专业英语八级-阅读理解(一)

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专业英语八级-阅读理解(一)
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TEXT D

It is lunehtime at the Chateau de Bellerive, Prinee Sadruddin Aga Khan’s home on Lake Geneva. His guests are being served the elegant food associated with the prince’s kitchen. But the prince and his wife Catherine are content to have a dish of brown rice and an accompanying salad. Can it be that they are not hungry., or is the price making a gesture: that aithough he is a rich man he has humble tastes No one is so polite as to ask, but the guests may talk about it later.
Sadruddin was disappointed that his father did not name him as the next leader. But father apparently believed that his son lived only for pleasure. Sadruddin’s much publicized life with his first wife Nina, a model, may have made it seem so. " Myths and labels become attached to people," he remarked later, "giving them a reputation that does not always correspond to reality. "It could be that his father had mixed up Sadruddin with his half brother Aly
A. he had a humble tastes.
B. he was not hungry.
C. he intended to show his sympathy with poor people in the world.
D. he didn’t want to show off his richness to his guests.
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TEXT A

For Cressida it was spiritually like some pagan vegetation rite of regeneration and renewal. In the sunburnt pepper-and-salt of Provencal landscape, in the sunny blue light of the Mediterranean, amid rocks and olives, in the carefree, slower, winy, singing zest of the Latin south, she seemed reborn; she responded to it all like a string plucked on an instrument. She was still beautiful, more beautiful in her late twenties than ever she had been, but repolished now by recapturing of the earlier joy and vivacity. Yet when the time came to turn north again she always went ungrudgingly, drawn now by a hunger and anxiety for her children, who during these holidays stayed at a pleasant farm school in Hertfordshire, because, as she would say, "They must be getting sick to death of the food up there; I know the poor" things loathe the fish they get. "
For Meredith these European vacations were essential in a different way for ton
A. she decided to return earlier and go to work.
B. she wanted to stay with Meredith.
C. she was eager to return home and look after her children.
D. she was eager to go back because her children liked fish.
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TEXT B

The idea that government should regulate intellectual property through copyrights and patents is relatively recent in human history, and the precise details of what intellectual property is protected for how long vary across nations and occasionally change. There are two standard sociological justifications for patents or copyrights: they reward creators for their labor, and they encourage greater creativity. Both of these are empirical claims that can be tested scientifically and could be false in some realms.
Consider music. Star performers existed before the 20th century, such as Franz Liszt and Niccolo Paganini, but mass media produced a celebrity system promoting a few stars whose music was not necessarily the best or most diverse. Copyright provides protection for distribution companies and for a few celebrities, thereby helping to support the industry as currently defined, but it may actually harm the majority of
A. Countries may differ in their efforts to protect it.
B. The author considers its protection well-grounded.
C. People believe its protection may benefit creators.
D. The history of its protection has not been long.
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TEXT C

What makes for a successful invasion Often, the answer is to have better weapons than the enemy. And, as it is with people, so it is with plants—at least, that is the conclusion of a paper published in Biology Letters by Naomi Cappueeino, of Carleton University, and Thor Arnason, of the University of Ottawa, both in Canada.
The phenomenon of alien species popping up unexpected parts of the world has grown over the past few decades as people and goods become more mobile and plant seeds and animal larvae have hitched along for the ride. Most such aliens blend into the ecosystem in which they arrive without too much fuss. (Indeed, many probably fail to establish themselves at all—but those failures, of course, are never noticed.) Occasionally, though, something goes bananas and starts ttarts to take the place over, and an invasive species is born. Dr. Cappuceino and Dr. Arnason asked themselves why.
One hypo
A. plant seeds are resistant to antibiotics.
B. people tend to hitch a ride.
C. there are more circulation of goods.
D. animal larvae become stronger.
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TEXT C

Britain’s east midlands were once the picture of English countryside, alive with flocks, shepherds, skylarks and buttercups—the stuff of fairytales. In 1941 George Marsh left school at the age of 14 to work as a herdsman in Nottinghamshire, the East Midlands countryside his parents and grandparents farmed. He recalls skylarks nesting in cereal fields, which when accidentally disturbed would fly singing into the sky. But in his lifetime, Marsh has seen the color and diversity of his native land fade. Farmers used to grow about a ton of wheat per acre; now they grow four tons. Pesticides have killed off the insects upon which skylarks fed, and year-round harvesting has driven the birds from their winter nests. Skylarks are now rare. "Farmers kill anything that affects production," says Marsh. "Agriculture is too efficient. "
Anecdotal evidence of a looming crisis in biodiversity is now being reinforced by science. In their
A. cherishes his adolescence memories.
B. thinks highly of the efficiency of agriculture.
C. may not have happy memories of past time.
D. cannot remember his adolescence days.
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TEXT A

We live in southern California growing grapes, a first generation of vintners, our home adjacent to the vineyards and the winery. It’s a very pretty place, and in order to earn the money to realize our dream of making wine, we worked for many years in a business that demanded several household moves, an incredible amount of risk-taking and long absences from my husband. When it was time, we traded in our old life, cinched up our belts and began the creation of the winery.
We make small amounts of premium wine, and our lives are dictated by the rhythm of nature and file demands of the loving vines. The vines start sprouting tiny green tendrils in March and April, and the baby grapes begin to form in miniature, so perfect that they can be dipped in gold to form jewelry. The grapes swell and ripen in early fall, and when their sugar content is at the right level, they are harvested carefully by hand and crushed in small lots
A. may vary.
B. is traditionally set.
C. depends on the approval of the regulatory bureau.
D. is determined by the availability of the pickers.
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TEXT C

What impact can mobile phones have on their users’ health Many people worry about the supposed ill effects caused by radiation from handsets and base stations, despite the lack of credible evidence of any harm. But evidence for the beneficial effects of mobile phones on health is rather more abundant. Indeed, a systematic review carried out by Rifat Atun and his colleagues at Imperial College, London, rounds up 150 examples of the use of text-messaging in the delivery of health care. These uses fall into three categories : efficiency gains, public-health gains, and direct benefits to patients by incorporating text-messaging into treatment regimes. The study, funded by Vodafone, the world’s largest mobile operator, was published this week.
Using texting to boost efficiency is not rocket science, but big savings can be achieved. Several trials carried out in England have found that the use of text-messaging reminders reduc
A. That cell phones are harmful to people’s health is unconvincing.
B. Cell phones can bring more benefits to people than harm.
C. People won’t worry about the harm cell phones do any longer.
D. There are only three types of benefits cell phones bring us.
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TEXT A

Except at night, they hardly ever have time together. He often sits alone in the house waiting for Julie tocome home. It would be nice to have kids to play with when one comes home from work. But, Oh, the houseis too small, Kappy-Pappy dear. We need to save and move to a bigger place before we can start a family.
Kapsak never understands that. What does a big house have to do with having children When he and Eka Udo had children, did they have a big house But they died, didn’t they And the doctor later said something about cramped living conditions making it easy for malaria to virtually wipe out his family. So maybe Julie has a point. All his children had died because of being cooped up in one room. All except Udo. Udo Kapsak would not ordinarily admit it but the truth is he misses the boy so much. Udo’s full-faced smile. His quirky-chirpy ways. His innocent probing manner. Oh Udo! He’ll be approaching five now. Five
A. died of a constant headache.
B. died from a traffic accident.
C. died of an infectious malady.
D. died from goods famine.
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TEXT D

Marriage may be about love, but divorce is a business. For global couples—born in different countries, married in a third, now working somewhere else and with children, pensions and other assets @tinkled over the world—a contested divorce is bliss for lawyers and a nightmare for others.
Divorce laws vary wildly, from countries (such as Malta) that still forbid it to Islamic states where-tot the husband, at least—it may be obtained in minutes. Rules on the division of property and future financial obligations vary hugely too. France expects the poorer party, usually the wife, to start fending for herself almost immediately; England and some American states insist on lifelong support. Some systems look only at the "acquest" ; others count the lot. A few, like Austria, still link cash to blame. Japan offers a temptingly quick cheap break, but—for foreigners—little or no enforceable contact with the kids thereafter, notes Je
A. Malta.
B. England.
C. France.
D. Austria.
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TEXT D

The human genetic sequence will allow researchers to make rapid progress in understanding the relationship between genes and behavior. The finding that we have far fewer genes than expected suggests that environmental influences play a greater role in our development than was previously thought.
Understanding how a relatively small number of genes translate into the incredible complexity of a human being will be one of the challenges of the future. "We now have the list of parts of the human body," said Sir John Sulston, who spearheaded UK efforts to crack the human code. "Now we have to find out what all the parts are, we have to find out how all the parts interact and we have to probably do some very sophisticated things to understand how the control of those interactions goes forward to actually build our bodies. "
Researchers are predicting that the data will unlock some of the secrets of how genes influence
A. how the genetic sequence influences the relationship between genes and behavior.
B. why environmental influences play a greater role in our growth.
C. why inheritance plays a less role in shaping our destiny.
D. how the genes are combined to create the incredible complexity of man.
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TEXT C

Not long ago, friends of mine confessed over dinner that they had put spyware on their 15-year-oht son’s computer so they could monitor all he did ratline. At first I was repelled at this invasion of privacy. Now, after doing a fair amount of research, I get it.
Make no mistake: If you put spyare on your computer, you have the ability to log every keystroke your child makes and thus a good portion of his or her private world. That’s what spyware is—at least the parental monitoring kind. You don’t have to be an expert to put it on your computer. You just download the software from a vendor and you will receive reports—weekly, daily, whatever—showing you everything your child is doing on the machine.
Scary. But a good idea. Most parents won’t even consider it.
Maybe it’s the word: spyware. It brings up associations of Dick Cheney sitting in a dark room, rubbing his hands together and reading your most privat
A. skeptical.
B. encouraging.
C. disapproving.
D. indifferent.
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TEXT B

For about three centuries we have been doing science, trying science out, using science for the construction of what we call modern civilization. Every dispensable item of contemporary technology, from canal locks to dial telephones to penicillin, was pieced together from the analysis of data provided by one or another series of scientific experiments. Three hundred years seems a long time for testing a new approach to human development long enough to settle back for critical appraisal of the scientific method, maybe even long enough to vote on whether to go on with it or not. There is an argument.
Voices have been raised in protest since the beginning, rising in pitch and violence in the nineteenth century during the early stages of the industrial revolution, summoning urgent crowds into the streets any day these days on the issue of nuclear energy. Give it back, say some of the voices, it doesn’t really work, we’d tried
A. Many valuable items were produced in the past.
B. Man supports scientific progress unanimously.
C. Some held hostile attitude toward science in the past.
D. Three hundred years is not long enough in science.
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TEXT A

My mother told me a story every evening while we waited for father to close the shop and come home. The shop remained open till midnight. Bullock carts in long caravans arrived late in the evening from distant villages, loaded with coconut, rice, and other commodities for the market. The animals were unyoked under the big tamarind tree for the night, and the cartmen drifted in twos and threes to the shop, for a chat or to ask for things to eat or smoke. How my father loved to discuss with them the price of grain, rainfall, harvest, and the state of irrigation channels! Or they talked about old litigations. One heard repeated references to magistrates, affidavits, witnesses in the case, and appeals, punctuated with roars of laughters—possibly the memory of some absurd legality or loophole tickled them.
My father ignored food and sleep when he had company. My mother sent me out several times to see if he could be made to t
A. One might find unfavorable faults in the legal code in lawsuits.
B. There were times when the cronies came to foolish decisions.
C. The magistrates were serious and punctilious.
D. Matters related to farming were of great interest to them.
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TEXT D

The necessary urban development of our cities must be compatible with the conservation of the Cultural and Historical Patrimony. This is particularly true in the ease of those cities, numerous, in the Iberian Peninsula and Europe, that are the result of a long historical tradition, often uninterrupted during almost two thousand years. The preservation of the Archaeological Patrimony in these cities, however, comes up against conflicts difficult to resolve, with very differing and opposed positions: the demand and the price of the ground, the harmonious development of the city, the presence of infrastructures and services, the aspiration of the citizens to worthy housing, the business projects of the promoters or the working plans of the constructors.
The common resource established to solve these conflicts is Urban Planning. Archaeology must take part actively in the elaboration of this planning, and use its abilities po
A. heritage.
B. site.
C. significance.
D. spot.
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TEXT B

As a contemporary artist, Jim Dine has often incorporated other people’s photography into his abstract works. But, the 68-year-old American didn’t pick up a camera himself and start shooting until he moved to Berlin in 1995—and once he did, he couldn’t stop. The result is a voluminous collection of images, ranging from early-20th-century-style heliogravures to modern-day digital printings, a selection of which are on exhibition at the Maison Européenne de la Photographie in Paris. They are among his most prized achievements. "I make photographs the way I make paintings, "says Dine, "but the difference is, in photography. It’s like lighting a fire every time. "
Though photography makes up a small slice of Dine’s vast oeuvre, the exhibit is a true retrospective, of his career. Dine mostly photographs his own artwork or the subjects that he has portrayed in sculpture, painting and prints including Venus de Milo, ravens and
A. the latter requires more insight.
B. the former needs more patience.
C. the latter arouses great passions in him.
D. the former involves more indoor work.
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TEXT C

It is all very well to blame traffic congestion, the cost of petrol and the hectic pace of modern life, but manners on the roads are becoming deplorable. Everybody knows that the nicest men become monsters behind the wheel. It is all very well, again, to have a tiger in the tank, but to have one in the driver’s seat is another kettle of fish altogether. You might tolerate the old road hog, but nowadays the well-mannered motorist is the exception to the rule. Perhaps the situation calls for a "Be Kind to Other Drivers" campaign, otherwise it may get completely out of hand.
Road courtesy is not only good manners, but good sense too. It takes the most level-headed and goodtempered drivers to resist the temptation to retaliate when subjected to uncivilized behavior. On the other hand, a little courtesy goes a long way towards relieving the tensions and frustrations of motoring. A friendly nod or a wave of acknowledgement in r
A. too many vehicles on the roads.
B. the way people have to rush around nowadays.
C. the aggressiveness of most drivers.
D. too many pedestrians walking about.
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TEXT D

After World War II, when a large collection of Impressionist paintings was moved to the Cal rie Nationale du Jeu de Paume in Paris, a curator expressed the hope that the works would help viewers overcome the horrors of war and celebrate the beauty of nature. However, over the years, the Jeu de Pamne got too crowded, and tourists and art lovers had to crane their necks to appreciate the paintings.
So, in 1987, the Impressionist collection, along with the works of their precursors, was moved across the Seine into the [*] d’Orsay, a former railroad station with crystal palace stylishness. Now it is again a pleasure to walk in its airy hails, admiring the great works of art that are the heritage of the French nation. Another nice touch was added to the collection, but don’t look for it inside the museum; you have to visit the places where the artists lived and worked.
Along the course of the Seine, poster-size reprodu
A. By asking the local people living along the Seine.
B. By visiting the places where the artists lived and worked.
C. By going to the outskirts of Paris.
D. By an art book in hand.
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TEXT B

The romantic image of the trusty postman, delivering letters to the farthest-flung corners of the land, makes the reform of postal services a sensitive subject. This is especially true when the impetus for reform comes from the European Union. This month the European Parliament starts work on a directive, drawn up by the European Conmrission, to remove the last monopolies in postal markets by 2009—the final stage in a slow and laborious liberalisation that began in 1992. Directives in 1997 and 2002 chipped away at the centuries’ old monopolies enjoyed by national operators, and the proposed new law will open the whole market to competition by abolishing the" reserved area"on mail weighing less than 50 grams. But although the legislative wheels are in motion, some countries are as skeptical as ever.
The commission says it has deliberately pursued postal liberalisation at a slower pace than other market openings. This is p
A. appealed.
B. repealed.
C. aggravated.
D. consolidated.
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TEXT B

I recently took care of a 50-year-old man who had been admitted to the hospital, short of breath. During his month-long stay he was seen by a hematologist, an endocrinologist, a kidney specialist, a podiatrist, two cardiologists, a cardiac electrophysiologist, an infectious-diseases specialist, a pulmonologist, an ear-nose-throat specialist, a urologist, a gastroenterologist, a neurologist, a nutritionist, a general surgeon, a thoracic surgeon and a pain specialist.
He underwent 12 procedures, including cardiac catheterization, a pacemaker implant and a bone-marrow biopsy (to work-up chronic anemia).
Despite this wearying schedule, he maintained an upbeat manner, walking the corridors daily with assistance to chat with nurses and physician assistants. When he was discharged, follow-up visits were scheduled for him with seven specialists.
This man’s case, in which expert consultations sprouted with little r
A. There are a lot of excessive services in American hospitals.
B. Doctors are over-loaded in American hospitals.
C. American hospitals are suffering great loss because of poor health conditions.
D. The healthcare service in the American hospitals is systematic and patient-oriented.
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TEXT A

Feld, the shoemaker, was annoyed that his helper, Sobel, was so insensitive to his reverie that he wouldn’t for a minute cease his fanatic pounding at the other bench. He gave him a look but Sobel’s bald head was bent over the last as he worked, and he didn’t notice. The shoemaker shrugged and continued to peer through the partly frosted window at the near-sighted haze of falling February snow. Neither the shifting white blur outside, nor the sudden deep remembrance of the snowy Polish village where he had wasted his youth could turn his thoughts from Max, the college boy (a constant visitor in the mind since early that morning when Feld saw him trudging through the snowdrifts on his way to school),whom he so much respected because of the sacrifices he had made throughout the years—in winter or direst heat—to further his education.
An old wish returned to haunt the shoemaker: that he had had a son instead of a daughter,
A. Feld may not have a happy childhood.
B. Feld cherished his childhood memories.
C. Feld thought highly of man of perseverance.
D. Feld lived an affluent but empty life.