We now must address two questions:

　　Firstly，where on Earth is the population problem the worst?

　　It is my opinion that the world's worst population problem is right here in the United States. This is because of our high per capita resource consumption. It has been estimated that a person added to the population of the United States will have 30 or more times the impact on world resources as will a person added to the population of an underdeveloped nation. Indeed, resource consumption in North America is roughly the same as resource consumption in the entire rest of the world.

　　Secondly，where should we apply our efforts to have the most beneficial effect in helping to solve the population problem?

　　The answer is, right here in the U.S..

　　For many people, the population problem is a problem of "those people" in distant undeveloped countries. In early 1997, many people successfully lobbied Congress to restore family planning assistance in the U.S. foreign aid programs. This was a great victory, but it treats "those people" as though they were the big problem.

　　Unchecked population growth in the Third World means depletion of water resources. It means famine. It means suffering. It pushes populations to clear rainforests. It pushes populations to go out and graze on land that cannot sustain cattle, and that leads to expansion of deserts worldwide. We all have a stake in the global environment.

　　It is so easy to blame the problem on others and to identify what other people should do to solve the problem, while we ignore our own responsibilities and avoid doing anything to reduce the population problem in the U.S.. We need to work to stop population growth in the U.S..

　　There are two sources that contribute approximately equally to population growth in the U.S.: the excess of births over deaths, and immigration. Both of these must be addressed.

　　Let's compare three aspects of efforts to stop population growth in other countries with efforts to stop population growth in the United States.

　　1) When we give family planning assistance to other countries, we are dealing with countries over which we have no legal jurisdiction and where we have little or no immediate political responsibility.

　　When we confront population growth in the United States, we are dealing with a country where we as citizens have full and complete jurisdiction, and where we have political and family responsibilities. It should be much easier to solve our problem than it is to solve other peoples' problems.

　　2) The negative effects of runaway population growth in an underdeveloped country are generally felt only in that country and in its immediate neighbors.

　　The negative effects of population growth in the U.S. are felt throughout the entire world, because of our enormous per capita consumption of resources. Indeed, one of the aims of the many free-trade agreements about which we currently hear so much, is to open up the world's resources for consumption by consumers in the U.S..

　　3) In countries receiving family planning assistance from the U.S. there will always be individuals who will claim that this assistance is a form of "genocide." They will be strengthened in this belief if we in the U.S. fail to take steps to halt our own population growth. As Tim Wirth of the U.S. Department of State has said, the best thing that we in the U.S. can do to help other countries stop their population growth, is to set an example and stop our own population growth.

　　As you think about addressing the problem of population growth in the U.S., please ponder this challenge:

　　Can you think of any problem, on any scale, from microscopic to global, whose long-term solution is in any demonstrable way, aided, assisted, or advanced, by having continued population growth at the local level, the state level, the national level, or globally?

　　So we can see that Pogo was right:

　　"We've met the enemy, and they're us!"

1．What did the author mainly talk about?
[A] The population problem in the world.
[B] The population condition in the western world.
[C] The population problem in Europe.
[D] The population problem in the U.S.

2. According to the author， which place should solve the population proplem?
[A] The US
[B] Europe
[C] Underdeveloped countries
[D] The Third World

3. What did the Congressman think about the population problem?
[A] He thought that the problem was worst in America.
[B] He thought that the problem caused many other problems in the world.
[C] He thought that the problem cannot be solved easily.
[D] He thought that the problem in the Third World was to be blamed.

4. Why are the negative effects of population growth in the U.S. felt throughout the entire world?
[A] Because people around the world are all concerned about it.
[B] Because per capita consumption of resources in America is enormous.
[C] Because the U.S. is the most powerful country in the world.
[D] Because the U.S .has great influence on other countries.

5. Which is one of the reasons for the Americans to pay attention to their population problem?
[A] Because some people always claim that the American assistance for family planning in other countries is a form of "genocide".
[B] Because there are too many migrants nowadays.
[C] Because once the population is too large, the American government will adopt unfavorable policies to limit migrants' coming to it.
[D] Because America is now facing a lot of problems.

Passage Two

　　Europe is often one of the first places people think of when racism is discussed. From the institutionalized racism, especially in colonial times, when racial beliefs-even eugenics-were not considered something wrong, to recent times where the effects of neo-Nazism is still felt. Europe is a complex area with many cultures in a relatively small area of land that has seen many conflicts throughout history. (Note that most of these conflicts have had trade and resource access at their core, but national identities have often added fuel to some of these conflicts.)

　　Racism has also been used to justify exploitation, even using "pseudo-science".

　　Debates over the origins of racism often suffer from a lack of clarity over the term. Many conflate recent forms of racism with earlier forms of ethnic and national conflict. In most cases ethnic-national conflict seems to owe to conflict over land and strategic resources. In some cases ethnicity and nationalism were harnessed to wars between great religious empires (for example, the Muslim Turks and the Catholic Austro-Hungarians). As Benedict Anderson has suggested in Imagined Communities, ethnic identity and ethno-nationalism became a source of conflict within such empires with the rise of print-capitalism.

　　In its modern form, racism evolved in tandem with European exploration and conquest of much of the rest of the world, and especially after Christopher Columbus reached the Americas. As new peoples were encountered, fought, and ultimately subdued, theories about "race" began to develop, and these helped many to justify the differences in position and treatment of people whom they categorized as belonging to different races.

　　Another possible source of racism is the misunderstanding of Charles Darwin's theories of evolution. Some took Darwin's theories to imply that since some "races" were more civilized, there must be a biological basis for the difference. At the same time they appealed to biological theories of moral and intellectual traits to justify racial oppression. There is a great deal of controversy about race and intelligence, in part because the concepts of both race and IQ are themselves controversies.

　　A short review from the Inter Press Service highlights the rise of neo-Nazism in 2000 in Europe and suggests that "far from being a fringe activity, racism, violence and neo-nationalism have become normal in some communities. The problems need to be tackled much earlier, in schools and with social programs."

　　Ethnic minorities and different cultures in one country can often be used as a scapegoat for the majority during times of economic crisis. That is one reason why Nazism became so popular.

　　In France, May 2002, the success of far right politician Le Pen in the run for leadership (though he lost out in the end) sent a huge shockwave throughout Europe, about how easy it was for far right parties to come close to getting power if there is complacency in the democratic processes and if participation is reduced.

　　In various places throughout Western Europe, in 2002, as Amnesty International highlights, there has been a rise in racist attacks and sentiments against both Arabs and Jews, in light of the increasing hostilities in the Middle East.

　　In 1997, Human Rights Watch noted that, "The U.K. has one of the highest levels of racially-motivated violence and harassment in Western Europe, and the problem is getting worse." In April 1999, London saw two bombs explode in predominantly ethnic minority areas where a Nazi group has claimed responsibility. The summer of 2001 saw many race-related riots in various parts of northern England.

　　Greece has one of the worst records in the European union for racism against ethnic minorities, according to the BBC. Anti-immigrant sentiment has long been high, especially against ethnic Albanians, who form the largest minority. Until the 1990s, the BBC notes, Greece had been an extremely homogenous society. With the fall of communism many immigrants from Eastern Europe came to Greece. Albanians especially have been targeted by a lot of racist sentiment. Some hostage taking by a few Albanians in recent years has not helped the situation.

1. What does the author mainly talk about?
[A] Racism in the world.
[B] Racism in the western world.
[C] Racism in Europe.
[D] Racism in the countries other than the western world.

2. When did the theories about race begin to develop?
[A] After "the New World" was discovered.
[B] After the USA was established.
[C] Before the First World War.
[D] During the colonial times.

3. According to the author what is the second possible source of racism?
[A] The colonial people began to be ultimately subdued.
[B] The misunderstanding of Darwinism.
[C] The development of human beings.
[D] None of the above.

4. One of the reasons that Nazism became very popular is that.
[A] ethnic minorities have small impact in the whole world
[B] various cultures cannot so-exist harmoniously
[C] ethnic minorities and different cultures are used as a scapegoat for the majority during times of economic crisis
[D] none of the above

5. Which country in the EU has the worst record for racism against ethnic minorities?
[A] The United Kingdom
[B] Greece
[C] Albania
[D] Australia

練習(xí)答案與題解：

Ⅰ Cloze

1.[B]

the answer to是固定搭配，與之相同的有the key to...。

2. [A]

說(shuō)"人口眾多"時(shí)一般用large來(lái)形容。另外，根據(jù)題意，這里只適合填人類(lèi)活動(dòng)的多而不是少。

3. [C]

affect是動(dòng)詞，意為"影響"；effect是名詞，意為"效果，影響"。

4. [D]

impact（影響）作名詞時(shí)通常作單數(shù)，搭配有impact on/upon sb/sth.。

5. [B]

be proportional (to sth.)為固定用法，意思是"與某事物（在大小，數(shù)量或程度上）相稱(chēng)的，成比例的。

6. [A]

average既可作名詞，也可作形容詞和動(dòng)詞。在此處作形容詞，意為"一般的，平均的"。

7. [B]

reduce的意思是"減少，縮��；降低"， decrease意思同樣是減小降低，但與reduce的區(qū)別在于reduce可以除了可以表示具體數(shù)量的減少外還可以表示抽象概念的減少，正如文中所說(shuō)的"減少影響"，而decrease通常指具體數(shù)量的減少。decline作動(dòng)詞講時(shí)，是下降下傾的意思，在這里不合適deduce是推論，演繹的意思，與原句意思不符。

8. [C]

根據(jù)題意此處應(yīng)填"要素，因素"。 truth意為"事實(shí)，確實(shí)，真理"；fact意思是"事實(shí)，實(shí)際，實(shí)情"； element意思是"要素，元素，成分"。 根據(jù)上下文可知，factor最恰當(dāng)。

9. [A]

continual一般指多次重復(fù)的動(dòng)作；continuous表示動(dòng)作或物體繼續(xù)不停地或不間斷地進(jìn)行下去；continued意為"繼續(xù)不停地"。

10. [B]

to the extent (of/that)是固定搭配。scale作名詞時(shí)，意為"規(guī)模，程度，范圍"。to scale的意思是"按比例"。

11. [A]

seek  to 意為"試圖，設(shè)法"；seek after/for sth的意思是"尋找，找到獲得到某事物"。

12. [D]

leave sb. with sth.為固定搭配，意為"把某物留給某人"。本句使用的是其被動(dòng)語(yǔ)態(tài)。

13.[B]。

此題中只有studying符合題意。另外，雖然research也有"研究、調(diào)查"的意思，但為不及物動(dòng)詞，其后不能跟直接賓語(yǔ)。

14. [A]

appreciation的意思是"感謝，感激，欣賞"，也有"正確評(píng)價(jià)"的意思。在此處更符合上下文意思。

15. [D]

arithmetic意思為"算數(shù)，算數(shù)的計(jì)算"；arithmetician的意思是"算數(shù)家"；arithmetically意思是算術(shù)上，該詞是副詞，詞性不對(duì)； aristocratic意為"貴族的，貴族統(tǒng)治的，有貴族氣派的"。

16. [C]

quantity的意思是"量，大小，重量"，是正確選項(xiàng)。amount作量來(lái)講時(shí)有大量的意思，quality是質(zhì)量的意思，是形近詞，但意思截然不同，注意區(qū)分，number通常作數(shù)字，個(gè)數(shù)，號(hào)碼的意思，在這里不合適。

17. [B]

只有at a rate才是正確搭配，其余均不對(duì)。

18. [A]

在這句話(huà)中，要表達(dá)增長(zhǎng)的量的多少應(yīng)用in size來(lái)搭配，size的意思是"（量度，數(shù)量或程度的）大小，多少"。

19. [C]

fixed意為"確定不變的，固定的"。其余選項(xiàng)均無(wú)法與上下文銜接。

20. [B]

此句中，doubling為動(dòng)詞的現(xiàn)在分詞形式，用作形容詞，修飾time。

Ⅱ Reading Passages

Part A

Passage One

1. [D]

文章開(kāi)篇就提出了問(wèn)題：全世界什么地方人口問(wèn)題最為嚴(yán)峻？然后作者陳述了自己的觀點(diǎn)，在他看來(lái)，美國(guó)是人口問(wèn)題最嚴(yán)重的國(guó)家，因?yàn)樵谌珖?guó)范圍內(nèi)出生率與高于死亡率，并且近幾十年來(lái)大量移民涌入美國(guó)。后文通篇都在論述作者的這一觀點(diǎn)，因此選D項(xiàng)。

2. [A]

仔細(xì)閱讀文章第四、第五段，就能理解題意，找出正確答案。

3. [D]

文章中的第六段和第七段都在講大多數(shù)人在提到人口問(wèn)題是都將其歸究于發(fā)展中和不發(fā)達(dá)的第三世界國(guó)家，就如同一位有代表性的國(guó)會(huì)議員講的話(huà)那樣，第三世界國(guó)家的人口問(wèn)題導(dǎo)致了水資源的過(guò)度消耗，饑荒，災(zāi)難等等問(wèn)題。因此D項(xiàng)為正確選項(xiàng)。

4. [B]

此題是細(xì)節(jié)題，根據(jù)文中第六段所體現(xiàn)的相關(guān)信息，就不難作出正確判斷了。

5. [A]

文章倒數(shù)第五段指出，美國(guó)在幫助其他一些國(guó)家搞人口控制、計(jì)劃生育時(shí)，總有人會(huì)說(shuō)這是美國(guó)的一種"有計(jì)劃的滅絕和屠殺"政策。因此，如果美國(guó)自己不在控制人口增長(zhǎng)的問(wèn)題上做出榜樣的話(huà)，那些認(rèn)為美國(guó)有屠殺他國(guó)人的動(dòng)機(jī)的觀點(diǎn)就會(huì)得到證實(shí)。這是美國(guó)需要注意其人口問(wèn)題的原因之一。因此選A項(xiàng)。

[疑難長(zhǎng)句翻譯與注解]

1．where should we apply our ...effect in helping to solve the population problem?

[譯文]我們應(yīng)當(dāng)從哪方面入手下功夫去尋求最有效的方法來(lái)解決人口問(wèn)題？

[注解]該句是倒裝句，譯成漢語(yǔ)時(shí)要把語(yǔ)序調(diào)整過(guò)來(lái)。

2．For many people, the...of "those people" in distant undeveloped countries.

[譯文]對(duì)于許多人來(lái)說(shuō)，人口問(wèn)題只是那些遙遠(yuǎn)的不發(fā)達(dá)國(guó)家才會(huì)面臨的問(wèn)題。

[注解]這句話(huà)是一個(gè)引子，作者的目的是用它表明錯(cuò)誤的觀念，用以引出自己的見(jiàn)解。"in distant undeveloped countries"是用來(lái)修飾"those people"的。

3．In early 1997, many people successfully ...as though they were the big problem.

[譯文]在1997年早期，很多人成功地說(shuō)服國(guó)會(huì)恢復(fù)了對(duì)外計(jì)劃生育援助計(jì)劃，這是一個(gè)巨大的勝利，但這使得"那些人"（的問(wèn)題）好像已經(jīng)是大問(wèn)題了似的。

[注解]"family planning"是計(jì)劃生育的意思。

4．It is so easy to blame the problem on others... and avoid doing anything to reduce the population problem in the U.S.

[譯文]解決問(wèn)題時(shí)只是把問(wèn)題歸罪給他人，考慮別人應(yīng)該怎樣做這很容易，但與此同時(shí)，我們忽視了我們自己的責(zé)任，沒(méi)有自己做出行動(dòng)來(lái)減少美國(guó)的人口問(wèn)題。

[注解]"blame the problem on others"這個(gè)短語(yǔ)在文中是指把問(wèn)題歸罪于別人。"ignore our own responsibilities"是指忽視我們自己的責(zé)任。

5．The negative effects of ...per capita consumption of resources.

[譯文]全世界都感受到了美國(guó)人口增長(zhǎng)所帶來(lái)的負(fù)面影響，因?yàn)槲覀兊馁Y源要按人口品均消費(fèi)量來(lái)計(jì)算。

[注解]該句話(huà)言外之意是說(shuō)美國(guó)如果人口增長(zhǎng)，那么這批增長(zhǎng)了的人口將會(huì)消耗新的自然資源。而世界自然資源則是有限的。

Passage Two

1.[C]

通讀全文，可以總結(jié)出作者主要是在討論歐洲的種族歧視問(wèn)題。第一段的第一句就給全文大意做了個(gè)總結(jié)。

2.[A]

"新世界"就是指哥倫布發(fā)現(xiàn)美洲大陸的時(shí)候所用的名字，文章中明確指出了實(shí)在這一事件之后，"種族"這一觀念開(kāi)始產(chǎn)生了。因此正確選項(xiàng)為A。

3. [B]

作者在談到種族主義的起源時(shí)說(shuō)到，另一種可能的來(lái)源是對(duì)達(dá)爾文的進(jìn)化論的誤解。解答此題注意文中細(xì)節(jié)。

4. [C]

這是一道細(xì)節(jié)題，根據(jù)原文不難看出，一個(gè)國(guó)家的少數(shù)民族和非主流文化往往被大多數(shù)人用來(lái)作為經(jīng)濟(jì)危機(jī)時(shí)期的犧牲品。因此C為正確選項(xiàng)。

5. [B]

文章最后一段指出，希臘是歐盟國(guó)家中對(duì)少數(shù)民族持有種族偏見(jiàn)最嚴(yán)重的國(guó)家之一。由此不難看出，正確選項(xiàng)應(yīng)該為B。

[疑難長(zhǎng)句翻譯與注解]

1. Europe is often one of the first places people think of when racism is discussed.

[譯文]當(dāng)討論到種族主義問(wèn)題時(shí)，歐洲通常是第一個(gè)被想到的地方。

[注解] 本文講述關(guān)于種族與沖突，開(kāi)篇第一句目的是確定文章的基調(diào)。本句雖短，但翻譯時(shí)兩處調(diào)整了語(yǔ)序值得學(xué)習(xí)，第一翻強(qiáng)調(diào)句式時(shí)有時(shí)需調(diào)整語(yǔ)序，原句為了強(qiáng)調(diào)歐洲沖突之多，將"Europe"提到了句首，但翻譯時(shí)為符合漢語(yǔ)習(xí)慣需要作出調(diào)整。第二翻被動(dòng)語(yǔ)態(tài)時(shí)往往需要調(diào)整語(yǔ)序，"racism is discussed"是被動(dòng)語(yǔ)態(tài)，盡管有時(shí)被動(dòng)語(yǔ)態(tài)需要譯出被動(dòng)的意思來(lái)但在這里就不能翻作"種族主義被討論"，要符合漢語(yǔ)習(xí)慣在這里就需要作語(yǔ)序上的調(diào)整。

2．Europe is a complex area with many ...many conflicts throughout history.

[譯文] 歐洲是一個(gè)復(fù)雜的地區(qū)，它有著許多不同的文化，但其土地面積卻相對(duì)較小，并且自古以來(lái)在這片土地上有過(guò)無(wú)數(shù)的矛盾與沖突。

[注解]"many conflicts throughout history"指的是在歷史上充滿(mǎn)著沖突。

3. Debates over the origins ...earlier forms of ethnic and national conflict.

[譯文]關(guān)于種族主義起源問(wèn)題的爭(zhēng)論經(jīng)常會(huì)面臨缺乏相關(guān)透明度的問(wèn)題。新近的很多沖突已經(jīng)成為一種包含了早期種族歧視和民族主義的混合形態(tài)產(chǎn)物。

[注解] suffer是遭受的意思，而且通常遭受的都是壞的事情。這里在翻譯的時(shí)候，沒(méi)有直譯。

4．Note that most of these conflicts have...... identities have often added fuel to some of these conflicts.

[譯文]注意到大部分此類(lèi)沖突可以追述到它們的核心原因。但種族認(rèn)同問(wèn)題經(jīng)常會(huì)給這些矛盾火上澆油。

[注解] "add fuel"是火上澆油的意思。

5．Another possible source of racism is the misunderstanding of Charles Darwin's theories of evolution.

[譯文]種族歧視的另一個(gè)可能的原因是對(duì)達(dá)爾文的進(jìn)化論的誤解。

[注解]該句中的Charles Darwin是英國(guó)博物學(xué)家，進(jìn)化論的創(chuàng)立者。racism是名詞，意思是種族主義者