2018年全国硕士研究生入学统一考试
英语（一）试题

Section Ⅰ Use of English
Directions: Read the following text. Choose the best word(s) for each numbered blank and mark A, B, C or D on the ANSWER SHEET. (20 points)

Trust is a tricky business. On the one hand, it's a necessary condition __1__ many worthwhile things: child care, friendships, etc. On the other hand, putting your __2__, in the wrong place often carries a high __3__.

__4__, why do we trust at all? Well, because it feels good. __5__ people place their trust in an individual or an institution, their brains release oxytocin, a hormone that __6__ pleasurable feelings and triggers the herding instruct that prompts humans to __7__ with one another. Scientists have found that exposure __8__ this hormone puts us in a trusting __9__: In a Swiss study, researchers sprayed oxytocin into the noses of half the subjects; those subjects were ready to lend significantly higher amounts of money to strangers than were their __10__ who inhaled something else.

__11__ for us, we also have a sixth sense for dishonesty that may __12__ us. A Canadian study found that children as young as 14 months can differentiate __13__ a credible person and a dishonest one. Sixty toddlers were each __14__ to an adult tester holding a plastic container. The tester would ask, "What's in here?" before looking into the container, smiling, and exclaiming, "Wow!" Each subject was then invited to look __15__. Half of them found a toy; the other half __16__ the container was empty-and realized the tester had __17__ them.

Among the children who had not been tricked, the majority were __18__ to cooperate with the tester in learning a new skill, demonstrating that they trusted his leadership. __19__, only five of the 30 children paired with the "__20__" tester participated in a follow-up activity.
1. A. on B. like C. for D. from
2. A. faith B. concern C. attention D. interest
3. A. benefit B. debt C. hope D. price
4. A. Therefore B. Then C. Instead D. Again
5. A. Until B. Unless C. Although D. When
6. A. selects B. produces C. applies D. maintains
7. A. consult B. compete C. connect D. compare
8. A. at B. by C. of D. to
9. A. context B. mood C. period D. circle
10. A. counterparts B. substitutes C. colleagues D. supporters
11. A. Funny B. Lucky C. Odd D. Ironic
12. A. monitor B. protect C. surprise D. delight
13. A. between B. within C. toward D. over
14. A. transferred B. added C. introduced D. entrusted
15. A. out B. back C. around D. inside
16. A. discovered B. proved C. insisted D. remembered
17. A. betrayed B. wronged C. fooled D. mocked
18. A. forced B. willing C. hesitant D. entitled
19. A. In contrast B. As a result C. On the whole D. For instance
20. A. inflexible B. incapable C. unreliable D. unsuitable

解析：
1.【答案】[C] for
【解析】考察介词的用法。It’s a necessary condition ____ many worthwhile things (信任是一个必要条件_____许多重要事情) 此处应该是说，信任对许多重要事情来说是一个必要条件。C选项for(对...来说)符合语义，故为正确答案; A选项on(关于)语义不恰当，B选项like(像...)，D选项from(来自于)，排除。

2.【答案】[A] faith
【解析】考察语义逻辑和词义辨析。第一段为总分结构，主要讲述主题句：trust is a tricky business (信任是一个奇怪的东西)。后面是对trust的两方面说明：On the one hand, ……(一方面，信任对许多重要事情来说是必要条件)，这句话在说信任的好处。On the other hand, putting your ___ in the wrong place often carries a high ____. (另一方面，把...放在错误的地方往往会带来巨大...)，另一方面依旧在解释主题词“trust”，只有A选项faith(信任、忠诚)与trust属于近义词复现，故正确答案。

3.【答案】[D] price
【解析】考察词义辨析。On the other hand, putting your ___ in the wrong place often carries a high____. (另一方面，把...放在错误的地方往往会带来巨大...)，显然这句话在说信任不当的坏处，故A选项benefit和C选项hope排除，而B选项debt(债务)语义不当，故正确答案为[D] price(代价)。

4.【答案】[B] Then
【解析】考察逻辑关系。上段讲述的是信任的好处和信任不当的弊端。第二段段首提出问题：“_____我们为什么要信任”。只有B选项then(那么)能形成顺畅的语义和逻辑关系。A选项therefore(因此)表示结果，C选项instead(但是、然而)表示转折, D选项again(再次)表示强调，故排除。

5.【答案】[D] When
【解析】考察逻辑关系。______人们信任一个人或一个组织机构，他们的大脑会释放催产素。只有D选项when(当..时候)符合逻辑要求。A选项until(直到...)表时间，B选项unless(如果不)表条件，C选项although(尽管)表让步，均不符合语义逻辑，故排除。

6.【答案】[B] produce
【解析】动词辨析。上文指出：When people place their trust in…their brains release oxytocin, a hormone…….上文指出当人们产生信任感，大脑就会释放一种荷尔蒙，这个荷尔蒙能____令人愉悦的情绪，引发……冲动。 B. produce(产生)符合语义。A selects选择 C applies应用 D. maintains维持，根据语义可排除。

7.【答案】[C] connect
【解析】考察信息前后照应。上文讲到这种荷尔蒙能够激发一种群居本能，the herding instinct 因此选择C. connect 联系 。A. consult咨询 B. compete竞争 D. compare 比较

8.【答案】[D] to
【解析】考察名词介词搭配问题。exposure to为常用搭配，表示“显露，接触”的意思，因此选择to。

9.【答案】[B] mood
【解析】考察信息前后照应。上文提到身体会产生荷尔蒙，带来一种愉悦的情绪。实验中exposure to this hormone puts us in a trusting …，因此，根据上下文，试验中，处于这种荷尔蒙环境中，会给人带来一种信任的情绪;语气;心境;。因此选择 mood。

10.【答案】[A] counterparts
【解析】考察信息照应。上文指出，In a study, researchers sprayed oxytocin into the noses of half the subjects ,可推知本句再讲与另外一组受试者比较。故选择A。counterparts. 相对物，相对应的人。

11.【答案】[B] Lucky
【解析】考察语义逻辑关系。因为这个句子当中有个词also，说明前后文情感一致。说我们有这两种天赋，对大家来说都是好事，所以需要选择一个正向的情感色彩。只能选择lucky。A选项funny 有趣的是，C选项odd 奇怪的是，D选项ironic 讽刺的是。

12.【答案】[B] protect
【解析】考察前后逻辑和动词辨析。这个句子当中有个词also，说明前文和后文情感是并列平行关系，所以此处只能选择protect 保护我们，符合文意。A. monitor 监控, D. delight 使高兴, C 选项 surprise 使震惊。

13.【答案】[A] between
【解析】考察固定搭配。differentiate between A and B. “4个月大的孩子可以区分出一个可信的人和一个不诚实的人”。

14.【答案】[C] introduced
【解析】此处考察成分搭配。原文表达： Sixty toddlers were each______ to an adult tester holding a plastic container. 只有C选项be introduced to sb表示“引见给某人，互相认识”，符合文意。B选项added 添加;A选项transferred转移;D选项 entrusted 委托。

15.【答案】[D] inside
【解析】考察介词搭配及词义复现。原文表达：“What’s in here?” before looking into the container…… Each subject was then invited to _________. 只有B选项inside 才能和前文所表达的in here和looking into一致。

16.【答案】[A] discovered
【解析】动词辨析。根据原文Half of them found a toy; the other half ____the container was empty…前半句再讲一半的受测者在盒子里面找到了玩具，后半句肯定是再说另半会怎么样，所以16题填入的应该是found的同义词，发现的含义，故A为正确选项。B.proved 证明 C. insisted 坚持 D. remembered 记住。

17.【答案】[C] fooled
　【解析】语义辨析。前面提到另一半人发现盒子是空的，并且意识到测试者_____了他们，A fooled(戏弄)为正确选项。Betrayed 背叛，wronged 冤枉， mock嘲弄，均不符合。

18.【答案】[B] willing
【解析】 语义辨析。Among the children who had not been tricked, the majority were _____ to cooperate with the tester in learning a new skill, demonstrating that they trusted his leadership.在所有没有被戏弄过的孩子里面，大多数的孩子_____与测试者合作……。故选择B. willing，愿意。Forced 被迫，hesitant 犹豫，entitled 有资格，均不符合语义。

19.【答案】[A] In contrast
【解析】考察句间的逻辑关系。____, only five of the 30 children paired with the “20” tester participated in a follow-up activity. 通过该句中的only仅仅，可以看出与上文的 the majority of 形成鲜明的对比，空格处应该是表示转折，故D. in contrast为正确选项。As a result结果，on the whole 整体上，for instance例如。

20.【答案】[C] unreliable
【解析】词义辨析。在接下来的活动中30个孩子中只有5个孩子与______的测试者能合作，根据前后对比关系，此处应该是不信任，所以 tester的修饰词应该为C，unreliable不可靠的，不可信任的，故C为正确选项。Inflexible 顽固的 incapable无能的 unsuitable 不合适的。

Section Ⅱ Reading Comprehension
Part A
Directions: Read the following four texts. Answer the questions below each text by choosing A, B, C or D. Mark your answers on the ANSWER SHEET. (40 points)

Text 1
Among the annoying challenges facing the middle class is one that will probably go unmentioned in the next presidential campaign: What happens when the robots come for their jobs?

Don't dismiss that possibility entirely. About half of U.S. jobs are at high risk of being automated, according to a University of Oxford study, with the middle class disproportionately squeezed. Lower-income jobs like gardening or day care don't appeal to robots. But many middle-class occupations-trucking, financial advice, software engineering—have aroused their interest, or soon will. The rich own the robots, so they will be fine.

This isn't to be alarmist. Optimists point out that technological upheaval has benefited workers in the past. The Industrial Revolution didn't go so well for Luddites whose jobs were displaced by mechanized looms, but it eventually raised living standards and created more jobs than it destroyed. Likewise, automation should eventually boost productivity, stimulate demand by driving down prices, and free workers from hard, boring work. But in the medium term, middle-class workers may need a lot of help adjusting.

The first step, as Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee argue in The Second Machine Age, should be rethinking education and job training. Curriculums—from grammar school to college—should evolve to focus less on memorizing facts and more on creativity and complex communication. Vocational schools should do a better job of fostering problem-solving skills and helping students work alongside robots. Online education can supplement the traditional kind. It could make extra training and instruction affordable. Professionals trying to acquire new skills will be able to do so without going into debt.

The challenge of coping with automation underlines the need for the U.S. to revive its fading business dynamism: Starting new companies must be made easier. In previous eras of drastic technological change, entrepreneurs smoothed the transition by dreaming up ways to combine labor and machines. The best uses of 3D printers and virtual reality haven't been invented yet. The U.S. needs the new companies that will invent them.

Finally, because automation threatens to widen the gap between capital income and labor income, taxes and the safety net will have to be rethought. Taxes on low-wage labor need to be cut, and wage subsidies such as the earned income tax credit should be expanded: This would boost incomes, encourage work, reward companies for job creation, and reduce inequality.

Technology will improve society in ways big and small over the next few years, yet this will be little comfort to those who find their lives and careers upended by automation. Destroying the machines that are coming for our jobs would be nuts. But policies to help workers adapt will be indispensable.

21. Who will be most threatened by automation?
A. Leading politicians.
B. Low-wage laborers.
C. Robot owners.
D. Middle-class workers.

22. Which of the following best represent the author's view?
A. Worries about automation are in fact groundless.
B. Optimists' opinions on new tech find little support.
C. Issues arising from automation need to be tackled.
D. Negative consequences of new tech can be avoided.

23. Education in the age of automation should put more emphasis on ________.
A. creative potential
B. job-hunting skills
C. individual needs
D. cooperative spirit

24. The author suggests that tax policies be aimed at ________.
A. encouraging the development of automation
B. increasing the return on capital investment
C. easing the hostility between rich and poor
D. preventing the income gap from widening

25. In this text, the author presents a problem with ________.
A. opposing views on it
B. possible solutions to it
C. its alarming impacts
D. its major variations

解析：
21. 选D。根据第二段的About half of U.S. jobs are at high risk of being automated, according to a University of Oxford study, with the middle class disproportionately squeezed可知，中产阶级工人受到的威胁最大。

22. 选D。 根据第三段Likewise, automation should eventually boost productivity, stimulate demand by driving down prices, and free workers from hard, boring work. automation和工业革命一样最初可能会出现问题，但是最终这些问题都会被避免，从而给社会带来好处。

23. 选A。 根据第四段Curriculums —from grammar school to college- should evolve to focus less on memorizing facts and more on creativity and complex communication.
可知选A。

24. 选D. 根据第六段Finally, because automation threatens to widen the gap between capital income and labor income, taxes and the safety net will have to be rethought.可知是为了防止收入差距扩大。

25. 选B. 文中作者提出了automation的问题，然后主要围绕具体的解决方式展开。

Text 2
A new survey by Harvard University finds more than two-thirds of young Americans disapprove of President Trump's use of Twitter. The implication is that Millennials prefer news from the White House to be filtered through other source, Not a president's social media platform.

Most Americans rely on social media to check daily headlines. Yet as distrust has risen toward all media, people may be starting to beef up their media literacy skills. Such a trend is badly needed. During the 2016 presidential campaign, nearly a quarter of web content shared by Twitter users in the politically critical state of Michigan was fake news, according to the University of Oxford. And a survey conducted for BuzzFeed News found 44 percent of Facebook users rarely or never trust news from the media giant.

Young people who are digital natives are indeed becoming more skillful at separating fact from fiction in cyberspace. A Knight Foundation focus-group survey of young people between ages 14and24 found they use "distributed trust" to verify stories. They cross-check sources and prefer news from different perspectives—especially those that are open about any bias. "Many young people assume a great deal of personal responsibility for educating themselves and actively seeking out opposing viewpoints," the survey concluded.

Such active research can have another effect. A 2014 survey conducted in Australia, Britain, and the United States by the University of Wisconsin-Madison found that young people's reliance on social media led to greater political engagement.

Social media allows users to experience news events more intimately and immediately while also permitting them to re-share news as a projection of their values and interests. This forces users to be more conscious of their role in passing along information. A survey by Barna research group found the top reason given by Americans for the fake news phenomenon is "reader error," more so than made-up stories or factual mistakes in reporting. About a third say the problem of fake news lies in "misinterpretation or exaggeration of actual news" via social media. In other words, the choice to share news on social media may be the heart of the issue. "This indicates there is a real personal responsibility in counteracting this problem," says Roxanne Stone, editor in chief at Barna Group.

So when young people are critical of an over-tweeting president, they reveal a mental discipline in thinking skills—and in their choices on when to share on social media.

26. According to the Paragraphs 1 and 2, many young Americans cast doubts on ________.
A. the justification of the news-filtering practice
B. people's preference for social media platforms
C. the administration’s ability to handle information
D. social media was a reliable source of news

27. The phrase "beer up" (Line 2, Para. 2) is closest in meaning to ________.
A. sharpen
B. define
C. boast
D. share

28. According to the knight foundation survey, young people ________.
A. tend to voice their opinions in cyberspace
B. verify news by referring to diverse resources
C. have a strong sense of responsibility
D. like to exchange views on "distributed trust"

29. The Barna survey found that a main cause for the fake news problem is ________.
A. readers outdated values
B. journalists' biased reporting
C. readers' misinterpretation
D. journalists' made-up stories

30. Which of the following would be the best title for the text?
A. A Rise in Critical Skills for Sharing News Online
B. A Counteraction Against the Over-tweeting Trend
C. The Accumulation of Mutual Trust on Social Media
D. The Platforms for Projection of Personal Interests

解析：
26. 选D。根据文章第一段中的A new survey by Harvard University finds more than two-thirds of young Americans disapprove of President Trump’s use of Twitter. The implication is that Millennials prefer news from the White House to be filtered through other source 和第二段的Most Americans rely on social media to check daily headlines可知选D。

27. 选A。首先是定位到第二段中Yet as distrust has risen toward all media, people may be starting to beef up their media literacy skills.随着对所有媒体的不信任增加，人们可能开始提高媒体阅读能力。故选A。

28. 选B。定位到文章第三段的A Knight Foundation focus-group survey of young people between ages 14and24 found they use “distributed trust” to verify stories. They cross-check sources and prefer news from different perspectives—especially those that are open about any bias.可知选B。

29. 选C。定位到文章第五段A survey by Barna research group found the top reason given by Americans for the fake news phenomenon is “reader error,” more so than made-up stories or factual mistakes in reporting. About a third say the problem of fake news lies in “misinterpretation or exaggeration of actual news” via social media.可知选C。

30. 选A。根据文章第二段的一、二两句Most Americans rely on social media to check daily headlines. Yet as distrust has risen toward all media, people may be starting to beef up their media literacy skills.可知选A。

Text 3
On a five to three vote, the Supreme Court knocked out much of Arizona's immigration law Monday—a modest policy victory for the Obama Administration. But on the more important matter of the Constitution, the decision was an 8-0 defeat for the Administration's effort to upset the balance of power between the federal government and the states.

In Arizona v. United States, the majority overturned three of the four contested provisions of Arizona's controversial plan to have state and local police enforce federal immigration law. The Constitutional principles that Washington alone has the power to "establish a uniform Rule of Naturalization" and that federal laws precede state laws are noncontroversial. Arizona had attempted to fashion state policies that ran parallel to the existing federal ones.

Justice Anthony Kennedy, joined by Chief Justice John Roberts and the Court's liberals, ruled that the state flew too close to the federal sun. On the overturned provisions the majority held the congress had deliberately "occupied the field", and Arizona had thus intruded on the federal's privileged powers.

However, the Justices said that Arizona police would be allowed to verify the legal status of people who come in contact with law enforcement. That's because Congress has always envisioned joint federal-state immigration enforcement and explicitly encourages state officers to share information and cooperate with federal colleagues.

Two of the three objecting Justice—Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas—agreed with this Constitutional logic but disagreed about which Arizona rules conflicted with the federal statute. The only major objection came from Justice Antonin Scalia, who offered an even more robust defense of state privileges going back to the Alien and Sedition Acts.

The 8-0 objection to President Obama turns on what Justice Samuel Alito describes in his objection as "a shocking assertion of federal executive power". The White House argued that Arizona's laws conflicted with its enforcement priorities, even if state laws complied with federal statutes to the letter. In effect, the White House claimed that it could invalidate any otherwise legitimate state law that it disagrees with.

Some powers do belong exclusively to the federal government, and control of citizenship and the borders is among them. But if Congress wanted to prevent states from using their own resources to check immigration status, it could. It never did so. The administration was in essence asserting that because it didn't want to carry out Congress's immigration wishes, no state should be allowed to do so either. Every Justice rightly rejected this remarkable claim.

31. What is true of the agreement between the NHS and DeepMind?
A. It caused conflicts among tech giants.
B. It failed to pay due attention to patient's rights.
C. It fell short of the latter's expectations.
D. It put both sides into a dangerous situation.

32. The NHS trust responded to Denham's verdict with ______.
A. empty promises
B. tough resistance
C. necessary adjustments
D. sincere apologies

33. The author argues in Paragraph 2 that ________.
A. privacy protection must be secured at all costs
B. leaking patients' data is worse than selling it
C. making profits from patients' data is illegal
D. the value of data comes from the processing of it

34. According to the last paragraph, the real worry arising from this deal is ________.
A. the vicious rivalry among big pharmas
B. the ineffective enforcement of privacy law
C. the uncontrolled use of new software
D. the monopoly of big data by tech giants

35. The author's attitude toward the application of AI to healthcare is ______.
A. ambiguous
B. cautious
C. appreciative
D. contemptuous

解析：
31. 选B。根据题干中的“agreement between the NHS and DeepMind“定位到原文第一段最后一句”the NHS, which handed over to DeepMind……on the basis of a vague agreement which took far too little account of the patients’ rights and their expectations of privacy”. 从Which引导的定语从句可以看出agreement基本没有考虑病人的权利和隐私。Take little account of =fail to pay attention to.

32. 选C。题干问The NHS trust如何回应Denham’s verdict(裁决)。第一段末尾说了裁决，回应定位到第二段开头：the NHS has mended its way. （mend one’s way改过自新）。后面也说了进一步调整安排further arrangements，确保获得相关病人的同意，清楚不必要数据。

33. 选D。根据题干定位到第2段看作者的观点。最后一句but转折后才是真正的重点信息。it is processing and aggregation, not the mere possession of bits, that gives the data value. 这是个强调句型it is……that……，仅仅拥有这些数据是没用的，是数据的处理和聚合才让数据有了价值。

34. 选D。题干要求根据最后一段，这场交易引起的真正忧虑是……？定位到the real worry 后面的句子：It is not enough……. What matters is that they will belong to a private monopoly which developed from using public resources. 真正的问题在于这些数据最终会归属于一个利用公众资源发展起来的私人垄断公司。

35. 选 B。观点态度题。作者对人工智能应用在医疗上的态度可以从文末最后几句总结评论看出。
“we are still at the beginning of ……. A long struggle will be needed to avoid a future of digital feudalism. Ms Denham’s report is a welcome start.” （我们正处于初级阶段，为了避免出现数据垄断统治，需要长期斗争，德纳姆女士的报告是个可喜的开端。）可知作者态度是cautious谨慎的。A. ambiguous 模棱两可的C. appreciative 赞赏的D. contemptuous轻蔑的，均不符合。

Text 4
The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) continues to bleed red ink. It reported a net loss of $5.6 billion for fiscal 2016, the 10th straight year its expenses have exceeded revenue. Meanwhile, it has more than $120 billion in unfunded liabilities, mostly for employee health and retirement costs. There are many bankruptcies. Fundamentally, the USPS is in a historic squeeze between technological change that has permanently decreased demand for its bread-and-butter product, first-class mail, and a regulatory structure that denies management the flexibility to adjust its operations to the new reality.

And interest groups ranging from postal unions to greeting-card makers exert self-interested pressure on the USPS's ultimate overseer-Congress-insisting that whatever else happens to the Postal Service, aspects of the status quo they depend on get protected. This is why repeated attempts at reform legislation have failed in recent years, leaving the Postal Service unable to pay its bills except by deferring vital modernization.

Now comes word that everyone involved—Democrats, Republicans, the Postal Service, the unions and the system's heaviest users—has finally agreed on a plan to fix the system. Legislation is moving through the House that would save USPS an estimated $28.6 billion over five years, which could help pay for new vehicles, among other survival measures. Most of the money would come from a penny-per-letter permanent rate increase and from shifting postal retirees into Medicare. The latter step would largely offset the financial burden of annually pre-funding retiree health care, thus addressing a long-standing complaint by the USPS and its union.

If it clears the House, this measure would still have to get through the Senate – where someone is bound to point out that it amounts to the bare, bare minimum necessary to keep the Postal Service afloat, not comprehensive reform. There's no change to collective bargaining at the USPS, a major omission considering that personnel accounts for 80 percent of the agency's costs. Also missing is any discussion of eliminating Saturday letter delivery. That common-sense change enjoys wide public support and would save the USPS $2 billion per year. But postal special-interest groups seem to have killed it, at least in the House. The emerging consensus around the bill is a sign that legislators are getting frightened about a politically embarrassing short-term collapse at the USPS. It is not, however, a sign that they're getting serious about transforming the postal system for the 21st century.

36. The financial problem with the USPS is caused partly by ________.
A. its unbalanced budget
B. its rigid management
C. the cost for technical upgrading
D. the withdrawal of bank support

37. According to Paragraph 2, the USPS fails to modernize itself due to ________.
A. the interference from interest groups
B. the inadequate funding from Congress
C. the shrinking demand for postal service
D. the incompetence of postal unions

38. The long-standing complaint by the USPS and its unions can be addressed by ________.
A. removing its burden of retiree health care
B. making more investment in new vehicles
C. adopting a new rate-increase mechanism
D. attracting more first-class mail users

39. In the last paragraph, the author seems to view legislators with ______.
A. respect
B. tolerance
C. discontent
D. gratitude

40. Which of the following would be the best title for the text?
A. The USPS Starts to Miss Its Good Old Days
B. The Postal Service: Keep Away from My Cheese
C. The USPS: Chronic Illness Requires a Quick Cure
D. The Postal Service Needs More than a Band-Aid

解析：
36. 选B。根据Fundamentally, the USPS is in a historic squeeze between technological change that has permanently decreased demand for its bread-and-butter product, first-class mail, and a regulatory structure that denies management the flexibility to adjust its operations to the new reality可知。

37. 选A。根据第二段第一句：And interest groups ranging from postal unions to greeting-card makers exert self-interested pressure on the USPS’s ultimate overseer-Congress-insisting that whatever else happens to the Postal Service, aspects of the status quo they depend on get protected.可知。

38. 选A.根据第三段：Most of the money would come from a penny-per-letter permanent rate increase and from shifting postal retirees into Medicare. The latter step would largely offset the financial burden of annually pre-funding retiree health care, thus addressing a long-standing complaint by the USPS and its union可知。

39. 选C。根据最后一段中：The emerging consensus around the bill is a sign that legislators are getting frightened about a politically embarrassing short-term collapse at the USPS. It is not, however, a sign that they’re getting serious about transforming the postal system for the 21st century.可知作者认为他们并没有认真对待。所以此处作者态度为否定。

40. 选D。 文章的第一和第二段指出USPS出现了问题，并分析分析，第三段给出了解决方法，第四段是作者对这个方法的态度是否定的。所以选择D。

Part B
Directions: The following paragraphs are given in a wrong order. For Questions 41-45, you are required to reorganize these paragraphs into a coherent text by choosing from the list A-G and filling them into the numbered boxes. Paragraphs C and F have been correctly placed. (10 points)

[A] In December of 1869, Congress appointed a commission to select a site and prepare plans and cost estimates for a new State Department Building. The commission was also to consider possible arrangements for the War and Navy Departments. To the horror of some who expected a Greek Revival twin of the Treasury Building to be erected on the other side of the White House, the elaborate French Second Empire style design by Alfred Mullett was selected, and construction of a building to house all three departments began in June of 1871.

[B] Completed in 1875, the State Department's south wing was the first to be occupied, with its elegant four-story library (completed in 1876), Diplomatic Reception Room, and Secretary's office decorated with carved wood, Oriental rugs, and stenciled wall patterns. The Navy Department moved into the east wing in 1879, where elaborate wall and ceiling stenciling and marquetry floors decorated the office of the Secretary.

[C] The State, War, and Navy Building, as it was originally known, housed the three Executive Branch Departments most intimately associated with formulating and conducting the nation's foreign policy in the last quarter of the nineteenth century and the first quarter of the twentieth century-the period when the United States emerged as an international power. The building has housed some of the nation's most significant diplomats and politicians and has been the scene of many historic events.

[D] Many of the most celebrated national figures have participated in historical events that have taken place within the EEOB's granite walls. Theodore and Franklin D. Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Lyndon B. Johnson, Gerald Ford, and George H. W. Bush all had offices in this building before becoming president. It has housed 16 Secretaries of the Navy, 21 Secretaries of War, and 24 Secretaries of State. Winston Churchill once walked its corridors and Japanese emissaries met here with Secretary of State Cordell Hull after the bombing of Pearl Harbor.

[E] The Eisenhower Executive Office Building (EEOB) commands a unique position in both the national history and the architectural heritage of the United States. Designed by Supervising Architect of the Treasury, Alfred B. Mullett, it was built from 1871 to 1888 to house the growing staffs of the State, War, and Navy Departments, and is considered one of the best examples of French Second Empire architecture in the country.

[F] Construction took 17 years as the building slowly rose wing by wing. When the EEOB was finished, it was the largest office building in Washington, with nearly 2 miles of black and white tiled corridors. Almost all of the interior detail is of cast iron or plaster; the use of wood was minimized to insure fire safety. Eight monumental curving staircases of granite with over 4,000 individually cast bronze balusters are capped by four skylight domes and two stained glass rotundas.

[G] The history of the EEOB began long before its foundations were laid. The first executive offices were constructed between 1799 and 1820. A series of fires (including those set by the British in 1814) and overcrowded conditions led to the construction of the existing Treasury Building. In 1866, the construction of the North Wing of the Treasury Building necessitated the demolition of the State Department building.

41. E
42. G
43. A
44. B
45. D

解析：
41. [E]。E段首先介绍EEOB的全称，对全文进行概述提出话题，可选为41题答案。
42. [G]。C选项最后一句谈到了many historic events（建筑内呈现了历史事件），而G选项第一句提到了the history of the EEOB…（EEOB的历史。。。），意思一致，承上启下，故42题答案选G。
43. [A]。确定G后，根据G选项最后一句，。。。the demolition of the State Department Building（谈到拆除the State Department Building）， 而A选项中谈到了建立一个new State Department Building，前后意思承接，故43题答案选A。
44. [B]。根据给定的F段，首句提到了。。。as the building slowly rose wing by wing（该建筑分步展开）。 而B选项第一句谈到了。。。south wing was the first to be occupied（首先坐落在南翼），然后在B选项最后一句又谈到。。。moved into the east wing（之后又移至东翼）。 先在F段总起，再在B段中分说，前后对应，故44题答案选B。
45. [D]。B段结尾处谈到了where elaborate wall…decorated the office of the Secretary（这些精美的墙装饰了秘书处的办公室），而D段第一句提到了that have taken place within the EEOB’s granite walls（历史事件在这些EEOB的墙上呈现）， the wall原词复现，两句话意思一致，故45题答案选D。

Part C
Directions: Read the following text carefully and then translate the underlined segments into Chinese. Your translation should be written neatly on ANSWER SHEET 2. (10 points)

Shakespeare's lifetime was coincident with a period of extraordinary activity and achievement in the drama. (46) By the date of his birth Europe was witnessing the passing of the religious drama, and the creation of new forms under the incentive of classical tragedy and comedy. These new forms were at first mainly written by scholars and performed by amateurs, but in England, as everywhere else in western Europe, the growth of a class of professional actors was threatening to make the drama popular, whether it should be new or old, classical or medieval, literary or farcical. Court, school, organizations of amateurs, and the traveling actors were all rivals in supplying a widespread desire for dramatic entertainment; and (47) no boy who went to a grammar school could be ignorant that the drama was a form of literature which gave glory to Greece and Rome and might yet bring honor to England.

When Shakespeare was twelve years old the first public playhouse was built in London. For a time literature showed no interest in this public stage. Plays aiming at literary distinction were written for schools or court, or for the choir boys of St. Paul's and the royal chapel, who, however, gave plays in public as well as at court. (48) But the professional companies prospered in their permanent theaters, and university men with literary ambitions were quick to turn to these theaters as offering a means of livelihood. By the time that Shakespeare was twenty-five, Lyly, Peele, and Greece had made comedies that were at once popular and literary; Kyd had written a tragedy that crowded the pit; and Marlowe had brought poetry and genius to triumph on the common stage—where they had played no part since the death of Euripides. (49) A native literary drama had been created, its alliance with the public playhouse established, and at least some of its great traditions had been begun.

The development of the Elizabethan drama for the next twenty-five years is of exceptional interest to students of literary history, for in this brief period, we may trace the beginning, growth, blossoming, and decay of many kinds of plays, and of many great careers. We are amazed today at the mere number of plays produced, as well as by the number of dramatists writing at the same time for this London of two hundred thousand inhabitants. (50) To realize how great was the dramatic activity, we must remember further that hosts of plays have been lost, and that probably there is no author of note whose entire work has survived.

46. 参考译文：在他出生之前，欧洲正在经历宗教戏剧的衰退，古典悲剧和喜剧催生了新的戏剧形式。
47. 参考译文：任何一个上过文法学校的男孩都知道戏剧是一种文学形式。文学曾经给希腊和罗马带来荣耀，或许还可以给英格兰带来荣耀。
48. 参考译文：但是，专业公司的永久剧场生意蒸蒸日上，怀揣文学野心的大学生也很快投靠到这些剧院，以写剧为生。
49. 参考译文：本土的文学戏剧就此诞生，并与大众剧院结缘，少说也引生了一些了不起的传统。
50. 参考译文：要想认识当时戏剧活动的盛况，我们还需意识到大批剧本已然遗失，而且也许没有哪位知名剧作家的作品全然遗留至今。

Section Ⅲ Writing
Part A

51. Directions:
Write an email to all international experts on campus, inviting them to attend the graduation ceremony. In your email, you should include the time, place and other relevant information about the ceremony.

You should write about 100 words neatly on the ANSWER SHEET.
Do not use your own name at the end of the email. Use "Li Ming" instead. (10 points)

参考作文：
Dear professors,
I wonder if there is the possibility for you to come to my graduation at our university’s gymnasium at 7:00 pm next Saturday night.
It would be my pleasure to share the important moments with you. During the experiment, it is your generous help and constant encouragement that contributes to the success of the experiment. As I have been elected as the students’ representative, I will deliver a speech at the ceremony. I do wish you to be there to witness my growth and allow me to express my sincerest gratitude to you in person.
I would like you to attend, so please let me know your decision.
Yours faithfully,
Li Ming

Part B
52. Directions:
Write an essay of 160-200 words based on the picture below. In your essay, you should
1) Describe the picture briefly,
2) Interpret the meaning, and
3) Give your answer neatly on the ANSWER SHEET. (20 points)

参考作文：
As is vividly depicted in the picture, sitting in front of a computer is a university student pondering over which kind of course he should choose: the courses creative, informative and difficult to pass or the easy and less-work-amount ones.

The implication underlying this picture is rather thought-provoking: his confusion in fact mirrors hundreds of thousands of students’ dilemmas. Nowadays, many students in universities or colleges are not sure of what they want and where they will go in the future. As a result, they easily become anxious and helpless when choices confront them.

What should we do? In my opinion, the most important thing is having a goal. It is crucial for us college students to understand what we actually want and what kind of men we want to be. And then follow your heart. If you have the ambition to be an expert in some fields, you will naturally choose the courses that are creative, informative and progressive rather than courses oriented to students who want just to dip into it for fun or credit. Otherwise, if your focus is on honing your work skills or just feeding yourselves early and supporting your family, you can just choose whichever subject you would like to successfully graduate and then hunt for jobs or establish your own career.