1、大学英语四级改革适用（阅读）模拟试卷 187及答案与解析 Section A 0 The flood of women into the job market boosted economic growth and changed U.S. society in many ways. Many in-home jobs that used to be done【 C1】 _by women ranging from family shopping to preparing meals to doing【 C2】_work still need to be done by someone. Hu
2、sbands and children now do some of these jobs, a【 C3】 _that has changed the target market for many products. Or a working woman may face a crushing “poverty of time“ and look for help elsewhere, creating opportunities for producers of frozen meals, child care centers, dry cleaners, financial service
3、s, and the like. Although there is still a big wage【 C4】 _between men and women, the income working women【 C5】 _gives them new independence and buying power. For example, women now【 C6】 _about half of all cars. Not long ago, many car dealers【 C7】 _women shoppers by ignoring them or suggesting that t
4、hey come back with their husbands. Now car companies have realized that women are【 C8】_customers. Its interesting that some leading Japanese car dealers were the first to【 C9】 _pay attention to women customers. In Japan, fewer women have jobs or buy cars the Japanese society is still very much male-
5、oriented. Perhaps it was the【 C10】 _contrast with Japanese society that prompted American firms to pay more attention to women buyers. A. scale B. retailed C. generate D. extreme E. technically F. affordable G. situation H. really I. potential J. gap K. voluntary L. excessive M. insulted N. purchase
6、 O. primarily 1 【 C1】 2 【 C2】 3 【 C3】 4 【 C4】 5 【 C5】 6 【 C6】 7 【 C7】 8 【 C8】 9 【 C9】 10 【 C10】 Section B 10 Artificial Intelligence(AI) A)We often dont notice it, but artificial intelligence(AT)is all around us. It is present in computer games, in the cruise control in our cars and the servers that
7、 route our email. In June 2002, a robot called Gaak gave an alarming demonstration of its independence. It made a dash for freedom from an exhibit at the Magna science centre in Rotherham. Gaak crept along a barrier until it found a gap and squeezed through. Having left the building, it reached Magn
8、as exit by the Ml motorway before it was discovered. B)So, can a machine behave like a person? This question underlies artificial intelligence, the study of intelligent behavior in machines. In the 1980s, AI research focused on creating machines that could solve problems and reason like humans. One
9、of the most difficult problems in artificial intelligence is that of consciousness. A consciousness gives us feelings and makes us aware of our own existence. But scientists have found it difficult getting robots to carry out even the simplest of cognitive tasks. Creating a self-aware robot with rea
10、l feelings is a significant challenge faced by scientists hoping to imitate human intelligence in a machine. Since the early 1990s, researchers have concentrated on developing smaller, independent robots instead of trying to recreate human intelligence. The model for many of these machines is insect
11、 intelligence, which is in its own way very sophisticated. C)When it is completed in late 2004, the worlds most powerful computer will be ASCI Purple, built by IBM. It is expected to carry out 100 trillion operations per second(or 100 teraflops). A supercomputer with double this processing power is
12、expected within the next two years. It is being built to replace ASCI White formerly the worlds most powerful computer which occupies a space the size of two basketball courts at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in Liver-more, California. A spokesman for IBM said that ASCI Purple was appro
13、aching the processing power of the human brain. But some scientists believe our brains can carry out around 10,000 trillion operations per second. HAL, the supercomputer that rebels against its human handlers in the film 2001: A Space Odyssey(1968), is a bold reference to IBM. The letters H, A and L
14、, precede I, B and M in the alphabet. D)In 1950, mathematician Alan Turing devised a test to identify whether a machine displayed intelligence. In the Turing Test, two people(A and B)sit in a closed room, while an interrogator(询问者 )(C)sits outside. Person A tries to fool the interrogator about their
15、 gender, while person B tries to assist the interrogator in their identification. Turing suggested a machine take the place of person A If the machine consistently fooled the human interrogator, it was likely to be intelligent. E)The possible dangers posed by intelligent machines have inspired count
16、less science fiction films. In The Terminator(1984), a computer network attacks the human race in order to achieve control. This network then manufactures intelligent robots called “Terminators“ which it programs to destroy human survivors. In The Matrix(1999)and The Matrix Reloaded(2003), a machine
17、 enslaves humanity, using people as batteries to power its mainframe. Steven Spielbergs AI: Artificial Intelligence(2002)paints a more sympathetic view of artificial life, depicting sensitive robots that are abused by brutal, selfish human masters. F)One place where artificial intelligence has found
18、 a natural home is in the development of computer games. AI in computer games is becoming increasingly sophisticated as consumer appetites for better, faster, more challenging games grows. In games, AI is often present in the opponents you play against, or in allies or other team members. G)In 1997,
19、 then world chess champion Garry Kasparov played against IBMs Deep Blue supercomputer and lost. After six games, the mighty Kasparov lost 2.5 to 3.5 to the silicon upstart. In February 2003, Kasparov saved some credibility for humanity by drawing against the Israeli-built supercomputer Deep Junior.
20、Kasparov went on to draw 2-2 against US company X3D Technologies supercomputer X3D Fritz in November 2003, proving that the human brain can keep up with the latest developments in computing(at least in chess). H)Despite these entertaining applications, the original point of AI research was to create
21、 machines that could understand us. At the Massachusetts Institute of Technology(MIT), scientists have designed a robot called Kismet that can have realistic conversations with people. Kismet is capable of seven different facial expressions and can vary the tone of its voice. It also adjusts its gaz
22、e and the direction of its head towards the person it is speaking to. Scientists at HP have designed an electronic DJ. The “hpDJ“ selects beats and baselines from its memory bank and mixes them. Its makers say it could be made to react to the mood of clubbers. At the University of Texas, Dallas, res
23、earchers have designed a lifelike human face capable of 28 facial movements, including smiling, sneering, furrowing its brow and arching its eyebrows. It could be used to put a human face to the artificial brains of the future. I)A computer program developed at Brandeis University in Massachusetts h
24、as learnt how to design and build bridges, cranes and tables all by itself. It reinvented support structures such as the cantilever and the triangle without prior knowledge of them. Credit card companies use a computer program called The Falcon to detect card fraud. The Falcon works by constantly up
25、dating a profile of how customers use their credit cards. It then looks for uncharacteristic patterns of credit card use in the data. A robotic head built by a Scottish robotics company can determine a womans attractiveness. It works by examining faces to determine how “feminine“ or “masculine“ they
26、 are. It doesnt work in reverse because mens appeal is supposedly not based as much on looks. Perhaps jokingly, researchers say it could be put to use as an artificial receptionist. Robots designed for the consumer market and employing very basic forms of AI have become increasingly popular in recen
27、t years. Sonys Aibo robot dog behaves like a puppy when it is first activated. But it “learns“ new behavior as it spends more time with its human owner. A software program called FACES could stop mid-air collisions between planes. When tested in a flight simulator(模拟器 ), the software prevented a pil
28、e-up between 35 planes sharing airspace. J)Over the coming century, breakthroughs in nanotechnology, the science of ultra-small machines constructed at the molecular level, may help us build more sophisticated machines that are more compact. We may also see breakthroughs from scientists who are expe
29、rimenting with connecting biological cells to silicon circuits a phenomenon called wetware. 11 Kismet is a special robot that can demonstrate some kind of social skills. 12 Increasingly sophisticated AI is demanded for the development of more challenging computer games. 13 It is the consciousness th
30、at the most difficult part of artificial intelligence lies in 14 Credit card fraud can be detected with the help of a computer program called The Falcon. 15 Many scientific movies took artificial intelligent as their subject, posing its potential dangers. 16 The phenomenon of wetware refers to conne
31、cting biological cells to silicon circuits. 17 Even if we dont know it, the technology of artificial intelligence can be found everywhere, ranging from computer games to the servers that route our email. 18 In the early 1990s, the research of artificial intelligence had been replaced by the developm
32、ent of smaller, independent robots. 19 Some scientists believed that the processing power of ASCI Purple is still far behind from that of human beings. 20 The Turing Test was intended to show whether a machine was intelligent. Section C 20 Nearly 5,000 people below the age of 21 die because of exces
33、sive alcohol consumption each year. Oddly, this has triggered a new movement to lower the drinking age. In America, young people can vote, drive, marry, divorce, hunt and go to war before alcohol is legally allowed to touch their lips. Many states once set their minimum drinking-age at 18. But in 19
34、84 Ronald Reagan oversaw the passage of the “21 law“, which requires states to set 21 as the minimum drinking-age or risk losing 10% of their highway funds. Now campaigners want to move it back. In the past, states have been too financially timid to challenge the 21 law. But calls for change are gro
35、wing louder. Two local judges in South Carolina recently ruled that banning 18- to 20-year-olds from drinking or possessing alcohol is unconstitutional. Public officials, including the former attorney general of South Dakota, have called the 21 law a failure. The about-face of Morris Chafetz, a doct
36、or who served on the commission that recommended increasing the drinking-age to 21, has also raised eyebrows. This week he called it the most regrettable decision of his career. Supporters of existing status, including the organisation Mothers Against Drunk Driving, say that the law has helped avoid
37、 thousands of deaths. But doubters point out that other countries, like Canada, have seen similar declines, even though their drinking-age is 18. They also argue that barring young people from drinking does not stop them from consuming alcohol: it just makes them drink more quickly. John McCardell,
38、former president of Middlebury College in Vermont, is part of the Amethyst Initiative, a group of educators who are pushing for 18-year-olds to be allowed to drink. “Those who have graduated from high school, have a clean record and completed an alcohol-education programme should qualify for a drink
39、ing licence,“ he says, “in the same way that people who go to driving school receive a licence to operate a vehicle.“ This is not the first time that Americans have desired a change in alcohol policy during a period of economic distress. Franklin Roosevelt lifted prohibition in 1933 amid the trouble
40、 of a depression. 21 All the U.S. state governments used to follow the “21 law“ because _. （ A） its passage was supervised by Reagan personally （ B） most citizens believed that it was reasonable （ C） they couldnt afford to take the financial risk （ D） it took much time and money to get the law passe
41、d 22 What is Morris Chafetzs attitude towards the “21 law“ now? （ A） He demands that the law not be changed. （ B） He supports lowering the drinking age. （ C） He regrets that few people support the law. （ D） He is surprised by the judges ruling. 23 In Canada, where the drinking age is 18, _. （ A） you
42、ng people want to begin drinking at a lower age （ B） people are increasingly doubtful about the “18 law“ （ C） fewer and fewer people support the “18 law“ （ D） fewer young people die from drunk driving 24 John McCardell suggests that_. （ A） 18-year-olds should take drinking programs before they can d
43、rink （ B） a drinking school should be opened for high school students （ C） one should get a license before they can drink （ D） any 18-year-olds should be qualified to drink 25 What did Franklin Roosevelt do during the 1933 depression? （ A） He lifted the trouble of a depression. （ B） He changed the a
44、lcohol policy. （ C） He decided to ban alcohol. （ D） He desired a change in alcohol policy. 25 The Earth comprises three principal layers: the dense, iron-rich core, the mantle made of silicate(硅酸盐 )that are semi-molten at depth, and the thin, solid-surface crust. There are two kinds of crust, a lowe
45、r and denser oceanic crust and an upper, lighter continental crust found over only about 40 percent of the Earths surface. The rocks of the crust are of very different ages. Some continental rocks are over 3,000 million years old, while those of the ocean floor are less than 200 million years old. T
46、he crusts and the top, solid part of the mantle, totaling about 70 to 100 kilometers in thickness, at present appear to consist of about 15 rigid plates, 7 of which are very large. These plates move over the semi-molten lower mantle to produce all of the major topographical(地形学的 )features of the Ear
47、th. Active zones where intense deformation occurs are confined to the narrow, interconnecting boundaries of contact of the plates. There are three main types of zones of contact: spreading contacts where plates move apart, converging contacts where plates move towards each other, and transform conta
48、cts where plates slide past each other. New oceanic crust is formed along one or more margins of each plate by material issuing from deeper layers of the Earths crust, for example, by volcanic eruptions(爆发 )of lava(火山熔岩 )at mid-ocean ridges. If at such a spreading contact the two plates support cont
49、inents, a rift(裂缝 )is formed that will gradually widen and become flooded by the sea. The Atlantic Ocean formed like this as the American and Afro-European plates moved in opposite directions. When two plates carrying continents collide, the continental blocks, too light to be drawn down, continue to float and therefore buckle(起褶皱 )to form a mountain chain along the length of the margin of the plates. 26 The Earths crust_. （ A） can be classified into two types （ B） is formed along the margins
