公共英语等级考试模拟PETS3阅读理解模拟题及参考

3月PETS-3阅读理解模拟题及参考答案SECTION Reading Comprehension(40 minutes)Par ADirectionsRead the following three texts. Answer the questions on each text by choosing A, B, C or D. Mark your answers on ANSWER SHEET 1.Text 1In November 65, New York was blacked out by an electricity failure. The authorities promised that it would not happen again. Pessimists were certain that it would occur again within five years at the latest. In July 97, there was a repeat performance which produced varying degrees of chaos throughout the city of eight million people. In 65, the failure occurred in the cool autumn and at a time of comparative prosperity. In 97, the disaster was much more serious because it came when unemployment was high and the city was suffering form one of its worst heat waves.In 65, there was little crime or looting during the darkness, and fewer than a hundred people were arrested. In 97, hundreds of stores were broken into and looted. Looters smashed shop windows and helped themselves to jewelry, clothes or television sets. Nearly 4,000 people were arrested but far more disappeared into the darkness of the night. The number of policemen available was quite inadequate and they wisely refrained from using their guns against mobs which far outnumbered them and included armed men.Hospitals had to treat hundreds of people cut by glass from shop windows. Banks and most businesses remained closed the next day. The blackout started at 9:30 p.m., when lightning hit and knocked out vital cables. Many stores were thus caught by surprise.The vast majority of New Yorkers , however, were not involved in looting. They helped strangers, distributed candles and batteries, and tried to survive in a nightmare world without traffic lights, refrigerator, elevators, water and electrical power. For twenty-four hours, New York realized how helpless it was without electricity.46. From the first paragraph, we know that _ were right.A. the authoritiesB. the pessimistsC. both the authorities and the pessimistsD. neither the authorities nor the pessimists47. In what way was the blackout of 97 not really a repeat performance?A. There was much more disorder.B. This time the electricity supply failed.C. It was quite unexpected.D. It did not occur within five years of 65.48. As far as maintaining the peace was concerned, conditions in 97 were comparatively _.A. more favorableB. less favorableC. unchargedD. improved49. What caused the blackout in July 97?A. Excessive heat probably made people switch on too many electrical appliances.B. Because of unemployment, some machines were not in proper working order.C. During a storm, lightning damaged supply cables.D. The passage does not mention the cause.50. Why did many looters manage to escape?A. The police could not see them in the dark.B. Many of the looters were armed with guns.C. There were not enough policemen to catch them all.D. They were hidden inside big buildings.Test 2Thousands of years ago man used handy rocks for his surgical operations. Later he used sharp bone or horn, metal knives and more recently, rubber and plastic and that was where we stuck, in surgical instrument terms, for many years. In the 60s a new tool was developed, one which was, first of all, to be of great practical use to the armed forces and industry, but which was also, in time, to revolutionize the art and science of surgery.The tool is the laser and it is being used by more and more surgeons all over the world, for a year large number of different complaints. The word “laser” means: light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation. As we all know, light is hot, any source of light - from the sun itself down to a humble match burning - will give warmth. But light is usually spread out over a wide area. The light in a laser beam, however, is concentrated. This means that a light with no more power than that produced by an ordinary electric light bulb becomes intensely strong as it is concentrated to a pinpoint-sized beam.Experiments with these pinpoint beams showed researchers that different energy sources produce beams that have a particular effect on certain living cells. It is now possible for eye surgeons to operate on the back of human eye without harming the front of the eye, simply by passing a laser beam right through the eye-ball. No knives, no stitches, no unwanted damage-a true surgical wonder. Operations which once left patients exhausted and in need of long period of recovery time now leave them feeling relaxed and comfortable. So much more difficult operations can now be tired.The rapid development of laser techniques in the past ten years has made it clear that the future is likely to be very exciting. Perhaps some cancers will be treated with laser in a way that makes surgery not only safer but also more effective. Altogether, tomorrow may see more and more information coming to light on the diseases which can be treated medically.51. Which of the following would be appropriate to describe the instruments of surgical operations up until 60s?A. Traditional.B. ComplicatedC. Remarkable.D. Revolutionary52. What do we find after the development of the laser in the 60s?A. Industrial revolution brought surgery changed greatly.B. Medical help became available for industrial workers.C. The study of art went through a complete revolution.D. Human beings methods in surgery changed greatly.53. The reason why the laser beam is very strong is that _.A. it is artificially illuminatedB. it is made up of a concentrated beam of lightC. it sends out heat in all directions.D. its heat is increased by the heat of the sun54. After the use of the laser beam, surgeons can perform operation which _.A. leave their patients with negative effectsB. can treat only human eye diseasesC. do little damage to their patientsD. make their patients need a long time to recover55. The rapid development of laser techniques has meant that _.A. surgery is likely to improve considerablyB. in another ten years we shall be able to cure cancerC. in future all the diseases can certainly be curedD. operations will be performed more complicatedly in the futureText 3Urban life has always involved a balancing of opportunities and rewards against dangers and stress; its motivating force is, in the broadest sense, money. Opportunities to make money mean competition and competition is stressful; it is often most intense in the larges cities, where opportunities are greatest. The presence of huge numbers of people inevitably involves more conflict, more traveling, the overloading of public services and exposure to those deviants and criminals who are drawn to the rich pickings of great cities. Crime has always flourished in the relative anonymity of urban life, but todays ease of movement makes its control more difficult than ever; there is much evidence that is extent has a direct relationship to the size of communities. City dwellers may become trapped in their homes by the fear of crime around them.As a defense against these developments, city dwellers tend to use various strategies to try and reduce the pressures upon themselves; contacts with other people are generally made brief and impersonal; doors are kept locked; telephone numbers may be ex-directory; journeys outside the home are usually hurried, rather than a source of pleasure. There are other strategies, too, which are positively harmful to the individuals, for example, reducing awareness through drugs or alcohol. Furthermore, all these defensive forms of behavior are harmful to society in general; they cause widespread loneliness and destroy the communitys concern for its members. Lack of informal social contact and indifference to the misfortunes of others, if they are not personally known to oneself, are amongst the major causes of urban crime.Inner areas of cities tend to be abandoned by the more successful and left to those who have done badly in the competitive struggle or who belong to minority groups; these people are then geographically trapped because so much economic activity has migrated to the suburbs and beyond.Present day architecture and planning have enormously worsened the human problems of urban life. Old established neighborhoods have been ruthlessly swept away, by both public and private organizations, usually to be replaced by huge, ugly, impersonal structures. People have been forced to leave their familiar homes, usually to be re-housed in tower blocks which are drab, inconvenient, and fail to provide any setting for human interaction or support. This destruction of established social structures is the worst possible approach to the difficulties of living in a town or city. Instead, every effort should be made to conserve the human scale of the environment, and to retain familiar landmarks.56. According to the author, living in a city causes stress because there are so many people who are _.A. in need of helpB. naturally aggressiveC, likely to commit crimeD. anxious to succeed57. The author thinks that crime is increasing in cities because _.A. criminals are difficult to trace in larges populationsB. people do not communicated with their neighborsC. people feel anonymous thereD. the trappings of success are attractive to criminals58. According to the article, what is the worst problem facing people living in cities?A. CrimeB. Finding somewhere to liveC. Social isolationD. Drugs and alcoholism：59. The majority of people who live in inner cities do so because they _.A. dislike having to travel far to workB. dont like the idea of living in the suburbsC. have been forced by circumstances to do soD. have turned against society60. Architectural changes have affected city life by _.A. giving the individual a say in planningB. dispersing long-established communitiesC. forcing people to live on top of each otherD. making people move to the suburbsPart BDirectionsRead the following text from a discussion in which five persons talked about their views on dieting. For questions 61 to 65, match each person (61 to 65 ) to one of the statements ( A to G) given below. Mark your answers on ANSWER SHEET 1.AbbeyYou can always recognize dieters from the sour expression on their faces. They spend most of their time turning their noses up at food. They are forever consulting calories charts, gazing at themselves in mirrors, and leaping on to weight-machines in the bathroom. They spend a lifetime fighting a losing battle against spreading hips, protruding tummies and double chins. What a miserable lot dieters are !MarlinI began making some dietary and lifestyle changes during my second year of college and have been eating this way ever since. I like the way I feel when I dont eat animal foods so much more than the pleasure I used to get from eating them. I have much more energy; I need less sleep; I feel calmer: I can maintain an ideal body weight without worrying about how much I eat, and I can think more clearly.MaggieDuring my first year of college, I gained forty pounds when I began throwing the javelin. For the next twenty years, I carried all of this extra weight and kidded myself that I was in good shape since thats what I weighed in college. Now that Ive lost all that extra weight, I feel great! People say all the time, “Well, how do you live without eating cheeseburgers or this or that?” and I say , “You just dont. Its not even an option. Its not that hard once you get on it.”BelindaIf you are on a diet, youre always hungry. You cant be hungry and happy at the same time.All the horrible concoctions you eat instead of food leave you permanently dissatisfied. A complete food it