大学英语六级阅读训练

大学英语六级阅读训练Every day 25 milion U. S. children ride school buses. The safety record for these buses is much better than for passenger cars; but nevertheless, about 10 children are killed each year riding on large school buses, and nearly four times that number are killed outside buses in the loading zones. By and large, however, the nations school children are transported to and from school safely.Even though the number of school bus casualties(死亡人数) is not large, the safety of children is always of intense public concern. While everyone wants to see children transported safely, people are divided about what needs to be doneparticularly whether seat belts should be mandatory (强制性的)Supporters of seat belts on school buses argue that seat belts are necessary not only to reduce death and injury, but also to teach children lessons about the importance of using them routinely in any moving vehicle. A side benefit, they point out, is that seat belts help keep children in their seats, away from the bus driver.Opponents of seat belt installation suggest that children are already well protected by the school buses that follow the National Highway Traffic Safety Administrations (NHTSA) safety requirement set in 1977. They also believe that many children wont wear seat belts anyway, and that they may damage the belts or use them as weapons to hurt other children.A new Research Council report on school bus safety suggests that there are alternate safety devices and procedures that may be more effective and less expensive. For example, the study committee suggested that raising seat backs four inches may have the same safety effectiveness as seat belts.The report sponsored by the Department of Transportation at the request of Congress, reviews seat belts extensively while taking a broader look at safety in and around school buses.1. Each year, children killed outside buses in the loading zones are about_.A. 10 B. 40C. 30 D. 502. Which of these words is nearest in meaning to the words are divided in ParagraphA. disagree B. separateC. arrange D. concern3. According to the passage, who has the greatest degree of control of the school buses safety?A. A New Research Council.B. The Department of Transportation.C. The Medical Organizations.D. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.4. It may be inferred from this passage that_.A. many of the opponents of seat belt installation are parents and officials of the Department of TransportationB. proposal of seat belts on school buses would be seriously consideredC. an alternate safety device (raising seat backs four inches) may be taken intoconsiderationD. The Department of Transportation may either take the idea of seat belts or other measures when it reviews the whole situation5. The best title which expresses the idea of the passage is_.A. Making School Buses Even Safer for ChildrenB. Seat Belts Needed on School BusesC. Alternate Safety Devices and ProceduresD. Safety in and around School Buses答案1. B 2. A 3. D 4. D 5. AAccording to the latest research in the United States of America, men and women talk such different languages that it is like people from two different cultures trying to communicate. Professor Deborah Tannen of Georgetown University, has noticed the difference in the style of boys and girls conversations from an early age. She says that little girls conversation is less definite than boys and expresses more doubts. Little boys use conversation to establish status with their listeners.These differences continue into adult life, she says. In public conversations, men talk most and interrupt other speakers more. In private conversations, men and women speak in equal amountsalthough they say things in a different style. Professor Tannen believes that, for woman, private talking is a way to establish and test intimacy. For men, private talking is a way to explore the power structure of a relationship.Teaching is one job where the differences between mens and womens ways of talking show. When a man teaches a woman, says Professor Tannen, he wants to show that he has more knowledge, and hence more power in conversation. When a woman teaches another woman, however, she is more likely to take a sharing approach and to encourage her student to join in.But Professor Tannen does not believe that women are naturally more helpful. She says women feel they achieve power by being able to help others. Although the research suggests men talk and interrupt people more than women, Professor Tannen says, women actually encourage this to happen because they believe it will lead to more intimacy and help to establish a relationship.Some scientists who are studying speech think that the brain is preprogrammed for language. As we are usually taught to speak by women, it seems likely that the brain must have a sexual bias(倾向性) in its programming,otherwise male speech patterns would not arise at all.1. In the opinion of the writer, women encourage men to talk becauseA. it will lead to more intimacy and help to establish a relationshipB. it will help to establish status with their listenersC. it will help to express more clearlyD. it will help to communicate better2. There are_in little girls conversation than in boys.A. fewer doubts B. more demandsC. more doubts D. fewer uncertainties3. Some scientists believe that brain is pre-programmed for language. The word pre programmed means_.A. programmed already B. programmed before one is bornC. programmed early D. programmed by women4. In private conversation, women speakA. the same things as men B. less than menC. more than men D. as much as men5. The theme of this article is _.A. women are naturally more helpfulB. men and women talk different languagesC. men talk most and interrupt other speakers moreD. little girls conversation is less definite答案1. A 2. C 3. B 4. D 5. BEvery day, the news of the world is relayed to people by over 300 million copies of daily papers, over 400 million radio sets, and over 150 million television sets. Additional news is shown by motion pictures, in theatres and cinemas all over the world. As more people learn what the important events of the day are, fewer are still concerned exclusively with the events of their own household. As the English writer John Donne put it nearly four hundred years ago, no man is an island. This idea is more appropriate today than it was when Donne lived. In short, wherever he lives, a man belongs to some society; and we are becoming more and more aware that whatever happens in one particular society affects, somehow, the life and destiny of all humanity.Newspapers have been published in the modern world for about four hundred years. Most of the newspapers printed today are read in Europe and North America. However, soon they may be read in all parts of the world, thanks to the new inventions that are changing the techniques of newspaper publishing.Electronics and automation have made it possible to produce pictures and text far more quickly than before. Photographic reproduction eliminates the need for type and printing presses. And fewer specialists, such as type-setters, are needed to produce a paper or magazine by the photo-offset (照相平板胶印) method. Therefore, the publishing of newspapers and magazines becomes more economical. Furthermore, photo-copies can be sent over great distances now by means of television channels and satellites such as Telstar. Thus, pictures can be brought to the public more quickly than previously.Machines that prepare printed texts for photo-copies are being used a great deal today. Thousands of letters and figures of different sizes and thicknesses can now be arranged on a black glass disc that is only eight inches in diameter, to be printed in negative form(white on a black background). The disc on the machine turns constantly at the rate of ten revolutions a second. A beam of light from a slroboscopic (频闪的) lamp shines on the desired letters and figures for about I wo-millionths of a second. Then the image of the letters and figures that were illuminated is projected onto a film through lenses. The section of film is large enough to hold the equivalent of a page of text. There is a keyboard in front of the machine that is similar to the keyboard of a typewriter, and the machine operator has only to strike the proper keys for the image of the corresponding letters to be immediately transferred to the film. The negative image on the film can quickly be transferred onto paper. This method makes it as easy to reproduce photographs and illustrations as it is to reproduce the text itself.Film, being light and small, can be sent rapidly to other places and used to print copies of the text where they are needed. Film images can also be projected easily on a movie or television screen. Television broadcasts are limited to an area that is within sight of the sending station or its relay ( 中继 ). Although television relays are often placed on hills and mountains so that they can cover a wider region, they still can not cover more land than one could see from the same hilltop on a clear day. However, the rays also go out into the atmosphere, and if there is a relay station on a satellite that revolves around the earth, it can transmit the pictures to any point on the earth from which the satellite is visible. Three satellites permanently revolving over the equator transmit any television program to any part of the earth. This makes it possible for world editions of newspapers to give the news in all countries at the same time. Some day it may be possible for a subscriber to a televised newspaper to press a button and see a newspaper page on his television screen. He could also decide when he wants the page to turn, and, by dialling different numbers such as those on a telephone dial, he could choose the language or the edition of the paper he wants to read. It seems strange to think that, even today, methods of the past are not entirely useless. For example, sometimes press agencies that use radio and Telstar use carrier pigeons to send messages between offices in large cities because the pigeons are not bothered by traffic problems.It may be some time before television sets become common in the average homes in Africa and Asia. However, radio is already rapidly becoming accessible to thousands of people in these areas. And, now that good radios are being made with transistors, and their price is gradually dropping because of mass production, it may not be too long before radios become commonplace in areas which have no newspapers. Transistors make it possible for people to carry small radios wherever they go, without need of electric current. Even television sets are now operating on transistors, and the pocket TV may soon be as widespreadas the pocket radio.Now that scientific progress is making it possible to send the news to all theinhabitants of the earth, it will be important to consider what news is going to be sent to them. No matter what criteria are used in making the decision, a decision must be made, since no one would have time to read or listen to an account of everything there is going on in the world!People who have time to read several papers can already compare different reports of the same event. When an event has political significance, each paper reports it from the point of view of its own political beliefs or preferences. Ideally, of course, the expression of editorial opinion should be limited to the editorial page, and the news articles should be objectivetelling the facts as completely as possible, without trying to give them a particular interpretation, or without otherwise trying to influence the readers opinion. However, reporters and editors are only human, and if they have strong political beliefs it is almost impossible for them to hide them. If editors believe their point of view is best for the readers of their paper, whats to stop them from using the paper to try to influence public opinion? And if, some day, a world newspaper becomes a reality, will it be the most powerful press agencies that will choose the news to be sent out to all countries?1. The expression no man is an island means that no man lives surrounded by water.2. According to the author, it may not be long before people all over the world have access to newspapers.3. The transferring of newspaper texts to film is time-consuming and costly.4. Transistors are particularly useful because they are used in small radio and TV sets.5. Television relays are often placed on a hilltop so that they can reach a satellite.6. People are capable of knowing all the events going on in every part of the world.7. If a world newspaper becomes a reality, it will take more responsibility for informing all the readers of the latest news in the world.8. Newspapers have been published for about_.9. Any television program could be transmitted to any part of the world by_.10. It is ideal that the news articles_.答案1. N 2. Y 3. N 4. Y 5. N 6. N 7. NG 8. 400 years 9. satellites 10. be objectiveIn the last two hundred years there have been great changes in the method of production of goods. This is now also true of the building industry; for mechanization has been introduced. System building can save both time and money. The principle of system building is that the building is made from a set of standard units. These are either made at the building-site or at a factory. Some designers, in fact, are standardizing the dimensions of rooms. They are made in multiples of a single fixed length, usually ten centimeters. This is called a modular (标准件的) system, and it means that manufactures can produce standardized fittings at a lower cost. The most important fact about system building is its speed. A ten-storey flat, for example, can be completed in four months.There are several new methods of system building. One is the panel method. In this case, the construction company sometimes erects a factory on the site. The walls and floors of the building, called panels, are cast in a horizontal or vertical position. Conduits for electrical wires and sleeves for pipes are cast in the panels when they are being made. The moulds for making these castings are situated all around the building.After the concrete panels are cast, they are allowed to set and harden for a week. Next they are lifted by a tower crane on to any section of the building. There the panels are cemented together at their joints and the floor covering is laid.After the panels have been cemented together, the crane lifts a case into the area. It contains all the fittings to be installed, such as wash-basins, radiators and pipes. Finishing tradesmen, such as plumbers, plasterers, painters and electricians, follow behind to complete the work.In some building developments, in some countries, whole flats with internal features like their bathrooms, bedrooms and connecting stairs, and weighing as much as twenty tons, are carried to the building-site ready-made. A giant overhead crane is used to lift them into position. In the future, this method may become more widespread.1. The main difference between panel method and the method discussed in the last paragraph is_.A. the latter uses ready-made internal featuresB. panels are cast in a level positionC. the former is used to build walls and floors while the latter to construct bathrooms or bedroomsD. the former is more expensive than the latter2. Which of these statements is TRUE of system building?A. It employs more men. B. It is difficult and dangerous.C. It can save both time and money. D. It means less mechanization.3. According to the passage, the principle of system building is that_.A. construction methods are saferB. buildings are made from a set of standardized unitsC. similar buildings can be producedD. all units are produced on the site4. The usual fixed length in the modular system is_.A. twenty centimeters B. ten millimetersC. fifty centimeters D. ten centimeters5. What lifts the concrete panels onto the building?A. Cranes. B. Man-power.C. Pulleys. D. Hydraulic jacks.答案1. A 2. C 3. B 4. D 5. AEtiquette (礼仪)The origins of etiquettethe conventional rules of behavior and ceremonies observed in polite societyare complex. One of them is respect for authority. From the most primitive times, subjects(臣民) showed respect for their ruler by bowing, prostrating themselves on the ground, not speaking until spoken to, and never turning their backs to the throne. Some rulers developed rules to stress even further the respect due to them. The emperors of Byzantium expected their subjects to kiss their feet. When an ambassador from abroad was introduced, he had to touch the ground before the throne with his forehead. Meanwhile the throne itself was raised in the air so that, on looking up, the ambassador saw the ruler far above him, haughty and remote.Absolute rulers have, as a rule, made etiquette more complicated rather than simpler. The purpose is not only to make the ruler seem almost godlike, but also to protect him from familiarity, for without some such protection his life, lived inevitably in the public eye, would be intolerable. The court of Louis XIV of France provided an excellent example of a very highly developed system of etiquette. Because the king and his family were considered to belong to France, they were almost continually on show among their courtiers (朝臣).