1、2006年四川大学考博英语真题试卷及答案与解析 一、 Reading Comprehension 0 Superstition is a biased word. Look up almost any dictionary definition and you will see that it implies that every religion not based on reason or knowledge is called a superstition. Even the word knowledge is a two-faced word. Presumably, it is us
2、ed as a synonym for reason. What it all comes down to is that people designate as superstitious what they do not think reasonable in someone elses religion. It is true that a persons religion must be based on some kind of knowledge. But what kind of knowledge is meant? Scientific, experimental, rati
3、onal? Such knowledge is natural and maybe ethical and then it is natural religious knowledge. A person may quite easily conclude from observing the universe that only God could have produced it. That knowledge is not religion, not even if a person is bound to recognize a creator of the universe. It
4、is natural knowledge such as Confucius, Socrates or Zoroaster possessed. Natural religious knowledge, as is evident in the history of the human race, although it helps to make a malt good, hardly, suffices to keep him good, especially in times of crisis. Will such natural knowledge, for instance, su
5、stain a man when he has suddenly lost all his money and even his wife and children? Will it offer the hope of ever seeing them again? Will it influence him gladly to sacrifice his life for his family, his country, his religion? Only a strong sense of supernatural religion, a reliance upon God, will
6、provide the necessary courage for right action. All the great religions of the world-Christianity, Hinduism, Chinese Buddhism and Islam-have shown men the way to such courage and its resulting peace of mind and heart and peace with all men. They point to a better sort of life, mostly a life somewher
7、e else, or, at least, an end to the troubles of this life. Christianity and Islam direct men to look up, hope for and strive after an eternal life of happiness in the possession of God. Hinduism also encourages its adherents to achieve successively higher incarnations until they achieve unity, becom
8、e one with Brahman-God. The agnostic or the atheist thinks of all of these creeds as religious superstition. Are the agnostic and the atheist free of superstition? Hardly. Every thinking man has a natural bent for religion, for ideals above and beyond earthly ones. If he crushes his natural inclinat
9、ion, which is God-inspired ideals, he most likely will substitute a series of self-inspired ideals or some fad like astrology, which will become a religion for him. There is a line between religion and superstition which everyone must learn to identify, of forfeit a true direction in his life. 1 Acc
10、ording to the passage, people define superstition as _. （ A） some religious knowledge not based on reason （ B） anything that seems unreasonable to them （ C） anything that seems unreasonable in another persons religion （ D） any natural knowledge of a religion that is two-faced and totally different f
11、rom another 2 The second paragraph tells us that natural religious knowledge can hardly keep a person good because _. （ A） he is not always willing to sacrifice himself （ B） he does not rely upon God （ C） he may sometimes die for right action （ D） he may suffer crisis in his career 3 According to th
12、e author, all the great religions of the world _. （ A） bring peace of mind and peace with other human being （ B） put forth a better life now and promise eternal life in the Western Paradise （ C） give courage to their adherents to live and to die peacefully （ D） urge their adherents to achieve higher
13、 incarnations 4 From the passage we are told that the atheists _. （ A） have little or no religious knowledge （ B） have ideals that are beyond earthly ones （ C） are mostly astrologers who have too many materialistic ideals in life （ D） are actually not free from superstition 5 Of the following sugges
14、ted title, the one that most accurately sums UP the passage is _. （ A） The Great Religions on Earth （ B） What Is Superstition （ C） Religion and Superstition （ D） Achieve Unity with God 5 When we think of Hollywood-a term I use loosely to describe American movie production in general, not simply film
15、s made in Los Angeles-we think of films aimed at amusing audiences and making money for producers. During the early years of the new century, as workers won their demands for higher wages and a shorter working week, leisure assumed an increasingly important role in everyday life. Amusement parks, pr
16、ofessional baseball games, nickelodeons, and dance halls attracted a wide array of men and women anxious to spend their hard earned dollars in the pursuit of fun and relaxation. Yet of all these new cultural endeavors, films were the most important and widely attended source of amusement. For a mere
17、 five or ten cents, even the poorest worker could afford to take himself and his family to the local nickelodeon or storefront theatre. Taking root in urban working-class and immigrant neighborhoods, cinemas soon spread to middle-class districts of cities and into small communities throughout the na
18、tion. “Every little town that has never been able to afford and maintain an opera house,“ observed one journalist in 1908, “now boasts one or two Bijou Dreams.“ By 1910, the appeal of film was so great that nearly one-third of the nation flocked to the cinema each week; ten years later, weekly atten
19、dance equaled 50 per cent of the nations population. Early films were primarily aimed at entertaining audiences, but entertainment did not always come in the form of escapist fantasies. Many of the issues that dominated progressive-era polities were also portrayed on the serene. “Between 1990 and 19
20、17,“ observes Kevin Brownlow, “literally thousands of films dealt with the most pressing problems of the day-white slavery, political corruptions, gangsterism, loansharking: slum landlords, capital vs. labor, racial prejudice, etc.“ While most of these films were produced by studios and independent
21、companies, a significant nmnber were made by what we might call today “special interest groups“. As films quickly emerged as the nations most popular form of mass entertainment, they attracted the attention of a wide range organizations that recognized the mediums enormous potential for disseminatin
22、g propaganda to millions of viewers. 6 We can almost be sure that a “nickelodeon“ is _. （ A） a luxurious theatre （ B） an opera house （ C） a simple cinema （ D） a cheap film 7 “Bijou Dreams“ in the 2nd paragraph probably refers to _. （ A） cinemas （ B） dance halls （ C） theatres （ D） amusement parks 8 F
23、rom the context, “medium“ as use in the last sentence refers to _. （ A） studios and companies （ B） mass entertainment （ C） films （ D） the pursuit of fan and relaxation 9 The passage is about _. （ A） Hollywood and films （ B） the history and function of film （ C） American movie production （ D） the dev
24、elopment of film production 10 It can be concluded from the last paragraph that _. （ A） films quickly became a very form of entertainment and are welcome by people of all classes （ B） many of the social and political problems were reflected on the screen of the films （ C） films often dealt with the
25、most important problems of the day （ D） because of the large attendance, films had a great influence on a large number of people 10 In the course of my reading I had come across a case where, many years ago, some hunters on our Great Plains organized a buffalo hunt for the entertainment of an Englis
26、h earl and to provide some fresh meat for his use. They had charming sport. They killed seventy-two of those great animals and ate part of one of then and left the seventy-one to rot. In order to determine the difference between all anaconda and an earl, I had seven lambs turned into the anacondas c
27、age. The grateful snake immediately crashed one of them and swallowed it, then lay back satisfied. It showed no further interest in the lambs and no inclination to harm them. I tried this experiment with other anacondas, always with same result. The fact stood proven that the difference between and
28、earl and an anaconda is that the earl is cruel and the anaconda isnt; and the earl wantonly destroyed what not descended from the earl. It also seemed to suggest that the earl was descended from the anaconda and had lost a good deal in the transition. I was aware that many men who have accumulated m
29、ore money than they can ever use have shown a hunger for more and have not hesitated to cheat ignorant and the help- less out of their poor serving in order to partially satisfy that appetite. I furnished a hundred different kinds of wild and domestic animals the opportunity to accumulate vast store
30、s of food but none of them would do it. The squirrels and bees and certain birds made accumulations, but stopped when they gathered a winters supply, and could not be persuaded to add to it either honestly or by trickery. These experiments convinced me that there is this difference between man and t
31、he higher animals: he is greedy. In the course of my experiments I convinced myself that among the animals man is the only one that harbors insults and injuries, broods over them, waits till a chance offer, then takes revenge, The passion of revenge is unknown to the higher animals. 11 By describing
32、 the buffalo hunting and his experiment with the anaconda, the author mainly wants to tell us that _. （ A） the earls ancestor turned out to be the anaconda （ B） the earl is capable of committing wanton cruelty （ C） the anaconda is easily satisfied （ D） the anaconda does not harm other animals except
33、 when it is hungry 12 According to the author, in human society, the rich _. （ A） are not always ready to help the poor （ B） are inclined to gather more riches （ C） tend to accumulate vast of wealth （ D） cheat the ignorant and commit wanton cruelty 13 The authors experiments with different kinds of
34、animals seem to prove that _. （ A） man and other animals have some similarities （ B） man is the cruelest among animals （ C） man is superior to other animals in some aspects （ D） man is inferior to other animals in certain aspects 14 We learn from the last part of the passage that _. （ A） love of rev
35、enge is a unique characteristic of man （ B） man is the only animal capable of thinking and revenging （ C） human beings arc capable of insulting and injuring each other （ D） man is better at taking chances to revenge than other animals 15 In this passage, the author writes in a (n) _. （ A） serious to
36、ne （ B） angry tone （ C） ironic toned （ D） matter-of-fact tone 15 The spectacular auroral light displays that appear in Earths atmosphere around the north and south magnetic poles were once mysterious phenomena. Now, scientists have data from satellites and ground-based observations from which we kno
37、w that the auroral brilliance is an immense electrical discharge similar to that occurring in a neon sign. To understand the cause of auroras, first picture the Earth enclosed by its magnetosphere, a huge region crated by the Earths magnetic field. Outside the magneto-sphere, blasting, toward the Ea
38、rth is the solar wind, a swiftly moving plasma of ionized gases with its own magnetic field. Charged particles in this solar wind speed earth- ward along the solar winds magnetic lines of force with a spiraling motion. The Earths magnetosphere is a barrier to solar wind, and forces the charged parti
39、cles of the solar wind to flow around the magnetosphere itself. But in the polar regions, the magnetic lines of force of the Earth and of the solar wind bunch together. Here many of the solar winds charged particles break through the magnetosphere and enter Earths magnetic field. They then spiral ba
40、ck and forth between the Earths magnetic poles very rapidly. In the polar regions, electrons from the solar wind ionize and excite the atoms and molecules of the upper .atmosphere, causing them to emit auroral radiations of visual light. The colors of an aurora depend on the atoms emitting them. The
41、 dominant greenish-white light comes from low energy excitation of oxygen atoms. During huge magnetic storms oxygen atoms also undergo high energy excitation and emit a crimson light. Ex- cited nitrogen atoms contribute bands of color varying from blue to violet. Viewed from outer space, auroras can
42、 be seen as dimly glowing belts wrapped around each of the Earths magnetic poles. Each aurora hangs like a curtain of light stretching over the polar regions and into the higher latitudes. When the solar flares that result in magnetic storms and auroral activity are very intense, auroral displays ma
43、y extend as far as the southern regions of the United States. Studies of auroras have given physicists new information about the behavior of plasmas, which has helped to explain the nature of outer space and is being applied in attempts to harness energy from f the fusion of atoms. 16 What does the
44、passage mainly discuss? （ A） The periodic variation in the displays of auroras. （ B） The information and appearance of auroras around the Earths poles. （ C） The factors that cause the variety of colors in auroras. （ D） The methods used to observe auroras from outer space. 17 The passage describes th
45、e magnetosphere as a barrier because _. （ A） it is strongest in the polar regions and the magnetic lines bunch together （ B） it increases the speed of the particles from the solar wind （ C） it prevents particles from the solar wind from easily entering the Earths atmosphere （ D） its position makes i
46、t difficult to be observed from the Earth 18 The word “undergo“ in Paragraph 3 most probably means _. （ A） endure （ B） encounter （ C） experience （ D） confront 19 Auroras may be seen in the southern regions of the United States when _. （ A） the speed of the solar wind is reduced （ B） they are wrapped
47、 around the Earths magnetic poles （ C） magnetic storms do not affect the Earth （ D） solar flares are very intense 20 The passage supports which of the following statements about scientists understanding of auroras? （ A） Before advances in technology, scientists knew little about auroras. （ B） Scient
48、ists cannot yet explain the causes of the different colors in auroras. （ C） New knowledge about the fusion of atoms allowed scientists to learn more about auroras. （ D） Until scientists learn more about plasma physics, little knowledge about auroras will be available. 20 We all have offensive breath
49、 at one time of another. In most cases, offensive breath emanates from bacteria in the mouth, although there are other more surprising causes. Until a few years ago, what the most doctors could do was to counsel patients with bad breath about oral cleanliness. Now they are finding new ways to treat the usually curable condition. Bad breath can happen whenever the normal flow of saliva slows. Our mouths are full of bacteria feeding on protein in bits of food and shed
