Part II Reading Comprehension (35 minutes)

Directions: There are 4 passages in this part. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A)，B)，C), and D). You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet with a single line through the centre.

Passage One
Questions 21 to 25 are based on the following passage.

Time was—and not so many years ago, either—when the average citizen took a pretty dim view of banks and Banking. That this was so, it should be said, was to no small extent the fault of banks and bankers themselves. Banks used to be—and a few still are—forbidding structures. Behind the little barred windows were, more often than not, elderly gentlemen whose expression of friendliness reflected the size of the customer’s account, and nothing less than a few hundred thousand in the bank could have inspired the suggestion of a smile.

And yet the average bank for many year was, to the average citizen, a fearful, if necessary, instrument for dealing with business—usually big business. But somewhere in the past quarter century, banks Began to grow human, even pleasant, and started to attract the little man. It is possible that this movement began in medium-sized towns, or in small towns where people know each other by their first names, and spread to big towns. At any rate, the results have been remarkable.

The movement to “humanize” hanks, of course, received a big push during the war, when more and more women were employed to do work previously performed by men. Also more and more “little” people found themselves in need of personal loans, as taxes became heavier and as the practice of installment (分期付款) buying broke down the previously long—held concept that there was something almost morally wrong about being in debt. All sorts of people began to discover that the intelligent use of credit (信贷) could be extremely helpful.

21. The author believes that the unfriendly atmosphere in banks many years ago was chiefly due to ________.
A) the outer appearance of bank buildings
B) unfriendliness of customers toward banks
C) economic pressure of the time
D) the attitude of hankers（D）

22. The banks of many years ago showed interest only in ________.
A) regular visitors
B) rich customers
C) friendly businessmen
D) elderly gentlemen（B）

23. When did banks begin to grow human?
A) Sometime before the war.
B) A few years ago.
C) During the war.
D) In the last century.（A）

24. What helped to push the “humanization” of banks?
A) More and more “little” people became customers of banks.
B) The elderly gentlemen in banks were replaced by women.
C) More banks were set up in small and medium-sized towns.
D) The size of the customer’s account was greatly increased.（B）

25. Average People seldom borrowed money from bank in the bank because ________.
A) the bank buildings looked forbidding
B) they were comparatively rich before the war
C) they thought it was not proper to be in debt
D) they rarely spent more than they could earn（C）

Passage Two
Questions 26 to 30 are based on the following passage.

Last summer, Transportation Secretary Elizabeth Dole announced a new rule: Unless states representing two-thirds of the country’s population pass compulsory (强制性的) seat-belt-use laws by April 1989, all new vehicles will have to be fitted with air bags or automatic seat belts.

The rule wouldn’t have been necessary but for one simple fact. Even though seat belts could prevent nearly half of the deaths in fatal car accidents, 85 percent of the population simply won’t wear them.

Why not? Behavioral engineers have found that there are all sorts of reasons—usually unstated. These are some of the most popular. It’s safer to be thrown from a car man trapped. According to E. Scott Geller, that’s a faulty argument. “In fact”, he says, “being thrown from a car is twenty-five times more dangerous than being trapped”.
It won’t happen to me; I’m a good driver. But what about the other person who may be a terrible driver? The data show that the average incidence (发生率) for all accidents in one per driver every 10 years.

My car will end up underwater or on fire, and I won’t be able to get out. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), only 0.5 percent of all injury-producing accidents occur under these conditions. “If you’re wearing a belt, you’ve got a better chance of being conscious and not having your legs broken—distinct advantages in getting out of a dangerous situation”.

I’m only going a few blocks. Yet 80 percent of accidents happen at speeds or less that 25 miles per hour, 75 percent happen within 25 miles of home.

26. Before 1989, in the United States ________.
A) the use of seat belts was not compulsory for the majority of the population
B) a new law requiring the use of seat belts had just been passed
C) people had to choose between the use of seat belts or the use of air bags
D) almost fifty percent of the people involved in car accidents were saved by seat Belts（A）

27. The word “trapped” (Para. 3, Line 3) means to be ________.
A) held up in a traffic jam
B) confined in the car
C) caught in an accident
D) pulled into a car（B）

28. One of the reasons why many drivers refuse to wear seat belts is because ________.
A) they don’t think that it is comfortable to wear seat belts
B) they don’t believe that an accident involving a terrible driver is highly probable
C) they believe that no danger is involved in just driving a few blocks
D) they think that few drivers are willing to wear seat belts（C）

29. It can be inferred from the passage that ________.
A) seat belts should be replaced by air bags
B) eighty-five percent of all drivers are likely to Break traffic rules
C) all drivers, whether good or bad, are liable to have an accident at one time or another
D) wearing seat belts will get drivers out of dangerous situations（C）

30. The purpose of the writer in writing this passage is ________.
A) to urge the government to pass the law sooner
B) to tell how dangerous car-driving can be
C) to criticise those who refuse to use seat belts
D) to prove the necessity of the new rule（B）


Passage Three
Questions 31 to 35 are based on the following passage.

For well over 2000 years the world’s great religions have taught the virtues of a trusting heart. Now there is another reason to merit the wisdom of the ages: scientific evidence indicates that those with trusting hearts will live longer, healthier lives.

As a result of the work published in the 1970s by two pioneering heart specialists, Meyer Friedman and Ray H. Rosenman, nearly every American is aware that blood Type. A people are impatient, and easily moved to hostility and anger. Many have come to believe that Type As are at a much higher risk of suffering heart attack or dying of heart disease than others.

The driving force behind hostility is a cynical (愤世嫉俗) mistrust of others. If we expect others to mistreat us, we are seldom disappointed. This generates anger and leads us to respond with hostility.

The most characteristic attitude of a cynic is being suspicious of the motives of people he doesn’t know. Imagine you are waiting for an elevator and it stops two floors above for longer than usual. How inconsiderate (不替别人着想的) You think. In a few seconds, you have drawn hostile conclusions about unseen people and their motives.
Meanwhile, your cynical mistrust is leading to noticeable physical consequences. Your voice rises. The rate and depth of your breathing increases. Your heart is beating faster and harder, and the muscles of your arms and legs become tight. You feel “charged up”, ready for action.

If you frequently experience these feelings, you may be at increased risk of developing serious health problems. Anger can add to the risk of heart and other diseases.

31. According to the author, people with trusting hearts are ________.
A) usually intelligent and wise
B) usually very religious
C) less likely to get heart diseases
D) not likely to be mistreated by others（C）

32. The book by Meyer Friedman and Ray H. Rosenman most probably discusses ________.
A) friendliness and hostility
B) trust and mistrust of people
C) heart diseases and death rate
D) people’s characters and their blood types（D）

33. According to the passage, if you have a fixed idea in mind that people will mistreat you, you will always find it ________.
A) to be disappointing
B) to be pleasing
C) to be wrong
D) to be so（D）

34. A cynic, in the passage, is a person ________.
A) who is always ready to fight
B) who usually has doubts about the people around him
C) whose behaviour usually leads to serious health problems
D) whose behaviour usually seems strange to the people he knows（C）

35. The author’s intention in writing the passage is to ________.
A) advise people to be patient
B) analyze the danger of heart diseases
C) persuade people to be trustful
D) praise the wisdom of the old people（C）



Passage Four
Questions 36 to 40 are based on the following passage.

“Time is a problem for kids,” states a news report for a new Swiss watch. Children in some countries “learn time slowly” because “they don’t wear watches” and “parents don’t really know how to teach them time”. The kids grow up with this handicap and become adults—and then can’t get to work on time. Is there an answer to this problem? of course—it’s the Flik Flak, made by a famous Swiss watch company.

The Flik Flak is being marketed as something teaching watch for children aged 4 to 10. The watch itself does not teach kids how to tell time, of course it merely “captures their imagination” by presenting the “hour” hand as a beautiful red girl named Flak and the “minute” hand as a tall blue boy named Flik. Flik points to corresponding “blue“ minutes on the dial, while Flak points to red hour numbers. The characters and the colors combined with parental help, are supposed to teach young children how to tell time.

The watch comes equipped with a standard battery and a nylon band. Peter Lipkin, the United States sales manager for the Flik Flak, calls it Kidproof: if it gets dirty you can throw the whole watch in the washing machine.” The product is being sold in select department stores in Europe, Asia and the United States for a suggested price of $25. Parents who buy the watch may discover that it is one thing for kids to tell time; it’s quite another for them to be on time.

36. From the news report we know that ________.
A) parents are patient when teaching children time
B) parents have little idea of how to teach children time
C) children tend to learn time quickly
D) children enjoy wearing the Flik Flak watch（B）

37. The author doesn’t seem to believe ________.
A) children will be on time if they have learnt how to tell time
B) a Flik Flak can help parents teach their children how to tell time
C) the Flik Flak can capture children’s imagination
D) children usually have trouble telling time if they don’t wear watches（A）

38. The word “handicap” (Para. 1, Line 4) means ________.
A) displeasure
B) discouragement
C) disappointment
D) disadvantage（D）

39. Flik and Flak in the passage stand for ________.
A) a tall boy and a beautiful girl
B) the minute hand and the hour hand
C) the Swiss watch company
D) the designers of the watch（B）

40. The United States sales manager calls the new watch kidproof because ________.
A) it is designed to teach children to be on time
B) it proves to be effective in teaching children time
C) it is made so as not to be easily damaged by children
D) it is the children’s favourite watch（C）