2009年考研英语全题型高分强化教程(18)

　　We now must address two questions:

　　Firstly，where on Earth is the population problem the worst?

　　It is my opinion that the world's worst population problem is right here in the United States. This is because of our high per capita resource consumption. It has been estimated that a person added to the population of the United States will have 30 or more times the impact on world resources as will a person added to the population of an underdeveloped nation. Indeed, resource consumption in North America is roughly the same as resource consumption in the entire rest of the world.

　　Secondly，where should we apply our efforts to have the most beneficial effect in helping to solve the population problem?

　　The answer is, right here in the U.S..

　　For many people, the population problem is a problem of "those people" in distant undeveloped countries. In early 1997, many people successfully lobbied Congress to restore family planning assistance in the U.S. foreign aid programs. This was a great victory, but it treats "those people" as though they were the big problem.

　　Unchecked population growth in the Third World means depletion of water resources. It means famine. It means suffering. It pushes populations to clear rainforests. It pushes populations to go out and graze on land that cannot sustain cattle, and that leads to expansion of deserts worldwide. We all have a stake in the global environment.

　　It is so easy to blame the problem on others and to identify what other people should do to solve the problem, while we ignore our own responsibilities and avoid doing anything to reduce the population problem in the U.S.. We need to work to stop population growth in the U.S..

　　There are two sources that contribute approximately equally to population growth in the U.S.: the excess of births over deaths, and immigration. Both of these must be addressed.

　　Let's compare three aspects of efforts to stop population growth in other countries with efforts to stop population growth in the United States.

　　1) When we give family planning assistance to other countries, we are dealing with countries over which we have no legal jurisdiction and where we have little or no immediate political responsibility.

　　When we confront population growth in the United States, we are dealing with a country where we as citizens have full and complete jurisdiction, and where we have political and family responsibilities. It should be much easier to solve our problem than it is to solve other peoples' problems.

　　2) The negative effects of runaway population growth in an underdeveloped country are generally felt only in that country and in its immediate neighbors.

　　The negative effects of population growth in the U.S. are felt throughout the entire world, because of our enormous per capita consumption of resources. Indeed, one of the aims of the many free-trade agreements about which we currently hear so much, is to open up the world's resources for consumption by consumers in the U.S..

　　3) In countries receiving family planning assistance from the U.S. there will always be individuals who will claim that this assistance is a form of "genocide." They will be strengthened in this belief if we in the U.S. fail to take steps to halt our own population growth. As Tim Wirth of the U.S. Department of State has said, the best thing that we in the U.S. can do to help other countries stop their population growth, is to set an example and stop our own population growth.

　　As you think about addressing the problem of population growth in the U.S., please ponder this challenge:

　　Can you think of any problem, on any scale, from microscopic to global, whose long-term solution is in any demonstrable way, aided, assisted, or advanced, by having continued population growth at the local level, the state level, the national level, or globally?

　　So we can see that Pogo was right:

　　"We've met the enemy, and they're us!"

1．What did the author mainly talk about?
[A] The population problem in the world.
[B] The population condition in the western world.
[C] The population problem in Europe.
[D] The population problem in the U.S.

2. According to the author， which place should solve the population proplem?
[A] The US
[B] Europe
[C] Underdeveloped countries
[D] The Third World

3. What did the Congressman think about the population problem?
[A] He thought that the problem was worst in America.
[B] He thought that the problem caused many other problems in the world.
[C] He thought that the problem cannot be solved easily.
[D] He thought that the problem in the Third World was to be blamed.

4. Why are the negative effects of population growth in the U.S. felt throughout the entire world?
[A] Because people around the world are all concerned about it.
[B] Because per capita consumption of resources in America is enormous.
[C] Because the U.S. is the most powerful country in the world.
[D] Because the U.S .has great influence on other countries.

5. Which is one of the reasons for the Americans to pay attention to their population problem?
[A] Because some people always claim that the American assistance for family planning in other countries is a form of "genocide".
[B] Because there are too many migrants nowadays.
[C] Because once the population is too large, the American government will adopt unfavorable policies to limit migrants' coming to it.
[D] Because America is now facing a lot of problems.

Passage Two

　　Europe is often one of the first places people think of when racism is discussed. From the institutionalized racism, especially in colonial times, when racial beliefs-even eugenics-were not considered something wrong, to recent times where the effects of neo-Nazism is still felt. Europe is a complex area with many cultures in a relatively small area of land that has seen many conflicts throughout history. (Note that most of these conflicts have had trade and resource access at their core, but national identities have often added fuel to some of these conflicts.)

　　Racism has also been used to justify exploitation, even using "pseudo-science".

　　Debates over the origins of racism often suffer from a lack of clarity over the term. Many conflate recent forms of racism with earlier forms of ethnic and national conflict. In most cases ethnic-national conflict seems to owe to conflict over land and strategic resources. In some cases ethnicity and nationalism were harnessed to wars between great religious empires (for example, the Muslim Turks and the Catholic Austro-Hungarians). As Benedict Anderson has suggested in Imagined Communities, ethnic identity and ethno-nationalism became a source of conflict within such empires with the rise of print-capitalism.

　　In its modern form, racism evolved in tandem with European exploration and conquest of much of the rest of the world, and especially after Christopher Columbus reached the Americas. As new peoples were encountered, fought, and ultimately subdued, theories about "race" began to develop, and these helped many to justify the differences in position and treatment of people whom they categorized as belonging to different races.

　　Another possible source of racism is the misunderstanding of Charles Darwin's theories of evolution. Some took Darwin's theories to imply that since some "races" were more civilized, there must be a biological basis for the difference. At the same time they appealed to biological theories of moral and intellectual traits to justify racial oppression. There is a great deal of controversy about race and intelligence, in part because the concepts of both race and IQ are themselves controversies.

　　A short review from the Inter Press Service highlights the rise of neo-Nazism in 2000 in Europe and suggests that "far from being a fringe activity, racism, violence and neo-nationalism have become normal in some communities. The problems need to be tackled much earlier, in schools and with social programs."

　　Ethnic minorities and different cultures in one country can often be used as a scapegoat for the majority during times of economic crisis. That is one reason why Nazism became so popular.

　　In France, May 2002, the success of far right politician Le Pen in the run for leadership (though he lost out in the end) sent a huge shockwave throughout Europe, about how easy it was for far right parties to come close to getting power if there is complacency in the democratic processes and if participation is reduced.

　　In various places throughout Western Europe, in 2002, as Amnesty International highlights, there has been a rise in racist attacks and sentiments against both Arabs and Jews, in light of the increasing hostilities in the Middle East.

　　In 1997, Human Rights Watch noted that, "The U.K. has one of the highest levels of racially-motivated violence and harassment in Western Europe, and the problem is getting worse." In April 1999, London saw two bombs explode in predominantly ethnic minority areas where a Nazi group has claimed responsibility. The summer of 2001 saw many race-related riots in various parts of northern England.

　　Greece has one of the worst records in the European union for racism against ethnic minorities, according to the BBC. Anti-immigrant sentiment has long been high, especially against ethnic Albanians, who form the largest minority. Until the 1990s, the BBC notes, Greece had been an extremely homogenous society. With the fall of communism many immigrants from Eastern Europe came to Greece. Albanians especially have been targeted by a lot of racist sentiment. Some hostage taking by a few Albanians in recent years has not helped the situation.

1. What does the author mainly talk about?
[A] Racism in the world.
[B] Racism in the western world.
[C] Racism in Europe.
[D] Racism in the countries other than the western world.

2. When did the theories about race begin to develop?
[A] After "the New World" was discovered.
[B] After the USA was established.
[C] Before the First World War.
[D] During the colonial times.

3. According to the author what is the second possible source of racism?
[A] The colonial people began to be ultimately subdued.
[B] The misunderstanding of Darwinism.
[C] The development of human beings.
[D] None of the above.

4. One of the reasons that Nazism became very popular is that.
[A] ethnic minorities have small impact in the whole world
[B] various cultures cannot so-exist harmoniously
[C] ethnic minorities and different cultures are used as a scapegoat for the majority during times of economic crisis
[D] none of the above

5. Which country in the EU has the worst record for racism against ethnic minorities?
[A] The United Kingdom
[B] Greece
[C] Albania
[D] Australia

练习答案与题解：

Ⅰ Cloze

1.[B]

the answer to是固定搭配，与之相同的有the key to...。

2. [A]

说"人口众多"时一般用large来形容。另外，根据题意，这里只适合填人类活动的多而不是少。

3. [C]

affect是动词，意为"影响"；effect是名词，意为"效果，影响"。

4. [D]

impact（影响）作名词时通常作单数，搭配有impact on/upon sb/sth.。

5. [B]

be proportional (to sth.)为固定用法，意思是"与某事物（在大小，数量或程度上）相称的，成比例的。

6. [A]

average既可作名词，也可作形容词和动词。在此处作形容词，意为"一般的，平均的"。

7. [B]

reduce的意思是"减少，缩小；降低"， decrease意思同样是减小降低，但与reduce的区别在于reduce可以除了可以表示具体数量的减少外还可以表示抽象概念的减少，正如文中所说的"减少影响"，而decrease通常指具体数量的减少。decline作动词讲时，是下降下倾的意思，在这里不合适deduce是推论，演绎的意思，与原句意思不符。

8. [C]

根据题意此处应填"要素，因素"。 truth意为"事实，确实，真理"；fact意思是"事实，实际，实情"； element意思是"要素，元素，成分"。 根据上下文可知，factor比较恰当。

9. [A]

continual一般指多次重复的动作；continuous表示动作或物体继续不停地或不间断地进行下去；continued意为"继续不停地"。

10. [B]

to the extent (of/that)是固定搭配。scale作名词时，意为"规模，程度，范围"。to scale的意思是"按比例"。

11. [A]

seek  to 意为"试图，设法"；seek after/for sth的意思是"寻找，找到获得到某事物"。

12. [D]

leave sb. with sth.为固定搭配，意为"把某物留给某人"。本句使用的是其被动语态。

13.[B]。

此题中只有studying符合题意。另外，虽然research也有"研究、调查"的意思，但为不及物动词，其后不能跟直接宾语。

14. [A]

appreciation的意思是"感谢，感激，欣赏"，也有"正确评价"的意思。在此处更符合上下文意思。

15. [D]

arithmetic意思为"算数，算数的计算"；arithmetician的意思是"算数家"；arithmetically意思是算术上，该词是副词，词性不对； aristocratic意为"贵族的，贵族统治的，有贵族气派的"。

16. [C]

quantity的意思是"量，大小，重量"，是正确选项。amount作量来讲时有大量的意思，quality是质量的意思，是形近词，但意思截然不同，注意区分，number通常作数字，个数，号码的意思，在这里不合适。

17. [B]

只有at a rate才是正确搭配，其余均不对。

18. [A]

在这句话中，要表达增长的量的多少应用in size来搭配，size的意思是"（量度，数量或程度的）大小，多少"。

19. [C]

fixed意为"确定不变的，固定的"。其余选项均无法与上下文衔接。

20. [B]

此句中，doubling为动词的现在分词形式，用作形容词，修饰time。

Ⅱ Reading Passages

Part A

Passage One

1. [D]

文章开篇就提出了问题：全世界什么地方人口问题比较为严峻？然后作者陈述了自己的观点，在他看来，美国是人口问题比较严重的国家，因为在全国范围内出生率与高于死亡率，并且近几十年来大量移民涌入美国。后文通篇都在论述作者的这一观点，因此选D项。

2. [A]

仔细阅读文章第四、第五段，就能理解题意，找出正确答案。

3. [D]

文章中的第六段和第七段都在讲大多数人在提到人口问题是都将其归究于发展中和不发达的第三世界国家，就如同一位有代表性的国会议员讲的话那样，第三世界国家的人口问题导致了水资源的过度消耗，饥荒，灾难等等问题。因此D项为正确选项。

4. [B]

此题是细节题，根据文中第六段所体现的相关信息，就不难作出正确判断了。

5. [A]

文章倒数第五段指出，美国在帮助其他一些国家搞人口控制、计划生育时，总有人会说这是美国的一种"有计划的灭绝和屠杀"政策。因此，如果美国自己不在控制人口增长的问题上做出榜样的话，那些认为美国有屠杀他国人的动机的观点就会得到证实。这是美国需要注意其人口问题的原因之一。因此选A项。

[疑难长句翻译与注解]

1．where should we apply our ...effect in helping to solve the population problem?

[译文]我们应当从哪方面入手下功夫去寻求比较有效的方法来解决人口问题？

[注解]该句是倒装句，译成汉语时要把语序调整过来。

2．For many people, the...of "those people" in distant undeveloped countries.

[译文]对于许多人来说，人口问题只是那些遥远的不发达国家才会面临的问题。

[注解]这句话是一个引子，作者的目的是用它表明错误的观念，用以引出自己的见解。"in distant undeveloped countries"是用来修饰"those people"的。

3．In early 1997, many people successfully ...as though they were the big problem.

[译文]在1997年早期，很多人成功地说服国会恢复了对外计划生育援助计划，这是一个巨大的胜利，但这使得"那些人"（的问题）好像已经是大问题了似的。

[注解]"family planning"是计划生育的意思。

4．It is so easy to blame the problem on others... and avoid doing anything to reduce the population problem in the U.S.

[译文]解决问题时只是把问题归罪给他人，考虑别人应该怎样做这很容易，但与此同时，我们忽视了我们自己的责任，没有自己做出行动来减少美国的人口问题。

[注解]"blame the problem on others"这个短语在文中是指把问题归罪于别人。"ignore our own responsibilities"是指忽视我们自己的责任。

5．The negative effects of ...per capita consumption of resources.

[译文]全世界都感受到了美国人口增长所带来的负面影响，因为我们的资源要按人口品均消费量来计算。

[注解]该句话言外之意是说美国如果人口增长，那么这批增长了的人口将会消耗新的自然资源。而世界自然资源则是有限的。

Passage Two

1.[C]

通读全文，可以总结出作者主要是在讨论欧洲的种族歧视问题。第一段的第一句就给全文大意做了个总结。

2.[A]

"新世界"就是指哥伦布发现美洲大陆的时候所用的名字，文章中明确指出了实在这一事件之后，"种族"这一观念开始产生了。因此正确选项为A。

3. [B]

作者在谈到种族主义的起源时说到，另一种可能的来源是对达尔文的进化论的误解。解答此题注意文中细节。

4. [C]

这是一道细节题，根据原文不难看出，一个国家的少数民族和非主流文化往往被大多数人用来作为经济危机时期的牺牲品。因此C为正确选项。

5. [B]

文章比较后一段指出，希腊是欧盟国家中对少数民族持有种族偏见比较严重的国家之一。由此不难看出，正确选项应该为B。

[疑难长句翻译与注解]

1. Europe is often one of the first places people think of when racism is discussed.

[译文]当讨论到种族主义问题时，欧洲通常是第一个被想到的地方。

[注解] 本文讲述关于种族与冲突，开篇第一句目的是确定文章的基调。本句虽短，但翻译时两处调整了语序值得学习，第一翻强调句式时有时需调整语序，原句为了强调欧洲冲突之多，将"Europe"提到了句首，但翻译时为符合汉语习惯需要作出调整。第二翻被动语态时往往需要调整语序，"racism is discussed"是被动语态，尽管有时被动语态需要译出被动的意思来但在这里就不能翻作"种族主义被讨论"，要符合汉语习惯在这里就需要作语序上的调整。

2．Europe is a complex area with many ...many conflicts throughout history.

[译文] 欧洲是一个复杂的地区，它有着许多不同的文化，但其土地面积却相对较小，并且自古以来在这片土地上有过无数的矛盾与冲突。

[注解]"many conflicts throughout history"指的是在历史上充满着冲突。

3. Debates over the origins ...earlier forms of ethnic and national conflict.

[译文]关于种族主义起源问题的争论经常会面临缺乏相关透明度的问题。新近的很多冲突已经成为一种包含了早期种族歧视和民族主义的混合形态产物。

[注解] suffer是遭受的意思，而且通常遭受的都是坏的事情。这里在翻译的时候，没有直译。

4．Note that most of these conflicts have...... identities have often added fuel to some of these conflicts.

[译文]注意到大部分此类冲突可以追述到它们的核心原因。但种族认同问题经常会给这些矛盾火上浇油。

[注解] "add fuel"是火上浇油的意思。

5．Another possible source of racism is the misunderstanding of Charles Darwin's theories of evolution.

[译文]种族歧视的另一个可能的原因是对达尔文的进化论的误解。

[注解]该句中的Charles Darwin是英国博物学家，进化论的创立者。racism是名词，意思是种族主义者