1、考研英语(二)-15 及答案解析(总分：85.00，做题时间：90 分钟)一、Section Use of Eng(总题数：1，分数：10.00)The tower of Pisa has been leaning so longnearly 840 yearsthat it“s natural to assume it will 1 gravity forever. But the famous structure has been in danger of collapsing almost since its first brick was 2 . It began leaning sh
2、ortly after construction began in 1173. Builders had only reached the third of the tower“s 3 eight stories when its foundation began to settle unevenly on soft soil composed 4 mud, sand and clay. As a result, the structure leaned 5 to the north. Laborers tried to 6 it by making the columns and arche
3、s of the third story on the sinking northern side slightly taller. Then political unrest halted construction. The tower sat 7 for nearly 100 years, but it wasn“t done moving. By the time work restarted in 1272, the tower tilted to the souththe 8 it still leans today. Engineers tried to make another
4、9 , only to have their work interrupted once again in 1278 with just seven stories completed. Unfortunately, the building continued to settle, sometimes at an 10 rate. Finally, between 1360 and 1370, workers finished the project, once again trying to correct the lean 11 angling the eighth story, wit
5、h its bell room, northward. In 1989, a similarly constructed bell tower in Pavia, Italy, collapsed suddenly. Officials became 12 worried the tower of Pisa would suffer a similar fate that they closed the monument to the 13 . A year later, they rallied together an international team to see 14 the tow
6、er could be brought back from the brink. By 2001, the team had decreased the tower“s lean by 44 centimeters, enough to make officials 15 that they could reopen the monument. The actions taken by Burland and his team could, 16 , stabilize the structure forever. The real threat now comes from the maso
7、nry itself, especially the material in the 17 stories, where most of the forces caused by the centuries-long leaning have been directed. If any of this masonry crush, the tower could collapse. And even a 18 earthquake in the region could have devastating consequences. After 200 years, another interv
8、ention may be required, but the 19 available to make improvements could be far more advanced and 20 the tower for another 800 years.（分数：10.00）A.go intoB.go againstC.go upD.go onA.gotB.madeC.laidD.sentA.dreamedB.existedC.plannedD.originatedA.ofB.aboutC.withD.byA.seriouslyB.gentlyC.surprisinglyD.sligh
9、tlyA.rebuildB.compensateC.payD.destroyA.unfinishedB.straightC.stableD.motionlessA.wayB.directionC.angleD.trendA.achievementB.investmentC.complementD.adjustmentA.amusingB.astonishedC.alarmingD.amazingA.byB.withC.fromD.onA.soB.veryC.muchD.tooA.workersB.publicC.ItaliansD.foreignersA.ifB.thatC.whereD.wh
10、atA.gloomyB.profitableC.confidentD.disappointedA.actuallyB.effectivelyC.theoreticallyD.perfectlyA.middleB.lowerC.upperD.leftA.minorB.continuousC.greatD.bigA.workersB.conditionC.technologyD.timeA.persistB.preventC.presentD.preserve二、Section Reading Co(总题数：0，分数：0.00)三、Part A(总题数：0，分数：0.00)四、Text 1(总题数
11、：1，分数：10.00)With just one week until Christmas, retailers are rolling out shopper-baiting strategies to attract procrastinators, deal-hunters and people who just want a few extra Christmas gifts. Strategies include offering extended shopping hours, free shipping, last-minute-shopping ad campaigns an
12、d social media reminders that time is ticking away. The week leading up to Christmas is usually when consumers open their wallets widethe Saturday before the holiday traditionally being the biggest spending day behind Black Friday, according to shopper analytics firm Shopper Trak. Four of the 10 bus
13、iest holiday shopping days will occur between Dec. 20 and Dec. 24, Shopper Trak predicts. This holiday shopping season is shorter than last, with six fewer daystranslating into just four weekends. There will be “high levels of in-store shopper activity“ the weekend before Christmas, says Shopping Tr
14、ak founder Bill Martin. Here“s how retailers are trying to get the attention of gift buyers: Going social in their countdown warnings. Companies are using social media to remind customers that Christmas is coming and to offer gift suggestions. Best Buy is using the Twitter tag “Last Minute Gifts“ to
15、 promote its goods and on Tuesday evening hosted a Google Hangout chat with the last-minute gift theme. Targeting procrastinators. On Wednesday, J. C. Penney launches a “men in panic“ TV ad. In it, a desperate man walk by a store as a small choir sings “point him to the jewelry so he won“t buy a “va
16、cuum“. Offering free shipping. Many retailers, including J. C. Penney, have embraced Wednesday as “Free Shipping Day“ no minimum order, and delivery by Christmas Eve is guaranteed. FreeShippingD has a list of nearly 900 participating merchants. Extending store hours. Nordstrom, Target and Toys R Us
17、all have longer hours now or coming up. Toys R Us will be open around the clock for 87 continuous hours beginning at 6 a. m. Saturday, Dec. 21, through 9 p.m. Christmas Eve. “Expanded hours at this time of year have proven to be very popular with customers in the past, but with the shortened shoppin
18、g window between Thanksgiving and Christmas, and no time left to procrastinate, we expect to see larger crowds at all hours.“ says company spokeswoman Linda.（分数：10.00）(1).What does the phrase “open their wallets wide“ (Para. 3) mean?（分数：2.00）A.Let others take their money.B.Show off their wealth.C.Sp
19、end a lot of money.D.Buy big wallets.(2).How long was the holiday shopping season last year?（分数：2.00）A.Four weekends.B.Five weekends.C.Six weekends.D.Seven weekends.(3).What strategy is Best Buy taking to attract consumers?（分数：2.00）A.Going social in their countdown warnings.B.Targeting procrastinato
20、rs.C.Offering free shipping.D.Extending store hours.(4).On which day will J. C. Penney offer free shipping?（分数：2.00）A.Tuesday.B.Wednesday.C.Saturday.D.Friday.(5).When is the proper time to go shopping in Toys R Us before Christmas?（分数：2.00）A.11 p.m. Dec.25.B.10 p.m. Dec.24.C.6 a.m. Dec.20.D.6 a.m. D
21、ee.23.五、Text 2(总题数：1，分数：10.00)New research suggests that speaking more than one language may delay different kinds of dementia, that is the lost of mental ability. In fact, researchers say, speaking two languages appears to be more important than the level of education in defending against dementias
22、. A study in India examined the effect of knowing more than one language in delaying the first signs of several disorders. Researchers studied nearly 650 people whose average age was 66. 240 of those studied suffered from Alzheimer“s, the most common form of mental decline. 391 of the subjects spoke
23、 two or more languages. Investigators found the dementias began about four-and-a-half years later in those who spoke two languages compared to those who spoke only one language. Thomas Bak helped to organise the study. He is with the Center of Cognitive Aging at the University of Edinburgh in Scotla
24、nd. He suggests that individuals who speak more than one language train their brains by moving back and forth between different words and expressions. Mr. Bak believes this effort improves what scientists called executive functioning or attention to tasks, this mental ability often weakens in people
25、 with dementias. Researchers found there was no extra gain in speaking more than two languages. They also did not see a delay in the first signs of Lewy bodies dementia, the disorder causes patients to see or experience things that do not real exist. They can also cause sufferers to move back and fo
26、rth between being wide awake and really sleeping. Mr. Bak says it does not appear important whether you learn a language at a young age or later in life. “So it“s not something you sort of say that “you missed the boat when you do not do it as a baby“. It is something that is still quite useful and
27、powerful when you do it as an adult,“ he said. Scientists found that speaking more than one language help delay the first signs of dementias, even in those who could not read.（分数：10.00）(1).Which one is the most common phenomenon of mental decline?（分数：2.00）A.Losing the ability to speak.B.Failing to r
28、ecognize things.C.Suffering from Alzheimer“s disease.D.Being unable to fall asleep.(2).What did the study in India find?（分数：2.00）A.People started to suffer from dementias at the age of 66.B.Mental ability of people with dementias weakened.C.All people would suffer from dementias though the time vari
29、es.D.People who spoke only one language suffered from dementias earlier.(3).According to Thomas Bak, speaking more than one language can help delay dementias is because _.（分数：2.00）A.speaking different languages can slow down the aging processB.the process of learning a new language can benefit the b
30、rain a lotC.people who speak more than one language have younger spiritsD.the brains of people who speak more than one language get more training(4).What will happen when people have Lewy bodies dementia?（分数：2.00）A.They will be unable to move freely.B.They will be unable to see things.C.They will fo
31、rget their older memories.D.They will see things that do not really exist.(5).What can we learn from the passage?（分数：2.00）A.The more languages you speak, the later you have dementias.B.Leaning languages in adulthood is less useful to delay dementias.C.Those who cannot read can delay dementias by spe
32、aking different languages.D.Speaking two languages and the level of education are equally important.六、Text 3(总题数：1，分数：10.00)Amazon is looking at drastically reducing its delivery timesto 30 minutes or lessas it plans a new service called Prime Air that it says could debut in a few years. The giant o
33、nline retailer plans to use semi-autonomous drones to carry purchases to customers. CEO Jeff Bezos announced the plan Sunday on CBS“ 60 Minutes. Bezos tells Charlie Rose that Amazon“s “octocopter“ could be airborne within four to five years, using GPS coordinates to find customers. The drones would
34、depart from the retailer“s “fulfillment centers,“ the huge warehouses it has built near many large population centers in the U. S. and elsewhere. They can carry about five pounds, Bezos says, a figure that covers around 85 percent of Amazon“s products. The delivery drones would be particularly usefu
35、l in densely populated urban areas, Bezos says. Powered by electricity, their current range of operation is around 10 miles from the point of origin. Writing that “drones can explode, or run into things,“ the Quartz technology blog“s Heather Timmons notes that safety concerns may limit where the new
36、 delivery devices could be used. In addition to safety concerns, drones could face another challenge before they“re widely used for delivery: overcoming the possible suspicions of citizens who have mostly seen the unmanned aircraft mentioned in conjunction with military and surveillance uses. Rose“s
37、 interview of Bezos also touched on the retailer“s 10-year, $600 million contract with the CIA, through its Amazon Web Services unit. The company is using its technological expertise to build a computing cloud for the agency, Bezos said. When asked by Rose if that presented a conflict, Bezos answere
38、d, “We“re building what“s called a private cloud for them, Charlie, because they don“t want to be on the public cloud.“ Amazon isn“t alone in pursuing drone delivery. Earlier this year, a pilot project by Domino“s Pizza looked at flying hot pizzas to customers in Britain, posting a video of a succes
39、sful test run. That led the site Singularity Hub to observe: “So why are drones such a big deal? In our robotic future, anything that can reduce urban congestion, minimize carbon emissions, save money and save trips to the emergency room (car accidents kill, you know) will drive huge value in the ec
40、onomy and make our lives better, to boot.“（分数：10.00）(1).In order to shorten the delivery times, what has Amazon planned to do?（分数：2.00）A.Enhance the current air express services.B.Use the semi-automatic aircrafts to deliver goods.C.Equip its deliverymen with more advanced vehicles.D.Use GPS coordina
41、tors to deliver goods.(2).Which statement is TRUE about Amazon“s delivery drones?（分数：2.00）A.They can be used for Amazon“s purchase-delivery right now.B.They can deliver eighty-five percent of Amazon“s products.C.They can deliver the purchases to the remote areas.D.They can deliver the goods to a cus
42、tomer 15 miles away.(3).According to the passage, what is the safety concern about delivery drones?（分数：2.00）A.They can be used for surveillance.B.They can run out of control sometimes.C.They can burst into flames.D.They can be regarded as a military aircraft.(4).What does the phrase “save trips to t
43、he emergency room“ (Para.13) mean?（分数：2.00）A.Reduce the time of sending the injured to the emergency room.B.Reduce the traffic accidents in the future.C.Shorten the distance between the injured and the emergency room.D.Be more convenient to go to the emergency room.(5).What can be learned from this
44、passage?（分数：2.00）A.The “octocopter“ refers to Amazon“s purchase.B.Amazon is building a private cloud for itself.C.Amazon is the only company that is pursuing drone delivery.D.The author is optimistic about the future of drone delivery.七、Text 4(总题数：1，分数：10.00)Today, it“s certainly difficult to think
45、of any other single thing that represents modern America as powerfully as the company Disney that created Mickey Mouse. The reasons for Disney“s success are varied and numerous, but ultimately the credit belongs to one person, Walt Disney. He was a genius in plenty of other respects. But what really
46、 distinguished Disney was his ability to identify with his audiences. Disney always made sure his films championed the “little guy“, and made him feel proud to be American. This he achieved by creating characters that reflected the hopes and fears of ordinary people. Disney“s other great virtue was
47、the fact that his company had a human face. His Hollywood studio operated just like a democracy, where everyone was on first name terms and had a say in how things should be run. He was also regarded as a great patriot because not only did his cartoons celebrate America, but, during World War , stud
48、ios made training films for American soldiers. The reality, of course, was less ideal. As the public would later learn, Disney“s patriotism had an unpleasant side. After a strike by cartoonists in 1941, he agreed to work for the FBI as a spy, identifying and spying on colleagues whom he suspected we
49、re subversives. But, apart from his affiliations with the FBI, Disney was more or less the genuine article . A book, The Magic Kingdom: Walt Disney and the American Way of Life , by Steven Watts, confirms that he was very definitely on the side of ordinary Americansin the 1930s and 1940s he voted for Franklin Roosevelt, believing he was a champion of the workers. Also, Disney was not an apologist for the FBI, as some have suggested. In fact, he was always suspicious of large, bureaucratic organizations, as is evidenced in films like That Darn Cat, in which he portraye
