试点高校网络教育部分公共基础课全国统一考试大学英语A试卷 Information for the Examinees: This examination consists of THREE parts. They are: Part Ⅰ: Reading Comprehension (50 points, 60 minutes) Part Ⅱ: Vocabulary and Structure (30 points, 30 minutes) Part Ⅲ: Writing (20 points, 30 minutes) The total score for this examination is 100. The time allowed for this examination is 2 hours (120 minutes). Part Ⅰ: Reading Comprehension (50 points) Instructions: ? This part will take approximately 60 minutes. ? There are FIVE sections in this part. Mark ALL your answers by blackening the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet, e.g. [A]. Section A Questions 1- 5 are based on this section. (10 points) Directions: Read the following passage and choose the best answer from A, B, C and D. Blacken the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet. Some people would say that the Englishman’s home has become his workshop. This is partly because the ordinary Englishman is deeply interested in working with his hands and partly because he feels that he must do for himself many household jobs for which some years ago he would have asked for workers’ help. The main reason for this is a financial one: the high cost of labour has meant that builders’ and decorators’ costs have reached a level which is too high for ordinary people. So, if they wish to keep their houses looking bright and smart, they have to do some of the repairing and decorating themselves. As a result, there has grown up the “Do-It-Yourself Movement” after World War II.
The “Do-It-Yourself Movement” began with home decorating but has since spread into a much wider field. Nowadays there seem to be very few things that cannot be made by the “do-it-yourself” method. A number of magazines and handbooks exist to show just how easy it is to build anything from a coffee table to a fifteen-foot sailing boat. You follow the simple directions step by step and, before you know where you are the finished article stands before you complete in every detail.
Unfortunately, it is not always quite as simple as it sounds! Many people have found that one cannot learn a skilled worker’s job overnight. How quickly one realizes, when doing it oneself, that a job which takes the skilled man an hour or so to complete takes him five or six at least. And there is the question of tools which cost money. It is not surprising then that many people have come to realize that the money of paying the workers to do the job is, in fact, less than “do it oneself ”.
1. An Englishman’s home has become a workshop because he __________________. A. tries to work with his own hands to save some money
B. wants to have some physical training at home
C. wants to earn some money in his spare time by working at home D. has some people work for him at home at the weekend
2. The word “financial”(Para.1) has something to do with ________________. A. social position B. house repair C. decorating skills D. money
3. The “Do-It-Yourself Movement”(Para.2) is _____________________. A. an organization which helps women look for good jobs B. a group of people who help each other C. an activity many people now take part in
D. the name of a very popular magazine in Britain
4. According to the passage, which of the following is NOT true?
A. Before starting a repairing job, one must first study the methods for some time. B. Some books tell people that it is not too difficult to build a small boat. C. It needs both skills and tools to do a good job.
D. It is not as easy as some people think to make a coffee table. 5. From the passage, we can see that the writer _____________. A. likes to have the jobs done by skilled workers
B. thinks it sometimes less costly to pay for others to do the job than do it ourselves C. realizes that some people can learn a skilled worker’s job easily D. is strongly against the “Do-It-Yourself Movement”
Section B Questions 6-10 are based on this section. (10 points)
Directions: Read the following passage and choose the best answer from A, B, C and D. Blacken the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet.
Few people can resist a bargain. But bargains are not always what they seem. Some sales and bargains are good deals, but not all are. Here are some pointers to help you tell the difference between real bargains and bad deals.
Sometimes a product is on sale for “below manufacturer’s cost”. Watch out for this
kind of “bargain”. Why would anyone want to sell a product for less than it cost to make it? Before buying, you should find out why it is being sold at a loss to the manufacturer. Is it damaged? Is it out of style? Does it come with any guarantee?
Another pointer is to read price tags on sale items carefully. For example, a price tag in a store may say “regular price $ 16”. The regular price is the price of the item before the sales started and after the sale ends. The regular price is only for that store, however. In another store, the price could be lower.
A price tag may also say “ original price $ 16”. That means at one time the item sold for $16 —even as much as five years earlier! For example, the original price of pocket calculators was high when they were introduced. Now the price is much lower. Showing the original price would be misleading.
Finally, be careful how you use cents-off coupons. A coupon can save you money only if you intend to use the item. The price of an item may vary at different stores, so use the coupon at the store with the lowest price. Don’t forget to add any sales tax to the item before you figure out the “cents-off” price.
6. The purpose of the author to write this article is ____________. A. to show that there are no real bargains
B. to warn the reader that some sales are not bargains C. to sell a certain product
D. to warn the reader not to spend money on bargains 7. Which of these statements is an opinion?
