The advantages and disadvantages of a large population have long been a subject of discussion among economists. It has been argued that the supply of good land is limited. To feed a large population, inferior land must be cultivated and the good land worked intensively. Thus, each person produces less and this means a lower average income than could be obtained with a smaller population. Other economists have argued that a large population gives more scope for specialization and the development of facilities such as sports, roads and railways, which are not likely to be built unless there is a big demand to justify them.
One of the difficulties in carrying out a worldwide birth control program lies in the fact that official attitudes to population growth vary from country to country depending on the level of industrial development and the availability of food and raw materials. In the developing country where a vastly expanded population is pressing hard upon the limits of food, space and natural resources, it will be the first concern of government to place a limit on the birthrate, whatever the consequences may be. In a highly industrialized society the problem may be more complex. A decreasing birthrate may lead to unemployment because it results in a declining market for manufactured goods. When the pressure of population on housing declines, prices also decline and the building industry is weakened. Faced with considerations such as these, the government of a developed country may well prefer to see a slowly increasing population, rather than one which is stable or in decline.考試大
1. A smaller population may suggest ____.
A) lower productivity, but a higher average income
B) higher productivity, but a lower average income
C) high productivity and a high income
D) higher productivity and a higher income
2. According to the passage, a large population will offer an opportunity for developing ____.
A) space exploration
B) transport system
C) genetic engineering
D) mobile communications systems
3. In a developed country, people will lose their jobs if the birthrate ____.
A) goes down
B) exceeds death rate
C) rises
D) remains unchanged
4. According to this passage, a gradually rising birthrate perhaps is favorable to ____.
A) a developing nation
B) every nation with a big population
C) a developed nation
D) every nation with a small population
5. This passage tell us that ____.
A) there are a large quantity of inferior land in underdeveloped nations
B) birth control programs are hard to carry out in developing nations
C) even developed nations may be faced with employment problems
D) different governments hold different opinions about population problem
答案：
1.D)higher productivity and a higher income對(duì)應(yīng)原文each person produces less and this means a lower average income than could be obtained with a smaller population.
2.B)transport system對(duì)應(yīng)原文Other economists have argued that a large population gives more scope for specialization and the development of facilities such as sports, roads and railways...
3.A)goes down對(duì)應(yīng)原文A decreasing birthrate may lead to unemployment because it results in a declining market for manufactured goods.
4.C)a developed nation對(duì)應(yīng)原文the government of a developed country may well prefer to see a slowly increasing population.
5.D)different governments hold different opinions about population problem為本文主要內(nèi)容。A、B皆錯(cuò)，C并非作者討論的問(wèn)題。
參考譯文：
人口眾多的優(yōu)勢(shì)和劣勢(shì)長(zhǎng)期以來(lái)一直是經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家們討論的話題。所爭(zhēng)論的問(wèn)題是，肥沃土地的供給是有限的。為了養(yǎng)活大量的人口，貧瘠的土地必須加以開(kāi)墾，優(yōu)質(zhì)的土地更須精耕細(xì)作。這樣人均產(chǎn)量較低，也就意味著與較少量人口所能獲得的相比，大量人口的人均收入也較低。而其他的一些經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家認(rèn)為，大量人口為專業(yè)化，尤其是為諸如港口、公路及鐵路等設(shè)施的發(fā)展提供了更多的機(jī)會(huì)。因?yàn)橹挥袠O大的需求，人們才有理由去建設(shè)這些設(shè)施。
世界范圍內(nèi)實(shí)施計(jì)劃生育的困難之一在于：由于受工業(yè)發(fā)展水平的制約，受糧食和原材料供給能力的影響，每個(gè)國(guó)家對(duì)人口增長(zhǎng)的官方態(tài)度各不相同。發(fā)展中國(guó)家人口迅猛膨脹，給有限的食物、空間及自然考試*大]資源增添了過(guò)考試*大]重的負(fù)載。不論后果怎樣，控制人口出生率，將是這些國(guó)家政府的首要考慮。在高度發(fā)達(dá)的工業(yè)社會(huì)，人口問(wèn)題會(huì)更加復(fù)雜。下降的出生率會(huì)造成生產(chǎn)商品市場(chǎng)的萎縮，從而導(dǎo)致失業(yè)。人口對(duì)住房的壓力一旦減少，房屋價(jià)格就會(huì)下降，建筑業(yè)也就會(huì)受到削弱。面臨這些因素，發(fā)達(dá)國(guó)家的政府寧可看到人口緩慢增長(zhǎng)，而不愿人口穩(wěn)定或呈現(xiàn)下降的趨勢(shì)。
One of the difficulties in carrying out a worldwide birth control program lies in the fact that official attitudes to population growth vary from country to country depending on the level of industrial development and the availability of food and raw materials. In the developing country where a vastly expanded population is pressing hard upon the limits of food, space and natural resources, it will be the first concern of government to place a limit on the birthrate, whatever the consequences may be. In a highly industrialized society the problem may be more complex. A decreasing birthrate may lead to unemployment because it results in a declining market for manufactured goods. When the pressure of population on housing declines, prices also decline and the building industry is weakened. Faced with considerations such as these, the government of a developed country may well prefer to see a slowly increasing population, rather than one which is stable or in decline.考試大
1. A smaller population may suggest ____.
A) lower productivity, but a higher average income
B) higher productivity, but a lower average income
C) high productivity and a high income
D) higher productivity and a higher income
2. According to the passage, a large population will offer an opportunity for developing ____.
A) space exploration
B) transport system
C) genetic engineering
D) mobile communications systems
3. In a developed country, people will lose their jobs if the birthrate ____.
A) goes down
B) exceeds death rate
C) rises
D) remains unchanged
4. According to this passage, a gradually rising birthrate perhaps is favorable to ____.
A) a developing nation
B) every nation with a big population
C) a developed nation
D) every nation with a small population
5. This passage tell us that ____.
A) there are a large quantity of inferior land in underdeveloped nations
B) birth control programs are hard to carry out in developing nations
C) even developed nations may be faced with employment problems
D) different governments hold different opinions about population problem
答案：
1.D)higher productivity and a higher income對(duì)應(yīng)原文each person produces less and this means a lower average income than could be obtained with a smaller population.
2.B)transport system對(duì)應(yīng)原文Other economists have argued that a large population gives more scope for specialization and the development of facilities such as sports, roads and railways...
3.A)goes down對(duì)應(yīng)原文A decreasing birthrate may lead to unemployment because it results in a declining market for manufactured goods.
4.C)a developed nation對(duì)應(yīng)原文the government of a developed country may well prefer to see a slowly increasing population.
5.D)different governments hold different opinions about population problem為本文主要內(nèi)容。A、B皆錯(cuò)，C并非作者討論的問(wèn)題。
參考譯文：
人口眾多的優(yōu)勢(shì)和劣勢(shì)長(zhǎng)期以來(lái)一直是經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家們討論的話題。所爭(zhēng)論的問(wèn)題是，肥沃土地的供給是有限的。為了養(yǎng)活大量的人口，貧瘠的土地必須加以開(kāi)墾，優(yōu)質(zhì)的土地更須精耕細(xì)作。這樣人均產(chǎn)量較低，也就意味著與較少量人口所能獲得的相比，大量人口的人均收入也較低。而其他的一些經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家認(rèn)為，大量人口為專業(yè)化，尤其是為諸如港口、公路及鐵路等設(shè)施的發(fā)展提供了更多的機(jī)會(huì)。因?yàn)橹挥袠O大的需求，人們才有理由去建設(shè)這些設(shè)施。
世界范圍內(nèi)實(shí)施計(jì)劃生育的困難之一在于：由于受工業(yè)發(fā)展水平的制約，受糧食和原材料供給能力的影響，每個(gè)國(guó)家對(duì)人口增長(zhǎng)的官方態(tài)度各不相同。發(fā)展中國(guó)家人口迅猛膨脹，給有限的食物、空間及自然考試*大]資源增添了過(guò)考試*大]重的負(fù)載。不論后果怎樣，控制人口出生率，將是這些國(guó)家政府的首要考慮。在高度發(fā)達(dá)的工業(yè)社會(huì)，人口問(wèn)題會(huì)更加復(fù)雜。下降的出生率會(huì)造成生產(chǎn)商品市場(chǎng)的萎縮，從而導(dǎo)致失業(yè)。人口對(duì)住房的壓力一旦減少，房屋價(jià)格就會(huì)下降，建筑業(yè)也就會(huì)受到削弱。面臨這些因素，發(fā)達(dá)國(guó)家的政府寧可看到人口緩慢增長(zhǎng)，而不愿人口穩(wěn)定或呈現(xiàn)下降的趨勢(shì)。