英语四六级长篇阅读练习一

四六级阅读是⼀个考验理解能⼒的部分，但是⼜是最容易涨分的⼀个部分，只要童鞋们平时多做练习，阅读拿⾼分是没有问题的。

以下是yjbys⽹店铺整理的关于长篇阅读练习题及答案，供⼤家备考。

Section B Directions: In this section, you are going to read a passage with ten statements attached to it. Each statement contains information given in one of the paragraphs. Identify the paragraph from which the information is derived. You may choose a paragraph more than once. Each paragraph is marked with a letter Answer the questions by marking the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2. Endangered Peoples A) Today, it is not distance, but culture that separates the peoples of the world. The central question of our time may be how to deal with cultural differences. So begins the book, Endangered Peoples, by Art Davidson. It is an attempt to provide understanding of the issues affecting the world's native peoples. This book tells the stories of 21 tribes, cultures, and cultural areas that are struggling to survive. It tells each story through the voice of a member of the tribe .Mr. Davidson recorded their words. Art Wolfe and John Isaac took pictures of them. The organization called the Sierra Club published the book. B) The native groups live far apart in North America or South America, Africa or Asia. Yet their situations are similar. They are fighting the march of progress in an effort to keep themselves and their cultures alive. Some of them follow ancient ways most of the time. Some follow modern ways most of the time. They have one foot in ancient world and one foot in modern world. They hope to continue to balance between these two worlds. Yet the pressures to forget their traditions and join the modern world may be too great. C) Rigoberta Menchu of Guatemala, the Nobel Peace Prize winner in 1992, offers her thoughts in the beginning of the book Endangered Peoples. She notes that many people claim that native people are like stories from the past. They are ruins that have died. She disagrees strongly. She says native communities are not remains of the past. They have a future, and they have much wisdom and richness to offer the rest of the world. D) Art Davidson traveled thousands of miles around the world while working on the book. He talked to many people to gather their thoughts and feelings. Mr. Davidson notes that their desires are the same. People want to remain themselves~ he says. They want to raise their children the way they were raised. They want their children to speak their mother tongue, their own language. They want them to have their parents' values and customs. Mr. Davidson says the people's cries are the same: "Does our culture have to die? Do we have to disappear as a people?" E) Art Davidson lived for more than 25 years among native people in the American state of Alaska. He says his interest in native peoples began his boyhood when he found an ancient stone arrowhead. The arrowhead was used as a weapon to hunt food. The hunter was an American Indian, long dead. Mr. Davidson realized then that Indians had lived in the state of Colorado, right where he was standing. And it was then, he says, that he first wondered: "Where are they? Where did they go? "He found answers to his early question. Many of the native peoples had disappeared. They were forced off their lands. Or they were killed in battle. Or they died from diseases brought by new settlers. Other native peoples remained, but they had to fight to survive the pressures of the modern world. F) The Gwich'in are an example of the survivors. They have lived in what is now Alaska and Canada for 10,000 years. Now about 5,000 Gwich'in remain. They are mainly hunters. They hunt the caribou, a large deer with big horns that travels across the huge spaces of the far north. For centuries, they have used all parts of the caribou: the meat for food, the skins for clothes, the bones for tools. Hunting caribou is the way of life of the Gwich'in. G) One Gwich'in told Art Davidson of memories from his childhood. It was a time when the tribe lived quietly in its own corner of the world. He spoke to Mr. Davidson in these words: "As long as I canremember, someone would sit by a fire on the hilltop every spring and autumn. His job was to look for caribou. If he saw a caribou, he would wave his arms or he would make his fire to give off more smoke. Then the village would come to life! People ran up to the hilltop. The tribes seemed to be at its best at these gatherings. We were all filled with happiness and sharing!" H) About ten years ago, the modern world invaded the quiet world of the Gwich' in. Oil companies wanted to drill for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Preserve. This area was the please where the caribou gave birth to their young. The Gwich'in feared the caribou would disappear. One Gwich' in woman describes the situation in these words: "Oil development threatens the caribou. If the caribou are threatened, then the people are threatened. Oil company official and American lawmakers do not seem to understand. They do not come into our homes and share our food. They have never tried to understand the feeling expressed in our songs and our prayers. They have not seen the old people cry. Our elders have seen parts of our culture destroyed. They worry that our people may disappear forever." I) A scientist with a British oil company dismisses (驳回，打消) the fears of the Gwich'in. He also says they have no choice. They will have to change. The Gwich' in, however, are resisting. They took legal action to stop the oil companies. But they won only a temporary ban on oil development in the Arctic National Wildlife Preserve. Pressures continue on other native people, as Art Davidson describes in his book. The pressures come from expanding populations, dam projects that flood tribal lands, and political and economic conflicts threaten the culture, lands, and lives of such groups as the Quechua of Peru, the Malagasy of Madagascar and the Ainu of Japan. J) The organization called Cultural Survival has been in existence for 22 years. It tries to protect the rights and cultures of peoples throughout the world. It has about 12,000 members. And it receives help from a large number of students who work without pay. Theodore MacDonald is director of the Cultural Survival Research Center. He says the organization has three main jobs. It does research and publishes information. It works with native people directly. And it creates markets for goods produced by native communities. K) Late last year, Cultural Survival published a book called State of the Peoples: a Global Human Rights Report on Societies in Danger. The book contains reports from researchers who work for Cultural Survival, from experts on native peoples, and from native peoples themselves. The book describes the conditions of different native and minority groups. It includes longer reports about several threatened societies, including the Penan of Malaysia and the Anishina be of North American. And it provides the names of organizations similar to Cultural Survival for activists, researchers and the press. L) David May bury-Lewis started the Cultural Survival organization. Mr. May bury-Lewis believes powerful groups rob native peoples of their lives, lands, or resources. About 6,000 groups are left in the world. A native group is one that has its own langue. It has a long-term link to a homeland. And it has governed itself. Theodore MacDonald says Cultural Survival works to protect the rights of groups, not just individual people. He says the organization would like to develop a system of early warnings when these rights are threatened .Mr. MacDonald notes that conflicts between different groups within a country have been going on forever and will continue. Such conflicts, he says, cannot be prevented. But they do not have to become violent. What Cultural Survival wants is to help set up methods that lead to peaceful negotiations of traditional differences. These methods, he says, are a lot less costly than war. 46. Rigoberta Menchu, the Nobel Peace Prize winner in 1992, writes preface for the book Endangered Peoples. 47. The book Endangered Peoples contents not only words, but also pictures. 48. Art Davidson's initial interest in native people was aroused by an ancient stone arrowhead he found in his childhood, which was once used by an American Indian hunter. 49. The native groups are trying very hard to balance between the ancient world and the modern world. 50. By talking with them, Art Davidson finds that the native people throughout the world desire to remain themselves. 51. Most of the Gwich'in are hunters, who live on hunting caribou. 52. Cultural Survival is an organization which aims at protecting the rights and cultures of peoples throughout the world. 53. According to Theodore MacDonald, the Cultural Survival organization .would like to develop a system of early warnings when a society's rights are to be violated. 54. The book State of the Peoples: a Global Human Rights Report on Societies in Danger describes the conditions of different native and minority groups. 55. The Gwich' in tried to stop oil companies from drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Preserve for fear that it should drive the caribou away。

英语四级长篇阅读练习题及答案解析四级长篇阅读练习题：Promote Learning and Skills for Young People and AdultsA) This goal places the emphasis on the learning needs of young people and adults in the context of lifelong learning.It calls for fair access to learning programs that are appropriate，and mentions life skills particularly.B)Education is about giving people the opportunity to develop their potential，their personality and their strengths.This does not merely mean learning new knowledge，but also developing abilities to make the most of life.These are called life skills——including the inner capacities and the practical skills we need.C)Many of the inner capacities——often known as psych0—social skills——cannot be taught as subjects.They are not the same as academic or technical learnin9.They must rather be modeled and promoted as part of learning，and in particular by teachers.These skills have to do with the way we behave—towards other people，towards ourselves，towards the challenges and problems of life.They include skills in communicating，in making decisions and solving problems，in negotiating and expressing ourselves，in thinking critically and understanding our feelings.D)More practical life skills are the kinds of manual skills we need for the physical tasks we face.Some would include vocational skills under the heading of life skills——the ability to lay bricks.sew clothes，catch fish or repair a motorbike.These are skills by which people may earn their livelihood and which are often available to young people leaving school.In fact，very often young people learn psycho-social skills as they learn more practical skills.Learning vocational skills can be a strategy for acquiring both practical and psycho-social skills.E)We need to increase our life skills at every stage of life，so learning them may be part of early child—hood education.of primary and secondary education and of adult learning groups.Life skills can be put into the categories that the Jacques Delors report suggested;it spoke of four pillars of education，which correspond to certain kinds of life skills —Learning to know：Thinking abilities：such as problem—solving，critical thinking，decision making，understanding consequences.Learning to be：Personal abilities：such as managing stress and feelings，self-awareness，self-confidence.Learning to live together：Social abilities：such as communication，negotiation，teamwork.Learning to do： Manual skills：practicing know-how required for work and tasks.F)In todays world all these skills are necessary, in order to face rapid change in society.This means that it is important to know how to go on learning as we require new skills for life and work.In addition，we need to know how to cope with the flood of information and turn it in to useful knowledge.We also need to learn how to handle change in society and in our own lives.G)Life skills are both concrete and abstract—practical skills can be learned directly, as a subject.For example, a learner can take a course in laying bricks and learn that skill.Other life skills，such asself-confidence，self-esteem，and skills for relating to others or thinking critically cannot be taught in such direct ways.They should be part of any learning process，where teachers or instructors are concerned that learners should not just learn about subjects，but learn how to cope with life and make the most of their potential.H)So these life skills may be learnt when learning other things.For example：Learning literacy may have a big impact on self-esteem，on critical thinking or on communication skills;Learning practical skills s ach as drivin9，healthcare or tailoring may increase self-confidence，teach problem—solving processes or help in understanding consequences.I) Whether this is true depends on the way of teachin9—what kinds of thinkin9，relationship building and communication the teacher or facilitator models themselves and promotes among the learners.It would require measuring the individual and collective progress in making the most of learning and of life，or assessing how far human potential is being realized，or estimating how well people cope with change.It is easier to measure the development of practical skills，for instance by counting the number of students who register for vocational skills courses.However, this still may not tell us how effectively these skills are being used.J)The psych0.social skills cannot easily be measured by tests and scores，but become visible in Chang behavior.Progress in this area has often been noted by teachers on reports which they make to the parentsof their pupils.The teachers experience of life，of teaching and of what can be expected from education in the broadest sense serve as a standard by which the growth and development of individuals can be assessed to some extent.This kind of assessment is individual and may never appear in international tables and charts.K)The current challenges relate to these difficulties：We need to recognize the importance of life skillsboth practical and psycho-socialas part of education which leads to the full development of human potential and to the development of society.The links between psycho—social skills and practical skills must be more clearly spelled out，so that educators can promote both together and find effective ways to do this.Since life skills are taught as part of a wide range of subjects，teachers need to have training in how to put them across and how to monitor learnersgrowth in these areas.In designing curricula and syllabuses for academic subjects，there must be a balance between content teaching and attention to the accompanying life skills.A more conscious and deliberate effort to promote life skills will enable learners to become more active citizens in the life of society.L) Governments should recognize and actively advocate for the transformational role of education in realizing human potential and in socio—economic development.Ensure that curricula and syllabuses address life skills and give learners the opportunity to make real-life applications of knowledge，skills and attitudes.Show how life skills of all kinds apply in the world of work，for example，negotiating and communication skills，as well practical skills.Through initial andin-service teacher training，increase the use of active and participatory learning/teaching approaches.Examine and adapt the processes and content of education so that there is a balance between academic input and life skills development.Make sure that education inspectors look not only for academic progress through teaching and learning，but also progress in the communication， modeling and application of life skills.Advocate for the links between primary and(early)secondary education because learning life skills needs eight or nine years and recognize that the prospect of effective secondary education is an incentive to children，and their parents，to complete primary education successfully.M)Funding agencies should support research，exchange anddebate.nationally and regionally,on ways of strengthening life skills education.Support innovative(创新的)teacher training in order to combine life skills promotion into subjects across the curriculum and as a fundamental part of what school and education are about.Recognize the links between primary and secondary education in ensuring that children develop strong life skills.Support，therefore，the early years of secondary education as part basic education.N) As support to governments and in cooperation with other international agencies，UNESC0：Works to define life skills better and clarify what it means to teach and learn them.Assists education. policy makers and teachers to develop and use a life skills approach to education.Advocates for the links between a life skills approach to education and broader society and human development.46.The recognition of life skills as part of education will promote the development of human potential and society.47.The abilities to make the most of life consist of the inner capacities and the practical skills.48.The progress in psycho—social skills can be measured by changed behavior.ernments should examine and adapt the processes and content of education so as to balance the academic input and life skills development.50.According to Jacques Delors，four pillars of education include learning to know, learning to be， learning to live together and learning to do.51.The funding agencies should link primary education and secondary education to make sure that children develop strong life skills.52.Learning literacy may exert an influence on self-esteem，critical thinking and communication skills.53.One function of UNESCO is to help educational policy makers and teachers to develop and use a life skills approach to education.54.Learning vocational skills can be an approach to acquiring both practical and psycho—social skills.55.The abilities to manage stress and feelings，self-awareness，self-confidence are personal abilities.答案解析：【解析】J)。

英语四级长篇阅读模拟练习及参考答案四级长篇阅读模拟练习：A Grassroots RemedyA) Most of us spend our lives seeking the natural world. To this end, we walk the dog, play golf, go fishing, sit in the garden, drink outside rather than inside the pub, have a picnic, live in the suburbs, go to the seaside, buy a weekend place in the country. The most popular leisure activity in Britain is going for a walk. And when joggers (慢跑者) jog, they dont run the streets. Every one of the minstinctively heads to the park or the river. It is my profound beliefthat not only do we all need nature, but we all seek nature, whether we know we are doing so or not.B) But despite this, our children are growing up nature-deprived ( 丧失) , I spent my boyhood climbing trees on Stratham Common, south London. These days, children are robbed of these an cientfreedoms, due to problems like crime, traffic, the loss of the openspaces and odd new perceptions about what is best for children, that is to say, things that can be bought, rather than things that can be found.C) The truth is to be found elsewhere. A study in the U.S. families had moved to better housing and the children were assessed for ADHD -- attention deficit hyperactivity disorder ( 多动症) .Those whose accommodation had more natural views showed an improvement of 19%; those who had the same improvement in material surroundings but no nice view improved just 4%.D) A study in Sweden indicated that kindergarten children who could play in a natural environment had less illness and greater physical ability thanchildren used only to a normal playground. A U.S. study suggested that when a school gave children access to a natural environment, academic levels were raised across the entire school.E) Another study found that children play differently in a natural environment. In playgrounds, children create a hierarchy (等级) based on physicalabilities, with the tough ones taking the lead. But when a grassy area was planted with bushes, the children got much more into fantasy play, and the social hierarchy was now based on imagination and creativity.F) Most bullying (持枪凌弱) is found in schools where there is a tarmac (柏油碎石) play ground; the least bullying is in a natural area that the children are encouraged to explore. This reminds mean pleasantly of Sunny hill School in Stratham, with its harsh tarmac, where I used to hang about incomers fantasizing about wildlife. The children are frequently discouraged from involvement with natural spaces, for health and safety reasons, for fear that they might get dirty or that they might cause damage. So, instead, the damage is done to the children themselves: not to their bodies but to their souls.G) One of the great problems of modem childhood is ADHD, now increasingly and expensively treated with drugs. Yet one study after another indicates that contact with nature gives huge benefits to ADHDchildren. However, we spend money on drugs rather than on green places.H) The life of old people is measurably better when they have access to nature. The increasing emphasis for the growing population of old people is in quality rather than quantity of years. And study after study finds that a garden is the single most important thing in finding that quality.I) In wider and more difficult areas of life, there is evidence to indicate that natural surroundingsim prove all kinds of things. Even problems with crime and aggressive behavior are reduced when there is contact with the natural world. Dr. William Bird, researcher from the Royal Societyfor the Protection of birds, states in his study, A natural environment can reduce violent behavior because its restorative process helps reduce anger and impulsive behavior. Wild places need encouraging for this reason, no matter how small their contribution.J) We tend to look on nature conservation as some kind of favor that human beings are granting to thenatural world. The error here is far too deep: notonly do humans need nature for themselves, but thevery idea that humanity and the natural world are separable things is profoundly damaging. Human beings are a species of mammals (哺乳动物) . For sevenmillion years they lived on the planet as part of nature. Our ancestral selves miss the natural worldand long for contact with nonhuman life. Anyone whohas patted a dog, stoked a cat, sat under a tree with a pint of beer, given or received a bunch of flowersor chosen to walk through the park on a nice day, understands that. We need the wild world. It is essential to our well-being, our health, our happiness. Without the wild world we are not more but less civilized. Without other living things around us weare less than human.K) Five Ways to Find Harmony with the NaturalWorld Walk: Break the rhythm of permanently beingunder a roof. Get off a stop earlier, make a circuitof the park at lunchtime, walk the child to and fromschool, get a dog, feel yourself moving in moving air, look, listen, absorb.Sit: Take a moment, every now and then, to bestill in an open space. In the garden, anywhere thats not in the office, anywhere out of the house, awayfrom the routine. Sit under a tree, look at water,feel refreshed, ever so slightly renewed.Drink: The best way to enjoy the natural world is by oneself; the second best way is in company. Take a drink outside with a good person, a good gathering:talk with the sun and the wind with bird-song for background.Learn: Expand your boundaries. Leam five speciesof bird, five butterflies, five trees, five bird songs. That way, you see and hear more: and your mind responds gratefully to the greater amount of wildness in your life.Travel: The places you always wanted to visit: by the seaside, in the country, in the hills. Take aweek-end break, a day-trip, get out these and do it:for the scenery, for the way through the woods, forthe birds, for the bees. Go somewhere special and bring specialness home. It lasts forever, after all.46. The study in Sweden shows that more access to nature makes children less likely to fall ill.47. The authors profound belief is that people instinctively seek nature in different ways.48. It can be very helpful to provide more green spaces for children with ADHD.49. Elderly people will enjoy a life of better quality when they contact more with nature.50. Nowadays, people think things that can be bought are best for children, rather than things that can be found.51. Dr. William Bird suggests in his study that access to nature contributes to the reduction of violence.52. According to a study in the U. S. Children with ADHD whose accommodation had more natural views showed much better improvement.53. Children who have chances to explore natural areas are less likely to be involved in bullying.54. We can find harmony with the natural world in various ways, among which there are walking, sitting, drinking, learning and traveling.55. It is extremely harmful to think that humanity and the natural world can be separated.参考答案：D)瑞典的一项研究显示，在自然环境中玩要的幼儿园小朋友比在只习惯在正规运动场玩耍的小朋友少患病，身依也更健康。

英语四级阅读理解精选练习及答案英语四级阅读理解练习一：Personality is , to large extent, inherent --A-type parents usually bring about A-type offspring. But the environment must also have a profound effect, since if competition is improtant to the parents, it is likely to become a major factor lives of their children.One place where children soak up A characteristics is school, which is, by its very nature, a highly competitive institution. Too many schools adopt the "win at all costs" moral standard and measure their success by sporting achievements. The current passion for making children compete against their classmates or against the clock produces a two-layer system, in which competitive A types seem in some way better than their B-type fellows. Being too keen to win can have dangerous consequences:remember that Pheidippides ,the first marathon runner, dropped dead seconds after saying:"Rejoice, we conquer!".By far the worst form of competition in school is the disproportionate emphasis on examinations . It is a rare school that allows pupils to concentrate on those things they do well.The merits of competition by examination are somewhat questionable, but competition in the certain knowledge of failure is positively harmful.Obviously, it is neither practical nor desirable that all A youngsters change into Bs. The would needs types, and schools have an important dutyto try to fit a childs personality to his possible future employment. It is top management.1. According to the author, what factors contribute to the building of personality?A. inheritanceb. inheritance, competition and environmentc. competitiond. environment2.Which of the following statements is not true according to the author of the passage?A. Schools usually adopt severe competitive policies.B. Students are often divided by competition results.C. School is place where children cultivate their characteristics.D. The stronger desire for winning, the better.3.The phrase "soak up" is closest in meaning to ____.A. pull up b. take up c. take in d. pull in4.What attitude does the author hold toward examinations in schools?A. positive b. negative c. doubtful d. neutral5.what suggestion does the author make concerning the management of schools?A. All students be made into competitive A types.B. A childs personality be considered in regard to his possible future job.C. All students be changed into B characteristics.D. Schools abolish all forms of examinations.答案：bdccb英语四级阅读理解练习二：Nearly everybody buys a used car sooner or later, as a primary vehicle (首要的交通工具) or as a second car. Indeed(当然), three out of four sales today are used cars, and theyre not cheap junkers (废物)either—the average price now is $ 5500, about half what a new car costs. Make the wrong selection and a major investment (投资)can be lost the moment you drive off the lot.There is far less chance of this happening to you if you know: when to buy, where to buy, how to examine (仔细检查) the car, how to conduct (进行) your own road test, and how to bargain over (讲价)the price.When to buyShop during the day. Lighting makes cars gleam (V 闪光)like jewels (宝石)at night. In daylight they look dull (黯淡的), but realistic.Dont shop in the rain. It can mask(掩盖) liquids (液体) that might be leaking (泄漏). If possible, shop in the winter when supplies are high and demand (需求)is low.Where to buyShop the suburbs. In more affluent (富有的)neighborhoods cars are more likely to have been well cared for.A private owner normally sells a car for less than a dealer(商人) does, but almost always "as is," with no guarantee(质量保证). Thats an acceptable risk if what youre looking for is a cheap second car to "drive to the station. "Even though a used-car dealer generally charges more, you can often get some type of limited guarantee. This is often a 50-50 plan, in which you each pay half on repairs for a period (一段时间)that may range from 30 days to a year. Ask the dealer about the availability of an optional(可选择的) service policy.Used-car dealers often claim (声称)to have gone over (仔细查看)the car, and many have. But remember that small dealers often buy cars that are auctioned (拍卖 ) because nobody else wants them.Some experts feel that a new-car dealer is the best place to buy a secondhand car, especially if youre laying out a large sum (一笔金钱) for a late model. Some of these dealers offer extensive (广阔的)guarantees, such as one on the "drive train," which covers any problems with engine (发动机), transmission(变速器) ， drive shaft and differential (差速器 ). Expect to pay for this, as well as for the markup (标高的价格). But if you shop soon after the new models have arrived, when a dealer has a lot of trade-ins tying up his profits, he might deal. The visual examination (视觉上的检查)Youve found your dream car, and can hardly wait to get in and roar away. Wait.First, look for any flaws (瑕疵)or ripples(划痕) in the body that might indicate a past accident (暗示曾经出过事故). To see if a car has been repainted(重新漆过), look under the rubber seals around the door or under the chrome trim. Repainting may mask deep flaws (重新上漆可能隐藏深层的瑕疵).Check the odometer (计程器) for total mileage (英里数), and then compare that figure (数字)with any stickers still attached to door posts. Its illegal to change odometer readings, but it happens. If there are no stickers, be a little suspicious. Check pedals and controls: wear on these parts should agree with the mileage. If they are brand new, be suspicious. If they are worn out, beware.Check that the doors, hood and trunk all open smoothly and close with solid sound. Sight along the sides of the car from 30 feet away to be sure that the rear and front wheels line up.Look under the car for fluid leaks. Except for condensation from a working air conditioner on a hot day, no car should ever drip anything, any time.Now sit in the drivers seat and try the controls. The car should fit you—it should be comfortable. Check seat adjustment, door locks, window-raising mechanisms, horn, lights, directional signals, radio—all accessories.Start the engine. It should turn over quickly and then settle down to a rather fast idle. Give the engine a moment or two before you press the accelerator a bit. Watch for smoke from the rear. Blue smoke mightmean a complete engine overhaul (大修) , black a maladjusted carburetor (化油器). 2White smoke can be. Ignored if the engine is cold, but once it is warmed up, white smoke can mean a leaking head gasket (垫圈) : expensive. Reject this car.After the engine has warmed, shut it off, and then go wipe your finger inside the tailpipe (making sure its not too hot). The residue should be whitish-gay. If you get a black, oily mark, refuse the car—its probably an oil burner.Restart the engine and check the oil in an automatic transmission. It should be clean and clear, with no burned odor. The test drive The salesman may try to convince you that a short drive around the block is enough. Wrong. Make it clear that you plan to road test the car, and if he isnt happy with this look elsewhere.The test route you have mapped out should include dry city streets, a freeway, a hill, a bumpy road and an empty parking lot. All gauges(计量器) should read steady and normal throughout the test, especially oil pressure and engine heat. If not, dont buy the car.Drive to a traffic-free city street on your predetermined route and then accelerate smoothly to about 35 miles per hour. The automatic transmission should shift without jerking and with no noise.Slow to about 7 m. p. h. by gently applying the brakes. There should be no noise, no sharp sound or grinding. The car should slow in a straight line, with no pulling to the right or left.Pick up speed to about 15; then making certain nobody is behind you, hit the brakes hard! The car should come to an immediate stop without making noise or swerving.In an empty, level parking lot, brake to a complete stop. Shift into reverse and back up at about 4 m. p. h. , brake to a halt, shift into forward, etc. Do this four or five times to test the transmission. All shifting should be smooth, with no noise or hesitation.Accelerate up a hill to about 40 m. p. h. The car should not labor. If it does, you could have a rotten transmission. Go back down the hill. Stop halfway, shift into neutral and set the parking brake. The car should remain stationary when you take your foot off the brake pedal.Drive the car over the bumpy road, up a hill, and on the highway. Rarely will a car be perfect. However by now you should have a pretty good idea what needs to be done. How to bargainUse what youve learned from the visual exam, test drive and outside mechanic to get the price down. Have a maximum figure in mind, based on your inspection and on current prices from a used-car guide. Start your bidding lower than that. When you have nearly arrived at a price, get the seller to throw in certain repairs. It may be cheaper for him than further price cuts.1. Following the instructions here will help you make a good selection when buying a used car.2. Winter is a good time for purchasing a car because there is little rain in winter.3. You are more likely to pay less to a private owner for a car of poor quality.4. Refuse the car if you find any signs of a past accident in the visual examination.5. Dont buy the car if there is white smoke coming out of the rear because it is probably an oil burner.6. At certain speeds in the tests, a good car should not make any noise when the driver brakes either hard or gently.7. If you are patient and careful enough, you will certainly find a perfect used car.8. The last step before you make a decision to buy a car is______.9. Besides all gauges, the two very important systems mainly examined in the test drive are______.10. According to some experts, the best place to buy a second-hand car is______.答案：1. Y 2. N 3. Y 4. NG 5. N 6. Y 7. N 8. to bargain over the price 9. brake and transmission 10. a new-car dealer。

6月英语CET-6长篇阅读练习题2017年6月英语CET-6长篇阅读练习题一个人越知道时间的价值，就越感到失时的痛苦。

以下是店铺为大家搜索整理的2017年6月英语CET-6长篇阅读练习题，希望能给大家带来帮助![A] We apply for credit for many reasons-maybe it's to buy a new car, house, computer, or get a student loan. However, that there is a special number that can determine whether you can do these things, or at least how much it will cost you. A credit score is a number that is calculated based on your credit history to give lenders a simpler "lend/don't lend" answer for people who are applying for credit or loans. This number helps the lender identify the level of risk they may be taking if they lend to someone. The credit score is quicker and less subjective. It's the credit score that makes it possible to get instant credit at places like electronics stores and department stores.[B] Although there are several scoring methods, the method most commonly used by lenders is known as a FICO because of its origins with Fair Isaac Corporation. Fair Isaac is an independent company that came up with the scoring method and software used by banks and lenders, insurers and other businesses. Each of the three major credit bureaus (Experian, Equifax and TransUnion) worked with Fair Isaac in the early 1980's to come up with the scoring method.[C] The three national credit bureaus each have their own version of the FICO score with their own names. Equifax has the Beacon system, TransUnion has the Empirica system, and Experian has the Experian/Falr Isaac system. Each is based on the original Fair Isaac FICO scoring method and produces equivalentnumerical results for any given credit report. Some lenders also have their own scoring methods. Other scoring methods may include information such as your income or how long you've been at the same job.[D] Think of your credit score, like your grade in school. A teacher calculates grades by taking scores from tests, homework, attendance and anything else they want to use, weighting each one according to importance in order to come up with a final single number (or letter)score. Your credit score is calculated in a very similar manner. Instead of using the scores from pop quizzes and reports you wrote, it uses the information in your credit report.[E] 35 percent of the score is based on your payment history. This makes sense since one of the primary reasons a lender wants to see the score is to find out if (and how timely)you pay your bills. The score is affected by how many bills have been paid late, how many were sent out for collection, any bankruptcies, etc. When these things happened also comes into play. The more recent, the worse it will be for your overall score.[F] 30 percent of the score is based on outstanding debt. How much do you owe on car or home loans? How many credit cards do you have that are at their credit limits? The more cards you have at their limits, the lower your score will be. The rule of thumb is to keep your card balances at 25% or less of their limits.[G] 15 percent of the score is based on the length of time you've had credit. The longer you've had established credit, the better it is for your overall credit score. Why? Because more information about your past payment history gives a more accurate prediction of your future actions.[H] 10 percent of the score is based on the number ofinquiries on your report. If you've applied for a lot of credit cards or loans, you will have a lot of inquiries on your credit report. These are bad for your score because they indicate that you may be in some kind of financial trouble or may be taking on a lot of debt (even if you haven't used the cards or gotten the loans). The more recent these inquiries are, the worse for your credit score. FICO scores only count inquiries from the past years.[I] 10 percent of the score is based on the types of credit you currently have. The number of loans and available credit from credit cards you have makes a difference. There is no magic number or combination of types of accounts that you shouldn't have. These actually come more into play if there isn't as much other information on your credit report on which to base the score. This information is compared to the credit performance of other consumers with similar histories and profiles.[J] Your credit score doesn't just affect whether or not you get a loan; it also affects how much that loan is going to cost you. As your credit score increases, your credit risk decreases. This means your interest rate decreases. There are other factors that influence the interest rate you get for a loan besides your credit score. Things like the type of property you are using the loan to buy, how much of your own money is going into it, the costs the lender has to make the loan, etc.[K] In. addition to banks and lenders, there are landlords, merchants, employers and insurance companies jumping on the credit score bandwagon (风靡的活动). Of all of these, the fact that insurance rates are being determined by credit scores is causing consumers the most alarm. To most, it seems that your credit history and your driving record have little in common. Insurers, on the other hand, have found that using credit scores to predicthow likely someone is to pay premiums has helped them cut their losses. They don't use the same score that banks and lenders use, however. They use a slightly different formula for their calculations and actually call it an "insurance score".[ LJ Credit scores aren't static numbers. Because they are calculated based on your current credit report, they change every time your credit report changes. While this change may be very slight, it can also be much more dramatic. Here are some things some financial advisers say to do to try to improve your score.[M] Review your credit report and correct any errors you find. Getting rid of inaccurate information can sometimes improve your score dramatically.[N] Advice used to be given to close old and unused credit card accounts in order to reduce your "potential" available credit, which could change your debt ratio after you've been approved for a loan. Now, however, the ratio of your debt to your credit limit is more critical, so closing old accounts only raises that ratio-which you don't want to do. Some people have moved debt from several credit cards to one card and then closed the old accounts. Since creditors look at the debt-to- credit limit ratio, this can have a bad affect on your credit score because you have the same amount of debt but less available credit. So don't close old credit card accounts just because you're not using them.[O] Creditors also now look at the average age of your accounts so, again, keep those old accounts. Reduce your balances on credit cards to 75% or less of your available credit (25% is preferable). Pay your bills on time. (This is probably the most important of all!)Don't let anyone make an inquiry on your credit report unless you absolutely have to. The more inquiries, the lower your score. Don't open new credit card accounts just toincrease your available credit in the hopes of raising your score. Also, remember that some improvements-such as better efforts at making payments on time-may take time to impact your score. So, time is also a factor.46. The credit score based on one's payment history accounts for 35 percent.47. FICO is the most frequently used credit scoring method.48. The credit score is calculated based on one's credit reports.49. Too many times of application for loans suggest that one may have some financial trouble.50. Credit score not only determines whether one can get a loan, but also affects how much one pays interest rate.51. To improve credit score, one should lay great effort not to delay the payment of bills.52. The basic role of a credit score is to determine whether applicants can get credit or loans.53. Credit score is a dynamic number that. varies with the change of one's current credit report.54. If you have more outstanding debt, you will get lower credit score.55. Closing old credit card accounts raises the debt-to-credit limit ratio, because the amount of available credit is reducing.46.The credit score based on one’s payment history accounts for 35 percent.译文：依据个人支付记录确定的信用分数占到35%。

英语四级长篇阅读匹配试题及答案英语四级长篇阅读匹配试题及答案 1There are three kinds of goals: short-term,medium-range and long-term goals. Short-range goals are those that usually deal with current activities,which we can apply on a daily basis.Such goals can be achieved in a week or less,or two weeks,or possible months.It should be remembered that just as a building is no stronger than its foundation ,out long-term goals cannot amount to very munch without the achievement of solid short-term goals.Upon completing our short-term goals,we should date the occasion and then add new short-term goals that will build on those that have been completed. The intermediate goals bukld on the foundation of the short-range goals.They might deal with just one term of school or the entire school year,or they could even extend for several years.Any time you move a step at a time,you should never allow yourself to become discouraged or overwhelmed. As you complete each step,you will enforce the belief in your ability to grow adn succeed.And as your list of completion dates grow,your motivation and desire will increase.Long-range goals may be related to our dreams of the future. They might cover five years or more. Life is not a static thing.We should never allow a long-term goal to limit us or our course of action. 1.Our long-term goals mean a lot______.A.if we complete our short-range goalsB.if we cannot reach solid short-term goalsC.if we write down the datesD.if we put forward some plans2.New short-term goals are bulid upon______.A.two yearsB.long-term goalsC.current activitiesD.the goals that have been completed3.When we complete each step of our goals ,______.A.we will win final successB.we are overwhelmedC.we should build up confidence of successD.we should strong desire for setting new goals 4.Once our goals are drawn up,_______.A.we should stick to them until we complete themB.we may change our goals as we have new ideas and opportunitiesC.we had better wait for the exciting news of successD.we have made great decision5.It is implied but not stated in the passage that ______.A.those who habe long-term goals will succeedB.writing down the dates may discourage youC.the goal is only a guide for us to reach our desinationD.every should have a goal答案：adcbc英语四级长篇阅读匹配试题及答案 2If the population of the earth goes on increasing at its present rate, there will eventually not be enough resources left to sustain life on the planet.By the middle of the 21st century,if present trends continue, we will have used up all the oil that drives our cars,for example.Even if scientists develop new ways of feeding the human race,the crowded conditions on earth will make it necessary for lus to look for open space somewhere else. But none of the other planets in our solar system are capable of supporting life at present. One possible solution to the problem, however,has recently been suggested by American scientist, Professor Carl Sagan. Sagan believes that before the earths resources are compleetely exhausted it will be possible to change the atmophere of Venus and so create a new world almost as large as earth itself. The difficult is that Venus is much hotter than the earth and there is only a tiny amount of water there. Sagan proposes that algae organisms that can live in extremely hot or cold atmospheres and at the same time produce oxygen,should be bred in condition similar to those on Venus.As soon as this has been done, the algae will be placed in small rockets. Spaceship will then fly to Venus and fire the rockets into the atmosphere .In a fairly short time, the alge will break down the carbon dioxide into oxygen andcarbon. When the algae have done theri work, the atmosphere will become cooler,but befor man can set foot on Venus it will be neccessary for the oxygen to produce rain. The surface of the planet will still be too hot for man to land on it but the rain will eventually fall and in a few years something like earth will be reproduced on Venus. -1.Inte long run, the most insoluble problem caused by population growth on earth will probably be the lack of ______.a.foodb.oilc.spaced.resources2.Carl Sagan believes that Venus might be colonized from earth because _____ a.it might be possible to change its atmosphere b.its atmosphere is the same as the earthsc.there is a good supply of water on Venusd.the days on Venus are long enough3.On Venus there is a lot of ________.a.waterb.carbon dioxidec.carbon monoxided.oxygen4.Algae are plants that can____.a.live in very hot temperaturesb.live in very cold temperaturesc.manufacture oxygend.all of the above5. Man can land on Venus only when_______. a.the algae have done their work -b.the atmosphere becomes coolerc.thereis oxygend.it rains there答案：cabdd英语四级长篇阅读匹配试题及答案 3Like a needle climbing up a bathroom scale, the number keeps rising. In 1991, 15% of Americans were obese(肥胖的); by 1999, that proportion had grown to 27%. Youngsters, who should have age and activity on their side, are growing larger as well: 19% of Americans under 17 are obese. Waistbands have been popping in other western countries too, as physical activity has declined and diets have expanded. By and large, people in the rich world seem to have lost the fight against flab(松弛).Meanwhile, poorer nations have enjoyed some success in their battles against malnutrition and famine. But, according to research presented at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, it is more a case of being out of the frying pan and into the fire. The most striking example actually in the poor world comes from the Pacific islands, home of the world’s most obese communities. In 1966, 14% of the men on this island were obese while 100% of men under the age of 30 in 1996 were obese.This increase in weight has been uneven as well as fast. As a result, undernourished and over-nourished people frequently live cheek by jowl(面颊). The mix can even occur within a single household. A study of families in Indonesia found that nearly 10% contained both the hungry and the fat. This is a mysterious phenomenon, but might have something to do with people of different ages being given different amounts of food to eat.The prospect of heading off these problems is bleak. In many affected countries there are cultural factorsto contend with, such as an emphasis on eating large meals together, or on food as a form. ofhospitality.Moreover, there is a good measure of disbelief on the part of policymakers that such a problem Could existin their countries. Add to that reluctance on the part of governments to spend resources on promoting dietand exercise while starvation is still a real threat, and the result is a recipe for inaction. Unless something is done soon, it might not be possible to turn the clock back.英语四级阅读模拟试题：Choose correct answers to the question:1.The first sentence of the passage most probably implies that ______.A.many Americans are obsessed with the rising temperature in their bathroomB.more people are overweighed in the United StatesC.people are doing more physical exercises with the help of scalesD.youngsters become taller and healthier thanks to more activities2.As physical exercise declines and diet expands, ______.A.other western countries has been defeated by fatB.obesity has become an epidemic(流行病)of the rich worldC.waistbands begin to be popular in other western countriesD.western countries can no longer fight against obesity3.Which is NOT the point of the example of the Pacific Islands?A.The poor community has shaken off poverty and people are well-fed now.B.Obesity is becoming a problem in the developing world too.C.Excessive weight increase will cause no less harm than the food shortage.D.The problem of overweight emerges very fast.4.Of tackling obesity in the poor world, we can learn from the passage that____A.the matter is so complex as to go beyond our capacityB.no matter what we do, the prospect will always be bleakC.it is starvation, the real threat, that needs to be solvedD.we should take immediate actions before it becomes incurable5.What is the main idea of this passage?A.Obesity is now a global problem that needs tackling.B.The weights increase fast throughout the whole world.C.Obesity and starvation are two main problems in the poor world.D.Obesity has shifted from the rich world to the poor world.英语四级阅读参考答案1.[B] 推理判断题。

英语四级阅读长篇阅读练习1四级阅读长篇阅读练习1：A University Degree No Longer Confers Financial Securitylions of school-leavers in the rich world are about to bid a tearful goodbye to their parents and start a new life at university. Some are inspired by a pure love of learning. But most also believe that spending three or four years at university--and accumulating huge debts in the process--will boost their chances of landing a well-paid and secure job.B.Their elders have always told them that education is the best way to equip themselves to thrive in a globalised world. Blue-collar workers will see their jobs outsourced and automated, the familiar argument goes. School dropouts will have to cope with a life of cash-strapped (资金紧张的) insecurity. But the graduate elite will have the world at its feet. There is some evidence to support this view. A recent study from Georgetown Universitys Centre on Education and the Workforce argues that"obtaining a post-secondary credential ( 证书) is almost always worth it." Educational qualifications are tightly correlated with earnings: an American with a professional degree can expect to pocket $3.6m over a lifetime; one with merely a high- school diploma can expect only $1.3m. The gap between more- and less-educated earners may be widening. A study in 2002 found that someone with a bachelors degree could expect to earn75% more over a lifetime than someone with only a high-school diploma. Today the disparity is even greater.C.But is the past a reliable guide to the future? Or are we at the beginning of a new phase in the relationship between jobs and education? There are good reasons for thinking that old patterns are about to change--and that the current recession-driven downturn (衰退) in the demand for Western graduates will morph (改变) into something structural. The strong wind of creative destruction that has shaken so manyblue-collar workers over the past few decades is beginning to shake the cognitive elite as well.D.The supply of university graduates is increasing rapidly. The Chronicle of Higher Education calculates that between 1990 and 2007 the number of students going to university increased by 22% in North America, 74% in Europe, 144% in Latin America and 203% in Asia. In 2007 150m people attended university around the world, including 70m in Asia. Emerging economies—specially China--are pouring resources into building universities that can compete with the elite of America and Europe. They are also producing professional- services firms snch as Tata Consulting Services and Infosys that take fresh graduates and turn them into world-class computer programmers and consultants. The best and the brightest of the rich world must increasingly compete with the best and the brightest from poorer countries who are willing to work harder for less money.E. At the same time, the demand for educated labor is being reconfigured (重新配置) by technology, in much the same way that the demand for agricultural labor was reconfigured in the 19th century andthat for factory labor in the 20th. Computers can not only perform repetitive mental tasks much faster than human beings. They can also empower amateurs to do what professionals once did: why hire aflesh-and-blood accountant to complete your tax return when Turbotax (a software package ) will do the job at a fraction of the cost? And the variety of jobs that computers can do is multiplying as programmers teach them to deal with tone and linguistic ambiguity.F.Several economists, including Paul Krugman, have begun to argue that post-industrial societies will be characterized not by a relentless rise in demand for the educated but by a great "hollowing out", as mid-level jobs are destroyed by smart machines and high-level job growth slows. David Autor, of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), points out that the main effect of automation in the computer era is not that it destroys blue-collar jobs but that it destroys any job that can be reduced to a routine. Alan Blinder of Princeton University, argues that the jobs graduates have traditionally performed are if anything more "offshorable" than low-wage ones. A plumber or lorry-drivers job cannot be outsourced to India. A computer programmers can.G. A university education is still a prerequisite for entering some of the great industries, such as medicine, law and academia (学术界), that provide secure and well-paying jobs. Over the 20th century these industries did a wonderful job of raising barriers to entry--sometimes for good reasons (nobody wants to be operated on by a barber) and sometimes for self-interested ones. But these industries are beginning to bend the roles. Newspapers are fighting a losing battle with the blogosphere. Universities are replacing tenure-track professors with non-tenured staff. Law firms are contracting out routine work such as"discovery"(digging up documents relevant to a lawsuit) to computerized-search specialists such as Blackstone Discovery. Even doctors are threatened, as patients find advice online and treatment in Walmarts new health centers.H.Thomas Malone of MIT argues that these changes--automation, globalizafion and deregulation--may be part of a bigger change: the application of the division of labor to brain-work. Adam Smiths factory managers broke the production of pins into 18 components. In the same way, companies are increasingly breaking the production of brain-work into ever tinier slices. TopCoder chops up IT projects into bite-sized chunks and then serves them up to a worldwide workforce of freelance coders.I.These changes will undoubtedly improve the productivity ofbrain-workers. They will allow consumers to sidestep (规避 ) the professional industries that have extracted high rents for their services. And they will empower many brain-workers to focus on what they are best at and contract out more tedious tasks to others. But the reconfiguration of brain-work will also make life far less cozy and predictable for the next generation of graduates.46. The creative destruction that has happened to blue-collar workers in the past also starts to affect the cognitive elite.47. For the next generation of graduates, life will be far less comfortable and predictable with brain-work reconfigured.48. After computers are taught by programmers to deal with tone and linguistic ambiguity, the variety of jobs they can do will increase dramatically.49. Most school-leavers believe that, despite the huge debts they owe, going to university will increase their chances of getting secure jobs with high salaries.50. Modern companies are more likely to break the production of intellectual work into ever tinier slices.51. A scholar of Princeton University claims that the jobs traditionally taken by graduates are more likely to be offshored than low-wage ones.52. The income gap between an American professional degree holder and an American high-school graduate shows income is closely related to educational qualifications.53. The changes in the division of brain-work will save consumers some high service fees the professional organizations charge.54. Some students have always been told that. to achieve success ina globalised world, it is most advisable to equip themselves with education.55. Emerging economies are providing a lot of resources to build universities to compete with the elite of America and Europe.【参考译文】大学文凭不再提供铁饭碗A.发达国家的数百万高中毕业生将要含泪告别他们的父母，开始全新的大学生活。

英语四级长篇阅读练习题与答案导读：我根据大家的需要整理了一份关于《英语四级长篇阅读练习题与答案》的内容，具体内容：下面是我整理的，希望对大家有帮助。

Addicted, Really?A. Mental-health specialists disagree over whether...下面是我整理的，希望对大家有帮助。

Addicted, Really?A. Mental-health specialists disagree over whether to classify compulsive online behaviour as addiction---and how to treat it. Craig Smallwood, a disabled American war veteran, spent more than 20,000 hours over five years playing an online role-playing game called "Lineage II". When NCsoft, the South Korean firm behind the game, accused him of breaking the games rules and banned him, he was plunged into depression, severe paranoia (偏执) and hallucinations (幻想). He spent three weeks in hospital. After that, he sued NCsoft for fraud and negligence (过失 ), demanding over $ 9m in damages and claiming that the company acted negligently by failing to warn him of the danger that he would become "addicted" to the game.B. But does it make sense to talk of addiction to online activity? Mental-health specialists say three online behaviorscan become problematic for many people: video games, pornography ( 色情作品 ) and messaging via e-mail and social networks. But there is far less agreement about whether any of this should be called "Internet addiction"--or how to treat it.C. Some mental-health specialists wanted "Internet addiction" to be included in the fifth version of psychiatrys bible, the"Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders", known as DSM-V, which is currently being overhauled (全面修订). The American Medical Association endorsed (赞成) the idea in 2007, only to backtrack( 放弃) days later. The American Journal of Psychiatry called Internet addiction a "common disorder" and supported its recognition. Last year the DSM-V drafting group made its decision: lnteruet addiction would not be included as a "behavioral addiction"--only gambling made the cut--but it said further study was necessary.D. Skeptics say there is nothing uniquely addictive about the Internet. Back in 2000, Joseph Walther, a communications professor at Michigan State University, co-wrote an article in which he suggested, tongue in cheek, that the criteria used to call someone an Internet addict might also show that most professors were "addicted" to academia (学术活动). He argued that other factors, such as depression, are the real problem.He stands by that view today. "No scientific evidence has emerged to suggest that lnternet use is a cause rather than a consequence of some other sort of issue," he says. "Focusing on and treating people for Internet addiction, rather than looking for underlying clinical issues, is definitely unwise."E. Others disagree. "That would be wrong," says Kimberly Young, a researcher and therapist who has worked on Interact addiction since 1994. She insists that the Internet, with its powerfully immersive environments, creates new problems that people must learn to navigate(应对). Otherwise, the changing lifestyle will affect the development of the society.F.No one disputes that online habits can turn toxic. Take South Korea, where widespread broadband means that the average high-school student plays video games for 23 hours each week. In 2007 the government estimated that around 210,000 children needed treatment for Internet addiction. In 2010 newspapers around the globe carried the story of a South Korean couple who fed their infant daughter so little that she starved to death. Instead of caring for the child, the couple spent most nights at an Internet cafe, sinking hours into a role- playing game in which they raised, fed and cared for a virtual daughter. And several South Korean men have died from exhaustion aftermarathon, multi-day gaming sessions.G. The South Korean government has since asked game developers to adopt a gaming curfew (宵禁) for children, to prevent them playing between midnight and 8 a.m. At the same time, it has also opened more than 100 clinics for Internet addiction and sponsored an "Internet rescue camp" for serious cases.H. But compulsive behaviour is not limited to garners. E-mail or web-use behaviours can also show signs of addiction. Getting through a business lunch in which no one pulls out a phone to check their messages now counts as a minor miracle in many quarters. A deluge (泛滥) of self-help books, most recently "Alone Together" by Sherry Turlde, a social scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, offer advice on how to unplug (去除障碍).I.Pornography is hardly new, either, but the Internet makes accessing it much easier than ever before. When something can be summoned in an instant via broadband, whether it is a game world, an e-mail inbox or pornographic material, it is harder to resist. New services lead to new complaints. When online auction sites first became popular, talk of "eBay addiction" soon followed. Dr. Young says women complain to her now aboutaddiction to Facebook--or even to "FarmVille", a game playable only within Facebook.J.Treatment centres have popped up around the world with the popularity of online games. In 2006 Amsterdams Smith t believe her. In his research on college students, he found that most sense when they are "going overboard and restore self-control". Less than1% have a pathological(病态的) problem, he adds. For most people, Internet use "is just a habit--and one that brings us pleasure."46. According to Joseph Walther, it is unwise to emphasize the treatment of Internet addiction instead of seeking for potential clinical issues.47. As online games become popular, treatment centres have sprung up all over the world.48. After playing online games continuously for days, several South Korean men were exhausted to death.49. Smallwood sued NCsoft and claimed a huge compensation for fraud and its negligence of warning him of the danger of game addiction.50. In South Korea, a gaming curfew for children was adopted to prevent children playing after midnight.5l. Internet addiction still needs to be further studiedthough the DSM-V did not categorize it as a "behavioral addiction".52. An lnternet specialist found that most college students could realize when they are going too far and restoreself-control.53. According to mental-health specialists, for many people, video games, pornography and messaging via e-mail and social networks can become problematic online behaviors.54. People regard it as a small miracle if nobody takes outa phone to read the messages at a business lunch.55. Kimberly Young insists that people must learn to deal with new problems brought about by the Interact.【参考译文】真的是"上瘾"吗A.强迫性的上网行为是否属于成瘾行为，又该如何治疗，心理健康专家对此意见不一。

How Your Language Affect Your Wealth and HealthA. Doe the language we peak determine how healthy and rich we will be New reearch by Keith Chen of Yale Buine School ugget o. The tructure of language affect our judgment and deciion about the future and thi might have dramatic long-term conequence.Some people are better at delaying gratification ( 满足 ) than other. Thoe people have a better chance of accumulating wealth and keeping a healthy life tyle. They are le likely to be impule buyer or moker, or to engage in unafe e某.D. Chen recent finding ugget that an unlikely factor, language, trongly affect our future-oriented behavior. Some language trongly ditinguih the preent and the future. Other language only weakly ditinguih the preent and the future. Chen recent reearch ugget that people who peak language that weakly ditinguih the preent and the future are better prepared for the future. They accumulate more wealth and they are better able to maintain their health. The way thee people conceptualize the future i imilar to the way they conceptualize the preent. A a reult, the future doe not feel very ditant and it i eaier for them to act in accordance with their future interetS.He alo analyzed individual-level data on people retirement aet, moking and e某erciing habit, and general health in older age. Latly, he analyzed national-level data that inchide national aving rate, country GDP and GDP growth rate, country demographic, and proportion of people peaking different language.H. Similar analye howed that peaking a language that doe not have obligatory future marker, uch a Mandarin, make people accumulate more retirement aet, moke le, e某ercie more, and generally be healthier in older age. Countrie national aving rate are alo affected by language. Having a larger proportion of people peaking language that doe not have obligatory future marker make national aving rate higher.47. The tructure of language influence u when we are making a judgment or deciion about the future.48. Speaking a language that ha obligatory future marker and being unemployed nearly hare the ame percentage of decreaing the likelihood of aving.49. According to the well-known marhmallow tudie, people who can reit temptation tend to be ucceful in the future.50. People who peak language like Englih are more likely to feel that the future event are ditant.51. National aving rate of countrie are influenced by language a well.52. In Chen recent reearch, people who peak language in which the preent and the future are weakly ditinguihed are more prepared for the future.53. Recent finding how that it i poible to improve future-oriented behavior through making the future feel cloer to the preent.54. Through imple intervention, Ellen Langer and colleague made the phyical health of the older people changed for the better.55. Chen made an analyi of individual-level tatitic from 76 developed and developing nation【参考译文】语言如何影响你的财富与健康A.我们所说的语言是否会决定我们未来的健康和财富耶鲁商学院Keith Chen所做的一项新研究表明事实正是如此。

大学英语四级改革适用（长篇阅读）模拟试卷1(题后含答案及解析)题型有：1.9 motor vehicles for every household in America, and just to illustrate how many cars this is, consider that the average American household has only 1.8 drivers; America has more vehicles than it has drivers to drive them. By the time a middle-class American reaches 35 years of age, he or she has likely owned 3 cars in his or her life.B)The Unites States’lawmakers have done little to undermine the romance between their citizens and their automobiles. Taxes on gasoline have been kept low, while massive highway building projects allow more and more cars to take to the road. Public transportation, on the other hand, has traditionally suffered from neglect. From the 1970s, since Americans have more than doubled their reliance on cars for long-distance rides, train and bus usage has largely stopped developing. Inner city transit systems in most cities were either deteriorating or crime-ridden, as in New York, or dysfunctional(机能不良的), as in Los Angeles.C)There are, however, signs that U.S. drivers are quietly looking for alternatives to car usage—with growing backing from legislators. Throughout the country a record number of commuters are taking buses and transit to work. In Washington DC, city officials say this summer has been the busiest in the history of the Metro rail system, with trains often carrying more than 600,000 passengers a day. In Cincinnati, transit authorities say there have been up to 50 percent more users this summer on some commuter routes. The Atlanta and Portland transit systems are also recording heavy usage. Nationwide, public transportation systems have recorded a 4.8 percent increase for the first quarter of 2003 over the same period in 2002, according to the American Public Transportation Association(APTA).D)Transit officials say the main reason is the recent rise in gasoline prices. Feeling the impact of cuts in production by oil-exporting countries, gasoline prices in the US shot up from a national average of $1.30 dollars a gallon(nearly 3.8 litres)late last year to high of $1.68 a gallon in June this year. In parts of the country, prices even reached $2 a gallon for the first time.E)While the price rise angered car drivers, many transportation experts feel it has turned attention to America’s meager(不景气的)public transport. “The public transport system has been better now than in the past decades,”says Delon Lowas, an urban planning analyst at the Sierra Club, the environmental group. According to APTA, a person commuting 10 miles to work every day by train instead of by car could save as much as 314 gallons(1193 liters)of gasoline annually —thus reducing emissions of hydrocarbon gases and other pollutants.F)The oil price rise might just have been the induction to result in a new revolution in the travel habits of US commuters, say environmentalists. As evidence, they point to the popularity of new light-rail systems in cities such as Portland. Even Los Angeles, whose residents are famous for their infatuation(迷恋)with cars, recently installed 17 miles of subway tracks. Now, US politicians are also warming to public transport. Federal and state governments are toying with some initiatives, such as tax breaks for people who use trains or buses.G)But public transportation continues to have its ideological critics. “It shouldn’t be encouraged at the expense of private ownership of vehicles,” says BenLieberman of the Competitive Enterprise Institute(CEI). He asserts that the government’s priority should be to make owning and driving a car more affordable by reducing environmental restrictions that push up the price of gasoline.H)The expansion of public transportation systems also draws opposition from those who are worried about the immense costs involved. They cite Los Angeles’ subway expansion, which cost a record $4.7 billion, as an instance of how expensive public transport can be.I)Citing costs of construction, Tome DeLay,the powerful Republican Whip of the House of Representatives, have moved to block funds for a proposed light-rail system in Houston. Mr. DeLay argues that the city should conduct a referendum(公民投票)before investing taxpayer’s money. The result: the Houston authorities might well have to manage without federal funds —or scrap the light-rail project entirely. Given the strong political pressure against it, some observers think the flirtation(对......的一时兴趣)with public transport will pass, not least because there are signs already that gas prices have started to fall. Mr. Lovaas, however, thinks that there has been “genuine grass-roots change” as people understand the environmental and social need for cutting down on automobile use. But he admitted that political opposition could take a long time to overcome. “The people at the top will be the last to get it.”11．One factor for the sharp rising price of gasoline in the US this year was oil production cuts by oil-exporting countries.正确答案：D解析：根据题干中的线索词price of gasoline和production cuts by oil—exporting countries将本题出处定位于D)段第2句Feeling the impact of cuts in production by oil—exporting countries，gasoline prices in the US shot up from anational average of $1．30 dollars a gallon(nearly 3．8 litres)late last year to high of $1．68 a gallon in June this year．(受到石油出口国削减产量的影响，美国的石油价格从去年年底每加仑(约3．8升)1．30美元的全国平均价格猛涨到今年6月份的每加仑1．68美元。

大学英语CET6长篇阅读训练题及答案高校英语CET6长篇阅读训练题及答案try not to become a man of success but rather try to become a man of value，以下是我为大家搜寻整理的高校英语CET6长篇阅读训练题及答案，期望能给大家带来帮忙!更多精彩内容请准时关注我们应届毕业生考试网!Preparing for Computer DisastersA: Summary: When home office computers go down, many small businesses grind to a halt. Fortunately, taking steps to recover from disasters and minimize their effects is quite straightforward.B: Fires, power surges, and floods, theyre all facts of life. We read about them in the morning paper and see them on the evening news. We sympathize with the victims and commiserate over their bad luck. We also shake our heads at the digital consequencesmelted computers, system failures, destroyed data. Yet, somehow, many of us continue to live by that old mantra of denial: It wont happen to me. Well, the truth is, at some point youll probably have to deal with at least one disaster. Thats just how it goes, and in most aspects of our lives we do something about it. We buy insurance. We stow away provisions. We even make disaster plans and run drills. But for some reason, computer disaster recovery is a blind spot for many of us. It shouldnt be. Home computers contain some of our most important information, both business and personal, and making certain ourdata survives a disaster should be a priority. Moreover, even the smallest disaster can be a serious disruption. Personal computers have become an integral part of the smooth-running household. We use them to communicate, shop, and do homework, and theyre even more vital to home office users. When home office computers go down, many small businesses grind to a halt. Fortunately, taking steps to recover from disasters and minimize their effects is quite straightforward. With a good offsite storage plan and the right tools, you can bounce back quickly and easily from minor computer disasters. And, should a major calamity strike, you can rest assured your data is safe.Offsite Storage: Major DisastersC: House fires and floods are among the most devastating causes of personal computer destruction. Thats why a solid offsite backup and recovery plan is essential. Although many home users faithfully back up their hard drives, many would still lose all their data should their house flood our burn. Thats because they keep their backups in relatively close to their computers. Their backup disks might not be in the same room as their computerstucked away in a closet or even the garagebut theyre not nearly far enough away should a serious disaster strike. So, its important to back up your system to a removable medium and to store it elsewhere.D: There are many ways to approach offsite storage. It starts with choice of backup tools and storage medium. Disaster situations are stressful, and your recovery tools shouldnt add to that stress. They must be dependable and intuitive, making it easy to schedule regular backups and to retrieve files ina pinch. They must also be compatible with your choice of backup medium. Depending on your tools, you can back up to a variety of durable disk typesfrom CDs to Jaz drives to remote network servers. Although many of these storage media have high capacity, a backup tool with compression capabilities is a big plus, eliminating the inconvenience of multiple disks or large uploads.E: Once you select your tools and a suitable medium, you need to find a remote place to store your backups. The options are endless. However, no matter where you choose, be sure the site is secure, easily accessible, and a good distance away from your home. You may also want to consider using an Internet-based backup service. More and more service providers are offering storage space on their servers, and uploading files to a remote location has become an attractive alternative to conventional offsite storage. Of course, before using one of these services, make certain you completely trust the service provider and its security methods. Whatever you do, schedule backups regularly and store them far away from your home.Come What May: Handling the Garden Variety Computer CrisisF: Not all home computer damage results from physical disaster. Many less menacing problems can also hobble your PC or destroy your information. Systems crash, kids rearrange data, adults inadvertently delete files. Although these events might not seem calamitous, they can have serious implications. So, once again, its important to be prepared. As with physical disasters, regular backups are essential. However, some of these smaller issues require a response thats more nuanced thanwholesale backup and restoration. To deal with less-than-total disaster, your tool set must be both powerful and agile. For example, when a small number of files are compromised, you may want to retrieve those files alone. Meanwhile, if just your settings are affected, youll want a simple way to roll back to your preferred setup. Yet, should your operating system fail, youll need a way to boot your computer and perform large-scale recovery. Computer crises come in all shapes and sizes, and your backup and recovery tools must be flexible enough to meet each challenge.The Right Tools for the Right Job: Gearing up for DisasterG: When disaster strikes, the quality of your backup tools can make the difference between utter frustration and peace of mind. Symantec understands this and offers a range of top quality backup and recovery solutions. Norton GoBack is the perfect tool for random system crashes, failed installations, and inadvertent deletions. With this powerful and convenient solution, its simple to retrieve overwritten files or to bring your system back to its pre-crash state. Norton Ghost is a time-tested home office solution. Equipped to handlefull-scale backups, its also handy for cloning hard drives and facilitating system upgrades. A favorite choice for IT professionals, its the ideal tool for the burgeoning home office. You can buy Norton Ghost and Norton GoBack separately, or get them both when you purchase Norton System Works.H: Lifes disasters, large and small, often catch us by surprise. However, with a little planning and the right tools, you can reduce those disasters to bumps in the road. So, dontwait another day. Buy a good set of disaster recovery tools, set up an automatic backup schedule, and perform a dry run every now and again. Then, rest easy.1. You should take steps to recover from computer disasters so as to minimize their effects.2. For some reason, computer disaster recovery is always ignored by many of us.3. You can bounce back quickly and easily minor computer disasters with the help of a good offsite storage plan and the right tools.4. The most devastating causes of personal computer destruction includes house fires and floods.5. Its necessary for us to back up our systems to some transferable medium and to put it somewhere else.6. You should find a distant place to store your backups after selecting your tools and a suitable medium.7. Not only physical disaster can damage your computer.8. The backup and recovery tools must be flexible enough to deal with various computer crises.9. The quality of your backup tools determines whether you are frustrated or have a peaceful mind when disaster strikes.10. You should prepare for your computer disasters now and again.答案解析1. A依据题干中的信息词recover from computer disasters定位到本文的第一段。

英语四级长篇阅读练习题附答案导读：我根据大家的需要整理了一份关于《英语四级长篇阅读练习题附答案》的内容，具体内容：得阅读者得天下，是学生对阅读理解在六级英语考试中重要性的概括。

为了帮助大家提高长篇阅读的解题技巧，下面我为大家带来，欢迎各位考生参考练习。

英语四级长篇阅读练习题原文A)...得阅读者得天下，是学生对阅读理解在六级英语考试中重要性的概括。

为了帮助大家提高长篇阅读的解题技巧，下面我为大家带来，欢迎各位考生参考练习。

英语四级长篇阅读练习题原文A) We are surrounded by so much paper and card that it is easy to forget just how complex it is. There are many varieties and grades of paper materials, and whilst it is fairly easy to spot the varieties, it is far more difficult to spot the grades.B) It needs to be understood that most paper and card is manufactured for a specific purpose, so that whilst the corn-flake packet may look smart, it is clearly not something destined for the archives. It is made to look good, but only needs a limited life span. It is also much cheaper to manufacture than high grade card.C) Paper can be made from an almost endless variety of cellulose-based material which will include many woods, cottons and grasses or which papyrus is an example and from where we get theword "paper". Many of these are very specialized, but the preponderance of paper making has been from soft wood and cotton or rags, with the bulk being wood-based.Paper from WoodD) In order to make wood into paper it needs to be broken down into fine strands. Firstly by powerful machinery and then boiled with strong alkalies such as caustic soda, until a fine pulp of cellulose fibers is produced. It is from this pulp that the final product is made, relying on the bonding together of the cellulose into layers. That, in a very small nutshell, is the essence of paper making from wood. However, the reality is rather more complicated. In order to give us our white paper and card, the makers will add bleach and other materials such as china clay and additional chemicals.E) A further problem with wood is that it contains a material that is not cellulose. Something called lignin. This is essential for the tree since it holds the cellulose fibres together, but if it is incorporated into the manufactured paper it presents archivists with a problem. Lignin eventually breaks down and releases acid products into the paper. This will weaken the bond between the cellulose fibers and the paper will become brittle and look rather brown and careworn. We have all seen this in old newspapers and cheappaperback books. It has been estimated that most paper back books will have a life of not greater than fifty years. Not what we need for our archives.F) Since the lignin can be removed from the paper pulp during manufacture, the obvious question is "why is it left in the paper?" The answer lies in the fact that lignin makes up a considerable part of the tree. By leaving the lignin in the pulp a papermaker can increase his paper yield from a tree to some 95%. Removing it means a yield of only 35%. It is clearly uneconomic to remove the lignin for many paper and card applications.G) It also means, of course, that lignin-free paper is going to be more expensive, but that is nevertheless what the archivist must look for in his supplies. There is no point whatsoever in carefully placing our valuable artifacts in paper or card that is going to hasten their demise. Acid is particularly harmful to photographic materials, causing them to fade and is some cases simply vanish!H) So, how do we tell a piece of suitable paper or card from one that is unsuitable? You cannot do it by simply looking, and rather disappointingly, you cannot always rely on the label. "Acid-free" might be true inasmuch as a test on the paper may indicate that it is a neutral material at this time. But lignin can take years before it starts the inevitable process of breaking down, and in the rightconditions it will speed up enormously.I) Added to this, as I have indicated earlier, paper may also contain other materials added during manufacture such as bleach, china clay, chemical whiteners and size. This looks like a bleak picture, and it would be but for the fact that there are suppliers who will guarantee the material that they sell. If you want to be absolutely sure that you are storing in, or printing on, the correct material then this is probably the only way.J) Incidentally, acids can migrate from material to material. Lining old shoe boxes with good quality acid-free paper will do little to guard the contents. The acid will get there in the end. Paper from RagK) Paper is also commonly made from cotton and rag waste. This has the advantage of being lignin-free, but because there is much less cotton and rag than trees, it also tends to be much more expensive than wood pulp paper. You will still need to purchase from a reliable source though, since even rag paper and card can contain undesirable additives.L) A reliable source for quality rag papers is a recognized art stockiest. Many water color artists insist on using only fine quality rag paper and board.M) The main lesson to learn from this information is that youcannot rely on purchasing archival materials from the high street. The only safe solution is to purchase from specialist suppliers. It may cost rather more, but in the end you will know that your important and valuable data and images have the best home possible.英语四级长篇阅读练习题选项1. The corn-flake packet is cheaper than high grade card.2. There are a lot of materials which can be used for making paper, but the superiority ones are soft wood, cotton and rags.3. During the whole manufacturing process, the final product is made from a pulp of cellulose fibres.4. In order to make white paper and card, the makers will add bleach.5. Liguin is essential for the tree but it will make paper easy to break.6. Many paper producers will preserve lignin during manufacture, because leaving the lignin will make more paper from a tree.7. Acid is particularly harmful to photographic materials.8. If the lignin is removed from the paper, the paper will be more expensive.9. Although free of lignin, paper made from cotton and rag waste can also cost more money than wood pulp paper because there is much less cotton and rag than trees.10. What we can learn from "Paper from Rag" is that you had better buy archival materials from specialist suppliers.英语四级长篇阅读练习题答案：1.B根据题干中的信息提示词corn—flake packet,high grade card,可定位到文章第二段，该部分最后提到corn-flake packet在制造过程中比高等级的纸(high grade card)便宜.2.C根据题干中的信息提示词soft wood，cotton and rags，可定位到文章第三段最后一句。

大学英语六级考试阅读套题练习及答案范本1份大学英语六级考试阅读套题练习及答案 1The difference between a liquid and a gas is obvious under the conditions of temperature and pressure monly found at the surface of the Earth. A liquid can be kept in an open container and fill it to the level of a free surface. A gas forms no free surface but tends to diffuse throughout the 11 available; it must therefore be kept in a closed container or held by a gravitational field, as in the 12 of a planet's atmosphere. The distinction was a 13 feature of early theories describing the phases of matter. In the nineteenth century, for example, one theory maintained that a liquid could be “dissolved" in a vapor without losing its identity, and another theory 14 that the two phases are made up of different kinds of molecules. The theories now prevailing take a quite different approach by emphasizing what liquids and gases have in 15 They are both forms of matter that have no 16 structure, and they both flow readily.The fundamental similarity of liquids and gases es clearly apparent when the temperature and pressure are 17 somewhat. Suppose a closed container 18 filled with a liquid is heated. The liquid expands, or in other words es less dense; some of it evaporates. In contrast, the vapor above the liquid surface es denser as the evaporated molecules are 19 to it. Thebination of temperature and pressure at which the densities e 20 is called the critical point.A. addedB. caseC. prominentD. heldE. equalF. partiallyG. exampleH. previousI. spaceJ, liftedK. permanentL. particularlyM. extendedN. raised0. mon参__II. I 12. B 13. C 14. D 15. O 16. K 17. N 18. F 19. A 20. E。

英语四六级阅读练习（1）：庆祝英国高端商业区的没落The news that four out of 10 shops will have to shut in the next five years, casting further doubt on the future of the beleaguered British high street, need not be greeted with dismay.beleaguered adj. 被围困的；四面楚歌的dismay n. 灰心；沮丧；惊慌v. 使沮丧；使惊慌There is no reason to be downhearted – we should embrace change. This could be very positive. My hope is that the disappearance of large retailers will provide an opportunity for young entrepreneurs to set up in affordable rental shop fronts and market units. I started my first fashion business, Red or Dead, in Camden market and Kensington market 30 years ago, and in many ways today feels like the early 80s and we are seeing a renaissance of a variation of the serendipitous market. In Wembley, north London, shops have closed on the high street and have been turned into multi-business outlets by the Asian community. In Gateshead, there are examples of creative communities getting together and attempting to reuse empty spaces such as the Shed project on Gateshead High Street where, working with the council, they have brought vibrancy back to this area of a town that was sinking fast. It has so successfully transformed a large, former bed retailer (the Bed Shed) that a second Shed will be opening soon.downhearted adj. 垂头丧气的；无精打采的shop front 店面；门面renaissance n. 新生；复活Renaissance （欧洲14-16世纪）文艺复兴But for any new-style high street to work requires good town centre planning and the cornerstone of this is common sense. Most of us want places that give us everything we need to fulfil our lives. Give us a town centre where we can live in an affordable home, walk, cycle or take easy public transport to employment, be able to go to the cinema, theatre, gallery, nightclub or gig, kick a ball in a park with our mates or our kids, read a book under a magnolia tree, maybe grow a bit of veg on an allotment, watch a bit of sport, while away the time at a cafe or a bar, shop at cool independent stores. We have to develop places that people want to see and be seen in. Most of us love people watching, get a buzz from other human beings. I don't believe we want to do most of our shopping online, especially as we are spending more and more of our working lives in front of a screen.Vancouver is a city that has got it right. It boasts a wonderful natural setting but it doesn't rely on its natural beauty for liveability. Its commitment to the "green agenda" and the serendipity of being able to find independent cafes, second-hand vinyl record stores and vintage clothes stores right next to the big brands gives the city an ambience British cities have lost to the land value greed exerted by pension-fund landlords and short-sighted councils.serendipity n. 意外新发现vinyl record 黑胶唱片vintage clothes 复古的衣裳ambience n. 气氛，布景exert v. 运用；发挥；施以影响Closer to home, Copenhagen has ensured it hasn't drifted towards the "clone town" status bestowed upon most indistinguishable British towns and cities. There are streets full of quirky start-up businesses next to chain stores and it has employed urban designers such as Jan Gehl to ensure the city is a joy to walk around and cars are relegated to fourth place behind walking, cycling (what a great cycling infrastructure they have established) and public transport.drift to 转向quirky adj. 古怪的；离奇的But we can't always wait for government to deliver the infrastructure. We have to "have a go" ourselves at making small shops work.Our vision for the new-style high street will be on show at the pop-up high street at our vintage festival at Boughton House, Northampton, this July. The vintage high street is a place to promenade, shop, watch street artists, eat and drink and just sit and take in the magic of the high street, with the authenticity of a film set, in the middle of a wonderful landscape. But for our visions to become a reality in our towns and cities, we the consumers will have to frequent the galleries, cafes and new independent stores that rise out of the ashes of the tired old retail chains.（2）：为什么纽约市民平均寿命全美最高New York City is known for a lot of things — nightlife, world-class cuisine, an enviable skyline. There is, of course, a flip side to fast-moving life in the big city: our hair-trigger tempers, in-your-face attitudes and the relatively constant state of angst that comes from living cheek-to-jowl with more than 8 million urban neighbors.cuisine n. 烹饪艺术、菜肴、烹饪；风味、（通常指昂贵的饭店中的）饭菜，菜肴angst n. 焦虑，担心But all of that is what drew me to this city and kept me here —I’m a happily committed New Yor ker. I’ve always assumed, however, that I was paying a high price for my go-go urban lifestyle. Studies have shown that big city residents tend to have more stress, which can translate into skyrocketing blood pressure and increased rates of heart disease.committed adj. 尽心尽力的，坚信的，坚定的As it turns out, I might have been wrong. Living in New York may actually be good for your long-term health, at least according to the latest life expectancy data compiled by the city’s Bureau of Vital Statistics. Babies born in New York City in 2009 can expect to live a record 80.6 years, nearly three years longer than in 2000 and more than two years longer than the current national average of 78.2 years.Bureaun n.[C] 1. 事务处，联络处，询问处；社，分社；（政府机构的）局，司，署，处Life expectancy for 40-year-old New Yorkers rose to 82 in 2009, a 2.5-year increase from 2000 —slightly more than double the increase for middle-aged Americans on the whole. Life expectancy for 70-year-olds in New York also increased by 1.5 years, compared with 0.7 years for the country on average. Go figure.“If you want to live longer and healthier than the average American, then come toNew York City,‖ Mayor Michael Bloomberg told reporters at a press conference announcing the new figures on Tuesday.Is it something in the water? Not quite. According to Bloomberg, the success can be attributed in part to his administration’s aggressive public-health programs, which have sought to reduce smoking, cut salt consumption, encourage healthy eating and ban trans fats from food.At the press conference, held in the maternity ward of Lincoln Hospital in the Bronx, Health Commissioner Dr. Thomas Farley noted that since 2002, nearly half a million New Yorkers have quit smoking — the smoking rate is now down to 14 out of every 100 New Yorkers —for which the city administration credits the mayor’s intensive anti-smoking efforts, including the ban on smoking in bars and restaurants, the establishment of an excise tax on cigarettes and a quit-line for those who need help kicking the habit.maternity n. [U] 产科医院；产科病房 a. 适用于孕妇的；产妇的intensive adj. 加强的，集中的；紧张进行的，彻底的，十分细致的；加强语气的City officials attributed the city’s decline in deaths from heart disease in part to the mayor’s anti-smoking campaigns (and also to improvements in care for people with high blood pressure, high cholesterol and heart disease). Heart disease deaths dropped 27.9% since 2002, contributing to the increase in city residents’ life expectancy. The statistics also show that cancer deaths have fallen by 4.3% since 2002.The mayor also touted the city’s well-publicized moves to require calorie counts on menus at chain and fast food restaurants, which he believes has steered more New Yorkers away from the kind of poor dietary choices that contribute to obesity, heart disease and diabetes. (I have to admit that seeing the number of calories in a frappuccino has curbed my afternoon cravings.)New York was the first city in the nation, in 2006, to ban trans fats — a major culprit in promoting artery clogging and heart disease — from restaurant foods, including everything from pizza to bagels.culprit n. 犯错的人；罪犯；肇事者；引起问题的事物artery n. 动脉；主流，干道However, the most significant contributor to New Yorkers’ increased life expectancy had nothing to do with smoking or diet. Rather, it was the city’s expanded testing and treatment of people with HIV. More than 90% of patients who are diagnosed with HIV in the city’s health system currently receive drug treatment within 90 days; in 2011 alone, the city tested 195,516 patients, more than three times as many people tested six years earlier, helping to reduce mortality from HIV and AIDS. The death rate from HIV is declining faster than other causes of death in New York City, down 11.3% since 2000 and 51.9% since 2002.“By investing in health care and continuing to encourage more New Yorkers to take charge of their own heal th, we’ve experienced dramatic improvements in life expectancy,‖ the mayor said.City officials said that overdose deaths from heroin, cocaine and other illicit drugs were also down, further boosting life expectancy. Infant mortality rates had also dropped, reflecting healthier mothers and better obstetric and pediatric care.overdose v.[T] 使…用药过量；n.过量用药illicit a. 非法的；违法的；违背社会常规的；不正当的Although the new life expectancy numbers are encouraging, the fact remains that heart disease, cancer and flu/pneumonia are still the top three leading causes of death inNew York, followed by lung disease and diabetes. (This is New York, after all, and not everybody takes kindly to being told not to smoke or eat fast food.) A third of all deaths in New York occur before age 65, with more than 15,000 New Yorkers dying prematurely each year.But many of these deaths can be prevented, and the city is hard at work trying —as its public-health campaigns demonstrate.The health messages in New York are ubiquitous and persistent; you can’t avoid them (much like New Yorkers themselves). So, if there’s any upside to standing in a crowded subway car every day or fighting through the hordes at Times Square, maybe it’s that the city’s pervasive health-promoting billboards and ads might soon sink in.ubiquitous adj. 到处存在的，无处不在的，十分普遍的pervasive a. 遍布的，充斥各处的，弥漫的（3）：美国去年女博士人数首次超过男博士For the first time, more women than men in the United States received doctoral degrees last year, the culmination of decades of change in the status of women at colleges nationwide.culmination n. 顶点；高潮The number of women at every level of academia has been rising for decades. Women now hold a nearly 3-to-2 majority in undergraduate and graduate education. Doctoral study was the last holdout - the only remaining area of higher education that still had an enduring male majority.Of the doctoral degrees awarded in the 2008-09 academic year, 28,962 went to women and 28,469 to men, according to an annual enrollment report from the Council of Graduate Schools, based in Washington.Doctoral degrees, which require an average of seven years' study, are typically the last to show the impact of long-term changes. "It is a trend that has been snaking its way through the educational pipeline," said Nathan Bell, the report's author and the director of research and policy analysis for the council. "It was bound to happen."pipeline n. 管道；输油管；传递途径be bound to 注定；必然；一定要Women have long outnumbered men in earning master's degrees, especially in education. Women earned nearly six in 10 graduate degrees in 2008-09, according tothe new report, which is based on an annual survey of graduate institutions.outnumber vt. 数目超过；比…多But women who aspired to become college professors, a common path for those with doctorates, were hindered by the particular demands of faculty life. Studies have found that the tenure clock often collides with the biological clock: The busiest years of the academic career are the years that well-educated women tend to have children.aspire vi. 渴望；立志；追求hinder vi. 成为阻碍vt. 阻碍；打扰adj. 后面的collide with 冲突；碰撞"Many women feel they have to choose between having a career in academics and having a family," said Catherine Hill, director of research at the American Association of University Women. "Of course, they shouldn't have to."Undergraduate women began reaching parity with men in the early 1980s as societal barriers to female scholarship fell away. And then they eclipsed men - so thoroughly that federal officials are now investigating whether some liberal arts schools are favoring men in admissions to preserve some semblance of gender balance.eclipse vt. 使黯然失色；形成蚀n. 日蚀，月蚀；黯然失色A freshman seminar at the University of Iowa called "Graduate School: Is It for You?" drew 16 students last year, Associate Provost John Keller said. Fifteen of them were women.Scholarly attention in recent years has turned to the fallen aspirations of men, who are more likely than women to drop out of high school and more apt to be diverted from higher education into menial labor or prison. Men also join the military in disproportionate numbers.Overall, women and girls make up 51 percent of the U.S. population. But women have not conquered every corridor of the ivory tower. Men still hold the majority of faculty and administration positions. Women earn less than men at every level of academic rank, according to the American Association of University Professors. Male faculty members earned $87,206 on average and their female counterparts made $70,600 in the 2009-10 academic year. Starting salaries for newly minted faculty members are nearly equal.Men retained the lead in doctoral degrees until 2008, largely through their dominance in engineering, mathematics and the physical sciences. They still earn nearly 80 percent of engineering doctorates.retain vt. 保持；雇；记住drop out 退学；缀学be apt to 倾向于The increase in women receiving doctoral degrees resulted from years of persistent gains across several areas of study. In the health sciences, for example, the number has risen at a rate of 14 percent per year over the past decade. Women now earn 70 percent of doctorates in that field. They represent 67 percent of doctoral degrees in education, and 60 percent in social and behavioral sciences.The same economic forces that drove more women into the labor market sentgreater numbers of them into doctoral study, "aware of the increased need for them to make money for their families," Hill said.Women approached parity with men in law and medical studies in recent years, said Jacqueline E. King, an assistant vice president at the American Council on Education. "Doctoral fields couldn't be far behind," she said.parity n. 平价；同等；相等result from 起因于；由……造成Liz Nguyen, 25, is a doctoral candidate at the University of Maryland in chemistry, a field in which women have made gains but remain outnumbered. Many of her classmates are women, but the older generation of senior faculty is made up virtually of all men. "It was always just a male-dominated field," she said.Nguyen said the women she has met in doctoral study are "very strong-willed women. I never saw women like that growing up."Men may be staging a modest comeback. First-time enrollment in graduate education grew at a slightly faster rate for them than for women in 2009, reversing a long-term trend that has favored female enrollment. Meanwhile, the broader gender gap in higher education seems to be stabilizing. The split in enrollment and degrees remained constant through much of the past decade at about 57 percent women, according to a study King wrote this year.reverse n. 背面；相反；倒退；失败vt. 颠倒；倒转split vt. 分离；使分离；劈开；离开vi. 离开；被劈开；断绝关系"In general, higher education has expanded over the years to meet demand from both women and men," she said. "I don't expect that it's ever going to be all women."（4）：免邮对网购者假期消费有多大影响力？Increas ingly, online shoppers won’t complete their orders unless free shipping is part of the deal. Nearly two-thirds of online purchases last week were shipped for free.In November of last year, a New York Times story noted that 41% of online purchases came with free shipping—an impressive figure at the time, considering that free shipping was once a novelty, a rare unexpected bonus.Since then, retailers such as L.L. Bean and Nordstrom have begun offering free shipping on all orders, no promotional code or minimum purchase required, while stores such as Best Buy and Walmart are shipping most or all items for free during the holiday season.promotional adj. 推销的，推销广告或宣传的Even before Halloween was here in 2011, it was clear that free shipping would be a huge trend for the winter shopping season. In a National Retail Federation survey published over a month ago, more than 9 out of 10 retailers said they’d offer free shipping at some point during the holiday season. E-merchants are well aware that free shipping is in their best interests—because without it, consumers are less likely to buy, and with it, consumers are not only more likely to buy, but to buy in bigger ways. According to NRF data:More shoppers this year are also interested in shopping online as a direct result of free shipping offers –36.3 percent will spend more online this year if shipping comes free.Now, after an epic $52 billion shopping spree over Black Friday weekend, some of the effects of free shipping can be seen.epic n. 1. [C,U] 史诗，叙事诗2. [C] 壮举，惊人之举adj. 1. 史诗的，叙事诗的2. 漫长而艰难的 3. 壮丽的，给人深刻印象的spree n. 狂欢；无节制的狂热行为；欢闹vi. 狂欢；狂饮Market research firm ComScore has announced that during Cyber Week (week ending December 2), online purchases totaled $6 billion; a highest-ever $1.25 billion was spent online on Cyber Monday alone. This is particularly remarkable because the online spend-a-thon took place right on the heels of a dramatic rise in spending in physical stores over Black Friday weekend.What role did free shipping play in enticing shoppers to spend (and spend and spend) last week? Well, over the last two weeks, over 63% of all online purchases were accompanied by free shipping—that’s up roughly 10 percentage points over the same period one year ago. In the ComScore survey, 78% of consumers said that free shipping was either ―very important‖ or ―somewhat important‖ when it comes to decision time to make an online purchase.entice v. 怂恿；诱使accompany vt. 陪伴，伴随；伴奏vi. 伴奏，伴唱Increasingly, if shipping costs extra, the online purchase just doesn’t ha ppen. In a previous ComScore survey, nearly half of consumers (47%) said they’d abandon an online purchase if they discovered at checkout that shipping wasn’t included for free.You can’t have a discussion about the free-shipping trend during the holiday season without mentioning Free Shipping Day, which has quickly become a tradition: This year, over 1,400 retailers will offer free shipping for orders placed on December 16.Ironically, the trend toward more and more free shipping sorta makes Free Shipping Day unnecessary and obsolete: If shipping is available for free almost every day anyway, there’s really no need for a special day for getting free shipping.Last year, FreeShipping Day founder Luke Knowles said in a Q&A that about 60% of participating retailers were offering free shipping with no minimum purchase requirements whatsoever. This year, consumers can expect not only that the number of participating retailers will rise, but that the percentage of retailers with no-minimum-purchase requirements will as well.no-minimum-purchase 无最低消费限额（5）：女性比男性更容易心碎Women are a lot more likely to suffer a broken heart than men, researchers say. The good news is that it probably won't kill you.In the first national study of its kind, researchers at the University of Arkansas looked at rates of "broken heart syndrome" —when a sudden shock or prolongedstress causes heart attack-like symptoms or heart failure —and found that it overwhelmingly affects women.syndrome n. 1. 并发症状，综合症，同时存在的事物2. 典型意见，典型表现overwhelmingly ad. 压倒性地；不可抵抗地；（感情）极其强烈地Women are at least seven times more likely than men to suffer the syndrome, and older women are at greater risk than younger ones, according to data presented Wednesday at the American Heart Association conference in Orlando."It's the only cardiac condition where there's such a female preponderance," Dr. Abhiram Prasad, a Mayo Clinic cardiologist who was not associated with the study, told the AP. Heart attack and heart disease, of course, strike men more often and earlier in life than women.cardiac a. 1. 心脏的；心脏病的n. 强心剂；心脏病患者preponderance n. 重量的优势；优势；优越Broken heart syndrome can happen in response to shocking or suddenly emotional events — both positive ones like winning the lottery, or negative ones like a car accident or the unexpected death of a loved one. A flood of stress hormones and adrenaline causes part of the heart to enlarge temporarily and triggers symptoms that can look like heart attack: chest pain, shortness of breath, irregular heart rhythm. The difference is that the factors that would normally cause heart attack, such as a blocked artery, aren't present.Most sufferers usually recover within a week or two, but in rare cases — about 1% — people die of the condition.Doctors have long known about broken heart syndrome —first described by Japanese researchers two decades ago — and that it seemed to occur mostly in women. So, Dr. Abhishek Deshmukh, a cardiologist at the University of Arkansas who has treated women with broken heart syndrome, became curious about just how gender-specific the condition was.gender-specific 和性别有多大关系Using a federal database that included data from roughly 1,000 hospitals, Deshmukh found 6,229 cases of broken heart syndrome in 2007. Of those, only 671 — just under 11% — were in men. He found that, overall, women had about 7.5 times the risk of broken heart syndrome as men; in people under 55, women were at 9.5 times greater risk than men. Women over 55 were also three times more likely to suffer broken heart syndrome than younger women.Researchers don't know what causes the gender disparity, but they have some ideas. Reported the AP:One theory is that hormones play a role. Another is that men have more adrenaline receptors on cells in their hearts than women do, "so maybe men are able to handle stress better" and the chemical surge it releases, Deshmukh said.surge n. 大浪；汹涌澎湃；巨涌vi. 激增；汹涌vt. 使颠簸About 10% of sufferers will have a second episode at some point, but most return to full heart function without permanent damage or need for follow-up treatment. So, it looks like the way to mend a broken heart is what Mom always said:just give it time.follow-up 后续（6）：为什么高智商的孩子更易吸毒People with high IQs are more likely to smoke marijuana and take other illegal drugs, compared with those who score lower on intelligence tests, according to a new study from the U.K."It's counterintuitive," says lead author James White of the Center for the Development and Evaluation of Complex Interventions for Public Health Improvement at Cardiff University in Wales. "It's not what we thought we would find."counterintuitive adj. 违反直觉的The research was based on interviews with some 7,900 British people born in early April 1970. Researchers measured the participants IQs at ages 5 and 10, then followed up with them at ages 16 and 30, asking about symptoms of psychological distress and drug use as part of a larger survey.At age 30, about 35% of men and 16% of women said they had smoked marijuana at least once in the previous year; over the same time period, 9% of men and 4% of women said they had taken cocaine. Previous-year drug users tended to have scored higher on IQ tests than non-users.The IQ effect was larger in women: women in the top third of the IQ range at age 5 were more than twice as likely to have taken marijuana or cocaine by age 30, compared with those scoring in the bottom third. The men with the highest IQs were nearly 50% more likely to have taken amphetamines and 65% more likely to have taken ecstasy, compared to those with lower scores.And these results held even when researchers controlled for factors like socioeconomic status and psychological distress, which are also correlated with rates of drug use.correlate n. 有相互关系的东西，相关物v. 1. [T]使有相互关系，使相互关联2. [I]互相有关系adj. 相关的，关连的So why might smarter kids be more likely to try drugs? "People with high IQs are more likely to score high on personality scales of openness to experience," says White. "They may be more willing to experiment and seek out novel experiences."Another factor could be that the messages used to attempt to deter teens from drug use — particularly during the 1980s in the U.K. when the study group was in adolescence — weren't exactly known for the subtlety of their reasoning, so they may not have targeted the smarter group well.deter v. 制止；阻止"What you typically find is that people with high IQs are less likely to smoke , more likely to be active and to have a good diet," says White, noting that they are also likely to have high socioeconomic status. People in this group tend to make healthy choices, based both on health information and their own experience.socioeconomic status 社会经济地位；社会经济状况This group isn't likely to see occasional drug use as particularly harmful, White says, both because there is little data to suggest great risk of harm from such use and because evidence of harm is rare among their peers. "With smoking, the evidence is overwhelming," says White, "whereas when you look at things like cannabis use, since they are more likely to associate with people who are similar to them, they are likely to see that smoking cannabis relatively infrequently doesn't have huge impact."whereas conj. （用以比较或对比两个事实）但是，然而，尽管In contrast, drug users with less education and wealth are more likely to be exposed to negative consequences of drug use. This is due in part to the fact that money itself can buy protection against the types of criminal involvement and disease that can affect poor drug users.be exposed to 曝光；面临；遭受"The likely mechanism is openness to experience," White concludes, "and, I think, it's also this idea of having an educated view of risk as well." (Of course, American views about what consists of an "educated" perspective on drug risks have often clashed with those of the more relaxed position typically taken in Europe.) The study didn't look at the risk of addiction among those with high IQs because it wasn't able to measure the frequency of drug use in participants. However, earlier research has found a connection between high IQ and greater risk of alcohol abuse and dependence.That could potentially be linked to the boredom and social isolation experienced by many gifted children, the authors note. But since a link between IQ and drug use remains independent of psychological distress, that can't be all that's going on. "It rules out the argument that the only reason people take illegal drugs is to self medicate," says White.boredom n. 1.[U]厌烦，厌倦2.[C]令人厌烦的事物rule out 排除；取消；划去（7）：美国小孩受电视的间接影响很大Too much television can be detrimental for kids’ development, even when they’re not plopped directly in front of the screen. And your kids might be getting more exposure to such background TV than you think, a new study finds.The researchers found that the average American kid was exposed to 232.2 minutes of background television per day — when the TV was on, but the child was engaged in another activity. Younger children and African-America children were exposed to the most background television on average.“We were ready and willing to accept that the exposure would be high, but we were kind of shocked at how high it really was,‖ says study author Matthew Lapierre, a doctoral candidate and lecturer at the University of Pennsylvania’s Annenberg School for Communication. ―The fact that kids are exposed to about four hours on average per day definitely knocked us back on our heels a bit.‖knock back 使……大吃一惊Previous research has found that exposure to background television is linked to。