Part A: Reading Comprehension

Directions: Read the following text. Answer the questions below each text by choosing A, B, C or D. Mark your answers on the ANSWER SHEET. (40 points)

Text 3

In his book The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell argues that “social epidemics” are driven in large part by the actions of a tiny minority of special individuals, often called influentials, who are unusually informed, persuasive, or well connected. The idea is intuitively compelling, but it doesn’t explain how ideas actually spread.

The supposed importance of influentials derives from a plausible-sounding but largely untested theory called the “two-step flow of communication”: Information flows from the media to the influentials and from them to everyone else. Marketers have embraced the two-step flow because it suggests that if they can just find and influence the influentials, those select people will do most of the work for them. The theory also seems to explain the sudden and unexpected popularity of certain looks, brands, or neighborhoods. In many such cases, a cursory search for causes finds that some small group of people was wearing, promoting, or developing whatever it is before anyone else paid attention. Anecdotal evidence of this kind fits nicely with the idea that only certain special people can drive trends.

In their recent work, however, some researchers have come up with the finding that influentials have far less impact on social epidemics than is generally supposed. In fact, they don’t seem to be required at all.

The researchers’ argument stems from a simple observation about social influence: With the exception of a few celebrities like Oprah Winfrey-whose outsize presence is primarily a function of media, not interpersonal, influence- even the most influential members of a population simply don’t interact with that many others. Yet it is precisely these non-celebrity influentials who, according to the two-step-flow theory, are supposed to drive social epidemics, by influencing their friends and colleagues directly. For a social epidemic to occur, however, each person so affected must then influence his or her own acquaintances, who must in turn influence theirs, and so on; and just how many others pay attention to each of these people has little to do with the initial influential. If people in the network just two degrees removed from the initial influential prove resistant, for example, the cascade of change won’t propagate very far or affect many people.

Building on the basic truth about interpersonal influence, the researchers studied the dynamics of social influence by conducting thousands of computer simulations of populations, manipulating a number of variables relating to people’s ability to influence others and their tendency to be influenced. They found that the principal requirement for what is called “global cascades”-the widespread propagation of influence through networks-is the presence not of a few influentials but, rather, of a critical mass of easily influenced people.

31. By citing the book The Tipping Point, the author intends to

[A]analyze the consequences of social epidemics. 

[B]discuss influentials’ function in spreading ideas. 

[C]exemplify people’s intuitive response to social epidemics. 

[D]describe the essential characteristics of influentials. 

32. The author suggests that the “two-step-flow theory”

[A]serves as a solution to marketing problems. 

[B]has helped explain certain prevalent trends. 

[C]has won support from influentials. 

[D]requires solid evidence for its validity. 

33. What the researchers have observed recently shows that

[A]the power of influence goes with social interactions. 

[B]interpersonal links can be enhanced through the media. 

[C]influentials have more channels to reach the public. 

[D]most celebrities enjoy wide media attention. 

34. The underlined phrase “these people” in Paragraph 4 refers to the ones who

[A]stay outside the network of social influence. 

[B]have little contact with the source of influence. 

[C]are influenced and then influence others. 

[D]are influenced by the initial influential. 

35. What is the essential element in the dynamics of social influence?

[A]The eagerness to be accepted. 

[B]The impulse to influence others. 

[C]The readiness to be influenced. 

[D]The inclination to rely on others. 

Answers & Explanations (答案与深度解析)

试题精解

31. [B] discuss influentials’ function in spreading ideas.
【解析】写作意图题。文章开头提到 Gladwell 的书是为了引出“社会流行是由少数特殊人才（influentials）驱动的”这一核心观点，并随后展开讨论他们在信息传播中的作用。A 选项“分析后果”文中未提；D 选项“描述特征”只是文章提及的一部分，不是引用该书的主要目的。

32. [D] requires solid evidence for its validity.
【解析】作者态度题。第二段首句提到该理论是 plausible-sounding but largely untested（听起来有道理但很大程度上未经检验）。这表明作者认为该理论缺乏坚实的证据支持其正确性。故选 D。

33. [A] the power of influence goes with social interactions.
【解析】细节题。第四段首句提到，研究人员的论点源于对“社交影响”的一个简单观察：除了少数名人外，即使最有影响力的人也并不与那么多人互动（don't interact with that many others）。这说明影响力的实现依赖于人际互动（social interactions）。

34. [C] are influenced and then influence others.
【解析】词义指代题。定位到第四段 "...each person so affected must then influence his or her own acquaintances, who must in turn influence theirs... pay attention to each of these people..."。这里的 these people 指代的是前面提到的那些“受到影响并接着去影响熟人的人”，即传播链条中的中间节点。故选 C。

35. [C] The readiness to be influenced.
【解析】细节题。文章最后一段提到，研究发现大规模传播的关键不在于少数影响力人物，而在于存在 a critical mass of easily influenced people（大量容易受影响的人）。readiness to be influenced（乐于/准备好被影响）是对 easily influenced 的同义替换。故选 C。

考研核心句型与词汇

【长难句剖析】

1. 嵌套从句结构：
"Yet it is precisely these non-celebrity influentials who, according to the two-step-flow theory, are supposed to drive social epidemics, by influencing their friends and colleagues directly."
【解析】强调句型 It is... who...。被强调部分是 these non-celebrity influentials。中间插入语 according to... 增加了阅读难度。

2. 否定对比结构：
"...the principal requirement for what is called 'global cascades' ... is the presence not of a few influentials but, rather, of a critical mass of easily influenced people."
【解析】not... but rather...（不是...而是...）是考研英语极其高频的命题点。这里将“少数影响力人物”与“大量易受影响的人”进行对比，点明文章主旨。