2007 - 220 Selected English Reading Comprehension Passages

Author: Shi Chunzhen (Compiler)
Publisher:
Publish Date: March 1, 2006
Features: The book is designed to clearly help readers improve their English reading comprehension skills. Its difficulty is slightly higher than that of the English reading comprehension section of the postgraduate entrance examination. The topics are diverse, covering science and technology, economics, social life, education, and human physiology and psychology. The content is fresh, with all 220 articles selected from newly published books and journals abroad. Each article is accompanied by concise annotations. Long and complex sentences are analyzed syntactically with Chinese translations. An extended vocabulary list is provided after each article, and a classified extended vocabulary table is appended at the end of the book. The book serves multiple purposes: readers can use the syntactic analysis and Chinese translations of difficult sentences in the annotations to verify their understanding of the original text, and they can also use the annotated sentences as material for English-to-Chinese translation practice, achieving the goal of using one book for multiple purposes.
This edition was first published in 1999 and is revised annually. This is the seventh revision. Since its publication, the book has been deeply loved by a wide readership. Seeing that the book has helped readers learn English, especially in improving their reading comprehension skills, the author feels deeply gratified. The author is also extremely grateful for the valuable suggestions provided by many readers.
The book selects and compiles 220 English reading comprehension articles. The articles are primarily argumentative and expository essays, covering topics such as science and technology, economics, social life, cultural education, and human physiology and psychology. All articles are selected from publications abroad. This year, based on the readers' valuable suggestions, the book underwent a major revision. The basic principle of the revision is to prioritize the reader's needs, further facilitate learning, enhance the book's educational function, make self-study more convenient, and help readers quickly improve their authentic English reading comprehension skills.
After this revision, the book is divided into three main parts. The structure of each part is as follows:
Part I: Comprehensive Reading Practice, totaling 180 articles, divided into 30 units, with 6 articles per unit. The first four articles in each unit are multiple-choice exercises, each followed by 5 reading comprehension questions. These questions focus on in-depth issues, primarily addressing the main ideas and themes of the articles, the author's perspective and attitude, judgment, inference, and extension based on the article's logic. The fifth article is a matching exercise, with 7 options to choose from to fill in 5 blanks in the original text. The sixth article is an English-to-Chinese translation exercise, requiring the translation of 5 underlined sentences into Chinese. To facilitate learning, the book has enhanced its educational features. Each unit now includes an extended vocabulary list for that unit, significantly reducing the time readers spend looking up unfamiliar words. Annotations are provided for each article in the unit, explaining the most difficult sentences for readers. Each annotation not only analyzes the syntactic structure of the complex sentences involved but also provides a Chinese translation of the sentence. Some units also include annotations for the answers to the exercise questions. The answers to all exercises in each unit are provided at the end of the unit.
Part II: Single-Unit Reading Practice, totaling 15 articles, divided into 3 units, with 5 articles per unit. Each unit includes an extended vocabulary list for that unit and annotations for each article.
Part III: Single-Unit English-to-Chinese Translation Practice, totaling 25 articles, divided into 5 units, with 5 articles per unit, for English-to-Chinese translation practice. The answers to the English-to-Chinese translations are provided at the end of each unit.
The final appendix is the classified extended vocabulary table. Some readers may wonder whether it is necessary to memorize all 1,968 extended vocabulary words covered in the book. The author believes that while vocabulary is indeed important in learning English, it should not be studied as mere knowledge. The primary purpose of learning vocabulary is to use it proficiently in listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Learning vocabulary is not about knowing more but about using more effectively. Readers should first focus on mastering the core vocabulary outlined in the syllabus. The extended vocabulary lists in each unit and the classified extended vocabulary table in the appendix are designed to reduce the difficulty of looking up unfamiliar words during reading. There is absolutely no need to spend excessive time memorizing these extended vocabulary words. If time permits, the author recommends that readers first memorize the 328 extended vocabulary words in Appendix I, which may be more useful.
This book is suitable for readers preparing for the postgraduate entrance examination. If candidates can read all 220 articles and complete all exercises, their English reading comprehension skills will undoubtedly be significantly improved. Do not merely use this book as a simulation test. The questions or translation requirements after each article are merely tools for readers to self-assess their understanding. The score achieved after completing each unit does not reflect the score that can be expected in the actual exam. The primary purpose of this book is to help readers improve their authentic English reading comprehension skills. If readers focus on thoroughly understanding each article and master all 220 articles, their postgraduate entrance examination scores in English will undoubtedly be significantly improved.
The topics of the articles in this book are quite broad, and it is hoped that they will bring some benefits to readers in expanding their knowledge. This book can be used as an English reading textbook for readers with a CET-4 or higher level or for those interested in improving their English reading comprehension skills.