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

Sugar shocked. That describes the reaction of many Americans this week following revelations that, 50 years ago, the sugar industry paid Harvard scientists for research that shifted the focus away from sugar's role in heart disease—and put the spotlight squarely on dietary fat.

What might surprise consumers is just how many present-day nutrition studies are still funded by the food industry. Nutrition scholar Marion Nestle of New York University spent a year informally tracking industry-funded studies on food. “Roughly 90% of nearly 170 studies favored the sponsor's interest,” Nestle tells us. Other systematic reviews support her conclusions.

For instance, studies funded by Welch Foods—the brand behind Welch's 100% Grape Juice—found that drinking Concord grape juice daily may boost brain function. Another, funded by Quaker Oats, concluded, as a Daily Mail story put it, that “hot oatmeal breakfast keeps you full for longer.”

Last year, The New York Times revealed how Coca-Cola was funding well-known scientists and organizations promoting a message that, in the battle against weight gain, people should pay more attention to exercise and less to what they eat and drink. Coca-Cola also released data detailing its funding of several medical institutions and associations between 2010 and 2015.

“It's certainly a problem that so much research in nutrition and health is funded by industry,” says Bonnie Liebman, director of nutrition at the Center for Science in the Public Interest. “When the food industry pays for research, it often gets what it pays for.” And what it pays for is often a pro-industry finding.

Given this environment, consumers should be skeptical when reading the latest finding in nutrition science and ignore the latest study that pops up on your news feed. “Rely on health experts who've reviewed all the evidence,” Liebman says, pointing to the official government Dietary Guidelines, which are based on reviews of hundreds of studies.

“And that expert advice remains pretty simple,” says Nestle. “We know what healthy diets are—lots of vegetables, not too much junk food, balanced calories. Everything else is really difficult to do experimentally.”

46. What did Harvard scientists do 50 years ago?

A) They raised public awareness of the possible causes of heart disease.

B) They turned public attention away from the health risks of sugar to fat.

C) They placed the sugar industry in the spotlight with their new findings.

D) They conducted large-scale research on the role of sugar in people's health.

47. What does Marion Nestle say about present-day nutrition studies?

A) They took her a full year to track and analyze.

B) Most of them are based on systematic reviews.

C) They depend on funding from the food industries.

D) Nearly all of them serve the purpose of the funders.

48. What did Coca-Cola-funded studies claim?

A) Exercise is more important to good health than diet.

B) Choosing what to eat and drink is key to weight control.

C) Drinking Coca-Cola does not contribute to weight gain.

D) The food industry plays a major role in fighting obesity.

49. What does Liebman say about industry-funded research?

A) It simply focuses on nutrition and health.

B) It causes confusion among consumers.

C) It rarely results in objective findings.

D) It runs counter to the public interest.

50. What is the author's advice to consumers?

A) Follow their intuition in deciding what to eat.

B) Be doubtful of diet experts' recommendations.

C) Ignore irrelevant information on their news feed.

D) Think twice about new nutrition research findings.

Passage Two

Success was once defined as being able to stay at a company for a long time and move up the corporate ladder. The goal was to reach the top, accumulate wealth and retire to a life of ease. My father is a successful senior executive. In 35 years, he worked for only three companies.

When I started my career, things were already different. If you weren't changing companies every three or four years, you simply weren't getting ahead in your career. But back then, if you were a consultant or freelancer, people would wonder what was wrong with you. They would assume you had problems getting a job.

Today, consulting or freelancing for five businesses at the same time is a badge of honor. It shows how valuable an individual is. Many companies now look to these “ultimate professionals” to solve problems their full-time teams can't. Or they save money by hiring “top-tier experts” only for particular projects.

Working at home or in cafes, starting businesses of their own, and even launching business ventures that eventually may fail, all indicate “initiative,” “creativity,” and “adaptability,” which are desirable qualities in today's workplace. Most important, there is a growing recognition that people who balance work and play, and who work at what they are passionate about, are more focused and productive, delivering greater value to their clients.

Who are these people? They are artists, writers, programmers, providers of office services and career advice. What's needed now is a marketplace platform specifically designed to bring freelancers and clients together. Such platforms then become a place to feature the most experienced, professional, and creative talent. This is where they conduct business, where a sense of community reinforces the culture and values of the gig economy, and where success is rewarded with good reviews that encourage more business.

Slowly but surely, these platforms create a bridge between traditional enterprises and this emerging economy. Perhaps more important, as the global economy continues to be disrupted by technology and other massive change, the gig economy will itself become an engine of economic and social transformation.

51. What does the author use the example of his father to illustrate?

A) How long people took to reach the top of their career.

B) How people accumulated wealth in his father's time.

C) How people viewed success in his father's time.

D) How long people usually stayed in a company.

52. Why did people often change jobs when the author started his career?

A) It was considered a fashion at that time.

B) It was a way to advance in their career.

C) It was a response to the changing job market.

D) It was difficult to keep a job for long.

53. What does the author say about people now working for several businesses at the same time?

A) They are often regarded as most treasured talents.

B) They are able to bring their potential into fuller play.

C) They have control over their life and work schedules.

D) They feel proud of being outstanding problem solver.

54. What have businesses come to recognize now?

A) Who is capable of solving problems with ease.

B) How people can be more focused and productive.

C) What kind of people can contribute more to them.

D) Why some people are more passionate about work.

55. What does the author say about the gig economy?

A) It may force companies to reform their business practice.

B) It may soon replace the traditional economic model.

C) It will drive technological progress on a global scale.

D) It will bring about radical economic and social changes.

Answers & Explanations

Passage One: The Bias in Nutrition Science

46. B。解析：题干问50年前哈佛科学家做了什么。第一段指出：paid Harvard scientists for research that shifted the focus away from sugar's role... and put the spotlight squarely on dietary fat（付钱给哈佛科学家进行研究，将注意力从糖的作用转移...并将焦点直接放在饮食脂肪上），对应选项 B (They turned public attention away from the health risks of sugar to fat 转移了公众注意力)。

47. D。解析：题干问 Marion Nestle 对当今营养学研究的看法。第二段引用她的话：“Roughly 90% of nearly 170 studies favored the sponsor's interest”（将近170项研究中约90%偏向于赞助商的利益），对应选项 D (Nearly all of them serve the purpose of the funders 几乎所有的研究都服务于资助者的目的)。

48. A。解析：题干问可口可乐资助的研究声称了什么。第四段指出：promoting a message that, in the battle against weight gain, people should pay more attention to exercise and less to what they eat and drink（传达这样一个信息：在对抗体重增加的战斗中，人们应该多关注运动，少关注饮食），对应选项 A (Exercise is more important to good health than diet 运动比饮食更重要)。

49. C。解析：题干问 Liebman 对行业资助的研究有什么看法。第五段引用她的话说：When the food industry pays for research, it often gets what it pays for. And what it pays for is often a pro-industry finding（当食品工业为研究买单时，它通常会得到它所付钱想要的结果。而且往往是亲工业的结果），这说明研究失去了客观性，对应选项 C (It rarely results in objective findings 很少得出客观的结果)。

50. D。解析：题干问作者给消费者的建议是什么。第六段指出：consumers should be skeptical when reading the latest finding... and ignore the latest study（消费者在阅读最新发现时应该持怀疑态度...并忽略最新的研究），对应选项 D (Think twice about new nutrition research findings 对新的营养学研究发现要三思/重新考虑)。

Passage Two: The Shift to the Gig Economy

51. C。解析：题干问作者用他父亲的例子说明了什么。第一段首句说：Success was once defined as being able to stay at a company for a long time and move up the corporate ladder（成功曾经被定义为能够在一个公司呆很长时间并沿着公司的阶梯往上爬），接着引出他父亲作为高级高管35年只换了三家公司的例子，这正是为了说明当时的成功观，对应选项 C (How people viewed success in his father's time)。

52. B。解析：题干问作者刚工作时，人们为什么经常换工作。第二段指出：If you weren't changing companies every three or four years, you simply weren't getting ahead in your career（如果你没有每三四年换一次公司，你简直无法在你的职业生涯中取得进步），对应选项 B (It was a way to advance in their career 这是在职业生涯中晋升的一种方式)。

53. A。解析：题干问关于现在同时为多家企业工作的人，作者怎么说。第三段指出：consulting or freelancing for five businesses at the same time is a badge of honor... Many companies now look to these “ultimate professionals” to solve problems（这是一种荣誉勋章...很多公司指望这些“终极专业人士”解决问题），说明他们备受珍视，对应选项 A (They are often regarded as most treasured talents)。

54. B。解析：题干问企业现在认识到了什么。第四段末尾指出：there is a growing recognition that people who balance work and play, and who work at what they are passionate about, are more focused and productive（人们越来越认识到，平衡工作与娱乐、对自己所从事的工作充满热情的人更专注、更有效率），对应选项 B (How people can be more focused and productive 怎样能让人更加专注和高效)。

55. D。解析：题干问作者对“零工经济”的看法。最后一段末尾总结道：the gig economy will itself become an engine of economic and social transformation（零工经济本身将成为经济和社会转型的引擎），对应选项 D (It will bring about radical economic and social changes 它将带来彻底的经济和社会变革)。

核心搭配与高分句型

【核心搭配与高频短语】

• shift the focus away from... to...：把焦点从...转移到...（shifted the focus away from sugar... to dietary fat）
• favor the sponsor's interest：偏袒赞助商的利益
• battle against：与...作斗争（in the battle against weight gain）
• get what it pays for：一分钱一分货 / 得到它花钱想要的结果
• move up the corporate ladder：在公司的晋升阶梯上攀升
• get ahead：取得进步，获得成功（getting ahead in your career）
• a badge of honor：荣誉的象征 / 荣誉勋章
• look to sb. to do sth.：指望/依靠某人做某事（look to these "ultimate professionals" to solve problems）
• balance work and play：平衡工作和娱乐
• bring about：引起，带来（bring about radical changes）

【亮点句型解析】

• What 主语从句 + is + 疑问代词引导的表语从句：
  "What might surprise consumers is just how many present-day nutrition studies are still funded by the food industry."
  （可能让消费者惊讶的是，究竟有多少当今的营养学研究仍然是由食品工业资助的。）这种“从句套从句”的结构在四级作文中非常实用，能有效地引出一个让人意想不到的事实或现象。
• If 虚拟语气（对过去的非真实假设）：
  "If you weren't changing companies every three or four years, you simply weren't getting ahead in your career."
  （如果你没有每三四年换一次公司，你简直无法在你的职业生涯中取得进步。）通过否定假设来强调“频繁跳槽”在那个时代的重要性，语言富有表现力。