Long after the 1998 World Cup was won, disappointed fans were still cursing the disputed refereeing decisions that denied victory to their team. A researcher was appointed to study the performance of some top referees.
The researcher organized an experimental tournament involving four youth teams. Each match lasted an hour, divided into three periods of 20 minutes during which different referees were in charge.
Observers noted down the referees’ errors, of which there were 61 over the tournament. Converted to a standard match of 90 minutes, each referee made almost 23 mistakes, a remarkably high number.
The researcher then studied the videotapes to analyse the matches in detail. Surprisingly, he found that errors were more likely when the referees were close to the incident. When the officials got it right, they were, on average, 17 meters away from the action. The average distance in the case of errors was 12 meters. The research shows the optimum (最佳的) distance is about 20 meters.
There also seemed to be an optimum speed. Correct decisions came when the referees were moving at a speed of about 2 meters per second. The average speed for errors was 4 meters per second.
If FIFA, football’s international ruling body, wants to improve the standard of refereeing at the next World Cup, it should encourage referees to keep their eyes on the action from a distance, rather than rushing to keep up with the ball, the researcher argues.
He also says that FIFA’s insistence that referees should retire at age 45 may be misguided. If keeping up with the action is not so important, their physical condition is less critical.
小题1:The experiment conducted by the researcher was meant to ________.
A．review the decisions of referees at the 1998 World Cup
B．analyse the causes of errors made by football referees
C．set a standard for football refereeing
D．reexamine the rules for football refereeing小题2:The number of refereeing errors in the experimental matches was ________.
A．slightly above average
B．higher than in the 1998 World Cup
C．quite unexpected
D．as high as in a standard match小题3:The findings of the experiment show that ________.
A．errors are more likely when a referee keeps close to the ball
B．the farther the referee is from the incident, the fewer the errors
C．the more slowly the referee runs, the more likely errors will occur
D．errors are less likely when a referee stays in one spot小题4:The word “officials” (Para. 4) most probably refers to ________.
A．the researchers involved in the experiment
B．the inspectors of the football tournament
C．the referees of the football tournament
D．the observers at the site of the experiment小题5:What is one of the possible conclusions of the experiment?
A．The ideal retirement age for an experienced football referee is 45.
B．Age should not be the chief consideration in choosing a football referee.
C．A football referee should be as young and energetic as possible.
D．An experienced football referee can do well even when in poor physical condition.
小题1:B
小题2:C
小题3:A
小题4:C
小题5:B
题目分析：本文介绍了一项研究，对于世界杯中裁判的表现的具体研究，结果发现裁判越靠近事发地点越容易犯错，以及其他的一些具体的研究结果的信息介绍。
小题1:B 细节题。根据文章第一段最后一句A researcher was appointed to study the performance of some top referees.可知这项研究主要是为了分析裁判犯错的原因，来分析裁判的表现。故B正确。
小题2:C 细节题。根据文章第二段3,4行Converted to a standard match of 90 minutes, each referee made almost 23 mistakes, a remarkably high number.可知裁判所犯的错误的数量大大超过了人们的预料。故C正确。
小题3:A 细节题。根据文章第二段5,6行Surprisingly, he found that errors were more likely when the referees were close to the incident可知当裁判离事发地点教近的时候，最容易犯错。故A正确。
小题4:C 推理题。根据本句Surprisingly, he found that errors were more likely when the referees were close to the incident. When the officials got it right, they were, on average, 17 meters away from the action.可知这里的officials就是指上文的the referees，故C项内容正确。
小题5:B 推理题。根据文章最后一段He also says that FIFA’s insistence that referees should retire at age 45 may be misguided. If keeping up with the action is not so important, their physical condition is less critical.可知作者认为年龄不应该成为限制。故B正确。
点评：本文介绍了一项研究，对于世界杯中裁判的表现的具体研究，结果发现裁判越靠近事发地点越容易犯错，以及其他的一些具体的研究结果的信息介绍。文章基本上是考查细节题，对此类题型考生可以首先从问题中找到关键词，然后以此为线索，运用略读及查阅的技巧在文中迅速寻找这一细节，找到后再把这一部分内容仔细阅读一遍，仔细比较所给选项与文中细节的细微区别，在准确理解细节的前提下，最后确定最佳答案。