Passage Four

When the German cruise ship Wilhelm Gustloff was hit by torpedoes fired from a Russian submarine in the final winter of World War II, more than 10,000people - mostly women, children and old people fleeing the final Red Army push into Nazi Germany — were packed aboard. An ice storm had turned the decks into frozen sheets that sent hundreds of families sliding into the sea as the ship tilted and began to go down. Others desperately tried to put lifeboats down. Some who succeeded fought off those in the water who had the strength to try to claw their way aboard. Most people froze immediately. “I'll never forget the screams,” says Christa Nutzmann, 87, one of the 1,200 survivors. She recalls watching the ship, brightly lit, slipping into its dark grave — and into seeming nothingness, rarely mentioned for more than half a century. 

Now Germany's Nobel Prize-winning author Gunter Grass has revived the memory of the 9,000 dead, including more than 4,000 children — with his latest novel Crab Walk, published last month. The book, which will be out in English next year, doesn't dwell on the sinking; its heroine is a pregnant young woman who survives the catastrophe only to say later: “Nobody wanted to hear about it, no there in the West (of Germany) and not at all in the East.” The reason was obvious. As Grass put it in a recent interview with the weekly Die Woche: “Because the crimes we Germans are responsible for were and are so dominant, we didn’t have the energy left to tell of our own sufferings.”

The long silence about the sinking of the Wilhelm Gustloff was probably unavoidable and necessary. By unreservedly admitting to their country’s monstrous crimes in the Second World War, Germans have managed to win acceptance abroad, marginalize the neo-Nazis at home and make peace with their neighbors. Today's unified Germany is more prosperous and stable than at any time in its long, troubled history. For that, a half century of willful forgetting about painful memories like the German Titanic was perhaps a reasonable price to pay. But even the most politically correct Germans believe that they have now earned the right to discuss the full historical record. Not to equate German suffering with that of its victims, but simply to acknowledge a terrible tragedy.

Questions 16- 20 are based on Passage Four.

Why does the author say the sinking of the Wilhelm Gustloff was a terrible tragedy?

Animal life first appeared on the earth about 400 million years ago. Through the passing millennia, thousands of animal species have come and gone. Until recently, this process was gradual, the result of changes in climate, in habitat, or in the genes of the animals themselves. (46. But the tremendous expansion of modern civilization now threatens to upset this natural balance, putting unprecedented pressure on the survival of our wildlife. )

This imbalance can be traced to many causes. Most arise in the greed and poor planning of man himself. (47. With each increase in man's population the wilderness areas where the animals live get smaller. The use of pesticides to control injurious insects also harms wild birds and animals.) Water pollution kills fish in our rivers, lakes, and oceans. Hunters have almost exterminated many of the larger animals like the bighorn sheep and the grizzly bear. And farmers destroy smaller animals like the prairie dog and the coyote. As a result of this unrelenting pressure, our wildlife is disappearing at the rate of one species or subspecies per year.

(48. Of all the continents. the most drastic reduction in wildlife has occurred in North America. where the transition from a rural to a highly industrialized society has been most rapid.) Among the victims are birds, mammals, and fish. We will never again see the passenger pigeon or the eastern elk. They have been wiped out. Of, many other species, only a few representatives still survive in the wild. The U.S. Department of the Interior has put no fewer than 109 species on the endangered species list. (An endangered species is one with poor prospects for survival and in need of protection.) This list includes everything from the timber wolf to the whooping crane. Even the bald eagle, our national symbol, is threatened.

Animals that kill other game for food are called predators. The predators include the wolf, mountain lion, fox, bobcat, and bear. (49. Attack against these animals began with the arrival of the first European settlers. who wished to protect their livestock. Eventually, a reward was offered to hunters for every predator that was killed.) This reward is called a bounty. Ironically, the Federal government is the chief funder of predator-control programs.

The settlers also brought with them their Old World fears and superstitions concerning predators. Whether preying on livestock or not, predators were shot on sight. This attitude continues to this day for coyotes, eagles, foxes, mountain lions, and bobcats, and is largely responsible for placing the eastern timber wolf, grizzly bear, and bald eagle on the endangered species list.

Yet every animal, including the predator, has its place in nature's grand design. Predators help maintain the health of their prey species by eliminating the diseased, young, old, and injured. Predators like the mountain lion and the wolf help to keep the deer herds healthy. (50 Their kill also provides food for scavengers that feed on carrion. Occasional loss of livestock must be weighed against the good these animals do in maintaining the balance of nature.)

Paragraph Ten

When you wear cap and gown at ceremony of conferring degrees or diplomas, you will be following a custom that is many centuries old. The use of caps and gowns in college and universities goes back to medieval times. Nearly all gowns are made of black cloth.

Some doctoral gowns use other colors, but the vast majorities are black.The dresses at g______.

Paragraph Eight

There is generally a certain proportion between a living creature's length of life and the time it takes to grow to full size. There also exists some relationship between the growing body and the growing brain. The animals with more complicated bodies and brains develop more slowly, and are dependent longer upon their mothers than do creatures with simpler systems.

The c_____ of the growth of animals.

Paragraph Seven

There is one kind of pain for which nobody has yet found a cure — the pain that comes from the ending of a relationship. The relationship could be a marriage, a love affair or a deep friendship; in fact any strong emotional tie between two people. Such a relationship may come to an abrupt but premeditated end.

The g_____ caused by ending of a relationship.

Paragraph Nine

Mark Twain remarked that he could live for two months on one good compliment. How true! Haven't we all repeated someone's admiring words over and over in our minds, without losing the inspiration they give? There are people everywhere in need of a good word, that is, an inspiring compliment to fire their hopes and dreams.

The power of e______.

Paragraph Five

To achieve a favorable outcome from the negotiations, an exporter should draw up a plan of action beforehand, which addresses a few key issues. Experienced negotiators consider that as much as 80% of their overall time devoted to negotiations should go to such preparations.

Preparations are vital to the s____ of negotiations.

Paragraph Six

A good solution to the waste and energy problems would be one which solves them both, according to modern scientists. The possible solution would be to generate energy from wastes. Municipalities with large waste-disposal problems are likely to be attracted to incinerators that convert combustion heat to usable energy.

I______ use of waste for energy production.

Paragraph Four

Healthy families maintain parental authority and flexibility. They listen to their children's wishes, complaints and feelings and make decisions based on what they believe is best for the child. They don't give in when society or children object. Instead, the parents state expectations and explain rules clearly and reasonably. Such parents also tend to allow children a voice in rules and consequences as they mature.

P_____ of good parenting.

Paragraph One

The relationship between a sales person and a client is important as both parties want to feel satisfied with their deal and neither wants to feel cheated. A sales person should believe that his product has certain advantage over the competition. A customer wants to be sure that he is buying a product that is of good value and high quality.

M______ benefit of business deals.

Paragraph Three

Tears have a more complex chemical composition than was imagined and they might act as one of the body's waste disposal system. Evidence from tear research may warrant a drastic change in our thinking about crying. Although there is such a thing as people weeping to excess, crying in response to various emotions is a natural physical process that we should not be ashamed of.

It is not a shame to let the tears f_____.