2011年12月英语四级阅读备考材料(3) Happiness can be described as a positive mood and a pleasant state of mind. According to recent polls (民意测验) sixty to seventy percent of Americans consider themselves to be moderately happy and one in twenty persons feels very unhappy. Psychologists have been studying the factors that contribute to happiness. It is not predictable nor is a person in an apparently ideal situation necessarily happy. The ideal situation may have little to do with his actual feelings. A good education and income are usually considered necessary for happiness. Though both may contribute, they are only chief factors if the person is seriously undereducated or actually suffering from lack of physical needs. The rich are not likely to be happier than the middle-income group or even those with very low incomes. People with college educations are somewhat happier than those who did not graduate from high school, and it is believed that this is mainly because they have more opportunity to control their lives. Yet people with a high income and a college education may be less happy than those with the same income and no college education. Poor health does not rule out happiness except for the severely disabled or those in pain. Learning to cope with a health problem can contribute to happiness. Those with a good sex life are happier in general, but those who have a loving, affectionate relationship are happier than those who rely on sex alone. Love has a higher correlation with happiness than any other factor. It should be noted that people quickly get used to what they have, and they are happiest when they feel they are increasing their level no matter where it stands at a given time. Children whose parents were happily married have happier childhoods are not necessarily happier adults. The best formula for happiness is to be able to develop the ability to tolerate frustration, to have a personal involvement and commitment, and to develop self-confidence and self-esteem. 21. It can be inferred from the passage that______. A. happiness is predictable B. a person in an apparently ideal situation must be happy C. the rich are likely to be happier than the middle-income group D. happiness is not necessarily connected to one's situation in society 22. People with college education______. A. are not happier than those who have only an education at high school B. are much happier than those who did not graduate from high school C. have less opportunity to control their lives D. have more opportunity to control their lives 23. According to the article, happiness is greatly dependent upon______. A. a happy childhood B. great wealth C. a feeling that conditions are becoming for the better D. a college degreewww.233.com考试就上考试大 24. Which of the following is most likely to contribute to happiness? A. Being exceptionally good-looking. B. Having a loving, affectionate relationship. C. Having a good paying job. D. Meeting lots of people. 25. Which of the following attitudes or feelings is most likely to be found in happy people? A. Having self-esteem. B. Being sure of keeping everything they already have. C. Never being jealous. D. Knowing how to be charming. 21. D 22. D 23. C 24. B 25. A Agriculture is the number one industry in the United States and agricultural products are the country's leading export. American farmers manage to feed not only the total population of the United States, but also millions of other people throughout the rest of the world. Corn and soybean exports alone account for approximately 75 percent of the amount sold in world markets. This productivity, however, has its price. Intensive cultivation exposes the earth to the damaging forces of nature. Every year wind and water remove tons of rich soil from the nation's croplands. Each field is covered by a limited amount of topsoil, the upper layer of earth which is richest in the nutrients and minerals necessary for growing crops. Ever since the first farmers arrived in the Midwest almost 200 years ago，cultivation and, consequently, erosion have been decreasing the supply of topsoil. In the 1830s, nearly two feet of rich, black top soil covered the Midwest. Today the average depth is only eight inches, and every decade another inch is blown or washed away. This erosion is steadily decreasing the productivity of valuable cropland. A United States Agricultural Department survey states that if erosion continues at its present rate, corn and soybean yields in the Midwest may drop as much as 30 percent over the next 50 years. So far, farmers have been able to compensate for the loss of fertile topsoil by applying more chemical fertilizers to their fields; however, while this practice has increased crop yields, it has been devastating for ecology. Agriculture has become one of the biggest polluters of the nation's precious water supply. Rivers, lakes, and underground reserves of water are being filled in and poisoned by soil and chemicals carried by drainage from eroding fields. Furthermore, fertilizers only replenish the soils they do not prevent its loss. 26. The last sentence in the first paragraph gives an example to show_______. A. that American farmers manage to feed the total population of the U. S. B. the leading position of the U. S. farming in the world C. how important American people consider their farming D. that many people in the world rely on the export of the agricultural products of the U. S. A. 27. In order to compensate for the loss of fertile topsoil, farmers have been_______. A. planting less corn and soybean B. putting fertilizers on their fields C. preventing soil erosion D. decreasing the supply of top soil 28. At the present rate, approximately how many years later the black top soil now covering the Midwest will completely be blown or washed away? A. 120 years later. . B. 80 years later. C. 50 years later. D. 100 years later. 29. "This practice" in Paragraph 4 refers to_______. A. that farmers have lowered the yield of corn and soybean B. that farmers have expanded croplands C. that farmers have applied more chemical fertilizers D. that the top soil has been decreased greatly 30. All of the following are statements about the disadvantages of fertilizers EXCEPT that A. they replenish the soil B. they do not prevent the loss of soil C. they are destroying the ecology D. they pollute the nation's water supply 26. D 27. B 28. B 29. C 30. A |
