2009年6月大学英语四级考试真题解析及听力原文MP3
2009 年 6 月大学英语四级考试真题解析
Part I Writing
Free Admission To Museums Nowadays, an increasing number of museums are admission-free to visitors home and abroad. The hidden reason behind this is not hard to analyze as there’s a growing awareness for the authorities regarding the urgency of popularization of culture, knowledge and history with every average person in our society. Only with free access to this live ‘database’, can most people fully enjoy what museums could offer to them. However, free admission to museums might lead to some social problems as well. The most obvious problem is that it might give museums a very heavy economic burden which directly impedes the sustainable development of these organizations. As a result, our government has to work out other ways to collect funds from different channels, which might be difficult to operate or control. On the other hand, free admission attracts too many visitors, some of which might not be well-purposed and do some conscious or unconscious damage to the valuable treasures which used to be well-preserved in the museums. As a university student, I am in favor of the free-admission conduct. Yet it is proposed that some measures should be taken to solve the potential problems caused by it. For example, museums can make some regulations to guide the behavior of visitors or set some ‘closed’ days for museums for regular maintenance. Only in this way can free-admission to museums become a long-lasting phenomenon and have sustainable development.
Part II Reading Comprehension (Skimming and Scanning)
1. A. 由题干中的 bothered, Tiffany, during an interview, 定位到第一段第二、 三句。 文中提到，Tiffany 在面试时注意到应聘者不敢跟他们进行目光的交流。文章中的 puzzled 和 disappointed 与题干中的 bother 是同义表述。 选项 A 与文章内容完全一 致。
2. C. 该题比较难定位。由题干中的 misjudgment 一词可以勉强将答案锁定在第三 段第二句。该题主要是考查对题干中短语 stemmed from(源自于)的辨认和理解， 还考察 Tiffany 错误判断的原因， 而选项中的 ignorance 无知） misunderstanding （ 与 意义相近，因此 C 正确.
3. B. 由题干 becoming essential 定位到第五段最后一句。文章指出“随着世界变得 越来越小，增进对别人的了解变得十分必要”，文中 the world becomes smaller 正 是题干中的 economic globalization 所要表达的含义。选项 B 中的 Increasing 是对 文中 expand 的词义转述。
4. B. 由题干 Mindsets LLC 定位到第一个小标题下第一段最后两句。根据原文中 training 一词不难判断，该机构是一个培训机构，选项 B 与此相符。
5. D. 由题干中的 Dale 定位到第二个小标题下第一段最后三句。该小标题的主要 内容是在说明隐性别的原因造成对他人认识的偏差。 文章以 Dale 为例说明参加这 种学习班的作用，并且从后面一段中 Dale 的亲身经历来说明，参加该班的作用对 Dale 来说就是消除了他在性别上的偏见。选项 D 与此相符。
6. C. 因为第二个小标题下通篇都在讲 Dale 和 workshop，答案没有明确的出处， 这时可以看该标题下的首段与末段，通常会讲到陈述人的观点。该题是在考查 Dale 对 Mindsets LLC workshop 的认识。根据第二个标题下最后一段末句可以确 定答案为 C.
7. A. 由题干 Chinese American employee 定位到第三个小标题下第二段最后两句。 文章提到当一个华裔美国人向 Doug 请假去庆祝新年时，他认为这个华人弄错了 日期，从 I gave him a long talking-to about turning in requests early with the proper dates 一句可以看出当时 Doug 对他的反映就是 A 选项所表达的意思。
8. embarrassed. 由题干中的 Doug 定位到第三个小标题下面第三段第三句。 题干与 原文句子几乎一样，可以直接锁定答案。
9. inclusiveness. 此题无法通过信号词来定位。题干考查的的是参加完 Mindset’s workshop 的收获，根据文章最后一个标题下第一段后半部分对 my boss 参加 Mindset’s workshop 的作用的描述，以及 It wasn’t until my boss received Mindset’s training…was to customer service 可以得出答案为 inclusiveness，意为“包容性”。
10. differences and similarities. 由题干中的 view people as individuals and get rid of stereotypes 定位到全文倒数第二段第一、二句。题干中的 benefit from 和文章中的 taking advantage of 可以理解为同义转述，由此可以直接锁定答案。
Part Ⅲ Listening Comprehension
Section A
11. D. 细节推断题。男士对 Kate 能邀请到如此多的朋友参加她的聚会提出疑问， 而女士的回答表明，Kate 从小就很有人缘。
12. C. 推理判断题对话中男士首先说到了糟糕的天气还将持续一段时间，随后女 士说他们很幸运，因为他们要去福罗里达州度假而离开一段时间，并要确认航班 等，由此可以推断出答案。
13. B. 综合推断题。女士提到 Tony 因从森林火灾中救出了多个家庭而被授予奖 章，男士则对 Tony 的勇气表示钦佩，因此可以推断出 Tony 是非常勇敢的。
14. B. 请求建议题。 男士说用了
15 年的洗衣机昨天晚上坏了。 女士说这个机器的 零件不好更换，建议买一款新型号的。 15.D. 细节推断题。女士认为男士得以晋升后肯定很欣喜，二男时却说虽然新办 公室很大，但是工作量加倍了。由此判断，男士对自己的晋升不是很高兴。
16. D. 信息明示题。女士对于是否参加明天的聚会犹豫不决，男士说如果她不想 去就不必去，并且说，如果她去参加的话，他可以顺便捎上一程。
17. C. 行动计划题。男士表示，如果对方对合同的条款有疑问，他乐意回答，而 女士则表明她在签署合同前要重新看一下所有条款，因此他们谈话的内容主要是 关于一个合同的签署问题。
18. A. 细节辨认题。男士说没有打印纸了，让女士帮着订购一些，而女士的回答 表明她已经从网上订购了，到货后会立即通知他，由此可见女士刚刚订购了打印 纸。
19. B. 目的原因题。本题关键句为：they made him retire after 50 years at sea. 由此 可知，Jake 情绪低落的原因是退休，不能再在上海工作。
20. A. 细节辨认题。对话中谈到了 Jake 的妻子已经去世多年。其中 been dead for years 是 passed away years ago 的同义转述。
21. C. 信息明示题。当对话中男士提到 Jake 的妻子已去世多年，还有一个以模特 为职业的女儿时，女士提议联系她来照顾 Jake，但男士否定了这一提议，因为她 与 Jake 相处得不好。
22. B. 细节辨认题。 在对话最后女士用 bad-tempered 来形容 Jake 的医生 Johnson， 男士表示否定，并说明 Johnson 只是看起来脾气不好，其实是个优秀的医生。
23. C. 综合判断题。 本题关键词是 manuals， 男士一开始就说使用手册的数量不对， 然后说一些产品包装打开后没有使用手册。
24. D. 细节推断题。 Ms.Green 详细了解情况后， 当 便立刻提出了解决办法： We’ll send out the manuals this afternoon by express mail entirely at our cost 这也是她作出 的承诺，故 D 正确。
25. A. 细节推断题。当女士提出解决方案后，男士表示同意并说 That would be great.再结合 Thank you for your swift action 可知男士对这一解决方案是满意的。 shift 意为“迅速的，敏捷的”。
Section B
26. A. 事实细节题。录音一开始就点明了本段听力材料的大意：Attracting and
feeding wild birds are entertaining activities…根据选项 A 中的 entertaining 很容易就 能锁定答案。
27. B. 细节推断题。录音中提到 feeding birds 还存在一定的 responsibility，甚至会 带来 a disease hazard，所以 B 符合题意。
28. D. 细节辨认题。 此题询问的是冬季喂食时应该遵循的原则， 关键词是 in winter. 录音中提到，在·十五相对匮乏的冬季，喂食一定要持续、足量，否则会导致习惯 于依赖喂鸟人的鸟类饿死。
29. C. 语义理解题。 解答该题的关键是对 makes up weak and poor excuses （编造一 些站不住脚的借口）的理解，其实就是 tell lies 的意思，这样根据录音开始部分人 名 Leo 的提示，可以得出答案为 C.
30. A. 细节推断题。 该题答题的关键在于把握 girlfriend 一词。 根据录音可知， Leo 说谎而不跟女友约会，导致女友生气，直到他道歉，她才同意再次跟他约会，由 此可推断 A 正确。 题干中问“上周说话的人请 Leo 帮什么忙？”由录音可知， Leo
31. D. 事实细节题。 答应女士把家具从她父母家搬到她的新公寓。
32. C. 细节辨认题。根据问题中的 difficult fro Hollywood kids 很快就能住捉到信 息， 由于是用 why 进行提问， 所以锁定答案在 because they grow up in such an unreal atmosphere. 33. C. 细节推断题。关键词是 A thirteen-year-old boy.其实听力中以 Trent Maguire 为例意在支持作者的观点： 当每个要求都得到满足， 孩子们便不懂得事物的价值， 因为他们拥有一切。
34. D.目的原因题。文章中提到 Amanda 的母亲花钱雇佣别人来照顾自己的孩子， 其原因不是对孩子特别照顾，而是她没有时间亲自照顾孩子。
35. B. 细节推断题。该题考查对好莱坞儿童的生活产生负面影响的因素。文章的 结尾表达了作者的忧虑：在好莱坞，人们盲目崇拜金钱、美貌和享乐，言外之意 是孩子们生活在这样的环境中势必会给他们的成长带来消极负面的影响。
Section C
36. concentrated 37. information
38. depends 39 .straight 40. row 41. suspected 42. phenomenon （现象）
43. efficiently 44. our second rule of learning is this: it is better to study fairly briefly but often. 45. Let’s say you are trying to learn some new and rather difficult English vocabulary using a stack of cards.
46. The answer is it is better to space out the presentations of the word you are to learn.
Part IV Reading Comprehension (Reading in Depth)
Section A
47. M. 动词辨析题。空格位于从句主语 assignments 和宾语 it 之间，需要一个及 物动词作谓语。根据句意“他们从来不写作文，除非有作业______他们写作”可知， require 符合句意。
48. I. 形容词辨析题。 空格处为连词 and 连接的两个并列成分之一。 根据 and 之后 的 difficult 可以判断， 此处需要一个与 difficult 同义或近义的形容词， 而其他形容 词均不符合句意，故排除。
49. F. 副词辨析题。空格处缺少副词。句子前半部分提到 language，空格之后的 English 为语言的一种，因而此处的意思是：英语尤其如此。L）remarkably 不符 合句意，故排除。
50. E. 形容词辨析题。空格位于不定冠词 an 与名词 mansion 之间，显然需要一个 形容词， 而且需要以元音音素开头。 选项中不是元音开头的形容词可以全部排除， 而另外一个一元音开头的形容词 C）emotional 不符合句意，故排除。
51.H. 空格位于形容词性物主代词 my 和系动词 is 之间，需要一个名词作宾语从 句的主语， 而且根据句意， 此处的名词意思应为“工作”或者“任务”， 故选用 mission.
52. D. 动词辨析题。空格前出现动词不定式符号 to，此处需要一个动词原形，而 且要与后面的 development 搭配，符合条件的只有 enhance. 此处句意为：……以 加强学生道德和情感的发展。
53. B. 副词辨析题。句子结构完整，所以此处缺少的是修饰成分。根据上下文判 断，此处需要表示“每天”的副词作状语，由此可以直接选定答案。
54. J. 名词辨析题。空格位于连词 and 之后，根据 and 前面的成分判断，此处需 要一个名词。
55. C. 形容词辨析题。空格处缺少形容词与 academic 和 political 作并列成分，共 同修饰后面的名词 lives. 根据下文一一对应的举例，此处的形容词应与 love letter 对应，故直接选定答案。
56. A. 形容词辨析题。空格处缺少与 step 搭配的形容词作后置定语，而且要与介 词 to 搭配。根据句意，这里表示“向……更近一步”。
Section B Passage One
57. A. 事实细节题。 由题干中的专有名词 FutureFashion 可以将答案迅速定位到文 章第一段。由第一句话可知，FutureFashion 是一场时装秀，紧接着第二句话介绍 了其详细的内容。 选项 A 中的 leading 与原文中的 top 同义， 与 for the first time start 同义， going green 与 work with sustainable fabrics 相对应， 因而 A 选项与原文意义 一致。
58. D. 语义理解题。由题干中的人物 Scott Hahn 定位到第二段第二句。由 Scott 的说话内容可知，很多设计师面临的挑战是很难找到现在有材料的环保替代品。 选项 D“合成纤维的高质量有机替代品现在还无法获得”与文章提到的原因相符。
59. D. 事实细节题。由题干中的 Paragraph 3 定位到第三段第一句。该句意为：那 些已经转换了服装材料的设计师正在获得越来越多的支持。 选项 D 与原文意思完 全相符。 由题干中的人物 Natalie Hormilla 定位到原文最后一段的例子：
60. A. 语义理解题。 Natalie Hormilla, a fashion writer, … green just isn’t on her mind. 从该句可以看出， 当被问及是否拥有可持续材料制成的服装时，Natalie 给出了否定的回答，而前面 她又承认对环保尚不关注。选项 A 与文章的意思相符。
61. B. 观点态度题。本题询问作者对于绿色环保时尚的观点。这种题的答案通常 会出现在短文的结尾作者总结或重申观点处， 一定要仔细阅读。 原文最后一句 But — thanks to the combined efforts of designers, retailers and suppliers — one day it will be 可知，作者认为在多方努力下，环保时尚总有一天会被广大民众所关注和 接受，即相信它有一个很美好的未来。选项 B 与文章最贴近。
62. B. 事实细节题。根据题干中 the scientists’ new discovery 定位到原文第一段第 一句“科学家已经找到一种办法， 使用一缕头发大体判断出一个人的生活区域， 这 种技术有助于追踪犯罪嫌疑人或确定身份不明的凶杀案受害人的身份”。选项 B
与文章的意思最为接近。
63. C. 语义理解题。根据题干中 You are what you eat and drink 定位到原文第三段 第一句“你的饮食会体现在你的身上，而这些信息在你的头发里会有记录。”选项 C 与文章意义最贴近。
64. B. 推理判断题。根据题干中的 rainfall in America’s West 定位到原文第五段最 后一句“在太平洋上形成的风暴给加利福尼亚州带来的雨水要比给犹他州带来的 雨水的比重更大一些”。加州处于沿海地区，犹他州是内陆地区，选项 B“雨水由 沿海进入内陆地区时比重会变小”是对原文的抽象概括。
65. A. 事实细节题。根据题干中 Cerling’s team 定位到原文第七段第一句“瑟琳的 团队从 600 个城市收集了自来水样本， 并且绘制出一幅地区差异图”。 题干中问的 是瑟琳团队的研究成果之一，故选项 A 最符合题意。
66. C. 语义理解题。根据题干中的 practical value 定位到原文第九段：瑟琳团队的 研究成果的主要现实意义是排除众多的可能性，而根据下文的举例可以看到该成 果在犯罪侦查中的实际应用，即帮助警察缩小侦查范围。选项 C 与原文意思完全 吻合。 Part V Cloze
67. C. 名词辨析题。根据上下文可知，此处意为“他是东京一家网络服务公司年轻 有为的主管，有充裕的可自由支配的_____”。income 表示“收入，收益”，符合题 意。
68. A. 副词辨析题。文章此处要表达的是，虽然他拥有私家车，但他_____时候都 是乘坐地铁和火车出行的。mostly 表示“主要地，通常”，符合句意；occasionally 意为“有时候”；partially 意为“部分地”；rarely 意为“几乎不”。
69. B. 连词辨析题。由上下文可知，此处意思是“地铁和火车非常方便，______， 买车已经是上个世纪的时尚了” 。besides 意为“此外”，符合句意。
70. D. 名词辨析题。此处句意为“Suda 在交通方式上的转变反映出了日本国内一 种令人担忧的_____”。trend 意为“趋势” ，符合句意。
71. D. 副词辨析题。此处句意为“汽车正失去它的吸引力，对于年轻人来说_____ 如此”。particularly 意为“尤其，特别”，符合句意。
72. A. 连词辨析题。 此处句意为“______迷你汽车和外国的奢侈品牌车仍然十分受 欢迎，但处于两者之间的其他车型的销售量却在下滑”。while 表示两种情况的对 比，符合句意。 73. C. 动词辨析题。根据后面的句子：去年销量下降了 6.7%，且整篇文章都是在 说汽车销量下滑，可以推断此处选 C。slipping 意为“滑动，下降”。
74. B. 连词辨析题。根据上下文可知这里是说“_____不算上迷你汽车的销售额， 全国销量的下滑幅度为 7.6%”。 if“假设， 如果”在此引导条件状语从句， 符合句意。
75. D. 形容词辨析题。由上下文可知，这里要表达的是其他国家汽车销售额的下 滑更大。larger drops“更大幅度的下降”符合句意。
76.C. 固定搭配题。此处句意为“_____税收在不断增长，2007 年德国汽车销售降 低了 9%”。thanks to“由于，幸亏”符合句意。
77. A. 形容词辨析题。文章此处要表达的是：专家认为，日本在汽车销售上情况 较______。unique“独一无二的”符合句意。
78. A. 介词辨析题。由上下文可知，此处在说日本情况较特殊是因为其销售额是 缓慢下降的。over time 意为“随着时间的推移”，符合句意。
79. D. 名词辨析题。此处句意为“这种汽车市场_____的情况令日本汽车制造商协
会（JAMA）担忧，于是它开始采取行动”。decay 此处表示“谁退，衰落“，符合 句意。
80. C. 动词辨析题。由上下文可知，这里是指 JAMA 发起了一项对汽车市场的全 面调查研究。launch 意为“发起”，符合句意。
81. B. 动词辨析题。此处句意为“此次调查研究发现_____的贫富差距、人口结构 的变化和对汽车兴趣的普遍缺失都使日本人要么不再准备购买新车，要么……”。 widening wealth gap 表示“逐渐拉大的贫富差距”，符合句意。
82. D. 形容词辨析题。此处句意为“日本人对汽车兴趣的_____缺失是造成汽车销 量下滑的原因之一”。general“普遍的”放在此处符合句意。
83. C. 名词辨析题。 根据上下文可知此处意为“很多人准备用更小型的汽车代替现 有的汽车”。vehicle 在这里意为“汽车”，符合句意。
84. A. 连词辨析题。由句意可知，多种原因导致日本人或者已经不再准备购买新 车，_____选择用更小型的汽车代替现有的汽车，更有甚者彻底放弃拥有私家车。 or 意为“或者”，表示选择关系，符合句意。
85. B. 动词辨析题。此处句意为“据 JAMA______，2008 年的汽车销售额还会进 一步下滑 1.2%”。predict 意为“预计，预测”，符合句意。
86.B. 形容词辨析题。由上下文可以推断，文章得出的结论为：一些分析人士认 为，如果现在的这股趋势延续更长时间，汽车行业_____面临进一步合并的命运。 likely 表示“可能的”，符合句意；distant 意为“遥远的”；temporary 意为“暂时的”； immediate 意为“立即的，迅速的”。
Part VI Translation
87. difficulty (in) catching up with his classmates 本题考查两个短语的用法， 一个是 have difficulty (in) doing sth. 该短语中， 后面的 动词要用现在分词形式。第二个短语是 catch up with sb.表示“跟上某人”。
88. wouldn’t have been caught by the rain 本题主要考查虚拟语气的用法，if 引导的条件句表示对过去发生事情的虚拟，且 与事实相反，主句应使用 would (not) have done；另外，“被大雨淋了”地道的表达 为“caught in the rain”。
89. more likely to put on weight 本题考查两个短语的用法，一个是 be likely to do sth.，表示“有可能做某事”。第 二个短语是 put on weight，表示“增加体重”。
90. What many people don’t realize 根据句子缺少的成分来判断，此处需要名词性结构或从句作主语。
91. closely relative/related to the lack of exercise 本题考查 be relative/related to，表示“与……相关”。
听力原文
Short Conversations
11. W: There were more than a hundred people at Kate's birthday party. How come she's got so many friends?
M: It's really no surprise. You know she was popular even when she was a child
Q: What does the man imply about Kate?
12. M: They say there'll be a snow-storm tonight, and the cold weather will last quite a few days.
W: Oh! We're so lucky, we'll be getting away for a while, and having a holiday in Florida. But let's call right now to confirm our flight.
Q: What do we learn about the two speakers?
13. W: Tony was awarded a medal for rescuing several families from the forest fire.
M: I really admire his courage.
Q: What do we learn about Tony from the conversation?
14. M: My washing machine is more than fifteen years old and it has worked just fine until last night.
W: You’ll never be able to get parts for it, even from Japan. So it might be time to invest a more recent model.
Q: What does the woman suggest the man do?
15. W: I heard about your promotion, you must be thrilled.
M: Not really, the new office is huge, but the word load has doubled.
Q: What do we learn about the man from the conversation?
16. W: I can’t decide what to do about the party tomorrow.
M: You don’t have to go if you don’t want to, but I’ll be glad to give you a ride if you do.
Q: What do we learn from the conversation?
17. M: Now if you have any questions about the contract. I’ll be happy to answer them.
W: Nothing comes to mind right now, but I’d like to go over all the articles of the contract once more before signing it.
Q: What are the speakers doing right now?
18. M: We are out of paper for the printer. Can you please order some?
W: I completed the order form online yesterday and it will be here by noon. I’ll let you know when it comes in.
Q: What did the woman do?
Long Conversation
Conversation One
W: Bob, do you know who I saw the other day? Old Jake, looking terribly depressed. Did he get pensioned off at last?
M: Yes. They made him retire after 50 years at sea. He is pretty upset about it, but what can you do? He really is pasted.
W: He is all alone, isn’t he?
M: Yes, his wife has been dead for years. They had one daughter, Dories. But she went off to town as soon as she left school. And he hasn’t heard from her since. I hear she is making good money as a model.
W: Maybe someone could get in touch with her. Get her to come back for a while to help?
M: I don’t suppose she come. She never got on with her father. He is bit of a tough character and she is rather selfish. Oh, I expect old Jake will get by. He is healthy at least, comes into a clinic for a check regularly.
W: Are you his doctor?
M: No, my partner doctor Johnson is.
W: That bad-tempered old thing?
M: Oh, he isn’t bad-tempered. He just looks it. He is an excellent doctor, taught me a lot, and he has a very nice family. His wife invites me over there to supper every week. Very pleasant.
W: yes. I teach their daughter Pen at school. She is a bit careless and lazy about her school work, but a bright little thing and very popular with her age group.
Questions 19 to 22 are based on the conversation you’ve just heard.
19. Why does old Jake look terribly depressed?
20. What do we learn about Jake’s wife?
21. What does the man say about Jake’s daughter?
22. What does the man say about Jake’s doctor?
Conversation Two
W: Hello, Mr. Summerfield. How are you today?
M: Very well. Thank you, Ms. Green.
W: What can I do for you?
M: Well, unfortunately, there is a problem with the order we received from you yesterday. It seems we haven’t seen the right quantity of manuals to support the telephone system.
W: Oh, dear, that’s bad news. I’m very sorry to hear that, and you don’t know how many packs are without manuals?
M: No, because we haven’t opened every pack. But in several of those that have been opened there are none, no manuals.
W: I’m very sorry about this inconvenience, Mr. Summerfield. We’ll send out the manuals this afternoon by express mail entirely at our cost, and the manuals should arrive tomorrow or the day after at the latest.
M: All of them, right?
W: Yes. It maybe that some have them already, but we cannot be sure. So the best thing is to send out the manual for every pack.
M: Yes. Yes, I see. That would be great.
W: Please accept our apologies for this mix-up. I assure you we will do everything possible to find out why the mistake happened
M: Right. Thanks for your swift action.
W: Not at all. Thank you and goodbye for now. Do call if there is anything else.
M: All right. Thank you. Goodbye, Ms Green.
W: Goodbye.
Questions 23 to 25 are based on the conversation you’ve just heard.
23. What problems are the speakers discussing?
24. What does the woman promise to do?
25. What does the man think of the solution?
Passage
Passage 1
Attracting and feeding wild birds are entertaining activities that have long been enjoyed by people all over the world. Feeding birds has become so popular that prepared feed mixtures are readily available. We feed birds for many reasons. Many pleasant hours can come from watching birds. A hobby often develops into a serious study of their habits. Accurate identification of birds is usually the first goal. But observations that an amateur bird-watcher can make are really limitless. There is, however, responsibility associated with bird feeding, including a disease hazard. Attracting numbers of birds continually to the same spot can be harmful to them, particularly species that pick food from the ground contaminated by the droppings of other birds. In winter feeding efforts are most satisfying to people and are of greatest benefit to birds. During this time when fewer natural foods are available and air temperatures are lower, extra feeding can keep a bird warm and well. Once begun, feeding should never stop during these lean months. If you start a local increase of birds, be prepared to do what may be required to eliminate hazards to those you want to befriend. A constant supply of food should be given until the cold is over and spring has come. If feeding is stopped during severe weather, birds used to relying upon the feeders must starve.
Questions 26 to 28 are based on the passage you’ve just heard.
Q26 What does the speaker say about bird watching?
Q27 What does the speaker say about birds fed continually on the same spot?
Q28 What does the speaker suggest we do in feeding birds in winter?
Passage 2
My friend Leo makes up weak and poor excuses whenever there is something he doesn’t want to do. Just two weeks ago, he was at my house when he decided he didn’t want to go into work. He called his boss and said he had to get a new set of tires put on his truck. Then he sat down and watched TV with me. Not only had he lied but his excuse wasn’t a very convincing one. Another time, he cancelled a date with his girlfriend at the last minute telling her he had to get a new battery for his truck. She was angry and refused to go out with him again until he apologized. Last weekend, Leo offered the poorest excuse yet. He’d promised he’d help me move some furniture, from my parents’ house to my new apartment. He was supposed to bring his truck over about 8 o’clock Saturday morning. I waited, and then called and left a message on his machine. About 11:30, he called and said he was sorry but he’d been getting a new set of tires put on his truck. I guess he’d forgotten he used the same excuse when he called his boss from my house. I think I need a new set of friends. I’m beginning to get tired of Leo’s excuses.
Questions 29 to 31 are based on the passage you’ve just heard.
Q29 What does the speaker tell us about her friend Leo?
Q30 What did his girlfriend do when Leo canceled a date with her at the last minute?
Q31 What favor did the speaker ask Leo to do last weekend?
Passage 3
In Hollywood, everybody wants to be rich, famous and beautiful. Nobody wants to be old, unknown and poor. For Hollywood kids, life can be difficult because they grow up such an unreal atmosphere. Their parents are ambitious and the children are part of the parents’ ambitions. Parents pay for wasteful grand parties, expensive cars and designer clothes. When every dream can come true, kids don’t learn the value of anything because they have everything. A thirteen-year-old boy, Trent Maguire, has a driver, credit cards and unlimited cash to do what he wants when he wants to. “One day, I’ll earn more than my dad!” he boasts. Parents buy care and attention for their children because they have no time to give it themselves. Amender’s mother employs a personal trainer, a bodyguard, a singing coach and a councilor to look after all her fifteen-year-old daughter’s needs. Often, there is no parent at home most days, so children decide whether to make their own meals or go out to restaurants, when to watch television or do homework. They organize their social life. They play no childhood games. They become adults before they’re ready. Hollywood has always been the city of dreams. The kids there live unreal lives where money, beauty and pleasure are the only gods. Will children around the world soon start to think the same? Or do they already?
Questions 32 to 35 are based on the passage you’ve just heard.
Q32 Why is life said to be difficult for Hollywood kids?
Q33 What does the speaker say about Trent Maguire, a thirteen-year-old boy?
Q34 Why does Amender’s mother employ other people to look after her needs?
Q35 What will probably have negative effects on the lives of Hollywood kids?
Compound Dictation
Around 120 years ago, Ebbinghaus began his study of memory. He concentrated on studying how quickly the human mind can remember information. One result of his research is known as the total time hypothesis, which simply mean the amount you learn depends on the time you spend trying to learn it. This can be taken as our first rule of learning. Although it is usually true that studying for 4 hours is better than studying for 1, there is still the question of how to use the 4 hours. For example, is it better to study for 4 hours straight or to study for 1 hour a day for 4 days in a row? The answer, as you may have suspected, is that it is better to spread out the study times. This phenomenon through which we can learn more efficiently by dividing our practice time is known as the distribution of practice effect. Thus, our second rule of learning is this. It’s better to study fairly briefly but often. But we are not finished yet. We haven’t considered how we should study over very short periods of time. Let’s say you are trying to learn some new and rather difficult English vocabulary using a stack of cards. Should you look at the same word in rapid succession or look at the word and then have some delay before you look at it again? The answer is it is better to space up the presentations of the word you are to learn.
