1、在职艺术硕士（MFA ）全国联考英文阅读理解模拟试卷 18 及答案与解析一、英文阅读理解题0 According to a survey, which was based on the responses of over 188,000 students, todays traditional-age college freshmen are “more materialistic and less altruistic (利他主义的 )“ than at any time in the 17 years of the poll.Not surprising in these hard tim
2、es, the students major objective “is to be financially well off. Less important than ever is developing a meaningful philosophy of life. “ It follows then that today the most popular course is not literature or history but accounting.Interest in teaching, social service and the “altruistic“ fields i
3、s at a low. On the other hand, enrollment in business programs, engineering and computer science is way up.Thats no surprise either. A friend of mine (a sales representative for a chemical company) was making twice the salary of her college instructors her first year on the jobeven before she comple
4、ted her two-year associate degree.While its true that we all need a career, it is equally true that our civilization has accumulated an incredible amount of knowledge in fields far removed from our own and that we are better for our understanding of these other contributionsbe they scientific or art
5、istic. It is equally true that, in studying the diverse wisdom of others, we learn how to think. More important, perhaps, education teaches us to see the connections between things, as well as to see beyond our immediate needs.Weekly we read of unions who went on strike for higher wages, only to dri
6、ve their employer out of business. No company; no job. How shortsighted in the long run!But the most important argument for a broad education is that in studying the accumulated wisdom of the ages, we improve our moral sense. I saw a cartoon recently which shows a group of businessmen looking puzzle
7、d as they sit around a conference table； one of them is talking on the intercom (对讲机): “Miss Baxter,“ he says, “could you please send in someone who can distinguish right from wrong?“From the long-term point of view, thats what education really ought to be about. (353 words)1 According to the author
8、s observation, college students_.（A）have never been so materialistic as today（B） have never been so interested in the arts（C） have never been so financially well off as today（D）have never attached so much importance to moral sense2 The students criteria for selecting majors today have much to do wit
9、h_.（A）the influences of their instructors（B） the financial goals they seek in life（C） their own interpretations of the courses（D）their understanding of the contributions of others3 By saying “While its true thatbe they scientific or artistic“ (Lines 1 4, Para. 5), the author means that_.（A）business
10、management should be included in educational programs（B） human wisdom has accumulated at an extraordinarily high speed（C） human intellectual development has reached new heights（D）the importance of a broad education should not be overlooked4 Studying the diverse wisdom of others can_.（A）create varyin
11、g artistic interests（B） help people see things in their right perspectives（C） help improve connections among people（D）regulate the behavior of modern people5 Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?（A）Businessmen absorbed in their career are narrow-minded.（B） Managers ofte
12、n find it hard to tell, right from wrong.（C） People engaged in technical jobs lead a more rewarding life,（D）Career seekers should not focus on immediate interests only.5 Nearly all “speed reading“ courses have a “pacing“ elementsome timing device which lets the student know how many words a minute h
13、e is reading. You can do this simply by looking at your watch every 5 or 10 minutes and noting down the page number you have reached. Check the average number of words per page for the particular book you are reading. How do you know when 5 minutes has passed on your watch if you are busy reading th
14、e book? Well, this is difficult at first. A friend can help by timing you over a set period, or you can read within hearing distance of a public clock which strikes the quarter hours. Pace yourself every three or four days, always with the same kind of easy, general interest books. You should soon n
15、otice your accustomed w.p.m. rate creeping up.Obviously there is little point in increasing your w.p.m. rate if you do not understand what you are reading. When you are consciously trying to increase your reading speed, stop after every chapter (if you are reading a novel) or every section or group
16、of ten or twelve pages (if it is a textbook) and ask yourself a few questions about what you have been reading. If you find you have lost the thread of the story, or you cannot remember clearly the details of what was said, reread the section or chapter.You can also try “lightning speed“ exercise fr
17、om time to time. Take four or five pages of the general interest book you happen to be reading and read them as fast as you possibly can. Do not bother about whether you understand or not. Now go back and read them at what you feel to be your “normal“ w.p.m. rate, the rate at which you can comfortab
18、ly understand. After a lightning speed reading through you will usually find that your “normal“ speed has increasedperhaps by as much as 50-100 w.p.m. This is the technique sportsmen use when they usually run further in training than they will have to on the day of the big race. (341 words)6 Accordi
19、ng to the passage, a “pacing“ device_.（A）is used to time students reading speed（B） is not used in most speed reading courses（C） is used as an aid to vocabulary learning（D）should be used whenever we read alone7 In speed reading, looking at your watch every 5 or 10 minutes_.（A）avoids the need for read
20、ing faster（B） is not the same as pacing（C） may seem unworkable at first（D）helps you to remember your page number8 When you are reading a novel, you should check your understanding of the content after_.（A）every chapter（B） every section（C） every four or five pages（D）every ten or twelve pages9 The pur
21、pose of the “lightning speed“ exercise is to_.（A）increase your speed by scanning the text first（B） test your maximum reading speed（C） help you understand more of the content of the book（D）enable you to win reading races against your friends10 The best title for this passage would be_.（A）Hints for Su
22、ccessful Reading（B） Hints for Speed Reading（C） Effective Reading（D）Lightning Speed Exercises10 For centuries, explorers have risked their lives venturing into the unknown for reasons that were to varying degrees economic and nationalistic. Columbus went west to look for better trade routes to the Or
23、ient and to promote the greater glory of Spain. Lewis and Clark journeyed into the American wilderness to find out what the U.S. had acquired when it purchased Louisiana, and the Apollo astronauts rocketed to the moon in a dramatic show of technological muscle during the cold war.Although their miss
24、ions blended commercial and political-military imperatives, the explorers involved all accomplished some significant science simply by going where no scientists had gone before.Today Mars looms (隐约出现 ) as humanitys next great terra incognita (未探明之地 ). And with doubtful prospects for a short-term fin
25、ancial return, with the cold war a rapidly fading memory and amid a growing emphasis on international cooperation in large space ventures, it is clear that imperatives other than profits or nationalism will have to compel human beings to leave their tracks on the planets reddish surface. Could it be
26、 that science, which has long played a minor role in exploration, is at last destined to take a leading role? The question naturally invites a couple of others: Are there experiments that only humans could do on Mars? Could those experiments provide insights profound enough to justify the expense of
27、 sending people across interplanetary space?With Mars the scientific stakes are arguably higher than they have ever been. The issue of whether life ever existed on the planet, and whether it persists to this day, has been highlighted by mounting evidence that the Red Planet once had abundant stable,
28、 liquid water and by the continuing controversy over suggestions that bacterial fossils rode to Earth on a meteorite (陨石) from Mars. A more conclusive answer about life on Mars, past or present, would give researchers invaluable data about the range of conditions under which a planet can generate th
29、e complex chemistry that leads to life. If it could be established that life arose independently on Mars and Earth, the finding would provide the first concrete clues in one of the deepest mysteries in all of science; the prevalence of life in the universe. (362 words)11 According to the passage, th
30、e chief purpose of explorers in going to unknown places in the past was_.（A）to display their countrys military might（B） to accomplish some significant science（C） to find new areas for colonization（D）to pursue commercial and state interests12 At present, a probable inducement for countries to initiat
31、e large-scale space ventures is_.（A）international cooperation（B） scientific research（C） nationalistic reasons（D）long-term profits13 What is the main goal of sending human missions to Mars?（A）To find out if life ever existed there.（B） To see if humans could survive there.（C） To prove the feasibility
32、of large-scale space ventures.（D）To show the leading role of science in space exploration.14 By saying “With Mars the scientific stakes are arguably higher than they have ever been“ (Line 1, Para. 4), the author means that_.（A）with Mars the risks involved are much greater than any previous space ven
33、tures（B） in the case of Mars, the rewards of scientific exploration can be very high（C） in the case of Mars, much more research funds are needed than ever before（D）with Mars, scientists argue, the fundamental interests of science are at issue15 The passage tells us that proof of life on Mars would_.
34、（A）make clear the complex chemistry in the development of life（B） confirm the suggestion that bacterial fossils traveled to Earth on a meteorite（C） reveal the kind of conditions under which life originates（D）provide an explanation why life is common in the universe15 You must have been troubled by w
35、hen to say “I love you“ because it is one of the greatest puzzles in our life.What if you say it first and your partner doesnt love you back? Or if they do say it, but you dont feel they mean it? Being the first to declare your love can be ever racking (紧 张) and risky and can leave you feeling as vu
36、lnerable as a turtle (海龟) with no shell. But is the person who says it first really in a position of weakness? Doesnt it pay to hold back, play it cool and wait until the other half has shown their hand first?“A really good relationship should be about being fair and being equal,“ says psychologist
37、Sidney Crown. “But love is seldom equal. “ All relationships go through power struggles but, he says, if a love imbalance continues for years, the rot will set in. “That feeling of Ive always loved you more may be subverted (颠覆，破坏) for a time, but it never goes away completely and it often emerges i
38、n squabbling (大声争吵). “ In love, at least, the silent, withholding type is not always the most powerful. “The strongest one in a relationship is often the person who feels confident enough to talk about their feelings,“ says educational psychologist Ingrid Collins. Psychosexual therapist Paula Hall a
39、grees. “The one with the upper hand is often the person who takes the initiative. In fact, the person who says I love you first may also be the one who says Im bored with you first. “ Hall believes that much depends on how “I love you“ is said and the motivation of the person saying it. “Is it said
40、when theyre drunk? Is it said before their partner files off on holiday, and what it really means is Please dont be unfaithful to me? By saying I love you, they are really saying Do you love me? If so, wouldnt it just be more honest to say that?“ Collins agrees that intention is everything. “Its not
41、 what is said, but how its said What it comes down to is the sincerity of the speaker. “ (354 words)16 What is the main idea of this passage?（A）The importance of “I love you“.（B） The meaning of “I love you“.（C） The time of saying “I love you“.（D）The place of saying “I love you“.17 In the first sente
42、nce the author means that_.（A）it is easy to say “I love you“（B） it is hard to say “I love you“（C） we have many troubles in our life（D）people usually do not know when to say “I love you“18 According to the expert, a good relationship should be_.（A）fair and equal（B） fair and kind（C） powerful and equal
43、（D）confident and fair19 In the third paragraph, the phrase “with the upper hand“ means_.（A）being low in spirit（B） having only one hand（C） being active（D）being passive20 What is the most important for you to consider when somebody say “I love you“ to you?（A）The intention.（B） The place.（C） The time.（D
44、）The determination.在职艺术硕士（MFA ）全国联考英文阅读理解模拟试卷 18 答案与解析一、英文阅读理解题1 【正确答案】 A【知识模块】 英文阅读理解2 【正确答案】 B【知识模块】 英文阅读理解3 【正确答案】 D【知识模块】 英文阅读理解4 【正确答案】 B【知识模块】 英文阅读理解5 【正确答案】 D【知识模块】 英文阅读理解6 【正确答案】 A【知识模块】 英文阅读理解7 【正确答案】 C【知识模块】 英文阅读理解8 【正确答案】 A【知识模块】 英文阅读理解9 【正确答案】 A【知识模块】 英文阅读理解10 【正确答案】 B【知识模块】 英文阅读理解11 【正确答案】 D【知识模块】 英文阅读理解12 【正确答案】 B【知识模块】 英文阅读理解13 【正确答案】 A【知识模块】 英文阅读理解14 【正确答案】 B【知识模块】 英文阅读理解15 【正确答案】 C【知识模块】 英文阅读理解16 【正确答案】 C【知识模块】 英文阅读理解17 【正确答案】 D【知识模块】 英文阅读理解18 【正确答案】 A【知识模块】 英文阅读理解19 【正确答案】 C【知识模块】 英文阅读理解20 【正确答案】 A【知识模块】 英文阅读理解
