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Part II Reading Comprehension
(35 minutes)
Directions: There are 4 passages in this part. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A), B), C) and D). You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet with a single line through the center.
Passage one
Questions 21 to 25 are based on the following passage.
Some pessimistic experts feel that the automobile is bound to fall into disuse. They see a day in the not-too-distant future when all autos will be abandoned and allowed to rust. Other authorities, however, think the auto is here to stay. They hold that the car will remain a leading means of urban travel in the foreseeable future.
The motorcar will undoubtedly change significantly over the next 30 years. It should become smaller, safer, and more economical, and should not be powered by the gasoline engine. The car of the future should be far more pollution-free than present types.
Regardless of its power source, the auto in the future will still be the main problem in urban traffic congestion (擁擠). One proposed solution to this problem is the automated highway system.
When the auto enters the highway system, a retractable (可伸縮的) arm will drop from the auto and make contact with a rail, which is similar to those powering subway trains electrically. Once attached to the rail, the car will become electrically powered from the system, and control of the vehicle will pass to a central computer. The computer will then monitor all of the car’s movements.
The driver will use a telephone to dial instructions about his destination into the system. The computer will calculate the best route, and reserve space for the car all the way to the correct exit from the highway. The driver will then be free to relax and wait for the buzzer(蜂鳴器) that will warn him of his coming exit. It is estimated that an automated highway will be able to handle 10,000 vehicles per hour, compared with the 1,500 to 2,000 vehicles that can be carried by a present-day highway.
21. One significant improvement in the future car will probably be ________.
A) its power source
B) its driving system
C) its monitoring system
D) its seating capacity
22. What is the author’s main concern?
A) How to render automobiles pollution-free.
B) How to make smaller and safer automobiles.
C) How to solve the problem of traffic jams.
D) How to develop an automated subway system.
23. What provides autos with electric power in an automated highway system?
A) A rail.
B) An engine.
C) A retractable arm.
D) A computer controller.
24. In an automated highway system, all the driver needs to do is ________.
A) keep in the right lane
B) wait to arrive at his destination
C) keep in constant touch with the computer center
D) inform the system of his destination by phone
25. What is the author’s attitude toward the future of autos?
A) Enthusiastic.
B) Pessimistic.
C) Optimistic.
D) Cautious.
Passage Two
Questions 26 to 30 are based on the following passage.
Foxes and farmers have never got on well. These small dog-like animals have long been accused of killing farm animals. They are officially classified as harmful and farmers try to keep their numbers down by shooting or poisoning them.
Farmers can also call on the services of their local hunt to control the fox population. Hunting consists of pursuing a fox across the countryside, with a group of specially trained dogs, followed by men and women riding horses. When the dogs eventually catch the fox they kill it or a hunter shoots it.
People who take part in hunting think of as a sport; they wear a special uniform of red
coats and white trousers, and follow strict codes of behavior. But owning a horse and hunting regularly is expensive, so most hunters are wealthy.
It is estimated that up to 100,000 people watch or take part in fox hunting. But over the last couple of decades the number of people opposed to fox hunting, because they think it is brutal (殘酷的), has risen sharply. Nowadays it is rare for a hunt to pass off without some kind of confrontation (沖突) between hunters and hunt saboteurs (阻攔者). Sometimes these incidents lead to violence, but mostly saboteurs interfere with the hunt by misleading riders and disturbing the trail of the fox’s smell, which the dogs follow.
Noisy confrontations between hunters and saboteurs have become so common that they are almost as much a part of hunting as the pursuit of foxes itself. But this year supporters of fox hunting face a much bigger threat to their sport. A Labour Party Member of the Parliament, Mike Foster, is trying to get Parliament to approve a new law which will make the hunting of wild animals with dogs illegal. If the law is passed, wild animals like foxes will be protected under the ban in Britain.
26. Rich people in Britain have been hunting foxes ________.
A) for recreation
B) in the interests of the farmers
C) to limit the fox population
D) to show off their wealth
27. What is special about fox hunting in Britain?
A) It involves the use of a deadly poison.
B) It is a costly event which rarely occurs.
C) The hunters have set rules to follow.
D) The hunters have to go through strict training.
28. Fox hunting opponents often interfere in the game ________.
A) by resorting to violence
B) by confusing the fox hunters
C) by taking legal action
D) by demonstrating on the scene
29. A new law may be passed by the British Parliament to ________.
A) prohibit farmers from hunting foxes
B) forbid hunting foxes with dogs
C) stop hunting wild animals in the countryside
D) prevent large-scale fox hunting
30. It can be inferred from the passage that ________.
A) killing foxes with poison is illegal
B) limiting the fox population is unnecessary
C) hunting foxes with dogs is considered cruel and violent
D) fox-hunting often leads to confrontation between the poor and the rich
