大学英语六级经典阅读6

　　Passage 1

　　It is hard to predict how science is going to turn out ，and if it is really good science it is impossible to predict. If the things to be found are actually new， they are by definition unknown in advance. You cannot make choice in this matter. You either have science or you dont， and if you have it you are obliged to accept the surprising and disturbing pieces of information， along with the neat and promptly useful bits.

　　The only solid piece of scientific truth about which I feel totally confident is that we are profoundly ignorant about nature. Indeed ，I regard this as the major discovery of the past hundred years of biology. It is ， in its way， an illuminating piece of news. It would have amazed the brightest minds of the 18th century Enlightenment (启蒙运动) to be told by any of us how little we know and how bewildering seems the way ahead. It is this sudden confrontation with the depth and scope of ignorance that represents the most significant contribution of the 20 th century science to the human intellect. In earlier times， we either pretended to understand how things worked or ignored the problem， or simply made up stories to ill he gaps. Now that we have begun exploring in earnest ，we are getting glimpses of how huge the questions are ，and how far from being answered. Because of this ，we are depressed. It is not so bad being ignorant if you are totally ignorant; the hard thing is knowing in some detail the reality of ignorance， the worst spots and here and there the not-so -bad spots， but no true light at the end of the tunnel nor even any tunnels that can yet be trusted.

　　But we are making a beginning ，and there ought to be some satisfaction .There are probably no questions we can think up that cant be answered， sooner or later， including even the matter of consciousness. To be sure， there may well be questions we cant think up ，ever， and therefore limits to the reach of human intellect ，but that is anther matter. Within our limits we should be able to work our way through to all our answers ，if we keep at it long enough ，and pay attention.

　　31.According to the author， really good science___

　　(A) would surprise the brightest minds of the 18th century Enlightenment

　　(B) will help people to make the right choice in advance

　　(C) will produce results which cannot be foreseen

　　(D) will bring about disturbing results

　　32.It can be inferred from the passage that scientists of the 18th century_____

　　(A) knew that they were ignorant ant wanted to know more about nature

　　(B) were afraid of facing up to the realities of scientific research

　　(C) thought that knew a great deal and could solve most problems of science

　　(D) did more harm than good in promoting mans understanding of nature

　　33Which of the following is not mentioned about scientists in earlier times?

　　(A) They invented false theories to explain things they didnt understand

　　(B) They falsely claimed to know all about nature

　　(C) They did not believe in results from scientific observation

　　(D) They paid little attention to the problems they didnt understand

　　34 What is the author s attitude towards science?

　　(A) He is confident though he is aware of the enormous difficulties in scientific research

　　(B) He is doubtful because of enormous difficulties in scientific research

　　(C) He is depressed because of the ignorance of scientists

　　(D) He is delighted because of the illuminating scientific findings

　　35The author believes that____

　　(A) man can not solve all the problems he can think up because of the limits of human intellect

　　(B) man can find solutions sooner or later to whatever questions concerning nature he can think up

　　(C) sooner or later man can think up all the questions concerning nature and answer them

　　(D) questions concerning consciousness are outside the scope of scientific research

　　Passage 2

　　Greenspace facilities are contributing to an important extent to the quality of the urban environment. Fortunately it is no longer necessary that every lecture or every book about this subject has to start with the proof of this idea. At present it is generally accepted ， although more as a self-evident statement than on the base of a closely-reasoned scientific proof. The recognition of the important of greenspaces in the urban environment is a first step on the right way， this does not mean， however， hat sufficient details are known about the functions of greenspace in towns and about the way in which the inhabitants are using these spaces .As to this rather complex subject I shall， within the scope of this lecture， enter into one aspect only， namely the recreative function of greenspace facilities.

　　The theoretical separation of living， working， traffic and recreation which for many years has been used in town-and-country planning， has in my opinion resulted in disproportionate attention for forms of recreation far from home， whereas there was relatively little attention for improvement of recreative possibilities in the direct neighborhood of the home We have come to the conclusion that this is not right， because an important part of the time which we do not pass in sleeping or working， is used for activities at and around home. So it is obvious that recreation in the open air has to begin at the street-door of the house .The urban environment has to offer as many recreation activities as possible， and the design of these has to be such that more obligatory activities can also have a recreative aspect.

　　The very best standard of living is nothing if it is not possible to take a pleasant walk in the district， if the children cannot be allowed to play in the streets， because the risks of traffic are too great ，if during shopping you can nowhere find a spot for enjoying for a moment the nice weather ，in short ，if you only feel yourself at home after the street-door of your house is closed after you.

　　36.According to the author ， the importance of greenspaces in the environment _______

　　(A) is still unknown

　　(B) has been fully recognized

　　(C) is being closely studied

　　(D) is usually neglected

　　37.The theoretical separation of living ，working， traffic and recreation has led to________

　　(A) the disproportion of recreation facilities in the neighborhood

　　(B) the improvement of recreative possibilities in the neighborhood

　　(C) relatively little attention for recreative possibilities

　　(D) the location of recreative facilities far from home

　　38.The author suggests that the recreative possibilities of greenspace should be provided______

　　(A) in the neighborhood of the house

　　(B) in the suburbs

　　(C) in special areas

　　(D) in gardens parks

　　39.According to the author， the greenspace facilities should be designed in such a way that ______

　　(A) an increasing number of recreative activities might be developed

　　(B) more and more people might have access to them

　　(C) more obligatory activities might take on a recreative aspect

　　(D) recreative activities might be brought into our homes

　　40.The main idea of this passage is that______

　　(A) attention must be directed to the improvement of recreative possibilities

　　(B) better use of greenspace facilities should be made so as to improve the quality of our life

　　(C) the urban environment is providing more recreation activities than it did many years ago

　　(D) priority must be given to the development of obligatory activities

　　Passage 3

　　There are desert plants which survive the dry season in the form of inactive seeds. There are also desert insects which survive as inactive larvae(幼虫)。 In addition， difficult as it is to believe， there are desert fish which can survive through years of drought(干旱)in the form of inactive eggs. These are the shrimps(小虾)that live in the Mojave Desert， an intensely dry region in the south-west of the United States where shade temperatures of over 50.C are often recorded.

　　The eggs of the Mojave shrimps are the size and have the appearance of grains of sand. When sufficient spring rain falls to form a lake ， once every two to five years， these eggs hatch(孵化)。 Then the water is soon filled with millions of tiny shrimps about a millimeter long which feed on tiny plant and animal organisms which also grow in the temporary desert lake. Within a week， the shrimps grow from their original 1 millimetre to a length of about 1.5 centimetres.

　　Throughout the time that the shrimps are rapidly maturing， the water in the lake equally rapidly evaporates. Therefore， for the shrimps it is a race against time. By the twelfth day， however， when they are about 3 centimetre long， hundreds of tiny eggs form on the underbodies of the females. Usually this time， all that remains of the lake is a large， muddy patch of wet soil. On the thirteenth day and the next， during the final hours of their brief lives， the shrimps lay their eggs in the mud. Then ， having ensured that their species will survive， the shrimps die as the last of the water evaporates.

　　If sufficient rain falls the next year to form another lake， the eggs hatch， and once again the shrimps pass rapidly through their cycle of growth， adulthood ， egg-laying ， and death. Some years there is insufficient rain to form a lake ：in this case， the eggs will remain formant for another year， or even longer of necessary. Very， very occasionally， perhaps twice in a hundred year， sufficient rain falls to form a deep lake that lasts a month or more. In this case， the species passes through two cycles of growth， egg-laying， and death. Thus， on such occasions， the species multiplies considerably， which further ensures its survival.

　　21.Which of the following is the MOST distinctive feature of Mojave shrimps?

　　A) Their lives are brief.

　　B) They feed on plant and animal organisms.

　　C) Their eggs can survive years of dought.

　　D) They lay their eggs in the mud.

　　22.By saying for the shrimps it is a race against time (Para.3，Line 2)the author means_____.

　　A) they have to swim fast to avoid danger in the rapidly evaporating lake

　　B) they have to swim fast to catch the animal organisms on which they survive

　　C) they have to multiply as many as possible within thirteen days

　　D) they have to complete their life cycle within a short span of time permitted by the environment

　　23.The passage mainly deals with_____.

　　A) the life span of the Mojave shrimps

　　B) the survival of desert shrimps

　　C) the importance of water to life

　　D) life in the Mojave Desert

　　24.The word dormant(Para.4，Line 3)most probably means______.

　　A) inactive

　　B) strong

　　C) alert

　　D) soft

　　25.It may be inferred from the passage that______.

　　A) appearance and size are most important for life to survive in the desert

　　B) a species must be able to multiply quickly in order to survive

　　C) for some species one life cycle in a year is enough to survive the desert drought

　　D) some species develop a unique life pattern to survive in extremely harsh conditions

　　答案：Passage 1 CCCAB

　　Passage 2 BDACB

　　Passage 3 CDBAD