考研英语二（阅读）模拟试卷66

考研英语二(阅读)模拟试卷66

一、阅读理解(本题共20题，每题7.0分，共20分。)

FrankSinatraknewhewasgettingarawdeal.Hecouldsingbuthewasnotmuchofa

songwriter,soheneversawacentwhenmostofhis300orsosingleswereplayedon

Americanradio.HespentyearsfruitlesslylobbyingCongresstochangea1909royalties

law,whichrequiresradiobroadcasterstopaycomposersbutnotperformers.

Broadcasters—amoreformidablelobbythanartistsorrecordlabels-havelongfoughtany

change,arguingthatairtimegivessingersfreepublicity.Butthismonththeartistsand

labelshavehadsomegoodnews.OnJune5thClearChannelCommunications,

America'slargestradiobroadcaster,announcedadealwithBigMachine,acountry-music

label,topayperformanceroyaltiesonallitsradiochannels,terrestrial(ic,overtheair)

anddigital.TheplanisforClearChanneltopaythelabelanditsartists,whoinclude

TaylorSwiftandTimMcGraw,acutofitsadvertisingrevenue.Theagreementindicates

thatClearChannelplansioinvestmoreindigitalradio,thepartoftheindustrythatis

growing.Butunliketerrestrialbroadcasters,digitalstationsareobligedbya1998lawto

payfeestoartistswheneverasongisplayed.Thistwisiedsystemhasmadelifepainful

fordigitalplatformstryingtobuildanaudience,suchasPandora,whichpaysoutmore

thanhalfofitsrevenueinmusicroyalties."It'sverytoughtomakebusinessworkonline

withtheserates,"saysTimWestergren,founderandchiefstrategyofficerofPandora.

Hisfirmhasspent$50,000thisyearlobbyingCongresstochangethelaw.Only2%of

ClearChannel'slistenersaredigitaland98%terrestrial,sothedeallookscostly.ButBig

MachinesuppliesonlyasmallproportionofClearChannel'smusic.Andpayingashare

ofadrevenueshurtslessthanpayingpersong.Theideaistoseewhatthisdoestothe

bottomlinebeforenegotiatingwithotherlabels.Thedealmayalsoreflectanxietyon

ClearChannel'spart.Itsleveragedbuy-outin2008,justbeforetheadmarketcollapsed,

hasleftitheavilyinhock.Ithasenoughcashtokeepthingshummingfbrafewyears,but

fewyearslater,debtsof$12.1billionfalldue.Thecompanywillprobablyneeda

maturityextension."There'snowaytopaythat,"saysMelissalinkofFitch,aratings

agency."Theyneedgrowth."AlleyesarenowwatchingtoseewhetherClearChannel

canmakemoneyfromdigitalradio.ItalreadyhasiHeartRadio,aninternetnetwork

launchedin2008,whichreliesonadsratherthansubscriptions.InSeptember2011the

networkbeganofferingcustomisableplaylists,likePandora.ItoffersIlinsongs,

comparedwithPandora's900,000一buthasonlyatenthofitsrival'slisteners.Thebig

sourceofgrowthisamongsmartphonebuyers,whoaccountfor70%ofPandora's

streaming.YetPandoraalsoreliesheavilyonadvertising(only10%subscribe),and

mobileshaveprovendifficultforadsales.[A]intendstoenlargeinvestmentinihe

growingdigitalradiomarket[B]reliesmoreheavilyonsubscriptionsthanonadvertising.

[C]hasearnedprofitsfrombothdigitalradioandterrestrialradio.[D]coinplainsthatitis

difficultforhisfirmtooperateonlinebusinesswithhighroyaltyrates.[E]hastoexpend

overhalfofitsincomeonmusicroyalties.[F]thinksthatClearChannelCommunications

isunabletopayoffitsdebts.[G]cannotgetpaidforhissingingperformanceundera

1909royaltieslaw.

1、FrankSinatra

标准答案：G

知识点解析：FrankSinatra出现在文中第一段。该段第二句讲到，FrankSinatra大

约300首单曲中的大部分在美国广播电台播放，他却从来没拿到过一分钱。接着第

三句提到一项1909年的版权使用费法，该法要求电台对歌曲作者付款，但不必对

歌者付款。也就是说，艰据这项法律，作为歌曲演唱者的FrankSinatra无法拿到版

权费。G表达了这个意思，其中cannotgetpaid对应文中的neversawacent,故G

为答案。

2、ClearChannelCommunications

标准答案：A

知识点解析：ClearChannelCommunications出现在文中第二段、第五段至最后一

段，解题句在第二段。该段最后一句提到，这项协议表明，ClearChannel计划增加

它在数字广播上的投资，而数字广播在广播业中前景可观。A项表述与该句原文相

符,其中intendstoenlargeinvestment是文中planstoinvestmore的同义表达，故A

为本题答案。

3、Pandora

标准答案：E

知识点解析：Pandora出现在第三段、第四段及最后一段，解题句在第三段。该段

最后一句说，这种扭曲的制度让试图招俅听众的数字平台日子很不好过：仅以潘多

拉为例，它收入的一半以上都用于支付音乐版权费。E项是对该句末尾定语从句的

同义转述,其中expendoverhalfofitsincome与文中的paysoutmorethanhalfofits

revenue同义，故确定E为答案。

4、TimWestergren

标准答案：D

知识点解析：TimWestergren出现在第四段。该段首句是潘多拉的创建人兼首席策

略师TimWestergren的直接引语，他说：“这样的版税率让我们难以开展在线业

务。“D转述了该句原文的内容。作为版税支付方的TimWestergren,对高昂版税

肯定是反感的，D中complains与TimWestergren的这种态度和立场相符，operate

onlinebusiness对应文中的makebusinessworkonline,而royaltyrates则为文中

iheserates指代的具体内容，故确定D为本题答案。

5、MelissaLink

标准答案；F

知识点解析：MelissaLink出现在文中第六段。该段第三句说到几年后Clear

Channel有一笔121亿美元的债务到期。而惠誉评级公司的梅利莎-林克则说：“钱

他们肯定还不了。“F的表述与梅利莎-林克所说的内容一致，其中isunabletopay

offitsdebts与文中的There'snowaytopaythat同义，故确定F为本题答案。

Banks,troubledbyregulatorsandshortofcapital,arefleeingthecommoditiesbusiness.

DeutscheBank,MorganStanleyandUBSeithershutteredorshranktheircommodities

operationslastyear;thisyearBarclays,CreditSuisseandJPMorganChasehavescaled

back.Butevenastheyretreat,commodity-tradinghouses,mostofwhichbeganlifeas

simplemiddlemen,aregettingevermoredeeplyinvolvedintheextracting,shippingand

refiningofrawmaterials.ThebuyerofJPMorganChase'sphysicalcommoditiesunit,for

instance,wasMercuria,aten-year-oldfirmbasedinSwitzerlandthatstartedouttrading

oilbutnowowns(orhasjointventureswith)oil-explorationcompanies,oil-terminaland

pipelineoperators,coalandiron-oreminesandbiofuelrefineries.Verticalintegrationof

thissortgivestradingoperationsmoreflexibilityandbringsvaluablecommercial

intelligence,butitalsopushesthefirmsintocapital-intensivebusinessesandcompounds

theirexposuretothecommoditiescycle.Americahassomebigcommodityfirms,

includingArcherDanielsMidland,CargillandKochIndustries.Buttherealgiantsare

basedinSwitzerland.Vitol,whichstartedoutin1966tradingoilproductsalongthe

Rhine,had$307billioninsalesin2013.Inadditiontoitstradingbusiness,italsoowns

orchartersshipstotransportcrudeoil,petrol,gas,coakchemicalsandsugar(200arcat

seaatanytime);refines350,000barrelsofoiladayandownsapowerplantinBritain.

Glencorehad$233billioninsaleslastyear,kbothminesandmarketscoal;itsoil

businessesspanexplorationanddistributionanditsagriculturalassetsincludefarms,

processingplants,storageanddistribution.Trafigura,anothercommoditiesgiantbasedin

Switzerland,hadsalesof$133billionin2013.Ittootakesacradle-to-graveapproach:

thefirm'soilbusiness,forinstance,includeseverythingfromexplorationtopetrol

stations.Suchintegrationmayimprovetradingmargins,butonlybygettingthe

commoditiesfirmsintolotsoflow-margin,capital-intensivebusinesseslikeshippingand

mining.Itmayworkwellwhencommoditypricesarestableorrising,butitleavesthem

seriouslyexposedtothenextrecession.Astraders,theycouldrideoutandoftenprofit

fromsuchcrises.Buttheassetstheyaresnappingupwillbecomefarlessvaluableifthe

globaleconomysours.Thecommoditiesfirms'growingintegrationisalsoattractingthe

attentionofregulators,particularlyinAmericaandtheEuropeanUnion.Theyfearthat

thetraders'ownershipofinfrastructureallowsthemtomanipulatelocalprices,evenif

theydonothavethepowertocontrolglobalmarkets.EarlierthisyearMukhisaKituyi,

secretary-generaloftheUnitedNationsConferenceonTradeandDevelopment,accused

theindustryof"corruptionandillegalfinancialflows1'and"large-scaletrademispricing"

indevelopingcountries.TheSwissgovernment,foritspart,saystheindustrymustbe

moretransparent,whiletheSwissparliamentisexaminingitsrecordonhumanrightsand

theenvironment.[A]runscoalbusiness,involvingminingandmarketing.[B]holdsthat

commodityfirmsshouldbemorerecognizableaswhattheyreallyare.[C]isinvolvedin

goodsdelivery,oilrefiningandelectricitygeneration.[D]criticisedcommodity

companies*misdoingsindevelopingcountries.[E]fearsthattradersmaycontrollocal

pricesthroughtheirownershipofinfrastructure.|F|hadbeendoingbusinesswith

JPMorganChase.[G|starteditsbusinesswithoiltradingandoilexploration.

6、Mercuria

标准答案：F

知识点解析：Mercuria出现在文中第二段。该段第一句讲到Mercuria是JPMorgan

Chase实物商品的买家。也就是说，Mercuria与JPMorganChase曾有贸易往来。F

所述与此相符,其中dobusinesswith的意思是“与...做生意”，故确定F为本题

答案。

7、Vitol

标准答案：C

知识点解析：Vilol出现在文中第三段。该段第四句说到，Vi⑹除了贸易业务，还

涉猎运输业务，运输煤、糖、原油、汽油、天然气和化学制品，此外，每天精炼

35万桶石油，并且在英国还拥有发电站。C项是对该句要点的概述，其中goods

delivery和oilrefining分别是对文中totransportcrudeoiL..和refines350,000

barrelsofoiladay的概括,electricitygeneration则对应原文的ownsapowerplant,

故C为本题答案。

8、Glencore

标准答案：A

知识点解析：Glencore出现在文中第三段。该段第六句提到，Glencore开采煤，并

对其营销。A是对该句的同义转述，其中coal是文中的原词复现，mining和

marketing均是原文的mines和markets的词性转换，故确定A为本题答案。

9、MukhisaKituyi

标准答案：D

知识点解析：MukhisaKituyi出现在最后一段。该段倒数第二句中，MukhisaKituyi

指责商品贸易公司“资金流动腐败、非法”以及在发展中国家“大规模地在贸易上乱

定价”。D中的criticised对应原文的accused,而commoditycompanies则是文内the

industry指代的对象，misdoings是对原文large-scaletrademispricing的概括,故确

定D为本题答案。

10、TheSwissGovernment

标准答案：B

知识点解析：TheSwissGovernment出现在最后一段。该段最后一句说到，瑞士政

府表示，该行业必须更加透明。B中的commodityfilms对应文中的theindustry,

而recognizableaswhattheyreallyare则是对原文中的transparent的解释，故确定B

为本题答案。

Justaseachweddingcreatespotentialbusinessfbrdivorcelawyers,soeachengagement

givesinsurersachancetodrumupbusiness.Futurespouses,saysAlanTuvinof

Travelers,aninsurer,maywishtoprotectthemselvesagainstsomethinggoingwrongon

theweddingday.Itisunlikelythatyourfuturewifewillrunawayonhorseback,asJulia

Robertsdidin"RunawayBride,"andmostinsurerswouldn'tcoverthatanyway.Butyou

neverknowwhatmighthappen.MrTuvinlaunchedthefirm'swedding-insurance

business;heandhiswifewereitsfirstclients.AtypicalAmericanweddingcosts$25,000

orso.Thishasfallenabitoverthepastquarter-centurybutstillseemsexpensivegiven

howtightAmericanbeltsarethesedays.Weddingsarepriceybecausethericharemore

likelytomarrythanthepoor,andtheaverageageofnewlywedshasgoneup,socouples

aremoreprosperouswhentheyeventuallytietheknot.Highprices,andthefactthat

manyvenuesrequirecouplestotakeoutliabilityinsurance,feeddemandforwedding

insurance.Afifthofcouplesbuyit,saystheWeddingReport,atradepublication."If

somefatladyslipsonasofaandbreaksherhip,shedoesn'tgivearat'sassthatthisisher

boyfriend'scousin'swedding/'hypothesisesRobertNuccioofWedsure,aninsurer."She

justwantstogetpaid.11WeddinginsurancebeganinBritain:Cornhill,aninsurer,wrote

itsfirstpolicyin1988.Buttherewerefewtakers.Theideaonlytookoffonce

transplantedtoAmericaIntheearlydays,saysMrNuccio,therewereincidentsof

couplesfakingengagementstocollectapayout.Sincethen,mostpolicieshaveaclause

thatexcludes"changeofheart."Wcdsuredoesinsureagainstcoldfeet,butitspolicywill

payoutonlyiftheweddingiscancelledmorethan12monthsbeforeitisduetotake

place,therebyguardingagainstfuturehusbandsorfuturewives(ortheirparents)phoning

thebrokeroncetherelationshipisalreadyontherocks.Thisdoesnotmeanpoliciesare

useless.Commoncausesofpayoutsincludethevenueorcaterersgoingbustafterhaving

takenabigdeposit.Extremeweather,aspousebeingdeployedbythearmedforcesand

anabsentpriestcanalltriggerpayouts.Mostpolicieswillpaytore-stagethephotosifthe

snapperfailstoturnupordisappearswiththepictures."DJsarcflaky.Florists?Flaky.

Cakemakers?Flaky.Theyareallflakyashell,"warnsMrNuccio.Forsome,evenasmall

riskofsomethinggoingwrongonadaythathasbeenplannedformonthsisworthpaying

toavoid.Whosaysromanceisdead?[A|wasthefirstcompanywhointroducedwedding

insurancebusiness.[B]introducedwedding-insuranceservicetoTravelers.[C]has

embracedatimerequirementfbrcancellingaweddingonitspolicyagainstcoldfeet.[D]

stressesthenecessityofweddinginsurancebycitinganexampleofaflatlady.[E]finds

thatonefifthofcouplesbuyweddinginsurance.[F]hasexcluded"changeofheart"from

itspolicies.[G]hadseenaflatladywhoslippedonasofaandbrokeherhip.

11、AlanTuvin

标准答案：B

知识点解析：AlanTurin出现在文中第一段。该段第二句提到AlanTuvin是

Travelers这家保险公司的员工，他认为准夫妻可能希望在结婚当日避免事情出差

错。接着本段末句即讲到，AlanTuvin发起了这家公司的婚礼保险业务，文中的

Ihefirm即指Travelers公司0B项是对本段末句的前一个分句的转述，其中

introduced对应原文的launched,而wedding-insuranceservice与文中的wedding­

insurancebusiness同义，故B为答案。

12、WeddingReport

标准答案：E

知识点解析：WeddingReport出现在文中第二段。咳段后半部分提到，Wedding

Reporl指出有五分之一的夫妇购买婚礼保险。E正是该处原文信息的同义转述，其

中onefifthofcouples与文中的Afifthofcouples同义，而weddinginsurance则点明

了文中的it所指代的内容，故确定E为本题答案。

13、RobertNuccio

标准答案：D

知识点解析：RobertNucci。出现在文中第二段、第三段和第四段，解题句则在第

二段。第二段末尾，RobertNuccio做了个假设：如果有位胖太太在其男朋友表哥

的婚礼上摔跤了，她不会完全不在意，她会想要获得赔偿。由此可以看出，Robert

Nucci。举这个例子是想说明婚礼保险的必要性，D正表达了这个意思，故为本题

答案。

14、Cornhill

标准答案:A

知识点解析：Cornhill出现在文中第三段。该段第一句指出，婚礼保险这项业务最

早源于英国，在1988年保险公司Cornhill引入这项业务。可以看出CornhiH是第

一个引入这项业务的公司。A中的introduced对应文中的wroteitsfirstpolicy,而

thefirstcompany则转述了原文began的意思，故A为本题答案。

15、Wedsure

标准答案：C

知识点解析：Wedsure已现在文中第二段和第三段，解题句在第三段。该段最后一

句讲到Wedsure保险公司提供的保险包含婚礼前临阵退缩这一项，但是只有在原

定婚礼日期前12个月取消婚礼才有效。C项概括了该句的大意，其中atime

requirementforcancellingawedding是对原文onlyifthewedding...takeplace的概

括，coldfeet则是文中原词复现（表示“信心或勇气的丧失”，在文中引申为“婚礼前

临阵退缩”）,故C为本题答案.

LastDecemberUruguaybecamethefirstcountrytolegalisecannabisfully.Soon

afterwards,V,anAmericanwebsite,becamethefirstnewsorganisationtosenda

journalisttosmokeweedwithJoseMujica,Uruguay'spresident.Itisthissortofbold,

playfulreportagethathascaughttheattentionofmillionsofyoungmediaconsumers—

and,morerecently,investors.Viceoffersapopulistmixofnewsandentertaimnentto

readersviawebsitesandmobileapps.Itisvaluedmorehighlythanmanyofitspeers

becauseithasawiderrangeofbusinesses:besidesanewswebsiteandamagazine,ithas

anadvertisingagencyandadealtomaketelevisionshowsforHBO.Thereareplentyof

opportunitiestoclaimyoungaudienceswhoarenottiedtoanyparticularnewsbrandand

maynothavetouchedaprintnewspaperforyears,saysChrisAltchck,whohelpedfound

Mic,anewssite,in2011.Micnowsaysithasaround19muniquevisitorsamonth,and

inAprilitsecured$10minfinancing.Untilrecentlyventurecapitalistshadlittleinterest

inthenewsbusiness,butearlierthisyear,MarcAndreessen,aseniormemberofSilicon

Valley,predicteda"goldenage"forjournalism.Lastmonth,hisfirm,Andreessen

Horowitz,put$50mintoBuzzFeed,anotherpopularnewssite.Investorshopetostrikeit

richbyidentifyingthe"heirapparent"totoday'slargemediacorporations,saysJames

McQuiveyofForrester,aresearchfirm.Sincedigitalfirmshavenoneoftheprintingand

transportcostsofpaperpublications,"newsisstartingtolookalotlikesoftware,*'says

JessicaLessin,whorecentlylaunchedTheInformation,adigitalnewspaperabout

technology."Themarginalcostofdistributioniszero."Thatletsdigitalfirmsspendmore

oftheirrevenueonhiringwriters.Earlierthisyear,JimBankoff,thebossofVoxMedia,

hiredEzraKlein,astarbloggerfromtheWashingtonPost,tolaunchV,anews

site.Someoutfits,includingVoxandBuzzFeed,havepatentedtechnologythatgives

themanedge.Asaresult.KenLerer,afounderoftheonlineHuffingtonPostandnowan

investorindigitalnewsfirms,sayshevaluesthemsomewherebetweenatraditional

mediacompanyandatechnologyfirm.Investorsseepotentialfordigitalnewsfirmsto

goglobal.BuzzFeedstillproducesalotofsuperficialcontent,butitishiringforeign

correspondentstoprovidemoreseriouscoverage.TheHuffingtonPost,apioneerof

digitalnews,isseekingreadersinplaceslikeFranceandBrazil.Fewnewspapershave

establishedatrulyglobalbusiness,saysKenDoctor,amediaanalyst,butahandfulof

digitalnewsfirmscouldpullitoff,andreaptherewards.However,thoserewardsmaybe

worsethanventurecapitalistsareaccustomedtoearningontechfirms.Withsomany

competitors,digitalnewsoutfitswillfindithardtochargemuchforadvertising,andtheir

readersarehighlyunwillingtopayforsu