2016年公共英語PETS四級美文閱讀欣賞（七）
More than 30,000 drivers and passengers who sit in the front of the vehicles are killed or seriously injured each year. At a speed of only 30 miles per hour it is the same as falling from a third-floor building. Wearing a seat belt saves lives:it reduces your chance of death or serious injury by more than a half.
Therefore drivers or front seat passengers over 14 in most vehicles must wear a seat belt. If you do not, you will be fined up to —— 50. It will not be up to the drivers to make sure you wear your belt. But it will be the driver's responsibility, to make sure that children under 14 do not ride in the front unless they are wearing a seat belt of some kind.
However, when you're reversing your car, you do not have to wear a seat belt; or when you are making a local delivery or collection using a special vehicle; or if you have a valid medical certificate which excuses you from wearing it. Make sure these circumstances apply to you before you decide not to wear your seat belt. Remember that you may be taken to court for not doing so, and you may be fined if you cannot prove that you have been excused from wearing it.
41. How many people in the front of the vehicles are killed or seriously injured every year?
A. 30,000.
B. 60,000.
C. Approximately 30,000.
D. Above 30,000.
42. Wearing a seat belt in a vehicle_________
A. reduces road accidents to more than a half
B. saves lives while driving at a speed up to 30 miles per hour
C. reduces the death rate in traffic accidents
D. saves more than 15,000 lives each year
43. It is the driver's responsibility to_________
A. make the front seat passengers wear a seat belt
B. make the front seat children under 14 wear a seat belt
C. stop children riding in the front seat
D. wear a seat belt each time he drives
44. According to the text, which of the following people riding in the front does NOT have to
wear a seat belt?
A. Someone who is backing into a parking space.
B.Someone who is picking up the children from the local school.
C. someone who is delivering invitation letters.
D. Someone who is under 14.
45. For some people, it may be better_________
A. to wear a seat belt for health reasons
B.not to wear a seat belt for health reasons
C. to get a valid medical certificate before wearing a seat belt
D. to pay a fine rather than wear a seat belt
參考譯文
每年都有3萬多名司機(jī)或坐在前排的乘客喪命或受重傷。在時速只有30英里時也相當(dāng)于從一幢3層樓的建筑物上跌下。系安全帶可以挽救生命：它可使喪生或受重傷的幾率減少大半。
所以大多數(shù)交通工具中的司機(jī)和超過l4歲的前排乘客必須系安全帶。如果你不系，你會被處以最高50英鎊的罰款。司機(jī)沒有確保你系安全帶的責(zé)任。但是司機(jī)有責(zé)任確保14歲以下的兒童在車輛前排就座時系上安全帶之類的東西。
但當(dāng)你倒車，或者開特殊車輛時，如在當(dāng)?shù)厮拓浕蜃鍪占ぷ鲿r，或者你有無須系安全帶的有效醫(yī)療證明時，你無須系安全帶。在決定不系安全帶前要確定這些情況適用于你。記住你可能會因不系安全帶而被送上法庭，并且如果你不能證明自己有不系安全帶的理由你就會被罰款。
答案及解析
41.D【解析】more than=above“多于”;approximately=about “大約”。
42.C【解析】在車上系安全帶：reduce your chance of death or serious in.jury by more than a half系安全帶可以減少50%的死亡率或重傷幾率。選項A：不是公路事故而是死亡率或重傷幾率。選項8：以30公-里//b時開車時能挽救人的生命。與文章不符，本文是說30公里/小時以上必須系安全帶。選項D：每年挽救15，000人的生命。
43.B【解析】從第二段最后一句話可知：But it will be the driver，s re—sponsibility to make sure that children under l4 do not ride in thefront unless they are wearing a seat belt of,some kind。
44.A【解析】第三段第一句話reversing your Car=backing into a parkingspace倒車。45.B【解析】之所以人們要使用醫(yī)院證明，就是因為他們健康方面的原因，不能系安全帶。
Text 3
參考譯文
我依然記得陽光灑在她頭發(fā)上的樣子。她轉(zhuǎn)過頭，我們四目相對，在五年級喧囂的教室里，一絲奇妙的情愫掠過我的心。一剎那，我的心好像中了一擊。就這樣，我的初戀開始了。
她叫Rachel。我渾渾噩噩地讀完了五年級和中學(xué)，在此期間，只要見到她我就會動心，只要有她在場，我就會說不出話來。除了我，還會有誰被她微亮的窗燈吸引，徘徊在夜幕中，像夏夜里可憐的蟲子?那種如癡如狂的激情，雖非性愛，但卻是那樣急迫，那樣難以抗拒，使我局促不安，使我的聲音凝噎。如今，這一切就像那場難圓的夢。
一條通往家和學(xué)校的林間小道上，我常常與她邂逅，然而這卻讓我萬分沮喪，因為她總是一副若無其事，鎮(zhèn)定自如的樣子�；氐郊抑�，我只能獨自重溫和她每次相遇時的情景，而一想到自己不善言談我就深深為之苦惱。即便這樣，在我們十幾歲的時候，我卻能感受到她對我的柔情。要做“男女朋友”我們還缺乏那份成熟。她的猶太正教的教養(yǎng)和我天主教的自責(zé)心，迫使我們表現(xiàn)出單身者的莊重，在我們之間連接吻也變得可望而不可及，雖然我們都非�？释�!一次舞會上我終于擁抱了她——當(dāng)然，有父母在場。我的擁抱使她咯咯地笑起來，那充滿天真，信賴的少女的笑聲讓我痛恨自己當(dāng)時莫名冒出來的想法。無論如何，我對Rachel的愛仍然只是單相思。后來，我們都高中畢業(yè)，她考上了大學(xué)，而我則參了軍。
二戰(zhàn)使我們天各一方，因為我被派往了海外。一段時間里我們只能寄鴻雁以訴衷腸。在那段艱難無望，漫漫無期的歲月里，她的書信是我最刻骨銘心的記憶。一次她寄給我一張她身著泳裝的快照，這張照片使我對她的思念飆到了極點。在回復(fù)她的信中，我談到我們結(jié)婚有沒有可能，而就從那以后。她的信越來越少，越來越陌生了�；貒笪移炔患按鼐腿ニ艺宜ｉT，是她母親給開的。后來我才知道，Rachel已經(jīng)不在那住了。她早結(jié)婚了，和一個在大學(xué)里認(rèn)識的學(xué)醫(yī)的同學(xué)。她母親對我說：“我以為她已經(jīng)寫信告訴你了�！彼慕^情書終于被我收到了，那是在我等候復(fù)原的時候。她委婉地向我解釋，我，和她，結(jié)婚，是不可能的。現(xiàn)在回想起來，雖然在開始的幾個月里我想自己再也不愿意活下去了，我當(dāng)時還算很快就熬過了那段苦海無邊的日子。像Rachel一樣，后來，我也找到了屬于自己的她——一個我學(xué)會用永恒的更深沉的承諾去愛的人，直到今天，此情依舊!
