四级阅读强化练习题

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阅读强化练习八

PartⅡ ReadingComprehension(SkimmingandScanning) (15minutes)

For-ProfitCollegesCleanUpTheirActs...SortOf

Theimageofthenation’sfor-profitcollegeshastakenabeatinginrecentmonths.Senatehearingsandthemediahavebeenfilledwithstoriesofschoolsengaginginquestionablebusinesspractices,includingaccusationsthatsomecollegespushedstudentstotakeloanstheycouldn’taffordandmisledapplicantsaboutthepotentialforgettingahigh-payingjobafterreceivingadegree.Andthebadpressisn’toveryet.LastweektheFloridaattorneygeneral’s(长)officeannouncedaninvestigationintowhetherfor-profithigher-educationschools—includingKanInc.,theUniversityofPhoenix,EverestUniversity,MedVanceInstitute,andArgosyUniversity—hadmademisrepresentationstostudents.

Facedwithmountingcriticism,twoofthelargestfor-profitcollegeshaveannouncedreforms.StartinginSeptemberthe470,000-student-strongUniversityofPhoenixstoppedpayingitsadmissionsofficersbasedonthenumberofstudentstheysignup,eliminatinganincentivesomeseeforthoseofficerstomisleadapplicantsorpressurethemtosignpaperwork.Theschoolwillalsoputallprospectivenewstudentsthroughathree-week,tuition-“orientation”coursedesignedtohelpthemdecidewhetherthey’rereadyforthecommitmentsthatcomewiththeirstudies.Inthepasttherehavebeenreportsofcash-strappedstudentstalkedintosigningupwhentheymaynothavebeenready—manymaybebehindfinanciallyoreducationally,buttheystillenduponthehookformakingschoolpaymentstheycan’treallyafford.“TheorientationprogramenablesingstudentstomakeaninformeddecisionaboutattendingUniversityofPhoenixandexperiencethestrictnessofthecollegeclassroomwithoutincurringafinancial

burden,”saysUniversityofPhoenixspokesmanMannyRivera.Kan,oneoftheUniversityofPhoenix’slargercompetitors,announcedasimilarorientationcourseinSeptember.NewKanstudentsmusttakethecourseandpassan“academicassessment”inordertoenrollinadegreeprogram.

Thefederalernmentisalsostepin:onNov.1theDepartmentofEducationwillannounceasetofnewrulesthatfor-profitschoolsmustfollow,includinganindustrywideprohibitionagainstincentivestoadmissionsofficersforrecruitingmorestudentsandarevisiontopoliciesthathaveallowedschoolstochangethewaytheycountcredithoursinordertoletstudentsborrowmorefederalcash.Advocatespraisethesereforms.“It’sinspiringtoseetheEducationDepartmentregulatingthisindustry,whereasforaverylongtimetherewasnosupervision,”saysSteveBurdoftheNewAmericaFoundation’swatchdogblog,HigherEdWatch.Thechangesproposedbytheschoolsare“astepintherightdirection,”addsBenMiller,ofthethinkEducationSector.Butit’sunclearwhethertherestoftheindustrywillfollowtheleadofthesebiggerfor-profitschools, andwhetherthelatestreformswilleffectivelyaddresstheindustry’scoreproblem:graduateswithhighdebtand,criticssay,aneducationthatdoesn’tadequaypreparethemfortheworkce.

TradeassociationsthatrepresenttheschoolsarelobbyingagainstfurtherchangestheDepartmentofEducationisconsidering,includingtightermonitoringofhowstudentsdevelopaftergraduation.Schoolssaychangesofthissortareunnecessary,butEducationSecretaryArneDuncanarguestheyareneeded“tomakesurethattaxpayerdollarsarewellspent”(taxpayer-backedstudentloansarebyfarthelargestrevenuesourcefortheindustry).“Theseschools—andtheirinvestors—benefitfrombillionsofdollarsinsubsidiesfromtaxpayersand,inreturn,taxpayershavearighttoknowthattheseprogramsareprovidingsolidpreparationforajob,”DuncansaidinaJulystatement.

Reformslikeorientationprogramsendupreducingthenumberofstudentswhoenteraschool,andthat’snotusuallygoodforbusiness.UniversityofPhoenix

andKanhavemadethesechangesanyway,butthat’sinpartbecausetheyhaveafinancialmotivationtodoso:bothreceivefederalloansandgrantsataratethatapproaches90percentoftheirrevenues.Iftheyexceedthat90percentthresholdtwoyearsinarow,theernmentwillstopapprovingloansfortheirnewstudents.“Essentiallytheschoolwouldhavetoshutdown,”exinsindustryystMattSnowlingofFBRCapitalMarkets.Inordertoavoidthatscene,schoolshavetoreducethenumberofhigh-debtstudentsontheirrolls,andorientationcoursesthatstudentstoconsidertheirabilitytopayareone

waytodothat.

ThenewsthattheUniversityofPhoenixwouldslowitsenrollmenthasunderstandablyworriedinvestors.Whentheacknowledgedonacallwithyststhismonththatitsnewpolicieswouldcausestudentenrollmenttodecline,itsstockpricedipped23percentinasingleday.“UniversityofPhoenixappearstobeengagedinaseriousefforttoreformitself,”saysBurd.“ItisadmirablyngthisinthefaceoffiercefromWallStreet,makingitextremelyunlikelythattherestoftheindustrywillfollowsuit.”Miller,theyst,notesthatallfor-profitschoolscouldrequirethatstudentstakeacooling-offperiodofafewdaysbeforetheyenroll,which,likeUniversityofPhoenix’sandKan’sreforms,wouldensurethattheythinkit

overbeforeborrowingforschool,butthathasn’thappenedyet.

Otherfederallyrequiredchangesthatcouldhappendowntheroadincludeso-calledgainful-employmentrulesthatwouldcollegestomonitorhowmanyoftheirgraduatesareactuallyemployedandcanaffordtopaybacktheirloans.Ifacollegeisgraduatingtoomanystudentswhocan’t,itmightnotbeabletogetfederalloansfornewstudentsthefollowingyear(loansforexistingstudentswouldnotbeaffected).Undertheseregulations,thesystemwouldalsolimittheamountofdebtforstudentswhograduatefromfor-profitcolleges,butitwouldalsolimitthenumberofestudentswhocanattendthem.Underpressurefromfor-profitschools,theDepartmentofEducationhasagreedtodelaythe

“gainfulemployment”rulesatleastuntilnextyearwhileitholdsmorepublichearings.

Intheme,studentsoughttoremaincautiousaboutthecommitmentthey’remakinginsigningupforafor-profitcollege.ThoughKanandUniversityofPhoenix’sorientationprogramsprovidestudentswithsometimetoreconsidertheirdecision,noindustrywideruleislaiddown.Sostudentslookingtostartcareerswithdegreesfromfor-profitinstitutionsshouldtaketheirtimebeforesigningthatpromissorynote.

Whatisoneofthebusinesspracticesbyfor-profitschoolsreportedbymedia?

A)Toleratingcasesofbeatingstudentsinrecentmonths.

B)Pressingstudentstotakeloansbeyondtheircapacities.

C)Helstudentsgetahigh-payingjobaftergraduation.

D)Askingstudentstotakequestionablebusinesspractices.

Inreactiontogrowingcriticism,whatdidtheUniversityofPhoenixdotoitsadmissionsofficers?

A)Itdidnotpaythemforhowmanystudentstheyrecruitanymore.

B)Iteliminatedthoseofficerswhopressedstudentstosignpaperwork.

C)Ittreatedthoseofficerswithincentivetoofferapplicantsmoreloans.

D)Itstoppedpayingitsadmissionsofficersduetotheseverepressure.

WhatdoesUniversityofPhoenixspokesmanMannyRiverasayabouttheorientationprogram?

A)Ithelpsstudentgetfinancialhelpfromernmenteasily.

B)Itpreventsstudentsfromunaffordablefinancialburden.

C)Itinformsstudentsofwhattheyhavetofaceafterattendingcollege.

D)Itletsstudentsexperienceenjoyableenvironmentofthecollegeclassroom.

Inthesetofnewrules,thefor-profitschoolswillrevisepoliciesaboutcredithourssothat .

A)studentscangraduateearlierwithlessloanstopay

B)studentswillnotbeabletoborrowmorefederalcash

C)studentscantransfertocheaperschoolsmoreeasily

D)studentswillhavemoretimetoworkpart-timejobs

Whatistheindustry’scoreproblemaccordingtocritics?

A)Graduateswithlowscores.

B)Theineffectivenessofreforms.

C)Schools'reluctancetofollowsuit.

D)Graduates'inadequacyforwork.

WhatisthefurtherchangetheDepartmentofEducationisthinkingof?

A)Calculatingwhethertaxpayerdollarsarewellspent.

B)Providinggraduateswithsolidpreparationforajob.

C)Forbiddingbenefitsfromsubsidiesfromtaxpayers.

D)Monitoringhowstudentsdevelopaftergraduation.

WhatispartofthereasonthatUniversityofPhoenixandKanhavemadechangeslikeorientationprograms?

A)Theyintendtoreducethenumberofenteringstudents.

B)Bothareessentiallyfacingthedangerofshuttingdown.

C)Theyarefinanciallymotivatedtoadoptsuchmeasures.

D)Bothwanttorelieveheavyburdensoncollegestudents.

BurdsaysthatUniversityofPhoenixisengagedinreformingitselfwhileWallStreetfiercely .

Followingtheso-calledgainful-employmentrules,acollegemightbeunabletogetfederalloansfornewstudentsiftoomanyofitsgraduatescan’tget.

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Intheme,whenstudentsaremakingcommitmentinsighingupforafor-profitcollege,theyshouldstay.

PartⅣ ReadingComprehension(ReadinginDepth)(25minutes)

SectionA

Questions47to56arebasedonthefollowingpassage.

About1in3femalestudentsquestionedinasurveysaidtheyhadbrokenintotheirpartner’se-mail.Fewermensaidtheyhaddonethis,butmenweremorelikelythanwomentousehiddencameras,spyware(软件)andGPStrackingtomonitortheirpartner’sactivities.

SloaneBurkeatEastCarolinaUniversityinGreenville,NorthCarolina,andhercolleaguesasked804undergraduatestocompleteananonymous(的)onlinesurveyinwhichtheywereaskedwhethertheyhadusedtechnologytospyontheirpartnersonmorethanone47.Ofthosewhoreportedtheir48,abouttwo-

thirdswerefemale.Amongthesewomen,34percentsaidtheyhadbrokenintotheirpartner’smorethanonce,49 only14percentofmen

50ngthesame.Thesurveyalsofoundthatwomenweremorelikelythan

mento51

theirpartner’sactivityandhistories.

Amongmenrespondingtothesurvey,3percentadmittedhidingacameraintheirlover’sroom,while5percent52usedonlinetrackersto

monitortheirlover’s53 .“Onlya54 fractionofmenusedGPStechnology

inthisway,butwewerestillshocked,”saysBurke.Asmallnumberofmenand

evenfewerwomensaidtheyhad55tospyware.Twopercentofmeninstalled

softwareontheirpartner’scomputerthatletthemviewtheirscreens

56 inrealtime.

A)admitted

I)regularly

B)check

J)remoy

C)committed

K)resented

D)gender

L)resorted

E)location

M)small

F)occasion

N)thereby

G)occupation

O)whereas

H)particularly

SectionBPassageOne

Questions57to61arebasedonthefollowingpassage.

RaymondKurzweilbelievesthatwe’reapproachingamomentwhencomputerswilleinligent,andnotjustinligentbutmoreinligentthanhumans.Whenthathappens,humanity—ourbodies,ourminds,ourcivilization—willbecompleyandirreversiblytransformed.Hebelievesthatthismomentisnotonlyinevitablebuting.Accordingtohiscalculations,theendofhumancivilizationasweknowitisabout35yearsaway.

Computersaregettingfaster.Everybodyknowsthat.Also,computersaregettingfasterfaster—thatis,therateatwhichthey’regettingfasterisincreasing.True?True.Soifcomputersaregettingsomuchfaster,soincrediblyfast,theremightconceivablycomeamomentwhentheyarecapableofsomethingcomparabletohumaninligence—artificialinligence.Allthathorsepower

couldbeputintheserviceofemulatingwhateveritisourbrainsarengwhentheycreateconsciousness—notjustngarithmeticveryquicklyorcomposingpianomusicbutalsodrivingcars,writingbooks,makingethicaldecisions,appreciatingfancypaintings,makingwittyobservationsatcocktailparties.

Ifyoucanswallowthatidea,andalotofotherverysmartpeoplecan,thenallbetsareoff.Fromthatpointon,there’snoreasontothinkcomputerswouldstopgettingmorepowerful.Theywouldkeepondevelountiltheywerefarmoreinligentthanweare.Theirrateofdevelopmentwouldalsocontinuetoincrease,becausetheywouldtakeovertheirowndevelopmentfromtheirslower-thinkinghumancreators.Imagineacomputerscientistthatwasitselfasuper-inligentcomputer.Itwouldworkincrediblyquickly.Itcoulddrawonhugeamountsofdataeffortlessly.Itwouldn’teventakebreakstoyFarmville(一款电脑游戏).

Probably.It’simpossibletopredictthebehaviorofthesesmarter-than-humaninligenceswithwhichwemightonedaysharethenet,becauseifyoucould,you’dbeassmartastheywouldbe.Buttherearealotoftheoriesaboutit.Maybewe’llmergewiththemto esuper-inligentcyborgs,usingcomputerstoextendourinlectualabilitiesthesamewaythatcarsandnesextendourphysicalabilities.Maybetheartificialinligenceswillhelpustreattheeffectsofoldageandprolongourlifespansindefiniy.Maybewe’llscanourconsciousnessesintocomputersandliveinsidethemassoftware,forever,virtually.

WhatdoesRaymondsayaboutthemomentwhencomputerswillbemoreinligentthanhumans?

A)Itwillbringlotso

B)Itcannotbeavoi

C)Computerscience

D)Humanitywillbe

By“emulatingwhateveritisourbrainsareng”,theauthormostprobablyreferstotheactof .

A)predictingallthe

B)tryingtodoevery

C)controllingeveryt

D)heourbrains

Whatmakesitpossiblethattherateofcomputers’developmentwillcontinuetoincrease?

A)Humancreatorso

B)TheInternetwill

C)Computerswilld

D)Computerscienti

Accordingtothepassage,youareunlikelytopredictthebehaviorofcomputersbecause .

A)theythinkquited

B)theyworkunder

C)theydonotshare

D)theyaremoreint

Whichofthefollowingismentionedasimaginedtheoriesaboutthedevelopmentofcomputers?

A)Ourlifespanswi

B)Humanbeingswi

C)Humanconscious

D)Computerswillg

PassageTwo

Questions62to66arebasedonthefollowingpassage.

Over4billiontextmessagesaresenteachdayintheUSalone.Couldallthisthumbgymnasticsbesubtlychangingthewaywefeelaboutnumbers?Psychologistshavelongknownthatifaspecifictoneisconsistentlyyedwhileavolunteerpressesaspecifickeyonakeypad,thetonewilllaterbementallyreyedbytheusereachtimethatkeyispressedonotherkeypads.Withthisinmind,SaschaTopolinskiattheUniversityofWürzburg,Germany,wonderedwhethertheactivityoftextingonamightsimilarlyleadpeopletoassociatewordsorideaswithnumbers.

Topolinskifoundthat27Germanstudyparticipantsratedseeminglyrandomnumberssuchas373863andasequallypleasant.Butwhenafurther38Germanparticipantswereaskedtodialthenumbersonabeforeratingthem,theysignificantlypreferred373863—equivalenttousingthepredictivetextfunctiontotype“friend”inGerman—to—Germantextfor“slime”.Topolinskialsofoundthatcompaniesaremorelikediftheirphonenumberspellsouta-relatedword,like“flower”foraflorist.Thisappliedevenifthe-relatedwordhasnegativeconnotations—“corpse”foramortician,forexample.

Manycompaniesalreadychoosephonenumberspreciselybecausetheyspellouta-relatedword,butTopolinskisaysthenumber-wordassociationoccurssubconsciously,offeringcompaniesanopportunityforlessexplicitmanipulation.Forinstance,abettingmightchooseanumberthatspellsouttheword“successful”ratherthanthename.

Topolinski’sstudiesalsosuggestedawayforpeopletoprotectthemselvesfromsuchsubconsciousmanipulation.Whiledialingthenumbersona

subtlychangedthewayparticipantsfeltaboutthem,thesameeffectwasnotseenwhenthenumberswere“dialed”onthenumberpadofacomputerkeyboard,whe