2008年7月全国自主考试英语阅读(一)真题及答案

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Be very wary of opinions that flatter your self-esteem. Both men and women, nine times out of

ten, are firmly convinced of the superior excellence of their own sex. There is abundant evidence on both sides. (63) If you are a man, you can point out that most poets and men of science are male; if you are a women, you can retort that so are most criminals. The question is inherently insoluble, but self-esteem conceals this from most people. (64) We are all, whatever part of world we come from, persuaded that our own nation is superior to all others. (65) Seeing that each nation has its characteristic merits and demerits, we adjust our standard of values so as to make out that the merits possessed by our nation are the really important ones, while its demerits are comparatively trivial. (66) Here, again, the rational man will admit that the question is one to which there is no demonstrably right answer. (67) It is more difficult to deal with the self-esteem of man as man, because we cannot argue out the matter with some nonhuman mind. The only way I know of dealing with this general human conceit is to remind ourselves that man is a brief episode in the life of a small planet in a little corner of the universe, and that for aught we know, other parts of the cosmos may contain beings as superior to ourselves as we are to jellyfish.

(From How to Avoid the Foolish Opinions)

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According to the passage, what kind of writer is Constance Fenimore Woolson?

According to the passage, what’s the focus of Constance Fenimore Woolson’s imagination?

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Louis was from a small town (51) ______ Coupvray, near Paris—he was born on January 4 in

1809. Louis became blind (52) ______ accident, when he was 3 years old. Deep in his Dad’s

harness workshop, Louis tried to be like his Dad, but it went very wrong; he grabbed an awl, a

sharp tool for making holes, and the tool slid and hurt his eye. The wound got infected, and the

(53) ____ spread, and soon, Louis was blind in both eyes.

All of a sudden, Louis needed a new way to learn. He stayed at his old school for two (54)

_____ years, but he couldn’t learn everything just by listening. Things were looking up when Louis got a scholarship to the Royal Institution for Blind Youth in Paris, when he was 10. But even there, most of the teachers just talked at the students. The library had 14 huge books with raised letters that were very hard to read. Louis was (55) ______.

  Then in 1821, a former soldier named Charles Barbier visited the school. Barbier (56) ______ his invention called “night writing,” a code of 12 raised dots that let soldiers share top-secret information on the battlefield without (57) ______ having to speak. Unfortunately, the code was too hard for the soldiers, but not for 12-year-old Louis!

  Louis trimmed Barbier’s 12 dots into 6, ironed out the system by the time he was 15, then published the first-ever braille book in 1829. But did he stop there? No way! In 1837, he added symbols for math and music. But since the public was skeptical, blind students had to study braille on their own. Even at the Royal Institution, where Louis taught after he graduated, braille wasn’t (58) ______ until after his death. Braille began to spread worldwide in 1868, when a group of British men, now (59) ______ as the Royal National Institute for the Blind, took up the cause.

  Now practically every country in the world uses braille. Braille books have double-sided pages, which (60) ______ a lot of space. Braille signs help blind people get around in public spaces. And, most important, blind people can communicate independently, without needing print.

(From Louis Braille)

(sick) Doctors of that time knew very little about causes of ______ or ways of preventing it.

(comfort) Mary is very shy. So when she is with strangers she feels _______.

(lonely) Space explorers will have to face such great ______ when they travel far beyond the sun.

(distant) This is done by changing the _______ between the lens and the film inside the camera.

(long) The earth is much cooler than the sun, and the wave _____ of the earth’s radiations is much longer than that of sunrays.

(able) The Great lakes are all connected by canals, ______ ships to go from the Atlantic Ocean and the St. Lawrence River to Lake Superior.

(satisfy) The first experiments were not very ______ because the cloth became sticky in hot weather and cracked in cold weather.

(wealth) John Hancock was a ______ man who helped the patriots in the American Revolution.

(permit) Finally, the old woman was given ______ to adopt Pierre as her son.

(Europe) Most ______tourists are looking for a sunny beach to lie down.

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How long did it take Sequoyah to develop his alphabet?

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American society is much more informal than that of many other countries and, in some ways, is characterized by less social distinction. The American mixture of pride in achievement and sense of “I’m just as good as anybody else.” along with lack of importance placed on personal dignity, is difficult for a foreigner to understand. (31) ________, and they grumble loudly about inconveniences or nor getting a “fair deal.” Yet they do not make a point of their personal honor. (32) ______, John Whyte in American Words and Ways gives the following account.

  A European professor visiting in America was once sent a bill for hospital services which he had never enjoyed. The bill was accompanied by a strong letter demanding payment. (33) _____, but the professor, thoroughly aroused by this reflection on his character and financial integrity, wrote a vigorous letter of reply (which an American might also have done). But in this letter of reply he demanded that the creditor write him a formal letter of apology for this reflection on his honor. Since no publicity could possibly have been given to the mistake, for mistake it was, most Americans in that situation, after getting the matter off their chest (or without doing that) would have let the matter rest.

  An example of the same thing may be that although Americans like to talk about their accomplishments, it is their custom to show certain modesty in reply to compliments. (34) _____, which, incidentally, is a very polite thing to do in America, the American turns it aside. If someone should say, “Congratulations upon being elected president of the club,” an American is expected to reply, “Well, I hope I can do a good job,” or something of the sort. Or if someone says, “That’s a pretty blue necktie you are wearing,” an American is likely to say, “I’m glad you like it,” or “Thank you. My wife gave it to me for my birthday.” The response to a compliment seldom conveys the idea, “I, too ,think I’m pretty good.”

  (35) ______. Students do not rise when a teacher enters the room. One does not always address a person by his title, such as “Professor” or “Doctor” (“Doctor” is always used, however, for a doctor of medicine). The respectful “sir” is not always used in the northern and western parts of the country.

  Clothing in America, as in every place in the world, to a certain degree reflects a person’s social position and income, or, at least among the young , his attitudes toward society or toward himself. (36) ________. A bank president may wear overalls to paint his house and is not ashamed of either the job or the clothing, and a common laborer may wear a rented tuxedo at his daughter’s wedding.

  Yet in spite of all the informality, (37) _______. For example, one is likely to use somewhat more formal language when talking to superiors. While the informal “Hello” is an acceptable greeting from employee to employer, the employee is more apt to say, “Hello, Mr. Ferguson,” whereas the employer may reply, “Hello, Jim.” Southerners make a point of saying “Yes, sir,” or “Yes, ma’am,” or “No, sir,” or “No, ma’am,” when talking to an older person or a person in position of authority. (38) _______, “Yes ,Mr. Weston” or “No, Mrs. Baker” is somewhat more common in a similar situation in the North or West.

  (39) ______. Though people wear hats less now than in the past, women still occasionally wear hats in church and at public social functions (except those that are in the evening).

  (40) ______. He opens the door for her and lets her precede him through it. He walks on the side of the walk nearest the street. He takes her arm when crossing a street or descending a stairway. A younger person also shows respect for an older one in much the same fashion, by helping the older person in things requiring physical exertion or involving possible accident.

(From American Social Relations)

A.It was obvious that a mistake in names had been made

B.Likewise, there are fewer social conventions that show social differences in America

C.The American is quite ready to admit certain weaknesses

D.Americans in general do not like to be considered inferior

E. Yet no person is restricted to a certain uniform or manner of dress because of his occupations or class in society

F. Although this is a good form all over the United States

G. In America there are still customs by which a man may show respect for a woman

H. Although Americans are quite informal

I. America is not completely without customs that show consciousness of social distinction

J. When someone praises an American upon his achievement or upon his personal appearance

K. Certain other forms of politeness are observed on social occasions

L. As an illustration of the difference between European and American reflection in this respect

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Sequoyah spent so much time in the woods because _______ .

Sequoyah had more free time than the other tribesmen did because he was _______ .

The Cherokee alphabet _______ .

The Romans made a new kind of book out of _______ .

The Gutenberg Bible was about _______ .

Passage Six

Questions 26-30 are based on the following passage.

  Sequoyah was born about 1770 in the village of Taskigi. He was a Cherokee Indian, and, along with his entire tribe, he was illiterate. As a result of a hunting accident that left him partially crippled, he enjoyed more leisure time than other tribesmen. Then he began to ponder the idea that the Indian people might also come to possess the secret of the “talking leaf”. Alone in the woods, he spent hours playing with pieces of wood or making odd little marks on one stone with another. Neither his wife nor his friends offered him any encouragement, and many ridiculed him. However, Sequoyah was obsessed with his dream of developing an alphabet for the Cherokee language.

Passage Five

Questions 21-25 are based on the following passage.

  The first books were quite different from the books of today. They were made of baked clay tablets. Some of these tablets that have been found were used in Mesopotamia about fifty-five hundred years ago. The people of that time used symbols to represent their language. When the clay was soft, the symbols were written in the clay. After the tablets were baked, the clay hardened and the messages were permanently preserved. Most of the tablets that have been found are business records, such as deeds to certain lands in the area.

  The Egyptians found a material that was more convenient to write on than clay. They used the bark of the papyrus, a grassy plant that grows wild in the Nile Valley. They pasted layers of this bark together to make long sheets—sometimes over 100 feet long. A wooden roller was attached to each end of the sheet so that a small portion could be read, and then the papyrus could be rolled up a little to reveal a new portion of writing. Because this method was employed, the Egyptian writing was done in columns, reading from top to bottom.

  For centuries, this type of book was used in Greece, Egypt, China and Rome. The Romans made roll books of vellum, a soft parchment made from the skins of young animals such as lambs, kids or calves. About 300 A.D.a new type of book was developed: three or four sheets of vellum were folded and sewn together. Then the ends were cut so that the pages could be turned.

  The Chinese began printing books during the Middle Ages, long before the Europeans. Their printing type was made of baked clay and their books were made of paper—another Chinese invention. The Chinese books looked very much like our modern books. However, the Chinese had little or no contact with Europe at that time, so it is not clear whether the Europeans learned about printing from the Chinese.

  The first known inventor of printing in Europe was Johannes Gutenberg of Germany. The first book printed in his workshop was a Latin Bible. A few copies of this first book still exist. They are now over 500 years old. The Gutenberg Bible was printed on a hand press with type made of lead. Most of the copies were printed on paper, but a few were printed on vellum. The books are about 12 inches wide and 16.5 inches long.

The oldest books found were made of _______ .

The oldest books known were found in _______ .

The first printed books were made by the _______ .

The author mentions Howells and James to _______.

According to the passage, Constance Fenimore Woolson was originally from_______.

The word “drawn” in the first sentence of the second paragraph is closest in meaning to _______

Passage Four

Questions 16 to 20 are based on the following passage.

_______are NOT mentioned in the passage as the kind of people who went to the South after the Civil War.

In the author’s opinion, why was 2001 successful?

What does the author most object to in the science fiction movies of the 1970s?

The author believes that the best science fiction movie made in the 1970s was _______.

The theme of the majority of science fiction films made between 1970 and 1977 was _______.

According to the passage, how was the organization of the Iroquois Confederation a forerunner of the United States Constitution?

Passage Three

Questions 11 to 15 are based on the following passage.

  Unfortunately, most of the science fiction films of the 1970s were not much influenced by 2001:A Space Odyssey. Skillfully directed by Stanley Kubrick, 2001, which appeared in 1968, set new standards for science fiction films. During the next decade, every one of the dozens of science fiction movies released was compared to 2001, and all but a few were found sadly lacking.

Before the introduction of horses, the Blackfeet tribes were________.

It can be inferred from the passage that the life-styles of the various American Indian tribes were influenced most by________.

The Mandan tribes could best be classified as ________.

This passage supports the belief that _______.

Passage Two

Questions 6 to 10 are based on the following passage.

  When Christopher Columbus landed in the New World, the North American continent was an area of astonishing ethnic and cultural diversity. North of the Rio Grande, which now marks the border between the United States and Mexico, has a population of over 12 million people representing approximately 400 distinct cultures, 500 languages, and a remarkable variety of political and religious institutions and physical and ethnic types, Compared to the Europeans, the Indian peoples were extraordinarily heterogeneous, and they often viewed the Europeans as just another tribe.

  These varied tribal cultures were as diversified as the land the Indians inhabited. In the high plains of the Dakotas, the Mandan developed a peaceful communal society centered around agriculture. Only a few hundred miles away, however, in northwestern Montana, the Blackfeet turned from agriculture and began to use horses, which had been introduced by the Spaniards. As skilled riders, they became hunters and fighters and developed a fierce and aggressive culture centered around the buffalo. In the eastern woodlands surrounding the Great Lakes, the Potawatomis were expert fishermen, canoe builders, and hunters. In the Northeast, the six Iroquois nations were among the most politically sophisticated people in the world, forming the famed Iroquois Confederation, which included the Senecas and the Mohawks. This confederation, with its system of checks and balances, provided a model for the United States Constitution.

About how many different cultures existed among the fifteenth-century North American Indians?

The author states that birds left the tropics because_______.

Why did one scientist expose birds to artificial daylight?

According to the theory of photoperiodism, _______.

Passage One

Questions 1 to 5 are based on the following passage.