12．The Chinese put up with a lot living in the world's most populous country：standing on over-crowded trains for 40hours； sleeping outside hospitals to secure a doctor's appointment； waiting more than a year to earn a driver's license．
Add getting a U．S．entry visa to the list．Applicants here have waited as long as 60days to secure an appointment at one of five U．S．consular locations（領(lǐng)事館）in China that process visas．There，they're often greeted by long lines，followed by a face-to-face interview that can end badly in a matter of seconds．
Now there are only about 100 U．S．visa officers in China，facing considerable challenges during the summer when tourists and students travel the most．"It's not easy work，"Charles Bennett，minister-counselor for Consular Affairs at the U．S．Embassy in Beijing，said to his staff．"You're making，in some cases，life-changing decisions many times a day，and that can cause great tiredness．"
To adapt，US consular services expanded their hours，took on about a dozen additional staff and hope to have another 20officers by spring．More facilities are also being expanded．
Despite the shocking numbers，the embassy remains dogged by charges that it rejects applicants unreasonably and that the process is unfairly burdensome．"I'm fed up，"said Wendy Liu，24．The single woman from Beijing said she was recently refused a visa and told to re-apply when her personal life and finances were more stable．"I'll go anywhere but the U．S．now，"she said．"I thought America was supposed to be a country of freedom．"
To visit the US，Chinese nationals must prove that they have enough money and family or business ties that make it likely they'll return to China．The Department of Homeland Security said it did not keep records on how many Chinese overstay their visas．
Student visas can be refused on grounds of national security．Beijing native Tan Ge，25，believes he was not accepted after he stated his interests in infrared（紅外線的）technology and nanoelectronics（納米電子學(xué)）on his application．He now studies in Canada after being forced to abandon a full scholarship to Arizona State University．
By its very nature，the on-the-spot process at the U．S．Embassy can feel unbearable to Chinese applicants，who are asked to take their bank statements，property deeds（房產(chǎn)證），marriage licenses and HUKOU，a Chinese household ID．
"It made me feel very uncomfortable，"said Xu Yong，28，a journalist who needed a business visa last month to cover a conference in New York．"They made me feel like someone from a Third World country up to no good．"
After giving his fingerprints，Xu waited to be called for his interview，sitting in an area that was as quiet as a library．Each passing minute seemed to be as long as a century．
After an hour，Xu was called with three other people to a window for their interview．Two were rejected before his turn．Then the American officer，speaking fluent Chinese，reached for Xu's paperwork，asked some simple questions and said，"Congratulations．"
"I was so nervous．The first thing I did when I got out was to call my mom and tell her I passed，"Xu said．"She was the one who warned me it wasn't going to be easy．"
50．We can learn from Paragraph 2 that in ChinaA．
A．you may quickly be rejected for a U．S．visa after a long wait
B．getting a U．S．visa is not as hard as getting a driver's license
C．a(chǎn)n applicant has to wait two months to get a visa for the U．S．
D．there are more than five US consular locations stamping visas
51．What makes it tiring work to be a U．S．visa officer？D
A．Overcrowded workplaces．
B．Expanded working hours．
C．Poorly-equipped offices．
D．Over-loaded responsibilities．
52．The underlined word"dogged"in Paragraph 5 means"A"．
A．troubled B．pardoned
C．submitted D．a(chǎn)bandoned
53．Beijing native Tan Ge was refused a U．S．visa probably because heB．
A．had no stable income
B．was supposed to be unsafe for the U．S．
C．had too wide interests
D．had got a full scholarship in the U．S．
54．Why does the author give a detailed description of Xu Yong's experience？C
A．To show how lucky Xu is to make it to New York．
B．To reflect the problems in processing a U．S．entry visa．
C．To stress what a hard-won success it is to get a U．S．visa．
D．To persuade readers out of working or studying abroad．
分析 本文主要講述中國赴美簽證的艱辛．過程漫長而艱辛，經(jīng)常排很長的隊，最后很可能失敗而歸．美國領(lǐng)事館的工作人員壓力也很大，每天要做很多可能改變別人一生的決定，身心疲憊．
解答 50．A 細(xì)節(jié)理解題．根據(jù)第二段最后一句"There，they're often greeted by long lines，followed by a face-to-face interview that can end badly in a matter of seconds．"可知，在中國，申請美國簽證，經(jīng)常排著長隊，一個挨一個去面試，幾秒內(nèi)就可能失敗而歸．故選A．
51．D 推理判斷題．根據(jù)文中第三段的"It's not easy work，"Charles Bennett，minister-counselor for Consular Affairs at the U．S．Embassy in Beijing，said to his staff．"You're making，in some cases，life-changing decisions many times a day，and that can cause great tiredness．""這不是容易的工作，"Charles Bennett，在北京的美國領(lǐng)事館事務(wù)部長顧問，向他的員工說道"在某些情況下，你每天都在做很多次改變生活的決定，這會引起巨大的疲勞．"可知超負(fù)荷的責(zé)任讓簽證官的工作很令人疲勞不堪，故答案選D．
52．A 詞義猜測題．根據(jù)文章第三段的內(nèi)容可知簽證官的責(zé)任重大，工作令人疲勞不堪．根據(jù)文章第四段的內(nèi)容可知：美國領(lǐng)事服務(wù)擴大了簽證官的工作時間，又雇傭了大約有12名額外的工作人員，并希望再招收另外的20名簽證官．再根據(jù)該段中"Despite the shocking numbers盡管數(shù)字驚人"和"by charges that it rejects applicants unreasonably and that the process is unfairly burdensome"可知大使館仍然處于麻煩之中，故答案選A．
53．B 推理判斷題．根據(jù)第七段中的"Student visas can be refused on grounds of national security．Beijing native Tan Ge，25，believes he was not accepted after he stated his interests in infrared（紅外線的）technology and nanoelectronics（納米電子學(xué)）on his application．"可知，學(xué)生簽證可能以國家安全為由拒簽．北京人譚格在陳述了自己對紅外技術(shù)和納電子學(xué)感興趣后遭到拒簽．因此推斷他被拒簽很可能是因為安全問題．故選B．
54．C 推理判斷題．通讀最后四段可知，徐勇覺得簽證過程令自己很不舒服，非常難堪，等待的每一分鐘都令人坐立不安，簽證通過以后他趕緊給媽媽打了電話，媽媽提醒過他簽證不是一件容易的事情．再結(jié)合上文的幾個例子可以推斷，作者詳細(xì)描述徐勇的簽證經(jīng)歷是為了強調(diào)通過美國的簽證是多么難．故選C．
點評 本文是一篇政治經(jīng)濟類文章．政治經(jīng)濟類閱讀注意：1、要做好這類閱讀，平時就要注意了解國內(nèi)外發(fā)生的政治經(jīng)濟大事，掌握一定背景知識； 2、對這類文章的敘述特點及內(nèi)容安排有一定了解，還要擴展這方面的詞匯；3、閱讀這類文章，要抓住文章的核心，即文章整體和各段主要在說什么，也要注意段落之間的邏輯關(guān)系．
