1、考博英语模拟试卷 143及答案与解析 一、 Reading Comprehension 0 Signs of deafness had given him great anxiety as early as 1798. For a long time he successfully concealed it from all but his most intimate friends, while he consulted physicians and quacks with eagerness. But neither quackery nor the best skill of his t
2、ime availed him, and it has been pointed out that the root of the evil lay deeper than could have been supposed during his lifetime. Although his constitution was magnificently strong and his health was preserved by his passion for outdoor life, a post-mortem examination revealed a very complicated
3、state of disorder, evidently dating from childhood (if not inherited) and aggravated by lack of care and good food. The touching document addressed to his brothers in 1802, and known as his “will“ should be read in its entirety. No verbal quotation short of the whole will do justice to the overpower
4、ing outburst which runs in almost one long unpunctuated sentence through the whole tragedy of Beethovens life, as he knew it then and foresaw it. He reproaches men for their injustice in thinking and calling him pugnacious, stubborn, and misanthropical when they do not know that for six years he has
5、 suffered from an incurable condition aggravted by incompetent doctors. He dwells upon his delight in human society from which he has had so early to isolate himself, but the thought of which now fills him with dread as it makes him realize his loss, not only in music but in all finer interchange of
6、 ideas, and terrifies him lest the cause of his distresses should appear. He declares that, when those near him had heard a flute or a singing shepherd while he heard nothing, he was only prevented from taking his life by the thought of his art, but it seemed impossible for him to leave the world un
7、til he had brought out all that he felt to be in his power. He requests that after his death his present doctor, if surviving, shall be asked to describe his illness and to append it to this document in order that at least then the world may be as far as possible reconciled with him. He leaves his b
8、rothers property, such as it is, and in terms not less touching, if more conventional than the rest of the document, he declares that his experience shows that only virtue has preserved his life and his courage through all his misery. During the last twelve years of his life, his nephew was the caus
9、e of most of his anxiety and distress. His brother, Kaspar Karl, had often given him trouble-for example, by obtaining and publishing some of Beethovens early indiscretions, such as the trio variations, op. 44, the sonatas, op. 49, and other trifles. In 1815, after Beethoven had quarreled with his o
10、ldest friend, Stephan Breuning, for warning him against trusting his brother in money matters, Kaspar died, leaving a widow of whom Beethoven strongly disapproved, and a son, nine years old, for the guardianship of whom Beethoven fought the widow through all the law courts. The boy turned out utterl
11、y unworthy of his uncles persistent devotion and gave him every cause for anxiety. He failed in all his examinations, including an attempt to learn some trade in all his ecaminations, including an attempt to learn some trade in the polytechnic school, whereupon he fell into the hands of the police f
12、or attempting suicide, and after being expelled from Vienna, joined the army. Beethovens utterly simple nature could neither educate nor understand a human being who was not possessed by the wish to do his best. His nature was passionately affectionate, and he had suffered all his life from the want
13、 of a natural outlet for it. He had often been deeply in love and made no secret of it. But Robert Browning had not a more intense dislike of “the artistic temperament“ in morals, and though Beethovens attachments were almost hopelessly above him in rank, there is not one that was not honorable and
14、respected by society as showing the truthfulness and self-control of a great man. Beethovens orthodoxy in such matters has provoked the smiles of Philistines, especially when it showed itself in his objections to Mozarts Don Giovanni and the grounds for selecting the subject of Fidelio for his own o
15、pera. The last thing that Philistines will ever understand is that genius is far too independent of convention to abuse it, and Beethovens life, with all its mistakes, its grotesqueness, and its pathos, is as far beyond the shafts of Philistine wit as his art. 1 The title that best expresses the mai
16、n idea of this passage is _. （ A） A Great Genius （ B） Beethovens Deafness （ C） Tribulations of a Genius （ D） An Undeserving Nephew 2 By the statement that “genius is far too independent of convention to abuse it“ the author implies that _. （ A） an artist does not understand conventional morality （ B
17、） Philistines expect geniuses to be morally conventional （ C） Beethoven lived within a conventional moral code （ D） Don Giovanni abuses conventional standards 3 Beethovens contemporaries thought that he was _. （ A） a recluse （ B） inspired （ C） wealthy （ D） a good brother-in-law 4 Beethoven was distr
18、essed by his nephews _. （ A） extravagance （ B） unwillingness to do his best （ C） joining the army （ D） failure to enter polytechnical school 5 Opus 44 and Opus 49 are called “indiscretions“ because they were _. （ A） published by Beethovens brother （ B） not written by Beethoven （ C） written in Beetho
19、vens youth （ D） inferior efforts 5 Watch a baby between six and nine months old, and you will observe the basic concepts of geometry being learned. Once the baby has mastered the idea that space is three-dimensional, it reaches out and begins grasping various kinds of objects. It is then, from perha
20、ps nine to fifteen months, that the concepts of sets and numbers are formed. So far, so good. But now an ominous development takes place. The nerve fibers in the brain insulate themselves in such a way that the baby begins to hear sounds very precisely. Soon it picks up language, and it is then brou
21、ght into direct communication with adults. From this point on, it is usually downhill all the way for mathematics, because the child now becomes exposed to all the nonsense words and beliefs of the community into which it has been so unfortunate as to have been born. Nature, having done very well by
22、 the child to this point, having permitted it the luxury of thinking for itself for eighteen months, now abandons it to the arbitrary conventions and beliefs of society. But at least the child knows something of geometry and numbers, and it will always retain some memory of the early halcyon days, n
23、o matter what vicissitudes it may suffer later on. The main reservoir of mathematical talent in any society is thus possessed by children who are about two years old, children who have just learned to speak fluently. 6 What does the passage mainly discuss? （ A） How basic concepts of physics are lear
24、ned. （ B） Math-learning strategies for babies. （ C） How basic concepts of physics are learned. （ D） Math-learning strategies for babies. 7 According to the passage, which of the following activities would teach a baby about geometry? （ A） Picking up a wooden block. （ B） Recognizing the number 2. （ C
25、） Uttering a nonsense word. （ D） Looking at distant objects. 8 The use of the word “ominous“ shows that the author believes the childs _. （ A） linguistic future is threatened （ B） nerves will deteriorate （ C） hearing will suffer （ D） mathematical ability will decline 9 Which of the following conclus
26、ions does the passage support? （ A） The language concepts used in early education interfere with mathematical reasoning. （ B） It is hopeless to try to teach children mathematics after the age of two. （ C） Language teaching should incorporate some mathematical formulas. （ D） Preschool education shoul
27、d stress societys beliefs and conventions. 10 The authors attitude toward early childhood education can best be described as somewhat _. （ A） indifferent （ B） compromising （ C） indulgent （ D） cynical 10 The need for solar electricity is clear. It is safe, ecologically sound, efficient, continuously
28、available, and is has no moving parts. The basic problem with the use of solar photovoltaic devices is economics, but until recently very little progress has been made toward the development of low-cost photovoltaic devices. The larger part of research funding has been devoted to study of single-cry
29、stal silicon solar cells, despite the evidence, including that of the leading manufacturers of crystalline silicon, that the technique holds little promise. The reason for this pattern is understandable and historical. Crystalline silicon is the active element in the Very successful semiconductor in
30、dustry, and virtually all of the solid state devices contain silicon transistors and diodes. Crystalline silicon, however, is particularly unsuitable to terrestrial solar cells. Crystalline silicon solar cells work well and are successfully used in the space program, where cost is not an issue. Whil
31、e single-crystal silicon has been proven in extraterrestrial use with efficiencies as high as 18 percent, and other more expensive and scarce materials such as gallium arsenide can have even higher efficiencies, costs must be reduced by a factor of more than 100 to make them practical for commercial
32、 use. Beside the fact that the starting crystalline silicon is expensive, 95 percent of it is wasted and does not appear in the final device. Recently, there have been some imaginative attempts to make polycrystalline and ribbon silicon, which are lower in cost than high-quality single crystals. But
33、 to date the efficiencies of these apparently lower-cost arrays have been unacceptably small. Moreover, these materials are cheaper only because of the introduction of disordering in crystalline semiconductors, and disorder degrades the efficiency of crystalline solar cells. This dilemma can be avoi
34、ded by preparing completely disordered or amorphous materials. Amorphous materials have disordered atomic structure as compared to crystalline materials. That is, they have only short-range order rather than the long-range periodicity of crystals. The advantages of amorphous solar cells are impressi
35、ve. Whereas crystals can be grown as wafers about four inches in diameter, amorphous materials can be grown over large areas in a single process. Whereas crystalline silicon must be made 200 microns thick to absorb a sufficient, amount of sunlight for efficient energy conversion, only 1 micron of th
36、e proper amorphous materials is necessary. Crystalline silicon solar cells cost in excess of $100 per square foot, but amorphous films can be created at a cost of about 50 per square foot. Although many scientists were aware of the very low cost of amorphous solar cells, they felt that they could ne
37、ver be manufactured with the efficiencies necessary to contribute significantly to the demand for electric power. This was based on a misconception about the feature which determines efficiency. For example, it is not the conductivity of the material in the dark which is relevant, but only the photo
38、conductivity, that is the conductivity in the presence of sunlight. Already, solar cells with efficiencies well above 6 percent have been developed using amorphous materials, and further research will doubtless find even less costly amorphous materials with higher efficiencies. 11 The author is prim
39、arily concerned with _. （ A） discussing the importance of solar energy （ B） explaining the functioning of solar cells （ C） presenting a history of research on energy sources （ D） describing a possible solution to the problem of the cost of photovoltaic cells 12 Which of the following pairs of terms
40、does the author regard as most nearly synonymous? （ A） Solar and extraterrestrial. （ B） Photovoltaic devices and solar cells. （ C） Crystalline silicon and amorphous materials. （ D） Amorphous materials and higher efficiencies. 13 The material in the passage could best be used in an argument for _. （
41、A） discontinuing the space program （ B） increased funding for research on amorphous materials （ C） further study of the history of silicon crystals （ D） increased reliance on solar energy 14 The author mentions which of the following as advantages of amorphous materials for solar ceils over silicon
42、crystals? （ A） The relative thinness of amorphous materials. （ B） The cost of amorphous materials. （ C） The size of solar cells which can be made of amorphous materials. （ D） All of the above. 15 The tone of the passage can best be described as _. （ A） analytical and optimistic （ B） biased and unpro
43、fessional （ C） critical and discouraged （ D） tentative and inconclusive 15 The texture of the soil depends on the relative amounts of different-sized particles that combine to make up the soil. These particles can be as large as stone and gravel or as small as clay. A typical clay soil is composed o
44、f approximately 60 percent actual clay, 20 percent silt, and 20 percent sand. The particles in a sandy soil are so fine that it tends to be compact and interferes with the oxygen supply for plant roots. Water has trouble entering this impervious soil, and runoff is very common during rainfalls. A ty
45、pical light sandy soil is composed of approximately 70 percent sand, 20 percent silt, and 10 percent clay. The particles in a sandy soil are comparatively large, permitting water to enter the soil and to pass through it so quickly that it often carries nutrients with it and dries out very rapidly. T
46、he texture of sandy soils is generally very difficult to modify because huge amounts of organic material must be added. A typical loam soil is composed of approximately 40 percent sand, 40 percent silt, and 20 percent clay, making it an ideal garden soil. It is easily worked and retains water and nu
47、trients, which are slowly absorbed by plant roots. A typical adobe soil is a clay soil present in hot, dry areas of the country and is often very hard and cracked. It has all the disadvantages of a heavy clay soil and, being much drier, is more difficult to correct. 16 What is the authors main purpo
48、se in this passage? （ A） To tell gardeners how to modify their soil. （ B） To classify soil types on the basis of their composition. （ C） To illustrate the effects of soil type on plant growth. （ D） To show how water is absorbed by different soil. 17 What is most likely to happen to rainwater when it
49、 falls on sandy soil? （ A） It sinks in slowly, days later the soil is still saturted. （ B） It sinks in quickly, a few hours later the soil is almost dry. （ C） It runs off the surface and does not enter the soil. （ D） It cracks the surface of the soil. 18 According to the passage, the texture of sandy soil can be improved by mixing in _. （ A） water （ B） gravel （ C） chemistry nutrients （ D） organic material 19 Adobe soil differs from other clay soils in that _. （ A） other clay soils retain less water （ B） other
