| 1. 难度：中等 | |
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Disposing(处理)of waste has been a problem since humans started producing it.As more and more people choose to live close together in cities,the waste-disposal problem becomes Increasingly difficult. During the eighteenth century,it was usual for several neighboring towns to get together to select a faraway spot as a dump site.Residents or trash haulers(垃圾拖运者)would transport household rubbish,rotted wood,and old possessions to the site.Periodically(定期的)some of the trash was burned and the rest was buried.The unpleasant sights and smells caused no problem because nobody lived close by. Factories,mills,and other industrial sites also had waste to be disposed of.Those located on rivers often just dumped the unwanted remains into the water.Others built huge burners with chimneys to deal with the problem. Several facts make these choices unacceptable to modern society.The first problem is space Dumps,which are now called landfills,are most needed in heavily populated areas.Such areas rarely have empty land suitable for this purpose.Property is either too expensive or too close to residential(住宅区的) neighborhoods.Long-distance trash hauling has been a common practice but once farm areas are refusing to accept rubbish from elsewhere,cheap land within trucking distance of major city areas is almost nonexistent. Awareness(意识) of pollution dangers has resulted in more strict rules of waste disposal. Pollution of rivers,ground water,land and air is a price people can no longer pay to get rid of waste. The amount of waste,however,continues to grow. Recycling efforts have become commonplace,and many towns require their people to take part.Even he most efficient recycling programs,however,can hope to deal with only about 50 Percent of a city’s reusable waste. 1.The most suitable title for this passage would be _______. A.Places for Disposing Waste B.Waste Pollution Dangers C.Ways of Getting Rid of Waste D.Waste Disposal Problem 2.During the 18th century,people disposed their waste in many ways EXCEPT for _______. A.burying it B.recycling it C.burning it D.throwing it into rivers 3.What can be inferred from the fourth paragraph? A.Farm areas accept waste from the city in modern society. B.There is cheap land to bury waste in modern society. C.It is difficult to find space to bury waste in modern society. D.Ways to deal with waste in modern society stay the same. 4.The main purpose of writing this article is to _______. A.draw people’s attention to waste management B.warn people of the pollution dangers we are facing C.call on people to take part in recycling programs D.tell people a better way to get rid of the waste
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| 2. 难度：中等 | |
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When you think of the tremendous technological progress we have made, it’s amazing how little we have developed in other respects. We may speak contemptuously of the poor old Romans because they relished the orgies of slaughter that went on in their arenas. We may despise them because they mistook these goings on for entertainment. We may forgive them condescendingly because they lived 2000 years ago and obviously knew no better. But are our feelings of superiority really justified? Are we any less blood-thirsty? Why do boxing matches, for instance, attract such universal interest? Don’t the spectators who attend them hope they will see some violence? Human beings remains as bloodthirsty as ever they were. The only difference between ourselves and the Romans is that while they were honest enough to admit that they enjoyed watching hungey lions tearing people apart and eating them alive, we find all sorts of sophisticated arguments to defend sports which should have been banned long age; sports which are quite as barbarous as, say, public hangings or bearbaiting. It really is incredible that in this day and age we should still allow hunting or bull-fighting, that we should be prepared to sit back and watch two men batter each other to pulp in a boxing ring, that we should be relatively unmoved by the sight of one or a number of racing cars crashing and bursting into flames. Let us not deceive ourselves. Any talk of ‘the sporting spirit’ is sheer hypocrisy. People take part in violent sports because of the high rewards they bring. Spectators are willing to pay vast sums of money to see violence. A world heavyweight championship match, for instance, is front page news. Millions of people are disappointed if a big fight is over in two rounds instead of fifteen. They feel disappointment because they have been deprived of the exquisite pleasure of witnessing prolonged torture and violence. Why should we ban violent sports if people enjoy them so much? You may well ask. The answer is simple: they are uncivilized. For centuries man has been trying to improve himself spiritually and emotionally – admittedly with little success. But at least we no longer tolerate the sight madmen cooped up in cages, or public floggings of any of the countless other barbaric practices which were common in the past. Prisons are no longer the grim forbidding places they used to be. Social welfare systems are in operation in many parts of the world. Big efforts are being made to distribute wealth fairly. These changes have come about not because human beings have suddenly and unaccountably improved, but because positive steps were taken to change the law. The law is the biggest instrument of social change that we have and it may exert great civilizing influence. If we banned dangerous and violent sports, we would be moving one step further to improving mankind. We would recognize that violence is degrading and unworthy of human beings.
1.It can be inferred from the passage that the author’s opinion of nowadays’ human beings is A. not very high. B. high. C. contemptuous. D. critical. 2.The main idea of this passage is A. vicious and dangerous sports should be banned by law. B. people are willing to pay vast sums money to see violence. C. to compare two different attitudes towards dangerous sports. D. people are bloodthirsty in sports. 3.That the author mentions the old Romans is A. To compare the old Romans with today’s people. B. to give an example. C. to show human beings in the past know nothing better. D. to indicate human beings are used to bloodthirsty. 4..How many dangerous sports does the author mention in this passage? A. Three. B. Five. C. Six. D. Seven. 5.The purpose of the author in writing this passage is A. that, by banning the violent sports, we human beings can improve our selves. B. that, by banning the dangerous sports, we can improve the law. C. that we must take positive steps to improve social welfare system. D. to show law is the main instrument of social change.
Vocabulary
relish 从……获得乐处，享受 orgy 狂欢，放纵 arena 竞技场，活动或斗争的场所 blood-thirsty 残忍的，嗜血的 bear-baiting 逗熊游戏 bull-fight 斗牛 batter 猛击，连续地猛打/捶，乱打 pulp 成纸浆，成软块 burst into flames 突然燃烧起来/着火 grim 令人窒息的，简陋的 coop up 把……关起来
难句译注
bear-baiting 逗熊游戏。这是一种十六、十七世纪流行于英国的游戏――驱狗去咬绑着的熊，很残忍，后被禁止。 …two men batter each other to pulp in the boxing ring. 【结构简析】batter one to pulp = beat one to a pulp 狠揍某人，打瘫某人 【参考译文】两个人在拳击场内彼此狠揍，知道一个人被打倒在地，爬不起来。 …unmoved by the sight of one or a number of racing cars crashing and bursting into flames. 【参考译文】眼见一辆或多辆赛车相互撞击，突然烧起来而无动于衷。 A world heavy weight championship match is front page news. 【参考译文】世界重量级冠军赛总是头版头条新闻。 写作方法与文章大意 作者采取先对比、后分析的写作手法。先是今人和古罗马人对暴虐体育上对此两者都欣赏。后者坦率成人“欣赏暴力体育”，前者施以各种接口、实际都是嗜血成性者。第二段进一步剖析今人欣赏暴虐体育的种种实例，最后指出改善“暴虐”的根本嗜为改善法律采取积极的步骤，法律才能施以巨大的文明影响，否则人类很难改变。
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| 3. 难度：中等 | |
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There is probably no field of human activity in which our values and lifestyles are shown more clearly and strongly than they are in the clothes that we choose to wear.The dress of an individual is a kind of “sign language” that communicates a set of information and is usually the basis on which immediate impressions are formed.Traditionally,a concern for clothes was considered to be an affair of females,while men took pride in the fact that they were completely lacking in clothes consciousness(意识). This type of American culture is by degrees changing as man dress takes on greater variety and color.Even as early as 1955,a researcher in Michigan said that men attached rather high importance to the value of clothing in daily life. White collar workers in particular viewed dress as a symbol(象征)of ability,which could be used to impress or influence others,especially in the work situation.The white collar worker was described as extremely concerned about the impression his clothing made on his superiors(上司).Although blue collar workers were less aware(察觉到的)that they might be judged on the basis of their clothing,they recognized that any difference from the accepted pattern of dress would be made fun of by fellow workers. Since that time,of course,the patterns have changed:the typical office worker may now be wearing the blue shirt,and the laborer a white shirt;but the importance of dress has not become less.Other researchers in recent years have helped to prove its importance in the lives of individuals at various age levels and in different social and economic status groups(阶层). 1.The passage tells us that _______. A.our values and lifestyles are in no field of human activity B.the clothes that we choose to wear have something to do with our values and lifestyles C.our values and lifestyles are from the sign language D.the clothes we choose to wear depend on a set of information and immediate impression 2.Traditionally,people usually thought that _______. A.men cared very much for clothes B.women were concerned greatly about what they wore while men didn’t C.both men and women paid great attention to their clothes D.neither men nor women showed interest in clothes 3.Blue collar workers pay attention to their clothes because _______. A.they are concerned about the impression their clothes make on their superiors B.they know very clearly that people will judge them on the basis of their clothing C.they want to impress and influence others D.they don’t want to be laughed at 4.Which of the following can best explain the underlined sentence in the second paragraph? A.Men thought the value of clothing in daily life was very important. B.Men didn’t pay attention to the importance of the value of clothing in daily life. C.Men thought little of the importance of the value of clothing in daily life. D.Men were concerned little about the value of clothing in daily life. 5.The passage mainly suggests that _______. A.now men pay more attention to their clothes than women do B.women always like beautiful dresses C.people have paid more and more attention to the importance of dress D.American culture is changing greatly
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