CET4阅读理解试题共四篇附案.doc

CET4 Reading PracticeUnit 29Passage 1 These days its tough to find a vacation spot that doesnt in some way resemble a shopping mall, a garbage dump or a traffic jam. International tourism has grown into a booming industry, generating annual receipts of about $230 billion. About 400 million people will travel abroad this year, compared with only 25 million in 1950. Widespread affluence (富裕) among the worlds middle class has combined with faster, cheaper transportation to enable people to visit places their grandparents could only see on a map. Fast-food stands have sprung up in the middle of pristine(原始的) forests; ancient monuments have been converted into souvenir shops; running water and electricity have been piped into remote jungles. And in many places, the environment and local people are suffering. Whats gone wrong with tourism is that the age-old balance between host and guest has tipped too far in favor of the guest. A lot of tourism seeks to provide a similar life to what city-dwellers would expect at home. In providing those things, it damages or puts an enormous strain on the places it develops. There is no tourism without damage. Walking and breathing alone account for a great deal of the damage. In Londons Westerminster Abbey, the elaborately designed 13th century Cosmati pavement is badly worn by the visiting crowds. At King Tuts tiny tomb in Upper Egypt, the relentless crush increased the temperature and humidity inside the tomb so much that a slimy fungus ( 真菌 ) began to disfigure the ancient paintings. Comprehension Questions:1. According to the passage, todays vacation spots_. A) are hard to find B) provide excellent shopping facilities *C) are crowded and dirty D) provide good transportation services2. Over the past forty years, tourists traveling overseas each year increased approximately_. *A) 16 times B) 20 times C) 8 times D) 40 percent3. Which of the following is not mentioned in the passage as a factor contributing to the increasing number of tourists ? A) The worlds middle class have become richer. *B) More and more tourist attractions have been developed. C) Transportation is much cheaper. D) Transportation is much faster.4. The damage to the ancient paintings in King Tuts tomb is due to_. A) being touched by too many visitors *B) heat and moisture C) being scratched by tourists D) some strange chemical reactions5. The author of this passage seems to be_. A) happy to see the increase of revenues from tourism B) very much pleased by the growth of the tourist industry C) happy to see the improvement of tourist facilities *D) very much concerned about the damages done by tourism1.C 2.A 3.B 4.B 5.DPassage 2 It is my privilege to introduce again an annual report of the work of Our Ladys Hospice. Our Ladys Hospice, the first of its kind in these western islands, has entered the second century of caring for those with terminal illness. It was first opened in Milltown and its opening was the realization of a long cherished (心中怀着) dream. For years the Sisters (修女) had longed for a place where poor, lonely, friendless dying personsno longer fit subjects for hospital wards (病房) -could find care, comfort and peacefulness in their last days of life. In December 1879 these hopes were fulfilled when Our Ladys formally welcomed the first patients-35 in number. So great were the applications for admission that six years later the foundation stone of the present Hospice was laid on 18th July, 1886 and completed in August 1888. Much has been written about the spirit of the Hospice and much will continue to be written with present increasing interest in the Hospice movement. Yet it is difficult to capture a spirit in words. Over a hundred years ago Our Ladys Hospice was opened in a spirit that regarded neither race, nor belief, nor class but looked simply to the need of the person for help and for peace in the last days of life. We hope the same spirit born out of love, care and respect for the dignity and worth of each human person, will comfort all, both patients and their loved ones, who seek our help in the Hospice today.Comprehension Questions1. This report is given by_. A) a reporter who is interested in Hospice work *B) a patient representative C) a leading figure of the Hospice D) one of the founders of the Hospice2. Who can be admitted to the Hospice ? A) The poor. B) Lonely and friendless people. *C) Dying patients. D) People badly in need of care and comfort.3. Our Ladys Hospice was first opened in _. A) 1897 B) 1888 C)1886 *D) 18794. “their loved ones” in the last sentence refers to_. A) dying patients B) patients and doctors *C) those whom patients love D) human persons5. Which of the following is in agreement with the Hospice spirit ? A) Taking care of those seriously-ill people who believe in God. B) Showing love for those who live in these western islands. C) Freeing white patients from pain and comforting their fears, and supporting their loved ones. *D) Loving and helping those of the terminally ill.Passage 3 A well-established distinction in memory theory is that between short-term and long-term memory. The former refers to our ability to do such things as remember telephone numbers long enough to dial them; the latter concerns the wide range of ways in which experiences can affect behavior many years later. Given the two different kinds of ability, it is reasonable to hypothesize that each is represented differently in the brain. An experiment was designed to test the hypothesis(假设) that long-term memory implies a chemical change in the brain cells while short-term memory involves patterns of impulses in circuits of nerve cells. One group of rats were taught to run through a maze（迷宫）. Five minutes after learning the task, they were cooled to 5C., the temperature at which all electrical activity in the brain ceases. They were then kept at this temperature for 15 minutes before being allowed to return to their normal temperature. They were then run through the maze again. A second group of rats were taught to run the same maze, and then immediately cooled to 5C for 15 minutes. After being allowed to return to their normal temperature, an attempt was made to run the second group through the maze again. It was found that rats in the first group had no difficulty with the maze the second time, suggesting that they did not have to relearn the task. Rats in the group which was cooled immediately after learning the maze, on the other hand, could not negotiate the maze successfully,i.e., they apparently could not remember what they had learned.Comprehension Questions:1. The author believes that between short-term and long-term memory there is _. A) a slight difference B) an unbelievable difference C) no difference *D) a clear difference2. Long-term memory refers to the ability to _. A) remember telephone numbers to dial them later B) remember successful behaviors C) remember how to run through a maze the second time *D) remember things which affect you for a long time3. The experiment with rats was conducted to _. *A) see if short-term and long-term memory are represented differently in the brain B) test the chemical change in the brain cells C) test the electrical activity in the brain cells D) teach rats how to go through a maze4. At the temperature of 5C. _. A) chemical change in the brain starts B) chemical change in the brain stops C) electrical activity in the brain starts *D) electrical activity in the brain stops5. The difference between the two experiment is that _. A) rats were cooled at different temperatures *B) rats were cooled at different times C) rats were kept cooled for different lengths of time D) rats were taught to run in different waysPassage 4 The Indian cliff dwellings（住地） of the southwestern United States are a source of interest and mystery for archeologists（考古学家）. Located in the Four Corners area of the U.S. , where Colorado, Utah, Arazona, and New Mexico meet, the cliff dwellings were constructed during the Great Pueblo period, from approximately 1050 to 1300. The cliff dwellings are whole series of rooms built in layers into the sides of cliffs. The sleeping rooms of the cliff dwellings were very tiny, often only one to two meters wide and little more than one meter high, and they were built in complexes of up to several hundred rooms together. The front rooms of the complexes were considerably larger. These larger rooms were apparently the rooms where daily life took place. When the cliff dwellings were first found by explorers, they had been abandoned. Archeologists today are uncertain as to when or why they were abandoned and where the inhabitants went. There is some evidence, however, that the inhabitants left the cliff dwellings near the end of the thirteenth century because of a serious drought that is known to have occurred in the area from 1276 to 1299. Archeologists believe that the inhabitants could have left the cliff dwellings to move southwest and southeast. Today the descendants of the cliff dwellers are probably members of the Indian tribes of that area. Comprehension Questions:1. Which of the following is the main topic for this passage? A) the Great Pueblo period. B) A description of the Indian cliff dwellings. *C) What is known and unknown about the cliff dwellings