考研英語閱讀

2005

Text2

Doyourememberallthoseyearswhenscientistsarguedthatsmokingwouldkillusbut

thedoubtersinsistedthatwedidn'tknowforsure?Thattheevidencewasinconclusive,the

scienceuncertain?Thattheantismokinglobbywasouttodestroyourwayoflifeandthe

governmentshouldstayoutoftheway?LotsofAmericansboughtthatnonsense,andover

threedecades,some10millionsmokerswenttoearlygraves.

Thereareupsettingparallelstoday,asscientistsinonewaveafteranothertrytoawaken

ustothegrowingthreatofglobalwarming.ThelatestwasapanelfromtheNational

AcademyofSciences,enlistedbytheWhiteHouse,totellusthattheEarth'satmosphereis

definitelywarmingandthattheproblemislargelyman-made.Theclearmessageisthatwe

shouldgetmovingtoprotectourselves.ThepresidentoftheNationalAcademy,Bruce

Alberts,addedthiskeypointintheprefacetothepaneFsreport:"Scienceneverhasallthe

answers.Butsciencedoesprovideuswiththebestavailableguidetothefuture,anditis

criticalthatournationandtheworldbaseimportantpoliciesonthebestjudgmentsthat

sciencecanprovideconcerningthefutureconsequencesofpresentactions.^^

Justasonsmoking,voicesnowcomefrommanyquartersinsistingthatthescience

aboutglobalwarmingisincomplete,thatit'sOKtokeeppouringfumesintotheairuntilwe

knowforsure.Thisisadangerousgame:bythetime100percentoftheevidenceisin,it

maybetoolate.Withtherisksobviousandgrowing,aprudentpeoplewouldtakeoutan

insurancepolicynow.

Fortunately,theWhiteHouseisstartingtopayattention.Butit'sobviousthata

majorityofthepresident'sadvisersstilldon'ttakeglobalwarmingseriously.Insteadofa

planofaction,theycontinuetopressformoreresearch-aclassiccaseof“paralysisby

analysis/5

Toserveasresponsiblestewardsoftheplanet,wemustpressforwardondeeper

atmosphericandoceanicresearch.Butresearchaloneisinadequate.IftheAdministration

won'ttakethelegislativeinitiative,Congressshouldhelptobeginfashioningconservation

measures.AbillbyDemocraticSenatorRobertByrdofWestVirginia,whichwouldoffer

financialincentivesforprivateindustry,isapromisingstart.Manyseethatthecountryis

gettingreadytobuildlotsofnewpowerplantstomeetourenergyneeds.Ifweareever

goingtoprotecttheatmosphere,itiscrucialthatthosenewplantsbeenvironmentallysound.

26.Anargumentmadebysupportersofsmokingwasthat.

[A]therewasnoscientificevidenceofthecorrelationbetweensmokinganddeath

[B]thenumberofearlydeathsofsmokersinthepastdecadeswasinsignificant

[C]peoplehadthefreedomtochoosetheirownwayoflife

[D]antismokingpeoplewereusuallytalkingnonsense

27.AccordingtoBruceAlberts,sciencecanserveas,

[A]aprotector[B]ajudge

[C]acritic[D]aguide

28.Whatdoestheauthormeanby"paralysisbyanalysis^(Lastline,Paragraph4)?

[A]Endlessstudieskillaction.[B]Carefulinvestigationrevealstruth.

[C]Prudentplanninghindersprogress.[D]Extensiveresearchhelpsdecision-making.

29.Accordingtotheauthor;whatshouldtheAdministrationdoaboutglobalwarming?

[A]Offeraidtobuildcleanerpowerplants.

[B]Raisepublicawarenessofconservation.

[C]Pressforfurtherscientificresearch.

[D]Takesomelegislativemeasures.

30.Theauthorassociatestheissueofglobalwarmingwiththatofsmokingbecause_.

[A]theybothsufferedfromthegovernment'snegligence

[B]alessonfromthelatterisapplicabletotheformer

[C]theoutcomeofthelatteraggravatestheformer

[D]bothofthemhaveturnedfrombadtoworse

2

Text4

Americansnolongerexpectpublicfigures,whetherinspeechorinwriting,to

commandtheEnglishlanguagewithskillandgift.Nordotheyaspiretosuchcommand

themselves.Inhislatestbook,DoingOurOwnThing:TheDegradationofLanguageand

MusicandWhyWeShould,Like,Care,JohnMcWhorter,alinguistandcontroversialistof

mixedliberalandconservativeviews,seesthetriumphof1960scounter-cultureas

responsibleforthedeclineofformalEnglish.

Blamingthepermissive1960sisnothingnew,butthisisnotyetanothercriticism

againstthedeclineineducation.Mr.McWhorter?sacademicspecialityislanguagehistory

andchange,andheseesthegradualdisappearanceof“whomJforexample,tobenatural

andnomoreregrettablethanthelossofthecase-endingsofOldEnglish.

Butthecultoftheauthenticandthepersonal,“doingourownthing,“hasspeltthe

deathofformalspeech,writing,poetryandmusic.Whileeventhemodestlyeducatedsought

anelevatedtonewhentheyputpentopaperbeforethe1960s,eventhemostwellregarded

writingsincethenhassoughttocapturespokenEnglishonthepage.Equally,inpoetry,the

highlypersonal,performativegenreistheonlyformthatcouldclaimrealliveliness.Inboth

oralandwrittenEnglish,talkingistriumphingoverspeaking,spontaneityovercraft.

Illustratedwithanentertainingarrayofexamplesfrombothhighandlowculture,the

trendthatMr.McWhorterdocumentsisunmistakable.Butitislessclear,totakethe

questionofhissubtitle,whyweshould,like,care.Asalinguist,heacknowledgesthatall

varietiesofhumanlanguage,includingnon-standardoneslikeBlackEnglish,canbe

powerfullyexpressive—thereexistsnolanguageordialectintheworldthatcannotconvey

complexideas.Heisnotarguing,asmanydo,thatwecannolongerthinkstraightbecause

wedonottalkproper.

Russianshaveadeeplovefortheirownlanguageandcarrylargechunksofmemorized

poetryintheirheads,whileItalianpoliticianstendtoelaboratespeechthatwouldseem

old-fashionedtomostEnglish-speakers.Mr.McWhorteracknowledgesthatformallanguage

3

isnotstrictlynecessary,andproposesnoradicaleducationreforms—heisreallygrieving

overthelossofsomethingbeautifulmorethanuseful.WenowtakeourEnglish“onpaper

platesinsteadofchina."Ashame,perhaps,butprobablyaninevitableone.

36.AccordingtoMcWhorter,thedeclineofformalEnglish.

[AJisinevitableinradicaleducationreforms

fB]isbutalltoonaturalinlanguagedevelopment

[C]hascausedthecontroversyoverthecounter-culture

|D]broughtaboutchangesinpublicattitudesinthe1960s

37.Theword“talking”(Line6,Paragraph3)denotes.

IAJmodesty[BJpersonality

[C]liveliness[D]informality

38.TowhichofthefollowingstatementswouldMcWhortermostlikelyagree?

[AJLogicalthinkingisnotnecessarilyrelatedtothewaywetalk.

fB]BlackEnglishcanbemoreexpressivethanstandardEnglish.

[C]Non-standardvarietiesofhumanlanguagearejustasentertaining.

[D]Ofallthevarieties,standardEnglishcanbestconveycomplexideas.

39.ThedescriptionofRussians9loveofmemorizingpoetryshowstheauthor's.

[A]interestintheirlanguage[B]appreciationoftheirefforts

[C]admirationfortheirmemory[D]contemptfortheirold-fashionedness

40.Accordingtothelastparagraph,upaperplates”isto“china”as.

[A]"temporary''isto"permanent”

[B]"radical”isto“conservative”

[C]"functional”isto“artistic”

[D]"humble”isto“noble

4

2006

Text1

Inspiteof“endlesstalkofdifference,Americansocietyisanamazingmachinefor

homogenizingpeople.Thereis“thedemocratizinguniformityofdressanddiscourse,and

thecasualnessandabsenceofdeference“characteristicofpopularculture.Peopleare

absorbedinto“acultureofconsumption^^launchedbythe19thcentuiydepartmentstoresthat

offered“vastarraysofgoodsinanelegantatmosphere.Insteadofintimateshopscateringto

aknowledgeableelite,“thesewerestores“anyonecouldenter,regardlessofclassor

background.Thisturnedshoppingintoapublicanddemocraticact.^^Themassmedia,

advertisingandsportsareotherforcesforhomogenization.

Immigrantsarequicklyfittingintothiscommonculture,whichmaynotbealtogether

elevatingbutishardlypoisonous.WritingfortheNationalImmigrationForum,Gregory

Rodriguezreportsthattoday'simmigrationisneitheratunprecedentedlevelsnorresistantto

assimilation.In1998immigrantswere9.8percentofpopulation;in1900,13.6percent.In

the10yearspriorto1990,3.1immigrantsarrivedforevery1,000residents;inthe10years

priorto1890,9.2forevery1,000.Now,considerthreeindicesofassimilation-language,

homeownershipandintermarriage.

The1990Censusrevealedthat“amajorityofimmigrantsfromeachofthefifteenmost

commoncountriesoforiginspokeEnglish'well'or"verywell'aftertenyearsofresidence.^^

ThechildrenofimmigrantstendtobebilingualandproficientinEnglish."Bythethird

generation,theoriginallanguageislostinthemajorityofimmigrantfamilies.^^Hencethe

descriptionofAmericaasa“graveyard''forlanguages.By1996foreign-bornimmigrants

whohadarrivedbefore1970hadahomeownershiprateof75.6percent,higherthanthe

69.8percentrateamongnative-bornAmericans.

Foreign-bomAsiansandHispanics“havehigherratesofintermarriagethando

U.S.-bornwhitesandblacks."Bythethirdgeneration,onethirdofHispanicwomenare

marriedtononHispanics,and41percentofAsian-Americanwomenaremarriedto

non-Asians.

5

Rodrigueznotesthatchildreninremotevillagesaroundtheworldarefansofsuperstars

likeArnoldSchwarzeneggerandGarthBrooks,yet“someAmericansfearthatimmigrants

livingwithintheUnitedStatesremainsomehowimmunetothenation'sassimilativepower.”

AretheredivisiveissuesandpocketsofseethingangerinAmerica?Indeed.Itisbig

enoughtohaveabitofeverything.ButparticularlywhenviewedagainstAmerica's

turbulentpast,today'ssocialindiceshardlysuggestadarkanddeterioratingsocial

environment.

21.Theword“homogenizing”(Line2,Paragraph1)mostprobablymeans.

[AJidentifying[BJassociating

[C]assimilating[D]monopolizing

22.Accordingtotheauthor,thedepartmentstoresofthe19thcentury,

[A]playedaroleinthespreadofpopularculture

fB]becameintimateshopsforcommonconsumers

[CJsatisfiedtheneedsofaknowledgeableelite

[D]oweditsemergencetothecultureofconsumption

23.ThetextsuggeststhatimmigrantsnowintheU.S..

[AJareresistanttohomogenization

[B]exertagreatinfluenceonAmericanculture

[CJarehardlyathreattothecommonculture

[D]constitutethemajorityofthepopulation

24.WhyareArnoldSchwarzeneggerandGarthBrooksmentionedinParagraph5?

[A]Toprovetheirpopularityaroundtheworld.

[B]Torevealthepublic'sfearofimmigrants.

[C]Togiveexamplesofsuccessfulimmigrants.

[D]ToshowthepowerfulinfluenceofAmericanculture.

25.Intheauthor'sopinion,theabsorptionofimmigrantsintoAmericansocietyis_.

[AJrewarding[BJsuccessful

[C]fruitless[D]harmful

6

Text4

Manythingsmakepeoplethinkartistsareweird.Buttheweirdestmaybethis:artists*

onlyjobistoexploreemotions,andyettheychoosetofocusontheonesthatfeelbad.

Thiswasn'talwaysso.Theearliestformsofart,likepaintingandmusic,arethosebest

suitedforexpressingjoy.Butsomewherefromthe19thcenturyonward,moreartistsbegan

seeinghappinessasmeaningless,phonyor,worstofall,boring,aswewentfrom

Wordsworth\daffodilstoBaudelaire\flowersofevil.

Youcouldarguethatartbecamemoreskepticalofhappinessbecausemoderntimes

haveseensomuchmisery.Butit'snotasifearliertimesdidn,tknowperpetualwar,disaster

andthemassacreofinnocents.Thereason,infact,maybejusttheopposite:thereistoo

muchdamnhappinessintheworldtoday.

Afterall,whatistheonemodernformofexpressionalmostcompletelydedicatedto

depictinghappiness?Advertising.Theriseofanti-happyartalmostexactlytracksthe

emergenceofmassmedia,andwithit,acommercialcultureinwhichhappinessisnotjust

anidealbutanideology.

Peopleinearliererasweresurroundedbyremindersofmisery.Theyworkeduntil

exhausted,livedwithfewprotectionsanddiedyoung.IntheWest,beforemass

communicationandliteracy,themostpowerfulmassmediumwasthechurch,which

remindedworshippersthattheirsoulswereindangerandthattheywouldsomedaybemeat

forworms.Givenallthis,theydidnotexactlyneedtheirarttobeabummertoo.

TodaythemessagestheaverageWesternerissurroundedwitharenotreligiousbut

commercial,andforeverhappy.Fast-foodeaters,newsanchors,textmessengers,allsmiling,

smiling,smiling.Ourmagazinesfeaturebeamingcelebritiesandhappyfamiliesinperfect

homes.Andsincethesemessageshaveanagenda—tolureustoopenourwallets-they

maketheveryideaofhappinessseemunreliable.4<Celebrate!^^commandedtheadsforthe

arthritisdrugCelebrex,beforewefoundoutitcouldincreasetheriskofheartattacks.

Butwhatweforget—whatoureconomydependsonusforgetting—isthathappiness

7

ismorethanpleasurewithoutpain.Thethingsthatbringthegreatestjoycarrythegreatest

potentialforlossanddisappointment.Today,surroundedbypromisesofeasyhappiness,we

needarttotellus,asreligiononcedid,Mementomori:rememberthatyouwilldie,that

everythingends,andthathappinesscomesnotindenyingthisbutinlivingwithit.It'sa

messageevenmorebitterthanaclovecigarette,yet,somehow,abreathoffreshair.

36.BycitingtheexamplesofpoetsWordsworthandBaudelaire,theauthorintendsto

showthat.

[AJpoetryisnotasexpressiveofjoyaspaintingormusic

[B|artgrowsoutofbothpositiveandnegativefeelings

[C]poetstodayarelessskepticalofhappiness

[D]artistshavechangedtheirfocusofinterest

37.Theword“bummer”(Line5,paragraph5)mostprobablymeanssomething_.

[AJreligious[B]unpleasant

[C]entertaining[D]commercial

38.Intheauthor'sopinion,advertising?

IAJemergesinthewakeoftheanti-happyart

[B]isacauseofdisappointmentforthegeneralpublic

[C]replacesthechurchasamajorsourceofinformation

[D]createsanillusionofhappinessratherthanhappinessitself

39.Wecaniearnfromthelastparagraphthattheauthorbelieves,

[AJhappinessmoreoftenthannotendsinsadness

[B|theanti-happyartisdistastefulbutrefreshing

[Clmiseryshouldbeenjoyedratherthandenied

|D]theanti-happyartflourisheswheneconomybooms

40.Whichofthefollowingistrueofthetext?

[A]Religiononcefunctionedasareminderofmisery.

[B]Artprovidesabalancebetweenexpectationandreality.

[C]Peoplefeeldisappointedattherealitiesofmodernsociety.

[DJMassmediaareinclinedtocoverdisastersanddeaths.

8

2007

Text1

Ifyouweretoexaminethebirthcertificatesofeverysoccerplayerin2006'sWorldCup

tournament,youwouldmostlikelyfindanoteworthyquirk:elitesoccerplayersaremore

likelytohavebeenbornintheearliermonthsoftheyearthaninthelatermonths.Ifyou

thenexaminedtheEuropeannationalyouthteamsthatfeedtheWorldCupandprofessional

ranks,youwouldfindthisstrangephenomenontobeevenmorepronounced.

Whatmightaccountforthisstrangephenomenon?Hereareafewguesses:a)certain

astrologicalsignsconfersuperiorsoccerskills;b)winter-bornbabiestendtohavehigher

oxygencapacity,whichincreasessoccerstamina;c)soccer-madparentsaremorelikelyto

conceivechildreninspringtime,attheannualpeakofsoccermania;d)noneoftheabove.

AndersEricsson,a58-year-oldpsychologyprofessoratFloridaStateUniversity,says

hebelievesstronglyin“noneoftheabove."EricssongrewupinSweden,andstudied

nuclearengineeringuntilherealizedhewouldhavemoreopportunitytoconducthisown

researchifheswitchedtopsychology.Hisfirstexperiment,nearly30yearsago,involved

memory:trainingapersontohearandthenrepeatarandomseriesofnumbers.4tWiththe

firstsubject,afterabout20hoursoftraining,hisdigitspanhadrisenfrom7to20,"Ericsson

recalls.4tHekeptimproving,andafterabout200hoursoftraininghehadrisentoover80

numbers.”

Thissuccess,coupledwithlaterresearchshowingthatmemoryitselfisnotgenetically

determined,ledEricssontoconcludethattheactofmemorizingismoreofacognitive

exercisethananintuitiveone.Inotherwords,whateverinborndifferencestwopeoplemay

exhibitintheirabilitiestomemorize,thosedifferencesareswampedbyhowwelleach

person“encodes“theinfonnation.Andthebestwaytolearnhowtoencodeinformation

meaningfully,Ericssondetermined,wasaprocessknownasdeliberatepractice.Deliberate

practiceentailsmorethansimplyrepeatingatask.Rather,itinvolvessettingspecificgoals,

obtainingimmediatefeedbackandconcentratingasmuchontechniqueasonoutcome.

Ericssonandhiscolleagueshavethustakentostudyingexpertperformersinawide

9

rangeofpursuits,includingsoccer.Theygatherallthedatatheycan,notjustperformance

statisticsandbiographicaldetailsbutalsotheresultsoftheirownlaboratoryexperiments

withhighachievers.Theirworkmakesaratherstartlingassertion:thetraitwecommonly

calltalentishighlyoverrated.Or,putanotherway,expertperformers-whetherinmemory

orsurgery,balletorcomputerprogramming-arenearlyalwaysmade,notborn.

21.Thebirthdayphenomenonfoundamongsoccerplayersismentionedto

[A]stresstheimportanceofprofessionaltraining.

[BJspotlightthesoccersuperstarsintheWorldCup.

[C]introducethetopicofwhatmakesexpertperformance.

[D]explainwhysomesoccerteamsplaybetterthanothers.

22.Theword"mania”(Line4,Paragraph2)mostprobablymeans

[A]fun.fB]craze.

[C]hysteria.[DJexcitement.

23.AccordingtoEricsson,goodmemory

[A]dependsonmeaningfulprocessingofinformation.

(BJresultsfromintuitiveratherthancognitiveexercises.

[C]isdeterminedbygeneticratherthanpsychologicalfactors.

[D]requiresimmediatefeedbackandahighdegreeofconcentration.

24.Ericssonandhiscolleaguesbelievethat

[A]talentisadominatingfactorforprofessionalsuccess.

[BJbiographicaldataprovidethekeytoexcellentperformance.

[C]theroleoftalenttendstobeoverlooked.

[D]highachieversowetheirsuccessmostlytonurture.

25.Whichofthefollowingproverbsisclosesttothemessagethetexttriestoconvey?

[A]"Faithwillmovemountains.”

[B]“Onereapswhatonesows.”

[C]"Practicemakesperfect.”

[D]"Likefather,likeson.^^

10

Text4

Itneverrainsbutitpours.Justasbossesandboardshavefinallysortedouttheirworst

accountingandcompliancetroubles,andimprovedtheirfeeblecorporationgovernance,a

newproblemthreatenstoearnthem-especiallyinAmerica-thesortofnasty

headlinesthatinevitablyleadtoheadsrollingintheexecutivesuite:datainsecurity.Left,

untilnow,toodd,lowlevelITstafftoputright,andseenasaconcernonlyofdata-rich

industriessuchasbanking,telecomsandairtravel,informationprotectionisnowhighon

theboss'sagendainbusinessesofeveryvariety.

Severalmassiveleakagesofcustomerandemployeedatathisyear-from

organizationsasdiverseasTimeWarner,theAmericandefensecontractorScience

ApplicationsInternationalCorpandeventheUniversityofCalifornia,Berkeley-haveleft

managershurriedlypeeringintotheirintricateITsystemsandbusinessprocessesinsearch

ofpotentialvulnerabilities.

“Dataisbecominganassetwhichneedstobeguardedasmuchasanyotherasset,“

saysHaimMendelsonofStanfordUniversity'sbusinessschool."Theabilitytoguard

customerdataisthekeytomarketvalue,whichtheboardisresponsibleforonbehalfof

shareholders.Indeed,justasthereistheconceptofGenerallyAcceptedAccounting

Principles(GAAP),perhapsitistimeforGASP,GenerallyAcceptedSecurityPractices,

suggestedEliNoamofNewYork'sColumbiaBusinessSchool."Settingtheproper

investmentlevelforsecurity,redundancy,andrecoveryisamanagementissue,nota

technicalone,“hesays.

Themysteryisthatthisshouldcomeasasurprisetoanyboss.Surelyitshouldbe

obvioustothedimmestexecutivethattrust,thatmostvaluableofeconomicassets,iseasily

destroyedandhugelyexpensivetorestore-andthatfewthingsaremorelikelytodestroy

trustthanacompanylettingsensitivepersonaldatagetintothewronghands.

Thecurrentstateofaffairsmayhavebeenencouraged-thoughnotjustified-bythe

lackoflegalpenalty(inAmerica,butnotEurope)fordataleakage.UntilCaliforniarecently

11

passedalaw,Americanfinnsdidnothavetotellanyone,eventhevictim,whendatawent

astray.Thatmaychangefast:lotsofproposeddata-securitylegislationisnowdoingthe

roundsinWashington,D.C.Meanwhile,thetheftofinformationaboutsome40million

credit-cardaccountsinAmerica,disclosedonJune17th,overshadowedahugelyimportant

decisionadayearlierbyAmerica'sFederalTradeCommission(FTC)thatputscorporate

Americaonnoticethatregulatorswillactiffirmsfailtoprovideadequatedatasecurity.

36.Thestatement“Itneverrainsbutitpours”isusedtointroduce

[A]thefiercebusinesscompetition.[BJthefeebleboss-boardrelations.

[C]thethreatfromnewsreports.[D]theseverityofdataleakage.

37.AccordingtoParagraph2,someorganizationschecktheirsystemstofindout

IA]whetherthereisanyweakpoint.IB]whatsortofdatahasbeenstolen.

[C]whoisresponsiblefortheleakage.[DIhowthepotentialspiescanbelocated.

38.InbringinguptheconceptofGASPtheauthorismakingthepointthat

[A]shareholders,interestsshouldbeproperlyattendedto.

[B]informationprotectionshouldbegivendueattention.

[C]businessesshouldenhancetheirlevelofaccountingsecurity.

[D]themarketvalueofcustomerdatashouldbeemphasized.

39.AccordingtoParagraph4,whatpuzzlestheauthoristhatsomebossesfailto

[AJseethelinkbetweentrustanddataprotection.

|B]perceivethesensitivityofpersonaldata.

[C]realizethehighcostofdatarestoration.

[D]appreciatetheeconomicvalueoftrust.

40.ItcanbeinferredfromParagraph5that

IA]dataleakageismoresevereinEurope.

[B|FTC'sdecisionisessentialtodatasecurity.

[C]Californiatakestheleadinsecuritylegislation.

[DJlegalpenaltyisamajorsolutiontodataleakage.

12

2008

Text4

In1784,fiveyearsbeforehebecamepresidentoftheUnitedStates,George

Washington,52,wasnearlytoothless.Sohehiredadentisttotransplantnineteethintohis

jaw一havingextractedthemfromthemouthsofhisslaves.

That'safardifferentimagefromthecherry-tree-choppingGeorgemostpeople

rememberfromtheirhistorybooks.Butrecently,manyhistorianshavebeguntofocusonthe

rolesslaveryplayedinthelivesofthefoundinggeneration.Theyhavebeenspurredinpart

byDNAevidencemadeavailablein1998,whichalmostcertainlyprovedThomasJefferson

hadfatheredatleastonechildwithhisslaveSallyHemings.Andonlyoverthepast30years

havescholarsexaminedhistoryfromthebottomup.Worksofseveralhistoriansrevealthe

moralcompromisesmadebythenation'searlyleadersandthefragilenatureofthecountry's

infancy.Moresignificantly,theyarguethatmanyoftheFoundingFathersknewslaverywas

wrong-andyetmostdidlittletofightit.

Morethananything,thehistorianssay,thefounderswerehamperedbythecultureof

theirtime.WhileWashingtonandJeffersonprivatelyexpresseddistasteforslavery,theyalso

understoodthatitwaspartofthepoliticalandeconomicbedrockofthecountrytheyhelped

tocreate.

Foronething,theSouthcouldnotaffordtopartwithitsslaves.Owningslaveswas

“l(fā)ikehavingalargebankaccount,“saysWiencek,authorofAnImperfectGod:George

Washington,HisSlaves,andtheCreationofAmerica.Thesouthernstateswouldnothave

signedtheConstitutionwithoutprotectionsforthe"peculiarinstitution,includingaclause

thatcountedaslaveasthreefifthsofamanforpurposesofcongressionalrepresentation.

Andthestatesmen'spoliticallivesdependedonslavery.Thethree-fifthsformula

handedJeffersonhisnarrowvictoryinthepresidentialelectionof1800byinflatingthevotes

ofthesouthernstatesintheElectoralCollege.Onceinoffice,Jeffersonextendedslavery

withtheLouisianaPurchasein1803;thenewlandwascarvedinto13states,includingthree

slavestates.

13

Still,JeffersonfreedHemings'schildren—thoughnotHemingsherselforhis

approximately150otherslaves.Washington,whohadbeguntobelievethatallmenwere

createdequalafterobservingthebraveryoftheblacksoldiersduringtheRevolutionaryWar,

overcamethestrongoppositionofhisrelativestogranthisslavestheirfreedominhiswill.

Onlyadecadeearlier,suchanactwouldhaverequiredlegislativeapprovalinVirginia.

36.GeorgeWashington'sdentalsurgeryismentionedto

[A]showtheprimitivemedicalpracticeinthepast.

[BJdemonstratethecrueltyofslaveryinhisdays.

[C]stresstheroleofslavesintheU.S.history.

[D]revealsomeunknownaspectofhislife.

37.Wemayinferfromthesecondparagraphthat

[A]DNAtechnologyhasbeenwidelyapp