2008年北京清华大学考博英语真题及答案.doc

2008年北京清华大学考博英语真题及答案Part I Vocabulary (20%)Directions: There are forty incomplete sentences in this part For each sentence there are four choices marked A, B, C and D. Choose the best one that completes the sentence, and then mark the corresponding letter on the ANSWER SHEET with a single line through the center.1.The European Union countries, were once worried that they would not havesuppliesof petroleum.A. sufficientB. efficientC potentialD. proficient2.We'd like toa table for five for dinner this evening.A. preserveB. reserveC. sustainD. retain3.Britain has the highestof road traffic in the world-over 60 cars for every mile ofroad.A. popularityB. prosperityC. intensityD. density4.I would never havea court of law if I hadnt been so desperate.A. sought forB. accounted for C. turned upD. restored to5.The energyby the chain reaction is transformed into heat.A. transferredB. releasedC. conveyedD. delivered6.It is required that during the process, great care has to be taken to protect thesilkfrom damage.A. sensitiveB. sensibleC tenderD. delicate7.To our, Geoffreys illness proved not to be as serious as we had feared.A. reliefB. viewC. anxietyD. judgment8.The government will take some action tothe two big quarreling companies.A. jigsawB. jotC. impulseD. reconcile9.As automation became popular in most factories, labor was madeA. disincentive B. redundantC. diverseD. discontent10.They haveher unreasonable request for her annual salary.A. destinedB. chordedC. repelledD. commenced11.When you prepare for your speech, be sure to citequalified sources of informationand examples.A. unbiasedB. manipulated C. distortedD. conveyed12.It is apparent that winning the scholarship isof one's intelligence in the field ofphysics.A. parallelism B. alliterationC. testimonyD. rhythm13.In court he repeated histhat he was not guilty in front of the jury.A. impressions B. alliterations C. clausesD. assertions14.Shopping malls have some advantage in suffering from shorter periods ofbusiness.A. staleB. slackC. ferrousD. abundant5.According to the Genevano prisoners of war shall be subject to abuse.A. CustomsB. CongressesC. Conventions D. RoutinesBefore the general election many senior citizens signed theagainst the spreading ofnuclear arms.A. contractB. petitionC. supplication D. potential7.Scientists believe that there is not enough oxygen in the Moons atmosphere toplantlife.A. adaptB. personalizeC. sustainD, describeI cant remember exactly what triggered the explosion but it was pretty .A. estimatingB. devastatingC. reprocessing D. preferringThe industry has pumpedamounts of money into political campaigns, making itless and less likely that politicians will deal with the issue sensibly.A. potentialB. substantialC. massiveD. traditional20.I was entrusted toto a newspaper article making predictions for the New Year.A. contributeB. detractC. convertD. entail21.After 1989, the externalvanished, but the danger to American civilization remained.A. disruptionB, menaceC. liabilityD, emergence22.The government is trying to help these enterprises out of theby various means.A. flightB. plightC delightD. twilight23.An archaeologist has to pay much attention todetails of an unearthed object.A. miserableB. minusC. minuteD. moist24.The girlher tablemates arm to see if she was fast asleep at class.A. pinchedB. punchedC. pitchedD. preached25.Most of the local people involved in the affair have beenand dismissed.A. smuggledB. prosecutedC. salutedD. thrived26.I can respect someone who isfor their actions, but I cannot respect someone who isalways pointing the finger.A. millenniumB. dominantC. accountableD. commercial27.All the products made in China are sold and distributed inwith the U.S. ExportAdministration Regulations and also local country rules.A. compliance B. prosperityC. merchandise D intersection28.One of the main reasons is that the universitysattracts students and faculty staff allover the world.A. fraudB. respondentC. misconduct D. prestige29.Even though the investigation has been going on for two months, the police havenofurther details about the accident.A. comprisedB. formulatedC. releasedD. incorporated30.They want to stimulate economic growth in the region by offeringto foreigninvestors.A. incentivesB. abundances C. warriorsD. outnumbers31.Why beabout that old coat? Theres no point in keeping it just because you werewearing it when you first met me.A. sensitiveB. sensibleC. sentimentalD, sensational32.and hard work are the cornerstones of this company.A. MutilationB. InnovationC. EmpireD. Strength33.The protests were part of theiragainst the proposed building development in thearea.A. commission B. commitment C. conventionD. campaign34.Some people seem toon the pressure of working under a deadline.A. renderB- evolveC. prevailD. thrive35.These changes have not been sufficient tothe losses.A. stemB. stimulateC causeD. compensate36.Psychologists believe that children are easily influenced by their.A. conditionsB. combinations C, peersD. granaries37.Severalfor global warming have been suggested by climate researchers.A. systemsB. sentencesC fallaciesD. hypotheses38.These natural resources will besooner or later if the present rate of exploitationcontinues.A,depletedB. deployedC. inclinedD. mingled39.The military operationsyesterday were targeted at the military installations.A.propelledB. commenced C. plaguedD. modulated40.Artificial intelligence deals partly with thebetween the computer and the humanbrain.A.profileB- mightyC. analogyD, leakagePart II Reading Comprehension (40%)Directions: In this part of the test, there are five short passages. Read each passage carefully, and then do the questions that follow. Choose the best answer from the four choices given and mark the corresponding letter with a single bar across the square brackets on your machine-scoring ANSWER SHEET.Passage OneThere are over 6,000 different computer and online games in the world now. A segment of them are considered to be both educational and harmlessly entertaining. One such game teaches geography, and another trains pilots. Others train the player in logical thinking and problem solving. Some games may also help young people to become more computer literate, which is more important in this technology-driven era.But the dark side of the computer games has become more and more obvious. “A segment of games features anti-social themes of violence, sex and crude language，says David Walsh, president of the National Institute on Media and Family. “Unfortunately，its a segment that seems particularly popular with kids aged eight to fifteen.，One study showed that almost 80 percent of the computer and online games young people preferred contained violence. The investigators said * These are not just games anymore. These are learning machines. Were teaching kids in the most incredible manner what it，s like to pull the trigger. What they are not learning are the real-life consequences.”They also said “The new and more sophisticated games are even worse, because they have better graphics and allow the player to participate in even more realistic violent acts.” In the game Carmageddon, for example, the player will have driven over and killed up to 33,OCX) people by the time all levels are completed. A description of the outcome of the game says: “Your victims not only squish under your tires and splatter blood on the windshield. They also get on their knees and beg for mercy, or commit suidde. If you like, you can also dismember them.”Is all this simulated violence harmful? Approximately 3,000 different studies have been conducted on this subject. Many have suggested that there is a connection between violence in games and increased aggressiveness in the players.Some specialists downplay the influence of the games, saying that other factors must be taken into consideration, such as the possibility that kids who already have violent tendencies are choosing such games. But could it be that violent games still play a contributing role? It seems unrealistic to insist that people are not influenced by what they see. If that were true, why would the commercial world spend billions of dollars annually for television advertising?41.Which of the following computer games are NOT mentioned as educational and harmlessly entertaining?A.Those that teach how to fly an airplane.B.Those that teach the features of the earth.C Those that help people use computer language.D. Those that teach computer technology.42.According to the investigators,.A.the new and more sophisticated games allow the players to take part in real violent actsB.the new and more sophisticated games teach the players how to kill other peopleC.most computer and online games make the players forget the real life resultsD.most computer and online games may cultivate young people with bad manners43.It can be inferred from the passage that.A.more and more young people enjoy cruel computer gamesB- it is hard to find evidence of a link between violence and computer gamesC.there are now more incidents of violence due to computer gamesD.simulated violence in computer games is different from real violence44.The author uses “television advertising” as an example to show thatA.the commercial world is contributing to the increased violence in real lifeB.computer and online games are not the only cause of increased violence in real lifeC.there is a close link between computer games and increased violence in real lifeD.other factors must be considered as possible causes of violence in real lifePassage TwoThe collapse of the Earths magnetic fieldwhich guards the planet and guides many of its creaturesappears to have started seriously about 150 years ago, the New York Times reported last week.The fields strength has decreased by 10 or 15 percent so far and this has increased the debate over whether it signals a reversal of the planets lines of magnetic force*During a reversal，the main field weakens, almost vanishes, and reappears with opposite polarity (极） The transition would take thousands of years. Once completed, compass needles that had pointed north would point south. A reversal could cause problems for both man and animals. Astronauts and satellites would have difficulties. Birds, fish and anintals that rely on the inagnetic field for navigation would find migration confusing. But experts said the effects would not be a big disaster, despite daims of doom and vague evidence of links between past field reversals and species extinctions.Although a total transition may be hundreds or thousands of years away, the rapid decline in magnetic strength is already affecting satellites. Last month, the European Space Agency approved the worlds largest effort at tracking the fields shifts. A group of new satellites, called Swarm, is to monitor the collapsing field with far greater precision. “We want to get some idea * of how this would evolve in the near future, just like people trying to predict the weather，said Gauthier Hulot, a French geophysicist working on the satellite plan. “I，m personally quite convinced we should be able to work out the first predictions by the end of the mission.”No matter what the new findings, the public has no reason to panic. Even if a transition is coming on its way, it might take 2,000 years to mature. The last one took place 780,000 years ago， when early humans were learning how to make stone tools. Deep inside the Earth flow hot currents of melted iron. This mechanical energy creates electromagnetism. This process is known as the geophysical generator. In a cars generator, the same principle turns mechanical energy into electricity.No one knows precisely why the field periodically reverses. But scientists say the responsibility probably lies with changes in the disorderly flows of melted iron, which they see as similar to the gases that make up the clouds of Jupiter.45.According to the passage, the Earths magnetic field hasA,misguided many a man and animalB.begun to change in the opposite direction C caused the changes on the polaritiesD. been weakening in strength for a long time46.During the transition of the Earths magnetic field*A.the compass will become uselessB.man and animals will be confused in directionsC.the magnetic strength of the Earth will disappearD.the magnetic strength of the Earth will be stronger47.The author says '. the public has no reason to panic” becauseA.the transition is still thousands of years from nowB.the transition can be precisely predicted by scientistsC.the process of the transition will take a very long time to finishD.the new transition will come 780,000 years from now48.The cause of the transition of tiKe Earth、magnetic field comes from.A.the movement deep inside the Earth B. the periodical reverses of the Earth C the force coming from outer spaceD. the mechanical movement of the EarthPassage ThreeThe terrorist attacks in London Thursday served as a jarring reminder that in todays world, you never know what you might see when you pick up the newspaper or turn on the TV.Disturbing images of terror can trigger a visceral response no matter how close ox far away fromhome tihe event happened.Throughout history, every military conflict has involved psychological warfare in one way or another as the enemy sought to break the morale of their opponent. But thanks to advances in technology, the popularity of the Internet, and proliferation of news coverage, the rules of engagement in this type of mental battle have changed.Whether its a massive attack or a single horrific act, the effects of psychological warfare arent limited to the physical damage inflicted. Instead, the goal of these attacks is to instill a sense of fear that is much greater than the actual threat itself.Therefore, the impact of psychological terror depends largely on how the acts are publicized and interpreted. But that also means there are ways to defend yourself and your loved ones by putting these fears into perspective and protecting your children from horrific images.What Is Psychological Terror? “The use of terrorism as a tactic is predicated upon inducing a climate of fear that is incommensurate with the actual threat，says Middle Eastern historian Richard Buliiet of Columbia University. uEvery time you have an act of violence, publicizing that violence becomes an important part of the act itself.”There are various ways to have your impa