英语(二)历年翻译和阅读

考研英语（二）历年翻译真题

2007年真题

Poweringthegreatongoingchangesofourtimeistheriseofhumancreativityasthedefining

featureofeconomiclife.Creativityhascometobevalued,becausenewtechnologies,new

industriesandnewwealthflowfromit.Andasaresult,ourlivesandsocietyhavebeguntoecho

withcreativeideas.Itisourcommitmenttocreativityinitsvarieddimensionsthatformsthe

underlyingspiritofourage.

Creativityisessentialtothewayweliveandworktoday,andinmanysensesalwayshas

been.Thebigadvancesinstandardofliving—nottomentionthebigcompetitiveadvantagesin

themarketplace-alwayshavecomefrom“betterrecipes,notjustmorecooking?5Onemight

arguethat'snotstrictlytrue.Onemightpointout,forinstance,thatduringthelongperiodfrom

theearlydaysontheIndustrialRevolutiontomoderntimes,muchofthegrowthinproductivity

andmaterialwealthintheindustrialnationscamenotjustfromcreativeinventionslikethesteam

engine,butfromthewidespreadapplicationof“cookinginquantity^^businessmethodslike

massivedivisionoflabor,concentrationofassets,verticalintegrationandeconomiesofscale.But

thosemethodsthemselveswerecreativedevelopments.

2008年真题

Thetermubusinessmodel“firstcameintowidespreadusewiththeinventionofpersonal

computerandthespreadsheet（空白表格程序）.Beforethespreadsheet,businessplanningusually

meantproducingasingleforecast.Atbest,youdidalittlesensitivityanalysisaroundthe

projection.Thespreadsheetusheredinamuchmoreanalyticapproachtoplanningbecauseevery

majorlineitemcouldbepulledapart,itscomponentsandsubcomponentsanalyzedandtested.

Youcouldaskwhatifquestionsaboutthecriticalassumptionsonwhichyourbusiness

depended-forexample,whatifcustomersaremoreprice-sensitivethanwethought?-andwitha

fewkeystrokes,youcouldseehowanychangewouldplayoutoneveryaspectofthewhole.In

otherwords,youcouldmodelthebehaviorofabusiness.Beforethecomputerchangedthenature

ofbusinessplanning,mostsuccessfulbusinessmodelswerecreatedmorebyaccidentthanby

elaboratedesign.Byenablingcompaniestotietheirmarketplaceinsightsmuchmoretightlytothe

resultingeconomics,spreadsheetmadeitpossibletomodelbusinessbeforetheywerelaunched.

2009年真题

Withthenation'sfinancialsystemteeteringonacliff,thecompensationarrangementsfor

executivesofthebigbanksandotherfinancialfirmsarecomingundercloseexaminationagain.

Bankers,excessiverisk-takingisasignificantcauseofthisfinancialcrisisandhas

contributedtoothersinthepast.Inthiscase,itwasfueledbylowinterestratesandkeptgoingby

afalsesenseofsecuritycreatedbyadebt-fueledbubbleintheeconomy.

Mortgagelendersgladlylentenormoussumstothosewhocouldnotaffordtopaythemback,

dividingtheloansandsellingthemofftothenextfinancialinstitutionalongthechain,whichtook

advantageofthesamehigh-techsecuritizationtoloadonmoreriskymortgage-basedassets.

Financialregulationwillhavetocatchupwiththemostirresponsiblepracticesthatledbanks

downinthisroad,inhopesofavertingthenextcrisis,whichislikelytoinvolvedifferentfinancial

techniquesanddifferentsortsofassets.Butitisworthexaminingtherootproblemof

compensationschemesthataretiedtoshort-termprofitsandrevenues,andthusencouragebankers

totakeirresponsiblelevelofrisk.

2010年真题

Sustainabilityhasbecomeapopularwordthesedays,buttoTedNing,theconceptwillalways

havepersonalmeaning.Havingenduredapainfulperiodofunsustainabilityinhisownlifemade

itcleartohimthatsustainability-orientedvaluesmustbeexpressedthrougheverydayactionand

choice.

Ningrecallsspendingaconfusingyearinthelate1990ssellinginsurance.He'dbeenthrough

thedot-comboomandbustand,desperateforajob,signedonwithaBoulderagency.

Itdidn'tgowell.4tItwasareallybadmovebecausethat'snotmypassion,saysNing,whose

dilemmaaboutthejobtranslated,predictably,intoalackofsales.44Iwasmiserable.1hadsomuch

anxietythatIwouldwakeupinthemiddleofthenightandstareattheceiling.Ihadnomoney

andneededthejob.Everyonesaid,'Justwait,you'llturnthecorner,giveitsome

2011年真题

Whowouldhavethoughtthat,globally,theITindustryproducesaboutthesamevolumeof

greenhousegasesastheworld'sairlinesdo—roughly2percentofallCO2emissions?

Manyeverydaytaskstakeasurprisingtollontheenvironment.AGooglesearchcanleak

between0.2and7.0gramsofCO2,dependingonhowmanyattemptsareneededtogetthe“right”

answer.Todeliverresultstoitsusersquickly,then,Googlehastomaintainvastdatacenters

aroundtheworld,packedwithpowerfulcomputers.WhileproducinglargequantitiesofCO2,

thesecomputersemitagreatdealofheat,sothecentersneedtobewellair-conditioned,which

usesevenmoreenergy.

However,Googleandotherbigtechprovidersmonitortheirefficiencycloselyandmake

improvements.Monitoringisthefirststepontheroadtoreduction,butthereismuchmoretobe

done,andnotjustbybigcompanies.

英语（二）历年翻译真题

参考答案

2007年

人类创造力的不断进步已经成为我们经济生活中的突出特点，正是它在推动着我们时代

中正在进行的各种变化。由于许多新的技术，新兴的工业以及新的财富都源自创造力，所以

它的价值业已凸现出来.因此，各种创新的观念开始在我们的生活和社会中传播开来。正是

人们在各个领域对创造力的认同才形成了我们这个时代的精神基础。

创造力对我们如今的生活和工作方式是至关重要的，并在很多方面早己是这样：生活

水平的重大提高——更不用说在市场中的巨大竞争优势一都是来自“更好的菜谱，而不仅仅

是更多的烹制品

有人认为这并不完全正确。比如，有人指出，从工业革命早期到现代化这一漫长时期

在工业化国家，生产力和物质财富的很多增长不单单来自于像蒸汽机这样有创造力的发明，

而来自于广泛使用“数量烹饪”的商业方法，比如大规模的劳动分工、资产的集中、纵向整合

和规模经济。单那些方法本身都是具有创造力的发展。

2008年

随着个人计算机和空白表格程序的发明，“商业模式“这个术语首次得到了大规模的使

用。空白表格程序被发明前，商业计划通常意味着进行一次单一的预测，充其量，你也只能

在此单一预测的基础上再做一些敏感性分析。空白表格程序开启了一种更具分析性的规划方

法，其原因是空白表格程序中的每一行中都可以被拆分，其中的每一个部分及亚组成部分都

可以被拆分和测试。你可以对商业所依赖的关键设想提出“如果……会怎么样？”的问题，

例如，“如果顾客对价格的敏感度超过了我们的预期怎么办”，只需敲击几下键盘，你就可以

看到某个变化对全局的各个方面可能产生怎么样的影响，换句话说，你可以对商业的行为建

立模型。在计算机改变了商业规划本质之前,绝大部分成功的商业规划与其说是精心策划的，

不如说是运气使然。空白表格程序将公司的市场洞察力与相应的经济结构更为紧密地联系起

来，从而使公司在商业运营开始前建立商业模型变为可能。

2009年

由于国家金融体制处于危机动荡的边缘，一些大银行和金融机构中的高级管理人员的

补充金计划就受到密切关注。

银行家们过度冒险是导致金融危机至关重要的原因，在历史上也有类似情况。在这种

情况下，一般是由低息引起并造成持续的错觉，其实是一种债务泡沫经济。

抵押贷款人很乐意把大量资金借给无力偿还的人，再将贷款分割，并沿这样的链条出

售给下一个金融机构，这些做法都再利用高科技证券业，结果，却增加了抵押资产的风险。

金融管理规定必须能应对这种最不负责任的并导致银行损失惨重的做法，以期扭转下

一•个危机，而这下一个危机很可能包括有各种类型的金融技术和资产。但值得审视补偿金计

划的根本问题，因为那是眼前问题，但却让银行家门不负责任地甘冒风险。

2010年

最近，“承受力”成了一个流行词，但对宁泰德来说，他对该词的含义有自己的亲身体

会。在经历了一段无法承受的痛苦生活后，他清楚地认识到，旨在提高承受力的价值观必须

在日常的行为和抉择中才能得以体现。

宁泰德回忆起九十年代后期销售保险那困惑的一年。那一年，他经历了互联网泡沫的膨

胀和破灭，他急需找到一份工作，因此就与博尔德公司签了约。

但情况并不顺利。“这的确是糟糕的一步，因为它激不起我的工作热情，”宁泰德说。

不出所料，工作上的进退维谷造成他销售业绩不佳。“我很痛苦，愁肠百结，常常在半夜惊

醒，望着天花板发愣。我身无分文，需要这份工作。每个人都在说，'再等等吧，过一段时

间情况会好转的。

2011年

有谁能够想到，全世界信息技术行业产生的温室气体量与全球航空公司所产生的一样

多，大约为二氧化碳总排量的2%。

很多日常工作对环境的损害是惊人的。根据人们得到“正确”答案所需查询次数的不同，

在谷歌上搜索一次便会产生0.2到7.0克的二氧化碳。为了将搜索结果快速传递给用户，谷

歌必须使用功能强大的计算机系统来维护全球各大数据库中心。这些计算机产生大量二氧化

碳的同时，还释放出了许多热量，所以数据库中心又必须装备很好的散热设备，这样就会使

用更多的能源。

不过，谷歌和其他大型技术提供商们严密监控他们的效率问题，并做了许多改善。但监

控只是减排道路上的第一步，还有很多工作要做，而这也并非只是大公司的任务。

考研英语（二）历年阅读真题

2006年

Text1

Officejobsareamongthepositionshardesthitbycompumation（计算机自动化）.Word

processorsandtypistswillloseabout93,000jobsoverthenextfewyears,while57,000secretarial

jobswillvanish.BlamethePC:Today,manyexecutivestypetheirownmemosandcarrytheir

“secretaries“inthepalmsoftheirhands.Timeisalsohardforstockclerks,whoseranksare

expectedtodecreaseby68,000.Andemployeesinmanufacturingfirmsandwholesalersarebeing

replacedwithcomputerizedsystems.

Butnoteveryonewholosesajobwillendupintheunemploymentline.Manywillshiftto

growingpositionswithintheirowncompanies.Whennewtechnologiesshookupthetelecom

business,telephoneoperatorJudyDoughertypursuedretraining.Sheisnowacommunications

technician,earningabout64,000peryear.Ofcourse,ifyou'vebeenatollboothcollectorforthe

past30years,andyoufindyourselfreplacedbyanE-ZPassmachine,itmaybeoflittle

consolation（安慰）toknowthatthetelecomfieldisbooming.

Andthat'sjustit:Theserviceeconomyisfading;welcometotheexpertise（专门知识）

economy.Tosucceedinthenewjobmarket,youmustbeabletohandlecomplexproblems.

Indeed,allbutoneofthe50highest-payingoccupations—air-trafficcontroller-demandatleasta

bachelor'sdegree.

Forthosewithjustahighschooldiploma（毕业证书）,It'sgoingtogettoughertofinda

well-payingjob.Sincefewerfactoryandclericaljobswillbeavailable,what'sleftwillbethejobs

thatcompumationcan'tkill:Computerscan'tcleanoffices,orcareforAlzheimer'spatients（老年

痴呆病人）.But,sincemostpeoplehavetheskillstofillthosepositions,thewagesstaypainfully

low,meaningcompumationcoulddriveanevendeeperwedge（楔子）betweentherichandpoor.

Thebestadvicenow:Neverstoplearning,andkeepupwithnewtechnology.

Forbusyadults,ofcourse,thatcanbetough.Thegoodnewsisthattheverytechnology

that'sreducingsomanyjobsisalsomakingiteasiertogobacktoschool—withouthavingtositin

aclassroom.So-calledinternetdistancelearningishot,withmorethanthreemillionstudents

currentlyenrolled,andit'sgainingcredibilitywithemployers.

Areyouatriskoflosingyourjobtoacomputer?CheckthefederalBureauofLabor

Statistics,OccupationalOutlookHandbook,whichisavailableonlineat.

41.Fromthefirstparagraphwecaninferthatallofthefollowingpersonsareeasilythrowninto

unemploymentEXCEPT___.

A.secretariesB.stockclerksC.managersD.wholesalers

42.Inthesecondparagraphtheauthormentionsthetollboothcollectorto__.

A.meanhewillgetbenefitsfromthetelecomfield

B.showheistoooldtoshifttoanewposition

C.consolehimonhavingbeenreplacedbyamachine

D.blamethePCforhisunemployment

43.Bysaying4pumationcoulddriveanevendeeperwedgebetweentherichandpoor”

（Line5,Para.4）,theauthormeans___.

A.peoplearegettingricherandricher

B.therewillbeasmallgapbetweenrichandpoor

C.thegapbetweenrichandpoorisgettinglargerandlarger

D.it'stimetocloseupthegapbetweentherichandpoor

44.Whatistheauthor'sattitudetowardscomputers?

A.positiveB.negativeC.neutralD.prejudiced

45.Whichofthefollowingmightserveasthebesttitleofpassage?

A.BlamingthePC

B.TheBoomingTelecomField

C.InternetDistanceLearning

D.KeepingupwithCompumation

Text2

Tensofthousandsof18-year-oldswillgraduatethisyearandbehandedmeaningless

diplomas.Thesediplomaswon'tlookanydifferentfromthoseawardedtheirluckierclassmates.

Theirvaliditywillbequestionedonlywhentheiremployersdiscoverthatthesegraduatesare

semiliterate（半文盲）.

Eventuallyafortunatefewwillfindtheirwayintoeducational-repairshops-adult-literacy

programs,suchastheonewhereIteachbasicgrammarandwriting.There,high-schoolgraduates

andhigh-schooldropoutspursuinggraduate-equivalencycertificateswilllearntheskillsthey

shouldhavelearnedinschool.Theywillalsodiscovertheyhavebeencheatedbyoureducational

system.

Iwillneverforgetateacherwhogottheattentionofoneofmychildrenbyrevealingthe

trumpcardoffailure.Ouryoungest,aworld-classcharmer,didlittletodevelophisintellectual

talentsbutalwaysgotby.UntilMrs.Stifter.

Oursonwashigh-schoolseniorwhenhehadherforEnglish.4iHesitsinthebackoftheroom

talkingtohisfriends/shetoldme,“Whydon'tyoumovehimtothefrontrow?”Iurged,

believingtheembarrassmentwouldgethimtosettledown.Mrs.Stiftersaid,"Idon'tmoveseniors.

Iflunk（使...不及格）them."Ourson'sacademiclifeflashedbeforemyeyes.Noteacherhadever

threatenedhim.BythetimeIgothomeIwasfeelingprettygoodaboutthis.Itwasaradical

approachfbrthesetimes,but,well,Whynot?"She'sgoingtoflunkyou."Itoldmyson.Ididnot

discussitanyfurther.SuddenlyEnglishbecameapriority（头等重要）inhislife.Hefinishedout

thesemesterwithanA.

Iknowoneexampledoesn'tmakeacase,butatnightIseeaparadeofstudentswhoare

angryfbrhavingbeenpassedalonguntiltheycouldnolongerevenpretendtokeepup.Ofaverage

intelligenceorbetter,theyeventuallyquitschool,concludingtheyweretoodumbtofinish."I

shouldhavebeenheldback,“isacommentIhearfrequently.Evensadderarethosestudentswho

arehigh-schoolgraduateswhosaytomeafterafewweeksofclass,don'tknowhowIevergot

ahigh-schooldiploma.^^

Passingstudentswhohavenotmasteredtheworkcheatsthemandtheemployerswhoexpect

graduatestohavebasicskills.Weexcusethisdishonestbehaviorbysayingkidscan'tlearnifthey

comefromterribleenvironments.Nooneseemstostoptothinkthatmostkidsdon'tputschool

firstontheirlistunlesstheyperceivesomethingisatrisk.They'dratherbesailing.

ManystudentsIseeatnighthavedecidedtomakeeducationapriority.Theyaremotivated

bythedesireforabetterjobortheneedtohangontotheonethey'vegot.Theyhaveahealthy

fearoffailure.

Peopleofallagescanriseabovetheirproblems,buttheyneedtohaveareasontodoso.

Youngpeoplegenerallydon'thavethematuritytovalueeducationinthesameway.Myadult

studentsvalueit.Butfearoffailurecanmotivateboth.

46.Whatisthesubjectofthisessay?

A.Viewpointonlearning.

B.Aqualifiedteacher.

C.Theimportanceofexamination.

D.Thegenerationgap.

47.HowdidMrs.Siftergettheattentionofoneoftheauthor'schildren?

A.flunkinghim

B.movinghisseat

C.blaminghim

D.playingcardwithhim

48.Theauthorbelievesthatthemosteffectivewayforateacheristo_.

A.purifytheteachingenvironments

B.setupcooperationbetweenteachersandparents

C.holdbackstudent

D.motivatestudent

49.Fromthepassagewecandrawtheconclusionthattheauthor\attitudetowardflunkingis_.

A.negativeB.positiveC.biasedD.indifferent

50.Judgingfromthecontent,thispassageisprobablywrittenfor_.

A.administratorsB.studentsC.teachersD.parents

Text3

Nameshavegainedincreasingimportanceinthecompetitiveworldofhighereducation.As

collegesstriveformarketshare,theyarelookingfornamesthatprojecttheimagetheywantor

reflectthechangestheyhopetomake.TrentonStateCollege,forexample,becametheCollegeof

NewJerseynineyearsagowhenitbeganraisingadmissionsstandardsandappealingtostudents

fromthroughoutthestate.

“AHIhearinhighereducationis,brand,brand,brand,“saidTimWesterbeck,who

specializesinbrandingandismanagingdirectorofLipmanHearne,amarketingfirmbasedin

Chicagothatworkswithuniversitiesandothernonprofitorganizations."Therehasbeenasea

changeoverthelast10years.Marketingusedtobealmostadirtywordinhighereducation.”

Notalleffortsatnamechangesaresuccessful,ofcourse.In1997,theNewSchoolfbrSocial

ResearchbecameNewSchoolUniversitytoreflectitsgrowthintoacollectionofeightcolleges,

offeringalistofmajorsthatincludespsychology,music,urbanstudiesandmanagement.ButNew

YorkerscontinuedtocallittheNewSchool.

Now,afterspendinganundisclosedsumonanonlinesurveyandamarketingconsultant's

creationof“namingstructures,^^“brandarchitecture^^and“identitysystems,^^theuniversityhas

comeupwithanewname:theNewSchool.BeginningMonday,itwilladoptnewlogos（标识）,

banners,businesscardsandevennewnamesfortheindividualcolleges,alltoincludethewords

“theNewSchool.”

Changesinnamesgenerallyrevealsignificantshiftsinhowacollegewantstobeperceived.

InalteringitsnamefromCalState,Hayward,toCalState,EastBay,theuniversityhopedto

projectitsexpandingroleintwomostlysuburbancountrieseastofSanFrancisco.

TheUniversityofSouthernColorado,astateinstitution,becameColoradoStateUniversityat

Pueblotwoyearsago,hopingtohighlightmanyinternalchanges,includingofferingmore

graduateprogramsandsettinghigheradmissionsstandards.

BeaverCollegeturneditselfintoArcadiaUniversityin2001fbrseveralreasons:tobreakthe

connectionwithitspastasawomen'scollege,topromoteitsgrowthintoafull-fledged（完全成熟

的）universityandofficialsacknowledged,toeliminatesomejokesaboutthecollege'soldname

onlate-nighttelevisionand“morningzoo”radioshows.

Manycollegeofficialssaidchanginganameandimagecouldproducesubstantialresults.At

Arcadia,inadditiontotheriseinapplications,theaveragestudent'stestscorehasincreasedby60

points,JuliRoebeck,anArcadiaspokeswoman,said.

51.WhichofthefollowingisNOTthereasonforcollegestochangetheirnames?

A.Theypreferhighereducationcompetition.

B.Theytrytogainadvantageinmarketshare.

C.Theywanttoprojecttheirimage.

D.Theyhopetomakesomechanges.

52.Itisimpliedthatoneofthemostsignificantchangesinhighereducationinthepastdecadeis

A.thebrandB.thecollegenames

C.theconceptofmarketingD.listofmajors

53.Thephrase“comeupwith”（Line3,Para.4）probablymeans__.

A.catchupwithB.dealwith

C.putforwardD.cometotherealization

54.ThecaseofnamechangingfromCalState,Hayward,toCalState,EastBayindicatesthatthe

university___.

A.isperceivedbythesocietyB.hopestoexpanditsinfluence

C.preferstoreformitsteachingprogramsD.expectstoenlargeitscampus

55.Accordingtothespokeswoman,thenamechangeofBeaverCollege__.

A.turnsoutverysuccessfulB.failstoattainitsgoal

C.haseliminatedsomejokesD.hastransformeditsstatus

Text4

Itlookedjustlikeanotheraircraftfromtheoutside.Thepilottoldhisyoungpassengersthatit

wasbuiltin1964.Butappearancesweredeceptive,andthe13studentsfromEuropeandtheUSA

whoboardedtheaircraftwereinfortheflightoftheirlives.

Inside,theareathatnormallyhadseatshadbecomealongwhitetunnel.Heavilypadded（填

塞）fromfloortoceiling,itlookedabitstrange.Therewerealmostnowindows,butlightsalong

thepaddedwallsilluminatedit.Mostoftheseatshadbeentakenout,apartfromafewattheback

wheretheyoungscientistsquicklytooktheirplaceswithalookoffear.

For12months,sciencestudentsfromacrossthecontinentshadcompetedtowinaplaceon

theflightattheinvitationoftheEuropeanSpaceAgency.Thechallengehadbeentosuggest

imaginativeexperimentstobeconductedinweightlessconditions.

Forthenexttwohours,theflightresembledthatofanenormousbirdwhichhadloseits

reason,shootingupwardstowardstheheavensbeforerushingtowardsEarth.Theinventionwasto

achieveweightlessnessforafewseconds.

Theaircrafttookoffsmoothlyenough,butanyfeelingsthatIandtheyoungscientistshad

thatwewereonanythinglikeascheduledpassengerservicewerequicklydismissedwhenthe

pilotputtheplaneintoa45-degreeclimbwhichlastedaround20seconds.Thentheenginescut

ourandwebecameweightless.Everythingbecameconfusedandleftorright,upordownno

longerhadanymeaning.Aftertensecondsoffree-falldescentthepilotpulledtheaircraftoutof

itsnosedive.Thereturnofgravitywaslessimmediatethanitsloss,butwasstillsuddenenoughto

ensurethatsomestudentscamedownwithabump.

Eachtimethepilotcuttheenginesandwebecameweightless,anewteamconductedits

experiment.FirstitwastheDutchwhowantedtodiscoverhowitisthatcatsalwayslandontheir

feet.ThentheGermanteamwhoconductedasuccessfulexperimentonatraditionalbuilding

methodtoseeifitcouldbeusedforbuildingafurtherspacestation.TheAmericanshadanideato

createsolarsailsthatcouldbeusedbysatellites.

Aftertwohoursofgoingupanddowninthelanedoingtheirexperiments,thepredominant

feelingwasoneofexcitementratherthansickness.Mostofthestudentsthoughtitwasan

unforgettableexperienceandonetheywouldbekeentorepeat.

56.Whatdidthewritersayabouttheplane?

A.Ithadnoseats.B.Itwaspaintedwhite.

C.Ithadnowindows.D.Theoutsidewasmisleading.

57.Accordingtothewriter,howdidtheyoungscientistsfeelbeforetheflight?

A.SickB.KeenC.NervousD.Impatient

58.Whatdidthepilotdowiththeplaneafterittookoff?

A.Hequicklyclimbedandthenstoppedtheengines.

B.Heclimbedandthenmadetheplanefallslowly.

C.Hetookoffnormallyandthencuttheenginesfor20seconds.

D.Heclimbedandthenmadetheplaneturnover.

59.Accordingtothepassage,thepurposeofbeingweightlesswasto__.

A.seewhatconditionsarelikeinspace

B.preparetheyoungscientistsfbrfutureworkinspace

C.showthejudgesofthecompetitionwhattheycoulddo

D.maketheteamstryouttheirideas

60.Thispassagewaswrittento__.

A.encourageyoungpeopletotakeupscience

B.describetheprocessofascientificcompetition

C.showscientistswhatyoungpeoplecando

D.reportonanewscientifictechnique

2007年

Text1

Priortothe20thcentury,manylanguageswithsmallnumbersofspeakerssurvivedfor

centuries.Theincreasinglyinterconnectedmodernworldmakesitmuchmoredifficultforsmall

languagecommunitiestoliveinrelativeisolation,akeyfactorinlanguagemaintenanceand

preservation.

Itremainstobeseenwhethertheworldcanmaintainitslinguisticandculturaldiversityin

thecenturiesahead.Manypowerfulforcesappeartoworkagainstit:populationgrowth,which

pushesmigrantpopulationsintotheworld'slastisolatedlocations;masstourism;global

telecommunicationsandmassmedia;andthespreadofgiganticglobalcorporations.Allofthese

forcesappeartosignifyafutureinwhichthelanguageofadvertising,popularculture,and

consumerproductsbecomesimilar.AlreadyEnglishandafewothermajortongueshaveemerged

asgloballanguagesofcommerceandcommunication.Formanyoftheworld'speoples,learning

oneoftheselanguagesisviewedasthekeytoeducation,economicopportunity,andabetterway

oflife.

Onlyabout3,000languagesnowinuseareexpectedtosurvivethecomingcentury.Aremost

oftherestdoomedinthecenturyafterthat?

Whethermostoftheselanguagessurvivewillprobablydependonhowstronglycultural

groupswishtokeeptheiridentityalivethroughanativelanguage.Todosowillrequirean

emphasisonbilingualism（masteryoftwolanguages）.Bilingualspeakerscouldusetheirown

languageinsmallerspheres-athome,amongfriends,incommunitysettings—andaglobal

languageatwork,indealingswithgovernment,andincommercialspheres.Inthisway,many

smalllanguagescouldsustaintheirculturalandlinguisticintegrityalongsidegloballanguages,

ratherthanyieldtothehomogenizing（同化的）forcesofglobalization.

Ironically,thetrendoftechnologicalinnovationthathasthreatenedminoritylanguagescould

alsohelpsavethem.Forexample,someexpertspredictthatcomputersoftwaretranslationtools

willonedaypermitminoritylanguagespeakerstobrowsetheInternetusingtheirnativetongues.

Linguistsarecurrentlyusingcomputer-aidedlearningtoolstoteachavarietyofthreatened

languages.

Formanyendangeredlanguages,thelinebetweenrevivalanddeathisextremelythin.

Languageisremarkablyresilient（有活力的），however.Itisnotjustatoolforcommunicating,but

alsoapowerfulwayofseparatingdifferentgroups,orofdemonstratinggroupidentity.Many

indigenous（原生的，土著的）communitieshaveshownthatitispossibletoliveinthemodern

worldwhilereclaimingtheiruniqueidentitiesthroughlanguage.

41.Minoritylanguagescanbebestpreservedin__.

A.anincreasinglyinterconnectedworld

B.maintainingsmallnumbersofspeakers

C.relativelyisolatedlanguagecommunities

D.followingthetraditionofthe20thcentury

42.AccordingtoParagraph2,thattheworldcanmaintainitslinguisticdiversityinthefutureis

A.uncertainB.unrealistic

C.foreseeableD.definite

43.Accordingtotheauthor,bilingualismcanhelp__.

A.smalllanguagesbecomeacceptableinworkplaces

B.homogenizetheworld'slanguagesandcultures

C.globallanguagesreachhomeandcommunitysettings

D.speakersmaintaintheirlinguisticandculturalidentity

44.Computertechnologyishelpfulforpreservingminoritylanguagesinthatit__.

A.makeslearningagloballanguageunnecessary

B.facilitatesthelearningandusingofthoselanguages

C.raisespublicawarenessofsavingthoselanguages

D.makesiteasierforlinguiststostudythoselanguages

45.Intheauthor'sview,manyendangeredlanguagesare__.

A.remarkablywell-keptinthismodernworld

B.exceptionallypowerfultoolsofcommunication

C.quitepossibletoberevivedinsteadofdyingout

D.auniquewayofbringingdifferentgroupstogether

Text2

Everyone,itseems,hasahealthproblem.AfterpouringbillionsintotheNationalHealth

Service,Britishpeoplemoanaboutdirtyhospitals,longwaitsandwastedmoney.InGermanythe

newchancellor,AngelaMerkel,isunderfireforsuggestingchangingthefinancingofitshealth

system.Canada'snewConservativePrimeMinister,StephenHarper,madeabigfussduringthe

electionaboutreducingthecountry'slengthymedicalqueues.Acrosstherichworld,affluence,

ageingandadvancingtechnologyaredrivinguphealthspendingfasterthanincome.

ButnowherehasabiggerhealthproblemthanAmerica.Soaringmedicalbillsaresqueezing

wages,swelli