1、专业英语四级（阅读）模拟试卷 154及答案与解析 SECTION A In this section there are several passages followed by ten multiple-choice questions. For each question, there are four suggested answers marked A, B, C and D. Choose the one that you think is the best answer. 0 Wearable gadgets like smart watches and Google Glass
2、can seem like a fad that has all the durability of CB radios or Duran Duran, but theyre important early signs of a new era of technology that will drive investment and innovation for years. Tech companies are pushing out waves of wearable technology products all of them clumsy and none of them yet r
3、eally catching on. Samsung is excitedly hawking its Galaxy Gear smart watch, and Google, Apple, Qualcomm(高通公司 ), and others are expected to come out with competing versions. Google Glass gets lots of gee-whiz attention, and every other day, someone new introduces a fitness tracker, a GPS kid-monitor
4、ing bracelet, or yeah, seriously interactive underwear. These are all part of a powerful trend: Over the past 40 years, digital technology has consistently moved from far away to close to us. Go back long enough, and computers the size of Buicks stayed in the back rooms of big companies. Most people
5、 never touched them. By the late 1970s, technology started moving to office desks first as terminals connected to those hidden computers, and then as early personal computers. The next stage: We wanted digital technology in our homes, so we bought desktop PCs. A “portable“ computer in the mid-1980s,
6、 like the first Compaq, was the size of a carry-on suitcase and about as easy to lug as John Goodman. But by the 1990s, laptops got better and smaller, for the first time liberating digital technology from a place and attaching it more to a person. Now we want our technology with us all the time. Th
7、is era of the smartphone and tablet began with the iPhone in 2007. The “with us“ era is accelerating even now: IBM announced that its making its powerful Watson computing the technology that beat humans on Jeopardy! available in the cloud, so it can be accessed by consumers on a smart device. In tec
8、hnologys inexorable march from far away to close to us, and now with us, there are only three places left for it to go: on us, all around us, and then in us. “Wearable is the next paradigm shift, “ says Philippe Kahn, who invented the camera phone and today is developing innards for wearable tech. “
9、We are going to see a lot of innovation in wearable in the next seven years, by 2020. “ Hard to know which products will catch on. Glasses are an obvious way to wear a screen, but most people dont want to look like a tech geek(极客 ). The masses might get interested if Google Glass can be invisibly bu
10、ilt into hot-looking frames. A start-up called Telepathy is developing a slim arm that holds a microprojector that shoots images back to your eye. Another concept is to build a device with a tiny projector that suspends text or images out in front of you, like a heads-up display. 1 According to the
11、passage, which of the following statements is INCORRECT? （ A） Wearable products are warmly welcomed by customers. （ B） Wearable products are signals of a new technology era. （ C） Samsung has launched its wearable gadget. （ D） Wearable products are clumsy at this stage. 2 Compared with 1980s, what is
12、 the biggest development of portable computers in 1990s? （ A） They are easier to carry and closer to their users. （ B） Their appearances are more elegant. （ C） They are found on desktops instead of back rooms. （ D） Computer producers provide more brands for selection. 3 Why is Google Glass not accep
13、ted by most people? （ A） Because it is too fashionable for ordinary people. （ B） Because people wearing it look like geeks. （ C） Because it is not so powerful to technology fans. （ D） Because its frame is invisible. 3 Simply walking through an unfamiliar neighborhood can make you feel more paranoid(
14、疑神疑鬼的 )and lower your trust in others. In a study published in the journal PeerJ, student volunteers who spent less than an hour in a more dangerous neighborhood showed significant changes in some of their social perceptions. The researchers goal was to investigate the relationship between lower inc
15、ome neighborhoods and reduced trust and poor mental health. While the association is well known, the scientists, from Newcastle University in the UK, wanted to determine whether the connection was due to people reacting to the environment around them, or because those who are generally less trusting
16、 were more likely to live in troubled areas. Prior research showed that kids who grew up in such neighborhoods were less likely to graduate from high school and more likely to develop stress that can lead to depression. The study took 50 students, sent half of them to a low income, high crime neighb
17、orhood and the other half to an affluent neighborhood with little crime. Before the students ventured into their respective areas, the researchers interviewed the neighborhood residents and found that residents of the high-crime neighborhood harbored more feelings of paranoia(多疑 )and lower levels of
18、 social trust compared to the residents of the other neighborhood. The students in the study were not from either neighborhood, and did not know what the study was about. They were dropped off by a taxi and told to deliver envelopes containing a packet of questions to a list of residential addresses
19、. They spent 45 minutes walking around their assigned neighborhood distributing the envelopes. When the students returned, the researchers surveyed them about their experience, their feelings of trust, and their feelings of paranoia. Despite the short amount of time they spent in the neighborhoods,
20、the students picked up the prevailing social attitudes of the residents living in those environments; those who went to the more dangerous neighborhood scored higher on measures of paranoia and lower on measures of trust compared to the other group, just as the residents had. Not only that, but thei
21、r levels of reported paranoia and trust were indistinguishable from the residents who spent years living there. That came as an intriguing surprise to other experts. Ingrid Gould Ellen, the director of the Urban Planning Program at New York University Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, studie
22、s how the make-up of neighborhoods can impact the attitudes and interactions of people who live in them. In her research, she and her colleagues found that kids who live on blocks where violent crimes occurred the week before they took a standardized test performed worse on those tests than students
23、 from similar backgrounds who were not exposed to a violent crime in their neighborhood before their exam. But the fact that the paranoia and lack of trust set in after just a short time in the more troubled neighborhood suggested how powerful the influence of these environments can be. “In the case
24、 of this UK study, it seems unlikely that study participants were actually exposed to crime during their brief visits. But somehow the physical cr social cues in the neighborhood suggested to them that these were unsafe areas, “ says Ellen. 4 According to Paragraph 3, which of the following statemen
25、ts is CORRECT? （ A） The research showed relationships between trust and mental health. （ B） People who are not trustful tend to live in troubled areas. （ C） Kids from secure areas are more stressful. （ D） Kids from troubled areas are more likely poorly-educated. 5 According to the results of UKs exp
26、eriment, which of the following is INCORRECT? （ A） Volunteers have the same social attitudes with the long-time residents. （ B） Volunteers from troubled neighborhood have higher level of paranoia. （ C） Volunteers get better results than the long-time residents on level of trust. （ D） Volunteers from
27、 troubled neighborhood have lower level of trust. 6 Which of the following is the most suitable title for this passage? （ A） How to Establish the Feelings of Trust and Get Rid of Paranoia （ B） You Are Where You Live: Dangerous Neighborhoods Lead to Paranoia （ C） Closely Bonded: Neighborhood Safety a
28、nd Resident Income （ D） Born to Win: Neighborhood Environment Is the Key to Lead a Good Life 6 First the good news: 9 in 10 people said they were satisfied with their jobs or the work that they do and that remained steady throughout 2008, despite the economy. And now the bad, even if its not so surp
29、rising: The number of people who said their employer reduced the size of the workforce rose dramatically during the year, from 15% in the first quarter to 23% in the fourth quarter. Thats according to a survey from Gallup and health management company Healthways. Nearly each day in 2008, about 1, 00
30、0 adults were asked about their physical, emotional, economic and workplace well-being. When it came to their work environment, many of the 355, 334 people surveyed by phone were positive. But there were some labor pains. Just 47% of respondents from Hawaii said they were satisfied with their jobs,
31、used their strengths at work, were treated by a supervisor as a partner and worked in an “open, trusting environment“. That was the lowest score of any state on a work environment index that was compiled by calculating positive responses in those four areas. Utah nabbed top honors, with 59% of its r
32、espondents saying those four elements were prevalent in work lives. Among the biggest differences between Utah and Hawaii: 73% of Utah respondents said their supervisor created a trusting environment, while only 58% of folks in Hawaii felt that way. The national average was 65%. The Gallup-Healthway
33、s AHIP Congressional Report didnt offer any insights into why Utah ruled and Hawaii ranked so poorly on the workplace front. Hawaiis residents took the No. 1 slot in another two survey areas, emotional health and living conditions. “Maybe having a job while youre in paradise may not be all that grea
34、t, “ says Jim Harter, a chief scientist of workplace and well-being at Gallup. Utah has done well in separate workplace studies, as well. After considering factors such as unemployment rate, job growth, income growth, median household income and the cost of living, Moodys Economy, com named its capi
35、tal, Salt Lake City, the best U.S. city to work in for 2007 and 2008. But those glory days have faded, says Gus Faucher, Moodys Economy. com director of macroeconomics. Utahs housing boom turned into a bust later than most states. The national recession began in December 2007, according to the Natio
36、nal Bureau of Economic Research. Salt Lake Citys recession began in November 2008, according to Moodys Economy. com. From a non-economic angle, Faucher says he can see why Utah would earn strong marks on the work front. “The state is really Mormon, so there is a sense of solidarity“ among many emplo
37、yees, he says. “People feel very connected to each other.“ Also, with its high birth rate, Utah has a robust population of younger employees who often add enthusiasm to the workplace, Faucher says. Thats the case at the Wasatch Music Coaching Academy in Salt Lake City, school owner David Murphy says
38、. Most instructors are between 22 and 35 years old and are extremely passionate and excited about teaching students, he says. Murphy, 52, who says he has a “dream“ job, takes a collaborative approach in managing all staffers, “I see myself working side by side with my staff, not over my staff. “ 7 W
39、hat can we infer from the first two paragraphs? （ A） The economy of 2008 was still steady. （ B） More people had to change their jobs. （ C） From Jan. to Apr. , about 54, 000 people lost their jobs. （ D） Most of the people surveyed felt hopeless. 8 From Paragraph 4, we can infer ail of the following E
40、XCEPT that_. （ A） Hawaiis residents may feel more relaxed （ B） the word “paradise“ may refer to Hawaii （ C） people may prefer living in Hawaii to working there （ D） Jim Harter may be a scientist in Hawaii 8 Children as young as four will study Shakespeare in a project being launched today by the Roy
41、al Shakespeare Company. The RSC is holding its first national conference for primary school teachers to encourage them to use the Bards plays imaginatively in the classroom from reception classes onwards. The conference will be told that they should learn how Shakespearian characters like Puck in A
42、Midsummer Nights Dream are “jolly characters“ and how to write about them. At present, the national curriculum does not require pupils to approach Shakespeare until secondary school. All it says is that pupils should study “texts drawn from a variety of cultures and traditions“ and “myths, legends a
43、nd traditional stories“. However, educationists at the RSC believe children will gain a better appreciation of Shakespeare if they are introduced to him at a much younger age. “Even very young children can enjoy Shakespeares plays, “ said Mary Johnson, head of the learning department. “It is just a
44、question of pitching it for the age group. Even reception classes and key stage one pupils(five- to seven-year-olds)can enjoy his stories. For instance, if you build up Puck as a character who skips, children of that age can enjoy the character. They can be inspired by Puck and they could even start
45、 writing about him at that age. “ It is the RSCs belief that building the Bard up as a fun playwright in primary school could counter some of the negative images conjured up about teaching Shakespeare in secondary schools. Then, pupils have to concentrate on scenes from the plays to answer questions
46、 for compulsory English national-curriculum tests for 14-year-olds. Critics of the tests have complained that pupils no longer have the time to study or read the whole play and therefore lose interest in Shakespeare. However, Ms. Johnson is encouraging teachers to present 20-minute versions of the p
47、lays a classroom version of the Royal Shakespeare Companys Complete Works of Shakespeare(Abridged)which told his 37 plays in 97 minutes to give pupils a flavour of the whole drama. The RSCs venture coincides with a call for schools to allow pupils to be more creative in writing about Shakespeare. Pr
48、ofessor Kate McLuskie, the new director of the University of Birminghams Shakespeare Institute also based in Stratford said it was time to get away from the idea that there was “ a right answer“ to any question about Shakespeare. Her first foray into the world of Shakespeare was to berate him as a m
49、isogynist in a 1985 essay but she now insists this should not be interpreted as a criticism of his works although she admits: “I probably wouldnt have written it quite the same way if I had been writing it now. What we should be doing is making sure that someone is getting something out of Shakespeare, “ she said. “People are very scared about getting the right answer. I know its difficult but I dont care if they come up with a right answer that I can agree with about Shakespeare. “ 9 Whats Pucks characteristics according to th
