2004在职攻读硕士学位全国联考英语真题二
Passage Two
Next week, as millions of families gather for their Thanksgiving feasts, many other Americans will go without. According to the United States Department of Agriculture, more than 12 million households lack enough food for everyone in their family at some time during the year-including holidays.
Hunger is surprisingly widespread in our country-one of the world’s wealthiest-yet the government estimates that we waste almost 100 billion pounds of food each year, more than one-quarter of our total supply.
Reducing this improper distribution of resources is a goal of America’s Second Harvest, the nation’s largest domestic hunger-relief organization. Last year, it distributed nearly 2 billion pounds of food to more than 23 million people in need.
America’s Second Harvest is a network of 214 inter-connected food banks and other organizations that gather food from growers, processors, grocery stores and restaurants. In turn, the network distributes food to some 50,000 soup kitchens, homeless shelters and old people’s centers in every county of every state.
A great deal of work is involved in distributing tons of food from thousand of donors(捐赠)to hundreds of small, nonprofit organizations. Until a few years ago, America’s Second Harvest lacked any effective way to manage their inventory. Without accurate and timely information, soup kitchens were sometimes empty while food was left to spoil in loading places.
In 2000, America’s Second Harvest began to use a new inventory and financial-management system-Ceres. It is software designed specifically for hunger-relief operations. It is used by more than 100 America’s Second Harvest organizations to track food from donation to distribution.
Ceres has helped reduce the spoiling of food and improve distribution. An evaluation found that the software streamlined food banks’ operations by 23 percent in the first year alone.
With more accurate and timely reports, Ceres saves time, flees staff members to focus on finding new donors, and promises more efficient use of donations.
Hunger in America remains a troubling social problem. Technology alone cannot solve it. But in the hands of organizations such as America’s Second Harvest, it is a powerful tool that is helping to make a difference-and helping more Americans to join in the feast.
41. According to the passage, the total supply of food in America every year reaches
A. 12 million pounds B. more than 12 million pounds
C. almost 100 billion pounds D. about 400 billion pounds
42. By “this improper distribution of resources” in Paragraph 3, the writer means that many Americans lack enough food while
A. their country is one of the richest in the world
B. much food is left to spoil
C. others waste too much food
D. others consume too much food
43. A problem for America’s Second Harvest a few years ago was that
A. it did not get enough food from donors
B. it did not have a large enough network
C. it did not have enough soup kitchens
D. it did not have a good way to manage its food stock
44. With Ceres, America’s Second Harvest is now able to
A. enlarge its network
B. prevent food from spoiling
C. give out food more efficiently
D. solve the hunger problem in the country
45. The main idea of the passage is that
A. technology can help in the fight against hunger
B. America’s Second Harvest has found more donors
C. America’s Second Harvest promotes the development of technology
D. hunger is a problem even in the wealthiest country in the world
Passage Three
The differences in living standards around the world are vast．In 1993，the average American
had an income of about$25，000.In the same year，the average Mexican earned$7，000，and the
average Nigerian camed$1，500,Not surprisingly，this large variation in average income is reflected in various measures of the quality of life．Changes in living standards over time are also
1arge． In the United States，incomes have historically grown about 2 percent per year(after
adjusting for changes in the cost of living)．At this rate，average income doubles every 35years．In
some countries，economic growth has been even more rapid． In Japan， for instance， average
income has doubled in the past 20 years，and in South Korca it has doubled in the past 10years．
What explains these 1arge differences in 1iving standards among countries and over time?
The answer is surprisingly Simple． A1most a11 variation in 1iving standards is attributable to
differences in countries’productivity-----that is， the amount of goods and services produced from each hour of a worker's time．In nations where workers can produce a large quantity of goods and services per unit of time，most people enjoy a high standard of living； in nations where workers are less productive，most people must endure a more meager existence．Similarly，the growth rate of a nation's productivity determines the growth rate of its average income．
The fundamental relationship between productivity and living standards is simple，but its implications are far-reaching．If productivity is the primary determinant of livings standards，other
explanations must be of secondary importance．For example，people might think that labor unions
or minimum-wage 1aws contributed to the rise in 1iving standards of American workers over the past century. Yet the real hero of American workers is their rising productivity．
The relationship between productivity and living standards also has great implications for public po1icy．When thinking about how any policy will affect living standards， the key question is how it will affect our ability to produce goods and services．To improve living standards，po1icy makers need to raise productivity by ensuring that workers are well educated，have the too1s needed to produce goods and services，and have access to the best available technology．
46
A．Mexico． B．The United States ．
C．Japan． D．South Korea ．
47
A． modest B． poor C． meaning less D． plentiful
48
A．Labor unions． B．Minimum-wage laws ．
C．Rising productivity． D．Favorable publicpo1icy．
49
A．it calls po1icy makers’attention to a qualified work force
B．it encourages workers to get better education.
C．it helps improve the workers’ability to produce goods and services
D．it enables policy makers to access the latest technology
50．The passage mainly discusses____________
A．the differences in average income among countries
B．the relationships between productivity and living standards
C．th causes of the rise in living standards
D．the importance of raising productivity.