历年考研英语真题阅读理解word打印版.docx

1、历年考研英语真题阅读理解word打印版2004 ReadingText 1Hunting for a job late last year, lawyer Gant Redmon stumbled across CareerBuilder, a job database on the Internet. He searched it with no success but was attracted by the sites “personal search agent”. Its an interactive feature that lets visitors key in job cri

2、teria such as location, title, and salary, then E-mails them when a matching position is posted in the database. Redmon chose the keywords legal, intellectual property, and Washington, D.C. Three weeks later, he got his first notification of an opening. “I struck gold, says Redmon, who E-mailed his

3、resume to the employer and won a position as in-house counsel for a company. With thousands of career-related sites on the Internet, finding promising openings can be time-consuming and inefficient. Search agents reduce the need for repeated visits to the databases. But although a search agent worke

4、d for Redmon, career experts see drawbacks. Narrowing your criteria, for example, may work against you: “Every time you answer a question you eliminate a possibility.” says one expert.For any job search, you should start with a narrow concept what you think you want to do then broaden it. “None of t

5、hese programs do that, ” says another expert. “Theres no career counseling implicit in all of this.” Instead, the best strategy is to use the agent as a kind of tip service to keep abreast of jobs in a particular database; when you get E-mail, consider it a reminder to check the database again. “I w

6、ould not rely on agents for finding everything that is added to a database that might interest me, ” says the author of a job-searching guide. Some sites design their agents to tempt job hunters to return. When CareerSites agent sends out messages to those who have signed up for its service, for exa

7、mple, it includes only three potential jobs those it considers the best matches. There may be more matches in the database; job hunters will have to visit the site again to find them and they do. “On the day after we send our messages, we see a sharp increase in our traffic, ” says Seth Peets, vice

8、president of marketing for CareerSite. Even those who arent hunting for jobs may find search agents worthwhile. Some use them to keep a close watch on the demand for their line of work or gather information on compensation to arm themselves when negotiating for a raise. Although happily employed, Re

9、dmon maintains his agent at CareerBuilder. “You always keep your eyes open, ” he says. Working with a personal search agent means having another set of eyes looking out for you.41. How did Redmon find his job?A By searching openings in a job database. B By posting a matching position in a database.

10、C By using a special service of a database. D By E-mailing his resume to a database. 42. Which of the following can be a disadvantage of search agents?A Lack of counseling. B Limited number of visits. C Lower efficiency. D Fewer successful matches. 43. The expression “tip service” (Line 4, Paragraph

11、 3) most probably means _.A advisory. B compensation. C interaction. D reminder. 44. Why does CareerSites agent offer each job hunter only three job options?A To focus on better job matches. B To attract more returning visits. C To reserve space for more messages. D To increase the rate of success.

12、45. Which of the following is true according to the text?A Personal search agents are indispensable to job-hunters. B Some sites keep E-mailing job seekers to trace their demands. C Personal search agents are also helpful to those already employed. D Some agents stop sending information to people on

13、ce they are employed. Text 2Over the past century, all kinds of unfairness and discrimination have been condemned or made illegal. But one insidious form continues to thrive: alphabetism. This, for those as yet unaware of such a disadvantage, refers to discrimination against those whose surnames beg

14、in with a letter in the lower half of the alphabet. It has long been known that a taxi firm called AAAA cars has a big advantage over Zodiac cars when customers thumb through their phone directories. Less well known is the advantage that Adam Abbott has in life over Zoe Zysman. English names are fai

15、rly evenly spread between the halves of the alphabet. Yet a suspiciously large number of top people have surnames beginning with letters between A and K. Thus the American president and vice-president have surnames starting with B and C respectively; and 26 of George Bushs predecessors (including hi

16、s father) had surnames in the first half of the alphabet against just 16 in the second half. Even more striking, six of the seven heads of government of the G7 rich countries are alphabetically advantaged (Berlusconi, Blair, Bush, Chirac, Chrtien and Koizumi). The worlds three top central bankers (G

17、reenspan, Duisenberg and Hayami) are all close to the top of the alphabet, even if one of them really uses Japanese characters. As are the worlds five richest men (Gates, Buffett, Allen, Ellison and Albrecht). Can this merely be coincidence? One theory, dreamt up in all the spare time enjoyed by the

18、 alphabetically disadvantaged, is that the rot sets in early. At the start of the first year in infant school, teachers seat pupils alphabetically from the front, to make it easier to remember their names. So short-sighted Zysman junior gets stuck in the back row, and is rarely asked the improving q

19、uestions posed by those insensitive teachers. At the time the alphabetically disadvantaged may think they have had a lucky escape. Yet the result may be worse qualifications, because they get less individual attention, as well as less confidence in speaking publicly.The humiliation continues. At uni

20、versity graduation ceremonies, the ABCs proudly get their awards first; by the time they reach the Zysmans most people are literally having a ZZZ. Shortlists for job interviews, election ballot papers, lists of conference speakers and attendees: all tend to be drawn up alphabetically, and their reci

21、pients lose interest as they plough through them. 46. What does the author intend to illustrate with AAA A cars and Zodiac cars?A A kind of overlooked inequality. B A type of conspicuous bias. C A type of personal prejudice. D A kind of brand discrimination. 47. What can we infer from the first thre

22、e paragraphs?A In both East and West, names are essential to success. B The alphabet is to blame for the failure of Zo? Zysman. C Customers often pay a lot of attention to companies names. D Some form of discrimination is too subtle to recognize. 48. The 4th paragraph suggests that _.A questions are

23、 often put to the more intelligent students. B alphabetically disadvantaged students often escape form class. C teachers should pay attention to all of their students. D students should be seated according to their eyesight. 49. What does the author mean by “most people are literally having a ZZZ” (

24、Lines 2-3, Paragraph 5)?A They are getting impatient. B They are noisily dozing off. C They are feeling humiliated. D They are busy with word puzzles.50. Which of the following is true according to the text?A People with surnames beginning with N to Z are often ill-treated. B VIPs in the Western wor

25、ld gain a great deal from alphabetism. C The campaign to eliminate alphabetism still has a long way to go. D Putting things alphabetically may lead to unintentional bias. Text 3When it comes to the slowing economy, Ellen Spero isnt biting her nails just yet. But the 47-year-old manicurist isnt cutti

26、ng, filling or polishing as many nails as shed like to, either. Most of her clients spend $12 to $50 weekly, but last month two longtime customers suddenly stopped showing up. Spero blames the softening economy. “Im a good economic indicator, ” she says. “I provide a service that people can do witho

27、ut when theyre concerned about saving some dollars.” So Spero is downscaling, shopping at middle-brow Dillards department store near her suburban Cleveland home, instead of Neiman Marcus. “I dont know if other clients are going to abandon me, too” she says.Even before Alan Greenspans admission that

28、Americas red-hot economy is cooling, lots of working folks had already seen signs of the slowdown themselves. From car dealerships to Gap outlets, sales have been lagging for months as shoppers temper their spending. For retailers, who last year took in 24 percent of their revenue between Thanksgivi

29、ng and Christmas, the cautious approach is coming at a crucial time. Already, experts say, holiday sales are off 7 percent from last years pace. But dont sound any alarms just yet. Consumers seem only concerned, not panicked, and many say they remain optimistic about the economys long-term prospects

30、, even as they do some modest belt-tightening.Consumers say theyre not in despair because, despite the dreadful headlines, their own fortunes still feel pretty good. Home prices are holding steady in most regions. In Manhattan, “theres a new gold rush happening in the $4 million to $10 million range

31、, predominantly fed by Wall Street bonuses, ” says broker Barbara Corcoran. In San Francisco, prices are still rising even as frenzied overbidding quiets. “Instead of 20 to 30 offers, now maybe you only get two or three, ” says John Deadly, a Bay Area real-estate broker. And most folks still feel pr

32、etty comfortable about their ability to find and keep a job.Many folks see silver linings to this slowdown. Potential home buyers would cheer for lower interest rates. Employers wouldnt mind a little fewer bubbles in the job market. Many consumers seem to have been influenced by stock-market swings, which investors now view as a necessary ingredient to a sustained boom. Diners might see an upside, too. Getting a table at Manhattans hot new Alai