自考英语一历年真题及答案

2000年上半年高等教育自学考试英语（一）试卷

I.VocabularyandStructure(10points,1pointforeach)

从下列各句四个选项中选出一个最佳答案，并在答题纸上将相应的字母涂黑。

l.Somepeoplewhoareveryintelligentandsuccessfulintheirfieldsfinddifficulttosucceedinlanguage

learning.

[A]them[B]themselves[C]it[D]itself

2.Televisionadsareshort,buttheyarerepeatedoverandoveragaintheaudienceseesandhearsthemmany

times.

[A]inthat[B]sothat[C]asto[D]soas

3.TheAtlanticOceanisonlyhalfasbigasthePacific,itisstillverylarge.

[A]but[B]and[C]so[D]therefore

4.Noonehasbeenabletoprovethatfishisbetterforthebrainthanmanyotherkindsoffood.

[A]some[BJso[C]as[D]any

5.Tomatoeswereoncecalledloveapplesandweresupposedtomakethosewhoatetheminlove.

[A]fell[B]feel[CJfall[DJfelt

6.Washingfooddownwithwaterasaforchewingisnotagoodhabit.

[A]direction[BJsubstitute[CJpossibility[D]resource

7.Itisimportanttorealizethatthesametechnologyhelpsusmayalsoharmus.

[A]as[BJthat[C]what[D]when

8.Sciencebegantodeveloprapidlywhenmanlaidhiswrongbeliefsandbegantoseektrueexplanations.

[A]out[B]down[C]aside[D]outside

9.Remember,nothinghurtsconcentrationreadingtooslowly.

[A]ratherthan[B]aswellas[c]morethan[D]insteadof

10.Moreandmorepeoplearerealizingthatthereisabetweenheartdiseaseandthewayonelives.

[A]correspondence|B]comparison[CJconnection[DJconsequence

II.ClozeTest(10points,!pointforeach)

下列短文有十个空白，每个空白有四个选项。根据上下文要求选出最佳答案，并在答题纸上将相应的

字母涂黑。

Fearanditscompanionpainaretwoofthemostusefulthingsthatmenandanimalspossess,iftheyareproperlyused.If

firedidnothurtwhenitburnt,childrenwouldplaywithit_11___theirhandswereburntaway,___12,ifpainexisted

butfeardidnot,achildwouldburnitselfagainandagain,becausefearwouldnot_13___ittokeepawayfromthefirethat

hadburntitbefore.Fearandpainarethereforetwoguards___14___whichmenandanimalsmightsoondieout.

Inthefirstsentencewesuggestthatfearoughttobeproperlyused.If,15,younevergooutofyourhouse

___16ofthedangerofbeingknockeddownandkilledinthestreetbyacar,youarelettingfearruleyoutoo

―17.

Eveninyourhouseyouarenotabsolutely___18:anairplanemaycrashonyourhouseoryoumaygetcancer!

Theimportantthingisnottoletfearruleyou,but19tousefearasyourservantandguide.Fearwillwarn

youofdangers;20youhavetodecidewhatactiontotake.

1l.|a|becauselb]if[c]though[d]until

12.[a]GeneralIy[b]Probably[clSimilarly[d]Consequently

13.[a]warn[bjrequest[c]manage[djprotect

14.[a]w汕|b]without[c]for|d|against

15.[a]afterall[b]bychance[c]forexample[d]infact

16.[a]regardless[b]because[c]interms[d]infront

17.[a]little[b]more[c]many[d]much

18.[a]firm[b]calm[c]safe[d]strong

19.[a]instead[b]better[c]similarly[d]further

2O.[a]then[b]otherwise[c]likewise[dleven

III.Readingcomprehension(30points,2pointsfbreach)

从下列每篇短文的问题后所给的四个选择项中选出一个最佳答案，并在答题纸上将相应的字母涂黑。

PassageOne

Questions21to25arebasedonthefollowingpassage.

Theproblemofleisureisnew.Untilveryrecenttimespeopleworkedeachdaytothelimitoftheirstrength.Ofcourse

therewerealwaysaprivileged(有特权的)fewwhohadleisure;butmostmenhadtowork12,14,oreven16hoursaday,six

daysaweek.Aslateas1840theaveragefactoryworkerlabored72hoursaweek.nSunuptosundown'*wasthefarmer'sday,

orasanotherphraseputsit,"fromcantocan't."

Today,workinglessthana40-hourweek,peopleenjoymoreleisuretime.Hence,thewiseuseofleisuretimehas

becomeanimportantproblemfbreveryone,youngorold.Itisaparticularlydifficultproblemfbrthesick,theaged,and

thosewhohaveretiredfromearningaliving.Thosepeoplehavesomuchleisurethatitishardforthemtofindinteresting

andworthwhilewaystouseit.

Howevershorttheworkweekbecomes,workisstillthemostimportantpartoflife.Wedonotworktogetleisureand

thepleasuresleisurebringsus;rather,weuseleisurewiselysothatworkitselfcanbecomeawardingandenjoyable.The

feelingofsuccessatdoingone'sdailywork-whetheritisajob,maintainingahome,orgoingtoschool-dependslargelyon

comingtoiteachdaywithfreshenergyandactiveinterest.

Leisureandrecreation（消遗）gotogether,thoughtheyarenotnecessarilythesamething."Recreation"hasandobvious

meaning.Itisthekindofleisureactivitythatbrings"re-creation"ofstrengthandspirit.Whenonespeaksofmakinggooduse

ofleisure,hemeanschoosingrecreationalactivitieswhichcontributetohealth,growth,andspirit.

21.Thephrase"fromcantocan't"inParagraph1means.

[a]frombeginningtoend

[b]frombirthtodeath

[c]frommorningtonight

[d]fromtimetotime

22.Howtospendleisuretimewiselyisnotaparticularlydifficultproblemforpeople.

[a|whoareverybusyeveryday

[b]whoaresickinbed

[c]whoareagedandingoodhealth

[d]whohaveretiredfromwork

23.Howdoestheauthorlookatworkandleisure?

[a]Weworkhardsothatwecanenjoymoreleisure.

[b]Weenjoyleisuresothatwecancomebacktoworkwithfreshenergy.

[c]Leisurecanbringusalotofpleasuresthatworkcannot.

[d]Thesuccessofworkhaslittletodowithhowwespendourleisuretime.

24.Whatistherelationshipbetweenleisureandrecreation,accordingtotheauthor?

[a]Leisureandrecreationarecloselyrelated.

[b]Leisureandrecreationareidentical.

[c]Recreationcoversallkindsofleisureactivities.

[dJRecreationdoesnotbelongtoanyleisureactivity.

25.Fromthepassageweknowthat.

[a]leisurehasbeenanoldproblemsinceancienttimes

[b]leisurecannotbereplacedasthemostimportantpartoflife

[c]oursuccessinworkismostlydeterminedbywhetherweuseleisurewisely

[d]goodrecreationalactivitiescontributegreatlytohealth,growthandspirit

PassageTwo

Questions26to30arebasedonthefollowingpassage.

Eachnationhasitsownpeculiarcharacterwhichdistinguishesitfromothers.Butthepeoplesoftheworldhavemore

pointsincommonthanpointsinwhichtheydiffer.Onetypeofpersonthatiscommonineverycountryistheonewho

alwaystriestodoaslittleaspossibleandtogetasmuchaspossibleinreturn.Hisopposite,themanwhoisinthehabitof

doingmorethanisstrictlynecessaryandwhoisreadytoacceptwhatisofferedinreturn,israreeverywhere.

Boththesetypesareusuallyunconsciousoftheircharacter.Themanwhoavoidseffortisalwaystalkingabouthis

"rights":heappearstothinkthatsocietyoweshimapleasant,easylife.Themanwhoisalwaysdoingmorethanhisshare

talksof"duties"：hefeelsthattheindividualisindebttosociety,andnotsocietytotheindividual.Asaresultoftheirviews,

neitherofthesementhinksthathebehavesatallstrangely.

Themanwhotriestodoaslittleashecanisalwaysfullofexcuses:ifhehasneglectedtodosomething,itwasbecause

hehadaheadache,ortheweatherwastoohot-ortoocold-orbecausehewaspreventedbybadluck.Atfirst,otherpeople,

suchashisfriendsandhisemployer,generouslyaccepthisstories;butsoontheyrealizewhatkindofpersonheis.Inthe

longrunhedeceivesonlyhimself.Whenhisfriendsbecomecooltowardshimandhefailstomakeprogressinhisjob,heis

surprisedandhurt.Heblameseveryoneandeverythingexcepthimself.Hefeelsthatsocietyisfailinginitsdutiestowards

him,andthatheisbeingunjustlytreated.

26.ThecentralideaofParagraph1isthat.

[a]eachnationispeculiarenoughtoenableustodistinguishitfromothers

[bjthepeoplesoftheworldareasalikeastheyaredifferent

[c]thepeoplesoftheworldhavemoresimilaritiesthandifferences

[d]thosewhodomorethanisstrictlynecessaryarecommonineverycountry

27.AccordingtoParagraph1,themanwhodoesmorethanisrequired.

[a]isreadytoacceptwhatthesocietyoffershim

[b]expectsnothinginreturnforhiswork

[c]feelsthatheisunderheavydebt

[d]thinksthismakeshislifeeasy

28.Thosewhotrytodoaslittleaspossible.

[a]envyothers*goodluck

[b]aregoodstory-tellers

[c]supplyfalsereasonsfortheirlackofresponsibility

[d]thinkthattheiroppositesowethemapleasantlife

29.Thephrase"inthelongrun"（Paragraph3）isclosestinmeaningto"

[a]inpractice

[b]intheend

[c]ineffect

[d]innotime

30.ltcanbeinferredfromthepassagethatpeoplewhocheat.

[a]willbeunjustlytreated

[b]willcheatonlythemselveseventually

[c]willchangetheirbehavior

[d|willgetsurprisedbytheirownstories

PassageThree

Questions31to35arebasedonthefollowingpassage.

Thegovernmentmaycontrolpriceswhenwhereisaproblemsuchasrapidlyincreasingrentsorariseinthecostof

living.Whenthegovernmentcontrolsprices,thereisnolongeranormalrelationshipbetweenthepriceofaproductandthe

quantityconsumerswillbuy.Governmentcontrolsmayhelpinanemergency（紧急情况）°However,someeconomists

believethatcontrolscanhavenegativeeffectsoveralongperiodoftime.

Incitieswithrentcontrol,thecitygovernmentsetsthemaximumrentthatalandlord（房主）canchargeforanapartment.

Supportersofrentcontrolarguethatitprotectspeoplewhoarelivinginapartments.Theirrentcannotincrease;therefore,

theyarenotindangeroflosingtheirhomes.However,thecritics（批评者）saythatafteralongtime,rentcontrolmayhave

negativeeffects.Landlordsknowthattheycannotincreasetheirprofits.Therefore,theyinvestinotherbusinesseswherethey

canincreasetheirprofits.Theydonotinvestinnewbuildingswhichwouldalsoberent-controlled.Asaresult,new

apartmentsarenotbuilt.Manypeoplewhoneedapartmentscannotfindany.Accordingtothecritics,theendresultofrent

controlisashortageofapartmentsinthecity.

Economictheorypredictstheresultsofeconomicdecisionssuchasdecisionsaboutrentcontrol,pricecontrolandthe

minimumwage.Thepredictionsmaybecorrectonlyif"otherthingsareequal.

Economistsdonotagreeonsomeofthepredictions.Theyalsodonotagreeonthevalueofdifferentdecisions.Some

economistssupportaparticulardecisionwhileotherscriticizeit.Economistsdoagree,However,thattherearenosimple

answerstoeconomicquestions.

3l.AccirdubgtoParagraph1,pricecontrol.

[a]doesmoreharmthangood

[b]isgoodineverysense

[c]isnecessarybutharmfulinthelongterm

[d]shouldbeavoided

32.ltcanbeinferredfromParagraph2that.

[a]thankstorentcontrol,itwouldbeeasierformanytofindapartments

[b]landlordsmaytakebacktheirapartmentsiftherentistoolow

[c]thetightertherentcontrolis,thelessnewapartmentswillbebuilt

[d]land!ordswillnotinvestinotherbusinessesafterpricecontrolisapprovedbythegovernment

33.Whichofthefollowingdoalleconomistsagreeon?

[a]controlscanhavenegativeeffectsoveralongperiodoftime.

[b]Thegovernmentmusttakemeasurestocontrolrentincrease.

[c]Themaximumrentsystemprotectspeoplewhodon'thavetheirownhouses.

[d]Economicquestionsaredifficulttodealwith.

34.Theattitudeoftheauthortopricecontrolis.

[a]subjective

[b]objective

[c]indifferent

[d]supportive

35.Thepurposeofthispassageisto.

[A]argue

[b]persuade

[c]analyze

[d]describe

PARTTWO

IV.WordSpelling（10points,1pointfortwowords）

将下列汉语单词不达意译成英语并写在答题纸上O每个词的词类和第一个字母已在答题纸上给出。首字

母后的每条短线上只写一个字母。

珍嘴

36、广场37、

假装

38、口袋39、

另藏

40、各种各样的41、

想象

42、完美的43、

心脏

44、包含45、

海滩

46、直径47>

坚持

、诚实的、

4849最少

、法官；裁判员、

5051省略

52、信息；口信53、操作

54、律师55、

V.WordForm(10points,1pointforeach)

将括号中的各词变为适当形式填入空白。答案写在答题纸上。

56.Sometimesinformationinthelong-termmemory(be)hardtoremember.

57.Inthe1600's,travelersfromEurope(bring)backdiamondsfromIndia.

58.Insurancefundamentalscan(understand)bythosewillingtostudythem.

59.Hewantedtheletter(mail)atonce.

60.Webecomeusedto(see)bloodonthenewsontelevision,orinfullcolorinnewspapersand

magazines.

61.Asagenerally(accept)mediumofexchange,moneyrulesouttheneedforthedirectexchangeof

oneitemforanother.

62.Almosteveryonespendsaconsiderableamountofpresentmoments(worry)aboutthefuture.

63.Outregion(make)greatadvancesoverthepasttenyears.

64.Well-organizedmaterialis(well)rememberedthanjumbledinformation.

65.Ifwe(nothave)air,therewouldbenosound.

VI.TranslationfromChineseintoEnglish(15points,3pointsforeach)

将下列各句译成英语并将答案写在答题纸上。

66、对初学者来说，用英语思维比说英语更难。

67、据说有些吃鹿肉的原始人能跑得象鹿一样飞快。

68、要是昨天他早一点回到家，他的女儿就不会把他的手表拆了。

69、要找到与你观点相同的学生并不容易。

70、在你的朋友中有多少人从来未犯过法呢？

VII.TranslationfromEnglishintoChinese(15points)

将下列短文译成汉语并将答案写在答题纸上。

Manyoftheplantsandanimalsfromwhichourfoodcomescanproducethemselvesquitewellwithoutourhelp.Fish,

forexample,liveandbreedaccordingtotheirownlifepattern.Human"producers''thencomewithnetsandfishingpolesto

takethefishfromthewater.

Inourspecializedworld,however,itisnotalwayspossibletoletourfoodgrowinitsownway.Arelativelysmall

numberofpeopleareresponsibleforproducinglargequantitiesoffood.Inordertoperformsuchafunctioneffectively,itis

necessaryforthemtoraisecattleandgrowcropsinafairlyconcentratedarea.

Fishing,livestock(家畜)breeding,andfruit,vegetable,andgraingrowingareamongthemorecommonlyknownfood­

productionindustries.

全国2002年10月高等教育自学考试英语（一）试题

PARTONE

1.VocabularyandStructure(10points,1pointforeach)

从下列各句四个选项中选出一个最佳答案，并将最佳答案前选项字母写在答题纸上。

1.Thereareonlyfourareasverymanydiamondshavebeenfound.

A.whenB.whereC.thatD.which

2.Shedecidedtodo___alotofothergirlsweredoingthosedays.

A.howB.whyC.whichD.what

3.Moneyprovidesaunitofaccountthatservesastandardtomeasurevalue.

A.asB.forC.inD.with

4.Onewaytopreservespeciesthreatofextinctionistoremovethemtozoosandparksandbreedthemthere.

A.forB.withC.underD.beyond

5.Regardlesswhichmethodswechoose,theendresultwillbethesame.

A.aboutB.inC.forD.of

6.Theburningofrainforestsisdirectlytotheso-calledgreenhouseeffect.

A.contributingB.attributingC.constitutingD.associating

7.Someonewhostayswithyouandhelpsyouintimesoftrouble,ratherthanturninghis___,isatruefriend.

A.faceB.headC.handD.back

8.Theexpression"hastemakeswaste"doesnot_____toreading.

A.affectB.叩plyC.adoptD.attend

9.Experimentshavetobemadeundercarefully_____conditions.

A.treatedB.suppliedC.relatedD.controlled

10.Theatmosphereconsistsofanoceanofgases_____mileshigh.

A.hundredsB.hundredsofC.ofhundredsD.ofhundredsof

II.ClozeTest(10points,1pointforeach)

在下列短文中有十个空白，每个空白有四个选项。根据上下文要求选出最佳答案，并将最佳答案前选项字母写在答

题纸上。

Ifwewereaskedwhatweweredoingayearago,wewouldprobablyhavetosaythatwecouldn'tremember.Butifwekepta

bookandhadwritteninitanaccountofULwedideachday,weshouldbeabletogiveananswer12thequestion.

Itisthesamewithhistory.Manythingshavebeen13becausewedonothaveanywrittenaccountofthem.Sometimes

mendid14arecordofthemostimportanthappeningsintheircountry,butoftenitwasdestroyedbyfireorinawar.

Sometimes15wasneveranywrittenrecordatJ_6_becausethepeopleofthat17andplacedidnotknow]_8

towrite.Forexample,weknowagooddealaboutthepeoplewholivedinChina4,000yearsago,becausetheycouldwrite

andleavewrittenrecordsforthosewho19_afterthem.Butweknowalmost20aboutthepeoplewholivedeven

2,000yearsagoincentralAfrica,becausetheyhadnotlearnedtowrite.

11.A.whichB.thatC.howD.what

12.A.toB.ofC.forD.by

13.A.neglectedB.disposedC.forgottenD.passed

14.A.keepB.remainC.setD.break

15.A.itB.thatC.thereD.this

16.A.lastB.allC.leastD.once

17.A.areaB.kindC.conditionD.time

18.A.whenB.whichC.whatD.how

19.A.followedB.livedC.studiedD.bought

20.A.anythingB.everythingC.nothingD.something

III.ReadingComprehension(30points,2pointsforeach)

阅读下列短文，并从下列短文的问题后所给的四个选项中选出一个最佳答案，并将最佳答案前选项字母写在答题纸

±o

Passageone

Questions21to25arebasedonthefollowingpassage.

Somepeoplelearnasecondlanguageeasily.Otherpeoplehavetroublelearninganewlanguage.Howcanyouhelpyourself

learnanewlanguage,suchasEnglish?ThereareseveralstepstomakelearningEnglishalittleeasierandmoreinteresting.

ThefirststepistofeelpositiveaboutlearningEnglish.Ifyoubelievethatyoucanlearn,youwilllearn.Bepatient.Youdo

nothavetounderstandeverythingallatonce.Itisnaturaltomakemistakeswhenyoulearnsomethingnew.Wecanlearn

fromourmistakes.Inotherwords,donotworryabouttakingrisks.

ThesecondstopistopracticeyourEnglish.Forexample,writeadiaryeveryday.YouwillgetusedtowritinginEnglish,

andyouwillfeelcomfortableexpressingyourideasinEnglish.Afterseveralweeks,youwillseethatyourwritingis

improving.Inaddition,youmustspeakEnglisheveryday.Youcanpracticewithyourclassmatesoutsideclass.Youwillall

makemistakes,butgraduallyyouwillbecomecomfortablecommunicatinginEnglish.

Thethirdstepistokeeparecordofyourlanguagelearning.Youcanwritethisinyourdiary.Aftereachclass,thinkabout

whatyoudid.Didyouansweraquestioncorrectly?Didyouunderstandsomethingtheteacherexplained?Perhapsthelesson

wasdifficult,butyoutriedtounderstandit.Writetheseinyourdiary.

YoumustbepositiveaboutlearningEnglishandbelievethatyoucandoit.Itisimportanttopracticeeverydayandmakea

recordofyourachievements.YouwillenjoylearningEnglish,andyouwillhavemoreconfidenceinyourself.

21.Intheauthor'sopinion,thefirstthingtorememberis.

A.toavoidmakingmistakeswhenspeakingthelanguage

B.tospendmoretimeusingthenewlylearnedlanguage

C.tobelieveyouhavetheabilitytolearnanewlanguage

D.tolearnthesecondlanguagewiththehelpofyourteacher

22.Whichofthefollowingbestsummarizesthemainideaofthethirdparagraph?

A.Everybodymaymakemistakeswhenlearning.

B.Keepingadiarywillhelpyoulearnbetter.

C.Speakingshouldbeemphasized.

D.Practicemakesperfect.

23.Themainfunctionofthethirdstepis_.

A.toremindyouofthemistakesyoumadeinclass

B.tohelpyouthinkaboutyourlearningprocess

C.tohelpyouunderstandtheteacherbetter

D.torecordhowwellyouperforminclass

24.Inthelastparagraph,youareadvised.

A.tomakeadailyrecordofanythingyouplantodo

B.toenjoylearningEnglishratherthananyotherlanguages

C.totakeapositiveattitudetowardsyourlanguagestudy

D.tobelievethatyouarecapableofdoinganythingyouwantto

25.Whatisthemainideaofthispassage?

A.Therearewaystohelpyoulearnasecondlanguageeasily.

B.DifferentpeoplehavedifferentwaystolearnEnglish.

C.Languagelearnersshouldwritealearningdiary.

D.Itisimportanttolearnanewlanguagewell.

PassageTwo

Questions26to30arebasedonthefollowingpassage.

Youmayhavethebusinessqualifications（合格证明）.Youhaveanexcellentrecordofgoodeducationandworkexperience.

However,withoutgoodbusinessmannersyouwillnotsucceed.

Treatingpeoplewithrespectshouldbesecondnaturetoyou.Ithelpsyougetonwellwiththepeopleyouworkwithandwith

yourbosses.Italwayspaystobepolite.Herearesometipstohelpimproveyourbusinessmanners.

Ifyouarebehindschedule,remembertotakethetimetocontactyournextappointmentsothatthepersonyouaredueto

meetisawareofthedelay.Ifnecessary,youshouldrearrangethemeetingforamoreconvenienttime.

Trynottoleaveanycalleronholdfortoolong.Itisbettertotellsomeoneyouwillcallbackwhenyouarefree.Besureto

returncallsassoonasyoucan.Ifyoucannotreturnthecallimmediately,apologize（道歉）tothecallerforthedelay.

Trytorespondtoletterswithinasettime.Keeparecordofrequestsforreplywithinacertaintime.Makeanoteinyourdiary

ofotherdeadlines（最后期限）fbryourwork.Ifyouareunabletorespondquickly,writeashortlettertotheotherpersonto

explainthedelayandtellhimwhenyouwillreply.

Ifyouwanttotakeacustomerorabusinessfriendoutforlunch,youhadbetterchoosetherestaurantandletyourguest

choosethetime.

Youmaythinkthatyouarenotbeingpaidasmuchasyoushouldbe.Donotdiscussthematterwithyourcolleagues.Agood

wayistocontactanemploymentagencytofindoutthe'goingrate'.Armedwiththisobjectiveinformation,youcandiscuss

yoursalarywithyourboss.

26.Whatdoestheauthoremphasizeforaperson'ssuccessinbusiness?

A.Businessqualifications.

B.Anexcellentrecordofeducation.

C.Workexperience.

D.Businessmanners.

27.Whatdoestheauthormeanbysaying“Itpaystobepolite'!?

A.Youmustbepaidmoremoneytobepolite.

B.Youhavetopayforyourtrainingtobepolite.

C.Tobepolitewilleventuallybenefityou.

D.Customerspayforyourbeingpolite.

28.Theword'tip'usedinsentence4,paragraph2,refersto.

A.ausefulhintoridea

B.apointedendofanything

C.apieceofsecretinformation

D.asmallamountofmoneygiveninreturnforaservice

29.Whenyouknowyouaregoingtobelateforanappointment,youshould.

A.informthepersonyou'remeetingofyourdelay

B.leavethepersonamessagetellinghimnottowaitlong

C.tellthepersontopostponethemeeting

D.apologizefortakingtheotherperson'stime

30.Ifyouthinkyouareunderpaid,itissuggestedthatyou__.

A.godirectlytoyourbossanddiscussthematterfrankly

B.askyourcolleaguessecretlyhowmuchtheyearn

C.gotoanemploymentagenttolookforanotherjob

D.getobjectiveinformationaboutthejobmarketfirst

PassageThree

Questions31to35arebasedonthefollowingpassage.

Thejourneytwodiversmadesometimeagototheverydeepestpointontheearthmakesusrealizehowmuchoftheworld

stillremainstobediscovered.ThetwomenwentdownsevenmilestothebottomofthePacificOceaninsideasmallsteel

balltofindoutifthereareanyoceancurrentsorsignsoflife.

Itwasnecessarytosetoutearly,sothattheballwouldcometothesurfaceindaylight,andbeeeasilyfoundbythemother

shipwhichwouldbewaitingforit.Thediversbeganpreparationsearlyinthemorningandsoonafterwards,whenallwas

ready,thesteelballdisappearedunderthesurfaceofthewater.

Thediversfeltasiftheyweregoingdownstepsastheypassedthroughwarmandcoldlayersofwater.Intime,the

temperaturedroppedtofreezingpoint.Theykeptintouchwiththemothershipbytelephonetellinghowtheyfelt.Thenata

depthof3,000feet,thetelephonestoppedworkingandtheywerecutofffromtheoutsideworld.Allwentwelluntilsome

fourhourslaterat30,000feet,themenwerefrightenedbyaloud,crackingnoise:eventhesmallestholeintheballwould

havemeantinstantdeath.Luckily,though,itwasonlyoneoftheouterwindowsthathadbroken.Soonafterwards,theball

touchedthesoftoceanfloorraisingabigcloudof"dust1'madeupofsmalldeadsea-creatures.Here,powerfullightslitupthe

darkwaterandthemenweresurprisedtoseefishswimmingjustabovethemquiteuntroubledbythegreatwater-pressure.

Buttheydidnotdaretoleavethelightsonforlong,astheheatfromthemwouldmakethewaterboil.Quiteunexpectedly,

thetelephonebeganworkingagainandthefaintbutclearvoicesofthediverswereheardonthem