1、4 2014 年全国硕士研究生入学考试英语 (二 )试题 Section I Use of English Directions: Read the following text. Choose the best word(s) for each numbered blank and mark A, B, C or D on ANSWER SHEET. (10 points) Thinner isnt always better. A number of studies have _1_ that normal-weight people are in fact at higher risk
2、of some diseases compared to those who are overweight. And there are health conditions for which being overweight is actually _2_. For example, heavier women are less likely to develop calcium deficiency than thin women. _3_ among the elderly, being somewhat overweight is often an _4_ of good health
3、. Of even greater _5_ is the fact that obesity turns out to be very difficult to define. It is often defined _6_ body mass index, or BMI. BMI _7_ body mass divided by the square of height. An adult with a BMI of 18 to 25 is often considered to be normal weight. Between 25 and 30 is overweight. And o
4、ver 30 is considered obese. Obesity, _8_,can be divided into moderately obese, severely obese, and very severely obese. While such numerical standards seem 9 , they are not. Obesity is probably less a matter of weight than body fat. Some people with a high BMI are in fact extremely fit, 10 others wi
5、th a low BMI may be in poor 11 .For example, many collegiate and professional football players 12 as obese, though their percentage body fat is low. Conversely, someone with a small frame may have high body fat but a 13 BMI. Today we have a(an) _14 _ to label obesity as a disgrace.The overweight are
6、 sometimes_15_in the media with their faces covered. Stereotypes _16_ with obesity include laziness, lack of will power,and lower prospects for success.Teachers,employers,and health professionals have been shown to harbor biases against the obese. _17_very young children tend to look down on the ove
7、rweight, and teasing about body build has long been a problem in schools. 1. A denied B conduced C doubled D ensured 2. A protective B dangerous C sufficient Dtroublesome 3. A Instead B However C Likewise D Therefore 4. A indicator B objective C origin D example 5. A impact B relevance C assistance
8、D concern 6. A in terms of B in case of C in favor of D in of 7. A measures B determines C equals D modifies 8. A in essence B in contrast C in turn D in part 9. A complicated B conservative C variable D straightforward 10. A so B unlike C since D unless 11. A shape B spirit C balance D taste 12. A
9、start B quality C retire D stay 13. A strange B changeable C normal D constant 14. A option B reason C opportunity D tendency 15. A employed B pictured C imitated D monitored 16. Acompared B combined C settled D associated 17. A Even B Still C Yet D Only 18. A despised B corrected C ignored D ground
10、ed 19. A discussions B businesses C policies D studies 20. A for B against C with D without Section II Reading Comprehension Part A Directions: Read the following four texts. Answer the questions below each text by choosing A, B, C or D. Mark your answers on ANSWER SHEET. (40 points) Text 1 What wou
11、ld you do with 590m? This is now a question for Gloria Mackenzie, an 84-year-old widow who recently emerged from her small, tin-roofed house in Florida to collect the biggest undivided lottery jackpot in history. If she hopes her new-found for tune will yield lasting feelings of fulfillment, she cou
12、ld do worse than read Happy Money by Elizabeth Dumn and Michael Norton. These two academics use an array of behavioral research to show that the most rewarding ways to spend money can be counterintuitive. Fantasies of great wealth often involve visions of fancy cars and extravagant homes. Yet satisf
13、action with these material purchases wears off fairly quickly what was once exciting and new becomes old-hat; regret creeps in. It is far better to spend money on experiences, say Ms Dumn and Mr Norton, like interesting trips, unique meals or even going to the cinema. These purchases often become mo
14、re valuable with time-as stories or memories-particularly if they involve feeling more connected to others. This slim volume is packed with tips to help wage slaves as well as lottery winners get the most “happiness bang for your buck.“ It seems most people would be better off if they could shorten
15、their commutes to work, spend more time with friends and family and less of it watching television (something the average American spends a whopping two months a year doing, and is hardly jollier for it).Buying gifts or giving to charity is often more pleasurable than purchasing things for oneself,
16、and luxuries are most enjoyable when they are consumed sparingly. This is apparently the reason MacDonalds restricts the availability of its popular McRib - a marketing trick that has turned the pork sandwich into an object of obsession. Readers of “HappyMoney” are clearly a privileged lot, anxious
17、about fulfillment, not hunger.Money may not quite buy happiness, but people in wealthier countries are generally happier than those in poor ones. Yet the link between feeling good and spending money on others can be seen among rich and poor people around the world, and scarcity enhances the pleasure
18、 of most things for most people. Not everyone will agree with the authors policy ideas, which range from mandating more holiday time to reducing tax incentives for American homebuyers. But most people will come away from this book believing it was money well spent。 21.According to Dumn and Norton,wh
19、ich of the following is the most rewarding purchase? AA big house BA special tour CA stylish car DA rich meal 22.The authors attitude toward Americans watching TV is Acritical Bsupportive Csympathetic Dambiguous 23.Macrib is mentioned in paragraph 3 to show that Aconsumers are sometimes irrational B
20、popularity usually comes after quality Cmarketing tricks are after effective Drarity generally increases pleasure 24.According to the last paragraph,Happy Money Ahas left much room for readerscriticism Bmay prove to be a worthwhile purchase Chas predicted a wider income gap in the us Dmay give its r
21、eaders a sense of achievement 25.This text mainly discusses how to Abalance feeling good and spending money Bspend large sums of money won in lotteries Cobtain lasting satisfaction from money spent Dbecome more reasonable in spending on luxuries Text 2 An article in Scientific America has pointed ou
22、t that empirical research says that, actually, you think youre more beautiful than you are. We have a deep-seated need to feel good about ourselves and we naturally employ a number of self-enhancing strategies to research into what the call the “above average effect”, or “illusory superiority”, and
23、shown that, for example, 70% of us rate ourselves as above average in leadership, 93% in driving and 85% at getting on well with othersall obviously statistical impossibilities. We rose tint our memories and put ourselves into self-affirming situations. We become defensive when criticized, and apply
24、 negative stereotypes to others to boost our own esteem, we stalk around thinking were hot stuff. Psychologist and behavioral scientist Nicholas Epley oversaw a key studying into self-enhancement and attractiveness. Rather that have people simply rate their beauty compress with others, he asked them
25、 to identify an original photogragh of themselves from a lineup including versions that had been altered to appear more and less attractive. Visual recognition, reads the study, is “an automatic psychological process occurring rapidly and intuitively with little or no apparent conscious deliberation
26、”. If the subjects quickly chose a falsely flattering image- which must did- they genuinely believed it was really how they looked. Epley found no significant gender difference in responses. Nor was there any evidence that, those who self-enhance the must (that is, the participants who thought the m
27、ost positively doctored picture were real) were doing so to make up for profound insecurities. In fact those who thought that the images higher up the attractiveness scale were real directly corresponded with those who showed other makers for having higher self-esteem. “I dont think the findings tha
28、t we having have are any evidence of personal delusion”, says Epley. “Its a reflection simply of people generally thinking well of themselves. If you are depressed, you wont be self-enhancing. Knowing the results of Epley s study,it makes sense that why people heat photographs of themselves Visceral
29、ly-on one level, they dont even recognise the person in the picture as themselves, Facebook therefore ,is a self-enhancers paradise,where people can share only the most flattering photos, the cream of their wit ,style ,beauty, intellect and lifestyle its not that peoples profiles are dishonest,says
30、catalina toma of WisconMadison university ,”but they portray an idealized version of themselves. 26. According to the first paragraph, social psychologist have found that _. A our self-ratings are unrealistically high B illusory superiority is baseless effect C our need for leadership is unnatural D
31、 self-enhancing strategies are ineffective 27. Visual recognition is believed to be peoples_ A rapid watching B conscious choice C intuitive response D automatic self-defence 28. Epley found that people with higher self-esteem tended to_ A underestimate their insecurities B believe in their attracti
32、veness C cover up their depressions D oversimplify their illusions 29.The word “Viscerally”(Line 2,para.5) is closest in meaning to_. Ainstinctively Boccasionally Cparticularly Daggressively 30. It can be inferred that Facebook is self-enhancers paradise because people can _. Apresent their dishones
33、t profiles Bdefine their traditional life styles Cshare their intellectual pursuits Dwithhold their unflattering sides Text 4 When the government talks about infrastructure contributing to the economy the focus is usually on roads, railways, broadband and energy. Housing is seldom mentioned. Why is
34、that? To some extent the housing sector must shoulder the blame. We have not been good at communicating the real value that housing can contribute to economic growth. Then there is the scale of the typical housing project. It is hard to shove for attention among multibillion-pound infrastructure pro
35、ject, so it is inevitable that the attention is focused elsewhere. But perhaps the most significant reason is that the issue has always been so politically charged. Nevertheless, the affordable housing situation is desperate. Waiting lists increase all the time and we are simply not building enough
36、new homes. The comprehensive spending review offers an opportunity for the government to help rectify this. It needs to put historical prejudices to one side and take some steps to address our urgent housing need. There are some indications that it is preparing to do just that. The communities minis
37、ter, Don Foster, has hinted that George Osborne, Chancellor of the Exchequer, may introduce more flexibility to the current cap on the amount that local authorities can borrow against their housing stock debt. Evidence shows that 60,000 extra new homes could be built over the next five years if the
38、cap were lifted, increasing GDP by 0.6%. Ministers should also look at creating greater certainty in the rental environment, which would have a significant impact on the ability of registered providers to fund new developments from revenues. But it is not just down to the government. While these mea
39、sures would be welcome in the short term, we must face up to the fact that the existing 4.5bn programme of grants to fund new affordable housing, set to expire in 2015,is unlikely to be extended beyond then. The Labour party has recently announced that it will retain a large part of the coalitions s
40、pending plans if returns to power. The housing sector needs to accept that we are very unlikely to ever return to era of large-scale public grants. We need to adjust to this changing climate. 36. The author believes that the housing sector_ A has attracted much attention B involves certain political
41、 factors C shoulders too much responsibility D has lost its real value in economy 37. It can be learned that affordable housing has_ A increased its home supply B offered spending opportunities C suffered government biases D disappointed the government 38. According to Paragraph 5,George Osborne may
42、_. A allow greater government debt for housing B stop local authorities from building homes C prepare to reduce housing stock debt D release a lifted GDP growth forecast 39.It can be inferred that a stable rental environment would_. Alower the costs of registered providers Blessen the impact of gove
43、rnment interference Ccontribute to funding new developments Drelieve the ministers of responsibilities 40.The author believes that after 2015,the government may_. Aimplement more policies to support housing Breview the need for large-scale public grants Crenew the affordable housing grants programme
44、 Dstop generous funding to the housing sector PartB Directions: Read the following text and answer the questions by finding information from the left column that corresponds to each of the marked details given in the right column. There are two extra choices in the right column. Mark your answers on
45、 ANSWER SHEERT 1.(10 points) Uncommon Ground - Land Art in Britain The term Land Art brings to mind epic interventions in the land such as Robert Smithsons Spiral Jetty, 6,500 tons of basalt, earth and salt projecting into Utahs Great Salt Lake, or Roden Crater, an extinct volcano in Arizona, which
46、James Turrell has been transforming into an immense naked-eye observatory since 1979. Richard Longs A Line Made By Walking, however, involved nothing more strenuous than a 20-minute train ride from Waterloo. Having got off somewhere in suburbia, the artist walked backwards and forwards over a piece
47、of grass until the squashed turf formed a line - a kind of drawing on the land. Emerging in the late Sixties and reaching a peak in the Seventies, Land Art was one of a range of new forms, including Body Art, Performance Art, Action Art and Installation Art, which pushed art beyond the traditional c
48、onfines of the studio and gallery. Rather than portraying landscape, land artists used the physical substance of the land itself as their medium. The message of this survey of British land art - the most comprehensive to date - is that the British variant, typified by Longs piece, was not only more domestically scaled, but a lot quirkier than its American counterpart. Indeed, while you might assume that an exhibition of Land Art would consist o
