2014年考研英语二真题及解析(共40页).doc

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1、精选优质文档-倾情为你奉上2014年全国硕士研究生入学考试英语(二)试题Section I Use of EnglishDirections:Read the following text. Choose the best word(s) for each numbered blank and mark A, B, C or D on ANSWER SHEET. (10 points)Thinner isnt always better. A number of studies have _1_ that normal-weight people are in fact at higher r

2、isk of some diseases compared to those who are overweight. And there are health conditions for which being overweight is actually _2_. For example, heavier women are less likely to develop calcium deficiency than thin women. _3_ among the elderly, being somewhat overweight is often an _4_ of good he

3、alth.Of even greater _5_ is the fact that obesity turns out to be very difficult to define. It is often defined _6_ body mass index, or BMI. BMI _7_ body mass divided by the square of height. An adult with a BMI of 18 to 25 is often considered to be normal weight. Between 25 and 30 is overweight. An

4、d over 30 is considered obese. Obesity, _8_,can be divided into moderately obese, severely obese, and very severely obese.While such numerical standards seem 9 , they are not. Obesity is probably less a matter of weight than body fat. Some people with a high BMI are in fact extremely fit, 10 others

5、with a low BMI may be in poor 11 .For example, many collegiate and professional football players 12 as obese, though their percentage body fat is low. Conversely, someone with a small frame may have high body fat but a 13 BMI.Today we have a(an) _14 _ to label obesity as a disgrace.The overweight ar

6、e sometimes_15_in the media with their faces covered. Stereotypes _16_ with obesity include laziness, lack of will power,and lower prospects for success.Teachers,employers,and health professionals have been shown to harbor biases against the obese. _17_very young children tend to look down on the ov

7、erweight, and teasing about body build has long been a problem in schools.Negative attitudes toward obesity, _18_in health concerns, have stimulated a number of anti-obesity _19_.My own hospital system has banned sugary drinks from its facilities. Many employers have instituted weight loss and fitne

8、ss initiatives. Michelle Obama launched a high-visibility campaign _20_ childhood obesity, even claiming that it represents our greatest national security threat.1. A denied B concluded C doubled D ensured2. A protective B dangerous C sufficient Dtroublesome3. A Instead B However C Likewise D Theref

9、ore4. A indicator B objective C origin D example5. A impact B relevance C assistance D concern6. A in terms of B in case of C in favor of D in of7. A measures B determines C equals D modifies8. A in essence B in contrast C in turn D in part9. A complicated B conservativeC variable D straightforward1

10、0. A so B while C since D unless11. A shape B spirit C balance D taste12. A start B quality C retire D stay13. A strange B changeable C normal D constant14. A option B reason C opportunity D tendency15. A employed B pictured C imitated D monitored16. A computed B combined C settled D associated17. A

11、 Even B Still C Yet D Only18. A despised B correctedC ignored D grounded19. A discussions B businesses C policies D studies20. A for B against C with D withoutSection II Reading ComprehensionPart ADirections:Read the following four texts. Answer the questions below each text by choosing A, B, C or D

12、. Mark your answers on ANSWER SHEET. (40 points)Text 1What would you do with $590m? This is now a question for Gloria Mackenzie, an 84yearold widow who recently emerged from her small, tinroofed house in Florida to collect the biggest undivided lottery jackpot in history. If she hopes her newfound f

13、ortune will yield lasting feelings of fulfillment, she could do worse than read Happy Money by Elizabeth Dumn and Michael Norton.These two academics use an array of behavioral research to show that the most rewarding ways to spend money can be counterintuitive. Fantasies of great wealth often involv

14、e visions of fancy cars and extravagant homes. Yet satisfaction with these material purchases wears off fairly quickly. What was once exciting and new becomes oldhat; regret creeps in. It is far better to spend money on experiences, say Ms. Dumn and Mr. Norton, like interesting trips, unique meals o

15、r even going to the cinema. These purchases often become more valuable with timeas stories or memoriesparticularly if they involve feeling more connected to others.This slim volume is packed with tips to help wage slaves as well as lottery winners get the most “happiness bang for your buck.” It seem

16、s most people would be better off if they could shorten their commutes to work, spend more time with friends and family and less of it watching television (something the average American spends a whopping two months a year doing, and is hardly jollier for it). Buying gifts or giving to charity is of

17、ten more pleasurable than purchasing things for oneself, and luxuries are most enjoyable when they are consumed sparingly. This is apparently the reason MacDonalds restricts the availability of its popular McRiba marketing trick that has turned the pork sandwich into an object of obsession.Readers o

18、f Happy Money are clearly a privileged lot, anxious about fulfillment, not hunger. Money may not quite buy happiness, but people in wealthier countries are generally happier than those in poor ones. Yet the link between feeling good and spending money on others can be seen among rich and poor people

19、 around the world, and scarcity enhances the pleasure of most things for most people. Not everyone will agree with the authors policy ideas, which range from mandating more holiday time to reducing tax incentives for American homebuyers. But most people will come away from this book believing it was

20、 money well spent.21. According to Dumn and Norton, which of the following is the most rewarding purchase?A A big house. B A special tour. C A stylish car. D A rich meal.22. The authors attitude toward Americans watching TV is _.A critical B supportive C sympathetic D ambiguous23. McRib is mentioned

21、 in Paragraph 3 to show that _.A consumers are sometimes irrationalB popularity usually comes after qualityC marketing tricks are after effectiveD rarity generally increases pleasure24. According to the last paragraph, Happy Money _.A has left much room for readers criticismB may prove to be a worth

22、while purchaseC has predicted a wider income gap in the USD may give its readers a sense of achievement25. This text mainly discusses how to _.A balance feeling good and spending moneyB spend large sums of money won in lotteriesC obtain lasting satisfaction from money spentD become more reasonable i

23、n spending on luxuriesText 2An article in Scientific America has pointed out that empirical research says that, actually, you think youre more beautiful than you are. We have a deepseated need to feel good about ourselves and we naturally employ a number of selfenhancing strategies to research into

24、what they call the “above average effect”, or “illusory superiority”, and shown that, for example, 70% of us rate ourselves as above average in leadership, 93% in driving and 85% at getting on well with othersall obviously statistical impossibilities.We rose tint our memories and put ourselves into

25、selfaffirming situations. We become defensive when criticized, and apply negative stereotypes to others to boost our own esteem, we stalk around thinking were hot stuff.Psychologist and behavioral scientist Nicholas Epley oversaw a key studying into selfenhancement and attractiveness. Rather that ha

26、ve people simply rate their beauty compress with others, he asked them to identify an original photograph of themselves from a lineup including versions that had been altered to appear more and less attractive. Visual recognition, reads the study, is “an automatic psychological process occurring rap

27、idly and intuitively with little or no apparent conscious deliberation”. If the subjects quickly chose a falsely flattering imagewhich must didthey genuinely believed it was really how they looked.Epley found no significant gender difference in responses. Nor was there any evidence that, those who s

28、elfenhance the must (that is, the participants who thought the most positively doctored picture were real) were doing so to make up for profound insecurities. In fact those who thought that the images higher up the attractiveness scale were real directly corresponded with those who showed other make

29、rs for having higher selfesteem. “I dont think the findings that we having have are any evidence of personal delusion”, says Epley. “Its a reflection simply of people generally thinking well of themselves. If you are depressed, you wont be selfenhancing.Knowing the results of Epleys study, it makes

30、sense that why people heat photographs of themselves viscerallyon one level, they dont even recognize the person in the picture as themselves. Facebook therefore, is a selfenhancers paradise, where people can share only the most flattering photos, the cream of their wit, style, beauty, intellect and

31、 lifestyles. “Its not that peoples profiles are dishonest”, says Catalina Toma of WisconMadison university,” but they portray an idealized version of themselves.26. According to the first paragraph, social psychologists have found that _.A our selfratings are unrealistically high B illusory superior

32、ity is a baseless effectC our need for leadership is unnatural D selfenhancing strategies are ineffective27. Visual recognition is believed to be peoples _.A rapid watching B conscious choice C intuitive response D automatic selfdefence28. Epley found that people with higher selfesteem tended to _.A

33、 underestimate their insecurities B believe in their attractivenessC cover up their depressions D oversimplify their illusions29. The word “viscerally” (Line 2, Para. 5) is closest in meaning to _.A instinctively B occasionally C particularly D aggressively30. It can be inferred that Facebook is sel

34、fenhancers paradise because people can _.A present their dishonest profiles B define their traditional life stylesC share their intellectual pursuits D withhold their unflattering sidesText 3The concept of man versus machine is at least as old as the industrial revolution, but this phenomenon tends

35、to be most acutely felt during economic downturns and fragile recoveries. And yet, it would be a mistake to think we are right now simply experiencing the painful side of a boom and bust cycle. Certain jobs have gone away for good, outmoded by machines. Since technology has such an insatiable appeti

36、te for eating up human jobs, this phenomenon will continue to restructure our economy in ways we cant immediately foresee.When there is rapid improvement in the price and performance of technology, jobs that were once thought to be immune from automation suddenly become threatened. This argument has

37、 attracted a lot of attention, via the success of the book Race Against the Machine, by Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee, who both hail from MITs Center for Digital Business.This is a powerful argument, and a scary one. And yet, John Hagel, author of The Power of Pull and other books, says Brynjo

38、lfsson and McAfee miss the reason why these jobs are so vulnerable to technology in the first place.Hagel says we have designed jobs in the U. S. that tend to be “tightly scripted” and “highly standardized” ones that leave no room for “individual initiative or creativity.” In short, these are the ty

39、pes of jobs that machines can perform much better at than human beings. That is how we have put a giant target sign on the backs of American workers, Hagel says.Its time to reinvent the formula for how work is conducted, since we are still relying on a very 20th century notion of work, Hagel says. I

40、n our rapidly changing economy, we more than ever need people in the workplace who can take initiative and exercise their imagination “to respond to unexpected events.” Thats not something machines are good at. They are designed to perform very predictable activities.As Hagel notes, Brynjolfsson and

41、 McAfee indeed touched on this point in their book. We need to reframe race against the machine as race with the machine. In other words, we need to look at the ways in which machines can augment human labor rather than replace it. So then the problem is not really about technology, but rather,“how

42、do we innovate our institutions and our work practices?”31. According to the first paragraph, economic downturns would _.A ease the competition of man vs. MachineB highlight machines threat to human jobsC provoke a painful technological revolutionD outmode our current economic structure32. The autho

43、rs of Race Against the Machine argue that _.A technology is diminishing mans job opportunitiesB automation is accelerating technological developmentC certain jobs will remain intact after automationD man will finally win the race against machine33. Hagel argues that jobs in the U. S. are often _.A p

44、erformed by innovative minds B scripted with an individual styleC standardized without a clear target D designed against human creativity34. According to the last paragraph, Brynjolfsson and McAfee discussed _.A the predictability of machine behavior in practiceB the formula for how work is conducte

45、d efficientlyC the ways machines replace human labor in modern timesD the necessity of human involvement in the workplace35. Which of the following could be the most appropriate title for the text?A How to Innovate Our Work Practices? B Machines will Replace Human LaborC Can We Win the Race Against

46、Machines? D Economic Downturns Stimulate InnovationsText 4When the government talks about infrastructure contributing to the economy the focus is usually on roads, railways, broadband and energy. Housing is seldom mentioned.Why is that? To some extent the housing sector must shoulder the blame. We have not been good at communicating the real value that housing can contribute to economic growth. Then there is the scale of the