtheirwives.Mindyou.itishardtotellwhethersomethinginthebasiccharacterofanastronautencouragesfidelityorwhethertheselectionprocessdemandsthatacandidateshouldbehappilymarried.

TheNASAastronautsliveinunattractivesmallcommunitiesdottedhereandtherearoundthebaseinTexas.Youwouldexpectthemtofindtheirfriendsfromamongtheirprofessionalassociates,butthisisnotthecase.Rather,theyprefertomakefriendswiththenormalfolkintheirdistricts.Astronauts,likeeverybodyelse,mustgetfedupwithtalkingshopallthetime,andwhereastheyareindeedanelite,theirdailylifeoutsideworkshouldbeasnormalaspossible,ifonlyforthesakeoftheirfamilies.

Asfortheastronauts'politicalleanings,theyseemtobetowardstheright.Thismaybeduetothefactthatalargeproportionoftheastronautshaveamilitarybackground.Ontheotherhand,itcouldbejustcoincidence.

Detailsoftheprivatelifeofanastronau