First, of course, it is plain that in a few years everyone will have at his elbow several times more mechanical energy than he has today.
Second, there will be advances in biological knowledge as far-reaching as those that have been made in physics. We are only beginning to learn that we can control our biological environment as well as our physical one. Starvation has been prophesied twice to a growing world population: by Malthus about 1.8 billion and by Crookes about 1.9 billion. It was headed off the first time by taking agriculture to America and the second time by using the new fertilizers. Soon starvation will be headed off by the control of the diseases and the heredity of plants and animals — by shaping our own biological environment.
And third, I come back to the haunting theme of automation. The most common species in the factory today is the man who works or minds a simple machine — the operator. Before long he will be as extinct as the hand-loom weaver and the dodo (老古董). The repetitive tasks of industry will be taken over by the machines, as the heavy tasks were taken over long ago; and the mental tedium will go the way of physical exhaustion. Today we still distinguish, even among repetitive jobs, between the skilled and the unskilled, but in a few years to come all repetition will be unskilled. We simply waste our time if we oppose this change. 71.This article was written to ________.
A. warn us of impending starvation B. present facts about life in the near future C. oppose biological advances D. warn of the danger of automation 72.In the coming years, people will ________.
A. have more machines at their disposal B. experience starvation
C. never work D. have fewer machines at their disposal 73.Advances in biological knowledge have ________.
A. kept pace with those in physics B. been responsible for the invention of new machines C. surpassed those in physics D. lagged behind those in physics 74.We are beginning to learn that we ________. A. can control our physical environment B. can never control our biological environment C. have no control over our physical environment
D. can control both our biological and physical environments 75.In the near future, starvation will be prevented by ________.
A. Chinese agriculture B. use of new fertilizers
C. control of the diseases and the heredity of plants and animals D. vitamin pills 76.Which of the following is NOT true? A. The mental tedium will not exist in the end. B. Hand-loom weaver is the thing of the past. C. Automation is an out-of-date topic today.
D. Physical burden in the factory has already been replaced. 77.The author believes before long, machines will ________.
A. actually replace unskilled workers B. have learned to think for us C. be shaped like robots D. no longer be needed 78.The repetitive tasks of industry lead to ________.
A. physical exhaustion B. mental stimulation C. mental exhaustion D. physical extinction
79.If the author’s predictions are realized, the demand for unskilled workers will be ________.
A. very high B. very low C. the same as today D. constantly rising
80.From the passage, increased automation ________.
A. can be successfully opposed B. cannot be avoided
C. has not yet begun D. will put everyone out of work
Questions 81-90 are based on the following passage.
Of all the areas of learning the most important is the development of attitudes. Emotional reactions as well as logical thought processes affect the behavior of most people.
“The burnt child fears the fire” is one instance; another is the rise of despots like Hitler. Both examples also point up the fact that attitudes stem from experience. In one case the experience was direct and impressive; in the other it was indirect and cumulative. The Nazis were indoctrinated largely by the speeches they heard and the books they read.
The classroom teacher in the elementary school is in a strategic position to influence attitudes. This is true partly because children acquire attitudes from those adults whose word they respect.
Another reason it is true is that pupils often delve somewhat deeply into a subject in school that has only been touched upon at home or has possibly never occurred to them before. To a child who had previously acquired little knowledge of Mexico, his teacher’s method of handling such a unit would greatly affect his attitude toward Mexicans.
The media through which the teacher can develop wholesome attitudes are innumerable. Social studies (with special reference to races, creeds and nationalities), science matters of health and safety, the very atmosphere of the classroom… these are a few of the fertile fields for the inculcation of proper emotional reactions.
However, when children come to school with undesirable attitudes, it is unwise for the
teacher to attempt to change their feelings by cajoling or scolding them. She can achieve the proper effect by helping them obtain constructive experiences.
To illustrate, first grade pupils afraid of policemen will probably alter their attitudes after a classroom chat with the neighborhood officer in which he explains how he protects them. In the same way, a class of older children can develop attitudes through discussion, research, outside reading and all-day trips.
Finally, a teacher must constantly evaluate her own attitudes, because her influence can be deleterious if she has personal prejudices. This is especially true in respect to controversial issues and questions on which children should be encouraged to reach their own decisions as a result of objective analysis of all the facts. 81.The central idea of the above passage is that ________. A. attitudes affect our actions
B. teachers are important in developing or changing pupils’ attitudes C. attitudes can be changed by some classroom experiences D. by their attitudes, teachers inadvertently affect pupils’ attitudes
82.The word “despot” underlined in Paragraph 2 means a person ________. A. who enjoys a high reputation B. who is very successful in politics C. with unlimited powers D. who deposits a large sum of money in a bank 83.The pupils’ attitudes are NOT influenced by ________. A. their parents’ persuasion to behave properly B. their teachers’ attitudes
C. the speeches they hear and the books they read
D. such media as social studies, science matter and classroom atmosphere 84.It can be inferred from the passage that the pupils ________.
A. usually study a certain subject in greater details at home than at school B. usually do not study a certain subject at home C. study the subjects only at school
D. study a subject more deeply at school than at home
85.The example of the pupils’ learning about Mexico shows that ________. A. a child usually learns the right things from their teachers B. a teacher can correct a pupil’s wrong ideas
C. a teacher’s attitude can influence a child’s attitude by teaching D. a child’s attitude is very changeable 86.The author implies that ________.
A. the teacher should guide all discussions by revealing her own attitude
B. in some aspects of social studies a greater variety of methods can be used in the upper grades than in the lower grades
C. people usually act on the basis of reasoning rather than emotion D. children’s attitudes often come from those of other children 87.A statement made or implied in the passage is that ________. A.attitudes can be based on the learning of falsehoods
B.a child can develop in the classroom an attitude about the importance of brushing his teeth C.attitudes cannot easily be changed by rewards and lectures
D.the attitudes of elementary school-aged children are influenced primarily by their teachers 88.The passage specifically states that ________. A.direct experiences are more valuable than indirect ones
B.whatever attitudes a child learns in school have already been introduced at home C.teachers should always conceal their own attitudes