考研英语试题及答案

2014年全国硕士研究生入学统一考试英语试题

SectionIUseofEnglish

Directions:

Readthefollowingtext.Choosethebestword(s)foreachnumberedblankandmarkA,B,CorDontheANSWERSHEET.(10points)

Asmanypeoplehitmiddleage,theyoftenstarttonoticethattheirmemoryandmentalclarity

arenotwhattheyusedtobe.Wesuddenlycan’tremember

1

weputthekeysjustamoment

ago,oranoldacquaintance’sname,orthenameofanoldbandweusedtolove.Asthebrain

2

,

werefertotheseoccurrencesas“seniormoments.”

3

seeminglyinnocent,thislossofmental

focuscanpotentiallyhavea(n)

4

impactonourprofessional,social,andpersonal

5

.

Neuroscientists,expertswhostudythenervoussystem,areincreasinglyshowingthatthere’s

actuallyalotthatcanbedone.It

ourmusclesdo,andtherightmental

6 outthatthebrainneedsexerciseinmuchthesameway

7

cansignificantlyimproveourbasiccognitive

8 .

Thinkingisessentiallya

9

ofmakingconnectionsinthebrain.Toacertainextent,ourability

to

10

inmakingtheconnectionsthatdriveintelligenceisinherited.

11

,becausethese

connectionsaremadethrougheffortandpractice,scientistsbelievethatintelligencecanexpandand

fluctuate

12

mentaleffort.

Now,anewWeb-basedcompanyhastakenitastep

13

anddevelopedthefirst“brain

trainingprogram”designedtoactuallyhelppeopleimproveandregaintheirmental

14 .

TheWeb-basedprogram 15

youtosystematicallyimproveyourmemoryandattention

skills.Theprogramkeeps

16

ofyourprogressandprovidesdetailedfeedback

17

your

performanceandimprovement.Mostimportantly,it

18

modifiesandenhancesthegamesyou

playto

19

onthestrengthsyouaredeveloping—muchlikea(n)

20

exerciseroutine

requiresyoutoincreaseresistanceandvaryyourmuscleuse.

[A]where

[A]improves

[A]If

[A]uneven

[A]wellbeing

[A]turns

[A]roundabouts

[A]genre

[A]channel

[A]persist

[A]Therefore

[A]accordingto

[A]back

[A]sharpness

[A]forces

[B]when

[B]fades

[B]Unless

[B]limited

[B]environment

[B]finds

[B]responses

[B]functions

[B]condition

[B]believe

[B]Moreover

[B]regardlessof

[B]further

[B]stability

[B]reminds

[C]that

[C]recovers

[C]Once

[C]damaging

[C]relationship

[C]points

[C]workouts

[C]circumstances

[C]sequence

[C]excel

[C]Otherwise

[C]apartfrom

[C]aside

[C]framework

[C]hurries

[D]why

[D]collapses

[D]While

[D]obscure

[D]outlook

[D]figures

[D]associations

[D]criterion

[D]process

[D]feature

[D]However

[D]insteadof

[D]around

[D]flexibility

[D]allows

[A]hold

[A]to

[A]irregularly

[A]carry

[A]risky

[B]track

[B]with

[B]habitually

[B]put

[B]effective

[C]order

[C]for

[C]constantly

[C]build

[C]idle

[D]pace

[D]on

[D]unusually

[D]take

[D]familiar

SectionⅡReadingComprehension

PartADirections:

Readthefollowingfourtexts.AnswerthequestionsbeloweachtextbychoosingA,B,CorD.Mark

youranswersontheANSWERSHEET.(40points)

Text1

Inorderto“changelivesforthebetter”andreduce“dependency”GeorgeOsborne,ChancelloroftheExchequer,introducedthe“upfrontworksearch”scheme.OnlyifthejoblessarriveatthejobcentrewithaCV,registerforonlinejobsearch,andstartlookingforworkwilltheybeeligibleforbenefitandthentheyshouldreportweeklyratherthanfortnightly.Whatcouldbemorereasonable?Moreapparentreasonablenessfollowed.Therewillnowbeaseven-daywaitforthejobseeker’sallowance.“Thosefirstfewdaysshouldbespentlookingforwork,notlookingtosignon.”heclaimed.“We’redoingthesethingsbecauseweknowtheyhelppeoplestayoffbenefitsandhelpthoseonbenefitsgetintoworkfaster.”Help?Really?Onfirsthearing,thiswasthesociallyconcernedchancellor,tryingtochangelivesforthebetter,completewith“reforms”toanobviouslyindulgentsystemthatdemandstoolittleeffortfromthenewlyunemployedtofindwork,andsubsidizeslaziness.Whatmotivatedhim,weweretounderstand,washiszealfor“fundamentalfairness”—protectingthetaxpayer,controllingspendingandensuringthatonlythemostdeserving

claimantsreceivedtheirbenefits.

Losingajobishurting:youdon’tskipdowntothejobcentrewithasonginyourheart,delightedattheprospectofdoublingyourincomefromthegenerousstate.Itisfinanciallyterrifying,psychologicallyembarrassingandyouknowthatsupportisminimalandextraordinarilyhardtoget.Youarenownotwanted;yousupportisminimalandextraordinarilyhardtoget.Youarenownotwanted;youarenowexcludedfromtheworkenvironmentthatofferspurposeandstructureinyourlife.Worse,thecrucialincometofeedyourselfandyourfamilyandpaythebillshasdisappeared.Askanyonenewlyunemployedwhattheywantandtheanswerisalways:ajob.

ButinOsborneland,yourfirstinstinctistofallintodependency—permanentdependencyifyoucangetit—supportedbyastateonlytooreadytoindulgeyourfalsehood.Itisasthough20yearsofever-tougherreformsofthejobsearchandbenefitadministrationsystemneverhappened.TheprincipleofBritishwelfareisnolongerthatyoucaninsureyourselfagainsttheriskofunemploymentandreceiveunconditionalpaymentsifthedisasterhappens.Eventheveryphrase“jobseeker’sallowance”isaboutredefiningtheunemployedasa“jobseeker”whohadnofundamentalrighttoabenefitheorshehasearnedthroughmakingnationalinsurancecontributions.Instead,theclaimantreceivesatime-limited“allowance,”conditionalonactivelyseekingajob;no

entitlementandnoinsurance,at£71.70aweek,oneoftheleastgenerousintheEU.

21.GeorgeOsborne’sschemewasintendedto

.

providetheunemployedwitheasieraccesstobenefits

encouragejobseekers’activeengagementinjobseeking

motivatetheunemployedtoreportvoluntarily

guaranteejobseekers’legitimaterighttobenefits

Thephrase,“tosignon”(Line3,Para.2)mostprobablymeans

tocheckontheavailabilityofjobsatthejobcentre

toacceptthegovernment’srestrictionsontheallowance

toregisterforanallowancefromthegovernment

toattendagovernmentaljob-trainingprogram23.Whatpromptedthechancellortodevelophisscheme?

Adesiretosecureabetterlifeforall.

Aneagernesstoprotecttheunemployed.

Anurgetobegeneroustotheclaimants.

Apassiontoensurefairnessfortaxpayers.24.AccordingtoParagraph3,beingunemployedmakesonefeel

uneasy

enraged

insulted

guilty

Towhichofthefollowingwouldtheauthormostprobablyagree?

TheBritishwelfaresystemindulgesjobseekers’laziness.

Osborne’sreformswillreducetheriskofunemployment.

Thejobseekers’allowancehasmettheiractualneeds.

Unemploymentbenefitsshouldnotbemadeconditional.

.

.

Text2

Allaroundtheworld,lawyersgeneratemorehostilitythan

themembers

ofanyother

profession—withthepossibleexceptionofjournalism.ButtherearefewplaceswhereclientshavemoregroundsforcomplaintthanAmerica.

Duringthedecadebeforetheeconomiccrisis,spendingonlegalservicesinAmericagrewtwiceasfastasinflation.Thebestlawyersmadeskyscrapers-fullofmoney,temptingevermorestudentstopileintolawschools.Butmostlawgraduatesnevergetabig-firmjob.Manyoftheminsteadbecomethekindofnuisance-lawsuitfilerthatmakesthetortsystemacostlynightmare.

Therearemanyreasonsforthis.Oneistheexcessivecostsofalegaleducation.ThereisjustonepathforalawyerinmostAmericanstates:afour-yearundergraduatedegreeinsomeunrelatedsubject,thenathree-yearlawdegreeatoneof200lawschoolsauthorizedbytheAmericanBarAssociationandanexpensivepreparationforthebarexam.Thisleavestoday’saveragelaw-schoolgraduatewith$100,000ofdebtontopofundergraduatedebts.Law-schooldebtmeansthatmanycannotaffordtogointogovernmentornon-profitwork,andthattheyhavetoworkfearsomelyhard.Reformingthesystemwouldhelpbothlawyersandtheircustomers.Sensibleideashavebeenaroundforalongtime,butthestate-levelbodiesthatgoverntheprofessionhavebeentooconservativetoimplementthem.Oneideaistoallowpeopletostudylawasanundergraduatedegree.

Anotheristoletstudentssitforthebarafteronlytwoyearsoflawschool.Ifthebarexamistruly

asternenoughtestforawould-belawyer,thosewhocansititearliershouldbeallowedtodoso.Studentswhodonotneedtheextratrainingcouldcuttheirdebtmountainbyathird.

Theotherreasonwhycostsaresohighistherestrictiveguild-likeownershipstructureofthebusiness.ExceptintheDistrictofColumbia,non-lawyersmaynotownanyshareofalawfirm.Thiskeepsfeeshighandinnovationslow.Thereispressureforchangefromwithintheprofession,butopponentsofchangeamongtheregulatorsinsistthatkeepingoutsidersoutofalawfirmisolateslawyersfromthepressuretomakemoneyratherthanserveclientsethically.

Infact,allowingnon-lawyerstoownsharesinlawfirmswouldreducecostsandimproveservicestocustomers,byencouraginglawfirmstousetechnologyandtoemployprofessionalmanagerstofocusonimprovingfirms’efficiency.Afterall,othercountries,suchasAustraliaand

Britain,havestartedliberalizingtheirlegalprofessions.Americashouldfollow.

lotofstudentstakeuplawastheirprofessiondueto

thegrowingdemandfromclients

theincreasingpressureofinflation

theprospectofworkinginbigfirms

theattractionoffinancialrewards

.

WhichofthefollowingaddstothecostsoflegaleducationinmostAmericanstates?

Highertuitionfeesforundergraduatestudies.

Admissionsapprovalfromthebarassociation.

Pursuingabachelor’sdegreeinanothermajor.

Receivingtrainingbyprofessionalassociations.

Hindrancetothereformofthelegalsystemoriginatesfrom

lawyers’andclients’strongresistance

therigidbodiesgoverningtheprofession

thestemexamforwould-belawyers

non-professionals’sharpcriticism

.

Theguild-likeownershipstructureisconsidered“restrictive”partlybecauseit

bansoutsiders’involvementintheprofession

keepslawyersfromholdinglaw-firmshares

aggravatestheethicalsituationinthetrade

preventslawyersfromgainingdueprofits

.

30.Inthistext,theauthormainlydiscusses

.

flawedownershipofAmerica’slawfirmsanditscauses

thefactorsthathelpmakeasuccessfullawyerinAmerica

aprobleminAmerica’slegalprofessionandsolutionstoit

theroleofundergraduatestudiesinAmerica’slegaleducation

Text3

TheUS$3-millionFundamentalphysicsprizeisindeedaninteresting

experiment,as

AlexanderPolyakovsaidwhenheacceptedthisyear’sawardinMarch.Anditisfarfromtheonlyoneofitstype.AsaNewsFeaturearticleinNaturediscusses,astringoflucrativeawardsforresearchershavejoinedtheNobelPrizesinrecentyears.Many,liketheFundamentalPhysicsPrize,

arefundedfromthetelephone-number-sizedbankaccountsofInternetentrepreneurs.These

benefactorshavesucceededintheirchosenfields,theysay,andtheywanttousetheirwealthtodrawattentiontothosewhohavesucceededinscience.

What’snottolike?Quitealot,accordingtoahandfulofscientistsquotedintheNewsFeature.Youcannotbuyclass,astheoldsayinggoes,andtheseupstartentrepreneurscannotbuytheirprizestheprestigeoftheNobles,Thenewawardsareanexerciseinself-promotionforthosebehindthem,sayscientists.Theycoulddistorttheachievement-basedsystemofpeer-review-ledresearch.Theycouldcementthestatusquoofpeer-reviewedresearch.Theydonotfundpeer-reviewedresearch.Theyperpetuatethemythofthelonegenius.

Thegoalsoftheprize-giversseemasscatteredasthecriticism.Somewanttoshock,otherstodrawpeopleintoscience,ortobetterrewardthosewhohavemadetheircareersinresearch.

AsNaturehaspointedoutbefore,therearesomelegitimateconcernsabouthowscienceprizes—bothnewandold—aredistributed.TheBreakthroughPrizeinLifeSciences,launchedthisyear,takesanunrepresentativeviewofwhatthelifesciencesinclude.ButtheNobelFoundation’slimitofthreerecipientsperprize,eachofwhommuststillbeliving,haslongbeenoutgrownbythecollaborativenatureofmodernresearch—aswillbedemonstratedbytheinevitablerowoverwhoisignoredwhenitcomestoacknowledgingthediscoveryoftheHiggsboson.TheNobleswere,ofcourse,themselvessetupbyaveryrichindividualwhohaddecidedwhathewantedtodowithhisownmoney.Time,ratherthanintention,hasgiventhemlegitimacy.

Asmuchassomescientistsmaycomplainaboutthenewawards,twothingsseemclear.First,mostresearcherswouldacceptsuchaprizeiftheywereofferedone.Second,itissurelyagoodthingthatthemoneyandattentioncometoscienceratherthangoelsewhere,Itisfairtocriticizeandquestionthemechanism—thatisthecultureofresearch,afterall—butitistheprize-givers’

moneytodowithastheyplease.Itiswisetotakesuchgiftswithgratitudeandgrace.

TheFundamentalPhysicsPrizeisseenas

asymboloftheentrepreneurs’wealth

apossiblereplacementoftheNobelPrizes

anexampleofbankers’investments

ahandsomerewardforresearchers

.

Thecriticsthinkthatthenewawardswillmostbenefit

theprofit-orientedscientists

thefoundersofthenewawards

theachievement-basedsystem

peer-review-ledresearch

.

ThediscoveryoftheHiggsbosonisatypicalcasewhichinvolves

controversiesovertherecipients’status

thejointeffortofmodernresearchers

legitimateconcernsoverthenewprizes

thedemonstrationofresearchfindings

AccordingtoParagraph4,whichofthefollowingistrueoftheNobles?

Theirendurancehasdonejusticetothem.

Theirlegitimacyhaslongbeenindispute.

Theyarethemostrepresentativehonor.

Historyhasnevercastdoubtonthem.

.

Theauthorbelievesthatthenowawardsare

acceptabledespitethecriticism

harmfultothecultureofresearch

subjecttoundesirablechanges

unworthyofpublicattention

.

Text4

“TheHeartoftheMatter,”thejust-releasedreportbytheAmericanAcademyofArtsandSciences(AAAS),deservespraiseforaffirmingtheimportanceofthehumanitiesandsocialsciencestotheprosperityandsecurityofliberaldemocracyinAmerica.Regrettably,however,thereport’sfailuretoaddressthetruenatureofthecrisisfacingliberaleducationmaycausemoreharmthangood.

In2010,leadingcongressionalDemocratsandRepublicanssentletterstotheAAASaskingthatitidentifyactionsthatcouldbetakenby“federal,stateandlocalgovernments,universities,foundations,educators,individualbenefactorsandothers”to“maintainnationalexcellenceinhumanitiesandsocialscientificscholarshipandeducation.”Inresponse,theAmericanAcademyformedtheCommissionontheHumanitiesandSocialSciences.Amongthecommission’s51membersaretop-tier-universitypresidents,scholars,lawyers,judges,andbusinessexecutives,aswellasprominentfiguresfromdiplomacy,filmmaking,musicandjournalism.

Thegoalsidentifiedinthereportaregenerallyadmirable.Becauserepresentativegovernmentpresupposesaninformedcitizenry,thereportsupportsfullliteracy;stressesthestudyofhistoryandgovernment,particularlyAmericanhistoryandAmericangovernment;andencouragestheuseofnewdigitaltechnologies.Toencourageinnovationandcompetition,thereportcallsforincreasedinvestmentinresearch,thecraftingofcoherentcurriculathatimprovestudents’abilitytosolveproblemsandcommunicateeffectivelyinthe21stcentury,increasedfundingforteachersandtheencouragementofscholarstobringtheirlearningtobearonthegreatchallengesoftheday.Thereportalsoadvocatesgreaterstudyofforeignlanguages,internationalaffairsandtheexpansionofstudyabroadprograms.

Unfortunately,despite2½yearsinthemaking,“TheHeartoftheMatter”nevergetstotheheartofthematter:theilliberalnatureofliberaleducationatourleadingcollegesanduniversities.ThecommissionignoresthatforseveraldecadesAmerica'scollegesanduniversitieshaveproducedgraduateswhodon’tknowthecontentandcharacterofliberaleducationandarethusdeprivedofitsbenefits.Sadly,thespiritofinquiryonceathomeoncampushasbeenreplacedbytheuseofthehumanitiesandsocialsciencesasvehiclesforpublicizing“progressive,”orleft-liberalpropaganda.Today,professorsroutinelytreattheprogressiveinterpretationofhistoryandprogressivepublicpolicyasthepropersubjectofstudywhileportrayingconservativeorclassicalliberalideas—suchasfreemarketsandself-reliance—asfallingoutsidetheboundariesofroutine,andsometimes

legitimate,intellectualinvestigation.

TheAAASdisplaysgreatenthusiasmforliberaleducation.YetitsreportmaywellsetbackreformbyobscuringthedepthandbreadthofthechallengethatCongressaskedittoilluminate.

AccordingtoParagraph1,whatistheauthor’sattitudetowardtheAAAS’sreport?

Critical

Appreciative

Contemptuous

Tolerant

InfluentialfiguresintheCongressrequiredthattheAAASreportonhowto

retainpeople’sinterestinliberaleducation

definethegovernment’sroleineducation

keepaleadingpositioninliberaleducation

safeguardindividuals’rightstoeducation

.

AccordingtoParagraph3,thereportsuggests

anexclusivestudyofAmericanhistory

agreateremphasisontheoreticalsubjects

theapplicationofemergingtechnologies

fundingforthestudyofforeignlanguages

TheauthorimpliesinParagraph5thatprofessorsare

supportiveoffreemarkets

cautiousaboutintellectualinvestigation

conservativeaboutpublicpolicy

biasedagainstclassicalliberalideas

.

.

Whichofthefollowingwouldbethebesttitleforthetext?

WaystoGrasp“TheHeartoftheMatter”

IlliberalEducationand“TheHeartoftheMatter”

TheAAAS’sContributiontoLiberalEducation

ProgressivePolicyvs.LiberalEducation

Part

B

Directions:

Thefollowingparagraphsaregiveninawrongorder.ForQuestions41-45,youarerequiredtoreorganizetheseparagraphsintoacoherenttextbychoosingfromthelistA-Gandfillingthemintothenumberedboxes.ParagraphsAndEhavebeencorrectlyplacedMarkyouranswersontheANSWERSHEET(10points)

Somearchaeologicalsiteshavealwaysbeeneasilyobservable—forexample,theParthenoninAthens,Greece,thepyramidsofGizainEgypt;andthemegalithsofStonehengeinsouthernEngland.Butthesesitesareexceptionstothenorm.Mostarchaeologicalsiteshavebeenlocatedbymeansofcarefulsearching,whilemanyothershavebeendiscoveredbyaccident.OlduvaiGorge,anearlyhominidsiteinTanzania,wasfoundbyabutterflyhunterwholiterallyfellintoitsdeepvalleyin1911.ThousandsofAztecartifactscametolightduringthediggingoftheMexicoCitysubwayinthe1970s.

Inanothercase,AmericanarchaeologistsRenéMillionandGeorgeCowgillspentyearssystematicallymappingtheentirecityofTeotihuacanintheValleyofMexiconearwhatisnowMexicoCity.AtitspeakaroundAD600,thiscitywasoneofthelargesthumansettlementsintheworld.Theresearchersmappednotonlythecity’svastandornateceremonialareas,butalsohundredsofsimplerapartmentcomplexeswherecommonpeoplelived.

Howdoarchaeologistsknowwheretofindwhattheyarelookingforwhenthereisnothing

visibleonthesurfaceoftheground?Typically,theysurveyandsample(maketestexcavationson)largeareasofterraintodeterminewhereexcavationwillyieldusefulinformation.Surveysandtest

sampleshavealsobecomeimportantforunderstandingthelargerlandscapesthatcontainarchaeologicalsites.

Surveyscancoverasinglelargesettlementorentirelandscapes.Inonecase,manyresearchersworkingaroundtheancientMayacityofCopan,Honduras,havelocatedhundredsofsmallruralvillagesandindividualdwellingsbyusingaerialphotographsandbymakingsurveysonfoot.TheresultingsettlementmapsshowhowthedistributionanddensityoftheruralpopulationaroundthecitychangeddramaticallybetweenAD500and850,whenCopancollapsed.

Tofindtheirsites,archaeologiststodayrelyheavilyonsystematicsurveymethodsandavarietyofhigh-technologytoolsandtechniques.Airbornetechnologies,suchasdifferenttypesofradarandphotographicequipmentcarriedbyairplanesorspacecraft,allowarchaeologiststolearnaboutwhatliesbeneaththegroundwithoutdigging.Aerialsurveyslocategeneralareasofinterestorlargerburiedfeatures,suchasancientbuildingsorfields.

Mostarchaeologicalsites,however,arediscoveredbyarchaeologistswhohavesetouttolookforthem.Suchsearchescantakeyears.BritisharchaeologistHowardCarterknewthatthetomboftheEgyptianpharaohTutankhamenexistedfrominformationfoundinothersites.CartersiftedthroughrubbleintheValleyoftheKingsforsevenyearsbeforehelocatedthetombin1922.Inthelate1800sBritisharchaeologistSirArthurEvancombedantiquedealers’storesinAthens,Greece.HewassearchingfortinyengravedsealsattributedtotheancientMycenaeanculturethatdominatedGreecefromthe1400sto1200sBC.Evans’sinterpretationsoftheseengravingseventuallyledhimtofindtheMinoanpalaceatKnossos(Knossós)ontheislandofCrete,in1900.

Groundsurveysallowarchaeologiststopinpointtheplaceswheredigswillbesuccessful.Mostgroundsurveysinvolvealotofwalking,lookingforsurfacecluessuchassmallfragmentsofpottery.Theyoftenincludeacertainamountofdiggingtotestforburiedmaterialsatselectedpointsacrossalandscape.Archaeologistsalsomaylocateburiedremainsbyusingsuchtechnologiesasgroundradar,magnetic-fieldrecording,andmetaldetectors.Archaeologistscommonlyusecomputerstomapsitesandthelandscapesaroundsites.Twoandthree-dimensionalmapsarehelpfultoolsinplanningexcavations,illustratinghowsiteslook,andpresentingtheresultsof

archaeologicalresearch.

41.

PartCDirections:

→A→42.

→E→43.

→44.

→45.

ReadthefollowingtextcarefullyandthentranslatetheunderlinedsegmentsintoChinese.Your

translationshouldbewrittenneatlyontheANSWERSHEET.(10points)

Musicmeansdifferentthingstodifferentpeopleandsometimesevendifferentthingstothesamepersonatdifferentmomentsofhislife.Itmightbepoetic,philosophical,sensual,ormathematical,butinanycaseitmust,inmyview,havesomethingtodowiththesoulofthehumanbeing.Henceitismetaphysical;butthemeansofexpressionispurelyandexclusivelyphysical:sound.Ibelieveitispreciselythispermanentcoexistenceofmetaphysicalmessagethroughphysicalmeansthatisthestrengthofmusic.(46)Itisalsothereasonwhywhenwetrytodescribemusicwithwords,allwecandoisarticulateourreactionstoit,andnotgraspmusicitself.

Beethoven’simportanceinmusichasbeenprincipallydefinedbytherevolutionarynatureofhiscompositions.Hefreedmusicfromhithertoprevailingconventionsofharmonyandstructure.

SometimesIfeelinhislateworksawilltobreakallsignsofcontinuity.Themusicisabruptand

seeminglydisconnected,asinthelastpianosonata.Inmusicalexpression,hedidnotfeelrestrainedbytheweightofconvention.(47)Byallaccountshewasafreethinkingperson,andacourageousone,andIfindcourageanessentialqualityfortheunderstanding,letalonetheperformance,ofhisworks.