Part III Reading Comprehension (45 minutes, 30 points)

　　Directions: There are six passages in this part. Each passage is followed by five questions or

　　unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A, B, C and D. Choose the

　　best answer and mark the corresponding letter on the ANSWER SHEET with a single line through the center.

　　Passage One

　　Astronaut Jim Voss has enjoyed many memorable moments in his career, including three space flights and one space walk. But he recalls with special fondness a decidedly earthbound ( 为地球所吸引 ) experience in the summer of 1980, when he participated in the NASA - ASEE Summer Faculty Fellowship Program. Voss then a science teacher at West Point, was assigned to the Marshall Space Flight Center's propulsion (推进) lab in Alabama to analyze why a hydraulic fuel pump on the space shuttle was working so well when previous seals had failed. It was a seemingly tiny problem among the vast complexities of running the space program. Yet it was important to NASA because any crack in the seal could have led to destructive results for the astronauts who relied on them.

　　“I worked a bit with NASA engineers,” says Voss, "but I did it mostly by analysis. I used a

　　handheld calculator, not a computer, to do a thermodynamic (热力学的) analysis,"  At the end of

　　the summer, he, like the other NASA-ASEE fellows working at Marshall, summarized his f'indings in a formal presentation and detailed paper. It was a valuable moment for Voss because the ASEE program gave him added understanding of NASA, deepened his desire to fly in space, and intensified his application for astronaut status. "

　　It was not an essay process. Voss was actually passed over when he first applied for the astronaut program in 1978. Over the next nine years he reapplied repeatedly, and was finally accepted in1987. Since then he has participated in three space mission. The 50-year-old Army officer, who fives in Huston, is now in training fro a four-month mission as a crew member on the International Space Station starting in July 2000

　　Voss says the ASEE program is wonderful for all involved.  "It brings in people from the

　　academic world and gives NASA a special properly for a particular period of time. It brings some

　　fresh eyes and fresh ideas to NASA, and establishes a link with our colleges and universities, "  Voss explains. “There’s an exchange of information and an exchange of perspectives that is very  important.”

　　For the academic side, Voss says, the ASEE program also  "brings institutions of higher learning more insight into new technology. We give them an opportunity to work on real-world problems and take it back to the classroom."

　　36. Why was the hydraulic fuel pump seal important for the space shuttle?

　　A. Because previous seals all failed.

　　B. Because it was very complex in running the space program.

　　C. Because great care has to be taken of the hydraulic fuel pump sealing.

　　D. Because any crack in the seals would cause disastrous results for the astronauts.

　　37. The great significance of Voss's findings lies in _________.

　　I. strengthening his determination to join in space flights

　　II. furthering his understanding of NASA

　　III. consolidating his astronaut status in NASA programs

　　A. I only.

　　B. II only.

　　C. I, II and III all included.

　　D. I and II only.

　　38. How many flights will Voss have finished if his Four-month mission starting in July 2000 ends up successfully?

　　A. Three                  B. Two

　　C. Four                  D. Five

　　39. Which of the following is NOT TRUE according to what Voss said on the ASEE program?

　　A. Fresh members from die academic world participate in the program.

　　B. The program brings new outlooks to HASA space programs.

　　C. It is important for the space scientists to exchange information and perspectives.

　　D. American colleges and universities me a special property of NASA.

　　40. What does Voss want to stress in the last paragraph?

　　A. The technological significance of the program

　　B. The educational significance of the program

　　C. The philosophical significance of the program

　　D. The historical significance of the program

　　Passage Two

　　The current emergency in Mexico City that has taken over our fives is nothing. I could ever have imagined for me or my children, we are living in an environmental crisis, an air - pollution

　　emergency of unprecedented severity. What it really means is that just to breathe here is to play a

　　dangerous game with your health.

　　As parents, what terrorizes us most are reports that children are at higher risk because they

　　breathe more times per minute. What more can we do to protect them and ourselves? Our

　　pediatrician's (儿科医师的) medical recommendation was simple: abandon the city permanently.

　　We are foreigners and we are among the small minority that can afford to leave. We are here because of my husband's work. We are fascinated by Mexico--its history and rich culture. We know that for us, this is a temporary danger. However, we cannot stand for much longer the fear we feel for our boys. We cannot stop them from breathing.

　　But for millions, there is no choice. Their lives, their jobs, their futures depend on being here. Thousands of Mexicans arrive each day in this city, desperate for economic opportunities. Thousands more are born here each day. Entire families work in the streets and practically live there. It is a familiar sight: as parents hawk goods at stoplights, their children play in the grassy highway dividers, breathing exhaust fumes. I feel guilty complaining about my personal situation; we won't be here long enough for our children to form the impression that skies are colored only gray.

　　And yet the government cannot do what it must to end this problem. For any country, especially a developing Third World economy like Mexico's, the idea of barring from the capital city enough cars, closing enough factories and spending the necessary billions on public transportation is simply not an option. So when things get bad, as in the current emergency, Mexico takes half measures-prohibiting some more cars from circulating, stopping some factories from producing--that even its own officials concede aren't adequate.

　　The word "emergency" implies the unusual. But when daily life itself is an emergency, the

　　concept loses its meaning. It is human nature to try to adapt to that which we cannot change. Or to

　　mislead ourselves into believing we can adapt.

　　41. According to the passage, the current emergency in Mexico City refers to ________.

　　A. serious air pollution            B. economic crisis

　　C. unemployment        D. natural disaster

　　42. Which of the following statements is NOT TRUE according to the passage?

　　A. Kids are in greater danger than grown-ups in Mexico City.

　　B. The author is not a native Mexican.

　　C. The author’s husband is a pediatrician.

　　D. The Mexican history and culture appeal to the author.

　　43. The word "hawk" (Paragraph 3) most probably means ________.

　　A. sell  B. transport  C. place  D. deliver

　　44. The Mexican government takes half measures to solve the pollution problem because______.

　　A. Mexican economy depends very much on cars and factories

　　B. it is not wise enough to come up with effective measures

　　C. Mexicans are able to adapt themselves to the current emergency

　　D. Mexicans enjoy playing dangerous games with their health

　　45. The purpose of the passage is to _________.

　　A describe the harmful air pollution

　　B. explain the way to prevent air pollution

　　C. show the worries about the air pollution

　　D. recommend a method to avoid air pollution

　　Passage Three

　　In 1998 consumers could purchase virtually anything over the Internet. Books, compact discs, and even stocks were available from World Wide Web sites that seemed to spring up almost daily. A few years earlier, some people had predicted that consumers accustomed to shopping in stores would be reluctant to buy things that they could not see or touch in person. For a growing number of time-starved consumers, however, shopping from their home computer was proving to be a convenient alternative to driving to the store.

　　A research estimated that in 1998 US consumers would purchase $ 7.3 billion of goods over the Internet, double the 1997 total. Finding a bargain was getting easier owing to the rise of online

　　auctions and Web sites that did comparison shopping on the Internet for the best deal.

　　For all the consumer interest, retailing in cyberspace was still a largely unprofitable business, however. Internet pioneer Amazon.Com, which began selling books in 1995 and later branched into recorded music and videos, posted revenue of $ 153.7 million in the third quarter, up from $37.9 million in the same period of 1997. Overall, however, the company's loss widened to $45.2 million from $ 9.6 million, and analysis did not expect the company to turn a profit until 2001. Despite the great loss, Amazon.Com had a stock market value of many billion, reflecting investors' optimism about the future of the industry.

　　Internet retailing appealed to investors because it provided an efficient means for reaching

　　millions of consumers without having the cost of operating conventional stores with their armies of salespeople. Selling online carried its own risks, however. With so many companies competing for consumers' attention, price competition was intense and profit margins thin or nonexistent. One video retailer sold the hit movie Titanic for $ 9.99, undercutting (削价) the $ 19.99 suggested retail price and losing about $ 6 on each copy sold. With Internet retailing still in its initial stage, companies seemed willing to absorb such losses in an attempt to establish a dominant market position.

　　46. Which of the following is TRUE, according to the writer?

　　A. Consumers are reluctant to buy things on the Internet.

　　B. Consumers are too busy to buy things on the Internet.

　　C. Internet retailing is a profitable business.

　　D. More and more consumers prefer Internet shopping.

　　47. Finding a' bargain on the Internet was getting easier partly because _______.

　　A. there were more and more Internet users

　　B. there were more and more online auctions

　　C. the consumers had more money to spend

　　D. there were more goods available on the Internet

　　48. "For all the consumer interest" (Paragraph 3) means ________.

　　A. to the interest of all the consumers

　　B. for the interest of all the consumers

　　C. though consumers are very much interested

　　D. all the consumers are much interested

　　49. It can be inferred from the passage that Amazon. Com ________.

　　A. will probably make a profit in 2001

　　B. is making a profit now

　　C. is a company that sells books only

　　D. suffers a great loss on the stock market

　　50. Investors are interested in Internet retailing because __________.

　　A. selling online involves little risk

　　B. Internet retailing is in its initial stage

　　C. it can easily reach millions of consumers

　　D. they can make huge profits from it

　　Passage Four

　　It is all very well to blame traffic jams, the cost of petrol and the quick peace of modern life, but manners on the roads are becoming horrible. You might tolerate the rude and inconsiderate driver, but nowadays the well-mannered motorist is the exception to the rule. Perhaps the situation calls for a "Be Kind to Other Drivers" campaign, otherwise, it may get completely out of hand.

　　Road politeness is not only good manners, but good sense too. It takes the most cool-headed and good-tempered of drivers to resist the temptation to revenge when subjected to uncivilized behaviors. On the other hand, a little politeness goes a long way towards relieving the tensions of motoring. A friendly nod or a wave of acknowledgement in response to an act of politeness helps to create an atmosphere of goodwill and tolerance so necessary in modern traffic conditions. But such acknowledgements of politeness are all too rare today. Many drivers nowadays don't even seem able to recognize politeness when they see it.

　　However, improper politeness can also be dangerous. A typical example is the driver who waves a child across a crossing into the path of oncoming vehicles that may be unable to stop in time. The same goes for encouraging old ladies to cross the road wherever and whenever they care to.

　　A veteran driver, whose manners are faultless, told me it would help if motorists learn to filter correctly into traffic streams without causing the total blockages (堵塞) that give rise to bad

　　temper. Unfortunately, modern motorists can't even learn to drive, let alone be well-mannered on the　road. Years ago the experts warned us that the car-ownership explosion would demand a lot more give-and-take from all road users. It is high time for all of us to take this message to heart.

　　51. According to this passage, troubles on the road are primarily caused by _______.

　　A. people's attitude towards drivers

　　B. the rhythm of modern life

　　C. traffic conditions

　　D. the behavior of the driver

　　52. The sentence  "You might tolerate the rude and inconsiderate driver, but nowadays the well-

　　mannered motorist is the exception to the rule" implies that ?????________.

　　A. our society is unjust towards well-mannered motorists

　　B. rude drivers can be met only occasionally

　　C. nowadays impolite drivers constitute the majority of motorists

　　D. the well-mannered motorist cannot tolerate the rude driver

　　53. By "good sense" (Paragraph 2), the writer means _________.

　　A. the driver's prompt response to difficult conditions

　　B. the driver's ability to understand and react reasonably

　　C. the driver' s tolerance of bad road conditions

　　D. the driver's acknowledgement of politeness and regulations

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