大学英语快速阅读1-50.docx

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1、雅思快速阅读训练也可供四、六级考试，托福考试使用（包含答案）X 所有答案在资料结尾处,内部培训资料，一线在职教师倾力编写1. ACADEMY AWARDS - THE OSCARS(Time Limit:3 minutes 30 seconds)The Academy Awards, affectionately (亲切地)known as the Oscars, are the oldest, best known, most influential and famous of film awards. The awards have been presented annually (the

2、 first awards ceremony was held in May of 1929) by a non-profit professional organization - the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), based in Beverly Hills, California, and founded in 1927. Price waterhouse has managed the Academy Awards balloting (投票选举)process since 1935- all but th

3、e first six years of the Oscars. Ever since 1941, when their now-famous confidential (秘密的)envelope system was introduced, marking the first year of complete secrecy,“the Envelope PleaseM has become a familiar phrase that has been associated with the Academy Awards ceremony.Except for the early years

4、 of the institution, the awards honored films made during the previous 12-month calendar year. At first, to be eligible (有资格的)for an award, a film had to open in Los Angeles during the twelve months ending on July 31 of the preceding year. To allow each ceremony to cover films for a single calendar

5、year- matching the eligibility period, the 1932/33 awards were based on a 17-month qualifying period. Ever since then, beginning with the 1934 awards ceremony, all awards have been based on openings in the previous calendar year. Until 1954, the Oscars were presented mostly on a Thursday evening. Fr

6、om 1955 to 1958, they were presented on a Wednesday. From 1959 until 1998 the Oscars were, with a few exceptions, presented on a Monday night. Only since 1999 has the Awards ceremony taken place on a Sunday (traditionally in March). In 2004, the ceremony was moved even earlier to improve ratings and

7、 to be more relevant to the awards season.The establishment of the Academy (and its awards system) has had a major effect and influence upon the film industry, due to the enormous boost a nomination (提名)or award (for a film or actor ) creates, by giving prestige and bottom-line profits to a studio o

8、r performer. Studios have often engaged in expensive marketing and advertising campaigns to sway votes. Although the Academy has with limited success, tried to limit the influences of pressure groups and promotion, box office gross receipts, studio public relations and marketing, sentimentality and

9、personal popularity, those influences have had a decided effect upon the outcome of some of the poll results. Especially since the 80s, moneymaking *fbrmula-made, successful films have often been crowd-pleasing titans (大片)，but they havent necessarily been great films with depth or critical acclaim (

10、赞誉)by any measure.(425 words)Comprehension ExercisesI. Choose the best answers to the following questions.1. When were the first Academy Awards presented?A.1935B.1927.C.1929D.1934.2. Why did the qualifying period of a film made in 1932 last for 17 months?A. A new awards system started to make sure t

11、hat the films had opened during the twelve months ending on July 31 in the previous year.B. A new rule was put into operation that each ceremony should cover the films made in a single calendar year.C. Some changes were made so that the ceremony was moved earlier to improve ratings.D. An agreement w

12、as not reached on when the ceremony was held.3. Which of the following can be regarded as a mqjor effect of the Academy Awards upon the film industry?A. A film, if winning the Academy Awards, will do quite well at the box office.B. Studios often carry out advertising campaigns to win the favor of th

13、e public.C. The film industry has put economic benefits above all others.D. A studio or an actor will try every means to affect the outcome of the poll results.4. The word sway in Line 9, Para 3 means.A. promoteB. influenceC. distributeD. recollect5. What can be inferred from the last paragraph?A. T

14、he Academy Awards have done a lot to revolutionize the film industry.B. The Academy awards system is fair and free from any outside pressures and influences.C. The award-winning films are not always applauded by audience.D. Some people, including the author, dont think much of the award-winning film

15、s.11. Complete the following sentences with the information given in the passage.1. People dont know who will win the Academy Awards until is opened.2. Studios often carry out some to persuade people to vote for their films.3. Studios and performers will become and when the Academy Awards goto them.

16、4. A film has to go through a before it enters the competition for the Academy Awards.5. The Academy Awards ceremony is held once.2. Life or Death(Time Limit:3 minutes 10 sounds)How would you feel if a loved one were killed? Would you want the murderer executed, or would having the killer in prison

17、be enough? This question has been asked many times, but people are not in agreement about the ultimate punishment. We all know that it is wrong to take a human life, but if our government does the killing, is it still a crime? Some people say that the government dose not have the right to end someon

18、es life, but several reasons can be put forward to defend the death penalty.The first reason for allowing the death penalty is for the sake of punishment itself. The punishment ought to reflect the seriousness of the crime. It therefore seems reasonable that those who commit the most serious crimes

19、should be made to pay the ultimate price.Secondly, to preserve the death penalty is reasonable on financial grounds. The government shouldnt have to spend a lot of money on criminals. Next to the death penalty, the most severe punishment is a life sentence in prison, where the government has to take

20、 care of criminals until they die naturally. These criminals do not work, but they receive free housing and food. It is unfair to use taxpayers, money for such a purpose.The last argument for continuing the use of the death penalty is based on the nature and purpose of government. If the government

21、has the legitimate （合法的）power to make, judge, and carry out the laws, it should also have the power to decide if criminals should die.The opponents （反对者）of the death penalty might say that nobody has the right to decide who should die, including the government .However, when the government sends sol

22、diers into war, in some way, it is deciding those soldiers, fate; some will live and some will be killed. As long as the government has a right to send its citizens to the battlefield, it has a right to put criminals to death.There are, then, many good reasons to preserve the death penalty. If no pu

23、nishment can reform a murder, then the death penalty is the best thing that can be done for that person and for society.（377 words）Comprehension Exercises1. Choose the best answers to the following questions.1. How many reasons dose the writer give to preserve the death penalty?A. 3B. 4C. 5D.62. Wha

24、t dose the writer want to express in this passage?A. People are not in agreement about the death penalty.B. The use of the death penalty should serve the interests of government.C. The government does not have the right to end someones life.D. There are some good reasons to preserve the death penalt

25、y.3. Which of the following is mentioned in order to justify the death penalty?A. Some more serious measures should be taken against a killer once jailed, since putting him in prison is not enough.B. The death penalty is the best way to separate criminals from society.C. Since the government cannot

26、afford free housing and food for criminals, it is necessary to preserve the death penalty.D. Since the government has a right to send its citizens to war, it has the right to put criminals to death.4. Which of the following statement is false according to the writer?A. Death penalty is the harshest

27、form of punishment.B. Death penalty ought to be given when no punishment can reform a criminal.C. The government has no right to take the life of its citizens under any circumstances.D. It is reasonable to use harsh punishment for those criminals who commit serious crimes.II. Complete the following

28、sentences with the information given in the passage.1. The writer of this passage argues that should be preserved for a number of good reasons.2. The writer thinks that it is unfair to use to offer criminals free housing and food.3. The second most severe form of punishment is a.4. The writer sugges

29、ts that death penalty be preserved for those who have committed.5. Criminals who are punished with life sentences in prison are taken care of by the government unit they.3. Is Global Warming Harmful to Health（Time Limit:3 minutes 40seconds ）Today few scientists doubt that the atmosphere is warming.

30、Most also agree that the rate of heating is accelerating and that the consequences of this temperature change could bring about more and more problems and troubles. Even high school students can tell some projected outcomes: the oceans will warm, and glaciers will melt, causing sea levels to rise an

31、d salt water to overflow settlements along many low-lying coasts. Meanwhile the regions suitable for farming will shift. Weather patterns should also become more unpredictable and storms more severe.Yet less familiar effects could be equally damaging. Notably, computer models predict that global war

32、ming, and other climate changes it induces , will expand the incidence（发病率）and distribution of many serious medical disorders. Disturbingly, these forecasts seem to be coming true.Heating of the atmosphere can influence health through several routes. Most directly, it can generate more, stronger and

33、 hotter heat waves, which will become especially harmful if the evenings fail to bring cooling relief. Unfortunately, a lack of nighttime cooling seems to be in the cards; the atmosphere is heating unevenly and is showing the biggest rises at night, in winter and at latitudes higher than about 50 de

34、grees. In some places, the number of deaths related to heat waves is projected to double by 2020. Prolonged heat can, moreover, enhance production of smog and the spread of allergens （过敏原）.Both effects have been linked to respiratory （呼吸的）symptoms.Global warming can also threaten human well-being pr

35、ofoundly, if somewhat less directly, by revising weather patterns, particularly by increasing the frequency and intensity of floods and droughts and by causing rapid changes in the weather. As the atmosphere has warmed over the past century, droughts in arid （干旱的）areas have persisted longer, and mas

36、sive bursts of rainfall have become more common. Aside from causing death by drowning or starvation, these disasters promote by various means the emergence, return and spread of infectious diseases （传染病）。That prospect is deeply troubling, because infectious illness is a genie （妖怪）that can be very ha

37、rd to pul back into its bottle. It may kill fewer people in a short while than a raging flood or an extended drought, but once it takes root in a community, it is often hard to get rid of and can invade other areas.Floods and droughts associates with global climate change could undermine health in o

38、ther ways as well. They could damage crops, thereby reducing food supplies and potentially contributing to malnutrition（营养不良）。And they could force entire populations in developing countries to leave their homeland, leading to overcrowding and the diseases connected with it, such as tuberculosis （肺结核

39、）.（436 words）Comprehension ExercisesI .Choose the best answers to the following questions.1. According to the third paragraph, a lack of nighttime cooling seems to be.A. likely to happenB. a case in pointC. ridiculousD. paid attention to2. Heating of the atmosphere can influence health through the f

40、ollowing routes exceptA. more, stronger and hotter heat wavesB. nighttime coolingC. prolonged heatD. infectious diseases caused by natural disasters associated with global warming3. Infectious illness is a genie that can be very hard to put back into its bottle becauseA. it may do great damage to he

41、alth of human beings in a short whileB. it can threat human well-being once associated with floods and droughtsC. it may add to troubles causes by a raging flood or an extended droughtD. it is hard to wipe it out once it takes root in a community4. According to the last paragraph, floods and drought

42、s associated with global climate change undermine health in further ways.A. twoB. threeC. fourD. five11. Judge whether or not the following statement agree with the information given in the passage, and mark Y for YES, N for NO, or NG if information is not given in the passage.1. Few scientists agre

43、e that the rate of heading is speeding up.2. The forecasts that global warming will expand the incidence and distribution of many serious medical disorders seem to be coming true.3. Floods and droughts associated with global climate change could make crops easy to be attacked by pests.4. Permanent s

44、hift of entire populations in developed countries could lead to overcrowding and the disease connected with it.4. A Precious Moment(Time Limit:3minutes)“So, how do you develop a relationship? This question was asked of me when I was doing a Relationship Service seminar (讲座).I have to admit that the

45、question caught me off guard for a brief second. We had been talking theory all day and this woman wanted some practical methods for developing any relationship.After pausing for a minute to collect my thoughts, I stated that the only thing I could do was to tell her the truth from my experience. So

46、mewhat shyly, I began to tell her the story of how my wife and I saved our relationship. My mind flashed back to a time when Karen and I were at a State Fair and I won two red velvet （天鹅）hearts as a prize in one of the midway games. I broke apart the two hearts and gave one to Karen and kept one for

47、 myself.We had been married 10 years and we were going through a bit of a flat spot“ in our relationship. We still loved each other, but something was missing. Karen did not want the “flatness to continue. So one day she came up with a plan. She took one of the hearts and hid it in my towel while 1

48、was talking a shower. When I went to grab my towel, the red heart spilled out. As I bent down to pick it up, I was overcome with a rush of emotion that made me flash back to the time when I won the red hearts and the love we felt for each other at that moment.I then hid the heart in her sock drawer.

49、 She hid it in my underwear drawer. I hid it in the refrigerator. She wrapped it in plastic wrap and hid it in the peanut butter. Hiding the heart became as much fun as finding it. Each time we hid or found it was a moment to be treasured, like the first moment we fell in love or the first moment we kissed or the first moment we looked in