1、2014年全国硕士研究生入学考试英语(二)试题 Section I Use of English Directions: Read the following text. Choose the best word(s) for each numbered blank and mark A, B, C or D on ANSWER SHEET. (10 points) Thinner isnt always better. A number of studies have _1_ that normal-weight people are in fact at higher risk of so
2、me diseases compared to those who are overweight. And there are health conditions for which being overweight is actually _2_. For example, heavier women are less likely to develop calcium deficiency than thin women. _3_ among the elderly, being somewhat overweight is often an _4_ of good health. Of
3、even greater _5_ is the fact that obesity turns out to be very difficult to define. It is often defined _6_ body mass index, or BMI. BMI _7_ body mass divided by the square of height. An adult with a BMI of 18 to 25 is often considered to be normal weight. Between 25 and 30 is overweight. And over 3
4、0 is considered obese. Obesity, _8_,can be divided into moderately obese, severely obese, and very severely obese. While such numerical standards seem 9 , they are not. Obesity is probably less a matter of weight than body fat. Some people with a high BMI are in fact extremely fit, 10 others with a
5、low BMI may be in poor 11 .For example, many collegiate and professional football players 12 as obese, though their percentage body fat is low. Conversely, someone with a small frame may have high body fat but a 13 BMI. Today we have a(an) _14 _ to label obesity as a disgrace.The overweight are some
6、times_15_in the media with their faces covered. Stereotypes _16_ with obesity include laziness, lack of will power,and lower prospects for success.Teachers,employers,and health professionals have been shown to harbor biases against the obese. _17_very young children tend to look down on the overweig
7、ht, and teasing about body build has long been a problem in schools. 1. A denied B conduced C doubled D ensured 2. A protective B dangerous C sufficient Dtroublesome 3. A Instead B However C Likewise D Therefore 4. A indicator B objective C origin D example 5. A impact B relevance C assistance D con
8、cern 6. A in terms of B in case of C in favor of D in of 7. A measures B determines C equals D modifies 8. A in essence B in contrast C in turn D in part 9. A complicated B conservative C variable D straightforward 10. A so B unlike C since D unless 11. A shape B spirit C balance D taste 12. A start
9、 B quality C retire D stay 13. A strange B changeable C normal D constant 14. A option B reason C opportunity D tendency 15. A employed B pictured C imitated D monitored 16. A B combined C settled D associated 17. A Even B Still C Yet D Only 18. A despised B corrected C ignored D grounded 19. A disc
10、ussions B businesses C policies D studies 20. A for B against C with D without Section II Reading Comprehension Part A Directions: Read the following four texts. Answer the questions below each text by choosing A, B, C or D. Mark your answers on ANSWER SHEET. (40 points) Text 1 What would you do wit
11、h 590m? This is now a question for Gloria Mackenzie, an 84-year-old widow who recently emerged from her small, tin-roofed house in Florida to collect the biggest undivided lottery jackpot in history. If she hopes her new-found for tune will yield lasting feelings of fulfillment, she could do worse t
12、han read Happy Money by Elizabeth Dumn and Michael Norton. These two academics use an array of behavioral research to show that the most rewarding ways to spend money can be counterintuitive. Fantasies of great wealth often involve visions of fancy cars and extravagant homes. Yet satisfaction with t
13、hese material purchases wears off fairly quickly what was once exciting and new becomes old-hat; regret creeps in. It is far better to spend money on experiences, say Ms Dumn and Mr Norton, like interesting trips, unique meals or even going to the cinema. These purchases often become more valuable w
14、ith time-as stories or memories-particularly if they involve feeling more connected to others. This slim volume is packed with tips to help wage slaves as well as lottery winners get the most “happiness bang for your buck.“ It seems most people would be better off if they could shorten their commute
15、s to work, spend more time with friends and family and less of it watching television (something the average American spends a whopping two months a year doing, and is hardly jollier for it).Buying gifts or giving to charity is often more pleasurable than purchasing things for oneself, and luxuries
16、are most enjoyable when they are consumed sparingly. This is apparently the reason MacDonalds restricts the availability of its popular McRib - a marketing trick that has turned the pork sandwich into an object of obsession. Readers of “HappyMoney” are clearly a privileged lot, anxious about fulfill
17、ment, not hunger.Money may not quite buy happiness, but people in wealthier countries are generally happier than those in poor ones. Yet the link between feeling good and spending money on others can be seen among rich and poor people around the world, and scarcity enhances the pleasure of most thin
18、gs for most people. Not everyone will agree with the authors policy ideas, which range from mandating more holiday time to reducing tax incentives for American homebuyers. But most people will come away from this book believing it was money well spent。 21.According to Dumn and Norton,which of the fo
19、llowing is the most rewarding purchase? AA big house BA special tour CA stylish car DA rich meal 22.The authors attitude toward Americans watching TV is Acritical Bsupportive Csympathetic Dambiguous 23.Macrib is mentioned in paragraph 3 to show that Aconsumers are sometimes irrational Bpopularity us
20、ually comes after quality Cmarketing tricks are after effective Drarity generally increases pleasure 24.According to the last paragraph,Happy Money Ahas left much room for readerscriticism Bmay prove to be a worthwhile purchase Chas predicted a wider income gap in the us Dmay give its readers a sens
21、e of achievement 25.This text mainly discusses how to Abalance feeling good and spending money Bspend large sums of money won in lotteries Cobtain lasting satisfaction from money spent Dbecome more reasonable in spending on luxuries Text 2 An article in Scientific America has pointed out that empiri
22、cal research says that, actually, you think youre more beautiful than you are. We have a deep-seated need to feel good about ourselves and we naturally employ a number of self-enhancing strategies to research into what the call the “above average effect”, or “illusory superiority”, and shown that, f
23、or example, 70% of us rate ourselves as above average in leadership, 93% in driving and 85% at getting on well with othersall obviously statistical impossibilities. We rose tint our memories and put ourselves into self-affirming situations. We become defensive when criticized, and apply negative ste
24、reotypes to others to boost our own esteem, we stalk around thinking were hot stuff. Psychologist and behavioral scientist Nicholas Epley oversaw a key studying into self-enhancement and attractiveness. Rather that have people simply rate their beauty compress with others, he asked them to identify
25、an original photogragh of themselves from a lineup including versions that had been altered to appear more and less attractive. Visual recognition, reads the study, is “an automatic psychological process occurring rapidly and intuitively with little or no apparent conscious deliberation”. If the sub
26、jects quickly chose a falsely flattering image- which must did- they genuinely believed it was really how they looked. Epley found no significant gender difference in responses. Nor was there any evidence that, those who self-enhance the must (that is, the participants who thought the most positivel
27、y doctored picture were real) were doing so to make up for profound insecurities. In fact those who thought that the images higher up the attractiveness scale were real directly corresponded with those who showed other makers for having higher self-esteem. “I dont think the findings that we having h
28、ave are any evidence of personal delusion”, says Epley. “Its a reflection simply of people generally thinking well of themselves. If you are depressed, you wont be self-enhancing. Knowing the results of Epley s study,it makes sense that why people heat photographs of themselves Viscerally-on one lev
29、el, they dont even recognise the person in the picture as themselves, Facebook therefore ,is a self-enhancers paradise,where people can share only the most flattering photos, the cream of their wit ,style ,beauty, intellect and lifestyle its not that peoples profiles are dishonest,says catalina toma
30、 of WisconMadison university ,”but they portray an idealized version of themselves. 26. According to the first paragraph, social psychologist have found that _. A our self-ratings are unrealistically high B illusory superiority is baseless effect C our need for leadership is unnatural D self-enhanci
31、ng strategies are ineffective 27. Visual recognition is believed to be peoples_ A rapid watching B conscious choice C intuitive response D automatic self-defence 28. Epley found that people with higher self-esteem tended to_ A underestimate their insecurities B believe in their attractiveness C cove
32、r up their depressions D oversimplify their illusions 29.The word “Viscerally”(Line 2,para.5) is closest in meaning to_. Ainstinctively Boccasionally Cparticularly Daggressively 30. It can be inferred that Facebook is self-enhancers paradise because people can _. Apresent their dishonest profiles Bd
33、efine their traditional life styles Cshare their intellectual pursuits Dwithhold their unflattering sides Text 3 Up until a few decades ago, our visions of the future were largely - though by no means uniformly - glowingly positive. Science and technology would cure all the ills of humanity, leading
34、 to lives of fulfillment and opportunity for all.Now utopia has grown unfashionable, as we have gained a deeper appreciation of the range of threats facing us, from asteroid strike to epidemic flu and to climate change. You might even be tempted to assume that humanity has little future to look forw
35、ard to.But such gloominess is misplaced. The fossil record shows that many species have endured for millions of years - so why shouldnt we? Take a broader look at our species place in the universe, and it becomes clear that we have an excellent chance of surviving for tens, if not hundreds, of thous
36、ands of years. Look up Homo sapiens in the “Red List“ of threatened species of the International union for the Conversation of Nature (IUCN) ,and you will read: “Listed as Least Concern as the species is very widely distributed, adaptable, currently increasing, and there are no major threats resulti
37、ng in an overall population decline.“So what does our deep future hold? A growing number of researchers and organizations are now thinking seriously about that question. For example, the Long Now Foundation has its flagship project a medical clock that is designed to still be marking time thousands
38、of years hence.Perhaps willfully, it may be easier to think about such lengthy timescales than about the more immediate future. The potential evolution of todays technology, and its social consequences, is dazzlingly complicated, and its perhaps best left to science fiction writers and futurologists
39、 to explore the many possibilities we can envisage. Thats one reason why we have launched Arc, a new publication dedicated to the near future.But take a longer view and there is a surprising amount that we can say with considerable assurance. As so often, the past holds the key to the future: we hav
40、e now identified enough of the long-term patterns shaping the history of the planet, and our species, to make evidence-based forecasts about the situations in which our descendants will find themselves.This long perspective makes the pessimistic view of our prospects seem more likely to be a passing
41、 fad. To be sure, the future is not all rosy. But we are now knowledgeable enough to reduce many of the risks that threatened the existence of earlier humans, and to improve the lot of those to come.31. Our vision of the future used to be inspired byA our desire for lives of fulfillmentB our faith i
42、n science and technologyC our awareness of potential risksD our belief in equal opportunity32. The IUCNs “Red List” suggest that human being areA a sustained speciesB a threaten to the environmentC the worlds dominant powerD a misplaced race33. Which of the following is true according to Paragraph 5
43、?A Arc helps limit the scope of futurological studies.B Technology offers solutions to social problem.C The interest in science fiction is on the rise.D Our Immediate future is hard to conceive.34. To ensure the future of mankind, it is crucial toA explore our planets abundant resourcesB adopt an op
44、timistic view of the worldC draw on our experience from the pastD curb our ambition to reshape history35. Which of the following would be the best title for the text?A Uncertainty about Our FutureB Evolution of the Human SpeciesC The Ever-bright Prospects of MankindD Science, Technology and Humanity
