考研英语

　　2008年考研英语真题和答案

　　Section I Use of English

　　Directions:

　　Read the following text. Choose the best word(s) for each numbered blank and mark A, B, C or D on ANSWER SHEET 1. (10 points)

　　The idea that some groups of people may be more intelligent than others is one of those hypotheses that dare not speak its name. But Gregory Cochran is to say it anyway. He is that bird, a scientist who works independently any institution. He helped popularize the idea that some diseases not thought to have a bacterial cause were actually infections, which aroused much controversy when it was first suggested.

　　he, however, might tremble at the of what he is about to do. Together with another two scientists, he is publishing a paper which not only that one group of humanity is more intelligent than the others, but explains the process that has brought this about. The group in are a particular people originated from central Europe. The process is natural selection.

　　This group generally do well in IQ test, 12-15 points above the value of 100, and have contributed to the intellectual and cultural life of the West, as the of their elites, including several world-renowned scientists, . They also suffer more often than most people from a number of nasty genetic diseases, such as breast cancer. These facts, , have previously been thought unrelated. The former has been to social effects, such as a strong tradition of education. The latter was seen as a (an) of genetic isolation. Dr. Cochran suggests that the intelligence and diseases are intimately . His argument is that the unusual history of these people has them to unique evolutionary pressures that have resulted in this state of affairs.

　　1. [A] selected [B] prepared [C] obliged [D] pleased

　　2. [A] unique [B] particular [C] special [D] rare

　　3. [A] of [B] with [C] in [D] against

　　4. [A] subsequently [B] presently [C] previously [D] lately

　　5. [A] Only [B] So [C] Even [D] Hence

　　6. [A] thought [B] sight [C] cost [D] risk

　　7. [A] advises [B] suggests [C] protests [D] objects

　　8. [A] progress [B] fact [C] need [D] question

　　9. [A] attaining [B] scoring [C] reaching [D] calculating

　　10. [A] normal [B] common [C] mean [D] total

　　11. [A] unconsciously [B] disproportionately

　　[C] indefinitely [D] unaccountably

　　12. [A] missions [B] fortunes [C] interests [D] careers

　　13. [A] affirm [B] witness [C] observe [D] approve

　　14. [A] moreover [B] therefore [C] however [D] meanwhile

　　15. [A] given up [B] got over [C] carried on [D] put down

　　16. [A] assessing [B] supervising [C] administering [D] valuing

　　17. [A] development [B] origin [C] consequence [D] instrument

　　18. [A] linked [B] integrated [C] woven [D] combined

　　19. [A] limited [B] subjected [C] converted [D] directed

　　20. [A] paradoxical [B] incompatible [C] inevitable [D] continuous

　　Section II Reading Comprehension

　　Part A

　　Directions:

　　Read the following four texts. Answer the questions below each text by choosing A, B, C or D. Mark your answers on ANSWER SHEET 1. (40 points)

　　Text 1

　　While still catching-up to men in some spheres of modern life, women appear to be way ahead in at least one undesirable category. “Women are particularly susceptible to developing depression and anxiety disorders in response to stress compared to men,” according to Dr. Yehuda, chief psychiatrist at New York’s Veteran’s Administration Hospital.

　　Studies of both animals and humans have shown that sex hormones somehow affect the stress response, causing females under stress to produce more of the trigger chemicals than do males under the same conditions. In several of the studies, when stressed-out female rats had their ovaries (the female reproductive organs) removed, their chemical responses became equal to those of the males.

　　Adding to a woman’s increased dose of stress chemicals, are her increased “opportunities” for stress. “It’s not necessarily that women don’t cope as well. It’s just that they have so much more to cope with,” says Dr. Yehuda. “Their capacity for tolerating stress may even be greater than men’s,” she observes, “it’s just that they’re dealing with so many more things that they become worn out from it more visibly and sooner.”

　　Dr. Yehuda notes another difference between the sexes. “I think that the kinds of things that women are exposed to tend to be in more of a chronic or repeated nature. Men go to war and are exposed to combat stress. Men are exposed to more acts of random physical violence. The kinds of interpersonal violence that women are exposed to tend to be in domestic situations, by, unfortunately, parents or other family members, and they tend not to be one-shot deals. The wear-and-tear that comes from these longer relationships can be quite devastating.”

　　Adeline Alvarez married at 18 and gave birth to a son, but was determined to finish college. “I struggled a lot to get the college degree. I was living in so much frustration that that was my escape, to go to school, and get ahead and do better.” Later, her marriage ended and she became a single mother. “It’s the hardest thing to take care of a teenager, have a job, pay the rent, pay the car payment, and pay the debt. I lived from paycheck to paycheck.”

　　Not everyone experiences the kinds of severe chronic stresses Alvarez describes. But most women today are coping with a lot of obligations, with few breaks, and feeling the strain. Alvarez’s experience demonstrates the importance of finding ways to diffuse stress before it threatens your health and your ability to function.

　　21. Which of the following is true according to the first two paragraphs?

　　[A] Women are biologically more vulnerable to stress.

　　[B] Women are still suffering much stress caused by men.

　　[C] Women are more experienced than men in coping with stress.

　　[D] Men and women show different inclinations when faced with stress.

　　22. Dr. Yehuda’s research suggests that women

　　[A] need extra doses of chemicals to handle stress.

　　[B] have limited capacity for tolerating stress.

　　[C] are more capable of avoiding stress.

　　[D] are exposed to more stress.

　　23. According to Paragraph 4, the stress women confront tends to be

　　[A] domestic and temporary.

　　[B] irregular and violent.

　　[C] durable and frequent.

　　[D] trivial and random.

　　24. The sentence “I lived from paycheck to paycheck.” (Line 6, Para. 5) shows that

　　[A] Alvarez cared about nothing but making money.

　　[B] Alvarez’s salary barely covered her household expenses.

　　[C] Alvarez got paychecks from different jobs.

　　[D] Alvarez paid practically everything by check.

　　25. Which of the following would be the best title for the text?

　　[A] Strain of Stress: No Way Out?

　　[B] Responses to Stress: Gender Difference

　　[C] Stress Analysis: What Chemicals Say

　　[D] Gender Inequality: Women Under Stress