翻译三级笔译综合能力2003年12月

Mr. Faugel was convinced that student nervousness had affected their scores; to reduce the anxiety of these students who had already been tested, he gave 22 of them a beta blocker before readministration of the test. Their scores improved significantly. The other 8 students (who did not receive the beta blockers) improved only slightly. Second-time test-takers nationwide had average improvements which were similar to those in Faugel's non-beta blocker group. Beta blockers are prescription drugs which have been around for 25 years. These medications, which interfere with the effects of adrenalin, have been used for heart conditions and for minor stress such as stage fright. Now they are used for test anxiety. These drugs seem to help test-takers who have low scores because of test fright, but not those who do not know the material. Since there can be side effects from these beta blockers, physicians are not ready to prescribe them routinely for all test-takers.

As viewed from space, the Earth’s distinguishing characteristics are its blue waters and white clouds. Enveloped by an ocean of air consisting of 78% nitrogen and 21% oxygen, the planet is the only one in our solar system known to harbor life. Circling the Sun at an average distance of 149 million km (93 million miles), the Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the fifth largest planet in the solar system. Its rapid spin and molten nickel-iron core give rise to an extensive magnetic field which, coupled with the atmosphere, shields us from nearly all of the harmful radiation coming from the Sun and other stars. Most meteors burn up in the Earth’s atmosphere before they can strike the surface. The planet’s active geological processes have left no evidence of the ancient pelting it almost certainly received soon after it was formed. The Earth has a single natural satellite -- the Moon.

Since life began eons ago, thousands of creatures have come and gone. Some, such as the dinosaurs, became extinct due to naturally changing ecologic conditions. More recent threats to life forms are humans and their activities. Man has drained marshes, burned prairies, dammed and diverted rivers. Some of the more recent casualties of man's expansion have been the dodo, great auk, passenger pigeon, Irish elk, and Steller's sea cow. Sadly, we can no longer attribute the increasing decline in our wild animals and plant species to "natural" processes. Many species are dying out because of exploitation, habitat alteration or destruction, pollution, or the introduction of new species of plants and animals to an area. As mandated by Congress, protecting endangered species, and restoring them to the point where their existence is no longer jeopardized, is the primary objective of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Endangered Species Program.

The "Karat" marking on jewelry tells you what proportion of gold is mixed with other metals. If 14 parts of gold are mixed with 10 parts of base metal, the combination is called 14-Karat (14K) gold. The higher the Karat rating, the higher the proportion of gold in the object. The lowest Karat gold that can be marketed in the United States is 10-Karat gold. Jewelry does not have to be marked with its Karat quality, but most of it is. If there is a Karat quality mark, next to it must be the U.S. registered trademark of the person or company that will stand behind the mark, as required by the National Gold and Silver Stamping Act.