PART ⅥREADING COMPREHENSION［30 MIN.］
SECTION A READING COMPREHENSION ［25 MIN.］
In this section there arepassages followed by questions or unfinished statements, each with suggested answers marked A, B, C and D. Choose the one that you think is the correct answer. Mark your choicess on your ANSWER SHEET.
TEXT A
The Pony ExpressIn the United States today, we can send a letter from coast to coast in just a few days for well under half dollar. But news did not always travel as fast or as cheaply as it does today. In the mid 1800s, trains and horse-drawn coaches carried mail. It took many weeks for news to travel from New York to California.In 1860, the railroad and telegraph reached only from the East Coast to Missouri, less than halfway across the country. Horse-drawn coaches, which were very slow, then carried the mail from Missouri to California. In April 1860, the Pony Express began to carry the mail from St. Joseph, Missouri, to Sacramento, California. The trip took just ten dayshalf the time the coaches took.The Pony Express was a horse relay system.There were stations every 10 or 15miles along the route, which was nearly 3,200 kilometers (2,000 miles) long. Fresh horses were at each station. The riders, with their heavy mailbags, changed horses at every station. They continued riding full speed for a total of about 100 miles. Then another rider took over and continued riding.The Pony Express riders rode through dangerous territory,including mountains,deserts, and Indian lands.Bad weather didn’t stop these tough riders, either.
They rode through rain, snow, sleet, and blizzards, both night and day. The riders, therefore, had to be both brave and strong. Some newspapers in 1860 carried this advertisement:
Wanted: Young, skinny, wiry fellows, not over 18. Must be expert riders, willing to risk death daily. Orphans preferred.
Most of the young Pony Express riders completed the ride successfully. Some of them even became famous for their courage and bravery during difficult rides. What did these young men get paid for their bravery? Twenty-five dollars a week. And what was the cost of sending a letter by Pony Express? Five dollars a half-ounce in 1860, then reduced to two dollars in 1861.
In October 1861, the telegraph reached California. The Pony Express disappeared after this and became a short but exciting chapter in American history.
66. What is the usage of the Pony Express?
A. To help people travel from coast to coast.
B. To train riders for competition.
C. To transfer materials and messages.
D. To arrest criminals in the West.
67. How long did the Pony Express Exist?
A. 61 years.B. 6 months.
C. One year.D. 18 months.
68. According to the passage, the Pony Express riders are____.
A. orphansB. well over 18
C. skillful cart-drivers
D. courageous and brave young men
TEXT B
Blind people usually possess one advantage over other people who can see: their sense of hearing is far more acute. Sounds which most others would miss can carry a great deal of information to a sightless person. For instance, teams of blind children can enjoy fast-moving games of soccer with a bell inside the ball and a new hand-held ultrasonic device to guide them. And that sound-location system could help to build up an even more complete sound picture of a blind person’s surroundings.
Bats, whose sight is poor, use a sound-location system to help them avoid obstacles in the dark. They send out pulses of sound waves, pitched at 50,000 cycles per second, far above the limits of the human ear, which can hear sounds up to frequencies of about 20,000 cycles per second. As the echoes bounce back off obstacles such as trees and walls, the bats are able to take appropriate action.
The first steps to help blind people to see with sound are based on exactly the same principle. The sound is emitted by an ultrasonic torch, shaped like a double-barreled version of a normal electric torch. It works in a similar way to a sonar unit on a warship or submarine.
The unit’s transmitter sends out pulses of ultrasonic waves at the same frequency as the bat, and the receiver picks up the returning echoes. Because these are still above the frequency at which the human ear can pick them up, the echoes are filtered through circuits which turn them into clearly audible `bleeps’ before passing them into headphones.
This means that a person holding the torch can point it ahead of him and `scan’ the area for obstacles over a range of about 25 ft. If there are no return echoes coming through the headphones, then there is nothing in the way.
If echoes do come back, then the closer the obstruction, the faster the succession of bleeps and the deeper the pitch of each bleep. With practice the torch could help a blind person to lead a more normal lifewithout needing a constant companion to guide him. Experienced operators of the torch system claim they can distinguish grass from bushes, trees, pests and curbstones.
But before blind people can be helped to feel really independent, the system needs to be more streamlined. At present, the experimental ultrasonic torch requires a shoulder bag to carry the batteries, cables for the power supplies and earphones, in addition to the torch itself. But miniaturization of electronic equipment is making such rapid progress that it should not be long before the whole set-up can be reproduced in a form small enough to fit into a pair of spectacles.
The transmitter and power supplies, with all the circuitry, would be packed into the bridge-piece above the nose. The sending and receiving sensors would be in the `lenses’. And the filtered bleeps would be passed on to the wearer through the earpieces, as with present-day hearing-aid spectacles.
This would mean that scanning one’s surroundings would become instinctive.
The wearer would face in the direction he wanted to check, and lift or lower his head just as a sighted person would.
69. How do blind children play soccer?
A. They listen to the sound of the ball bouncing.
B. They ask an adult to guide them.
C. They hold a bell in their hands.
D. They put a bell inside the ball.
70. The attempt to help blind people to see with sound____
A. was similar to the sound location system of the bats
B. led to a product that sent out sound waves of about 20,000 cycles per second
C. was experimented on a submarine
D. turned out to be a failure
71. The returning echoes the receiver picks up are____
A. clearly audible bleeps
B. inaudible to human ears
C. immediately passed on to headphones
D. filtered through the transmitter
72. Which of the following is NOT true about the ultrasonic torch?
A. It enables the blind to live a more normal life.
B. It is mainly used to scan the area in front of the operator for obstacles.
C. Fast succession of bleeps indicates that the obstacle is near.
D. Its sound can warn other people of the blind man’s approach.
www.59wj.comTEXT C
Americans this year will swallow 15,000 tons of aspirin, one of the safest and most effective drugs invented by man. The most popular medicine in the world today, it is an effective pain reliever. Its bad effects are relatively mild and it is cheap.
For millions of people suffering from arthritis, it is the only thing that works. Aspirin, in short, is truly the 20th-century wonder drug. It is also the second largest suicide drug and is the leading cause of poisoning among children.
It has side effects that, although relatively mild, are largely unrecognized among users.
Although aspirin was first sold by a German company in 1899, it has been around much longer than that. Hippocrates, in ancient Greece, understood the medical value of the leaves and tree bark which today are known to contain salicylates, the chemical in aspirin. During the 19th century, there was a great deal of experimentation in Europe with this chemical, and it led to the introduction of aspirin. By 1915, aspirin tablets were available in the United States.
A small quantity of aspirin (two five-grain tablets) relieves pain and inflammation. It also reduces fever by interfering with some of the body’s reactions.
Specifically, aspirin seems to slow down the formation of the acids involved in pain and the complex chemical reactions that cause fever. The chemistry of these acids is not fully understood, but the slowing effect of aspirin is well known.
Aspirin is very irritating to the stomach lining and many aspirin takers complain about upset stomach. There is a right way and a wrong way to take aspirin. The best way is to chew the tablets before swallowing them with water, but few people can stand the bitter taste. Some people suggest crushing the tablets in milk or orange juice and drinking that.
73. The information in paragraph 2 shows that____.
A. aspirin can be dangerous
B. aspirin is always safe
C. aspirin has been around a long time
D. aspirin should be forbidden to apply to children
74. What are salicylates?
A. Leaves and tree bark.
B. The chemical in aspirin.
C. Aspirin tablets.
D. A Greek doctor.
75. Which of the following statement is NOT mentioned in the passage?
A. Aspirin has side effects on the stomach.
B. Aspirin can reduce fever.
C. The inventor of Aspirin lived in Greece.
D. One can use Aspirin to kill himself.
76. A good title for this article would be____.
A. Aspirin: the Most Popular Medicine in the World
B. Why I Take Aspirin
C. The Side Effects of Aspirin
D. How to Take Aspirin
TEXT D
Today’s trumpet is one of the world’s oldest instruments. It is really the result of many centuries of development. Although it looks nothing like its ancestors, there are many similarities. All trumpets are hollow tubes. They are all blown. And they all use the player’s lips to produce the basic sound.
The trumpet developed as players and makers worked to improve its design, size, shape, material, and method of construction. They wanted to create an instrument that would produce a beautiful and attractive tone, enable the performer to play all the notes of scale, extend the range higher and lower, make it possible to play more beautiful music, and, in general, be easier to play well. The remarkable way in which the modern trumpet achieves these goals is a measure of the success of all those who struggled to perfect this glorious instrument.
The trumpet is actually the leading member of an entire family of related instruments. There are trumpets of several different sizes, and in several different keys. There are cornets(短号), bugles, flugelhorns, and a number of others that are all similar to the trumpet in the way they are made and played.
The trumpet family is much than a group of related instruments that can stir one with their sound, or narrow tubes of metal capable of producing a variety of musical sounds. It is a link to many different periods of history and to people of many cultures. From the use of trumpets in ancient religious ceremonies to the part they play in modern rock bands, the trumpet family of instruments has much to tell about civilization and its development.
77. It can be inferred from the passage that which of the following is needed to make the trumpet work?
A. Air pressure.B. Daily cleaning.
C. Keen eyesight.D. Longer fingers.
78. Which of the following can be inferred about the first trumpet players?
A. They could not play all the notes of the scale.
B. They were not able to pick up the trumpet.
C. They could not play simple tunes.
D. They had difficulty improving upon the trumpet.
79. How many instruments are mentioned in the passage?
A. Two.B. Three.C. Four.D.Five.
80. The author believes that the trumpet is particularly important because it____.
A. can be used in rock bands
B. has historical significance
C. is a religious instrument
D. has a narrow range
www.59wj.comSECTION B SKIMMING AND SCANNING［5 MIN.］
In this section there are five passages with a total of ten multiple-choice questions. Skim or scan them as required and then mark your answers on your ANSWER SHEET.
TEXT E
First read the following questions.
81. Which one of the following statements is true according to the passage?
A. By and large, dentists are honest professionals.
B. Because of the large sums of money Americans spend on dental care, their teeth are in excellent condition.
C. Generally speaking, the results of poor dental care do not show up until very late in life.
D. For the most part, dentists think that Americans should assume greater responsibility in maintaining the health of their teeth.
82. The author of this passage states that the average American____.
A. still has the majority of his natural teeth at the age of 70
B. annually spends relatively little on health care
C. has a 50/50 chance of having gum disease by the age of 40
D. may very likely wear a bridge or denture by the age of 25
Now skim the passage below and mark your answers on your ANSWER SHEET.
Oral health care is, these days, a big, booming business. According to Ralph Nader, Americans spend some $5 billion on dental care each year. Yet, despite the tremendous amounts of money, time and energy given over to oral health, dental literature indicates that about half the population in this country has lost all of its teeth by age 65. Nearly half of all people over age 20 wear a bridge or denture, and more than 20 percent have complete upper and lower dentures. By age 50, one out of every two persons has gum disease.
The dental profession blames neglectful Americans themselves. About half the population, it claims, fails to visit the dentist regularly and some 30 million never do. Critics, on the other hand, slam the profession. It can be conservatively estimated that at least 15 percent of United States dentists are incompetent,dishonest, or both, says a former Pennsylvania Commissioner of Insurance. Some have set the figure as high as 50 percent.
TEXT F
First read the following questions.
83. How much of the earth’s water can man really use?
A. He can use nearly 75% of it.
B. He can use about 97% of it.
C. He can use less than 3% of it.
D. He can use exactly 3% of it.
84. How can we avoid a worldwide water shortage in the future?
A. We can develop ways of reusing water.
B. We can invent ways of increasing rainfall.
C. We may use less water.
D. We may build fewer steel plants.
Now skim the passage below and mark your answers on your ANSWER SHEET.
The world is not only hungry, but thirsty for water. That may seem strange to you, since nearly 75% of the earth surface is covered with water. But about 97% of this huge amount is seawater, or salt water. Man can only drink and use the other 3%the fresh water from rivers, lakes, underground, and other sources. And we cannot even use all of that, because some of it is in the form of icebergs and glaciers. Even worse, some of it has been polluted.
However, this small amount of fresh water is still enough for us. But our need for water is increasing rapidly.Only if we take steps to deal with this problem now can we avoid a severe worldwide water shortage later on.
One of the first steps is to develop ways of reusing it. Today water is used only once and then discharged into a sewer system, and it eventually return to the sea or runs into underground storage tanks. But it is possible to pipe used water to a purifying plant. There it can be filtered and treated with chemicals so that it can be used again.
But even if every large city purified and reused its water, we still would not have enough. All we’d have to do to make use of the seawater in the world is to remove the salt.If we take these steps we’ll be in no danger of drying up!
TEXT G
First read the following question.
85. The main idea of this passage is____.
A. how to raise goldfish
B. where a goldfish of normal size can survive
C. how to feed goldfish
D. we should keep goldfish as pets
Now skim the passage below and mark your answer on your ANSWER SHEET.
Because goldfish can be kept easily in small ponds and aquariums, they make good pets, but like any other pets, they must have proper care and the right place to live.
A two-inch fish requires a minimum of two gallons of water containing sufficient oxygen to support life. Some oxygen will make its way into the water of an aquarium from the air that touches the surface; plants in an aquarium also help to furnish oxygen. Snails help to keep an aquarium clean. Thus, with plenty of plants and snails, the water in an aquarium does not have to be changed frequently.
It is important that goldfish not be overfed. They can be fed such things as dried insects and shrimp in addition to commercially-prepared goldfish food, but they should never be fed more than once a day. Even then, they should not be given more food than can be consumed in about five minutes.
www.59wj.comTEXT H
First read the following questions.
86. For whom the short term insurance program is NOT ideal?
A. Underemployed people.
B. Unemployed people.
C. Part-time jobholders.
D. Graduating students.
87. Who is eligible for the short term health insurance?
A. Female, 30 years old, healthy, pregnant.
B. Male, 23 years old, healthy, basketball player.
C. Female, 59 years old, healthy, doctor.
D. Male, 18 years old, healthy, pilot.
Now skim the passage below and mark your answers on your ANSWER SHEET.
Short term health insurance is a special form of insurance with certain eligibility criteria. It is strictly an indemnity plan and has high limits of maximum coverage ($1-2 million). There are several co-insurance and deductible options with appropriate relative premiums.There are many different types of people for whom short term insurance is ideal:
*People between jobs.
*People laid-off from work.
*People graduating from college.
*Students who are no longer eligible under their parents’ health insurance.
*People waiting for their own Group Insurance eligibility. Short term insurance has certain eligibility requirements (although these may vary from carrier to carrier). You are eligible if:
*You are healthy and free of pre-existing conditions.
*You are between 15 days and 65 years old. Consequently, you are not eligible if:
*You have pre-existing health conditions excluded by your short term insurance carrier.
*You received medical consultation or treatment within last five years for serious conditions (i.e. heart attack, stroke, leukemia, cancer, etc.).
*You’ve been denied insurance for health reasons.
*You are currently pregnant.
*You have membership in any other medical insurance, HMO or other healthcare service plan (including retroactive effective ones).
*You train or play in professional or college sports.
*You work in a hazardous industry (i.e. construction, aviation, etc.).
TEXT I
First read the following questions.
88. What is the style of the passage?
A. Narration.
B. Description.
C. Advertising.
D. Prose.
89. How many pictures can the watch store?
A. 50.B. 100.C. 4.D. 25.
90. Which function of the Wrist Watch Camera is NOT provided?
A. It can be used as a watch.
B. It can take color pictures.
C. It can upload the pictures to a PC with the Kit.
D. It can be used as a camera.
Now skim the passage below and mark your answers on your ANSWER SHEET.
WRIST WATCH CAMERA (FREE $50 SOFTWARE PKG.)
$199.00! For the person who’s got to have the latest and best of all gadgets...THIS IS IT! UNBELIEVEABLY COOL! A wrist watch and a DIGITAL CAMERA. Imagine always having a camera with you. The usage is unlimited. Taking a picture of your loved ones, take a snapshot of a license plate of a car, photograph a URL in a magazine so you can check it out later, taking photos of a Porsche you want to buy but want to show it to your wife first, catching somebody red handed, and so on. In camera mode the watch display works like a little Video Screen. The screen shows in Real-time what the lens on the side of the watch is picking up. By pressing the shutter button a picture is taken. The watch stores 100 black and white images.....no developing necessary!! For a limited time only we are giving away FREE a software kit with each Camera Watch that enables you to upload the pictures to a PC, this is a $50 value. The Kit works for Windows 95/98/NT 4.0 and lets you organize your pictures, email them to others and it even has a Screensaver function where you can display your downloaded images as your screensaver. The Casio Wrist Camera is the musthavegadget of the year!
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