1、公共英语五级-阅读理解(十)及答案解析(总分：100.00，做题时间：90 分钟)一、Section Reading Co(总题数：0，分数：0.00)二、Part A(总题数：0，分数：0.00)三、Text 1(总题数：1，分数：15.00)Most of us are taught to pay attention to what is saidthe words. Words do provide us with some information, but meanings are derived from so many other sources that it would hin
2、der our effectiveness as a partner to a relationship to rely too heavily on words alone. Words are used to describe only a small part of the many ideas we associate with any given message. Sometimes we can gain insight into some of those associations if we listen for more than words. We dont always
3、say what we mean or mean what we say. Sometimes our words dont mean anything except “Im letting off some steam. I dont really want you to pay close attention to what Im saying. Just pay attention to what Im feeling“. Mostly we mean several things at once. A person wanting to purchase a house says to
4、 the current owner, “This step has to be fixed before Ill buy. “ The owner says, “Its been like that for years. “ Actually, the step hasnt been like that for years, but the unspoken message is. “I dont want to fix it. We put up with it. Why cant you?“ The search for a more expansive view of meaning
5、can be developed of examining a message in terms of who said it, when it occurred, the related conditions or situations, and how it was said.When a message occurs can also reveal associated meaning. Let us assume two couples do exactly the same amount of kissing and arguing. But one couple always ki
6、sses after an argument and the other couple always argues after a kiss. The ordering of the behaviors may mean a great deal more than the frequency of the behavior. A friends unusually docile behavior may only be understood by noting that it was preceded by situations that required an abnormal amoun
7、t of assertiveness. Some responses may be directly linked to a developing pattern of responses and defy logic. For example, a person who says “No!“ to a serials of charges like “Youre dumb,“ “Youre lazy,“ and “Youre dishonest,“ may also say “No!“ and try to justify his or her response if the next st
8、atement is “And youre good looking. “We would do well to listen for how messages are presented. The words, “It sure has been nice to have you over,“ can be said with emphasis and excitement or ritualistically. The phrase can be said once or repeated several times. And the meanings we associate with
9、the phrase will change accordingly. Sometimes if we say something infrequently, it assumes more importance; sometimes, the more we say something, the less importance it assumes.（分数：15.00）(1).Effective communication is rendered possible between two conversing partners, if _.Athey use proper words to
10、carry their ideasBthey both speak truly of their own feelingsCthey try to understand each others ideas beyond wordsDthey are capable of associating meaning with their words（分数：3.00）A.B.C.D.(2).“Im letting off some steam“ in Paragraph 1 means _.AIm just calling your attention BIm just kiddingCIm just
11、 saying the opposite DIm just giving off some sound（分数：3.00）A.B.C.D.(3).The house-owners example shows that he actually means _.Athe step has been like that for yearsBhe doesnt think it necessary to fix the stepCthe condition of the step is only a minor faultDthe cost involved in the fixing should b
12、e shared（分数：3.00）A.B.C.D.(4).Some responses and behaviors may appear very illogical, but are justifiable if _.Alinked to an abnormal amount of assertivenessBseen as ones habitual pattern of behaviorCtaken as part of an ordering sequenceDexpressed to a series of charges（分数：3.00）A.B.C.D.(5).The word “
13、ritualistically“ in the last paragraph equals something done _.Awithout true intention Blight-heartedlyCin a way of ceremony Dwith less emphasis（分数：3.00）A.B.C.D.四、Text 2(总题数：1，分数：15.00)You stare at waterfall for a minute or two, and then shift your gaze to its surroundings. What you now see appears
14、to drift upward.These optical illusions occur because the brain is constantly matching its model of reality to signals from the bodys sensors and interpreting what must be happeningthat your brain must have moved, not the other; that downward motions is now normal, so a change from it must now be pe
15、rceived as upward motion.The sensors that make this magic are of two kinds. Each eye contains about 120 million rods, which provide somewhat blurry black and white vision. These are the windows of night vision once adapted to the dark, they can detect a candle burning ten miles away.Color vision in
16、each eye comes from six to seven million structures called cones. Under ideal conditions, every cone can “see“ the entire rainbow spectrum of visible colors, but one type of cone is most sensitive to red, another to green, a third to blue.Rods and cones send their messages pulsing an average 20 to 2
17、5 times per second along the optic nerve. We see an image for a fraction of a second longer than it actually appears. In movies, reels of still photographs are projected onto screens at 24 frames per second, tricking our eyes into seeing a continuous moving picture.Like apparent motion, color vision
18、 is also subject to unusual effects. When day gives way to night, twilight brings what the poet T. S. Eliot called “the violet hour“. A light levels fall, the rods become progressively less responsive. Rods are most sensitive to the shorter wavelengths of blue and green, and they impart a strange vi
19、vidness to the gardens blue flowers.However, look at a white shirt during the reddish light of sunset, and youll still see it in its “true“ colorwhite, not red. Our eyes are constantly comparing an object against its surroundings. They therefore observe the effect of a shift in the color of illumina
20、ting on both, and adjust accordingly.The eyes can distinguish several million graduations of light and shade of color. Each waking second they flash tens of millions of pieces of information to the brain, which weaves them incessantly into a picture of the world around us.Yet all this is done at the
21、 back of each eye by a fabric of sensors, called the retina, about as wide and as thick as a postage amp. As the Renaissance inventor and artist Leonardo da Vinci wrote in wonder, “Who would believe that so small a space could contain the images of all the universe?/（分数：15.00）(1).Visual illusions of
22、ten take place when the image of reality is _.Amatched to six to seven million structures called conesBconfused in the bodys sensors of both rods and conesCinterpreted in the brain as what must be the caseDsignaled by about 120 million rods in the eye（分数：3.00）A.B.C.D.(2).The visual sensor that is ca
23、pable of distinguishing shades of color is called _.Acones Bcolor vision Crods Dspectrum（分数：3.00）A.B.C.D.(3).The retina send pulses to the brain _.Ain short wavelengths Bas color picturesCby a ganglion cell Dalong the optic nerve.（分数：3.00）A.B.C.D.(4).Twenty-four still photographs are made into a con
24、tinuous moving picture just because _.Athe image we see usually stays longer than it actually appearsBwe see an object in comparison with its surroundingsCthe eyes catch million pieces of information continuouslyDrods and cones send messages 20 to 25 times a second（分数：3.00）A.B.C.D.(5).The authors pu
25、rpose in writing the passage lies in _.Ashowing that we sometimes are deceived by our own eyesBinforming us about the different functions of the eye organsCregretting that we are too slow in the study of eyesDmarveling at the great work done by the retina（分数：3.00）A.B.C.D.五、Text 3(总题数：1，分数：15.00)Femi
26、nist sociolinguists (社会语言学家), over the course of the last few decades, have conducted studies that they believe and support the conclusion that women are routinely discriminated against in English-speaking society. They point to the words used to describe women, as well as the words used to describe
27、 society as a whole, as indications that the English language, and therefore the English-speaking culture, is slanted towards the advantage of males.The words used to describe women are used as instrument by feminist sociolinguists to denote an inherent sexism in the English language. Word pairs suc
28、h as master and mistress and sir and madam, they claim, epitomize such sexism. All of the words in question once held positive connotations but, while the masculine (男性的) forms have retained their respectable associations, the feminine forms have undergone pejoration and now imply sexual promiscuity
29、 (混杂) and other negative characteristics. Feminist researchers assume that such pejoration indicate that the status of women in English-speaking society is relatively low.These researchers also find fault with the use of masculine words to describe unisex entities. For example, they feel that there
30、is nothing inherently mainly about mankind, the best man for the job, or the common man. Similarly, the use of such constructions as the “the average students is worried about his grades“ indicate to these researchers an inherent sexism in English that is reflective of the cultures in which they are
31、 produced.Carolyn Jacobson, author of Non-sexist Language has proposed a solution to this conundrum (难题). She advocates the elimination of all sexed words in favor of gender-neutral terms. No longer should we refer to actors and actresses or waiters and waitresses, as such dichotomies (男女有别) allow f
32、or the possibility of negative connotations being associated with the feminine designation. Likewise, she believes that phrases such as mankind should give way to humankind and that the use of the masculine pronoun as the default should be abandoned in favor of neutral constructions. Thus, when sexi
33、sm is eliminated from the English language, the culture will be more amenable to the deliverance of women as well.（分数：15.00）(1).The primary purpose of this passage is to _.Acompare and contrast ideology in various culturesBprove a commonly held belief to be wrongCdescribe a problem and a possible so
34、lutionDanalyze the historical origins of a modern situation（分数：3.00）A.B.C.D.(2).According to the passage, gender-neutral constructions should be advocated because _.Athe elimination of sexism in the English language will precede the elimination of sexism in the cultureBthey are more grammatically so
35、und than sexed structuresCunisex terms are less awkward in casual speechDsex-specific terms always carry negative connotations（分数：3.00）A.B.C.D.(3).The author refers to mankind, the best man for the job, and the common man in order to _.Ademonstrate the superiority of males in English-speaking societ
36、yBprovide an example of speech that is slanted towards the advantage of malesClist the characteristics of the feminist sociolinguist movementDdiscount the notion that the English language discriminates against women（分数：3.00）A.B.C.D.(4).The word “perjoration“ most probably means _.Anegative connotati
37、on Bpositive connotationCsexual characteristic Drespectable characteristic（分数：3.00）A.B.C.D.(5).In favor of gender-neutral terms, which of the following words can be used to describe unisex entities?AMankind. BChairperson. CSuperman. DDragon lady.（分数：3.00）A.B.C.D.六、Part B(总题数：1，分数：15.00)The year 1972
38、 was marked by publication of a controversial book, The Limits to Growth. This study of the worlds future, done by a team of MIT scientists with the aid of computer “modes“ of the future of our society, forecast a planet-wide disaster unless humankind sharply limits its population growth and consump
39、tion of natural resources.(16) Many refused to believe that disaster is possible, probable, inevitableif we dont change our mode of running Spaceship Earth. But for science fiction people were neither surprised nor outraged. The study was really old news to them. Theyd been making their own “models“
40、 of tomorrow and testing them all their lives.For what the scientists attempted with their computer model is very much like the thing that science fiction writers and readers have been doing for decades. Instead of using a computer to “model“ a future world society, science fiction writers have used
41、 their human imaginations; This gives the writers some enormous advantages.(17) Science fiction writers are not in the business of predicting the future. They do something much more important. They try to show the many possible futures that lie open to us.For there is not simply a future, a time to
42、come thats inevitable. Our future is built, hit by bit, minute by minute, by the actions of human beings. One vital role of science fiction is to show what kinds of future might result from certain kinds of human actions.(18) For while a scientists job has largely ended when hes reduced his data to
43、tabular or graph form, the work of a science fiction writer is just beginning. His task is to convey the human story: the scientific basis for the possible future of his story is merely the background. Perhaps “merely“ is too limiting a word. Much of science fiction consists of precious little excep
44、t the background, the basic idea, the gimmick. But the best of science fiction, the stories that make a lasting impact on generations of readers, are stories about people. The people may be non-human. They may be robots or other types of machines. But they will be people, in the sense that human rea
45、ders can feel for them, share their joys and sorrows, their dangers and their ultimate successes.(19) The formula for telling a powerful story has remained the same: create a strong character, a person of great strengths, capable of deep emotions and decisive action. Give him a weakness. Set him in
46、conflict with another powerful characteror perhaps with nature. Let his exterior conflict be the mirror of the protagonists own interior conflict, the clash of his desires, his own strength against his own weakness. And there you have a story. Whether its Abraham offering his only son to God, or Par
47、is bringing ruin to Troy over a woman, or Hamlet and Claudius playing their deadly game, Faust seeking the worlds knowledge and powerthe stories that stand out in the minds of the readers are those whose characters are unforgettable.(20) The writer of science fiction must show how these worlds and t
48、hese futures affect human beings. And something much more important, he must show how human beings can and do literally create these future worlds. For our future is largely in our own hands. It doesnt come blindly rolling out of the heavens; it is the joint product of the actions of billions of hum
49、an beings. This is a point thats easily forgotten in the rush of headlines and the hectic badgering of everyday life. But its a point that science fiction makes constantly, the future belongs to uswhatever it is. We make it, and our actions shape tomorrow. We have the brains and guts to build paradise (or at least try). Tragedy is when we fail, and the greatest crime of all is when we fail even to try.Thus science
