大学英语阅读理解.doc

1.
"Family" is of course an elastic word. But when British people say that their society is based on family life, they are thinking of "family" in its narrow, peculiarly European sense of mother, father and children living together alone in their own house as an economic and social unit. Thus, every British marriage indicates the beginning of a new and independent family — hence the tremendous importance of marriage in British life. For both the man and the woman, marriage means leaving one's parents and starting one's own life. The man's first duty will then be to his wife, and the wife's to her husband. He will be entirely responsible for her financial support, and she for the running of the new home. Their children will be their common responsibility and theirs alone. Neither the wife's parents nor the husband's, nor their brothers or sisters, aunts or uncles, have any right to interfere with them — they are their own masters.
     Readers of novels like Jane Austin's "Pride and Prejudice" will know that in former times marriage among wealthy families was arranged by the girl's parents, that is, it was the parents' duty to find a suitable husband for their daughter, preferably a rich one, and by skillful encouragement to lead him eventually to ask their permission to marry her. Until that time, the girl was protected and maintained in the parents' home, and the financial relief of getting rid of her could be seen in their giving the newly married pair a sum of money called a dowry. It is very different today. Most girls of today get a job when they leave school and become financially independent before their marriage. This has had two results. A girl chooses her own husband, and she gets no dowry.

1. What does the author mean by "Family is of course an elastic word"?B B
    A. Different families have different ways of life.
    B. Different definitions could be given to the word.
    C. Different nations have different families.
    D. Different times produce different families.
2. For an English family, the husband's duty is ___________.C C
    A. supporting the family while the wife's is financial
    B. defending the family while the wife's is running the home
    C. financial while the wife's is running the home
    D. independent while the wife's is dependent
3. Everything is decided in a family _________.A A
    A. by the couple
    B. with the help of their parents
    C. by brothers and sisters
    D. with the help of aunts and uncles
4. What is true concerning the book "Pride and Prejudice"?C C
    A. It is the best book on marriage.
    B. It is a handbook of marriage.
    C. It gives quite some idea of English social life in the past.
    D. It provides a lot of information of former-time wealthy families.
5. With regard to marriage in Britain, present-day girls differ from former-time girls in _______.C C
    A. the right to get married
    B. more parental support
    C. choosing husbands
    D. social position
2.
  American cities are similar to other cities around the world. In every country, cities reflect the values of the culture. Cities contain the very best aspects of a society: opportunities for education, employment, and entertainment. They also contain the very worst parts of a society: violent crime, racial conflict, and poverty. American cities are changing, just as American society is changing.
     After World War II, city residents became wealthier, more prosperous. They had more children. They needed more space. They moved out of their apartments in the city to buy their own homes. They bought houses in the suburbs, areas near a city where people live. These are areas without many offices or factories. During the 1950s the American "dream" was to have a house in the suburbs.
     Now things are changing. The children of the people who left the cities in the 1950s are now adults. They, unlike their parents, want to live in the cities. Many young professionals, doctors, lawyers, and executives, are moving back into the city. Many are single; others are married, but often without children. They prefer the city to the suburbs because their jobs are there; they are afraid of the fuel shortage; or they just enjoy the excitement and opportunities which the city offers. A new class is moving into the city — a wealthier, more mobile class.
     Only a few years ago, people thought that the older American cities were dying. Some city residents now see a bright, new future. Others see only problems and conflicts. One thing is sure: Many dying cities are alive again.

1. Paragraph 1 __________.B B
    A. explains why American cities are changing
    B. is a description of cities
    C. shows that American cities have many problems
    D. says: American cities contain the very best aspects of a society
2. In the 1950s the American "dream" was ______.D D
    A. to have a color TV set
    B. to have a big car
    C. to buy an apartment in the city
    D. to buy a new house in the suburbs
3. In paragraph 3, the author gives ______ reasons why people want to live in cities.B B
    A. two
    B. three
    C. four
    D. five
4. According to the article, cities are ______.B B
    A. sick
    B. alive again
    C. living
    D. dying
5. The movement of people to and from the city can explain _______.A A
    A. social changes
    B violent crime
    C. racial conflict
    D. the best aspects of a society
3.
Sugar is so much a part of our modern life that we only really think about it when, for some reason, we cannot obtain it. It has been known to man for at least 3,000 years, but has come into common use only in modern times. Until quite recently it was considered as a medicine and as a luxury for the very rich only.
     Sugar is, then, very important to our civilization. But what exactly is it? Of course, most of us recognize sugar immediately as the sweet material which we put in coffee or cakes. This common form of sugar is derived from two plants: the sugarcane (a type of grass which grows to a height of twenty feet) and the sugar beet (which grows under ground). But there are in fact many types of sugar, and the chemist recognizes hundreds of different varieties, each coming from a different source.
     About 90% of the sugar is produced as food. Only 10% is used in industry for purposes other than food production. Yet sugar has great possibilities for use as the basis of chemicals. It can even be used for making plastics. In the future these potential uses will certainly be developed more than in the past.
     There are many reasons why we should increase the production of sugar. Most important is that it is one of the most highly concentrated of energy foods. Thus sugarcane and sugar beet produce an average of 7,000,000 calories per acre. In this way they have the advantage over potatoes which give only 4,000,000, while the figure for wheat and beans is 2,000,000 each. So three acres of land growing wheat, beans and potatoes give only slightly more energy than one acre of sugar.

1. The heading of Paragraph 1 may be _________.BB
    A. What Sugar Is
    B. Sugar Through the Ages
    C. The Advantages of Sugar
    D. Present and Future Uses of Sugar
2. The third paragraph emphasizes ________.D D
    A. about 90% of sugar is used as food
    B. only 10% is used in industry
    C. sugar is used for making plastic
    D. future uses of sugar
3. Sugar has been used widely _________.B B
    A. for 3,000 years
    B. in modern times
    C. quite recently
    D. for 300 years
4. How many common forms of sugar are exemplified in this passage?A A
    A. One.
    B. Two.
    C. One hundred.
    D. Several hundreds.
5. The main reason why we should increase the production of sugar is ________.BB
    A. it tastes sweet
    B. we can save plenty of land
    C. we can get more food
    D. it's one of the least highly concentrated of energy foods
4.
    Of many problems in the world today, none is as widespread, or as old, as crime. Crime has many forms, including crimes against property, person, and government. Crime, in all its forms, penetrates every layer of society and touches every human being. You may never have been robbed, but you suffer the increased cost of store-bought items because of other’s shoplifting and you pay higher taxes because of other's tax evasion. Perhaps your house is not worth as much today as it was a few years ago because of the increased crime rate in your neighborhood, or maybe your business is not doing as well as it used to because tourism is down due to increased terrorism in your part of the world. Whatever you do, wherever you go, you are a victim of crime whether you like it or not, whether you know it or not.
     Crime, especially violent crime, has risen to a point where many people are afraid to walk alone in their own neighbourhoods, afraid to open their door after dark.
     Expert argues whether the number of crimes committed is actually on the rise. This issue is particularly true in cases of family violence, the abuse of husbands, wives or children. Throughout much of history, cases of family violence and neglect often went unreported because of the attitude of society, which considered family matters to be private.

1. Which description about crime is NOT correct, according to the passage?D D
    A. It is the most widespread problem.
    B. It has the most distant origin.
    C. It has many forms.
    D. It has very little to do with ordinary people.
2. "Tax evasion" in the first paragraph means ____.A A
    A. "not paying due taxes"
    B. "imposing taxes on others"
    C. "collecting taxes"
    D. "paying overdue taxes"
3. According to the author, people became victims of crime ____.B B
    A. only when they are robbed or kidnapped
    B. even they are not directly involved in any crime
    C. when they witness some crime scenes
    D. because they tend to commit certain crime
4. Violent crime nowadays ____.C C
    A. is most widespread
    B. arouses greatest attention
    C. is severer than ever before
    D. makes people less selfconfident
5. It can be inferred from the passage that ____.B B
    A. cases of family violence are on the rise
    B. there have been more cases of family violence than those recorded
    C. cases of family violence are fewer than those of other crimes
    D. victims of family violence don’t report for fear of losing face
5.
Long hours at the screen can cause aching eyes, blurred vision and headaches, experts say. In fact, eyestrain surpasses even wrist pain as the top physical complaint among heavy computer users.
     When peering into the computer screen, the eye's focusing muscle is at constant tension. Like any muscle, it feels sore when overloaded. And when someone spends a lot of time looking at something close, the eye muscle can get stuck on the near-focus setting and have difficulty relaxing, leaving the person temporarily nearsighted, a condition called accommodative spasm (痉挛) that can last seconds or hours.
     This is why after looking at a monitor all day, some computer workers complain that their distance vision is blurred when they attempt to drive home.
     The letters on the screen are not as clearly defined as on a printed page. Take a magnifying glass to your monitor and you'll see the letters, each made up of pinpoint sources of light, have no sharp edges. But those liquid crystal display (LCD) monitors, like those found on laptop computers, are easier on the eyes because they display sharper images.
     And studies have shown that when people are working on a computer, their rate of blinking goes down by two-thirds, which can result in dry, stinging eyes. This is especially a problem for contact-lenses wearers.

1. ___ used to be the biggest physical problem that computer users had.D D
    A. Dry eyes
    B. Blurred vision
    C. Headache
    D. Wrist pain
2. Working hours before the screen will _____.AA
    A. impose too much burden on the eye’s focusing muscle
    B. bring about near-sightedness
    C. make it difficult for the user to learn driving
    D. magnify the letters on the screen
3. LCD monitors are better in terms of eye protecting because ___.D D
    A. they are more expensive
    B. they will not blur the user's eyes
    C. they bring about no eye problems
    D. they display letters with sharp edges
4. Dry, stinging eyes are caused by ___.A A
    A. lower rate of blinking of the computer user's eyes
    B. letters on the screen without any edges
    C. overburden on the focusing muscle
    D. a constant tension
5. Which group of people are most likely to get dry, stinging eyes?D D
    A. Drivers.
    B. Doctors.
    C. Glasses wearers.
    D. Contact-lenses wearers.
6.
Convenient, nutritious, cheap and available year round, carrots are not just for rabbits. But the Easter Bunny would certainly approve of a carrot dish as part of a holiday meal.
     Because of their natural sweetness, carrots have long been part of the dessert menu as well as the salad bar. In the Middle Ages, carrots were used in sweet cakes and other desserts. They are still used in sweets in the Middle East and Asia, and are often preserved in jams. In California, carrot juice is popular.
     Carrots were first cultivated in central Asia and the Middle East, and used as a medicine rather than as a vegetable. But carrots weren’t always orange. In the 10th century, they were white or purple. The Dutch developed orange carrots in the 1600s.
     Carrots are a great convenience food. They’re inexpensive and available year round. And even children who won't touch other vegetables eat carrots.
     Choose carrots with a bright, even color and smooth skin. Avoid limp (萎蔫的) ones, which are past their prime. Pick medium-sized carrots, which are sweeter and more flavorful than small ones, and more tender than larger, more mature carrots.
     Before storing, cut off any greens, since they can absorb moisture. Avoid storing carrots near apples, which emit a gas that can give carrots a bitter taste.

1. Which is not an advantage of carrots mentioned in the passage?C C
    A. Easy to get.
    B. Full of nutrients.
    C. A favorite food for rabbits.
    D. Sweetness.
2. Carrots were first used to ____.A A
    A. deal with illnesses
    B. make sweets
    C. absorb moisture
    D. feed rabbits
3. Carrots were probably ____ in 12th.C C
    A. red
    B. orange
    C. white
    D. green
4. What kind of carrots taste best?C C
    A. Small, fresh ones.
    B. Big, smooth ones.
    C. Medium-sized, smooth ones.
    D. Big, limp ones.
5. According to the passage, carrots ____.D D
    A. are not used in sweets nowadays
    B. are the most nutritious food for children
    C. can be used to cure cancers
    D. can not be put together with apples
7.