1、武汉大学考博英语模拟试卷 8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 corners of her house after her 2-year-old sons birthday party. This friendly com
2、bination of chitchat took place not in front of a blackboard but in an E-mail 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 attr
3、acts 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
4、 represented. 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 Schoolers80 percent ar
5、e 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 c
6、ourse 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 p
7、ercent. 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 intera
8、ction 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
9、who 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 class
10、room （ 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 From
11、 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） amo
12、ng 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 urge the
13、 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 The C
14、ommercial Revolution was not confined, of course, to the growth of trade and banking. Included in it also were fundamental changes in methods of production. The system of manufacture developed by the craft guilds in the later Middle Ages was rapidly becoming defunct. The guilds themselves, dominated
15、 by the master craftsmen, had grown selfish and exclusive. Membership in them was commonly restricted to a few privileged families. Besides, they were so completely choked by tradition that they were unable to make adjustments to changing conditions. Moreover, new industries had sprung up entirely o
16、utside the guild system. Characteristic examples were mining and smelting and the woolen industry. The rapid development of these enterprises was stimulated by technical advances, such as the invention of the spinning wheel and the discovery of a new method of making brass, which saved about half of
17、 the fuel previously used. In the mining and smelting industries a form of organization was adopted similar to that which has prevailed ever since. But the most typical form of industrial production in the Commercial Revolution was the domestic system, developed first of all in the woolen industry.
18、The domestic system derives its name from the fact that the work was done in the homes of industrial artisans instead of in the shop of a master craftsman. Since the various jobs in the manufacture of a product were given out on contract, the system is also known as the putting out system. Notwithst
19、anding the petty scale of production, the organization was basically capitalistic. The raw material was purchased by an entrepreneur and assigned to individual worker, each of whom would complete his allotted task for a stipulated payment. In the case of the woolen industry the yam would be given ou
20、t first of all to the spinners, then to the weavers, fullers, and dyer in succession. When the cloth was finally finished, it would be taken by the clothier and sold in the open market for the highest price it would bring. 6 According to the article, what changes did the Commercial Revolution bring
21、about? （ A） Methods of production （ B） Appearance of craft guilds （ C） Increased trade volume （ D） Growth of trade, banking and methods of production 7 The word “defunct“ in the first paragraph most probably means:_. （ A） popular （ B） obsolete （ C） potential （ D） flourishing 8 According to the artic
22、le, in which area was it more energy-efficient? （ A） Smelting industry （ B） Mining industry （ C） Banking （ D） Weaving 9 The author implies that_. （ A） the guild system was more efficient （ B） the domestic system was capitalistic （ C） the technical advances stimulated the guild system （ D） the domest
23、ic system was not as efficient as the guild system 10 According to the article, which one of the following statements is NOT true? （ A） Technical advances stimulated the development of enterprises. （ B） In the woolen industry, weavers would pass on their products to spinners. （ C） The domestic syste
24、m is also known as the putting out system. （ D） The word “clothier“ is synonymous to “entrepreneur“ in this context. 10 And researchers say that like those literary romantics Romeo and Juliet, they may be blind to the consequences of their quests for an idealized mate who serves their every physical
25、 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 Wednesday by Rutgers University. David Popenoe, a Rutgers sociologi
26、st 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 didnt find a soul mate.“ The survey points to a fundamental dilemma i
27、n 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 of emotional support rendered by same-sex friends. The authors of t
28、he 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 concentrate on people in their 20s. A total of 1,003 married and single youn
29、g 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 there are too many divorces. They believe there is one right person for
30、 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 search for soul mates has increased over the last generationand th
31、e last centuryas 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 DeLamater, a sociologist at the University of Wisconsin. “And most p
32、eople 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 exchange vows. “I know a lot of it has to do with financial reasons,“
33、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 Heather Helms-Erikson, an assistant professor of human development and f
34、amily studies at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. “But passionpartly in endor-phin-caused physiological phenomenonhas been known to diminish in time.“ 11 Whats the best title of this passage? （ A） Marriage Scholars Worry Search for “Soul Mates“ is Unrealistic. （ B） People Should Seek
35、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 search for a spouse （ B） American 20-somethings have a largely romantic v
36、iew 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 which of the following statements regarding marriage? （ A） It usually in
37、volves 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 than in the past because most people center on romance instead of utilit
38、y. （ 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 concerned? （ A） The young people nowadays require more from marriage b
39、ut 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 attention to look for soul mates than the past generations when they search
40、 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 argument? （ A） Ten years into a marriage, you will still have great passio
41、n and you notice someone else and say, Only my wife orhusband is my soul mate. （ B） “The romantic part of marriagewhile it can be thereshould not be substituted by other things such as shared values and social status.“ （ C） The couple should focus on thethree Cscommunication, conflict resolution and
42、 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 To get from Kathmandu to the tiny village in Nepal, Dave Irvine-Halliday spent more than two days. When he arrived
43、, he found villagers working and reading around battery-powered lamps equipped with light-emitting diodes, or LEDsthe same lamps he had left there in 2000. Irvine-Halliday, an American photonics engineer, was not surprised. He chose to use LED bulbs because they are rugged, portable, long-lived, and
44、 extremely efficient. Each of his lamps produces a useful amount of illumination from just one watt of power. Villagers use them about four hours each night, then top off the battery by pedaling a generator for half an hour. The cool, steady beam is a huge improvement over lamps still common in deve
45、loping Countries. In fact, LEDs have big advantages over familiar incandescent (白炽的 )lights as wellso much so that Irvine-Halliday expects LEDs will eventually take over from Thomas Edisons old lightbulb as the worlds main source of artificial illumination. The dawn of LEDs began about 40 years ago,
46、 but early LEDs produced red or green glows suitable mainly for displays in digital clocks and calculators. A decade ago, engineers invented a semiconductor crystal made of an aluminum compound that produced a much brighter red light. Around the same time, a Japanese engineer developed the first pra
47、ctical blue LED. This small advance had a huge impact because blue, green, and red LEDs can be combined to create most of the colors of the rainbow, just as that in a color television picture. These days, high-intensity color LEDs are showing up everywhere such as the traffic lights. The reasons for
48、 the rapid switchover are simple. Incandescent bulbs have to be replaced annually, but LED traffic lights should last five to yen years. LEDs also use 80 to 90 percent less electricity than the conventional signals they replace. Collectively, the new traffic lights save at least 400 million kilowatt
49、-hours a year in the United States. Much bigger savings await if LEDs can supplant Mr. Edisons bulb at the office and in the living room. Creating a white-light LED that is energy-saving, cheap and appealing has proved a tough engineering challenge. But all the major lightbulb makersincluding General Electric, Philips, and Osram-Sylvaniaare teaming up with semiconductor manufacturers to make it happen. 16 From the first paragraph, we can see that Dave Irvine-Halliday_. （ A） is a mountain climber （ B） went to
