重庆交通学院《大学英语IV》期末预测试卷No.1
Part I Listening Comprehension ( 20%) (略)
Part II Reading Comprehension (40%)
Directions: There are four reading passages in this part. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four suggested answers marked A, B, C and D. Choose the best answer to each question. Then you should mark the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet with a single line through the center.
Passage 1
Questions 31 to35 are based on the following passage:
It is often claimed that nuclear energy is something we cannot do without. We live in a consumer society where there is an enormous demand for commercial products of all kinds. Moreover, an increase in industrial production is considered to be one solution to the problem of mass unemployment. Such an increase presumes an abundant and cheap energy supply. Many people believe that nuclear energy provides an inexhaustible and economical source of power and that it is therefore essential for an industrially developing society. There are a number of other advantages in the use of nuclear energy. Firstly, nuclear power, except for accidents, is clean. A further advantage is that a nuclear power station can be run and maintained by relatively few technical and administrative staff. The nuclear reactor represents an enormous step in our scientific evolution and, whatever the anti-nuclear group says, it is wrong to expect a return to more primitive sources of fuel. However, opponents of nuclear energy point out that nuclear power stations bring a direct threat not only to the environment but also to civil liberties. Furthermore, it is questionable whether ultimately nuclear power is a cheap source of energy. There have, for example, been very costly accidents in America, in Britain and, of course, in Russia. The possibility of increases in the cost of uranium (铀) in addition to the cost of greater safety provisions could price nuclear power out of the market. In the long run, environmentalists argue, nuclear energy wastes valuable resources and disturbs the ecology to an extent which could bring about the destruction of the human race. Thus, if we wish to survive, we cannot afford nuclear energy. In spite of the case against nuclear energy outlined above, nuclear energy programs are expanding. Such an expansion assumes a continual growth in industrial production and consumer demands. However, it is doubtful whether this growth will or can continue. Having weighed up the arguments on both sides, it seems there are good economic and ecological reasons for sources of energy other than nuclear power.
31. The advocates of nuclear energy claim that nuclear energy is _________________.
A) extremely dangerous B) vital in our society
C) exhaustible and expensive D) primitive and cheap
32. Some people think that nuclear energy is essential because _________________.
A) there is a serious shortage of manpower
B) it provides a perfect solution to mass unemployment
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C) it is impossible to return to more primitive sources of fuel
D) it can meet the growing demand of an industrially developing society 33. Which of the following statements does the writer support?
A) The demand for commercial products will not necessarily keep increasing. B) Uranium is a good source of energy for economic and ecological reasons. C) Nuclear energy provides an inexhaustible and economical source of power.
D) Greater safety provisions can bring about the expansion of nuclear energy programs. 34. The function of the last sentence is to ______________.
A) reflect the writer’s attitude B) advance the final argument
C) reverse previously expressed thoughts D) show the disadvantages of nuclear power
35. What is the writer’s attitude toward nuclear energy?
A) Indifferent. B) Favorable. C) Tolerant. D) Critical.
Passage 2
Questions 36 to 40 are based on the following passage:
There seems never to have been a civilization without toys, but when and how they developed is unknown. They probably came about just to five children something to do.
In the ancient world, as is today, most boys played with some kinds of toys and most girls with another. In societies where social roles are rigidly determined, boys pattern their play after the activities of their fathers and girls after the tasks of their mothers. This is true because boys and girls are being prepared, even in play, to step into the roles and responsibilities of the adult world.
What is remarkable about the history of toys is not so much how they changed over the centuries but how much they have remained the same. The changes have been mostly in terms of craftsmanship, mechanics, and technology. It is the universality of toys with regard to their development in all part of the world and their persistence to the present that is amazing. In Egypt, the Americas, China, Japan and among the Arctic (北极的) peoples, generally the same kinds of toys appeared. Variations depended on local customs and ways of life because toys imitate their surroundings. Nearly every civilization had dolls, little weapons, toy soldiers, tiny animals and vehicles.
Because toys can be generally regarded as a kind of art form, they have not been subject to technological leaps that characterize inventions for adult use. The progress from the wheel to the oxcart to the automobile is a direct line of ascent (进步). The progress from a rattle(拨浪鼓)used by a baby in 3000 BC to one used by an infant today, however, is not characterized by inventiveness. Each rattle is the product of the artistic tastes of the times and subject to the limitations of available materials.
36.The reason why the toys most boys play with are different from those that girls play with is that_______.
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A) their social roles are rigidly determined
B) most boys would like to follow their fathers' professions
C) boys like to play with their fathers while girls with their mothers D) they like challenging activities
37.One aspect of \ A) technological advances have greatly improved the durability of toys
B) the improvement of craftsmanship in making toys depends on the efforts of universities C) the exploration of the universe has led to the creation of new kinds of toys D) the basic characteristics of toys are the same the world over
38.Which of the following is the author's view on the historical development of toys? A) The craftsmanship in toy making has remained essentially unchanged. B) Toys have remained basically the same all through the centuries.
C) The toy industry has witnessed great leaps in technology in recent years. D) Toys are playing an increasingly important role in shaping a child's character. 39.Regarded as a kind of art form, toys_______. A) follow a direct line of ascent B) also appeal greatly to adults
C) are not characterized by technological progress D) reflect the pace of social progress
40.The author used the example of a rattle to show that_______. A) in toy making there is a continuity in the use of materials B) even the simplest toys can reflect the progress of technology
C) it often takes a long time to introduce new technology into toy making D) even a simple toy can mirror the artistic tastes of the time
Passage 3
Questions 41 to 45 are based on the following passage:
When President Clinton held a press conference in June 1999 to mark what was billed as one of the most important scientific milestones of the century － the cracking of the human genetic code － two men stood together on a White House podium（讲台）to share the credit. As leaders of competing genome（基因组） projects, Francis Collins, director of the National Human Genome Research Institute, and J. Craig Venter, president of Celera Genomics, were recognized, correctly, as the two most important players in the worldwide effort to spell out the 3 billion “letters” of the human genome － the biochemical recipe, encoded in our DNA, for manufacturing and operating a complete human being.
Yet while scientific diplomacy required that Venter and Collins get equal recognition for this epochal achievement, insiders knew that one man was more equal than the other. The genome would certainly have been sequenced if Craig Venter had never been born. But if he hadn’t decided to attack the problem with a radical approach, using the most sophisticated computer technology available, and to drive the effort with the full force of his rebellious personality, it would have taken years longer to complete. By forcing Collins and his colleagues to double and redouble the pace of their work, Venter guaranteed that the scientific rewards and potentially lifesaving medical treatments derived from decoding our genes would start to pour in almost half a decade earlier than anyone had expected. Venter’s contribution, asserts Victor McKusick, the
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Johns Hopkins researcher who is considered the grandfather of medical genetics, was “spectacular.”
That is an understatement. Having the genome in hand will almost certainly be seen as one of the crowning achievements of the new century, no matter what else happens in the next 100 years. The genome － or, more precisely, the individual genes it contains － spell out the instructions for constructing the protein building blocks of every cell in every tissue of the body. This so-called book of life will inevitably reveal secrets of both health and disease, promising new treatments for virtually every malady that afflicts us.
41.The word “bill” (line 1, paragraph 1) most probably means ______________.
A) to send a list of charges to
B) to claim something as having some qualities C) to make known by public notice D) to be suitable for
42.Venter and Collins share the credit for _______________.
A) the discovery of DNA
B) the cracking of the human genetic code
C) the success of the press conference held in June 1999 D) the invention of a new language
43. The author is of the opinion that ______________.
A) Venter’s contribution is as great as Collin’s
B) Collins was ignorant of the most sophisticated computer technology C) without Venter, the genome would never have been sequenced D) it is Venter who quickened the pace of genome research
44. What does the author imply when he says “That is an understatement”?
A) Venter’s contribution is far more important. B) The value of the genome is underestimated. C) We should focus on something more important. D) The statement is not fair and should be forgotten.
45. In the last paragraph, “this so-called book of life” refers to____________.
A) an instruction B) a building block C) the genome D) a secret Passage 4
Questions 46 to 50 are based on the following passage:
The rise of multinational corporations (跨国公司), global marketing, new communications technologies, and shrinking cultural differences have led to an unparalleled increase in global public relations or PR.
Surprisingly, since modern PR was largely an American invention, the U.S. leader ship in public relations is being threatened by PR efforts in other countries. Ten years ago, for example, the world's top five public relations agencies were American owned. In 1991, only one was. The British in particular are becoming more sophisticated and creative. A recent survey found that more than half of all British companies include PR as part of their corporate (公司的) planning
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activities, compared to about one third of U.S. companies, It may not be long before London replaces New York as the capital of PR.
Why is America lagging behind in the global PR race? First, Americans as a whole tend to be fairly provincial and take more of an interest in local affairs. Knowledge of world geography, for example, has never been strong in this country. Secondly, Americans lag behind their European and Asian counterparts (相对应的人)in knowing a second language. Less than 5 percent of Burson Marshall's U.S. employees know two languages. Ogilvy and Mather has about the same percentage Conversely, some European firms have half or more of their employees fluent in a second language. Finally, people involved in PR abroad tend to keep a closer eye on international affairs. In the financial PR area, for instance, most Americans read the Wall Street Journal. Orerseas, their counterparts read the Journal as well as the Financial Times of London and The Economist, publications not often read in this country.
Perhaps the PR industry might take a lesson from Ted Turner of CNN(Cable News Network). Turner recently announced that the work \would no longer be used on CNN news broadcasts. According to Turner, global communications have made the nations of the world so interdependent that there is no longer any such thing as foreign.
46.According to the passage, U.S. leadership in public relations is being threatened because_______.
A) an unparalleled increase in the number of public relations companies B) shrinking cultural differences and new communications technologies C) the decreasing number of multinational corporations in the U.S. D) increased efforts of other countries in public relations
47.London could soon replace New York as the center of PR because_______. A) British companies are more ambitious than U.S. companies
B) British companies place more importance on PR than U.S. companies C) British companies are heavily involved in planning activities
D) four of the world's top public relations agencies are British owned 48.The word \ A) limited in outlook
B) like people from the provinces C) rigid in thinking
D) interested in world financial affairs
49.We learn from the third paragraph that employees in the American PR industry_______. A) speak at least one foreign language fluently B) are ignorant about world geography
C) are not as sophisticated as their European counterparts
D) enjoy reading a great variety of English business publications 50.What lesson might the PR industry take from Ted Turner of CNN? A) American PR companies should be more internationally minded.
B) The American PR industry should develop global communications technologies. C) People working in PR should be more fluent in foreign languages. D) People involved in PR should avoid using the word \
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