In the USA, 85% of the population over the age of 21 approve of the death penalty. In the many states which still have the death penalty, some use the electric chair, which can take up to 20 minutes to kill, while others use gas or lethal injection. The first of these was the case of Ruth Ellis who was hanged for shooting her lover in what was generally regarded as a crime of passion. The second was hanged for murders which, it was later proved, had been committed by someone else. The pro-hanging lobby(赞成极刑的活动集团)uses four main arguments to support its call for the reintroduction of capital punishment. First there is the deterrence theory, which argues that potential murderers would think twice before committing the act if they knew that they might die if they were caught. The armed bank robber might, likewise, go back to being unarmed. The other two arguments are more suspect. The idea of retribution demands that criminals should get what they deserve: if a murderer intentionally set out to commit a crime, he should accept the consequences. Retribution, which is just another word for revenge, is supported by the religious doctrine of an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. The arguments against the death penalty are largely humanitarian(人道主义的). But there are also statistical reasons for opposing it: the deterrence figures do not add up. In Britain, 1903 was the record year for executions and yet in 1904 the number of murders actually rose. There was a similar occurrence in 1946 and 1947. If the deterrence theory were correct, the rate should have fallen. The other reasons to oppose the death penalty are largely a matter of individual conscience and belief. One is that murder is murder and the state has no more right to take a life than the individual. The other is that Christianity advises forgiveness, not revenge.
单选题
All of the following death penalty methods are mentioned in the passage EXCEPT
【正确答案】
D
【答案解析】解析：本题的答案在文章第一段，讲到“In the many states which still have the death penalty，some use the electric chair，which can take up to 20 minutes to kill，while others use gas or lethal injection．”在许多仍然执行死刑的州中，有些使用电椅，这种方法处死犯人需要长达20分钟；有些则使用毒气或注射致命的针剂。所以A、B、C项都是文中所提到的执行死刑的方法，D项作为执行死刑的方法在文中没有提到。因此本题的正确答案为D。
单选题
According to the first four paragraphs, which of the following statements is NOT correct?
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】解析：文章第二段“The first of these was the case of Ruth Ellis who was hanged for shooting her lover in what was generally regarded as a crime of passion．”第一个执行死刑的案例是鲁思·艾利丝案，她因为枪杀了自己的爱人而被处以绞刑，通常这种犯罪被看成是“情感犯罪”。可见是她枪杀了她的爱人，而不是她被她的爱人所杀。所以A项不正确。文章第三段中的威慑理论讲到，潜在的杀人犯如果知道他们被捕后可能被判处死刑，那么他们在犯罪前会三思的。可见B项正确。第四段“if a murderer intentionally set out to commit a crime，he should accept the consequences．”如果一名杀人犯故意去犯罪，那么他就应该承担由此产生的后果。可见C项也正确。第四段中提到了宗教训导的观点支持报应学说，即“以牙还牙，以眼还眼”。可见D项也正确。所以本题的正确答案为A。
单选题
In Paragraph 3, "deterrence" means______.
【正确答案】
C
【答案解析】解析：该单词在文章第三段，也就是本段中所谈到的威慑理论，在所提出的这个理论后对此理论的观点作了叙述： “which argues that potential murderers would think twice before committing the act if they knew that they might die if they were caught．”潜在的杀人犯如果知道他们被捕后可能被判处死刑，那么他们在犯罪前会三思的。可见，这种理论是利用了杀人犯因为害怕被判处死刑而停止或者减少犯罪的心理。所以“deterrence”的含义应当是“妨碍，阻止”。C项与文章的意思相符。因此本题的正确答案为C。
单选题
We can learn from the last paragraph that______.
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】解析：在文章的最后一段讲到：“One is that murder is murder and the state has no more right to take a life than the individual．”从这句话可以看出，无论是国家或是个人都没有权利去剥夺一个人的生命。所以A项正确。B项的内容与文章的内容不符，所以B项不对。最后一段的第一句话中提到“反对死刑的其他理由主要与个人的良心和信仰有关”，所以C项不对。D项不对，威慑数字没有意义，在第五段中提到了，谋杀案并没有因为执行数量的增多而减少。所以本题的正确答案为A。