Directions: There are 4 passages in this Part. Each passage is followed by
some questions or Unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices
marked A), B), C) and D). You should decide on the best choice and mark the
corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet with a single line through the
centre.
Passage One
Questions 21 to 25 are based on the following passage.
When global warming finally came, it stuck with a vengeance (异乎寻常地). In
some regions, temperatures rose several degrees in less than a century Sea
levels shot up nearly 400 feet, flooding coastal settlements and forcing people
to migrate inland. Deserts spread throughout the world as vegetation shifted
drastically in North America, Europe and Asia. After driving many of the animals
around them to near extinction, people were forced to abandon their old way of
life for a radically new survival strategy that resulted in widespread
starvation and disease. The adaptation was farming: the global-warming crisis
that gave rise to it happened more than l0,000 years ago.
As environmentalists convene in rio de Janeiro this week to ponder the
global climate of the future, earth scientists are in the midst of a revolution
in understanding how climate has changed in the past -- and how those changes
have transformed human existence. Researchers have begun to piece together an
illuminating picture of the powerful geo1ogical and astronomical forces that
have combined to change the planet's environment from hot to cold, wet to dry
and back again over a time Period stretching back hundreds of millions of
years.
Most important, scientists are beginning to realize that the climatic
changes have had a major impact on the evolution of the human species. New
research now suggests that climate shifts have played a key role in nearly every
significant turning point in human evolution: from the dawn of Primates (灵长类动物)
some 65 million years ago to human ancestors rising up to walk on two legs, from
the huge expansion of the human brain to the rise of agriculture. Indeed, the
human history has not been merely touched by global climate change, some
scientists argue, it has in some instances been driven by it.
The new research has profound implications for the environmental summit in
Rio. Among other things, the findings demonstrate that dramatic climate change
is nothing new for planet Earth. The benign (宜人的) global environment that has
existed over the past l0,00O years - during which agriculture, writing, cities
and most other features of civilization appeared -- is a mere bright spot in a
much large pattern of widely varying climate over the ages. In fact the pattern
of climate change in the past reveals that Earth's climate will almost certainly
go through dramatic changes in the future -- even without the influence of human
activity
2l. Farming emerged as a survival strategy because man had been obliged
--
A) to give up his former way of life
B) to leave the coastal areas.
C) to follow the ever-shifting vegetation
D) to abandon his original settlement.
22. Earth scientists have come to understand that climate --
A) is going trough a fundamental change
B) has been getting warmer for l0, 000 years
C) will eventually change from hot to cold.
D) has gone through Periodical changes
23. Scientists believe that human evolution -
A) has seldom been accompanied by climatic changes
B) has exerted little influence on climatic changes
C) has large1y been effected by climatic changes
D) has had a major impact on climatic changes
24. Evidence of past climatic changes indicates that .
A) human activities have accelerated changes of Earth's environment
B) Earth's environment will remain mild despite human interference
C) Earth's climate is bound to change significantly in the future
D) Earth's climate is unlikely to undergo substantial changes in the
future
25. The message the author wishes to convey in the passage is that .
A) human civilization remains glorious though it is affected by climatic
changes
B) mankind is virtually helpless in the face of the dramatic changes of
climate
C) man has to limit his activities to slow down the global warming
process
D) human civilization will continue to develop in spite of the changes of
nature
Passage two
Questions 26 to 30 are based on the following passage.
No woman can be too rich or too thin. This saying often attributed to the
late Duchess (公爵夫人 ) of Windsor embodies much of the odd spirit of our times.
Being thin is deemed as such virtue.
The Problem with such a view is that some people actually attempt to live
by it. I myself have fantasies of slipping into narrow designer clothes.
Consequently, I have been on a diet for the better -- or worse -- part of my
life. Being rich wouldn't be bad either, but that won't happen unless an unknown
relative dies suddenly in some distant land, leaving me millions of dollars.
Where did we go off the track? When did eating butter become a sin, and a
little bit of extra flesh unappealing, if not repellent? All religions have
certain days when PeOPle refrain from eating, and excessive eating is one of
Christianity's seven deadly sins. However until quite recently, most People had
a problem getting enough to eat. In some religious groups, Wealth was a symbol
of probable salvation and nigh morals, and fatness a sign of wealth and
well-being.
Today the Opposite is true. We have shifted to thinness as ourk new mar of
virtue. The result is that being fat -- or even only somewhat overweight -- is
bad because it implies a lack of moral strength.
Our obsession (迷恋) with thinness is also fueled by health concerns. It is
true that in this country we have more overweight people than ever before, and
that, in many cases, being over weight correlates with an increased risk of
heart and blood vessel disease. These diseases, however, may have as much to do
with our way of life and our high-fat diets as with excess weight. And the
associated risk of cancer in the digestive system may be more of a dietary
problem -- too much fat and a lack of fiber -- than a weight problem.
The real concern, then, is not that we weigh too much, but that we neither
exercise enough nor eat well. Exercise is necessary for strong bones and both
heart and lung health. A balanced diet without a lot of fat can also help the
body avoid many diseases. We should surely stop -paying so much attention to
weight. Simply being thin is not enough. It is actually hazardous if those who
get (or already are) thin think they are automatically healthy and thus free
from paying attention to their overall life-style. Thinness can be pure
vainglory (虚荣).
26. In the eyes of the author an odd phenomenon nowadays is that --.
A) the Duchess of Windsor is regarded as a woman of virtue
B) looking slim is a symbol of having a large fortune
C) being thin is viewed as a much desired quality
D) religious people are not necessarily virtuous
27. Swept by the prevailing trend, the author --.
A) had to go on a diet for the greater part of her life
B) could still prevent herself from going off the track
C) had to seek help from rich distant relatives
D) had to wear highly fashionable clothes
28. In human history people’s views on body weight .
A) were closely related to their religious beliefs
B) changed from time to time
C) varied between the poor and the rich
D) led to different moral standards
29. The author criticizes women's obsession with thinness --.
A) from an economic and educational perspective
B) from sociological and medical points of view
C) from a historical and religious standpoint
D) in the light of moral principles
30. What's the author’s advice to women who are absorbed in the idea of
thinness?
A) They should be more concerned with their overall lifestyle.
B) They should be more watchful for fatal diseases.
C) They should gain weight to look healthy.
D) They should rid themse1ves of fantasies about designer
clothes.
精彩生活 
