1、2007 年 8 月美国托福英语考试（TOEFL）阅读真题精选及答案解析(总分：104.00，做题时间：150 分钟)一、REAFING(总题数：5，分数：104.00)Early CinemaThe cinema did not emerge as a form of mass consumption until its technology evolved from the initial “peepshow“ format to the point where images were projected on a screen in a darkened theater. In the
2、peepshow format, a film was viewed through a small opening in a machine that was created for that purpose. Thomas Edisons peepshow device, the Kinetoscope, was introduced to the public in 1894. It was designed for use in Kinetoscope parlors, or arcades, which contained only a few individual machines
3、 and permitted only one customer to view a short, 50-foot film at any one time. The first Kinetoscope parlors contained five machines. For the price of 25 cents (or 5 cents per machine), customers moved from machine to machine to watch five different films (or, in the case of famous prizefights, suc
4、cessive rounds of a single fight).These Kinetoscope arcades were modeled on phonograph parlors, which had proven successful for Edison several years earlier. In the phonograph parlors, customers listened to recordings through individual ear tubes, moving from one machine to the next to hear differen
5、t recorded speeches or pieces of music. The Kinetoscope parlors functioned in a similar way. Edison was more interested in the sale of Kinetoscopes (for roughly $1,000 apiece) to these parlors than in the films that would be run in them (which cost approximately $10 to $15 each). He refused to devel
6、op projection technology, reasoning that if he made and sold projectors, then exhibitors would purchase only one machine-a projector-from him instead of several.Exhibitors, however, wanted to maximize their profits, which they could do more readily by projecting a handful of films to hundreds of cus
7、tomers at a time (rather than one at a time) and by charging 25 to 50 cents admission. About a year after the opening of the first Kinetoscope parlor in 1894, showmen such as Louis and Auguste Lumiere, Thomas Armat and Charles Francis Jenkins, and Orville and Woodville Latham (with the assistance of
8、 Edisons former assistant, William Dickson) perfected projection devices. These early projection devices were used in vaudeville theaters, legitimate theaters, local town halls, makeshift storefront theaters, fairgrounds, and amusement parks to show films to a mass audience.With the advent of projec
9、tion in 1895-1896, motion pictures became the ultimate form of mass consumption. Previously, large audiences had viewed spectacles at the theater, where vaudeville, popular dramas, musical and minstrel shows, classical plays, lectures, and slide-and-lantern shows had been presented to several hundre
10、d spectators at a time. But the movies differed significantly from these other forms of entertainment, which depended on either live performance or (in the case of the slide-and-lantern shows) the active involvement of a master of ceremonies who assembled the final program.Although early exhibitors
11、regularly accompanied movies with live acts, the substance of the movies themselves is mass-produced, prerecorded material that can easily be reproduced by theaters with little or no active participation by the exhibitor. Even though early exhibitors shaped their film programs by mixing films and ot
12、her entertainments together in whichever way they thought would be most attractive to audiences or by accompanying them with lectures, their creative control remained limited. What audiences came to see was the technological marvel of the movies; the lifelike reproduction of the commonplace motion o
13、f trains, of waves striking the shore, and of people walking in the street; and the magic made possible by trick photography and the manipulation of the camera.With the advent of projection, the viewers relationship with the image was no longer private, as it had been with earlier peepshow devices s
14、uch as the Kinetoscope and the Mutoscope, which was a similar machine that reproduced motion by means of successive images on individual photographic cards instead of on strips of celluloid. It suddenly became public-an experience that the viewer shared with dozens, scores, and even hundreds of othe
15、rs. At the same time, the image that the spectator looked at expanded from the minuscule peepshow dimensions of 1 or 2 inches (in height) to the life-size proportions of 6 or 9 feet.（分数：22）(1).According to paragraph 1, all of the following were true of viewing films in Kinetoscope parlors EXCEPT:（分数
16、：2）A.One individual at a time viewed a film.B.Customers could view one film after another.C.Prizefights were the most popular subjects for films.D.Each film was short.(2).The author discusses phonograph parlors in paragraph 2 in order to（分数：2）A.Explain Edisons financial successB.Describe the model u
17、sed to design Kinetoscope parlorsC.Contrast their popularity to that of Kinetoscope parlorsD.Illustrate how much more technologically advanced Kinetoscope parlors were(3).Which of the sentences below best expresses the essential information in the highlighted sentence from the passage?（分数：2）A.Edison
18、 was more interested in developing a variety of machines than in developing a technology based on only one.B.Edison refused to work on projection technology because he did not think exhibitors would replace their projectors with newer machines.C.Edison did not want to develop projection technology b
19、ecause it limited the number of machines he could sell.D.Edison would not develop projection technology unless exhibitors agreed to purchase more than one projector from him.(4).The word readily in the passage is closest in meaning to（分数：2）A.FrequentlyB.EasilyC.IntelligentlyD.Obviously(5).The word a
20、ssistance in the passage is closest in meaning to（分数：2）A.CriticismB.LeadershipC.HelpD.Approval(6).According to paragraph 4, how did the early movies differ from previous spectacles that were presented to large audiences?（分数：2）A.They were a more expensive form of entertainment.B.They were viewed by l
21、arger audiences.C.They were more educational.D.They did not require live entertainers.(7).According to paragraph 5, what role did early exhibitors play in the presentation of movies in theaters?（分数：2）A.They decided how to combine various components of the film program.B.They advised film-makers on a
22、ppropriate movie content.C.They often took part in the live-action performances.D.They produced and prerecorded the material that was shown in the theaters.(8).Which of the following is mentioned in paragraph 6 as one of the ways the Mutoscope differed from the Kinetoscope?（分数：2）A.Sound and motion w
23、ere simultaneously produced in the Mutoscope.B.More than one person could view the images at the same time with the Mutoscope.C.The Mutoscope was a less sophisticated earlier prototype of the Kinetoscope.D.A different type of material was used to produce the images used in the Mutocope.(9).The word
24、it in the passage refers to（分数：2）A.The advent of projectionB.The viewers relationship with the imageC.A similar machineD.Celluloid(10).According to paragraph 6, the images seen by viewers in the earlier peepshows, compared to the images projected on the screen, were relatively（分数：2）A.Small in sizeB.
25、Inexpensive to createC.UnfocusedD.Limited in subject matter(11).The word expanded in the passage is closest in meaning to（分数：2）A.Was enlargedB.Was improvedC.Was variedD.Was rejectedAggressionWhen one animal attacks another, it engages in the most obvious example of aggressive behavior. Psychologists
26、 have adopted several approaches to understanding aggressive behavior in people.The Biological Approach. Numerous biological structures and chemicals appear to be involved in aggression. One is the hypothalamus, a region of the brain. In response to certain stimuli, many animals show instinctive agg
27、ressive reactions. The hypothalamus appears to be involved in this inborn reaction pattern: electrical stimulation of part of the hypothalamus triggers stereotypical aggressive behaviors in many animals. In people, however, whose brains are more complex, other brain structures apparently moderate po
28、ssible instincts.An offshoot of the biological approach called sociobiology suggests that aggression is natural and even desirable for people. Sociobiology views much social behavior, including aggressive behavior, as genetically determined. Consider Darwins theory of evolution. Darwin held that man
29、y more individuals are produced than can find food and survive into adulthood. A struggle for survival follows. Those individuals who possess characteristics that provide them with an advantage in the struggle for existence are more likely to survive and contribute their genes to the next generation
30、. In many species, such characteristics include aggressiveness. Because aggressive individuals are more likely to survive and reproduce, whatever genes are linked to aggressive behavior are more likely to be transmitted to subsequent generations.The sociobiology view has been attacked on numerous gr
31、ounds. One is that peoples capacity to outwit other species, not their aggressiveness, appears to be the dominant factor in human survival. Another is that there is too much variation among people to believe that they are dominated by, or at the mercy of, aggressive impulses.The Psychodynamic Approa
32、ch. Theorists adopting the psychodynamic approach hold that inner conflicts are crucial for understanding human behavior, including aggression. Sigmund Freud, for example, believed that aggressive impulses are inevitable reactions to the frustrations of daily life. Children normally desire to vent a
33、ggressive impulses on other people, including their parents, because even the most attentive parents cannot gratify all of their demands immediately. Yet children, also fearing their parents punishment and the loss of parental love, come to repress most aggressive impulses. The Freudian perspective,
34、 in a sense: sees us as “steam engines.“ By holding in rather than venting “steam,“ we set the stage for future explosions. Pent-up aggressive impulses demand outlets. They may be expressed toward parents in indirect ways such as destroying furniture, or they may be expressed toward strangers later
35、in life.According to psychodynamic theory, the best ways to prevent harmful aggression may be to encourage less harmful aggression. In the steam-engine analogy, verbal aggression may vent some of the aggressive steam. So might cheering on ones favorite sports team. Psychoanalysts, therapists adoptin
36、g a psychodynamic approach, refer to the venting of aggressive impulses as “catharsis.“ Catharsis is theorized to be a safety valve. But research findings on the usefulness of catharsis are mixed. Some studies suggest that catharsis leads to reductions in tension and a lowered likelihood of future a
37、ggression. Other studies, however, suggest that letting some steam escape actually encourages more aggression later on.The Cognitive Approach. Cognitive psychologists assert that our behavior is influenced by our values, by the ways in which we interpret our situations and by choice. For example, pe
38、ople who believe that aggression is necessary and justified-as during wartime-are likely to act aggressively, whereas people who believe that a particular war or act of aggression is unjust, or who think that aggression is never justified, are less likely to behave aggressively.One cognitive theory
39、suggests that aggravating and painful events trigger unpleasant feelings. These feelings, in turn, can lead to aggressive action, but not automatically. Cognitive factors intervene. People decide whether they will act aggressively or not on the basis of factors such as their experiences with aggress
40、ion and their interpretation of other peoples motives. Supporting evidence comes from research showing that aggressive people often distort other peoples motives. For example, they assume that other people mean them harm when they do not.（分数：20）(1).According to paragraph 2, what evidence indicates t
41、hat aggression in animals is related to the hypothalamus?（分数：2）A.Some aggressive animal species have a highly developed hypothalamus.B.Electrical stimulation of the hypothalamus delays animals inborn reaction patterns.C.Animals behaving aggressively show increased activity in the hypothalamus.D.Anim
42、als who lack a hypothalamus display few aggressive tendencies.(2).According to Darwins theory of evolution, members of a species are forced to struggle for survival because（分数：2）A.Not all individuals are skilled in finding foodB.Individuals try to defend their young against attackersC.Many more indi
43、viduals are born than can survive until the age of reproductionD.Individuals with certain genes are more likely to reach adulthood(3).The word inevitable in the passage is closest in meaning to（分数：2）A.UnavoidableB.RegrettableC.ControllableD.Unsuitable(4).The word gratify in the passage is closest in
44、 meaning to（分数：2）A.IdentifyB.ModifyC.SatisfyD.Simplify(5).The word they in the passage refers to（分数：2）A.Future explosionsB.Pent-up aggressive impulsesC.OutletsD.Indirect ways(6).According to paragraph 5, Freud believed that children experience conflict between a desire to vent aggression on their pa
45、rents and（分数：2）A.A frustration that their parents do not give them everything they wantB.A fear that their parents will punish them and stop loving themC.A desire to take care of their parentsD.A desire to vent aggression on other family members(7).Freud describes people as steam engines in order to
46、 make the point that people（分数：2）A.Deliberately build up their aggression to make themselves strongerB.Usually release aggression in explosive waysC.Must vent their aggression to prevent it from building upD.Typically lose their aggression if they do not express it(8).Which of the sentences below be
47、st expresses the essential information in the highlighted sentence in the passage?（分数：2）A.People who believe that they are fighting a just war act aggressively while those who believe that they are fighting an unjust war do not.B.People who believe that aggression is necessary and justified are more
48、 likely to act aggressively than those who believe differentlyC.People who normally do not believe that aggression is necessary and justified may act aggressively during wartimeD.People who believe that aggression is necessary and justified do not necessarily act aggressively during wartime.(9).Acco
49、rding to the cognitive approach described in paragraphs 7 and 8, all of the following may influence the decision whether to act aggressively EXCEPT a persons（分数：2）A.Moral valuesB.Previous experiences with aggressionC.Instinct to avoid aggressionD.Beliefs about other peoples intentions(10).The word distort in the passage is closest in meaning to（分数：2）A.MistrustB.MisinterpretC.CriticizeD.ResentArtisans and IndustrializationBefore 1815 manufacturing in the United States had been done in homes or shops by skilled artisans. As master craft workers, they imparted the knowledge of thei
