ReadingComprehension(level3)解读

1、Reading ComprehensionSection A Close Reading Passage 1According to the World Health Organization, malaria kills about3,000 people a day, as many as 70% of whom are children under the age offive. Many groups of researchers are working on vaccines against thedisease, but most agree that any vaccine th

2、at results will be imperfect.Nobody is expecting to confer full immunity with a vaccine, because theorganisms that cause malaria are not viruses or bacteria ( the traditionaltargets of vaccination ) but single-celled animal-like creatures. These are alot more complex and diverse than traditional vac

3、cine targets. It is thereforehard to prime the immune system against all the strains of them that maycause the disease.That might not be thought to matter much, on the basis that someprotection is better than none. But a paper by Sylvain Gandon, MargaretMackinnon and their colleagues at the Universi

4、ty of Edinburgh, published inthis weeks Nature, shows that this isnt necessarily so. Partially effectivevaccines may end up doing more harm than good. The researchersmathematical models suggest that such vaccines may provoke theevolution of particularly virulent strains of the pathogen that causes t

5、hedisease.To understand why an imperfect vaccine might increase a diseases virulence, consider the matter from the pathogens point of view. Themain cost of increased virulence is that it will shorten the lifespan of the host,reducing the chances of the disease being transmitted to new hosts. On theo

6、ther hand, a pathogen benefits from increased virulence becausepathogenic organisms that are more virulent are less easily defeated by ahosts immune system. That means that once a pathogen gets into a newhost, it has a better chance of establishing itself.In nature, the balance between these two for

7、ces is what governs thevirulence of a given disease. The effect of a vaccine that confers fullimmunity, from the pathogens point of view, is to reduce the size of its hostpopulation, since only unprotected individuals can then be infected. Ifanything, that will tend to reduce virulence, since the pa

8、thogen will have tohang on longer between transmission opportunities, and so will“want”itshost to survive. But a vaccine that confers only partial immunity will increasehost survival anyway, allowing pathogens that are not affected to“bank”this increased survival by becoming more virulent themselves

9、.This means two things. First, in the long run, the unvaccinated will beno better off than they would otherwise have been. Second, theunvaccinated are actually worse off, since the newly virulent strain willspread at the expense of the older, less virulent ones. That is somethingthat policymakers ne

10、ed to consider carefully if and when they ate presentedwith a vaccine against malaria.() 1. What is the main idea of the first paragraph?A.Malaria kills about 3,000 people a day.B.70% of the victims of malaria are childrenC.No vaccine at present is perfect against malaria.D.A vaccine will increase h

11、ost survival anyway () 2. What doesthe word“virulent”mean in the third paragraph?A. Fatal B. poisonousC. RiskyD. Perilous() 3. How does an imperfect vaccine increase a diseases virulence?A. By shortening the lifespan of the hostB.By breaking the balance between the two forces thatgovern a diseases v

12、irulenceC.By reducing the size of the host populationD.By allowing pathogens that are not affected to becomemore virulent themselvesPassage 2The writers of murder stories go to a great deal of trouble to keepus guessing right up to the end. In actual fact, people often behave morestrangely in real l

13、ife than they do in stories.The following advertisement once appeared in a local newspaper.“An opportunity to earn $250 in a few minu tes. A manwilli ng to takecha nces wan ted for an out-of-the-ord inary job which can be performedonly once.”A reader found this offer very generous and applied to the

14、advertiser. Enclosed in the envelope was a typed note instructing him toring a number if he was still interested in the job. He did so and learnt on thetelephone that the advertiser wanted him“toget rid of somebody”and would discuss it more fully with him next day. Butthe man told the police and fro

15、m then on acted under their instructions. Thepolice saw two men meet and watched them as they drove away together.In the car the advertiser came to the point at once: he told the man hewanted him to shoot his wife. The reason he gave was that he was sufferingfrom an incurable disease and wanted to l

16、ive in a warmer country, but hiswife objected to this. Giving the man some money, the advertiser told him tobuy a gun and warned him to be careful of the dog which though would notbite, might attract attention. He also gave him a photograph of his wife sothat he would be able to recognize her. After

17、 that, the advertiser suggestedthat the man shoulddo the job”next morning. Meanwhile he would preparehis wife by telling her that a young man was going to all. After the murder,they would meet again outside a railway station and the money would bepaid as arranged. The second meeting never took place

18、, for the advertiserwas arrested shortly afterwards and charged with attempting to persuadesomeone to murder his wife.() 4. Of the four sentences, which best expresses the meaning of theopening sentence?a.The writers of murder stories meet with a lot of trouble.b.Usually the stories show us who is t

19、he murderer in themiddle.c.While reading, we can easily guess who is the realmurderer.d.The murder stories often lead us in the round-about way.() 5. When a reader saw the advertisements, _.a.he applied for the job under a false nameb.he was eager to get itc.he was doubtful whether such a generous o

20、ffer could betrued.he was sure he was the man the advertiser was lookingfor() 6. When the police received the report, _.a.they arrested the advertiser at onceb.they sent a dog to keep watch on himc.they didntarrest him until they got enough evidenced.they arrested him after his wife was killedpassag

21、e 3Danny and Sylvia, about the stormy marriage and showbizcollaboration of entertainer Danny Kaye and his wife, songwriter Sylvia FineKaye, debuted last fall as a production of American Century Theater. It wasreprised last spring. Now the show, written by Kayeslong-agopublicist Bob McElwaine and com

22、poser Bob Bain, is about to open in a NewYork theater festival. It will play from Thursday through Sept. 22. McElwaine,a former advertising man and Hollywood press agent, worked for thevolatile Kayes from 1952 to 1958.“They just devoured mywhole life, you know? I tried to leave several times,”he rec

23、alledrecently. At 79, the writer stillmarvels at Danny Kayes ability to charm an audience with patter songs(many written by Sylvia) and other inspired stage silliness.“He had theability to become a child, which was quite remarkable,”said McElwaine.“Danny Kaye was a consummate professional, a perfect

24、ionist. I think it wasSylvia who converted him into being a perfectionist.”Danny and Sylvia contains three songs that Kaye actuallyperformed - Minnie the Moocher, Tschaikowsky and Anatole of Paris- the last the only song bySylvia Fine Kaye towhich McElwaine and American Century Theater could get the

25、 rights. Theother 25 numbers in the show were written by McElwaine and Bain, 78, palssince high school in Culver City, Calif . Bain is a big band veteran andformer guitarist-arranger on Johnny Carsons Tonight Show. Brain childers,who won a Helen Hayes Award in May for his portrayal of Kaye, will aga

26、inplay the role in New York.“read every book, I watched every movietoget every little twitch, every little move,”said Childers. (Among Kayesbest-known films are The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Hans ChristianAndersen, Knock on Wood and On the Double.)“Again, its not animpersonation, itsa tribute,”th

27、e actor emphasized. Perry Payne, a cabaretperformer in New York, filled in for Sylvia. Tony winner Thommie Walsh, afrequent collaborator of Paynes, will direct.“She really wanted money andshe was very stylish and she was very cool and she smoked like a chimneyand she was not necessarily polite.”Said

28、 Payne of Sylvia. Her researchwas more limited than that of Childers:“Whereas Brain could look atfootage and tapes and scriptsI just had to imagine Sylvia, but I heard Im pretty close.”Danny Kaye died in 1987 and Sylvia Fine Kaye in 1991. of the NewYork debut, McElwaine mused,“I was always afraid of

29、 going to New Yorkwith it because its not a sophisticated kind of story. Its a love story, and Iworried that the New York critics will go, Whereall the dirt? Wherethegossip?Well just have to take a chanee and see what happens.”() 7. What is true of Danny and Sylvia?a.They are two imaginary character

30、s in a play.b.They were both famous singers in the 1950s.c.They were a couple who cooperated in their professionalcareer.d.They only performed on the stage.() 8. Who are the actor and actress in the play Danny and Sylvia?a.Bob McElwaine and Bob Bain.b.Brain Childers and Johnny Carsonc.Perry Payne an

31、d Thommie Walshd.Brain Childers and Perry Payne() 9. Of the two roles, Danny and Sylvia, which is more difficult toplay?a.Danny, because of his stormy characterb.Sylvia, because the acting of her is based on imaginationc.Danny, because itshard to sing all the songs in the play.d.Sylvia, because audi

32、ence have their own interpretation of a“cool”woman.Passage 4Early one morning more than a hundred years ago, an Americaninventor called Elias Howe finally fell asleep. He had been working all nighton the design of a sewing-machine but he had run into a very difficultproblem: it seemed impossible to

33、get the thread to run smoothly around theneedle.Despite his exhaustion, Howe slept badly. He tossed and turned.Then he had a nightmare. He dreamt that he had been captured by a tribe ofterrible savages whose king threatened to kill and eat him unless he couldbuild a perfect sewing-machine. When he t

34、ried to do so, Howe ran into thesame problem as before. The thread kept getting caught around the needle.The king flew into a rage and ordered his soldiers to kill Howe. Theyadvanced towards him with their spears raised. But suddenly the inventornoticed something. There was a hole in the tip of each

35、 spear. The inventorawoke from the nightmare with a start, realizing that he had just found thesolution to the problem. Instead of trying to get the thread to run around theneedle, he should make it run through a small hole in the center of theneedle. This was the simple idea the finally enabled How

36、e to design andbuild the first really practical sewing machine.Elias Howe was far from being unique in finding the answer to hisproblem in this way. Thomas Edison, the inventor of the electric light bulb,said that his best ideas came to him in dreams. So did the great physicist,Albert Einstein. Char

37、lotte Bronte also drew on her dreams in his writingJane Eyre. The composer, Igor Stravinsky, once said the only way he couldsolve his problems in musical composition was to sleep on them.To appreciate the value of dreams, you have to understand whathappens when you are asleep. Even then, a part of y

38、our mind is still working.This unconscious, but still active part digests you experiences and goes towork on the problems you have had during the day. It stores all sorts ofinformation and details which you may have forgotten or never have reallynoticed. It is only when you fall asleep that this par

39、t of the brain can sendmessage to the part you use when you are awake. However, theunconscious part expresses itself through its own logic and its ownlanguage. It uses strange images which the conscious part may notunderstand at first. This is why dreams are sometimes called“secretmessages to oursel

40、ves”.() 10. According to the passage, Elias Howe was _ .a.the first person we know of who solved problems in hissleepb.the only person at the time who appreciated the value ofdreamsc.the first person to design a sewing-machine that reallyworkedd.much more hard-working than other inventors() 11. The

41、problem Howe was trying to solve was _ .a.how to stop the thread from getting caught around theneedleb.how to make thread from thin enough to pull through aneedlec.how to design a needle which would not breakd.how to find a place in the machine to put the needle (_) 12. Dreams are sometimes called“s

42、ecret messages to ourselves”becausea.only specially trained people can understand themb.strange images are involved which have no meaningc.we can never understand the real meaning of our dreamsd.strange images are used to communicate ideasPassage 5New York mayor Michchael R. Bloomberg said that inve

43、stors whosank their paychecks into companies with no earnings and no prospects forever having them were just as culpable for the mess in the markets as thosecompanies that government officials say defrauded investors.Almost as soon as the words had left his lips some people who workin the City Counc

44、il were quick to deride them. Mr. Bloomberg was asked byJohn Gambling, the host of the radio program, what he thought about therecent accusations that companies like Enron and WorldCom had engagedin fraudulent accounting practices that bilked investors out of millions ofdollars.“It is a disgrace if

45、there was fraud committed,”the mayor said.“People in management have a responsibility to conduct their affairshonorably and legally.”But when questioned further about the Wall Streetmeltdown of the last two years, the mayor went on to say:“People whowere buying stocks in the stock market at multiple

46、s that never made anysense should look at themselves in the mirror. Theyre as responsible, Ithink as those who actually committed the crimes of misstating earningsand fudging the numbers.”Mr. Bloomberg appeared to be referring both todot-coms, which traded at enormously high prices even without the

47、benefitof actual earnings, as well as those companies that are accused ofdefrauding investors. Mr. Bloomberg was a critic of dot-coms during theInternet boom.“The mayor was offering the perspective that if the numbersdont make sense, either because of market hysteria or possible fraud, thenpeople sh

48、ould use basic investment principles before buying shares incompanies,”said his spokesman, Edward Skyler.“You cant get somethingfor nothing.”Right after the mayors program, the phones began ringing in madsuccession around the City Hall press room., with council members orcouncil staff members offeri

49、ng to provide views on his comments.“Ourmayor has made some unfortunate remarks that Im sure were brought onby the frustration of seeing such a criminal misuse of the stockmarket,”said James Sanders Jr., a councilman from Queens.“just as weno longer say that a woman who dresses in a provocative fash

50、ion cried outfor rape, nor should we say that anyone who was simply misled by the stockexchange or its members was a willing victim.”( ) 13. What did the NewYork mayor say in the radio program about recent accusations involvingcompanies like Enron and WorldCom?A. These companies have defrauded inves

51、tors.B.Unlike other government officials, he doesnt thinkthese companies have defrauded investors.C.The investors who sank their paychecks into thesecompanies are to blameD.Both the companies and the investors are to blamefor creating a mess in the market() 14. From the third paragraph, what can you

52、 infer about thedot-coms?a.Their stocks used to rise at multiples in the stock marketb.They do not conduct their affairs honorably and legallyc.They are accused of defrauding investors.d.They have brought about the Wall Street meltdown of thelast two years () 15. According to the mayor, what is the

53、best way for theinvestors to avoid economic lossbefore buying a stock?a.They should consult the specialistsb.They should use basic investment principlesc.They should make a thorough investigation of a companyd.They should stop buying stocks altogether.Passage 6“At Antoines. At seven,”the womans voic

54、e said at the other endof the phone.“At Antoines, at seven.”I repeated. I always repeat suchinformation on the phone in case I havent heard correctly. Not that Im hardof hearing, but its better that way.“Very well, then. Illbe expecting you.”She replied.“Just a moment. How will I recognize you?I ask

55、ed. I was trying toimagine what she looked like. Her voice suggested someone in her early 20s. there was something smooth but at the same time hard about that voice,something that goes with diamonds and an expensive education.“You wont have to. Just dont be late!”she said curtly. Then shehung up.Ant

56、oineswas one of those new-style French places thatspecialize in very small portions and very high prices. I left my old Ford inthe car-park. There was only one other car there, a white Mercedes. Iwondered if it could be hers.“Yes, sir? Have you got a reservation?”the headwaiter asked assoon as I cam

57、e through the door. I looked around. Even though it wascandle-lit, I could see the inside of the place was as empty as the car-park.“No, but I dont think Ill need one.”I answered.The waiter smiled. But his eyes didnt. he looked at my well-wornsports jacket and not very new shoes.“Imafraid were fully

58、 booked this evening,”he said.“its all right. I think the gentleman is looking for me.”It was the same voice Id heard on the phone and it came from atable in the corner.The waiters manner suddenly changed.“You should have said she was waiting for you,”he said in a lowvoice as he showed to the table.

59、 I looked down. She had red hair and wasdressed casually in denims. But they were the sort of denims you cantbuyin most shops. It was hard to tell how old she was in the candle-light. But itwas obvious she was beautiful. Very beautiful.“Sit down, Mr. Nelson. What would you like to drink?”she said.Be

60、er.”Excuse me, sir. Did you saybeer? the waiter pronounced thelast word as if he didnquite understand it.“Perhaps youd better have a glass of champagne instead,”thewoman said and nodded to the waiter before I could refuse. She waited forhim to leave. Then she took out a photograph of two people at a