【考研类试卷】考博英语-241及答案解析.doc

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1、考博英语-241 及答案解析(总分：110.00，做题时间：90 分钟)一、Section Reading Com(总题数：4，分数：20.00)1All animals must rest, but do they really sleep as we know it? The answer to this question seems obvious. If an animal regularly stops its activities and stays quiet and un moving-if it looks as though it is sleepingthen why n

2、ot simply assume that it is in fact sleeping? But how can observers be sure that an animal is sleeping?They can watch the animal and notice whether its eyes are open or closed, whether it is active or lying quietly, and whether it responds to light or sound. These actors are im portant clues, but th

3、ey often are not enough. Horses and cows, for example, rarely close their eyes, and fish and snakes cannot close them. Yet this does not necessarily mean that they do not sleep. Have you ever seen a cat dozing with an eye partly open? Even humans have occasionally been observed to sleep with one or

4、both eyes partially open. Animals do not necessarily lie down to sleep either. Elephants, for example, often sleep standing up, with their tusks resting in the fork of a tree. Finally, while “sleeping“ animals often seem unaware of changes in the sounds and light and other stimuli around them, that

5、does not really prove they are sleeping either.Observations of animal behavior alone cannot fully answer the question of whether or not animals sleep. The answers come from doing experiments in sleep laboratories, using a machine called the electroencephalograph (EEC). The machine is connected to an

6、imals and measures their brain signals, breathing, heartbeat, and muscle activity. The measure- ments are dierent when the animals appear to be sleeping than when they appear to be awake. Using the EEC, scientists have confirmed that all birds and mammals studied in laboratories do sleep. There is s

7、ome evidence that reptiles, such as snakes and turtles, do not truly sleep, although they do have periods of rest each day, in which they are quiet and unmoving. They also have discovered that some animals, like chimpanzees, cats, and moles (who live underground), are good sleepers while others, lik

8、e sheep, goats, and donkeys, are poor sleepers. Interestingly, the good sleepers are nearly all hunters with rest ing places that are safe from their enemies. Nearly all the poor sleepers are animals hunted by other animals: they must always be watching for enemies, even when they are resting.（分数：5.

9、00）(1).According to the author, all animals_.（分数：1.00）A.spend some time restingB.close their eyes when sleepingC.are good sleepersD.are poor sleepers(2).The statement “Horses and cows, for example, rarely close their eyes“ aims to show that_.（分数：1.00）A.these animals rarely need any restB.they almost

10、 always keep alert to dangerC.they often stay awakeD.their eyes are rarely closed even when they are asleep(3).How can researchers in “sIeep laboratories“ tell that the animals they are observing are asleep or not?（分数：1.00）A.They see if the animals respond to light and sound.B.They do this by observ

11、ing changes in the animals brain signals, breathing, heart beat, and muscle activity.C.They see if the animals eyes are closed.D.They can tell this by seeing if the animals lie down or not.(4).According to the research findings mentioned in the passage, reptiles_.（分数：1.00）A.such as turtles and snake

12、s cannot close their eyesB.cannot be studied with an EECC.do not sleep in the true sense of wordD.do not need to rest(5).Animals that are good sleepers_.（分数：1.00）A.need to have a good sleep after they have exhausted themselves by getting rid of hunting animalsB.need to have a good sleep after they g

13、et tired from hunting other animalsC.are all mammalsD.almost always have a safe resting place2Analysts have had their go at humor, and I have read some of this interpretative liter ature, but without being greatly instructed. Humor can be dissected, as a frog can, but the thing dies in the process a

14、nd the innards (内在部分) are discouraging to any but the pure scientific mind.In a newsreel theatre the other day I saw a picture of a man who had developed the soap bubble to a higher point than it had ever before reached. He had become the ace soap bubble blower of America, had perfected the business

15、 of blowing bubbles, refined it, doubled it, squared it, and had even worked himself up into a convenient lather. The effect was not pretty. Some of the bubbles were too big to be beautiful, and the blower was always jumping into them or out of them, or playing some sort of unattractive trick with t

16、hem. It was, if anything, a rather repulsive sight. Humor is a little like that: it wont stand much blowing up, and it wont stand much poking. It has a certain fragility, an evasiveness, which one had best respect. Essentially, it is a complete mystery. A hu man frame convulsed with laughter, and th

17、e laughter becoming mysterious and uncontrol lable, is as far out of balance as one shaken with the hiccoughs or in the throes of a sneez ing fit.One of the things commonly said about humorists is that they are really very sad peo ple-clowns with a breaking heart. There is some truth in it, but it i

18、s badly stated. It would be more accurate, I think, to say that there is a deep vein of melancholy running through everyones life and that the humorist, perhaps more sensible of it than some oth ers, compensates for it actively and positively. Humorists fatten on trouble. They have al ways made trou

19、ble pay. They struggle along with a good will and endure pain cheerfully, knowing how well it will serve them in the sweet by and by. You find them wrestling with foreign languages, fighting folding ironing boards and swollen drainpipes, suffering the terrible discomfort of tight boot (or as Josh Bi

20、llings wittily called them, “tire boots“). They pour out their sorrows profitably, in a form that is not quite a fiction not quite a fact either. Beneath the sparking surface of these dilemmas flows the strong tide of human woe.Practically everyone is a manic depressive of sorts, with his up moments

21、 and his down moments, and you certainly dont have to be a humorist to taste the sadness of situation and mood. But there is often a rather fine line between laughing and crying, and if a hu morous piece of writing brings a person to the point where his emotional responses are un trustworthy and see

22、m likely to break over into the opposite realm, it is because humor, like poetry, has an extra content. It plays close to the big hot fire, which is Truth, and sometimes the reader feels the heat.（分数：5.00）(1).In the first paragraph the author wants to say that_.（分数：1.00）A.just as scientists can diss

23、ect a frog, so analysts can dissect humorB.detailed, scientific analysis is not appropriate for humor, for it may make humor lose its aesthetic valueC.some peoples analysis of humor are too scientificD.analysts attempts at humor are not instructive enough to interest the author(2).The author uses th

24、e example of the soap bubble blower to show that_.（分数：1.00）A.skill is required to produce humorB.neither too much exaggeration nor absolute explicitness is fit for humorC.people should perfect the art of humor just as the bubble blower does to the bubblesD.humor should make people frantic for a whil

25、e(3).According to the author, humorists differ from ordinary people in the sense that_.（分数：1.00）A.they give vent to their sorrows in a laughable wayB.they have much trouble in their life and they are melancholyC.they are more sensible of the sadness of life and they endure and express the pain cheer

26、fullyD.they are mostly clowns with a breaking heart(4).A humorous piece of writing can make the readers emotional responses untrustwor- thy because_.（分数：1.00）A.it expresses the truth of the sadness of human life with a sparkling surfaceB.everyone has his happy moments and unhappy momentsC.there is a

27、n obvious line between laughing and cryingD.it is like poetry, very rhythmic(5).The passages success lies in its extensive use of_.（分数：1.00）A.parallelismB.metaphorsC.metonymyD.similes3The word science is heard so often in modern times that almost everybody has some notion of its meaning. On the othe

28、r hand, its definition is difficult for many people. The meaning of the term is confused, but everyone should understand its meaning and objec tives. Just to make the explanation as simple as possible, suppose science is defined as clas- sified knowledge (facts).Even in the true sciences distinguish

29、ing fact from fiction is not always easy. For this reason great care should be taken to distinguish between beliefs and truths. There is no danger as long as a clear difference is made between temporary and proved explana tions. For example, hypotheses and theories are attempts to explain natural ph

30、enome na. From these positions the scientist continues to experiment and observe until they are proved or discredited. The exact status of any explanation should be clearly labeled to avoid confusion.The objectives of science are primarily the discovery and the subsequent understanding of the unknow

31、n. Man cannot be satisfied with recognizing that secrets exist in nature or that questions are unanswerable; he must solve them. Toward that end specialists in the field of biology and related fields of interest are directing much of their time and energy.Actually, two basic approaches lead to the d

32、iscovery of new information. One, aimed at satisfying curiosity, is referred to as pure science. The other is aimed at using knowl edge for specific purposes-for instance, improving health, raising standards of living, or creating new consumer products. In this case knowledge is put to economic use.

33、 Such an ap proach is referred to as applied science.Sometimes practical-minded people miss the point of pure science in thinking only of its immediate application for economic rewards. Chemists responsible for many of the dis coveries could hardly have anticipated that their findings would one day

34、result in application of such a practical nature as those directly related to life and death. The discoveries of one bit of information opens the door to the discovery of another. Some discoveries seem so sim ple that one is amazed they were not made years ago; however, one should remember that the

35、construction of the microscope had to precede the discovery of the cell. The host of sci entists dedicating their lives to pure science are not apologetic about ignoring the practical side of their discoveries; they know from experience that most knowledge is eventually ap plied.（分数：5.00）(1).To defi

36、ne science we may simply call it_.（分数：1.00）A.the study of unrelated subjectsB.an attempt to explain natural phenomenaC.the study of unrelated fieldsD.classified knowledge(2).Pure science, leading to the construction of a microscope,_.（分数：1.00）A.may lead to antiscientific, “impure“ resultsB.necessari

37、ly precedes applied science, leading to the discovery of a cellC.is not always as pure as we supposeD.necessarily results from applied science and the discovery of a cell(3).A scientist interested in adding to our general knowledge about oxygen would probably call his approach_.（分数：1.00）A.applied sc

38、ienceB.agriculture scienceC.pure scienceD.environmental science(4).Which of the following statements does the author imply?（分数：1.00）A.Scientists engaged in theoretical research should not be blamed for ignoring the practical side of their discoveries.B.Today few people have any notions of the meanin

39、g of science.C.In science, it is not difficult to distinguish fact from fiction.D.Practical-minded people can understand the meaning and objectives of pure scienc(5).The best title for the passage is_.（分数：1.00）A.The Nature of Science and ScientistsB.Biology and the Scientific AgeC.Hypotheses and The

40、oriesD.On Distinguishing Fact from Fiction4In most American cities, the rent for a one-bedroom apartment was $ 250 or more per month in recent years. In some smaller cities such as Louisville, Kentucky or Jacksonville, Florida the rent was less, but in larger cities it was more. For example, if you

41、lived in Los Angeles, you had to pay $ 400 or more to rent a one-bedroom apartment, and the same apartment rented for $ 625 and up in Chicago. The most expensive rents in the U. S. were in New York City, where you had to pay at least $ 700 a month to rent a one-bedroom apartment in most parts of the

42、 city.Renters and city planners are worried about the high cost of renting apartments. Many cities now have rent-control laws to keep the cost of renting low. These laws help low income families who cannot pay high rents.Rent controls in the United States began in 1943 when the government imposed re

43、nt controls on all American cities to help workers and the families of soldiers during World War 1. After the war, only one cityNew Yorkcontinued these World War controls. Recently, more and more cities have returned to rent controls. At the beginning of the 1980s, nearly one fifth of the people in

44、the United States lived in cities with rent-control laws.Many cities have rent-control laws, but why are rents so high? Builders and landlords blame rent controls for the high rents. Rents are high because there are not enough apart ments to rent, and they blame rent controls for the shortage of apa

45、rtments. Builders want more money to build more apartment buildings, and landlords want more money to repair their old apartment buildings. But they cannot increase rents to get this money because of the rent-control laws. As a result, landlords are not repairing their old apartments, and builders a

46、re not building new apartment buildings to replace the old apartment build ings. Builders are building apartments for high-income families, not low-income families, so low-income families must live in old apartments that are in disrepair. Builders and land lords claim that rent-control laws really h

47、urt low-income families.Many renters disagree with them. They say that rent control is not the problem. Even without rent controls, builders and landlords will continue to ignore low-income housing because they can make more money from high-income housing. The only answer, they claim, is more rent c

48、ontrols and government help for low-income housing.（分数：5.00）(1).Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?（分数：1.00）A.The Highest Rent.B.Rent Controls.C.Buiiding Apartments for Low-Income Families.D.Rent-Control Laws.(2).The aim of the U. S. government in imposing rent controls o

49、n American cities in 1943 was to help_.（分数：1.00）A.workers and the families of soldiersB.low-income familiesC.up-middle-income familiesD.high-income families(3).This passage implies that the high cost of renting apartments is worried by_.（分数：1.00）A.some city governmentsB.low-income familiesC.renters and city plannersD.all of the above(4).It can be inferred from the passage that rent controls_.（分数：1.00）A.seem unable to control high rentsB.are successfulC.are favoured by builders and landlordsD.wil