Text 1

    It is frequently assumed that the mechanization of work has a revolutionary effect on the lives of the people who operate the new machines and on the society into which the machines have been introduced. For example, it has been suggested that the employment of women in industry took them out of the household, their traditional sphere, and fundamentally altered their position in society. In the nineteenth century, when women began to enter factories, Jules Simon, a French politician, warned that by doing so, women would give up their femininity. Friedrich Engels, however, predicted that women would be liberated from the “social, legal, and economic subordination” of the family by technological developments that made possible the recruitment of “the whole female sex… into public industry.” Observers thus differed concerning the social desirability of mechanization’s effects, but they agreed that it would transform women’s lives.

    Historians, particularly those investigating the history of women, now seriously question this assumption of transforming power. They conclude that such dramatic technological innovations as the spinning jenny, the sewing machine, the typewriter, and the vacuum cleaner have not resulted in equally dramatic changes in women’s economic position or in the prevailing evaluation of women’s work. The employment of young women in textile mills during the Industrial Revolution was largely an extension of an older pattern of employment of young, single women as domestics. It was not the change in office technology, but rather the separation of secretarial work, previously seen as an apprenticeship for beginning managers, from administrative work that in the 1880’s created a new class of “dead-end” jobs, thenceforth considered“women’s work”. The increase in the numbers of married women employed outside the home in the twentieth century had less to do with the mechanization of housework and an increase in leisure time for these women than it did with their own economic necessity and with high marriage rates that shrank the available pool of single women workers, previously, in many cases, the only women employers would hire.

    Women’s work has changed considerably in the past 200 years, moving from the household to the office or the factory, and later becoming mostly white-collar instead of blue-collar work. Fundamentally, however, the conditions under which women work have changed little since before the industrial revolution: the segregation of occupations by sex, lower pay for women as a group, jobs that require relatively low levels of skill and offer women little opportunity for advancement all persist, while women’s household labor remains demanding. Recent historical investigation has led to a major revision of the notion that technology is always inherently revolutionary in its effects on society. Mechanization may even have slowed any change in the traditional position of women both in the labor market and in the home. (461 words)

    Notes: femininity 女子氣質(zhì)。subordination 從屬地位。recruitment招慕。 spinning jenny 紡紗機(jī)。domestic 傭人。apprenticeship 學(xué)徒期。dead-end 沒有出息的。segregation 分離，隔離。advancement晉升。demanding adj. 花功夫的，要付出巨大精力的。

    1. The main idea of the text is that mechanization _____________.

    A. does not perform an inherently revolutionary function

    B. revolutionizes the traditional values of a society

    C. has caused the nature of women’s work to change

    D. creates whole new classes of jobs that did not exist previously

    2. In relation to those historians who study the history of women, the author most probably believes that _____________.

    A. they provide a valuable insight into the social phenomena affecting the position of women

    B. their work can only be used cautiously by scholars in historical studies

    C. they tend to draw less reliable conclusions than do other historians

    D. their work has not had an impact on other historians’ current assumptions

    3. The text states that, before the twentieth century, many employers ____________.

    A. employed women only in traditional household work B. tended to employ single rather than married women

    C. resisted changing women’s roles in their social life D. hired only qualified women to fill the open positions

    4. According to the author, which of the following may indicate a fundamental alteration in working women’s conditions?

    A. The majority of women occupy white-collar positions.

    B. Married men are doing the same household tasks as are women.

    C. Female workers outnumber male ones in a new class of jobs.

    D. Working women’s pay is as high as that of working men.

    5. The function of the concluding sentence of the text is that _____________.

    A. it sums up the general points concerning the mechanization of work made in the text

    B. it draws a conclusion which goes beyond the evidence presented in the text as a whole

    C. it restates the point concerning technology made in the sentence immediately preceding it

    D. it suggests a compromise between two seemingly contradictory views stated in the text

    Word Study

    1. subordinate vt. 使屈從于：1) She constantly subordinated her own wishes to the children’s welfare. (她總是使自己的愿望屈從于孩子們的康樂。) 2) He subordinated his personal needs to his political interests. (他使他的個(gè)人需要屈從于他的政治利益。)

    subordinate adj. 地位較低的，從屬于：1) In the army a captain is subordinate to a major. (在軍隊(duì)中大尉比少校地位低。)2)This is our main aim: all the other aims are subordinate to the main problem. (這是我們的主要目標(biāo)，所有其他目標(biāo)都從屬于這個(gè)主要問題。)

    subordinate n. 下屬：1) He treated his subordinates like slaves. (他對(duì)待他的下屬就像對(duì)待奴隸一樣。) 2) The surgeon asked his subordinates to make notes on the patient’s medical history. (外科醫(yī)生要他的下屬記錄病人的病歷。)

    subordination n. 從屬，從屬地位：economic subordination經(jīng)濟(jì)上的從屬地位。

    2. subscribe vt. 捐贈(zèng)，認(rèn)購(gòu)；簽（名）：1) Two local businessmen have subscribed large sums to the rebuilding fund. (兩位當(dāng)?shù)厣倘艘褳橹亟ɑ�金捐�?zèng)大筆款項(xiàng)。) 2) Each member subscribed ten dollars for the charity. (每個(gè)會(huì)員給慈善機(jī)構(gòu)捐10美元。) 3) They subscribed their names to the protest about low wages. (他們簽名抗議低工資。)

    用于成語：subscribe to 捐款；訂閱；贊同，支持：1) We all subscribed to the football club. (我們都給足球俱樂部捐款。) 2) He subscribed to a number of journals concerned with his subject. (他訂閱了若干本與他的課題有關(guān)的期刊。) 3) I don’t subscribe to the idea that money brings happiness. (我不贊同金錢帶來幸福的觀念。)

    同根詞：subscriber n. 訂戶，用戶。subscription n. 捐贈(zèng)，訂費(fèi)：We paid our subscription yearly.

    3. submit vt. 提交；聽從，順從；投降，屈服；聲明（法律用語）：1) You must submit your request to the committee.（你必須把你的請(qǐng)求提交給委員會(huì)。） 2) The old woman refused to submit to surgery. (這位老太太不肯做外科手術(shù)。) 3) After being defeated they submitted to the enemy. (被打敗以后他們向敵人投降了。) 4) I submit that the witness is lying. (我聲明，證人在撒謊。)

    同根詞：submission n. 交上；屈服；順從，投降，看法（法律用語）。submissive adj. 順從的：Maria is not a submissive wife. submissiveness n. 順從性。

    4. assume, consume, presume, resume的詞義與用法區(qū)別：

    assume vt. 認(rèn)為，假定；裝出…樣子；開始擔(dān)任，承擔(dān)（職務(wù)、任務(wù)等）：1) We assumed that you understood the situation. (我們認(rèn)為，你了解形勢(shì)。) 2) He assumed a well-informed manner but in fact he knows very little. (他裝出一副見多識(shí)廣的樣子，而實(shí)際上他知之甚少。) 3）You will assume your new duties tomorrow. (你明天將開始擔(dān)任新的任務(wù)。) 4）The prince assumed power when he was only fifteen. (王子掌權(quán)時(shí)只有15歲。)

    同根詞：assumption假定，設(shè)想；擔(dān)任（職務(wù)）；裝出…樣子：1) His assumption proved to be wrong. (他的假定證明是錯(cuò)誤的。) 2) His assumption of power is not liked by many. （許多人并不喜歡他掌權(quán)。） 3) He appeared with an assumption of authority. (他帶著一副權(quán)威的樣子出現(xiàn)。) assumed adj. 假裝的，假的：He lived under an assumed name. (他使用假名活著。)

    consume vt. 消費(fèi)，吃掉；燒掉：1)An automobile consumes gasoline. (汽車消費(fèi)汽油。) 2) This is time-consuming work. 3) Fire consumed the whole house. (火把房子燒了。)

    用于成語：be consumed with 充滿某種感情：He was consumed with envy. (他充滿妒忌心。)

    同根詞：consumer 消費(fèi)者，用戶。consumption n. 消耗；消耗量。

    presume vt. 揣想，認(rèn)為，估計(jì)；竟敢冒昧（做某事）：1) I presume that you will be at the meeting. 2) She presumed to write to him in his daughter’s name. (她竟敢冒昧地以他女兒的名字給他寫信。) 3) I won’t presume to disturb you.（我不敢冒昧地打擾你。）

    同根詞：presumption n. 假定；大膽，冒昧，放肆：1) As his mouth was sticky, the presumption was that he had eaten the cake.(由于他的嘴發(fā)粘，可以假定，他剛把這個(gè)蛋糕吃了。) 2) It took a great deal of presumption to insult the ambassador at his own party. (在他自己的聚會(huì)上污辱大使是要有很大膽量的。)

    presumptuous adj. 大膽的，傲慢的：It was presumptuous for the young senator to challenge the leadership so soon. (這位年輕參議員那么快就向領(lǐng)導(dǎo)挑戰(zhàn)是十分大膽的。) presumably 大概，或許：Presumably there’s a good reason for her absence, as she doesn’t usually stay away from work. (很可能她有充分理由缺席，因?yàn)樗�通常不在工作的地方�? presumptive a. 假定的，依據(jù)推定的。

    resume vt. （停頓以后）繼續(xù)（進(jìn)行某項(xiàng)活動(dòng)）vt. vi. 1) Directly after, they resumed their journey. (接著，他們又繼續(xù)他們的行程。) 2) We’ll stop now and resume working at 2 o’clock. (我們現(xiàn)在停下來，二點(diǎn)繼續(xù)開始工作。)

    同根詞：resumption 重新開始：We all hate the resumption of work after a holiday. resume n. 簡(jiǎn)歷。

    Text 2

    American federalism has been described as a neat mechanical theory. The national government was said to be sovereign in certain areas of governmental concern, such as the regulation of interstate commerce. State governments were said to be sovereign in certain other areas, such as regulation of intrastate commerce and exercise of the police power. One writer has described this as the 'layer cake' concept of American federalism. In the top layer are neatly compacted all the powers of the national government; in the bottom layer are found the separate and distinct functions and powers of state governments.

    How nice it would be if the American federal system could be so easily and conveniently analyzed. But Professor Martin Grodzings of the University of Chicago has gone on to describe federalism in practice as more like a marble cake, with an intermingling of functions, than like a layer cake, with functions separate and distinct. This intermingling can be seen best, perhaps, by examining the example of railroad traffic. If it crosses a state line, it constitutes interstate commerce, coming under control of the national government. Rail shipments originating and ending within a single state constitute intrastate commerce, thus --the theory tells us -- falling under regulation of state government. However, both the interstate and intrastate shipments may have moved over the same rails. In this simple example, one might easily read the urgent necessity for close cooperation between state and national governments. This need has not gone unrecognized by administrators of governmental programs at the state, local, and national levels.

    Nonetheless, national and state interests often conflict in the political arena. Pressures may be brought to bear on state legislators which differ from those felt by members of the national Congress. Disagreement over the proper division of powers between states and the national government often lies beneath a conflict of interests. But no 'best' formula has been discovered for drawing a dividing line between state powers and national powers.

    The men who wrote the United States Constitution did the best they could in the face of circumstances which confronted them at the time. The state-national power dispute has raged persistently ever since. What are "states' rights"? It is obvious that, throughout the United States' history, "states' rights" has risen repeatedly as the anguished wail of any interest which felt it was being treated unsympathetically at a given moment by the national government. The source of the cry would seem to depend on whose ox is being gored. (418 words)

    Notes: federalism 聯(lián)邦制度；sovereign adj. 擁有主權(quán)的；至高無尚的；bear on… 影響…；legislators 立法委員；anguished wail痛苦的哀鳴；gore vt. 用角頂。

    1. Federalism could best be described as ____________.

    A. a system that reconciles central government with states’ ones

    B. a system that provides for continuous checks on federal authority

    C. a system in which the state and federal governments have distinct functions

    D. dividing the powers of the federal government into three distinct branches of government

    2. The author implies in the second paragraph that modern federalism _________.

    A. has a new way to limit the states' powers

    B. has not recognized the legal demand for states' rights

    C. is best explained as a system with diffused functions

    D. can be classified as a distinct two-tier(層) system of government control

    3. In the author's point of view, the basic problem in establishing clear guidelines related to interstate commerce would be that __________.

    A. as the power of the federal government increases, the power of the states decreases

    B. the rapid growth of transportation networks has undermined federal authority

    C. federal authorities have abused their constitutional power to regulate commerce

    D. state and national governments have not effectively cooperated in defining their areas of control

    4. According to the text, since there is no clear-cut formula for dividing state and national powers, _________.

    A. the role of the state has not been significantly altered

    B. conflicting interests have to be resolved in the political arena

    C. interstate cooperation is primarily a thing of the past

    D. state governments delegate certain functions to the federal government

    5. A major factor weighing heavily against federal-state cooperation would be ___________.

    A. conflicting economic interests B. national railway transportation

    C. the rapid growth of state powers D. the integration of political powers

    Text 3

    [99年考題，試題重編]

    Science, in practice, depends far less on the experiments it prepares than on the preparedness of the men who watch the experiments. Sir Isaac Newton supposedly discovered gravity through the fall of an apple. Apples had been falling in many places for centuries and thousands of people had seen them fall. But Newton for years had been curious about the cause of the orbital motion of the moon and planets. What kept them in place? Why didn’t they fall out of the sky? The fact that the apple fell down toward the earth and not up into the tree answered the question he had been asking himself about those larger fruits of the heavens, the moon and planets.

    How many men would have considered the possibility of an apple falling up into the tree? Newton did because he was not trying to predict anything. He was just wondering. His mind was ready for the unpredictable. Unpredictability is part of the essential nature of research. If you don’t have unpredictable things, you don’t have research. Scientists tend to forget this when writing their cut and dried reports for the technical journals, but history is filled with examples of it.

    In talking to some scientists, particularly younger ones, you might gather the impression that they find the “scientific method” a substitute for imaginative thought. I’ve attended research conferences where a scientist has been asked what he thinks about the advisability of continuing a certain experiment. The scientist has frowned, looked at the graphs, and said “the data are still inconclusive.” “We know that,” the men from the budget office have said, “but what do you think? Is it worthwhile going on? What do you think we might expect?” The scientist has been shocked at having even been asked to speculate.

    What this amounts to, of course, is that the scientist has become the victim of his own writings. He has put forward unquestioned claims so consistently that he not only believes them himself, but has convinced industrial and business management that they are true. If experiments are planned and carried out according to plan as the reports in the science journals indicate, then it is perfectly logical for management to expect research to produce results measurable in dollars and cents. It is entirely reasonable for auditors to believe that scientists who know exactly where they are going and how they will get there should not be distracted by the necessity of keeping one eye on the cash register while the other eye is on the microscope. Nor, if regularity and conformity to a standard pattern are as desirable to the scientist as the writing of his papers would appear to reflect, is management to be blamed for discriminating against the “odd balls” among researchers in favor of more conventional thinkers who “work well with the team.” (474 words)

    注：最后一句譯文：如果科學(xué)家和他的著作似乎所反映的一樣，都渴望得到規(guī)律性和與標(biāo)準(zhǔn)模式的一致性，那么就不應(yīng)該責(zé)備管理人員歧視研究人員中的“標(biāo)新立異者”，也不能責(zé)備管理人員支持能與他們合作的循規(guī)蹈矩者。

    1. The author uses the example of Isaac Newton in the first paragraph to show that __________.

    A. science advances not so much through scientific experiments as because of inquiring minds of scientists.

    B. scientists are capable of predicting anything if entirely devoted to their research work.

    C. a scientist is certain to succeed in his research if he has unpredictable things.

    D. all scientists believe unpredictability to be the essential nature of research.

    2. By the second paragraph the author intends to render the idea that _____________.

    A. the history of science is flooded with examples of predictability in scientific research

    B. scientists should attach great significance to speculating on unpredictable things

    C. it is important for scientists to work on more elaborate reports for technical journals

    D. confidence in one’s research discoveries is essential to scientific experiments

    3. It can be inferred from the third paragraph that some young scientists _____________.

    A. are lacking in experience in dealing with unpredictable things

    B. often attend research conferences where they are asked to speculate on the future

    C. tend to replace a “scientific method” with imaginative thinking

    D. are liable to overestimate the value of “scientific method” and reluctant to speculate

    4. We can learn from the last paragraph that it often happens that _____________.

    A. scientists concentrate on their research work rather than on practical application

    B. industrial and business management expects too much to meet their needs

    C. the results of scientific research may fall short of expected commercial profits

    D. management tends to underestimate the practical value of scientific research

    5. The best title for the text may be _____________.

    A. Scientific Method and Inventive Thinking

    B. Importance of Independent Thinking in Science

    C. Readiness for Unpredictability in Scientific Research

    D. Theoretical Science and Its Experiments

    Text 4 (課外閱讀)

    In recent years, railroads have been combining with each other, merging into super-systems, causing heightened concerns about monopoly. As recently as 1995, the top four railroads accounted for under 70 percent of the total ton-miles moved by rails. Next year, after a series of mergers is completed, just four railroads will control well over 90 percent of all the freight moved by major rail carriers.

    Supporters of the new super-systems argue that these mergers will allow for substantial cost reductions and better coordinated service. Any threat of monopoly, they argue, is removed by fierce competition from trucks. But many shippers complain that for heavy commodities traveling long distances, such as coal, chemicals, and grain, trucking is too costly and the railroads therefore have them by the throat.

    The vast consolidation within the rail industry means that most shippers are served by only one rail company. Railroads typically charge such “captive” shippers 20 to 30 percent more than they do when another railroad is competing for the business. Shippers who feel they are being overcharged have the right to appeal to the federal government’s Surface Transportation Board for rate relief, but the process is expensive, time consuming, and will work only in truly extreme cases.

    Railroads justify rate discrimination against captive shippers on the grounds that in the long run it reduces everyone’s cost. If railroads charge all customers the same average rate, they argue, shippers who have the option of switching to trucks or other forms of transportation would do so, leaving remaining customers to shoulder the cost of keeping up the line. It’s a theory to which many economists subscribe, but in practice it often leaves railroads in the position of determining which companies will flourish and which will fail. “Do we really want railroads to be the arbiters of who wins and who loses in the marketplace”? asks Martin Bercovici, a Washington lawyer who frequently represents shippers.

    Many captive shippers also worry they will soon be hit with a round of huge rate increase. The railroad industry as a whole, despite its brightening fortunes, still does not earn enough to cover the cost of the capital it must invest to keep up with its surging traffic. Yet railroads continue to borrow billions to acquire one another, with Wall Street cheering them on. Consider the $10.2 billion bid by Norfolk Southern and CSX to acquire Conrail this year. Conrail’s net railway operating income in 1996 was just $427 million, less than half of the carrying costs of the transaction. Who’s going to pay for the rest of the bill? Many captive shippers fear that they will, as Norfolk Southern and CSX increase their grip on the market. (449 words)

    Notes: merge合并；acquisition收購(gòu)；allow for 考慮到；rate relief費(fèi)用補(bǔ)貼；on the grounds that因?yàn)椋籯eep up維持；subscribe to 訂購(gòu)，同意；surge洶涌；高漲；cheer on向…鼓氣，歡呼；grip v./n. 掌握，控制。

    1. According to those who support mergers, railway monopoly is unlikely because ________.

    A. cost reduction is based on competition B. services call for cross-trade coordination

    C. outside competitors will continue to exist D. shippers will have the railway by the throat

    2. What is many captive shippers’ attitude towards the consolidation in the rail industry?

    A. Indifferent. B. Supportive. C. Indignant. D. Apprehensive.

    3. It can be inferred from paragraph 3 that ________.

    A. shippers will be charged less without a rival railroad B. there will soon be only one railroad company nationwide

    C. overcharged shippers are unlikely to appeal for rate relief D. a government board ensures fair play in railway business

    4. The word “arbiters” (line 5, paragraph 4) most probably refers to those ________.

    A. who work as coordinators B. who function as judges

    C. who supervise transactions D. who determine the price

    5. According to the text, the cost increase in the rail industry is mainly caused by ________.

    A. the continuing acquisition B. the growing traffic

    C. the cheering Wall Street D. the shrinking market

    Word Study

    1. allow 允許；允許進(jìn)入；給予，讓有：1) They don’t allow smoking. 2) They didn’t allow their workers to organize. 3) He didn’t allow her into the house. 4) Allow me one minute in which to change my costume.

    allow for 把…考慮進(jìn)去：In working with this cloth, be sure to allow for shrinkage. (用這種布做衣服時(shí)，一定要考慮到縮水。)

    allow of 容許（有）：The problem allows of only one solution. (這個(gè)問題只容許有一種解決辦法。)

    同根詞： allowable 允許的：In some parks it is allowable to walk on the grass. (有的公園容許在草地上走。)

    allowance n. 1)補(bǔ)貼，津貼：He has an allowance from the government for traveling expense.2) 折扣：That store makes an allowance of 10% for cash payment. (那家商店現(xiàn)金支付打九折。)

    make allowance for 原諒，不計(jì)較：We make allowances for her rudeness because she has never been taught good manners.

    2. appeal vi. 1) 呼吁，請(qǐng)求：He appealed to his friends for support. (他向他的朋友們請(qǐng)求支持。) 2) 投合（興趣或心意），對(duì)…有吸引力: These pictures don’t appeal to me. （這些畫對(duì)我沒有吸引力。） 3) 上訴，申訴：He appealed against the judge’s decision. 4) 訴諸于：If you don’t obey me, I shall appeal to force. (如果你不服從我，我將訴諸于武力。)

    appeal n. 1) .呼吁，請(qǐng)求：His appeal was broadcast yesterday. 2) 吸引力：Films of that sort have lost their appeal for me. 3) 上訴： Not satisfied with the verdict, they decided to make an appeal. (他們不滿意這個(gè)裁決，決定上訴。)

    同根詞：appealing 吸引人的：His appealing eyes impressed me very much.

    3. on the ground(s) that (復(fù)合連詞) 因?yàn)�，原因是：Her claim was disallowed on the grounds that she had not paid her premium. (她要求賠款遭到拒絕，原因是她事先沒有交納保險(xiǎn)費(fèi)。)

    類似的復(fù)合連詞有： with the result that 因此；as long as 只要；now that 既然；for fear 唯恐，以防；in that 因?yàn)�；in case 以防，萬一；seeing that 既然，因?yàn)椋籹o that 因此，以便；in so far as 由于；on condition that 只要；for all that 盡管；admitting that 即使；even if 即使；as though 好像。

    4. acquire vt. (經(jīng)過一個(gè)過程或通過自己的努力等)培養(yǎng)出，獲得（接抽象名詞）： 1) He has acquired a set of interests. 2) She has acquired confidence. 3) She did not acquire her knowledge of English from reading alone. 4) an acquired taste 逐漸培養(yǎng)的愛好。 5) AIDS (acquired immunity deficiency syndrome) 愛滋�。ǐ@得性免疫力缺乏綜合癥）。 acquire vt. （經(jīng)過努力）得到（接具體名詞）：By the time he was twenty he had acquired a store of his own.

    acquire vt. (經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)用語) 收購(gòu): Yet railroads continue to borrow billions to acquire one another, with Wall Street cheering them on. 同根詞：acquisition n. 取得，獲得；收購(gòu)；采編（書等）。 acquisitive a. 貪得無厭的。

    III. Writing

    Directions: In this section, you are to write an essay of 160-- 200 words within 30--35 minutes. Your essay should be based on the information given below:

    現(xiàn)在許多人愿意乘飛機(jī)旅行。隨著我國(guó)民航事業(yè)的迅速發(fā)展，全國(guó)各大城市興建了許多現(xiàn)代化的機(jī)場(chǎng)。乘飛機(jī)旅行有許多長(zhǎng)處（方便、快捷、省時(shí)、舒適等); 但是，空中旅行也有許多不足之處(機(jī)票價(jià)格貴，有的旅客不適應(yīng)空中旅行，常常感到身體不適，甚至有人還擔(dān)心發(fā)生空難)。請(qǐng)你簡(jiǎn)單闡述上述兩個(gè)方面。最后請(qǐng)你說明你的看法。

    許多人愿意乘飛機(jī)旅行。這是因?yàn)榭罩新眯杏心承╅L(zhǎng)處。首先，人類創(chuàng)造的奇跡 – 飛機(jī) – 是最快捷的運(yùn)輸工具。人們從一地到另一地乘飛機(jī)旅行花時(shí)間最少。其次，空中旅行方便舒適。友好的空中小姐既熱心又體貼。她們照料旅客一直到目的地。最后，在長(zhǎng)途航班上有電影和音樂供旅客娛樂。

    常言道，“事物總是一分為二的�！笨罩新眯幸惨粯�。它也有某些短處。一方面，空中旅行費(fèi)用高。普通中國(guó)人還沒有富到足以支付價(jià)格昂貴的機(jī)票錢。因此，他們寧愿乘火車，這樣能省下許多錢。另一方面，雖然向旅客保證安全，但是在旅途中旅客仍然擔(dān)心安全，因?yàn)轱w行或多或少冒點(diǎn)風(fēng)險(xiǎn)。

    至于我的看法是，上面提到的長(zhǎng)處超過短處。如果給我挑選乘飛機(jī)還是乘火車，我肯定愿意乘飛機(jī)。對(duì)于我來說，時(shí)間就是金錢，無論做什么事，時(shí)間是我必須考慮的最重要因素。

    Many people prefer to travel by air. The reason is that air travel has some advantages. In the first place, airplane, the miracle created by man, is the fastest means of transport. It takes the least time for one to travel by air from one place to another. Secondly, traveling by air is convenient and comfortable. Friendly air hostesses are affectionate and considerate. They look after passengers all the way to their destinations. Finally, on long distance flights there are films and music for people to entertain themselves.

    As a popular saying goes, “Everything has two sides.” The same is true of air travel. It has some disadvantages, too. For one thing, air travel costs a great deal. The average Chinese are not rich enough to afford expensive air-fares. So they prefer to take trains, which save a lot of money. For another, although passengers are assured of their safety, they are still worried about it during the journey because flying always involves more or less risk.

    As far as I am concerned, the advantages mentioned above exceed the disadvantages. If I were given choice between traveling by air and by train, I would certainly prefer the former. For me, time is money and it is the most important thing I have to take into consideration whatever I do. (219 words)

    背記重點(diǎn)詞語漢英對(duì)照：1. 人類創(chuàng)造的奇跡：the miracle created by man。 2. 需要某人多少時(shí)間做某事： It takes + 多少時(shí)間 + for sb. to do sth. 3. 熱情體貼的：affectionate and considerate。 4. 一路照料乘客：look after passengers all the way。 5. 娛樂：entertain themselves。 6. 事物總是一分為二的。Everything has two sides. 7. …也一樣：The same is true of/with …。 8. 空中旅行費(fèi)用高。Air travel costs a great deal. 9. 涉及到或多或少的冒險(xiǎn)性：involve more or less risk。10. 向他們保證他們的安全：assure them of their safety。 11. 考慮：take sth. into consideration。

    Put the following sentences From Chinese into English:

    1. 電視、計(jì)算機(jī)和飛機(jī)都是人類創(chuàng)造的奇跡。

    2. 完成這項(xiàng)計(jì)劃需要我們花兩年左右。

    3. 醫(yī)生和護(hù)士們既熱情又體貼。他們?nèi)�心全意照料病人�?

    4. 我能向你保證我全力支持你的計(jì)劃。

    5. 我們必須考慮到我們前進(jìn)道路上的各種艱難險(xiǎn)阻。.

    家庭作業(yè)：1. 認(rèn)真復(fù)習(xí)閱讀材料，注意試題命題思路與解題對(duì)策。

    2. 總結(jié)考研圖畫短文寫作的基本模式：描述、分析內(nèi)含和舉例闡述。

    贈(zèng)言：成功就在于不斷地剖析自己、不斷地反省自己、不斷地否定自己、不斷地更新自己、不斷地戰(zhàn)勝自己、不斷地超越自己。這是我事業(yè)與人生的座右銘。

    Text 1

    人們常常以為，勞動(dòng)機(jī)械化會(huì)對(duì)操作新機(jī)器的人和引進(jìn)這些機(jī)器的社會(huì)產(chǎn)生革命性的影響。例如，人們認(rèn)為，在工業(yè)中雇傭婦女使婦女走出家庭，即她們傳統(tǒng)的活動(dòng)范圍，并根本上改變了她們的社會(huì)地位。19世紀(jì)，當(dāng)婦女開始進(jìn)入工廠時(shí)，法國(guó)政治家Jules Simon警告說，這樣做，婦女將失去她們的女子氣質(zhì)。然而，F(xiàn)riedrich Engels預(yù)言，技術(shù)的發(fā)展將使婦女從家庭的“社會(huì)、法律和經(jīng)濟(jì)的從屬地位”中解放出來，而且技術(shù)的發(fā)展還能招收“整個(gè)女性…進(jìn)入公共工業(yè)”。因此，觀察家有關(guān)機(jī)械化影響所產(chǎn)生的社會(huì)效果意見不一，但是他們卻一致認(rèn)為，機(jī)械化會(huì)改變婦女的生活。

    歷史學(xué)家，特別是那些研究婦女歷史的歷史學(xué)家，現(xiàn)在對(duì)機(jī)械化的這種改造力提出了嚴(yán)肅的質(zhì)疑。他們的結(jié)論是，像紡紗機(jī)、縫紉機(jī)、打字機(jī)和真空吸塵器這樣的激動(dòng)人心的技術(shù)革新并沒有產(chǎn)生婦女經(jīng)濟(jì)地位或?qū)�婦女勞動(dòng)流行的評(píng)價(jià)方面的同樣激動(dòng)人心的變化。工業(yè)革命期間紡織工廠雇傭年輕婦女基本上是舊式的雇傭年輕單身婦女做家庭傭人的延伸。并不是辦公室技術(shù)的變革，而是秘書工作，即過去被認(rèn)為是見習(xí)經(jīng)理的學(xué)徒期，與行政管理工作相分離，在19世紀(jì)80年代產(chǎn)生了一個(gè)新的“沒有出息的”工作階層，此后被認(rèn)為是“婦女的工作”。20世紀(jì)在家庭以外雇傭已婚婦女人數(shù)的增加與其說與家務(wù)勞動(dòng)機(jī)械化有關(guān)，與這些婦女閑暇時(shí)間增加有關(guān)，還不如說與婦女經(jīng)濟(jì)上的必要性及結(jié)婚率高有關(guān)。結(jié)婚率高縮小了過去在許多情況下雇主常常雇傭的單身婦女工人的來源。

    過去的200年中，婦女工作發(fā)生了相當(dāng)大的變化，從家庭進(jìn)入到辦公室或工廠，后來又變成主要是白領(lǐng)工作而不是藍(lán)領(lǐng)工作。然而，從根本上講，從工業(yè)革命到現(xiàn)在為止，婦女勞動(dòng)的狀況幾乎沒有什么變化：按性別分隔職業(yè)、婦女作為一個(gè)群體工資較低、其工作技術(shù)含量相對(duì)低、提供婦女的晉升機(jī)遇很少，所有這一切都繼續(xù)存在，而婦女的家務(wù)勞動(dòng)仍然是要付出巨大精力的。最近歷史學(xué)的研究已經(jīng)對(duì)一個(gè)觀念做出了重大的修正，這個(gè)觀念認(rèn)為，技術(shù)對(duì)社會(huì)的影響天生是革命性的。機(jī)械化可能甚至減慢了在勞務(wù)市場(chǎng)和家庭中婦女傳統(tǒng)地位的任何改變。

    Text 3

    在實(shí)踐中，科學(xué)與其說是依靠它所準(zhǔn)備的試驗(yàn)，還不如說是依靠觀察試驗(yàn)的人的有所準(zhǔn)備的頭腦。艾薩克 牛頓爵士據(jù)說是看到蘋果落下而發(fā)現(xiàn)地心引力的。在這之前，幾百年來蘋果在許多地方都在落地，并且成千上萬的人看見過蘋果落地。但是牛頓多年來一直想知道月球和行星繞軌道運(yùn)動(dòng)的原因。什么力量使它們停在原地？它們?yōu)槭裁床粡奶炜盏粝聛恚刻O果向地球落下而不是向上進(jìn)入樹叢這一事實(shí)回答了他一直對(duì)那些如月球和行星那樣更大的天體所提出的問題。

    有多少人會(huì)去考慮蘋果向上飛入樹叢的可能性？牛頓考慮了，因?yàn)樗�并不試圖去預(yù)告什么事情將發(fā)生。他就是不知道而想知道。他的頭腦時(shí)刻準(zhǔn)備去接受不能預(yù)知的事情。不可預(yù)知性是研究的本質(zhì)部分。如果你沒有不可預(yù)知的事情，那你就沒有研究�？茖W(xué)家在寫枯燥乏味的期刊論文時(shí)，往往忘記了這一點(diǎn)，但是歷史上這類事例卻是舉不勝舉。

    在和一些科學(xué)家，特別是年輕科學(xué)家談話時(shí)，你可能會(huì)得到這樣的印象：他們認(rèn)為“科學(xué)方法”可以替代富有想象力的思維。我曾出席過一些科研討論會(huì)，會(huì)上有人曾問一位科學(xué)家，他對(duì)繼續(xù)某項(xiàng)研究的可取性有何想法。這位科學(xué)家皺了一下眉頭，看了一眼曲線圖表，然后回答說，“這些數(shù)據(jù)資料仍然不能令人信服。”來自預(yù)算辦公室的人員說，“我們知道那一點(diǎn)，但是你是怎么看的呢？是不是值得繼續(xù)？你認(rèn)為我們或許可以得到什么結(jié)果？”這位科學(xué)家對(duì)要他進(jìn)行推測(cè)感到十分驚訝。

    當(dāng)然，這就等于說，這位科學(xué)家已經(jīng)成了他自己著作的犧牲品（或譯為：作繭自縛）。他一貫提出毋容置疑的斷言，因而他不僅自己相信這些斷言，而且還使工業(yè)和企業(yè)管理人員相信，這些斷言是正確的。如果嚴(yán)格按計(jì)劃、按科學(xué)期刊上的報(bào)告所示來安排和進(jìn)行試驗(yàn)，那么管理人員完全可以按邏輯推理期待這項(xiàng)研究會(huì)產(chǎn)生可以用錢來計(jì)算的成果。審計(jì)人員也完全有理由認(rèn)為，確切了解研究方向和研究目標(biāo)的科學(xué)家不需要因?yàn)橐谎鄱⒅�收款機(jī)、一眼盯著顯微鏡而分心。如果科學(xué)家和其科學(xué)論著所似乎反映的一樣都希望一切符合規(guī)律、一切符合一種標(biāo)準(zhǔn)模式，那么管理人員歧視“有奇異想法的人”并支持“能和大家合作的”循規(guī)蹈矩的人就是無可指責(zé)的了。

    Text 4

    近年來，鐵路一直相互聯(lián)合，合并為超大系統(tǒng)，因而使人們?cè)絹碓疥P(guān)注壟斷問題。早在1995年，最大的4條鐵路占了鐵路運(yùn)輸總噸英里數(shù)的不到百分子七十。明年，經(jīng)過一系列的合并，僅4條鐵路將控制主要貨運(yùn)公司全部運(yùn)輸貨物的百分之九十以上。

    新的超大系統(tǒng)的支持者論證說，這些合并將大大降低成本并改進(jìn)協(xié)調(diào)服務(wù)。他們說，壟斷產(chǎn)生的威脅已被來自公路運(yùn)輸?shù)募ち腋?jìng)爭(zhēng)所消除。但是許多發(fā)貨人抱怨說，對(duì)于長(zhǎng)途運(yùn)輸?shù)拇笞谪浳飦碚f，諸如煤、化學(xué)品和糧食，公路運(yùn)輸費(fèi)用太大，而鐵路就能運(yùn)輸這些貨物。

    鐵路業(yè)內(nèi)部的大規(guī)模合并強(qiáng)化意味著，許多發(fā)貨人將由一家鐵路公司來服務(wù)。聯(lián)營(yíng)鐵路對(duì)這樣的“跑不掉的”的發(fā)貨人所收取的運(yùn)費(fèi)比有另一條鐵路來競(jìng)爭(zhēng)這筆生意時(shí)的收費(fèi)高出百分之二十到三十。被敲了竹杠的發(fā)貨人有權(quán)向聯(lián)邦政府的陸地運(yùn)輸局申訴，以便得到費(fèi)用補(bǔ)貼，但是這一過程費(fèi)用高、耗時(shí)長(zhǎng)而且成功的把握很小。

    聯(lián)營(yíng)鐵路認(rèn)為對(duì)“跑不掉的”的發(fā)貨人實(shí)行費(fèi)用差異是正確的，因?yàn)閺拈L(zhǎng)遠(yuǎn)來看這會(huì)降低每個(gè)人的費(fèi)用。如果鐵路對(duì)所有客戶收取相同的平均費(fèi)用，他們說，那么有可能選擇汽車運(yùn)輸或其它運(yùn)輸形式的發(fā)貨人或許會(huì)跑掉，而使剩下的客戶來負(fù)擔(dān)維持線路的費(fèi)用。這是一條許多經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家都同意的理論，但是在實(shí)踐中這樣做常常使鐵路有能力來決定，哪些公司將興旺發(fā)達(dá)，哪些公司將倒閉破產(chǎn)�！拔覀兪遣皇窍Ｍ�鐵路成為市場(chǎng)中決定誰贏誰輸?shù)牟门心�？”�?jīng)常代表發(fā)貨人的一位華盛頓律師Martin Bercovici問道。

    許多跑不掉的運(yùn)貨人也著急，他們將很快受到新一輪費(fèi)用暴漲的沖擊。整個(gè)鐵路業(yè)，盡管財(cái)運(yùn)亨通，仍然賺不到足夠的錢來支付為跟上不斷增加的車輛而投入的資金費(fèi)用。然而鐵路卻不斷借貸巨款來相互收購(gòu)，而華爾街的金融巨頭在為他們鼓氣。看看Norfolk Southern公司和CSX公司今年為收購(gòu)Conrail 公司而出價(jià)$102億。Conrail公司1996年的凈鐵路運(yùn)行收入剛為$427,000,000，不到業(yè)務(wù)運(yùn)輸成本的一半。誰來支付費(fèi)用的其余部分呢？許多跑不掉的發(fā)貨人擔(dān)心，他們將承擔(dān)這部分費(fèi)用，隨著Norfolk Southern公司和CSX公司增強(qiáng)對(duì)市場(chǎng)的控制。

    幫助你學(xué)習(xí)記憶單詞的有效方法 -- 同根詞解析

    machin, mechan [希臘語] 機(jī)械，機(jī)器 *machine n. 機(jī)器

    *machinery n. [總稱] 機(jī)器，機(jī)械 vt. 用機(jī)器加工 *mechanic n. 技工，機(jī)修工

    *mechanical a. 機(jī)械的；機(jī)械學(xué)的，力學(xué)的；機(jī)械式的，刻板的；手工操作的

    *mechanically adv. 機(jī)械地 *mechanics n. 力學(xué)，機(jī)械學(xué)；技術(shù)細(xì)節(jié)，例行方法

    *mechanism n. 機(jī)械裝置；結(jié)構(gòu)，構(gòu)造；機(jī)制；手法，技巧

    man, manu, mani [拉丁語] 手，管理 *manage vt./vi. 管理，經(jīng)營(yíng)，處理；設(shè)法，對(duì)付

    *management n. 管理，經(jīng)營(yíng)；管理部門 *manager n. 經(jīng)理，管理人

    *manual a. 用手的，手工的 n. 手冊(cè)，指南 *manuscript [manu手 + cript抄寫] n. 手冊(cè)，原稿

    *manipulate [mani手 + pul(=full) 完滿 + ate熟練地使用] vt. 操縱，控制；應(yīng)付，處理

    *manner n. 方法，方式；舉止，態(tài)度；pl.禮貌，規(guī)矩

    *manifest [mani手 + fest表明] vt. 清楚表明 a. 明白的，明了的