1、2004 年全国攻读硕士学位研究生入学考试英语试题年全国攻读硕士学位研究生入学考试英语试题Section IUse of EnglishDirections：Read the following text.Choose the best word(s)for each numbered blank and mark A,B,C or D onANSWER SHEET1.(10 points)Many theories concerning the causes of juvenile delinquency(crimes committed by young people)focus eith
2、er on theindividual or on society as the major contributing influence.Theories1on the individual suggest that children engage incriminal behavior2they were not sufficiently penalized for previous misdeeds or that they have learned criminalbehavior through3with others.Theories focusing on the role of
3、 society suggest that children commit crimes in4to their failure to rise above their socioeconomic status,5as a rejection of middle-class values.Most theories of juvenile delinquency have focused on children from disadvantaged families,_ 6the fact thatchildren from wealthy homes also commit crimes.T
4、he latter may commit crimes7lack of adequate parental control.All theories,however,are tentative and are8to criticism.Changes in the social structure may indirectly9juvenile crime rates.For example,changes in the economy that10to fewer job opportunities for youth and rising unemployment11make gainfu
5、l employment increasinglydifficult to obtain.The resulting discontent may in12lead more youths into criminal behavior.Families have also13changes these years.More families consist of one-parent households or two workingparents;14，children are likely to have less supervision at home15was common in th
6、e traditional family16.This lack of parental supervision is thought to be an influence on juvenile crime rates.Other _17_causes ofoffensive acts include frustration or failure in school,the increased _ 18 _ of drugs and alcohol,and the growing19ofchild abuse and child neglect.All these conditions te
7、nd to increase the probability of a child committing a criminal act,20a direct causal relationship has not yet been established.1.A actingB relyingC centeringD commenting2.A beforeB unlessC untilD because3.A interactionB assimilationC cooperationD consultation4.A returnB replyC referenceD response5.
8、A orB but ratherC butD or else6.A consideringB ignoringC highlightingD discarding7.A onB inC forD with8.A immuneB resistantC sensitiveD subject9.A affectB reduceC chockD reflect10.A pointB leadC comeD amount11.A in generalB on averageC by contrastD at length12.A caseB shortC turnD essence13.A surviv
9、edB noticedC undertakenD experienced14.A contrarilyB consequentlyC similarlyD simultaneously15.A thanB thatC whichD as16.A systemB structureC conceptD heritage17.A assessableB identifiableC negligibleD incredible18.A expenseB restrictionC allocationD availability19.A incidenceB awarenessC exposureD
10、popularity20.A providedB sinceC althoughD supposingSection IIReading ComprehensionPartADirections:Read the following four texts.Answer the questions below each text by choosing A,B,C or D.Mark youranswers on ANSWER SHEET 1.(40 points)Text 1Hunting for a job late last year,lawyer Gant Redmon stumbled
11、 across CareerBuilder,a job database on the Internet.Hesearched it with no success but was attracted by the sites“personal search agent”.Its an interactive feature that lets visitorskey in job criteria such as location,title,and salary,then E-mails them when a matching position is posted in the data
12、base.Redmon chose the keywords legal,intellectual property and Washington,D.C.Three weeks later,he got his first notificationof an opening.“I struck gold,”says Redmon,who E-mailed his resume to the employer and won a position as in-housecounsel for a company.With thousands of career-related sites on
13、 the Internet,finding promising openings can he time-consuming andinefficient.Search agents reduce the need for repeated visits to the databases.But although a search agent worked forRedmon,career experts see drawbacks.Narrowing your criteria,for example,may work against you:“Every time youanswer a
14、question you eliminate a possibility,”says one expert.For any job search,you should start with a narrow conceptwhat you think you want to dothen broaden it.“None ofthese programs do that,”says another expert.“Theres no career counseling implicit in all of this.”Instead,the best strategyis to use the
15、 agent as a kind of tip service to keep abreast of jobs in a particular database;when you get E-mail,consider it areminder to check the database again.“I would not rely on agents for finding everything that is added to a database thatmight interest me,”says the author of a job-searching guide.Some s
16、ites design their agents to tempt job hunters to return.When CareerSites agent sends out messages to those whohave signed up for its service,for example,it includes only three potential jobsthose it considers the best matches.Theremay be more matches in the database;job hunters will have to visit th
17、e site again to find themand they do.“On the dayafter we send our messages,we see a sharp increase in our traffic,”says Seth Peets,vice president of marketing forCareerSite.Even those who arent hunting for jobs may find search agents worthwhile.Some use them to keep a close watch on thedemand for th
18、eir line of work or gather information on compensation to arm themselves when negotiating for a raise.Although happily employed,Redmon maintains his agent at CareerBuilder.“You always keep your eyes open,”he says.Working with a personal search agent means having another set of eyes looking out for y
19、ou.21.How did Redmon find his job?A By searching openings in a job database.B By posting a matching position in a database.C By using a special service of a database.D By E-mailing his resume to a database.22.Which of the following can be a disadvantage of search agents?A Lack of counseling.B Limite
20、d number of visits.C Lower efficiency.D Fewer successful matches.23.The expression“tip service”(Line 4,Paragraph 3)most probably means.A advisory.B compensation.C interaction.D reminder.24.Why does CareerSites agent offer each job hunter only three job options?A To focus on better job matches.B To a
21、ttract more returning visits.C To reserve space for more messages.D To increase the rate of success.25.Which of the following is true according to the text?A Personal search agents are indispensable to job-hunters.B Some sites keep E-mailing job seekers to trace their demands.C Personal search agent
22、s are also helpful to those already employed.D Some agents stop sending information to people once they are employed.Text 2Over the past century,all kinds of unfairness and discrimination have been condemned or made illegal.But oneinsidious form continues to thrive:alphabetism.This,for those as yet
23、unaware of such a disadvantage,refers todiscrimination against those whose surnames begin with a letter in the lower half of the alphabet.It has long been known that a taxi firm called AAAA cars has a big advantage over Zodiac cars when customers thumbthrough their phone directories.Less well known
24、is the advantage that Adam Abbott has in life over Zo Zysman.Englishnames are fairly evenly spread between the halves of the alphabet.Yet a suspiciously large number of top people havesurnames beginning with letters between Aand K.Thus the American president and vice-president have surnames starting
25、 with B and C respectively;and 26 of GeorgeBushs predecessors(including his father)had surnames in the first half of the alphabet against just 16 in the second half.Even more striking,six of the seven heads of government of the G7 rich countries are alphabetically advantaged(Berlusconi,Blair,Bush,Ch
26、irac,Chrtien and Koizumi).The worlds three top central bankers(Greenspan,Duisenberg and Hayami)areall close to the top of the alphabet,even if one of them really uses Japanese characters.As are the worlds five richest men(Gates,Buffett,Allen,Ellison and Albrecht).Can this merely be coincidence?One t
27、heory,dreamt up in all the spare time enjoyed by the alphabeticallydisadvantaged,is that the rot sets in early.At the start of the first year in infant school,teachers seat pupils alphabeticallyfrom the front,to make it easier to remember their names.So short-sighted Zysman junior gets stuck in the
28、back row,and israrely asked the improving questions posed by those insensitive teachers.At the time the alphabetically disadvantaged maythink they have had a lucky escape.Yet the result may be worse qualifications,because they get less individual attention,aswell as less confidence in speaking publi
29、cly.The humiliation continues.At university graduation ceremonies,the ABCs proudly get their awards first;by the timethey reach the Zysmans most people are literally having a ZZZ.Shortlists for job interviews,election ballot papers,lists ofconference speakers and attendees:all tend to be drawn up al
30、phabetically,and their recipients lose interest as they ploughthrough them.26.What does the author intend to illustrate with AAAA cars and Zodiac cars?A Akind of overlooked inequality.B Atype of conspicuous bias.C Atype of personal prejudice.D Akind of brand discrimination.27.What can we infer from
31、the first three paragraphs?A In both East and West,names are essential to success.B The alphabet is to blame for the failure of Zo Zysman.C Customers often pay a lot of attention to companiesnames.D Some form of discrimination is too subtle to recognize.28.The 4th paragraph suggests that.A questions
32、 are often put to the more intelligent studentsB alphabetically disadvantaged students often escape from classC teachers should pay attention to all of their studentsD students should be seated according to their eyesight29.What does the author mean by“most people are literally having a ZZZ”(Lines 2
33、-3,Paragraph 5)?A They are getting impatient.B They are noisily dozing off.C They are feeling humiliated.D They are busy with word puzzles.30.Which of the following is true according to the text?A People with surnames beginning with N to Z are often ill-treated.B VIPs in the Western world gain a gre
34、at deal from alphabetism.C The campaign to eliminate alphabetism still has a long way to go.D Putting things alphabetically may lead to unintentional bias.Text 3When it comes to the slowing economy,Ellen Spero isnt biting her nails just yet.But the 47-year-old manicurist isntcutting,filing or polish
35、ing as many nails as shed like to,either.Most of her clients spend$12 to$50 weekly,but last monthtwo longtime customers suddenly stopped showing up.Spero blames the softening economy.“Im a good economicindicator,”she says.“I provide a service that people can do without when theyre concerned about sa
36、ving some dollars.”SoSpero is downscaling,shopping at middle-brow Dillards department store near her suburban Cleveland home,instead ofNeiman Marcus.“I dont know if other clients are going to abandon me,too,”she says.Even before Alan Greenspans admission that Americas red-hot economy is cooling,lots
37、 of working folks had alreadyseen signs of the slowdown themselves.From car dealerships to Gap outlets,sales have been lagging for months as shopperstemper their spending.For retailers,who last year took in 24 percent of their revenue between Thanksgiving and Christmas,the cautious approach is comin
38、g at a crucial time.Already,experts say,holiday sales are off 7 percent from last years pace.But dont sound any alarms just yet.Consumers seem only mildly concerned,not panicked,and many say they remainoptimistic about the economys long-term prospects even as they do some modest belt-tightening.Cons
39、umers say theyre not in despair because,despite the dreadful headlines,their own fortunes still feel pretty good.Home prices are holding steady in most regions.In Manhattan,“theres a new gold rush happening in the$4 million to$10million range,predominantly fed by Wall Street bonuses,”says broker Bar
40、bara Corcoran.In San Francisco,prices are stillrising even as frenzied overbidding quiets.“Instead of 20 to 30 offers,now maybe you only get two or three,says JohnTealdi,a Bay Area real-estate broker.And most folks still feel pretty comfortable about their ability to find and keep a job.Many folks s
41、ee silver linings to this slowdown.Potential home buyers would cheer for lower interest rates.Employerswouldnt mind a little fewer bubbles in the job market.Many consumers seem to have been influenced by stock-marketswings,which investors now view as a necessary ingredient to a sustained boom.Diners
42、 might see an upside,too.Getting atable at Manhattans hot new Alain Ducasse restaurant used to be impossible.Not anymore.For that,Greenspan&Co.maystill be worth toasting.31.By“Ellen Spero isnt biting her nails just yet”(Line 1,Paragraph 1),the author means_.A Spero can hardly maintain her business.B
43、 Spero is too much engaged in her work.C Spero has grown out of her bad habit.D Spero is not in a desperate situation.32.How do the public feel about the current economic situation?A Optimistic.B Confused.C Carefree.D Panicked.33.When mentioning“the$4 million to$10 million range”(Lines 3,Paragraph 3
44、),the author is talking about _A gold market.B real estate.C stock exchange.D venture investment.34.Why can many people see“silver linings”to the economic slowdown?A They would benefit in certain ways.B The stock market shows signs of recovery.C Such a slowdown usually precedes a boom.D The purchasi
45、ng power would be enhanced.35.To which of the following is the author likely to agree?A Anew boom,on the horizon.B Tighten the belt,the single remedy.C Caution all right,panic not.D The more ventures,the more chances.Text 4Americans today dont place a very high value on intellect.Our heroes are athl
46、etes,entertainers,and entrepreneurs,notscholars.Even our schools are where we send our children to get a practical educationnot to pursue knowledge for thesake of knowledge.Symptoms of pervasive anti-intellectualism in our schools arent difficult to find.“Schools have always been in a society where
47、practical is more important than intellectual,”says education writer DianeRavitch.“Schools could be a counterbalance.”Ravitchs latest book.Left Back:A Century of Failed School Reforms,tracesthe roots of anti-intellectualism in our schools,concluding they are anything but a counterbalance to the Amer
48、ican distastefor intellectual pursuits.But they could and should be.Encouraging kids to reject the life of the mind leaves them vulnerable to exploitation andcontrol.Without the ability to think critically,to defend their ideas and understand the ideas of others,they cannot fullyparticipate in our d
49、emocracy.Continuing along this path,says writer Earl Shorris,“We will become a second-rate country.We will have a less civil society.”“Intellect is resented as a form of power or privilege,”writes historian and professor Richard Hofstadter inAnti-intellectualism in American Life,a Pulitzer-Prize win
50、ning book on the roots of anti-intellectualism in US politics,religion,and education.From the beginning of our history,says Hofstadter,our democratic and populist urges have driven usto reject anything that smells of elitism.Practicality,common sense,and native intelligence have been considered more
