1、专业英语八级（阅读）练习试卷 34及答案与解析 0 Last week oil prices finally stopped rising. They now hover around $43 a barrel, a 20-year high. The average American family will spend about $2,700 on gasoline this year (driving 22,000 miles). Thats twice as much as it spent on gas two years ago. These prices are having a
2、 predictable consequence. The consumer price index has risen by 4.9 percent to date, versus 1.9 percent last year. And last week President Bushs economic adviser, Gregory Mankiw, acknowledged that a $10 rise in the price of oil probably translates into a half-percentage-point drag on economic growth
3、. For countries like Japan, China and India, the effect is even greater. How did this happen? And can Washingtonor anybody to much about it? The answer that flashed on our television screens is instability in the Middle East. Pipeline explosions in Iraq, tensions with Iran and terror attacks in Saud
4、i Arabia all contribute to what analysts call the “security premium“ on the price of oil. But that premium might be exaggerated. Oil prices are rising for broader, structural reasons. The world may have to get used to expensive oil. The largest ingredient in current oil prices has been a massive inc
5、rease in demand. This years growth is double what it has been for the past six years (on average). Thats because the United States is in recovery, Japans economy is finally back and Asia particularly China and India is growing fast. In fact, this year is likely to have the strongest global growth on
6、 record in three decades unless oil prices choke it off. While demand is up, supply cant rise much. For a variety of reasons, almost no oil- producing country has “surplus capacity“ the ability to put substantially more oil into tile market. Oil companies have been slow to increase investments in pr
7、oduction, and these expenditures take a few years to bear fruit. “Right now oil markets are tighter than they were on the eve of the 1973 oil shocks. And they will stay tight for the next two years. That makes the geopolitics of oil crucial,“ says Daniel Yergin, the chairman of Cambridge Energy Rese
8、arch Associates. If there is trouble anywhere, it will probably cause an oil shock. And think of the possibilities instability in Venezuela, Nigeria, Indonesia, Libya, Saudi Arabia or, of course, Iraq. Last year the markets could absorb the loss of Iraqi oil (during the war). This year they cant. Ir
9、aq has to stay online. And all these other countries have to stay stable. There is only one country with significant surplus capacity Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia has increased its production repeatedly over the past two years, or else prices would be higher still than they are. And the Saudis are mak
10、ing investments that will increase their surplus capacity by the end of the year. In a tight oil market, Saudi Arabia is the pivotal player. Consider the irony. One of the Bush administrations (privately stated) reasons for going to war in Iraq was to reduce our dependence on Saudi Arabias oil power
11、. It was a reasonable idea. But having botched the occupation, with Iraqi oil more insecure now than before the war, America is today more dependent on Saudi Arabia than ever before. Fortunately the Saudi regime has proved a responsible and reliable player, in this realm. “The Saudis are the central
12、 bankers of the world of oil. And they take that role seriously,“ says Yergin. What to do about this new reality? George Bush proposes to increase U. S. production in Alaska. John Kerry calls for increased conservation. Bush is correct to argue that some increase in American production is important.
13、 In 1973, the United States imported one third of its oil from abroad. Today it imports two thirds. And exploration does not have to be ecologically devastating. Even if the major oilfields that are assumed to exist there were discovered in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, only a few thousand ac
14、res of the 19 million-acre refuge would be affected. But the more lasting solution to Americas oil problem has to come from energy efficiency. American demand is the gorilla fueling high oil prices more than instability or the rise of China or anything else. Between 1990 and 2000, the global trade i
15、n oil increased by 9.5 billion barrels. Half of that was accounted for for the rise in U. S. imports. America is consuming more because it is growing more but also because over the past two decades, it has become much less efficient in its use of gasoline, the only major industrial country to slide
16、backward. The reason is simple: three letters SUV. In 1990 sport utility vehicles made up 5 percent of Americas cars. Today they make up 55 percent. They violate all energy-efficiency standards because of an absurd loophole in the law that allows them to be classified as trucks. Bashing the Saudis i
17、s easy these days. Controlling our own wastefulness is more difficult. But making no mistake as to which one will make a difference. 1 According to the passage, what is the reason for the rise of the oil price? （ A） Pipeline explosion in Iraq. （ B） Tensions with Iran. （ C） Terror attacks in Saudi Ar
18、abia. （ D） A massive increase in deman 2 Which of the following is the consequence of the US going to war in Iraq? （ A） America is less dependent on Saudi Arabias oil power. （ B） Americas dependence on Saudi Arabia is not reduced. （ C） The oil price is rising. （ D） The demand for oil is increasin 3
19、The following are the reasons why Saudi Arabia plays an important role in the oil market except _. （ A） It has significant surplus capacity. （ B） It will increase its investments in production. （ C） It helps regulate the oil market. （ D） There is an oil shock in the worl 4 The following might be the
20、 solutions to Americas oil problem except _. （ A） to criticize the Saudis for raising oil prices. （ B） to increase conservation. （ C） to increase energy efficiency. （ D） to increase US production in Alask 5 What can be inferred from the passage? （ A） The oil price will fall when peace is restored in
21、 the Middle East. （ B） The oil price is unlikely to fall down. （ C） Increased production in Alaska will help the oil price down. （ D） The oil price would not rise if America did not go to war in Iraq. 5 The most important thing now is for Democrats not to panic. Despite what your gut is telling you,
22、 this is not the end of the world. The republic survived one run of the George lefties will say he was too inside-the-Beltway to energize the angry, disillusioned masses; and the increasingly unbalanced Ralph Nader will declare him another loathsome Republicrat slave to corporate America. This sort
23、of infighting may feel cathartic, but it is dangerously counterproductive, serving largely to confirm Republicans claims that Democrats lack the core values necessary to run the country. Besides, Kerrys problem wasnt his policies; it was his personality. The guy was simply too cerebral, too equivoca
24、ting and too out of touch with Middle America to wrest enough purple-state voters from even a seriously tarnished Bush. Sure, his Vietnam medals were pretty, but no Democrat who attended Swiss boarding school, hails from Massachusetts and raves about his love of French skiers had a snowballs chance
25、of unseating good ole W. So we ran an unlikable candidate, and we lost. Theres no reason to go nuts and launch a civil war over whether to embrace A1 Sharpton or Zell (Mad Dog) Miller as our ideological guru for 2008. However we opt to handle our grief, Kerry supporters need to pull themselves toget
26、her on Inauguration Day because if you thought the past four years have been scary, just imagine the policy atrocities to be attempted by a Bush White House freed from the concerns of re-election. With George & Dick on the loose, self-pity and finger pointing are unaffordable distractions for libera
27、ls. To paraphrase renowned political sage Jesse Ventura: Democrats havent got time to bleed. 6 According to the passage, which of the following is the reason why the Democrats are so disappointed at the election result? （ A） They failed to send President Bush into early retirement. （ B） The votes fo
28、r John Kerry and George Bush were so close. （ C） They have to face the next four years with Bush as President. （ D） John Kerry was defeate 7 According to the passage, the Democrats should do the following except _. （ A） They should move to another country. （ B） They should stop accusing each other o
29、f the defeat. （ C） They should work harder for a Democratic victory next time. （ D） They should reconcile with their Republican friends and colleagues. 8 “Ire“ in the fifth paragraph is closest in meaning to _. （ A） idea （ B） anger （ C） feeling （ D） determination 9 Which of the following is NOT the
30、reason for Kerrys defeat? （ A） His personality. （ B） His Vietnam medals. （ C） His principles of action. （ D） His relationship with Middle Americ 10 The main purpose of the passage is to _. （ A） criticize John Kerry for his personality （ B） explain why John Kerry was defeated （ C） describe the Democr
31、ats reaction to the defeat （ D） encourage the Democrats to overcome their depression 专业英语八级（阅读）练习试卷 34答案与解析 【知识模块】 阅读 1 【正确答案】 D 【试题解析】 本题考察对第二段和第三段的理解。作者认为需求增加是造成油价上涨的原因。故选项 D为正确答案。 【知识模块】 阅读 2 【正确答案】 B 【试题解析】 本题考察对第七段的理解。布什进军伊 拉克的目的是减少对沙特阿拉伯的依赖，但结果适得其反，因为伊拉克战争并没有减少美国对沙特石油的依赖。故选项 B为正确答案。 【知识模块】 阅读
32、3 【正确答案】 D 【试题解析】 本题考察对第六段的理解。沙特在世界石油市场扮演了重要角色，是因为沙特能为市场提供更多的石油，而且还将增加投资，并能调节石油市场。所以排除选项 A、 B和 C。故选项 A为正确答案。 【知识模块】 阅读 4 【正确答案】 A 【试题解析】 本题考察对文章最后四段的理解。选项 B、 C和 D都被提及，但作者认为 A并不能解 决美国的石油问题，故为正确答案。 【知识模块】 阅读 5 【正确答案】 B 【试题解析】 作者认为造成油价上涨的主要原因不是中东地区的不安定局势，而是需求量的增加，尤其是法律将 SUV划为卡车，法律是不能轻易被改变的，由此判断，今后的石油价格
33、不太可能降下来。故选项 A为正确答案。 【知识模块】 阅读 【知识模块】 阅读 6 【正确答案】 B 【试题解析】 本题答案为第二段的第一句。民主党人之所以如此失望是因为两党的投票数是那么接近。故选项 B为正确答案。 【知识模块】 阅读 7 【正确答案】 A 【试题解析】 本题考察对全文的理解。选项 B出现在最后一段， C出现在第五段中，而 D则出现在第六段中，故排除；选项 A显然不是民主党人应该做的事情。 【知识模块】 阅读 8 【正确答案】 B 【试题解析】 原文是这样的： “I know plenty of folks who plan to nurse their anti-Bush
34、ire, using it as a motivating tool to work even harder for a Democratic victory next time. Such chronic rage may sound unhealthybut it did the trick for Newt Gingrichs troops in the wake of Bill Clintons 1992 win ”画线部分的 such一词起着衔接作用，与 ire衔接，由此可见， ire的意思是 rage，与选项 B意思一致，故 B为正确答案。 【知识模块】 阅读 9 【正确答案】 C 【试题解析】 文章第八段表明 ，科里失利不是因为政策问题，而是因为他的性格，除此以外，导致他失败的还有与中美洲的关系。虽然他的越南勋章很漂亮，但是却并未让他受益。因此选项 C符合题意，为正确答案。 【知识模块】 阅读 10 【正确答案】 D 【试题解析】 本文为一位民主党人所写，由字里行间可见其目的是鼓舞民主党人忘掉不快，振作起来，为下界竞选而努力工作。 【知识模块】 阅读
