1、MBA 联考-英语(二)-16 及答案解析(总分：100.00，做题时间：90 分钟)一、BSection Use o(总题数：1，分数：10.00)Directions: Read the following text. Choose the best word (s) for each numbered blank and mark A, B, C or D.Have you ever wondered what our future is like? Practically all people U U 1 /U /Ua desire to predict their future U
2、U 2 /U /U. Most people seem inclined to U U 3 /U /Uthis task using causal reasoning. First we U U 4 /U /Urecognize that future circumstances are U U 5 /U /Ucaused or conditioned by present ones. We learn that getting an education will U U 6 /U /Uhow much money we earn later and that swimming beyond
3、the reef may bring an unhappy U U 7 /U /Uwith a shark. Second, people also learn that such U U 8 /U /Uof cause and effect are probabilistic (可能的) in nature. That is, the effects occur more often when the causes occur than when the causes are U U 9 /U /Ubut not always. Thus, students learn that study
4、ing hard U U 10 /U /Ugood grades in most instances, but not every time.Science makes these concepts of causality and probability more U U 11 /U /Uand provides techniques for dealing U U 12 /U /Uthen more accurately than does causal human inquiry. In looking at ordinary human inquiry, we need to U U
5、13 /U /Ubetween prediction and understanding. Often, even if we dont understand why, we are willing to act U U 14 /U /Uthe basis of a demonstrated predictive ability. Whatever the primitive drives U U 15 /U /Umotivate human beings, satisfying them depends heavily on the ability to U U 16 /U /Ufuture
6、 circumstances. The attempt to predict is often played in a U U 17 /U /Uof knowledge and understanding. If you can understand why certain regular patterns U U 18 /U /U, you can predict better than if you simply observe those patterns. Thus, human inquiry aims U U 19 /U /Uanswering both “what“ and “w
7、hy“ question, and we pursue these U U 20 /U /Uby observing and figuring out.（分数：10.00）(1). A. exhibit B. exaggerate C. examine D. exceed（分数：0.50）A.B.C.D.(2). A. contexts B. circumstances C. inspections D. intuitions（分数：0.50）A.B.C.D.(3). A. underestimate B. undermine C. undertake D. undergo（分数：0.50）A
8、.B.C.D.(4). A. specially B. particularly C. always D. generally（分数：0.50）A.B.C.D.(5). A. somehow B. somebody C. someone D. something（分数：0.50）A.B.C.D.(6). A. enact B. affect C. reflect D. inflect（分数：0.50）A.B.C.D.(7). A. meeting B. occurrence C. encounter D. contact（分数：0.50）A.B.C.D.(8). A. patterns B.
9、designs C. arrangements D. pictures（分数：0.50）A.B.C.D.(9). A. disappointed B. absent C. inadequate D. absolute（分数：0.50）A.B.C.D.(10). A. creates B. produces C. loses D. protects（分数：0.50）A.B.C.D.(11). A. obscure B. indistinct C. explicit D. explosive（分数：0.50）A.B.C.D.(12). A. for B. at C. in D. with（分数：0
10、.50）A.B.C.D.(13). A. distinguish B. distinct C. distort D. distract（分数：0.50）A.B.C.D.(14). A. at B. on C. to D. under（分数：0.50）A.B.C.D.(15). A. why B. how C. that D. where（分数：0.50）A.B.C.D.(16). A. predict B. produce C. pretend D. precede（分数：0.50）A.B.C.D.(17). A. content B. contact C. contest D. contex
11、t（分数：0.50）A.B.C.D.(18). A. happen B. oecur C. occupy D. incur（分数：0.50）A.B.C.D.(19). A. at B. on C. to D. beyond（分数：0.50）A.B.C.D.(20). A. purposes B. ambitions C. drives D. goals（分数：0.50）A.B.C.D.二、BSection Readi(总题数：0，分数：0.00)三、BPart A/B(总题数：4，分数：40.00)Directions: Read the following four passages. An
12、swer the questions below by choosing A, B, C or D.The standardized educational or psychological tests, which are widely used to aid in selecting, assigning or promoting students, employees and military personnel, have been the target of recent attacks in books, magazines, the daily press, and even i
13、n Congress. The target is wrong, for, in attacking the tests, critics divert attention from the fault that lies with ill-informed or incompetent users. The tests themselves are merely tools. Whether the results will be valuable, meaningless, or even misleading depends partly upon the tool itself but
14、 largely upon the user.All informed predictions of future performance are based upon some knowledge of relevant past performance. How well the predictions will he validated by later performance depends upon the amount, reliability and appropriateness of the information used and on the skill and wisd
15、om with which it is interpreted. Anyone who keeps careful score knows that the information available is always incomplete and that the predictions are always subject to error.Standardized tests should be considered in this context: they provide a quick, objective method of getting some kind of infor
16、mation about what a person has learned, the skills he has developed, or the kind of person he is. The information so obtained has, qualitatively, the same advantages and shortcomings as other kinds of information. Whether to use tests, other kinds of information, or both in a particular situation de
17、pends, therefore, upon the empirical evidence concerning comparative validity and upon such factors as cost and availability.In general, the tests work most effectively when the traits or qualities to be measured can be most precisely defined (for example, ability to do well in a particular course o
18、f training program) and least effectively when what is to be measured or predicted cannot be well defined, for example, personality or creativity. Properly used, they provide a rapid means of getting comparable information about many people. Sometimes they identify students whose high potential has
19、not been previously recognized.（分数：10.00）(1).In this passage, the author is primarily concerned with _. A. the necessity of standardized tests B. the validity of standardized tests C. the method used in interpreting the results of standardized tests D. the theoretical grounds of standardized tests（分
20、数：2.00）A.B.C.D.(2).We can infer from the passage that _. A. standardized tests should no longer be used B. results of standardized tests accurately reflect the abilities of the testees C. the value of standardized tests lies in their proper interpretation D. special methods must he applied to the re
21、sult of standardized tests（分数：2.00）A.B.C.D.(3).The word “empirical“ (Line 6, Para. 3) most probably means “_“ . A. theoretical B. critical C. indisputable D. experiential（分数：2.00）A.B.C.D.(4).According to the passage, standardized tests work work most effectively when _. A. the user knows how to inte
22、rpret the results in advance B. the objectives are most clearly defined C. the persons who take the test are intelligent or skillful D. they measure the traits or qualities of the tests（分数：2.00）A.B.C.D.(5).The authors attitude toward standardized tests could he described as _. A. positive B. critica
23、l C. prejudiced D. indifferent（分数：2.00）A.B.C.D.Natural disasters strike rich countries as well as needy ones, but the trail of devastation they leave behind is usually far greater in poor places. Worse, insurance payouts cover a much larger chunk of the costs of recovery in rich countries than in po
24、or ones, where few individuals or companies take out disaster cover. Most of the burden of financing reconstruction falls on foreign governments and multilateral agencies. It will be no different in Haiti after the earthquake that struck this month.Developing countries have some options to help them
25、 manage the fallout from natural disasters. The World Bank helped the Mexican government raise $290m in October by placing “catastrophe bonds“, which pay investors generous yields against the loss of their principal in the event that disaster strikes. UUntil now such bonds have largely been the pres
26、erve of rich-country issuers/U: in 2009 Munich Re estimates that 80% of issuance was to cover risks in America. But Francis Ghesquiere of the World Bank doubts that a country as poor as Haiti, with no experience on international bond markets, will start issuing catastrophe bonds.Risk-sharing mechani
27、sms can enable the poorest nations to pool their insurance-buying power. Haiti is getting a payout of around $8m from the Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility (CCRIF), which came into being in 2007. The CCRIF has a fund made up of contributions from donors and member countries, which allows
28、 it to cover payouts of up to $10m itself and has additional capacity of $110m obtained through international reinsurance markets. Payouts are based simply on the severity of the disaster (in Haitis case, the magnitude of the earthquake), and the amount of coverage purchased, and are paid out in two
29、 weeks. The money is intended to ensure that lack of cash does not hamper basic government functions.But Pamela Cox, the World Banks vice-president for Latin America and the Caribbean, points out that it is sometimes politically difficult for the government of a poor country to explain why it is spe
30、nding scarce money on insurance premiums rather than things that may seem more pressing in normal times. Not every disaster triggers a payout: Haiti purchased significantly more hurricane insurance than earthquake insurance through the CCRIF. And purchasing enough cover to meet the need for funds af
31、ter something like the Haitian quake would prove prohibitively expensive. Countries as poor as Haiti are far more likely to have their premiums paid by donors, who funded its CCRIF premium of $385,000.（分数：10.00）(1).The suffering of Haiti after the earthquake would be worse than that of rich countrie
32、s because _. A. the insurance money covers only a small part of its reconstruction costs B. the insurance payout might be kept by individuals or companies C. foreign governments cant offer enough help because of financial burden D. its government might transfer the burden of recovery of multilateral
33、 agencies（分数：2.00）A.B.C.D.(2).What does the author imply by “ Until now such bonds have largely been the preserve of richcountry issuers“ (Lines 3-4, Para. 2)? A. The catastrophe bonds are mainly reserved by rich countries B. Only rich countries have the ability to issue the catastrophe bonds C. Ric
34、h countries seldom issue the catastrophe bonds D. Most of the catastrophe bonds are raised in rich countries（分数：2.00）A.B.C.D.(3).Which of the following statements is NOT true about the CCRIF? A. The sources of its fund are private donations and financing of member countries B. Its supplemental payou
35、ts are attainable from international reinsurance markets C. The amount of the insurance payout is decided by the seriousness of the natural disaster D. The government can resume is overall operation with the insurance money after the strike（分数：2.00）A.B.C.D.(4).What is the obstacle that poor countrie
36、s might experience in preparing their disaster insurance? A. It is not easy to explain the important items of insurance in normal times B. The severity of the disaster is not big enough to trigger a payout C. The insurance premiums are too expensive for poor countries to afford D. The insurance payo
37、ut cant meet the need for recovery（分数：2.00）A.B.C.D.(5).The authors attitude towards the insurance facility is _. A. objective B. negative C. positive D. biased（分数：2.00）A.B.C.D.Two decades ago only spies and systems administrators had to worry about passwords. But today you have to enter one even to
38、do humdrum things like turning on your computer, downloading an album or buying a book online. No wonder many people use a single, simple password for everything.Analysis of password databases, often stolen from websites, shows that the most common choices include “password“, “123456“ and “abc123“ .
39、 But using these, or any word that appears in a dictionary, is insecure. Even changing some letters to numbers (“e“ to “3“, “i“ to “1“ and so forth) does little to reduce the vulnerability of such passwords to an automated “dictionary attack“, because these substitutions are so common. The fundament
40、al probldm is that secure passwords tend to be hard to remember, and memorable passwords tend to be insecure.Weak passwords open the door to fraud, identity theft and breaches of privacy. An analysis by Verizon, an American telecoms firm, found that the biggest reason for successful security breache
41、s was easily guessable passwords. Some viruses spread by trying common passwords.The solution, say security researchers, is to upgrade the software in peoples heads, by teaching them to choose more secure passwords. One approach is to use passphrases containing unrelated words, such as “correct hors
42、e battery staple “, linked by a mental image. Passphrases are, on average, several orders of magnitude harder to crack than passwords. But a new study by researchers at the University of Cambridge finds that people tend to choose phrases made up not of unrelated words but of words that already occur
43、 together, such as “dead poets society“ . Such phrases are vulnerable to a dictionary attack based on common phrases taken from the Internet. And many systems limit the length of passwords, making a long phrase impractical.An alternative approach, championed by Bruce Schneier, a security guru, is to
44、 turn a sentence into a password, taking the first letter of each word and substituting numbers and punctuation marks where possible. “Too much food and wine will make you sick“ thus becomes “2mf countries go to war over oil. But the worlds most expensive commodities are worth nothing in the absence
45、 of water. Fresh water is essential for life, with no substitute. Although mostly unpriced, it is the most valuable stuff in the world.Nature has decided that the supply of water is fixed. Meanwhile demand rises as the worlds populati on increases and enriches itself. Homes, factories and offices ar
46、e sucking up ever more. But it is the planets growing need for food that matters most. Farming accounts for 70% of withdrawals.Few of the worlds great rivers that run through grain-growing areas now reach the sea all the year round or, if they do, they do so as a trickle. Less obvious, though even m
47、ore serious, are the withdrawals from underground, which are hidden from sight but big enough to produce changes in the Earths gravitational field that can be monitored by NASAs satellites in space. Water tables are now failing in many parts of the world, including America, India and China.So far Uthe world has been spared a true water war/U, and competition for water can sometimes bring rivals together as well as drive them apart. But since over 60% of the worlds population lives in a river basin shared by two or more countries, the scope for squabbles is plain. Even
