1、考研英语-293 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)BDirections:/BRead the following text. Choose the best word(s) for each numbered blank and mark A, B, C or D on ANSWER SHEET 1. The communications explosion is on the scale of the rail, automobile or telephone revolution. Very soon
2、youll be able to record your entire lifeU (1) /Uanything a microphone or a camera can sense you Il be able toU (2) /U. In particular, the number of images a person captures in a lifetime is set to rise exponentially. The thousandU (3) /Ua year I take of my children on a digital camera are all precio
3、us to me.U (4) /Ua generation s time, my children s children will have total image documentation of their entire livesaU (5) /Ulog of tremendous personal value.By then well be wrestling with another question: how we control all the electronicU (6) /Uconnected to the internet: trillions of PCs, lapto
4、ps, cell phones and other gadgets. In Cambridge, were already workingU (7) /Umillimetre-square computing and sensing devices that can be linked to the internet through the radio network. This sort ofU (8) /Uwill expand dramaticallyU (9) /Umicroscopic communications devices become dirt-cheap and mult
5、iply. Just imagineU (10) /Uthe paint on the wall could do if it had this sort of communications dust in it: change colour, play music, show movies or even speak to you.U (11) /Ucosts raise other possibilities too.U (12) /Ulaunching space vehicles is about to become very much cheaper, the number of s
6、atellites is likely to go up exponentially. There s lots ofU (13) /Uup there so we could have millions of them. And if you have millions of loworbit satellites, you can establish aU (14) /Ucommunications network that completely does away with towers and masts. If the satellites worked on the cellula
7、r principle so you got spatial reuse of frequencies, systemU (15) /Uwould be amazing. Speech is soU (16) /Uthat I expect voice communication to become almost free eventually: you 11 pay just a monthly fixedU (17) /Uand be able to make as many calls as you want. By then people will also have fixed li
8、nks with businessU (18) /U, friends and relatives. One day IU (19) /Ubeing able to keep in touch with my family in Poland on a fibreoptic audio-videoU (20) /U; well be able to have a little ceremony at supper-time, open the curtains and sit down “together“ to eat.（分数：10.00）A.electricallyB.electronic
9、allyC.automaticallyD.technicallyA.reserveB.conserveC.restoreD.storeA.picturesB.imagesC.drawingsD.episodesA.DuringB.AfterC.InD.BetweenA.visualB.videoC.digitalD.audioA.equipmentsB.devicesC.appliancesD.noveltiesA.toB.onC.forD.withA.conversionB.interactionC.connectivityD.continuityA.asB.ifC.afterD.befor
10、eA.whatB.thatC.whichD.asA.IncreasingB.FallingC.ReducingD.RfocketingA.WhenB.ThoughC.IfD.BecauseA.distanceB.vacancyC.spaceD.gapA.universalB.globalC.solarD.lunarA.capacityB.capabilityC.competencyD.contentA.intricateB.availableC.flexibleD.fluctuantA.subsidyB.chargeC.tuitionD.revenueA.contactsB.communica
11、tionsC.conversationsD.interactionsA.anticipateB.intendC.expectD.dreamA.routeB.tunnelC.linkD.path二、BSection Readi(总题数：4，分数：40.00)BPart A/BBDirections:/BRead the following four texts. Answer the questions below each text by choosing A, B, C or D. Mark your answers on ANSWER SHEET 1. BText 1/BFew insec
12、ts have inspired as much fear and hatred as the diminutive fire ants, less than half an inch long but living in colonies of more than 250,000 others. Everyone in the southern United States gets to know fire ants sooner or later by painful experience. Fire ants live in large earthen mounds and are tr
13、ue social insects-that means they have a caste system ( division of labor), with a specialized caste that lays eggs (queen) and a worker caste of sterile females. There are several reasons that they are considered pests. About 60% of people living in areas where fire ants occur are stung every year.
14、 Of these, about 1% have some degree of allergic reaction ( called anaphylaxis) to the sting. Their large mounds are unsightly and can damage mowing equipment. Fire ants sometimes enter electrical and mechanical equipment and can short out switches or chew through insulation. Finally. as fire ants m
15、ove into new areas, they reduce diversity of native ants and prey on larger animals such as ground-nesting birds and turtles.Even though fire ants are pests in many circumstances, they can actually be beneficial in others. There is evidence that their predatory activities can reduce the numbers of s
16、ome other important pests. In cotton, for example, they prey on important pests that eat cotton plants such as bollworms and budworms. In Louisiana sugarcane, an insect called the sugarcane borer used to be a very important pest before fire ants arrived and began preying on it. Fire ants also prey o
17、n ticks and fleas.Whether fire ants are considered pest or not depend on where they are found, but one thing is surewe had best get used to living with them. Eradication attempts in the 1960s and 1970s failed for a number of reasons, and scientists generally agree that complete elimination of fire a
18、nts from the United States is not possible. A new, long-term approach to reducing fire ant populations Involves classical biological control. When fire ants were accidentally brought to the United States, most of their parasites and diseases were not. Classical biological control involves identifyin
19、g parasites and diseases specific to fire ants in South America, testing them to be sure that they don t attack or infect native plants or animals and establishing them in the Introduced fire ant population In the United States. Since fire ants are about 5 to 7 times more abundant here than in South
20、 America, scientists hope to reduce their numbers using this approach.（分数：10.00）(1).The word “caste“ ( line 4, paragraph 1 ) most probably means（分数：2.00）A.throwing.B.castle.C.rank.D.level.(2).Which of the following is a reason why fire ants are considered pests?（分数：2.00）A.They may cause possible mec
21、hanical breakdowns to mowing equipment.B.A person has a 60% chance to be stung by fire ants every year.C.1% of the fire ants will cause allergic reactions to the people stung.D.They will disrupt the food chain by killing off other ants and larger animals.(3).That fire ants prey on bollworms and budw
22、orms is mentioned to show that（分数：2.00）A.pests often attack each other to maintain a balance of nature.B.fire ants are not always harmful pests in given situations.C.fire ants are stronger and fiercer than bollworms and budworms.D.pests are either harmful or beneficial to people or plants.(4).Whethe
23、r fire ants are pests or not largely depends on their（分数：2.00）A.predatory activities.B.temporal distribution.C.spreading speed.D.geographical distribution.(5).The author s tone in talking about fire ants in the US seems to be（分数：2.00）A.critical.B.indifferent.C.fearful.D.objective.BText 2/BIf you smo
24、ke, you d better hurry. From July 1st pubs all over England will, by law, be no-smoking areas. So will restaurants, offices and even company cars, if more than one person uses them. England s smokers are following a well-trodden path. The other three bits of the United Kingdom have already banned sm
25、oking in almost all enclosed public spaces, and there are anti-smoking laws of varying strictness over most of Western Europe. The smoker s journey from glamour through toleration to suspicion is finally reaching its end in pariah status.But behind this public-health success story lies a darker tale
26、. Poorer people are much more likely to smoke than richer onesa change from the 1950s, when professionals and laborers were equally keen. Today only 15% of men in the highest professional classes smoke, but 42% of unskined workers do. Despite punitive taxation20 cigarettes cost around 5.00 ( $10.00)
27、, three-quarters of which is tax55% of single mothers on benefits smoke. The figure for homeless men is even higher; for hard-drug users it is practically 100%. The message that smoking kills has been heard, it seems, but not by all.Having defeated the big killers of the pastwant, exposure, poor san
28、itationgovernments all over the developed world are turning their attention to diseases that stem mostly from how individuals choose to live their lives. But the same deafness afflicts the same people when they are strongly encouraged to give up other sorts of unhealthy behavior. The lower down they
29、 are on practically any pecking order-job prestige, income, education, background-the more likely people are to be fat and unfit, and to drink too much.That tempts governments to shout ever louder in an attempt to get the public to listenand nowhere do they do so more aggressively than in Britain. O
30、ne reason is that pecking orders matter more than in most other rich countries: income distribution is very unequal and the unemployed, disaffected, ill-educated rump is comparatively large. Another reason is the frustration of a government addicted to targets, which often aim not only to improve so
31、mething but to lessen inequality in the process. A third is that the National Health Service is free to patients, and paying for those who have arguably brought their ill-health on themselves grows alarmingly costly.Britains aggressiveness, however, may be pointless, even counter-productive. There i
32、s no reason to believe that those who ignore measured voices will listen to shouting. It irritates the majority who are already behaving responsibly, and it may also undermine all government pronouncements on health by convincing people that they have an ultra-cautious margin of error built in.Such
33、hectoring may also be missing the root cause of the problem. According to Mr. Marmot, who cites research on groups as diverse as baboons in captivity, British civil servants and Oscar nominees, the higher rates of iii health among those in more modest walks of life can be attributed to what he calls
34、 the “status syndrome“. People in privileged positions think they are worth the effort of behaving healthily, and find the will-power to do so. The implication is that it is easier to improve a person s health by weakening the connection between social position and health than by targeting behavior
35、directly. Same public-health experts speak of social cohesion, support for families and better education for all. These are bigger undertakings than a bossy campaign; but more effective, and quieter.（分数：10.00）(1).The word “pariah“( line 6 ,paragraph 1 ) is closest in meaning to（分数：2.00）A.prohibition
36、.B.strictness.C.pardon.D.punishment.(2).The author seems to be suspicious of the public-health success because（分数：2.00）A.the message that smoking kills isnt voiced loudly enough.B.unskilled workers are more willing to pay for the heavy tax in cigarettes.C.single mothers are more likely to use their
37、benefits to buy cigarettes.D.the positive effects are yielded mostly on the richer population.(3).According to the text, why does the same deafness afflict the same people?（分数：2.00）A.Because governments all turned their attention to these people.B.Because these people are more likely to have unhealt
38、hy behaviors.C.Because these people suffer more from their poor income and education.D.Because governments always neglect the real needs of these people.(4).Which of the following is NOT a reason for Britains aggressiveness in the public-health campaign?（分数：2.00）A.The government is frustrated in cur
39、ing smoking-related diseases.B.The government is keen on eliminating social unfairness.C.The free health service proves very expensive.D.The gap between the rich and the poor is very big.(5).The author seems to believe that status syndrome may be cured（分数：2.00）A.if the measures can actually weaken t
40、he relationship between social position and health.B.if the government shouts louder in their campaign against diseases resulting from unhealthy habits.C.if the government helps people find a stronger will power to give up their unhealthy habits.D.ff the government undertakes bigger and more effecti
41、ve ad campaigns against poor education.BText 3/BA very important world problem, if not the most serious of all the great world problems which affect us at the moment, is the increasing number of people who actually inhabit this planet. The limited amount of land and land resources will soon be unabl
42、e to support the huge population if it continues to grow at its present rate.In an early survey conducted in 1888, a billion and a half people inhabited the earth. Now, the population exceeds five billion and is growing fastby the staggering figure of 90 million in 1988 alone. This means that the wo
43、rld must accommodate a new population roughly equal to that of the United States and Canada every three years! Even though the rate of growth has begun to slow down, most experts believe the population size will still pass eight billion during the next 50 years.So why is this huge Increase in popula
44、tion taking place? It is really due to the spread of the knowledge and practice of what is becoming known as “Death Control“. You have no doubt heard of the term “Birth Control“ Death Control“ is something rather different. It recognizes the work of the doctors and scientists who now keep alive peop
45、le who, not very long ago, would have died of a variety of then incurable diseases. Through a wide variety of technological innovations that include farming methods and sanitation, as well as the control of these deadly diseases, we have found ways to reduce the rate at which we diecreating a popula
46、tion explosion. We used to think that reaching seventy years old was a remarkable achievement, but now eighty or even ninety is becoming recognized as the normal life-span for humans. In a sense, this represents a tremendous achievement for our species. Biologically this is the very definition of su
47、ccess and we have undoubtedly become the dominant animal on the planet. However, this Success is the very cause of the greatest threat to mankind.Man is constantly destroying the very resources which keep him alive. He is destroying the balance of nature which regulates climate and the atmosphere, p
48、roduces and maintains healthy soils, provides food from the seas, etc. In short, by only considering our needs of today, we are ensuring there will be no tomorrow.An understanding of man s effect on the balance of nature is crucial to be able to find the appropriate remedial action. It is a very com
49、mon belief that the problems of the population explosion are caused mainly by poor people living in poor countries who do not know enough to limit their reproduction. This is not true. The actual number of people in an area is not as important as the effect they have on nature. Developing countries do have an effect on their environment, but
