公共英语二级阅读题及答案(2)
In Africa, people learned to send messages by beating on a series of large drums(鼓). Each drum was kept within hearing distance of the next one. The drum beats were sent out in a special way that all the drummers understood. Though the messages were simple, they could be sent at great speed for hundreds of miles.
In the eighteenth century, a French engineer found a new way to send short messages. In this way, a person held a flag in each hand and the arms were moved to various positions representing different letters of the alphabet. It was like spelling out words with flags and arms.
Over a long period of time, people sent messages by all these different ways. However, not until the telephone was invented in America in the nineteenth century could people send speech sounds over a great distance in just a few seconds.
65. According to this passage, the Roman way of communication depended very much upon .
[A] fine weather [B] high tower
[C] the spelling system [D] arm movements
66. Which of the following statements is true?
[A] Neither the Greek soldiers nor their enemy could understand the message.
[B] African soldiers shouted from tower to tower to pass message.
[C] Telephone was invented by a French engineer.
[D] Only by using telephone could people send speech sounds quickly.
67. The African way of communication sent messages.
[A] in a special way [B] over a very short distance
[C] by a musical instrument [D] at a rather slow speed
68. The way of communication made use of visible signs.
[A] French [B] Roman [C] African [D] American
D
Because we can feel that things are heavy, we think of weight as being a fixed quality in an object, but it is not really fixed at all. If you could take a one pound packet of butter 4, 000? miles out from the earth, it would weigh only a quarter of a pound. Why would things weigh only a quarter as much as they do at the surface of the earth if we took them 4 000 miles out into space? The reason is this: All objects have a natural attraction for all other objects; this is called gravitational attraction, but this power of attraction between two objects gets weaker as they get farther apart. When the butter was at the surface of the earth, it was 4 000 miles from the centre (in other words the radius(半径)of the earth is 4 000 miles). When we took the butter 4 000 miles out, it was 8 000 miles from the centre, which is twice the distance.
If you double the distance between two objects, their gravitational attraction decreases two times two. If you treble(翻三倍)the distance, it gets nine times weaker(three times three). If you take it four times as far away, it gets sixteen times weaker (four times four)and so on.
69. The best title for this passage is.
[A] The Earth Weight [B] Weight in Space
[C] Changing Weight on the Earth [D] Weight on and off the Earth
70. We can feel things are heavy because.
[A] weight is a fixed quality in an object
[B] they are far away from the centre of the earth
[C] of the earth's strong attraction for them
[D] they are not taken away from the surface of the earth
71. If the distance between two objects is shortened by half, their gravitational attraction will.
[A] double [B] become four times stronger
[C] be the same [D] get four times weaker
72. If an object weighed one pound 8 000 miles above the earth, it would weigh on the surface of the earth.
[A] 6 pounds [B] 4 pounds [C] 9 pounds [D] 1/9 pound
E
As more women in the United States move up the professional ladder, more are finding it necessary to make business trips alone. Since this is new for many, some trips are certainly in order. If you are married, it is a good idea to encourage your husband and children to learn to cook a few simple meals while you are away. They will be much happier and probably enjoy the experience. If you will be eating a good meal alone, choose good restaurants. In the end, they will be much better for your digestion(消化). You may also find it useful to call the restaurant in advance and state that you will be eating alone. You will probably get better service and almost certainly a better table. Finally, and most importantly, anticipate(提前做准备)your travel needs as a businesswoman; this starts with lightweight luggage which you can easily manage even when fully packed. Take a folding(折叠)case inside your suitcase; it will come in extremely handy(极其方便)for dirty clothes, as well as for business documents and papers you no longer need on the trip. And make sure you have a briefcase so that you can keep currently required papers separate. Obviously, experience helps, but you can make things easier on yourself from the first by careful planning, so that right from the start you really can have a good trip!
