高职升本科《英语综合》辅导 Reading Comprehension 阅读理解
旅游学院英语系
dictionary will tell you that the word \paper made by the Chinese has little in common with the inner bark of the papyrus plant used originally in Egypt.
Instead, the Chinese soaked hemp, linen and other plant fibers in vats(大缸) and let the disintegrated sediment form on a screen, which was then lifted from the water and dried, until it could be peeled off in sheets. The first piece of paper was thick, strong, and useful for anything but writing!
The Origin of Firecrackers
The ancient Chinese believed in a densely-populated world of spirits, specters and demons who plagued mankind with everything from bothersome tricks to deadly afflictions.
It became an established practice to drive off demons and welcome benevolent spirits at events like New Year's celebrations, weddings, victory processions and festivals.
When certain long-streamer fireworks were exploded, the falling red paper resembled the dripping of blood, symbolizing a sacrifice in which everything is cleansed but no human or animal has to be killed.
Engineering
It is common knowledge that the Chinese first cultivated silk (by the 14th century B.C.), but in order to deal with the enormously long silk fibers, they invented a silk-winder, which then gave rise to the spinning wheel.
The chain-drive was first employed by the inventor Su Sung in an astronomical clock in 1090 A.D., 800 years before it appeared in European silk reeling mills. In 1869, a fellow named J.F. Tretz used the chain-drive to make bicycles, the most popular form of transportation in China today.
(354 words)
1. Westerners who didn’t know the origin of paper might think paper was first invented in ________. A. Egypt
B. China
C. India
D. Greece
2. It can be inferred from the passage that for an ancient western sacrifice, _______. A. food was a necessity
B. red paper should be burnt D. blood should be shed
C. firecrackers should be exploded
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高职升本科《英语综合》辅导 Reading Comprehension 阅读理解
旅游学院英语系
3. Which of following is implied in the last section of passage? A. Few people know the significance of Chinese silk-winder. B. Bicycles were originally invented by Chinese. C. Chinese style of sacrifice is superior to western ones. D. Ancient Chinese paper was better than that of Egypt. 4. The writer regards the Chinese inventions with__________. A. sarcasm
B. admiration
C. suspicion
D. indifference
5. This writing is probably__________. A. a newspaper article
Passage 22
Every Chinese schoolchild is drilled in the motherland’s historic ―Four Inventions‖: gunpowder, paper, printing and the compass. But last week a somewhat unlikely item was added to the list of things for which the rest of the world should apparently be grateful to China — the sauna(桑拿浴).
According to China Daily, the sauna ―may well have once been a popular luxury in ancient China‖, and ―related records on steam bathing by ancient Chinese may be found in various historical accounts‖.
It seems that nothing was beyond the ancient Chinese. A couple of years ago, an article claimed that China had also invented golf, which was news to Scotland. And in the recent Peking Toilet Exhibition, photographs of archaeological remains were produced to demonstrate that China was home to the earliest known public convenience.
Finland, which has a million saunas for its population of five million, is likely to be devastated by this latest revelation. According to China Daily, during the Warring States period(475B.C.—221B.C.), Shi Hu, the King of Zhao of the Jie ethnic group, used to bathe in the steam from a pool into which more than 1,000 scalding metal bars, each weighing just over 401b, has been plunged.
As for Kubla Khan, ―struck down by a disabling illness‖ one day after fighting, ―his attendants poured water on a scorching hot stone to make steam‖ which helped him to expel a blood clot, explained the newspaper.
―It is possible that the Chinese style of steaming or fuming found its way to Finland and was eventually accepted by the Finns,‖ said China Daily, suggesting that
B. a research report D. an argumentative essay
C. an except from a novel
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高职升本科《英语综合》辅导 Reading Comprehension 阅读理解
旅游学院英语系
the Chinese invention could have spread to Finland when the Hun people, who originated in China, invaded Hungary in AD376. However, a Finnish spokesman argued that saunas in Finland dated back to the Stone Age and there was much more to the sauna than just a bit of steam. The fundamentals of the sauna experience included ―forests, lakes, clean air and fresh water‖, he said.
(317 words)
1. ―Nothing was beyond the ancient Chinese‖ (Line 1, Para. 3) means__________. A. ancient Chinese were capable of everything B. ancient Chinese could do very little
C. if ancient Chinese could not do it, others could not either
D. ancient Chinese people could do everything better than Scottish people 2. The pool in which Shi Hu bathed was heated by__________. A. hot stones
B. hot metal bars
C. hot water
D. hot wind
3. Which of the following is true? A. Hungarian people invaded Finland.
B. Chinese people brought the sauna to Hungary. C. the sauna was popular in Shi Hu’s time. D. Kubla Khan invented the sauna.
4. According to the Finnish spokesman, the major difference between the ancient Chinese saunas and the Finnish ones is that the latter__________. A. used fuming
B. used a natural pool D. emphasized good service
C. emphasized natural environment writer__________.
A. is trying to assume an objective attitude B. is somewhat biased
C. has regarded the whole thing as a joke D. disagrees with the Finnish spokesman
Passage 23
What are the chances that we will encounter alien form of live, as we explore the galaxy. If the argument about the time scale for the appearance of life on earth is correct, there ought to be many other stars, whose planets have life on them. Some of these stellar(恒星的) systems could have formed 5 million years before the Earth. So
5. Judging from the way the massage is written, we can see that the
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高职升本科《英语综合》辅导 Reading Comprehension 阅读理解
旅游学院英语系
why is the galaxy not crawling with self-designing mechanical or biological life forms? Why hasn’t the Earth been visited, and even colonized. I discount suggestions that UFOs contain beings from outer space. I think any visits by aliens, would be mush more obvious, and probably also, much more unpleasant.
What is the explanation of why we have not been visited?
One possibility is that the argument, about the appearance of life on Earth, is wrong. Maybe the probability of life spontaneously appearing is so low, that Earth is the only planet in the galaxy, or in the observable universe, in which it happened.
Another possibility is that there is a reasonable probability of forming self- reproducing systems, like cells, but that most of these forms of life did not evolve intelligence.
A third possibility is that there is a reasonable probability for life to form, and to evolve to intelligent beings, in the external transmission phase. But at that point, the system becomes unstable, and the intelligent life destroys itself. This would be a very pessimistic conclusion. I very much hope it is not true.
I prefer a fourth possibility: there are other forms of intelligent life out there, but that we have been overlooked. There used to be a project called SETI, the search for extra-terrestrial(地球外的) intelligence. It involved scanning the radio frequencies, to see if we could pick up signals form alien civilizations. I thought this project was worth supporting, though it was cancelled due to a lack of funds. But we should have been wary of answering back, until we have developed a bit further. Meeting a more advanced civilization, at our present stage, might be a bit like the original inhabitants of America meeting Columbus. I don’t think they were better off for it.
(360words)
1. The author thinks that__________.
A) it is impossible that we encounter some alien form if life B) life only exists on Earth
C) it is likely that we’ll encounter some alien form of life D) beings form outer space will never visit the earth
2. What does the word ―discount‖(Line 5, Para. 1) most probably mean according to the context? A) Doubt. been visited?
B) Accept.
C) Deduct
D) Disregard
3. Which of the following is NOT among the four possibilities of why we haven’t
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高职升本科《英语综合》辅导 Reading Comprehension 阅读理解
旅游学院英语系
A) Forms of life on the other planets don’t evolve to intelligent beings. B) Earth is the only planet that contains life in the universe. C) Life on the other planets destroys itself.
D) Beings from outer space are too far away from us.
4. In the author’s eyes, the search for extra-terrestrial intelligence__________. A) is unnecessary
B) should be supported
D) has not been done appropriately
C) is a waste of money
5. By comparison, the author considers that__________.
A) a more advanced civilization will destroy us if they visit us at present B) the original inhabitants of America were better off because of Columbus’ visit C) being visited by a more advanced civilization will do us no good
D) we won’t be better off even though we are visited by beings form outer space at present.
Passage 24
My name is Gail Naughton and I am President of Advanced Tissue Sciences. On June 28th of this year I was honored to be the first individual woman to be awarded ―National Inventor of the Year‖ by the Intellectual Property Organization. I was delighted to donate my award money to the Association for Women in Science Organization to help provide scholarship funds for young women interested in pursuing a career in science; but this is a small part of what needs to be done. Being the first woman of 27 awardees in indeed a privilege and offers me the opportunity to serve as a role model for many young women interested in pursuing a career in science. Yet the ―first of 27‖ raises the serious issue of the paucity(缺乏) of women who are pursuing a career in technical fields and who are contributing their talents toward developing key inventions that can provide key benefits to the American public and to people worldwide.
My successes scientifically were not due to special programs in schools, scholarships for women in science, or a privileged formal education. I am a scientist today because I had the great fortune to be raised by my parents to believe that I can achieve anything I set my mind to. Although not having the benefit of a college education, my parents stressed the value of higher education to both my brother and myself. This backing, along with a strong stubbornness, carried me through years of intense training toward my Ph.D.
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高职升本科《英语综合》辅导 Reading Comprehension 阅读理解
旅游学院英语系
Training in the sciences and engineering is long, expensive, and arduous and starting salaries in these fields for new Ph.D.s are remarkably low, particularly for women and minorities. Young people need to be encouraged to face these hurdles (障
碍) and be given every opportunity to develop their scientific talents.
We and others developing cutting edge technologies in this exciting new millennium need the largest and best-trained talent pool available. Please don’t let future inventors be neglected. I implore your support of developing grants and scholarships to encourage women and minorities to get into technology. Training and support can’t start too early; scholarships for special training and scientific sabbaticals (休假年) for teachers in minority areas are a key first step. Programs to raise awareness and encourage young scientists are key. Your support can help ensure that the United States develops the best talent pool and remains clearly the worldwide technical leader.
(400 words)
1. It can be inferred from the passage that before Gail Naughton ―National Inventor of the Year‖ was to be awarded to__________. A. women only C. men only
B. minorities
D. both men and women
2. Which of the following is true according to the passage? A. There are fewer women than men pursuing a career in science. B. Women are less talented than men in science.
C. Men get scholarships in science more easily than women do. D. Future inventors are often neglected.
3. The author has attributed her success largely to__________. A. scholarships for women in science C. special training in schools A. have more chances than men C. have certain privileges
B. her talent
D. her parents’ trust and support B. earn less money than men D. earn as much money as men
4. The author tells us that women in science and engineering__________.
5. The author’s purpose in writing this passage is to__________. A. show her great success in science
B. indicate that American is the worldwide technical leader C. ask for people’s support of women pursuing a career in science D. prove that it’s difficult for women to pursue a career in science
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