2015年考研英語閱讀初階

考研主講感受考研Inthe2006filmversionofTheDevilWearsPrada,MirandaPriestly,playedbyMerylStreep,scoldsherunattractiveassistantforimaginingthathighfashiondoesn?taffecther.Priestlyexplainshowthedeepbluecoloroftheassistant?ssweaterdescendedovertheyearsfromfashionshowstodepartmentstoresandtothebargainbininwhichthepoorgirldoubtlessfoundherThistop-downconceptionofthefashionbusinesscouldn?tbemoreoutofdateoratoddswiththefeverishworlddescribedinOverdressed,ElizabethCline?sthree-yearindictmentof"fastfashion".Inthelastdecadeorso,advancesintechnologyhaveallowedmass-marketlabelssuchasZara,H&M,andUniqlotoreacttotrendsmorequicklyandanticipatedemandmoreprecisely.Quickerturnaroundsmeanlesswastedinventory,morefrequentrelease,andmoreprofit.Theselabelsencouragestyle-consciousconsumerstoseeclothesasdisposable—meanttolastonlyawashortwo,althoughtheydon?tadvertisethatandtorenewtheirwardrobeeveryfewweeks.Byofferingon-trenditemsatdirt-cheapprices,Clineargues,thesebrandshavehijackedfashioncycles,shakinganindustrylongaccustomedtoaseasonalpace.Thevictimsofthisrevolution,ofcourse,arenotlimitedtodesigners.ForH&Mtooffer$5.95knitminiskirtinallits2,300-plusstoresaroundtheworld,itmustrelyonlow-wageoverseaslabor,orderinvolumesthatstrainnaturalresources,andusemassiveamountsofharmfulOverdressedisthefashionworld?sanswertoconsumer-activistbestsellerslikeMichael"Pollan?sTheOmnivore?sDilemma."Mass-producedclothing,likefastfood,fillsahungerandneed,yetisnon-durableandwasteful,"Clineargues.Americans,shefinds,buyroughly20billiongarmentsayear—about64itemsper —andnomatterhowmuchtheygiveaway,thisexcessleadstowaste.TowardstheendofOverdressed,Clineintroducedherideal,aBrooklynwomannamedSarahKateBeaumont,whosince2008hasmadeallofherownclothes—andbeautifully.ButasClineisthefirsttonote,ittookBeaumontdecadestoperfecthercraft;herexamplecan?tbeknockedoff.Thoughseveralfast-fashioncompanieshavemadeeffortstocurbtheirimpactonlaborandtheenvironment—includingH&M,withitsgreenConsciousCollectionline—Clinebelieveslastingchangecanonlybeeffectedbythecustomer.Sheexhibitstheidealismcommontomanyadvocatesofsustainability,beitinfoodorinenergy.Vanityisaconstant;peoplewillonlystartshopmoresustainablywhentheycan?taffordnotto.Priestlycriticizesherassistantfor poorbargainingobsessionwithhighlackofAccordingtoCline,mass-marketlabelsurgeconsumers combatunnecessaryshutoutthefeverishfashionresisttheinfluenceofshopfortheirgarmentsmoreTheword (Line2,Para.2)isclosestinmeaning WhichofthefollowingcanbeinferredfromthelastVanityhasmoreoftenbeenfoundinThefast-fashionindustryignoresPeoplearemoreinterestedinunaffordablePricingisvitaltoenvironment-friendlyWhatisthesubjectoftheSatireonanextravagantChallengetoahigh-fashionCriticismofthefast-fashionExposureofamass-market時(shí)間分思TextInspiteof“endlesstalkofdifference,”Americansocietyisanamazingmachineforhomogenizingpeople.Thereis“thedemocratizinguniformityofdressanddiscourse,andthecasualnessandabsenceofdeference”characteristicofpopularculture.Peopleareabsorbedinto“acultureofconsumption”launchedbythe19th-centurydepartmentstoresthatoffered“vastarraysofgoodsinanelegantatmosphere.Insteadofintimateshopscateringtoaknowledgeableelite,”thesewerestores“anyonecouldenter,regardlessofclassorbackground.Thisturnedshopintoapublicanddemocraticact.”Themassmedia,advertisingandsportsareotherforcesforImmigrantsarequicklyfittingintothiscommonculture,whichmaynotbealtogetherelevatingbutishardlypoisonous.WritingfortheNationalImmigrationForum,GregoryRodriguezreportsthattoday?simmigrationisneitheratunprecedentedlevelsnorresistanttoassimilation.In1998immigrantswere9.8percentofthepopulation;in1900,13.6percent.Inthe10yearspriorto1990,3.1immigrantsarrivedforevery1,000residents;inthe10yearspriorto1890,9.2forevery1,000.Now,considerthreeindicesofassimilation－language,homeownershipandintermarriage.The1990Censusrevealedthat“amajorityofimmigrantsfromeachofthefifteenmostcommoncountriesoforiginspokeEnglish?well?or?verywell?aftertenyearsofresidence.”ThechildrenofimmigrantstendtobebilingualandproficientinEnglish.“Bythethirdgeneration,theoriginallanguageislostinthemajorityofimmigrantfamilies.”HencethedescriptionofAmericaasa“graveyard”forlanguages.By1996foreign-bornimmigrantswhohadarrivedbefore1970hadahomeownershiprateof75.6percent,higherthanthe69.8percentrateamongnative-bornForeign-bornAsiansandHispanics“havehigherratesofintermarriagethandoU.S.-bornwhitesandblacks.”Bythethirdgeneration,onethirdofHispanicwomenaremarriedtonon-Hispanics,and41percentofAsian-Americanwomenaremarriedtonon-Asians.RodrigueznotesthatchildreninremotevillagesaroundtheworldarefansofsuperstarslikeArnoldSchwarzeneggerandGarthBrooks,yet“someAmericansfearthatimmigrantslivingwithintheUnitedStatesremainsomehowimmunetothenation?sassimilativepower.”AretheredivisiveissuesandpocketsofseethingangerinAmerica?Indeed.Itisbigenoughtohaveabitofeverything.ButparticularlywhenviewedagainstAmerica?sturbulentpast,today?ssocialindiceshardlysuggestadarkanddeterioratingsocialenvironment.Theword“homogenizing”(Paragraph1)mostprobably [B] [C] [D]Accordingtotheauthor,thedepartmentstoresofthe19thplayedaroleinthespreadofpopularbecameintimateshopsforcommonsatisfiedtheneedsofaknowledgeableoweditsemergencetothecultureofThetextsuggeststhatimmigrantsnowintheareresistanttoexertagreatinfluenceonAmericanarehardlyathreattothecommonconstitutethemajorityoftheWhyareArnoldSchwarzeneggerandGarthBrooksmentionedinParagraphToprovetheirpopularityaroundtheTorevealthepublic?sfearofTogiveexamplesofsuccessfulToshowthepowerfulinfluenceofAmericanIntheauthor?sopinion,theabsorptionofimmigrantsintoAmericansociety [B] [C] [D]Itneverrainsbutitpours.Justasbossesandboardshavefinallysortedouttheirworstaccountingandcompliancetroubles,andimprovedtheirfeeblecorporation ernance,anewproblemthreatenstoearnthem—especiallyinAmerica—thesortofnastyheadlinesthatinevitablyleadtoheadsrollingintheexecutivesuite:datainsecurity.Left,untilnow,toodd,low-levelITstafftoputright,andseenasaconcernonlyofdata-richindustriessuchasbanking, sandairtravel,informationprotectionisnowhighontheboss?sagendainbusinessesofeveryvariety.Severalmassiveleakagesofcustomerandemployeedatathisyear—fromorganizationsasdiverseasTimeWarner,theAmericandefensecontractorScienceApplicationsInternationalCorpandeventheUniversityofCalifornia,Berkeley—haveleftmanagershurriedlypeeringintotheirintricateITsystemsandbusinessprocessesinsearchofpotentialvulnerabilities.“Datais inganassetwhichneedstobeguardedasmuchasanyotherasset,”saysHaimMendelsonofStanfordUniversity?sbusinessschool.“Theabilitytoguardcustomerdataisthekeytomarketvalue,whichtheboardisresponsibleforonbehalfofshareholders”.Indeed,justasthereistheconceptofGenerallyAcceptedAccountingPrinciples(GAAP),perhapsitistimeforGASP,GenerallyAcceptedSecurityPractices,suggestedEliNoamofNewYork?sColumbiaBusinessSchool.“Settingtheproperinvestmentlevelforsecurity,redundancy,andrecoveryisamanagementissue,notatechnicalone,”hesays.Themysteryisthatthisshouldcomeasasurprisetoanyboss.Surelyitshouldbeobvioustothedimmestexecutivethattrust,thatmostvaluableofeconomicassets,iseasilydestroyedandhugelyexpensivetorestore—andthatfewthingsaremorelikelytodestroytrustthanacompanylettingsensitive aldatagetintothewronghands.Thecurrentstateofaffairsmayhavebeenencouraged—thoughnotjustified—bythelackoflegalpenalty(inAmerica,butnotEurope)fordataleakage.UntilCaliforniarecentlypassedalaw,Americanfirmsdidnothavetolanyone,eventhevictim,whendatawentastray.Thatmaychangefast:lotsofproposeddata-securitylegislationisnowngtheroundsinWashington,D.C.Meanwhile,thetheftofinformationaboutsome40millioncredit-cardaccountsinAmerica,disclosedonJune17th,overshadowedahugelyimportantdecisionadayearlierbyAmerica?sFederalTradeCommission(FTC)thatputscorporateAmericaonnoticethatregulatorswillactiffirmsfailtoprovideadequatedatasecurity.Thestatement“Itneverrainsbutitpours”isusedtothefiercebusiness [B]thefeebleboss-board[C]thethreatfromnews [D]theseverityofdataAccordingtoParagraph2,someorganizationschecktheirsystemstofindwhetherthereisanyweak [B]whatsortofdatahasbeen[C]whoisresponsibleforthe [D]howthepotentialspiescanbeInbringinguptheconceptofGASPtheauthorismakingthepointshareholders?interestsshouldbeproperlyattendedinformationprotectionshouldbegivenduebusinessesshouldenhancetheirlevelofaccountingthemarketvalueofcustomerdatashouldbeAccordingtoParagraph4,whatpuzzlestheauthoristhatsomebossesfailseethelinkbetweentrustanddataperceivethesensitivity alrealizethehighcostofdataappreciatetheeconomicvalueofItcanbeinferredfromParagraph5dataleakageismoresevereinFTC?sdecisionisessentialtodataCaliforniatakestheleadinsecuritylegalpenaltyisamajorsolutiontodataWhilestillcatchinguptomeninsomespheresofmodernlife,womenappeartobewayaheadinatleastoneundesirablecategory.“Womenareparticularlysusceptibletodevelodepressionandanxietydisordersinresponsetostresscomparedtomen,”accordingtoDr.Yehuda,chiefpsychiatristatNewYork?sVeteran?sAdministrationHospital.Studiesofbothanimalsandhumanshaveshownthatsexhormonessomehowaffectthestressresponse,causingfemalesunderstresstoproducemoreofthetriggerchemicalsthandomalesunderthesameconditions.Inseveralofthestudies,whenstressed-outfemaleratshadtheirovaries(thefemalereproductiveorgans)removed,theirchemicalresponsesbecameequaltothoseofthemales.Addingtoawoman?sincreaseddoseofstresschemicals,areherincreased“opportunities”forstress.“It?snotnecessarilythatwomendon?tcopeaswell.It?sjustthattheyhavesomuchmoretocopewith,”saysDr.Yehuda.“Theircapacityfortoleratingstressmayevenbegreaterthanmen?s,”sheobserves,“it?sjustthatthey?redealingwithsomanymorethingsthatewornoutfromitmorevisiblyandDr.Yehudanotesanotherdifferencebetweenthesexes.“Ithinkthatthekindsofthingsthatwomenareexposedtotendtobeinmoreofachronicorrepeatednature.Mengotowarandareexposedtocombatstress.Menareexposedtomoreactsofrandomphysical.Thekindsofinter althatwomenareexposedtotendtobeindomesticsituations,by,unfortunay,parentsorotherfamilymembers,andtheytendnottobeone-shotdeals.Thewear-and-tearthatcomesfromtheselongerrelationshipscanbequitedevastating.”AdelineAlvarezmarriedat18andgavebirthtoason,butwasdeterminedtofinishcollege.“Istruggledalottogetthecollegedegree.Iwaslivinginsomuchfrustrationthatthatwasmyescape,togotoschool,andgetaheadanddobetter.”Later,