Question

John von Neumann was the oldest of 3 children of an banker, and his speed of learning new ideas and solving problems stood out early. At 17, his father tired to persuade him not to become a mathematician because he may lead a poor life being a mathematician, and so von Neumann agreed to study chemistry as well. In 1926, at 23, he received a degree in chemical engineering and a Ph.D. in mathematics. From then on, mathematics provided well enough for him, and he never had to turn to chemistry.

In 1930, von Neumann visited Princeton University for a year and then became a professor there. His first book was published in 1932. In 1933, the Institute for Advanced Study was formed, and he became one of the 6 full-time people in the School of Mathematics（Einstein was one of the others）

World War Ⅱ hugely changed von Neumann's areas of interest. Until 1940 he had been a great pure mathematician. During and after the war, he became one of the best mathematicians who put mathematics theories into practice. During the last part of the war he became interested in computing machines and made several fundamental contributions After the war, von Neumann continued his work with computers, and was generally very active in government service. He received many awards, was president of the American Mathematical Society and was a member of the Atomic Energy Commission. He died in 1957 of cancer.

    Von Neumann made several great contributions and any one of them would have been enough to earn him a firm place in history. He will be remembered as one of the greatest minds of the 20th century.

    Von Neumann really was a legend in his own time, and there are a number of stories about him. His driving ability is a part of his legend. He reported one accident this Way: "I was driving down the road. The trees on the right were passing me in an orderly fashion at 60 miles per hour. Suddenly one of them stepped in my path."

1.According to the text, von Neumann's father believed that _____________.

A. a mathematician couldn't earn a lot of money

B. a mathematician needed a good memory

C. von Neumann had the ability to learn two subjects at the same time

D. von Neumann had the gift for solving problems at a high speed.

2.von Neumann published his first book at the age of _________________

A. 23                  B. 26            C. 29                       D. 32

3.How did World War Ⅱ affect John von Neumann?

A. He realized the importance of engineering

B. He began to research how to put mathematics into practice.

C. He left college and served at the government department.

D. He lost interest in chemistry.

4.Which of the following is true of Von Neumann?

A. He had three children

B. He died from an accident.

C. He received many rewards in his life

D. He and Einstein were classmates in Princeton University.

5.From the last paragraph, we can infer John von Neumann was _____________.

A. calm         B. brave       C. intelligent     D. humorous

 

Answer 1

【答案】

 

1.A

2.C

3.B

4.C

5.D

【解析】

试题分析：文章介绍了美籍匈牙利人，物理学家、数学家、发明家，“现代电子计算机之父” ----约翰·冯·诺依曼。他对人类社会做出了重大的贡献，而且他制定的计算机工作原理直到现在还被各种电脑使用着。做为二十世纪最伟大的人物之一他会被人们永远铭记在心。

1.A细节理解题。根据第一段his father tired to persuade him not to become a mathematician because he may lead a poor life being a mathematician,可知他父亲认为做数学家会生活的很贫穷，所以A选项正确。

2.C推理判断题。根据In 1926, at 23, he received a degree in chemical engineering可知他出生在1903年，然后由 His first book was published in 1932.可以计算出他第一本书出版时是在他29岁时，所以答案选C。

3.B细节理解题。由文章第二段 During and after the war, he became one of the best mathematicians who put mathematics theories into practice可知在战争期间他开始把数学理论应用于实践，所以B选项正确。

4.C细节理解题。根据文章倒数第二段 He received many awards, 可知C选项正确。

5.D 推理判断题。根据他对事故幽默诙谐的描述I was driving down the road. The trees on the right were passing me in an orderly fashion at 60 miles per hour. Suddenly one of them stepped in my path."可知他非常幽默，所以D选项正确。

考点：考查人物类阅读理解。