Part II Reading Comprehension (35 points, 25 minutes)
Section I Careful reading (25points, 20 minutes)
Directions: There are 4 passages in this part. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A), B), C) and D). You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet with a single line through the centre.
Text A
Many of the home electric goods which are advertised as liberating the modern woman tend to have the opposite effect, because they simple change the nature of work instead of eliminating it. Machines have a certain novelty value, like toys for adults. It is certainly less tiring to put clothes in a washing machine, but the time saved does not really amount to much: the machine has to be watched, the clothes have to be carefully sorted out first, stains removed by hand, buttons pushed and water changed, clothes taken out, aired and ironed. It would be more liberating to pack it all off to a laundry and not necessarily more expensive, since no capital investment is required. Similarly, if you really want to save time you do not make cakes with an electric mixer, you buy one in a shop. If one compares the image of the woman in the women’s magazine with the goods advertised by those periodicals, one realizes how useful a projected image can be commercially. A careful balance has to be struck: if you show a labour-saving device, follow it up with a complicated’ recipe on the next page; on no account hint at the notion that a woman could get herself a job, but instead foster her sense of her own usefulness, emphasizing the creative aspect of her function as a housewife. So we get cake mixes where the cook simply adds an egg herself, to produce “that lovely homo-baked flavour the family love”, and knitting patterns that can be made by hand, or worse still, on knitting machines, which became tremendously fashionable when they were first introduced. Automatic cookers are advertised by pictures of pretty young mothers taking their children to the park, not by professional women presetting the dinner before leaving home for work.
26. According to the passage, many of the home electric goods which are supposed to liberate woman___.
A. remove unpleasant aspects of housework
B. save the housewife very little time
C. save the housewife’s time but not her money
D. have absolutely no value for the housewife
27. According to the context, “capital investment” refers to money___.
A. spent on a washing machine
B. borrowed from the bank
C. saved in the bank
D. lent to other people
28. The goods advertised in women’s magazines are really meant to ___.
A. free housewives from housework
B. encourage housewives to go out to work
C. make housewives into excellent cooks
D. give them a false sense of fulfillment
TEXT B
The “standard of living” of any country means the average person’s share of the goods and services which the country produces. A country’ s standard of living, therefore, depends first and foremost on its capacity to produce wealth. “Wealth” in this sense is not money, for we do not live on money but on things that money can buy: “goods” such as food and clothing, and “services” such as transport and entertainment.
A country’s capacity to produce wealth depends upon many factors, most of which have an effect on one another. Wealth depends to a great extent upon a country’s natural resources, such as coal, gold, and other minerals, water supply and so on. Some regions of the world are well supplied with coal and minerals, and have a fertile soil and a favourable climate; other regions possess none of them.
Next to natural resources comes the ability to turn them to use. Some countries are perhaps well off in natural resources, but suffered for many years from civil and external wars, and for this and other reasons have been unable to develop their resources. Sound and stable political conditions, and freedom from foreign invasion, enable a country to develop its natural resources peacefully and steadily, and to produce more wealth than another country equally well served by nature but less well ordered. Another important factor is the technical efficiency of a country’s people. Industrialized countries that have trained numerous skilled workers and technicians are better placed to produce wealth than countries whose workers are largely unskilled.
A country’s standard of living does not only depend upon the wealth that is produced and consumed within its own borders, but also upon what is indirectly produced through international trade. For example, Britain’s wealth in foodstuffs and other agricultural products would be much less if she had to depend only on those grown at home. Trade makes it possible for her surplus manufactured goods to be traded abroad for the agricultural products that would otherwise be lacking. A country’s wealth is, therefore, much influenced by its manufacturing capacity, provided that other countries can be found ready to accept its manufactures.
29. The standard of living in a country is determined by ___.
A. its goods and services
B. the type of wealth produced
C. how well it can create wealth
D. what an ordinary person can share
30. A country’s capacity to produce wealth depends on all the factors EXCEPT ___.
A. people’s share of its goods B. political and social stability
C. qualities of its workers D. use of natural resources
31. According to the passage, ___ play an equally important rule indetermining a country’s standard of living.
A. farm products B. industrial goodsC. food stuffs D. export and import
TEXT C
How we look and how we appear to others probably worries us more when are in our teens or early twenties than at any other time in our life. Few of us are content to accept ourselves as we are, and few are brave enough to ignore the trends of fashion.
Most fashion magazines or TV advertisements try to persuade us that we should dress in a certain way or behave in a certain manner. If we do, they tell us, we will be able to meet new people with confidence and deal with every situation confidently and without embarrassment. Changing fashion, of course, does not apply just to dress. A barber today does not cut a boy’s hair in the same way as he used to, and girls do not make up in the same way as their mothers and grand mothers did. The advertisers show us the latest fashionable styles and we are constantly under pressure to follow the fashion in case our friends think we are odd or dull.
What causes fashions to change? Sometimes convenience or practical necessity or just the fancy of an influential person can establish a fashion. Take hats, for example. In cold climates, early buildings were cold inside, so people wore hats indoors as well as outside. In recent times, the late President Kennedy caused a depression in the American hat industry by not wearing hats: more American men followed his example.
There is also a cyclical pattern in fashion. In the 1920s in Europe and America, short skirts became fashionable. After World War Two, they dropped to ankle length. Then they got shorter and shorter the miniskirt was in fashion. After a few more years, skirts became longer again.
Today, society is much freer and easier than it used to be. It is no longer necessary to dress like everyone else. Within reason, you can dress as you like or do your hair the way you like instead of the way you should because it is the fashion. The popularity of jeans and the “untidy” look seems to be a reaction against the increasingly expensive fashion of the top fashion houses.
At the same time, appearance is still important in certain circumstances and then we must choose our clothes carefully. It would be foolish to go to an interview for a job in a law firm wearing jeans and a sweater; and it would be discourteous to visit some distinguished scholar looking as if we were going to the beach or a night club. However, you need never feel depressed if you don’t look like the latest fashion photo. Look around you and you’ll see that no one else does either!
32. The author thinks that people are ___.
A. satisfied with their appearance
B. concerned about appearance in old age
C. far from neglecting what is in fashion
D. reluctant to follow the trends in fashion
33. Fashion magazines and TV advertisements seem to link fashion to___.
A. confidence in life B. personal dress
C. individual hair style D. personal future
34. Causes of fashions are ___.
A. uniform B. varied C. unknown D. inexplicable.
TEXT D
Massive changes in all of the world’ s deeply cherished sporting habits are underway. Whether it’s one of London’s parks full of people playing softball, and Russians taking up rugby, or the Super bowl rivaling the British Football Cup Final as a televised spectator event in Britain, the patterns of players and spectators are changing beyond recognition. We are witnessing a globalization of our sporting culture.
That annual bicycle race, the Tour de France, much loved by the French is a good case in point. Just a few years back it was a strictly continental affair with France, Belgium and Holland, Spain and Italy taking part. But in recent years it has been dominated by Colombian mountain climbers, and American and Irishriders.
The people who really matter welcome the shift toward globalization. Peugeot, Michelin and Panasonic are multi-national corporations that want worldwide returns for the millions they invest in teams. So it does them literally a world of good to see this unofficial world championship become just that.
This is undoubtedly an economic-based revolution we are witnessing here,one made possible by communications technology, but made to happen because of marketing considerations. Sell the game and you can sell Cola or Budweiser as well The skilful way in which American football has been sold to Europe is a good example of how all sports will develop. The aim of course is not really to spread the sport for its own sake, but to increase the number of people interested in the major money-making events. The economics of the Superbowl are already astronomical. With seats at US $125, gate receipts alone were a staggering $ 10,000,000. The most important statistic of the day, however, was the $ 100,000,000 in TV advertising fees. Imagine how much that becomes when the eyes of the world are watching.
So it came as a terrible shock, but not really as a surprise, to learn that some people are now suggesting that soccer change from being a game of two 45-minute halves, to one of four 25-minute quarters. The idea is unashamedly to capture more advertising revenue, without giving any thought for the integrity of asport which relies for its essence on the flowing nature of the action.
Moreover, as sports expand into world markets, and as our choice of sports as consumers also grows, so we will demand to see them played at a higher and higher level. In boxing we have already seen numerous, dubious world title categories because people will not pay to see anything less than a “World Tide” fight,and this means that the title fights have to be held in different countries around the world!
35. Globalization of sporting culture means that ___.
A. more people are taking up sports.
B. traditional sports are getting popular.
C. many local sports are becoming international
D. foreigners are more interested in local sports
36. Which of the following is NOT related to the massive changes?
A. Good economic returns. B. Revival of sports
C. Communications technology. D. Marketing strategies.
37 What is the author’s attitude towards the suggestion to change soccer into one of four 25-minute quarters?
A. Favourable. B. Unclear. C. Reserved. D. Critical.
Section II Skimming and scanning (10 points ,5 minutes.)
In this section there are seven passages with a total of ten multiple-choice questions. Skim or scan them as required and then mark your answers.
Text E
First read the following question.
38. The main purpose of the passage is to___.
A. warn people of pickpockets. B. tell people what to wear.
C. describe how to catch thieves. D. explain how to contact the police.
Now, go through Text E quickly and answer question 38.
Pickpockets operate in crowded places in the hope of getting easy pickings. Don’t make it easy for them. Keep wallets, purses and other valuables out of sight. If wearing a jacket, an inside pocket is the best place to use. If not, your possessions are safest in a pocket with a button-down flap.
Please co-operate with the police by reporting any crime or suspicious activity immediately, either by dialling 110 or calling at your nearest police station.
Text F
First read the following question.
39. The main topic of the passage is ___.
A. agricultural products B. irrigation methods
C. natural resources D. water shortages
Now, go through Text F quickly and answer question 39.
It is widely accepted that China is a country faced with severe water shortages. Insufficient water resources have slowed agricultural development. And to
make matters worse, some of the traditional Chinese irrigation methods have wasted an astonishing amount of water.
In China today, the utilization efficiency of farming water is about 30-40 per cent. This figure stands in sharp contrast to developed countries’ utilization average of 70-80 per cent. The low utilization efficiency has resulted from the adoption of some traditional Chinese irrigation methods.
Only by using modern irrigation methods can we reduce water shortage in agriculture.
One of the advantages of modern irrigation methods is that they alone can save 20-30 per cent of the present volume of wasted irrigation water.
Text G
First read the following question.
40. The letter is about___.
A. cities in South-east Asia B. holiday greetings
C. sightseeing D. travel plans
Now, go through TEXT F quickly and answer question40.
May 5th 2002
Dear Mark,
Hello again! Here are my holiday plans. I’ll leave on a tour of South-east Asia in August and will arrive in Singapore in September. Hope we’ll be able to meet there. These are my travel plans:
August 28th London-Tokyo
September 1st Tokyo-Bangkok
September 4th Bangkok-Singapore
September 7th Singapore-Manila
September 9th Manila-London
Looking forward to seeing you again.
Best wishes
Christopher
Text H
First read the following question.
41. Who will read the following excerpt from a pamphlet?
A. Travellers. B. Baby-sitters.
C. Insurance agents. D. Traffic police.
Now, go through TEXT G quickly and answer question41.
DAY TRIPS
Even if you are only going on a day trip to another country, accidents can happen. So please make sure you have adequate travel insurance.
TAKE CARE IN WATER
Bathing will cool you but remember that fatal accidents can happen very easily and in the most unexpected conditions. Adults should watch each other for signs of trouble when in water. Children should always be supervised by an adult who can swim well. Young children should never be left unattended near a stretch of water.
TAKE CARE ON THE ROADS
Traffic accidents are the major cause of death among travellers. Whether driver or pedestrian, always check on local traffic regulations.
Text I
First read the following questions.
42. How many performances will the Irish dancing troupe give between June 23 and 25?
A. One. B. Two. C. Three. D. Four.
43. Whose works will NOT be played at the concert?
A. Chopin. B. Schumann. C. Beethoven. D. Liszt.
Now, go through Text H quickly and answer questions 42 and 43.
Irish dance: The Irish International Dance Company, one of the most dynamic dance troupes in the world, will tour China with its classic production“ Spirit of the Dance—the New Millennium.”
The dancers include such famous names as Patricia Murray, one of the Irish dancing champions, and first rate ballerina Claire Holding.
Sponsored by China National Culture and Art Company Ltd., the dancing troupe will give three performances at the Century Theatre.
Time:7:30 pm, June 23-25
Place: Century Theatre, 40 Liangmaqiaolu, Chaoyang District
Telephone: 6551 - 8888
Piano solos: twenty Chinese and foreign piano music works will be playedby three young, promising pianists from the China Central Conservatory of Music.
Programmes include: “Consolation No 3 in D-flat major” by Liszt,“ For Elise” by Beethoven, “Turkish March” by Mozart, “Waltz in C-sharp minor” and “A Minute Waltz” by Chopin, and “Hungarian Dance” by Brahms.
Time:7:30 pm, June 16
Place: Beijing Concert Hall, 1 Beixinhuajie, Xicheng District
Telephone: 6605- 5812
Text J
First read the following questions.
44. When is the deadline for the competition?
A. May 7. B. May 5. C. June 18. D. June 15.
45. The six lucky winners will ___.
A. visit Guiyang City. B. contact the Press Office
C. go to China Daily. D. take an overseas trip.
Now, go throughText I quickly and answer questions 44 and 45.
Guiyang Customs and Scenery Competition
Notice
Fifteen questions for the Guigyang Customs and Scenery Competition were published in China Daily on May 5 and 7, and on China Daily’ s web edition on May 7. Participants, please answer the questions and mail the answer card to:Press Office, Guiyang Municipal People’s Government46 Zhongshan Xilu, Guiyang 550003, Guizhou, China or find the competitionon www. chinadaily, com. cn. Then answer the questions, fill in all information needed and click the button below to send it back. The deadline for the competition is June 15(subject to postmark).
The prize-drawing Ceremony will be held on June 18 in Guiyang City ,and six luck winners(three living in China, three from abroad)will be drawn from those who give correct answers to all questions. Their names will be published in China Daily and its web edition on June 19.
The six lucky winners will be invited to visit Guiyang from August 8 to 18.
Text K
First read the following questions.
46. If you want to travel to Shanghai on Air France on a Saturday, which flight would you take?
A. AF129. B. AF128. C. AF111. D. AF112.
47. Does Lufthansa operate a flight between Beijing and Frankfurt everyday?
A. No. B. Yes.
C. Yes, except on Saturdays. D. No, only three days a week.
Now, go through Text K quickly and answer questions 46 and 47
Flight Schedule
Air France ..................................................................
... Tel: (010)6588 1388(020)6360 6688
Day From To Flight Departure Arrival
1 - 7 Beijing Paris AFl29 09: 40 14:15
1 - 7 Paris Beijing AFl28 15:55 07:40
2,4,7 Shanghai Paris AFlll 10:55 17:05
1,3,6 Paris Shanghai AFl12 15:55 09:05
Lufthansa ..................................................................... Tel: (010)6465 4488
Tel: (010)6465 4488
(021)6248 1100
Day From To Flight Departure Arrival
1 - 7 Beijing Frankfurt LH721 10:30 14:25
1 - 7 Frankfurt Beijing LH720 17:25 08:30
1,2,3,4,5,7 Shanghai Frankfurt LH729 11:15 16:30
