2013年全国硕士研究生入学统一考试英语(二)试题 Section II Reading Comprehension Part A
Section II Reading Comprehension Part A Directions: Read the following four texts. Answer the questions below each text by choosing A, B, C or D. Mark your answers on ANSWER SHEET 1. (40 points) Text 1 In an essay entitled “Making It in America”, the author Adam Davidson relates a joke from cotton about just how much a modern textile mill has been automated: The average mill only two employees today,” a man and a dog. The man is there to feed the dog is there to keep the man away from the machines.” Davidson’s article is one of a number of pieces that have recently appeared making the point that the reason we have such stubbornly high unemployment and declining middle-class incomes today is also because of the advances in both globalization and the information technology revolution, which are more rapidly than ever replacing labor with machines or foreign worker. In the past, workers with average skills, doing an average job，could earn an average lifestyle ,But ,today ,average is officially over. Being average just won’t earn you what it used to. It can’t when so many more employers have so much more access to so much more above average cheap foreign labor, cheap robotics, cheap software, cheap automation and cheap genius. Therefore, everyone needs to find their extra-their unique value contribution that makes them stand out in whatever is their field of employment. Yes, new technology has been eating jobs forever, and always will. But there’s been an acceleration. As Davidson notes,” In the 10 years ending in 2009, [U.S.] factories shed workers so fast that they erased almost all the gains of the previous 70 years; roughly one out of every three manufacturing jobs-about 6 million in total -disappeared. There will always be changed-new jobs, new products, new services. But the one thing we know for sure is that with each advance in globalization and the I.T. revolution, the best jobs will require workers to have more and better education to make themselves above average. In a world where average is officially over, there are many things we need to do to support employment, but nothing would be more important than passing some kind of G.I.Bill for the 21st century that ensures that every American has access to poet-high school education. 21. The joke in Paragraph 1 is used to illustrate_______. [A] the impact of technological advances [B] the alleviation of job pressure [C] the shrinkage of textile mills [D] the decline of middle-class incomes 22. According to Paragraph 3, to be a successful employee, one has to______ [A] work on cheap software [B] ask for a moderate salary [C] adopt an average lifestyle [D] contribute something unique 23. The quotation in Paragraph 4 explains that ______ [A] gains of technology have been erased [B] job opportunities are disappearing at a high speed [C] factories are making much less money than before [D] new jobs and services have been offered 24. According to the author, to reduce unemployment, the most important is_____ [A] to accelerate the I.T. revolution [B] to ensure more education for people [C] to advance economic globalization [D] to pass more bills in the 21st century 25. Which of the following would be the most appropriate title for the text? [A] New Law Takes Effect [B] Technology Goes Cheap [C] Average Is Over [D] Recession Is Bad Text 2 A century ago, the immigrants from across the Atlantic included settlers and sojourners. Along with the many folks looking to make a permanent home in the United States came those who had no intention to stay, and 7millin people arrived while about 2 million departed. About a quarter of all Italian immigrants, for example, eventually returned to Italy for good. They even had an affectionate nickname, “uccelli di passaggio,” birds of passage. Today, we are much more rigid about immigrants. We divide newcomers into two categories: legal or illegal, good or bad. We hail them as Americans in the making, or our broken immigration system and the long political paralysis over how to fix it. We don’t need more categories, but we need to change the way we think about categories. We need to look beyond strict definitions of legal and illegal. To start, we can recognize the new birds of passage, those living and thriving in the gray areas. We might then begin to solve our immigration challenges. Crop pickers, violinists, construction workers, entrepreneurs, engineers, home health-care aides and physicists are among today’s birds of passage. They are energetic participants in a global economy driven by the flow of work, money and ideas .They prefer to come and go as opportunity calls them , They can manage to have a job in one place and a family in another. With or without permission, they straddle laws, jurisdictions and identities with ease. We need them to imagine the United States as a place where they can be productive for a while without committing themselves to staying forever. We need them to feel that home can be both here and there and that they can belong to two nations honorably. Accommodating this new world of people in motion will require new attitudes on both sides of the immigration battle .Looking beyond the culture war logic of right or wrong means opening up the middle ground and understanding that managing immigration today requires multiple paths and multiple outcomes. Including some that are not easy to accomplish legally in the existing system. 26 “Birds of passage” refers to those who____. [A] immigrate across the Atlantic [B] leave their home countries for good [C] stay in a foreign temporarily [D]find permanent jobs overseas 27 It is implied in paragraph 2 that the current immigration system in the US ____. [A] needs new immigrant categories [B] has loosened control over immigrants [C] should be adopted to meet challenges [D] has been fixed via political means 28 According to the author, today’s birds of passage want___ [A] financial incentives. [B] a global recognition. [C] opportunities to get regular jobs. [D]the freedom to stay and leave. 29 The author suggests that the birds of passage today should be treated __ [A] as faithful partners. [B] with economic favors. [C] with regal tolerance. [D]as mighty rivals. 30 which is the best title of the passage? [A] come and go: big mistake [B] living and thriving : great risk [C] with or without : great risk [D]legal or illegal: big mistake Text 3 Scientists have found that although we are prone to snap overreactions, if we take a moment and think about how we are likely to react, we can reduce or even eliminate the negative effects of our quick, hard-wired responses. Snap decisions can be important defense mechanisms; if we are judging whether someone is dangerous, our brains and bodies are hard-wired to react very quickly, within milliseconds. But we need more time to assess other factors. To accurately tell whether someone is sociable, studies show, we need at least a minute, preferably five. It takes a while to judge complex aspects of personality, like neuroticism or open-mindedness. But snap decisions in reaction to rapid stimuli aren’t exclusive to the interpersonal realm. Psychologists at the University of Toronto found that viewing a fast-food logo for just a few milliseconds primes us to read 20 percent faster, even though reading has little to do with eating. We unconsciously associate fast food with speed and impatience and carry those impulses into whatever else we’re doing, Subjects exposed to fast-food flashes also tend to think a musical piece lasts too long. Yet we can reverse such influences. If we know we will overreact to consumer products or housing options when we see a happy face (one reason good sales representatives and real estate agents are always smiling), we can take a moment before buying. If we know female job screeners are more likely to reject attractive female applicants, we can help screeners understand their biases-or hire outside screeners. John Gottman, the marriage expert, explains that we quickly “thin slice” information reliably only after we ground such snap reactions in “thick sliced” long-term study. When Dr. Gottman really wants to assess whether a couple will stay together, he invites them to his island retreat for a muck longer evaluation; two days, not two seconds. Our ability to mute our hard-wired reactions by pausing is what differentiates us from animals: doge can think about the future only intermittently or for a few minutes. But historically we have spent about 12 percent of our days contemplating the longer term. Although technology might change the way we react, it hasn’t changed our nature. We still have the imaginative capacity to rise above temptation and reverse the high-speed trend. 31. The time needed in making decisions may____. [A] vary according to the urgency of the situation [B] prove the complexity of our brain reaction [C] depend on the importance of the assessment [D] predetermine the accuracy of our judgment 32. Our reaction to a fast-food logo shows that snap decisions____. [A] can be associative [B] are not unconscious [C] can be dangerous [D] are not impulsive 33. To reverse the negative influences of snap decisions, we should____. [A] trust our first impression [B] do as people usually do [C] think before we act [D] ask for expert advice 34. John Gottman says that reliable snap reaction are based on____. [A] critical assessment [B]‘thin sliced’study [C] sensible explanation [D] adequate information 35. The author’s attitude toward reversing the high-speed trend is____. [A] tolerant [B] uncertain [C] optimistic [D] doubtful Text 4 Europe is not a gender-equality heaven. In particular, the corporate workplace will never be completely family—friendly until women are part of senior management decisions, and Europe’s top corporate-governance positions remain overwhelmingly male. Indeed, women hold only 14 percent of positions on Europe corporate boards. The Europe Union is now considering legislation to compel corporate boards to maintain a certain proportion of women-up to 60 percent. This proposed mandate was born of frustration. Last year, Europe Commission Vice President Viviane Reding issued a call to voluntary action. Reding invited corporations to sign up for gender balance goal of 40 percent female board membership. But her appeal was considered a failure: only 24 companies took it up. Do we need quotas to ensure that women can continue to climb the corporate Ladder fairy as they balance work and family? “Personally, I don’t like quotas,” Reding said recently. “But i like what the quotas do.” Quotas get action: they “open the way to equality and they break through the glass ceiling,” according to Reding, a result seen in France and other countries with legally binding provisions on placing women in top business positions. I understand Reding’s reluctance-and her frustration. I don’t like quotas either; they run counter to my belief in meritocracy, government by the capable. Bur, when one considers the obstacles to achieving the meritocratic ideal, it does look as if a fairer world must be temporarily ordered. After all, four decades of evidence has now shown that corporations in Europe as the US are evading the meritocratic hiring and promotion of women to top position— no matter how much “soft pressure ” is put upon them. When women do break through to the summit of corporate power--as, for example, Sheryl Sandberg recently did at Facebook—they attract massive attention precisely because they remain the exception to the rule. If appropriate pubic policies were in place to help all women—whether CEOs or their children’s caregivers—and all families, Sandberg would be no more newsworthy than any other highly capable person living in a more just society. 36. In the European corporate workplace, generally_____. [A] women take the lead [B] men have the final say [C] corporate governance is overwhelmed [D] senior management is family-friendly 37. The European Union’s intended legislation is ________. [A] a reflection of gender balance [B] a reluctant choice [C] a response to Reding’s call [D] a voluntary action 38. According to Reding, quotas may help women ______. [A] get top business positions [B] see through the glass ceiling [C] balance work and family [D] anticipate legal results 39. The author’s attitude toward Reding’s appeal is one of _________. [A] skepticism [B] objectiveness [C] indifference [D] approval 40. Women entering top management become headlines due to the lack of ______. [A] more social justice [B] massive media attention [C] suitable public policies [D] greater“soft pressure”
2013年全国硕士研究生入学统一考试英语(二)试题 Section II Reading Comprehension Part A的延伸阅读— —2014考研十一黄金周备考“黄金课表”
一场秋雨一场凉，天气在秋雨中变得更像秋天了。夏日的酷暑已经消失，严冬还未到来，阴雨过后，秋高气爽，正是读书好时节。也许这几天校园里多了几分活跃，大家都在准备十一黄金周的出游、玩乐，而你作为一名考研人，是否还有那份兴致呢。其实十一黄金周是一个短小精悍的自由时光，加之前阵子新大纲刚刚发布，正是调整思路的关键时期。为了帮助广大考生最大限度的提高十一学习效率，特为大家制作了这份“黄金课程表”帮助大家安排假期时间。 十一，普国同庆，热闹非凡!但，热闹是他们的。 反观我们考研人，这7天，是否甚至可以说“成也7天，败也7天”呢?为何如此说： 1、9.13新大纲刚刚发布，正好利用这几天静下心来好好调整思路; 2、别人出游你备考，相当于比别人多了一周的复习时间; 3、这段时间不用为抢座占座发愁，不为学习环境发愁，全身心备考; 4、目前正是网报的高峰期，新东方在线全国研究生入学考试中心在此提醒各位考研的小伙伴儿们，“网报有风险，选校须谨慎”。 为了帮助广大考生最大限度的提高十一学习效率，我们为大家制作了这份“黄金课程表”帮助大家安排假期时间。 假期前五天： 上午 6：30—7：30 起床，吃完早饭，进入学习状态 7：30—8：20 背诵英语考研阅读真题材料、写作范文或者其他英语材料 8： 30—9：30 背诵政治马哲原理、形势政策或最后押题30道 9： 40—12: 20 重点攻克数学知识点或做数学模拟题(不考数学的将数学时间用于专业课的一科) 下午 12：30—13：30 午餐、午休 13：30—16：00 做英语阅读或英语专题，以精读为主，复习后期侧重英语作文 16：00—18：00 做数学或专业课 18：00—18：40 吃晚饭，休息或与同学交流 晚上 18：50—19：30 背诵政治或英语单词(以理解为主，不刻意记忆);晚餐19：40—22：30 重点攻克数学或专业课(可以按照科目或日期单双数调 整) 22：40—23：00 洗漱、上网 23：30 睡前回顾白天复习的内容(躺下默默回忆)，遇到遗忘的第二天早上及时温习记忆 当然，小伙伴儿的考研备考方法如同八仙过海，各有奇招，这份课表是就大多数考研学子的备考情况准备的，大家可以根据自己的复习情况具体调整，一切皆以高效学习为目的。 假期第六天： 第六天为总结日，可以将前五天的学习结果进行简单的总结，尤其是针对各个网络强化课程、大纲增补课程、真题精讲课程的学习，可以在前期复习的基础上进行收尾、整理。通过总结整理前期复习，对十一过后的学习做出一份精准的安排。 假期第七天： 考研伤神伤闹，劳逸结合最重要，抓住假期的最后一天，三五研友，可以一起出行游玩，缓解备考压力，收拾心情，为假期后的学习做好充分准备。 |
