2012考研英语一真题及答案

2012

考研英语一真题及答案

2012

考研英语（一）真题及答案

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

ethical

judgments

of

the

Supreme

Court

justices

have

become

an

important

issue

recently.

The

court

cannot

_1_

its

legitimacy

as

guardian

of

the

rule

of

law

_2_

justices

behave

like

politicians.

Yet,

in

several

instances, justices acted in ways that _3_ the court

’

s reputation for being independent and impartial.

Justice Antonin Scalia, for example, appeared at political events. That kind of activity makes it less likely that

the court

’

s decisions will be _4_ as impartial judgments. Part of the problem is that the justices are not _5_by

an ethics code. At the very least, the court should make itself _6_to the code of conduct that _7_to the rest of

the federal judiciary.

This and other similar cases _8_the question of whether there is still a _9_between the court and politics.

The framers of the Constitution envisioned law _10_having authority apart from politics. They gave justices

permanent

positions

_11_they

would

be

free

to

_12_

those

in

power

and

have

no

need

to

_13_

political

support. Our legal system was designed to set law apart from politics

precisely because they are so

closely

_14_.

Constitutional law is political because it results from choices rooted in fundamental social _15_ like liberty

and property. When the court deals with social policy decisions, the law it _16_ is inescapably political-which

is why decisions split along ideological lines are so easily _17_ as unjust.

The justices must _18_ doubts about the court

’

s legitimacy by making themselves _19_ to the code of conduct.

That would make rulings more likely to be seen as separate from politics and, _20_, convincing as law.

1. [A]emphasize

[B]maintain

[C]modify

[D] recognize

2. [A]when

[B]lest

[C]before

[D] unless

3. [A]restored

[B]weakened

[C]established

[D] eliminated

4. [A]challenged

[B]compromised [C]suspected

[D] accepted

5. [A]advanced

[B]caught

[C]bound

[D]founded

6. [A]resistant

[B]subject

[C]immune

[D]prone

7. [A]resorts

[B]sticks

[C]loads

[D]applies

8. [A]evade

[B]raise

[C]deny

[D]settle

9. [A]line

[B]barrier

[C]similarity

[D]conflict

10. [A]by

[B]as

[C]though

[D]towards

11. [A]so

[B]since

[C]provided

[D]though

12. [A]serve

[B]satisfy

[C]upset

[D]replace

13. [A]confirm

[B]express

[C]cultivate

[D]offer

14. [A]guarded

[B]followed

[C]studied

[D]tied

15. [A]concepts

[B]theories

[C]divisions

[D]conceptions

16. [A]excludes

[B]questions

[C]shapes

[D]controls

17. [A]dismissed

[B]released

[C]ranked

[D]distorted

18. [A]suppress

[B]exploit

[C]address

[D]ignore

19. [A]accessible

[B]amiable

[C]agreeable

[D]accountable

20. [A]by all mesns [B]atall costs

[C]in a word

[D]as a result

Section II Reading Comprehension

Part A

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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

Come on < /p>

–

Everybody

’

s doing it. That whispered message, half invitation and half forcing, is what most of

us think of when we hear the words peer pressure. It usually leads to no good-drinking, drugs and casual sex.

But in her new book Join the Club, Tina Rosenberg contends that peer pressure can also be a positive force

through what she calls the social cure, in which organizations and officials use the power of group dynamics

to help individuals improve their lives and possibly the word.

Rosenberg, the recipient

of a Pulitzer Prize,

offers a

host

of example of the social cure in action: In South

Carolina, a state-sponsored antismoking program called Rage Against the Haze sets out to make cigarettes

uncool. In South Africa, an HIV-prevention initiative known as LoveLife recruits young people to promote

safe sex among their peers.

The

idea

seems

promising

，

and

Rosenberg

is

a

perceptive

observer.

Her

critique

of

the

lameness

of

many

pubic-health

campaigns

is

spot-on:

they

fail

to

mobilize

peer

pressure

for

healthy

habits,

and

they

demonstrate a seriously flawed understanding of psychology.

”

Dare to be different, please don

’

t smoke!

”

pleads

one

billboard campaign aimed

at reducing smoking among teenagers- teenagers, who desire nothing

more than fitting in. Rosenberg argues convincingly that public-health advocates ought to take a page from

advertisers, so skilled at applying peer pressure.

But on the general effectiveness of the social cure, Rosenberg is less persuasive. Join the Club is filled with

too

much

irrelevant

detail

and

not

enough

exploration

of

the

social

and

biological

factors

that

make

peer

pressure so powerful. The most glaring flaw of the social cure as it

’

s presented here is that it doesn

’

t work

very well for very long. Rage Against the Haze failed once state funding was cut. Evidence that the LoveLife

program produces lasting changes is limited and mixed.

There

’

s

no

doubt

that

our

peer

groups

exert

enormous

influence

on

our

behavior.

An

emerging

body

of

research

shows

that

positive

health

habits-as

well

as negative

ones-spread

through

networks

of

friends via

social communication. This is a subtle form of peer pressure: we unconsciously imitate the behavior we see

every day.

Far less certain, however, is how successfully experts and bureaucrats can select our peer groups and steer

their activities in virtuous directions. It

’

s like the teacher who breaks up the troublemakers in the back row

by pairing them with better- behaved classmates. The tactic never really works. And that

’

s the problem with

a

social

cure

engineered

from

the

outside:

in

the

real

world,

as

in

school,

we

insist

on

choosing

our

own

friends.

21. According to the first paragraph, peer pressure often emerges as

[A] a supplement to the social cure

[B] a stimulus to group dynamics

[C] an obstacle to school progress

[D] a cause of undesirable behaviors

22. Rosenberg holds that public advocates should

[A] recruit professional advertisers

[B] learn from advertisers

’

experience

[C] stay away from commercial advertisers

[D] recognize the limitations of advertisements

23. In the author

’

s view, Rosenberg

’

s book fails to

[A] adequately probe social and biological factors

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[B] effectively evade the flaws of the social cure

[C] illustrate the functions of state funding

[D]produce a long-lasting social effect

24. Paragraph 5shows that our imitation of behaviors

[A] is harmful to our networks of friends

[B] will mislead behavioral studies

[C] occurs without our realizing it

[D] can produce negative health habits

25. The author suggests in the last paragraph that the effect of peer pressure is

[A] harmful

[B] desirable

[C] profound

[D] questionable

Text 2

A deal is a deal-except, apparently ,when Entergy is involved. The company, a major energy supplier in New

England,

provoked

justified

outrage

in

Vermont

last

week

when

it

announced

it

was

reneging

on

a

longstanding commitment to abide by the strict nuclear regulations.

Instead,

the

company

has

done

precisely

what

it

had

long

promised

it

would

not

challenge

the

constitutionality of Vermont

’

s rules in the federal court, as part of a desperate effort to keep its Vermont

Yankee nuclear power plant running. It

’

s a stunning move.

The conflict has been surfacing since 2002, when the corporation bought Vermont

’

s only nuclear power plant,

an

aging reactor in

Vernon. As a condition of receiving state

approval for the sale, the

company agreed to

seek permission from state regulators to operate past 2012. In 2006, the state went a step further, requiring

that any extension of the plant

’

s license be subject to Vermont legislature

’

s approval. Then, too, the company

went along.

Either Entergy never really intended to live by those commitments, or it simply didn

’

t foresee what would

happen next. A string of accidents, including the partial collapse of a cooling tower in 207 and the discovery

of an underground pipe system leakage, raised serious questions about both Vermont Yankee

’

s safety and

Entergy

’

s management

–

especially after the company made misleading statements about the pipe. Enraged

by Entergy

’

s behavior, the Vermont Senate voted 26 to 4 last year against allowing an extension.

Now the company is suddenly claiming that the 2002 agreement is invalid because of the 2006 legislation, and

that only the federal government has regulatory power over nuclear issues. The legal issues in the case are

obscure: whereas the Supreme Court has ruled that states do have some regulatory authority over nuclear

power, legal scholars say that Vermont case will offer a precedent-setting test of how far those powers extend.

Certainly,

there

are

valid

concerns

about

the

patchwork

regulations

that

could

result

if

every

state

sets

its

own rules. But had Entergy kept its word, that debate would be beside the point.

The company seems to have concluded that its reputation in Vermont is already so damaged that it has noting

left

to

lose

by

going

to

war with

the

state.

But

there

should

be

consequences.

Permission

to

run

a

nuclear

plant is a poblic trust. Entergy runs 11 other reactors in the United States, including Pilgrim Nuclear station

in Plymouth. Pledging to run Pilgrim safely, the company has applied for federal permission to keep it open

for another 20 years. But as the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) reviews the company

’

s application,

it should keep it mind what promises from Entergy are worth.

26. The phrase

“

reneging on

”

(Line .1) is closest in meaning to

[A] condemning.

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[B] reaffirming.

[C] dishonoring.

[D] securing.

27. By entering into the 2002 agreement, Entergy intended to

[A] obtain protection from Vermont regulators.

[B] seek favor from the federal legislature.

[C] acquire an extension of its business license .

[D] get permission to purchase a power plant.

28. According to Paragraph 4, Entergy seems to have problems with its

[A] managerial practices.

[B] technical innovativeness.

[C] financial goals.

[D] business vision

29. In the author

’

s view, the Vermont case will test

[A] Entergy

’

s capacity to fulfill all its promises.

[B] the mature of states

’

patchwork regulations.

[C] the federal authority over nuclear issues .

[D] the limits of states

’

power over nuclear issues.

30. It can be inferred from the last paragraph that

[A] Entergy

’

s business elsewhere might be affected.

[B] the authority of the NRC will be defied.

[C] Entergy will withdraw its Plymouth application.

[D] Vermont

’

s reputation might be damaged.

Text 3

In the idealized version of how science is done, facts about the world are waiting to be observed and collected

by objective researchers who use the scientific method to carry out their work. But in the everyday practice

of science, discovery frequently follows an ambiguous and complicated route. We aim to be objective, but we

cannot

escape

the

context

of

our

unique

life

experience.

Prior

knowledge

and

interest

influence

what

we

experience,

what

we

think

our

experiences

mean,

and

the

subsequent

actions

we

take.

Opportunities

for

misinterpretation, error, and self- deception abound.

Consequently, discovery claims should be thought of as protoscience. Similar to newly staked mining claims,

they are full of potential. But it takes collective scrutiny and acceptance to transform a discovery claim into a

mature discovery. This is the credibility process, through which the individual researcher

’

s me, here, now

becomes

the

community

’

s

anyone,

anywhere,

anytime.

Objective

knowledge

is

the

goal,

not

the

starting

point.

Once

a

discovery

claim

becomes

public,

the

discoverer

receives intellectual

credit.

But,

unlike

with

mining

claims,

the

community

takes

control

of

what

happens

next.

Within

the

complex

social

structure

of

the

scientific community, researchers make discoveries; editors and reviewers act as gatekeepers by controlling

the publication process; other scientists use the new finding to suit their own purposes; and finally, the public

(including other scientists) receives the new discovery and possibly accompanying technology. As a discovery

claim

works

it

through

the

community,

the

interaction

and

confrontation

between

shared

and

competing

beliefs

about

the

science

and

the

technology

involved

transforms an

individual

’

s

discovery

claim

into

the

community

’

s credible discovery.

Two paradoxes exist throughout this credibility process. First, scientific work tends to focus on some aspect of

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prevailing Knowledge that is viewed as incomplete or incorrect. Little reward accompanies duplication and

confirmation of what is already known and believed. The goal is new-search, not re- search. Not surprisingly,

newly published discovery claims and credible discoveries that appear to be important and convincing will

always be open to challenge and potential modification or refutation by future researchers. Second, novelty

itself frequently provokes disbelief. Nobel

Laureate and physiologist Albert Azent-Gyorgyi once

described discovery as

“

seeing what everybody has

seen and thinking what nobody has thought.

”

But thinking what nobody else has thought and telling others

what they have missed may not change their views. Sometimes years are required for truly novel discovery

claims to be accepted and appreciated.

In the end, credibility

“

happens

< br>”

to a discovery claim

–

a process that corresponds to what philosopher

Annette

Baier

has

described

as

the

commons

of

the

mind.

“

We

reason

together,

challenge,

revise,

and

complete each other

’

s reasoning and each other

’

s conceptions of reason.

”

31. According to the first paragraph, the process of discovery is characterized by its

[A] uncertainty and complexity.

[B] misconception and deceptiveness.

[C] logicality and objectivity.

[D] systematicness and regularity.

32. It can be inferred from Paragraph 2 that credibility process requires

[A] strict inspection.

[B]shared efforts.

[C] individual wisdom.

[D]persistent innovation.

aph 3 shows that a discovery claim becomes credible after it

[A] has attracted the attention of the general public.

[B]has been examined by the scientific community.

[C] has received recognition from editors and reviewers.

[D]has been frequently quoted by peer scientists.

34. Albert Szent-Gy?rgyi would most likely agree that

[A] scientific claims will survive challenges.

[B]discoveries today inspire future research.

[C] efforts to make discoveries are justified.

[D]scientific work calls for a critical mind.

of the following would be the best title of the test?

[A] Novelty as an Engine of Scientific Development.

[B]Collective Scrutiny in Scientific Discovery.

[C] Evolution of Credibility in Doing Science.

[D]Challenge to Credibility at the Gate to Science.

Text 4

If the trade unionist Jimmy Hoffa were alive today, he would probably represent civil servant. When Hoffa

’

s

Teamsters were in their prime in 1960, only one in ten American government workers belonged to a union;

now 36% do. In 2009 the number of unionists in America

’

s public sector passed that of their fellow members

in the private sector. In Britain, more than half of public-sector workers but only about 15% of private-sector

ones are unionized.

There

are

three

reasons

for

the

public-sector

unions

’

thriving.

First,

they

can

shut

things

down

without

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