考研英文二级阅读理解真题.docx

1、考研英文二级阅读理解真题考研英文二级阅读理解真题 考研英文二级阅读理解真题1Text 2While fossil fuelsstill generate roughly 85 percent of the worlds energy supply, its clearer than ever that the future belongs to renewable sources such as wind and solar. The move to renewables is picking up momentum around the world: They now account for

2、 more than half of new power sources going on line.Some growth stems from a commitment by governments and farsighted businesses to fund cleaner energy sources. But increasingly the story is about the plummeting prices of renewables, especially wind and solar. The cost of solar panels has dropped by

3、80 percent and the cost of wind turbines by close to one-third in the past eight years.In many parts of the world renewable energy is already a principal energy source. In Scotland, for example, wind turbines provide enough electricity to power 95 percent of homes. While the rest of the world takes

4、the lead, notably China and Europe, the United States is also seeing a remarkable shift. In March, for the first time, wind and solar power accounted for more than 10 percent of the power generated in the US, reported the US Energy Information Administration.President Trump has underlined fossil fue

5、lsespecially coalas the path to economic growth. In a recent speech in Iowa, he dismissed wind power as an unreliable energy source. But that message did not play well with many in Iowa, where wind turbines dot the fields and provide 36 percent of the states electricity generationand where tech gian

6、ts like Microsoft are being attracted by the availability of clean energy to power their data centers.The question “What happens when the wind doesnt blow or the sun doesnt shine?” has provided a quick put-down for skeptics. But a boost in the storage capacity of batteries is making their ability to

7、 keep power flowing around the clock more likely.The advance is driven in part by vehicle manufacturers, who are placing big bets on battery-powered electric vehicles. Although electric cars are still a rarity on roads now, this massive investment could change the picture rapidly in coming years.Whi

8、le theres a long way to go, the trend lines for renewables are spiking. The pace of change in energy sources appears to be speeding upperhaps just in time to have a meaningful effect in slowing climate change. What Washington doesor doesnt doto promote alternative energy may mean less and less at a

9、time of a global shift in thought.26. The word “plummeting”(Line 3, Para. 2) is closest in meaning to .A stabilizingB changingC fallingD rising27. According to Paragraph 3, the use of renewable energy in America .A is progressing notablyB is as extensive as in EuropeC faces many challengesD has prov

10、ed to be impractical28. It can be learned that in Iowa, .A wind is a widely used energy sourceB wind energy has replaced fossil fuelsC tech giants are investing in clean energyD there is a shortage of clean energy supply29. Which of the following is true about clean energy according to Paragraphs 56

11、?A Its application has boosted battery storage.B It is commonly used in car manufacturing.C Its continuous supply is becoming a reality.D Its sustainable exploitation will remain difficult.30. It can be inferred from the last paragraph that renewable energy_.A will bring the USA closer to other coun

12、tries.B will accelerate global environmental change.C is not really encouraged by the USA government.D is not competitive enough with regard to its cost.考研英文二级阅读理解真题2Text 2For years, studies have found that first-generation college students-those who do not have a parent with a college degree-lag ot

13、her students on a range of education achievement factors. Their grades are lower and their dropout rates are higher. But since such students are most likely to advance economically if they succeed in higher education, colleges and universities have pushed for decades to recruit more of them. This ha

14、s created a paradox in that recruiting first-generation students, but then watching many of them fail, means that higher education has continued to reproduce and widen, rather than close achievement gap based on social class, according to the depressing beginning of a paper forthcoming in the journa

15、l Psychological Sciense.But the article is actually quite optimistic, as it outlines a potential solution to this problem, suggesting that an approach(which involves a one-hour, next-to-no-cost program) can close 63 percent of the achievement gap(measured by such factors as grades)between first-gene

16、ration and other students.The authors of the paper are from different universities, and their findins are based on a study involving 147 students(who completed the project)at an unnamed private unive rsity.First generation was defined as not having a parent with a fou r-year college degree Most of t

17、he first-generation students(59.1 percent) were recipients of Pell Grants，a federal g rant for undergraduates with financial need，while this was true only for 8.6 percent of the students wit at least one parent with a four-year degreeTheir thesis-that a relatively modest inte rvention could have a b

18、ig impact-was based on the view that first-gene ration students may be most lacking not in potential but in practical knowledge about how to deal with the issues that face most college students They cite past resea rch by several authors to show that this is the gap that must be na rrowed to close t

19、he achievement gap.Many first-gene ration studentsstruggle to navigate the middle-class culture of higher education，learn therules of the game，and take advantage of college resou rces, they write And this becomes more of a problem when collages dont talk about the class advantage and disadvantages o

20、f different groups of students Because US colleges and universities seldom acknowledge how social class can affect students educational expe rience，many first-gene ration students lack sight about why they a re struggling and do not unde rstand how students like them can improve26. Recruiting more f

21、irst-generation students hasAreduced their d ropout ratesBnarrowed the achievement gaoC missed its original pu rposeDdepressed college students27 The author of the research article are optimistic becauseAthe problem is solvableBtheir approach is costlessq the recruiting rate has increasedDtheir find

22、ing appeal to students28 The study suggests that most first-gene ration studentsAstudy at private universitiesBare from single-pa rent familiesq are in need of financial supportDhave failed their collage29. The author of the paper believe that first-generation studentsAa re actually indifferent to t

23、he achievement gapBcan have a potential influence on othe r studentsC may lack opportunities to apply for resea rch projectsDare inexperienced in handling their issues at college30.We mayinfer from the last paragraph that-Auniversities often rect the culture of the middle-classBstudents are usually

24、to blame for their lack of resourcesCsocial class g reatly helps en rich educational experiencesDcolleges are partly responsible for the problem in question考研英文二级阅读理解真题3Text 2A century ago, the immigrants from across the Atlantic inclued settlers and sojourners. Along with the many folks looking to

25、make a permanent home in the United States came those who had no intention to stay, and 7millin people arrived while about 2 million departed. About a quarter of all Italian immigrants, for exanmle, eventually returned to Italy for good. They even had an affectionate nickname, “uccelli di passaggio,

26、” birds of passage.Today, we are much more rigid about immigrants. We divide nemcomers into two categories: legal or illegal, good or bad. We hail them as Americans in the making, or our broken immigrantion system and the long political paralysis over how to fix it. We dont need more categories, but

27、 we need to change the way we think about categories. We need to look beyond strick definitions of legal and illegal. To start, we can recognize the new birds of passage, those living and thriving in the gray areas. We might then begin to solve our immigration challenges.Crop pickers, violinists, co

28、nstruction workers, entrepreneurs, engineers, home health-care aides and physicists are among todays birds of passage. They are energetic participants in a global economy driven by the flow of work, money and ideas .They prefer to come and go as opportunity calls them , They can manage to have a job

29、 in one place and a family in another.With or without permission, they straddle laws, jurisdictions and identities with ease. We need them to imagine the United States as a place where they can be productive for a while without committing themselves to staying forever. We need them to feel that home

30、 can be both here and there and that they can belong to two nations honorably.Accommodating this new world of people in motion will require new attitudes on both sides of the immigration battle .Looking beyond the culture war logic of right or wrong means opening up the middle ground and understandi

31、ng that managing immigration today requires multiple paths and multiple outcomes. Including some that are not easy to accomplish legally in the existing system.26 “Birds of passage” refers to those who_A immigrate across the Atlantic.B leave their home countries for good.C stay in a foregin temporaily.D find permanent jobs overseas.27 It is implied in paragraph 2 that the current immigration stystem in the US_A needs new immigrant categories.B has loosened control over immigrants.C should be adopted to meet challenges.D has been fixe