1、武汉大学考博英语模拟试卷 3及答案与解析 一、 Reading Comprehension 0 Before high school teacher Kimberly Rugh got down to business at the start of a recent school week, she joked with her students about how shed had to clean cake out of the comers of her house after her 2-year-old sons birthday party. This friendly comb
2、ination of chitchat took place not in front of a blackboard but in an Email message that Rugh sent to the 135 students shes teaching at the Florida Virtual School, one of the nations leading online high schools. The schools motto is “any time, any place, any path, any pace“. Floridas E-school attrac
3、ts many students who need flexible scheduling, from young tennis stars and young musicians to brothers Tobias and Tyler Heeb, who take turns working on the computer while helping out with their familys clam-farming business on Pine Island, off Floridas southwest coast. Home-schoolers also are well r
4、epresented. Most students live in Florida, but 55 hail from West Virginia, where a severe teacher shortage makes it hard for many students to take advanced classes. Seven kids from Texas and four from Shanghai round out the student body. The great majority of Florida Virtual Schoolers-80 percent are
5、 enrolled in regular Florida public or private high schools. Some are busy overachievers. Others are retaking classes they barely passed the first time. The schools biggest challenge is making sure that students arent left to sink or swim on their own. After the school experienced a disappointing co
6、urse completion rate of just 40 percent in its early years, Executive Director Julie Young made a priority out of what she calls “relationship-building“, asking teachers to stay in frequent E-mail and phone contact with their students. That personal touch has helped: The completion rate is now 80 pe
7、rcent. Critics of online classes say that while they may have a limited place, they are a poor substitute for the face-to-face contact and socialization that take place in brick-and-mortar classrooms. Despite opportunities for online chats, some virtual students say theyd prefer to have more interac
8、tion with their peers. Students and parents are quick to acknowledge that virtual schooling isnt for everyone. “If your childs not focused and motivated, I can only imagine it would be a nightmare,“ says Patricia Haygood of Orlando, whose two daughters are thriving at the Florida school. For those w
9、ho have what it takes, however, virtual learning fills an important niche. “I can work at my own pace, on my own time,“ says Hackney. “Its the ultimate in student responsibility.“ 1 Kimberly Rugh Talked about her sons birthday party _ . （ A） with her friends （ B） with her colleagues （ C） in the clas
10、sroom （ D） in an E-mail massage sent to her students 2 “Any time, any place, any path, any pace“ is_. （ A） what taken as the guiding principle of the Florida Virtual School （ B） words placed at the beginning of a book or a chapter （ C） a slogan put on the wall （ D） words used in advertisements 3 Fro
11、m this passage, we can find the following facts except that_. （ A） the students at the Florida Virtual School hail from places in or out of the U. S. （ B） the students at the online schools can take classes at any time （ C） the online schools provide a variety of training from tennis to music （ D） a
12、mong the students of Florida Vitual School, there are some very advanced or backward ones. 4 The challenge of the school is_. （ A） how to teach the students to swim well （ B） how to make the students more active in their learning （ C） to complete “the relationship-building“ ahead of time （ D） to urg
13、e the teachers to go to the office more often 5 What is the passage mainly about? （ A） online schooling is more convenient and efficient. （ B） online schooling lacks in face-to-face contact and socialization. （ C） online schooling is not for everyone. （ D） An overall estimate on online schooling. 5
14、In the wake of 11 September, Visionics, a leading manufacturer, issued a fact sheet explaining how its technology could enhance airport security. They called it “protecting civilization from the faces of terror“. The companys share price skyrocketed, as did the stocks of other face-recognition compa
15、nies, and airports across the globe began installing the software and running trials. As the results start to come in, however, the gloss (光滑表面 ) is wearing off. No matter what you might have heard about face-recognition software, Big Brother is not so good as expected. The concern was based largely
16、 on an independent assessment of face-recognition systems carried out in 2000 in the U. S. by the Department of Defense. These tests found that to catch 90 percent of suspects at an airport, face-recognition software would have to raise a huge number of false alarms. one in three people would end up
17、 being dragged out of the line and thats assuming everyone looks straight at the camera and makes no effort to disguise himself. Results from the recent airport trials would seem to justify that concern. Most face-recognition systems use some kind of geometric technique to translate a picture of a f
18、ace into a set of numbers that capture its characteristics. once it has identified these boundaries, the software calculates their relative sizes and positions and converts this geometry into what Visionics calls a “faceprint“. Feed the software a series of mugshots, and itll calculate their facepri
19、nts. Then it can monitor live CCTV images for the faces of known suspects. When it finds a match, it raises an alarm. Even if the system does manage to capture a face, the problems arent over. The trouble is that a suspects faceprint taken from live CCTV is unlikely to match the one in the database
20、in every detail. To give themselves the best chance of picking up suspects, operators can set the software so that it doesnt have to make an exact match before it raises the alarm. But theres a price to pay: the more potential suspects you pick up, the more false alarms you get. You have to get the
21、balance just right. Despite the disappointing tests, some people insist that face-recognition technology is good enough to put terrorists off. After all the claims and counter-claims, with no one able to discern(洞察 ) the truth, the industry may soon have to face up to reality. 6 The first paragraph
22、tells us that_. （ A） Visionics produced the best face-recognition software enhancing airport security （ B） Visionicss stocks rose in price （ C） the airports were satisfied with the software （ D） Visionicss software was a great success 7 The second paragraph implies that_. （ A） the surface of the sof
23、tware is not smooth （ B） there is a series of face-recognition software products （ C） the software turns out to be inefficient （ D） the software is not durable 8 What is the fatal defect of the system according to the U. S. Department of Defense? （ A） Too many false alarms were raised. （ B） Everyone
24、 should look straight at the camera. （ C） only 90% of suspects at an airport were found. （ D） Everyone should not disguise himself. 9 What makes it so hard for the face-recognition systems to work effectively? （ A） The computers are not so advanced. （ B） The faceprints of the mugshots fed in the com
25、puters are never identical with those of real persons. （ C） It is very hard for the operators to learn to control the system. （ D） People seldom look straight at the camera. 10 In the last paragraph, the author points out that_. （ A） any way, the face-recognition technology is good enough to frighte
26、n the terrorists （ B） the industry will have to recognize the real situation and work hard to improve the technology （ C） all the claims are premature （ D） we must not expect too much 10 And researchers say that like those literary romantics Romeo and Juliet, they may be blind to the consequences of
27、 their quests for an idealized mate who serves their every physical and emotional need. Nearly 19 in 20 never-married respondents to a national survey agree that “when you marry you want your spouse to be your soul mate, first and foremost“, according to the State of Our Unions: 2001 study released
28、Wednesday by Rutgers University. David Popenoe, a Rutgers sociologist and one of the studys authors, said that view might spell doom for marriages. “It really provides a very unrealistic view of what marriage really is,“ Popenoe said. “The standard becomes so high, its not easy to bail out if you di
29、dnt find a soul mate.“ The survey points to a fundamental dilemma in which younger people want more from the institution of marriage while they seemingly are unwilling to make the necessary commitments. The survey also suggests that some respondents expect too much from a spouse, including the kind
30、of emotional support rendered by same-sex friends. The authors of the study also suggest that the generation that was polled may more quickly leave a margin because of infidelity than past generations. Popenoe said the poll, conducted by the Gallup organization, is the first of its kind to concentra
31、te on people in their 20s. A total of 1,003 married and single young adults nationwide were interviewed by telephone between January and March. The margin of error was plus or minus four percentage points. Respondents said they eventually want to get married, realize its a lot of work and think ther
32、e are too many divorces. They believe there is one right person for them out there somewhere and think their own marriages wont end in divorce. Since the poll is the first of its kind, researchers say it is impossible to say if expectations about marriage are changing or static. But scholars say the
33、 search for soul mates has increased over the last generation-and the last century-as marriage has become an institution centering on romance rather than utility. “one hundred years ago, people married for financial reasons, for tying families together, they married for political reasons,“ said John
34、 DeLamater, a sociologist at the University of Wisconsin. “And most people had children.“ Those conditions are no longer the case for young adults like David Asher, a 24-year-old waiter in a Trenton cafe who has been in a relationship for about two years. He wants to wait to make sure hes ready to e
35、xchange vows. “I know a lot of it has to do with financial reasons,“ he said. “Maybe if youre going to have children, marriage is the best bet.“ But the main reason for matrimony: “If youre in love with someone, its sort of like promising to them you are in love.“ “Thats all well and good,“ said Hea
36、ther Helms-Erikson, an assistant professor of human development and family studies at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. “But passion-partly in endorphin- caused physiological phenomenon-has been known to diminish in time.“ 11 Whats the best title of this passage? （ A） Marriage Scholars
37、 Worry Search for “Soul Mates“ is Unrealistic. （ B） People Should Seek for Romeo and Juliet. （ C） Marriage Should Happen between Soul Mates. （ D） Search for “soul Mates“ Should be Superseded by Reality. 12 The new study in this passage shows that_. （ A） many Americans are very practical when they se
38、arch for a spouse （ B） American 20-somethings have a largely romantic view of marriage （ C） Romantic view of marriage might lead marriage to a happy ending （ D） Americans are fond of marriage life so they will not care cohabitation 13 It can be inferred that the author would most likely agree with w
39、hich of the following statements regarding marriage? （ A） It usually involves idealized mates who can serve their every physical and emotional need. （ B） It may not be realized unless the couple consider carefully about their responsibility and commitment. （ C） It becomes more unrealistic nowadays t
40、han in the past because most people center on romance instead of utility. （ D） It results from many reasons such as financial reasons, family reunion, and political reasons. 14 Which of the following is not one of the differences between this generation and the past generations as far as marriage is
41、 concerned? （ A） The young people nowadays require more from marriage but they seem not to be willing to make necessary commitments. （ B） This generation expects too much from their spouses and they cannot keep to be faithful to their husbands or wives. （ C） The young people at present pay more atte
42、ntion to look for soul mates than the past generations when they search for partners. （ D） Now some young people usually marry for the same reasons as the older generations such as financial one and children. 15 Which of the following sentences will Heather Helms-Erikon use to illustrate her own arg
43、ument? （ A） Ten years into a marriage, you will still have great passion and you notice someone else and say, only my wife or husband is my soul mate. （ B） The romantic part of marriage-while it can be there-should not be substituted by other things such as shared values and social status. （ C） The
44、couple should focus on the three Cs-communication, conflict resolution and commitment-to make marriage the first priority. （ D） Ten years into a marriage, you dont have that any more and you notice someone else and think, Maybe this person is my soul mate. 15 on the morning of September 11 th, I boa
45、rded the train from Washington Heights in Upper Manhattan just as usual and went to the Body Positive office in the South Street Seaport of Lower Manhattan. While I was leaving the subway at 8:53 am, a man ran down the street screaming, “Someone just bombed the World Trade Center.“ Those around me s
46、creamed and shouted “No !“ in disbelief. However, being an amateur photographer, and thinking that I might be able to help out, I ran directly toward the WTC I stopped just short of the WTC at a corner and looked Up. There before me stood the gaping hole and fire that had taken over the first buildi
47、ng. I stood there in shock taking pictures, wanting to run even closer to help out, but I could not move: Soon I saw what looked like little angels floating down from the top of the building. I began to cry when I realized that these “angels“-in fact, desperate office workers-were coming down, some
48、one-by-one, some even holding hands with another. Could I actually be seeing this disaster unfold with hundreds of people around me crying, screaming and running for safety? As I watched in horror, another white airliner came from the south and took aim at the South Tower. As the plane entered the b
49、uilding, there was an explosion and fire and soon debris (碎片 ) began to fall around me. It was then that I realized that we were being attacked and that this was just not a terrible accident. Yet, I still could not move, until I was pushed down by the crowd on the street, many now in a panic running toward the water, as far from the WTC as they could possibly get. All around me were the visual reminders of hundreds of people running in panic. There Were shoes, hats, briefcases, pocketbooks,
