Section C Reading in Depth
Read the following three passages carefully and then do the exercises below.
PASSAGE 1
The city of Venice, built on saltwater marshes and crisscrossed by canals, experienced problems with its water supply for most of its history. One fifteenth⁃century French traveler noted that “in a city in which the inhabitants are in water up to their mouths, they often go thirsty”. How was the community to solve this important problem?
Water drawn from the lagoon (the large, shallow body of water between Venice and the Mediterranean Sea) and the canals within the city served many domestic uses such as washing and cooking inventories of even the most modest households list large numbers of buckets,which were emptied and rinsed, the ones used to carry the brackish (somewhat salty) canal water were kept separate from those intended for fresh water. Still, even serving such needs would have been impossible if the canals of Venice had been extremely polluted. The government was obliged to impose controls, and in the early fourteenth century, the Great Council prohibited the washing of all cloth and dyed woolens in the canals, adding that water used for dyeing could not be flushed into the canals.Henceforth dirty water of that sort was to go into the lagoon. Thanks to resistance on the part of the dyers, infractions were many, the law did not reflect common practice. A century later, however, most of the dye works that used blood or indigo (a dark blue dye) had shifted to the periphery of the city, as had all activities that “let off bad odors or smells” such as butchering. Blood, carcasses, and spoiled meat were to go into the lagoon. The canals of Venice began to be protected in the name of nascent ecological awareness.
Much more stringent measures were necessary to guarantee a supply of drinking water,however. In the early centuries of settlement in the lagoon basin, the populations depended on wells on the nearby coastal region. By the ninth century, however, with the increase in population density, cisterns became necessary. Basically, the cisterns were large, covered pits dug into the ground and lined with clay to hold water. The cisterns were located in the city,but unlike the wells, the cisterns were not supplied with water from the lagoon, they collected rainwater instead. Cisterns became widespread in the growing city.
Over a period of several hundred years,Venice developed an elaborate system of cisterns and gome—the gutters or pipes that carried rainwater to the cisterns and that, for a single cistern, might extend over an area of several streets. Wealthy households had their own cisterns. In less affluent areas of the city, cisterns were often owned and maintained by neighborhood groups. In crowded parts of the city where landlords offered small house for rent,one or two cisterns were provided for each street.A network of public cisterns paralleled these private and semiprivate arrangements. Every public square in the city had a cistern to serve the poorest venetians.
In the thirteenth century, a decision was made to create 50 additional cisterns, primarily in the recently urbanized area at the edge of the city. At the same time, a campaign was launched to repair the existing cisterns. Expansion of the cistern system stopped during much of the fourteenth century as Venice,like other cities in Europe,suffered from bubonic plague.In the fifteenth century, however, a new program of cistern construction and repair was undertaken.
In spite of the expansion of the cistern system, Venice continued to have problems with its water supply, especially during dry periods. Flotillas of boats had to be dispatched to the mouths of nearby rivers⁃first to the Bottenigo, then to the Brenta to fetch fresh water. The fresh water was then sold by the bucket or poured into the cisterns. The public authorities made efforts to take bolder action to ensure the supply of fresh water from this parallel source and a number of projects were suggested during the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries to channel river water and even to construct an aqueduct. However, the high cost of such initiatives prevented their execution.
1. Why does the author include the quotation “in a city in which the inhabitants are in water up to their mouths, they often go thirsty” in Para. 1?
A. To illustrate the opinion of other Europeans about the water situation in Venice.
B. To indicate that the French traveled to Venice frequently in the fifteenth century.
C. To emphasize how serious the water problem was in Venice.
D. To suggest that the water supply problem of Venice continued well beyond the fifteenth century.
2. The word “obliged” in (Line 7, Para. 2) is closest in meaning to________.
A. forced B. allowed C. expected D. persuaded
3. It can be inferred from Para. 3 that wells on the nearby coastal region________.
A. increased in number as the population density increased
B. were smaller than the cisterns located in the city
C. served as a water source for the growing number of cisterns in the city
D. provided enough water for only a relatively small number of people
4. According to Para. 4, all of the following are true of Venice's system of cisterns and gome EXCEPT________.
A. it reflected the social and economic diversity of the city of Venice
B. it was maintained with fees paid by the public
C. it was developed over several centuries
D. it collected rainwater
5. According to Para.6, how did public authorities respond to problems with the water supply during dry periods?
A. They constructed an aqueduct.
B. They channeled river water into the cisterns.
C. They sent boats to fetch fresh water from nearby rivers.
D. They sold water from the cisterns in buckets to the public.
PASSAGE 2
If you want to work in the classroom as a professional teacher, you need to take a teacher⁃training qualification. These can be bachelor of education degrees or bachelor of arts degrees, but they must also confer Qualified Teacher Status (QTS). They are three⁃or four⁃year courses during which you will develop the specialist subject you need to teach, learn about the national curriculum for that subject, get up to speed with the latest government education initiatives, and learn about the legal and ethical responsibilities that come with the job.
If you want to learn about education because you find it interesting, but do not plan to teach, then an education studies course is more appropriate. These courses will look at how education is delivered,but will focus more on how this fits into a cultural,political or historical context, rather than just how it is practically applied in schools on a day⁃to⁃day basis. You will probably look at other education models and their impact on society in other countries,perhaps even start to develop a few ideas of your own.
After completing your teaching qualification, you should have the confidence to walk into a classroom of 30 children or young people knowing that you have the theory and the practical knowledge and experience to ensure that all of them learn and achieve their potential. You'll know what subjects you need to teach and at least have an idea about how best to do it.
Students taking education studies degrees will develop a good knowledge of educational practices, and be able to explain past ideas and assess how they fit into today's policies.
Teachers are highly skilled at working with people, organizing and planning, and coping with stressful situations—these skills are valuable in many careers.
The majority of graduates with QTS do enter the teaching profession and some of those with education studies choose to study for a postgraduate teaching qualification, though many of the latter follow other careers working with children and young people.
1. What does the word “confer”(Line 3, Para. 1) mean?
A. Describe. B. Become. C. Award. D. Hold.
2. What does one need if he/she wants to be a professional teacher?
A. A government certificate and a PHD degree.
B. A degree and Qualified Teacher Status.
C. A degree in education.
D. Professional training as a pre⁃teacher.
3. What kind of people is an education studies course suitable for?
A. Those who intend to develop their own teaching theory.
B. Those who are interested in politics or history.
C. Those who like being together with kids.
D. Those who like education but don't want to teach.
4. Which of the following skills is not valuable in many careers from the passage?
A. Organizing. B. Planning.
C. Relaxing. D. Coping with stressful situations.
5. What is the passage mainly about?
A. What you need if you want to be a teacher and how education is delivered.
B. How education will fit into a cultural, political or historical context.
C. How to teach practically after completing your teaching qualification.
D. Studying other countries' education models and their impact on society.
PASSAGE 3
John Lotus, aged 6, knows that hijackers flew planes into the World Trade Center on September 11, but he isn't haunted by graphic images, as so many other young children are.That's because his parents ban TV from their home. “Every kid in my son's first⁃grade class could talk about nothing but people jumping off the skyscrapers,” says his mother, Jean.“My son did not see that, and I'm glad.” While the typical 2⁃ to 11⁃year⁃old child is watching TV for three hours and 14 minutes a day, John and his three siblings are playing outdoors,practicing the piano and building with blocks. “There are viewers and doers ,” says Jean Lotus.
The rules in the Lotus family may seem extreme, but they're not unique. More and more parents are listening to research on the long⁃term benefits of setting strict limits on pastimes that can be bad for kids, such as watching TV or eating junk food. But when do bans on popular activities do more harm than good? Some parents worry that their children will be outcasts (流浪的人) if they haven't watched the latest TV series. Others say that kids who grow up in a candy⁃free house will just eat chocolate bars at the neighbors'. Then there's the always tricky etiquette of trying to respect another family's rules on a play date. Negotiating this minefield isn't easy, psychologists say. The answers depend on the age of the child and the community environment.
If rules are too strict—in opposition to everyone else on the block—kids may indeed become pariahs. “When it's a norm, they're risking social isolation from their peers,” warns Barbara Howard, a professor of developmental⁃behavioral pediatrics at Johns Hopkins. And that increases the risk that they'll grow up defiant, she says. “They're more likely to do things like sneak,steal,lie to you about it.” That can mean anything from putting on makeup in the girls' room at school to spending lunch money on candy bars. Howard's advice: don't ban everything. “Pick one that you think is really important,” she says.
Television is a major battleground. Research shows children glued to the set for more than 10 hours each week are more likely to be overweight, aggressive and slower to learn in school. For that reason, the American Academy of Pediatrics discourages “screen time” for children under 2 and says parents should limit exposure to video games, computers and TV to a maximum of two hours a day for older kids. Interacting with people rather than listening to TV characters helps children learn a language, and become creative, independent learners,says pediatrician Miriam Bar⁃on, who chairs the academy's committee on public education.To help kids develop their own internal limits on TV, offer healthy alternatives. Alison Smith,14, and her sister, Stacis, 13, are usually too busy attending ballet lessons, to turn on the tube. “They don't have time, which is good,” says their mother, Lynn.
Junk food is another problem area. Many parents mistakenly place excessive limits on food intake because they're worried their children will get fat. But cutting out cookies can make a child yearn for them. “If parents are really too controlling, they don't give children opportunities to develop self⁃regulation,” says psychologist Leann Birch, a professor of human development at Penn State. That's not to say parents should stock their cupboards with M &M's.Rather,Birch suggests they keep a “healthy array” of food in the house,serve appropriate portions and discourage nonstop snacking.Parents should also act as role models.Birch's research shows that girls show signs of food intake problems even at the age of 5 if their mothers severely restrict them—set a poor example by constantly dieting. The goal should be to teach self⁃control. Many parents think kids who can curb their desire for candy may be better able to make decisions later on about alcohol, drugs and money.
When setting limits on anything, experts say, it's always important to take a positive approach. Otherwise, kids may see bans as punishment. When Tina Palmer's daughter Elena, 6,asks why she and her 4⁃year⁃old brother,John,don't have Barbies,games or soda pop like other kids, Palmer explains her reasoning and adds, “The most precious things I have in the world are you and John. Things that are precious you treat with care.” Elena likes that answer.
1. It can be inferred from the phrase “viewers and doers” in Para. 1 that________.
A. parents watch TV when children play
B. parents observe how their children play
C. children are fascinated by various games
D. children watch TV with the help of parents
2. What is the effect of setting strict limits on children's pastimes?
A. It does more good than harm.
B. It does more harm than good.
C. It will isolate the children from their peers.
D. It may cause behavioral problems in children.
3. The word “pariah” in Para. 3 is closest in meaning to________.
A. illiterate B. outcast C. thief D. fool
4. When it comes to watching TV, parents are advised to________.
A. offer children healthy alternatives to develop self⁃control
B. engage children in more academic lessons and activities
C. allow kids to watch TV for about two hours a day
D. prevent kids at different ages from watching TV
5. What is the main purpose of the last paragraph?
A. To summarize the benefits of setting limits.
B. To advise parents not to set strict limits.
C. To suggest setting limits properly.
D. To recommend a positive approach.