1、考研英语（阅读）-试卷 4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）_Whether an atheist or a creationist, the most research
2、ed arguments will incline towards the same conclusion: people are inherently evil. Creationists who hinge the existence of man on the story as told by Moses in the book of Genesis must understand that, as backed? by the same book, God created both good and evil. If the account of creation is to be b
3、elieved, then the creation of evil is also to be believed as a premeditated design of the creator. Evil can then be said as created to exist with the other creations. When Adam and Eve occupied the Garden of Eden, they only had to choose between living in obedience or disobedience. In this particula
4、r case, obedience can be said to be good while disobedience is evil. If God knows everything, then he could be said to know that Adam and Eve would disobey. Why then did he not remove the evil part so they could live in obedience forever? The answer is simple; Man“s evil part is his free will. Stopp
5、ing a man from being inherently evil is the same as imprisoning the man. The level of this imprisonment does vary. Man did not become evil after eating the forbidden fruit. No, he was evil right from the dust. Man“s free will is his tendency to choose evil when aware of the existence and consequence
6、s of both good and evil. What makes a man choose good ahead of evil is not his free will but things that aim to check his free will. These include morals, laws, religion etc. From the creationist angle, all people are inherently evil. From the atheist“s angle, the well researched conclusion remains
7、the same. In the first place, nothing can be more evil than chance and evolution. In this case, survival depends on the elimination of the unfit for the fit to survive. In an evolutionary society that is not evil, both the fit and the unfit will have the same rights and an equal chance to survive. B
8、ut this is not so. Every inclination of the evolutionary man, whether conscious or unconscious, is designed to beat his fellow man in the survival game. What can be more evil than this? Is it robbery, murder, war, genocide or rape? None. They are all the unpalatable children of the evolutionary mama
9、. The need to survive gives birth to them all. All people are inherently evil. If i am not evil, then i haven“ t faced the challenge to survive in an evil way.（分数：10.00）(1).Creationism holds that_.（分数：2.00）A.evil exists in every person as a natural attributeB.man“s evil part was elaborately designed
10、 by GodC.human beings were created to exist by the creatorD.good and evil were created simultaneously by God(2).The author challenges the notion that_.（分数：2.00）A.Adam and Eve lived in the Garden of EdenB.Adam and Eve chose to live in disobedienceC.male and female were simultaneous creationD.evil ori
11、ginated from eating the forbidden fruit(3).The author argues that good_.（分数：2.00）A.was produced together with evil by GodB.results from the constraint on free choiceC.a characteristic every person is born withD.is what every human being pursues in life(4).The author argues from the atheist“s angle t
12、hat_.（分数：2.00）A.the existence of God is out of the questionB.our destiny depends on chance and evolutionC.to eliminate the unfit for the fit is undesirableD.the inclination to win the survival game is evil(5).The author primarily intends to show that_.（分数：2.00）A.all men are born with an evil quality
13、B.the need to survive brings about evilC.all men and women are created equalD.both chance and evolution are immoral“The good news is that no existential catastrophe has happened,“ declared Nick Bostrom. “Not one. Yet. “ Bostrom, director of Oxford“s Future of Humanity Institute, opened what he think
14、s might be the first ever conference to comprehensively consider the gamut of Global Catastrophic Risks. By existential catastrophes Bostrom means that humanity has survived extinction so far. However, he quickly pointed out 99. 9 percent of all species are extinct. Bostrom cited the Toba super-erup
15、tion 73,000 years ago which may have produced a global winter that reduced the population of human ancestors to fewer than 500 fertile women(though some disagree). Our Neanderthal relatives died out between 33,000 and 24,000 years ago. In Our Final Hour, Lord Martin Rees predicted that there was onl
16、y a 50 percent chance that our civilization would survive to 2100. Bostrom justified the broad topic of global catastrophic risks by pointing to common causal links, e. g. , super-volcanoes, asteroid strikes, and nuclear wars all have the potential to produce disastrous global cooling. Catastrophic
17、scenarios also present common methodological, analytical, and cultural challenges. And, argues Bostrom, a wider view of potential catastrophes is necessary for the adoption of proper policies and informed prioritization. To assist in this effort, the conference is launching the eponymous volume, Glo
18、bal Catastrophic Risks. Bostrom did note that people today are safer from small to medium threats than ever before. As evidence he cites increased life expectancy from 18 years in the Bronze Age to 64 years today(the World Health Organizations thinks it“s 66 years). And he urged the audience not to
19、let future existential risks occlude our view of current disasters, such as 15 million people dying of infectious diseases every year, 3 million from HIV/AIDS, 18 million from cardiovascular diseases, and 8 million per year from cancer. Bostrom did note that, “All of the biggest risks, the existenti
20、al risks are seen to be anthropogenic, that is, they originate from human beings“. The biggest risks include nuclear war, biotech plagues, and nanotechnology arms races. The good news is that the biggest existential risks are probably decades away, which means we have time to analyze them and develo
21、p countermeasures. Tomorrow, the Oxford conference on Global Catastrophic Risks will have more edifying presentations on proposals for recovering from social collapses occasioned by catastrophes: how to rationally consider the end of the world; how to avoid Millennialist cognitive biases; how to ins
22、ure against catastrophes; how ecological diversity could affect human prospects; and the tragedy of the uncommons.（分数：10.00）(1).By saying “existential catastrophe“, Bostrom refers to the catastrophe which _.（分数：2.00）A.human species will not surviveB.few people survive if it happensC.has happened to
23、humans so farD.results in the ruin of the earth(2).Bostrom cited the Toba super-eruption to illustrate that _.（分数：2.00）A.the extinction of a race is more than probableB.existential catastrophe is not totally impossibleC.human beings can hardly survive global winterD.human population may be reduced t
24、o hundreds(3).Bostrom argues that a wider view of possible catastrophe _.（分数：2.00）A.keeps us informed of current prioritizationsB.helps us meet unexpected future challengesC.reduces the likelihood of global catastrophesD.contributes to the adoption of proper policies(4).Bostrom noted that future exi
25、stential risks _.（分数：2.00）A.arise from human activitiesB.are related to current disastersC.can be avoided though dreadfulD.originate from new technologies(5).The dominant theme of the Oxford conference on Global Catastrophic Risks is_.（分数：2.00）A.the possibility to recover from social collapsesB.the
26、effect of ecological diversity on the futureC.whether humanity will survive the 21st centuryD.how to combat the imminent global catastropheIn 1971, according to the Association of Departments of English, about eight out of every 100 bachelor“s degrees were awarded to English majors. Today, that figu
27、re stands at just a shade over four out of 100, with an equally precipitous decline evident in foreign literature enrollments as well. As the nation“s lit departments go begging for students, they would do well to consult John Carey“s brilliant, funny, and insightful What Good Are the Arts, which ma
28、kes a compelling and persuasive case that creative expressionespecially the written wordis absolutely central to a rich and thoughtful life. “Literature does not make you a better person, though it may help you to criticize what you are,“ writes Carey, a former Oxford professor and author of, among
29、other books, 1992“s The Intellectuals and the Masses, a stunning reappraisal of British modernists as hate-filled class warriors terrified by the breakdown of social hierarchy. “ But it enlarges your mind, and it gives you thoughts, words and rhythms that will last you for life. “ Ironically, in mak
30、ing his case for the arts, Carey spends most of his book tearing down what he considers specious justifications for them. Where Kant, Hegel and Schopenhauer argued for art as sacred, spiritual and transcendent, Carey insists simply that “anything can be a work of art“ and that standards of taste and
31、 beauty are irreducibly subjective. Nor does he have any sympathy for left-wing critics of mass art such as Theodor Adorno and Walter Benjamin, who viewed popular culture as a means of social control. Similarly, new theories about aesthetics rooted in cognitive science and evolutionary psychology, w
32、hile interesting, fail to explain the wide range of individual responses to specific pieces of art, not to mention changing tastes over time. If Carey finds no theory of the arts fully convincing, he remains their adamant champion. In what smacks of special pleading, Carey contends that literature i
33、s first among the arts, mainly because it is the only art that is explicitly capable of reasoning. The chief implication of this is that literature can moralize in the best way possible. Not in a William Bennett Book of Virtues sense, which holds that if people consume the right sort of messages, th
34、ey will be upright citizens. Rather, Carey writes that the world“s boundless literary canon “is a field of comparisons and contrasts, spreading infinitely outwards“, challenging readers to be more thoughtful about the past from which they spring, the present in which they live, and the future which
35、they will create.（分数：10.00）(1).John Carey“s work What Good Are the Arts _.（分数：2.00）A.is popular in the world of literatureB.challenges readers to be thoughtfulC.reveals the value of literature to lifeD.casts light on the decline of literature(2).John Carey claims in his book that literature_.（分数：2.0
36、0）A.enriches one“s lifeB.stimulates one“s growthC.inspires one“s confidenceD.enhances one“s reputation(3).John Carey maintains that_.（分数：2.00）A.nothing in one“s life isn“t a work of artB.art is sacred, spiritual and transcendentC.there are sufficient justifications for artsD.standards of taste and b
37、eauty vary greatly(4).John Carey thinks that new theories about aesthetics are_.（分数：2.00）A.far from compellingB.rooted in modern sciencesC.inconsistent with his theoryD.as convincing as they can be(5).John Carey argues that literature is_.（分数：2.00）A.the only moralized form of artB.both enlightening
38、and instructingC.full of comparisons and contractsD.characterized as being reasonableThe notion that we might need nuclear energy to stave off global warming makes me want to laugh and cry at the same time. It is a self-fulfilling prophecy that began when Ronald Reagan took office in 1981 and prompt
39、ly removed Jimmy Carter“s solar panels from the White House roof. It was not simply a symbolic act. Reagan also slashed alternative energy funding so deeply that it virtually put the solar industry out of business. Alternatives are hampered today because Reagan was doing then what Bush is doing now:
40、 serving the interests of big oil, which seeks to squeeze out every last drop of profit from fossil fuels. The war in Iraq and other foreign policy actions today continue with that aim. And nuclear is not unlike oil in that it is a very centralized industry, controlled by a few companies. It will en
41、rich the few and further hamper progress for renewables. A decentralized energy future will be far better for an economy that wants to float all boats(not just yachts)while not having so many energy eggs in one basket. That nuclear might belong in the mix right now is only due to the climate predica
42、ment we are in because of our past sins. If undertaken at all, it should only be a bridge(a “necessary evil“)to a future powered instead by many forms of safe, clean energy sources. Much is happening now in that regard, spurred by our almost sudden acceptance that global warming is real. Seattle wan
43、ts to harness ocean power and provide electricity for 60, 000 homes. Similar projects are planned from Alaska to New York. Wind power has quadrupled since 2000 and, though wind is now only one percent of the U. S. power grid, it is poised for a quantum leap; offshore wind projects are in various sta
44、ges of development in Maryland, Texas , Massachusetts, New York and elsewhere. Hydrogen- and electric-powered cars are also likely to come online more quickly than we imagined even five years ago. Nuclear has far too many problems, not the least of which is its waste, which will only become a bigger
45、 problem if its use proliferates. The waste stays radioactive for thousands of years and has to be buried underground. Even if plans for doing that are ever realized, deadly waste will need to be transported across the country, through communities, subjecting people to unacceptable risks. Nuclear is
46、 also still a large accident risk. Industry proponents claim that nuclear is safer today than ever before, but even a small malfunction or leak could have devastating effects. And even if Chernobyl-style meltdowns are not likely, nuclear facilities still emit low-level radiation, a potentially serio
47、us public health concern.（分数：10.00）(1).The author thinks that the use of nuclear energy_.（分数：2.00）A.hampers global warming effectivelyB.to avoid global warming is doubtfulC.is inevitable with the shortage of oilD.is necessary to evade global warming(2).By saying “It is a self-fulfilling prophecy“(Li
48、ne 2, Paragraph 1), the author implies that it will become true that_.（分数：2.00）A.nuclear energy is used more widely than todayB.solar panels are promptly removed from roofsC.oil is to a large extent replaced by alternativesD.alternative energy funding is further curtailed(3).President Bush is quite
49、similar to Ronald Reagan in that he_.（分数：2.00）A.makes the most of fossil fuels for profitB.cuts alternative energy funding deeplyC.puts the solar industry out of businessD.serves the interests of oil monopolies(4).To alleviate global warming, various forms of safe, clean energy sources will be used in the future, a possible brid
