1、1 考研英语考研英语暑期高强特训班暑期高强特训班阅读教程阅读教程2003-Text3In recent years,railroads have been combining with each other,merging into supersystems,causing heightened concerns about monopoly.As recently as 1995,the top fourrailroadsaccountedforunder70percentofthetotalton-milesmovedbyrails.Nextyear,afteraseriesofmerge
2、rsiscompleted,justfourrailroadswillcontrolwellover90percentofallthefreightmovedbymajorrailcarriers.Supportersofthenewsupersystemsarguethatthesemergerswillallowforsubstantialcostreductionsandbettercoordinatedservice.Anythreatofmonopoly,theyargue,isremovedbyfiercecompetitionfromtrucks.Butmanyshippersc
3、omplainthatforheavybulkcommoditiestravelinglongdistances,suchascoal,chemicals,andgrain,truckingistoocostlyandtherailroadsthereforehavethembythethroat.Thevastconsolidationwithintherailindustrymeansthatmostshippersareservedbyonlyonerailcompany.Railroadstypicallychargesuch“captive”shippers20to30percent
4、morethantheydowhenanotherrailroadiscompetingforthebusiness.ShipperswhofeeltheyarebeingoverchargedhavetherighttoappealtothefederalgovernmentsSurfaceTransportationBoardforraterelief,buttheprocessisexpensive,timeconsuming,andwillworkonlyintrulyextremecases.Railroadsjustifyratediscriminationagainstcapti
5、veshippersonthegroundsthatinthelongrunitreduceseveryonescost.Ifrailroadschargedallcustomersthesameaveragerate,theyargue,shipperswhohavetheoptionofswitchingtotrucksorotherformsoftransportationwould do so,leaving remaining customers to shoulder the cost of keeping up the line.Itstheorytowhichmanyecono
6、mistssubscribe,butinpracticeitoftenleavesrailroadsinthepositionofdeterminingwhichcompanieswillflourishandwhichwillfail.“Dowereallywantrailroadstobe the arbiters of who wins and who loses in the marketplace?”asks Martin Bercovici,aWashingtonlawyerwhofrequentlyrepresentsshipper.Manycaptiveshippersalso
7、worrytheywillsoonbehitwitharoundofhugerateincreases.Therailroadindustryasawhole,despiteitsbrighteningfortunes,stilldoesnotearnenoughtocoverthecostofthecapitalitmustinvesttokeepupwithitssurgingtraffic.Yetrailroadscontinuetoborrowbillionstoacquireoneanother,withWallStreetcheeringthemon.Considerthe$10.
8、2billionbidbyNorfolkSouthernandCSXtoacquireConrailthisyear.Conrailsnetrailwayoperatingincomein1996wasjust$427million,lessthanhalfofthecarryingcostsofthetransaction.Whosgoingtopayfortherestofthebill?Manycaptiveshippersfearthattheywill,asNorfolkSouthernandCSXincreasetheirgriponthemarket.51.Accordingto
9、thosewhosupportmergers,railwaymonopolyisunlikelybecause_.Acostreductionisbasedoncompetition Bservicescallforcross-tradecoordination Coutsidecompetitorswillcontinuetoexist Dshipperswillhavetherailwaybythethroat 52.Whatismanycaptiveshippersattitudetowardstheconsolidationintherailindustry?2 AIndifferen
10、t.BSupportive.CIndignant.DApprehensive.53.ItcanbeinferredfromParagraph3that_.Ashipperswillbechargedlesswithoutarivalrailroad Btherewillsoonbeonlyonerailroadcompanynationwide Coverchargedshippersareunlikelytoappealforraterelief Dagovernmentboardensuresfairplayinrailwaybusiness54.Theword“arbiters”(Lin
11、e7,Paragraph4)mostprobablyreferstothose_.Awhoworkascoordinators Bwhofunctionasjudges Cwhosupervisetransactions Dwhodeterminetheprice 55.Accordingtothetext,thecostincreaseintherailindustryismainlycausedby_.AthecontinuingacquisitionBthegrowingtraffic CthecheeringWallStreet Dtheshrinkingmarket2003-Text
12、4ItissaidthatinEnglanddeathispressing,inCanadainevitableandinCaliforniaoptional.Small wonder.Americans life expectancy has nearly doubled over the past century.Failinghipscanbereplaced,clinicaldepressioncontrolled,cataractsremovedina30-minutesurgical procedure.Such advances offer the aging populatio
13、n a quality of life that wasunimaginablewhenIenteredmedicine50yearsago.Butnotevenagreathealth-caresystemcancuredeathandourfailuretoconfrontthatrealitynowthreatensthisgreatnessofours.Deathisnormal;wearegeneticallyprogrammedtodisintegrateandperish,evenunderidealconditions.Weallunderstandthatatsomeleve
14、l,yetasmedicalconsumerswetreatdeathasaproblemtobesolved.Shieldedbythird-partypayersfromthecostofourcare,wedemandeverythingthatcanpossiblybedoneforus,evenifitsuseless.Themostobviousexampleislate-stagecancercare.Physiciansfrustratedbytheirinabilitytocurethediseaseandfearinglossofhopeinthepatienttoooft
15、enofferaggressivetreatmentfarbeyondwhatisscientificallyjustified.In1950,theUSspent$12.7billiononhealthcare.In2002,thecostwillbe$1540billion.Anyonecanseethistrendisunsustainable.Yetfewseemwillingtotrytoreverseit.Somescholarsconcludethatagovernmentwithfiniteresourcesshouldsimplystoppayingformedicalcar
16、ethatsustainslifebeyondacertainagesay83orso.FormerColoradogovernorRichardLammhasbeenquotedassayingthattheoldandinfirm“haveadutytodieandgetoutoftheway”,sothatyounger,healthierpeoplecanrealizetheirpotential.Iwouldnotgothatfar.Energeticpeoplenowroutinelyworkthroughtheir60sandbeyond,andremaindazzlinglyp
17、roductive.At78,ViacomchairmanSumnerRedstonejokinglyclaimstobe53.SupremeCourtJusticeSandraDayOConnorisinher70s,andformersurgeongeneralC.EverettKoopchairsanInternetstart-upinhis80s.Theseleadersarelivingproofthatpreventionworksandthatwecanmanagethehealthproblemsthatcomenaturallywithage.Asamere68-year-o
18、ld,Iwishtoageasproductivelyastheyhave.3 Yettherearelimitstowhatasocietycanspendinthispursuit.Asaphysician,Iknowthemostcostlyanddramaticmeasuresmaybeineffectiveandpainful.IalsoknowthatpeopleinJapanandSweden,countriesthatspendfarlessonmedicalcare,haveachievedlonger,healthierlivesthanwehave.Asanation,w
19、emaybeover-fundingthequestforunlikelycureswhileunder-fundingresearchonhumblertherapiesthatcouldimprovepeopleslives.56.Whatisimpliedinthefirstsentence?AAmericansarebetterpreparedfordeaththanotherpeople BAmericansenjoyahigherlifequalitythaneverbefore CAmericansareover-confidentoftheirmedicaltechnology
20、 DAmericanstakeavainprideintheirlonglifeexpectancy 57.Theauthorusestheexampleofcancerpatientstoshowthat_.Amedicalresourcesareoftenwasted Bdoctorsarehelplessagainstfataldiseases Csometreatmentsaretooaggressive Dmedicalcostsarebecomingunaffordable 58.TheauthorsattitudetowardRichardLammsremarkisoneof_.
21、AstrongdisapprovalBreservedconsent CslightcontemptDenthusiasticsupport 59.IncontrasttotheUS,JapanandSwedenarefundingtheirmedicalcare_.AmoreflexiblyBmoreextravagantly CmorecautiouslyDmorereasonably 60.Thetextintendstoexpresstheideathat_.Amedicinewillfurtherprolongpeopleslives Blifebeyondacertainlimit
22、isnotworthliving CdeathshouldbeacceptedasafactoflifeDexcessivedemandsincreasethecostofhealthcare4 2004-Text1 Huntingforajoblatelastyear,lawyerGantRedmonstumbledacrossCareerBuilder,ajobdatabase on the Internet.He searched it with no success but was attracted by the sites“personalsearchagent”.Itsanint
23、eractivefeaturethatletsvisitorskeyinjobcriteriasuchaslocation,title,andsalary,thenE-mailsthemwhenamatchingpositionispostedinthedatabase.Redmonchosethekeywordslegal,intellectualproperty,andWashington,D.C.Threeweekslater,hegothisfirstnotificationofanopening.“Istruckgold,”saysRedmon,whoE-mailedhisresum
24、etotheemployerandwonapositionasin-housecounselforacompany.Withthousandsofcareer-relatedsitesontheInternet,findingpromisingopeningscanbetime-consuming and inefficient.Search agents reduce the need for repeated visits to thedatabases.ButalthoughasearchagentworkedforRedmon,careerexpertsseedrawbacks.Nar
25、rowingyourcriteria,forexample,mayworkagainstyou:“Everytimeyouansweraquestionyoueliminateapossibility.”saysoneexpert.Foranyjobsearch,youshouldstartwithanarrowconceptwhatyouthinkyouwanttodothenbroadenit.“Noneoftheseprogramsdothat,”saysanotherexpert.“Theresnocareercounselingimplicitinallofthis.”Instead
26、,thebeststrategyistousetheagentasakindoftipservicetokeepabreastofjobsinaparticulardatabase;whenyougetE-mail,consideritaremindertocheckthedatabaseagain.“Iwouldnotrelyonagentsforfindingeverythingthatisaddedtoadatabasethatmightinterestme,”saystheauthorofajob-searchingguide.Somesitesdesigntheiragentstot
27、emptjobhunterstoreturn.WhenCareerSitesagentsendsoutmessagestothosewhohavesignedupforitsservice,forexample,itincludesonlythreepotential jobsthose it considers the best matches.There may be more matches in thedatabase;jobhunterswillhavetovisitthesiteagaintofindthemandtheydo.“Onthedayafterwesendourmess
28、ages,weseeasharpincreaseinourtraffic,”saysSethPeets,vicepresidentofmarketingforCareerSite.Eventhosewhoarenthuntingforjobsmayfindsearchagentsworthwhile.Someusethem to keep a close watch on the demand for their line of work or gather information oncompensationtoarmthemselveswhennegotiatingforaraise.Al
29、thoughhappilyemployed,Redmon maintains his agent at CareerBuilder.“You always keep your eyes open,”he says.Workingwithapersonalsearchagentmeanshavinganothersetofeyeslookingoutforyou.41.HowdidRedmonfindhisjob?ABysearchingopeningsinajobdatabase.BBypostingamatchingpositioninadatabase.CByusingaspecialse
30、rviceofadatabase.DByE-mailinghisresumetoadatabase.42.Whichofthefollowingcanbeadisadvantageofsearchagents?ALackofcounseling.BLimitednumberofvisits.CLowerefficiency.DFewersuccessfulmatches.43.Theexpression“tipservice”（Line4,Paragraph3）mostprobablymeans_.AadvisoryBcompensation CinteractionDreminder44.W
31、hydoesCareerSitesagentoffereachjobhunteronlythreejoboptions?ATofocusonbetterjobmatches.BToattractmorereturningvisits.5 CToreservespaceformoremessages.DToincreasetherateofsuccess.45.Whichofthefollowingistrueaccordingtothetext?APersonalsearchagentsareindispensabletojob-hunters.BSomesiteskeepE-mailingj
32、obseekerstotracetheirdemands.CPersonalsearchagentsarealsohelpfultothosealreadyemployed.DSomeagentsstopsendinginformationtopeopleoncetheyareemployed.2004-Text2 Overthepastcentury,allkindsofunfairnessanddiscriminationhavebeencondemnedormadeillegal.Butoneinsidiousformcontinuestothrive:alphabetism.This,
33、forthoseasyetunawareofsuchadisadvantage,referstodiscriminationagainstthosewhosesurnamesbeginwithaletterinthelowerhalfofthealphabet.IthaslongbeenknownthatataxifirmcalledAAAAcarshasabigadvantageoverZodiaccarswhencustomersthumbthroughtheirphonedirectories.LesswellknownistheadvantagethatAdamAbbotthasinl
34、ifeoverZoZysman.Englishnamesarefairlyevenlyspreadbetweenthe halves of the alphabet.Yet a suspiciously large number of top people have surnamesbeginningwithlettersbetweenAandK.Thus the American president and vice-president have surnames starting with B and Crespectively;and26ofGeorgeBushspredecessors
35、（includinghisfather）hadsurnamesinthefirsthalfofthealphabetagainstjust16inthesecondhalf.Evenmorestriking,sixofthesevenheadsofgovernmentoftheG7richcountriesarealphabeticallyadvantaged（Berlusconi,Blair,Bush,Chirac,Chretien and Koizumi）.The worlds three top central bankers（Greenspan,DuisenbergandHayami）
36、areallclosetothetopofthealphabet,evenifoneofthemreallyusesJapanesecharacters.Asaretheworldsfiverichestmen（Gates,Buffett,Allen,EllisonandAlbrecht）.Canthismerelybecoincidence?Onetheory,dreamtupinallthesparetimeenjoyedbythealphabeticallydisadvantaged,isthattherotsetsinearly.Atthestartofthefirstyearinin
37、fantschool,teachersseatpupilsalphabeticallyfromthefront,tomakeiteasiertoremembertheirnames.Soshort-sightedZysmanjuniorgetsstuckinthebackrow,andisrarelyaskedtheimproving questions posed by those insensitive teachers.At the time the alphabeticallydisadvantaged may think they have had a lucky escape.Ye
38、t the result may be worsequalifications,becausetheygetlessindividualattention,aswellaslessconfidenceinspeakingpublicly.Thehumiliationcontinues.Atuniversitygraduationceremonies,theABCsproudlygettheirawardsfirst;bythetimetheyreachtheZysmansmostpeopleareliterallyhavingaZZZ.Shortlistsforjobinterviews,el
39、ectionballotpapers,listsofconferencespeakersandattendees:alltendtobedrawnupalphabetically,andtheirrecipientsloseinterestastheyploughthroughthem.46.WhatdoestheauthorintendtoillustratewithAAAAcarsandZodiaccars?AAkindofoverlookedinequality.BAtypeofconspicuousbias.CAtypeofpersonalprejudice.DAkindofbrand
40、discrimination.47.Whatcanweinferfromthefirstthreeparagraphs?AInbothEastandWest,namesareessentialtosuccess.6 BThealphabetistoblameforthefailureofZoZysman.CCustomersoftenpayalotofattentiontocompaniesnames.DSomeformofdiscriminationistoosubtletorecognize.48.The4thparagraphsuggeststhat_.Aquestionsareofte
41、nputtothemoreintelligentstudents Balphabeticallydisadvantagedstudentsoftenescapefromclass Cteachersshouldpayattentiontoalloftheirstudents Dstudentsshouldbeseatedaccordingtotheireyesight49.Whatdoestheauthormeanby“mostpeopleareliterallyhavingaZZZ”（Line2,Paragraph5）?ATheyaregettingimpatient.BTheyarenoi
42、silydozingoff.CTheyarefeelinghumiliated.DTheyarebusywithwordpuzzles.50.Whichofthefollowingistrueaccordingtothetext?APeoplewithsurnamesbeginningwithNtoZareoftenill-treated.BVIPsintheWesternworldgainagreatdealfromalphabetism.CThecampaigntoeliminatealphabetismstillhasalongwaytogo.DPuttingthingsalphabet
43、icallymayleadtounintentionalbias.2004-Text3 Whenitcomestotheslowingeconomy,EllenSperoisntbitinghernailsjustyet.Butthe47-year-oldmanicuristisntcutting,fillingorpolishingasmanynailsasshedliketo,either.Mostofherclientsspend$12to$50weekly,butlastmonthtwolongtimecustomerssuddenlystoppedshowingup.Sperobla
44、mesthesofteningeconomy.“Imagoodeconomicindicator,”shesays.“Iprovideaservicethatpeoplecandowithoutwhentheyreconcernedaboutsavingsomedollars.”SoSperoisdownscaling,shoppingatmiddle-browDillardsdepartmentstorenearhersuburbanClevelandhome,insteadofNeimanMarcus.“Idontknowifotherclientsaregoingtoabandonme,
45、too”shesays.EvenbeforeAlanGreenspansadmissionthatAmericasred-hoteconomyiscooling,lotsofworkingfolkshadalreadyseensignsoftheslowdownthemselves.FromcardealershipstoGapoutlets,saleshavebeenlaggingformonthsasshopperstempertheirspending.Forretailers,who last year took in 24 percent of their revenue betwe
46、en Thanksgiving and Christmas,thecautious approach is coming at a crucial time.Already,experts say,holiday sales are off 7percentfromlastyearspace.Butdontsoundanyalarmsjustyet.Consumersseemonlymildly concerned,not panicked,and many say they remain optimistic about the economyslong-termprospects,even
47、astheydosomemodestbelt-tightening.Consumerssaytheyrenotindespairbecause,despitethedreadfulheadlines,theirownfortunesstillfeelprettygood.Homepricesareholdingsteadyinmostregions.InManhattan,“theresanewgoldrushhappeninginthe$4millionto$10millionrange,predominantlyfedbyWallStreetbonuses,”saysbrokerBarba
48、raCorcoran.InSanFrancisco,pricesarestillrisingevenasfrenziedoverbiddingquiets.“Insteadof20to30offers,nowmaybeyouonlygettwoorthree,”says John Teadly,a Bay Area real-estate broker.And most folks still feel prettycomfortableabouttheirabilitytofindandkeepajob.Manyfolksseesilverliningstothisslowdown.Pote
49、ntialhomebuyerswouldcheerforlowerinterestrates.Employerswouldntmindalittlefewerbubblesinthejobmarket.Many7 consumersseemtohavebeeninfluencedbystock-marketswings,whichinvestorsnowviewasanecessaryingredienttoasustainedboom.Dinersmightseeanupside,too.GettingatableatManhattanshotnewAlainDucasserestauran
50、tusedtobeimpossible.Notanymore.Forthat,Greenspan&Co.maystillbeworthtoasting.51.By“EllenSperoisntbitinghernailsjustyet”（Line1,Paragraph1）,theauthormeans_.ASperocanhardlymaintainherbusiness BSperoistoomuchengagedinherwork CSperohasgrownoutofherbadhabit DSperoisnotinadesperatesituation52.Howdothepublic
