2013年考研英语一真题

2013

年全国研究生入学考试英语

一

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)

People are, on the whole, poor at considering background information when making individual decisions. At first

glance this might seem like a strength that __1_ the ability to make judgments which are unbiased by _2_ factors. But Dr

Simonsohn speculated that an inability to consider the big _3_ was leading decision- makers to be biased by the daily

samples of information they were working with. _4_, he theorized that a judge _5_ of appearing too soft _6_crime might be

more likely to send someone to prison __7_he had already sentenced five or six other defendants only to forced community

service on that day.

To __8__this idea, they turned their attention to the university-admissions process. In theory, the ____9___ of an

applicant should not depend on the few others___10____ randomly for interview during the same day, but Dr Simonsohn

suspected the truth was____11____.

He studied the results of 9,323 MBA interviews _12_ by 31 admissions officers. The interviewers had _13_ applicants

on a scale of one to five. This scale _14_ numerous factors into consideration. The scores were _15_ used in conjunction

with an applicant’s score on the GMAT, a standardized exam which is _16_out of 800 points, to make a decision on

whether to accept him or her.

Dr Simonsohn found if the score of the previous candidate in a daily series of interviewees was 0.75 points or more

higher than that of the one _17__ that, then the score for the next applicant would_18_ by an average of 0.075 points. This

might sound small, but to_19_the effects of such a decrease a candidate would need 30 more GMAT points than would

otherwise have been _20__.

1. A grants B submits C transmits D delivers

2. A minor B external C crucial D objective

3. A issue B vision C picture D moment

4. A Above all B On average C In principle D For example

5. A fond B fearful C capable D thoughtless

6. A in B for C to D on

7. A if B until C though D unless

8. A. test ize e

9. on y s

10. d fied

11. ise ible eable ional

12. A. inspired B. expressed C. conducted D. secured

13. A. assigned B. rated C. matched D. arranged

14. A. put B. got C. took D. gave

15. A. instead B. then C. ever D. rather

16. A. selected B. passed C. marked D. introduced

17. A below B after C above D before

18. A jump B float C fluctuate D drop

19. A achieve B undo C maintain D disregard

20. A necessary B possible C promising D helpful

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

In the 2006 film version of The Devil Wears Prada ,Miranda Priestly, played by Meryl Strep, scolds her unattractive

assistant for imagining that high fashion doesn’t affect her, Priestly explains how the deep blue color of the assistant’s

sweater descended over the years from fashion shows to departments stores and to the bargain bin in which the poor girl

doubtless found her garment.

This top-

down conception of the fashion business couldn’t be more out of date or at odds with the feverish would

described in Overdressed, Eliazabeth Cline’s three

-

year indictment of ―fast fashion‖. In the last decade or so ,advance

s in

technology have allowed mass-market labels such as Zara ,H&M, and Uniqlo to react to trends more quickly and anticipate

demand more precisely. Quicker turnarounds mean less wasted inventory, more frequent release, and more profit. These

labels encourage style-conscious consumers to see clothes as disposable-meant to last only a wash or two, although they

don’t advertise that –

and to renew their wardrobe every few weeks. By offering on-trend items at dirt-cheap prices, Cline

argues, these brands have hijacked fashion cycles, shaking an industry long accustomed to a seasonal pace.

The victims of this revolution, of course, are not limited to designers. For H&M to offer a $$5.95 knit miniskirt in all its

2,300-pius stores around the world, it must rely on low-wage overseas labor, order in volumes that strain natural resources,

and use massive amounts of harmful chemicals.

Overdressed is the fashion world’s answer to consumer

-

activist bestsellers like Michael Pollan’s The Omnivore’s

Dilemma. ―Mass

-produced clothing, like fast food, fills a hunger and need, yet is non-

durable and wasteful,‖ Cline argues.

Americans, she finds, buy roughly 20 billion garments a year

–

about 64 items per person

–

and no matter how much they

give away, this excess leads to waste.

Towards the end of Overdressed, Cline introduced her ideal, a Brooklyn woman named Sarah Kate Beaumont, who

since 2008 has made all of her own clothes

–

and beautifully. But as Cline is the first to note, it took Beaumont decades to

perfect her craft; her e

xample can’t be knocked off.

Though several fast- fashion companies have made efforts to curb their impact on labor and the environment

–

including H&M, with its green Conscious Collection line

–

Cline believes lasting change can only be effected by the

customer. She exhibits the idealism common to many advocates of sustainability, be it in food or in energy. Vanity is a

constant; people will only start shopping more sustainably when they can’t afford not to.

21. Priestly criticizes her assistant for her

[A] poor bargaining skill.

[B] insensitivity to fashion.

[C] obsession with high fashion.

[D] lack of imagination.

22. According to Cline, mass-market labels urge consumers to

[A] combat unnecessary waste.

[B] shut out the feverish fashion world.

[C] resist the influence of advertisements.

[D] shop for their garments more frequently.

23. The word ―indictment‖ (Line 3, Para.2) is closest in meaning to

[A] accusation.

[B] enthusiasm.

[C] indifference.

[D] Tolerance.

24. Which of the following can be inferred from the last paragraph?

[A] Vanity has more often been found in idealists.

[B] The fast-fashion industry ignores sustainability.

[C] People are more interested in unaffordable garments.

[D] Pricing is vital to environment- friendly purchasing.

25. What is the subject of the text?

[A] Satire on an extravagant lifestyle.

[B] Challenge to a high-fashion myth.

[C] Criticism of the fast-fashion industry.

[D] Exposure of a mass-market secret.

Text 2

An old saying has it that half of all advertising budgets are wasted-the trouble is, no one knows which half. In the

internet age, at least in theory, this fraction can be much reduced. By watching what people search for, click on and say

online, companies can aim ―behavioural‖ ads at those most likely to buy.

In the past couple of weeks a quarrel has illustrated the value to advertisers of such fine-grained information: Should

advertisers assume that people are happy to be tracked and sent behavioural ads? Or should they have explicit permission?

In December 2010 America's Federal Trade Cornmission (FTC) proposed adding a

internet browsers ,so that users could tell advertisers that they did not want to be followed .Microsoft's Internet Explorer and

Apple's Safari both offer DNT Google's Chrome is due to do so this year. In February the FTC and Digltal Advertising

Alliance (DAA) agreed that the industry would get cracking on responding to DNT requests.

On May 31st Microsoft set off the row: It said that Internet Explorer 10, the version due to appear windows 8, would

have DNT as a default.

It is not yet clear how advertisers will respond. Getting a DNT signal does not oblige anyone to stop tracking, although

some companies have promised to do so. Unable to tell whether someone really objects to behavioural ads or whether they

are sticking with Microsoft’s default, some may ignore a DNT signal and press on anyway.

Also unclear is why Microsoft has gone it alone. After all, it has an ad business too, which it says will comply with

DNT requests, though it is still working out how. If it is trying to upset Google, which relies almost wholly on default will

become the norm. DNT does not seem an obviously huge selling point for windows 8-though the firm has compared some

of its other products favorably with Google's on that count before. Brendon Lynch, Microsoft's chief privacy officer,

bloggde:

26. It is suggested in paragraph 1 that ―behavioural‖ ads help advertisers to:

[A] ease competition among themselves

[B] lower their operational costs

[C] avoid complaints from consumers

[D] provide better online services

27. ―The industry‖ (Line 6

, Para.3) refers to:

[A] online advertisers

[B] e-commerce conductors

[C] digital information analysis

[D] internet browser developers

28. Bob Liodice holds that setting DNT as a default

[A] many cut the number of junk ads

[B] fails to affect the ad industry

[C] will not benefit consumers

[D] goes against human nature

29. which of the following is true according to Paragraph.6?

[A] DNT may not serve its intended purpose

[B] Advertisers are willing to implement DNT

[C] DNT is losing its popularity among consumers

[D] Advertisers are obliged to offer behavioural ads

30. The author's attitude towards what Brendon Lynch said in his blog is one of:

[A] indulgence

[B] understanding

[C] appreciation

[D] skepticism

Text 3

Up until a few decades ago, our visions of the future were largely - though by no means uniformly - glowingly positive.

Science and technology would cure all the ills of humanity, leading to lives of fulfillment and opportunity for all.

Now utopia has grown unfashionable, as we have gained a deeper appreciation of the range of threats facing us, from

asteroid strike to epidemic flu and to climate change. You might even be tempted to assume that humanity has little future

to look forward to.

But such gloominess is misplaced. The fossil record shows that many species have endured for millions of years - so why

shouldn't we? Take a broader look at our species' place in the universe, and it becomes clear that we have an excellent

chance of surviving for tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of years. Look up Homo sapiens in the

species of the International Union for the Conversation of Nature (IUCN) ,and you will read:

the species is very widely distributed, adaptable, currently increasing, and there are no major threats resulting in an overall

population decline.

So what does our deep future hold? A growing number of researchers and organizations are now thinking seriously

about that question. For example, the Long Now Foundation has its flagship project a medical clock that is designed to still

be marking time thousands of years hence.

Perhaps willfully, it may be easier to think about such lengthy timescales than about the more immediate future. The

potential evolution of today's technology, and its social consequences, is dazzlingly complicated, and it's perhaps best left to

science fiction writers and futurologists to explore the many possibilities we can envisage. That's one reason why we have

launched Arc, a new publication dedicated to the near future.

But take a longer view and there is a surprising amount that we can say with considerable assurance. As so often, the

past holds the key to the future: we have now identified enough of the long- term patterns shaping the history of the planet,

and our species, to make evidence-based forecasts about the situations in which our descendants will find themselves.

This long perspective makes the pessimistic view of our prospects seem more likely to be a passing fad. To be sure, the

future is not all rosy. But we are now knowledgeable enough to reduce many of the risks that threatened the existence of

earlier humans, and to improve the lot of those to come.

31. Our vision of the future used to be inspired by

[A] our desire for lives of fulfillment

[B] our faith in science and technology

[C] our awareness of potential risks

[D] our belief in equal opportunity

32. The IUCN’s ―Red List‖ suggest that human being are

[A] a sustained species

[B] a threaten to the environment

[C] the world’s dominant power

[D] a misplaced race

33. Which of the following is true according to Paragraph 5?

[A] Arc helps limit the scope of futurological studies.

[B] Technology offers solutions to social problem.

[C] The interest in science fiction is on the rise.

[D] Our Immediate future is hard to conceive.

34. To ensure the future of mankind, it is crucial to

[A] explore ou

r planet’s abundant resources

[B] adopt an optimistic view of the world

[C] draw on our experience from the past

[D] curb our ambition to reshape history

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

[A] Uncertainty about Our Future

[B] Evolution of the Human Species

[C] The Ever-bright Prospects of Mankind