1、考博英语-试卷 286及答案解析(总分：94.00，做题时间：90 分钟)一、Cloze(总题数：1，分数：40.00)In our contemporary culture, the prospect of communicating withor even looking ata stranger is virtually unbearable. Everyone around us seems to agree by the way they fiddle with their phones, even without a【C1】_underground. Its a sad reali
2、tyour desire to avoid interacting with other human beingsbecause theres【C2】_to be gained from talking to the stranger standing by you. But you wouldnt know it, 【C3】_into your phone. This universal armor sends the【C4】_; “Please dont approach me. “ What is it that makes us feel we need to hide【C5】_our
3、 screens? One answer is fear, according to Jon Wortmann, executive mental coach. We fear rejection, or that our innocent social advances will be【C6】_as “creepy. “ We fear well be【C7】_. We fear well be disruptive. Strangers are inherently【C8】_to us, so we are more likely to feel【C9】_when communicatin
4、g with them compared with our friends and acquaintances. To avoid this anxiety, we【C10】_to our phones. “Phones become our security blanket,“ Wortmann says. “They are our happy glasses that protect us from what we perceive is going to be more【C11】_. “ But once we rip off the bandaid, tuck our smartph
5、ones in our pockets and look up, it doesnt 【C12】_so bad. In one 2011 experiment, behavioral scientists Nicholas Epley and Juliana Schroeder asked commuters to do the unthinkable: Start a【C13】_. They had Chicago train commuters talk to their fellow【C14】_. “ When Dr. Epley and Ms. Schroeder asked othe
6、r people in the same train station to【C15】_how they would feel after talking to a stranger, the commuters thought their【C16】_would be more pleasant if they sat on their own,“ The New York Times summarizes. Though the participants didnt expect a positive experience, after they【C17】_with the experimen
7、t, “not a single person reported having been snubbed. “ 【C18】_, these commuters were reportedly more enjoyable compared with those sans communication, which makes absolute sense, 【C19】_human beings thrive off of social connections. Its that【C20】_: Talking to strangers can make you feel connected.（分数
8、：40.00）(1).【C1】（分数：2.00）A.ticketB.permitC.signalD.record(2).【C2】（分数：2.00）A.nothingB.linkC.anotherD.much(3).【C3】（分数：2.00）A.beatenB.guidedC.pluggedD.brought(4).【C4】（分数：2.00）A.messageB.cedeC.noticeD.sign(5).【C5】（分数：2.00）A.underB.beyondC.behindD.from(6).【C6】（分数：2.00）A.misinterpretedB.misappliedC.misadju
9、stedD.mismatched(7).【C7】（分数：2.00）A.firedB.judgedC.replacedD.delayed(8).【C8】（分数：2.00）A.unreasonableB.ungreatfulC.unconventionalD.unfamiliar(9).【C9】（分数：2.00）A.comfortableB.anxiousC.confidentD.angry(10).【C10】（分数：2.00）A.attendB.pointC.takeD.turn(11).【C11】（分数：2.00）A.dangerousB.mysteriousC.violentD.boring
10、(12).【C12】（分数：2.00）A.hurtB.resistC.bendD.decay(13).【C13】（分数：2.00）A.lectureB.conversationC.debateD.negotiation(14).【C14】（分数：2.00）A.traineesB.employeesC.researchersD.passengers(15).【C15】（分数：2.00）A.revealB.chooseC.predictD.design(16).【C16】（分数：2.00）A.voyageB.flightC.walkD.ride(17).【C17】（分数：2.00）A.went t
11、hroughB.did awayC.caught upD.put up(18).【C18】（分数：2.00）A.In turnB.In particularC.In factD.In consequence(19).【C19】（分数：2.00）A.unlessB.sinceC.ifD.whereas(20).【C20】（分数：2.00）A.funnyB.simpleC.logicalD.rare二、Reading Comprehensio(总题数：5，分数：50.00)The potential of computers for increasing the control of organi
12、zations or society over their members and for invading the privacy of those members has caused considerable concern. The privacy issue has been raised most insistently with respect to the creation and maintenance of data files that assemble information about persons from a multitude of sources. File
13、s of this kind would be highly valuable for many kinds of economic and social research, but they are bought at too high a price if they endanger human freedom or seriously enhance their opportunities of blackmailers. While such dangers should not be ignored, it should be noted that the lack of compr
14、ehensive data files has never before been the limiting barrier to the suppression of human freedom. Making the computer the villain in the invasion of privacy or encroachment on civil liberties simply divers attention from the real dangers. Computer data bank files can and must be given the highest
15、degree of protection from abuse. But we must be careful also, that we do not employ such crude methods of protection as to deprive our society of important data it needs to understand its down social processes and to analyze its problems. Perhaps the most important question of all about the computer
16、 is what it has come and will do to mans view of himself and his place in the universe. The most heated attacks on the computer are not focused on its possible economic effects, its presumed destruction of job satisfaction, or its threat to privacy and liberty, but upon the claim that it causes peop
17、le to be viewed, and to view themselves, as machines. What the computer and progress in artificial intelligence challenge are an ethic that rests on mans apartness from the rest of nature. An alternative ethic, of course, views man as a part of nature, governed by nature law, subject to the forces o
18、f gravity and the demands of his body. The debate about artificial intelligence and the simulation of mans thinking is, in considerable part, a confrontation of these two views of mans place in the universe.（分数：10.00）(1).Why is it important to prevent the abuse of computer data bands?（分数：2.00）A.To p
19、rotect the right of the individual.B.To maintain discipline in society.C.To encourage economic and social research.D.To collect wide - ranging information.(2).Which of the following is not true about data files?（分数：2.00）A.It may cause invasion of privacy.B.Dangers caused by it should be paid much at
20、tention to.C.Computer data files should be protected from abuse.D.It is reasonable to cancel data files in order to protect privacy.(3).Too much caution in the use of computers will_.（分数：2.00）A.prevent the solution of economic problemsB.cause more suppression of human freedomC.lead to clumsy methods
21、 of protectionD.interfere with our study of society(4).What lessons can be learned from the past in this decade?（分数：2.00）A.Private issue has always been associated with data collection.B.Attacks on freedom are new.C.The accumulation of data encourages oppression.D.Privacy has been a neglected issue.
22、(5).The arrival of the computer has made man_.（分数：2.00）A.have more difficulty understanding himselfB.think more like a machineC.look at himself in a different wayD.gain less satisfaction from his workWhat our society suffers from most today is the absence of consensus about what it and life in it ou
23、ght to be; such consensus cannot be gained from societys present stage, or from fantasies about what it ought to be. For that the present is too close and too diversified, and the future too uncertain, to make believable claims about it. A consensus in the present hence can be achieved only through
24、a shared understanding of the past, as Homers epics informed those who lived centuries later what it meant to be Greek, and by what images and ideals they were to live their lives and organize their societies. Most societies derive consensus from a long history, a language all their own, a common re
25、ligion, common ancestry. The myths by which they live are based on all of these. But the United States is a country of immigrants, coming from a great variety of nations. Lately, it has been emphasized that an asocial, narcissistic personality has become characteristic of Americans, and that it is t
26、his type of personality that makes for the lack of well-being, because it prevents us from achieving consensus that would counteract a tendency to withdraw into private worlds. In this study of narcissism, Christopher Lash says that modern man, “tortured by self-consciousness, turns to new therapies
27、 not to free himself of his personal worries but to find meaning and purpose in life, to find something to live for“. There is widespread distress because national morale has declined, and we have lost an earlier sense of national vision and purpose. Contrary to rigid religions or political beliefs,
28、 as are found in totalitarian societies, our culture is one of the great individual differences, at least in principle and in theory; but this leads to disunity, even chaos. Americans believe in the value of diversity, but just because ours is a society based on individual diversity, it needs consen
29、sus about some dominating ideas more than societies based on uniform origin of their citizens. Hence, if we are to have consensus, it must be based on a mytha vision about a common experience, a conquest that made us Americans, as the myth about the conquest of Troy formed the Greeks. Only a common
30、myth can offer relief from the fear that life is without meaning or purpose. Myths permit us to examine our place in the world by comparing it to a shared idea. Myths are shared fantasies that form the tie that binds the individual to other members of his group. Such myths help to ward off feelings
31、of isolations, guilt, anxiety, and purposelessnessin short, they combat isolation and the breakdown of social standards and values.（分数：10.00）(1).In the eyes of the author, the greatest trouble with the U. S. society may lie in_.（分数：2.00）A.the non-existence of consensus on the forms the society shoul
32、d takeB.the lack of divergence over the common organizations of social lifeC.the non-acceptance of a society based on individual diversityD.the pervasive distress caused by national morale decline(2).The asocial personality of Americans may stem from_.（分数：2.00）A.the absence of a common religion and
33、ancestryB.the multiracial constituents of the US societyC.the want of a shared myths they possess in lifeD.the counterbalance to narcissistic personality(3).Homers epics is mentioned in Paragraph 1 in order to_.（分数：2.00）A.exemplify the contributions made by ancient poetsB.illustrate the role of shar
34、ed fantasies about societyC.show an ideal stage of eternal social progressD.make known myths of what a society ought to be(4).The author concludes that only shared myths can help Americans_.（分数：2.00）A.to bring about the uniformity of their cultureB.to regain their consensus about a common experience
35、C.to stay away from negative feelings in their lifeD.to counteract the effects of consensus about society(5).It can be inferred from Paragraph 2 that Christopher Lash is most probably_.（分数：2.00）A.a reform advocateB.a senior psychologistC.a reputed poetD.a social historianThe early retirement of expe
36、rienced workers is seriously harming the U. S. economy, according to a new report from the Hudson Institute, a public policy research organization. Currently, many older experienced workers retire at an early age. According to the recently issued statistics, 79 percent of qualified workers begin col
37、lecting retirement benefits at age 62; if that trend continues, there will be a labor shortage that will hinder the economic growth in the twenty-first century. Older Americans constitute an increasing proportion of the population, according to the U. S. Census Bureau, and the population of those ov
38、er age 65 will grow by 60% between 2001 and 2020. During the same period, the group aged 18 to 44 will increase by only 4%. Keeping older skilled workers employed, even part time, would increase U. S. economic output and strengthen the tax base; but without significant policy reforms, massive early
39、retirement among baby boomers seems more likely. Retirement at age 62 is an economically rational decision today. Social Security and Medicaid earnings limits and tax penalties subject our most experienced workers to marginal tax rates as high as 67%. Social Security formulas encourage early retirem
40、ent. Although incomes usually rise with additional years of work, any pay increases after the 35-year mark result in higher social Security taxes but only small increases in benefits. Hudson Institute researchers believe that federal tax and benefit policies are at fault and reforms are urgently nee
41、ded, but they disagree with the popular proposal that much older Americans will have to work because Social Security will not support them and that baby boomers are not saving enough for retirement. According to the increase in 401(k)and Keogh retirement plans, the ongoing stock market on Wall Stree
42、t, and the likelihood of large inheritances, there is evidence that baby boomers will reach age 65 with greater financial assets than previous generations. The Hudson Institute advocates reforming government policies that now discourage work and savings, especially for older workers. Among the repor
43、ts recommendations: Tax half of all Social Security benefits, regardless of other income; provide 8% larger benefits for each year beyond 65; and permit workers nearing retirement to negotiate compensation packages that may include a lower salary but with greater healthcare benefits. However, it may
44、 take real and fruitful planning to find the right solution to the early retirement of older experienced workers; any measures taken must be allowed to prolong the serviceability of older experienced workers.（分数：10.00）(1).According to Hudson Institute researchers, the effect of the early retirement
45、of qualified workers on the U. S. economy is_.（分数：2.00）A.constructiveB.significantC.inconclusiveD.detrimental(2).The older experienced workers in America tend to retire early because their prolonged service may_.（分数：2.00）A.do harm to younger generationsB.end up with few or no benefitsC.give play to
46、their potentialsD.shed light on social trends(3).The second paragraph is written chiefly to show that_.（分数：2.00）A.there will be an acute labor shortage in the near futureB.baby-boomers contribute much to the US economic outputC.government policies concerning older people are out-datedD.older workers
47、 are enthusiastic about collecting social benefits(4).When mentioning “the ongoing stock market on Wall Street“, the writer_.（分数：2.00）A.is calling attention to the privileges to which baby-boomers are entitledB.is calling for the government to take countermeasures against labor shortageC.is refuting
48、 a notion about experienced workers early retirementD.is justifying the ineffectiveness of federal tax and benefit policies(5).Towards the issue, what the writer is most concerned about will be_.（分数：2.00）A.to advocate radically reforming government policiesB.to take into account the benefits upon re
49、tirementC.to put in practice what Hudson researchers believe inD.to prolong the practicability of older experienced employeesThe history of responses to the work of the artist Sandro Botticelli(14441510)suggests that widespread appreciation by critics is a relatively recent phenomenon. Writing in 1550, Vasari expressed an unease with Botticellis work, admitting that the artist fitted awkwardly into his evolutio
