2013年考研英语(二)真题原文、详尽解析

2013

年真题原文

In an essay entitled

“

Making It in America

”

, the author Adam Davidson relates a joke from cotton country about

just how much a modern textile mill has been automated: The average mill has only two employees today,

“

a man

and a dog. The man is there to fe

ed the dog, and the dog is there to keep the man away from the machines.”

Davidson

’

s article is one of a number of pieces that have recently appeared making the point that the reason we

have such stubbornly high unemployment and declining middle-class incomes today is largely because of the big drop

in

demand

because

of

the

Great

Recession,

but

it

is

also

because

of

the

advances

in

both

globalization

and

the

information

technology

revolution,

which

are

more

rapidly

than

ever

replacing

labor

with

machines

or

foreign

workers.

In the past, workers with average skills, doing an average job, could earn an average lifestyle. But, today, average is

officially over. Being average just won’t earn you what it used to. It can’t when so many more employers

have so much

more access to so much more above average cheap foreign labor, cheap robotics, cheap software, cheap automation

and cheap genius. Therefore, everyone needs to find their extra

—

their unique value contribution that makes them

stand out in whatever is their field of employment.

Yes, new technology has been eating jobs forever, and always will. But there

’

s been an acceleration. As Davidson

notes,

“

In the 10 years ending in 2009, [U. S.] factories shed workers so fast that they erased almost all the gains of

the previous 70 years; roughly one out of every three manufacturing jobs

—

about 6 million in total

—disappeared.”

There will always be change

—

new jobs, new products, new services. But the one thing we know for sure is that

with each advance in globalization and the I.T. revolution, the best jobs will require workers to have more and better

education to make themselves above average.

In a world where average is officially over, there are many things we need to do to support employment, but

nothing would be more important than passing some kind of G. I. Bill for the 21st century that ensures that every

American has access to post-high school education.

21. The joke in Paragraph 1 is used to illustrate ___ .

[A] the impact of technological advances

[B] the alleviation of job pressure

[C] the shrinkage of textile mills

[D] the decline of middle-class incomes

22. According to Paragraph 3, to be a successful employee, one has to ___ .

[A] work on cheap software

[B] ask for a moderate salary

[C] adopt an average lifestyle

[D] contribute something unique

23. The quotation in Paragraph 4 explains that ___ .

[A] gains of technology have been erased

[B] job opportunities are disappearing at a high speed

[C] factories are making much less money than before

[D] new jobs and services have been offered

24. According to the author, to reduce unemployment, the most important is ___ .

[A] to accelerate the I.T. revolution

[B] to ensure more education for people

[C] to advance economic globalization

[D] to pass more bills in the 21st century

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

[A] New Law Takes Effect

[B] Technology Goes Cheap

[C] Average Is Over

[D] Recession Is Bad

A century ago, the immigrants from across the Atlantic included settlers and sojourners. Along with the many

folks looking to make a permanent home in the United States came those who had no intention

to stay, and who

would make some money and go home. Between1908 and 1915, about 7 million people arrived while about 2 million

departed. About a quarter of all Italian immigrants, for example, eventually returned to Italy for good. They even had

an affectionate nickname, “uccelli di passaggio”, birds of passa

ge.

Today, we are much more rigid about immigrants. We divide newcomers into two categories: legal or illegal, good

or

bad.

We

hail

them

as

Americans

in

the

making,

or brand

them

as

aliens

to

be

kicked

out.

That

framework

has

contributed mightily to our brok

en immigration system and the long political paralysis over how to fix it. We don’t

need

more

categories,

but

we

need

to

change

the

way

we

think

about

categories.

We

need

to

look

beyond

strict

definitions of legal and illegal. To start, we can recognize the new birds of passage, those living and thriving in the gray

areas. We might then begin to solve our immigration challenges.

Crop

pickers,

violinists,

construction

workers,

entrepreneurs,

engineers,

home

health-care aides

and

physicists

are among today

’

s birds of passage. They are energetic participants in a global economy driven by the flow of work,

money and ideas. They prefer to come and go as opportunity calls them. They can manage to have a job in one place

and a family in another.

With or without permission, they straddle laws, jurisdictions and identities with ease. We need them to imagine

the

United

States

as

a

place

where

they

can

be

productive

for

a

while

without

committing

themselves

to

staying

forever.

We

need

them

to

feel

that

home

can

be

both

here

and

there

and

that

they

can

belong

to

two

nations

honorably.

Accommodating this new world of people in motion will require new attitudes on both sides of the immigration

battle.

Looking

beyond

the

culture

war

logic

of

right

or

wrong

means

opening

up

the

middle

ground

and

understanding that managing immigration today requires multiple paths and multiple outcomes, including some that

are not easy to accomplish legally in the existing system.

26. “Birds of passage” refers to those who ___ .

[A] immigrate across the Atlantic

[B] leave their home countries for good

[C] stay in a foreign country temporarily

[D] find permanent jobs overseas

27. It is implied in Paragraph 2 that the current immigration system in the US ___ .

[A] needs new immigrant categories

[B] has loosened control over immigrants

[C] should be adapted to meet challenges

[D] has been fixed via political means

28. According to the author, today’s birds of passage want ___ .

[A] financial incentives

[B] a global recognition

[C] opportunities to get regular jobs

[D] the freedom to stay and leave

29. The author suggests that the birds of passage today should be treated ___ .

[A] as faithful partners

[B] with economic favors

[C] with legal tolerance

[D] as mighty rivals

most appropriate title for this text would be ___ .

[A] Come and Go: Big Mistake

[B] Living and Thriving : Great Risk

[C] Legal or Illegal: Big Mistake

[D] With or Without : Great Risk

Scientists have found that although we are prone to snap overreactions, if we take a moment and think about

how we are likely to react, we can reduce or even eliminate the negative effects of our quick, hard- wired responses.

Snap

decisions

can

be

important

defense

mechanisms;

if

we

are

judging

whether

someone

is

dangerous,

our

brains and bodies are hard-wired to react very quickly, within milliseconds. But we need more time to assess other

factors. To accurately tell whether someone is sociable, studies show, we need at least a minute, preferably five. It

takes a while to judge complex aspects of personality, like neuroticism or open-mindedness.

But snap decisions in reaction to rapid stimuli aren

’

t exclusive to the interpersonal realm. Psychologists at the

University

of

Toronto

found

that

viewing

a

fast-food

logo

for

just

a

few

milliseconds

primes

us

to

read 20

percent

faster,

even

though

reading

has

little

to

do

with

eating.

We

unconsciously

associate

fast

food

with

speed

and

impatience and carry those impulses into whatever else we’re doing. Subjects exposed to fast

-food flashes also tend

to think a musical piece lasts too long.

Yet we can reverse such influences. If we know we will overreact to consumer products or housing options when

we see a happy face (one reason good sales representatives and real estate agents are always smiling), we can take a

moment before buying. If we know female job screeners are more likely to reject attractive female applicants, we can

help screeners understand their biases

—

or hire outside screeners.

John Gottman, the marriage expert, explains that we quickly

“

thin slice

”

information reliably only after we

ground such snap reactions in

“

thick sliced

”

long-term study. When Dr. Gottman really wants to assess whether a

couple

will

stay

together,

he

invites

them

to

his

island

retreat

for

a

much

longer

evaluation:

two

days,

not

two

seconds.

Our

ability

to

mute

our

hard- wired

reactions

by

pausing

is

what

differentiates

us

from

animals:

dog

can

think

about the future only intermittently or for a few minutes. But historically we have spent about 12 percent of our days

contemplating the longer

term. Although technology might change the way we react, it hasn’t changed our nature.

We still have the imaginative capacity to rise above temptation and reverse the high-speed trend.

31. The time needed in making decisions may ___ .

[A] vary according to the urgency of the situation

[B] prove the complexity of our brain reaction

[C] depend on the importance of the assessment

[D] predetermine the accuracy of our judgment

32. Our reaction to a fast-food logo shows that snap decisions ___ .

[A] can be associative

[B] are not unconscious

[C] can be dangerous

[D] are not impulsive

33. To reverse the negative influences of snap decisions,we should ___ .

[A] trust our first impression

[B] do as people usually do

[C] think before we act

[D] ask for expert advice

34. John Gottman says that reliable snap reactions are based on ___ .

[A] critical assessment

[B]

‘

‘

thin sliced

’

’

study

[C] sensible explanation

[D] adequate information

35. The author

’

s attitude toward reversing the high-speed trend is ___ .

[A] tolerant [B] uncertain [C] optimistic [D] doubtful

Europe

is

not

a

gender-equality

heaven.

In

particular,

the

corporate

workplace

will

never

be

completely

family-friendly

until

women

are

part

of

senior

management

decisions,

and

Europe

’

s

top

corporate-governance

positions

remain

overwhelmingly

male.

Indeed,

women

hold

only

14

percent

of

positions

on

Europe

corporate

boards.

The Europe Union is now considering legislation to compel corporate boards to maintain a certain proportion of

women

—

up

to

60

percent.

This

proposed

mandate

was

born

of

frustration.

Last

year,

Europe

Commission

Vice

President Viviane Reding issued a call to voluntary action. Reding invited corporations to sign up for gender balance

goals of 40 percent female board membership. But her appeal was considered a failure: only 24 companies took it up.

Do we need quotas to ensure that women can continue to climb the corporate ladder fairly as they balance work

and family?

“

Personally, I don

’

t like quotas,

”

Reding said recently.

“

But I like what the quotas do.

”

Quotas get action: they

“

open the way to equality and they break through the glass ceiling,

”

according to Reding, a result seen in France

and other countries with legally binding provisions on placing women in top business positions.

I understand Reding

’

s reluctance

—

and her frustration. I don

’

t like quotas either; they run counter to my belief

in meritocracy, governance by the capable. But, when one considers the obstacles to achieving the meritocratic ideal,

it does look as if a fairer world must be temporarily ordered.

After all, four decades of evidence has now shown that corporations in Europe as well as the US are evading the

meritocratic hiring and promotion of women to top position

—

no matter how much

“

soft pressure

”

is put upon

them. When women do break through to the summit of corporate power

—

as, for example, Sheryl Sandberg recently

did at Facebook

—

they attract massive attention precisely because they remain the exception to the rule.

If appropriate pubic policies were in place to help all women

—

whether CEOs or their children

’

s caregivers

—

and

all

families,

Sandberg

would

be

no

more

newsworthy

than

any

other

highly

capable

person

living

in

a

more

just

society.

36. In the European corporate workplace, generally ___ .

[A] women take the lead

[B] men have the final say

[C] corporate governance is overwhelmed

[D] senior management is family-friendly

37. The European Union

’

s intended legislation is ___ .

[A] a reflection of gender balance

[B] a reluctant choice

[C] a response to Reding

’

s call

[D] a voluntary action

38. According to Reding, quotas may help women ___ .

[A] get top business positions

[B] see through the glass ceiling

[C] balance work and family

[D] anticipate legal results

39. The author

’

s attitude toward Reding

’

s appeal is one of ___ .

[A] skepticism [B] objectiveness [C] indifference [D] approval

40. Women entering top management become headlines due to the lack of ___ .

[A] more social justice

[B] massive media attention

[C] suitable public policies

[D] greater

“

soft pressure

”