1、2006 考研英语（一）真题及答案解析Directions: Read the following text. Choose the best word(s)for each numbered blank and mark A,B,C or D on ANSWER SHEET 1(10 points)The homeless make up a growing percentage of Americas population. 1 , homelessness has reached such proportions that local government cant possibly 2
2、 . To help homeless people 3 independence, the federal government must support job training programs, 4 the minimum wage, and fund more low-cost housing.5 everyone agrees on the numbers of Americans who are homeless. Estimates 6 anywhere from 600,000 to 3 million. _7_ the figure may vary, analysts d
3、o agree on another matter: that the number of the homeless is_8_. One of the federal governments studies _9_ that the number of the homeless will reach nearly 19 million by the end of this decade.Finding ways to _10_ this growing homeless population has become increasingly difficult. _11_when homele
4、ss individuals manage to find a _12_ that will give them three meals a day and a place to sleep at night, a good number still spend the bulk of each day_13_ the street. Part of the problem is that many homeless adults are addicted to alcohol or drugs. And a significant number of the homeless have se
5、rious mental disorders. Many others, _14_not addicted or mentally ill, simply lack the everyday _15_ skills needed to turn their lives _16_. Boston Globe reporter Chris Reidy notes that the situation will improve only when there are _17_ programs that address the many needs of the homeless. _18_ Edw
6、ard Zlotkowski, director of community service at Bentley College in Massachusetts, _19_it, “There has to be _20 _of programs. What we need is a package deal.”1.AIndeed BLikewise CTherefore DFurthermore2.Astand Bcope Capprove Dretain3.Ain Bfor Cwith Dtoward4.Araise Badd Ctake Dkeep5.Agenerally Balmos
7、t Chardly Dnot6.Acover Bchange Crange Ddiffer7.ANow that BAlthough CProvided DExcept that8.Ainflating Bexpanding Cincreasing Dextending9.Apredicts Bdisplays Cproves Ddiscovers10.Aassist Btrack Csustain Ddismiss11.AHence BBut CEven DOnly12.Alodging Bshelter Cdwelling Dhouse13.Asearching Bstrolling Cc
8、rowding Dwandering14.Awhen Bonce Cwhile Dwhereas15.Alife Bexistence Csurvival Dmaintenance16.Aaround Bover Con Dup17.Acomplex Bcomprehensive Ccomplementary Dcompensating18.ASo BSince CAs DThus19.Aputs Binterprets Cassumes Dmakes20.Asupervision Bmanipulation Cregulation DcoordinationDirections: Read
9、the following four texts. Answer the questions below each text by choosing A, B, C or D. Mark your answers on ANSWER SHEET 1. (40 points)Text 1In spite of “endless talk of difference,” American society is an amazing machine for homogenizing people. This is “the democratizing uniformity of dress and
10、discourse, and the casualness and absence of deference” characteristic of popular culture. People are absorbed into “a culture of consumption” launched by the 19th-century department stores that offered vast arrays of goods in an elegant atmosphere. Instead of intimate shops catering to a knowledgea
11、ble elite.” these were stores “anyone could enter, regardless of class or background. This turned shopping into a public and democratic act.” The mass media, advertising and sports are other forces for homogenization.Immigrants are quickly fitting into this common culture, which may not be altogethe
12、r elevating but is hardly poisonous. Writing for the National Immigration Forum, Gregory Rodriguez reports that todays immigration is neither at unprecedented level nor resistant to assimilation. In 1998 immigrants were 9.8 percent of population; in 1900, 13.6 percent. In the 10 years prior to 1990,
13、 3.1 immigrants arrived for every 1,000 residents; in the 10 years prior to 1890, 9.2 for every 1,000. Now, consider three indices of assimilation-language, home ownership and intermarriage.The 1990 Census revealed that “a majority of immigrants from each of the fifteen most common countries of orig
14、in spoke English “well” or “very well” after ten years of residence.” The children of immigrants tend to be bilingual and proficient in English. “By the third generation, the original language is lost in the majority of immigrant families.” Hence the description of America as a graveyard” for langua
15、ge. By 1996 foreign-born immigrants who had arrive before 1970 had a home ownership rate of 75.6 percent, higher than the 69.8 percent rate among native-born Americans.Foreign-born Asians and Hispanics “have higher rates of intermarriage than do U.S-born whites and blacks.” By the third generation,
16、one third of Hispanic women are married to non-Hispanics, and 41 percent of Asian-American women are married to non-Asians.Rodriguez notes that children in remote villages around world are fans of superstars like Amold Schwarzenegger and Garth Brooks, yet “some Americans fear that immigrants living
17、within the United States remain somehow immune to the nations assimilative power.”Are there divisive issues and pockets of seething anger in America? Indeed. It is big enough to have a bit of everything. But particularly when viewed against Americas turbulent past, todays social indices hardly sugge
18、st a dark and deteriorating social environment.21.The word “homogenizing” (Line 2, Paragraph 1) most probably means_.A. identifying B. associatingC. assimilating D. monopolizing22. According to the author, the department stores of the 19th century_.A. played a role in the spread of popular culture.B
19、. became intimate shops for common consumers.C. satisfied the needs of a knowledgeable elite.D. owed its emergence to the culture of consumption.23. The text suggests that immigrants now in the U.S. _.A. are resistant to homogenization.B. exert a great influence on American culture.C. are hardly a t
20、hreat to the common culture.D. constitute the majority of the population.24. Why are Amold Schwarzenegger and Garth Brooks mentioned in Paragraph 5?A. To prove their popularity around the world.B. To reveal the public s fear of immigrants.C. To give examples of successful immigrants.D. To show the p
21、owerful influence of American culture.25. In the authors opinion, the absorption of immigrants into American society is_.A. rewarding B. successfulC. fruitless D. harmfulText 2Stratford-on-Avon, as we all know, has only one industry-William Shakespeare-but there are two distinctly separate and incre
22、asingly hostile branches. There is the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC), which presents superb productions of the plays at the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre on the Avon. And there are the townsfolk who largely live off the tourists who come, not to see the plays, but to look at Anne Hathaways Cottage,
23、 Shakespeares birthplace and the other sights.The worthy residents of Stratford doubt that the theatre adds a penny to their revenue. They frankly dislike the RSCs actors, them with their long hair and beards and sandals and noisiness. Its all deliciously ironic when you consider that Shakespeare, w
24、ho earns their living, was himself an actor (with a beard) and did his share of noise-making.The tourist streams are not entirely separate. The sightseers who come by bus-and often take in Warwick Castle and Blenheim Palace on the side-dont usually see the plays, and some of them are even surprised
25、to find a theatre in Stratford. However, the playgoers do manage a little sight-seeing along with their playgoing. It is the playgoers, the RSC contends, who bring in much of the towns revenue because they spend the night (some of them four or five nights) pouring cash into the hotels and restaurant
26、s. The sightseers can take in everything and get out of town by nightfall.The townsfolk dont see it this way and local council does not contribute directly to the subsidy of the Royal Shakespeare Company. Stratford cries poor traditionally. Nevertheless every hotel in town seems to be adding a new w
27、ing or cocktail lounge. Hilton is building its own hotel there, which you may be sure will be decorated with Hamlet Hamburger Bars, the Lear Lounge, the Banquo Banqueting Room, and so forth, and will be very expensive.Anyway, the townsfolk cant understand why the Royal Shakespeare Company needs a su
28、bsidy. (The theatre has broken attendance records for three years in a row. Last year its 1,431 seats were 94 percent occupied all year long and this year theyll do better.) The reason, of course, is that costs have rocketed and ticket prices have stayed low.It would be a shame to raise prices too m
29、uch because it would drive away the young people who are Stratfords most attractive clientele. They come entirely for the plays, not the sights. They all seem to look alike (though they come from all over)-lean, pointed, dedicated faces, wearing jeans and sandals, eating their buns and bedding down
30、for the night on the flagstones outside the theatre to buy the 20 seats and 80 standing-room tickets held for the sleepers and sold to them when the box office opens at 10:30 a.m.26. From the first two paragraphs, we learn that_.A. the townsfolk deny the RSC s contribution to the towns revenue.B. th
31、e actors of the RSC imitate Shakespeare on and off stage.C. the two branches of the RSC are not on good terms.D. the townsfolk earn little from tourism.27. It can be inferred from Paragraph 3 that_.A. the sightseers cannot visit the Castle and the Palace separately.B. the playgoers spend more money
32、than the sightseers.C. the sightseers do more shopping than the playgoers.D. the playgoers go to no other places in town than the theater.28. By saying “Stratford cries poor traditionally” (Lines 2-3, Paragraph 4), the author implies that_.A. Stratford cannot afford the expansion projects.B. Stratfo
33、rd has long been in financial difficulties.C. the town is not really short of money.D. the townsfolk used to be poorly paid.29. According to the townsfolk, the RSC deserves no subsidy because_.A. ticket prices can be raised to cover the spending.B. the company is financially ill-managed.C. the behav
34、ior of the actors is not socially acceptable.D. the theatre attendance is on the rise.30. From the text we can conclude that the author_.A. is supportive of both sides.B. favors the townsfolks view.C. takes a detached attitude.D. is sympathetic to the RSC.Text 3When prehistoric man arrived in new pa
35、rts of the world, something strange happened to the large animals. They suddenly became extinct. Smaller species survived. The large, slow-growing animals were easy game, and were quickly hunted to extinction. Now something similar could be happening in the oceans.That the seas are being overfished
36、has been known for years. What researchers such as Ransom Myers and Boris Worm have shown is just how fast things are changing. They have looked at half a century of data from fisheries around the world. Their methods do not attempt to estimate the actual biomass (the amount of living biological mat
37、ter) of fish species in particular parts of the ocean, but rather changes in that biomass over time. According to their latest paper published in Nature, the biomass of large predators (animals that kill and eat other animals) in a new fishery is reduced on average by 80% within 15 years of the star
38、t of exploitation. In some long-fished areas, it has halved again since then.Dr Worm acknowledges that the figures are conservative. One reason for this is that fishing technology has improved. Todays vessels can find their prey using satellites and sonar, which were not available 50 years ago. That
39、 means a higher proportion of what is in the sea is being caught, so the real difference between present and past is likely to be worse than the one recorded by changes in catch sizes. In the early days, too, longlines would have been more saturated with fish. Some individuals would therefore not ha
40、ve been caught, since no baited hooks would have been available to trap them, leading to an underestimate of fish stocks in the past. Furthermore, in the early days of longline fishing, a lot of fish were lost to sharks after they had been hooked. That is no longer a problem, because there are fewer
41、 sharks around now.Dr Myers and Dr Worm argue that their work gives a correct baseline, which future management efforts must take into account. They believe the data support an idea current among marine biologists, that of the “shifting baseline“. The notion is that people have failed to detect the
42、massive changes which have happened in the ocean because they have been looking back only a relatively short time into the past. That matters because theory suggests that the maximum sustainable yield that can be cropped from a fishery comes when the biomass of a target species is about 50% of its o
43、riginal levels. Most fisheries are well below that, which is a bad way to do business.31. The extinction of large prehistoric animals is noted to suggest that_.A. large animals were vulnerable to the changing environment.B. small species survived as large animals disappeared.C. large sea animals may
44、 face the same threat today.D. Slow-growing fish outlive fast-growing ones32. We can infer from Dr Myers and Dr. Worms paper that_.A. the stock of large predators in some old fisheries has reduced by 90%.B. there are only half as many fisheries as there were 15 years ago.C. the catch sizes in new fi
45、sheries are only 20% of the original amount.D. the number of larger predators dropped faster in new fisheries than in the old.33.By saying “these figures are conservative” (Line 1, paragraph 3), Dr Worm means that_.A. fishing technology has improved rapidly.B. the catch-sizes are actually smaller th
46、en recorded.C. the marine biomass has suffered a greater loss.D. the data collected so far are out of date.34. Dr Myers and other researchers hold that_.A. people should look for a baseline that can work for a longer time.B. fisheries should keep the yield below 50% of the biomassC. the ocean biomas
47、s should restored its original level.D. people should adjust the fishing baseline to changing situations35. The author seems to be mainly concerned with most fisheries _.A. management efficiencyB. biomass levelC. catch-size limitsD. technological application.Text 4Many things make people think artis
48、ts are weird. But the weirdest may be this: artists only job is to explore emotions, and yet they choose to focus on the ones that feel bad.This wasnt always so. The earliest forms of art, like painting and music, are those best suited for expressing joy. But somewhere in the 19th century, more arti
49、sts began seeing happiness as meaningless, phony or, worst of all, boring as we went from Wordsworths daffodils to Baudelaires flowers of evil.You could argue that art became more skeptical of happiness because modern times have seen so much misery. But its not as if earlier times didnt know perpetual war, disast
