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Part IV Reading Comprehension (Reading in Depth) (25 minutes)
Section A
Directions: In this section, there is a short passage with 5 questions or incomplete statements. Read the passage carefully. Then answer the questions or complete the statements in the fewest possible words on Answer Sheet 2.
Questions 47 to 51 are based on the following passage.
The bacteria that cause a common food-borne illness show low drug resistance in Australia, unlike similar strains from the United States and Europe, a study has found. Scientists behind the finding say Australia's de facto ban on certain antibiotics in poultry (家禽) and other livestock helps explain why.
In the study, researchers analyzed samples of Campylobacter jejuni (空肠弯曲杆菌) bacteria from 585 patients in five Australian states.
Scientists found that only 2 percent of the samples were resistant to ciprofloxacin (环丙沙星), one of the group of antibiotics known as fluoroquinolonones. By contrast, 18 percent of Campylobacter (弧形杆菌) samples in U.S. patients are immune to fluoroquinolonones, which have been used in the U.S. to prevent or treat respiratory (呼吸的) disease in poultry for a decade.
The study, led by Leanne Unicomb, a graduate student at Australian National University in Canberra, was published in the May issue of the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases.
"The findings add to the growing body of evidence suggestive of the problems of using fluoroquinolonones in food-producing animals," Unicomb wrote in an email.
Campylobacter is the most common food-borne disease in the U.S. and many other industrialized countries.
People can contract the pathogen (病原体) by consuming undercooked poultry or meat, raw milk, or contaminated (被污染的) water.
Symptoms include fever, vomiting, and diarrhea (腹泻). In rare cases, the disease can trigger paralysis or death.
"In most industrial countries Campylobacter is more commonly reported than Salmonella (沙门氏菌), a better-known cause of food poisoning," Unicomb said.
"The number of cases of Campylobacter has been on the rise in Australia since the early 90's."
In the U.S., about 1.4 million people contracted Campylobacter infections last year, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, Georgia.
While the infection rate in the U.S. has dropped over the last decade, the bacteria have grown more drug-resistant.
According to the CDC, surveys between 1986 and 1990 found no signs of resistance to the antibiotics in U.S. Campylobacter infections. But by 1997, strains resistant to the antibiotics accounted for 12 percent of human cases. In 2001 the figure climbed to 18 percent.
Public health experts say many factors contribute to Campylobacter's drug resistance; the widespread use of fluoroquinolonones by U.S. poultry farmers over the past decade is one of them.
Fluoroquinolones were first approved for use in humans by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 1986. In 1995 the FDA granted poultry farmers permission to the use the drugs in livestock. Last year the FDA banned the antibiotic from food-producing animals, citing the concerns raised by public health experts over drug-resistant bacteria.
Frederick Angulo, an epidemiologist with the CDC, monitors the drug resistance of food-borne pathogens in the U.S. food supply. "The people who are most likely to get infected with food-borne diseases include the most vulnerable people in the population-infants and young children and also the elderly," he said. He says that Campylobacter infections are entirely preventable, as is the bacteria's antibiotic resistance. "In many ways what's occurring with Campylobacter is an indicator for a broader issue, which is...antibiotic-resistant bacteria in the food supply," he said.
47. Why do food-borne pathogens in Australia show low drug resistance?
48. In many industrialized countries, the most common food-borne disease is ________.
49. The food-borne disease may cause fever, vomiting, diarrhea and even ________.
50. The FDA banned the use of antibiotic from food-producing animals because public health
experts were concerned about ________.
51. What does Angulo say about the bacteria's antibiotic resistance?
Section B
Directions: There are 2 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked [A],[B],[C] and [D]. You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the center.
Passage One
Questions 52 to 56 are based on the following passage.
At some time in your life, you may have a strong desire to do something strange or terrible. However, chances are that you don't act on your impulse, but let it pass instead. You know that to commit the action is wrong in some way and that other people will not accept your behavior.
Perhaps the most interesting thing about the phenomenon of taboo behavior is how it can change over the years within the same society, how certain behavior and attitude once considered taboo can become perfectly acceptable and natural at another point in time. Topics such as death, for example, were once considered so upsetting and unpleasant that it was a taboo to even talk about them. Now with the publication of important books such as On Death and Dying and Learning to Say Goodbye, people have become more aware of the importance of expressing feelings about death and, as a result, are more willing to talk about this taboo subject.
One of the newest taboos in American society is the topic of fat. Unlike many other taboos, fat is a topic that Americans talk about constantly. It's not taboo to talk about fat; it's taboo to be fat. The "in" look is thin, not fat. In the work world, most companies prefer youthful-looking, trim executives to sell their images as well as their products to the public. The thin look is associated with youth, vigor, and success. The fat person, on the other hand, is thought of as lazy and lacking in energy, self-discipline, and self-respect. In an image-conscious society like the U.S., thin is "in", fat is "out".
It's not surprising, then, that millions of Americans have been obsessed with staying slim and "in shape". The pursuit of a youthful physical appearance is not, however, the sole reason for Americans' fascination with diet and exercise. Recent research has shown the critical importance of diet and exercise for personal health. As in most technologically developed nations, the life style of North Americans has changed dramatically during the course of the last century. Modern machines do all the physical labor that people were once forced to do by hand. Cars and buses transport us quickly from point to point. As a result of inactivity and disuse, people's bodies can easily become weak and vulnerable to disease. In an effort to avoid such a fate, millions of Americans are spending more of their time exercising.
52. From the passage we can infer taboo is ________.
[A] a strong desire to do something strange or terrible
[B] a crime committed on impulse
[C] behavior considered unacceptable in society's eyes
[D] an unfavorable impression left on other people
53. Based on the ideas presented in the passage we can conclude "being fat" ________ in American society.
[A] will always remain a taboo
[B] is not considered as a taboo by most people
[C] has long been a taboo
[D] may no longer be a taboo someday
54. The topic of fat is ________ many other taboo subjects.
[A] the same as
[B] different from
[C] more popular than
[D] less often talked about than
55. What does "thin is 'in', and fat is 'out'" mean?
[A] Thin is "inside", and fat is "outside".
[B] Thin is "diligent", and fat is "lazy".
[C] Thin is "youthful", and fat is "spiritless".
[D] Thin is "fashionable", and fat is "unfashionable".
56. Apart from this new understanding of the correlation between health and exercise, the main reason the passage gives for why so many Americans are exercising regularly is ________.
[A] their changed life style
[B] their eagerness to stay thin and youthful
[C] their appreciation of the importance of exercise
[D] the encouragement they have received from their companies
Passage Two
Questions 57 to 61 are based on the following passage.
We can begin our discussion of "population as global issue" with what most persons mean when they discuss "the population problem": too many people on earth and a too rapid increase in the number added each year. The facts are not in dispute; it was quite right to employ the analogy that likened demographic growth to "a long, thin powder fuse that burns steadily and haltingly until it finally reaches the charge and explodes".
To understand the current situation, which is characterized by rapid increases in population, it is necessary to understand the history of population trends. Rapid growth is a comparatively recent phenomenon. Looking back at the 8,000 years of demographic history, we find that populations have been virtually stable or growing very slightly for most of human history. For most of our ancestors, life was hard, often nasty, and very short. There was high fertility in most places, but this was usually balanced by high mortality. For most of human history, it was seldom the case that one in ten persons would live past forty, while infancy and childhood were especially risky periods. Often, societies were in clear danger of extinction because death rates could exceed their birthrates. Thus, the population problem throughout most of history was how to prevent extinction of the human race.
This pattern is important to notice. Not only does it put the current problems of demographic growth into a historical perspective, but it suggests that the cause of rapid increase in population in recent years is not a sudden enthusiasm for more children, but an improvement in the conditions that traditionally have caused high mortality.
Demographic history can be divided into two major periods: a time of long, slow growth which extended from about 8000 B.C. till approximately 1650 A.D. In the first period of some 9,600 years, the population increased from some 8million to 500 million in 1650. Between 1650 and 1975, the population has increased from 500 million to more than 4 billion. And the population reached 6.2 billion throughout the world by the year 2000. One way to appreciate this dramatic difference in such abstract numbers is to reduce the time frame to something that is more manageable. Between 8000 B.C. and 1650, an average of only 50,000 persons was being added annually to the world's population. At present, this number is added every six hours. The increase is about 80,000,000 persons annually.
57. The word "demographic" (Line 4, Para. 1) means ________.
[A] statistics of human
[B] surroundings study
[C] accumulation of human
[D] development of human
58. Which of the following demographic growth patterns is most suitable for the long thin powder fuse analogy?
[A] A virtually stable or slightly decreasing period and then a sudden explosion of population.
[B] A slow growth for a long time and then a period of rapid, dramatic increase.
[C] Too many people on earth and a few rapid increase in the number added each year.
[D] A long period when death rates exceed birthrates and then a short period with higher
fertility and lower mortality.
59. During the first period of demographic history, societies were often in danger of extinction
because ________.
[A] only one in ten persons could live past 40
[B] there was higher mortality than fertility in most places
[C] it was too dangerous to have babies due to the poor conditions
[D] our ancestors had little enthusiasm for more children
60. Which statement is TRUE about population increase?
[A] There might be an increase of 2.2 billion persons from 1975 to the year 2000.
[B] About 50,000 babies are born annually at present.
[C] Between 8000 B.C. and the present, the population increase is about 80,000,000 persons
each year.
[D] The population increased faster between 8000 B.C. and 1650 than between 1650 and the
present.
61. The author of the passage intends to ________.
[A] warn people against the population explosion in the near future
[B] compare the demographic growth pattern in the past with that after 1650
[C] find out the cause for rapid increase in population in recent years
[D] present us a clear and complete picture of the demographic growth
