2010年6月英語六級考試閱讀理解訓練題(5)

　　The process of perceiving other people is rarely translated (to ourselves or other's) into cold, objective terms. "She was 5 feet 8 inches tall, had had fair hair, and wore a colored skirt." More often, we try to get inside the other person to pinpoint his or her attitudes, emotions, motivations, abilities, ideas and characters. Furthermore, we sometimes behave as if we can accomplish this difficult job very quickly -perhaps with a two-second glance.

　　31. The word "paradox" (Para. 1,) means "_________" .

　　A) implication

　　B) contradiction

　　C) interpretation

　　D) confusion

　　It is a curious paradox that we think of the physical sciences as "hard", the social sciences as "soft", and the biological sciences as somewhere in between, This is interpreted to mean that our knowledge of physical systems is more certain than our knowledge of biological systems, and these in turn are more certain than our knowledge of social system. In terms of our capacity to sample the relevant universes, however, and the probability that our images of these universes are at least approximately correct, one suspects that a reverse order is more reasonable. We are able to sample earth' s social systems with some degree of confidence that we have a reasonable sample of the total universe being investigated. Our knowledge of mal systems, therefore, while it is in many ways extremely inaccurate, is not likely to be seriously overturned by new discoveries. Even the folk knowledge in social systems on which ordinary life is based in earning, spending, organizing, marrying, taking part in political activities, fighting and so on, is not very dissimilar from the more sophisticated images of the social system derived from the social sciences, even though it is built upon the very imperfect samples of personal experience.

　　26. The word "liability" (Para. 1) most probably means "______".

　　A) misfortune

　　B) instability

　　C) disadvantage

　　D) burden

　　Beauty has always been regarded as something praiseworthy. Almost everyone thinks attractive people are happier and healthier, have better marriages and have more respectable occupations. Personal consultants give them better advice for finding jobs. Even judges are softer on attractive defendants. But in the executive circle, beauty can become a liability.

　　28. The phrase "function in the disservice of one another" (Para. 1) most probably means "_______".

　　A) betray each other

　　B) harm one another

　　C) help to collaborate with each other

　　D) benefit on another

　　The question of whether war is inevitable is one which has concerned many of the world's great writers. Before considering this question, it will useful to introduce some related concepts. Conflict, defined as opposition among social entities directed against one another is distinguished from competition, defined as opposition among social entities independently striving for some thing which is in inadequate supply. Competitors may not be aware of one another, while the parties to a conflict are. Conflict and vice of one another. Opposition is thus contrasted with cooperation, the process by which social entities function in the service of one another. These definitions are necessary because it is important to emphasize that competition between individuals or groups is inevitable in a world of limited resources, but conflict is not. Conflict, nevertheless, is very likely to occur, and is probably an essential and desirable element of human societies.

　　33. The word "precedent" (Line 1, Para.4) probably refers to __________.

　　A) early acts for men to follow as examples

　　B) particular places for men to occupy especially because of their importance

　　C) things that men should agree upon

　　D) men's beliefs that everything in the world has already been decided

　　In the workplace, men have long had well defined precedents and role models for achieving success. It has been otherwise for women. A good many women in the business world are uncertain about the appropriate mixture of "masculine" an d "feminine" attributes they should convey by their professional clothing. The variety of clothing alternatives to women has also been greater than that avail able for men. Male administrators tend to judge women more favorably for managerial positions when the women display less "feminine" grooming(打扮)-shorter hair, moderate use of make up, and plain tailored clothing. As one male administrator confessed, "An attractive woman is definitely going to get a longer interview, but she won't get a job."

　　29. The word "carcass"(Line 2, Para.3) most probably means"__________ ".

　　A) vegetables preserved for future use

　　B) the dead body of an animal ready to be cut into meat

　　C) expensive food that consumers can hardly afford

　　D) meat canned for future consumption

　　This means one has to feed approximately 9--10 times as much food value to the animal than one can consume from the carcass. As a system for feeding the hungry, the effects can prove disastrous. At times of crisis, grain is the food of life.

　　31. The phrase "emanate from"in Paragraph 1 most probably means "______".

　　A) thrive on

　　B) account for

　　C) originate from

　　D) descend from

　　We all have offensive breath at one time or another. In most cases, offensive breath emanates from bacteria in the mouth, although there are other more causes. Until a few years ago, the most doctors could do was to counsel patients with bad breath about oral cleanliness. Now they are finding new ways to treat the usually curable condition.