7.11 考研英语真题源外刊阅读模拟试题【难度7.3】

Section II Reading Comprehension 

Part A 

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

Text 2

On June 7, Gordon Wood, a prominent historian and Pulitzer Prize winner, was walking across a supermarket parking lot when a driver struck and killed him. Wood’s passing made international news and inspired memorial pieces across major publications. But for the purposes of federal recordkeeping, it might as well have never happened.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the agency charged with minimizing road fatalities, maintains a tally of serious crashes that occur on public streets. But most driveways and parking lots are private property, which means collisions there do not register. Consequently, little is known about them, and they seldom appear in street safety discourse—even though walking across a parking lot is an everyday occurrence. The prevalence and nature of such conflicts remain a "serious black box," according to researchers.

What little data exists is alarming. Advocacy groups note that at least 110 children are injured in driveway and parking lot strikes every week. While these collisions are typically low-speed affairs where vehicle occupants remain unharmed, the same is not true for pedestrians. The NHTSA estimated that over 900 people outside of motor vehicles died in 2021 in "non-traffic crashes," a category that lumps together private properties. Because they occurred off public roads, these fatalities are systematically excluded from the widely cited official annual statistics.

Safety experts suspect "car bloat"—the growing popularity of taller, heavier passenger vehicles—is making these low-speed non-road collisions more deadly. As trucks and SUVs dominate new vehicle sales, the typical vehicle mass and blind zones have grown substantially. Drivers of today’s full-sized pickups have severely limited visibility, sometimes unable to see multiple children sitting directly in front of their trucks. Other features of modern vehicles, like thicker A-pillars and bigger side mirrors, can further conceal pedestrians.

Furthermore, distracted driving appears to be another primary catalyst for such tragedies. Ten years ago, the National Safety Council found that two out of three Americans admitted to making calls while navigating parking lots. Today, flashy infotainment touchscreens pose equivalent hazards.

Automotive technology can theoretically provide a measure of safety in such environments. Research shows that rear-facing cameras, which have been mandatory on new cars sold in the US since 2018, can reduce backover collisions. Pedestrian automatic emergency braking can also protect footgoers and is scheduled to become standard on new cars by 2029. But with the average car in the US now almost 13 years old, it will be a long time before the majority of vehicles are equipped with such lifesaving tech.

In the meantime, experts recommend tangible behavioral adjustments. Drivers are advised to back into parking spots instead of going in front-first, a practice that affords a clearer view when exiting. Furthermore, prospective buyers should consider modest-sized models that do not rely on cameras to compensate for gaping blind zones, as research indicates that drivers respond more swiftly to direct visual stimuli than to screen-mediated images.

Ultimately, federal policymakers must acknowledge that a crash death demands attention regardless of whether it occurs on a public street or a private lot. For decades, they have created a distinction without a difference, meticulously tracking the former while inexplicably ignoring the latter.

26. Why was Gordon Wood's fatal collision excluded from federal safety statistics?
[A] The incident was classified as a low-speed affair lacking severe structural vehicular damage.
[B] Federal databases predominantly register vehicular fatalities occurring on public thoroughfares.
[C] The local jurisdiction deliberately withheld the accident reports from national regulatory agencies.
[D] The NHTSA systematically neglects casualties involving high-profile public figures to maintain neutrality.

27. What contributes significantly to the worsening lethality of non-road collisions?
[A] The intentional removal of rearview cameras in the latest generations of sports utility vehicles.
[B] The overwhelming reliance on smartphones by pedestrians navigating through congested private lots.
[C] The disproportionate proliferation of massive passenger vehicles featuring extensive visual obstructions.
[D] The persistent failure of modern infotainment systems to issue timely pedestrian proximity alerts.

28. What does the author imply about advanced automotive safety technologies in Paragraph 6?
[A] Their exorbitant installation costs deter average consumers from prioritizing pedestrian protection.
[B] They inadvertently encourage drivers to engage in riskier maneuvering behaviors within tight spaces.
[C] Their gradual fleet penetration inevitably compromises their immediate societal benefits.
[D] They frequently malfunction when operating in densely packed and poorly illuminated parking lots.

29. To mitigate parking lot risks, prospective car buyers are advised to ________.
[A] exclusively depend on screen-mediated images when reversing into narrow spaces
[B] prioritize vehicles that necessitate minimal technological compensation for visibility
[C] install aftermarket automatic emergency braking systems before entering private properties
[D] navigate front-first into parking spots to optimize their field of vision upon arrival

30. Which of the following best represents the author's underlying argument in the concluding paragraph?
[A] Bureaucratic classifications should not obscure the underlying urgency of comprehensive fatality tracking.
[B] Private property owners must bear the primary legal responsibility for preventing non-traffic crashes.
[C] The federal government is constitutionally constrained from intervening in private property disputes.
[D] Public street safety initiatives have inadvertently shifted traffic hazards toward unregulated private lots.

附注：根据历年考研英语真题阅读题源外刊等，摘选最新文章，模拟仿真出题。

参考答案见以下。

Quick look: BCCBA

26.【正确答案】B
【解析】题型：事实细节题
定位： 第一段和第二段。“...for the purposes of federal recordkeeping, it might as well have never happened... maintains a tally of serious crashes that occur on public streets. But most driveways and parking lots are private property, which means collisions there do not register.”
分析： 原文明确指出，戈登·伍德的死亡之所以没有被记录在案，是因为联邦机构（NHTSA）只统计发生在“公共街道（public streets）”上的碰撞，而停车场属于私人财产，因此不予登记。选项 B“联邦数据库主要登记发生在公共主干道上的车辆死亡事故（predominantly register vehicular fatalities occurring on public thoroughfares）”是对这一官方制度盲区的精准学术化替换（public thoroughfares 对应 public streets）。
干扰项：[A] 该事件被归类为缺乏严重结构性车辆损坏的低速事件（张冠李戴，文中确实提到这是低速事件，但将其排除在统计之外的核心原因是“地理位置属性/私有财产”，而非速度或车辆损坏）；[C] 地方司法管辖区故意向国家监管机构隐瞒事故报告（无中生有，原文强调这是联邦统计规则的问题，并未提及地方故意隐瞒）；[D] NHTSA系统性地忽视涉及知名公众人物的伤亡以保持中立（动机揣测，文章提及伍德的知名度是为了形成反差，并非指控机构因其出名而忽视他）。

27.【正确答案】C
【解析】题型：因果细节题
定位： 第四段第一、二句“Safety experts suspect 'car bloat'—the growing popularity of taller, heavier passenger vehicles—is making these low-speed non-road collisions more deadly. As trucks and SUVs dominate new vehicle sales, the typical vehicle mass and blind zones have grown substantially.”
分析： 题目询问是什么导致了非道路碰撞的致命性恶化。原文给出的原因是“汽车膨胀（car bloat）”，即更高、更重的卡车和SUV占据了销售主导，导致“车辆质量和盲区大幅增加（mass and blind zones have grown substantially）”。选项 C“具有大面积视觉障碍的大型乘用车的极不均衡的激增（disproportionate proliferation of massive passenger vehicles featuring extensive visual obstructions）”完美再现了这一物理与工业现象。
干扰项：[A] 在最新一代运动型多用途车中故意移除后视摄像头（事实相反，第六段明确指出自2018年起后视摄像头已成为强制标配/mandatory）；[B] 行人在拥挤的私人停车场中过度依赖智能手机（修饰错位，第五段提到使用手机导致事故的是“驾驶员/Americans making calls while navigating”，而非行人）；[D] 现代信息娱乐系统持续未能发出及时的行人接近警告（偷换概念，信息娱乐系统的问题在于“分散了司机的注意力/distracted driving”，而非未能发出警告）。

28.【正确答案】C
【解析】题型：推理判断题
定位： 第六段最后一句“But with the average car in the US now almost 13 years old, it will be a long time before the majority of vehicles are equipped with such lifesaving tech.”
分析： 原文指出，尽管后视摄像头和自动紧急制动等汽车安全技术在理论上能提供保护，但由于美国目前的平均车龄高达13年，“距离大多数车辆配备这种救生技术还有很长一段时间”。这暗示了新技术的普及极其缓慢。选项 C“其在车队中的逐渐普及不可避免地削弱了它们直接的社会效益（gradual fleet penetration inevitably compromises their immediate societal benefits）”极其精妙地推导出了由于“车龄老化”导致的“技术红利延迟”问题（fleet penetration 为汽车行业术语，指新技术在保有车辆中的渗透率）。
干扰项：[A] 其高昂的安装成本阻止了普通消费者优先考虑行人保护（无中生有，文中指出这些技术正成为标准配置/standard，并未归咎于消费者的购买力）；[B] 它们无意中鼓励了驾驶员在狭窄空间内进行更危险的操控行为（反向干扰，这是另一种常见的社会学推论，即“风险补偿理论”，但在本文中作者并未提及技术会鼓励危险驾驶）；[D] 它们在密集拥挤和照明不良的停车场中运行频繁出现故障（凭空捏造，文章未质疑技术本身的可靠性）。

29.【正确答案】B
【解析】题型：细节推断题
定位： 第七段第二句“Furthermore, prospective buyers should consider modest-sized models that do not rely on cameras to compensate for gaping blind zones, as research indicates that drivers respond more swiftly to direct visual stimuli than to screen-mediated images.”
分析： 在技术普及缓慢的过渡期，作者向潜在购车者提出的建议是：考虑购买“不需要依靠摄像头来弥补巨大盲区的、尺寸适中的车型（modest-sized models that do not rely on cameras...）”。选项 B“优先考虑那些几乎不需要视觉技术补偿的车辆（prioritize vehicles that necessitate minimal technological compensation for visibility）”是对作者购车建议的高度抽象提炼。
干扰项：[A] 在狭窄空间倒车时完全依赖屏幕媒介图像（态度相反，原文明确建议不要过度依赖屏幕，因为直接视觉刺激的反应更快）；[C] 在进入私人财产之前安装售后自动紧急制动系统（无中生有，文中未提及购买售后/aftermarket系统）；[D] 车头朝前驶入停车位，以在到达时优化其视野（事实相反，第七段第一句明确建议“倒车入库/back into parking spots”，而非车头朝前进入/front-first）。

30.【正确答案】A
【解析】题型：主旨推断题
定位： 第八段（最后一段）“Ultimately, federal policymakers must acknowledge that a crash death demands attention regardless of whether it occurs on a public street or a private lot. For decades, they have created a distinction without a difference, meticulously tracking the former while inexplicably ignoring the latter.”
分析： 文章结尾直击核心矛盾：联邦政策制定者几十年来制造了一种“没有意义的区分（distinction without a difference）”，只追踪公共街道的死亡，而无视私人地段（停车场）的死亡。作者呼吁，无论发生在何处，撞车死亡就是死亡，都需要被重视。选项 A“官僚主义的分类不应掩盖全面追踪死亡事故的潜在紧迫性（Bureaucratic classifications should not obscure the underlying urgency of comprehensive fatality tracking）”完美升华了作者要求打破“公共/私有”数据壁垒的政策呼吁。
干扰项：[B] 私有财产所有者必须承担防止非交通碰撞的主要法律责任（偏离主旨，作者呼吁的是“联邦政府将其纳入统计和监管”，而非将责任推给私有财产所有者）；[C] 联邦政府在宪法上受到限制，无法干预私有财产纠纷（事实错误，作者认为无视私人地段是“莫名其妙的/inexplicably”，这说明政府原本是可以且应该介入的）；[D] 街道安全倡议无意中将交通隐患转移到了不受监管的私人地段（无中生有，文章并未论证公共街道变安全导致了停车场变得更危险，停车场的危险是汽车体积变大和分心造成的）。

【词汇注释】

【长难句】Furthermore, prospective buyers should consider modest-sized models that do not rely on cameras to compensate for gaping blind zones, as research indicates that drivers respond more swiftly to direct visual stimuli than to screen-mediated images.

拆解：

1. 句子主干为 prospective buyers should consider modest-sized models（潜在买家应考虑尺寸适中的车型）。

2. that 引导定语从句 that do not rely on cameras to compensate for gaping blind zones，修饰 models，指出这些车型不需要靠摄像头来弥补巨大的盲区。

3. as 引导原因状语从句，从句主干为 research indicates that...。

4. 在 indicates 的宾语从句中，包含了一个比较级结构 respond more swiftly to direct visual stimuli than to screen-mediated images（对直接视觉刺激的反应比对屏幕媒介图像的反应更迅速）。

此外，潜在买家应考虑那些不需要依靠摄像头来弥补巨大盲区的、尺寸适中的车型，因为研究表明，驾驶员对直接视觉刺激的反应比对屏幕媒介图像的反应要快得多。

【参考译文】

6月7日，杰出的历史学家、普利策奖得主戈登·伍德在穿过一家超市的停车场时，被一名司机撞倒身亡。伍德的离世登上了国际新闻，并引发了各大出版物的悼念文章。但就联邦政府的记录而言，这件事就像从未发生过一样。

美国国家公路交通安全管理局（NHTSA）是负责最大程度减少道路死亡人数的机构，它维护着一份在公共街道上发生的严重撞车事故的统计数据。但大多数车道和停车场都属于私人财产，这意味着在那里发生的碰撞不会被登记在案。因此，人们对这些事故知之甚少，它们也很少出现在关于街道安全的公共讨论中——尽管穿过停车场是每天都在发生的事情。研究人员表示，此类冲突的普遍程度和性质仍然是一个“严重的黑匣子”。

仅存的少量数据也令人触目惊心。倡导团体指出，每周至少有110名儿童在车道和停车场的撞击中受伤。虽然这些碰撞通常是低速事件，车内人员可以安然无恙，但对行人来说情况却并非如此。NHTSA估计，2021年有超过900名机动车外的“非乘员”死于“非交通事故”，这是一个将私人领地混为一谈的类别。由于它们发生在公共道路之外，这些死亡人数被系统性地排除在被广泛引用的官方年度统计数据之外。

安全专家怀疑，“汽车膨胀”——即更高、更重的乘用车日益流行——正在使这些低速的非道路碰撞变得更加致命。随着卡车和SUV主导新车销售，典型的车辆质量和盲区已经大幅增加。当今全尺寸皮卡的驾驶员视野受到严重限制，有时无法看到直接坐在卡车前方的多名儿童。现代车辆的其他特征，如更厚的A柱和更大的侧后视镜，会进一步遮挡行人。

此外，分心驾驶似乎是造成此类悲剧的另一个主要催化剂。十年前，国家安全委员会发现，三分之二的美国人承认在穿过停车场时打电话。如今，花哨的信息娱乐触摸屏也构成了同等的危险。

从理论上讲，汽车技术可以在这样的环境中提供一定程度的安全保障。研究表明，自2018年起在美国销售的新车上强制安装的后视摄像头可以减少倒车碰撞。行人自动紧急制动系统也能保护步行者，并计划在2029年成为新车的标准配置。但由于目前美国汽车的平均车龄接近13年，要让道路上的大多数车辆都配备这种救生技术还需要很长一段时间。

与此同时，专家建议人们在行为上做出切实调整。建议驾驶员倒车入库，而不是车头朝前驶入，这种做法可以在驶出时提供更清晰的视野。此外，潜在买家应考虑那些不需要依靠摄像头来弥补巨大盲区的、尺寸适中的车型，因为研究表明，驾驶员对直接视觉刺激的反应比对屏幕媒介图像的反应要迅速得多。

归根结底，联邦政策制定者必须承认，无论撞车死亡事件是发生在公共街道上还是私人地段，都需要引起重视。几十年来，他们制造了一种毫无意义的区分，一丝不苟地追踪前者，却莫名其妙地无视了后者。

附注：