第4部分：阅读理解（第31～45题，每题3分，共45分）

下面有３篇短文，每篇幅短文后有5道题，每题材后面有4个选项。请仔细阅读短文并根据短文回答其后面的问题，从4个选项中选择一个最佳答案涂在答题卡相应的位置上。

第一篇　　　　　　　　Sony's Vision For The Future

    As the television, communications and telecommunications industries emerge, compatibility (兼容性) becomes a big issue for consumers. I think we should maintain open and compatible standards and create features particular to Sony, in other words, the system should be open but the services could be distinctive --- like restaurants. The menus may be alike but the services are different.

     Being president of Sony Corporation, I am often asked by this question: With digital cameras and digital camcorders (摄像机), what will be the future of digital imaging?

     In 1997, optimists see non-traditi0nal cameras ~ digital cameras achieving sales of one million units in Japan. We are selling a new digital camera. Even though the price is quite high, it is selling well. And laser and ink-jet printers have improved greatly for printing colour pictures. But traditional pictures are still more popular than those from today's electronic cameras. Because of that, traditional cameras and digital cameras will co-exist for a long time.

     If you want me to sum up Sony's vision for the next few years, all I can say is that there will be a big change. We can run our business at Sony based on today's technologies ~ which means the digitalisation of audio and video. But beyond 2000, there will be a big change and we should be prepared. This will be the network environment. So we are preparing for a big change in technologies and for a change in the way of thinking as well.

     We celebrate our 50~ anniversary this year (1997), and this coincides (与……一致) with what I call the transistor cycle, which has also lasted fifty years Since we started using transistors in radios, the electronic industry has undergone a big evolution. But a new technology wave started with the invention of the microprocessor, about 14 or 15 years ago. My theory is that each business cycle lasts 50 years, with one cycle overlapping (重叠) another. The information age started 15 years ago with microprocessors and for another 10 years it will be in the takeoff stage. Like an airport, a 747 approaching the end of the runway is still gathering speed. So for information technology, for another five to seven years there will not be so much change, only increasing speed. But after that you fly. What that will mean, I cannot foresee. I'm just preparing for the takeoff stage while I'm president. The job of the next generation will be more important. I'm just in-between.

31  Why does the president of Sony Corporation mention restaurants in the first paragraph?

    A To praise Japanese restaurants for offering good services.

    B To explain that Japanese restaurants are distinctive.

    C To explain what has just been said.

    D To emphasize that restaurants are all alike.

32 What is the president's view on digital cameras and traditional ones?

    A Digital cameras will be cheaper than traditional ones in the near future.

    B Digital cameras and traditional cameras will co-exist for ever.

    C The prices of digital cameras will go down very soon.

    D Digital cameras will not take the place of traditional ones in the next few years.

33 What will take place in the next few years, according to the president?

    A A big change in technologies and in the way of thinking.

    B A change in digitalisation.

    C A change in the way of manufacturing.

    D A change in the business cycle.

34 How long does each business cycle last, according to the president?

    A 10 years.

    B 14 or15 years.

    C 25 years.

    D 50 years.

35 What does the president say he is doing?

    A He is designing jobs for the next generation.

    B He is preparing for the 'fly' stage.

    C He is doing something for the takeoff stage.

    D He is flying an aircraft.

第二篇　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Laughter

    There is an old saying in English: "Laughter is the best medicine". Until recently, few people took the saying very seriously. Now, however, doctors have begun to investigate laughter and the effects it has on the human body. They have found evidence that laughter really can improve people's health.

     Tests were carried out to study the effects of laughter on the body. People watched funny films, while doctors checked their heart rate blood pressure, breathing and muscles. It was found that laughter has similar effects to physical exercise. It increases blood pressure, the heart rate and the rate of breathing; it also works several groups of muscles in the face, the stomach, and even the feet. If laughter exercises the body, it must be beneficial.

     Other tests have shown that laughter appears to be capable of reducing the effect of pain on the body. In one experiment doctors produced pain in groups of students who listened to different radio programs. The group which tolerated the pain for the longest time was the group which listened to a funny program. The reason why laughter can reduce pain seems to be that it helps to produce endorphins (内啡肽) in the brain. These are natural chemicals which diminish both stress and pain.

     There is also some evidence to suggest that laughter helps the body's immune system, that is, the system which fights infection. In an experiment, one group of students watched a funny video while another group served as the control group - in other words, a group with which to compare the first group. Doctors checked the blood of the students in both groups and found that the people in the group that watched the video had an increase in the activity of their white blood cells, that is, the cells which fight infection.

     As a result of these discoveries, some doctors and psychiatrists (精神病学) in the United States now hold laughter clinics, in which they try to improve their patients' condition by encouraging them to laugh. They have found that even if their patients do not really feel like laughing, making them smile is enough to produce beneficial effects similar to those caused by laughter.

36 We learn from the first paragraph that laughter

    A  is good for one's health.

    B  is related to some illness.

    C  has been investigated long since.

    D  has no effect on the body.

37 Doctors have found that laughter

    A  keeps down blood pressure.

    B  has similar effects to physical exercise.

    C  decreases the heart rate.

    D  increases stress.

38 Which of the following statements is NOT true of laughter, according to the passage?