1998年考研英语试题及答案

1998年考研英语试题及答案

1998年全国硕士研究生入学统一考试英语试题

Section II Cloze Test

Directions:

For each numbered blank in the following passage, there are four choices marked [A], [B], [C], and [D]. Choose the best one and mark your answer on ANSWER SHEET 1 by blackening the corresponding letter in the brackets with a pencil. (10 points)

Until recently most historians spoke very critically of the Industrial Revolution. They 大41家 that in the long run industrialization greatly raised the standard of living for the 大42家 man. But they insisted that its 大43家 results during the period from 1750 to 1850 were widespread poverty and misery for the 大44家 of the English population. 大45家 contrast, they saw in the preceding hundred years from 1650 to 1750, when England was still a 大46家 agricultural country, a period of great abundance and prosperity.

This view, 大47家, is generally thought to be wrong. Specialists 大48家 history and economics, have 大49家 two things: that the period from 1650 to 1750 was 大50家 by great poverty, and that industrialization certainly did not worsen and may have actually improved the conditions for the majority of the populace.

41. [A] admitted[B] believed[C] claimed[D] predicted 42. [A] plain[B] average[C] mean[D] normal

43. [A] momentary[B] prompt[C] instant[D] immediate 44. [A] bulk[B] host[C] gross[D] magnitude 45. [A] On[B] With[C] For[D] By

46. [A] broadly[B] thoroughly[C] generally[D] completely 47. [A] however[B] meanwhile[C] therefore[D] moreover 48. [A] at[B] in[C] about[D] for

49. [A] manifested[B] approved[C] shown[D] speculated 50. [A] noted[B] impressed[C] labeled[D] marked

Section III Reading Comprehension Directions:

Each of the passages below is followed by some questions. For each question there are four answers marked [A], [B], [C] and [D]. Read the passages carefully and choose the best answer to each of the questions. Then mark your answer on the ANSWER SHEET 1 by blackening the corresponding letter in the brackets with a pencil. (40 points)

Text 1

Few creations of big technology capture the imagination like giant dams. Perhaps it is humankind’s long suffering at the mercy of flood and drought that makes the idea of forcing the waters to do our bidding so fascinating. But to be fascinated is also, sometimes, to be blind. Several giant dam projects threaten to do more harm than good.

The lesson from dams is that big is not always beautiful. It doesn’t help that building a big,

powerful dam has become a symbol of achievement for nations and people striving to assert themselves. Egypt’s leadership in the Arab world was cemented by the Aswan High Dam. Turkey’s bid for First World status includes the giant Ataturk Dam.

But big dams tend not to work as intended. The Aswan Dam, for example, stopped the Nile flooding but deprived Egypt of the fertile silt that floods left -- all in return for a giant reservoir of disease which is now so full of silt that it barely generates electricity.

And yet, the myth of controlling the waters persists. This week, in the heart of civilized Europe, Slovaks and Hungarians stopped just short of sending in the troops in their contention over a dam on the Danube. The huge complex will probably have all the usual problems of big dams. But Slovakia is bidding for independence from the Czechs, and now needs a dam to prove itself.

Meanwhile, in India, the World Bank has given the go-ahead to the even more wrong-headed Narmada Dam. And the bank has done this even though its advisors say the dam will cause hardship for the powerless and environmental destruction. The benefits are for the powerful, but they are far from guaranteed.

Proper, scientific study of the impacts of dams and of the cost and benefits of controlling water can help to resolve these conflicts. Hydroelectric power and flood control and irrigation are possible without building monster dams. But when you are dealing with myths, it is hard to be either proper, or scientific. It is time that the world learned the lessons of Aswan. You don’t need a dam to be saved. 51. The third sentence of Paragraph 1 implies that ________.

[A] people would be happy if they shut their eyes to reality [B] the blind could be happier than the sighted [C] over-excited people tend to neglect vital things [D] fascination makes people lose their eyesight

52. In Paragraph 5, “the powerless” probably refers to ________.

[A] areas short of electricity [B] dams without power stations [C] poor countries around India

[D] common people in the Narmada Dam area

53. What is the myth concerning giant dams?

[A] They bring in more fertile soil. [B] They help defend the country. [C] They strengthen international ties.

[D] They have universal control of the waters.

54. What the author tries to suggest may best be interpreted as ________.

[A] “It’s no use crying over spilt milk” [B] “More haste, less speed” [C] “Look before you leap”

[D] “He who laughs last laughs best”

Text 2

Well, no gain without pain, they say. But what about pain without gain? Everywhere you go in America, you hear tales of corporate revival. What is harder to establish is whether the productivity revolution that businessmen assume they are presiding over is for real.

The official statistics are mildly discouraging. They show that, if you lump manufacturing and services together, productivity has grown on average by 1.2% since 1987. That is somewhat faster than the average during the previous decade. And since 1991, productivity has increased by about 2% a year, which is more than twice the 1978-87 average. The trouble is that part of the recent acceleration is due to the usual rebound that occurs at this point in a business cycle, and so is not conclusive evidence of a revival in the underlying trend. There is, as Robert Rubin, the treasury