No bankers today inspire such awe or fear. Time, technology and government restrictions weakened bank power. In the 1920s, auto companies popularized car loans. National credit cards originatedin 1950 with the Dinners Club card. In 1933, the Glass-Steagal Act required banks and their investment houses to split. After World War Ⅱ, pensions and the stock market competed for consumer savings. As a result, banks command a shrinking share of the nation’s wealth: 20 percent of assets of financial institutions in 1997, down from 50 percent in 1950.
注意：此部分试题请在答题卡2上作答。
52. Traditionally, Americans’ attitude towards banks is one of______.
A) suspicion C) dependence
B) trust D) admiration
53. Why are John Reed and Hugh McColl not as well-known as J. P. Morgan?
A) John Reed and Hugh McColl are not as rich as J. P. Morgan.
B) Banks are no longer as powerful as they were in J. P. Morgan’s time.
C) John Reed and Hugh McColl are not as capable as J. P. Morgan was.
D) The banks John Reed and Hugh McColl head are smaller than Morgan’s.
54. The word “spread” (Line 3, Para 2) most probably means______.
A) cover C) difference
B) extent D) degree
55. Which of the following statements is true?
A) The recent bank mergers have given much shock to the nation.
B) People no longer distrust banks.
C) No bank today can compare with J. P. Morgan’s in size.
D) It is easier to borrow money today than it was in the past.
56. What does the author chiefly talk about in the passage?
A) Banking and investment. C) The evolution of the banks.
B) The credit market. D) The shrinking power of the banks.
Passage Two
Questions 57 to 61 based on the following passage.
Since the first brain scanner was constructed several years ago, computed tomography or computed medical imagery, has become fairly widely used. Its rapid acceptance is due to the fact that it has overcome several of the draw backs of conventional X-ray technology.
To begin with, conventional two-dimensional X-ray pictures cannot show all of the information contained in a three-dimension object. Things at different depths are superimposed, causing confusion to the viewer. The computer is able to reconstruct pictures of the body’s interior by measuring the varying intensities of X-ray beams passing through sections of the body from hundreds of different angles. Such pictures are based on series of thin “slices”.
In addition, conventional X-ray generally differentiates only between bone and air, as in the chest and lungs. They cannot distinguish soft tissues or variations in tissues. The liver and pancreas are not discernible at all, and certain other organs may only be rendered visible though the use of radiopaque dye. Since computed tomography is much more sensitive, the soft tissues of the kidneys or the liver can be seen and clearly differentiated. This technique can also accurately measure different degrees of X-ray absorption, facilitating the study of the nature of tissue.
A third problem with conventional X-ray methods is their inability to measure quantitatively the separate densities of the individual substances through which the X-ray has passed. Only the mean absorption of all the tissues is recorded. This is not a problem with computed tomography. It can accurately locate a tumor and subsequentlymonitor the progress of radiation treatment, so that in addition to its diagnostic capabilities, it can play a significant role in therapy.
注意： 此部分试题请在答题卡2上作答。
57. Conventional X-rays mainly show the difference between ______.
A) bone and air C) muscle and other body tissues
B) liver and pancreas D) heart and lungs
58. What kind of view is made possible by contiguous cross sections of the body?
A) Two-dimensional C) Animated
B) Three-dimensional D) Intensified
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