概括大意

Stanford University

Stanford University, famous as one of northern California’s several institutions of higher learning, is sometimes called "the Harvard of the West." The closeness of Stanford to San Francisco, a city thirty-two miles to the north, gives the university a decidedly cosmopolitan flavor.

The students are enrolled mainly from the western United State. But most of the fifty states send students to Stanford, and many foreign students study here, as well. And standards for admission remain high. Young men and women are selected to enter the university from the upper fifteen percent of their high school classes.

Not only because of the high caliber of its students but also because of the desirable location and climate, Stanford has attracted to its faculty some of the world’s most respected scholars. The university staff has included many Nobel Prize winners such as Dr. Felix Bloch, Dr. Robert Hofstadter, and Dr. William Shockley in physics, Dr. Author Kornberg and Dr. Joshua Lederberg in medicine, and Dr. Paul J. Flory and Dr. Linus Pauling in chemistry. The Russian novelist Aleksander Solzhenistsyn has been in residence. Stanford’s undergraduate school of engineering and its graduate schools of business, law, and medicine are especially well-regarded.

What is student life like on "The Farm"? Culturally, the campus is a magnet for both students and citizens of nearby communities. Plays, concerts, and operas are performed in the university’s several auditoriums and in its outdoor theater, where graduations are also held. Several film series are presented during the school year. Guest lecturers from public and academic life frequently appear on campus. In the evenings, many students gather to socialize in the Student Union’s coffee house; here the beverages an the atmosphere both have a decidedly European flavor. For the sports-minded, the Stanford campus offer highly developed athletic facilities. Team sports, swimming, and track and field activity are all very much part of the Stanford picture. So are bicycling and jogging.

In addition to financial support from alumni, Stanford receives grants from the government and from private philanthropic foundations. In recent years, government grants have made possible advanced studies in the fields of history, psychology, education, and atomic energy. At presents Stanford is carrying out an ambitions building program, financed in part by the Ford Foundation’s 25 million grant. Recently added to the campus are a new physics building, new school of business, new graduate school of law, new student union, and undergraduate library.

EXERCISE:

1. Paragraph 2______

2. Paragraph 3______

3. Paragraph 4______

4. Paragraph 5______

A Colorful life on the campus

B Intelligent student body

C School administration

D Distinguished faculty

E Substantial financial support

F The Harvard of the west

1. Paragraph 1

2. Paragraph 3

3. Paragraph 4

4. Paragraph 6

5. Those high school graduates who can enter Stanford University ______.

6. Many professors like to teach in this university partly because here _____.

7. On the faculty of the university there are ______.

8. Financial support from both private organizations and the government has made possible _____.

A they can find the best students

B the university’s academic advancement and physical extension

C some of the most distinguished scholars of the world

D where a sports meet is held every year

E must have been the top students in their class

F must be hardworking

參考答案：B D A E E A C B

閱讀理解

Eta Carinae

As possibly the galaxy's (銀河) most massive star, Eta Carinae is now engaging in some very unusual behaviour. Australian astronomers, being in the Southern Hemisphere (半球), are able to observe it clearly.

In the 19th century, Eta Carinae was for a time the third brightest star in the sky. It has now become less bright so that binoculars (雙筒望遠(yuǎn)鏡) are needed to see it. "It seems to be brightening and becoming less bright over a period of many years", said Dr Bob Duncan from the Australia Telescope National Facility.

While it is not unusual for stars to vary in brightness, the period is usually much shorter. "Since 1992 it has become four times brighter, and then last year it began to drop dramatically," he said.

The problem in observing Eta Carinae is that it has been surrounded by a cloud of gas and dust, making it hard to see the star directly. However, radio waves and infrared light (紅外線) can pass through this cloud, so telescopes that receive these wavelengths can observe what is occurring.

Eta Carinae is of particular interest to astronomers because it seems to be in its death throes (劇痛). Being so large it will end up as a supernova (超新星). There has not been a supernova in our galaxy since the invention of the telescope. While a 1987 explosion in a nearby galaxy gave astronomers plenty of valuable data, they are hungry for an even closer look.

Eta Carinae has other unique features, and is the only star known to produce an ultraviolet (紫外線) laser that is brighter than that produced by the Sun. Lasers have been observed in other frequencies from a few stars.

31　Eta Carinae is now engaging in

A　some very common behaviour.

B　some very dull behaviour.

C　some very frightening behaviour

D　some very strange behaviour.

32　The word "period" in Paragraph 3 means the length of time

A　over which stars vary in brightness.

B　for which Eta Charinae's brightening lasts.

C　Eta Carinae takes to become a supernova.

D　it takes the laser from Eta Carinae to travel to the earth.

33　Eta Carinae is hard to observe because

A　it is too far away.

B　there is too much dust and gas around it

C　the binoculars are not powerful enough.

D　it does not send out infrared light.

4　Astronomers are particularly interested in Eta Carinae because

A　it is in its final stage.

B　it is a supernova.

C　it exploded in 1987.

D　it is brighter than the Sun.

5　Which of the following statements about Eta Carinae is NOT true?

A　It will end up as a supernova.

B　It can be seen only through binoculars.

C　It is the only star that sends out an ultraviolet laser.

D　Its ultraviolet laser is brighter than that of the Sun.

（責(zé)任編輯：中大編輯）

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