高考英语二轮复习专题训练：阅读理解（10）

阅读下列材料，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项。

A

Any foreigner who has tried to learn Chinese can tell how hardit is to master the tones required to speak and understand. Andanyone who has tried to learn to play the violin or otherinstruments can report similar challenges.

Now researchers have found that people with musical traininghave an easier time learning Chinese. Writing in the online editionof Nature Neuroscience，researchers from NorthwesternUniversity say that both skills draw on the same parts of the brainthat help people discover changes in pitch(音调)．

One of the study’s authors，Nina Kraus，said the findingssuggested that studying music “actually tunes our sensorysystem”．This means that schools that want children to do well inlanguages should hesitate before cutting music programs，Dr.Kraussaid. She said music training might also help children withlanguage problems.

Mandarin(普通话)speakers have been shown to have a more complexencoding(编码) of pitch patterns in their brains than Englishspeakers do. This is because in Mandarin and other Asianlanguages，pitch plays a central role. Asingle-syllable word can have several meaningsdepending on how it is intoned.

For this study，the researchers looked at 20non-Chinese speaking volunteers，half with nomusical background and half who have studied an instrument for atleast six years.

As they were shown a movie，the volunteers also heard an audiotape of the Mandarin word “mi” in three of itsmeanings：squint，bewilder and rice. The researchers recordedactivities in their brain stems to see how well they wereprocessing the sounds. Those with a music background showed muchmore brain activities in response to the Chinese sounds.

The lead author of the study，Patrick C．M.Wong，said it might workboth ways. It appears that native speakers of tonal languages maydo better at learning instruments.

1. When learning Chinese，a foreigner will find ________.

A．he has a difficult time learning music at the same time

B．he has an easier time learning music at the same time

C．it is hard to master the tones required to speak andunderstand

D．it is easy to use the brain to help him discover changes inpitch

2. Why does Chinese learning have something to do with musictraining?

A．Because there is the same difficulty in learning Chinese andmusic.

B．Because skills to learn the two make use of the same parts ofthe brain.

C．Because music training might help people with languagestudy.

D．Because people who do well in Chinese study do well inmusic.

3. The underlined word “intoned” in the fourth paragraph can bereplaced by the word “____”．

A．created                          B．spelled     

C．seemed                          D．pronounced

4. What would be the best title for this passage?

A．Mandarin Speakers Are Smarter than English Speakers

B．Skilled Ear for Music May Help Language Study

C．Pitch Plays a Central Role in Chinese Learning

D．Schools Need to Develop Music Programs

 

B

Today, there’s hardly an aspect of our life that isn’t beingupended by the tons of information available on the hundreds ofmillions of sites crowding the Internet, not to mention its abilityto keep us in constant touch with each other via electronic mail.“If the automobile and aerospace technology had exploded at thesame pace as computer and information technology,” says Microsoft,“a new car would cost about $ 2 and go 600 miles on a smallquantity of gas. And you could buy a Boeing 747 for the cost of apizza.”

Probably the biggest payoff, however, is the billions of dollarsthe Internet is saving companies in producing goods and serving forthe needs of their customers. Nothing like it has been seen sincethe beginning of the Industrial Revolution, when power-drivenmachines began producing more in a day than men could turn out innearly a year. “We view the growth of the Internet and e-commerceas a global trend,” says Merrill Lynch, “along the lines ofprinting press, the telephone, the computer, and electricity.”

You would be hard pressed to name something that isn’t availableon the Internet. Consider: books, health care, movie tickets,construction materials, baby clothes, stocks, cattle feed, music,electronics, antiques, tools, real estate, toys, autographs offamous people, wine and airline tickets. And even after you’vemoved on to your final resting place, there’s no reason those youlove can’t keep in touch. A company called FinalThoughts.com offersa place for you to store “afterlife e-mails” you can send to Heavenwith the help of a “guardian angel”.

Kids today are so computer literate that it in fact ensures theUnited States will remain the unchallenged leader in cyberspace forthe foreseeable future. Nearly all children in families withincomes of more than $75,000 a year have home computers, accordingto a study by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation. Youngstersfrom ages 2 to 17 at all income levels have computers, with 52% ofthose connected to the Internet. Most kids use computers to playgames (some for 30 hours or more a week), and many teenage girlsthink nothing of rushing home from school to havee-mail chats with friends they have just left.

What’s clear is that, whether we like it or not, the Internet isan ever growing part of our lives and there is no turning back.“The Internet is just 20% invented,” says cyber pioneer JakeWinebaum. “The last 80% is happening now.”

5. What can we learn from the Microsoft’s remark?

   A. Today’s cars andairplanes are extremely overpriced.

   B. Information technologyis developing at an amazing speed.

   C. Information technologyhas reached the point where improvement is difficult.

   D. There’s more competitionin information technology industry than in car industry.

6. According to the author, the biggest benefit of the Internetis that___.

   A. it saves companies hugeamounts of money

   B. it speeds up profitmaking

   C. it brings peopleincredible convenience

   D. it provides easy accessto information 

7. The author gives the example of FinalThoughts.com to make thepoint that____.

   A. there are some geniusideas on the Internet

   B. almost anything isavailable on the Internet

   C. people can find goodbargains on the Internet

   D. people are free to doanything on the Internet

8. What can we learn from the fourth paragraph?

   A. There is a link betweenincome and computer ownership.

   B. Many American childrendon’t put computers to good use.

   C. Studies show that boysare more computer literate than girls.

   D. The U.S. will stay aheadin the information technology in years.

9. Which sentence has the phrase that has the same meaning asthe one underlined in the fifth paragraph?

A. Some can tell you that he has changed their lives, whileothers think nothing of him.

B. Think nothing of it. It was my pleasure.

C. He thinks nothing of staying up all night in the Cafébar.

D. He thinks nothing of the pain in his back for themoment.

10. What is the message the author intends to convey?

   A. The Internet is going toget firm hold of our lives some day.

   B. The Internet is going toinfluence our lives even more greatly.

   C. We should have apositive attitude towards the changes the Internet brings.

   D. Children should be wellprepared for the challenges in the information age.

 

    C

The new studies show that fewer than half of the 9th graders inmany of the nation’s largest cities, can ever graduate. The studiesclearly show that the dropout rate isn’t dropping. And, inparticular, the dropout rate isn’t dropping for poor and minoritystudents.

Amazingly, though so many regret the rising dropout rate, ourschools continue to lack formal plans--or any plans--to teachstudents motivation(动机). Most schools have no game plan to ensurethat students understand that schooling will be completelynecessary. Schools expect youth and children to act as thoughschooling is important, but they never teach them to believethat.

    Yearsago, families ensured thatthe children recognized the valueof schooling. But in many modern families, the children may fail torecognize the importance of school life just because these familiesmay actually tell their children that school is not important.Since many families are not motivating their children to beinterested students, youth professionals, like teachers may need toprovide this training. Otherwise, it is likely the dropout ratewill continue not to drop, but only worsen.

    Hereare some strategies to convince even the most apathetic (无动于衷的)students that they must stay in school.

    Askstudents if they will ever need to work: The world has changed. 100years ago, factory work was the booming job, and it required noeducation. Today, factories are increasingly automated. Mostcomputer-related jobs require education and at least a high schooldiploma.

    Askstudents which century they will be prepared for: In 1900, the mostcommon jobs were farm laborer and domestic servant—education notneeded. Now, the most common jobs are office and salesstaff—education and diploma usually needed. An amazing 6 out of 10people today work in a store or office.

Ask students to devise a way that the employee could bereplaced. For example, the coming trend in fast food is to usecomputers rather than people to run the restaurant. A prototype isapparently already being tested. The students should discover thatmost jobs that lack education and diploma requirements may be ripefor automation.

11. What does the underlined part mean in Paragraph1?

     A. Fewstudents can afford to go to school in large cities.

     B. A largenumber of the 9^th graders can graduate now.

     C. There arestill quite a few 9^th graders leaving school early.

     D. Mostschools in large cities have fewer and fewer students.

12. Without the help of youth professionals,_____.

     A. more andmore families will gradually recognize the value of school.

     B. it islikely that the dropout rate in schools won’t continue to drop.

     C. someparents will be more convinced of their children’s future.

     D. theschools will make proper plans to solve the problems withdropout.

13. The author takes factory work for example mainly to______.

     A. tell usthat many jobs requires certain education in the past

     B. show thatthere are more factory work and employment in modern society

     C. show thatemployment in the computer field grows at a high rate

     D. emphasizethat modern jobs require education and schools are necessary

14. It can be inferred that______.

     A. bothschools and families should answer for the high dropout rate

     B. many newjobs don’t need children’s high school diploma

     C. workingin a store doesn’t require a high school diploma

     D. mostschools are ready to help students recognize the importance ofstudy

15. If students play the “Replace Me” game, the result would be“______”.

A. They will know that they can ‘always’ do without adiploma

B. More of them will drop out early to go to work

C. They will discover that lack of education is a disadvantagein choosing jobs

D. They will become better at using computers to hunt for ajob

 

D

Hans was an honest fellow with a funny round good-humored face.Living alone, every day he worked in his garden. In all thecountryside there was no garden so lovely as his. All sorts offlowers grew there, blooming in their proper order as the monthswent by, one flower taking another flower’s place, so that therewere always beautiful things to see, and pleasant odors tosmell.

    Hans hadmany friends, the most devoted being the Miller. So devoted was therich Miller to Hans that he’d never go by his garden withoutplucking a large bunch of flowers or a handful of sweet herbs, orfilling his pockets with fruits. The Miller used to talk aboutnoble ideas, and Hans nodded and smiled, feeling proud of havingsuch a friend.

    Theneighbors thought it strange that the rich Miller never gave Hansanything in return, though he had hundreds of sacks of flour, manycows and sheep, but Hans never troubled his head about these, andnothing gave him greater pleasure than to listen to all thewonderful things about the unselfishness of true friendship.

    Inspring, summer, and autumn Hans was very happy, but when wintercame, and he had no fruit or flowers to sell, he suffered from coldand hunger. Though extremely lonely, the Miller never came to seehim then.

    “There’sno good in going to see Hans while the snow lasts.” The Miller saidto his wife, “When people are introuble they shouldn’t be bothered. So I’ll wait till the springcomes when he’s happy to give me flowers.”

    “You’recertainly very thoughtful,” answered his wife, “It’s quite a treatto hear you talk about friendship.”

    “Couldn’twe ask Hans up here?” said their son. “I’ll give him half my meal,and show him my white rabbits.”

    “Howsilly you are!” cried the Miller. “I really don’t know what’s theuse of sending you to school. If Hans came up here, and saw ourwarm fire, our good supper, and our red wine, he might get envious,and envy is a most terrible thing, and would spoil anybody’snature. I am his best friend, and I’ll always watch over him, andsee that he’s not led into any temptation. Besides, if Hans camehere, he might ask me for some flour. Flour is one thing, andfriendship is another, and they shouldn’t be confused. Thewords are spelt differently, and mean quite different things.Everybody can see that.” He looked seriously at his son, who feltso ashamed that he hung his head down, and grew quite scared, andbegan to cry into his tea.

    Springcoming, the Miller went down to see Hans. Again he talked aboutfriendship. “Hans, friendship never forgets. I’m afraid you don’tunderstand the poetry of life. See, how lovely your roses are!”

    Hans saidhe wanted to sell them in the market to buy back his things whichwere sold during the hard time of the winter.

    “I’llgive you many good things. I think being generous is the base offriendship.” said the Miller. “And now, as I’ll give you many goodthings, I’m sure you’d like to give me some flowers in return.Here’s the basket, and fill it quite full.”

    Poor Hanswas afraid to say anything. He ran and plucked all his prettyroses, and filled the Miller’s basket, imagining the many goodthings promised by the Miller.

    The nextday he heard the Miller calling: “Hans, would you mind carryingthis sack of flour for me to market?”

    “I’msorry, but I am really very busy today.”

    “Well,”said the Miller, “considering that I’m going to give you my things,it’s rather unfriendly of you to refuse. Upon my word, you mustn’tmind my speaking quite plainly to you.”

    Poor Hanswas driven by his friendship theory to work hard for his bestfriend, leaving his garden dry and wasted.

    Oneevening Hans was sitting by fire when the Miller came.

    “Hans,”cried the Miller, “My little boy has fallen off a ladder and hurthimself, and I’m going for the Doctor. But he lives so far away,and it’s such a bad windy night. It has just occurred to me thatyou can go instead of me. You know I’m going to give you my goodthings, so you should do something for me in return.”

   “Certainly,” cried Hans. He struggled into the stormy night, andgot the doctor to ride a horse to the Miller’s house in time tosave the boy. However, Hans got lost in the darkness, and wanderedoff into a deep pool, drowned.

    At Hans’funeral, the Miller said, “I was his best friend. I should walk atthe head of the procession.” Every now and then he wiped his eyeswith a handkerchief.

16. From the passage, we can learn that Hans ___________.

   A. was extremely wise andnoble

B. was highly valued by the Miller

   C. admired the Miller verymuch

D. had a strong desire for fortune

17. “Flour is one thing, and friendship is another” can beunderstood as ___________.

   A. “Different words maymean quite different things.”

   B. “Interest is permanentwhile friendship is flexible.”

   C. “I’m afraid you don’tunderstand the poetry of life.”

   D. “I think being generousis the base of friendship.”

18. From the Miller’s talk at home, we can see he was___________.

   A. serious but kind

B. helpful and generous

C. caring but strict

D. selfish and cold-hearted

19. What’s the main cause of Hans’ tragedy?

   A. True friendship betweenthem.

B. A lack of formal education.

   C. A sudden change ofweather.

D. Blind devotion to a friend.

20. The author described the Miller’s behavior in order to___________.

   A. entertain the readerswith an incredible joking tale

   B. show the friendshipbetween Hans and the Miller

   C. warn the readers aboutthe danger of a false friend

   D. persuade people to be asintelligent as the Miller

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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