英語專四考試備考閱讀練習

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　　task 1

　　On January 10, 1962, an enormous piece of glacier broke away and tumbled down the side of a mountain in Peru. A mere seven minutes later, when cascading ice finally came to a stop ten miles down the mountain, it had taken the lives of 4,000 people.?

　　This disaster is one of the most “devastating”examples of a very common event: an avalanche of snow or ice. Because it is extremely cold at very high altitudes, snow rarely melts. It just keeps piling up higher and higher. Glaciers are eventually created when the weight of the snow is so great that the lower layers are pressed into solid ice. But most avalanches occur long before this happens. As snow accumulates on a steep slope, it reaches a critical point at which the slightest vibration will send it sliding into the valley below.? Even an avalanche of light power can be dangerous, but the Peruvian catastrophe was particularly terrible because it was caused by a heavy layer of ice. It is estimated that the ice that broke off weighed three million tons. As it crashed down the steep mountainside like a gigantic snow plough, it swept up trees, boulders and tons of topsoil, and completely crushed and destroyed the six villages that lay in its path.

　　At present there is no way to predict or avoid such enormous avalanches, but, luckily, they are very rare. Scientists are constantly studying the smaller, more common avalanches, to try to understand what causes them. In the future, perhaps dangerous masses of snow and ice can be found and removed before they take human lives.?

　　1. The first paragraph catches the reader’s attention with a ?_____?

　　A. first hand report? B. dramatic description? C. tall tale?D. vivid world picture ?

　　2. In this passage "devastating" means ?______?.

　　A. violently ruinous? B. spectacularly interesting? C. stunning? D. unpleasant ?

　　3. The passage is mostly about ?______?.?

　　A. avalanches B. glaciers C. Peru D. mountains

　　答案解析

　　1. A) 文章的`第一段就像一個新聞報道，報道了在秘魯發(fā)生的雪崩的災難性后果，一下子就吸引了讀者的注意力。

　　2. A) 根據(jù)語境線索可判斷出詞義為A。?

　　3. A) 通讀全文可知，文章主要是講述雪崩的形成。

　　task 2

　　As the merchant class expanded in the eighteenth?century North American Colonies, the silversmith and the coppersmith businesses rose to serve it. Only a few silversmiths were available in New York or Boston in the late seventeenth century, but in the eighteenth century they could be found in all major colonial cities. No other colonial artisans rivaled the silversmiths’ prestige. They handled the most expensive materials and possessed direct connections to prosperous colonial merchants. Their products, primarily silver plates and bowls, reflected their exalted status and testified to their customers’ prominence. Silver stood as one of the surest ways to store wealth at a time before neighborhood banks existed. Unlike the silver coins from which they were made, silver articles were readily identifiable. Often formed to individual specifications, they always carried the silversmith’s distinctive markings and consequently could be traced and retrieved. Customers generally secure the silver for the silver object they ordered. They saved coins, took them to smiths, and discussed the type of pieces they desired. Silversmiths complied with these requests by melting the money in a small furnace, adding a bit of copper to form a stronger alloy, and casting the alloy in rectangular blocks. They hammered these ingots to the appropriate thickness by hand, shaped them and pressed designs into them for adornment. Engraving was also done by hand. In addition to plates and bowls, some customers sought more intricate products, such as silver teapots. These were made by shaping or casting parts separately and then soldering them together. Colonial coppersmithing also come of age in the early eighteenth century and prospered in northern cities. Copper’s ability to conduct heat efficiently and to resist corrosion contributed to its attractiveness. But because it was expensive in colonial America, coppersmiths were never very numerous. Virtually all copper worked by Smiths was imported as sheets or obtained by recycling old copper goods. Copper was used for practical items, but it was not admired for its beauty. Coppersmiths employed it to fashion pots and kettles for the home. They shaped it in much the same manner as silver or melted it in a foundry with lead or tin. They also mixed it with zinc to make brass for maritime and scientific instruments.?

　　1.According to the passage, which of the following eighteenth century developments had strong impact on silversmiths? ?

　　A. A decrease in the cost of silver. ?

　　B. The invention of heat efficient furnaces. ?

　　C. The growing economic prosperity of colonial merchants. ?

　　D. The development of new tools used to shape silver. ?

　　2.In colonial America, where did silversmiths usually obtain the material to make silver articles? ?

　　A. From their own mines. ? B. From importers.

　　C. From other silversmiths. ? D. From customers.

　　3.The passage mentions all of the following as uses for copper in Colonial America EXCEPT ?______?.?

　　A. cooking pots ?B. scientific instruments ? C. musical instruments ? D. maritime instruments

　　4.According to the passage, silversmiths and coppersmiths in colonial America were similar in which of the following ways? ?

　　A. The amount of social prestige they had.?

　　B. The way they shaped the metal they worked with. ?

　　C. The cost of the goods they made. ?

　　D. The practicality of the goods they made.

　　答案解析

　　1. C) 根據(jù)文章第一句“As the merchant class expanded in the eighteenth?century North American Colonies,...”可知，隨著在十八世紀的北美殖民地商人階級膨脹起來，也就是說那時的商人財富有了很大的發(fā)展，銀匠銅匠們有機會發(fā)揮他們的`專長了，這與選項C正好相符。?

　　2. D) 根據(jù)文章第十四、五行“Customers generally secures …object they ordered. They saved coins, took them to smiths, and...”可知顧客要做銀器，首先要積攢銀幣，然后拿到銀匠處加工成他們想要的形狀。選項D“來自客戶”與之相符。

　　3. C) 文章末尾在提到銅的用途時惟獨沒有提到樂器。?

　　4. B) 根據(jù)文章倒數(shù)第四行“They shaped it in much the same manner as silver or melted it in a foundry with lead or tin.”可知銀匠和銅匠在銀器和銅器的塑型方式上是一樣的，故選項B為正確答案。

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