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1997年8月托福考试阅读理解全真考题

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1997年8月托福考试阅读理解全真试题

Question 1-10In the 1600 s when the Spanish moved into what later

was to become the southwestern United States， they encoun-

tered the ancestors of the modern-day Pueblo， Hopi， and Zuni

peoples. These ancestors， known variously as the Basket

Makers， the Anasazi， or the Ancient Ones， had lived in the

area for at least 2，000 years. They were an advanced agricultural

people who used irrigation to help grow their crops. The Anasazi lived in houses constructed of adobe and

wood. Anasazi houses were originally built in pits and were

entered from the roof. But around the year 700 A.D.， the

Anasazi began to build their homes above ground and join them

together into rambling multistoried complexes， which the

Spanish called pueblos or villages. Separate subterranean rooms

in these pueblos---known as kivas or chapels---were set aside

for religious ceremonials. Each kiva had a fire pit and a hole

that was believed to lead to the underworld. The largest pueblos

had five stories and more than 800 rooms. The Anasazi family was matrilineal， that is， descent was

traced through the female. The sacred objects of the family

were under the control of the oldest female， but the actual

ceremonies were conducted by her brother or son. Women owned

the rooms in the pueblo and the crops， once they were harvested.

While still growing， crops belonged to the man who，

in contrast to most other Native American groups， planted

them. The women made baskets and pottery， the men wove

textile and crafted turquoise jewelry. Each village had two chiefs. The village chief dealt with

land disputes and religious affairs. The war chief led the men

in fighting during occasional conflicts that broke out with

neighboring villages and directed the men in community building

projects. The cohesive political and social organization of

the Anasazi made it almost impossible for other groups to

conquer them. 1. The Anasazi people were considered agriculturally advanced because of the way they stored their crops

fertilized their fields.

watered their crops.

planted their fields. 2.The Anasazi people were considered agriculturally advanced because of the way they stored their crops

fertilized their fields

watered their crops

planted their fields 3.The word pits in line 9 is closest in meaning to stages

scars

seeds

holes. 4.The word stories in line 17 is closest in meaning to articles

tales

levels

rumors 5.Who would have been most likely to control the sacred objects of an Anasazi family? A twenty-year-old man

A twenty-year-old woman

A forty-year-old man

A forty-year-old woman 6.The word they in line 22 refers to women

crops

rooms

pueblos 7.The word disputes in line 28 is closest in meaning to discussions

arguments

developments

purchases 8.Which of the following activities was NOT done by Anasazi men? Making baskets

Planting crops

Building homes

Crafting jewelry. 9.According to the passage， what made it almost impossible for other groups to conquer the Anasazi? The political and social organization of the Anasazi

The military tactics employed by the Anasazi

The Anasazi s agricultural technology.

The natural barriers surrounding Anasazi willages. 10.The passage supports which of the following generalizations? The presence of the Spanish threatened Anasazi society.

The Anasazi benefited from trading relations with the Spanish.

Anasazi society exhibited a well-defined division of labor.

Conflicts between neighboring Anasazi villages were easily resolved. Question 10-20Barbed wire， first patented in the United States in 1867，

played an important part in the development of American

farming， as it enabled the settlers to make effective fencing to

enclose their land and keep cattle away from their crops. This

had a considerable effect on cattle ranching， since the herds no

longer had unrestricted use of the plans for grazing， and the

fencing led to conflict between the farmers and the cattle

ranchers. Before barbed wire came into general use， fencing was often

made from serrated wire， which was unsatisfactory because

it broke easily when under strain， and could snap in cold

weather due to contraction. The first practical machine for

producing barbed wire was invented in 1874 by an Illinois

farmer， and between then and the end of the century about

400 types of barbed wire were devised， of which only about a

dozen were ever put to practical use. Modern barbed wire is made from mild steel high-tensile

steel， or aluminum. Mild steel and aluminum barbed wire

have two strands twisted together to form a cable which is

stronger than single-strand wire and less affected by temperature

changes. Single-strand wire， round or oval， is made from

high-tensile steel with the barbs crimped or welded on . The

steel wires used are galvanized - coated with zinc to make

them rustproof. The two wires that make up the line wire or

cable are fed separately into a machine at one end. They leave

it at the other end twisted-together and barbed. The wire to

make the barbs is fed into the machine from the sides and cut

to length by knives that cut diagonally through the wire to

produce a sharp point. This process continues automatically，

and the finished barbed wire is wound onto reels， usually made

of wire in length of 400 meters or in weights of up to 50

kilograms. A variation of barbed wire is also used for military

purposes. It is formed into long coils or entanglements called

concertina wire. 11.What is the main topic of the passage? Cattle ranching in the United States.

A type of fencing

Industrial uses of wire

A controversy over land use. 12.The word unrestricted in line 5 is closest in meaning to unsatisfactory

difficult

considerable

unlimited 13.The word snap in line 10 could best be replaced by which of the following? freeze

click

loosen

break 14.What is the benefit of using two-stranded barbed wire? Improved rust-resistance

Increased strength

More rapid attachment of barbs

Easier installation. 15.According to the author， the steel wires used to make barbed wire are specially processed to

protect them against rust

make them more flexible

prevent contraction in cold weather

straighten them. 16.The word fed in line 24 is closest in meaning to put

eaten

bitten

nourished 17.The knives referred to in line 27 are used to separate double-stranded wire

prevent the reel from advancing too rapidly

twist the wire

cut the wire that becomes barbs 18.What is the author s purpose in the third paragraph? To explain the importance of the wire.

To outline the difficulty of making the wire

To describe how the wire is made

To suggest several different uses of the wire. 19.According to the passage， concertina wire is used for livestock management

international communications

prison enclosures

military purposes. 20.Which of the following most closely resembles the fencing described in the passage? （图）

（图）

（图） Question 21-29Under certain circumstance the human body must cope

with gases at greater-than-normal atmospheric pressure. For

example， gas pressures increase rapidly during a dive made

with scuba gear because the breathing equipment allows divers

to stay underwater longer and dive deeper. The pressure

exerted on the human body increases by 1 atmosphere for every

10 meters of depth in seawater， so that at 30 meters in seawater

a diver is exposed to a pressure of about 4 atmospheres.

The pressure of the gases being breathed must equal the

external pressure applied to the body; otherwise breathing is very

difficult. Therefore all of the gases in the air breathed by a

scuba diver at 40 meters are present at five times their usual

pressure. Nitrogen which composes 80 percent of the air we

breathe usually causes a balmy feeling of well-being at this

pressure. At a depth of 5 atmospheres nitrogen causes symp-

toms resembling alcohol intoxication known as nitrogen narcosis.

Nitrogen narcosis apparently results from a direct effect

on the brain of the large amounts of nitrogen dissolved in the

blood. Deep dives are less dangerous if helium is substituted

for nitrogen， because under these pressures helium does not

exert a similar narcotic effect. As a scuba diver descends， the pressure of nitrogen in the

lungs increases. Nitrogen then diffuses from the lungs to the

blood and from the blood to body tissues. The reverse occurs

when the diver surfaces; the nitrogen pressure in the lungs

falls and the nitrogen diffuses from the tissues into the blood

and from the blood into the lungs. If the return to the surface

is too rapid， nitrogen in the tissues and blood cannot diffuse

out rapidly enough and nitrogen bubbles are formed . They can

cause severe pains， particularly around the joints. Another complication may result if the breath is held dur-

ing ascent. During ascent from a depth of 10 meters， the

volume of air in the lungs will double because the air pressure at

the surface is only half of what it was at 10 meters. This

change in volume may cause the lungs to distend and even rup-

ture. This condition is called air embolism. To avoid this

event， a diver must ascent slowly， never at a rate exceeding

the rise of the exhaled air bubbles， and must exhale during

ascent. 21.What does the passage mainly discuss? The equipment divers use

The effects of pressure on gases in the human body

How to prepare for a deep dive

The symptoms of nitrogen bubbles in the bloodstream. 22.The word exposed to in line 8 are closest in meaning to leaving behind

prepared for

propelled by

subjected to 23.The word exert in line 21 is closest in meaning to cause

permit

need

change 24.The word diffuses in line 23 is closest in meaning to yields

starts

surfaces

travels 25.What happens to nitrogen in body tissues if a diver ascends too quickly. It forms bubbles

It goes directly to the brain

It is reabsorbed by the lungs.

It has a narcotic effect. 26.The word They in line 29 refers to joints

pains

bubbles

tissues. 27.The word rupture in line 36 is closest in meaning to hurt

shrink

burst

stop 28.It can be inferred from the passage that which of the following presents the greatest danger to a diver? Pressurized helium

Nitrogen diffusion

Nitrogen bubbles

An air embolism 29.What should a diver do when ascending? Rise slowly

Breathe faster

Relax completely

Breathe helium. Question 29-38 Each advance in microscopic technique has provided

scientists with new perspectives on the function of living

organisms and the nature of matter itself. The invention of the

visible-light microscope late in the sixteenth century introduced a

previously unknown realm of single-celled plants and animals.

In the twentieth century， electron microscopes have provided

direct views of viruses and minuscule surface structures. Now

another type of microscope， one that utilize x-rays rather than

light or electrons， offers a different way of examining tiny

details， it should extend human perception still farther into the

natural world. The dream of building an x-ray microscope dates to

1895， its development， however， was virtually halted in the

1940 s because the development of the electron microscope

was progressing rapidly. During the 1940 s electron micro-

scopes routinely achieved resolution better than that possible

with a visible-light microscope， while the performance of x-ray

microscopes resisted improvement. In recent years， however，

interest in x-ray microscopes has revived， largely because of

advances such as the development of new sources of x-ray

illumination. As a result， the brightness available today is

millions of times that of x-ray tubes， which， for most of the

century， were the only available sources of soft x-rays. The new x-ray microscopes considerably improve on the

resolution provided by optical microscopes. They can also be

used to map the distribution of certain chemical elements.

Some can form pictures in extremely short times， others hold

the promise of special capabilities such as three dimensional

imaging. Unlike conventional electron microscopy， x-ray

microscopy enables specimens to be kept in air and in water，

which means that biological samples can be studied under

conditions similar to their natural state. The illumination used，

so-called soft x-rays in the wavelength range of twenty to forty

angstroms ， is

also sufficiently penetrating to image intact biological cells in

many cases. Because of the wavelength of the x-rays used，

soft x-ray microscopes will never match the highest resolution

possible with electron microscopes. Rather， their special pro-

perties will make possible investigations that will complement

those performed with light- and electron-based instruments. 30.What does the passage mainly discuss? The detail seen through a microscope

Sources of illumination for microscopes

A new kind of microscope

Outdated microscopic technique 31.According to the passage， the invention of the visible-light microscope allowed scientists to see viruses directly

develop the electron microscope later on

understand more about the distribution of the chemical elements

discover single celled plants and animals they had never seen before. 32.The word minuscule in line 7 is closest in meaning to circular

dangerous

complex

tiny 33.The word it in line 10 refers to a type of microscope

human perception

the natural world

light 34.Why does the another mention me visible light microscope in the first paragraph? To begin a discussion of sixteenth century discoveries.

To put the x-ray microscope in historical perspective

To show how limited its uses are

To explain how it functioned 35.Why did it take so long to develop the x-ray microscope? Funds for research were insufficient.

The source of illumination was not bright enough until recently.

Materials used to manufacture x-ray tubes were difficult to obtain

X-ray microscopes were too complicated to operate. 36.The word enables in line 30 is closest in meaning to constitutes

specifies

expands

allows 37.The word Rather in line 38 is closest in meaning to significantly

preferably

somewhat

instead 38.The word those in line 40 refers to properties

investigations

microscopes

x-rays 39.Based on the information in the passage， what can be inferred about x-ray microscopes in the future? They will probably replace electron microscopes altogether.

They will eventually be much cheaper to produce than they are now.

They will provide information not available from other kinds of microscopes.

They will eventually change the illumination range that they now use. Question 40-50 Perhaps the most striking quality of satiric literature is its

freshness， its originality of perspective. Satire rarely offers

original ideas. Instead it presents the familiar in a new form.

Satirists do not offer the world new philosophies. What they

do is look at familiar conditions from a perspective that makes

these conditions seem foolish， harmful or affected. Satire jars

us out of complacence into a pleasantly shocked realization that

many of the values we unquestioningly accept are false. Don

Quixote makes chivalry seem absurd， Brave New World

ridicules the pretensions of science， A Modest proposal

dramatizes starvation by advocating cannibalism. None of these ideas

is original. Chivalry was suspect before Cervantes， humanists

objected to the claims of pure science before Aldous Huxley

and people were aware of famine before Swift. It was not the

originality of the idea that made these satires popular. It was

the manner of expression the satiric method that made them

interesting and entertaining. Satires are read because they are

aesthetically satisfying works of art， not because they are

morally wholesome or ethically instructive. They are stimulat-ing and refreshing because with commonsense briskness they

brush away illusions and secondhand opinions. With spontaneous

irreverence， satire rearranges perspectives， scrambles

familiar objects into incongruous juxtaposition and speaks in a

personal idiom instead of abstract platitude. Satire exists because there is need for it. It has lived

because readers appreciate a refreshing stimulus， an irreverent

reminder that they lived in a world of platitudinous thinking，

cheap moralizing， and foolish philosophy. Satire serves to prod

people into an awareness of truth though rarely to any action

on behalf of truth. Satire tends to remind people that much of

what they see， hear， and read in popular media is sanctimonious，

sentimental， and only partially true. Life resembles in

only a slight degree the popular image of it. Soldiers rarely

hold the ideals that movies attribute to them， nor do ordinary

citizens devote their lives to unselfish service of humanity.

Intelligent people know these things but tend to forget them

when they do not hear them expressed. 40.What does the passage mainly discuss? Difficulties of writing satiric literature.

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