1、专业英语八级（阅读）模拟试卷 57 及答案与解析 0 In last weeks Tribune, there was an interesting letter from Mr. J. Stewart Cook, in which he suggested that the best way of avoiding the danger of a“ scientific hierarchy“ would be to see to it that every member of the general public was, as far as possible, scientifically
2、 educated. At the same time, scientists should be brought out of their isolation and encouraged to take a greater part in politics and administration. As a general statement, I think most of us would agree with this, but I notice that, as usual, Mr. Cook does not define science, and merely implies i
3、n passing that it means certain exact sciences whose experiments can be made under laboratory conditions. Thus, adult education tends “to neglect scientific studies in favor of literary, economic and social subjects“, economics and sociology not being regarded as branches of science, apparently. Thi
4、s point is of great importance. For the word science is at present used in at least two meanings, but the whole question of scientific education is obscured by the current tendency to dodge from one meaning to the other. Science is generally taken as meaning either(a)the exact sciences, such as chem
5、istry, physics, etc. ,or(b)a method of thought which obtains verifiable results by reasoning logically from observed fact. If you ask any scientist, or indeed almost any educated person, “What is science?“ you are likely to get an answer approximating to(b). In everyday life, however, both in speaki
6、ng and in writing, when people say“science“they mean(a). Science means something that happens in a laboratory: test-tubes, balances, Bunsen burners, microscopes. A biologist, an astronomer, perhaps a psychologist or a mathematician, is described as a“man of science“ :no one would think of applying t
7、his term to a statesman, a poet, a journalist or even a philosopher. And those who tell us that the young must be scientifically educated mean, almost invariably, that they should be taught more about radioactivity, or the stars, or the physiology of their own bodies, rather than that they should be
8、 taught to think more exactly This confusion of meaning, which is partly deliberate, has in it a great danger. Implied in the demand for more scientific education is the claim that if one has been scientifically trained ones approach to all subjects will be more intelligent than if one had had no su
9、ch training. A scientists political opinions, it is assumed, his opinions on sociological questions, on morals, on philosophy, perhaps even on the arts, will be more valuable than those of a layman. But a“ scientist“, as we have just seen, means in practice a specialist in one of the exact sciences.
10、 It follows that a chemist or physicist, as such, is politically more intelligent than a poet or a lawyer. And, in fact, there are already millions of people who do believe this. But is it really true that a “scientist“ ,in this narrower sense, is any likelier than other people to approach non-scien
11、tific problems in an objective way? There is not much reason for thinking so. Take one simple testthe ability to withstand nationalism. It is often loosely said that “Science is international“, but in practice the scientific workers of all countries line up behind their own governments with fewer sc
12、ruples than are felt by the writers and the artists. The German scientific community, as a whole, made no resistance to Hitler. There were plenty of gifted men to do the necessary research on such things as synthetic oil, jet planes, rocket projectiles and the atomic bomb. On the other hand, what ha
13、ppened to German literature when the Nazis came to power? I believe no exhaustive lists have been published, but I imagine that the number of German scientistsJew apartwho voluntarily exiled themselves or were persecuted by the regime was much smaller than the number of writers and journalists. More
14、 sinister than this, a number of German scientists swallowed the monstrosity of “racial science“. But does this mean that the general public should not be more scientifically educated? On the contrary! All it means is that scientific education for the masses will do little good, and probably a lot o
15、f harm, if it simply boils down to more physics, more chemistry, more biology, etc. to the detriment of literature and history. Its probable effect on the average human being would be to narrow the range of his thoughts and make him more than ever contemptuous of such knowledge as he did not possess
16、; and his political reactions would probably be somewhat less intelligent than those of an illiterate peasant who retained a few historical memories and a fairly sound aesthetic sense. Clearly, scientific education ought to mean the implanting of a rational, skeptical, experimental habit of mind. It
17、 ought to mean acquiring a methoda method that can be used on any problem that one meetsand not simply piling up a lot of facts. Put it in those words, and the apologist of scientific education will usually agree. Press him further, ask him to particularize, and somehow it always turns out that scie
18、ntific education means more attention to the exact sciences, in other wordsmore facts. The idea that science means a way of looking at the world, and not simply a body of knowledge, is in practice strongly resisted. I think sheer professional jealousy is part of the reason for this. 1 We know from t
19、he second paragraph that the author considers the present definition of the word “science“_. （ A） ambiguous （ B） ambivalent （ C） questionable （ D） inappropriate 2 When people are talking about science, they may NOT refer to_. （ A） physics （ B） physiology （ C） philosophy （ D） psychology 3 Which of th
20、e following is INCORRECT as regards scientists? （ A） Many people assume that scientists can do well in handling political affairs. （ B） German scientists did research on atomic bombs. （ C） Generally people dont regard an economist as a scientist. （ D） Scientists prefer laboratory work to administrat
21、ion. 4 The author contrasts German science with German literature to support his viewpoint that_. （ A） German literature has long been persecuted by the government （ B） writers are the most disruptive force of a government （ C） scientists are more inclined to support their governments than writers （
22、 D） German scientists should not be on the side of the racists 5 An average person ignorant of history being compared with an illiterate farmer with historical memories is to show that_. （ A） in scientific education, the teaching of history shouldnt be neglected （ B） history is important for a perso
23、n who wants to be outstanding （ C） history is the most important subject in scientific education （ D） in scientific education, more history courses should be provided 6 The passage can be best summarized as_. （ A） contrasting science with literature （ B） explaining what science is （ C） giving a bett
24、er definition of science （ D） pointing out peoples misunderstanding of science 6 As I write, a gentle, much needed rain is falling this morning. It has been a dry spring here in Vermont. So dry in fact, that the Spring Peepers were late enough in coming that many thought that these amazing little fr
25、ogs would fail to bless us with their song this year. But they came, and I cant fault them for being tardy. In almost any seasonal wetland in the state these frogs can be heard. They are a sign of spring, and of rebirth and renewal. It is late June and the mountain snow has left the higher slopes of
26、 the mountains. Folks have planted their gardens, even though there is still the threat of frost. Yes, it is almost July, yet in the evenings here, the thermometer can still sometimes dip into the low-thirties this time of year. My family planted our garden during the last weekend of May, and frost
27、came twice since then, luckily not a killing frost. But others were not so lucky. There is a very ambitious gardener in the village that lost most of his non-hardy plants this year. There is a saw in this state:“if you dont like the weather, wait five minutes. “This spring has demonstrated the valid
28、ity of this old saying. Twice this spring it has been warm enough in the day that my family went swimming, but there was frost on the ground the next morning. I enjoy the juxtaposition of the vagaries of the climate and the steady rhythms of life here. Folks have been tending to the chores of spring
29、 for generations, knowing full well that they really cant depend upon the hand that nature will deal them. Planting a garden in Vermont amounts to an act of faith. Will our sweat and toil be rewarded by abundance enough to share with our friends and extended families, or will a killing frost render
30、these efforts exercises in futility? And I have planted more than a garden this year. My family was recently faced with a tough decision, do we leave this place and the people whom we have come to know and love, or do we stay and make a commitment? Well, we have decided that this is where we will ma
31、ke our stand. Along with our little garden, this year we have planted ourselves. And this is no less an act of faith than the one mentioned above. Will my family be blessed with that which is needed to grow and flourish. We have no way of knowing this.but we do have faith. The rain has stopped and t
32、he sun is shining. Strong winds have blown the cloud cover away. It is a beautiful day. Vermont gardening. There is another saying among farmers here: “there is no better fertilizer than a farmers footprints.“ To me this means that which is planted must be revisited often. The garden must be nurture
33、d and tended. It must be cared for with love. It seems to me that this applies to our lives as well. Hopes and dreams and aspirations must be revisited often lest we lose sight of the things that are really important to us. Commitments must be tended to as carefully as any garden plot. But as with g
34、ardening, there are no guarantees. But there is faith, and today is a beautiful day. 7 The frogs are late in showing up in Vermont because_. （ A） people there dont welcome them （ B） the weather there is not agreeable （ C） they prefer to stay in other places （ D） winter has not gone yet 8 In the seco
35、nd paragraph, the author seems to indicate that_. （ A） people shouldnt have planted their gardens in June （ B） he was not lucky to have missed a killing frost （ C） the present temperature seems to be a little lower than usual （ D） he regrets that he didnt believe in the old saying 9 The authors atti
36、tude towards planting gardens is all of the following EXCEPT_. （ A） joyful （ B） hopeful （ C） realistic （ D） ecstatic 10 In the passage,_is likened to planting a garden. （ A） fulfilling ambition （ B） making a contribution （ C） having faith （ D） offering a guarantee 10 After thirty years of married ha
37、ppiness, he could still remind himself that Victoria was endowed with every charm except the thrilling touch of human frailty. Though her perfection discouraged pleasures, especially the pleasures of love, he had learned in time to feel the pride of a husband in her natural frigidity. For he still c
38、lung, amid the decay of moral platitudes, to the discredited ideal of chivalry. In his youth the world was suffused with the after-glow of the long Victorian age, and a graceful feminine style had softened the manners, if not the natures, of men. At the end of that interesting epoch, when womanhood
39、was exalted from a biological fact into a miraculous power, Virginius Littlepage, the younger son of an old and affluent family, had married Victoria Brooke, the grand-daughter of a tobacco planter, who had made a satisfactory fortune by forsaking his plantation and converting tobacco into cigarette
40、s. While Virginius had been trained by stern tradition to respect every woman who had not stooped to folly, the virtue peculiar to her sex was among the least of his reasons for admiring Victoria. She was not only modest, which was usual in the nineties, but she was beautiful, which is unusual in an
41、y decade. In the beginning of their acquaintance he had gone even further and ascribed intellect to her; but a few months of marriage had shown this to be merely one of the many delusions created by perfect features and noble expression. Everything about her had been smooth and definite, even the to
42、nes of her voice and the way her light brown hair, which she wore a Pompadour, was rolled stiffly back from her forehead and coiled in a burnished rope on the top of her head. A serious young man, ambitious to attain a place in the world more brilliant than the secluded seat of his ancestors, he had
43、 been impressed at their first meeting by the compactness and precision of Victorias orderly mind. For in that earnest period the minds, as well as the emotions, of lovers were orderly. It was an age when eager young men flocked to church on Sunday morning, and eloquent divines discoursed upon the V
44、ictorian poets in the middle of the week. He could afford to smile now when he recalled the solemn Browning class in which he had first lost his heart. How passionately he had admired Victorias virginal features! How fervently he had envied her competent but caressing way with the poet! Incredible a
45、s it seemed to him now, he had fallen in love with her while she recited from the more ponderous passages in The Ring and the Book. He had fallen in love with her then, though he had never really enjoyed Browning, and it had been a relief to him when the Unseen, in company with its illustrious poet,
46、 had at last gone out of fashion. Yet, since he was disposed to admire all the qualities he did not possess, he had never ceased to respect the firmness with which Victoria continued to deal in other forms with the Absolute. As the placid years passed, and she came to rely less upon her virginal fea
47、tures, it seemed to him that the ripe opinions of her youth began to shrink and flatten as fruit does that has hung too long on the tree. She had never changed, he realized, since he had first known her; she had become merely riper, softer, and sweeter in nature. Her advantage rested where advantage
48、 never fails to rest, in moral fervour. To be invariably right was her single wifely failing. For his wife, he sighed, with the vague unrest of a husband whose infidelities are imaginary, was a genuinely good woman. She was as far removed from pretence as she was from the posturing virtues that flou
49、rish in the credulous world of the drama. The pity of it was that even the least exacting husband should so often desire something more piquant than goodness. 11 In her husbands eyes, Victoria has all of the following qualities EXCEPT_. （ A） intelligence （ B） beauty （ C） delicacy （ D） humbleness 12 From the passage, we can get the impression that Virginius is a man_. （ A） with profound knowledge （ B） of high aspiration （ C） of low aspiration （ D） with immovable confidence 13 When Brownings poem became unpopula
