电大开放教育英语II阅读理解电脑考试版

英语II(1) 期末复习资料——阅读理解

第一篇

Benjamin Disraeli, the famous nineteenth century prime minister, said, “London is not a city, - it is a nation.” Today this is an understatement; London, with its vast range of different ethnic groups, is a world.

Certainly, London is the most culturally diverse city in the world. The city was founded by the Romans and since then new arrivals have constantly added to its character and prosperity.

Within 10 years 40% of Londoners will be from ethnic minority groups, including the growing number of Londoners of mixed ethnic origin, but most of them will have been born in Britain.

Children of Caribbean-Chinese marriages will go to school with children of Russian-Irish couples. None of them will be English but all of them will be Londoners.

Most of Britain's ethnic minority residents live in the capital, speaking over 300 languages.

Nearly all of the African population and many of the Caribbean population of Britain live in London (83% and 58% respectively); 39% of the Chinese population of Britain and 36% of the Asian population of Britain live in London.

The largest migrant community is from the Irish Republic with 256,000 people, 3.8% of the total population of London.

There are an estimated 330,000 refugees and asylum seekers living in London, with most recent arrivals coming from Eastern Europe, North Africa and Kurdistan.

Young people, in particular, are skilled at dealing with a large number of different and hybrid cultures.

They themselves often have several different ethnic identities since their parents and grandparents may come from several different backgrounds and their friends and partners do also. They are “skilled cross-cultural travellers” without leaving their home-town.

1．Why does the writer think that Benjamin Disraeli’s statement is an understatement?

Because he thinks London is _________.

A. a miniature world thanks to its great cultural diversity B. even larger than some countries in the world C. not a nation at all

2. London is regarded as the most culturally diverse city in the world due to the following facts EXCEPT that _________.

A. within 10 years 40% Londoners will be from ethnic minority groups B. many young people are immigrants from different backgrounds

C. London accommodates about 330,000 refugees and asylum seekers from many other countries

3. Ethnic minority groups will make up _________ of the London population in the future.

A. 36% B. 40% C. 39%

4. The last paragraph mainly tells us in London _________.

A. young people feel at ease with a large number of diversified cultures B. young people are raised in a multicultural environment

C. young people find it hard to adapt themselves to hybrid cultures 5. The passage mainly deals with _________.

A. the advantage of hybrid cultures in London B. the composition of the population in London

C. the cultural diversity in London 1. A 2. B 3. B 4. A 5. C 第二篇

In the last 500 years, nothing about people – not their clothes, ideas, or languages – has changed as much as what they eat. The original chocolate drink was made from the seeds of the cocoa tree by South American Indians. The Spanish introduced it to the rest of the world during the 1500’s. And although it was very expensive, it quickly became fashionable. In London shops where chocolate drinks were served became important meeting places. Some still exist today.

The potato is also from the New World. Around 1600, the Spanish brought it from Peru to Europe, where it soon was widely grown. Ireland became so dependent on it that thousands of Irish people starved when the crop failed during the“Potato Famine”of 1845-6, and thousands more were forced to emigrate to America.

There are many other foods that have traveled from South America to the Old World. But some others went in the opposite direction. Brazil is now the World’s largest grower of coffee, and coffee is an important crop in Colombia and other South American countries. But it is native to Ethiopia. It was first made into a drink by Arabs during the 1400’s.

According to an Arabic legend, coffee was discovered when a goatherd name

Kaldi noticed that his goats were attracted to the red berries on a coffee bush. He There have been changes in all sorts of different areas of British society. In recent tried one and experienced the “wide-awake” feeling that one-third of the world’s years in the UK we have had a very large increase in the number of couples who get population now starts the day with.

divorced.

1. According to the passage, which of the following has changed the most in the After 1969 and the Divorce Law Reform Act we had a very rapid increase in the last 500 years?

number of divorces. The rate increased steadily and in recent years has increased A. Food C. Potato B. Chocolate D. Coffee much more rapidly. But there are also quite a lot of people who do actually get 2. “Some” in “Some still exist today” means _________.

married. At present the marriage rate in the UK is about 70 per cent, which has gone A. some cocoa trees C. some shops B. some chocolate down since the number of people who marry has gone down quite a lot in the last 20 drinks D. some South American Indians

years, but more significantly in the last 10 years. Quite high proportions of people 3. Thousands of Irish people starved during the “Potato Famine” because now live together without marrying, and, for example, 40 per cent of children born _________.

in the UK are born to couples who aren't married or are born to lone parents. There A. they were so dependent on the potato that they refused to eat anything else are quite a large number of lone parent families, 90 per cent of these are headed by a B. they were forced to emigrate to America

woman rather than a man.

C. the weather conditions in Ireland were not suitable for growing the potato The average family size now in the UK is 1.8 children per couple, which means that D. the potato harvest was bad

there's been quite a decline in the birth rate in the UK along with other European 4. Coffee originally came from_________.

countries.

A. Brazil B. Colombia C. Ethiopia D. Arabia 1. What does the passage mainly discuss?

5. The Arabic legend is used to prove that _________.

A. The declining divorce rate in the UK. B. The declining marriage rate in the A. coffee was first discovered by Kaldi B. coffee was first discovered by UK.

Kaldi’s goats

C. The increasing divorce rate in the UK. D. Trends in marriage and divorce in C. coffee was first discovered in south American countries

the UK.

D. coffee drinks were first made by Arabs (key: ACDCD) 2. During the last ten years, __________.

第三篇

A. the marriage rate has gone down more rapidly in the UK B. the marriage An Extraordinary Change of Direction

rate has gone up a lot in the UK

Molly Wilson had been a dancer and a mother for many years when she decided to C. 40% of children were born to unwed couples in the UK D. 40% of children sail round the world to raise money for charity.

were born to single parents in the UK

As a child she had trained as a ballet dancer, but at 15 she had grown too tall for 3. According to the passage, the cohabitation rate in the UK tends to __________. classical ballet, so she became a member of a pop dance team.

A. decline B. soar (急剧上升) C. stay stable D. not mentioned in the She got married, and after she had children she retired from show business to bring passage

them up. They grew up, and when they were 18 they left home.

4. According to the passage, which of the following statements is NOT true?

She says, “When I decided to do the round-the-world race, my husband thought I A. The highest divorce rate was around 1969. B. The marriage rate has gone down was bored because the children had left home. He was also worried because I had in recent years.

never sailed before. I was not bored, but I had met some people who told me about C. The marriage rate is currently 70 percent. D. 90 percent of lone parent families the race.

are headed by women.

They had taken part in it, but they had only done one section, say, from New Zealand 5. The last paragraph tells us __________.

to Australia. I wanted to do the whole ten-month journey.”

A. the birth rate in the UK is increasing at the moment B. at present any family in Before Molly left she did a lot of training, but it hadn’t prepared her for the worst the UK is 2 children at most

weather which they experienced. She tells one story. “One night the sea was very C. the birth rate in other European countries keeps increasing

rough and it was very cold. I had gone downstairs when a huge wave smashed into D. the birth rate in the UK is decreasing rapidly now (key:CABAD) the boat and injured two men on the deck. One of the men couldn’t move because he

had broken his leg. They were taken to hospital by helicopter. That was the worst 第五篇

time.”

Some people think they have an answer to the troubles of automobile crowding and By the end of October last year, she had raised more than £50,000 for charity.

dirty air in large cities. Their answer is the bicycle, or “bike”.

She says, “Sometimes I ask myself, what did I do? How did I do it? But then I think, In a great many cities, hundreds of people ride bicycles to work every day. In New it’s the same as being a dancer. Before I left on the trip, I had trained hard. I had got York City, some bike riders have even formed a group called Bike for a Better City. very fit and had prepared myself completely. Then on the trip I was simply a good They claim that if more people rode bicycles to work there would be fewer team member.”

automobiles in the downtown section of the city and therefore less dirty air from car 1. What does the word “extraordinary” mean in the title?

engines.

A. very ordinary B. very unusual and surprising C. not special D. For several years this group has been trying to get the city government to help bike extreme

riders. For example, they want the city to draw bicycle lanes on some of the main 2. The sentence “…my husband thought I was bored …” in Para. 4 meant that my streets, because when bike riders have to use the same lanes as cars, there are husband thought I felt_________.

accidents. Bike for a Better City feels that if there were special lanes more people A. dissatisfied because I had nothing better to do at home

would use bikes.

B. annoyed because I had to wait long for my children to come back home

But no bicycle lanes have been drawn. Not everyone thinks it is a good idea - they C. happy because I could do something I was interested in instead of taking care say it will slow traffic. Some store owners on the main streets say that if there is less of children

traffic, they will have less business. And most people live too far from downtown to D. sad because all the children left me when they grew up

travel by bike.

3. The word “section” in Para. 4 most probably means here _________.

The city government has not yet decided what to do. It wants to keep everyone A. group of people B. part of the training C. part of the route of sail D. happy. Only on weekends, Central Park is closed to cars, and the roads may be used part of the job

by bicycles only. But Bike for a Better City says that this is not enough and keeps 4. Which of the following is nearest (closest) in meaning to “rough” in the sentence fighting to get bicycle lanes downtown.

“One night the sea was very rough …” in Para. 5? A. not exact B. difficult 1. According to the passage, bicycles ____________.

C. not smooth because of huge waves D. pleasant A. are more convenient than cars B. are safer traffic tools than cars

5. The last paragraph suggests that _________.

C. are ridden by most people in the U.S D. are the solution to some city A. the qualities she needed for the trip were the same as those for a dancer

problems

B. many years of dancing had already prepared her for the sail completely, so she 2. The idea of special bicycle lanes is most favored by ____________.

needn’t do anything before the journey

A. the city government B. some bike riders C. people living far from C. she should be kind to other team members during the trip

downtown D. some store owners

D. she should not forget dancing during the trip (key: BACCA) 3. “Bicycle lanes” in the third paragraph probably means ____________.

第四篇

A. narrow passages between buildings for bicycles B. roads full of bicycles

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C. special parts of the road for bicycle riders only D. roads for bicycles only

4. Which of the following is not true according to the passage? A. Bike for a Better City members ride bicycles to work.

B. Sometimes accidents may occur when cars and bikes are on the same lanes. C. The Central Park is closed to cars on weekends.

D. In New York City, many people use bikes as they have special lanes. 5. The best title for this passage is ____________.

A. Traffic Crowding in New York City B. Air Pollution in New York City by Cars

C. Special Lanes for Passengers D. Solution to Traffic Problem in New York (key: DBCDD) 第六篇

Paper was invented by the Chinese in the first century AD. Paper was not made in southern Europe until about the year 1100. Scandinavia - which now makes a great deal of the world’s paper - did not begin to make it until 1500. Most paper is made from wood. Paper-making is an important British industry and paper from Britain is sold to many countries such as Australia and South Africa. Some of the wood used in the British paper making industry comes from trees grown in Britain, but wood is also bought from other countries such as Norway. One tree is needed for every four hundred copies of a forty-page newspaper. If half the adults in Britain buy one daily paper, this uses up over a thousand trees a day. All over the world, trees are being cut down faster than they are being planted, so there may be a serious need for paper at the beginning of next century.

When we think of paper, we think of newspaper, books, letters and writing paper. But there are many other uses. Only half of paper is used for books and newspaper, etc. Paper is very good for keeping you warm. Each year, more and more things are made of paper. Now we hear that chairs, tables, and even beds can be made of paper. But the latest in paper making seems to be paper houses. 1. Where was paper invented?

A. In China. B. In southern Europe .C. In Scandinavia. D. In Britain.

2. Scandinavia began to make paper ____________.

A. in 1100 B. in 1400 C. in 1500 D. in the first century

3. Every four hundred copies of a forty-page newspaper will need ____________. A. half a tree B. one tree C. two trees D. more than one tree

4. All over the world, trees are being cut down ____________ than they are being planted.

A. more slowly B. much faster C. much more slowly D. faster

5. The latest things made of paper are ____________.

A. chairs B. tables C. clothes D. houses (Key: 1. A 2. C 3. B 4. D 5. D) 第七篇

A funny thing happened on the way to the communication revolution: we stopped talking to each other.

I was walking in the park with a friend recently, and his mobile phone rang, interrupting our conversation. There we were, walking and talking on a beautiful sunny day and – poof! – I was cut off as if I had become absent from the conversation.

The park was filled with people talking on their cell phones. They were passing people without looking at them, saying hello, noticing their babies or stopping to pat their dogs. It seems that the limitless electronic voice is preferred to human contact. The telephone used to connect you to the absent. Now it makes people feel absent. Recently I was in a car with three friends. The driver hushed the rest of us because he could not hear the person on the other end of his cell phone. There we were, four friends driving down the highway, unable to talk to each other because of the small thing designed to make communication easier.

Why is it that the more connected we get, the more disconnected I feel? Every advance in communications technology is a setback (退步) to the closeness of human interaction. With e-mail and instant message over the Internet, we can now communicate without seeing or talking to one another. With voice mail, you can make entire conversations without ever reaching anyone. If my mom has a question, I just leave the answer on her machine.

As almost every contact between human beings gets automatic, the emotional distance index goes up. Pumping gas at the station? Why say good-morning to the assistant when you can swipe you credit card at the pump and save yourself the

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