1、大学英语六级改革适用（阅读）模拟试卷 105及答案与解析 Section C 0 Historians can trace the foundations of plastic surgery as far back as about 2,600 years ago to ancient India where facial surgery were carried out. The techniques were recorded in the early Hindu texts and were used primarily on soldiers injured during confl
2、ict. The birth of cosmetic reconstructive surgery truly occurred many hundreds of years later, and over the past ten years plastic surgery has become very popular with more and more people refusing to grow old gracefully. It is however not limited to young women considering the fact eating disorders
3、 are on the rise among young men; men and women alike are interested in cosmetic surgery and it even gains popularity in mainstream culture. It seems that no longer are people judged on their abilities alone but on their appearance, and more and more of people are choosing to go under the knife in a
4、n effort to shape themselves into an objective and arbitrary ideal beauty. The “image“ of beauty portrayed by the media is usually related to the objectives, young, very slim, and most often white. Having a body weight of 15% below normal for ones height, age and weight is considered ideal. In other
5、 words people should be anorexic to meet the media s image of beauty. The message is that only their imposed image of beauty is acceptable, and those who are larger, shorter, thicker, or browner are not. This ideal image and weight, however, is unattainable for 99% of women. Ironically, most images
6、of models appearing on magazines have been airbrushed to perfection to attain that “perfect“ image of beauty. Sadly, for many people, the quest for beauty has turned into an all-out obsession. Unsurprisingly, the newfound obsession is a convenient marketing tool because 99% of the female population
7、is not satisfied with their appearance and therefore will be more likely to buy slimming, cosmetics or turn to plastic surgery. The dieting industry makes an incredible $33 billion a year. The industry uses media to keep people thinking that they should maintain the slender or even skinny shape. Thi
8、s image of beauty is simply unattainable and the desire for it will never be met so the demand for the industry will never decrease. And the very industries that profit from fueling inadequacy, a feeling of not being good enough, will continue to prosper. 1 Plastic surgery was mainly provided for_at
9、 first. （ A） kings （ B） queens （ C） injured soldiers （ D） historians 2 The word “mainstream“(Line 5, Para.2)is closest in meaning to_. （ A） dominated （ B） worldwide （ C） standard （ D） maternal 3 What is the ideal image of beauty in the perspective of the mass media according to the passage? （ A） Tal
10、l, strong and white. （ B） Elegant, healthy and white. （ C） Short, thick and brown. （ D） Young, slim and white. 4 What is the authors attitude to the ideal image of beauty portrayed by media? （ A） Positive. （ B） Neutral. （ C） Not clear. （ D） Negative. 5 Why the mass media portrayed the ideal image in
11、 such way according to the passage? （ A） Because the mass media are expected to satisfy audiences. （ B） Because it motivates females to pursue “the best“ so that businessmen could make money from the industry. （ C） Because it gives women more confidence in themselves. （ D） Because the quest for beau
12、ty lies in everyone s heart. 5 Genetic Engineering is a radical and rapidly developing technology that touches our lives through its application in medicine, forensics, industry and agriculture. Through this science humans are fast in becoming the architects of life but there are those who warn agai
13、nst the unknown dangers of playing God while others see its benefits in our fight against disease and the production of abundant food supplies. In the past 50 years, plant and animal production has increased dramatically. Today, the human population is the largest it has ever been and fortunately we
14、 produce more food per capita than ever before. Despite the fact that we have enough food for every single human being to have an adequate diet, about 1 billion people still suffer from malnutrition and hunger. A lot of the increase in food production is attributed to efficient farming methods and e
15、nvironmental factors such as irrigation, pest and weed control but the largest contributing factor is modern plant and animal breeding. So what are GM foods and what are the concerns for the consumer? The main difference between GM foods and traditional breeding methods is the direct modification or
16、 manipulation of certain genes. Traditional methods involve mixing thousands of genes whereas genetic modification allows just one individual gene, or a small number of genes, to be inserted into a plant, or animal. The benefits of GM foods are enormous. Genetic modification can be used to give crop
17、s immunity to plant viruses or to improve the nutritional value of a plant. In animals intended for food, genetic modification could potentially increase how fast and how big they grow. Starvation on any part of the planet could be a thing of the past as we could control the yield, varieties and siz
18、e of foods and produce strains that are resistant to pests, are extreme in temperature and are tolerant to herbicides. Opponents of GM foods however consider their production to be the worlds biggest uncontrolled biological experiment, a disaster waiting to happen. The biggest concerns are the effec
19、ts that an uncontrolled genetically modified species could potentially have on human and animal health, agriculture, and on the environment as a whole. Genetically modified species have the potential to become biological pollutants that are far worse than chemical pollutants as they would be virtual
20、ly impossible to control since they are alive, migrate and could mutate producing even more dangerous offspring. This could lead to irreversible damage to the ecology of the planet. 6 The author defines genetic engineering as_. （ A） a brand new technology that will shape our planet （ B） an updated t
21、echnology that merely benefit human beings （ C） a dangerous technology that should be functioned in the laboratory （ D） a new and emerging technology that has had an effect on many aspects of our lives 7 What is the most significant element for the increase in food production? （ A） Modern plant and
22、animal breeding. （ B） Efficient farming methods. （ C） Environmental factors. （ D） New irrigation system. 8 What is the main difference between Genetic Engineering and traditionally bred foods? （ A） The difference lies in the methods and the number of genes. （ B） They have different size and color. （
23、 C） Traditional methods are not attracted by consumers. （ D） Genetic Engineering is more efficient. 9 Why does the author claim that starvation could be a thing of the past in paragraph 4? （ A） Because GM is immune to plant viruses. （ B） The temperature can be modified by scientists. （ C） Scientists
24、 will be able to control the size, variety and immunity of crops and animals. （ D） People are easily accessible to food nowadays. 10 What is the main opposition to the production of GM foods? （ A） Chemical pollutants are more dangerous. （ B） The potential of producing harmful offspring could not be
25、controlled. （ C） GM foods are not properly tested. （ D） The release of larger species into the environment. 10 The recent, apparently successful prediction by mathematical models of an appearance of EI Nino the warm ocean current that periodically develops along the Pacific coast of South America ha
26、s excited researchers. Jacob Bjerknes pointed out over 20 years ago how winds might create either abnormally warm or abnormally cold water in the eastern equatorial Pacific. Nonetheless, until the development of the models no one could explain why conditions should regularly shift from one to the ot
27、her, as happens in the periodic oscillations between appearances of the warm EI Nino and the cold so-called anti-El Nino. The answer, at least if the current model that links the behavior of the ocean to that of the atmosphere is correct, is to be found in the ocean. It has long been known that duri
28、ng an El Nino, two conditions exist: unusually warm water extends along the eastern Pacific, principally along the coasts of Ecuador and Peru, and winds blow from the west into the warmer air rising over the warm water in the east. These winds tend to create a feedback mechanism by driving the warme
29、r surface water into a “pile“ that blocks the normal upwelling of deeper, cold water in the east and further warms the eastern water, thus strengthening the wind still more. The contribution of the model is to show that the winds of an El Nino, which raise sea level in the cast, simultaneously send
30、a signal to the west lowering sea level. According to the model, that signal is generated as a negative Rossby wave, a wave of depressed, or negative, sea level, mat moves westward parallel to the equator at 25 to 85 kilometers per day. Taking months to traverse the Pacific, Rossby waves march to th
31、e western boundary of the Pacific basin, which is modeled as a smooth wall but in reality consists of quite irregular island chains, such as, the Philippines and Indonesia. When the waves meet the western boundary, they are reflected, and the model predicts that Rossby waves will be broken into nume
32、rous coastal Kelvin waves carrying the same negative sea-level signal. These eventually shoot toward the equator, and then head eastward along the equator propelled by the rotation of the Earth at a speed of about 250 kilometers per day. When enough Kelvin waves of sufficient amplitude arrive from t
33、he western Pacific, their negative sea-level signal overcomes the feedback mechanism tending to raise the sea level, and they begin to drive the system into the opposite cold mode. This produces a gradual shift in winds, one that will eventually send positive sea-level Rossby waves westward, waves t
34、hat will eventually return as cold cycle-ending positive Kelvin waves, beginning another warming cycle. 11 Which of the following best describes the organization of the first paragraph? （ A） A model is described and its value assessed. （ B） A result is reported and its importance explained. （ C） A p
35、henomenon is noted and its significance debated. （ D） A hypothesis is introduced and contrary evidence presented. 12 According to the passage, which of the following features is characteristic of an El Nino? （ A） Cold coastal water near Peru. （ B） Wind blowing from the west. （ C） Random occurrence.
36、（ D） Worldwide effects. 13 Which of the following, if true, would most seriously undermine the validity of the model El Nino that is presented in the passage? （ A） El Nino extends much farther along the coasts of Ecuador and Peru during some years. （ B） The rising of cold water in the eastern Pacifi
37、c depends on the local characters. （ C） The variations in the time for Rossby waves to cross the Pacific rely on the wind power. （ D） The Pacific irregular western coast hinders most Kelvin waves from heading eastward. 14 According to the model presented in the passage, which of the following normal
38、ly signals the disappearance of an El Nino? （ A） The arrival in the eastern Pacific of negative sea-level Kelvin waves. （ B） A shift in the direction of the winds produced by an anti-El Nino. （ C） The reflection of Kelvin waves reaching the eastern border of the Pacific. （ D） An increase in the spee
39、d at which negative Rossby waves cross the Pacific. 15 The primary purpose of the text as a whole is to_. （ A） introduce a new explanation of physical phenomenon （ B） explain the difference between two natural phenomena （ C） illustrate the limits of applying mathematics to complex problems （ D） clar
40、ify the distinction between an old explanation and a new model 15 Aided by the recent ability to analyze samples of air trapped in glaciers, scientists now have a clearer idea of the relationship between atmospheric composition and global temperature changing over the past 160,000 years. In particul
41、ar, determination of atmospheric composition during periods of glacial expansion and retreat(cooling and warming)is possible using data from the 2,000 meter Vostok ice core drilled in Antarctica. The technique involved is similar to that used in analyzing cores of marine sediments, where the ratio o
42、f the two common isotopes of oxygen, 180 and 160, accurately reflects past temperature changes. Isotopic analysis of oxygen in the Vostok core suggests mean global temperature fluctuations of up to 10 degrees centigrade over the past 160,000 years. Data from the Vostok core also indicate that the am
43、ount of carbon dioxide has fluctuated with temperature over the same period: the higher the temperature, the higher the concentration of carbon dioxide and the lower the temperature, the lower the concentration. Although change in carbon dioxide content closely follows change in temperature during p
44、eriods of deglaciation, it apparently lags behind temperature during periods of cooling. The correlation of carbon dioxide with temperature, of course, does not establish whether changes in atmospheric composition causing the warming and cooling trends or were caused by them. The correlation between
45、 carbon dioxide and temperature throughout the Vostok record is consistent and predictable. The absolute temperature changes, however, are from 5 to 14 times greater than would be expected on the basis of carbon dioxides own ability to absorb infrared radiation, or radiant heat. This reaction sugges
46、ts that, quite aside from changes in heat-trapping gases, commonly known as greenhouse gases, certain positive feedbacks are also amplifying the temperature change. Such feedbacks might involve ice on land and sea, clouds, or water vapor, which also absorb radiant heat. Other data from the Vostok co
47、re show that methane gas also correlates closely with temperature and carbon dioxide. The methane concentration nearly doubled, for example, between the peak of the penultimate glacial period and the following interglacial period. Within the present interglacial period it has more than doubled in ju
48、st the past 300 years and is rising rapidly. Although the concentration of atmospheric methane is more than two orders of magnitude lower than that of carbon dioxide, it cannot be ignored: the radiative properties of methane make it 20 times more effective, molecule for molecule, than carbon dioxide
49、 in absorbing radiant heat. On the basis of a simulation model that climatological researchers have developed, methane appears to have been about 25 percent as important as carbon dioxide in the warming that took place during the most recent glacial retreat 8,000 to 10,000 years ago. 16 The primary purpose of the passage is to_. （ A） interpret data （ B） explain research methodology （ C） evaluate a conclusion （ D） suggest a new technique 17 According to the passage, which of the following statements best describes the relationship between carbon dioxide
