害怕的英文-watercloset
2016年12月英语四级真题(第一套)
Part I
Writing (30minutes)
(请于正式开考后半小时内完成该部分,之后将进行听力考试)
Directions:For this part, you are allowed 30
minutes to write an essay .Suppose you
are two
options upon graduation: one is to take a job in a
company and
the other to go to a graduate
school. You are to make a choice between
the
two. Write an essay to explain the reasons for
your choice. You should
write at least 120
words but no more than 180 words.
Part II
Listening Comprehension (25 minutes)
Section A
Directions: In this section, you
will hear three news reports. At the end of each
news
report, you will hear two or three
questions. Both the news report and the
questions will be spoken only once. After you
hear a question, you must
choose the best
answer from the four choices marked A), B), C).
Then
mark the corresponding letter on the
Answer sheet1with a single line
through the
centre.
Questions 1and 2 are based on the
news report you have just the heard.
1.
A) It was going to be renovated. C) It
was dangerous to live in.
B) He could no
longer pay the rent. D) He had sold it to
the royal family.
2. A) A storm.
C) A forest fire.
B) A strike.
D) A Terrorist attack.
Questions 3and 4
are based on the news report you have just heard.
3. A) They lost contact with the
emergency department.
B) They were injured by
suddenly falling rocks.
C) They sent calls for
help via a portable radio.
D) They were
trapped in an underground elevator.
4. A)
They provided the miner with food and water.
B) They sent supplies to keep the miners warm.
C) They released the details of the accident.
D) They tried hard to repair the accident.
Question5 to7 are based on the news
report you have just heard.
5. A) Raise
postage rates. C) Close some of its
post offices.
B) Improve its services.
D) Redesign delivery routes.
6. A)
Closing offices on holidays. C)
Computerizing mail sorting processes.
B)
Shortening business hours. D) Stopping
mail delivery on Saturdays.
7. A)A lot of
controversy will arise
B) Taxpayers will be
very pleased
C) Many people will begin to
complain
D) Many post office staff will lose
their jobs
Section B
Directions:In
this section,you will hear two long the end of
eachconversation,you will hear four questions.
Both the conversation and
the questions will
be spoken only once. After you hear a question,
you
must choose the best answer from four
choice marked A),B),C) and
D).Then mark the
corresponding letter an Answer sheet1 with a
single
line though the centre.
Question8 to 11 are based on the conversation
you have just heard.
8. A)He will lose
part of his pay. C)He will be given a warning.
B)He will go through retraining. D)He is go
good terms with his workmates.
9. A)He
is an experienced press operator. C)He is always
on time.
B)He is trustworthy guy.
D)He is go good terms with his workmates.
10. A)She is a trade union representative.
C)She is better at handing such matters.
B)She is a senior manager of the shop. D)She is
in charge of public relation.
11. A)He is
always trying to stir up trouble.
B)He is
skilled and experienced.
C)He is very close to
the manager.
D)He is always complaining about
low wages.
Question12 to 15 are based on
the conversation you have just heard.
12.
A)Open. C)Selfish.
B)Reserved.
D)Friendly.
13. A)They read a book.
C)They stay quiet.
B)They talk about the
weather D)They chat with fellow passengers.
14. A)She was unwilling to make friends
with workmates.
B)She was never invited to a
colleague’s home.
C)She was eager to visit an
English castle.
D)She was always
treated as a foreigner.
15.A) House are much
more quiet. C) They want a garden of
their own.
B) They want to have more space.
D) Houses provide more privacy.
Section C
Directions:In this section,you will hear three
the end of each passage,you
will hear three or
four the passage and the questions will
be
spoken only you hear a question,you must choose
the best
answer from the four choices marked
A),B),C) and D).Then mark the
corresponding
letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line
through the
centre.
Questions 16 to
18 are based on the passage you have just heard.
16.A) They will automatically be given
hiring priority.
B) They don’t have to go
through job interviews.
C) They are likely
to get much higher pay.
D) They don’t have
much choice of jobs.
17.A) Visit the
school careers services. C) Look at
school bulletin boards.
B) Ask their
professors for help. D) Go through
campus newspapers.
18.A) Providing
students with information about the library.
B) Helping students arrange appointments with
librarians.
C) Supervising study spaces to
ensure a quiet atmosphere.
D) Helping students
find the books and journals they need.
Questions 19 to 21 are based on the passage
you have just heard.
19.A) It tastes
better. C) It is easier
to grow.
B) It may be sold at a higher
price. D) It can better survive
extreme weathers.
20.A) It can grow in
drier soil. C) It will replace
green tea one day.
B) It is immune to various
diseases. D) It is healthier than
green tea.
21.A) It does not have a
stable market.
B) It has made
tea farmers’ life easier.
C) It does not
bring the promised health benefits.
D) It
has been well received by many tea drinkers.
Questions 22 to 25 are based on the passage
you have just heard.
22. A) They care
more about environment.
B) They decorate
their homes themselves.
C) They
prefer unique objects of high quality.
D)
They need decorations to show their status.
23. A) They made great contributions to
society.
B) They could only try to create
at night.
C) They were proud of their
creations.
D) They focused on the quality
of their products.
24. A) Identify fake
crafts. C) Design handicrafts
themselves.
B) Make wise choices.
D) Learn the importance of creation.
25.
A) To attract foreign investments. C) To
arouse public interest in crafts.
B) To
preserve the traditional culture. D) To
boost the local economy.
PARTⅢ
Reading Comprehension (40 minutes)
Section A
Directions: In this
section, there is a passage with ten blanks. You
are required to
select oneword for each blank
from a list of choices given in a word bank
following the the passage through carefully
before making
your choices. Each choice in the
bank is identified by a letter. Please
mark
the corresponding letter for each item on Answer
Sheet 2 with a
single line through the centre.
You may not use any of the words in the
bank
more than once.
Many men and women have
long bought into the idea that there
are“male”and“female”brains,believing that
explains just about every difference between the
sexes.A new study 26 that belief,
questioning whether brains really can be
distinguished by
gender.
In the study,
Tel Aviv University researchers 27 for sex
differences throughout the entire
human brain
And what did they find? Not much. Rather
than offer evidence for 28 brains as “male”
or“female”,research shows that brains fall
into a wide range , with most people falling right
in the
middle.
Daphna Joel ,who led the
study, said her research found that while there
are some gender‐
based 29 ,many different
types of brain can’t always be distinguished by
gender.
While the “average”male
and“average”female brains were 30different, you
couldn’t tell it by
looking at individual
brain scans. Only a small 31of people had
“all-male”or“all-female”characteristics.
Larry Cahill, an American
neuroscientist(神经科学家),said the study is an
important addition
to a growing body of
research questioning 32 beliefs about gender
and brain function. But he
cautioned against
concluding from this study that all brains are the
same, 33 of gender.
“There’s a mountain of
evidence 34 the importance of sex influences at
all levels of brain
function ,”he told
The Seattle Times.
If anything, he said, the
study 35that gender plays a very important role
in the
brain—“even when we are not clear
exactly how.”
A) abnormal
I) regardless
B) applied
J) searched
C) brieflyK)
similarities
D) categorizing
L)slightly
E)challenges
M) suggests
F)figure
N)tastes
G)percentage
O)traditional
、 H)proving
Section B
Directions:In this section, you
are gonging to read a passage with ten statements
attached to it. Each statement contains
information given in one of the
paragraphs.
Identify theparagraph from which the information
is derived.
You may choose a paragraphmore
than paragraph is marked
with a letter.
Answer the questions by marking the corresponding
letter
on Answer sheet 2.
Can
Burglars Jam Your wireless Security System?
[A] Any product that promises to protect your
home deserves careful examination. So it isn’t
surprising that you’ll find plenty of strong
opinion about the potential vulnerabilities of
popular home-security systems.
[B]
The most likely type of burglary(入室盗窃) by far is
the unsophisticated crime of opportunity,
usually involving a broken or some forced
entry. According to the FBI, crimes like these
accounted for roughly two-thirds of all
household burglaries in the US in 2003. The wide
majority of the rest were illegal, unforced
entries that resulted from something like a window
being left open. The FBI doesn’t even track
those statistics.
[C] One of the main
theoretical home-security concerns is whether or
not a given system is
vulnerable to being
blocked from working altogether. With wired
setups, the fear is that a
burglar(入室盗窃)might
be able to shut your system down simply by cutting
the right cable.
With a wireless setup, you
stick battery-powered sensor up around your home
that keeps an
eye on windows, doors, motion,
and more. If they detect something wrong while the
system is
armed,they’ll transmit a wireless
alert signal to aa base station that will then
raise the alarm.
Thatapproach will eliminate
most cord-cutting concerns-but what about their
wireless
equivalent, jamming? With the right
device tuned to the right frequency, what’s to
stop a thief
from jamming your setup and
blocking that alert signal from ever reaching the
base station?
[D] Jamming concerns are
nothing new, and they’re not unique to security
systems. Any
deviceThat’s built to
receive a wireless signal at a specific can be
overwhelmed by a stronger
signal coming in on
the same frequency. For comparison, let’s say you
wanted to “jam” a
conversation between two
people-all you’d need to do is yell in the
listener’s ear.
[E] Security devices are
required to list the frequencies they broadcast
on-that means that a
potential thief can find
what they need to know with minimal Googling. They
will, however,
need to know what system they’
are looking for. If you have a sign in your yard
declaring what
setup you use, that’d point
them in the right direction, thought at that
point, we’ are talking
about a highly
targeted, semi-sophisticated attack, and not the
sort of forced-entry attack that
makes up the
majority of burglaries. It’s easier to find and
acquire jamming equipment for
some frequencies
than it is for others.
[F] Wireless security
providers will often take steps to help combat the
threat of jamming attacks.
SimpliSafe, winner
of our Editors’ Choice distinction, utilizes a
special system that’s capable
of separating
incidental RF interference form targeted jamming
attacks. When the system
thinks it’s being
jammed, it’ll notify you via push alert (推送警报).
From there, it’s up to you
to sound the alarm
manually.
[G] SimpliSafe was singled out in
one recent article on jamming, complete with a
video showing
the entire system being
effectively bypassed with handheld jamming
equipment .After taking
appropriate measure to
contain the RF interference to our test lab, we
tested the attack out for
ourselves, and were
able to verify that it’ is possible with the right
equipment. However, we
also verified that
SimpliSafe’s anti-jamming system words. It caught
us in the act, sent an alert
to my smartphone,
and also listed our RF interference on the
system’s event log. The team
behind the
article and video in question make no mention of
the system, or whether or not it
detected
them.
[H] We like the unique nature of that
software. It means that a thief likely wouldn’t be
able to
Google how the system words, then
figure out a way around it. Even if they could,
SimpliSafe
claims that its system is always
evolving, and that it varies slightly form system
to system,
which means there wouldn’t be a
universal magic formula for cracking it. Other
systems also
seem confident on the subject of
jamming. The team at Frontpoint addresses the
issue in a blog
on its site, citing their own
jam protection software and claiming that there
aren’t any
documented cases of a successful
jam attack since the company began offering
wireless
security sensors in the 1980s.
[I] Jamming attacks are absolutely possible.
As said before, with the right equipment and the
right
know-how, it’s possible to jam any
wireless transmission. But how probable is it that
someone
will successfully jam theirway into
your home and steal your stuff?
[J] Let’s
imagine that you live in a small home with a
wireless security setup that offers a
functional anti-jamming system. First, a thief
is going to need to target your home,
, he’s
going to need to know the technical details of
your system and acquire
the specific equipment
necessary for jamming your specific setup.
Presumably, you keep your
doors locked at
night and while you’re away, so the thief will
still need to break in. That means
defeating
the lock somehow, or breaking a window .He’ll need
to be jamming you at this point,
as a broken
window or opened door would normally release the
alarm .So, too, would the
motion detectors in
your home, so the thief will need to continue
jamming once he’s inside and
searching for
things to steal. However, he’ll need to do so
without tripping the anti-jamming
system, the details of which he almost
certainly does not have access to.
[K] At the
end of the day, these kinds of systems are
primarily designed to protect against the sort
of opportunistic smash-and-grab attack that
makes up the majority of burglaries. They’re also
only a single layer in what should ideally be
a many-sided approach to securing your home,
one that includes common sense things like
sound locks and proper exploit lighting at night.
No system is impenetrable, and none can
promise to eliminate the worst case completely.
Every one of them has vulnerabilities that a
knowledgeable thief could theoretically exploit. A
good system is one that keeps that worst-case
setting as improbable as possible while also
offering strong protection in the event of a
less-extraordinary attack.
36. It is
possible for burglars to make jamming attacks with
the necessary equipment and skill.
37.
Interfering with a wireless security system is
similar to interfering with a conversation.
38. A burglar has to continuously jam the
wireless security device to avoid triggering the
alarm,
both inside and outside the house.
39. SimpliSafe provides devices that are
able to distinguish incidental radio interference
from
targeted jamming attacks.
40.
Only a very small proportion of burglaries are
committed by technical means.
41. It is
difficult to crack SimpliSafe as its system keeps
changing.
42. Wireless devices will
transmit signals so as to activate the alarm once
something wrong is
detected.
43.
Different measures should be taken to protect
one’s home from burglary in addition to the
wireless security system.
44.
SimpliSafe’s device can send a warning to the
house owner’s cellphone.
rs can easily get a
security device’s frequency by Internetsearch.
Section C
Directions:There are 2
passages in this section .Each passage is followed
by some questions or
unfinished statements.
For each of them there are four choices maked
A),B),C)and
D).You should decide on the best
choice and mark the corresponding letter on Answer
Sheet2 with a single line through the centre.
Passage One
Questions 46 to 50 are
based on the following passage.
As a
person who writers about food and drink for a
living, I couldn’t tell you the first thing
about Bill Perry or whether the beers
he sells are that great. But I can tell you that I
like this guy.
That’s because he plans to ban
tipping in favor of paying his servers an actual
living wage.
I hate tipping.
I hate it
because it’s an obligation disguised as an option.
I hate it for the post-dinner math
it requires
of me. But mostly, I hate tipping because I
believe I would be in a better place if pay
decisions regarding employees were simply left
up to their employers, as is the custom in
virtually
every other industry.
Most of
you probably think that you hate tipping, too.
Research suggest otherwise. You
actually love
tipping! You like to feel that you have a voice in
how much money you server makes.
No matter how
the math works out, you persistently view
restaurants with voluntary tipping
systems as
being a letter value, which makes it extremely
difficult for restaurants and bars to do
away
with the tipping system.
One argument that you
tend to hear a lot from the pro-tipping crowd
seems logical enough:
the service is better
when waiters depend on tips, presumably because
they see a benefit to
successfully veiling
their contempt for you .Well , if this were true
we would all be slipping a few
100 dollar
bills to our doctors on the way out their doors,
too. But as it turns out, waiters see only
a
tiny bump in tips when they do an exceptional job
compared to a passable one. Waiters, keen
observers of humanity that they are , are
catching on to this; in one poll, a full 30% said
they
didn’t believe the job they did any
impact on the tips they received.
So come on,
folks: get on board with ditching the outdated tip
system. Pay a little more up
–front for your
beer or burger. Support Bill Perry’s pub, and any
other bar or restaurant that
doesn’t ask you
to do drunken math.
46. What can we learn
about Bill Perry from the passage?
A) He
runs a pub that serves excellent beer.
B)
He intends to get rid of the tipping practice.
C) He gives his staff a considerable sum
for tips.
D) He lives comfortably without
getting any tips.
47. What is the main
reason why the author hates tipping?
A) It
sets a bad example for other industries.
B)
It adds to the burden of ordinary customers.
C) It forces the customer to compensate the
waiter.
D) It poses a great challenge for
customers to do math.
48. Why do many
people love tipping according to the author?
A) They help improve the quality of the
restaurants they dine in.
B) They believe
waiters deserve such rewards for good service.
C) They want to preserve a wonderful
tradition of the industry.
D) They can have
some say in how much their servers earn.
49. What have some waiters come to realize
according to a survey?
A) Service quality
has little effect on tip size.
B) It is in
human nature to try to save on tips.
C) Tips make it more difficult to please
customers.
D) Tips benefit the boss rather
than the employees.
50. What does the
author argue for in the passage?
A)
Restaurants should calculate the tips for
customers.
B) Customers should pay more
tips to help improve service.
C) Waiters
deserve better than just relying on tips for a
living.
D) Waiters should be paid by
employers instead of customers.
Passage
Two
Questions 51 to 55 are based on the
following passage.
In the past, falling
oil prices have given a boost to the world
economy, but recent forecasts for
global
growth have been toned down, even as oil prices
sink lower and lower. Does that mean the
link
between lower oil prices and growth has weakened?
Some experts say there are still good reasons
to believe cheap oil should heat up the world
economy. Consumers have more money in their
pockets when they’re paying less at the pump.
They spend that money on other things, which
stimulates the economy.
The biggest gains go
to countries that import most of their oil like
China,Japan,and
doesn’t the extra money in
the pockets of those countries’ consumers mean an
equal loss in
oil-producing countries,
cancelling out the gains? Not necessarily,says
economic researcher Sara
Johnson. “Many oil
producers built up huge reserve funds when prices
were high, so when prices
fall they will draw
on their reserves to support spend and
subsidies(补贴)for their consumers.”
But not all
oil producers have big reserves. In Venezuela,
collapsing oil prices have sent its
economy
into free-fall.
Economist Carl Weinberg
believes the negative effects of plunging oil
prices are overwhelming
the positive effects
of cheaper oil. The implication is a sharp decline
in global trade, which has
plunged partly
because oil-producing nations cant’s afford to
import as much as they used to.
Sara Johnson
acknowledges that the global economic benefit from
a fall in oil prices today is
likely lower
than it was in the past. One reason is that more
countries are big oil producers now, so
the
nations suffering from the prices drop account for
a larger share of the global economy.
Consumers, in the U.S. at least, acting
cautiously with the savings they’re getting at the
gas
pump, as the memory of the recent great
recession is still fresh in their mind. And a
number of
oil-producing countries are trimming
their gasoline subsidies and raising taxes, so the
net savings
for global consumers is not as big
as the oil price plunge might suggest.
51. What does the author mainly discuss in the
passage?
A)The reasons behind the plunge of
oil prices.
B)Possible ways to stimulate the
global economy.
C)The impact of cheap oil on
global economic growth.
D)The effect of
falling oil prices on consumer spending.
52. Why do some experts believe cheap oil will
stimulate the global economy?
A) Manufacturers
can produce consumer goods at a much lower cost.
B) Lower oil prices have always given a
big boost to the global economy.
C) Oil prices
may rise or fall but economic laws are not subject
to change.
D) Consumers will spend their
saving from cheap oil on other commodities.
53. What happens in many oil-exporting
countries when oil prices go down?
A)They
suspend import of necessities from overseas.
B)They reduce production drastically to boost
oil prices.
C)They use their money reserves to
back up consumption.
D)They try to stop their
economy from going into free-fall.
54.
How does Carl Weinberg view the current oil price
plunge?
A) It is one that has seen no parallel
in economic history.
B) Its negative effects
more than cancel out its positive effects.
C)
It still has a chance to give rise to a boom in
the global economy.
D) Its effects on the
global economy go against existing economic laws.
55. Why haven’t falling oil prices
boosted the global economy as they did before?
A) People are not spending all the money they
save on gas.
B) The global economy is likely
to undergo another recession.
C)Oil importers
account for a larger portion of the global
economy.
D)People the world over are afraid of
a further plunge in oil prices.
Part IVTranslation (30
minutes)
Directions: For this part, you are
allowed 30minutes to translate a passage from
Chinese into
English .You should write your
answer on Answer Sheet 2.
在中国文化中,红色通常象征着好
运、长寿和幸福。在春节和其他喜庆场合,红色到处
可见。人们把现金作为礼物送给家人或亲密朋友时,
通常放在红色信封里。红色在中国流行
的另一个原因是人们把它与中国革命和共产党相联系。然而,红色
并不总是代表好运和快乐。
因为从死前者名字通常用红色书写,用红墨水书写中国人名被看成是一种冒犯
行为。
不管四级能不能过,四六级总是要刷一刷 The color of red
in Chinese culture usually
means good luck,
longevity and happiness. Red can be found
everywhere during Chinese Spring
Festival and
other joyous occasions. Cashes often in red
envelopes are sent to family members or
close
friends as gifts. Its popularity can also be
attributed to the fact that people associate it
with
Chinese revolution and Communist Party.
However, it does not always equal to good luck or
joy
because the name of the dead is often
written in red. And writing names of Chinese
people in red ink is seen as an offense.
P