2013年考研法硕英语最新模拟题之阅读理解

　　Part Ⅲ Reading Comprehension (40 minutes, 40 points)

　　Directions: There are 4 passages in this part. Each of the passage is followed by 5 questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are 4 choices marked A, B, C and D. Choose the best one and mark your answer on the ANSWER SHEET with a single line through the center.

　　Passage One

　　Some pessimistic experts feel that the automobile is bound to fall into disuse. They see a day in the not-too-distant future when all autos will be abandoned and allowed to rust. Other authorities, however, think the auto is here to stay. They hold that the car will remain a leading means of travel in the foreseeable future.

　　The motorcar will undoubtedly change significantly over the next 30 years. It should become smaller, safer, and more economical, and should not be powered by the gasoline engine. The car of the future should be far more pollution-free than present types.

　　Regardless of its power source, the auto in the future will still be the main problem in urban traffic congestion(拥挤). One proposed solution to this problem is the automated highway system.

　　When the auto enters the highway system, a retractable (可伸缩的) arm will drop from the auto and make contact with a rail, which is similar to those powering subway trains electrically. Once attached to the rail, the car will become electrically powered from the system, and control of the vehicle will pass to a central computer. The computer will then monitor all of the car's movements.

　　The driver will use a telephone to dial instructions about his destination into the system. The computer will calculate the best mute, and reserve space for the car all the way to the correct exit from the highway. The driver will then be free to relax and wait for the buzzer(蜂鸣器) that will warn of his coming exit. It is estimated that an automated highway will be able to ban 10,000 vehicles per hour, compared with the 1,400 to 2,000 vehicles that can be carried by a present-day highway.

　　31. One significant improvement in the future car will probably be ______________.

　　A. its power source B. its driving system

　　C. its monitoring system D. its seating capacity

　　32. What is the author's main concern?

　　A. How to render automobiles pollution-free.

　　B. How to make smaller and safer automobiles.

　　C. How to solve the problem of traffic jams.

　　D. How to develop an automated subway system.

　　33. What provides autos with electric power in an automated highway system?

　　A. A rail. B. An engine.

　　C. A retractable ann. D. A computer controller.

　　34. In an automated highway system, all the driver needs to do is ____________.

　　A. keep in the right lane

　　B. wait to arrive at his destination

　　C. keep in constant touch with the computer center

　　D. inform the system of his destination by phone

　　35. What is the author's attitude toward the future of autos?

　　A. Enthusiastic. B. Pessimistic.

　　C. Optimistic. D. Cautious.

　　Passage Two

　　Do you know that all human beings have a "comfortable zone" regulating the distance they stand from someone when they talk? This distance varies in interesting ways among people of different cultures.

　　Greeks, others of the Eastern Mediterranean, and many of those from South America normally stand close together when they talk, often moving their faces even closer as they warm up in a conversation. North Americans find this awkward and often back away a few inches. Studies have found that they tend to feel most comfortable at about 21 inches apart. In much of Asia and Africa, there is even more space between two speakers in conversation. This greater space subtly lends an air of dignity and respect. This matter of space is nearly always unconscious, but it is interesting to observe.

　　This difference applies also to the closeness with which people sit together, the extent which they lean over one another in conversation, how they move as they argue, or make an emphatic point. In the United States, for example, people try to keep their bodies apart even in a crowded elevator; in Paris they take it as it comes!

　　Although North Americans have a relatively wide "comfortable zone" for talking, they communicate a great deal with their hands — not only with gestures but also with touch. They put a sympathetic hand on a person's shoulder to demonstrate warmth of feeling or an arm around him in sympathy; they nudge a man in the ribs to emphasize a funny story; they pat an arm in reassurance or stroke a child's head in affection, they readily take someone's arm to help him across a street or direct him along an unfamiliar route. To many people — especially those from Asia or the Moslem countries — such bodily contact is unwelcome, especially if inadvertently done with the left hand. (The left hand carries no special significance in the U. S. Many Americans are simply left handed and use that hand more. )

　　36. In terms of bodily distance, North Americans ____________.

　　A. are similar to South Americans

　　B. stand farthest apart

　　C. don't feel at ease when too close

　　D. move nearer during conversations

　　37. For Asians, the comfortable zone _____________.

　　A. is deliberately determined

　　B. measures 21 inches

　　C. varies according to status

　　D. implies esteem

　　38. It can be inferred from the passage that in a crowded elevator, a Frenchman would __________.

　　A. behave in the same way as an American would

　　B. make no particular effort to distance himself

　　C. be afraid of bodily contact

　　D. do his best to leave

　　39. When Americans tell a joke, they often ___________.

　　A. pat people on the head

　　B. give people a hug

　　C. dig people in the ribs

　　D. touch people on the arm

　　40. What does the passage mainly concern?

　　A. It concerns distance and bodily contact.

　　B. It concerns body language.

　　C. It concerns cultural differences between the East and the West.

　　D. It concerns hand signals.