单选题

Mankind's fascination with gold is as old as civilization itself. The ancient Egyptians esteemed gold, which had religious significance to them, and King Tutankhamen was buried in a solid-gold coffin 3300 years ago.
People have always longed to possess gold. Unfortunately, this longing has also brought out the worst in the human character. The Spanish conquistadores robbed palaces, temples and graves, and killed thousands of Indians in their ruthless search for gold. Often the only rule in young California during the days of the gold rush was exercised by the mob with a rope. Even today, the economic running of South Africa's gold mines depends largely on the employment of black labourens who are paid about 40 a month, plus room and board, and who must work in conditions that can only be described as cruel. About 400 miners are killed in mine accidents in South Africa each year, or one for every two tons of gold produced.
Much of gold's value lies in its scarcity. Only about 80,000 tons have been mined in the history of the world. All of it could be stored in a vault 60 feet square, or a supertanker.
Great Britain was the first country to adopt the gold standard, when the Master of Mint, Sir Isaac Newton, established a fixed price for gold in 1717. But until the big discoveries of gold in the last half of the nineteenth century — starting in California in 1848 and later in Australia and South Africa — there simply wasn't enough gold around for all the trading nations to link their currencies to the precious metal.
An out-of-work prospector named George Harrison launched South Africa into the gold age in 1886 when he discovered the metal on a farm near what is now Johannesburg. Harrison was given a 12 reward by the farmer. He then disappeared and reportedly was eaten by a lion.
Historically, the desire to hoard gold at home has been primarily an occupation of the working and peasant classes, who have no faith in paper money. George Bernard Shaw defended their instincts eloquently: "You have to choose between trusting to the natural stability of gold and the natural stability of the honesty and intelligence of the members of the government", he said, "and with due respect to these gentlemen, I advise you to vote for gold."

单选题 It can be inferred from the passage that during the days of the gold-rush in California ______ .

【正确答案】 C

【答案解析】[解析] 本题主要考查的是学生对上下文的理解能力。答题句是“Often the only rule in young California during the days of the gold rush was exercised by the mob with a rope．”(在加利福尼亚年轻人中，他们的惩罚经常都是通过暴民用绳子来解决的。)这道题目可以通过前面讲的内容来帮助理解，文章前面一直在说为了淘金，暴露了人性最丑恶的一面，并列举了很多例子。D选项指的是绳子是法律和命令的象征，容易使考生混淆。hanging指的是绞死，故选C。

单选题 One of the problems with gold is that ______ .

单选题 According to the passage, gold has always been considered a precious metal mainly because ______ .

单选题 After the big gold discoveries in the late nineteenth century,

【正确答案】 A

【答案解析】[解析] 本题主要考查的是上下文转折的关系。解题句是第四段的“But until the big discoveries of gold in the last half of the nineteenth century — starting in California in 1848 and later in Australia and South Africa — there simply wasn't enough gold around for all the trading nations to link their currencies to the precious metal．”(对于传统国家来说，直到19世纪下半叶发现金矿，1848年加利福尼亚开发的金矿，以及后来的澳大利亚，南非发现金矿之后，他们才有了足够的金子来把他们国家的货币和昂贵的金子联系起来，也就是接受了英国最初提出的黄金标准。)本句套用 not … until句型，“直到……才……”，本文要注意的是上下文的一个转折，通过but这个词转折了意思。故选A。

单选题 George Bernard Shaw thought that ______ .

【正确答案】 D

【答案解析】[解析] 本题考的是学生对最后一句话的理解能力。答题句是“George Bernard Shaw defended their instincts eloquently：‘You have to choose between trusting to the natural stability of gold and the natural stability of the honesty and intelligence of the members of the government’，he said，‘and with due respect to these gentlemen，I advise you … to vote for gold．’”(如果让你在相信金子天然的稳定性和政府工作人员天然的诚实与智慧中选择的话，他说本着对这些绅士的尊敬，我还是建议你给金子投票吧。)这句话的言外之意就是还是选择金子放弃这些绅士吧。如果不能理解这句话，其实从这段话的第一句也可以看出答案来，因为第一句说许多工薪家庭和农民都喜欢在家里藏金子，而这些人一点也不相信纸币，所以可以看出是更相信金子而不是政府人员，因为纸币是政府的产物。故选D。