第4部分：阅读理解（第31～45题，每题3分，共45分）
下面有3篇短文，每篇短文后有5道题。请根据短文内容，为每题确定1个最佳选项。
第一篇
The Robot Man
According to Hans Moravec，universal robots will take over all the physical activities that we engage in，leaving us with little housework to do.Moravec sees four generations on the road to true universal robots.The first generation has been here by 2010 and consists of free-ranging robots that can navigate by building an internal mental map of their surroundings.In new situations they are able to adapt，unlike today’s mobile industrial robots.These robots have the computing power，to cope with simple speech and text recognition，and are used for tasks such as domestic cleaning.
The second generation will arrive around 2020 and will be distinguished by the ability to learn. Second generation robots are programed with sets of primitive tasks and with feedback that provide “pleasure”and“pain”stimuli.For example，a collision provokes a negative response，a completed task would be positive.
Move forward another ten years to 2030 and you get to generation three.This robot can build internal simulations of the world around it.Before beginning a task，it can imagine what will happen in order to predict problems.If it has a free moment，it can replay past experiences and try variations in order to find a better way of doing things next time.It could even observe a person or another robot performing a task and learn by imitation.For the first time，we have here a robot that can think.
By the time we get to generation four in 2040，Moravec predicts that robots will be able to match human reasoning and behaviour，generalise abstract ideas from specific experience，and conversely， compile detailed plans of action from general commands such as“earn a living”or“make more robots”.
The Moravec manifesto（宣告）runs something like this.As robots start to become useful in generation one，they’ll begin to take on many tasks in industry.Driven by the availability of this cheap and tireless labour force，the economy will boom and the demand for robots will grow so rapidly that they will soon become low-cost commodity items，that they’ll move into the home， where the domestic robot will relieve us of lots of housework.
With increasing automation in generations two and three，the length of the average working day willplummet，eventually to near zero.Most people will be unemployed as robots take over not just primary industry，but the service economy too.Moravec sees the fourth generation as an opportunity to surpass（超越）our human limitations.
These future machines will be our“mind children”.Like biological children of previous generations，they will embody humanity’s best hope for a long-term future.
31.What will be the distinctive feature of the second generation robots？
A.They will be able to learn by themselves.
B.They will be able to recognize speeches and texts.
C.They will be able to predict problems.
D.They will be able to match human reasoning and behavior.
32.Robots of generation four are predicted to do the following things EXCEPT
A.taking over the information industry.
B.reasoning and behaving like humans.
C.generalizing abstract ideas.
D.compiling detailed plans of action.
33.The word“plummet”in Paragraph 6 means
A.expand. B.decrease. C.extend. D.grow.
34.What does Moravec think of these future robots？
A.They will be humans’mind-children.
B.They will look like previous biological children.
C.They will create a dangerous world.
D.They will rule the world.
35.The author’s main purpose is to
A.support the view that robots will play a major role in our life.
B.describe the life of Hans Moravec.
C.make fun of the views of Hans Moravec.
D.get people prepared for the threat of future robots.
第二篇
Sino-Japan Animosity（仇恨）Lessens
Chinese and Japanese people view each other slightly more positively than last year， according to a survey released on Wednesday at a press conference in Beijing.
The survey is jointly sponsored by China Daily and Genron NPO（非营利组织），a Japanese think tank similar to the American Council on Foreign Relations.It also found overwhelming agreement in both countries that Sino-Japanese relations were important.
The survey is a part of the Beijing-Tokyo Forum，an annual gathering of senior government officials and representatives from Chinese and Japanese NGOs（非政府组织）designed to improve communication and understanding between the two countries.
Conducted every year for five years now，the survey focused on two different groups of people： ordinary citizens and intellectuals.In China，the intellectual group was comprised mainly of university students from well-known schools like Peking University.In Japan，the intellectual group was mainly made up of previous members of Genron NPO.
Among ordinary Chinese polled，35.7 percent said they have“very good”or“relatively good” impressions of Japan，a 5.5-percentage-point increase compared with last year.45.2 percent of Chinese students had a positive impression of Japan，two percentage points more than last year. Only 26.6 percent of Japanese have a positive impression of China，however.
Still，a large majority of the respondents from each country said Sino-Japanese relations were “important”and wanted their leaders to deepen talks and cooperation with each other.
But 51.9 percent of ordinary people and 42.4 percent of students in China said they saw no change in relations between the two countries over the last year.In Japan，64.8 percent of those ordinary people and 53.4 percent of intellectuals surveyed shared the view that there was no improvement in bilateral ties this year.
Historical issues and territorial disputes remain two major obstacles to improve bilateral relations，the survey found.What concerns the Chinese most are historical issues，visits by Japanese officials to Yasukuni Shrine（靖国神社），and the Nanjing Massacre（屠杀）.
Cooperation in East Asian issues，trade and investment，energy，and the environment and climate change top the list of common concerns that people in China and Japan want their leaders to talk about in bilateral（双边）meetings，the survey found.
Civil exchanges were regarded by the most people from the both countries as an important way to improve relations.90.7 percent of the students and 85.7 percent of the ordinary people in China and 95.8%of intellectuals and 74.8%of the ordinary people in Japan viewed civil exchanges as“important”or“relatively important”. 36.Which of the following statements about the survey is true？
A.The survey was conducted on Wednesday at a press conference in Beijing.
B.The survey is jointly sponsored by China Daily，Genron NPO and the American Council on Foreign Relations.
C.The survey found that people in both China and Japan generally agree that the relationship between the two countries is important.
D.The survey mainly focused on two different groups of people：ordinary citizens and the university students.
37.According to the passage，the Beijing-Tokyo Forum
A.is held every year in Beijing.
B.aims at promoting communication between the two countries.
C.mainly attracts representatives from the governments of the two countries.
D.releases a survey on Sino-Japanese relation every five years.
38.Last year，Chinese students who held a positive impression of Japan were
A.45.2. B.42.4. C.26.6. D.43.2.
39.Which of the following is NOT mentioned as the major obstacles to improve bilateral ties？
A.Territorial disputes.
B.Trade frictions.
C.Visits by Japanese officials to Yasukuni Shrine.
D.The Nanjing Massacre.
40.The survey found that
A.most Japanese had good or relatively good impressions of China.
B.the bilateral relationship was perceived as being improved over last year by the majority respondents.
C.a large majority of the respondents from each country believed that the civil exchanges were an important way to improve relations.
D.the territorial issue ranked among the top list of common concerns that people in both countries want their leaders to talk about in bilateral meetings.
第三篇
Gender Gap
The girls in this sixth grade class in East Palo Alto，California，all have the same access to computers as boys.But researchers say，by the time they get to high school，they are victims of what the researchers call a major new gender（性别）gap in technology.Janice Weinman of the American Association of University Women says，“Girls tend to be less comfortable than boys with the computer.They use it more for word processing rather than for problem solving，rather than to discover new ways in which to understand information.”
After re-examining a thousand studies，the American Association of University Women researchers found that girls make up only a small percentage of students in computer science classes.Girls consistently rate themselves significantly lower than boys in their ability and confidence in using computers.And they use computers less often than boys outside the classroom.
An instructor of a computer lab says he’s already noticed some differences.Charles Cheadle of Cesar Chavez School says，“Boys are not so afraid they might do something that will harm the computer，whereas girls are afraid they might break it somehow.”
Six years ago，the software company Purple Moon noticed that girls’computer usage was falling behind boys.Karen Gould says，“The number one reason girls told us they don’t like computer games is not that they’re too violent，or too competitive.Girls just said they’re incredibly boring.”
Purple Moon says it found what girls want，characters they can relate to and story lines relative to what’s going on in their own lives.Karen Gould of Purple Moon Software says，“What we definitely found from girls is that there is no intrinsic（固有的）reason why they wouldn’t want to play on a computer；it was just a content thing.”
The sponsor of the study says it all boils down to this：the technology gender gap that separates the girls from the boys must be closed if women are to compete effectively with men in the 21st century.
41.According to the passage，girls are victims of the gender gap in technology because
A.they can not discover new ways to use computers.
B.they have the same access to computers as boys.
C.they are likely to be less comfortable with computers.
D.they can only use computers for word processing.
42.The research on girls and computers is
A.based on a few recent articles. B.presented by one person.
C.based on thousands of studies. D.not considered well grounded.
43.Girls often feel
A.bored with computer games.
B.comfortable using computers.
C.it hard to use computers in word processing.
D.confused about using computers.
44.The software company seems to think girls would be more interested if
A.girls had an equal chance of playing games.
B.the software was more violent.
C.the software content was changed.
D.the characters were funny.
45.The gender gap needs to be closed because
A.it isn’t fair that boys are allowed to use computers all the time.
B.there isn’t enough money for upgrading computers.
C.most of the causes may boil down to a question of money.
D.the ability to use computers is important in today’s world.