1、MBA（英语）阅读理解练习试卷 14 及答案与解析一、Section III Reading ComprehensionDirections: Read the following four passages. Answer the questions below each passage by choosing A, B, C or D. Mark your answers on ANSWER SHEET 1.0 They are said to be reluctant to forsake the pleasures of single life. But nothing could b
2、e further from the truth; British women are much more attached to marriage than their European counterparts, around 95.1 percent of British women have married at least once by age 49, the highest figure in the European Union. Only 91.2 percent of British men have walked up the aisle by the same age.
3、 Meanwhile, the much discussed trend for delaying marriage until later in life-blamed on career women reluctant to have children-may actually reflect a return to the historical norm. The average age of first marriage in Europe 200 years ago was 28, the same as British brides in 1998, according to a
4、paper for the National Family and Parenting Institute, the independent thinktank set up by Jack Straw to advise on family issues. “The public conversation about marriage has often been conducted in an atmosphere fraught with anxiety that can easily tip over into what commentators have described as a
5、 moral panic,“ the report, comparing European trends in marriage, adds. “Changes in the marriage rate and in the way people form relationships are part and parcel of a society where change is rapid and individuals feel helpless in the face of new developments; yet it is vital that these issues can b
6、e discussed without blame.“ The paper does not include divorce rates. In 1997 Britain had the highest divorce rate in Europe, although by 1999 the rate had fallen to the level of the late 1980s. Despite much political consternation about the family, the report suggests British attitudes are more soc
7、ially conservative than those of many EU counterparts. Nine out of 10 couples in Britain living with their children are married, compared to half in Finland. And while cohabiting is becoming the norm for European twentysomethings, “change has happened much more rapidly across the whole of the EU tha
8、n in the UK“, the report finds. Around a third of British under-thirties live with a partner, but it is closer to half in France and 40 per cent in Germany. “This report is about lets bring a cool head to this debate,“ said Gill Keep, head of policy at the institute. “It is much easier to take the p
9、anic out of the discussion if you look at it in a comparative way; things that you think are destroying your own society are actually common trends and they may not be that destructive.“ She said that despite anxiety over later marriages-the average age of first-time brides rose from 23 in the postw
10、ar period to 28 for women and 30 for men by 1999-historically this would have seemed normal. Social historian Christina Hardyment said that in the nineteenth century couples would not marry until they could afford to support a household. “Women below the middle classes would always work in some capa
11、city, mainly in domestic service, and it made sense to save; people think of kings and queens and nobility being married off at 12 but that was highly unusual,“ she said.1 It is a well-known fact that British women are unwilling to abandon single life for a marriage. （A）True（B） False2 British women
12、married at the same age as European women did about two centuries ago. （A）True（B） False3 English marriage break-up is not discussed in the paper because of its low rate. （A）True（B） False4 It can be concluded that more European youth tend to live together without getting married than their British co
13、unterparts. （A）True（B） False5 Living pressure was a key factor in marriage decision in the 19th century. （A）True（B） False5 Its wonderful how everyone agrees (or fears to disagree) that genetic discrimination is a bad thing. Your genes are beyond your control. Why should you be punished for them? Unf
14、ortunately, genetic discrimination is universal, inevitable and, in some ways, essential. Leaving aside the hot issue of intelligence, consider clearly genetic traits such as musical or athletic talent. Practice, practice will get you to Carnegie Hall, but only if youre born on the right bus. The no
15、tion of not discriminating on the basis of inborn talent is not even an abstract ideal, the world would be a poorer place if it did not distinguish between me and Yo-Yo Ma in doling out opportunities to be a concert cellist. As we learn more about the human genome, well learn that more and more of t
16、he traits we reward have a genetic component. Martin Luther King said we should all be judged on “the content of our character.“ But if a disposition to hard work or courage or creative imagination turns out to have a large genetic component, should we still judge people based on these qualities? Th
17、en, too, the world discriminates on the basis of clearly genetic traits, such as physical beauty, that are irrelevant in most circumstances. Occasionally, some zealot proposes to ban this kind of discrimination, too. But it will never happen. So what is the limiting principle on banning genetic disc
18、rimination? Where do we stop? Right now, the universal consensus makes a distinction between the results of genetic tests and genetic traits that reveal themselves in some other way. It seems unfair and arbitrary that your fate in life should be determined in any important way by what a drop of your
19、 blood reveals under a microscope; but logically, there is no difference between this and letting your fate be determined by how tall or musically gifted you are. A Juilliard tryout is, in part, a genetic test. If there were a blood test for musical talent, as there may be some day, it would do the
20、same thing more efficiently. A blood test might even be fairer than the crude substitutes we use instead to judge and choose among people: It would zero in on the trait we really need to discriminate about and reduce discrimination on the basis of traits that are irrelevant. Some people say the dang
21、er is that genetic testing will encourage irrelevant discrimination; employers will overreact and refuse to hire you even though your actual likelihood of getting Alzheimers before your retirement is minuscule. But discriminationby mistake will often bring its own punishment, like any business misju
22、dgment. The real problem is discrimination that makes perfect sense. A health insurer is not crazy or stupid to want to keep people out of its insurance pool if theyre more likely to get sick. Nor is the company evil to do this if the law allows it. The idea of insurance is to protect against unpred
23、ictable costs. Ignoring predictable costs, when your competitors arent required to do the same, is a recipe for bankruptcy.6 The author holds that genetic discrimination is a part of every day life. （A）True（B） False7 Most of the public favor a strict ban against genetic discrimination by following M
24、artin Luther King. （A）True（B） False8 Genetic testing is based on solid scientific evidence that nobody can argue against. （A）True（B） False9 If an employee gets Alzheimers, he is likely to be discriminated by his colleagues. （A）True（B） False10 It can be concluded that genetic testing can be used to p
25、revent predictable costs. （A）True（B） FalseMBA（英语）阅读理解练习试卷 14 答案与解析一、Section III Reading ComprehensionDirections: Read the following four passages. Answer the questions below each passage by choosing A, B, C or D. Mark your answers on ANSWER SHEET 1.【知识模块】 阅读理解1 【正确答案】 B【试题解析】 源自第一段头两句，关键在于考生对于 nothi
26、ng could be further from the truth“大错特错” 的理解。 【知识模块】 阅读理解2 【正确答案】 A【试题解析】 源自三段第一句：重点考查考生对比较结构的认识。 【知识模块】 阅读理解3 【正确答案】 B【试题解析】 源自第六段，本题的原因不在段落信息中。 【知识模块】 阅读理解4 【正确答案】 A【试题解析】 从第八段的数据对比中，可以判断欧洲其他地方比英国年青人更多选择同居而不是结婚。 【知识模块】 阅读理解5 【正确答案】 A【试题解析】 源自最后一段的引语。 【知识模块】 阅读理解【知识模块】 阅读理解6 【正确答案】 A【试题解析】 根据第一段第三句
27、表达的信息，可知这种“基因歧视”无处不在，而且不可避免。 【知识模块】 阅读理解7 【正确答案】 B【试题解析】 从第二段倒数第二句，我们可以知道，只有少数“热心人”(zealot)主张禁止这种歧视；其次，这些人和马丁路德金的号召没有关系。 【知识模块】 阅读理解8 【正确答案】 B【试题解析】 这个选项的信息完全没有来源，不属于文章的基本信息。 【知识模块】 阅读理解9 【正确答案】 B【试题解析】 根据文章最后一段第一句可知，员工的疾病基因报告会让雇主产生过激反应，与员工同事无关。 【知识模块】 阅读理解10 【正确答案】 A【试题解析】 在文章最后一段，我们可以发现，基因测试可以帮助保险公司避免那些可以预防的风险。 【知识模块】 阅读理解
