历年英语四级考试阅读理解部分3

　　1993年1月

　　Reading Comprehension (35 minutes)

　　Passage One

　　Questions 21 to 25 are based on the following passage.

　　With fifteen years Britain and other nations should be well on with the building of huge industrial complexes for the recycling of waste. The word rubbish could lose its meaning because everything which goes into the dumps (垃圾堆) would be made into something useful. Even the most dangerous and unpleasant wastes would provide energy if nothing else.

　　The latest project is to take a city of around half a million inhabitants and discover exactly what raw materials go into it and what go out. The aim is to find out how much of these raw materials could be provided if a plant for recycling waste were built just outside the city. This plant would recycle not only metal such as steel, lead and copper, but also paper and rubber as well.

　　Another new project is being set up to discover the best ways of sorting and separating the rubbish. When this project is complete, the rubbish will be processed like this: First, it will pass through sharp metal bas which will tear open the plastic bags in which rubbish is usually packed; then it will pass through a powerful fan to separate the lightest elements from the heavy solids; after that grounders and rollers will break up everything that can be broken. Finally, the rubbish will pass under magnets (磁铁) , which will remove the bits of iron and steel; the rubber and plastic will then be sorted out in the final stage.

　　The first full-scale giant recycling plants are perhaps fifteen years away. Indeed, with the growing cost of transporting rubbish to more distant dumps, some big cities will be forced to build their own recycling plants before long.

　　21. The phrase "be well on with ..." (Para.1, Line 1) most probably means _____.

　　(A) have completed what was started (C) have achieved a great deal in

　　(B) get ready to start (D) put an end to

　　22. What is NOT mentioned as a part of the recycling process described in Paragraph 3?

　　(A) Breaking up whatever is breakable.

　　(B) Sharpening metal bars.

　　(C) Separating light elements from the heavy ones.

　　(D) Sorting out small pieces of metal.

　　23. What's the main reason for big cities to build their own recycling plants?

　　(A) To deal with wastes in better way.

　　(B) To protect the environment from pollution.

　　(C) To get raw materials locally.

　　(D) To get big profits from those plants.

　　24. The first full-scale huge recycling plants ______.

　　(A) began to operate fifteen years ago

　　(B) will probably take less than fifteen years to build

　　(C) will be built fifteen years later

　　(D) will probably be in operation in fifteen years

　　25. The passage is mainly about ______.

　　(A) a cheap way to get energy (C) new ways of recycling wastes

　　(B) the location of recycling plants (D) the probably of city environment

　　Passage Two

　　Questions 26 to 30 are based on the following passage:

　　By 1970, according to a World Wildlife Fund report, only about 4,500 tigers survived throughout the world-half of them in India. Mr. Foresters, who followed and counted tiger footprints, estimated that in May 1972 only about 1,800 tigers existed in India. Project Tiger Supported by W.W.F. was immediately launched. Nine tiger reserves were created, with armed guards protecting them.

　　The project provided opportunities for researchers from India and abroad to study tigers in the reserves and gather previously unavailable information about their habits. Studies show that a male tiger may control a hunting territory of between 10 and 20 sq. kms. depending on its age, size and strength. The territory of male includes the smaller territories of three or four tigressess. A tiger marks the boundaries of its territories by spraying urine (尿) and other bodily liquids on bushes. But it tries to avoid territorial fights, being guided by the distinctive body smell of other tigers. Tigers fight to death only when a tigress is defending her young, or when a tiger is guarding a tigress from the attentions of other males.

　　The popular image of the tiger is that of a merciless and unconquerable hunter. But studies show that it catches only one of 20 victims (牺牲品) it tries to attack.

　　Fears have recently developed that Project Tiger has been too successful. It has enabled the tiger population to double (by mid-80 S), but India's human population has also grown out of control. Currently it is 750 million and likely to be 900 million by the end of the century. Land problem is becoming serious and many rural people feel bitter about the fact that some rich forests are reserved for tigers. A growing number of attacks by tigers on man has added to the hostility (敌意).

　　26. The ultimate aim of Project Tiger is to _____.

　　(A) study the growth rate of tigers (C) promote the breeding of young tigers

　　(B) protect tigers from being killed (D) analyze the behavioral patterns of tigers

　　27. Studies have shown that ______.

　　(A) a tigress never attacks until attacked

　　(B) the tigress is not as fierce as the tigers

　　(C) a tiger usually fights another tiger to defend its own territory

　　(D) the tiger is not an efficient hunter as is commonly described

　　28. According to the passage, a tiger's territory _____.

　　(A) remains unchanged (C) expands as the tiger grows up

　　(B) is often defended by tigresses (D) is the cause of most fights

　　29. Some people are afraid that Project Tiger _____.

　　(A) has been carried too far (C) has failed to achieve its goal

　　(B) has not received enough attention (D) is not worth the money spent on it

　　30. The author seems _____.

　　(A) to be enthusiastic about Project Tiger

　　(B) to have a matter-of-fact attitude towards Project Tiger

　　(C) to have a hostile attitude towards Project Tiger

　　(D) to be satisfied with Project Tiger

　　Passage Three

　　Questions 31 to 35 are based on the following passage.

　　In only two decades Asian Americans have become the fastest-growing U.S. minority (少数民族). As their children began moving up through the nation's schools, it became clear that a new class of academic achievers was emerging. Their achievements are reflected in the nation's best universities, where mathematics, science and engineering departments have taken on a decidedly Asian character. This special liking for mathematics and science is partly explained by the fact that Asian-American students who began their educations abroad arrived in the U.S. with a solid grounding in mathematics but little or no knowledge of English. They are also influenced by the promise of a good job after college. Asians feel there will be less unfair treatment in areas like mathematics and science because they will be judged more objectively. And the return on the investment in education is more immediate in something like engineering than with an arts degree.

　　Most Asian-American students owe their success to the influence of parents who are determined that their children take full advantage of what the American educational system has to offer. An effective measure of parental attention is homework. Asian parents spend more time with their children than American parents do, and it helps. Many researchers also believe there is something in Asian Culture that breeds success, such ideals that stress family values and emphasize education.

　　Both explanations for academic success worry Asian Americans because of fears that they feed a typical racial (种族的) image. Many can remember when Chinese, Japanese and Filipino immigrants (移民) were the victims of social isolation. Indeed, it was not until 1952 that laws were laid down giving all Asian immigrants the right to citizenship.

　　31. While making tremendous achievements at college, Asian-American students ______.

　　(A) feel they are mistreated because of limited knowledge of English

　　(B) are afraid that their academic successes bear a strong Asian character

　　(C) still worry about unfair treatment in society

　　(D) generally feel it a shame to have to depend on their parents

　　32. What are the major factors that determine the success of Asian Americans?

　　(A) A solid foundation in basic mathematics and Asian Americans?

　　(B) Hard work and intelligence.

　　(C) Parental help and a limited knowledge of English.

　　(D) Asian culture and the American educational system.

　　33. Few Asian-American students major in human sciences mainly because ______.

　　(A) their English is not good enough

　　(B) they are afraid they might meet with unfair judgement in these areas

　　(C) there is a wide difference between Asian and Western cultures

　　(D) they know little about American cultures and Western cultures

　　34. Why do the two "explanations" (Para. 3, Line 1) worry Asian Americans?

　　(A) They are afraid that they would again be isolated from American society in general.

　　(B) People would think that Asian students rely on their parents for success.

　　(C) Asian American would be a threat to other minorities.

　　(D) American academic achievements have taken on too strong an Asian character.

　　35. The author's tone in this passage is _____.

　　(A) sympathetic (B) doubtful (C) critical (D) objective

　　Passage Four

　　Questions 36 to 40 are based on the following passage.

　　Like fine food, good writing is something we approach with pleasure and enjoy from the first taste to the last. And good writers, good cooks, do not suddenly appear full-blown. Quite the contrary, just as the cook has to undergo an intensive training, mastering the skills of his trade, the writer must sit at his desk and devote long hours to achieving a style in his writing, whatever its purpose-schoolwork, matters of business, or purely social communication. You may be sure that the more painstaking the effort, the more effective the writing, and the more rewarding.

　　There are still some remote places in the world where you might find a public scribe to do your business or social writing for you, for a fee. There are a few managers who are lucky enough to have the service of that rate kind of secretary who can take care of all sorts of letter writing with no more than a quick note to work from. But for most of us, if there is any writing to be done, we have to do it ourselves.

　　We have to write school papers, business papers or home papers. We are constantly called on to put words to paper. It would be difficult to count the number of such words, messages, letters, and reports put into the mails or delivered by hand, but the daily figure must be enormous. What is more, everyone who writes expects, or at least hopes. We want whatever we write to be read, from first word to last, not just thrown into some "letters-to-be-read" file (档案) or into a wastepaper basket. This is the reason we bend our efforts toward learning and practicing the skill of interesting, effective writing.

　　36. In this passage, good writing is compared to fine food because _____.

　　(A) both writers and cooks have to work long hours every day

　　(B) both are essential to life

　　(C) both writers and cooks can earn a good living

　　(D) both are enjoyable

　　37. A public "scribe" (Para 2, Line 1) is _____.

　　(A) a secretary who does your business or social writing

　　(B) a machine that does writing for you

　　(C) a public school where writing is taught

　　(D) a person who ears a living by writing for others

　　38. According to the passage, some managers don't have to do any letter writing because _____.

　　(A) they rely on quick notes (C) they have a computer to do it

　　(B) they have excellent secretaries (D) they prefer making phone calls

　　39. According to the author, if your letter is thrown into some "letter-to-be-read" file, ______.

　　(A) it will receive immediate attention (C) it is likely to be neglected

　　(B) it will be dealt with by the secretary (D) it is meant to be delivered soon

　　40. The purpose of the author in writing this passage is _____.

　　(A) to explain and persuade (C) to interest and entertain

　　(B) to comment and criticize (D) to argue and demonstrate

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