第三部分 全国考博英语历年真题

北京大学2013年博士英语真题

Part I: Listening Comprehension

Part II: Structure and Written Expression (15%)

Directions: For each question decide which of the four of given will most suitably complete the sentence if inserted at the place marked. Mark your choices on the ANSWER SHEET.

11. Prince Charles, the longest-waiting ____ to the throne in British history, has spoken of his “impatience” to get things done.

12. Love was in the air in a Tokyo park as normally staid Japanese husbands gathered to scream out their feelings for their wives, promising ____ and extra tight hugs.

13. The number of stay-at-home fathers reached a record high last year, new figures show, as families saw a (an) ____ in female breadwinners.

14. The market for dust masks and air purifier is ____ in Beijing because the capital has been shrouded for several days in thick fog and haze.

15. Traditional fairytales are being ditched by parents because they are too ____ for their young children, a study found.

16. It has been revealed that nearly one in five degree courses has been ____ since the tripling of tuition fees to £9,000 a year.

17. Microsoft founder Bill Gates has ____ about being a parent, stating that 13 is an appropriate age for a child's first cell phone.

18. Sales of mushrooms have hit an all-time high as Britons increasingly turn to the cheap and ____ foodstuff for their cooking.

19. “Gangnam Style”, the ____ popular song from South Korean recording artist PSY, has just become the most watched video on YouTube ever.

20. The ____ British theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking once said in an interview that heaven is a fairy story for people afraid of the dark.

21. Some might consider it an ugly truth that attractive people are often more successful than those ____ blessed with looks.

22. ____ they think it will come to an end through the hands of God, or a natural disaster or a political event, whatever the reason, nearly 15 percent of people worldwide think the end of the world is coming, according to a new poll.

23. The European Parliament has banned the terms “Miss.” and “Mrs.” ____ they offend female members.

24. Packed like sardines into sweaty, claustrophobic subway carriages, passengers can barely breathe, ____ move about freely.

25. Japan is one of only three counties that now hunt whales and ____ the government says it is an important cultural tradition.

Part III: Clone Test (15%)

Directions: Read the following passage carefully and decide the best choice for each numbered blank Mark your choices on the ANSWER SHEET.

Ironically, the intellectual tools currently being used by the political right to such harmful effect originated on the academic left. In the 1960s and 1970s a philosophical movement called postmodernism developed among humanities professors, [26] ____ being deposed by science, which they regarded as right-leaning. Postmodernism [27] _____ ideas from cultural anthropology and relativity theory to argue that truth is [28] ____ and subject to the assumptions and prejudices of the observer. Science is just one of many ways of knowing, they argued, neither more nor less [29] ____ than others, like those of Aborigines, Native Americans or women. [30] ____, they defined science as the way of knowing among Western white men and a tool of cultural [31] ____. This argument [32] ____ with many feminists and civil-rights activists and became widely adopted, leading to the “political correctness” justifiably [33] ____ by Rush Limbaugh and the “Mental Masturbation” lampooned by Woody Allen.

Acceptance of this relativistic worldview [34] ____ democracy and leads not to tolerance but to authoritarianism. John Locke, one of Jefferson's “trinity of three greatest men”, showed [35] ____ almost three centuries ago. Locke watched the arguing factions of Protestantism, each claiming to be the one true religion, and asked: How do we know something to be true? What is the basis of knowledge? In 1689 he [36] ____ what knowledge is and how it is grounded in observations of the physical world in An Essay Concerning Human Understanding. Any claim that fails this test is “but faith, or opinion, but not knowledge”. It was this idea — that the world is knowable and that objective, empirical knowledge is the most [37] ____ basis for public policy — that stood as Jefferson's foundational argument for democracy.

By falsely [38] ____ knowledge with opinion, postmodernists and anti-science conservatives alike collapse our thinking back to a pre-Enlightenment era, leaving no common basis for public policy. Public discourse is [39] ____ to endless warring opinions, none seen as more valid than another. Policy is determined by the loudest voices, reducing us to a world in which might [40] ____ right — the classic definition of authoritarianism.

Part IV: Reading Comprehension (30%)

Directions: Each of the following four passages is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each question or unfinished statement, four answers are given. Read the passages and choose the best answer to each questions. Mark your choice on the ANSWER SHEET.

Passage 1

A considerable part of Facebook's appeal stems from its miraculous fusion of distance with intimacy, or fusion of distance with the illusion of intimacy. Our online communities become engines of self-image, and self-image becomes the engine of community. The real danger with Facebook is not that it allows us to isolate ourselves, but that by mixing our appetite for isolation with our vanity, it threatens to alter the very nature of solitude. The new isolation is not of the kind that American's once idealized, the lonesomeness of the proudly nonconformist, independent-minded, solitary stoic, or that of the astronaut who blasts into new worlds. Facebook's isolation is a grind. What's truly staggering about Facebook usage is not its volume — 750 million photographs uploaded over a single weekend — but the constancy of the performance it demands. More than half its users — and one of every 13 people on Earth is a Facebook user — log on every day. Among 18- to- 34-year-olds, nearly half check Facebook minutes after waking up, and 28 percent do so before getting out of bed. The relentlessness is what is so new, so potentially transformative. Facebook never takes a break. We never take a break. Human beings have always created elaborate acts of self-presentation. But not all the time, not every morning, before we even pour a cup of coffee.

Nostalgia for the good old days of disconnection would not just be pointless, it would be hypocritical and ungrateful. But the very magic of the new machines, the efficiency and elegance with which they serve us, obscures what isn't being served: everything that matters. What Facebook has revealed about human nature — and this is not a minor revelation — is that a connection is not the same thing as a bond, and that instant and total connection is no salvation, no ticket to a happier, better world or a more liberated version of humanity. Solitude used to be good for self-reflection and self-reinvention. But now we are left talking about who we are all the time, without ever really thinking about who we are. Facebook denies us a pleasure whose profundity we had underestimated: the chance to forget about ourselves for a while, the chance to disconnect.

41. Which of the following statements regarding the power of Facebook can be inferred from the passage?

A. It creates the isolation people want.

B. It delivers a more friendly world.

C. It produces intimacy people lack in the real world.

D. It enables us to be social while avoiding the mess of human interaction.

42. Which of the following statements about the underside of Facebook is supported by the information contained in this passage?

A. It imprisons people in the business of self-presentation.

B. It causes social disintegration.

C. It makes people vainer.

D. It makes people lonelier.

43. Which of the following best states "the new isolation" mentioned by the author?

A. It is full of the spirit of adventure

B. It is the extension of individualism.

C. It has a touch of narcissism.

D. It evolves from the appetite for independence.

44. Which of the following belongs to the category of "something that matters" according to the passage?

A. Constant connection

B. Instant communication

C. Smooth sociability

D. A human bond

45. Which of the following conclusions about Facebook does the author want us to draw?

A. It creates friendship.

B. It denies us the pleasure of socializing.

C. It opens a new world for us.

D. It draws us into a paradox.

Passage 2

Most scholars agree that Isaac Newton, while formulating the laws of force and gravity and inventing the calculus in the late 1600s, probably knew all the science there was to know at the time. In the ensuing 350 years an estimated 50 million research papers and innumerable books have been published in the natural sciences and mathematics. The modern high school student probably now possesses more scientific knowledge than Newton did, yet science to many people seems to be an impenetrable mountain of facts.

One way scientists have tried to cope with this mountain is by becoming more and more specialized. Another strategy for coping with the mountain of information is to largely ignore it. That shouldn't come as a surprise. Sure, you have to know a lot to be a scientist, but knowing a lot is not what makes a scientist. What makes a scientist is ignorance. This may sound ridiculous, but for scientists the fact are just a starting place. In science, every new discovery raises 10 new questions.

By this calculus, ignorance will always grow faster than knowledge. Scientists and laypeople alike would agree that for all we have come to know, there is far more we don't know. More important, every day there is far more we know than we don't know. One crucial outcome of scientist knowledge is to generate new and better ways of being ignorant: not the kind of ignorance that associated with a lack of curiosity or education but rather a cultivated, high-quality ignorance. This gets to the essence of what scientists do: they make distinctions: between qualities of ignorance. They do it in grant proposals and over beers at meetings. As James Clerk Maxwell, probably the greatest physicist between Newton and Einstein, said “Thoroughly conscious ignorance ... is a prelude to every real advance in knowledge.”

This perspective on science — that it is about the questions more than the answers — should come as something of a relief. It makes science less threatening and far more friendly and, in fact, fun. Science becomes a series of elegant puzzles and puzzles within puzzles — and who doesn't like puzzles? Questions are also more accessible and often more interesting than answers; answers tend to be the end of the process, whereas questions have you in the thick of things.

Lately this side of science has taken a backseat in the public mind to what I call the accumulation view of science — that it is a pile of facts way too big for us to ever hope to conquer. But if scientists would talk about questions, and if the media reported not only on new discoveries but the questions they answered and the new puzzles they created, and if educators stopped trafficking in facts that already available on Wikipedia — then we might find a public once again engaged in this great adventure that has been going on for the past 15 generations.

46. Which of the following would most scholars agree to about Newton and science?

A. Newton was the only person who knew all the science in the 1600s

B. Newton's laws of force and gravity dominated science for 350 years.

C. Since Newton's time, science has developed into a mountain of facts

D. A high school student probably knows more science than Newton did.

47. Which of the following is best support in this passage?

A. A scientist is a master of knowledge.

B. Knowledge generates better ignorance.

C. Ignorance is a sign of lack of education.

D. Good scientists are thoroughly ignorant

48. Why is it a relief that science is about the questions more than the answers?

A. Because people like solving puzzles.

B. Because questions make science accessible.

C. Because there are more questions than answers,

D. Because questions point the way to deep answers.

49. The expression “take a backseat” (Paragraph 5) probably means ________.

A. take a back place

B. have a different role

C. be of greater priority

D. become less important

50. What is the author's greatest concern in the passage?

A. The involvement of the public in science.

B. Scientists' enjoyment of ignorance.

C. The accumulation of scientific knowledge.

D. Newton's standing in the history of science.

Passage 3

Information technology that helps doctors and patients make decisions has been around for a long time. Crude online tools like WebMD get millions of visitors a day. But Watson is a different beast. According to IBM, it can digest information and make recommendations much more quickly, and more intelligently, than perhaps any machine before it—processing up to 60 million pages of text per second, even when that text is in the form of plain old prose, or what scientists call “natural language”.

That's no small thing, because something like 80 percent of all information is “unstructured”. In medicine, it consists of physician notes dictated into medical records, long-winded sentences published in academic journals, and raw numbers stored online by public-health departments. At least in theory, Watson can make sense of it all. It can sit in on patient examinations, silently listening. And over time, it can learn and get better at figuring out medical problems and ways of treating them the more it interacts with real cases. Watson even has the ability to convey doubt. When it makes diagnoses and recommends treatments, it usually issues a series of possibilities, each with its own level of confidence attached.

Medicine has never before had a tool quite like this. And at an unofficial coming-out party in Las Vegas last year, during the annual meeting of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society, more than 1,000 professionals packed a large hotel conference hall, and overflow room nearby, to hear a presentation by Marty Kohn, an emergency-room physician and a clinical leader do the IBM team training Watson for health care. Standing before a video screen that dwarfed his large frame, Kohn described in his husky voice how Watson could be a game changer — not just in highly specialized fields like oncology but also in primary care, given that all doctors can make mistakes that lead to costly, sometimes dangerous, treatment errors.

Drawing on his own clinical experience and on academic studies, Kohn explained that about one-third of these errors appear to be products of misdiagnosis, one cause of which is "anchoring bias": human beings' tendency to rely too heavily on a single piece of information. This happens all the time in doctors' offices, clinics, and emergency rooms. A physician hears about two or three symptoms, seizes on a diagnosis consistent with those, and subconsciously discounts evidence that points to something else. Or a physician hits upon the right diagnosis, but fails to realize that it's incomplete, and ends up treating just one condition when the patient is, in fact, suffering from several. Tools like Watson are less prone to those failings. As such, Kohn believes, they may eventually become as ubiquitous in doctors' offices as the stethoscope.

"Watson fills in for some human limitations." Kohn told me in an interview. "Studies show that human are good at taking a relatively limited list of possibilities and using that list, but a far less adept at using huge volumes of information. That's where Watson shines: taking a huge list of information and winnowing it down."

51. What is Watson?

A. It is a person who aids doctors in processing medical records.

B. it is an online tool that connects doctors over different places.

C. It is an intelligent computer that helps doctors make decisions.

D. It is a beast that greets millions of visitors to a medical institution.

52. Which of the following is beyond Watson's ability?

A. Talk with the patient

B. Calculate probability

C. Recommend treatment

D. Process sophisticated data

53. Marty Kohn ________.

A. gave a presentation at an academic conference

B. works for the IBM Training Division

C. is a short person with a husky voice

D. expressed optimism for Watson

54. "Anchoring bias" ________.

A. is a device ubiquitous in doctors' offices

B. is less likely to be committed by Watson

C. happens in one third of medical treatments

D. is a wrong diagnosis with incomplete information

55. Which of the following may be the best title of the passage?

A. Watson as a Shining Star

B. The Risks of Misdiagnosis

C. The Robot Will See You Now

D. IBM's IT Solution to Medicine

Passage 4

The contribution genes make intelligence increase as children grow older. This goes against the notion that most people hold that as we age, environmental influences gradually overpower the genetic legacy we are born with and may have implications for education. "People assume the genetic influence goes down with age because the environmental differences between people pile up in life," says Robert Plomin. "What we found was quite amazing, and goes in the other direction."

Previous studies have shown variations in intelligence are at least partly due to genetics. To find out whether this genetic contribution varies with age, Plomin's team pooled data from six separate studies carried out in the US, the UK, Australia and Netherlands, involving a total of 11,000 pairs of twins. In these studies, the researchers tested twins on reasoning, logic and arithmetic to measure a quantity called general cognitive ability, or "G". Each study also included both identical twins, with the same genes, and Lateral twins, sharing about half their genes, making it possible to distinguish the contributions of genes and environment to their G scores.

Plomin's team calculated that in childhood, genes account for about 41 percent of the variation in intelligence. In adolescence, this rose to 55 percent; by young adolescence it was 66 percent. No one knows why the influence Mom genes should increase with age, but Plomin suggests that as children get older, they become better at exploiting and manipulating their environment to suit their genetic needs, and says "Kids with high G will use their environment to foster their cognitive ability and choose friends who are like-minded." Children with medium to low G may choose less challenging pastimes and activities, further emphasizing their genetic legacy.

Is there any way to interfere with the pattern? Perhaps. "The evidence of strong heritability doesn't mean at all that there is nothing you can do about it, " says Susanne Jaeggi, "from our own work, the ones that started off with lower IQ scores had higher gains after training."

Plomin suggests that genetic differences may be more emphasized if all children share an identical curriculum instead of it being tailored to children's natural abilities. "My inclination would be to give everyone a good education, but put more effort into the lower end," he says. Intelligence researchers Paul Thompson agrees: "It shows that educators need to steer kids towards things drawing out their natural talents."

56. What is the common notion that people hold about genes?

A. Humans can do little to change the genetic differences between people.

B. Genetic influence becomes stronger when people receive education.

C. Genes contribute more to one's intelligence than environmental factors.

D. Environmental factors lessen the influence of genes on one's intelligence.

57. The study by Plomin's team aims to find out ________.

A. whether variations in intelligence caused by genetic differences

B. how to overpower genetic factors with new educational approaches

C. whether genetic contribution to one's intelligence varies with age

D. the relationship between environment and genes

58. From the experiment with twins, Plomin's team draws a conclusion that ________.

A. genetic contribution increases when one grows older

B. genetic influence decreases when age increases

C. environment has more impact on fraternal twins than identical twins

D. it remains a mystery how genes and environment co-influence people

59. The word "pattern" in paragraph four is closest in meaning to ________.

A. cognitive ability

B. strong heritability

C. genetic legacy

D. challenging pastimes

60. Which of the following might Plomin's team least agree to?

A. An identical curriculum to school children

B. A differentiated course design to children with varied IQ

C. More effort directed at children with medium or low G

D. Education tailored to children's natural abilities

Part V: Proofreading (15%)

Directions: In the following passage, there are altogether 15 mistakes, ONE in each numbered and underlined part. You may have to change a word, add a word, or just delete a word. If you change a word, cross it out and write the correct word beside it. If you add a word write the missing word between the words in brackets immediately before and after it. If you delete a word, just cross it out. Put your answers on ANSWER SHEET 2.

[61] The economic growth that many nations in Asia and increasingly Africa have experienced over the past couple of decades has transformed hundreds of millions of lives — almost entire for the better. [62] But there is byproduct to that growth, one that's visible — or sometimes less than visible — in the smoggy, smelly skies above cities like Beijing, New Delhi and Jakarta. [63] Because of new cars and power plants, air pollution is bad and getting worse in much of the world, and it is taking a major toll to global health.

[64] How big? According to a new analyze published in the Lancet, more than 3.2 million people suffered premature deaths from air pollution in 2010, the largest number on record. That's up from 800,000 in 2000. [65] And it's a regional problem: 65% of those deaths occurred in Asia wherever the air is choked by diesel soot from cars and trucks, as well as the smog from power plants and the dust from endless urban construction. In East Asia, 1.2 million people died, as well as another 712,000 in South Asia, including India. [66] For the first time ever, air pollution is the world's top-10 list of killers, and it's moving down the ranks faster than any other factor.

So how can air pollution be so damaging? [67] It is the very finest soot — so small that it lodges deep within the lungs and from there entered the bloodstream—that contributes to most the public-health toll of air pollution including mortality. [68] Diesel soot, what is also a carcinogen, is a major problem because it is concentrated in cities along transportation corridors impacting densely populated areas. [69] It is thought contribute to half the premature deaths from air pollution in urban centers. For example, 1 in 6 people in the U.S. live near a diesel-pollution hot spot like a rail yard, port terminal or freeway.

We also know that air pollution may be linked to other nonlethal conditions, including autism. Fortunately in the U.S. and other developed nations, urban air is for the most part cleaner than it was 30 or 40 years ago, thanks to regulations and new technologies like the catalytic converts that reduce automobile emissions. Governments are also pushing to make air cleaner—see the 'White House's move last week to further tighten soot standards. [70] It is perfect, but we've had much more success dealing with air pollution than climate change.

[71] Will developing nations like China and India eventually catch up? Hopefully — though the problem may get worse before long it gets better. The good news is that it doesn't take a major technological leap to improve urban air. [72] Switching from diesel fuel to unleaded helps, as do newer and cleaner cars that are more likely to spew pollutants. Power plants — even ones that burn fossil fuels like coal — can be fitted with pollution-control equipment that, at a price, will greatly reduce smog and other contaminants.

[73] But the best solutions may involve urban design. In the Guardian, John Vidal notes that Delhi now has 200 cars per 1,000 people, far more than much rich Asian cities like Hong Kong and Singapore. [74] Developing cities will almost certainly see an increase in car ownership as residents become wealthier — and that does have to mean lethal air pollution. (Even ultra-green European cities often have rates of car ownership at or above the level Delhi has now.) [75] Higher incomes should also lead to tougher environmental regulations, which is exactly what happened in the West. We can only hope it happens after the death toll from bad air gets even higher.

Part VI: Writing (15%)

Directions: Read the following paragraph and then write a response paper of about 250 to 300 English words. Write it neatly on ANSWER SHEET 2.

When there is a heavy rain in the north of China, cities and towns are often flooded. But heavy rains in southern cities seldom pose severe problems. When there is a heavy snow in the south of China, cities and towns often run into chaos. But heavy snows in the north seldom pose severe problems. What should city planners do to deal with this and what do you think of different ways of dealing with it?