第一章历年考研真题

第一章历年考研真题

2004年考研试题

SectionIIIReadingComprehension

PartA

Directions:

Readthefollowingfourtexts.AnswerthequestionsbeloweachtextbychoosingA,B,CorD.

MarkyouranswersonANSWERSHEET1.(40points)

Text1

Huntingforajoblatelastyear,lawyerGantRedmonstumbledacrossCareerBuilder,ajob

databaseontheInternet.Hesearcheditwithnosuccessbutwasattractedbythesite's''personal

searchagent”.It'saninteractivefeaturethatletsvisitorskeyinjobcriteriasuchaslocation,title,

andsalary,thenE-mailsthemwhenamatchingpositionispostedinthedatabase.Redmonchose

thekeywordslegal,intellectualproperty,andWashington,D.C,Threeweekslater,hegothis

firstnotificationofanopening.4tIstruckgold,^^saysRedmon,whoE-mailedhisresumetothe

employerandwonapositionasin-housecounselforacompany.

Withthousandsofcareer-relatedsitesontheInternet,findingpromisingopeningscanbe

time-consumingandinefficient.Searchagentsreducetheneedforrepeatedvisitstothe

databases.ButalthoughasearchagentworkedfbrRedmon,careerexpertsseedrawbacks.

Narrowingyourcriteria,forexample,mayworkagainstyou:"Everytimeyouansweraquestion

youeliminateapossibility,nsaysoneexpert.

Foranyjobsearch,youshouldstartwithanarrowconcept—whatyouthinkyouwanttodo

—thenbroadenit.uNoneoftheseprogramsdothat,^^saysanotherexpert.'There'snocareer

counselingimplicitinallofthis."Instead,thebeststrategyistousetheagentasakindoftip

servicetokeepabreastofjobsinaparticulardatabase;whenyougetE-mail,considerita

remindertocheckthedatabaseagain.t4Iwouldnotrelyonagentsforfindingeverythingthatis

addedtoadatabasethatmightinterestme,“saystheauthorofajob-searchingguide.

Somesitesdesigntheiragentstotemptjobhunterstoreturn.WhenCareerSite^agentsends

outmessagestothosewhohavesignedupforitsservice,forexample,itincludesonlythree

potentialjobs—thoseitconsidersthebestmatches.Theremaybemorematchesinthedatabase;

jobhunterswillhavetovisitthesiteagaintofindthem-andtheydo."Onthedayafterwe

sendourmessages,weseeasharpincreaseinourtraffic,“saysSethPeets,vicepresidentof

marketingforCareerSite.

Eventhosewhoaren'thuntingfbrjobsmayfindsearchagentsworthwhile.Someusethem

tokeepaclosewatchonthedemandfortheirlineofworkorgatherinformationon

compensationtoarmthemselveswhennegotiatingfbraraise.Althoughhappilyemployed,

RedmonmaintainshisagentatCareerBuilder.44Youalwayskeepyoureyesopen,“hesays.

Workingwithapersonalsearchagentmeanshavinganothersetofeyeslookingoutforyou.

41.HowdidRedmonfindhisjob?

[A]Bysearchingopeningsinajobdatabase.

[B]Bypostingamatchingpositioninadatabase.

[C]Byusingaspecialserviceofadatabase.

[D]ByE-mailinghisresumetoadatabase.

42.Whichofthefollowingcanbeadisadvantageofsearchagents?

[A]Lackofcounseling.[B]Limitednumberofvisits.

[C]Lowerefficiency.[D]Fewersuccessfulmatches.

43.Theexpression“tipservice^^(Line4,Paragraph3)mostprobablymeans

[A]advisory.[B]compensation.

[C]interaction.[D]reminder.

44.WhydoesCareerSite^agentoffereachjobhunteronlythreejoboptions?

[A]Tofocusonbetterjobmatches.|B]Toattractmorereturningvisits.

[C]Toreservespaceformoremessages.[D]Toincreasetherateofsuccess.

45.Whichofthefollowingistrueaccordingtothetext?

[A]Personalsearchagentsareindispensabletojob-hunters.

[BJSomesiteskeepE-mailingjobseekerstotracetheirdemands.

[C]Personalsearchagentsarealsohelpfultothosealreadyemployed.

[D]Someagentsstopsendinginformationtopeopleoncetheyareemployed.

Text2

Overthepastcentury,allkindsofunfairnessanddiscriminationhavebeencondemnedor

madeillegal.Butoneinsidiousformcontinuestothrive:alphabetism.This,forthoseasyet

unawareofsuchadisadvantage,referstodiscriminationagainstthosewhosesurnamesbeginwith

aletterinthelowerhalfofthealphabet.

IthaslongbeenknownthatataxifirmcalledAAAAcarshasabigadvantageoverZodiac

carswhencustomersthumbthroughtheirphonedirectories.Lesswellknownistheadvantagethat

AdamAbbotthasinlifeoverZoeZysman.Englishnamesarefairlyevenlyspreadbetweenthe

halvesofthealphabet.Yetasuspiciouslylargenumberoftoppeoplehavesurnamesbeginning

withlettersbetweenAandK.

ThustheAmericanpresidentandvice-presidenthavesurnamesstartingwithBandC

respectively;and26ofGeorgeBush'spredecessors(includinghisfather)hadsurnamesinthefirst

halfofthealphabetagainstjust16inthesecondhalf.Evenmorestriking,sixofthesevenheadsof

governmentoftheG7richcountriesarealphabeticallyadvantaged(Berlusconi,Blair,Bush,Chirac,

ChretienandKoizumi).Theworld'sthreetopcentralbankers(Greenspan,DuisenbergandHayami)

areallclosetothetopofthealphabet,evenifoneofthemreallyusesJapanesecharacters.Asare

theworld'sfiverichestmen(Gates,Buffett,Allen,EllisonandAlbrecht).

Canthismerelybecoincidence?Onetheory,dreamtupinallthesparetimeenjoyedbythe

alphabeticallydisadvantaged,isthattherotsetsinearly.Atthestartofthefirstyearininfant

school,teachersseatpupilsalphabeticallyfromthefront,tomakeiteasiertoremembertheirnames.

Soshort-sightedZysmanjuniorgetsstuckinthebackrow,andisrarelyaskedtheimproving

questionsposedbythoseinsensitiveteachers.Atthetimethealphabeticallydisadvantagedmay

thinktheyhavehadaluckyescape.Yettheresultmaybeworsequalifications,becausetheyget

lessindividualattention,aswellaslessconfidenceinspeakingpublicly.

Thehumiliationcontinues.Atuniversitygraduationceremonies,theABCsproudlygettheir

awardsfirst;bythetimetheyreachtheZysmansmostpeopleareliterallyhavingaZZZ.Shortlists

forjobinterviewselectionballotpapers,listsofconferencespeakersandattendees:alltendtobe

drawnupalphabetically,andtheirrecipientsloseinterestastheyploughthroughthem.

46.WhatdoestheauthorintendtoillustratewithAAAAcarsandZodiaccars?

[A]Akindofoverlookedinequality.[B]Atypeofconspicuousbias.

[C]Atypeofpersonalprejudice.|D|Akindofbranddiscrimination.

47.Whatcanweinferfromthefirstthreeparagraphs?

[A]InbothEastandWest,namesareessentialtosuccess.

[B]ThealphabetistoblameforthefailureofZoeZysman.

[C]Customersoftenpayalotofattentiontocompanies'names.

[D]Someformofdiscriminationistoosubtletorecognize.

48.The4thparagraphsuggeststhat

[A]questionsareoftenputtothemoreintelligentstudents.

[BJalphabeticallydisadvantagedstudentsoftenescapefromclass.

[C]teachersshouldpayattentiontoalloftheirstudents.

[D]studentsshouldbeseatedaccordingtotheireyesight.

49.Whatdoestheauthormeanby“mostpeopleareliterallyhavingaZZZM(Lines2—3,

Paragraph5)?

[A]Theyaregettingimpatient.[B]Theyarenoisilydozingoff.

[C]Theyarefeelinghumiliated.[D]Theyarebusywithwordpuzzles.

50.Whichofthefollowingistrueaccordingtothetext?

[A]PeoplewithsurnamesbeginningwithNtoZareoftenill-treated.

[B]VIPsintheWesternworldgainagreatdealfromalphabetism.

[C]Thecampaigntoeliminatealphabetismstillhasalongwaytogo.

ID]Puttingthingsalphabeticallymayleadtounintentionalbias.

Text3

Whenitcomestotheslowingeconomy,EllenSperoisn'tbitinghernailsjustyet.Butthe47-

year-oldmanicuristisn'tcutting,filingorpolishingasmanynailsasshe'dliketo,either.Mostof

herclientsspend$12to$50weekly,butlastmonthtwolongtimecustomerssuddenlystopped

showingup.Speroblamesthesofteningeconomy."Tn\agoodeconomicindicator,shesays."I

provideaservicethatpeoplecandowithoutwhenthey'reconcernedaboutsavingsomedollars.”

SoSperoisdownscaling,shoppingatmiddle-browDillard'sdepartmentstorenearhersuburban

Clevelandhome,insteadofNeimanMarcus.don'tknowifotherclientsaregoingtoabandonme,

too,“shesays.

EvenbeforeAlanGreenspan'sadmissionthatAmerica'sred-hoteconomyiscooling,lotsof

workingfolkshadalreadyseensignsoftheslowdownthemselves.FromcardealershipstoGap

outlets,saleshavebeenlaggingformonthsasshopperstempertheirspending.Forretailers,who

lastyeartookin24percentoftheirrevenuebetweenThanksgivingandChristmas,thecautious

approachiscomingatacrucialtime.Already,expertssay,holidaysalesareoff7percentfromlast

year'space.Butdon'tsoundanyalarmsjustyet.Consumersseemonlymildlyconcerned,not

panicked,andmanysaytheyremainoptimisticabouttheeconomy'slong-termprospectsevenas

theydosomemodestbelt-tightening.

Consumerssaythey'renotindespairbecause,despitethedreadfulheadlines,theirown

fortunesstillfeelprettygood.Homepricesareholdingsteadyinmostregions.InManhattan,

“there'sanewgoldrushhappeninginthe$4millionto$10millionrange,predominantlyfedby

WallStreetbonuses,MsaysbrokerBarbaraCorcoran.InSanFrancisco,pricesarestillrisingeven

asfrenziedoverbiddingquiets.t4Insteadof20to30offers,nowmaybeyouonlygettwoorthree,“

saysJohnTealdi,aBayAreareal-estatebroker.Andmostfolksstillfeelprettycomfortableabout

theirabilitytofindandkeepajob.

Manyfolksseesilverliningstothisslowdown.Potentialhomebuyerswouldcheerforlower

interestrates.Employerswouldn'tmindalittlefewerbubblesinthejobmarket.Manyconsumers

seemtohavebeeninfluencedbystock-marketswings,whichinvestorsnowviewasanecessary

ingredienttoasustainedboom.Dinersmightseeanupside,too.GettingatableatManhattan'shot

newAlainDucasserestaurantusedtobeimpossible.Notanymore.Forthat,Greenspan&Co.may

stillbeworthtoasting.

51.By“EUenSperoisn'tbitinghernailsjustyet"(Line1,Paragraph1),theauthormeans

[A]Sperocanhardlymaintainherbusiness.[B]Speroistoomuchengagedinherwork.

[C]Sperohasgrownoutofherbadhabit.[DISperoisnotinadesperatesituation.

52.Howdothepubicfeelaboutthecurrenteconomicsituation?

[A]Optimistic.[B]Confused.

[C]Carefree.[D]Panicked.

53.Whenmentioning"the$4millionto$10millionrange”(Lines3—4,Paragraph3),the

authoristalkingabout

[A]goldmarket.[B]realestate.

[C]stockexchange.[D]ventureinvestment.

54.Whycanmanypeoplesee"silverlinings^^totheeconomicslowdown?

[A]Theywouldbenefitincertainways.[B]Thestockmarketshowssignsofrecovery.

[C]Suchaslowdownusuallyprecedesaboom.[D]Thepurchasingpowerwouldbeenhanced.

55.Towhichofthefollowingistheauthorlikelytoagree?

[A]Anewboom,onthehorizon.|B|Tightenthebelt,thesingleremedy.

[C]Cautionallright,panicnot.[D]Themoreventures,themorechances.

Text4

Americanstodaydon'tplaceaveryhighvalueonintellect.Ourheroesareathletes,

entertainers,andentrepreneurs,notscholars.Evenourschoolsarewherewesendourchildrento

getapracticaleducation—nottopursueknowledgeforthesakeofknowledge.Symptomsof

pervasiveanti-intellectualisminourschoolsaren'tdifficulttofind.

“Schoolshavealwaysbeeninasocietywherepracticalismoreimportantthanintellectual,“

sayseducationwriterDianeRavitch,"Schoolscouldbeacounte^balance.^^Ravitch'slatestbook,

LeftBack:ACentury^ofFailedSchoolReforms,tracestherootsofanti-intellectualisminour

schools,concludingtheyareanythingbutacounterbalancetotheAmericandistasteforintellectual

pursuits.

Buttheycouldandshouldbe.Encouragingkidstorejectthelifeofthemindleavesthem

vulnerabletoexploitationandcontrol.Withouttheabilitytothinkcritically,todefendtheirideas

andunderstandtheideasofothers,theycannotfullyparticipateinourdemocracy.Continuing

alongthispath,sayswriterEarlShorris,44Wewillbecomeasecond-ratecountry.Wewillhavea

lesscivilsociety.^^

"Intellectisresentedasaformofpowerorprivilege,writeshistorianandprofessorRichard

HofstadterinAnti-IntellectualisminAmericanLife,aPulitzer-Prizewinningbookontherootsof

anti-intellectualisminUSpolitics,religion,andeducation.Fromthebeginningofourhistory,says

Hofstadter,ourdemocraticandpopulisturgeshavedrivenustorejectanythingthatsmellsof

elitism.Practicality,commonsense,andnativeintelligencehavebeenconsideredmorenoble

qualitiesthananythingyoucouldlearnfromabook.

RalphWaldoEmersonandotherTranscendentalistphilosophersthoughtschoolingand

rigorousbooklearningputunnaturalrestraintsonchildren:44Weareshutupinschoolsandcollege

recitationroomsfor10or15yearsandcomeoutatlastwithabellyfulofwordsanddonotknowa

thing."MarkTwain'sHuckleberryFinnexemplifiedAmericananti-intellectualism.Itsheroavoids

beingcivilized—goingtoschoolandlearningtoread-sohecanpreservehisinnategoodness.

Intellect,accordingtoHosfstadter,isdifferentfromnativeintelligence,aqualitywe

reluctantlyadmire.Intellectisthecritical,creative,andcontemplativesideofthemind.

Intelligenceseekstograsp,manipulate,re-order,andadjust,whileintellectexamines,ponders,

wonders,theorizes,criticizes,andimagines.

Schoolremainsaplacewhereintellectismistrusted.Hofstadtersaysourcountry'seducational

systemisinthegripsofpeoplewho'joyfullyandmilitantlyproclaimtheirhostilitytointellectand

theireagernesstoidentifywithchildrenwhoshowtheleastintellectualpromise.,9

56.WhatdoAmericanparentsexpecttheirchildrentoacquireinschool?

[A]Thehabitofthinkingindependently.[B]Profoundknowledgeoftheworld.

[C]Practicalabilitiesforfuturecareer.[D]Theconfidenceinintellectualpursuits.

57.WecanlearnfromthetextthatAmericanshaveahistoryof

[A]undervaluingintellect.[B]favoringintellectualism.

[C]supportingschoolreform.[D]suppressingnativeintelligence.

58.TheviewsofRavitchandEmersononschoolingare

[A]identical.[B]similar.

[C]complementary[D]opposite.

59.Emerson,accordingtothetext,isprobably

[A]apioneerofeducationreform.[B]anopponentofintellectualism.

[C]ascholarinfavorofintellect.[D]anadvocateofregularschooling.

60.Whatdoestheauthorthinkofintellect?

[A]Itissecondtointelligence.[B]Itevolvesfromcommonsense.

[C]Itistobepursued.|D]Itunderliespower.

2003年考研试题

SectionIHReadingComprehension

PartA

Directions:

Readthefollowingfourtexts.AnswerthequestionsbeloweachtextbychoosingA,B,CorD.

MarkyouranswersonANSWERSHEET1.(40points)

Text1

WildBillDonovanwouldhavelovedtheInternet.TheAmericanspymasterwhobuiltthe

OfficeofStrategicServicesinWorldWarIIandlaterlaidtherootsfortheCIAwas

fascinatedwithinfonnation.Donovanbelievedinusingwhatevertoolscametohandinthe

“greatgame“ofespionage—spyingasa“profession."ThesedaystheNet,whichhasalready

re-madesucheverydaypastimesasbuyingbooksandsendingmail,isreshapingDonovan's

vocationaswell.

Thelatestrevolutionisn'tsimplyamatterofgentlemenreadingothergentlemen'se-mail.

Thatkindofelectronicspyinghasbeengoingonfordecades.Inthepastthreeorfouryears,

theWorldWideWebhasgivenbirthtoawholeindustryofpoint-and-clickspying.The

spookscallit"open-sourceintelligence",andastheNetgrows,itisbecomingincreasingly

influential.In1995theCIAheldacontesttoseewhocouldcompilethemostdataabout

Burundi.Thewinner,byalargemargin,wasatinyVirginiacompanycalledOpenSource

Solutions,whoseclearadvantagewasitsmasteryoftheelectronicworld.

AmongthefirmsmakingthebiggestsplashinthisnewworldisStraitford,Inc.,aprivate

intelligence-analysisfirmbasedinAustin,Texas.Straitfbrdmakesmoneybysellingthe

resultsofspying(coveringnationsfromChiletoRussia)tocorporationslikeenergy-services

firmMcDermottInternational.Manyofitspredictionsareavailableonlineat

StraitfbrdpresidentGeorgeFriedmansaysheseestheonlineworldasakindofmutually

reinforcingtoolforbothinformationcollectionanddistribution,aspymaster'sdream.Last

weekhisfirmwasbusyvacuumingupdatabitsfromthefarcornersoftheworldand

predictingacrisisinUkraine."Assoonasthatreportruns,we'llsuddenlyget500new

Internetsign-upsfromUkraine,“saysFriedman,aformerpoliticalscienceprofessor.t4And

we'llhearbackfromsomeofthem."Open-sourcespyingdoeshaveitsrisks,ofcourse,since

itcanbedifficulttotellgoodinformationfrombad.ThafswhereStraitfordearnsitskeep.

Friedmanreliesonaleanstaffof20inAustin.Severalofhisstaffmembershave

military-intelligencebackgrounds.Heseesthefirm'soutsiderstatusasthekeytoitssuccess.

Straitfbrd'sbriefsdon'tsoundliketheusualWashingtonback-and-forthing,wherebyagencies

avoiddramaticdeclarationsonthechancetheymightbewrong.Straitfbrd,saysFriedman,

takesprideinitsindependentvoice.

11.TheemergenceoftheNethas

[A]receivedsupportfromfanslikeDonovan.|B]remoldedtheintelligenceservices.

[C]restoredmanycommonpastimes.[D]revivedspyingasaprofession.

12.Donovan'sstoryismentionedinthetextto

[A]introducethetopicofonlinespying.[B]showhowhefoughtfortheU.S.

[C]giveanepisodeoftheinformationwar.[D]honorhisuniqueservicestotheCIA.

13.Thephrase“makingthebiggestsplash"(line1,paragraph3)mostprobablymeans

[A]causingthebiggesttrouble.[B]exertingthegreatesteffort.

|C]achievingthegreatestsuccess.[D]enjoyingthewidestpopularity.

14.Itcanbelearnedfromparagraph4that

[A]Straitford'spredictionaboutUkrainehasprovedtrue.

[B]Straifordguaranteesthetruthfulnessofitsinformation.

[C]Straitford'sbusinessischaracterizedbyunpredictability.

[D|Straitfordisabletoprovidefairlyreliableinformation.

15.Straitfordismostproudofits

[A]officialstatus.[B]nonconformistimage.

[C]efficientstaff.[D]militarybackground.

Text2

Toparaphrase18th-centurystatesmanEdmundBurke,"allthatisneededforthetriumph

ofamisguidedcauseisthatgoodpeopledonothing."Onesuchcausenowseekstoend

biomedicalresearchbecauseofthetheorythatanimalshaverightsrulingouttheirusein

research.Scientistsneedtorespondforcefullytoanimalrightsadvocates,whosearguments

areconfusingthepublicandtherebythreateningadvancesinhealthknowledgeandcare.

Leadersoftheanimalrightmovementtargetbiomedicalresearchbecauseitdependsonpublic

funding,andfewpeopleunderstandtheprocessofhealthcareresearch.Hearingallegationsof

crueltytoanimalsinresearchsettings,manyareperplexedthatanyonewoulddeliberately

harmananimal.

Forexample,agrandmotherlywomanstaffingananimalrightsboothatarecentstreet

fairwasdistributingabrochurethatencouragedreadersnottouseanythingthatcomesfrom

orisanimals—nomeat,nofur,nomedicines.Askedifsheopposedimmunizations,she

wantedtoknowifvaccinescomefromanimalresearch.Whenassuredthattheydo,she

replied,44ThenIwouldhavetosayyes."Askedwhatwillhappenwhenepidemicsreturn,she

said,"Don'tworry,scientistswillfindsomewayofusingcomputers/,Suchwell-meaning

peoplejustdon'tunderstand.

Scientistsmustcommunicatetheirmessagetothepublicinacompassionate,

understandableway—inhumanterms,notinthelanguageofmolecularbiology.Weneedto

makecleartheconnectionbetweenanimalresearchandagrandmother'shipreplacement,a

father'sbypassoperation,ababy'svaccinations,andevenapet'sshots.Tothosewhoare

unawarethatanimalresearchwasneededtoproducethesetreatments,aswellasnew

treatmentsandvaccines,animalresearchseemswastefulatbestandcruelatworst.

Muchcanbedone.Scientistscould“adopt”middleschoolclassesandpresenttheirown

research.Theyshouldbequicktorespondtoletterstotheeditor,lestanimalright

misinformationgounchallengedandacquireadeceptiveappearanceoftruth.Research

institutionscouldbeopenedtotours,toshowthatlaboratoryanimalsreceivehumanecare.

Finally,becausetheultimatestakeholdersarepatients,thehealthresearchcommunityshould

activelyrecniittoitscausenotonlywell-knownpersonalitiessuchasStephenCooper,who

hasmadecourageousstatementsaboutthevalueofanimalresearch,butallwhoreceive

medicaltreatment.Ifgoodpeopledonothing,thereisarealpossibilitythatanuninformed

citizenrywillextinguishthepreciousembersofmedicalprogress.

16.TheauthorbeginshisarticlewithEdmundBurke'swordsto

[A]callonscientiststotakesomeactions.

[B]criticizethemisguidedcauseofanimalrights.

[C]warnofthedoomofbiomedicalresearch.

[D]showthetriumphoftheanimalrightsmovement.

17.Misledpeopletendtothinkthatusingananimalinresearchis

[A]cruelbutnatural.|B]inhumanandunacceptable.

[C]inevitablebutvicious.[D]pointlessandwasteful.

18.Theexampleofthegrandmotherlywomanisusedtoshowthepublic's

[A]discontentwithanimalresearch.|B]ignoranceaboutmedicalscience.

[C]indifferencetoepidemics.[D]anxietyaboutanimalrights.

19.Theauthorbelievesthat,infaceofthechallengefromanimalrightsadvocates,scientists

should

[A]communicatemorewiththepublic.|B]employhi-techmeansinresearch.

[C]feelnoshamefortheircause.[D]strivetodevelopnewcures.

20.FromthetextwelearnthatStephenCooperis

[A]awell-knownhumanist.[B]amedicalpractitioner.

[C]anenthusiastinanimalrights.[D]asupporterofanimalresearch.

Text3

Inrecentyears,railroadshavebeencombiningwitheachother,merginginto

supersystems,causingheightenedconcernsaboutmonopoly.Asrecentlyas1995,thetopfour

railroadsaccountedforunder70percentofthetotalton-milesmovedbyrails.Nextyear,after

aseriesofmergersiscompleted,justfourrailroadswillcontrolwellover90percentofallthe

freightmovedbymajorrailcarriers.

Supportersofthenewsupersystemsarguethatthesemergerswillallowforsubstantial

costreductionsandbettercoordinatedservice.Anythreatofmonopoly,theyargue,is

removedbyfiercecompetitionfromtrucks.Butmanyshipperscomplainthatforheavybulk

commoditiestravelinglongdistances,suchascoal,chemicals,andgrain,truckingistoo

costlyandtherailroadsthereforehavethembythethroat.

Thevastconsolidationwithintherailindustrymeansthatmostshippersareservedby

onlyonerailcompany.Railroadstypicallychargesuch“captive“shippers20to30percent

morethantheydowhenanotherrailroadiscompetingforthebusiness.Shipperswhofeel

theyarebeingoverchargedhavetherighttoappealtothefederalgovernment'sSurface

TransportationBoardforraterelief,buttheprocessisexpensive,timeconsuming,andwill

workonlyintrulyextremecases.

Railroadsjustifyratediscriminationagainstcaptiveshippersonthegroundsthatinthe

longrunitreduceseveryone'scost.Ifrailroadschargedallcustomersthesameaveragerate,

theyargue,shipperswhohavetheoptionofswitchingtotrucksorotherformsof

transportationwoulddoso,leavingremainingcustomerstoshoulderthecostofkeepingup

theline.It'satheorytowhichmanyeconomistssubscribe,butinpracticeitoftenleaves

railroadsinthepositionofdeterminingwhichcompanieswillflourishandwhichwillfail.

“Dowereallywantrailroadstobethearbitersofwhowinsandwholosesinthe

marketplace?”asksMartinBercovici,aWashingtonlawyerwhofrequentlyrepresents

shippers.

Manycaptiveshippersalsoworrytheywillsoonbehitwitharoundofhugerateincreases.

Therailroadindustryasawhole,despiteitsbrighteningfortunes,stilldoesnotearnenoughto

borrowbillionstoacquireoneanother,whichWallStreetcheeringthemon.Considerthe

$10.2billionbidbyNorfolkSouthernandCSXtoacquireConrailthisyear.ConraiFsnet

railwayoperatingincomein1996wasjust$427million,lessthanhalfofthecarryingcostsof

thetransaction.Who'sgoingtopayfortherestofthebill?Manycaptiveshippersfearthat

theywill,asNorfolkSouthernandCSXincreasetheirgriponthemarket.

21.Accordingtothosewhosupportmergers,railwaymonopolyisunlikelybecause

[A]costreductionisbasedoncompetition.

[B]servicescallforcross-tradecoordination.

[C]outsidecompetitorswillcontinuetoexist.

|D]shipperswillhavetherailwaybythethroat.

22.Whatismanycaptiveshippers'attitudetowardstheconsolidationintherailindustry?

[A]Indifferent.[B]Supportive.

[C]Indignant.[D]Apprehensive.

23.Itcanbeinferredfromparagraph3that

[A]shipperswillbechargedlesswithoutarivalrailroad.

[B]therewillsoonbeonlyonerailroadcompanynationwide.

[C]overchargedshippersareunlikelytoappealforraterelief.

[DJagovernmentboardensuresfairplayinrailwaybusiness.

24.Theword“arbiters”(line8,paragraph4)mostprobablyreferstothose