1、大学英语四级（阅读）模拟试卷 32及答案与解析 Section B Directions: There are 2 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A, B, C and D. You should decide on the best choice. 0 A Nice Cup of Tea The Legendary Origins of Te
2、a The story of tea began in ancient China over 5,000 years ago. According to legend, Shen Nung, an early emperor was a skilled ruler, creative scientist and lover of the arts. One summer day while visiting a distant region of his realm, he and the court stopped to rest. The servants began to boil wa
3、ter for the court to drink. Dried leaves from the nearby bush fell into the boiling water, and a brown liquid was infused into the water. As a scientist, the Emperor was interested in the new liquid, drank some, and found it very refreshing. And so, according to legend, tea was created. The Chinese
4、Influence Tea consumption spread throughout the Chinese culture reaching into every aspect of the society. In 800 A.D. Lu Yu wrote the first definitive book on tea, the Cha Ching. This amazing man was an orphan and raised by scholarly Buddhist monks in one of Chinas finest monasteries. However, as a
5、 young man, he rebelled against the discipline of priestly training which had made him a skilled observer. His fame as a performer increased with each year, but he felt his life lacked meaning. Finally, in mid-life, he retired for five years into seclusion. Drawing from his vast memory of observed e
6、vents and places, he codified (整理，编撰 ) the various methods of tea cultivation and preparation in ancient China. The vast definitive nature of his work, projected him into near sainthood within his own lifetime. Patronized by the Emperor himself, his work clearly showed the Zen Buddhist philosophy to
7、 which he was exposed as a child. It was this form of tea service that Zen Buddhist missionaries would later introduce to imperial Japan. Europe Learns of Tea While tea was at this high level of development in both Japan and China, information concerning this then unknown beverage began to filter ba
8、ck to Europe. Earlier caravan leaders had mentioned it, but were unclear as to its service format or appearance. (One reference suggests the leaves be boiled, salted, buttered, and eaten!) The first European to personally encounter tea and write about it was the Portuguese Jesuit Father Jasper de Cr
9、uz in 1560. Portugal, with her technologically advanced navy, had been successful in gaining the first right of trade with China. It was as a missionary on that first commercial mission that Father de Cruz had tasted tea four years before. The Portuguese developed a trade route by which they shipped
10、 their tea to Lisbon, and then Dutch ships transported it to France, Holland, and the Baltic countries. (At that time Holland was politically affiliated with Portugal. When this alliance was altered in 1602, Holland, with her excellent navy, entered into full Pacific trade in her own right.) Tea Arr
11、ives in England Great Britain was the last of the three great sea-faring nations to break into the Chinese and East Indian trade routes. This was due in part to the unsteady ascension to the throne of the Stuarts and the Cromwellian Civil War. The first samples of tea reached England between 1652 an
12、d 1654. Tea quickly proved popular enough to replace ale as the national drink of England. As in Holland, it was the nobility that provided the necessary stamp of approval and so insured its acceptance. King Charles II had married, while in exile, the Portuguese Infanta Catherine de Braganza (1662).
13、 Charles himself had grown up in the Dutch capital. As a result, both he and his Portuguese bride were confirmed tea drinkers. When the monarchy was re-established, the two rulers brought this foreign tea tradition to England with them. As early as 1600 Elizabeth I had founded the John Company for t
14、he purpose of promoting Asian trade. When Catherine de Braganza married Charles she brought as part of her dowry the territories of Tangier and Bombay. Suddenly, the John Company had a base of operations. Afternoon Tea in England Tea mania swept across England as it had earlier spread throughout Fra
15、nce and Holland. Tea importation rose from 40,000 pounds in 1699 to an annual average of 240,000 pounds by 1708. Tea was drunk by all levels of society. Prior to the introduction of tea into Britain, the English had two main mealsbreakfast and dinner. Breakfast was ale, bread and beef. Dinner was a
16、long, massive meal at the end of the day. It was no wonder that Anna, the Duchess of Bedford (1788-1861) experienced a “sinking feeling“ in the late afternoon. Adopting the European tea service format, she invited friends to join her for an additional afternoon meal at five oclock in her rooms at Be
17、lvoir Castle. The menu centered around small cakes, bread and butter sandwiches, assorted sweets, and, of course, tea. This summer practice proved so popular, the Duchess continued it when she returned to London, sending cards to her friends asking them to join her for “tea and a walking the fields.
18、“ (London at that time still contained large open meadows within the city.) The practice of inviting friends to come for tea in the afternoon was quickly picked up by other social hostesses. A common pattern of service soon merged. The first pot of tea was made in the kitchen and carried to the lady
19、 of the house who waited with her invited guests, surrounded by fine porcelain from China. The first pot was warmed by the hostess from a second pot (usually silver) that was kept heated over a small flame. Food and tea was then passed among the guests, the main purpose of the visiting being convers
20、ation. Tea Cuisine Tea cuisine quickly expanded in range to quickly include wafer thin crustless sandwiches, shrimp or fish paste, toasted breads with jams, and regional British pastries such as scones (Scottish) and crumpets (English). At this time two distinct forms of tea services evolved: “High“
21、 and “Low“. “Low“ Tea (served in the low part of the afternoon) was served in aristocratic homes of the wealthy and featured small delicious food rather than solid meals. The emphasis was on presentation and conversation. “High“ Tea or “Meat Tea“ was the main or “High“ meal of the day. It was the ma
22、jor meal of the middle and lower classes and consisted of mostly full dinner items such as roast beef, mashed potatoes, peas, and of course, tea. Coffee Houses Tea was the major beverage served in the coffee houses, but they were so named because coffee arrived in England some years before tea. Excl
23、usively for men, they were called “Penny Universities“ because for a penny any man could obtain a pot of tea, a copy of the newspaper, and engage in conversation with the sharpest wits of the day. The various houses specialized in selected areas of interest, some serving attorneys, some authors, oth
24、ers the military. They were the forerunner of the English gentlemens private club. One such beverage house was owned by Edward Lloyd and was favored by shipowners, merchants and marine insurers. That simple shop was the origin of Lloyds, the worldwide insurance firm. Attempts to close the coffee hou
25、ses were made throughout the eighteenth century because of the free speech they encouraged, but such measures proved so unpopular they were always quickly revoked. Tea Gardens Experiencing the Dutch “tavern garden teas“, the English developed the idea of Tea Gardens. Here ladies and gentlemen took t
26、heir tea out of doors surrounded by entertainment such as orchestras, hidden arbors, flowered walks, bowling greens, concerts, gambling, or fireworks at night. It was at just such a Tea Garden that Lord Nelson, who defeated Napoleon by sea, met the great love of his life, Emma, later Lady Hamilton.
27、Women were permitted to enter a mixed, public gathering for the first time without social criticism. As the gardens were public, British society mixed here freely for the first time, cutting across lines of class and birth. 1 According to Chinese legend, it was _ who first discovered tea. （ A） Da Yu
28、 （ B） Shen Nung （ C） the Yellow Emperor （ D） the Goddess of Sky-patching 2 When Lu Yu was a child, he was greatly influenced by_. （ A） the Buddhist philosophy （ B） the Taoist monks （ C） the Emperor then （ D） the Japanese Zen philosophy 3 The first European who wrote about tea was_. （ A） a Spanish ad
29、venturer （ B） an England merchant （ C） a Portuguese priest （ D） a Greek philosopher 4 What happened to Holland in the year 1602? （ A） It began to cooperate with the Portuguese navy. （ B） It began to trade in tea directly from China. （ C） It transported tea to the whole Pacific area. （ D） It was fina
30、ncially afflicted with Portugal. 5 Before tea was shipped to England, its national drink was_. （ A） coffee （ B） whisky （ C） soda （ D） ale 6 In order to improve Asian trade, Queen Elizabeth I established _. （ A） the John Company （ B） more Asian colonies （ C） a new sea route to India （ D） strong relat
31、ion with China 7 Anna, the Duchess of Bedford began to arrange an additional afternoon meal_. （ A） after she returned to London （ B） when she lived at Belvoir Castle （ C） when she visited the continent （ D） after she was invited to tea by a friend 8 Aristocratic and wealthy people provided a tea ser
32、vice called_in the afternoon. 9 Throughout the eighteenth century, coffee houses were once forced to close because they encouraged_. 10 Lord Nelson met Emma, his great love of life, at_. 10 After intensive research, scientists have concluded that politicians lie. In a study described in Britains Obs
33、erver newspaper, Glen Newey, a political scientist at Britains University of Strathclyde, concluded that lying is an important part of【 11】in the modern democracy. “Politicians need to be more honest about lying,“ he told the newspaper. According to Newey, voters expect to be lied to in certain circ
34、umstances, and sometimes even【 12】 it. “Politics should be regarded as less like an exercise in producing【 13】 statements and more like a poker game,“ he said. “And there is an expectation by a poker player that you try to【 14】 them as part of the game.“ Newey said lying by politicians can occasiona
35、lly be【 15】 justified, such as when national security is at【 16】 , and the public even has a “right to be lied to“ in cases where they do not expect to be told the whole truth, such as during a war. But the main cause of lying is increased【 17】 by the public into areas that the government would rath
36、er not discuss candidly. If voters only asked fewer questions, politicians would tell them fewer lies. Bill Clinton【 18】 lied about his affair with Monica Lewinsky, while earlier philandering (追逐女人的 ) U.S. presidents never had to lie about their【 19】 , because nobody ever asked. “When【 20】 or parlia
37、mentary colleagues start to probe at that area which the government wants to keep secret, you are more likely to be pushed further and further toward the territory of lying,“ Newey said. A. famously B. require C. politics D. miserable E. intermediate F. journalists G. representing H. affairs I. mech
38、anism J. truthful K. faithfully L. probing M. deceive N. risk O. entirely 11 【 11】 12 【 12】 13 【 13】 14 【 14】 15 【 15】 16 【 16】 17 【 17】 18 【 18】 19 【 19】 20 【 20】 20 For thousands of years, people thought of glass as something beautiful to look at. Only recently have they come to think of it as som
39、ething to look through. Stores display their goods in large glass windows. Glass bottles and jars that hold food and drink allow us to see the contents. Glass is used to make eyeglasses, microscopes, telescopes, and many other extremely useful and necessary objects. Until the Second World War, most
40、of the glass used for optical instruments was imported from Europe. However, during the war Americans could not get European glass, and they were forced to make their own. As a result, new kinds of glasses were developed that had been previously unknown. These new effects were achieved by mixing oth
41、er chemical elements with the sand. Some of these new glasses are very strong and can resist many kinds of shocks. Legend has it that a very hard glass was invented by a Roman who showed his discovery to the Emperor. When the Emperor saw the glass he feared that it would become more valuable than go
42、ld and silver, making his treasure worthless. Therefore, he had the glassmaker killed, and the secret was not discovered again for hundreds of years. In the present century, safety glass was invented for use in modern cars and planes. Safety glass is made by placing a layer of plastic between two la
43、yers of plate glass. When the outside layer of glass is broken, the pieces do not scatter and injure people. Some glass of this type is strong enough to resist bullets. Although in recent years plastics have replaced glass under conditions where glass might be easily broken, there are new uses being
44、 developed, for the greatest advantage of glass is that its component parts are inexpensive and can be found all over the world. 21 With the passage of time, glass_. （ A） is regarded as transparent （ B） is no longer seen as decoration （ C） is used to make things look pleasant （ D） is widely used to
45、replace steel in making containers 22 Why did Americans make their own glass during the Second World War? （ A） The war blocked the way of glass import. （ B） They refused to use the European glass. （ C） The glass made in Europe was out of date. （ D） They were able to make a new kind of glass. 23 By t
46、elling the legend, the author wants to_. （ A） prove that the Roman was the first inventor of hard glass （ B） support that the Americans were as clever as the Romans （ C） give some interesting information about hard glass （ D） provide a historical event concerned with hard glass 24 All of the followi
47、ng concerning the safety glass are discussed in the text EXCEPT_. （ A） its uses （ B） its strength （ C） its structure （ D） its limitations 25 New uses of glass are being developed on the ground that_. （ A） glass is not as safe as plastics （ B） glass is not as strong and durable as plastics （ C） glass
48、 is easily obtainable and inexpensive （ D） glass is more and more widely used 25 The Eskimos have developed a capacity to live peacefully with one another. They have not had a strict system of landownership, one of the universal causes of conflict. They have evolved a system of food-sharing among fa
49、milies that makes the preservation of life possible. The absolute necessity of creating this safeguard against starvation has strengthened bonds between neighbors. Almost every traveler has noted the Eskimos friendliness and good humor toward strangers and among themselves. In a country where agriculture is impossible they have been forced to spend their energies in food-gathering rather than warfare. If one family disagreed with another, the usual solution was for that family to pick up its few posses
