Section C: Reading Comprehension
Directions: There are 2 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A), B), C) and D). You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre.
Passage One
Questions 46 to 50 are based on the following passage.
Danielle Steel, the 71-year-old romance novelist is notoriously productive, having published 179 books at a rate of up to seven a year. But a passing reference in a recent profile by Glamour magazine to her 20-hour workdays prompted an outpouring of admiration.
Steel has given that 20-hour figure when describing her “exhausting” process in the past: “I start the book and don't leave my desk until the first draft is finished.” She goes from bed, to desk, to bath, to bed, avoiding all contact aside from phone calls with her nine children. “I don't comb my hair for weeks,” she says. Meals are brought to her desk, where she types until her fingers swell and her nails bleed.
The business news website Quartz held Steel up as an inspiration, writing that if only we all followed her “actually extremely liberating” example of industrious sleeplessness, we would be quick to see results.
Well, indeed. With research results showing the cumulative effects of sleep loss and its impact on productivity, doubt has been voiced about the accuracy of Steel's self-assessment. Her output may be undeniable, but sceptics have suggested that she is guilty of erasing the role of ghostwriters at worst, gross exaggeration at best.
Steel says working 20 hours a day is “pretty brutal physically.” But is it even possible? “No,” says Maryanne Taylor of the Sleep Works. While you could work that long, the impact on productivity would make it hardly worthwhile. If Steel was routinely sleeping for four hours a night, she would be drastically underestimating the negative impact, says Alison Gardiner, founder of the sleep improvement programme Sleepstation. “It's akin to being drunk.”
It's possible that Steel is exaggerating the demands of her schedule. Self-imposed sleeplessness has “become a bit of a status symbol”, says Taylor, a misguided measure to prove how powerful and productive you are. Margaret Thatcher was also said to get by on four hours a night, while the 130-hour work weeks endured by tech heads has been held up as key to their success.
That is starting to change with increased awareness of the importance of sleep for mental health. “People are starting to realise that sleep should not be something that you fit in between everything else,” says Taylor.
But it is possible—if statistically extremely unlikely—that Steel could be born a “short sleeper” with an unusual body clock, says sleep expert Dr. Sophie Bostock. “It's probably present in fewer than 1% of the population.”
Even if Steel does happen to be among that tiny minority, says Bostock, it's “pretty irresponsible” to suggest that 20-hour days are simply a question of discipline for the rest of us.
46. What do we learn from the passage about Glamour magazine readers?
47. What did the business news website Quartz say about Danielle Steel?
48. What do sceptics think of Danielle Steel's work schedule claims?
49. What does Maryanne Taylor think of self-imposed sleeplessness?
50. How does Dr. Sophie Bostock look at the 20-hour daily work schedule?
Passage Two
Questions 51 to 55 are based on the following passage.
Organic agriculture is a relatively untapped resource for feeding the Earth's population, especially in the face of climate change and other global challenges. That's the conclusion I reached in reviewing 40 years of science comparing the long-term prospects of organic and conventional farming.
The review study, “Organic Agriculture in the 21st Century,” is featured as the cover story for the February issue of the journal Nature Plants. It is the first to compare organic and conventional agriculture across the main goals of sustainability identified by the National Academy of Sciences: productivity, economics, and environment.
Critics have long argued that organic agriculture is inefficient, requiring more land to yield the same amount of food. It's true that organic farming produces lower yields, averaging 10 to 20 percent less than conventional. Advocates contend that the environmental advantages of organic agriculture far outweigh the lower yields, and that increasing research and breeding resources for organic systems would reduce the yield gap. Sometimes excluded from these arguments is the fact that we already produce enough food to more than feed the world's 7.4 billion people but do not provide adequate access to all individuals.
In some cases, organic yields can be higher than conventional. For example, in severe drought conditions, which are expected to increase with climate change in many areas, organic farms can produce as good, if not better, yields because of the higher water-holding capacity of organically farmed soils.
What science does tell us is that mainstream conventional farming systems have provided growing supplies of food and other products but often at the expense of other sustainability goals.
Conventional agriculture may produce more food, but it often comes at a cost to the environment. Biodiversity loss, environmental degradation, and severe impacts on ecosystem services have not only accompanied conventional farming systems but have often extended well beyond their field boundaries. With organic agriculture, environmental costs tend to be lower and the benefits greater.
Overall, organic farms tend to store more soil carbon, have better soil quality, and reduce soil erosion compared to their conventional counterparts. Organic agriculture also creates less soil and water pollution and lower greenhouse gas emissions. And it's more energy-efficient because it doesn't rely on synthetic fertilizers or pesticides.
Organic agriculture is also associated with greater biodiversity of plants, animals, insects and microorganisms as well as genetic diversity. Biodiversity increases the services that nature provides and improves the ability of farming systems to adapt to changing conditions.
Despite lower yields, organic agriculture is more profitable for farmers because consumers are willing to pay more. Higher prices, called price premiums, can be justified as a way to compensate farmers for providing ecosystem services and avoiding environmental damage or external costs.
51. What do we learn from the conclusion of the author's review study?
52. What is the critics' argument against organic farming?
53. What does the author think should be taken into account in arguing about organic farming?
54. What does science tell us about conventional farming?
55. Why does the author think higher prices of organic farm produce are justifiable?
Answers & Explanations
46. C。解析：题干问关于Glamour杂志的读者我们能了解到什么。根据第一段“...prompted an outpouring of admiration.”（...引发了极大的钦佩/赞赏）。这表明读者对她的工作安排感到惊叹，对应C选项（They are deeply impressed by Danielle Steel's daily work schedule. 他们对Danielle Steel的日常工作时间表印象深刻）。
47. A。解析：题干问Quartz网站说了Danielle Steel什么。根据第二段末尾“held Steel up as an inspiration... example of industrious sleeplessness”（将Steel视为灵感...勤奋不眠的榜样）。industriousness对应industrious，对应A选项（She could serve as an example of industriousness. 她可以作为勤奋的榜样）。
48. A。解析：题干问怀疑论者对她工作时间表的声明怎么看。根据第四段“doubt has been voiced about the accuracy... sceptics have suggested that she is guilty of erasing the role of ghostwriters at worst, gross exaggeration at best.”（对其准确性表达了怀疑...怀疑者暗示她往坏了说抹杀了代笔，往好了说是严重夸大）。这表明她的说法是可疑的，对应A选项（They are questionable. 它们是可疑的）。
49. C。解析：题干问Maryanne Taylor怎么看自我强加的失眠。根据第六段“Self-imposed sleeplessness has ‘become a bit of a status symbol’, says Taylor, a misguided measure to prove how powerful and productive you are.”（泰勒说，自我强加的失眠已经“成为一种地位的象征”，一种证明你有多强大和多高产的被误导的衡量标准）。对应C选项（It may symbolise one's importance and success. 它可能象征着一个人的重要性和成功）。
50. B。解析：题干问Sophie Bostock博士如何看待每天20小时的工作时间表。根据最后一段“Even if Steel does happen to be among that tiny minority... it's ‘pretty irresponsible’ to suggest that 20-hour days are simply a question of discipline for the rest of us.”（暗示这是纪律问题对我们其他人来说是“非常不负责任的”）。既然不负责任，就是不鼓励大众效仿。对应B选项（The general public should not be encouraged to follow it. 不应鼓励公众效仿它）。
51. B。解析：题干问从作者综述研究的结论中能学到什么。根据第二篇文章第一段“Organic agriculture is a relatively untapped resource for feeding the Earth's population... That's the conclusion I reached”（有机农业是养活地球人口的一个相对未被开发的资源...这是我得出的结论）。对应B选项（Organic farming may be exploited to solve the global food problem. 有机农业可被开发来解决全球粮食问题）。
52. D。解析：题干问批评家反对有机农业的论点是什么。根据第三段“Critics have long argued that organic agriculture is inefficient, requiring more land to yield the same amount of food.”（批评家长期以来一直认为有机农业效率低下，需要更多土地才能产出同等数量的食物）。即产量不高，对应D选项（It is not that productive. 它没有那么高产）。
53. C。解析：题干问作者认为争论有机农业时应该考虑什么。根据第三段最后一句“Sometimes excluded from these arguments is the fact that we already produce enough food... but do not provide adequate access to all individuals.”（有时被排除在这些争论之外的事实是，我们已经生产了足够的食物...但并没有为所有人提供足够的获取途径）。强调的是分配不均。对应C选项（Inequality in food distribution. 粮食分配的不平等）。
54. B。解析：题干问关于传统农业科学告诉我们什么。根据第五段“What science does tell us is that mainstream conventional farming systems have provided growing supplies of food... but often at the expense of other sustainability goals.”（科学告诉我们...往往以牺牲其他可持续性目标为代价）。对应B选项（It is not conducive to sustainable development. 它不利于可持续发展）。
55. D。解析：题干问作者为何认为有机农产品高价是合理的。根据最后一段“Higher prices... can be justified as a way to compensate farmers for providing ecosystem services and avoiding environmental damage or external costs.”（更高的价格是合理的，以此补偿农民提供生态系统服务并避免环境破坏）。说明其对生态有益。对应D选项（Organic farming does long-term good to the ecosystem. 有机农业对生态系统有长期好处）。
核心搭配与高分句型
【核心搭配与高频短语】
● prompt an outpouring of：引发...的涌现/迸发（prompted an outpouring of admiration）
● hold sb up as：将某人作为...的榜样/典型（held Steel up as an inspiration）
● akin to：类似于（It's akin to being drunk）
● status symbol：地位的象征（become a bit of a status symbol）
● in the face of：面对（困难、挑战等）（in the face of climate change）
● outweigh：在重量、价值或重要性上超过（advantages far outweigh the lower yields）
● at the expense of：以牺牲...为代价（at the expense of other sustainability goals）
【亮点句型解析】
If only 引导的虚拟语气：
"...writing that if only we all followed her “actually extremely liberating” example of industrious sleeplessness, we would be quick to see results."
（...写道，如果只有我们都效仿她那“实际上极其解放的”勤奋不眠的榜样，我们很快就会看到结果。）`If only` 表示“但愿，要是...就好了”，引出非真实的假设，主句配合使用 `would be`，常用于表达强烈的愿望或带有一丝反讽意味的论述。
"...writing that if only we all followed her “actually extremely liberating” example of industrious sleeplessness, we would be quick to see results."
（...写道，如果只有我们都效仿她那“实际上极其解放的”勤奋不眠的榜样，我们很快就会看到结果。）`If only` 表示“但愿，要是...就好了”，引出非真实的假设，主句配合使用 `would be`，常用于表达强烈的愿望或带有一丝反讽意味的论述。
As good, if not better, ... 插入语结构：
"...organic farms can produce as good, if not better, yields because of the higher water-holding capacity..."
（...有机农场可以产生同样好，甚至更好的产量，因为其拥有更高的保水能力...）`if not better` 巧妙地插入在同级比较 `as good... yields` 之间，既承认了至少等同的效果，又暗示了超越的可能性，使得学术表达非常严密和高级。
"...organic farms can produce as good, if not better, yields because of the higher water-holding capacity..."
（...有机农场可以产生同样好，甚至更好的产量，因为其拥有更高的保水能力...）`if not better` 巧妙地插入在同级比较 `as good... yields` 之间，既承认了至少等同的效果，又暗示了超越的可能性，使得学术表达非常严密和高级。