中山大学研究生英语期末考试题2(2)

The most glaring inequality is that between managers and the rest. For most managers, work is an opportunity and a challenge. Their jobs engage their interest and allow them to develop their abilities. They are constantly learning; they are able to exercise responsibility; they have a considerable degree of control over their own and others 3

working lives. Most important of all, they have opportunity to initiate. By contrast, for most manual workers, and for a growing number of white-collar workers, work is a boring, dull, even painful experience. They spend all their working lives in conditions which would be regarded as intolerable --- for themselves --- by those who take the decisions which let such conditions continue. The majority have little control over their work; it provides them with no opportunity for personal development. Often production is so designed that workers are simply part of the technology. In offices, many jobs are so routine that workers justifiably feel themselves to be mere cogs in the bureaucratic machine. As a direct consequence of their work experience, many workers feel alienated from their work and their firm, whether it is in public or in private ownership.

11 In the writer s opinion, people judge others by_________.

A. the type of work they do

B. the place where they work

C. the time they spend at work

D. the amount of money they earn

12 According to the writer, in the future, work will ________.

A. matter less than it does now

B. be as important as it is now

C. be better paid than it is now

D. offer more satisfaction

13 What does the writer think is needed to solve our industrial problems?

A. A reduction in the number of strikes

B. Equality in salaries

C. A more equal distribution of responsibility

D. An improvement in moral standards

14 What advantages does the writer say managers have over other workers?

A. They cannot lose their jobs.

B. They get time off to attend courses.

C. They can work at whatever interests them.

D. They can make their own decisions.

15 Working conditions generally remain bad because _______________.

A. the workers are quite satisfied with them

B. no one can decide what to do about them

C. managers see no need to change them

D. office workers want to protect their positions

Passage 4

Coincident with concerns about the accelerating loss of species and habitats has been a growing appreciation of the importance of biological diversity, the number of species in a particular ecosystem, to the health of the Earth and human being. Much has been written about the diversity of terrestrial organisms, particularly the exceptionally rich life associated with tropical rain-forest habitats. Relatively little has been said, however, about diversity of life in the sea even though coral reef systems are comparable to rain forests in 4

terms of richness of life.

An alien exploring Earth would probably give priority to the planet s dominant, most distinctive feature – ocean. Humans have a bias toward land that sometimes gets in the way of truly examining global issues. Seen from far away, it is easy to realize that landmasses occupy one-third of the Earth s surface. Given that two-thirds of the Earth s surface is water and that marine life lives at all levels of the ocean, the total three-dimensional living space of the ocean is perhaps 100 times greater than that of land and contains more than 90 percent of all life on Earth even though the ocean has fewer distinct species.

The fact that half of the known species are thought to inhabit the world s rain forests does not seem surprising, considering the huge numbers of insects that comprise the bulk of the species. One scientist found many different species of ants in just one tree from a rain forest. While every species is different from every other species, their genetic makeup constrains them to be insects and to share similar characteristics with 750,000 species of insects. If basic, broad categories such as phyla and classes are given more emphasis than differentiating between species, then the greatest diversity of life is unquestionably the sea. Nearly every major type of plant and animal has some representation there.

To appreciate fully the diversity and abundance of life in the sea, it helps to think small. Every spoonful of ocean water contains life on the order of 100 to 100,000 bacterial cells plus assorted microscopic plants and animals, including larvas of organisms ranging from sponges and corals to starfish and clams and much more.

16 What is the main point of the passage?

A. Humans are destroying thousands of species.

B. There are thousands of insect species.

C. The sea is even richer in life than the rain forests.

D. Coral reefs are similar to rain forests.

17 Why does the author compare rain forests and coral reefs (Paragraph 1)?

A. They are approximately the same size.

B. They share many similar species.

C. Most of their inhabitants require water.

D. Both have many different forms of life.

18 The passage suggests that most rain forest species are ________________.

A. insects

B. bacteria

C. mammals

D. birds

19 The author argues that there is more diversity of life in the sea than in the rain forests because ____________.

A. more phyla and classes of life are represented in the sea

B. there are too many insects to make meaningful distinctions

C. many insect species are too small to divide into categories

D. marine life-forms reproduce at a faster rate

20 Which of the following conclusions is supported by the passage?

5

A.

B.

C.

D. Ocean life is highly adaptive. More attention needs to be paid to preserv …… 此处隐藏：5726字，全部文档内容请下载后查看。喜欢就下载吧 ……