全国2005年1月高等教育自学考试英语阅读（二）试题

Ⅰ.Match the words from Column A with the definitions from Column B.(15%)
    A.      B.
1.fasten     A. eat very quickly
2.vaguely     B. not clearly felt
3.utterly     C. fix firmly
4.gobble     D. dark with clouds
5.strengthen    E. completely
6.probe     F. animal living by killing and eating other animals
7.predator               G. an apparatus sent into the sky to examine the conditions in outer space
8.overcast    H. make sth. strong or stronger
9.figure     I. fixed regular pay
10.approximately   J. moreover or in addition
11.famine     K. change one’s place of living
12.assemble    L. fit or put together
13.migrate    M. serious lack of food
14.furthermore   N. nearly, almost
15.salary     O. symbol for a number
Ⅱ. All the following sentences are taken from the textbook. Study each sentence carefully and choose A,B,C or D that has the closest meaning to the underlined word or phrase.(15%)
1.What breathtaking impertinence to advertise 1p OFF your soap or washing powder or dog food or whatever.
A. very disgusting     B. frightening
C. excited      D. very unusual and astonishing
2.The person thanked me and put me completely at ease.
A. brought...trouble     B. freed...from pain
C. made...nervous     D. made...comfortable
3.Not only will these questions help you understand a person’s needs, you  also strengthen rapport by showing concern and listening.
A. peaceful atmosphere    B. friendly relationship
C. recognition      D. mutual understanding
4.Concentrated eye contact helps you listen more effectively, and customers intuitively respect people who look them in the eyes.
A. consciously     B. directly
C. weakly     D. gradually
5.So exploration of the solar system is more or less underway.
A. in progress     B. in preparation
C. moving away    D. in the way
6....my wife had slipped me the housekeeping before going on holiday...
A. escaped from    B. got free from
C. left      D. given secretly
7.Errors occur because men grow tired and can be distracted.
A. be cheated
B. get confused
C. have their attention drawn away from what they are doing
D. become anxious and restless
8.Regardless of their direction or form, computer developments and uses of the future will depend on the cleverness and skill of men.
A. without respect for    B. without what happens to
C. without worrying about   D. without being troubled by
9.Harry Paulinanas,23,also from Sydney, said he was still stunned hours after the attack.
A. surprised    B. shocked
C. worried    D. unconscious
10.The windscreen and five of its windows had been shattered by the gunfire.
A. broken     B. scattered
C. shot     D. blown away
11.Inside,scores of Egyptian officials shouted orders and questions as they herded a crowd of frightened tourists into the restaurant.
A. looked after    B. fed
C. drove      D. took
12.As they filed by, they passed a bottle of water still intact that lay in a pool of blood.
A. untouched     B. complete
C. broken      D. undamaged
13.Her frail legs were covered with shrapnel and glass wounds.
A. injured     B. front
C. broken      D. weak

14.Radical groups have in the past targeted foreign tourists in an effort to cripple the country’s tourist industry.
A. aimed at     B. directed towards
C. shot at      D. made a goal of
15.The spate of shootings had appeared to be easing recently.
A. relaxing     B. weakening
C. feeling at home    D. becoming less tight
Ⅲ.Reading Comprehension(40%)
Reading Passage 1
The range in frequencies of musical sounds is approximately 20－20,000 cycles per second(Hz).Some people can hear higher frequencies than others. Longitudinal(纵向的) waves whose frequencies are higher than those within the audible range are called ultrasonic frequencies. Ultrasonic frequencies are used in sonar for such purposes as submarine detection and depth finding. Ultrasonic frequencies are also being tried for sterilizing food since these frequencies kill some bacteria. Sound waves of all frequencies in the audible range travel at the same speed in the same medium. In the audible range, the higher the frequency of the sound the higher is the pitch. The term supersonic refers to speed greater than sound. An airplane traveling at supersonic speed is moving at a speed of sound in air at that temperature. Mach 1 means a speed equal to that of sound; Mach 2 means a speed equal to twice that of sound, etc.
Musical sounds have three basic characteristics: pitch, loudness, and quality or timbre. As was indicated above, pitch is determined largely by the frequency of the wave reaching the ear. The higher the frequency the higher is the pitch. Loudness depends on the amplitude of the wave reaching the ear. For a given frequency, the greater the amplitude of the wave the louder the sound. To discuss quality of sound we need to clarify the concept of overtones. Sounds are produced by vibrating objects; if these objects are given a gentle push, they usually vibrate at one definite frequency producing a pure tone. This is the way a tuning fork is usually used. When objects vibrate freely after a force is momentarily applied, they are said to produce their natural frequency. Some objects, like strings and air columns, can vibrate naturally at more than one frequency at a time. The lowest frequency which an object can produce when vibrating freely is known as the object’s fundamental frequency; other frequencies that the object can produce are known as its overtones. The quality of a sound depends on the number and relative amplitude of the overtones present in the wave reaching the ear.
1.The primary purpose of the passage is to ______.
A. define the nature and quality of musical sounds
B. analyze what gives a work of art its musical quality
C. explain the applications of ultrasonic frequencies
D. explore the influence of wave length on musical appreciation
2.The style and content of this passage indicate that it is most likely an excerpt from ______.
A. an informal article written for a popular magazine
B. a scholarly monograph on aesthetics
C. a college textbook on music theory
D. a critique of music education at school
3.According to the author, the timbre of a musical sound is dependent on ______
A. amplitude    B. frequency
C. overtones    D. speed
4.According to the passage, ultrasonic frequencies are ______.
A. inaudible       B. excessively fast
C. characterized by a great amplitude  D. death rays
5.Which of the following individuals would be most likely to use terms like Mach 5 or Mach 9¡
A. a helicopter pilot&nbs