2012年阅读及英美文学、语言学基础

机密 启用前和使用过程中厦门大学2012年招收攻读硕士学位研究生入 学 考 试 试 题科目代码：814科目名称：阅读及英美文学、语言学基础招生专业：英语语言文学、外国语言学及应用语言 考生须知：答题必须使用黑（蓝）色墨水（圆珠）笔；不得直接在试卷（试题纸）或草稿纸上作答；凡未按上述规定作答均不予评阅、判分，后果考生自负。Part One Reading Comprehension 70 pointsPassage 1Species interdependence in nature confers many benefits on the species involved, but it can also become a point of weakness when one species involved in the relationship is affected by a catastrophe. Thus, flowering plant species dependent on insect pollination, as opposed to self-pollination or wind pollination, could be endangered when the population of insect-pollinators is depleted by the use of pesticides.In the forests of New Brunswick, for example, various pesticides have been sprayed in the past 25 years in efforts to control the spruce budworm, an economically significant pest. Scientists have now investigated the effects of the spraying of Matacil, one of the anti-budworm agents that is least toxic to insect-pollinators. They studied Matacils effects on insect mortality in a wide variety of wild insect species and on plant fecundity, expressed as the percentage of the total flowers on an individual plant that actually developed fruit and bore seeds. They found that the most pronounced mortality after the spraying of Matacil occurred among the smaller bees and one family of flies, insects that were all important pollinators of numerous species of plants growing beneath the tree canopy of forests. The fecundity of plants in one common indigenous species, the red-osier dogwood, was significantly reduced in the sprayed areas as compared to that of plants in control plots where Matacil was not sprayed. This species is highly dependent on the insect-pollinators most vulnerable to Matacil. The creeping dogwood, a species similar to the red-osier dogwood, but which is pollinated by large bees, such as bumblebees, showed no significant decline in fecundity. Since large bees are not affected by the spraying of Matacil, these results add weight to the argument that spraying where the pollinators are sensitive to the pesticide used decreases plant fecundity.The question of whether the decrease in plant fecundity caused by the spraying of pesticides actually causes a decline in the overall population of flowering plant species still remains unanswered. Plant species dependent solely on seeds for survival or dispersal are obviously more vulnerable to any decrease in plant fecundity that occurs, whatever its cause. If, on the other hand, vegetative growth and dispersal (by means of shoots or runners) are available as alternative reproductive strategies for a species, then decreases in plant fecundity may be of little consequence. The fecundity effects described here are likely to have the most profound impact on plant species with all four of the following characteristics: a short life span, a narrow geographic range, an incapacity for vegetative propagation, and a dependence on a small number of insect-pollinator species. Perhaps we should give special attention to the conservation of such plant species since they lack key factors in their defenses against the environmental disruption caused by pesticide use.1. Which of the following best summarizes the main point of the passage? A) Species interdependence is a point of weakness for some plants, but is generally beneficial to insects involved in pollination. B) Efforts to control the spruce budworm have had deleterious effects on the red-osier dogwood. C) The use of pesticides may be endangering certain plant species dependent on insects for pollination. D) The spraying of pesticides can reduce the fecundity of a plant species, but probably does not affect its overall population stability.2. According to the author, a flowering plant species whose fecundity has declined due to pesticide spraying may not experience an overall population decline if the plant species can do which of the following? A) Reproduce itself by means of shoots and runners. B) Survive to the end of the growing season. C) Survive in harsh climates. D) Respond to the fecundity decline by producing more flowers.3. The passage suggests that the lack of an observed decline in the fecundity of the creeping dogwood strengthens the researchers conclusions regarding pesticide use because the A) creeping dogwood is a species that does not resemble other forest plants B) creeping dogwood is a species pollinated by a broader range of insect species than are most dogwood species C) creeping dogwood grows primarily in regions that were not sprayed with pesticide, and so served as a control for the experiment D) creeping dogwood is similar to the red-osier dogwood, but its insect pollinators are known to be insensitive to the pesticide used in the study4. It can be inferred that which of the following is true of plant fecundity as it is defined in the passage? A) A plants fecundity decreases as the percentage of unpollinated flowers on the plant increases. B) A plants fecundity decreases as the number of flowers produced by the plant decreases. C) A plants fecundity increases as the number of flowers produced by the plant increases. D) A plants fecundity is usually low if the plant relies on a small number of insect species for pollination.5. Which of the following assumptions most probably underlies the authors tentative recommendation in lines 51-54? A) Human activities that result in environmental disruption should be abandoned. B) The use of pesticides is likely to continue into the future. C) It is economically beneficial to preserve endangered plant species. D) Preventing the endangerment of a species is less costly than trying to save an already endangered one.Passage 2Of all the changes that have taken place in English-language newspapers during the past quarter-century, perhaps the most far-reaching has been the inexorable decline in the scope and seriousness of their arts coverage.It is difficult to the point of impossibility for the average reader under the age of forty to imagine a time when high-quality arts criticism could be found in most big-city newspapers. Yet a considerable number of the most significant collections of criticism published in the 20th century consisted in large part of newspaper reviews. To read such books today is to marvel at the fact that their learned contents were once deemed suitable for publication in general-circulation dailies.We are even farther removed from the unfocused newspaper reviews published in England between the turn of the 20th century and the eve of World War II, at a time when newsprint was dirt-cheap and stylish arts criticism was considered an ornament to the publications in which it appeared. In those far-off days, it was taken for granted that the critics of major papers would write in detail and at length about the events they covered. Theirs was a serious business, and even those reviewers who wore their learning lightly, like George Bernard Shaw and Ernest Newman, could be trusted to know what they were about. These men believed in journalism as a calling, and were proud to be published in the daily press. “So few authors have brains enough or literary gift enough to keep their own end up in journalism,” Newman wrote, “that I am tempted to define journalism as a team of contempt applied by writers who are not read to writers who are.”Unfortunately, these critics are virtually forgotten. Neville Cardus, who wrote for the Manchester Guardian from 1917 until shortly before his death in 1975, is now known solely as a writer of essays on the game of cricket. During his lifetime, though, he was also one of Englands foremost classical-music critics, a stylist so widely admired that his Autobiography (1947) became a best-seller. He was knighted in 1967, the first music critic to be so honoured. Yet only one of his books is now in print, and his vast body of writings on music is unknown save to specialists.Is there any chance that Carduss criticism will enjoy a revival? The prospect seems remote. Journalistic tastes had changed long before his death, and postmodern readers have little use for the richly upholstered Vicwardian prose in which he specialized. Moreover, the amateur tradition in music criticism has been in headlong retreat.6. It is indicated in Paragraphs 1 and 2 thatA) arts criticism has disappeared from big-city newspapers.B) English-language newspapers used to carry more arts reviews.C) high-quality newspapers retain a large body of readers.D) young readers doubt the suitability of criticism on dailies.7. Newspaper reviews in England before World War II were characterized byA) free themes.B) casual style.C) elaborate layout.D) radical viewpoints.8. Which of the following would Shaw and Newman most probably agree on?A) It is writers duty to fulfil journalistic goals.B) It is contemptible for writers to be journalists.C) Writers are likely to be tempted into journalism.D) Not all writers are capable of journalistic writing.9. What can be learned about Cardus according to the last two paragraphs?A) His music criticism may not appeal to readers today.B) His reputation as a music critic has long been in dispute.C) His style caters largely to modern specialists.D) His writings fail to follow the amateur tradition.10. What could be the best title for the text?A) Newspapers of the Good Old DaysB) The Most Horizon in NewspapersC) Mournful Decline of JournalismD) Prominent Critics in MemoryPassage 3 Bankers have been blaming themselves for their troubles in public. Behind the scenes, they have been taking aim at someone else: the accounting standard-setters. Their rules, moan the banks, have forced them to report enormous losses, and its just not fair. These rules say they must value some assets at the price a third party would pay, not the price managers and regulators would like them to fetch.Unfortunately, banks lobbying now seems to be working. The details may be unknowable, but the independence of standard-setters, essential to the proper functioning of capital markets, is being compromised. And, unless banks carry toxic assets at prices that attract buyers, reviving the banking system will be difficult.After a bruising encounter with Congress, Americas Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) rushed through rule changes. These gave banks more freedom to use models to value illiquid assets and more flexibility in recognizing losses on long-term assets in their income statement. Bob Herz, the FASBs chairman, cried out against those who “question our motives.” Yet bank shares rose and the changes enhance what one lobby group politely calls “the use of judgement by management.”European ministers instantly demanded that the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) do likewise. The IASB says it does not want to act without overall planning, but the pressure to fold when it completes it reconstruction of rules later this year is strong. Charlie McCreevy, a European commissioner, warned the IASB that it did “not live in a political vacuum” but “in the real world” and that Europe could yet develop different rules.It was banks that were on the wrong planet, with accounts that vastly overvalued assets. Today they argue that market prices overstate losses, because they largely reflect the temporary illiquidity of markets, not the likely extent of bad debts. The truth will not be known for years. But banks shares trade below their book value, suggesting that investors are skeptical. And dead markets partly reflect the paralysis of banks which will not sell assets for fear of booking losses, yet are reluctant to buy all those supposed bargains.To get the system working again, losses must be recognized and dealt with. Americas new plan to buy up toxic assets will not work unless banks mark assets to levels which buyers find attractive. Successful markets require independent and even combative standard-setters. The FASB and IASB have been exactly that, cleaning up rules on stock options and pensions, for example, against hostility from special interests. But by giving in to critics now they are inviting pressure to make more concessions.11. Bankers complained that they were forced to A) follow unfavourable assets evaluation rulesB) collect payments from third partiesC) cooperate with the price managers.D) reevaluate some of their assets.12. According to the author, the rule changes of the FASB may result in A) the diminishing role of managementB) the revival of the banking systemC) the banks long-term asset lossesD) the weakening of its independence13. According to Paragraph 4, McCreevy objects to the IASBs attempt to A) keep away from political influences.B) evade the pressure from their peers.C) act on their own in rule-setting.D) take gradual measures in reform14. The author thinks the banks were “on the wrong planet” in that theyA) misinterpreted market price indicatorsB) exaggerated the real value of their assetsC) neglected the likely existence of bad debtsD) denied booking losses in their sale of assets15. The authors attitude towards standard-setters is one ofA) satisfaction.B) scepticism.C) objectivenessD) sympathyPassage 4It was once assumed that all living things could be divided into two fundamental and exhaustive categories. Multicellular plants and animals, as well as many unicellular organisms, are eukaryotictheir large, complex cells have a well-formed nucleus and many organelles. On the other hand, the true bacteria are prokaryotic cell, which are simple and lack a nucleus. The distinction between eukaryotes and bacteria, initially defined in terms of subcellular structures visible with a microscope, was ultimately carried to the molecular level. Here prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells have many features in common. For instance, they translate genetic information into proteins according to the same type of genetic coding. But even where the molecular processes are the same, the details in the two forms are different and characteristic of the respective forms. For example, the amino acid sequences of various enzymes tend to be typically prokaryotic or eukaryotic. The differences between the groups and the similarities within each group made it seem certain to most biologists that the tree of life had only two stems. Moreover, arguments pointing out the extent of both structural and functional differences between eukaryotes and true bacteria convinced many biologists that the precursors of the eukaryotes must have diverged from the common ancestor before the bacteria arose.Although much of this picture has been sustained by more recent research, it seems fundamentally wrong in one respect. Among the bacteria, there are organisms that are significantly different both from the cells of eukaryotes and from the true bacteria, and it now appears that there are three stems in the tree of life. New techniques for determining the molecular sequence of the RNA of organisms have produced evolutionary information about the degree to which organisms are related, the time since they diverged from a common ancestor, and the reconstruction of ancestral versions of genes. These techniques have strongly suggested that although the true bacteria indeed form a large coherent group, certain other bacteria, the archaebacteria, which are also prokaryotes and which resemble true bacteria, represent a distinct evolutionary branch that far antedates the common ancestor of all true bacteria.16. The passage is primarily concerned withA) detailing the evidence that has led most biologists to replace the trichotomous picture of living organisms with a dichotomous oneB) outlining the factors that have contributed to the current hypothesis concerning the number of basic categories of living organismsC) evaluating experiments that have resulted in proof that the prokaryotes are more ancient than had been expectedD) summarizing the differences in structure and function found among true bacteria, archaebacteria, and eukaryotes17. According to the passage, investigations of eukaryotic and prokaryotic cells at the molecular level supported the conclusion thatA) most eukaryotic organisms are unicellularB) complex cells have well-formed nucleiC) prokaryotes and eukaryotes form two fundamental categoriesD) subcellular structures are visible with a microscope18. It can be inferred from the passage that which of the following have recently been compared in order to clarify the fundamental classifications of living things?A) The genetic coding in true bacteria and that in other prokaryotesB) The organelle structures of archaebacteria, true bacteria, and eukaryotesC) The cellular structures of multicellular organisms and unicellular organismsD) The molecular sequences in eukaryotic RNA, true bacterial RNA, and archaebacterial RNA19. If the “new techniques” mentioned in line 31 were applied in studies of biological classifications other than bacteria, which of the following is most likely?A) Some of those classifications will have to be reevaluated.B) Many species of bacteria will be reclassified.C) It will be determined that there are four main categories of living things rather than three.D) It will be found that true bacteria are much older than eukaryotes.20. According to the passage, researchers working under the two-category hypothesis were correct in thinking thatA) prokaryotes form a coherent groupB) the common ancestor of all living things had complex propertiesC) eukaryotes are fundamentally different from true bacteriaD) true bacteria are just as complex as eukaryotesPassage 5Extraordinary creative activity has been characterized as revolutionary, flying in the face of what is established and producing not what is acceptable but what will become accepted. According to this formulation, highly creative activity transcends the limits of an existing form and establishes a new principle of organization. However, the idea that extraordinary creativity transcends established limits is misleading when it is applied to the arts, even though it may be valid for the sciences. Differences between highly creative art and highly creative science arise in part from a difference in their goals. For the sciences, a new theory is the goal and end result of the creative act. Innovative science produces new propositions in terms of which diverse phenomena can be related to one another in more coherent ways. Such phenomena as a brilliant diamond or a nesting bird are relegated to the role of data, serving as the means for formulating or testing a new theory. The goal of highly creative art is very different: the phenomenon itself becomes the direct product of the creative act. Shakespeares Hamlet is not a tract about the behavior of indecisive princes or the uses of political power; nor is Picassos painting Guernica primarily a propositional statement about the Spanish Civil War or the evils of fascism. What highly creative artistic activity produces is not a new generalization that transcends established limits, but rather an aesthetic particular. Aesthetic particulars produced by the highly creative artist extend or exploit, in an innovative way, the limits of an existing form, rather than transcend that form.This is not to deny that a highly creative artist sometimes establishes a new principle of organization in the history of an artistic field; the composer Monteverdi, who created music of the highest aesthetic value, comes to mind. More generally, however, whether or not a composition establishes a new principle in the history of music has little bearing o