2006-12-23四级短对话原文
11.
M: Christmas is round the corner and I’m looking for a gift for my girlfriend. Any suggestions?
W: Well, you have to tell me something about your girlfriend first. Also, what’s your budget?
Q: What does the woman want the man to do?
B. Give her more information.
12.
M: What would you like for dessert? I think I’ll have apple pie and ice cream.
W: The chocolate cake looks great. But I have to watch my weight, you go ahead and get yours.
Q: What will the woman most probably do?
C. She’ll go without dessert.
13.
W: Having visited so many countries, you must be able to speak several different languages!
M: I wish I could. But Japanese and, of course English are the only languages I can speak.
Q: What do we learn from the conversation?
A. The man can speak a foreign language.
14.
M: Prof. Smith asked me to go to his office after class. So it is impossible for me to make it to the bar at 10：00.
W: Then it seems we’ll have to meet an hour later at the library.
Q: What will the man do first after class?
C. See Prof. Smith
15.
M: It’s already 11：00 now. Do you mean I ought to wait until Prof. Bloom comes back from class?
W: Not really. You can just leave a note. I’ll give it to her later.
Q: What does the woman mean?
D. She can pass on the message for the man.
16.
M: How’s John now? Is he feeling any better?
W: Not yet. It still seems impossible to make him smile. Talking to him is really difficult. And he gets upset easily over little things.
Q: What do we learn about John from the conversation?
B. He’s got emotional problems.
17.
M: Do we have to get the opera tickets in advance?
W: Certainly! Tickets at the door are usually sold at a higher price.
Q: What does the woman imply?
D. It’s better to buy the tickets beforehand.
18.
M: The taxi driver must have been speeding.
W: Well, not really! He crashed into the tree because he was trying not to hit a box that had fallen off the truck ahead of him.
Q: What do we learn about the taxi driver?
A. He turned suddenly and ran into a tree.
23日四级长对话原文
Conversation One
W: Hey, Bob, guess what? I’m going to visit Quebec next summer. I’m invited to go to a friend’s wedding, but while I’m there, I’d also like to do some sightseeing.
M: That’s nice, Sherry. But do you mean the province of Quebec or Quebec City?
W: I mean the province. My friend’s wedding is in Montreal, so I’m going there first. I’ll stay for 5 days. Is Montreal the capital city of the province?
M: Well, many people think so because it’s the biggest city, but it’s not the capital. Quebec City is, but Montreal is great. The Santa Lawrence River runs right through the middle of the city. It’s beautiful in summer.
W: Wow, and do you think I can get by in English? My French is okay, but not that good. I know most people there speak French, but can I also use English?
M: Well, people speak both French and English there, but you’ll hear French most of the time and all the street signs are in French. In fact, Montreal is the third largest French-speaking city in the world. So you’d better practice your French before you go.
W: Good advice, what about Quebec City? I’ll visit a friend from college who lives there now. What’s it like?
M: It’s a beautiful city, very old. Many old buildings have been nicely restored. Some of them were built in the 17th and 18th centuries. You’ll love it there.
W: Fantastic, I can’t wait to go.
19. What’s the woman’s main purpose of visiting Quebec? D. To attend a wedding in Montreal.
20. What does the man advise the woman to do before the trip? C. Brush up on her French.
21. What does the man say about Quebec City? B. It has many historical buildings.
Conversation Two
M: Hi, Ms. Rowling. How old were you when you started to write, and what was your first book?
W: I wrote my first finished story when I was about 6. It was about a small animal, a rabbit I mean, and I’ve been writing ever since.
M: Why did you choose to be an author?
W: If someone asked me how to achieve happiness, step one would be finding out what you love doing most and step two would be finding someone to pay you to do it. I consider myself very lucky indeed to be able to support myself by writing.
M: Do you have any plans to write books for adults?
W: My first two novels were for adults. I suppose I might write another one, but I never really imagine a target audience when I’m writing. The ideas come first, so it really depends on the idea that grabs me next!
M: Where did the ideas for the Harry Potter books come from?
W: I’ve no idea where ideas come from and I hope I never find out, it would spoil my excitement if it turned out I just have a funny little wrinkle on the surface of my brain which makes me think about invisible train platforms.
M: How do you come up with the names of your characters?
W: I invented some of the names in the Harry books, but I also collect strange names. I’ve gotten them from medieval saints, maps, dictionaries, plants, war memorials, and people I’ve met!
M: Oh, you are really resourceful.
22. What do we learn from the conversation about Ms. Rowling’s first book? A. It was about a little animal.
23. Why does Ms. Rowling consider herself very luck? D. She can make a living by doing what she likes.
24. What dictates Ms. Rowling’s writing? B. Her ideas.
25. According to Ms. Rowling, where did she get the ideas for the Harry Potter books? A. She doesn’t really know where they originated.
2006-12-23四级听力文章原文
Passage one
Reducing the amount of sleep students get at night has a direct impact on their performance at school during the day. According to classroom teachers, elementary and middle school students who stay up late exhibit more learning and attention problems. This has been shown by Brown Medical School and Bradley Hospital research. In the study, teachers were not told the amount of sleep students received when completing weekly performance reports. Yet they rated the students who have received eight hours or less as having the most trouble recalling old material, learning new lessons, and completing high quality work. Teachers also reported that these students had more difficulty paying attention. The experiment is the first to ask teachers to report on the effects of sleep deficiency in children. ‘Just staying up late can cause increased academic difficulty and attention problems for otherwise healthy while functioning kids’, said G. F., the study’s lead author. So the results provide professionals and parents with a clear message: when a child is having learning and attention problems, the issue of sleep has to be taken into consideration. ‘If we don’t ask about sleep and try to improve sleep patterns in kids’ struggling academically, then we aren’t doing our job’, F said. For parents, he said, the message is simple. Getting kids to bed on time is as important as getting them to school on time.
26. What were teachers told to do in the experiment? C. Record students’ weekly performance.
27. According to the experiment, what problem can insufficient sleep cause in students? B. Lack of attention.
28. What message did the researcher intend to convey to parents? D. They should see to it that their children have adequate sleep.
Passage two
P. P never wanted to be a national public figure. All she wanted to be was a mother and a homemaker. But her life was turned upside down when a motorist distracted by his cell phone, ran a stop sign and crashed into the side of her car. The impact killed her two-year-old daughter. Four months later, P. reluctantly but courageously decided to try to educate the public and to fight for laws to ban drivers from using cell phones while a car is moving. She wanted to save other children from what happened to her daughter. In her first speech, P. got off to a shaky start. She was visibly trembling and her voice was soft and uncertain. But as she got into her speech, a dramatic transformation took place. She stopped shaking and spoke with a strong voice. For the rest of her talk, she was a forceful and compelling speaker. She wanted everyone in the audience to know what she knew without having to learn it from a personal tragedy. Many in the audience were moved to tears, and to action. In subsequent presentations, P. gained reputation as a highly effective speaker. Her appearance on a talk show was broadcast three times transmitting her message to over 14,000,000 people. Her campaign increased public awareness of the problem and prompted over 300 cities and several states to consider restrictions on cell phone use.
29. What was the significant change in P. P.’s life?C. She became a public figure.
30. What had led to P.’s personal tragedy?D. A motorist’s failure to concentrate.
31. How did P. feel when she began her first speech?A. Nervous and unsure of herself.
32. What could be expected as a result of P.’s efforts?B. Restrictions on cell phone use while driving.
Passage 3
Many people catch a cold in the springtime or fall. It makes us wonder if scientists can send a man to the moon, why can’t they find a cure for the common cold? The answer is easy. There’re actually hundreds of kinds of cold viruses out there. You never know which one you will get, so there isn’t a cure for each one. When a virus attacks your body, your body works hard to get rid of it. Blood rushes to your nose and causes a blockage in it. You feel terrible because you can’t breathe well. But your body is actually eating the virus. Your temperature rises and you get a fever. But the heat of your body is killing the virus. You also have a running nose to stop the virus from getting to your cells. You may feel miserable but actually your wonderful body is doing everything it can to kill the cold. Different people have different remedies for colds. In the United States and some other countries, for example, people might eat chicken soup to feel better. Some people take hot baths and drink warm liquids. Other people take medicines to relieve various symptoms of colds. There’s one interesting thing to note. Some scientists say taking medicines when you have a cold is actually bad for you. The virus stays in you longer because your body doesn’t develop a way to fight it and kill it.
33. According to the passage, why haven’t the scientists find a cure for the common cold? B. There are too many kinds of cold viruses for them to identify.
34. What does the speaker say about the symptoms of the common cold? D. They show our body is fighting the virus.
35. What do some scientists say about taking medicines for the common cold according to the passage? A. It actually does more harm than good.
2006-12-23四级听写原文
You probably have noticed that people express similar ideas in different ways, depending on the situations they are in. This is very natural. All languages have two general levels of usage – a formal level and an informal level. English is no exception. The difference in these two levels is the situation in which you use a particular level. Formal language is the kind of language you find in textbooks, reference books and in business letters. You would also use formal English in compositions and essays that you write in school. Informal language is used in conversation with colleagues, family members and friends, and when we write personal notes or letters to close friends.
Formal language is different from informal language in several ways. First, formal language tends to be more polite. What we may find interesting is that it usually takes more words to be polite. For example, I might say to a friend or a family member “Close the door, please. But to a stranger, I probably would say, “Would you mind closing the door? Another difference between formal and informal language is some of the vocabulary. There are bound to be some words and phrases that belong in formal language and others that are informal. Let’s say that I really like soccer. If I am talking to my friend, I might say, “I am just crazy about soccer. But if I were talking to my boss, I would probably say, “I really enjoy soccer.
36. natural
37. usage
38. exception
39. particular
40. reference
41. essays
42. colleagues
43. personal
44. What we may find interesting is that it usually takes more words to be polite.
45. But to a stranger, I probably would say, “Would you mind closing the door?
46. There are bound to be some words and phrases that belong in formal language and others that are informal