Passage Four Questions 36 to 40 are based on the following passage:

Is it possible to persuade mankind to live without war War is an ancient institution which has existed for at least six thousand years. It was always wicked and usually foolish, but in the past the human race managed to live with it. Modern ingenuity¹ has changed this. Either Man will abolish war, or war will abolish Man. For the present, it is nuclear weapons that cause the , but bacteriological or chemical weapons may, before long, offer an even greater threat. If we succeed in abolishing nuclear weapons, our work will not be done. It will never be done until we have succeeded in abolishing war. To do this, we need to persuade mankind to look upon international questions in a new way not as contests of force, in which the victory goes to the side which is most skillful in killing², but by arbitration³ (仲裁) in accordance with agreed principles of law. It is not easy to change age old mental habits, but this is what must be attempted.There are those who say that the adoption⁴ of this or that ideology⁵ would prevent war. I believe this to be a profound error. All ideologies⁶ are based upon dogmatic (武断的) assertions which are, at best, doubtful, and at worst, totally false. Their supporters believe in them so fanatically that they are willing to go to war in support of them.The movement of world opinion during the past two years has been very largely such as we can welcome. It has become a commonplace that nuclear war must be avoided. Of course very difficult problems remain in the international sphere, but the spirit in which they are being approached is a better one than it was some years ago. It has begun to be thought, even by the powerful men who decide whether we shall live or die, that negotiations⁸ should reach agreements even if both sides do not find these agreements wholly satisfactory. It has begun to be understood that the important conflict nowadays  East and West, but between Man and the H-bomb. 

36.This passage implies that war is now ____.
A) more wicked than in the past
B) as wicked as in the past
C) less wicked than in the past
D) what people try to live with

37.According to the author ____.
A) it is impossible to live without war
B) war is the only way to settle international disagreements
C) war must be abolished if man wants to survive
D) war will be abolished by modern ingenuity

38.The author says that modern weapons ____.
A) will help abolish war
B) make mankind live in a greater threat.
C) will gradually become part of man’s life
D) need further improving

39.The author believes that the only way to abolish war is to ____.
A) abolish nuclear weapons
B) let the stronger side take over the world
C) improve bacteriological and chemical weapons
D) settle international issues through negotiation⁷

40.The last paragraph suggests that ____.
A) nuclear war will definitely not take place
B) international agreements are now reached more and more easily
C) man is beginning to realize that nuclear war is his greatest enemy
D) world opinion is in favor of nuclear war

内容概要:本文讨论了现代社会中能否避免战争以及人们通常认为的没有战争就不能解决根本性的社会矛盾或国家之间的冲突等问题。

36.【答案】A。
【译文】现代的战争比过去更险恶。
【试题分析】归纳推论题。
【详细解答】根据文章中提到的两点入手：1. 核武器带来的最大的危险；2.生化武器给人类带来的威胁，对全文进行归纳可得出A为正确答案。

37.【答案】C。
【译文】人类如果想生存下去，就必须抛弃战争。
【试题分析】判断作者的态度。
【详细解答】根据文中“Either man will abolish war, or war will abolish man”（要么人类摒弃战争，要么战争摒弃人类）这句话，我们可判断C是这句话的翻版，故选C。

38.【答案】B。
【译文】人类生活在危险中。
【试题分析】推断作者的观点。
【详细解答】本题要求考生理解作者关于现代武器谈论的要点。从全文的内容看，作者是激烈反对现代战争的。故选B。

39.【答案】D。
【译文】通过谈判来解决国际争端。
【试题分析】事实细节题。
【详细解答】本文中一直以客观的态度探讨问题。文中提到：“negotiation should reach agreements even if both sides do not find these agreements wholly satisfactory.”。根据这句话，可知D是最佳答案。

40.【答案】C。
【译文】人类开始意识到核武器是人类最大的敌人。
【试题分析】段落大意理解题。
【详细解答】根据文中所提到的“the movement of world opinion during the past two years has been very largely such as we can welcome” 表明人类在核问题上已经逐渐达成了一些共识。因此选C。