2013年12月英語(yǔ)四級(jí)閱讀真題與答案kj140331103107

1、PartReadingComprehension(40minutes)SectionBDirections:Inthissection,youaregoingtoreadapassagewithtenstatementsattachedtoit.Eachstatementcontainsinformationgiveninoneoftheparagraphs.Identifytheparagraphfromwhichtheinformationisderived.Youmaychooseaparagraphmorethanonce.Eachparagraphismarkedwithalette

2、r.AnswerthequestionsbymarkingthecorrespondingletteronAnswerSheet2.IsCollegeaWorthyInvestment?A）Whyarewespendingsomuchmoneyoncollege?Andwhyarewesounhappyaboutit?Weallseemtoagreethatacollegeeducationiswonderful,andyetstrangelyweworrywhenweseefamiliesinvestingsomuchinthissupposedlyessentialgood.Maybeit

3、stimetoaskaquestionthatseemsalmostsacrilegious（大不敬的）：isallthisinvestmentincollegeeducationreallyworthit?B）Theanswer,Ifear,isno.Foranincreasingnumberofkids,theextratimeandmoneyspentpursuingacollegediplomawillleavethemworseoffthantheywerebeforetheysetfootoncampus.C）Formyentireadultlife,agoodeducationh

4、asbeenthemostimportantthingformiddle-classhouseholds.Myparentsspentmoreeducatingmysisterandmethantheyspentontheirhouse,andtheyrenottheonlyones,and,ofcourse,foranincreasingnumberoffamilies,mostofthecostoftheirhouseisactuallythecostoflivinginagoodschooldistrict.Questioningthevalueofacollegeeducationse

5、emsabitlikequestioningthevalueofhappiness,orfun.D）Theaveragepriceofallgoodsandserviceshasrisenabout50percent.Butthepriceofacollegeeducationhasnearlydoubledinthattime.Istheeducationthattodaysstudentsaregettingtwiceasgood?Arenewworkerstwiceassmart?Havetheybecomesomehowmassivelymoreexpensivetoeducate?E

6、）Perhapsabit.RichardVedder,anOhioUniversityeconomicsprofessor,says,“Ilookatthedata,andIseecollegecostsrisingfasterthaninflationuptothemid-1980sby1percentayear.NowIseethemrising3to4percentayearoverinflation.Whathashappened?Thefederalgovernmenthasstarteddroppingmoneyoutofairplanes.”Aidhasincreased,sub

7、sidized（補(bǔ)貼的）loanshavebecomeavailable,and“theuniversitieshavegottenthemoney.”EconomistBryanCaplan,whoiswritingabookabouteducation,agrees:“Itsagiantwasteofresourcesthatwillcontinueaslongasthesubsidiescontinue.”F）Promotionalliteratureforcollegesandstudentloansoftenspeaksofdebtasan“investmentinyourself.

8、”Butaninvestmentissupposedtogenerateincometopayofftheloans.Morethanhalfofallrecentgraduatesareunemployedorinjobsthatdonotrequireadegree,andtheamountofstudent-loandebtcarriedbyhouseholdshasincreasedmorethanfivetimessince1999.Thesegraduatesweretoldthatadiplomawasalltheyneededtosucceed,butitwontevenget

9、themoutofthesparebedroomatMomandDads.Formany,themostvisibleresultoftheirfouryearsistheloanpayments,whichnowaveragehundredsofdollarsamonthonloanbalancesinthetensofthousands.G）Itstrueaboutthemoneysortof.Collegegraduatesnowmake80percentmorethanpeoplewhohaveonlyahigh-schooldiploma,andthoughtherearenopre

10、ciseestimates,thewagepremium（高出的部分）foranoutstandingschoolseemstobeevenhigher.Butthatsnottrueofeverystudent.ItsveryeasytospendfouryearsmajoringinEnglishliteratureandcomeoutnomoreemployablethanyouwerebeforeyouwentin.Conversely,chemicalengineersstraightoutofschoolcaneasilymakealmostfourtimesthewagesofa

11、nentry-levelhigh-schoolgraduate.H）JamesHeckman,theNobelPrize-winningeconomist,hasexaminedhowthereturnsoneducationbreakdownforindividualswithdifferentbackgroundsandlevelsofability.“Evenwiththesehighprices,yourestillfindingahighreturnforindividualswhoarebrightandmotivated,”hesays.Ontheotherhand,“ifyou

12、renotcollegeready,thentheanswerisno,itsnExpertstendtoagreethatfortheaveragestudent,collegeisstillworthittoday,buttheyalsoagreethattherapidincreaseinpriceiseatingupmoreandmoreofthepotentialreturn.Forborderlinestudents,tuition（學(xué)費(fèi)）risecanpushthosereturnsintonegativeterritory.I）Everyoneseemstoagreethatt

13、hegovernment,andparents,shouldberethinkinghowweinvestinhighereducationandthatemployersneedtorethinktheincreasinguseofcollegedegreesascrudescreeningtoolsforjobsthatdontreallyrequirecollegeskills.“Employersseeingasurplusofcollegegraduatesandlookingtofilljobsarejustaddingthatrequirement,”saysVedder.“In

14、fact,acollegedegreebecomesajobrequirementforbecomingabar-tender.”J）Wehavestartedtoseesomechangeonthefinanceside.Alawpassedin2007allowsmanystudentstocaptheirloanpaymentat10percentoftheirincomeandforgivesanybalanceafter25years.Butofcourse,thatdoesntcontrolthecostofeducation;itjustshiftsittotaxpayers.I

15、talsoencouragesgraduatestochooselower-payingcareers,whichreducesthefinancialreturntoeducationstillfurther.“Youresubsidizingpeopletobecomepriestsandpoetsandsoforth,Heckman.“Youmaythinkthatsagoodthing,oryoumaynot.”Eitherwayitwillbeexpensiveforthegovernment.K）Whatmightbealotcheaperisputtingmorekidstowo

16、rk.Caplannotesthatworkalsobuildsvaluableskillsprobablymorevaluableforkidswhodontnaturallylovesittinginaclassroom.Heckmanagreeswholeheartedly:“Peoplearedifferent,andthoseabilitiescanbeshaped.Thatswhatwevelearned,andpublicpolicyshouldrecognizethat.”L）Heckmanwouldliketoseemoreapprenticeship-style（學(xué)徒式）p

17、rograms,wherekidscanlearnintheworkplacelearnnotjustspecificjobskills,butthekindof“softskills,”likegettingtoworkontimeandgettingalongwithateam,thatarecrucialforcareersuccess.“Itsabouthavingmentors（指導(dǎo)者）andhavingworkplace-basededucation,”hesays.“TimeandagainIveseenexamplesofthiskindofprogramworking.”M）

18、Ah,buthowdowegettherefromhere?Withbetterpublicpolicy,hopefully,butalsobymakingbetterindividualdecisions.“Historicallymarketshavebeenabletohandlethesethings,”saysVedder,“andIthinkeventuallymarketswillhandlethisone.Ifitdoesntimprovesoon,peoplearegoingtowakeupandask,WhyamIgoingtocollege?”注意：此部分試題請(qǐng)?jiān)诖痤}卡2

19、上作答。Caplansuggeststhatkidswhodontloveschoolgotowork.Anincreasingnumberoffamiliesspendmoremoneyonhousesinagoodschooldistrict.Subsidizedloanstocollegestudentsareahugewasteofmoney,accordingtooneeconomist.Moreandmorekidsfindtheyfareworsewithacollegediploma.Forthosewhoarenotpreparedforhighereducation,goi

20、ngtocollegeisnotworthit.Overtheyearsthecostofacollegeeducationhasincreasedalmostby100%.52.Alawpassedrecentlyallowsmanystudentstopaynomorethanonetenthoftheirincomefortheircollegeloans.Middle-classAmericanshavehighlyvaluedagoodeducation.Morekidsshouldbeencouragedtoparticipateinprogramswheretheycanlear

21、nnotonlyjobskillsbutalsosocialskills.55.Overfiftypercentofrecentcollegegraduatesremainunemployedorunabletofindasuitablejob.Directions:Thereare2passagesinthissection.Eachpassageisfollowedbysomequestionsorunfinishedstatements.ForeachofthemtherearefourchoicesmarkedA），B），C）andD）。Youshoulddecideonthebest

22、choiceandmarkthecorrespondingletteronAnswerSheet2withasinglelinethroughthecentre.Questions56to60arebasedonthefollowingpassage.Arecentglobalsurveyof2000high-net-worthindividualsfoundthat60%werenotplanningonatraditionalretirement.AmongUSparticipants,75%expectedtocontinueworkinginsomecapacityevenafters

23、teppingawayfromfull-timejobs.“Manyofthesepeoplemadetheirwealthbydoingsomethingtheyrepassionate（有激情的）about,”saysDanielEgan,headofbehavioralfinanceforBarclaysWealthAmericas.“Giventhechoice,theyprefertocontinueworking.”Barclayscallsthesepeople“nevertirees.”UnlikemanyAmericanscompelledintoearlyretiremen

24、tbycompanyrestrictions,theaveragenevertireeoftenhasnooneforcinghishand.If106-year-oldinvestorIrvingKahn,headofhisownfamilyfirm,wantstokeepcomingtoworkeveryday,whosgoingtostophim?Seventy-eight-year-oldSupremeCourtJusticeRuthBaderGinsburgjobssecurityisguaranteedintheConstitution.Itmayseemthattheseelde

25、rlypeoplearetryingtocheatdeath.Infact,theyare.Anditworkings.HowardFriedman,aprofessoratUCRiverside,foundinhisresearchthatthosewhoworkhardestandaresuccessfulintheircareersoftenlivethelongestlives.“Peoplearegenerallybeinggivenbadadvicetoslowdown,takeiteasy,stopworrying,andretiretoFlorida,he”says.Hedes

26、cribedonestudyparticipant,stillworkingattheageof100,whowasrecentlydisappointedtoseehissonretire.“Webeginningretoseeachangeinhowpeopleviewretirement,says”GeorgeLeeson,co-directoroftheInstituteofPopulationAgeingatOxford.Whereonceretirementwasseenasabriefrewardafteralongstrugglethroughsomemiserablejob,

27、itisnowakin（近似）tobeingcastaside.WhatLeesonterms“theWarrenBuffetteffect”isbecomingmorebroadlyappealingasindividualscometo“viewretirementasnotsimplybeinglinkedtoeconomicproductivitybutalsoaboutcontribution.”O(jiān)bserversaresplitonwhetherthisisawhollygoodthing.Ontheonehand,companiesandfinancialfirmscanbene

28、fitfromthewisdomofaresilient（堅(jiān)韌的）chief.Ontheother,thenewgenerationcanfinditmoredifficulttoadvanceanargumentthattypicallyholdslittleswaytoanevertiree.注意：此部分試題請(qǐng)?jiān)诖痤}卡2上作答。56.Whatdowelearnabouttheso-called“nevertirees”？A）Theyarepassionateaboutmakingafortune.B）Theyhavenochoicebuttocontinueworking.C）Theylo

29、vewhattheydoandchoosenottoretire.D）Theywillnotretireunlesstheyarecompelledto.57.WhatdoIrvingKahnandRuthBaderGinsburghaveincommon?A）Neitherofthemissubjecttoforcedretirement.B）Neitherofthemdesiresrewardfortheirwork.C）Bothclingtotheirpositionsdespiteopposition.D）Botharecapableofcopingwithheavyworkloads

30、.58.WhatisthefindingofHowardFriedmansresearch?A）Theharderyouwork,thebiggeryourfortunewillbe.B）Theearlieryouretire,thehealthieryouwillbe.C）Elderlypeoplehavetoslowdowntolivelonger.D）Workingatanadvancedagelengthenspeopleslife.59.Whatisthetraditionalviewofretirementaccordingtothepassage?A）Itmeansaburden

31、totheyoungergeneration.B）Itisasymbolofamatureandcivilizedsociety.C）Itisacompensationforoneslife-longhardwork.D）Ithelpsincreaseanationseconomicproductivity.60.Whatdocriticssayabout“nevertirees”？A）Theyareanobstacletoacompanysdevelopment.B）Theylackthecreativityoftheyoungergeneration.C）Theycannotworkase

32、fficientlyastheyusedto.D）Theypreventyoungpeoplefromgettingahead.PassageTwoQuestions61to65arebasedonthefollowingpassage.WhenwetalkaboutAmericansbarelyintoadulthoodwhoaresaddledwithunbearablelevelsofdebt,theconversationisalmostalwaysaboutstudentloandebt.Buttheresagrowingbodyofevidencesuggestingthattod

33、aysyoungadultsarealsodrowningincredit-carddebtandthatmanyofthemwilltakethisdebttotheirgraves.Morethan20%overspenttheirincomebymorethan100everysinglemonth.Sincetheyhaventbuiltuptheircredithistoriesyet,itsasafebetthattheseyoungadultsarepayingrelativelyhighinterestratesontheresultingcreditcarddebt.Alth

34、oughmanyyoungpeopleblame“socializing”asabarriertosavingmoney,mostofthemarentknockingback20drinksintrendy（時(shí)尚的）lounges.Theyrestrugglingwithmuchmoredailyfinancialdemands.Toadisturbinglylargeextent,theyoungandthebrokearerelyingoncreditcardstomakeituntiltheirnextpayday.Thisobviouslyisntsustainablelongrun

35、,anditsgoingtoputahugedragontheirspendingpowerevenafterheytreachtheirpeakearningyears,becausetheyllstillbepayinginterestonthatbottleoforangejuiceorboxofspaghetti（意式面條）theyboughtadecadeearlier.AnewstudyoutofOhioStateUniversityfoundthatyoungadultsareaccumulatingcreditcarddebtatamorerapidratethanothera

36、gegroups,andthattheyresloweratpayingitoff.“Ifwhatwefoundcontinuestoholdtrue,wemayhavemoreelderlypeoplewithsubstantialfinancialproblemsinthefuture,”warnsLuciaDunn,professorofeconomicsatOhioState.“Ifourfindingspersist,wemaybefacedwithafinancialcrisisamongelderlypeoplewhocantpayofftheircreditcards.”Dunnsaysalotoftheseyoungpeoplearenevergoingtogetoutfromundertheircreditcarddebt.“Manypeopleareborrowingo