1、考研英语二（阅读）-试卷 14 及答案解析(总分：60.00，做题时间：90 分钟)一、Reading Comprehensio(总题数：6，分数：60.00)1.Section II Reading Comprehension（分数：10.00）_2.Part ADirections: Read the following four texts. Answer the questions below each text by choosing A, B, C or D.（分数：10.00）_Next to snakes and crocs, Australians imagine shark
2、s to be the country“s most dangerous creature. Tim Winton, an author, calls sharks “substitute for the Devil“. Seven swimmers in three years have died from shark attacks in Mr Winton“s home state of Western Australia. The state“s government, led by Colin Barnett, is now taking revenge. In late Novem
3、ber a skilled surfer died from a shark attack. A week later a shark killed a 19-year-old in New South Wales. The tragedies fed public anxieties. Mr Barnett ordered no-go zones for sharks to be set up offshore, marked by lines of baited hooks. Any shark caught on them more than three metres long was
4、to be shot. The first shark caught in this strategy was shot on January 26th. Mr Barnett says he has to “protect the people of Western Australia“. But previously hostile popular attitudes towards sharks are shifting. Plenty of Western Australians, along with environmentalists and shark experts, depl
5、ore the new policy. In early January, at the height of the summer holiday season, more than 4,000 protesters swamped Cottesloe Beach in Perth, with signs reading “Save Our Sharks“and “Science Not Slaughter“. Of Australia“s 180 or so shark species, only a few are dangerous to humans: chiefly, bull sh
6、arks, tiger sharks and great whites, which are protected under federal law. Their numbers have suffered from the trade in shark fins for soup in Asia, which Australia and others have banned. Nonetheless, the federal government has given its conservative counterpart in Western Australia an exemption
7、from protecting great whites under its “catch-and-kill“ policy. Despite the recent attacks, deaths from sharks are rarean average of just one person a year for the past half-century around Australia“s vast coastline, says the Australian Shark Attack File, a research outfit at Taronga Zoo in Sydney.
8、By contrast, an average of 120 people drown each year off beaches and in harbours and rivers. There has been no fatal shark attack at Bondi beach in Sydney, Australia“s most popular strand, since 1929.（分数：10.00）(1).Tim Winton calls sharks “substitute for the Devil“ because_.（分数：2.00）A.they are as ug
9、ly as DevilB.they have killed many victimsC.they are the most dangerous creatureD.they are more dangerous than snakes and crocs(2).Mr Barnett“s policy includes_.（分数：2.00）A.shooting any shark caught on no-go zonesB.setting up restricted areas offshore for swimmersC.protecting his people from being ki
10、lled by sharksD.ensuring safety of both human beings and animals(3).Many Australians“ attitude towards the new policy is_.（分数：2.00）A.doubtfulB.supportiveC.ambiguousD.opponent(4).According to Paragraph 4, which one is true?（分数：2.00）A.Great whites are protected in Western Australia.B.Shark fin is a de
11、licate course in both Asia and Australia.C.Some dangerous shark species are protected by federal law.D.The number of sharks in Australia is growing in the past few years.(5).We can infer from the last paragraph that_.（分数：2.00）A.more people die from drowning every year than from sharksB.there has not
12、 been any shark attack at Bondi beach since 1929C.attacks from sharks are rare in the past five decades in AustraliaD.incidents of shark attack often happen at the most popular beachWhen a search engine guesses what you want before you finish typing it, or helpfully ignores your bad spelling, that i
13、s the result of machine learning, a branch of artificial intelligence. Although AI has been through cycles of hype and disappointment before, big technology companies have recently been scrambling to hire experts in the field, in the hope of building machines that can learn even more sophisticated t
14、asks. IBM said this month it would invest $ 1 billion in a new division to develop uses for Watson, its computer that understands human language. But this week Google enhanced its lead in this field by paying around $ 660 m for DeepMind Technologies, a startup in London that has yet to announce a pr
15、oduct. The boss of DeepMind, Demis Hassabis, previously created video games such as “ Evil Genius“ and “Theme Park“. DeepMind“s 75 geniuses will join the world“s leading group of machine-learning experts, which Google has been assembling in the past few years. Google“s main source of income, its sea
16、rch engine and the accompanying ad-placement system, is driven by machine learning. The firm“s self-driving cars rely on it, as do the intelligent thermostats made by Nest, a firm it has just taken over, and the robots made by Boston Dynamics and other robotics outfits it has been buying. The techno
17、logy is already the backbone of many other internet firms. It is why Facebook and Linkedln have that slightly creepy ability to find people you know, and why Amazon and Netflix are good at suggesting books and films you might like. It also helps intelligence agencies to identify terrorist networks.
18、As machine learning leaves the lab and goes into practice, it will threaten white-collar, knowledge-worker jobs just as machines, automation and assembly lines destroyed factory jobs in the 19th and 20th centuries. For example, the technique has been applied by researchers at Stanford University to
19、tell whether a biopsy of breast cells is highly cancerous, something that until now has required a human expert to assess. Another of DeepMind“s founders, Shane Legg, has predicted that artificial intelligence running wildly will be the biggest existential risk to humans in this century. Its founder
20、s have asked Google to set up an “ethics board“ to consider the appropriate use of machine learning in its products. The creator of “Evil Genius“ is ensuring that his new overlord sticks to its motto, “Don“t be evil“.（分数：10.00）(1).The underlined word “hype“(Para 1, Line 3)may be closest to_.（分数：2.00
21、）A.confusionB.surpriseC.excitementD.despair(2).DeepMind Technologies is_.（分数：2.00）A.a giant like Google and IBMB.a new company that develops video gamesC.a leading technological company in AmericaD.a newly started firm that cooperates with Google(3).Google has done the following EXCEPT_.（分数：2.00）A.g
22、athering talents on machine-learningB.earning money from its search engineC.purchasing large number of automatic devicesD.taking over firms like Nest and Boston Dynamics(4).Technology contributes to all EXCEPT_.（分数：2.00）A.stealing into one“s personal dataB.discovering people“s acquaintanceC.recommen
23、ding good books and moviesD.confirming hacker attack for spy agencies(5).Machine learning may be a threat to workers because_.（分数：2.00）A.it will destroy all human jobsB.it may lead to unemploymentC.it can do better than workers and human expertsD.it can tell whether a biopsy of cells is cancerousIf
24、the world“s education systems have a common focus, it is to turn out school-leavers who are proficient in maths. Governments are impressed by evidence from the World Bank and others that better maths results raises GDP and incomes. That, together with the soul-searching provoked by the cross-country
25、 PISA comparisons of 15-year-olds“ mathematical attainment produced by the OECD, a club of mostly rich countries, is prompting educators in many places to look afresh at what maths to teach, and how to teach it. Those countries fret about how to catch up without turning students off the subject with
26、 boring drill. Top performers, most of them Asian, fear that their focus on technical proficiency does not translate into an enthusiasm for maths after leaving school. And everyone worries about how to prepare pupils for a jobs market that will reward creative thinking ever more highly. Maths educat
27、ion has been a battlefield before: the American “maths wars“ of the 1980s pitted traditionalists, who emphasized fluency in pen-and-paper calculations, against reformers led by the country“s biggest teaching lobby, who put real-world problem-solving, often with the help of calculators, at the centre
28、 of the curriculum. A backlash followed as parents and academics worried that the “new maths“ left pupils ill-prepared for university courses in maths and the sciences. But as many countries have since found, training pupils to pass exams is not the same as equipping them to use their hard-won knowl
29、edge in work and life. Today“s reformers think new technology renders this old argument redundant. They include Conrad Wolfram, who worked on Mathematica, a program which allows users to solve equations, visualize mathematical functions and much more. He argues that computers make rote procedures, s
30、uch as long division, obsolete. “If it is high-level problem-solving and critical thinking we“re after, there“s not much in evidence in a lot of curriculums,“ he says.（分数：10.00）(1).We can infer from the first paragraph that_.（分数：2.00）A.a man“s salary may be higher if he is good at mathsB.maths is th
31、e most important subject in many countriesC.high scores at school equal to great achievement at workD.teachers in rich countries know exactly how to teach maths(2).According to Paragraph 2,which one is true?（分数：2.00）A.Rich countries often do better in maths.B.Asian students are tired of boring exerc
32、ises.C.Creative thinking is crucial for a student“s future job.D.Top performers“ craze for maths doesn“t wane after leaving school.(3).Many countries have found that_.（分数：2.00）A.teaching students to pass exams is much easierB.there is great differences between test and practical useC.knowledge learn
33、ed at school is rarely used in work and lifeD.most pupils are ill-prepared for university courses in maths(4).Reformers think new technology is_.（分数：2.00）A.redundantB.ambivalentC.excessiveD.contributive(5).The best title for the text may be_.（分数：2.00）A.Maths Teaching: Time to ReformB.Technology: Cru
34、cial in TeachingC.Maths Teaching: A Headache in EducationD.Critical Thinking; Important in EducationWalmart is at an “ inflection point “. Those words are truer now than when Bill Simon, the head of its American operation, uttered them last October. He was talking about Walmart“s plan for the first
35、time to open more small and medium-sized stores in 2014 than giant “supercentres“ , and all that would mean. Now another big change looms. On February 1st the company gets a new chief executive , Doug McMillon, until now the head of its international business. In some respects Mr McMillon looks like
36、 a natural choice to manage a huge beast that inspires loathing and loyalty in equal measure. A native of Arkansas, Walmart“s home state, he started out in one of the company“s warehouses, rose as a specialist in merchandising(deciding how goods are displayed and sold in stores)and was head of the S
37、am“s Club unit, stores where members buy in bulk. Genial and approachable, Mr McMillon may cure the corporate problem that afflicts Walmart when it talks to its 2. 2m employees, to its giant customer base(90% of Americans shop there at least once a year)and to critics who say it pays miserly wages a
38、nd sucks life out of town centres. On January 15 th the National Labour Relations Board accused Walmart of sacking and disciplining workers who went on strike in 2012. Walmart says it acted lawfully and claims to promote 160,000 people a year; Mr McMillon“s box-shifting calluses make such claims a b
39、it more convincing. Yet the international business, which he has led since 2009, is not thriving. This year it is expected to account for 28% of sales but it has just achieved 19% of operating income. Walmart has reduced costs in China and Brazil after expanding too fast. Confusing policies on forei
40、gn investment in retailing have hampered Walmart“s push into India. Walmart is co-operating with investigations into allegations that executives in Mexico bribed officials; the inquiries have been broadened to the company“s operations in India, Brazil and China. Mr McMillon is not to blame for these
41、 setbacks, many of which date from before he took over, but neither has he brought about a turnaround.（分数：10.00）(1).The underlined phrase “inflection point“(Para 1, Line 1)is closest to_.（分数：2.00）A.flash pointB.turning pointC.starting pointD.finishing point(2).According to Paragraph 2, which one of
42、the following is true?（分数：2.00）A.Mr McMillon looks like a huge beast.B.Some of Walmart“s stores are about to close.C.At Sam“s Club, members buy in large quantities.D.In Walmart, executives are also experts in merchandising.(3).Walmart was charged for_.（分数：2.00）A.paying miserly wagesB.going on strike
43、 illegallyC.restricting workers with disciplinesD.dismissing and punishing employees(4).Which one is NOT true about Walmart“s international business?（分数：2.00）A.Mr. McMillon has taken it over since 2009.B.It accounts for 19% of Walmart“s net income.C.Its sales haven“t reached original expectation thi
44、s year.D.Walmart has to tighten its belt in fast-expanded countries.(5).We can conclude from the last paragraph that_.（分数：2.00）A.unclear overseas policies have hindered Walmart“s spreadB.situations of overseas markets have turned around for WalmartC.Walmart“s foreign markets focus on China, Brazil a
45、nd India onlyD.Mr. McMillon is to blame for problems of Walmart“s foreign business考研英语二（阅读）-试卷 14 答案解析(总分：60.00，做题时间：90 分钟)一、Reading Comprehensio(总题数：6，分数：60.00)1.Section II Reading Comprehension（分数：10.00）_解析：2.Part ADirections: Read the following four texts. Answer the questions below each text by
46、choosing A, B, C or D.（分数：10.00）_解析：Next to snakes and crocs, Australians imagine sharks to be the country“s most dangerous creature. Tim Winton, an author, calls sharks “substitute for the Devil“. Seven swimmers in three years have died from shark attacks in Mr Winton“s home state of Western Austra
47、lia. The state“s government, led by Colin Barnett, is now taking revenge. In late November a skilled surfer died from a shark attack. A week later a shark killed a 19-year-old in New South Wales. The tragedies fed public anxieties. Mr Barnett ordered no-go zones for sharks to be set up offshore, mar
48、ked by lines of baited hooks. Any shark caught on them more than three metres long was to be shot. The first shark caught in this strategy was shot on January 26th. Mr Barnett says he has to “protect the people of Western Australia“. But previously hostile popular attitudes towards sharks are shifting. Plenty of Western Australians, along with environmentalists and shark experts, deplore the new policy. In early January, at the height of the summer holiday se
