英美概况.《英美概况(二)》练习题及答案docx

《英美概况（二）》练习题一答案

套一、答案

I．Fill in the following blanks in English

1. cotton

2. Indians

3. Superior; Michigan; Huron; Erie; Ontario; Michigan; Canada

4. 1607

5. 12

6. winner-take-all; majority /270

7. Vice- Presidency

8.1854

9. private

10. Pittsburg 11. space 12. Scandinavian 13. Civil Rights Movement 14. 88 000, 18 000

15. 1922 16. four 17. Independence

II. In each of the following questions there are four choices. Choose the correct one

1. C

2.B

3.A

4.D

5.A

6.C

7.B

8.C

9.D 10.B

11.B 12.B 13.D 14.D 15.A 16.C 17.B 18.B 19.D 20.D

III. Decide whether the following statements are true [T] or false [F]

1.T

2. F

3. F

4.F

5. T

6. F

7.F

8.T

9. T 10.T

III. Define the following terms

1. Yale University is a private university in New Haven, Connecticut, USA, which was named after Elihu Yale, an early patron and was chartered in 1701. It consists of Yale College for men, three other undergraduate schools for men and women, and eight graduate schools for men and women.

2. It is the largest and most famous American stock market. Located on Wall Street in New York City, it centralizes the trading of stock of over 3000 corporations, and hundreds of millions of shares are bought and sold there each day.

3.The second continental congress was held in Philadelphia in May 1775. It decided to take charge of the troops around Boston and appointed George Washington as commander to fight for their freedom and independence. IV. Answer the following questions

1.In the post World War 11 decade, the United States was the richest nation in the world. After a brief period of postwar adjustment, the economy boomed. Consumers demanded goods and services. Businesses produced more to meet this demand. With 6 percent of the world' s population, the United States produced half the world's goods. As productivity rose, the labor market changed. Employment grew rapidly in the service sector, which includes sales work, office work, and government jobs. Federal foreign aid programs provided overseas markets for US businesses. Finally, the government spent large amounts of money by providing loans, fighting the Cold War, and finding social programs. Technological advances, many achieved with federate aid, ushered in new industries and sped up the pace of production in old ones. Government spending plus consumer demand led to an era of widespread prosperity, rising living standards, and social mobility…

2. The mass education can provide free public education for all of American children and improve the whole quality of American citizenries, while it also has caused several problems. One criticism is that basic education in the United States catered to the “least common denominator”,meaning the teacher gives attention to the

slower learners while the brighter students become bored and lose interest in learning. A related issue involves "mainstreaming", a program which allows physically and mentally handicapped children to attend the same classes with children without these problems. While parents of handicapped children want their children to be included, other parents are concerned that their children are not receiving the best possible education because the teacher spends a great deal of time helping the disadvantaged students. Moreover, the costs for educating handicapped exceed the costs for educating other children.

套二、答案

I. In each of the following questions there are four choices. Choose the correct one

1.B

2.A

3.B

4.C

5.A

6.C

7.B

8.B

9.C 10.D

11.B 12.B 13.C 14.D 15.A 16.B 17.C 18.B 19.B 20.D

II. Explain the following terms

1. The Boston Massacre took place before the American War of Independence. In 1768 some English troops

were sent to the colonies to help tax-collectors. The people of the colonies hated these soldiers. In the spring of 1770 in Boston, a soldier was hit by a club and at last some of the troops fired and killed four people, with many wounded. This is known as Boston Massacre. After the event, Boston was in an uproar. A big meeting was called, demanding that the English troops should be removed. This showed that the people in the colonies began their struggle against the British rule.

2. This is a kind of principle in American Presidential election. If the voters of a state choose presidential electors,

they have to choose between a Democratic list and a Republican list because of the American two-party system. If the candidates of a party for “ele c tors” in a given state receive a majority of the total vote, then the party is entitled to have all the electoral votes for that state, even though a presidential receives only slightly more than electoral votes of that stat e. This system is known as the “winner-take-all” principle.

3. In American political system, the American Constitution divides the powers of the government into three

branches —the Executive, the Legislative and the Judicial. According to the Constitution the powers of the three branches should be separated and kept balanced. The Constitution limits the powers of each branch and prevents any one branch from gaining undue power. This balance is always kept among the three branches and this is called the “system of checks and balances”.

4. The American Civil Rights Movement mainly refers to the American black people's struggle against the racial

discrimination in 1960s. As early as in 1950s, the black people once struggled against segregation in schools.

In 1960, the blacks in 20 states held a large-scale sit-in demonstration protesting against racial segregation. In 1961 the blacks held a freedom-rides against segregation on buses. Under the outstanding leader Martin Luther King, the Civil Rights Movement went still further in mid-1960s. There was a march on Washington for “Jobs and Freedom”. So in 1964 the Civil Rights Act was passed. This movement shows the American black people's bravery and confidence in their struggles for equal rights and liberty.

5. Wall Street is a street in lower Manhattan, New York. Wall Street was the northern limit of New York in 1653,

when the Dutch built a wooden palisade here to protect the colony from Indian attack. Now it is the center of one of the most important financial districts in the world, and the name Wall Street is often used to mean the Stock Exchange or American finance in general. Wall Street is the symbol of American monopoly capitalism. III. Answer the following questions

1. During American Civil War, Abraham Lincoln took two important measures, one is the “Homestead Bill”,

the other is the “Emancipation Proclamation”. During the first stage of the war from 1861 to 1862, the North was in an unfavorable condition. The North army could not get much support from farmers and Negroes, because many farmers had not got enough land and Negroes had been still enslaved. So they had no interest in the war. In order to get support from the broad masses, Lincoln took these two measures. In May 1862 Lincoln issued the Homestead Bill, and this stimulated the development of capitalist agriculture in the South, greatly encouraged farmers. In September 1962, Lincoln is sued the famous “Emancipation Proclamation”, freeing a great number of the slaves in the South and permitting them to join the armed forces of the North.

After issuing the two measures, Lincoln's army became much stronger and got more support from the broad masses. Finally Lincoln won the war.

2. In the U.S. government there are three branches: the executive, the legislative and the judicial branches.

The executive branch is headed by the President, consists of eleven departments and many independent agencies, including the postal service. The President, as the chief executive, performs many functions.

He is the head of the government and chief of state. The President can negotiate foreign treaties, appoint government officials, command the armed forces, send and receive diplomatic officials. In fact he makes foreign policy. He also in e ach year submits to Congress a “State of the Union Message”, budget message and other reports. He may introduce legislative bill to Congress. The President has great power in the government. The legislative branch refers to Congress. Only Congress has the right; to make laws. It is the supreme legislative body of the nation, It is made of two houses —the senate and the House of the Representatives. The judicial branch refers to the Supreme Court and some inferior courts. The Supreme Court is the highest court of the whole land and has the sole right to interpret the Constitution and review laws to see whether they are in agreement with the Constitution. The Supreme Court is headed by a Chief Justice and eight other justices.

套三、答案

I. Fill in the following blanks.

1. Harvard,

2. the end of American Civil War,

3.Orthodox Eastern Church,

4. Louisiana,

5. arrow and heart.

6. patriotism; American ideals,

7. individuals,

8. New Year’s Day;

Santa Claus; North Pole; Christmas Eve; sleigh; reindeer; Christmas tree

II. In each of the following questions there are four choices. Choose the correct answer. (10%)

1. A

2.C.

3.D

4.B

5.C

6. D

7.B

8.A

9.A 10.D

III. Explain the following terms.

1. When Franklin D. Rooselvelt was elected American President in 1982, American was in the Great Depression. In order to save the situation, he made a program to deal with the economic emergency. This program is known as the “ New Deal “. According to the “New Deal”, Roosevelt took efforts to consolidate the old marker at abroad and also to conquer new ones. At home, many public project, were launched to create employment through a huge increase in government responsibility. Crops were destroyed and agriculture production was cut down to stabilize the falling farm prices. The big industries were compelled to make reforms. Roosevelt also took some measures of “social security”, paying pension to the old, unemployed and the injur ed. The “New Deal”relaxed the economic crisis, made some concessions to the working people. The more important thing is that the Roosevelt Government carried out a progressive foreign policy against fascist aggression and wars.

2. It is the largest library in the USA. It serves as a reference library. In 1800 Congress passed legislation founding the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., which was initially established to serve the needs of the members of Congress. Since then, this extraordinary collecti on has become one of the world’s great libraries and a depository for every work copyrighted in the United States. The library is open to the public and maintains major collections of papers, photographs, films, maps, and music.

3.In brief, the mass media, including the press, radio, TV and Internet, is the methods of communication for the people. They offer general and narrow audiences with ideas, information and entertainment.

4. V oice of America is the most famous of the radio stations of the America. It is started on the air in Washington

D.C. in 1942 in the Second World War as a speaker for war information. VOA programs include news, commentary, popular music and features about American culture. Owing to its external service function, now it has 16 broadcasting stations, and about 40 foreign languages were used besides English, ranging from Albanian to Chinese. Some advanced technology such as relay facilities and satellites are used to send programs overseas.

5. A famous novel written by Harriet Beecher Stowe in 1852. The novel described the cruel things that might happen to a slave under a cruel master. It had a very strong influence and aroused a great and universal hatred for slavery.

IV. Answer the following questions.

1. By the end of the 19th century the United States had grown into a highly developed industrial country and

reached the stage of imperialism. Then it began its overseas expansion. Hawaii fell into her control in 1893. In 1898 U. S. Congress declared war on Spain. It invaded China by means of both force and culture. In 1906 it put down the Cuban uprising. During the two world wars, the U.S. also extended its economic and military influences over Far East, Europe and the Pacific Region. After the war, the U. S. started it s “Cold War”, and established NATO against the Soviet Union. In 1950 it invaded Korea. In 1964 the U. S. started long year's Vietnam War. In 1990s the U. S. attacked Iraq and Kosovo. In a word , the United States never stops its aggression and expansion.

2. (1) The system of the Gulf: The Mississippi River and its tributaries form an important inland navigation and

irrigation system. (2) The system of the Atlantic: The Hudson River, linked by canals with the five Great Lakes, is one of the main arteries for inland water traffic. There are also Potomac River, St. Lawrence River which serves as an international river forming part of the boundary between U.S. and Canada. (3) The system of the Pacific: two major rivers, the Columbia River and the Colorado River which are rich in potential water power.

3. American industry is developing so rapidly that it has been in the leading position for the past century. Many

manufacture goods rank the first three in the world. Its major industry includes aircraft, computers, chemicals, electronics, motor vehicles, textiles, etc. There are many big companies and small enterprises…

《英美概况（二）》练习题二答案

套四、答案

I. Fill in the following blanks.

1. 1607, 1776

2.Christopher Columbus

3.Plymouth

4. Philadelphia

5. 1783

6. Missouri, Ohio

7. St. Lawrence River

8. Colorado River

9. Appalachian 10. Potomac 11. three 12. State 13.Bill of Rights 14. House of Representatives 15. Democratic

II. Decide whether the following statements are true [T] or false [F]

1.[F]

2.[T]

3.[F]

4.[T]

5.[T]

6. [F]

7. [F]

8.[T]

9. [F] 10. [F]

III. Explain the following terms.

1. The Democratic Party grew out of the “ Anti-Federalists” that appeared after 1787. It was founded in 1828, led

by a group of planters and capitalists and a considerable number of small farmers. Thomas Jefferson was the leader.

2. The parties in the United States choose all th eir candidates for election at “primary e lections”, which is held in

spring. “Primary elections” are considered the first step and part of the formal voting process and it has many forms. Once the party candidates have been chosen, the primary campaign between the parties begins Sometimes a lot of money is needed for a primary campaign.

3. The war was started under Eisenhower and ended in January 1973. It ended with a victory of the North

Vietnamese people and a thorough failure of the United States. The Vietnam War was an example of American imperialism for the benefit of the American corporate military interests.

4.. the Civil Rights Movement carried by the blacks to get the civil rights in 1950's to 1960's and to fight against

racial segregation. As the result of their struggle, the Civil Rights Act was passed in 1964. And the V oting Rights Act was passed in 1965.

5. Martin Luther King was an outstanding leader of the Civil Rights Movement, a Baptist clergyman. He upheld

“non-violence” struggle. He set up a boycott of the bus lines. He also led the largest civil rights rally in 1963.

So the Civil Rights Act was passed in 1964. He protested against voting-rights restriction. In 1964 the Voting Rights Act was passed. From 1965-1968 his struggle turned to the discrimination and injustice in the North and protested against the Vietnam War. He was assassinated in April 1968.

IV. Answer the following questions.

1. Because at home, there was wartime scarcity, high wages, accumulated savings and industrial expansion.

There was a pent-up demand for consumer goods. The establishment of new factories, the expansion of internal and external markets and the increasing employment all account for the prosperity. At abroad Germany, Japan and Italy lost their capacity for competition with America. They relied greatly upon the aid and products from the. U. S. But this prosperity disappeared so quickly because it was based upon the war time economy.

2. (1) It achieved prominent breakthroughs in the three fields of atomic energy, electronic computers and space

navigation. (2) Organ and Limb transplants were tried such as heart transplants. (3) New drugs and preventatives were discovered such as polio vaccine, vaccinations etc.

套五、答案

I. Fill in the following blanks in English

1. five Great Lakes

2. Atlantic coast

3. New York Stock Exchange

4.the Associated Press (AP)

5. space satellite

6. Declaration of Independence

7. atom bomb

8. Desert Storm

9. Grand Canyon 10. Death Valley 11. Harriet Beecher Stowe 12. Great Depression 13. Pearl Harbor 14. Second World War 15. Midway Island 16. three 17. 3000 18. Baptist 19. Detroit 20. “do-it-yourself”21. 117 22. privately 23. Labor Day 24. advertising 25. Halloween

II. Decide whether the following statements are true [T] or false [F]

1.[F]

2.[T]

3.[T]

4.[T]

5.[F]

6. [T]

7. [F]

8.[T]

9. [F] 10. [F] )

III. Define the following terms

1. The first ten amendments put into the Constitution in 1791, which include freedom of speech, the right to assemble and other democratic rights.

2. The Second Continental Congress was held in Philadelphia in May 1775. It decided to take charge of the

troops around the Boston and appointed George Washington as commander to fight for their freedom and independence.

3. In April 1945 forty-eight countries attended the conference at San Francisco in America to organize a

peacetime, permanent organization in the world. Thus the United Nations was founded.

4. The Constitution limits the power of each government branch, and prevents any one branch from gaining

undue power. This balance is always kept among the three branches.

5. is the largest state in the USA. It was purchased by the USA from Russia in 1867. The total area is 1 500 000

square kilometers, much of which is mountainous. Its capital is Juneau. Its chief industries are oil, natural gas and fishing, especially salmon fishing.

IV. Answer the following questions

1. (1) With the war over, the United States again achieved a stable political environment. Both foreign and

domestic capital became available for investment. (2) Black slaves were free, and the waves of European and Asian immigrants poured into the US, so there was enough labor supply for the development of industries. (3) Science and inventions played a very important role. New thing were invented one after another. (4) The federal government put high taxes on foreign imports. This encouraged Americans to buy American-made goods. (5) The United States was rich in natural resources. These advantages together contributed to the development of the US.

2. The bond is the borrower’s written promise to repay the loan on a certain date and also to pay a certain rate of

interest on the borrowed money. The individual who buys bonds does not share in the company’s profits, but neither does he run the risk of losing money if the stock goes down in value. Corporation may issue bonds to obtain money for expansion. State and local governments issue bonds to raise fund for community improvements such as highway, bridges, schools, and hospitals.

3. First a bill introduced by member of Congress is sent to an appropriate legislative Congress works. The

committee is formed and holds hearing on it. Then the recommendations of the bill are reported to the Houses.

The bill is debated on the floor of each house. Then the votes began. After the majority approval by both houses, the proposal law goes to the president. If two-thirds of each house of Congress approves it, the bill becomes law in spite of president's veto.