1、考研英语（阅读）模拟试卷 244 及答案与解析Part ADirections: Read the following four texts. Answer the questions below each text by choosing A, B, C or D. (40 points)0 “I think paying kids for test scores really undercuts the basics of what we preach in the classroom about why learning is an important thingwhy its impo
2、rtant for its own sake,“ says Liam Julian. Julian, like many, is worried about New York s new plan to pay kids to learn. His idealism is understandable, but problematic in a city where about half of the black and Hispanic students dont make it to graduation. If “learning for learnings sake“ is what
3、the schools are selling, a lot of kids arent buying.Harvard economist Ronald Fryer designed the pay-to-learn plan. Under his plan, kids can earn cash for performance on 10 standardized testsfive mathematics and five English exams. Each student will be paid a small amount for simply completing the te
4、st; additional money is added for high scores.The idea is not new. In cities like Washington, D. C. , and Atlanta, some kids are already profiting from academic improvement. But the New York program has attracted its share of controversy. Barry Schwartz argues that the use of incentives could “make
5、the learning problem worse in the long run unless were prepared to follow these children through life, giving them a pat on the head, or a check every time they learn something new“. Schwartz and Julian argue that if students are paid for performance, their intrinsic love of learning will be corrupt
6、ed. Both concede, however, that the students being targeted for this program already feel little or no love for school. Yet Ph. D. candidatesand professors of psychology, for that matterget paid to learn as a matter of course, and they seem to be doing just fine.To completely separate the idea of mo
7、ney from schools is in some ways noble and ideal, but doesnt reflect reality. Schools spend thousands of dollars per year per student; school systems spend millions to renovate buildings; and considerable money is spent on sports programs and academic teams. More directly, the schools already provid
8、e free or reduced-price meals to many students so that growling stomachs wont prevent them from focusing enough to learn. Paying the students directly to enhance that focus is not going to warp the system or the students any more than free lunch and football already do. If anything, paying them will
9、 further prepare them for adulthood when they will be paid for their services, or- if theyre luckyreceive performance-based scholarships and stipends for college. 1 Julian believes that _.（A）learning is important for its own sake（B） its understandable to pay kids for test scores（C） paying kids to le
10、arn is what schools strive for（D）pay-to-learn is against our notion about education2 Barry Schwartz argues that _.（A）pay-to-learn plan should target kids who feel no love for learning（B） children who get paid to learn should be followed through life（C） paying kids to learn diminishes their interests
11、 in learning（D）profiting isnt what kids study for in schools3 The author points out that _.（A）many kids arent learning for learnings sake（B） paying kids to learn is harmful in the long run（C） pay-to-learn plan is defective, though understandable（D）its corrosive to pay kids for their performance on t
12、ests4 The example of Ph. D, candidates is used to show that _.（A）all kids get paid to learn as a matter of fact（B） pay-to-learn plan is not necessarily harmful（C） many kids arent interested in learning at all（D）pay-to-learn enhances ones love of learning5 The author thinks that the pay-to-learn plan
13、 is _.（A）beneficial（B） detrimental（C） controversial（D）comprehensible5 The 20th century witnessed two profound changes in regions of the world where people are well educated and science and technology flourish: Life expectancy nearly doubled, and fertility rates fell dramatically. As a result, indivi
14、duals and populations are aging.Virtually all educated people are aware of the graying of the United States, yet relatively few are as aware of its implications for science, technology, and human culture. Longer life is a remarkable achievement, but now we need to apply what we are learning in the n
15、atural and social sciences to redesign human culture to accommodate long lives. We need to find cures for Alzheimers disease and arthritis, develop technologies that render many age-related frailties such as poor balance invisible in the way eyeglasses now compensate for presbyopia, and begin seriou
16、sly rethinking cultural norms, such as the timing of education and retirement. Longevity is the largely unexpected consequence of improvements in general living conditions. Genetically speaking, we are no smarter or heartier than our relatives were 10, 000 years ago. Nonetheless, in practical terms
17、we are more biologically fit than our great-grandparents. Robert Fogel and his colleague Dora Costa coined the term “ technophysio evolution“ to refer to improvements in biological functioning that are a consequence of technological advances. They point out that technologies developed mostly in the
18、past century vastly improved the quality and sustainability of the food supply. Subsequent improvements in nutrition were so dramatic that average body size increased by 50% and life expectancy doubled. The working capacity of vital organs greatly improved. Breakthroughs in manufacturing, transporta
19、tion, energy production, and communications contributed further to improvements in biological functioning. Medical technology now enables full recovery from accidents or illnesses that were previously fatal or disabling.Remember, however, that advances of the 20th century did not aim to increase lon
20、gevity or alleviate the disabling conditions of later life. Longer life was the byproduct of better conditions for the young. The challenge today is to build a world that is just as responsive to the needs of very old people as to the very young. The solutions must come from science and technology.
21、Unlike evolution by natural selection, which operates across millennia, improvements in functioning due to technological advances can occur in a matter of years. In fact, given that the first of the 77 million Baby Boomers turned 60 in 2006, there is no time to waste. To the extent that we effective
22、ly use science and technology to compensate for human frailties at advanced ages, the conversation under way in the nation changes from one about old age to one about long life, and this is a far more interesting and more productive conversation to have. 6 One of the radical changes in developed nat
23、ions in the 20th century was that_.（A）populations grew unexpectedly（B） the majority were well educated（C） life expectancy increased sharply（D）science and technology advanced7 Facing the rapid increase of the aging population, we should_.（A）manage to adapt our culture to it（B） redesign our educationa
24、l systems（C） find cures for age-related diseases（D）develop technologies for old people8 According to Robert Fogel and Dora Costa, improved biological functioning is_.（A）largely beyond our expectations（B） attributed to various technological advances（C） due to the improved quality of the food supply（D
25、）inevitable with the improvement of living conditions9 In the authors opinion, the world we have built is_.（A）to accommodate to the needs of young people（B） to improve living conditions for all the people（C） to increase the life expectancy of the majority（D）to attune to the needs of both old and you
26、ng10 The author proposes that we should_.（A）spare no efforts to increase life expectancy（B） be aware of the rapid graying of our society（C） apply science and technology in everyday life（D）try our best to improve the lives of old people10 Heroes are people that have aehieved something that we admire.
27、 It could be a character in a book or a movie. Everybody loves a hero. People often have their own personal heroes that represent the values to which they aspire. Many select their hero from the public domain. The hero may be an actor, a musician, a politician or a celebrity. Sometimes it is a perso
28、n that has committed a heroic act, showing great courage in the face of danger. We admire what they stand for.But back at home in their private(and sometimes not so private)life, heroes are normal people. Normal people are subject to temptation and are faced with the stresses of everyday life. Few p
29、eople are perfect, and when the spotlight falls upon their private lives the result is often disappointing. A young golfer captured the imagination of the world. His achievements were immense, and he became a hero to many young golfers and others. He had a beautiful wife and young children and seeme
30、d like a role model for many. Suddenly, news emerged about countless affairs and infidelity. No longer the hero, the young golfer is in disgrace.Success brings about a whole new range of temptations. Our hero was human and didnt know how to resist. Does this negate everything that he had achieved? D
31、oes it mean that his character is now bad?There must be many discarded heroes in the worldpoliticians and activists of high integrity that have fallen prey to the temptation of corruption, sports heroes that have used steroids, and celebrities that have become involved in drug and alcohol abuse and
32、infidelity. These are common mistakes or errors of judgment that we are all subject to. Even when we stray away from the straight and narrow we may return.So we are disappointed by our hero who behaved badly. Is it right to discard this hero and find another?Being human means making mistakes. There
33、are none that are perfect and do only good. Each of us has our faults and imperfections. We will all be disappointed by our heroes from time to time. Sometimes the damage is too great to allow for forgiveness and it is time to find a new hero.But doing something wrong does not take away the achievem
34、ents that have been achieved. It does not negate the courage or bravery that was required to become a hero. Recognize your hero for what he or she has achieved and remember that no-one is perfect.11 From the first two paragraphs, we learn that_.（A）heroes are usually public figures（B） fictional heroe
35、s are no less admired（C） everyone has his own private heroes（D）heroes are admired for their heroic acts12 By saying “heroes are normal people“ in paragraph 3, the author means that heroes_.（A）can hardly avoid making mistakes in life（B） live a life no more brilliant than most of us（C） are admired in
36、public rather than in private（D）are faced with more stresses than most people13 The example of a young golfer is given to show that heroes may_.（A）have a good and perfect family（B） be exposed to various temptations（C） let us down with their bad behavior（D）serve as role models for most people14 The a
37、uthor argues that our hero_.（A）is subject to the temptation of corruption（B） is likely to degenerate under temptations（C） is superior to temptation with high integrity（D）has nothing to do with drug or alcohol abuse15 The author suggests that we should_.（A）find a new hero once we lose one（B） maintain
38、 our admiration for a hero（C） forgive the imperfections of a hero（D）behave like a hero in whatever we do15 For the average American living in the United States is like having more than half a million dollars in wealth. So says a new study from the World Bank, Where is the Wealth of Nations?: Measuri
39、ng Capital for the 21st Century, which makes estimates of the contribution of natural, produced, and intangible capital to the aggregate wealth of 120 countries. Why are Americans so well off? Its not just because of Americas fruited plains and its alabaster cities. In fact, it turns out that such n
40、atural and man-made resources comprise a relatively small percentage of our wealth.The World Bank study begins by defining natural capital as the sum of nonrenewable resources(including oil, natural gas, coal, and mineral resources), cropland, pastureland, forested areas, and protected areas. Produc
41、ed capital is what many of us think of when we think of capital. It is the sum of machinery, equipment, and structures(including infrastructure)and urban land. The Bank then identifies intangible capital as the difference between total wealth and all produced and natural capital. Intangible capital
42、encompasses raw labor; human capital, which includes the sum of the knowledge, skills, and know-how possessed by population; as well as the level of trust in a society and the quality of its formal and informal social institutions. Once the analytical framework is set up, what the researchers at the
43、 World Bank find is fascinating. “The most striking aspect of the wealth estimates is the high values for intangible capital. Nearly 85 percent of the countries in our sample have an intangible capital share of total wealth greater than 50 percent,“ write the researchers. They further note that year
44、s of schooling and a rule-of-law index can account for 90 percent of the variation in intangible capital. In other words, the more highly educated a countrys people are and the more honest and fair its legal system is, the wealthier it is.Lets consider a few cases. The country with the highest per c
45、apita wealth is Switzerland at $ 648,000. The United States is fourth at $ 513,000.So if every American has $ 513,000 in capital, where is it? The vast majority of it is amassed in our political and economic institutions and our educations. The natural wealth in rich countries like the U. S. is a ti
46、ny proportion of their overall wealthtypically 1 to 3 percentyet they have higher amounts of natural capital than poor countries. Cropland, pastures and forests are more valuable in rich countries because they can be combined with other capital like machinery and strong property rights to produce mo
47、re value. Machinery, buildings, roads, and so forth account for 17 percent of the rich countries total wealth. And 80 percent of the wealth of rich countries consists of intangible capital. “Rich countries are largely rich because of the skills of their populations and the quality of the institution
48、s supporting economic activity,“ argues the World Bank study.16 Americans are rich because_.（A）each American has more than half a million dollars in wealth（B） they are the most creative and productive people in the world（C） what the capital contributes to the wealth in America is tremendous（D）natura
49、l resources comprise a small percentage of the wealth in America17 According to the World Bank study, it is true that _.（A）there is difference between tangible and intangible capital（B） both natural and man made resources are nonrenewable（C） human capital can be thought of as intangible capital（D）natural capital consists of both rural and urban land18 By saying “the analytical framework“ in the 4th paragraph, the author refers to_.（A）what intangible capital encompas
