11年成人英语三级考试阅读理解题答题技巧
一、概述
阅读理解（Part I Reading Comprehension），共15题，考试时间40分钟。
要求考生阅读三篇短文，总阅读量不超过900个词。每篇文章后有五个问题，考生应根据文章内容从每题中选出一个答案。短文选材的原则是：
1．题材广泛。包括人物传记、社会、文化、日常知识、热门话题及科普常识等。但所涉及的背景知识应能为学生所理解。
2．体裁多样。包括叙述文、说明文、议论文等。
3．文章的语言为中等难度。无法猜测而又影响理解的关键词，如超出全日制文理科教学大纲中词汇表一至三级的范围，则用汉语注明词义。
二、考核内容
三级英语考试中的阅读理解部分是对应试者阅读能力的一次综合性检测。根据《统测考试大纲》的要求，主要测试以下6大类问题：
1． 提问文章主要观点
比如会经常出现下列提问形式（选择题题干）：
（1） Which of the following is the main point of the passage?
（2） The author is primarily concerned with.
考生应当排除文中的次要观点，归纳和总结其中的主要观点或中心思想，或者基本目标。
2． 提问文中的具体论据
（1） The author mentions which of the following…?
（2） According to the author…
（3） The author provides information that would answer which of the following questions.
这类提问主要用来测试考生理解文中各个论据的能力，区别文中的主要观点的能力。考生不公应仔细阅读，还要有耐心各信心选择正确答案。
3． 提问文章的逻辑结构
（1） The author develops the passage primarily by…
（2） Which of the following best explains why the author introduces…?
或者提问作者采用何种途径说明事由，或者论证作者的论据是否充分，凡此都用来检验考生对文章的理解能力和评论能力。
4． 寻求文章的推断观点
（1） The passage implies that…
（2） It can be inferred from the passage that……
（3） Which of the following can be inferred from the passage?
它要求考生能推断话语中深层含义或弦外之音。因此考生要学会理解作者的内涵和反义，或者作者选用某一词语的比喻用法。
5． 猜测某一单词或短语的具体含义
（1） The phrase“——”in the context means…
（2） The word“——”most nearly means…
（3） Which of the following is closest to the word“…”in paragraph 2?
这要求考生具有根据构词法或上下文猜测词汇或短语的能力。
6． 作者的观点和态度
（1） The author's attitude towards…
（2） What's the author's opinion about…?
这不仅用来测试考生在其他场合下如何应用作者思想的能力，而且检验考生识别事理关系能力，文中必有充分论据支持作者的态度、观点和信仰等。
三、考试常见问题
在三级英语统一考试中，许多考生在阅读理解部分失分较多。究其因主要有以下几个方面：
1．阅读方法欠妥，速度较慢
许多考生在准备考试的过程中，把注意力集中在语法结构分析和单个词汇记忆上，从而忽视了阅读数量及阅读速度，导致在应试时慌乱，不知所云。阅读时把精力集中在每个单词的含义上，一字一字地读，造成“只见树不见森林”的结果。不会根据不同的题型采用不同的阅读方法，从而影响了阅读速度和效果。
2．对生词的恐惧心理
许多同学在阅读中一遇到生词就暗徨恐惧心理，这样就影响了正常水平的发挥。其实，在阅读测试中，考的并不是词汇，而是阅读技能，其中一个技能就是如何通过上下文线索以及构词法猜出，帮助考生理解文章大意。即使有些词猜不出其意思，也不要紧，只要不影响答题就不必去管它。
3．对句与句，段与段之间的逻辑关系不重视
许多考生对篇章句与句，段与段之间的逻辑关系及信号词不够重视，从而导致理解和答题的片面性，跟不上作者的思路，分不清文章的层次结构，抓不住段落要点，直接影响了考试成绩。
4．不熟悉试题类型及解题方法
考生对试题类型，提问方式及解题办法不熟悉是导致阅读测试失败的一个重要因素。所以，考生应该学会如何判断题的类型：是直接型试题，还是间接型试题；答题信息是牵涉整篇文章，还是只涉及文章的某一部分。
四、解题技巧及方法
（一）阅读方法
1．根据上下文，猜测词义
在做阅读题时，考生不可能知道所有词汇的意义，不可避免会遇到不认识的词汇或固定短语。只要生词不多，考生通过提高自己的猜词能力，同样可以理解一个句子、一个段落，乃至一篇文章的含义。
（1） 考生通过构词法猜测词义
1） 派生法
有些单词是由前缀或后缀加上词根构成。
如：in+correct=incorrdct
use+ful=useful
2）合成法
有些单词是由两个单词合成的。
如：green+house=greenhouse
ice+box=icebox
3）缩略法
有些单词由于所含的字母太多，在文章中出现时，通常用缩略的形式。
如：advertisement－ad.
Laboratory－lab.
4）拼缀法
有些单词是由两个单词拼缀而成的，但与合成词不同的是拼缀后的单词并不是两个单词的简单相加。
如：smoke+fog－smog（烟雾）
Chinese+English－Chinglish（中文式英文）
（2） 考生通过分析生词所在的句子、段落的上下文，运用自己所掌握的语法构词法以及对其背景的了解，可以决定许多词在特定句子、段落中的内在涵义。
运用上下文猜测词义，必须注意以下几点：
1） 利用句子中自己能理解的其他词汇用句子的基本含义来推断生词的词义。
2） 运用所掌握的英语语法和表达句子中各部分关系的标点符号来判断生词的含义。
3） 仅仅要求了解该生词的大概意义，不一定要明白该词汇的定义或同义词。
2．略读
略读（或称为跳跃式阅读）的重点在于找出一个段落的中心思想。可以运用词汇手段（如词根、前缀、后缀等）、靠上下文猜测词义等方法了解不认识的词汇或句子的含义。在此基础上，一个不容易理解的段落可以通过词汇省略的方法找出其主要的思想或观点。段落的理解在很大程度上取决于对其中句子的理解。英语中由于存在许多从句，常常使不适应英语思维的人感到困惑，产生错觉，因而难于达到对段落意义的正确理解。略读则可以帮助我们解决这个难点。
略读的方法是首先看一下标题（在标题的情况下）。接着读第一段，抓住中心思想。再浏览一下其他段落的首句和末句。最后读完结尾段，这样就达到了略读的目的。
略读要点一、将不熟悉的困难词语放弃不读，领会句子大意。
略读要点二、阅读中有时会遇到一些较长的句子，可以通过语法结构了解什么是支撑主题的细节描写句，略去细节描写的部分，直接读出其中心含义。
略读要点三、特别注意那些重要的构词和标点符号，因为它们可能会导致重要词汇意义的改变。
通常，略读适用于考查文章言主旨或大意的试题。
例：
After a hectic day of work and play, the body needs to rest. Sleep is necessary for good health. During this time, the body recovers from the activities of the previous day .The rest that you get while sleeping enables your body to prepare itself for the next day.
There are four levels of sleep, each being a little deeper than the one before. As you sleep, your muscles relax little by little. Your heart beats more slowly, and your brain slows down. After you reach the fourth level, your body shifts back and forth from one level of sleep to the other.
Although your mind slows down, from time to time you will dream, Scientists who study sleep state say that when dreaming occurs, your eyeballs begin to move more quickly （although your eyelids are closed）. This stage of sleep is called REM, which stands rapid eye movement.
If you have trouble falling asleep, some people recommend breathing very slowly and very deeply. Other people believe that drinking warm milk will help make you drowsy. There is also an old suggestion that counting sheep will put you to sleep!
Question: A good title for this passage is____.
A. sleep
B. good health
C. dreams
D. work and rest
说明：本题属于主旨型试题，答案为A项。全文共分为四段。第一段说明睡眠的重要性；第二段解释睡眠的四个阶段用睡眠中肌肉、心跳各大脑的活动；第三段指出做梦时伴有眼球活动这一现象；第四段告诉我们治疗失眠的办法。这四段一环扣一环，始终没有离开睡眠这一主题，所以A项是正确答案。回答本题时，考生无需逐句地读，只读首句或末句就行了。
3．迅读
无论是在我们平时的阅读，还是考生在考试时的阅读，常常需要了解段落的主题或文章的中心思想，还需要掌握一定的细节。这时，我们就得运用另一种阅读技巧，它就是我们这里将讲的迅读。迅读是一种比一般速度高一倍以上的阅读方法，目的是迅速从文中找到所需信息，解决问题。
迅读要领一：首先确定你需要什么事实和细节，并对其形式进行估计。
迅读要领二：在略读中由于对各段落和句子已进行过分析，已大致了解主题和细节，并进行过勾勒，这时就可以考虑确定在什么地方去找自己需要的有关细节或说明。
迅读要领三：尽快用眼睛扫过文章，找到自己需要的细节描述部分，并在有关句子下做出各种记忆符号。文章浏览完毕，再将划线部分（或做其他符号）重新详读一次，并进行适当推理。
通常，迅读法适用于事实、细节型阅读理解试题。
例：
Languages are marvelously complex and wonderfully complicated organs of culture: they embody the quickest and the most efficient means of communicating within their respective culture; in the words of a poet and philosopher,“ As many languages as one speaks, so many lives one lives”. A culture and its languages are as inseparable as brain and body; while one is a part of the other, neither can function without the other. In learning a foreign language, the best beginning is with the non-verbal linguistic elements of the language, its gestures, its body language. Eye contact is extremely important in English. Direct eye contact leads to understanding, or, as the English maxim has it, seeing eye-to-eye. We can never see eye-to-eye with a native speaker of English until we have learned to look directly into his eyes.
Question: According to this passage, the best way to learn a foreign language is____.
A. to read the works of poets and philosophers
B. to find a native speaker and look directly into his eyes
C. to begin by learning its body language
D. to visit a country where English is spoken
说明：本题属于细节型试题，答案为C项。原文中的第四名“In learning a foreign language, the best beginning is with the non-verbal linguistic elements of the language, its gestures, its body language.”，其中“non-verbal”意为“非语言的”。此句大意为：学外语由非文字性语言因素开始经，即从学习讲这种语言的人的手势、肢体语言入手。因此“to begin by learning its body language”正好与题意吻合，故应推断C项为正确答案。考生只需运用迅读法，快速找到这句话所在位置，然后根据句意做出正确的判断。
4．研读法
除了在阅读理解中运用略读法和读法之外，有时还需要仔细阅读文章的某一特定部分，力求对其有较深的理解，或对其进行归纳、总结、推断等。这时就需要对这部分仔细阅读，以便理解作者言外之意。这种仔细的阅读方法就研读法，通常适用于推断型阅读理解试题。
例：
Very high waves are destructive when they strike the land. Fortuately, this seldom happens. One reason is that out at sea, waves moving in one direction almost always run into waves moving in a different direction. The two sets of waves tend to cancel each other out. Another reason is that water is shallower near the shore. As a wave gets closer to land, the shallow bottom helps reduce its strength.
But the power of waves striking the shore can still be very great. During a winter gale, waves sometimes strike the shore with the force of 6,000 pounds for each square foot. That means a wave, 25 feet high and 500 feet along its face, may strike the shore with a force of 75 million pounds.
Yet the waves, no matter how big or how violent, affect only the surface of the sea. During most raging storms, the water a hundred fathoms（600 feet） beneath the surface is just as calm as on a day without a breath of wind.
Question: From your reading of the paragraph, which of the following is true?
A. At a depth of 1,200 feet the effects ofa violent surface storm are frightful.
B. A submarine commander navigating his vessel at a depth of 700 feet will not be affected by a raging surface storm.
C. A typhoon 500 miles out at sea can stir up the ocean bed.
D. If high waves can strike the shore with a horizontal force of 75 million pounds, the vertical force of such waves can have an even greater effect upon the ocean floor.
说明：本题答案为B项。此项为判断题。在本文报后一段，作者表述的意思为：不管海浪多高，多凶猛，它只影响到海面以下有限的深度。即使在的风暴中，600英尺以下尝试的水域也会像没有一丝风的白天那样风平浪静。选顼A意为“狂风巨浪会对1200英尺以下的水域造成可怕的影响”；B项意为“一名在水深700英尺以下驾驶潜艇行的指挥员有会受海面上的狂风巨浪的影响”；C项意为“风速每小时500英里的台风能海底的东西掀上来”；D项意为“如果巨浪袭击海岸的力量水平方向为75000000磅，那么它的垂直方向作用在海底的力量比水平方向作用力还要大”。根据最后一段内容，只有B项正确，因为潜艇是在700英尺以下水域航行。A项，C项与B项矛盾，可以排除，D项在短文中没有涉及。正是基于对这部分进行研读，考生才能够得出正确答案。
5．整体阅读
一篇文章是一个整体。文章作者通过整篇文章的构思、布局、对事物的论证、说明、叙述和描写等方法向读者传授知识和信息。知识和信息是存在于整篇文章之中，而不是存在于孤立的词句之内。在阅读句、段、篇时都应从整体原则出发。这样才能既理解字面含义，又能洞察深层含义；既能看到上下文呼应的语言结构，又能体会到字里行间的潜在含义；既能了解文章的各局部的含义，又能抓住文章的中心思想，从而对整篇文章达到较高层次的理解。
整体阅读有两个层次：
（1） 篇章的阅读。在阅读一篇文章时，应从五个方面驾驭整篇文章，遵循如下的模式：文章的标题；作者；基本内容；事实；文章的特点、争议和批评意见。这样可以避免盲目性和疏忽遗漏。阅读时，可把主要精力放在有用信息上，大大减少处理无用作息的时间，并使信息条理化，以便理解和吸收。
（2） 句、段的阅读。句子是一个整体，段也是一个整体。阅读句子时，如果不太长，要一口气读完。这样不仅读速快，而且有助于理解。当然，英语句子一般比较长，不能一口气读完。这时应以较大的意群为单位进行阅读。所谓意群是指句子中可以分开来看的各个部分，每个部分都有其相对独立的意义。
把句子和段落看成整体并不意味着要把句中所有的词、段落中所有的句子都看得同等重要。一个句子中有些词是关键词，有些词只是结构信号，有些词只表示辅助信息。对前者应注意，对后两者可一扫而过。
（二）答题方法
针对阅读理解的不同题型和测试点，答题可采用以下几种基本方法。
1．对应法
根据试题要求到文章中去寻找相应的答案。在寻找答案时要注意：
（1） 题目与文章段落的对应位置（一般来说题目的顺序与文章段落的顺序是一致的）。通常第一题在文章开头的一、二段里找到的可能性大，而最后一题的答案在文章的最后或后半部分找到的可能性。但有时为了提高答题的难度，可能打乱题目与段落的这种对应关系。
（2） 注意题目中醒目的词语及符号，如大写的专有名词、年代、符号以及出现次数很少的词语等。题目中的这些词语和符号在文章中的相应部分也会出现，找到了它们也就找到了答案。
注意以上两点，既节省答题时间，又可以提高准确性。
2．分析法
通过对文章有关内容的分析和推论得出正确答案。有些文章没有直接说明某个问题，但通过对文章有关此问题的细节的分析，可推出正确答案。
3．归纳法
根据段落内容归纳段落中心思想，根据各段中心思想提炼主题。
4．淘汰法
亦称排除法，即通过淘汰错误答案，以取得正确答案。
这里介绍的各种答题法都不是孤立的，可以综合运用，比如做一个较难的题，首先通过分析法找到自己认为正确的答案，然后再用淘汰法排除剩下的三个错误答案，这样就证明了自己的选择完全准确可靠，保证了答题的准确性。
五、实例讲解
例1：
Hillary Rodham Clinton released the first television spot of her Senate campaign this morning, a 30-second commercial that will begin airing statewide on Thursday. The spot, titled “First,” uses numerous still photos to highlight landmarks in Mrs. Clinton's career, while the voiceover says she is “more than a fist lady.”
There is no mention of Mrs. Clinton's rival for New York's Senate seat, New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani.
Clinton campaign spokesman Howard Wolfson said the ad was “positive” and “biographical,” instead of focusing on the first lady's opponent.
Mrs. Clinton has previously aired radio ads, but has generally stayed with a strategy of making extensive campaign appearances instead of using television spots, while Giuliani has already run statewide TV ads.
Text of Hillary Commercial:
First she became a lawyer, named one of the top hundred in America.
Her first cause was children, fighting abuse and chairing the board of the Children's Defense Fund.
Her first priority was public schools, helping to establish teacher testing.
More than a first lady. For 30 years, she's fought for children and families.
As New York's senator, she'll fight for better schools and heath care for children.
Hillary, Put her to work for all of us.
1. What does the word “air” in the first sentence mean?
A. dry B. express C. breathe D. broadcast
2. What does “more than first lady” in the first paragraph suggest?
A. Hillary is not a first lady.
B. Hillary does much more than what a first lady is expected to do.
C. There are more women in America who does better than Hillary does.
D. Hillary is doing better than her husband.
3.Which of the following statement is true regarding the Senator campaign according the passage?
A. Hillary has appeared on TV shot for mumerous times.
B. Hillary rarely makes her public appearance.
C. Giuliani has made TV advertisement for himself.
D. Hillary has a bigger chance to win the campaign.
4. Hillary's campaign focuses on all the flooowing except_____.
A. children's health care
B. school education for children
C. combating child abuse
D. family planning policy
5.Which of the following can best serve as the title of this passage?
A. First Lady's Senator Campaign
B. Hillary's TV Advertisement
C. A Rivalry for New York's Senate Seat
D. The Focuses of Hillary Campaign
[难点]
1． 今早，希拉里竞选纽约州议员的电视演说拉开了序幕；Hillary Rodham Clinton：希拉里；美国现任总统克林顿夫人。Spot:（在无线电广播、电视中播出的）短小节目；commercial:宣传
2． 这句话的意思是该电视节目特别播出了希拉里政绩上的一些重要照片。Highlight:突出；landmark：（具有转折意义的）重大事件
3． Voiceover：旁白；话外音
4． Biographical:关于一个人的材料的；美国，一般的竞选广告都包括竞选双方的资料，但是在该电视广告里，只播放了希拉里的资料，所以克氏竞选团的发言人说，这次广告具有肯定意义。
5． Strategy:策略
6． Abuse：虐待
[答案]
1.D
考点：该题是一个词汇题
解析：本题提问的是第一段中的“air”是什么意思。由这句话我们可以得知，希拉里今天早晨发表了她竞选纽约州议员的电视宣传；为时30分钟的电视宣传将于星期二开始进行全国播放。由该句的意思我们可以猜出“air”的意思为“播放”。所以，答案为D.而其他三个词A（晒干），B（表达）和C（呼吸）均与原义不符，故不能入选。
2．B
考点：这是一个理解判断题。
解析：本题提问的是第一段里“more than first lady”是什么意思。在世界各地，第一夫人作为国家元首的妻子，是一国之母，她的形象一般是一个帮助总统处理好家务，并且进行一些妇女活动和慈善事业，借此来提高元首的形象。但是，希拉里作为第一夫人，她所做的超出了第一夫人的职责。她不但在社会活动中经常露脸，而且直接参与政事，开始竞选起议员来了。所以，选项B应该是该题的答案。
3．C
考点：这是一个对原文事实的理解题。
解析：本题提问的是对此次参议院竞选，以下哪一个说法是正确的。文章的第四段告诉我们，希拉里以前曾经在广播上作过宣传，但是她一直采取的战略是频频在公众场合出现，而不是使用电视宣传；与她不同的是，Giuliani已作过全国电视宣传。由该段可知，选项C为正确答案。从文章的第一句话我们可以得知，这是希拉里第一次在电视上为自己作宣传，所以，选项A和B不符合原文；此次议员竞选，花落谁手尚未分晓，所以，选项D也不能入选。
4．D
考点：这是一个对原文细节的分析判断题。
解析：本题提问的是以下哪一下不是希拉里的竞选重点。希拉里的竞选广告在文章的最后几段里；它的重点是学校教育；作者评论道，在过去的30年里，希拉里一直都在为儿童和家庭的幸福斗争。将来当了纽约的参议员，她会为孩子们的良好教育和健康保险而努力；由此我们得知，选项A（儿童健康保险）B（儿童的学校教育）和C（打击虐待儿童现象）都是她的竞选重点，只有选项D（计划生育政策）与原文不合，所以，D为本题答案。
5．A
考点：该题是一个主旨题，考的是文章的题目应该是哪一个。
解析：本文从第一夫人希拉里-克林顿为其入选纽约参议员拉开序幕讲起，对目前的竞选状况作了一个大概介绍，并且对希拉里的竞选内容作了一个介绍，同时，作者表达了他自己的观点；整篇文章以介绍她的竞选情况为主，所以，选项A（第一夫人竞选参议员）用以概括全文最为全面，因此，为正确答案。
例2：
America is in no immediate danger of “running out of water”. People in the West have been aware that water is a precious commodity and must be conserved. In the damp East, an excess of water led to complacency until two factors created concern over our water supply. First, the periods of drought from the 1961 to 1966 in the Northeast affected crop production and used up the surface and ground water supplies. Second, attention was called to rapid increases in the rates of pollution of these waters resulting from increased urban and industrial growth. As a result, there is an increasing awareness of the need for conserving the quantity and quality of our nation's water supplies.
Water is a renewable resource, but it is not exhaustible. When used for municipal, industrial, or agricultural purposes, it is not destroyed, but generally finds its way back into our water supply. This used water now carries some waste materials. These dirty waters are often dumped into large bodies of water or are disposed of on land. In the latter instance, evaporation concentrates some of the wastes on the soil surface. On the other hand, water moving through the soil will eventually carry some of the wastes down into the ground water supplies, Eventually, all water evaporates and later returns to the earth as rain or snow in a relatively purer state.
Through this never-ending cycle, there is just as much water in this country now as there ever was. The amount, however, does not increase. Our rapid population growth and our agricultural and industrial expansion have caused our water needs to soar. By withdrawing water from streams too quickly, we have in some instances upset the balance of nature's built-in renewal processes for conserving water. As a result, some of our streams and lakes have become “wet deserts.” There is still plenty of water in them, but its water is so polluted that it supports almost no life at all.
1.The passage is mainly about_____.
A. water resources of the United States
B. the renewal processes of water in mature
C. the importance of water conservation
D.water pollution in America
2. The word “drought” in the sentence “First, the periods of drought——ground water supplies.” Most probably means_____.
A. catastrophe of too much rain
B. danger of running out of water
C. calamity dry weather
D. damage caused by typhoon
3. Water is relatively purer in_____.
A. fast moving streams and rivers
B. underground water supplies
C. mountainous areas
D. rain and snow
4. When theauthor says that lakes have become “wet deserts”,._____
A. he is being angry
B. he is being optimistic
C. he is being sad
D. he is being humorous
5. It is implied in the passage that______
A. water can be polluted by deserts
B. there are many water conservation programs in America
C. water keeps evaporating from the earth's surface
D. water is not polluted by waster maberials
[难点]
1.run out of 用完，耗尽
2.commodity 商品，货物
3.complacency 自满，满足
4.drought 长期干旱，旱灾
5.result from 是——的结果，由于——而发生
6.inexhaustible 用不完的，无穷尽的
7.municipal 市政的，市办的
8.dispose of 处理，丢掉，清除
9.evaporation 蒸发
10.withdraw 提取，取回
11.deposit 放下，放置
[答案]
1.C
考点：这是一道典型的文章主旨题。
解析：文章第一段的最后一句话是文章的中心思想，指出人们越来越意识到保护水的量和质的必要性。第二、三段主要讨论节约用水和水污染 的危害。第二段指出，水虽然百一种可再生的资源，但并不是用之不竭；第三段说，人口的急剧增加，工农业的快速发展使得用水需求高涨并造成严重的水污染。综上所述，我们可以看出，文章主要讨论保护水资源的重要性。选项A、B、D都是以偏概全。
2．C
考点：这是一道理解题。
解析：题目要求猜测“drought”一词的含义，我们可以通过这个词的上下文来理解它的意思。文章第一段第四句说，1961至1966年东北部地区的drought影响了农作物的生产，使地表水和地下水供应枯竭。据此我们可以推断出这个词的含义是旱灾。
3．D
考点：这是一道细节题。
解析：答案在文章第二段的最一句：“Eventually, all water evaporates and later returns to the earth as rain or snow in a relatively purer state.”（最终所有的水蒸发，然后以更加纯净的形式降雨或降雪回到地球。）
4．D
考点：此题考察学生对作者态度的理解。
解析：文章第三段最后一句很好地解释了“wet desert”的含义，即：一些河流、湖泊中有大量的水，但污染非常严重，几乎所有的生物都不能使用。根据这个解释，我们可以理解作者说这番话的心情，作者面对这样一种情况只能感到悲哀，而不是愤怒，因为愤怒无济于事，更不是感到乐观或幽默。
5．C
考点：此题考察学生的判断能力。
解析：根据文章第二段的最后一句：“Eventually, all water evaporates and later returns to the earth as rain or snow in a relatively purer state.”，我们可以推断出水不停地从地球表面蒸发掉，然后在高空中变成水的固态形式。选项A和D与文章内容不符。选项B在文章中没有提及。
例3：
In what now seems like the prehistoric times of computer history, the early postwar era, there was a quite widespread concern that computers would take over the world from man one day. Already today, less than forty years later, as computers are relieving us of more and more of the routine tasks in business and in our personal lives, we are faced with a less dramatic but also less foreseen problem. People tend to be over-trusting of computers and are reluctant to challenge their authority. Indeed, they behave as if they were hardly aware that wrong buttons may be pushed, or that a computer may simply malfunction.
Obviously, there would be no point in investing in a computer if you had to check all its answers, but people should also rely on their own internal computers and check the machine when they have the feeling that something has gone awry. Questioning and routine double checks must continue to be as much a part of good business as they were in pre-computer days. Maybe each computer should come with the following warning: for all the help this computer may provide, it should not be seen as a substitute for fundamental thinking and reasoning skills.
1.What is the main purpose of this passage?
A. To look back to the early days of computers.
B. To explain what technical problems may occur with computers.
C. To discourage unnecessary investment in computers.
D. To warn against a mentally lazy attitude towards computers.
2.According to the passage, initial concerns about computers were that they might_____
A. lead us into the post-war era
B. be quite widespread
C. take control
D. take over routine tasks
3.The passage recommends those dealing with computers to_____
A. be reasonably skeptical abort them
B. check all their answers
C. substitute them for basic thinking
D. use them for business purposes only
4.An “internal computer” is_____
A. a computer uses exclusively by one company for its own problems
B. a person's store of knowledge and the ability to process it
C. the most up-to-date in-house computer a company can buy
D. a computer from the post-war era which is very reliable
5.The passage suggests that the present-day problem with regard to computers is_____
A. challenging
B. psychological
C. dramatic
D. malfunctioning
[难点]
1.widespread 普遍的，广泛的
2.relieve 减轻，解除，使得到解脱
3.dramatic 引人注目的，突然的
4.foreseen 预见的，预知的
5.reluctant 不情愿的，不愿意的
6.authority 权威
7.malfunction 发生故障，发生功能障碍
8.invest 投资；花钱买；耗费，投入
9.rely on 依赖，依靠
10.go awry 出岔子，失败；（人）背离正道
11.substitute 代替物，代用器
[答案]
1.D
考点：这是一道典型的文章主旨题。
解析：文章分析了人们过分依赖电子计算机这一问题，在结尾向人们提出了忠告：尽管电子计算机可以提供各种帮助，但是它不应被视为代替人们基本思维和推理的东西。文章主要目的是警告人们在心理上对计算机不要采取懒惰的态度。
2.C
考点：这是一道细节题。
解析：问题的答案在文章的第一句之中：“In what now seems like the prehistoric times of computer history, the early postwar era, there was a quite widespread concern that computers would take over the world from man one day.”（在计算机历史的前期即战后初期，人们普遍担心计算机可以能会代替人类统治世界）选项C与这一句的含义完全一致，故为正确答案。
3.A
考点：这是一道推断题。
解析：文章第二段第二句说：“Questioning and routine double checks must continue to be as much a part of good business as they were in pre-computer days.”由此我们可以推断出，文章建议那些与计算机打交道的人应该对它们采取合理的怀疑态度。
4.B
考点：这是一道理解题
解析：理解：“internal computer”的含义的关键是确定“internal”的意思。这个词几个基本含义：内部的，体内的，内在的。从它所在的上下文来看，它的意思是：“体内的”。“internal computer”是一种比喻说法，指人的大脑，它比计算机更聪明、更复杂，具有储存知识和运用知识的能力。因此，选项B是正确答案。
5.B
考点：这是一道推断题。
解析：根据文章内容我们得知，当今电子计算机的问题既不是令人深思的也不是容易出故障。而选项C与文章内容不符。它的问题是人们在心理上过分信赖它，对它的能力毫不怀疑。因此选项B是正确答案。
以上是®无忧考网考友提供的11年成人英语三级考试阅读理解题答题技巧，恭祝广大考友们顺利通过考试！
一、概述
阅读理解（Part I Reading Comprehension），共15题，考试时间40分钟。
要求考生阅读三篇短文，总阅读量不超过900个词。每篇文章后有五个问题，考生应根据文章内容从每题中选出一个答案。短文选材的原则是：
1．题材广泛。包括人物传记、社会、文化、日常知识、热门话题及科普常识等。但所涉及的背景知识应能为学生所理解。
2．体裁多样。包括叙述文、说明文、议论文等。
3．文章的语言为中等难度。无法猜测而又影响理解的关键词，如超出全日制文理科教学大纲中词汇表一至三级的范围，则用汉语注明词义。
二、考核内容
三级英语考试中的阅读理解部分是对应试者阅读能力的一次综合性检测。根据《统测考试大纲》的要求，主要测试以下6大类问题：
1． 提问文章主要观点
比如会经常出现下列提问形式（选择题题干）：
（1） Which of the following is the main point of the passage?
（2） The author is primarily concerned with.
考生应当排除文中的次要观点，归纳和总结其中的主要观点或中心思想，或者基本目标。
2． 提问文中的具体论据
（1） The author mentions which of the following…?
（2） According to the author…
（3） The author provides information that would answer which of the following questions.
这类提问主要用来测试考生理解文中各个论据的能力，区别文中的主要观点的能力。考生不公应仔细阅读，还要有耐心各信心选择正确答案。
3． 提问文章的逻辑结构
（1） The author develops the passage primarily by…
（2） Which of the following best explains why the author introduces…?
或者提问作者采用何种途径说明事由，或者论证作者的论据是否充分，凡此都用来检验考生对文章的理解能力和评论能力。
4． 寻求文章的推断观点
（1） The passage implies that…
（2） It can be inferred from the passage that……
（3） Which of the following can be inferred from the passage?
它要求考生能推断话语中深层含义或弦外之音。因此考生要学会理解作者的内涵和反义，或者作者选用某一词语的比喻用法。
5． 猜测某一单词或短语的具体含义
（1） The phrase“——”in the context means…
（2） The word“——”most nearly means…
（3） Which of the following is closest to the word“…”in paragraph 2?
这要求考生具有根据构词法或上下文猜测词汇或短语的能力。
6． 作者的观点和态度
（1） The author's attitude towards…
（2） What's the author's opinion about…?
这不仅用来测试考生在其他场合下如何应用作者思想的能力，而且检验考生识别事理关系能力，文中必有充分论据支持作者的态度、观点和信仰等。
三、考试常见问题
在三级英语统一考试中，许多考生在阅读理解部分失分较多。究其因主要有以下几个方面：
1．阅读方法欠妥，速度较慢
许多考生在准备考试的过程中，把注意力集中在语法结构分析和单个词汇记忆上，从而忽视了阅读数量及阅读速度，导致在应试时慌乱，不知所云。阅读时把精力集中在每个单词的含义上，一字一字地读，造成“只见树不见森林”的结果。不会根据不同的题型采用不同的阅读方法，从而影响了阅读速度和效果。
2．对生词的恐惧心理
许多同学在阅读中一遇到生词就暗徨恐惧心理，这样就影响了正常水平的发挥。其实，在阅读测试中，考的并不是词汇，而是阅读技能，其中一个技能就是如何通过上下文线索以及构词法猜出，帮助考生理解文章大意。即使有些词猜不出其意思，也不要紧，只要不影响答题就不必去管它。
3．对句与句，段与段之间的逻辑关系不重视
许多考生对篇章句与句，段与段之间的逻辑关系及信号词不够重视，从而导致理解和答题的片面性，跟不上作者的思路，分不清文章的层次结构，抓不住段落要点，直接影响了考试成绩。
4．不熟悉试题类型及解题方法
考生对试题类型，提问方式及解题办法不熟悉是导致阅读测试失败的一个重要因素。所以，考生应该学会如何判断题的类型：是直接型试题，还是间接型试题；答题信息是牵涉整篇文章，还是只涉及文章的某一部分。
四、解题技巧及方法
（一）阅读方法
1．根据上下文，猜测词义
在做阅读题时，考生不可能知道所有词汇的意义，不可避免会遇到不认识的词汇或固定短语。只要生词不多，考生通过提高自己的猜词能力，同样可以理解一个句子、一个段落，乃至一篇文章的含义。
（1） 考生通过构词法猜测词义
1） 派生法
有些单词是由前缀或后缀加上词根构成。
如：in+correct=incorrdct
use+ful=useful
2）合成法
有些单词是由两个单词合成的。
如：green+house=greenhouse
ice+box=icebox
3）缩略法
有些单词由于所含的字母太多，在文章中出现时，通常用缩略的形式。
如：advertisement－ad.
Laboratory－lab.
4）拼缀法
有些单词是由两个单词拼缀而成的，但与合成词不同的是拼缀后的单词并不是两个单词的简单相加。
如：smoke+fog－smog（烟雾）
Chinese+English－Chinglish（中文式英文）
（2） 考生通过分析生词所在的句子、段落的上下文，运用自己所掌握的语法构词法以及对其背景的了解，可以决定许多词在特定句子、段落中的内在涵义。
运用上下文猜测词义，必须注意以下几点：
1） 利用句子中自己能理解的其他词汇用句子的基本含义来推断生词的词义。
2） 运用所掌握的英语语法和表达句子中各部分关系的标点符号来判断生词的含义。
3） 仅仅要求了解该生词的大概意义，不一定要明白该词汇的定义或同义词。
2．略读
略读（或称为跳跃式阅读）的重点在于找出一个段落的中心思想。可以运用词汇手段（如词根、前缀、后缀等）、靠上下文猜测词义等方法了解不认识的词汇或句子的含义。在此基础上，一个不容易理解的段落可以通过词汇省略的方法找出其主要的思想或观点。段落的理解在很大程度上取决于对其中句子的理解。英语中由于存在许多从句，常常使不适应英语思维的人感到困惑，产生错觉，因而难于达到对段落意义的正确理解。略读则可以帮助我们解决这个难点。
略读的方法是首先看一下标题（在标题的情况下）。接着读第一段，抓住中心思想。再浏览一下其他段落的首句和末句。最后读完结尾段，这样就达到了略读的目的。
略读要点一、将不熟悉的困难词语放弃不读，领会句子大意。
略读要点二、阅读中有时会遇到一些较长的句子，可以通过语法结构了解什么是支撑主题的细节描写句，略去细节描写的部分，直接读出其中心含义。
略读要点三、特别注意那些重要的构词和标点符号，因为它们可能会导致重要词汇意义的改变。
通常，略读适用于考查文章言主旨或大意的试题。
例：
After a hectic day of work and play, the body needs to rest. Sleep is necessary for good health. During this time, the body recovers from the activities of the previous day .The rest that you get while sleeping enables your body to prepare itself for the next day.
There are four levels of sleep, each being a little deeper than the one before. As you sleep, your muscles relax little by little. Your heart beats more slowly, and your brain slows down. After you reach the fourth level, your body shifts back and forth from one level of sleep to the other.
Although your mind slows down, from time to time you will dream, Scientists who study sleep state say that when dreaming occurs, your eyeballs begin to move more quickly （although your eyelids are closed）. This stage of sleep is called REM, which stands rapid eye movement.
If you have trouble falling asleep, some people recommend breathing very slowly and very deeply. Other people believe that drinking warm milk will help make you drowsy. There is also an old suggestion that counting sheep will put you to sleep!
Question: A good title for this passage is____.
A. sleep
B. good health
C. dreams
D. work and rest
说明：本题属于主旨型试题，答案为A项。全文共分为四段。第一段说明睡眠的重要性；第二段解释睡眠的四个阶段用睡眠中肌肉、心跳各大脑的活动；第三段指出做梦时伴有眼球活动这一现象；第四段告诉我们治疗失眠的办法。这四段一环扣一环，始终没有离开睡眠这一主题，所以A项是正确答案。回答本题时，考生无需逐句地读，只读首句或末句就行了。
3．迅读
无论是在我们平时的阅读，还是考生在考试时的阅读，常常需要了解段落的主题或文章的中心思想，还需要掌握一定的细节。这时，我们就得运用另一种阅读技巧，它就是我们这里将讲的迅读。迅读是一种比一般速度高一倍以上的阅读方法，目的是迅速从文中找到所需信息，解决问题。
迅读要领一：首先确定你需要什么事实和细节，并对其形式进行估计。
迅读要领二：在略读中由于对各段落和句子已进行过分析，已大致了解主题和细节，并进行过勾勒，这时就可以考虑确定在什么地方去找自己需要的有关细节或说明。
迅读要领三：尽快用眼睛扫过文章，找到自己需要的细节描述部分，并在有关句子下做出各种记忆符号。文章浏览完毕，再将划线部分（或做其他符号）重新详读一次，并进行适当推理。
通常，迅读法适用于事实、细节型阅读理解试题。
例：
Languages are marvelously complex and wonderfully complicated organs of culture: they embody the quickest and the most efficient means of communicating within their respective culture; in the words of a poet and philosopher,“ As many languages as one speaks, so many lives one lives”. A culture and its languages are as inseparable as brain and body; while one is a part of the other, neither can function without the other. In learning a foreign language, the best beginning is with the non-verbal linguistic elements of the language, its gestures, its body language. Eye contact is extremely important in English. Direct eye contact leads to understanding, or, as the English maxim has it, seeing eye-to-eye. We can never see eye-to-eye with a native speaker of English until we have learned to look directly into his eyes.
Question: According to this passage, the best way to learn a foreign language is____.
A. to read the works of poets and philosophers
B. to find a native speaker and look directly into his eyes
C. to begin by learning its body language
D. to visit a country where English is spoken
说明：本题属于细节型试题，答案为C项。原文中的第四名“In learning a foreign language, the best beginning is with the non-verbal linguistic elements of the language, its gestures, its body language.”，其中“non-verbal”意为“非语言的”。此句大意为：学外语由非文字性语言因素开始经，即从学习讲这种语言的人的手势、肢体语言入手。因此“to begin by learning its body language”正好与题意吻合，故应推断C项为正确答案。考生只需运用迅读法，快速找到这句话所在位置，然后根据句意做出正确的判断。
4．研读法
除了在阅读理解中运用略读法和读法之外，有时还需要仔细阅读文章的某一特定部分，力求对其有较深的理解，或对其进行归纳、总结、推断等。这时就需要对这部分仔细阅读，以便理解作者言外之意。这种仔细的阅读方法就研读法，通常适用于推断型阅读理解试题。
例：
Very high waves are destructive when they strike the land. Fortuately, this seldom happens. One reason is that out at sea, waves moving in one direction almost always run into waves moving in a different direction. The two sets of waves tend to cancel each other out. Another reason is that water is shallower near the shore. As a wave gets closer to land, the shallow bottom helps reduce its strength.
But the power of waves striking the shore can still be very great. During a winter gale, waves sometimes strike the shore with the force of 6,000 pounds for each square foot. That means a wave, 25 feet high and 500 feet along its face, may strike the shore with a force of 75 million pounds.
Yet the waves, no matter how big or how violent, affect only the surface of the sea. During most raging storms, the water a hundred fathoms（600 feet） beneath the surface is just as calm as on a day without a breath of wind.
Question: From your reading of the paragraph, which of the following is true?
A. At a depth of 1,200 feet the effects ofa violent surface storm are frightful.
B. A submarine commander navigating his vessel at a depth of 700 feet will not be affected by a raging surface storm.
C. A typhoon 500 miles out at sea can stir up the ocean bed.
D. If high waves can strike the shore with a horizontal force of 75 million pounds, the vertical force of such waves can have an even greater effect upon the ocean floor.
说明：本题答案为B项。此项为判断题。在本文报后一段，作者表述的意思为：不管海浪多高，多凶猛，它只影响到海面以下有限的深度。即使在的风暴中，600英尺以下尝试的水域也会像没有一丝风的白天那样风平浪静。选顼A意为“狂风巨浪会对1200英尺以下的水域造成可怕的影响”；B项意为“一名在水深700英尺以下驾驶潜艇行的指挥员有会受海面上的狂风巨浪的影响”；C项意为“风速每小时500英里的台风能海底的东西掀上来”；D项意为“如果巨浪袭击海岸的力量水平方向为75000000磅，那么它的垂直方向作用在海底的力量比水平方向作用力还要大”。根据最后一段内容，只有B项正确，因为潜艇是在700英尺以下水域航行。A项，C项与B项矛盾，可以排除，D项在短文中没有涉及。正是基于对这部分进行研读，考生才能够得出正确答案。
5．整体阅读
一篇文章是一个整体。文章作者通过整篇文章的构思、布局、对事物的论证、说明、叙述和描写等方法向读者传授知识和信息。知识和信息是存在于整篇文章之中，而不是存在于孤立的词句之内。在阅读句、段、篇时都应从整体原则出发。这样才能既理解字面含义，又能洞察深层含义；既能看到上下文呼应的语言结构，又能体会到字里行间的潜在含义；既能了解文章的各局部的含义，又能抓住文章的中心思想，从而对整篇文章达到较高层次的理解。
整体阅读有两个层次：
（1） 篇章的阅读。在阅读一篇文章时，应从五个方面驾驭整篇文章，遵循如下的模式：文章的标题；作者；基本内容；事实；文章的特点、争议和批评意见。这样可以避免盲目性和疏忽遗漏。阅读时，可把主要精力放在有用信息上，大大减少处理无用作息的时间，并使信息条理化，以便理解和吸收。
（2） 句、段的阅读。句子是一个整体，段也是一个整体。阅读句子时，如果不太长，要一口气读完。这样不仅读速快，而且有助于理解。当然，英语句子一般比较长，不能一口气读完。这时应以较大的意群为单位进行阅读。所谓意群是指句子中可以分开来看的各个部分，每个部分都有其相对独立的意义。
把句子和段落看成整体并不意味着要把句中所有的词、段落中所有的句子都看得同等重要。一个句子中有些词是关键词，有些词只是结构信号，有些词只表示辅助信息。对前者应注意，对后两者可一扫而过。
（二）答题方法
针对阅读理解的不同题型和测试点，答题可采用以下几种基本方法。
1．对应法
根据试题要求到文章中去寻找相应的答案。在寻找答案时要注意：
（1） 题目与文章段落的对应位置（一般来说题目的顺序与文章段落的顺序是一致的）。通常第一题在文章开头的一、二段里找到的可能性大，而最后一题的答案在文章的最后或后半部分找到的可能性。但有时为了提高答题的难度，可能打乱题目与段落的这种对应关系。
（2） 注意题目中醒目的词语及符号，如大写的专有名词、年代、符号以及出现次数很少的词语等。题目中的这些词语和符号在文章中的相应部分也会出现，找到了它们也就找到了答案。
注意以上两点，既节省答题时间，又可以提高准确性。
2．分析法
通过对文章有关内容的分析和推论得出正确答案。有些文章没有直接说明某个问题，但通过对文章有关此问题的细节的分析，可推出正确答案。
3．归纳法
根据段落内容归纳段落中心思想，根据各段中心思想提炼主题。
4．淘汰法
亦称排除法，即通过淘汰错误答案，以取得正确答案。
这里介绍的各种答题法都不是孤立的，可以综合运用，比如做一个较难的题，首先通过分析法找到自己认为正确的答案，然后再用淘汰法排除剩下的三个错误答案，这样就证明了自己的选择完全准确可靠，保证了答题的准确性。
五、实例讲解
例1：
Hillary Rodham Clinton released the first television spot of her Senate campaign this morning, a 30-second commercial that will begin airing statewide on Thursday. The spot, titled “First,” uses numerous still photos to highlight landmarks in Mrs. Clinton's career, while the voiceover says she is “more than a fist lady.”
There is no mention of Mrs. Clinton's rival for New York's Senate seat, New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani.
Clinton campaign spokesman Howard Wolfson said the ad was “positive” and “biographical,” instead of focusing on the first lady's opponent.
Mrs. Clinton has previously aired radio ads, but has generally stayed with a strategy of making extensive campaign appearances instead of using television spots, while Giuliani has already run statewide TV ads.
Text of Hillary Commercial:
First she became a lawyer, named one of the top hundred in America.
Her first cause was children, fighting abuse and chairing the board of the Children's Defense Fund.
Her first priority was public schools, helping to establish teacher testing.
More than a first lady. For 30 years, she's fought for children and families.
As New York's senator, she'll fight for better schools and heath care for children.
Hillary, Put her to work for all of us.
1. What does the word “air” in the first sentence mean?
A. dry B. express C. breathe D. broadcast
2. What does “more than first lady” in the first paragraph suggest?
A. Hillary is not a first lady.
B. Hillary does much more than what a first lady is expected to do.
C. There are more women in America who does better than Hillary does.
D. Hillary is doing better than her husband.
3.Which of the following statement is true regarding the Senator campaign according the passage?
A. Hillary has appeared on TV shot for mumerous times.
B. Hillary rarely makes her public appearance.
C. Giuliani has made TV advertisement for himself.
D. Hillary has a bigger chance to win the campaign.
4. Hillary's campaign focuses on all the flooowing except_____.
A. children's health care
B. school education for children
C. combating child abuse
D. family planning policy
5.Which of the following can best serve as the title of this passage?
A. First Lady's Senator Campaign
B. Hillary's TV Advertisement
C. A Rivalry for New York's Senate Seat
D. The Focuses of Hillary Campaign
[难点]
1． 今早，希拉里竞选纽约州议员的电视演说拉开了序幕；Hillary Rodham Clinton：希拉里；美国现任总统克林顿夫人。Spot:（在无线电广播、电视中播出的）短小节目；commercial:宣传
2． 这句话的意思是该电视节目特别播出了希拉里政绩上的一些重要照片。Highlight:突出；landmark：（具有转折意义的）重大事件
3． Voiceover：旁白；话外音
4． Biographical:关于一个人的材料的；美国，一般的竞选广告都包括竞选双方的资料，但是在该电视广告里，只播放了希拉里的资料，所以克氏竞选团的发言人说，这次广告具有肯定意义。
5． Strategy:策略
6． Abuse：虐待
[答案]
1.D
考点：该题是一个词汇题
解析：本题提问的是第一段中的“air”是什么意思。由这句话我们可以得知，希拉里今天早晨发表了她竞选纽约州议员的电视宣传；为时30分钟的电视宣传将于星期二开始进行全国播放。由该句的意思我们可以猜出“air”的意思为“播放”。所以，答案为D.而其他三个词A（晒干），B（表达）和C（呼吸）均与原义不符，故不能入选。
2．B
考点：这是一个理解判断题。
解析：本题提问的是第一段里“more than first lady”是什么意思。在世界各地，第一夫人作为国家元首的妻子，是一国之母，她的形象一般是一个帮助总统处理好家务，并且进行一些妇女活动和慈善事业，借此来提高元首的形象。但是，希拉里作为第一夫人，她所做的超出了第一夫人的职责。她不但在社会活动中经常露脸，而且直接参与政事，开始竞选起议员来了。所以，选项B应该是该题的答案。
3．C
考点：这是一个对原文事实的理解题。
解析：本题提问的是对此次参议院竞选，以下哪一个说法是正确的。文章的第四段告诉我们，希拉里以前曾经在广播上作过宣传，但是她一直采取的战略是频频在公众场合出现，而不是使用电视宣传；与她不同的是，Giuliani已作过全国电视宣传。由该段可知，选项C为正确答案。从文章的第一句话我们可以得知，这是希拉里第一次在电视上为自己作宣传，所以，选项A和B不符合原文；此次议员竞选，花落谁手尚未分晓，所以，选项D也不能入选。
4．D
考点：这是一个对原文细节的分析判断题。
解析：本题提问的是以下哪一下不是希拉里的竞选重点。希拉里的竞选广告在文章的最后几段里；它的重点是学校教育；作者评论道，在过去的30年里，希拉里一直都在为儿童和家庭的幸福斗争。将来当了纽约的参议员，她会为孩子们的良好教育和健康保险而努力；由此我们得知，选项A（儿童健康保险）B（儿童的学校教育）和C（打击虐待儿童现象）都是她的竞选重点，只有选项D（计划生育政策）与原文不合，所以，D为本题答案。
5．A
考点：该题是一个主旨题，考的是文章的题目应该是哪一个。
解析：本文从第一夫人希拉里-克林顿为其入选纽约参议员拉开序幕讲起，对目前的竞选状况作了一个大概介绍，并且对希拉里的竞选内容作了一个介绍，同时，作者表达了他自己的观点；整篇文章以介绍她的竞选情况为主，所以，选项A（第一夫人竞选参议员）用以概括全文最为全面，因此，为正确答案。
例2：
America is in no immediate danger of “running out of water”. People in the West have been aware that water is a precious commodity and must be conserved. In the damp East, an excess of water led to complacency until two factors created concern over our water supply. First, the periods of drought from the 1961 to 1966 in the Northeast affected crop production and used up the surface and ground water supplies. Second, attention was called to rapid increases in the rates of pollution of these waters resulting from increased urban and industrial growth. As a result, there is an increasing awareness of the need for conserving the quantity and quality of our nation's water supplies.
Water is a renewable resource, but it is not exhaustible. When used for municipal, industrial, or agricultural purposes, it is not destroyed, but generally finds its way back into our water supply. This used water now carries some waste materials. These dirty waters are often dumped into large bodies of water or are disposed of on land. In the latter instance, evaporation concentrates some of the wastes on the soil surface. On the other hand, water moving through the soil will eventually carry some of the wastes down into the ground water supplies, Eventually, all water evaporates and later returns to the earth as rain or snow in a relatively purer state.
Through this never-ending cycle, there is just as much water in this country now as there ever was. The amount, however, does not increase. Our rapid population growth and our agricultural and industrial expansion have caused our water needs to soar. By withdrawing water from streams too quickly, we have in some instances upset the balance of nature's built-in renewal processes for conserving water. As a result, some of our streams and lakes have become “wet deserts.” There is still plenty of water in them, but its water is so polluted that it supports almost no life at all.
1.The passage is mainly about_____.
A. water resources of the United States
B. the renewal processes of water in mature
C. the importance of water conservation
D.water pollution in America
2. The word “drought” in the sentence “First, the periods of drought——ground water supplies.” Most probably means_____.
A. catastrophe of too much rain
B. danger of running out of water
C. calamity dry weather
D. damage caused by typhoon
3. Water is relatively purer in_____.
A. fast moving streams and rivers
B. underground water supplies
C. mountainous areas
D. rain and snow
4. When theauthor says that lakes have become “wet deserts”,._____
A. he is being angry
B. he is being optimistic
C. he is being sad
D. he is being humorous
5. It is implied in the passage that______
A. water can be polluted by deserts
B. there are many water conservation programs in America
C. water keeps evaporating from the earth's surface
D. water is not polluted by waster maberials
[难点]
1.run out of 用完，耗尽
2.commodity 商品，货物
3.complacency 自满，满足
4.drought 长期干旱，旱灾
5.result from 是——的结果，由于——而发生
6.inexhaustible 用不完的，无穷尽的
7.municipal 市政的，市办的
8.dispose of 处理，丢掉，清除
9.evaporation 蒸发
10.withdraw 提取，取回
11.deposit 放下，放置
[答案]
1.C
考点：这是一道典型的文章主旨题。
解析：文章第一段的最后一句话是文章的中心思想，指出人们越来越意识到保护水的量和质的必要性。第二、三段主要讨论节约用水和水污染 的危害。第二段指出，水虽然百一种可再生的资源，但并不是用之不竭；第三段说，人口的急剧增加，工农业的快速发展使得用水需求高涨并造成严重的水污染。综上所述，我们可以看出，文章主要讨论保护水资源的重要性。选项A、B、D都是以偏概全。
2．C
考点：这是一道理解题。
解析：题目要求猜测“drought”一词的含义，我们可以通过这个词的上下文来理解它的意思。文章第一段第四句说，1961至1966年东北部地区的drought影响了农作物的生产，使地表水和地下水供应枯竭。据此我们可以推断出这个词的含义是旱灾。
3．D
考点：这是一道细节题。
解析：答案在文章第二段的最一句：“Eventually, all water evaporates and later returns to the earth as rain or snow in a relatively purer state.”（最终所有的水蒸发，然后以更加纯净的形式降雨或降雪回到地球。）
4．D
考点：此题考察学生对作者态度的理解。
解析：文章第三段最后一句很好地解释了“wet desert”的含义，即：一些河流、湖泊中有大量的水，但污染非常严重，几乎所有的生物都不能使用。根据这个解释，我们可以理解作者说这番话的心情，作者面对这样一种情况只能感到悲哀，而不是愤怒，因为愤怒无济于事，更不是感到乐观或幽默。
5．C
考点：此题考察学生的判断能力。
解析：根据文章第二段的最后一句：“Eventually, all water evaporates and later returns to the earth as rain or snow in a relatively purer state.”，我们可以推断出水不停地从地球表面蒸发掉，然后在高空中变成水的固态形式。选项A和D与文章内容不符。选项B在文章中没有提及。
例3：
In what now seems like the prehistoric times of computer history, the early postwar era, there was a quite widespread concern that computers would take over the world from man one day. Already today, less than forty years later, as computers are relieving us of more and more of the routine tasks in business and in our personal lives, we are faced with a less dramatic but also less foreseen problem. People tend to be over-trusting of computers and are reluctant to challenge their authority. Indeed, they behave as if they were hardly aware that wrong buttons may be pushed, or that a computer may simply malfunction.
Obviously, there would be no point in investing in a computer if you had to check all its answers, but people should also rely on their own internal computers and check the machine when they have the feeling that something has gone awry. Questioning and routine double checks must continue to be as much a part of good business as they were in pre-computer days. Maybe each computer should come with the following warning: for all the help this computer may provide, it should not be seen as a substitute for fundamental thinking and reasoning skills.
1.What is the main purpose of this passage?
A. To look back to the early days of computers.
B. To explain what technical problems may occur with computers.
C. To discourage unnecessary investment in computers.
D. To warn against a mentally lazy attitude towards computers.
2.According to the passage, initial concerns about computers were that they might_____
A. lead us into the post-war era
B. be quite widespread
C. take control
D. take over routine tasks
3.The passage recommends those dealing with computers to_____
A. be reasonably skeptical abort them
B. check all their answers
C. substitute them for basic thinking
D. use them for business purposes only
4.An “internal computer” is_____
A. a computer uses exclusively by one company for its own problems
B. a person's store of knowledge and the ability to process it
C. the most up-to-date in-house computer a company can buy
D. a computer from the post-war era which is very reliable
5.The passage suggests that the present-day problem with regard to computers is_____
A. challenging
B. psychological
C. dramatic
D. malfunctioning
[难点]
1.widespread 普遍的，广泛的
2.relieve 减轻，解除，使得到解脱
3.dramatic 引人注目的，突然的
4.foreseen 预见的，预知的
5.reluctant 不情愿的，不愿意的
6.authority 权威
7.malfunction 发生故障，发生功能障碍
8.invest 投资；花钱买；耗费，投入
9.rely on 依赖，依靠
10.go awry 出岔子，失败；（人）背离正道
11.substitute 代替物，代用器
[答案]
1.D
考点：这是一道典型的文章主旨题。
解析：文章分析了人们过分依赖电子计算机这一问题，在结尾向人们提出了忠告：尽管电子计算机可以提供各种帮助，但是它不应被视为代替人们基本思维和推理的东西。文章主要目的是警告人们在心理上对计算机不要采取懒惰的态度。
2.C
考点：这是一道细节题。
解析：问题的答案在文章的第一句之中：“In what now seems like the prehistoric times of computer history, the early postwar era, there was a quite widespread concern that computers would take over the world from man one day.”（在计算机历史的前期即战后初期，人们普遍担心计算机可以能会代替人类统治世界）选项C与这一句的含义完全一致，故为正确答案。
3.A
考点：这是一道推断题。
解析：文章第二段第二句说：“Questioning and routine double checks must continue to be as much a part of good business as they were in pre-computer days.”由此我们可以推断出，文章建议那些与计算机打交道的人应该对它们采取合理的怀疑态度。
4.B
考点：这是一道理解题
解析：理解：“internal computer”的含义的关键是确定“internal”的意思。这个词几个基本含义：内部的，体内的，内在的。从它所在的上下文来看，它的意思是：“体内的”。“internal computer”是一种比喻说法，指人的大脑，它比计算机更聪明、更复杂，具有储存知识和运用知识的能力。因此，选项B是正确答案。
5.B
考点：这是一道推断题。
解析：根据文章内容我们得知，当今电子计算机的问题既不是令人深思的也不是容易出故障。而选项C与文章内容不符。它的问题是人们在心理上过分信赖它，对它的能力毫不怀疑。因此选项B是正确答案。
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