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1、1997年Passage 1 It was 3:45 in the morning when the vote was finally taken. After six months of arguing and final 16 hours of hot parliamentary debates, Australias Northern Territory became the first legal authority in the world to allow doctors to take the lives of incurably ill patients who wish to
2、 die. The measure passed by the convincing vote of 15 to 10. Almost immediately word flashed on the Internet and was picked up, half a world away, by John Hofsess, executive director of the Right to Die Society of Canada. He sent it on via the groups on line service, Death NET. Says Hofsess: “We pos
3、ted bulletins all day long, because of course this isnt just something that happened in Australia. Its world history.” The full import may take a while to sink in. The NT Rights of the Terminally III law has left physicians and citizens alike trying to deal with its moral and practical implications.
4、 Some have breathed sighs of relief, others, including churches, right to life groups and the Australian Medical Association, bitterly attacked the bill and the haste of its passage. But the tide is unlikely to turn back. In Australia where an aging population, life extending technology and changing
5、 community attitudes have all played their part other states are going to consider making a similar law to deal with euthanasia. In the US and Canada, where the right to die movement is gathering strength, observers are waiting for the dominoes to start falling. Under the new Northern Territory law,
6、 an adult patient can request death probably by a deadly injection or pill to put an end to suffering. The patient must be diagnosed as terminally ill by two doctors. After a “cooling off” period of seven days, the patient can sign a certificate of request. After 48 hours the wish for death can be m
7、et. For Lloyd Nickson, a 54 year old Darwin resident suffering from lung cancer, the NT Rights of Terminally III law means he can get on with living without the haunting fear of his suffering: a terrifying death from his breathing condition. “Im not afraid of dying from a spiritual point of view, bu
8、t what I was afraid of was how Id go, because Ive watched people die in the hospital fighting for oxygen and clawing at their masks,” he says. 1.From the second paragraph we learn that _ . A)the objection to euthanasia is slow to come in other countries B)physicians and citizens share the same view
9、on euthanasia C)changing technology is chiefly responsible for the hasty passage of the law D)it takes time to realize the significance of the laws passage 2.When the author says that observers are waiting for the dominoes to start falling, he means _. A)observers are taking a wait and see attitude
10、towards the future of euthanasia B)similar bills are likely to be passed in the US, Canada and other countries C)observers are waiting to see the result of the game of dominoes D)the effecttaking process of the passed bill may finally come to a stop 3.When Lloyd Nickson dies, he will _. A)face his d
11、eath with calm characteristic of euthanasia B)experience the suffering of a lung cancer patient C)have an intense fear of terrible suffering D)undergo a cooling off period of seven days 4.The authors attitude towards euthanasia seems to be that of _. A)opposition B)suspicion C)approval D)indifferenc
12、e Passage 2 A report consistently brought back by visitors to the US is how friendly, courteous, and helpful most Americans were to them. To be fair, this observation is also frequently made of Canada and Canadians, and should best be considered North American. There are, of course, exceptions. Smal
13、l minded officials, rude waiters, and illmannered taxi drivers are hardly unknown in the US Yet it is an observation made so frequently that it deserves comment. For a long period of time and in many parts of the country, a traveler was a welcome break in an otherwise dull existence. Dullness and lo
14、neliness were common problems of the families who generally lived distant from one another. Strangers and travelers were welcome sources of diversion, and brought news of the outside world. The harsh realities of the frontier also shaped this tradition of hospitality. Someone traveling alone, if hun
15、gry, injured, or ill, often had nowhere to turn except to the nearest cabin or settlement. It was not a matter of choice for the traveler or merely a charitable impulse on the part of the settlers. It reflected the harshness of daily life: if you didnt take in the stranger and take care of him, ther
16、e was no one else who would. And someday, remember, you might be in the same situation. Today there are many charitable organizations which specialize in helping the weary traveler. Yet, the old tradition of hospitality to strangers is still very strong in the US, especially in the smaller cities an
17、d towns away from the busy tourist trails. “I was just traveling through, got talking with this American, and pretty soon he invited me home for dinner amazing.” Such observations reported by visitors to the US are not uncommon, but are not always understood properly. The casual friendliness of many
18、 Americans should be interpreted neither as superficial nor as artificial, but as the result of a historically developed cultural tradition. As is true of any developed society, in America a complex set of cultural signals, assumptions, and conventions underlies all social interrelationships. And, o
19、f course, speaking a language does not necessarily meant that someone understands social and cultural patterns. Visitors who fail to “translate” cultural meanings properly often draw wrong conclusions. For example, when an American uses the word “friend”, the cultural implications of the word may be
20、 quite different from those it has in the visitors language and culture. It takes more than a brief encounter on a bus to distinguish between courteous convention and individual interest. Yet, being friendly is a virtue that many American value highly and expect from both neighbors and strangers. 1.
21、In the eyes of visitors from the outside world, _. A)rude taxi drivers are rarely seen in the US B)small minded officials deserve a serious comment C)Canadians are not so friendly as their neighbors D)most Americans are ready to offer help 2.It could be inferred from the last paragraph that _. A)cul
22、ture exercises an influence over social interrelationship B)courteous convention and individual interest are interrelated C)various virtues manifest themselves exclusively among friends D)social interrelationships equal the complex set of cultural conventions 3. Families in frontier settlements used
23、 to entertain strangers _. A)to improve their hard life B)in view of their long distance travel C)to add some flavor to their own daily life D)out of a charitable impulse 4.The tradition of hospitality to strangers _. A)tends to be superficial and artificial B)is generally well kept up in the United
24、 States C)is always understood properly D)was something to do with the busy tourist trailsPassage 3 Technically, any substance other than food that alters our bodily or mental functioning is a drug. Many people mistakenly believe the term drug refers only to some sort of medicine or an illegal chemi
25、cal taken by drug addicts. They dont realize that familiar substances such as alcohol and tobacco are also drugs. This is why the more neutral term substance is now used by many physicians and psychologists. The phrase “substance abuse” is often used instead of “drug abuse” to make clear that substa
26、nces such as alcohol and tobacco can be just as harmfully misused as heroin and cocaine. We live a society in which the medicinal and social use of substances (drugs) is pervasive: an aspirin to quiet a headache, some wine to be sociable, coffee to get going in the morning, a cigarette for the nerve
27、s. When do these socially acceptable and apparently constructive uses of a substance become misuses? First of all, most substances taken in excess will produce negative effects such as poisoning or intense perceptual distortions. Repeated use of a substance can also lead to physical addiction or sub
28、stance dependence. Dependence is marked first by an increased tolerance, with more and more of the substance required to produce the desired effect, and then by the appearance of unpleasant withdrawal symptoms when the substance is discontinued. Drugs (substances) that affect the central nervous sys
29、tem and alter perception, mood, and behavior are known as psychoactive substances. Psychoactive substances are commonly grouped according to whether they are stimulants, depressants, or hallucinogens. Stimulants initially speed up or activate the central nervous system, whereas depressants slow it d
30、own. Hallucinogens have their primary effect on perception, distorting and altering it in a variety of ways including producing hallucinations. These are the substances often called psychedelic (from the Greek word meaning “mindmanifesting”) because they seemed to radically alter ones state of consc
31、iousness. 1.“Substance abuse” (Line 5, Paragraph 1) is preferable to “drug abuse” in that _. A)substances can alter our bodily or mental functioning if illegally used B)“drug abuse” is only related to a limited number of drug takers C)alcohol and tobacco are as fatal as heroin and cocaine D)many sub
32、stances other than heroin or cocaine can also be poisonous 2.The word “pervasive” (Line 1, Paragraph 2) might mean _. A)widespread B)overwhelming C)piercing D)fashionable 3.Physical dependence on certain substances results from _. A)uncontrolled consumption of them over long periods of time B)exclus
33、ive use of them for social purposes C)quantitative application of them to the treatment of diseases D)careless employment of them for unpleasant symptoms 4. From the last paragraph we can infer that _. A)stimulants function positively on the mind B)hallucinogens are in themselves harmful to health C
34、)depressants are the worst type of psychoactive substances D)the three types of psychoactive substances are commonly used in groups Passage 4 No company likes to be told it is contributing to the moral decline of a nation. “Is this what you intended to accomplish with your careers?” Senator Robert D
35、ole asked Time Warner executives last week. “You have sold your souls, but must you corrupt our nation and threaten our children as well?” At Time Warner, however, such questions are simply the latest manifestation of the soul searching that has involved the company ever since the company was born i
36、n 1990. Its a selfexamination that has, at various times, involved issues of responsibility, creative freedom and the corporate bottom line. At the core of this debate is chairman Gerald Levin, 56, who took over for the late Steve Ross in 1992. On the financial front, Levin is under pressure to rais
37、e the stock price and reduce the companys mountainous debt, which will increase to 17.3 billion after two new cable deals close. He has promised to sell off some of the property and restructure the company, but investors are waiting impatiently. The flap over rap is not making life any easier for hi
38、m. Levin has consistently defended the companys rap music on the grounds of expression. In 1992, when Time Warner was under fire for releasing Ice Ts violent rap song Cop Killer, Levin described rap as a lawful expression of street culture, which deserves an outlet. “The test of any democratic socie
39、ty,” he wrote in a Wall Streel Journal column, “lies not in how well it can control expression but in whether it gives freedom of thought and expression the widest possible latitude, however disputable or irritating the results may sometimes be. We wont retreat in the face of any threats.” Levin wou
40、ld not comment on the debate last week, but there were signs that the chairman was backing off his hard line stand, at least to some extent. During the discussion of rock singing verses at last months stockholders meeting, Levin asserted that “music is not the cause of societys ills” and even cited
41、his son, a teacher in the Bronx, New York, who uses rap to communicate with students. But he talked as well about the “balanced struggle” between creative freedom and social responsibility, and he announced that the company would launch a drive to develop standards for distribution and labeling of p
42、otentially objectionable music. The 15 member Time Warner board is generally supportive of Levin and his corporate strategy. But insiders say several of them have shown their concerns in this matter. “Some of us have known for many, many years that the freedoms under the First Amendment are not tota
43、lly unlimited,” says Luce. “I think it is perhaps the case that some people associated with the company have only recently come to realize this.” 1.Senator Robert Dole criticized Time Warner for _. A)its raising of the corporate stock price B)its selfexamination of soul C)its neglect of social respo
44、nsibility D)its emphasis on creative freedom 2.According to the passage, which of the following is TRUE? A)Luce is a spokesman of Time Warner. B)Gerald Levin is liable to compromise. C)Time Warner is united as one in the face of the debate. D)Stever Ross is no longer alive 3.In face of the recent at
45、tacks on the company, the chairman _. A)stuck to a strong stand to defend freedom of expression B)softened his tone and adopted some new policy C)changed his attitude and yielded to objection D)received more support from the 15member board 4.The best title for this passage could be _. A)A Company un
46、der Fire B)A Debate on Moral Decline C)A Lawful Outlet of Street Culture D)A Form of Creative FreedomPassage 5 Much of the language used to describe monetary policy, such as “steering the economy to a soft landing” or “a touch on the brakes”, makes it sound like a precise science. Nothing could be f
47、urther from the truth. The link between interest rates and inflation is uncertain. And there are long, variable lags before policy changes have any effect on the economy. Hence the analogy that likens the conduct of monetary policy to driving a car with a blackened windscreen, a cracked rear view mi
48、rror and a faulty steering wheel. Given all these disadvantages, central bankers seem to have had much to boast about of late. Average inflation in the big seven industrial economies fell to a mere 2.3% last year, close to its lowest level in 30 years, before rising slightly to 2.5% this July. This is a long way below the double digit rates which many countries experienced in the 1970s and early 1980s. It is also less than most forecasters had predicated. In late 1994 the panel of economists which The Economist polls each month said that Americas inflation rate would average 3.5% in 1
