In an up market restaurant near Cambridge city centre, twelve young men and women sit around a large, linen-covered table set wi

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问题     In an up market restaurant near Cambridge city centre, twelve young men and women sit around a large, linen-covered table set with plates and dishes, glasses and cutlery. To one side is a man in a wheelchair. He is older than the others. He looks terribly frail, almost withered away to nothing, slumped motionless and seemingly lifeless against the black cloth cushion of his wheelchair. His hands, thin and pale, the fingers slender, lie in his lap. Set into the centre of his sinewy throat, just below the collar of his open-necked shirt, is a plastic breathing device about two inches in diameter. But despite his disabilities, his face is alive and boyish, neatly brushed brown hair falling across his brow, only the lines beneath his eyes belying the fact that he is a contemporary of Keith Richards and Donald Trump. His head lolls forward, but from behind steel rimmed spectacles his clear blue eyes are alert, raised slightly to survey the other faces around him.
66.____________________
    There is an air of excitement in the restaurant. Around this man the young people laugh and joke, and occasionally address him or make a flippant remark in his direction. A moment later the babble of human voices is cut through by a rasping sound, a metallic voice, like something from the set of Star Wars—the man in the wheelchair makes a response which brings peals of laughter from the whole table.
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    As the diners begin their main course there is a commotion at the restaurant’s entrance. A few moments later, the head waiter walks towards the table escorting a smiling redhead in a fake-fur coat. Everyone at the table turns her way as she approaches and there is an air of hushed expectation as she smiles across at them and says "Hello" to the gathering. She appears far younger than her eyes and looks terribly glamorous, a fact exaggerated by the general scruffiness of the young people at the table. Only the older man in the wheelchair is neatly dressed, in a plain jacket and neatly pressed shirt, his immaculately smart nurse beside him.
    "I’m so sorry I’m late", she says to the party. "My car was wheel-clamped in London". Then she adds, laughing, "There must be some cosmic significance in that!"
    Faces look towards her and smile, and the man in the wheelchair beams. She walks around the table towards him, as his nurse stands at his side.
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    For the rest of the meal Shirley McLaine sits next to her host, playing him with question after question in an attempt to discover his views on subjects which concern her deeply. She is interested in metaphysics and spiritual matters. Having spoken to holy men and teachers around the world, she has formulated her own personal theories concerning the meaning of existence. She has strong beliefs about the meaning of life and the reason for our being here, the creation of the Universe and the existence of God. But they are only beliefs. The man beside her is perhaps the greatest physicist of our time, the subjects of his scientific theories are the origin of the Universe, the laws which govern its existence and the eventual fate of all that has been created—including you, me and Ms Shirley MacLaine. His name has spread far and wide, his name known by millions around the world.
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    The professor is neither rude nor condescending; brevity is simply his way. Each word he says has to be painstakingly spelt out on a computer attached to his wheelchair and operated by tiny movements of two of the fingers of one hand, almost the last vestige of bodily freedom he has. His guest accepts his words and nods.
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A. She asks the professor if he believes that there is a God who created the Universe and guides His creation. He smiles momentarily, and the machine voice says, "No".
B. For the next two hours, until tea is served in the common room, the Hollywood actress asks the Cambridge professor question after question.
C. Beside him sits a nurse, her chair angled towards his as she positions a spoon to his lips and feeds him. Occasionally she wipes his mouth.
D. The woman stops two steps in front of the wheelchair. Crouches a little and says, "Professor Hawking, I’m delighted to meet you. I’m Shirley MacLaine".
E. His eyes light up, and what has been described by some as "the greatest smile in the world" envelops his whole face. Suddenly you know that this man is very much alive.
F. What he is saying is not what she wants to hear, and she does not agree—but she can only listen and take notes for it, nothing else, his views have to be respected.


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答案D

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