四川大学2005年博士研究生入学英语考试题Passage 1As the horizons of science have expanded, two main groups of scientists have emerged. One is the pure scientist; the other, the applied scientist. The pure or theoretical scientist does original research in order to understand the basic laws of nature that govern our world. The applied scientist adapts this knowledge to practical problems. Neither is more important than the other, however, for the two groups are very much related. Sometimes, however, the applied scientist finds the problem for the theoretical scientist to work on. Lets take a particular problem of the aircraft industry: heat-resistant metals. Many of the metals and alloys which perform satisfactorily in a car cannot be used in a jet-propelled plane. New alloys must be used, because the jet engine operates at a much higher temperature than an automobile engine. The turbine wheel in a turbojet must withstand temperatures as high as 1,600 degrees Fahrenheit, so aircraft designers had to turn to the research metallurgist for the development of metals and alloys that would do the job in jet-propelled planes. Dividing scientists into two groups is only one broad way of classifying them, however. When scientific knowledge was very limited, there was no need for men to specialize. Today, with the great body of scientific knowledge, scientists specialize in many different fields. Within each field, there is even further subdivision. And, with finer and finer subdivisions, the various sciences have become more and more interrelated until no one branch is entirely independent of the others. Many new specialties -geophysics and biochemistry, for example - have resulted from combining the knowledge of two or more sciences.1. The applied scientist _.A. is not always interested in practical problems B. provides the basic knowledge for practiceC. applies the results of research to practice D. does original research to understand the basic laws of nature2. The example given in the passage illustrates how _.A. pure science operates independently of applied science B. the applied scientist discovers the basic laws of nature C. applied science defines all the areas in which basic research is done D. applied science suggests problems for the basic scientist3. The problem discussed in the second paragraph called for_.A. selecting the best hear-resistant metal from existing metalsB. developing a turbine wheel capable of generating heat up to 1,600 degrees FahrenheitC. developing metals and alloys that would withstand terrific temperaturesD. causing the jet engine to operate at higher temperatures4. Finer mad finer subdivision in the field of science has resulted in_.A. greater independence of each science B. greater interdependence of all the various sciencesC. the eradication of the need for specialists D. the need for only on classification of scientists5. The horizons of science have expanded means that_.A. the horizon changes its size from year to year B. science has developed more fields of endeavorC. scientists have made great progress in studying the horizon D. scientists can see further out into spacechow Passage 2 In The Disuniting of America: Reflections on a Multicultural Society, Revised and Enlarged Edition (W. W. Norton) Schlesinger provides deep insights into the crises of nationhood in America. A new chapter assesses the impact both of radical multiculturalism and radical monoculturalism on the Bill of rights. Written with his usual clarity and force, the book brings a noted historians wisdom and perspective to bear on Americas culture wars. Schlesinger addresses the questions: What holds a nation together? And what does it mean to be an American? Describing the emerging cult of ethnicity, Schlesinger praises its healthy effect on a nation long shamed by a history of prejudice and narrow-mindedness. But he warns against the campaign of multicultural advocates to divide the nation into separate ethnic and racial communities. From the start, he observes, the United States has been a multicultural nation, rich in its diversity but held together by a shared commitment to the democratic process and by the freedom of intermarriage. It was this national talent for assimilation that impressed foreign visitors like Alexis de Tocqueville and James Bryce, and it is this historic goal that Schlesinger champions as the best hope for the future. Schlesinger analyzes what he sees as grim consequences of identity politics: the widening of differences. Attacks on the First Amendment, he argues, threaten intellectual freedom and, ultimately, the future of the ethnic groups. His criticisms are not limited to the left. As a former target of McCarthyism, he understands that the radical right is even more willing than the radical left to restrict and weaken the Bi