专八：改错模拟题

模拟1

You stare at a waterfall for a minute or two, then shift your gaze to its surrounding. What you now see appears to drift upward. You __1

are board a train in a busy station when suddenly another train next __2

to your starts moving forward. __3

For a fraction of a second you feel that your train has lurched backward. These optical illusions occur because the brain is constantly matching its model of reality to signals from the body’s sensors and interpret what must be happening – that your train __4

might have moved, not the other; that downward motion is now __5

normal, so a change from it must be perceived as upward motion.

The sensors that make this magic are two kinds. __6

Each eye contains about 120 million rods, which provide somewhat blurry black and white vision. These are the windows of night vision; once adapted to the dark, they can detect a candle burnt __7

ten miles away. Colorful vision in each eye comes from six to seven __8

million structures called cones. Under ideal conditions, every cone can ―see‖ the entire rainbow spectrum of visible colors, but one type of cone is most sensitive to red, another to green, the third to __9

blue. By monitoring how many wavelength of light affects the different cones, a connected ganglion cell can determ ine its ―color‖ and relay that data. Rods and cones send their messages pulsing on __10

average 20 to 25 times per second along the optic nerve.

模拟2

The violence within a society is controlled through institutions of law. The most developed a legal system becomes, the more __1

societies takes responsibility for the discovery, control, and punishment __2

of violent acts. In most tribal societies the only means to dealing with __3

an act of violence is revenge. Each family group may have the responsibility for personal carrying out judgment and punishment __4

upon the person who did the offense. __5

But in legal systems, the responsibility for revenge becomes personalized and diffused. The society assumes the responsibility for __6

protecting individuals from violence. In cases where he cannot be __7

protected, the society is responsible for committing punishment. __8

In a state controlling legal system, individuals are removed __9

from the circle of revenge motivated by acts of violence, and the __10

state assumes responsibility for their protection.

模拟3

There are three main groups of oils: animal, vegetable and mineral.

Great numbers of animal oil come from whales, those enormous __1

creatures of the sea which are the largest remaining animals in the world. To protect the whale from the cold of the Arctic seas, nature has provided it with a thick cover of fat called blubber. When the __2

whale is killed, the blubber is stripped off and boiled down, either board the ship or on shore. It produces a great quantity of oil which __3

can be made into food for human consumption. A few other creatures yield oil, and none so much as the whale. The livers of the cod and __4

the halibut, two kinds of fish, yield nourishing oil. Both cod liver oil and halibut liver oil are given to sick children and other invalids who need certain vitamins. These oils may be bought at any chemist. Vegetable oil has been known from antiquity. __5

No household can not get on without it, for it is used in cooking. To __6

the ordinary man, one kind of oil may be as important as another.

But when the politician or the engineer refers to oil, one almost always __7

means mineral oil, the oil that drives tanks, aeroplanes and warships,motor-cars and diesel locomotives; the oil that is used to lubricate all kinds of machineries. This is the oil that has changed the life __8

of the common men. To it we owe the existence of the motor-car, __9

which has replaced the private horse-drawing carriage. __10

模拟4

Dinosaurs, saber-tooth tigers and the dodo bird are famous examples __1

of animals that have become extinct. In case of the dinosaurs, it __2

seems likely that a catastrophic event alters the global climate __3

enough to lead to their disappearance. More recent extinctions and near-extinctions－such as the blue whales, tiger, panda, and __4

North American bison—have been the direct result of human activity. By the early 1990s, species were becoming extinct at a rate of three per hour, or 27,000 every day – a figure quoted by the American biologist Edward O.Wilson of Harvard University, based on his most conservative estimates. This rate of extinctions carries with it some terrible consequences. Each plant that becomes extinct,for example, may take with it as much as 30 insects and animals __5

that depend on it for food. Habitat loss is one of the most important causes of extinction. For rising populations in many countries __6

lead to the clearing of more land, habitats such as raining forest __7

and grasslands disappear.

In the East Africa, once renowned for its wildlife, few wild animals __8

remain living outside the boundaries of national parks and game __9

reserves. In other parts of the world, coastal ecosystems are clearing __10

for development. Wetland areas are drying out as a result of water extraction to support farming and tourism. Bird species are among the worst affected by the loss of wetlands.

模拟5

Now, it is clear that the decline of a language must ultimately have political and economical causes: it is not due simply to the bad __1

influence of this or that individual writers. But an effect can become __2

a cause, reinforce the original cause and producing the same effect __3

in an intensified form, and so on indefinitely. A man may take drink __4

because he feels himself to be a failure, and then fail all the most __5

completely because he drinks. It is rather the same thing that is happening to the English language. It becomes ugly and inaccurate because our thoughts are foolish, but the sloven of our language __6

makes it easier for us to have foolish thoughts. The point is that the process is irreversible. Modern English, especially written English, __7

is full of bad habits which spread by imitation and which can beavoided if one is willing to take the necessary trouble. If one gets rid of these habits one can think more clearly, and think clearly is a __8

necessary first step towards political regeneration: so that the fight against bad English is not frivolous and is not the exclusive concerning __9

of professional writers. I will come back to this present, and I hope __10

that by that time the meaning of what I have said here will have become clearer.

模拟6

Our obsession with thinness is also fueled by health concerns.It is true that in this country we have more overweighted people __1

than ever before, and that, in many cases, being overweight correlates an increased risk of heart and blood vessel disease. __2

These diseases, therefore, may have as much to do with our __3

way of life and our high-fat diets as with excessive weight. And __4

the associate risk of cancer in the digestive system may be more __5

about a dietary problem—too much fat and a lack of fiber than a __6

weight problem.The real concern, then, is not that we weigh too much, but that we neither exercise enough or eat well. Exercise is necessary __7

for strong bones and both heart and lung health. A balanced diet

without a lot of fat can also help the body avoid many diseases.We should surely stop paying so much attention on weight. __8

Simply being thin is not enough. It is actually hazardy if those who __9

get(or already are) thin think they are automatically healthy and thus free from paying attention to their overall life-style. Thinness can be purely vainglory. __10

模拟7

To be called beautiful is thought to name something essential to women’s character and concerns.

(In contrast by men whose __1

essence is to be strong, or effective, or competent.) It does not need someone in the throes of feminist awareness to perceive that __2

the way women are taught to be involved in beauty encourages __3

narcissism, reinforces independence and immaturity. Everybody knows __4

that. For it is ―everybody‖, a whole society, which has identified __5

being feminine with caring about how one looks. Giving these __6

stereotypes, it is no wonder that beauty enjoys, at best, a rather mixed reputation.

It is not, of course, the desire to be beautiful is wrong but the __7

obligation to be. Women are taught to see their bodies in parts, and to assess each part separately. Breasts, feet, hips, waistline, neck, __8

eyes, nose, complexion, hair, and so on – each by turn is submitted __9

to an anxious scrutiny. Even if some pass the scrutiny, some will always be found wanted. Nothing less than perfection will do. __10

模拟8

The great whales are among the most fascinating creatures which __1

have ever lived on the earth, and one of them, the blue whale, is the largest. People in ancient times thought whales as fearsome __2

monsters of the ocean depths. So to hunt a whale, when one occasionally swam toward shore, he was high adventure. People __3

found the adventure was rewarding, too, for the oil and meat from one whale alone could heat and feed a village for a whole winter.Whales resemble huge fish. They were referred by the ancients as __4

―great fish,‖ and any whale beaching along the coasts of England was designated ―the King’s fish‖ because it automatically belonged to the Crown.Ever since those early times, human have felt whales a sense of __5

wonder mixed with an intense desire to capture, slaughter, and exploit. Now the slaughter has reached alarming proportions. __6

Even though some species are protected by the regulations of the International Whaling Commission and theoretically all whale hunting is regulated, but the earth's stock of whales is still being __7

depleted. In fact, some scientists worry that 100 years since now __8

there may be no whales left. If this happens, mankind will be blame for removing from the earth forever a remarkable and __9

awe-inspiring creature that always fed man's imagination and made the world a more exciting place__10

模拟9

Planning is a very important activity in our lives. It can give pleasure, even excitement, and it can cause quite severe headaches. __1

The most significant the task ahead, the more careful the planning __2

required. Getting to school or to work on time is a task requiring few __3

or no planning, it is almost routine. A month’s touring holiday abroad,or better still, getting married, is a different matter altogether. If the matter involve a church wedding, a reception, a honeymoon in Venice, __4

and returning a new home, this requires even more planning to make __5

sure that it is successful. Planning is our way of trying to ensure success and of avoiding costly failures we can not suffer. It is equally essential __6

to individual nations and families; the scale may be vary, but the degree __7

of importance does not. In the essence, a nation planning its resources __8

and needs do not differ from the familiar weekly shopping or monthly __9

household budget. Both are designed to ensure an adequate supply of essentials, and if improperly carried out, will avoid shortages, wastage __10

and over-expenditure.

模拟10

Sporting activities are essentially modified forms of hunting behavior.

Viewing biologically, the modern footballer is revealed as a member of a disguised __1

hunting pack. His killing weapon has turned into a harmless football and his prey into a goal-mouth. If his aim is inaccurate and he scores a goal, __2

enjoys the hunter’s triumph of killing his prey. __3

To understand how this transformation has taken place we must briefly look up at our ancient ancestors. They spent over a million __4

year evolving as co-operative hunters. Their very survival depended on success __5

in the hunting-field. Under this pressure their whole way of life, even if their __6

bodies, became radically changed. They became chasers, runners, jumpers, aimers, throwers and prey-killers. They co-operate as skillful male-group __7

attackers.

Then, about ten thousand years ago, when this immensely long formative __8

period of hunting for food, they became farmers. Their improved intelligence,

so vital to their old hunting life, were put to a new use—that of penning, __9

controlling and domesticating their prey. The food was there on the farms,awaiting their needs. The risks and uncertainties of farming were no longer __10

essential for survival.

模拟11

A great many cities are experiencing difficulties which are nothing new in the history of cities, except in their scale. Some cities have lost their original purpose and have not found new one. And any large or rich city is __1

going to attract poor immigrants, who flood in, filling with hopes of __2

prosperity which are then often disappointing. There are backward towns on the edge of Bombay or Brasilia, just as though there were on the edge of __3

seventeenth-century London or early nineteenth-century Paris. This is new is __4

the scale. Descriptions written by eighteenth-century travelers of the poor of Mexico City, and the enormous contrasts that was to be found there, are very __5

dissimilar to descriptions of Mexico City today—the poor can still be numbered __6

in millions.The whole monstrous growth rests on economic prosperity, but behind it lies __7

two myths; the myth of the city as a promised land, that attracts immigrants __8

from rural poverty and brings it flooding into city centers, and the myth of the __9

country as a Garden of Eden, which, a few generations late, sends them flood __10

-ing out again to the suburbs.

模拟12

What is a black hole? Well, it is difficult to answer the question, as the terms we would normally use to describe a scientific phenomenon __1

are adequate here. Astronomers and scientists think that a black hole is __2

a region of space which matter has fallen and from which nothing can __3

escape—not even light. But we can’t see a black hole. A black hole __4

exerts a strong gravitational pull and yet it has no matter. It is only space—or thus we think. How can this happen? __5

The theory is that some stars explode when their density increases to a particular point; they ―collapse‖ and sometimes a supernova occurs.

The collapse of a star may produce a ―White Dwarf‖ of a ―neutronstar‖—a star which matter is so dense that it continually shrinks by the force of __6

its own gravity. But if the star is very large, this process of shrinking may be so intense that a black hole results in. Imagine the earth reduced to the __7

size of a marble, but still having the same masses and a stronger __8

gravitational pull, and you have some ideas of the force of a black hole. __9

And no matter near the black hole is sucked in. __10