大学英语四级考试练习

Reading Comprehension & Cloze

Directions: There are 10 reading 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).

Passage 1

       You want something you can't get by behaving within the rules, and you want it badly enough you'll do it regardless of any guilt or deep regret, and you're willing to run the risk of being caught. That's how Ladd Wheeler, psychology professor at the University of Rochester in New York, defines cheating. Many experts believe cheating is on the rise. "We're suffering a moral breakdown," Pinkard says. "We're seeing more of the kind of person who regards the world as a series of things to be dealt with. Whether to cheat depends on whether it's in the person's interest." He does, however, see less cheating among the youngest students. Richard Dienstbier, psychology professor at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln, believes that society's attitudes account for much of the upsurge in cheating. "Twenty years ago if a person cheated in college, society said: "That is extremely serious, you will be dropped for a semester if not kicked out permanently," he says. "Nowadays, at the University of Nebraska, for example, it is the stated policy of the College of Arts and Sciences that if a student cheats in an exam, the student must receive an "F" on what he cheated in. That's nothing. If you're going to flunk anyway, why not cheat". Cheating is most likely in situations where the vital interests are high and the chances of getting caught are low, says social psychologist Lynn Kahle of the University of Oregon in Eugene.

1. The passage centers on ______.
A) convincing the reader that cheating is immoral
B) discussing the reasons for cheating
C) describing how students cheat in exams
D) suggesting how to control cheating
正确答案是

2. Cheating tends to occur in all the following situations except when ______.
A) one wants something badly
B) one can't get something in a right way
C) it is not very likely to be revealed
D) a series of things have to be dealt with
正确答案是

3. Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A) It is forgivable to cheat unless money is involved.
B) There has been an increase in cheating.
C) Most cheaters are college students.
D) Cheaters do not feel guilty and regretful.
正确答案是

4. What can be inferred from the passage?
A) Cheating is widespread because society is too tolerant.
B) Cheating is the result of intense pressure.
C) Cheating is cheating, whether in a test or on any other occasions.
D) Cheating comes together with civilization.
正确答案是

5. Which of the following could best replace the word "flunk" (Para. 5, Line. 3)?
A) Fear.
B) Be pleased.
C) Succeed.
D) Fail.
正确答案是

Passage 2

      Believe it or not, optical illusion can cut highway crashes. Japan is a case in point. It has reduced automobile crashes on some roads by nearly 75 percent using a simple optical illusion. Bent stripes, called chevrons, painted on the roads make drivers think that they are driving faster than they really are, and thus drivers slow down. Now the American Automobile Association Foundation for Traffic Safety in Washington D.C. is planning to repeat Japan's success. Starting next year, the foundation will paint chevrons and other patterns of stripes on selected roads around the country to test how well the patterns reduce highway crashes. Excessive speed plays a major role in as much as one fifth of all fatal traffic accidents, according to the foundation. To help reduce those accidents, the foundation will conduct its tests in areas where speed-related hazards are the greatest -- curves, exit slopes, traffic circles, and bridges. Some studies suggest that straight, horizontal bars painted across roads can initially cut the average speed of drivers in half. However, traffic often returns to full speed within months as drivers become used to seeing the painted bars. Chevrons, scientists say, not only give drivers the impression that they are driving faster than they really are but also make a lane appear to be narrower. The result is a longer lasting reduction in highway speed and the number of traffic accidents.