1、 本文由堕落天使路希法贡献doc文档可能在WAP端浏览体验不佳。建议您优先选择TXT，或下载源文件到本机查看。英语四级网 www.1-（雨荷上传） 2010 年 12 月英语四级阅读练习详解 2010 年 12 月英语四级阅读练习详解 Unit one Elementary Schools in early America What accounts forthe great outburst of major inventions in early America -breakthroughs such as the telegraph, the steamboat and the weav
2、ing machine? Among the many shaping factors, I would single out the countrys excellent elementary schools; a labor force that welcomed the new technology; the practice of giving premiums to inventors; and above all the American genius for nonverbal, “spatial“ thinking about things technological. Why
3、 mention the elementary schools? Because thanks to these schools our early mechanics, especially in the New England and Middle Atlantic states, were generally literate and at home in arithmetic and in some aspects of geometry and trigonometry. Acute foreign observers related american adaptiveness an
4、d inventiveness to this educational advantage. As a member of a British commission visiting here in 1853 reported, “With a mind prepared by thorough school discipline, the American boy develops rapidly into the skilled workman.“ A further stimulus to invention came from the “premium“ system, which p
5、receded our patent system and for years ran parallel with it. This approach, originated abroad, offered inventors medals, cash prizes and other incentives. In the United States, multitudes of premiums for new devices were awarded at country fairs and at the industrial fairs in major cities. American
6、s flocked to these fairs to admire the new machines and thus to renew their faith in the beneficence of technological advance. Given this optimistic approach to technological innovation, the American worker took readily to that special kind of nonverbal thinking required in mechanical technology. As
7、 Eugene Ferguson has pointed out, “A technologist thinks about objects that cannot be reduced to unambiguous verbal 英语四级网 www.1- verbal a. 1.口头的 2.用言辞的,用文字的 联想词 vocal a. 发声的,嗓音的 premium n. 1.保险金 2.额外费用 3. 奖品,赠品,额外津贴 a. 1.高级的,优质的 2.售价高的 联想词 subsidy n. 津贴,补贴 breakthhrough n. 1.突围,突破 2.重大成就,惊人发现 联想词 br
8、eakdown n. 1.垮台,破裂 2.衰竭,衰弱 3.损坏,故障 4.分类 invention n. 1.发明,发明物 2.捏造,虚构 inventor n.发明家,发明者 联想词 inventory n.1.详细目录 2.存货清 -1descriptions; they are dealt with in his mind by a visual, nonverbal process. The designer and the inventor are able to assemble and manipulate in their minds devices that as yet d
9、o not exist.“ This nonverbal “spatial“ thinkingcan be just as creative as painting and writing. robert fulton once wrote, “The mechanic should sit down among levers, screws, wedges, wheels, etc. , like a poet among the letters of the alphabet, considering them as an exhibition of histhoughts, in whi
10、ch a new arrangement transmits a new idea.“ When all these shaping forces - schools, open attitudes, the premium system, a genius for spatial thinking - interacted with one another on the rich U.S. mainland, they produced that american characteristic, emulation. Today that word implies mere imitatio
11、n. But in earlier times it meant a friendly but competitive striving forfame and excellence.英语四级网 www.1-（雨荷上传） spatial a. 的, 的 literacy n. 字, 文 ,读 能 literate a.1. 读 能 的 2. 文 的 stimulus n. 1. 2. 联想词 provocation n. 1. , 2. , provocative a. 1. 的, 的 2. 的 precede vt. 在 ,先 precedent n. 1.先 , , 2. emulatio
12、n n. 1. ,2., patent n., a.()的,保currency1的 vt.到 的 strivevi. “ , originate vi. fi源 ,fl , vt.造, 联想词 commence v. incentive n. , multitude n. 1.大,” 2.大, marble n. 1.大 ambiguous a.fi 的,可的,不清的 联想词 indefinite a. 1.不明的,的 2. 的 exdplicit a. 1.明的,明 的;详的 2.言的,不 的, 的 diploma n. 文 , , 联想词 diplomat n. 1.外 ,外 家 2. 的
13、人, 的人 sculpture n.1. , 2. 品, 品 联想词 carve vt. 1. , 2. , engrave vt. 1.在 上 2.使,使 statue n. , bust n. 1. , 2., 围 imitation n. 1. 2.,品 3. 品 manipulate vt. 1. , 2. ,使用 lever n. 1. 2., , vt. , fi wedge n. (子) vt. 入,塞入 联想词 groove n. 沟,槽 hinge n. 铰链 interact vi. 相互 用,相互 -2-英语四级网 www.1-英语四级网 www.1-（雨荷上传） per
14、petual a. 1.永久的,永恒的,长的 2. 休止的,没完没了的 2010 年 12 月英语四级阅读练习详解 Unit Two 月英语四级阅读练习详解 Fight Again Youth Smoking-3-Three years ago, appalled by how many children were becoming addicted to cigarettes every year, the Vice President and I committed this administration tostopping the sale and marketing of cigar
15、ettes to children. Today, thanks to these efforts and the persistence of state attorneys general, the public health comm2010 年 12 月英语四级阅读练习详解 Unity, and leaders in Congress, we have the best opport2010 年 12 月英语四级阅读练习详解 Unity ever to pass comprehensive anti-smoking legislation that well save millions
16、 of our children from a premature, painful, and very preventable death. This week, in a historic and resounding 19 to 1 vote, a key Senate committee gave its stamp of approval to comprehensive legislation sponsored by Senator John McCain, a Republican, and Senator Fritz Hollings, a Democrat, that wo
17、uld cut youth smoking by half over the next decade.This bill represents a dramatic step forward. It would raise the price of cigarettes, give the FDA full authority to regulate tobacco products, ban advertising aimed at children, and protect tobacco farmers. We still have work to do in this legislat
18、ion. Above all, we need to put in place tough penalties that will cost the tobacco industry if it continues to sell cigarettes to young people. Just this week the Centers for Disease Control released a disturbing report that more than a third of teenagers in the 2010 年 12 月英语四级阅读练习详解 United States n
19、ow smoke, even though its illegal. It is time to hold tobacco companies accountable. Reducidng youth smoking must be veerybodys bottom line. Lets remember - this is not about politics or money, or seeking revenge against the tobacco industry for past practices. Were not trying to put the tobacco com
20、panies out of business; we want to put them out of the business of selling cigarattes to kids. This weeks progress in the Senate shows we have real momentum in both parties to do just that. 英语四级网 www.1-英语四级网 www.1-（雨荷上传） Therere still maly issues to be worked out and many long nights ahead. But we h
21、ave within our grasp one of the most important public health victories our nation has ever achieved. Finally, lit me just pause a moment to observe the 30th anniversary of the death of one of Americas greatest heroes, Dr. Martin Luther King. His dream, deeply rooted in the American Dream, is a dream
22、 for all Americans. Let us here at home always strive to heed Dr. Kings words and live up to his legacy. Bill Clinton premature a.1.比预时 早是 2.不成熟的,仓 的 prosecute vt.1.对 提fi公诉,告发,检举 2.继续从事 vi.fi诉,告发 defendant n.被告 invalid a.1. 的, 废的 2. 可靠依据的 n.病弱者,残疾者 testify vi.1. , 明 2.表明,说明 vt. , 明 testimony n.1. 词
23、2.见 , 明-4-authority n.1. ,管辖 2. 方,当局 3.当者,行政管机构 4.威,家 appall vt.使惊骇,使大吃一惊 联想词 terrify vt.使害怕,使惊吓 outrage vt. fi 的愤, n.1.愤,愤慨 2.暴行,骇人听闻的事件 accountable a. 负fi责任的 addict n.1. 瘾的人 2.入迷的人 vt.使成瘾,使入迷 联想词 cocaine n.可卡因 toxic a. 毒的,中毒fi的 persistent a. 1.坚持不懈的,执意的 2.持续的 persistence n.1.坚持不懈,执意 2. 持续性,持续状态 联想
24、词 stubborn a.1.顽固的,执拗的,倔强的 2.难对付的,难 克服的 legislation n.1.法律,法规 2,立法的,法律的定联想词 legitimate a. 1.合情合的 2.合法的,法律认可的 judicial a. 1.司法的,法庭的,审 的 2.明断的,公正的 sue vi.1.告,fi诉 2.要,请 vt.告,fi诉 英语四级网 www.1-heed vt.留心,注意,听从 legency n.遗赠的财物,遗 deadly a.1.致死的,致命的 2.不共戴天的,殊死的 3.极度的,十足的 ad.非常,极度地 联想词 drastic a.1.极端的,严厉的 2.
25、烈的, 的 strive vi.“ , momentum n.1. , , 2. 联想词 impetus n.1. , 2. revenge n. , authoritative a.1.威性的,可 的 2.断的,命 的 authorize vt. , 联想词 definitive a. 1. 可靠的,威性的 2. 定性的英语四级网 www.1-（雨荷上传） epidemic n.1. 行病 2. 传, 行 a. 行性的, 传极 的 lure vt. , , 2010 年 12 月英语四级阅读练习详解 Unit Three Beauty Is Meaningless-5-A young man
26、 sees a sunset and, unable to understand or to express the emotion that it rouses in him, concludes that it must be the gateway to a world that lies beyond. It is difficult for any of us in moments of intense aesthetic experience to resist the suggestion that we are catching a glimpse of a light tha
27、t shines down to us from a different realm of existence, different and, because the experience is intensely moving, in some wqy higher. And, though the gleams blind and dazzle, yet they do convey a hint of beauty and serenity greater than we have known or imagined. Greater too than we can describe,
28、for language, which was invented to convey the meanings of this world, cannot readily be fitted to the uses of another. That all great art has this power of suggesting a world beyond is undeniable. In some moods, Nature shares it. There is no sky in June so blue that it does not point forward to a b
29、luer, no sunset so beautiful that it does not waken the vision of a greater beauty, a wision which passes before it is fully glimpsed, and in passing leaves an indefinable linging and regret. But, if this world is not merely a bad joke, life a vulgar flare amid the cool radiance of the stars, and ex
30、istence an empty laugh braying across the mysteries, if these intimations of a something behind and beyond are not evil humour born of indigestion, or whimsies sent by the devil to mock and madden us , if, in a word, beauty means something, yet we must not seek to interpret the meaning. If we glimps
31、e the unutterable, it is unwise to try to utter it, nor should we seek to invest with significance that which we cannot grasp. Beauty in terms of our human meanings is meaningless. intense a. 1.强烈的,烈的, 的 2.认的,注的 3. 情的, 的 intensify v. (使) 强,(使) aesthetic a. 1. 的,审 的 2. 目的, 致的英语四级网 www.1-英语四级网 www.1-（
32、雨荷上传） gleam vi.1. , 2. 现, n.1. , 2. 现, 联想词 sparkle vi.1.发, , 2.,发 n.1.发, , 2. , glitter vi. 发, n. ,currency1的 2.“, dazzle vt. 使目 n.1.“的2. 人fi的fl serenity n. 1.,详 2. ,明 denial n. 1.认 2. undeniablea.不可认的 vulgar a. 1.”的,下 的 2.的,的 联想词 boscene a. 1. 的,下 的 2.可的,可 的 flare vi. 1.() 2.突发,突发 n. ,明 联想词 eruptvi
33、. 1.() 发 2.( )发,突发 ignite vt. ,发 radiant a. 1.发的, 的 2. 四 的,currency1的 3. 的 联想词 radiate v. 1.发 (或 ), 2. ,radioactive a. 性的, 的 bray vi. 1.( ) 2. 的声音说(或 ) whimsy n. 1. 头, 的想法 2. 联想词 bizare a. 的, 状的 weird a. 1. 的,的 2. 的, 可怕的 mock vt. 1. , 2.(了 ) vi. , a. 1.的,习的 2. 的, 的 英语四级网 www.1- 2010 年 12 月英语四级阅读练习详解
34、 Unit Four Waiting in Line-6-The British queue up and the Americans wait in line, except for New Yorkers,who wait on line. No one seems to know the reason for this local idiom. It is something to ponder while waiting in/on line. Another thing to ponder: It is estimated that Americans spednd up to fi
35、ve years of their lives in that tedious,weary but unavoidable process known as waiting. Studies show that otherwise rational people act irrationally when forced to stand in line or wait in crowds,even becoming violent. Queues are a grim reality of city life. While there seemsto be no consensus onthe
36、 citys worst line, the ones mentioned most often in talks here and there were lunchtime lines at banks and post offices and, among younger people, movie lines and college-registration lines. “Bank lines,“ said Mark Sloane, an investor. “No matter what time of day you bank, the number of tellers is i
37、nadequate to the number of patrons. Even when the bank is open you see long lines infront of the money machines outside.“ “Supermarkets,“ said Ed Frantz, a graphic artist, who once abandoned a full shopping cart in the middle of a long checkout line. It was not a political act. “The line was filled
38、with coupon clippers and check writers,“ he recalled. “And suddenly I had to walk away. Food no longer mattered.“ In any line the fundamental rule is first come, first served, or what dsocial scientists call “distributive justice.“ Exceptionsmay be made, say, in fancy restaurants where the headwaite
39、rs have their favorites, but, in general, the rule prevails. If misery loves company, so do sports fans. Dr. Leon Mann documented this several years ago when, as a Harvard professor, he studied the long overnight queues for tickets to ball games in hisnative Australia. “Outside the stadium something
40、 of a carnival atmosphere prevails,“ he wrote in The American Journal of Sociology. “The devotees sing, sip warm英语四级网 www.1-（雨荷上传） drinks, play cards and huddle together.“ Like the teams they had come to watch, the fans in line took timeouts. Some worked in shifts, with certain members leaving to ta
41、ke naps or eat meals, while others saved their places in line. Some staked claims in line with items of personal property such as sleeping bags and folding chairs. “During the early hours of waiting,“ Dr. Mann noted, “the queues often consisted of one part people to two parts inanimate objects.“ Nob
42、ody has ever seriously studied Helen Quinns Saturday morning line for Metropolitan Opera tickets, but perhaps someone should -Miss Quinn is not an official at the Met. For 15 years standeesat the opera have been doing just that, thanks to Miss Quins ticketing system. She makes, dates and numbers her
43、 tickets-one for each of the 175 standing room spots available- and dispenses them to early birds. Assured of a place, ticket holders then leave and return shortly before 8 A.M. to line up for the real tickets. idiom n. 1.习语,成语 2. , ponder v. , , 联想词 contemplate vt. 1. , 议 2. , 3.注, weary a. 1. 的, 的
44、 2.使 的, 人 的 vi. 的,不耐烦 联想词 tiresome a. 人 的, 人 的 dispense vt. 1.分配,分发 2.配(药),发(药) 3.实施,执行 grim a. 1.讨 的,糟糕的 2.严厉的 3.严酷的, 情的 consensus n. (意见)一致,一致同意 patron n. 1. 助人,助人 2.老主顾,顾客 resent vt. 对 表 忿恨,怨恨 英语四级网 www.1- 联想词 disperse vi. 1.分散,散 2.消散,消失 vt. 1.使分散,赶散 2.使消散,驱散 huddle vi. 1.聚集在一fi 2. 子蜷成一团 vt.使聚集在一
45、fi n.挤在一fi的人,一堆杂乱的fl inanimate a. 1. 命的,非 物的 2. 的, 调的 metropolitan a.大城市的,大都会的 graphic a. 1. 的,象的 2.绘画的,文字的,图表的 coupon n. 1.礼券,优惠券 2.配券,票 clip n. 1.夹子,回针,别针 2.夹,仓 3.剪, 剪 4.剪,电 片断 vt.(clipped;clipping) 1.夹住,扣住 2.剪, 剪 3.削减,缩短 联想词 clamp n.夹头,夹 ,夹钳 vt.(用夹 )夹 ,固定 prevail vi. 1. 行,盛行 2.获胜,占优 3.说明,劝说, 使pre
46、valent a. 秆的,普遍的 misery n. 1.痛苦,苦恼,苦难 2.悲惨的境遇,贫苦 carnival n. 1.表演会 2.庆祝,欢宴 3.狂欢节 联想词 feast n. 1.盛宴,筵席 2.节日 sociology n. 社会 sip v.(sipped,sippig)小口地喝,抿,呷 n. 小口喝-7-英语四级网 www.1-（雨荷上传） 2010 年 12 月英语四级阅读练习详解 Unit Five rioAggressive Pattism in Sports Some people believe that international sport creates go
47、odwill between the nations. Others say that the opposite is true: thatinternational contests encourage false national pride and lead to misunderstanding and hatred. There is probably some truth in both arguments, butin recent years the Olympic games have done little to support the view that sports e
48、ncourages international brotherhood. Not only, was there the tragic incident involving the murder of athletes, but the games were also ruined by lesser incidents caused principally by minor national contests. One country received its second-place medals with visible indignation after the hockey final. There had been noisy scenes at the end of the hockey match, the users objecting to the final decisions. The
