2015年12月英语四级仔细阅读真题及答案
第一篇
Could youreproduce Silicon Valley elsewhere, or is there something unique about it?
It wouldn’t besurprising if it were hard to reproduce in other countries, because youcouldn’t reproduce it in most of the US either. What does it take to make aSilicon Valley?
It’s the rightpeople. If you could get the right ten thousand people to move from SiliconValley to Buffalo, Buffalo would become Silicon Valley.
You only needtwo kinds of people to create a technology hub (中心):rich people and nerds (痴迷科研的人).
Observationbears this out. Within the US, towns have become startup hubs if and only ifthey have both rich people and nerds. Few startups happen in Miami, forexample, because although it’s full of rich people, it has few nerds. It’s notthe kind of place nerds like.
WhereasPittsburg has the opposite problem: plenty of nerds, but no rich people. Thetop US Computer Science departments are said to be MIT, Stanford, Berkeley, andCarnegie-Mellon. MIT yielded Route 128. Stanford and Berkeley yielded SiliconValley. But what did Carnegie-Mellon yield in Pittsburgh? And whathappened in Ithaca, home of Cornell University, which is also high on the list.
I grew up inPittsburgh and went to college at Cornell, so I can answer for both. Theweather is terrible, particularly in winter, and there’s no interesting oldcity to make up for it, as there is in Boston. Rich people don’t want to livein Pittsburgh or Ithaca. So while there are plenty of hackers (电脑迷)who could start startups, there’s no one to invest in them.
Do you reallyneed the rich people? Wouldn’t it work to have the government invest the nerds?No, it would not. Startup investors are a distinct type of rich people. Theytend to have a lot of experience themselves in the technology business. Thishelps them pick the right startups, and means they can supply advice andconnections as well as money. And the fact that they have a personal stake inthe outcome makes them really pay attention.
56. What do welearn about Silicon Valley from the passage?
A) Its success is hard to copy any where else.
B) It is the biggest technology hub in the US.
C) Its fame in high technology is incomparable.
D) It leads the world in information technology.
57. What makesMiami unfit to produce a Silicon Valley?
A) Lack of incentive for investments.
B) Lack of the right kind of talents.
C) Lack of government support.
D) Lack of famous universities.
58. In that wayis Carnegie-Mellon different from Stanford, Berkeley and MIT?
A) Its location is not as attractive to rich people
B) Its science department are not nearly as good
C) It does not produce computer hackers and nerds
D) It does not pay much attention to business startups
59. What doesthe author imply about Boston?
A) It has pleasant weather all year round.
B) It produces wealth as well as high-tech
C) It is not likely to attract lots of investor and nerds.
D) It is an old city with many sites of historical interest.
60. What doesthe author say about startup investors?
A) They are especially wise in making investments.
B) They have good connections in the government.
C) They can do more than providing money.
D) They are enough to invest in nerds.
参考答案：
56. A
此题难度不大，根据题干中的“Silicon Valley”可定位第一段，第一段尾句“is there something unique about it?”直接把答案引向第二段。精读第二段“it wouldn’t be surprising if it were hard to reproduce in othercountries”，可知该句与A选项“Its success is hard to copy anywhere else.”为同义替换关系，故选A，其他三项均为无中生有。
57. B
此题难度不大，根据题干中“Miami”可定位至原文第五段，该段表明迈阿密只有有钱人，而缺少“痴迷于技术的人”，所以无法成为科技中心，该含义对应B选项，为统一替换关系，选项中的“the right kind oftalents”替换了原文的“nerds”。
58. A
此题难度不高，根据题干中的“Carnegie-Mellon”和“Stanford”，“Berkeley”，“MIT”容易定位到原文第六段，第六段段位抛出问题，所以顺势往第七段找答案。第七段中详细描述了卡内基梅隆大学所在的匹兹堡的不同之处：“The weather is terrible”，“rich people don’t want to live in Pittsburgh or Ithaca”，这些信息都指向了A选项，为高度概括关系。
59. D
该题难度较高，根据题干中的“Boston”可定位至原文的第七段。原文提到Boston的句子为“as there is in Boston”，as在这里表对比，意为“波士顿却有”，那么前文一定指出了匹兹堡没有某物，所以关键句在于具体是什么，故往前文查找，发现前文提到的是“and there’s no interesting old city to make up for it”，意思是匹兹堡不仅天气恶劣，而且也没有有趣的老城区，但是波士顿却与之相反，固选择D，表示“波士顿有着很多历史古迹”。
60. C
本题难度不高，根据核心名词概念“startup investors”可定位到原文最后一段，原文清晰地表述了，startup investors不仅能够提供资金帮助，还能提供很多建议，所以C选项“他们不仅能提供资金”是最好的.答案，和原文关系为高度概括。
第二篇
It’s nice to have people of like mindaround. Agreeable people boost your confidence and allow you to relax and feelcomfortable. Unfortunately, that comfort can hinder the very learning that canexpand your company and your career.
It’s nice to have people agree, but youneed conflicting perspectives to dig out the truth. If everyone around you hassimilar views, your work will suffer from confirmation bias. (偏颇)
Take a look at your own network. Do youcontacts share your point of view on most subjects? It yes, it’s time to shakethings up. As a leader, it can be challenging to create an environment in whichpeople will freely disagree and argue, but as the saying goes: Fromconfrontation comes brilliance.
It’s not easy for most people to activelyseek conflict. Many spend their lives trying to avoid arguments. There’s noneed to go out and find people you hate, but you need to do someself-assessment to determine where you have become stale in your thinking. Youmay need to start by encouraging your current network to help you identify yourblind spots.
Passionate, energetic debate does notrequire anger and hard feelings to be effective. But it does require moralstrength. Once you have worthing opponents, set some ground rules so everyoneunderstands responsibilities and boundaries. The objective of this debatinggame is not to win but to get to the truth that will allow you to move faster,and better.
Fierce debating can hurt feelings,particularly when strong personalities are involved. Make sure your check inwith your opponents so that they are not carrying the emotion of the battlesbeyond the battlefield. Break the tension with smiles and humor to reinforcethe idea that this is friendly discourse and that all are working toward acommon goal.
Reword all those involved in the debatesufficiently when the goals are reached. Let your sparring partners (拳击陪练) know how much you appreciate their contribution. The more theyfeel appreciated, the more they’ll be willing to get into the ring next time.
61.What happens when you have like-mindedpeople around you all the while?
A) It will help your companyexpand more rapidly.
B) It will be create a harmoniousworking atmosphere.
C) It may prevent your businessand career from advancing.
D) It may make you fell uncertainabout your own decision.
62.What does the author suggest leaders do?
A) Avoid arguments with businesspartners.
B) Encourage people to disagreeand argue.
C) Build a wide and strongbusiness network.
D) Seek advice from their worthycompetitors.
63.What is the purpose of holding a debate?
A) To find out the truth about anissue.
B) To build up people’s moralstrength.
C) To remove misunderstandings.
D) To look for worthy opponents.
64.What advice does the author give topeople engaged in a fierce debate?
A) They listen carefully to theiropponents’ views.
B) They slow due respect for eachother’s beliefs.
C) They present their viewsclearly and explicitly.
D) They take care not to hurt eachother’s feelings.
65.How should we treat our rivals after asuccessful debate?
A) Try to make peace with them.
B) Try to make up the differences.
C) Invite them to the ring nexttime.
D) Acknowledge their contribution.
参考答案：
61. C
该题难度不大，根据“like-minded people”定位到首段，首段指出这类人可以给人信息并令人感到舒服，后面用“unfortunately”表转折，后面的表述“这种舒服会让你意识不到你可以扩大你的公司和事业”，对应C选项，同义替换。
62. B
本题不难。根据核心名词“leaders”定位到第三段，作者给leader的建议是“虽然建立一个自由言论的环境不容易，但是俗话说灵感从争论中迸发”，意思是领导者需要建立这样能的环境，固选择B项，高度概括。
63. A
本题难度不大。根据关键信息“purpose of holding adebate”定位到原文倒数第三段，原文“objective”对应“purpose”，后面跟的即为答案：“isnot to win but to get the truth that will allow you to move faster, farther,and better.”，对应A选项。
64. D
该题难度较大。根据关键信息“fierce debate”定位到原文倒数第二段，原文给出观点“用微笑和幽默表明这是一个友好的讨论，大家的目标都是一样的”，对应D选项，该题强干扰项为B，B选项中的“respect”容易让同学们产生好感从而错选B，而实际上B选项错在“other’s beliefs”上，原文并没有提到尊重他人的信念和观点，属于无中生有。
65. D
根据题干“rival”对应到最后一段的“sparring partners”，原文给出“让他们知道对他们的付出你很感激”，对应D选项“肯定他们的付出”，为同义替换关系。