1997-2012考研历年英语试题(6)

1997-2012考研历年英语试题,部分答案有意删去,以便平时练习

1997-2012年全国硕士研究生入学统一考试英语试题答案

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[A] revolt [B] revolve [C] reverse [D] revive

37. I was unaware of the critical points involved, so my choice was quite ________. [A] arbitrary [B] rational [C] mechanical [D] unpredictable

38. The local people were joyfully surprised to find the price of vegetables no longer ________ according to the weather. [A] altered [B] converted [C] fluctuated [D] modified

39. The pursuit of leisure on the part of the employees will certainly not ________ their prospect of promotion. [A] spur [B] further [C] induce [D] reinforce

40. In what ________ to a last minute stay of execution, a council announced that emergency funding would keep alive two aging satellites. [A] applies [B] accounts [C] attaches [D] amounts

Section II: Cloze Test Directions:

For each numbered blank in the following passage, there are four choices marked [A], [B], [C], [D]. Choose the best one and mark your answer on ANSWER SHEET 1 by blackening the corresponding letter in the brackets with a pencil. (10 points)

Until recently most historians spoke very critically of the Industrial Revolution. They __41__ that in the long run industrialization greatly raised the standard of living for the __42__ man. But they insisted that its __43__ results during the period from 1750 to 1850 were widespread poverty and misery for the __44__ of the English population. __45__ contrast, they saw in the preceding hundred years from 1650 to 1750, when England was still a __46__ agricultural country, a period of great abundance and prosperity.

This view, __47__, is generally thought to be wrong. Specialists __48__ history and economics, have __49__ two things: that the period from 1650 to 1750 was __50__ by great poverty, and that industrialization did not worsen and 41. [A] admitted [B] believed [C] claimed [D] predicted 42. [A] plain [B] average [C] mean [D] normal

43. [A] momentary [B] prompt [C] instant [D] immediate 44. [A] bulk [B] host [C] gross

[D] magnitude 45. [A] On [B] With [C] For [D] By

46. [A] broadly [B] thoroughly [C] generally [D] completely 47. [A] however [B] meanwhile [C] therefore [D] moreover 48. [A] at [B] in [C] about [D] for

49. [A] manifested [B] approved [C] shown [D] speculated 50. [A] noted [B] impressed [C] labeled [D] marked

Section III: Reading Comprehension Directions:

Each of the passages below is followed by some questions. For each question there are four answers marked [A], [B], [C] and [D]. Read the passages carefully and choose the best answer to each of the questions. Then mark your answer on the ANSWER SHEET by blackening the corresponding letter in the brackets. (40 points) Text 1

Few creations of big technology capture the imagination like giant dams. Perhaps it is humankind‘s long suffering at the mercy of flood and drought that makes the ideal of forcing the waters to do our bidding so fascinating. But to be fascinated is also, sometimes, to be blind. Several giant dam projects threaten to do more harm than good.

The lesson from dams is that big is not always beautiful. It doesn‘t help that building a big, powerful dam has become a symbol of achievement for nations and people striving to assert themselves. Egypt‘s leadership in the Arab world was cemented by the Aswan High Dam. Turkey‘s bid for First World status includes the giant Ataturk Dam.

But big dams tend not to work as intended. The Aswan Dam, for example, stopped the Nile flooding but deprived Egypt of the fertile silt that floods left -- all in return for a giant reservoir of disease which is now so full of silt that it barely generates electricity.

And yet, the myth of controlling the waters persists. This week, in the heart of civilized Europe, Slovaks and Hungarians stopped just short of sending in the troops in their contention over a dam on the Danube. The huge complex will probably have all the usual problems of big dams. But Slovakia is bidding for independence from the Czechs, and now needs a dam to prove itself.

Meanwhile, in India, the World Bank has given the go-ahead to the even more wrong-headed Narmada Dam. And the bank has done this even though its advisors say the dam will cause hardship for the powerless and environmental destruction. The benefits are for the powerful, but they are far from guaranteed.

Proper, scientific study of the impacts of dams and of the cost and benefits of controlling water can help to resolve these conflicts. Hydroelectric power and flood control and irrigation are possible without building monster dams. But when you are dealing with myths, it is hard to be either proper, or scientific. It is time that the world learned the lessons of Aswan. You don‘t need a dam to be saved. 51. The third sentence of paragraph 1 implies that ________. [A] people would be happy if they shut their eyes to reality [B] the blind could be happier than the sighted [C] over-excited people tend to neglect vital things [D] fascination makes people lose their eyesight

52. In paragraph 5, ―the powerless‖ probably refers to ________. [A] areas short of electricity [B] dams without power stations [C] poor countries around India

[D] common people in the Narmada Dam area 53. What is the myth concerning giant dams? [A] They bring in more fertile soil. [B] They help defend the country. [C] They strengthen international ties.

[C] ―

[D] ―He who laughs last laughs best‖ Text 2

Well, no gain without pain, they say. But what about pain without gain? Everywhere you go in America, you hear tales of corporate revival. What is harder to establish is whether the productivity revolution that businessmen assume they are presiding over is for real.

The official statistics are mildly discouraging. They show that, if you lump manufacturing and services together, productivity has grown on average by 1.2% since 1987. That is somewhat faster than the average during the previous decade. And since 1991, productivity has increased by about 2% a year, which is more than twice the 1978-1987 average. The trouble is that part of the recent acceleration is due to the usual rebound that occurs at this point in a business cycle, and so is not conclusive evidence of a revival in the underlying trend. There is, as Robert Rubin, the treasury secretary, says, a ―disjunction‖ between the mass of business anecdote that points to a leap in productivity and the picture reflected by the statistics.

Some of this can be easily explained. New ways of organizing the workplace -- all that re-engineering and downsizing -- are only one contribution to the overall productivity of an economy, which is driven by many other factors such as joint investment in equipment and machinery, new technology, and investment in education and training. Moreover, most of the changes that companies make are intended to keep them profitable, and this need not always mean increasing productivity: switching to new markets or improving quality can matter just as much.

Two other explanations are more speculative. First, some of the business restructuring of recent years may have been ineptly done. Second, even if it was well done, it may have spread much less widely than people suppose.

Leonard Schlesinger, a Harvard academic and former chief executive of Au Bong Pain, a rapidly growing chain of bakery cafes, says that much ―re-engineering‖ has been crude. In many cases, he believes, the loss of revenue has been greater than the reductions in cost. His colleague, Michael Beer, says that far too many companies have applied re-engineering in a mechanistic fashion, chopping out costs without giving sufficient thought to long term profitability. BBDO‘s Al Rosenshine is blunter. He dismisses a lot of the work of re-engineering consultants as mere rubbish -- ―the worst sort of ambulance cashing.‖

55. According to the author, the American economic situation is ________. [A] not as good as it seems [B] at its turning point

[C] much better than it seems [D] near to complete recovery

56. The official statistics on productivity growth ________. [A] exclude the usual rebound in a business cycle [B] fall short of businessmen‘s anticipation