2013年考研英語二閱讀理解

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 the ANSWER SHEET. (40 points)

Text 1

In an essay entitled “Making It in America”, the author Adam Davidson relates a joke from cotton country about just how much a modern textile mill has been automated: The average mill has only two employees today, “a man and a dog. The man is there to feed the dog, and the dog is there to keep the man away from the machines.”

Davidson's article is one of a number of pieces that have recently appeared making the point that the reason we have such stubbornly high unemployment and declining middle­class incomes today is also because of the advances in both globalization and the information technology revolution, which are more rapidly than ever replacing labor with machines or foreign worker.

In the past, workers with average skills, doing an average job，could earn an average lifestyle. But，today，average is officially over. Being average just won't earn you what it used to. It can't when so many more employers have so much more access to so much more above average cheap foreign labor, cheap robotics, cheap software, cheap automation and cheap genius. Therefore, everyone needs to find their extra—their unique value contribution that makes them stand out in whatever is their field of employment.

Yes, new technology has been eating jobs forever, and always will. But there's been acceleration. As Davidson notes, “In the 10 years ending in 2009, U.S. factories shed workers so fast that they erased almost all the gains of the previous 70 years; roughly one out of every three manufacturing jobs—about 6 million in total—disappeared.”

There will always be change—new jobs, new products, new services. But the one thing we know for sure is that with each advance in globalization and the I.T. revolution, the best jobs will require workers to have more and better education to make themselves above average.

In a world where average is officially over, there are many things we need to do to support employment, but nothing would be more important than passing some kind of G.I. Bill for the 21st century that ensures that every American has access to post-­high school education. 

21. The joke in Paragraph 1 is used to illustrate ________.

[A] the impact of technological advances             [B] the alleviation of job pressure

[C] the shrinkage of textile mills                     [D] the decline of middle-­class incomes

22. According to Paragraph 3, to be a successful employee, one has to ________.

[A] work on cheap software                     [B] ask for a moderate salary

[C] adopt an average lifestyle                         [D] contribute something unique

23. The quotation in Paragraph 4 explains that ________.

[A] gains of technology have been erased            

[B] job opportunities are disappearing at a high speed

[C] factories are making much less money than before   

[D] new jobs and services have been offered

24. According to the author, to reduce unemployment, the most important is ________.

[A] to accelerate the I.T. revolution                   [B] to ensure more education for people

[C] to advance economic globalization               [D] to pass more bills in the 21st century

25. Which of the following would be the most appropriate title for the text?

[A] New Law Takes Effect                      [B] Technology Goes Cheap

[C] Average Is Over                           [D] Recession Is Bad

Text 2

A century ago, the immigrants from across the Atlantic included settlers and sojourners. Along with the many folks looking to make a permanent home in the United States came those who had no intention to stay, and 7million people arrived while about 2 million departed. About a quarter of all Italian immigrants, for example, eventually returned to Italy for good. They even had an affectionate nickname, “uccelli di passaggio,” birds of passage.

Today, we are much more rigid about immigrants. We divide newcomers into two categories: legal or illegal, good or bad. We hail them as Americans in the making, or brand them as aliens to be kicked out. That framework has contributed mightily to our broken immigration system and the long political paralysis over how to fix it. We don't need more categories, but we need to change the way we think about categories. We need to look beyond strict definitions of legal and illegal. To start, we can recognize the new birds of passage, those living and thriving in the gray areas. We might then begin to solve our immigration challenges.

Crop pickers, violinists, construction workers, entrepreneurs, engineers, home health-­care aides and physicists are among today’s birds of passage. They are energetic participants in a global economy driven by the flow of work, money and ideas. They prefer to come and go as opportunity calls them. They can manage to have a job in one place and a family in another.

With or without permission, they straddle laws, jurisdictions and identities with ease. We need them to imagine the United States as a place where they can be productive for a while without committing themselves to staying forever. We need them to feel that home can be both here and there and that they can belong to two nations honorably.

Accommodating this new world of people in motion will require new attitudes on both sides of the immigration battle. Looking beyond the culture war logic of right or wrong means opening up the middle ground and understanding that managing immigration today requires multiple paths and multiple outcomes, including some that are not easy to accomplish legally in the existing system.

26. “Birds of passage” refers to those who________.

[A] immigrate across the Atlantic                   

[B] leave their home countries for good

[C] stay in a foreign temporarily                    

[D] find permanent jobs overseas

27. It is implied in paragraph 2 that the current immigration system in the US________.

[A] needs new immigrant categories                

[B] has loosened control over immigrants

[C] should be adopted to meet challenges              

[D] has been fixed via political means

28. According to the author, today's birds of passage want________.

[A] financial incentives                           

[B] a global recognition

[C] opportunities to get regular jobs                   

[D] the freedom to stay and leave

29. The author suggests that the birds of passage today should be treated ________.

[A] as faithful partners                           

[B] with economic favors

[C] with legal tolerance                          

[D] as mighty rivals

30. The most appropriate title for this text would be ________.

[A] Come and go: big mistake                    

[B] Living and thriving: great risk

[C] With or without: great risk                     

[D] Legal or illegal: big mistake

Text 3

Scientists have found that although we are prone to snap overreactions, if we take a moment and think about how we are likely to react, we can reduce or even eliminate the negative effects of our quick, hard-­wired responses.

Snap decisions can be important defense mechanisms; if we are judging whether someone is dangerous, our brains and bodies are hard-­wired to react very quickly, within milliseconds. But we need more time to assess other factors. To accurately tell whether someone is sociable, studies show, we need at least a minute, preferably five. It takes a while to judge complex aspects of personality, like neuroticism or open-­mindedness.

But snap decisions in reaction to rapid stimuli aren't exclusive to the interpersonal realm. Psychologists at the University of Toronto found that viewing a fast­food logo for just a few milliseconds primes us to read 20 percent faster, even though reading has little to do with eating. We unconsciously associate fast food with speed and impatience and carry those impulses into whatever else we're doing. Subjects exposed to fast-­food flashes also tend to think a musical piece lasts too long.

Yet we can reverse such influences. If we know we will overreact to consumer products or housing options when we see a happy face (one reason good sales representatives and real estate agents are always smiling), we can take a moment before buying. If we know female job screeners are more likely to reject attractive female applicants, we can help screeners understand their biases—or hire outside screeners.

John Gottman, the marriage expert, explains that we quickly “thin slice” information reliably only after we ground such snap reactions in “thick sliced” long-­term study. When Dr. Gottman really wants to assess whether a couple will stay together, he invites them to his island retreat for a much longer evaluation; two days, not two seconds.

Our ability to mute our hard-­wired reactions by pausing is what differentiates us from animals: doges can think about the future only intermittently or for a few minutes. But historically we have spent about 12 percent of our days contemplating the longer term. Although technology might change the way we react, it hasn't changed our nature. We still have the imaginative capacity to rise above temptation and reverse the high-­speed trend.

31. The time needed in making decisions may________.

[A] vary according to the urgency of the situation  

[B] prove the complexity of our brain reaction

[C] depend on the importance of the assessment     

[D] predetermine the accuracy of our judgment

32. Our reaction to a fast-­food logo shows that snap decisions________.

[A] can be associative                                  

[B] are not unconscious

[C] can be dangerous                                  

[D] are not impulsive

33. To reverse the negative influences of snap decisions, we should________.

[A] trust our first impression                              

[B] do as people usually do

[C] think before we act                                 

[D] ask for expert advice

34. John Gottman says that reliable snap reactions are based on________.

[A] critical assessment                                  

[B] “thin sliced” study

[C] sensible explanation                                 

[D] adequate information

35. The author's attitude toward reversing the high-­speed trend is________.

[A] tolerant   [B] uncertain   [C] optimistic   [D] doubtful

Text 4

Europe is not a gender­equality heaven. In particular, the corporate workplace will never be completely family—­friendly until women are part of senior management decisions, and Europe's top corporate­governance positions remain overwhelmingly male. Indeed, women hold only 14 percent of positions on Europe corporate boards.

The Europe Union is now considering legislation to compel corporate boards to maintain a certain proportion of women—up to 60 percent. This proposed mandate was born of frustration. Last year, Europe Commission Vice President Viviane Reding issued a call to voluntary action. Reding invited corporations to sign up for gender balance goal of 40 percent female board membership. But her appeal was considered a failure: only 24 companies took it up.

Do we need quotas to ensure that women can continue to climb the corporate Ladder fairy as they balance work and family?

“Personally, I don't like quotas，” Reding said recently.“But I like what the quotas do.” Quotas get action: they “open the way to equality and they break through the glass ceiling,” according to Reding, a result seen in France and other countries with legally binding provisions on placing women in top business positions.

I understand Reding's reluctance—and her frustration. I don't like quotas either; they run counter to my belief in meritocracy, government by the capable. But, when one considers the obstacles to achieving the meritocratic ideal, it does look as if a fairer world must be temporarily ordered.

After all, four decades of evidence has now shown that corporations in Europe as the US are evading the meritocratic hiring and promotion of women to top position—no matter how much “soft pressure” is put upon them. When women do break through to the summit of corporate power—as, for example, Sheryl Sandberg recently did at Facebook—they attract massive attention precisely because they remain the exception to the rule.

If appropriate public policies were in place to help all women—whether CEOs or their children's caregivers—and all families, Sandberg would be no more newsworthy than any other highly capable person living in a more just society.

1.In the European corporate workplace, generally________.
[A] women take the lead                       

[B] men have the final say

[C] corporate governance is overwhelmed           

[D] senior management is family-­friendly

37. The European Union's intended legislation is ________.

[A] a reflection of gender balance                    [B] a reluctant choice

[C] a response to Reding's call                       [D] a voluntary action

38. According to Reding, quotas may help women ________.

[A] get top business positions                      

[B] see through the glass ceiling

[C] balance work and family                     

[D] anticipate legal results

39. The author's attitude toward Reding's appeal is one of ________.

[A] skepticism                                                   [B] objectiveness 

[C] indifference                                                 [D] approval

40. Women entering top management become headlines due to the lack of ________.

[A] more social justice                          

[B] massive media attention

[C] suitable public policies                        

[D] greater “soft pressure”

Section II Reading Comprehension

Part A

Text 1

21.【答案】A

【解析】第一段第二行指出笑話是關于紡織廠自動化程度的，后一句具體說明了笑話的內容：工廠平均每天只有兩個人，一人一狗。人的工作是喂狗，狗的工作是看機器，暗示了工廠所有的生產工作都是由機器自動完成的。因此，這個笑話是用來說明技術進步的影響，故選A。

22.【答案】D

【解析】 事實細節題，通過題干“根據第3段，要想成為一個成功的雇員，一個人得……”, 我們首先可以定位到文章第三段，由第三段的最后一句話“Therefore, everyone needs to find their extra-their unique value contribution that makes them stand out in whatever is their field of employment.”意思是“因此，人人都需要有另外的價值，異于常人的獨特價值能夠讓他們在各自的雇傭市場上脫穎而出。”，我們可以得出，題干中“to be a successful employee”與第三段的最后一句話中的“that makes them stand out in whatever is their field of employment”是同義替換，“everyone needs to find their extra-their unique value contribution”與D選項中的“contribute something unique”是同義替換，所以D選項正確。

A、B兩個選項與第三段的倒數第二句話意思不符，是干擾選項。C選項與第三段的第一、二句話意思相反，重點關注的是“But ,today ,average is officially over.”，意思是“現如今，擁有一般水平不行了。”

23. 【答案】B

【解析】根據題干定位到第四段，第一句technology has been eating jobs(技術使工作機會減少)也反映了該段的主旨。而根據題干quotation一詞，我們讀到引號里有“shed workers (解雇工人)”、“roughly one out of every three manufacturing jobs-about 6 million in total -disappeared (大約1/3的手工生產工作機會消失，總計6百萬)”，可推斷出B選項。

24. 【答案】B

【解析】細節題。根據題干reduce unemployment減少失業，可以定位到文章中最后一段，這段出現了與之類似的表達“support employment” 促進就業，而題干表述“the most important”與文章“nothing would be more important than”相對應，指出促進就業最重要的是頒布類似于“G.I.Bill”的法案來保障人們接受高等教育的權利，選項C與之吻合，故正確。A項加速信息技術產業變革，C項促進經濟全球化，均未提及，故排除。D項是干擾項，雖提及要頒布更多法案，但頒布法案的目的實際是為了保障教育，故也排除。

25.【答案】C

【解析】該題是主旨大意題，主要考查考生根據文章內容凝練主旨大意的能力。從整個文章的脈絡來看，第一段以亞當?大衛森一篇論文中關于現代工廠自動化與僅需要一人一狗兩個員工的一則笑話，揭示了科技進步給人們帶來的影響。第二三段是科技的進步引起工廠自動化水平提高，普通員工如果沒有競爭力和突出優勢，就很容易失去工作，因此也對員工提出了更高的要求(extra-unique value contribution)。第四段就是員工只有不斷地提高自己的教育水平，才能讓自己脫穎而出(to have more and better education to make themselves above average)。最后一段點明主題，average is officially over。由此可見，全文一直在圍繞這一宏觀主線展開，這一主線也統領全文，所以正確答案為C。

Text 2

26.【答案】C (stay in a foreign temporarily)

【解析】詞義句意題。根據題干，首先定位到首段末句。在這句中，birds of passage是前面一句中的1/4的意大利移民的昵稱，他們只在美國居住了一段時間，但最終還是返回意大利。A項的內容在首段首句有提及，但是它突出強調的是橫跨大西洋的移民，這也是一世紀前的情況，而如今birds of passage可能來自世界各個角落，并非局限于大西洋兩岸。B項與段意不符，D項文中未提及。

27.【答案】C (should be adopted to meet challenges)

【解析】推理判斷題。根據題干，直接定位到第二段。解題關鍵可定位到“…, but we need to change the way we think about categories. We need to look beyond stick definitions of legal and illegal. To start, we can recognize the new birds of passage, …We might then begin to solve our immigration challenges.”大意是“我們需要改變的是關于分類的思考方式，突破合法和非法的嚴格限制。首先承認短暫移民者的存在，然后解決移民問題面臨的挑戰。”C項高度總結了以上幾點。A項與原文意思不符。B、D項在文中未提及。

28.【答案】D (the freedom to stay and leave)

【解析】事實細節題。根據題干，可定位到第三段。解題關鍵在于對“They prefer to come and go as opportunity calls them .They can manage to have a job in one place and a family in another.”大意是“他們跟著機會走，來去自如。他們可以在一個地方立業，在另一個地方成家”。強調的是工作機會，而不在乎工作地點。D項是這句意思的高度概括。A項是對原文的片面理解，吸引短暫移民者的不僅僅是來自金錢的激勵(financial incentives)，還有工作機會和工作理念。B項在文中未提及。C項中的regular jobs(一般工作)在文中未提及，也是對文意的曲解。

29.【答案】C (with legal tolerance)

【解析】推理判斷題。根據題干，可定位到第五段。題干問到“根據作者的意思，我們(美國)應該怎樣對待這些短暫移民者?”在本段中，作者寫道我們應該“Looking beyond the culture war logic of right or wrong means opening up the middle ground and understanding that managing immigration today requires multiple paths and multiple outcomes. Including some that are not easy to accomplish legally in the existing system”，大意是“我們應該超越移民合法性方面的文化之爭，重現看待中間地段，充分意識到當今的移民管理體系需要各種途徑，從而取得多樣化的結果，來解決現今移民體系下用法律手段很難解決的問題”，暗含了C項中的tolerance也就是對multiple paths and multiple outcomes的改寫。A、B和D項在文中未提及。

30.【答案】D (legal or illegal: big mistake)

【解析】主旨大意題。文章第二段第二句中提到“我們把新移民分成兩類：合法移民和不合法移民”，同時作者認為“我們不需要局限于合法與不合法這樣嚴格的定義”，這說明了從合法和不合法角度對于移民的分類是錯誤的。另外，文章最后一段最后一句“包括在現行的移民體系中不容易合法的實現的一些事情”也反映了文章的中心。即，從合法和不合法角度對于移民的分類是錯誤的。故選D(合法或非法：大錯誤)。 A項談到短暫移民者的移動是個錯誤，偏離了文章主旨。B和C項說的是risk(風險)，文中并未提及，偏離文章主旨。

Text 3

31.【答案】 [D] predetermine the accuracy of our judgment

【解析】細節題。題干問的是“作決定過程中所需的時間可以_____”。文章第一段提到“如果我們在做出反應之前花點兒時間來思考，那么將會減少甚至消除我們快速反應所帶來的負面影響”，也就是說我們做決定所花的時間決定了我們判斷的準確性。文章第二段第二句話也隱含本題正確答案線索。第二句以But這一轉折連詞引導，應該重點關注其后表達的信息，“但是，我們需要更多的時間來評估其他要素。”而本段的第三、四句子，很明顯地揭示出本題正確答案，尤其是第三個句子中的“accurately” 一詞。選項D中的表達“可預先決定判斷的準確性”，此外，此選項中的“accuracy” 為“accurately ”的同詞異形，故此項為正確答案。選項A表達“依形勢緊急性而定”錯在無中生有，本文并沒有出現類似信息;選項B“證明大腦反映的復雜性”，也是無中生有;選項C “取決于評估的重要性”，也與原文不符合，故排除。

32.【答案】[A] can be associative

【解析】細節題。題干問的是“我們對于快餐商標的反應速度表明決定是_____樣的”,由題干的“fast-food logo”我們可以定位到第三段。第二段說處理人際關系問題時人們會倉促決定，第三段開頭就說了，讓人做出倉促決定的刺激因素不僅限于人際關系范圍內。緊接著一句說人們對快餐商標的反應速度比一般閱讀速度快。下一句闡述了原因：因為人們無意識地(unconsciously)將“快餐”與“速度”和“心急”聯系在一起，并將這些沖動付諸行動。A說決定是有聯系性的，正確，因為人們將“快餐”與“速度”，“心急”聯系在了一起。B說決定是無意識的，與原文意思相反，錯。C說決定是危險的，原文未提及，排除。D說決定是不沖動的，與原文意思相悖，故排除。

33.【答案】[C] think before we act

【解析】細節題。先看題干說“為了逆轉倉促決定所帶來的影響，我們可以做_____”， 根據題干定位到第四段。第四段通過兩個例子說明我們應該怎樣克服負面影響，第一個例子表示“如果我們會對消費產品或者房產選擇做出“過度反應”，我們可以在購買之前先思考一會兒”，由此可說明我們應該在行動之前先思考來消除負面影響，因此選擇答案C。其他選項：A項“相信我們的第一印象”;B項“按照人們通常所做的去做”;D項“征求希賽網意見”均不符合題意。

34.【答案】[D] adequate information

【解析】細節題。題干問的是“John Gottman認為可靠的快速反映是基于_____的。”由題干John Gottman 定位到全文倒數第二段。其中第一句：John Gottman, the marriage expert,the marriage expert,explains that we quickly”thin slice”information reliably only after we gound such snap reactions in ”thick sliced”long-term study.婚姻希賽網約翰.古德曼解釋說，我們快速反應的信息的可靠性是建立在這樣的快速反應的行為是以長期的研究為基礎而做出的快速反應行為。其中gound是題干中base on 的同意置換，long-term study長期的研究與D選項adequate information相互呼應。由此可判斷出[D] adequate information(足夠的信息)是本題正解。該段第二句話是When Dr,Gottman really wants to assess whether a couple will stay together, he invites them to his island retreat for a much longer eveluation,two days ,not two seconds.當古德曼博士想去評估一對夫妻是否應該繼續在一起時，他會邀請他們到他的島上進行一個更為長期的調查，是兩天而不是兩秒。第二句是對第一句的舉例說明，更加驗證此選項。

35.【答案】[C] optimistic

【解析】態度題。根據35題題干reversing the high-speed trend是全文的最后一句，所以解此題可先定位到全文的最后一段。最后一段最后兩句：Although technology might change the way we react, it hasn’t changed our nature. We still have the imaginative capacity to rise above temptation and reverse the high-speed trend.譯為：盡管技術可能改變我們反應的方式，但是它并沒有改變我們的本性。我們仍然有能力去克服誘惑并扭轉這種高速度的趨勢。由此我們可以看出作者的態度是非常確定的，因此B選項uncertain(不確定)首先排除;We still have the imaginative capacity…表面作者對于我們的能力是有信心的。因此[C] optimistic(樂觀的)是正解。A選項tolerant(容忍的) 、D選項doubtful(懷疑的)在原文中沒有體現，屬于無中生有的選項。

Text 4

36.【答案】B men have the final say

【解析】根據題干corporate workplace定位到第一段。首句就說歐洲性別不平等，in particular進一步指出corporate workplace，說明工作中性別尤其不平等。緊接著說歐洲公司高管職位remain overwhelmingly male，說明以男性為主導。Indeed進一步解釋，指出女性在歐洲公司董事會只占有14%的席位。所以，B選項是基于首段信息給出的推論。A項women take the lead和D項senior management is family-friendly都與原文相反;C選項是對文章overwhelm這個詞出的干擾項。

37.【答案】A a reflection of gender balance

【解析】根據題干，定位到第二段首句，intended legislation是對is now considering legislation的同義改寫。該句意思為“歐洲現在考慮立法來迫使公司董事讓婦女的比例達到60%”，因此立法是為了保持性別的平衡。B選項的reluctant是對第5段的Reding’s reluctance出的干擾項，并不是說European Union的立法。C選項a response to Reding’s call不正確，Reding號召的是voluntary action， D也是干擾項，而真正的立法緣由是對gender balance的反思，所以A項正確，也是文章中心的反映。

38.【答案】A get top business positions

【解析】定位至第4段，Reding說自己不喜歡quotas，后面出現了but，他真正的觀點在but之后，他說他喜歡quotas所做的事情，即get action，后面的冒號是對get action的解釋。核心的答案在a result seen in France and other coutries with legally binding provisions on placing women in top business positions。a result是前面內容的同位語，進一步補充說明，所以選A。B項see through the glass ceiling是對原文break through the glass ceiling的望文生義，屬于膚淺選項，也和原文意思不符。C和D選項屬于無中生有。

39.【答案】D approval

【解析】本題問的是作者對Reding的呼吁的態度。Reding的appeal最早出現在第2段，即呼吁在董事會中有40%的女性，以實現性別均衡。而第四段再一次提到Reding 的觀點即“他自己也不喜歡quotas,但是quotas本身確實起到了作用”;接著作者在第五段給出了自己的觀點，先是說可以理解Reding，自己本身也不喜歡quotas，但是“既然現在meritocratic ideal(精英管理的理想)有障礙，確實需要一種強制的手段，即強制設定男女比例。”所以可以看出作者是持“贊成”的態度。

40.【答案】C suitable public policies

【解析】題干中的women entering top management become headlines是對第6段第二句話when women do break through to the summit of the corporate power的同義改寫，become headlines是對后面for example所舉的Sheryl Sandberg的事例的概括。答案出現在第7段開頭。第7段是提出一種解決措施，“If appropriate pubic choices were in place to help all women, ...Sandberg would be no more newsworthy...”，這個句子是if虛擬條件句，是對未來的一種美好展望，也是提出觀點的一種方式，意思是“如果有合理的公共政策來幫助所有的女性，Sandberg也就沒有報道價值了”。所以正確答案是C，因為缺少“suitable public policies”。