考研英語閱讀真題正文+全文翻譯(1995-2010)1

2010Text1在過去的25年英語報(bào)紙所發(fā)生的變化中，影響最深遠(yuǎn)的可能就是它們對(duì)藝術(shù)方面的報(bào)道在范圍上毫無疑問的縮小了，而且這些報(bào)道的嚴(yán)肅程度也絕對(duì)降低了。對(duì)于年齡低于40歲的普通讀者來講，讓他們想象一下當(dāng)年可以在許多大城市報(bào)紙上讀到精品的文藝評(píng)論簡直幾乎是天方夜譚。然而，在20世紀(jì)出版的最重要的文藝評(píng)論集中，人們讀到的大部分評(píng)論文章都是從報(bào)紙上收集而來?，F(xiàn)在，如果讀到這些集子，人們肯定會(huì)驚詫，當(dāng)年這般淵博深?yuàn)W的內(nèi)容竟然被認(rèn)為適合發(fā)表在大眾日?qǐng)?bào)中。從20世紀(jì)早期到二戰(zhàn)以前，當(dāng)時(shí)的英國報(bào)紙上的評(píng)論主題廣泛，包羅萬象，我們現(xiàn)在離此類報(bào)紙?jiān)u論越來越遠(yuǎn)。當(dāng)時(shí)的報(bào)紙極其便宜，人們把高雅時(shí)尚的文藝批評(píng)當(dāng)作是所刊登報(bào)紙的一個(gè)亮點(diǎn)。在那些遙遠(yuǎn)的年代，各大報(bào)刊的評(píng)論家們都會(huì)不遺余力地詳盡報(bào)道他們所報(bào)道的事情，這在當(dāng)時(shí)被視為是理所當(dāng)然的事情。他們的寫作是件嚴(yán)肅的事情，人們相信：甚至那些博學(xué)低調(diào)不喜歡炫耀的評(píng)論家，比如GeorgeBernardShaw和ErnestNewman也知道自己在做什么（即他們的文章會(huì)高調(diào)出現(xiàn)在報(bào)紙上）。這些批評(píng)家們相信報(bào)刊評(píng)論是一項(xiàng)職業(yè)，并且對(duì)于他們的文章能夠在報(bào)紙上發(fā)表感到很自豪?！拌b于幾乎沒有作家能擁有足夠的智慧或文學(xué)天賦以保證他們?cè)谛侣剤?bào)紙寫作中站穩(wěn)腳跟”，Newman曾寫道，“我傾向于把‘新聞寫作’定義為不受讀者歡迎的作家用來嘲諷受讀者歡迎的作家的一個(gè)‘輕蔑之詞’”不幸的是，這些批評(píng)家們現(xiàn)在實(shí)際上已被人們遺忘。從1917年開始一直到1975年去世不久前還在為曼徹斯特《衛(wèi)報(bào)》寫文章的NevilleCardus，如今僅僅作為一個(gè)撰寫關(guān)于板球比賽文章的作家被人們所知。但是，在他的一生當(dāng)中，他也是英國首屈一指的古典音樂評(píng)論家之一。他也是一位深受讀者青睞的文體家，所以1947年他的《自傳》一書就成為熱銷讀物。1967年他被授予爵士稱號(hào)，也是第一位獲此殊榮的音樂評(píng)論家。然而，他的書現(xiàn)在只有一本可以在市面上買到。他大量的音樂批評(píng)，除了專門研究音樂評(píng)論的人以外，已鮮為人知。Cardus的評(píng)論有沒有機(jī)會(huì)重新流行？前景似乎渺茫。在他去世之前，新聞業(yè)的品味早已改變很長時(shí)間了，而且他所擅長的措詞華麗的維多利亞愛德華時(shí)期的散文風(fēng)格對(duì)后現(xiàn)代的讀者沒有什么用處。何況，由業(yè)余愛好者作音樂批評(píng)的傳統(tǒng)早已經(jīng)成為昨日黃花了。2010Text2在過去的十年中，成千上萬的商業(yè)方法被授予了專利權(quán)。亞馬遜網(wǎng)站獲得的專利是在線“單擊”付費(fèi)系統(tǒng)。美林公司的資產(chǎn)分配方案得到了法律保護(hù)。有個(gè)發(fā)明者的提箱技巧也獲得了專利?，F(xiàn)在，該國最高專利法院似乎完全準(zhǔn)備好要縮減商業(yè)方法專利，因?yàn)樯虡I(yè)方法專利自從十年前第一次批準(zhǔn)授予以來一直有爭議。在一項(xiàng)使得知識(shí)產(chǎn)權(quán)律師們議論紛紛的提議中，美國聯(lián)邦巡回上訴法院聲稱它將利用某個(gè)具體案件來對(duì)商業(yè)方法專利進(jìn)行廣泛的復(fù)審。密蘇里大學(xué)法學(xué)院DennisD.Crouch說，“正如人們所知道的那樣，Bilski案例是一件非常大的事情”它可能將消除整個(gè)專利類別”。對(duì)于商業(yè)方法訴求的限制是個(gè)戲劇性的徹底變化，因?yàn)檎锹?lián)邦巡回法院自己引進(jìn)了這種專利。那是在1998年，對(duì)于所謂的美國道富銀行的案件中，聯(lián)邦巡回法院做出了判決，批準(zhǔn)了籌集共同基金資產(chǎn)的方法具有專利權(quán)。這一裁決使得商業(yè)方法專利文件以幾何數(shù)級(jí)增加，起初只是一些新興的網(wǎng)絡(luò)公司對(duì)于某些特定類型的在線交易系統(tǒng)試圖爭取獨(dú)家專有權(quán)。后來，更多的公司競相添加這樣的專利權(quán)，希望這樣一個(gè)防御性的行為可以先下手為強(qiáng)。2005年，IBM公司在一份法院報(bào)告中聲稱：盡管懷疑這種專利授權(quán)的法律基礎(chǔ)，但它已經(jīng)申請(qǐng)了300多份商業(yè)方法專利。同樣，當(dāng)一些華爾街投資公司出席某些反對(duì)其金融產(chǎn)品的法庭案件時(shí)，他們會(huì)給其各類金融產(chǎn)品申請(qǐng)專利來作為自己的維權(quán)武器。前面提到的Bilski案例牽扯到一份已申請(qǐng)的方法專利，即關(guān)于能源市場的風(fēng)險(xiǎn)規(guī)避方法（注：也可譯為“套期保值或?qū)_風(fēng)險(xiǎn)”）。上訴法院罕見地裁定，該案件將不由三位法官聽審，而是由全部十二名法官共同進(jìn)行。另外，上訴法院還宣布，它想探討的另一件事情是是否應(yīng)該“重審”道富銀行的裁決。聯(lián)邦巡回法院的這一裁決效仿了最高法院。最高法院最近做出了一系列的判決，縮小了專利持有者的受保范圍。例如，去年四月，法官們認(rèn)定太多的專利授予了一些顯而易見的“發(fā)明”。喬治華盛頓大學(xué)法律學(xué)院的專利法律師HaroldC.Wegner教授表示，“聯(lián)邦巡回法院的法官們正在對(duì)最高法院的反專利動(dòng)態(tài)做出反應(yīng)”。2010Text3在《引爆流行》這本書中，作者M(jìn)alcolmGladwell認(rèn)為社會(huì)流行潮流在很大程度上是由一小部分特殊個(gè)體的行為引起的，這些人就是人們常說的影響者。他們異乎尋常的博聞多識(shí)，能言善辯，人脈廣泛。從直覺上講，MalcolmGladwell的理論似乎很有說服力，但是它沒有解釋流行觀念的實(shí)際傳播過程。人們之所以認(rèn)為影響者很重要，是因?yàn)槭艿搅恕皟杉?jí)傳播”理論的影響，即信息先從媒體流向影響者，然后再從影響者流向其他人。這一理論看似合理，但未經(jīng)驗(yàn)證。營銷人員接受兩級(jí)傳播理論是因?yàn)樵摾碚撜J(rèn)為，如果他們能夠找到影響者，并對(duì)他們施加影響，這些精英們就會(huì)替他們完成大部分的營銷傳播工作。這一理論似乎還可以解釋某些裝扮、品牌或社區(qū)為何會(huì)突然受到出乎意料的追捧。對(duì)于許多諸如此類的情況，如果只是走馬觀花地尋找原因，你會(huì)發(fā)現(xiàn)總是有一小群人開風(fēng)氣之先，率先穿上、宣傳和開發(fā)人們此前從未留意的東西。這種事實(shí)證據(jù)與該觀點(diǎn)正好一拍即合——只有一些特別的人才能引領(lǐng)潮流。但是，在最近的研究中，一些研究人員發(fā)現(xiàn)，影響者對(duì)社會(huì)流行潮流的影響力遠(yuǎn)比人們認(rèn)為的要小。事實(shí)上，他們似乎根本就是無關(guān)緊要。研究者的觀點(diǎn)源于對(duì)社會(huì)影響力的簡單觀察：除了少數(shù)像OprahWinfrey這樣的名人之外（她強(qiáng)大的人氣影響力主要來自媒體影響力，而非她與觀眾互動(dòng)的人際影響力），即使人群中最有影響力的人也無法與那么多的“其他人”互動(dòng)，從而引領(lǐng)潮流。然而，根據(jù)兩級(jí)傳播理論，正是這些非名人影響者直接影響了他們的朋友和同事，從而推動(dòng)了社會(huì)流行潮流。但是，要讓一種社會(huì)流行潮流真正發(fā)生，每個(gè)受影響的人還必須影響他的熟人，而他的熟人又必須影響其他熟人，依此類推；但是會(huì)有多少人去關(guān)注這些熟人中的每個(gè)人，與最初的影響者幾乎沒有關(guān)系。舉個(gè)例子來說，在這個(gè)人際影響的網(wǎng)絡(luò)中，如果第一個(gè)影響者受到兩次抵制，那么他的連鎖影響范圍就不會(huì)繼續(xù)擴(kuò)大，或者說影響的人不會(huì)很多?；谶@一人際影響力的基本事實(shí)，研究者們研究了社會(huì)影響的動(dòng)力機(jī)制。我們對(duì)不同人群進(jìn)行了成千上萬次計(jì)算機(jī)模擬，不斷調(diào)整人們影響他人和受他人影響的各種變量。他們發(fā)現(xiàn)，人們所說的“全球連鎖反應(yīng)”——影響力通過（人際）網(wǎng)絡(luò)進(jìn)行廣泛傳播——發(fā)生的主要前提，并不取決于是否存在著那么幾個(gè)影響者，而主要取決于易受影響的人們是否達(dá)到了臨界數(shù)量。2010Text4臺(tái)面上，銀行家們將他們的麻煩歸咎于己身，臺(tái)面下，他們一直把目標(biāo)對(duì)準(zhǔn)他人：會(huì)計(jì)準(zhǔn)則制定者。銀行業(yè)抱怨會(huì)計(jì)規(guī)則迫使他們報(bào)告巨大損失，認(rèn)為這不公平。規(guī)則規(guī)定他們必須以第三方付出價(jià)格來評(píng)估部分資產(chǎn)的價(jià)值，而非按照管理者和監(jiān)管者期望該資產(chǎn)能夠獲得的價(jià)格。不幸的是，銀行的游說活動(dòng)看來已顯成效。其中細(xì)節(jié)可能無法獲知，但是準(zhǔn)則制定者在獨(dú)立性方面——這正是資產(chǎn)市場正常運(yùn)行的關(guān)鍵——已經(jīng)做出妥協(xié)了。銀行如果不以能夠吸引買家的價(jià)格計(jì)量有毒資產(chǎn)，銀行系統(tǒng)的復(fù)蘇將會(huì)非常困難。美國FASB（財(cái)務(wù)會(huì)計(jì)準(zhǔn)則委員會(huì)）在與國會(huì)激烈摩擦之后，匆匆通過了規(guī)則的修改。這些修改使得銀行在使用模型評(píng)估非流動(dòng)資產(chǎn)方面用有更大的自由，同時(shí)使得它們確認(rèn)收益表中長期資產(chǎn)損失時(shí)更為靈活。FASB主席BobHerz大聲反對(duì)那些“懷疑我們的動(dòng)機(jī)”的人們。然而銀行股票上漲了，這些修改強(qiáng)化了“管理層使用理性判斷”的說法，這種說法是一個(gè)游說團(tuán)的客氣之言。歐洲的部長們立刻要求國際會(huì)計(jì)準(zhǔn)則委員會(huì)(IASB)也這么做。IASB表示它不想沒有完整計(jì)劃就冒然行動(dòng)，但它在今年下半年完成規(guī)則修訂時(shí)必須屈服的壓力十分巨大。歐洲委員會(huì)委員CharlieMcCreevy警告IASB說：它不是“處在政治真空中”而是“在現(xiàn)實(shí)世界里”，并表示歐洲可能最終會(huì)發(fā)展出不同的會(huì)計(jì)規(guī)則。正是這些銀行呆錯(cuò)了星球，它們的賬目上充斥著估值過高的資產(chǎn)。現(xiàn)在他們爭論道市價(jià)高估了損失，因?yàn)槭袃r(jià)主要反映了市場的暫時(shí)性流動(dòng)性不足，而非壞賬的可能范圍。幾年中沒人會(huì)知道真相。但是，銀行股票以低于賬面價(jià)值的價(jià)格交易，這一點(diǎn)反應(yīng)了投資者的懷疑。死寂的市場一定程度上反應(yīng)了癱瘓的銀行由于怕賬面損失既既不愿出售資產(chǎn)，也不愿意去購買那些看似不錯(cuò)的廉價(jià)資產(chǎn)。為了讓銀行系統(tǒng)重新運(yùn)轉(zhuǎn)起來，損失必須被確認(rèn)和處理。美國收購有毒資產(chǎn)的新計(jì)劃只有在銀行將資產(chǎn)定價(jià)在足夠吸引買家的水平上才會(huì)有效。成熟的市場需要獨(dú)立的，甚至是好斗的準(zhǔn)則制定者。FASB和IASB以往正是這樣對(duì)抗特殊利益集團(tuán)的敵意的，例如改進(jìn)股權(quán)和退休金的相關(guān)規(guī)則。但是現(xiàn)在向批評(píng)者妥協(xié)是自尋壓力，他們會(huì)進(jìn)一步做出讓步。2013SectionIUseofEnglishDirections:

Readthefollowingtext.Choosethebestword(s)foreachnumberedblankandmarkA,B,CorDonANSWERSHEET1.(10points)Giventheadvantagesofelectronicmoney,youmightthinkthatwewouldmovequicklytothecashlesssocietyinwhichallpaymentsaremadeelectronically.__1__atruecashlesssocietyisprobablynotaroundthecorner.Indeed,predictionshavebeen___2__fortwodecadesbuthavenotyetcometofruition.Forexample,BusinessWeekpredictedin1975thatelectronicmeansofpaymentwouldsoon"revolutionizethevery__3__ofmoneyitself,"onlyto__4___itselfseveralyearslater.Whyhasthemovementtoacashlesssocietybeenso___5___incoming?Althoughelectronicmeansofpaymentmaybemoreefficientthanapaymentssystembasedonpaper,severalfactorswork__6___thedisappearanceofthepapersystem.First,itisvery___7__tosetupthecomputer,cardreader,andtelecommunicationsnetworksnecessarytomakeelectronicmoneythe___8__formofpaymentSecond,papercheckshavetheadvantagethatthey___9___receipts,somethingthatmanyconsumersareunwillingto__10__.Third,theuseofpaperchecksgivesconsumersseveraldaysof"float"-ittakesseveraldays__11___acheckiscashedandfundsare__12___fromtheissuer'saccount,whichmeansthatthewriterofthecheckcancaminterestonthefundsinthemeantime.___13__electronicpaymentsareimmediate,theyeliminatethefloatfortheconsumer.Fourth,electronicmeansofpaymentmay__14___securityandprivacyconcerns.Weoftenhearmediareportsthatanunauthorizedhackerhasbeenabletoaccessacomputerdatabaseandtoalterinformation___15___there.Thefactthatthisisnotan__16___occurrencemeansthatdishonestpersonsmightbeabletoaccessbankaccountsinelectronicpaymentssystemsand__17___fromsomeoneelse'saccounts.The__18__ofthistypeoffraudisnoeasytask,andanewfieldofcomputerscienceisdevelopingto___19___securityissues.Afurtherconcernisthattheuseofelectronicmeansofpaymentleavesanelectronic__20___thatcontainsalargeamountofpersonaldata.Thereareconcernsthatgovernment,employers,andmarketersmightbeabletoaccessthesedata,therebyviolatingourprivacy.1.[A]However[B]Moreover[C]Therefore[D]Otherwise

2.[A]off[B]back[C]over[D]around

3.[A]power[B]concept[C]history[D]role

4.[A]reward[B]resist[C]resume[D]reverse

5.[A]silent[B]sudden[C]slow[D]steady

6.[A]for[B]against[C]with[D]on

7.[A]imaginative[B]expensive[C]sensitive[D]productive

8.[A]similar[B]original[C]temporary[D]dominant

9.[A]collect[B]provide[C]copy[D]print

10.[A]giveup[B]takeover[C]bringback[D]passdown

11.[A]before[B]after[C]since[D]when

12.[A]kept[B]borrowed[C]released[D]withdrawn

13.[A]Unless[B]Until[C]Because[D]Though

14.[A]hide[B]express[C]raise[D]ease

15.[A]analyzed[B]shared[C]stored[D]displayed

16.[A]unsafe[B]unnatural[C]uncommon[D]unclear

17.[A]steal[B]choose[C]benefit[D]return

18.[A]consideration[B]prevention[C]manipulation[D]justification

19.[A]copewith[B]fightagainst[C]adaptto[D]callfor

20.[A]chunk[B]chip[C]path[D]trailSectionIIReadingComprehensionPartA

Directions:

Readthefollowingfourtexts.AnswerthequestionsbeloweachtextbychoosingA,B,CorD.MarkyouranswersonANSWERSHEET1.(40points)Text1

Inanessayentitled“MakingItinAmerica”,theauthorAdamDavidsonrelatesajokefromcottonaboutjusthowmuchamoderntextilemillhasbeenautomated:Theaveragemillonlytwoemployeestoday,”amanandadog.Themanistheretofeedthedogistheretokeepthemanawayfromthemachines.”

Davidson’sarticleisoneofanumberofpiecesthathaverecentlyappearedmakingthepointthatthereasonwehavesuchstubbornlyhighunemploymentanddecliningmiddle-classincomestodayisalsobecauseoftheadvancesinbothglobalizationandtheinformationtechnologyrevolution,whicharemorerapidlythaneverreplacinglaborwithmachinesorforeignworker.Inthepast,workerswithaverageskills,doinganaveragejob，couldearnanaveragelifestyle,But,today,averageisofficiallyover.Beingaveragejustwon’tearnyouwhatitusedto.Itcan’twhensomanymoreemployershavesomuchmoreaccesstosomuchmoreaboveaveragecheapforeignlabor,cheaprobotics,cheapsoftware,cheapautomationandcheapgenius.Therefore,everyoneneedstofindtheirextra-theiruniquevaluecontributionthatmakesthemstandoutinwhateveristheirfieldofemployment.Yes,newtechnologyhasbeeneatingjobsforever,andalwayswill.Butthere’sbeenaacceleration.AsDavidsonnotes,”Inthe10yearsendingin2009,[U.S.]factoriesshedworkerssofastthattheyerasedalmostallthegainsoftheprevious70years;roughlyoneoutofeverythreemanufacturingjobs-about6millionintotal-disappeared.Therewillalwaysbechanged-newjobs,newproducts,newservices.ButtheonethingweknowforsureisthatwitheachadvanceinglobalizationandtheI.T.revolution,thebestjobswillrequireworkerstohavemoreandbettereducationtomakethemselvesaboveaverage.Inaworldwhereaverageisofficiallyover,therearemanythingsweneedtodotosupportemployment,butnothingwouldbemoreimportantthanpassingsomekindofG.I.Billforthe21stcenturythatensuresthateveryAmericanhasaccesstopoet-highschooleducation.

21.ThejokeinParagraph1isusedtoillustrate_______

[A]theimpactoftechnologicaladvances

[B]thealleviationofjobpressure

[C]theshrinkageoftextilemills

[D]thedeclineofmiddle-classincomes22.AccordingtoParagraph3,tobeasuccessfulemployee,onehasto______

[A]workoncheapsoftware

[B]askforamoderatesalary

[C]adoptanaveragelifestyle

[D]contributesomethingunique23.ThequotationinParagraph4explainsthat______

[A]gainsoftechnologyhavebeenerased

[B]jobopportunitiesaredisappearingatahighspeed

[C]factoriesaremakingmuchlessmoneythanbefore

[D]newjobsandserviceshavebeenoffered24.Accordingtotheauthor,toreduceunemployment,themostimportantis_____

[A]toacceleratetheI.T.revolution

[B]toensuremoreeducationforpeople

[C]toadvanceeconomicglobalization

[D]topassmorebillsinthe21stcentury25.Whichofthefollowingwouldbethemostappropriatetitleforthetext?

[A]NewLawTakesEffect

[B]TechnologyGoesCheap

[C]AverageIsOver

[D]RecessionIsBad

Text2

Acenturyago,theimmigrantsfromacrosstheAtlanticincludesettlersandsojourners.AlongwiththemanyfolkslookingtomakeapermanenthomeintheUnitedStatescamethosewhohadnointentiontostay,and7millinpeoplearrivedwhileabout2milliondeparted.AboutaquarterofallItalianimmigrants,forexample,eventuallyreturnedtoItalyforgood.Theyevenhadanaffectionatenickname,“uccellidipassaggio,”birdsofpassage.Today,wearemuchmorerigidaboutimmigrants.Wedividenewcomersintotwocategories:legalorillegal,goodorbad.WehailthemasAmericansinthemaking,orourbrokenimmigrationsystemandthelongpoliticalparalysisoverhowtofixit.Wedon’tneedmorecategories,butweneedtochangethewaywethinkaboutcategories.Weneedtolookbeyondstrictdefinitionsoflegalandillegal.Tostart,wecanrecognizethenewbirdsofpassage,thoselivingandthrivinginthegrayareas.Wemightthenbegintosolveourimmigrationchallenges.

Croppickers,violinists,constructionworkers,entrepreneurs,engineers,homehealth-careaidesandphysicistsareamongtoday’sbirdsofpassage.Theyareenergeticparticipantsinaglobaleconomydrivenbytheflowofwork,moneyandideas.Theyprefertocomeandgoasopportunitycallsthem,Theycanmanagetohaveajobinoneplaceandafamilyinanother.

Withorwithoutpermission,theystraddlelaws,jurisdictionsandidentitieswithease.WeneedthemtoimaginetheUnitedStatesasaplacewheretheycanbeproductiveforawhilewithoutcommittingthemselvestostayingforever.Weneedthemtofeelthathomecanbebothhereandthereandthattheycanbelongtotwonationshonorably.

Accommodatingthisnewworldofpeopleinmotionwillrequirenewattitudesonbothsidesoftheimmigrationbattle.Lookingbeyondtheculturewarlogicofrightorwrongmeansopeningupthemiddlegroundandunderstandingthatmanagingimmigrationtodayrequiresmultiplepathsandmultipleoutcomes.Includingsomethatarenoteasytoaccomplishlegallyintheexistingsystem.26“Birdsofpassage”referstothosewho____

[A]immigrateacrosstheAtlantic.

[B]leavetheirhomecountriesforgood.

[C]stayinaforeigntemporarily.

[D]findpermanentjobsoverseas.27Itisimpliedinparagraph2thatthecurrentimmigrationsystemintheUS____

[A]needsnewimmigrantcategories.

[B]hasloosenedcontroloverimmigrants.

[C]shouldbeadoptedtomeetchallenges.

[D]hasbeenfixedviapoliticalmeans.28Accordingtotheauthor,today’sbirdsofpassagewant___

[A]financialincentives.

[B]aglobalrecognition.

[C]opportunitiestogetregularjobs.

[D]thefreedomtostayandleave.29Theauthorsuggeststhatthebirdsofpassagetodayshouldbetreated__

[A]asfaithfulpartners.

[B]witheconomicfavors.

[C]withregaltolerance.

[D]asmightyrivals.30whichisthemosttitle?

[A]comeandgo:bigmistake.

[B]livingandthriving:greatrisk.

[C]withorwithout:greatrisk.

[D]legalorillegal:bigmistake.

Text3

Scientistshavefoundthatalthoughwearepronetosnapoverreactions,ifwetakeamomentandthinkabouthowwearelikelytoreact,wecanreduceoreveneliminatethenegativeeffectsofourquick,hard-wiredresponses.Snapdecisionscanbeimportantdefensemechanisms;ifwearejudgingwhethersomeoneisdangerous,ourbrainsandbodiesarehard-wiredtoreactveryquickly,withinmilliseconds.Butweneedmoretimetoassessotherfactors.Toaccuratelytellwhethersomeoneissociable,studiesshow,weneedatleastaminute,preferablyfive.Ittakesawhiletojudgecomplexaspectsofpersonality,likeneuroticismoropen-mindedness.Butsnapdecisionsinreactiontorapidstimuliaren’texclusivetotheinterpersonalrealm.PsychologistsattheUniversityofTorontofoundthatviewingafast-foodlogoforjustafewmillisecondsprimesustoread20percentfaster,eventhoughreadinghaslittletodowitheating.Weunconsciouslyassociatefastfoodwithspeedandimpatienceandcarrythoseimpulsesintowhateverelsewe’redoing,Subjectsexposedtofast-foodflashesalsotendtothinkamusicalpiecelaststoolong.Yetwecanreversesuchinfluences.Ifweknowwewilloverreacttoconsumerproductsorhousingoptionswhenweseeahappyface(onereasongoodsalesrepresentativesandrealestateagentsarealwayssmiling),wecantakeamomentbeforebuying.Ifweknowfemalejobscreenersaremorelikelytorejectattractivefemaleapplicants,wecanhelpscreenersunderstandtheirbiases-orhireoutsidescreeners.JohnGottman,themarriageexpert,explainsthatwequickly“thinslice”informationreliablyonlyafterwegroundsuchsnapreactionsin“thicksliced”long-termstudy.WhenDr.Gottmanreallywantstoassesswhetheracouplewillstaytogether,heinvitesthemtohisislandretreatforamucklongerevaluation;twodays,nottwoseconds.Ourabilitytomuteourhard-wiredreactionsbypausingiswhatdifferentiatesusfromanimals:dogecanthinkaboutthefutureonlyintermittentlyorforafewminutes.Buthistoricallywehavespentabout12percentofourdayscontemplatingthelongerterm.Althoughtechnologymightchangethewaywereact,ithasn’tchangedournature.Westillhavetheimaginativecapacitytoriseabovetemptationandreversethehigh-speedtrend.31.Thetimeneededinmakingdecisionsmay____.

[A]varyaccordingtotheurgencyofthesituation

[B]provethecomplexityofourbrainreaction

[C]dependontheimportanceoftheassessment

[D]predeterminetheaccuracyofourjudgment

32.Ourreactiontoafast-foodlogoshowsthatsnapdecisions____.

[A]canbeassociative

[B]arenotunconscious

[C]canbedangerous

[D]arenotimpulsive

33.Toreversethenegativeinfluencesofsnapdecisions,weshould____.

[A]trustourfirstimpression

[B]doaspeopleusuallydo

[C]thinkbeforeweact

[D]askforexpertadvice

34.JohnGottmansaysthatreliablesnapreactionarebasedon____.

[A]criticalassessment

[B]‘‘thinsliced’’study

[C]sensibleexplanation

[D]adequateinformation

35.Theauthor’sattitudetowardreversingthehigh-speedtrendis____.

[A]tolerant

[B]uncertain

[C]optimistic

[D]doubtful

Text4

Europeisnotagender-equalityheaven.Inparticular,thecorporateworkplacewillneverbecompletelyfamily—friendlyuntilwomenarepartofseniormanagementdecisions,andEurope’stopcorporate-governancepositionsremainoverwhelminglymale.indeed,womenholdonly14percentofpositionsonEuropecorporateboards.TheEuropeUnionisnowconsideringlegislationtocompelcorporateboardstomaintainacertainproportionofwomen-upto60percent.Thisproposedmandatewasbornoffrustration.Lastyear,EuropeCommissionVicePresidentVivianeRedingissuedacalltovoluntaryaction.Redinginvitedcorporationstosignupforgenderbalancegoalof40percentfemaleboardmembership.Butherappealwasconsideredafailure:only24companiestookitup.DoweneedquotastoensurethatwomencancontinuetoclimbthecorporateLadderfairyastheybalanceworkandfamily?“Personally,Idon’tlikequotas,”Redingsaidrecently.“Butilikewhatthequotasdo.”Quotasgetaction:they“openthewaytoequalityandtheybreakthroughtheglassceiling,”accordingtoReding,aresultseeninFranceandothercountrieswithlegallybindingprovisionsonplacingwomenintopbusinesspositions.IunderstandReding’sreluctance-andherfrustration.Idon’tlikequotaseither;theyruncountertomybeliefinmeritocracy,governmentbythecapable.Bur,whenoneconsiderstheobstaclestoachievingthemeritocraticideal,itdoeslookasifafairerworldmustbetemporarilyordered.Afterall,fourdecadesofevidencehasnowshownthatcorporationsinEuropeastheUSareevadingthemeritocratichiringandpromotionofwomentotopposition—nomatterhowmuch“softpressure”isputuponthem.Whenwomendobreakthroughtothesummitofcorporatepower--as,forexample,SherylSandbergrecentlydidatFacebook—theyattractmassiveattentionpreciselybecausetheyremaintheexceptiontotherule.Ifappropriatepubicpolicieswereinplacetohelpallwomen---whetherCEOsortheirchildren’scaregivers--andallfamilies,Sandbergwouldbenomorenewsworthythananyotherhighlycapablepersonlivinginamorejustsociety.

36.IntheEuropeancorporateworkplace,generally_____.

[A]womentakethelead

[B]menhavethefinalsay

[C]corporategovernanceisoverwhelmed

[D]seniormanagementisfamily-friendly

37.TheEuropeanUnion’sintendedlegislationis________.

[A]areflectionofgenderbalance

[B]areluctantchoice

[C]aresponsetoReding’scall

[D]avoluntaryaction

38.AccordingtoReding,quotasmayhelpwomen______.

[A]gettopbusinesspositions

[B]seethroughtheglassceiling

[C]balanceworkandfamily

[D]anticipatelegalresults

39.Theauthor’sattitudetowardReding’sappealisoneof_________.

[A]skepticism

[B]objectiveness

[C]indifference

[D]approval

40.Womenenteringtopmanagementbecomeheadlinesduetothelackof______.

[A]moresocialjustice

[B]massivemediaattention

[C]suitablepublicpolicies

[D]greater“softpressure”PartBDirections:

Youaregoingtoreadalistofheadingsandatext.ChoosethemostsuitableheadingfromthelistA-Fforeachnumberedparagraph(41-45).MarkyouranswersonANSWERSHEET1.(10points)

[A]Livelikeapeasant

[B]Balanceyourdiet

[C]Shopkeepersareyourfriends

[D]Remembertotreatyourself

[E]Sticktowhatyouneed

[F]Planningiseverything

[G]Wastenot,wantnot

ThehugelypopularblogtheSkintFoodiechronicleshowTonybalanceshisloveofgoodfoodwithlivingonbenefits.Afterbills,Tonyhas￡60aweektospend,￡40ofwhichgoesonfood,but10yearsagohewasearning￡130,000aIyearworkingincorporatecommunicationsandeatingatLondon'sbestrestaurants'"atleasttwiceaweek.Thenhismarriagefailed,hiscareerburnedoutandhisdrinkingbecameserious."Thecommunitymentalhealthteamsavedmylife.AndIfeltlikethatagain,toacertaindegree,whenpeoplerespondedtotheblogsowell.ItgavemethevalidationandconfidencethatI'dlost.Butit'sstilladay-by-daything."Nowhe'slivinginacouncilflatandfieldingoffersfromliteraryagents.He'sfeelingpositive,buthe'llcarryonblogging-notabouteatingascheaplyasyoucan-"therearesomanypeopleinamuchworsestate,withbarelyanymoneytospendonfood"-buteatingwellonabudget.Here'shisadviceforeconomicalfoodies.

41._____________________

Impulsivespendingisn'tanoption,soplanyourweek'smenuinadvance,makingshoppinglistsforyouringredientsintheirexactquantities.IhaveanExceltemplateforaweekofbreakfast,lunchanddinner.Stoplaughing:it'snotjustcosteffectivebuthelpsyoubalanceyourdiet.It'salsoagoodideatoshopdailyinsteadofweekly,because,being-human,you'llsometimeschangeyourmindaboutwhatyoufancy.

42____________________________________________________________

Thisiswheresupermarketsandtheiranonymitycomeinhandy.Withthem,

there'snotthesameembarrassmentaswhenbuyingonecarrotinalittle

greengrocer.Andifyouplanproperly,you'llknowthatyouonlyneed,say,350g

ofshinofbeefandsixrashersofbacon,notwhateverweightispre-packedinthe

supermarketchiller.

43_________

Youmayproudlyclaimtoonlyhavefrozenpeasinthefreezer-that'snot

goodenough.Mineisfilledwithleftovers,bread,stock,meatandfish.Planning

aheadshouldeliminatewastage,butifyouhavesurplusvegetablesyou'lldoa

vegetablesoup,andallfruitsthreateningto"gooff'willbecookedorjuiced.

44___________________________________

Everyonesaysthis,butitreallyisatoptipforfrugaleaters.Shopatbutchers,

delisandfish-sellersregularly,evenforsmallthings,andbesuperfriendly.Soon

you'llfeelcomfortableaskingifthey'veanyknucklesofhamforsoupsandstews,

orbeefbones,chickencarcassesandfishheadsforstockwhich,moreoftenthan

not,they'llletyouhaveforfree.

45__________________

Youwon'tbeeatingoutalot,butsaveyourpenniesandonceeveryfew

monthstreatyourselftoasetlunchatagoodrestaurant-￡1.75aweekforthree

monthsgivesyou￡21-morethan"enoughforathree-courselunchat

Michelin-starredArbutus.It's￡16.95there-or￡12.99foralargepizzafrom

Domino's:IknowwhichI'drathereat.Readthefollowingtext.Choosethebestword(s)foreachnumberedblankandmark[A],[B],[C]or[D]onANSWERSHEET1.(10points)MillionsofAmericansandforeignersseeGI.Joeasamindlesswartoy,thesymbolofAmericanmilitaryadventurism,butthat’snothowitusedtobe.Tothemenandwomenwho1inWorldWarⅡandthepeopletheyliberated,theGI.wasthe2mangrownintohero,thepoorfarmkidtornawayfromhishome,theguywho3alltheburdensofbattle,whosleptincoldfoxholes,whowentwithoutthe4offoodandshelter,whostuckitoutanddrovebacktheNazireignofmurder.Thiswasnotavolunteersoldier,notsomeonewellpaid,5anaverageguyup6thebesttrained,bestequipped,fiercest,mostbrutalenemiesseenincenturies.Hisnameisn'tmuch.GI.isjustamilitaryabbreviation7.GovernmentIssue,anditwasonallofthearticles8tosoldiers.AndJoe?Acommonnameforaguywhonever9ittothetop.JoeBlow,JoePalooka.JoeMagrac...aworkingclassname.TheUnitedStateshas10hadapresidentorvice-presidentorsecretaryofstateJoe.G.I.Joehada11careerfightingGerman,Japanese,andKoreantroops.Heappearsasacharacter.ora12ofAmericanpersonalities,inthe1945movieTheStoryofG.I.Joe,basedonthelastdaysofwarcorrespondentEmiePyle.SomeofthesoldiersPyle13portrayedthemselvesinthefilm.Pylewasfamousforcoveringthe14sideofthewar,writingaboutthedirt-snow-and-mudsoldiersnothowmanymileswere15orwhattownswerecapturedorliberated.Hisreports16the“Willie”cartoonsoffamedStarsandStripesartistBillMaulden.Bothmen17thedirtandexhaustionofwar,the18ofcivilizationthatthesoldierssharedwitheachotherandthecivilians:coffee,tobacco,whiskey,shelter,sleep.19Egypt,France,andadozenmorecountries,G.I.JoewasanyAmericansoldier,20themostimportantpersonintheirlives.1.[A]performed[B]served[C]rebelled[D]betrayed2.[A]actual[B]common[C]special[D]normal3.[A]bore[B]cased[C]removed[D]loaded4.[A]necessities[B]facilities[C]commodities[D]properties5.[A]and[B]nor[C]but[D]hence6.[A]for[B]into[C]form[D]against7.[A]meaning[B]implying[C]symbolizing[D]claiming8.[A]handedout[B]turnover[C]broughtback[D]passeddown9.[A]pushed[B]got[C]made[D]managed10.[A]ever[B]never[C]either[D]neither11.[A]disguised[B]disturbed[C]disputed[D]distinguished12.[A]company[B]collection[C]community[D]colony13.[A]employed[B]appointed[C]interviewed[D]questioned14.[A]ethical[B]military[C]political[D]human15.[A]ruined[B]commuted[C]patrolled[D]gained16.[A]paralleled[B]counteracted[C]duplicated[D]contradicted17.[A]neglected[B]avoided[C]emphasized[D]admired18.[A]stages[B]illusions[C]fragments[D]advances19.[A]With[B]To[C]Among[D]Beyond20.[A]onthecontrary[B]bythismeans[C]fromtheoutset[D]atthatpointSectionⅡReadingComprehensionText1Homeworkhasneverbeenterriblypopularwithstudentsandevenmanyparents,butinrecentyearsithasbeenparticularlyscorned.Schooldistrictsacrossthecountry,mostrecentlyLosAngelesUnified,arerevisingtheirthinkingonhiseducationalritual.Unfortunately,L.A.Unifiedhasproducedaninflexiblepolicywhichmandatesthatwiththeexceptionofsomeadvancedcourses,homeworkmaynolongercountformorethan10%ofastudent’sacademicgrade.Thisruleismeanttoaddressthedifficultythatstudentsfromimpoverishedorchaotichomesmighthaveincompletingtheirhomework.Butthepolicyisunclearandcontradictory.Certainly,nohomeworkshouldbeassignedthatstudentscannotdowithoutexpensiveequipment.Butifthedistrictisessentiallygivingapasstostudentswhodonotdotheirhomeworkbecauseofcomplicatedfamilylives,itisgoingriskilycloseto