1、11998-2010 年高考英语阅读理解真题汇编及详解（历史类）第 1 题(2006 年普通高等学校夏季招生考试英语陕西卷)For centuries,the only form of written correspondence (通信)was the letters, letters were, and are, sent by some form of postal service, the history of which goes back a long way .Indeed, the Egyptians began sending letters from about 2000
2、BC,as did the Chinese a thousand years later. Of course, modern postal service now are much more developed and faster, depending as they do on cars and planes for delivery. Yet they are still too slow for some people to send urgent documents (紧急文件)and letters.The invention of the fax (传真) machine in
3、creased the speed of delivering documents even more. When you send a fax，you are sending a copy of a piece of correspondence to someone by telephone service. It was not until the early 1980s that such a service was developed enough for businesses to be able to fax documents to each other.The fax ser
4、vice is still very much in use when copies of documents require to be sent ,but, as a way of fast correspondence, it has been largely taken the place of by email ,Email is used to describe messages sent form one computer user to another.There are advantages and disadvantages with emails. If you send
5、 some one an email , then he will receive it extremely quickly .Normal postal services are rather slow as far as speed of delivery is concerned.However, if you write something by email, which you might later regret ,and send it immediately, there is no chance for second thoughts. At least, if you ar
6、e posting a letter you have to address and seal(封)the envelope and take it to the post box.There is plenty of time to change your mind .The message is think before you email!41.We can learn from the text that_.A.email is less popular than the fax service B.the postal service has over the years becom
7、e fasterC. the postal service has over the years become slowerD. the fax service has a history as long as the postal service does42.It can be inferred from the text that_.A. the fax service had been fully developed by the 1980sB. letters have been used in China for about 1,000 yearsC. the fax machin
8、e was invented after the 1980sD. letters have been used in Egypt for about 2,000 years43.In the last paragraph, the writer mentions “think before you email“ to show that_.A. you may regret if you dont your envelope B. you may regret before you send something by emailC. youd better not send your emai
9、l in a hurry D. you need plenty of time to send an email44.The text mainly deal with_.A. the progress in correspondence B. the advantage of fax machinesC .the advantage of emails D. the invention of fax machines答案 41B 42A 43C 44A 41解析：这是一道细节推断题。根据第二段第一句“modern postal services now are much developed
10、and faster”可知选 B。242解析：这是一道推断题。根据“It was not until the early 1980s that such a service has developed enough ”可以推断 20 世纪 80 年代初 fax 已经比较发达可以满足商用了，所以选 A.43解析：这是一道细节题。由于 email 方便高速，可供考虑的时间很短，如果发现问题就来不及了，所以作者建议发送前多想想，选 C.44解析：这是一道主旨题。本文讲述了通讯的发展和由此带来的变化，着重于不同通讯方式的比较和发展过程，而不是单单针对某种方式来讲述。A 选项最贴近这一点。第 2 题(2
11、004 年普通高等学校夏季招生考试英语全国卷)Say you are a 17th century construction worker whos worked long and hard to build a splendid tower for the dead wife of your emperor. Now say that the emperor orders your fingertips cut off so you can never build another one. Yes, that is the Taj Mahal, one of the most famous
12、buildings in the world. And the tale behind the construction is just as impressive（印象深刻的） as the building itself. First, theres the emperor of northern India, Shah Jehan, also called the King of the World. In 1612, Shah Jehan married Mumtaz Mahal. Madly in love, they had 14 children over the next 20
13、 years. But then sadness came. As Mumtaz was about to give birth to child number 14, she said she had heard her unborn baby cry out. It was a sign of death. And as Mumtaz lay dying, she asked Jehan to build a lasting memorial（纪念物） to celebrate their love. When the heartbroken Jehan appeared eight da
14、ys after his wifes death, his people were shocked to see that his coal-black hair had turned snow-white. Putting away his sadness, Jehan ordered his wifes dying wish carried out. More than 20 000 workers labored nearly 22 years to complete the construction. In 1653, Jehan placed Mumtazs remains in t
15、he center under the building. And then, son number five, Aurangzeb, murdered his brothers and took over the power from his aging father, Jehan lived the rest of his days-eight years, to be exact-imprisoned not far from the Taj Mahal. Jehan was only allowed to climb onto the top of his prison to see
16、the timeless treasure from a distance. But never again would he be allowed to visit ituntil he was buried next to his wife. Today 25, 000 people visit the Taj Mahal each day. Though the reason for building the tower was a strange, sad story, those who see its breath-taking beauty are reminded of the
17、 happiness that inspired（激发的灵感）its construction. 59. The first two paragraphs were written to show that_. A. the Taj Mahal is an unusual historic building B. ancient Indian emperors were cruelC. construction workers led a hard life in ancient IndiaD. India has some of the most famous buildings in th
18、e world60. The Taj Mahal was first built as_. A. a prison B. a gift to Mumtaz C. a memorial building D. a tourist attraction61. We learn from the text that Mumtaz probably died in_. A. 1626 B. 1632 C. 1634 D. 165362. The underlined word “happiness” in the last sentence refers to_. A. the married hap
19、piness of the emperor and his wife3B. the great pleasure Jehan once found in exercising his powerC. the happiness Jehan felt on completing the Taj MahalD. the pleasure tourists experience when visiting the Taj Mahal答案 59. A 60. C 61. B 62. A 第 3 题(2004 年普通高等学校夏季招生考试英语上海卷)Holiday Inns and McDonalds,b
20、oth saw unmatched growth in the 1960s.Their growth opened another direct business operationfranchising（特许经营）. These operations have the same general pattern.The franchisor,the parent company,first establishes a successful retail（零售）business.As it expands,it sees a profit potential in offering others
21、 the right to open similar business under its name.The parent companys methods and means of identification with consumers are included in this right.The parent company supplies skill,and may build and rent stores to franchisees.For these advantages the franchisee pays the franchisor a considerable f
22、ee.However,some of the advantages and disadvantages are different.By extending a“proven”marketing method,a parent can profit in several ways.First,the franchisees purchase price gives the parent an immediate return on the plan.Then the sale of supplies to the franchisee provides a continuing source
23、of profits.As new businesses are added and the companys reputation spreads,the value of the franchise increases and sales of franchises become easier.The snowballing effect can be dramatic.Such growth,too,brings into play the economies of scale（规模经济）.Regional or national advertising that might be fi
24、nancially impossible for a franchisor with 20 franchises could be profitable for one with 40.The parent,then,finds immediate gains from the opportunity to expand markets on the basis of reputation alone,without having to put up capital or take the risk of owning retail stores.Added to this advantage
25、 is a less obvious but material one.Skilled,responsible retail managers are rare.People who invest their capital in franchises,though,probably come closer to the ideal than do paid managers.In fact,the franchisee is an independent store operator working for the franchisor,but without an independents
26、 freedom to drop supplies at will.Of course the factorys costs of selling supplies are less.But also certainly the franchisee buying goods that have had broad consumer acceptance will not casually change supplies,even when the contract permits.If the hamburger is not what the customer expected,they
27、may not return.Having paid for the goodwill,the franchisee wont thoughtlessly destroy it.Franchising may give you the idea that as a franchisor,you need only relax in the rocking chair.Franchising,however,has problems to be solved.86.Franchising refers to a business operation in which a successful p
28、arent company_.A.sells name-brand goods to a private investorB.rents proven ideas and techniques for investmentC.sells the right,the guidance to a business under its nameD.takes no advertising responsibility for individual investors87.The advantages of franchising to the parent company are all the f
29、ollowing EXCEPT_.A.an immediate investment return B.the ownership of additional retail storesC.the profit from the sale of supplies D.the possibility of profitable advertising88.The passage mainly tells the reader_.4A.the advantages and disadvantages of franchising B.the benefits of franchising to t
30、he franchisorC.the unmatched economic growth in the 1960s D.some regional and national business operation89.What will the author probably discuss after the last paragraph?A.More advantages of franchising. B.Risks of investment besides franchising.C.The standard of consumer acceptance. D.Negative asp
31、ects related to franchising.答案 86. C 87. B 88. B 89. D 第 4 题(2004 年普通高等学校春季招生考试英语北京卷)The first tape recorder didnt use tape.It used long thin wire.It was invented in 1990 by Valdermar Poulsen.In 1930， German scientists invented the tape we use today.Back then the tape was on big rolls.In 1964 the Ph
32、ilips company in Holland invented the cassette.Its pretty much a holder for the tape.People use cassettes all over the world.If you dont have a cassette recorder，borrow one. Think of a book your parents read out loud to you.That might be a great book to read out loud to your mom or dad in their car.
33、Put a cassette in the recorder，open the book，hit the record button and start reading out loud.Remember there is no such a thing as a wrong way to do this.You might think youve made a mistake，but this gift is part of you，and nothing about that can be a mistake.Its impossible.You get to be all artisti
34、c and creative here.You might want to play music in the background.Do whatever you want.The gift is you，so you decide.Remember to say “I love you”at the end of your reading.Thats like the prize at the end of the book.63.Choose the right order that shows the development of the tape recorder.a.Using b
35、ig rolls.b.Using cassettes.c.Using thin wire.A.a，b，c B.b，c ，a C.c，a，b D.c，b，a64.Why does the author mention the history of tape recorders in Paragraph 1？A.To inform readers of new inventions. B.To lead into his following suggestion.C.To give an example of his suggestion. D.To show the importance of
36、tape recorders.65.What does the author advise us to do？A.To read a book to our parents in their car. B.To ask our parents to record a book.C.To make a gift for our parents. D.To practice reading out loud.66.Why does the author say it is impossible to make a mistake in Paragraph 3？A.Because the tape
37、shows your true love. B.Because its easy to use a tape recorder.C.Because the music is what your parents like. D.Because its impossible to find a mistake in the book.答案 63.C 64.B 65.C 66.A 第 5 题(2003 年普通高等学校夏季招生考试英语全国卷)Tristan da Cunha,a 38-square-mile island,is the farthest inhabited island in the
38、world,according to the Guinness Book of records.It is 1 510 miles southwest of its nearest neighbor.St.Helena,and 1 950 miles west of Africa.Discovered by the Portuguese admiral(葡5萄牙海军上将）of the same name in 1506,and settled in 1810,the island belongs to Great Britain and has a population of a few hu
39、ndred. Coming in a close secondand often wrongly mentioned as the most distant landis Easter Island,which lies 1 260 miles east of its nearest neighbor,Pitcairn Island,and 2 300 miles west of South America.The mountainous 64-square-mile island was settled around the 5th century,supposedly by people
40、who were lost at sea.They had no connection with the outside world for more than a thousand years,giving them plenty of time to build more than 1 000 huge stone figures,called moai,for which the island is most famous.On Easter Sunday,1722,however,settlers from Holland moved in and gave the island it
41、s name.Today,2 000 people live on the Chilean territory (智利领土 ).They share one street,a small airport,and a few hours of television per day.56.It can be learned from the text that the island of Tristan da Cunha .A.was named after its discoverer B.got its name from Holland settlersC.was named by the
42、British government D.got its name from the Guinness Book of Records57.Which of the following is most famous for moai?A.Tristan da Cunha. B.Pitcairn Island. C.Easter Island. D.St.Helena.58.Which country does Easter Island belong to ?A.Britain. B.Holland. C.Portugal. D.Chile.答案 56.A 57.C 58.D 第 6 题(20
43、00 年普通高等学校夏季招生考试英语全国卷)Olaf Stapledon wrote a book called First and Last Men，in which he looked millions of years ahead.He told of different men and of strange civilisations（文明），broken up by long“dark ages”in between.In his view，what is called the present time is no more than a moment in human histor
44、y and we are just the First Men.In 2，000 million years from now there will be the Eighteenth or Last Men. However，most of our ideas about the future are really very short-sighted.Perhaps we can see some possibilities for the next fifty years.But the next hundred？The next thousand？The next million？Th
45、ats much more difficult.When men and women lived by hunting 50,000 years ago，how could they even begin to picture modern life？Yet to men of 50,000 years from now，we may seem as primitive（原始的）in our ideas as the Stone-Age hunters do to us.Perhaps they will spend their days gollocking to make new spun
46、dels，or struggling with their ballalators through the cribe.These words，which I have just made up，have to stand for things and ideas that we simply cant think of.So why bother even to try imagining life far in the future？Here are two reasons.Frist， unless we remember how short our own lives are comp
47、ared with the whole human history，we are likely to think our own interests are much more important than they really are.If we make the earth a poor place to live on because we are careless or greedy（贪婪）or quarrelsome，our grandchildren will not bother to think of excuses for us.Second，by trying to es
48、cape from present interests and imagine life far in the future，we may arrive at quite fresh ideas that we can use ourselves.For example，if we imagine that in 6the future men may give up farming，we can think of trying it now.So set your imagination free when you think about the future.63.A particular mention made of Stapledons book in the opening paragraph .A.serves as a description of human history B.serves as an introduction to the discussionC.shows a disagreement of views D.shows the popularity of the book64.The text discusses men and wo
