谢忠明大学英语四级考试预测试卷及答案②

College English Model Test Two

—Band Four—

2

-College English Model Test Two

试卷一

Part I    Listening Comprehension(20 minutes)
Section A
Directions: In this section, you will hear 10 short conversations. At the end of each conversation, a question will be asked about what was said. Both the conversation and the question will be spoken only once. After each question there will be a pause. During the pause, you must read the four choices marked A), B), C) and D) and decide which is the best answer. Then mark the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet with a single line through the center.
Example：You will hear:
You will read:
A) At the office.       
B) In the waiting room.
C) At the airport.      
D) In a restaurant.
From the conversation we know that the two were talking about some work they had to finish in the evening. This is most likely to have taken place at the office. Therefore, A)“At the office”is the best answer. You should choose ［A］ on the Answer Sheet and mark it with a single line through the center.

1. A) Steve cannot hear.
   B) Steve has some problems with his ears.
   C) Steve doesn’t listen to him.
   D) Steve forgot about the meeting.
2. A) She loved the people in Africa.
   B) She loved  the tour in some places.
   C) Three weeks is just like a few minutes.
   D) The whole tour is quite interesting.
3. A) Bill cannot afford a house.
   B) Bill decided to buy a house.
   C) Bill doesn’t mean to buy a house.
   D) Bill goes beyond the house
4. A) Susan Evans rings a bell.
   B) The name sounds familiar to the man.
   C) The man never heard of the name.
   D) The man is not sure about the bell.
5. A) To a movie.    B) On a two-week trip. 
   C) To work.       D) On a short visit to their neighbor.
6. A) ＄18.50.       B) ＄19.50.          C) ＄15.50.              D) ＄14.50.
7. A) He went mountain climbing last year.
   B) He hasn’t traveled around the world yet.
   C) He’d like to climb that mountain.
   D) He definitely does not want to go.
8. A) The woman’s doctor.  B) The woman’s husband.
   C) A shoe buyer.         D) A shoe salesman.
9. A) The man.        B) The woman.       C) The woman’s mother.  D) A baker.
10. A) She does not agree with the man.
    B) She thinks that it is better to wait.
    C) To go today is much better than tomorrow.
    D) She  thinks that the man has made a wrong decision.

Section B Compound Dictation
注意：听力理解的B节(Section B)为复合式听写(Compound Dictation)，题目在试卷二上，现在请取出试卷二。

Part II  Reading Comprehension(35 minutes)
Directions: There are 4 passages in this part. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A), B), C) and D). You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet with a single line through the center.

Passage One
Questions 11 to 15 are based on the following passage.
    My father’s reaction to the bank building at 43rd Street and Fifth Avenue in New York city was immediate and definite: “You won’t catch me putting my money in there!” he declared, “Not in that glass box !”
    Of course, my father is a gentleman of the old school, a member of the generation to whom a good deal of modern architecture is upsetting, but I am convinced that his negative response was not so much to the architecture as to a violation of his concept of the nature of money .
In his generation money was thought of as a  real commodity (实物)that could be carried, or stolen. Consequently, to attract the custom of a sensible man, a bank had to have heavy walls, barred windows, and bronze doors, to affirm the fact, however untrue, that money would be safe inside. If a building’s design made it appear impenetrable, the institution was necessarily reliable, and the meaning of the heavy wall as an architecture symbol dwelt in the prevailing attitude toward money.
    But the attitude toward money has, of course, changed. Excepting pocket money, cash of any kind is now rarely used; money as a tangible commodity has largely been replaced by credit. A deficit (赤字) economy, accompanied by huge expansion, has led us to think of money as product of the creative imagination. The banker no longer offers us a safe: he offers us a service in which the most valuable element is the creativity for the invention of large numbers. It is in no way surprising, in view of this change in attitude, that we are witnessing the disappearance of the heavy-walled bank.
    Just as the older bank emphasized its strength, this bank by its architecture boasts of imaginative powers. From this point of view it is hard to say where architecture ends and human assertion (人们的说法)begins.
11. The main idea of this passage is that         . 
  A) money is not as valuable as it was in the past
  B) changes have taken place in both the appearance and the concept of banks
  C) the architectural style of the older bank is superior to that of the modern bank
  D) prejudice makes the older generation think that the modern bank is unreliable
12. How do the older generation and the younger one think about money?
  A) The former thinks more of money  than the latter.  
  B) The younger generation values money more than the older generation.
  C) Both generations rely on the imaginative power of bankers to make money.
  D) To the former money is a real commodity but to  the latter  be a means   to produce more money.
13. The word “tangible” (Line 2, Para. 4 ) refers to something         .
  A) that is precious    B) that is usable    C) that can be touched  D) that can be reproduced
14. According to this passage, a modern banker should be        .
  A) ambitious and friendly      B) reliable and powerful
  C) sensible and impenetrable   D) imaginative and creative
15. It can be inferred from the passage that the author’s attitude towards the new trend in   banking is         .
  A) cautious            B) regretful         C) positive             D) hostile

Passage Two
Questions 16 to 20 are based on the following passage.
    Sixteen years ago, Eileen Doyle’s husband, an engineer, took his four children up for an early morning cup of tea, packed a small case and was never seen or heard of again. Eileen was astonished and in a state of despair. They had been a happy family and, as far as she knew, there had been nothing wrong with their marriage.
    Every day of the year a small group of men and women quietly pack a few belongings and without so much as a note or a good-bye close the front door for the last time, leaving their debts, their worries and their confused families behind them.
    Last year, more than 1,200 men and nearly as many women were reported missing from home—the highest in 15 years. Many did return home within a year, but others rejected the past completely and are now living a new life somewhere under a different identity.
    To those left behind this form of desertion is a terrible blow to their pride and selfconfidence. Even the finality of death might be preferable. At least it does not imply rejection or failure. Worse than that, people can be left with an unfinished marriage, not knowing whether they will have to wait seven years before they are free to start a fresh life.
    Clinical psychologist Paul Brown believes most departures of this kind to be well planned rather than impulsive. “It’s typical of the kind of personality which seems able to ignore other people’s pain and difficulties. Running away, like killing yourself, is a highly aggressive act. By creating an absence the people left behind feel guilty, upset and empty.”
    The Salvation Army’s Investigation Department has a 70 per cent success rate in tracking missing people down. According to Lt. Co. Bramwell Pratt, head of the department, men and women run away for very different reasons though lack of communication is often the biggest motive. “The things that disturb a man’s personality are problems like being tied up in debt. Or serious worries about work. And some women make impossible demands on their husbands. Women usually leave for more obvious reasons but fear is at the root of it. Men are more often prepared to give their marriage another try than women, but we are aware that, for some wives, it would be a total impossibility to return after the way they’ve been treated.”
16. When her husband left home, Eileen Doyle        .
  A) could not forgive him for taking the children
  B) had been expecting it to happen for some time
  C) could not understand why
  D) blamed herself for what had happened
17. Most people who leave their families behind them        .
  A) do so without warning     B) do so because of their debts
  C) come back immediately     D) change their names
18. The man or woman left behind usually        .
  A) admits responsibility for the situation
  B) wishes the person who has left were dead
  C) feels embarrassed and uselesscomes back within a year
  D) will have no legal marriage life for seven years
19. Paul Brown regards leaving home in such circumstances as          .
  A) an act of despair                           
  B) an act of selfishness
  C) the result of a sudden decision       
  D) the result of the enormous sense of guilt
20. The Salvation Army believes that         .
  A) most men run away because of the impossible demands of their wives
  B) men’s reasons are more understandable than women’s
  C) some women never give their men another chance
  D) women are often afraid to start marriage again

Passage Three
Questions 21 to 25 are based on the following passage.
    The English have the reputation of being very different from all other nationalities. It is claimed that living on an island separated from the rest of Europe has much to do with it. Whatever the reasons it may be fairly stated that the Englishman has developed some attitudes and habits distinguishing him from other nationalities.
    Broadly speaking, the Englishman is a quiet, shy, reserved person among people he knows well. Before strangers he often seems inhibited, even embarrassed. You have only to witness a railway compartment any morning or evening to see the truth. Serious-looking businessmen and women sit reading their newspapers or dozing (打盹) in a corner; no one speaks. An English wit once suggested to overseas visitors, “On entering a railway compartment shake hands with all the passengers.” Needless to say, he was not being serious. There is an unwritten but clearly understood code of behavior, which, if broken, makes the person immediately the object of suspicion.
    It is well known that the English seldom show openly extremes of enthusiasm, emotion etc. Of course, an Englishman feels no less than any other nationality. Imagine a man commenting on the great beauty of a young girl. A man of more emotional temperament might describe her as “a marvelous jewel”, while the Englishman will flatly state “Um, she’s all right”. An Englishman may recommend a highly successful and enjoyable film to friends by commenting, “It’s not bad.” The overseas visitors must not be disappointed by this apparent lack of interest; he must realize that “all right”, “not bad” are very often used with the sense of “first class”, “excellent”. This special use of language is particularly common in English.
21. One explanation for the different character of English people is that        .
  A) they are geographically isolated from the European continent
  B) they have nothing to do with the other Europeans
  C) they like to keep quiet among their acquaintances
  D) they tend to be reserved by nature
22. The word “inhibited” (Line 2, Para. 2) in this passage probably means          .
  A) unable to have good manners   B) unable to express and relax freely
  C) able to act properly          D) able to talk freely
23. According to the passage, on entering a railway compartment, an overseas visitor is expected to          .
  A) inquire about the code of behavior in the train
  B) shake hands with all the passengers
  C) shake hands with the person he knows
  D) behave like an Englishman
24. The English way of commenting on something or somebody suggests that           .
  A) the English are modest  in most circumstances
  B) the English feel no less than any other nationality
  C) the English tend to display less emotion than they feel 
  D) the English don’t take a strong interest in making comment
25. What does the passage mainly discuss?
  A) The differences between the English and the other Europeans.
  B) The different character of the English man and its reason.
  C) The reasons for English people’s shyness.
  D) The code of behavior of the nationalities in Europe.

Passage Four
Questions 26 to 30 are based on the following passage.
    It is difficult to imagine what life would be like without memory. The meanings of thousands of everyday perceptions, the basis for the decisions we make, and the roots of our habits and skills are to be found in our past experiences, which are brought into the present by memory.
    Memory can be defined as the capacity to keep information available for later use. It includes not only “remembering” things like arithmetic or historical facts, but also involves any change in the way an animal typically behaves. Memory is involved when a rat gives up eating grain because he has sniffed (嗅出) something suspicious in the grain pile.
    Memory exists not only in humans and animals but also in some physical objects and machines. Computers, for example, contain devices for storing data for later use. It is interesting to compare the memory storage capacity of a computer with that of a human being. The instant access memory of a large computer may hold up to 100,000 “words”—string of alphabetic or numerical characters—ready for instant use. An average U.S. teenager probably recognizes the meaning of about 100,000 words of English. However, this is but a fraction of the total amount of information that the teenager has stored. Consider, for example, the number of faces and places that the teenager can recognize on sight.
    The use of words is the basis of the advanced problem-solving intelligence of human beings. A large part of a person’s memory is in terms of words and combinations of words. But while language greatly expands the number and kind of things a person can remember, it also requires a huge memory capacity. It may well be this capacity that distinguishes humans, setting them apart from other animals.
26. Which of the following is true about memory?
  A) It helps us perceive things happening around us every day.
  B) It is based on the decisions we made in the past.
  C) It is rooted in our past habits and skills.
  D) It connects our past experiences with the present.
27. According to the passage, memory is helpful in one’s life in the following aspects EXCEPT that          .
  A) it involves a change in one’s behavior
  B) it keeps information for later use
  C) it warns people not to do things repeatedly
  D) it enables one to remember events that happened in the past
28. What is the author’s view about computers and  human beings in terms of intelligence?
  A) Computers have better memory than a child does.
  B) Computers are as intelligent as a teenager is.
  C) Computers can understand as many as 100,000 words.
  D) Human beings are far superior to computers.
29. What is the major characteristic of man’s memory capacity according to the author?
  A) It can be expanded by language.
  B) It can remember all the combined words.
  C) It may keep all the information in the past.
  D) It may change what has been stored in it.
30. Human beings make themselves different from other animals by            .
  A) having the ability to perceive danger
  B) having a far greater memory capacity
  C) having the ability to recognize faces and places on sight
  D) having the ability to draw on past experiences