2012年职称英语理工类考前冲刺试题(四)
2012-03-15来源:和谐英语
第四部分：阅读理解(第31～45题，每题3分，共45分)
下面有3篇短文，每篇短文后有5道题，每题后面有4个选项。请仔细阅读短文并根据短文回答其后面的问题，从4个选项中选择1个最佳答案涂在答题卡相应的位置上。
第一篇
The Wasteland
A new catastrophe faces Afghanistan. The American bombing campaign is conspiring with years of civil conflict and drought to create an environmental crisis.
Humanitarian and political concerns are dominating the headlines. But they are also masking the disappearance of the country's once rich habitat and wildlife, which are quietly being crushed by war. The UN is dispatching a team of investigators to the region next month to evaluate the damage. “A health environment is a prerequisite for rehabilitation,” says Ktaus Topfer, head of the UN environment Programme.
Much of south-east Afghanistan was once lush forest watered by monsoon rains. Forests now cover less than 2 per cent of the country. “The worst deforestation occurred during Talibab rule, when its timber mafia denuded forests to sell to Pakistani markets,” says Usman Qazi, an environmental consultant based in Quetta, Pakistan. And the intense bombing intended to flush out the last of the Tatiban troops is destroying or burning much of what remains.
The refugee crisis is also wrecking the environment, and much damage may be irreversible. Forests and vegetation are being cleared for much-needed farming, but the gains are likely to be only short-term. “Eventually the land will be unfit for even the most basic form of agriculture,” warns hammad Naqi of the World Wide Fund for Nature in Pakistan. Refugees—around 4 million as the last count－are also cutting into forests for firewood.
The hail of bombs falling on Afghanistan is making life particularly hard for the country's wildlife. Birds such as the pelican and endangered Siberian crane cross eastern Afghanistan as they follow one of the world's great migratory thoroughfares from Siberia to Pakistan and India. But the number of the birds flying across the region has dropped by a staggering 85 percent. “Cranes are very sensitive and they do not use the route if they see any danger,” says Ashiq Ahgmad, an environmental scientist for the WWF in Peshawar, Pakistan, who has tracked the collapse of the birds migration this winter.
The rugged mountains also usually provide a safe have for mountain leopards, gazelles, bears and Marco Polo sheep--the world's largest species. “The same terrain that allows fighters to strike and disappear back into the hills has also historically enabled wild life to survive,” says Peter Zahler of the Wildlife Conservation society, based in New York. But he warns they are now under intense pressure from the bombing and invasions of refugees and fighters.
For instance, some refugees are hunting rare snow leopards to buy a safe passage across the border. A single fur can fetch $ 2,000 on the black market, says Zahler. Only 5,000 or so snow leopards are thought to survive in central Asia, and less than 100 in Afghanistan, their numbers already decimated by extensive hunting and smuggling into Pakistan before the conflict. Timber, falcons and medicinal plants are also being smuggled across the border. The Talibab once controlled much of this trade, but the recent power vacuum could exacerbate the problem.
Bombing will also leave its mark beyond the obvious craters. Defence analysts says that while depleted uranium has been used less in Afghanistan that in the Kosovo conflict, conventional explosives will litter the country with pollutants. They contain toxic compounds such as cyclonite, a carcinogen, and rocket propellants contain perchlorates, which damage thyroid glands.
31 All of the following are causes of the environmental crisis in Afghanistan EXCEPT ________.
A American bombing
B heavy monsoon rains
C years of lack of rain
D fighting among the Afghanis
32 According to the passage, the main cause of the loss of the country's forests is ________.
A the flooding caused by the monsoon rain
B the intense bombing of the Taliban troops
C the improper use of the trees for benefits during Taliban rule
D the fire set to burn the forests by the Taliban troops
33 Most of the migratory bird no longer fly across Afghanistan to Pakistan and India because ________.
A they change their route from time to time
B some birds have collapsed while flying
C they have been threatened by the bombs dropped on the country
D they are scared by the big animals in the mountains
34 In which of the following ways do the refugees threaten the survival of such wild animals as the snow leopards?
A They hunt the animals for food.
B They fight in the rugged mountains that provide a haven for the animals.
C They hunt the animals to make profits.
D They drive the animals away from their homes in the mountains.
35 Which of the following CANNOT be inferred from the last paragraph?
A Depleted uranium is not a kind of conventional explosives.
B Craters are not the only damage done by bombs.
C The conventional bombs are no less damaging to environment than the non-conventional ones.
D Fewer people were killed in bombing in Afghanistan than in Kosovo.
第二篇
Kasparov: Chess Computers Beatable...For Now
Humans will continue to beat computers for years, but the machines are likely to dominate in matches played over several games, according to the world's top chess player.
“We will not see a machine replacing a human being in our lifetime. Man will be able to beat a computer in at least one game for a very long time,” Kasparov told a press conference in Moscow a week after setting for a draw in a six-game match with the computer Deep Junior in New York. But while human intuition can provide an advantage in individual games, “Man will never be able to play 8 or 10 games in a row to an equal level,” Kasparov said. He gradually declines for a variety or external factors: the weather, a headache, a headache, family strains or whatever.
In his Man vs. Machine contest in the United States, Kasparov won the first game, but lost the third after committing a mid-game blunder. He then adopted a safety-first strategy, and in the sixth game passed up a chance to win by accepting a draw in a position some analysts said was favourable.
Kasparov-watchers believe he was determined above all not to lose to Deep Junior because he was still smarting from a defeat to another computer, Deep Blue, in 1997. That loss clearly rankled Kasparov, and he said at the time that the computer had been receiving assistance from its human operators.
The Russian, who has reigned undisputed as the world's top player since 1985, said he was “satisfied overall” with his result against Deep Junior, although “if I'd been in better shape and had more time to prepare the result might have been different.” He stressed the importance of psychology in chess between one human player and another, and described the “psychological discomfort” involved in adapting to a confrontation with a machine. In chess with humans, “you're always attempting to impose your decisions on the personality of your rival. A game is always an exchange of errors, of imprecision. It's psychology. There's never complete exactitude or purity in a game of chess,” he said. “But playing against a machine, beyond a certain point, to win or even to save the game you have to play with absolute exactitude, which is not human quality. Knowing this specificity of your rival creates a psychological discomfort which is very difficult to overcome.”
Kasparov was at pains to stress that his 1997 defeat was an aberration: “The main thing was to show that what happened then nothing to do with the fight between man and machine. Any impartial specialist can see that Deep Junior is much stronger that Deep Blue. The real battle begins now.”
36 According to Kasparov, ________.
A humans can beat computers in individual games
B computers will never take the place of human beings in games
C human beings can never beat computers in individual or series games
D human intuition plays an important role in games
37 In the contest with Deep Junior in the United States, Kasparov ________.
A lost the game
B won the game
C settled for a draw
D left the game unfinished
38 Which of the following statements is true about Kasparov's contest with Deep Blue in 1997？
A He made up his mind to win Deep Blue.
B He was smart enough to have beaten Deep Blue.
C Deep Blue received human assistance.
D Kasparov was unwilling to admit his defeat by Deep Blue.
39 According to Kasparov, a human vs machine chess game may involve all the following qualities EXCEPT that ________.
A it involves psychological discomfort in the mind of the human player
B it demands the human player of absolute exactitude
C it creates an exchange of errors between man and machine
D it is difficult to overcome psychological discomfort
40 Kasparov's remarks on his 1997 defeat imply that ________.
A man was no match to computer in intelligence
B Deep Blue was unbeatable
C Deep Blue also made blunders
D if he had made no blunders, he should have beaten Deep Blue
第三篇
U.S. Marks 175 Locomotive Years
Built by the Mason machine Worlds in 1856, the 27,900-kilogram William Mason was an example of the archetypal 19th Century American locomotive, the oldest in operation in the United States. The locomotive was transferred last month from its open bay in B＆O's historic roundhouse to ready it for this summer's Fair of the Iron Horse, a celebration of 175 years of American railroading, in the city of Baltimore, Maryland. Tests will show whether the old gauges and boiler pressure points are up to federal standards to operate during the six-day festival.
“This is sort of the world's fair of railroading,” said Courtney Wilson, executive director of the B＆O Railroad Museum. The festival will run from June 28 to July 3 and display what organizers say is the most impressive collection of locomotives in the Western Hemisphere.
At the museum, an area will be set aside for model trains to keep toddlers interested. Children will learn about safety rules around train tracks. Adults will be able to track the development of railroad technology－from horse power to steam and diesel power to magnetic levitation, which can push trains at speeds upward of 390 kph.
“We have locomotives coming from all over the country, and we believe even the Rocket is coming from England--the very first locomotive in the world－to participate in this fair,” Wilson said.
The Rocket, the first successful steam locomotive in the world, won a competition in 1829 as the fastest locomotive—an event that helped spark worldwide railway interest.
“it was probably the fastest machine on Earth in its time,” Wilson said.
Rail companies in France, Canada, Germany and Spain have been invited to participate in this year's event.
“This will probably be the last time in this century that these many locomotives will be assembled in one spot, and it'll be a once-in-a lifetime experience,” Wilson said.
The B＆O Railroad was the host of a similar event in 1927 in nearby Hale Thorpe that attracted more than 1.25 million visitors over three weeks. The railroad held the event for its 100th anniversary.
Museum officials hope the event gives people a better appreciation of trains.
The museum's 22-sided roundhouse will be a focal point in the months leading up to the festival. Completed in 1884, the building rises 40. 5 meters into a huge cupola and covers nearly a half hectare of ground. The roundhouse has been in continuous use since its construction.
Inside is the most significant collection of railroad artifacts in the nation, including a replica built in 1926 of the Tom Thumb—the first American built locomotive (constructed in 1830)—and the St. Elizabeth—one of the last steam engines built in the United States(1950).
The museum, which sits on about 16 hectares in west Baltimore, holds locomotives, freight and passenger cars and other rolling stock－including cars from the nation's first trains, which were pulled by horses.
41 William Mason was the oldest locomotive in operation ________.
A in the world
B in America
C in England
D in the region of Baltimore
42 The oldest locomotive will be put to tests again to make sure ________.
A its commercial operation is safe
B it competes with the Rocket in good shape
C its technical information to be presented to the Fair is accurate
D it is up to the federal standards before operation
43 Which of the following statements is NOT a correct description of the Rocket?
A It was the first successful steam locomotive in the world.
B It is believed to be the fastest locomotive in its time.
C It will be put on display in festival.
D It sped up the development of railroading in America.
44 How large is the museum's roundhouse?
A One-tenth of the museum.
B 16 hectares.
C One-thirty-second of the museum.
D Not mentioned.
45 Which of the following best describes the collection of the artifacts in the museum?
A Its collection is important and representative.
B The collection is not rich enough.
C The replica of the Tom Thumb is disappointing.
D The St. Elizabeth, one of the last steam engines is not among the artifacts.
下面有3篇短文，每篇短文后有5道题，每题后面有4个选项。请仔细阅读短文并根据短文回答其后面的问题，从4个选项中选择1个最佳答案涂在答题卡相应的位置上。
第一篇
The Wasteland
A new catastrophe faces Afghanistan. The American bombing campaign is conspiring with years of civil conflict and drought to create an environmental crisis.
Humanitarian and political concerns are dominating the headlines. But they are also masking the disappearance of the country's once rich habitat and wildlife, which are quietly being crushed by war. The UN is dispatching a team of investigators to the region next month to evaluate the damage. “A health environment is a prerequisite for rehabilitation,” says Ktaus Topfer, head of the UN environment Programme.
Much of south-east Afghanistan was once lush forest watered by monsoon rains. Forests now cover less than 2 per cent of the country. “The worst deforestation occurred during Talibab rule, when its timber mafia denuded forests to sell to Pakistani markets,” says Usman Qazi, an environmental consultant based in Quetta, Pakistan. And the intense bombing intended to flush out the last of the Tatiban troops is destroying or burning much of what remains.
The refugee crisis is also wrecking the environment, and much damage may be irreversible. Forests and vegetation are being cleared for much-needed farming, but the gains are likely to be only short-term. “Eventually the land will be unfit for even the most basic form of agriculture,” warns hammad Naqi of the World Wide Fund for Nature in Pakistan. Refugees—around 4 million as the last count－are also cutting into forests for firewood.
The hail of bombs falling on Afghanistan is making life particularly hard for the country's wildlife. Birds such as the pelican and endangered Siberian crane cross eastern Afghanistan as they follow one of the world's great migratory thoroughfares from Siberia to Pakistan and India. But the number of the birds flying across the region has dropped by a staggering 85 percent. “Cranes are very sensitive and they do not use the route if they see any danger,” says Ashiq Ahgmad, an environmental scientist for the WWF in Peshawar, Pakistan, who has tracked the collapse of the birds migration this winter.
The rugged mountains also usually provide a safe have for mountain leopards, gazelles, bears and Marco Polo sheep--the world's largest species. “The same terrain that allows fighters to strike and disappear back into the hills has also historically enabled wild life to survive,” says Peter Zahler of the Wildlife Conservation society, based in New York. But he warns they are now under intense pressure from the bombing and invasions of refugees and fighters.
For instance, some refugees are hunting rare snow leopards to buy a safe passage across the border. A single fur can fetch $ 2,000 on the black market, says Zahler. Only 5,000 or so snow leopards are thought to survive in central Asia, and less than 100 in Afghanistan, their numbers already decimated by extensive hunting and smuggling into Pakistan before the conflict. Timber, falcons and medicinal plants are also being smuggled across the border. The Talibab once controlled much of this trade, but the recent power vacuum could exacerbate the problem.
Bombing will also leave its mark beyond the obvious craters. Defence analysts says that while depleted uranium has been used less in Afghanistan that in the Kosovo conflict, conventional explosives will litter the country with pollutants. They contain toxic compounds such as cyclonite, a carcinogen, and rocket propellants contain perchlorates, which damage thyroid glands.
31 All of the following are causes of the environmental crisis in Afghanistan EXCEPT ________.
A American bombing
B heavy monsoon rains
C years of lack of rain
D fighting among the Afghanis
32 According to the passage, the main cause of the loss of the country's forests is ________.
A the flooding caused by the monsoon rain
B the intense bombing of the Taliban troops
C the improper use of the trees for benefits during Taliban rule
D the fire set to burn the forests by the Taliban troops
33 Most of the migratory bird no longer fly across Afghanistan to Pakistan and India because ________.
A they change their route from time to time
B some birds have collapsed while flying
C they have been threatened by the bombs dropped on the country
D they are scared by the big animals in the mountains
34 In which of the following ways do the refugees threaten the survival of such wild animals as the snow leopards?
A They hunt the animals for food.
B They fight in the rugged mountains that provide a haven for the animals.
C They hunt the animals to make profits.
D They drive the animals away from their homes in the mountains.
35 Which of the following CANNOT be inferred from the last paragraph?
A Depleted uranium is not a kind of conventional explosives.
B Craters are not the only damage done by bombs.
C The conventional bombs are no less damaging to environment than the non-conventional ones.
D Fewer people were killed in bombing in Afghanistan than in Kosovo.
第二篇
Kasparov: Chess Computers Beatable...For Now
Humans will continue to beat computers for years, but the machines are likely to dominate in matches played over several games, according to the world's top chess player.
“We will not see a machine replacing a human being in our lifetime. Man will be able to beat a computer in at least one game for a very long time,” Kasparov told a press conference in Moscow a week after setting for a draw in a six-game match with the computer Deep Junior in New York. But while human intuition can provide an advantage in individual games, “Man will never be able to play 8 or 10 games in a row to an equal level,” Kasparov said. He gradually declines for a variety or external factors: the weather, a headache, a headache, family strains or whatever.
In his Man vs. Machine contest in the United States, Kasparov won the first game, but lost the third after committing a mid-game blunder. He then adopted a safety-first strategy, and in the sixth game passed up a chance to win by accepting a draw in a position some analysts said was favourable.
Kasparov-watchers believe he was determined above all not to lose to Deep Junior because he was still smarting from a defeat to another computer, Deep Blue, in 1997. That loss clearly rankled Kasparov, and he said at the time that the computer had been receiving assistance from its human operators.
The Russian, who has reigned undisputed as the world's top player since 1985, said he was “satisfied overall” with his result against Deep Junior, although “if I'd been in better shape and had more time to prepare the result might have been different.” He stressed the importance of psychology in chess between one human player and another, and described the “psychological discomfort” involved in adapting to a confrontation with a machine. In chess with humans, “you're always attempting to impose your decisions on the personality of your rival. A game is always an exchange of errors, of imprecision. It's psychology. There's never complete exactitude or purity in a game of chess,” he said. “But playing against a machine, beyond a certain point, to win or even to save the game you have to play with absolute exactitude, which is not human quality. Knowing this specificity of your rival creates a psychological discomfort which is very difficult to overcome.”
Kasparov was at pains to stress that his 1997 defeat was an aberration: “The main thing was to show that what happened then nothing to do with the fight between man and machine. Any impartial specialist can see that Deep Junior is much stronger that Deep Blue. The real battle begins now.”
36 According to Kasparov, ________.
A humans can beat computers in individual games
B computers will never take the place of human beings in games
C human beings can never beat computers in individual or series games
D human intuition plays an important role in games
37 In the contest with Deep Junior in the United States, Kasparov ________.
A lost the game
B won the game
C settled for a draw
D left the game unfinished
38 Which of the following statements is true about Kasparov's contest with Deep Blue in 1997？
A He made up his mind to win Deep Blue.
B He was smart enough to have beaten Deep Blue.
C Deep Blue received human assistance.
D Kasparov was unwilling to admit his defeat by Deep Blue.
39 According to Kasparov, a human vs machine chess game may involve all the following qualities EXCEPT that ________.
A it involves psychological discomfort in the mind of the human player
B it demands the human player of absolute exactitude
C it creates an exchange of errors between man and machine
D it is difficult to overcome psychological discomfort
40 Kasparov's remarks on his 1997 defeat imply that ________.
A man was no match to computer in intelligence
B Deep Blue was unbeatable
C Deep Blue also made blunders
D if he had made no blunders, he should have beaten Deep Blue
第三篇
U.S. Marks 175 Locomotive Years
Built by the Mason machine Worlds in 1856, the 27,900-kilogram William Mason was an example of the archetypal 19th Century American locomotive, the oldest in operation in the United States. The locomotive was transferred last month from its open bay in B＆O's historic roundhouse to ready it for this summer's Fair of the Iron Horse, a celebration of 175 years of American railroading, in the city of Baltimore, Maryland. Tests will show whether the old gauges and boiler pressure points are up to federal standards to operate during the six-day festival.
“This is sort of the world's fair of railroading,” said Courtney Wilson, executive director of the B＆O Railroad Museum. The festival will run from June 28 to July 3 and display what organizers say is the most impressive collection of locomotives in the Western Hemisphere.
At the museum, an area will be set aside for model trains to keep toddlers interested. Children will learn about safety rules around train tracks. Adults will be able to track the development of railroad technology－from horse power to steam and diesel power to magnetic levitation, which can push trains at speeds upward of 390 kph.
“We have locomotives coming from all over the country, and we believe even the Rocket is coming from England--the very first locomotive in the world－to participate in this fair,” Wilson said.
The Rocket, the first successful steam locomotive in the world, won a competition in 1829 as the fastest locomotive—an event that helped spark worldwide railway interest.
“it was probably the fastest machine on Earth in its time,” Wilson said.
Rail companies in France, Canada, Germany and Spain have been invited to participate in this year's event.
“This will probably be the last time in this century that these many locomotives will be assembled in one spot, and it'll be a once-in-a lifetime experience,” Wilson said.
The B＆O Railroad was the host of a similar event in 1927 in nearby Hale Thorpe that attracted more than 1.25 million visitors over three weeks. The railroad held the event for its 100th anniversary.
Museum officials hope the event gives people a better appreciation of trains.
The museum's 22-sided roundhouse will be a focal point in the months leading up to the festival. Completed in 1884, the building rises 40. 5 meters into a huge cupola and covers nearly a half hectare of ground. The roundhouse has been in continuous use since its construction.
Inside is the most significant collection of railroad artifacts in the nation, including a replica built in 1926 of the Tom Thumb—the first American built locomotive (constructed in 1830)—and the St. Elizabeth—one of the last steam engines built in the United States(1950).
The museum, which sits on about 16 hectares in west Baltimore, holds locomotives, freight and passenger cars and other rolling stock－including cars from the nation's first trains, which were pulled by horses.
41 William Mason was the oldest locomotive in operation ________.
A in the world
B in America
C in England
D in the region of Baltimore
42 The oldest locomotive will be put to tests again to make sure ________.
A its commercial operation is safe
B it competes with the Rocket in good shape
C its technical information to be presented to the Fair is accurate
D it is up to the federal standards before operation
43 Which of the following statements is NOT a correct description of the Rocket?
A It was the first successful steam locomotive in the world.
B It is believed to be the fastest locomotive in its time.
C It will be put on display in festival.
D It sped up the development of railroading in America.
44 How large is the museum's roundhouse?
A One-tenth of the museum.
B 16 hectares.
C One-thirty-second of the museum.
D Not mentioned.
45 Which of the following best describes the collection of the artifacts in the museum?
A Its collection is important and representative.
B The collection is not rich enough.
C The replica of the Tom Thumb is disappointing.
D The St. Elizabeth, one of the last steam engines is not among the artifacts.
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