2007年9月公共英语四级考试真题及答案

2007 年 9 月公共英语四级考试真题及答案 Section I Listening Comprehension( 30 minutes) Part A 1-5 略 Part B 6-10 略 Part C Directions: You will hear three dialogues or monologues. Before listening to each one ,you will have 5 seconds to read each of the questions which accompany it. While listening, answer each question by choosing A ,B , C or D . After listening, you will have 10 seconds' to check your answer to each question. You will hear each piece once only. Questions 11--13 are based on the following talk about prodigies, kids with unusual natural abilities. You now have 1.5 seconds to read Questions 11--13. 11. What was John Stuart Mill? [ A ] A historian. [ B ] A composer. [ C ] A philosopher. [ D ] A mathematician. 12. What has been found about children of unusual talent? [ A ] Many of them are from middle-class families. [ B ] There are more girls than boys among them. [ C ] They are mostly born by natural childbirth. [ D ] Their parents are usually ambitious and humorous. 13. What can be inferred from the talk? [ A ] Material wealth goes hand in hand with mental emptiness. [ B ] Environment plays a decisive role in the development of prodigies. [ C ] Success has not always brought happiness to prodigies. [ D ] Public praise will help prodigies to find the value of their lives. Questions 14--16 are based on the interview with British singer and songwriter Beth Orton.You now have 15 seconds to read Questions 14--16. 14. When did Beth Orton begin singing? [ A ] After she met William. [ B ] Before she went to acting classes. [ C ] After she dropped out of school. [ D ] Before she joined a traveling group. 15. When is the best time of a woman' s life, as Beth Orton was told? [A] In her 60s. [B] In her 40s. [C] In her 30s. [D] In her 20s. 16. What does Beth Orton want to do in the next year or so? [ A ] Improve her skills in playing the drums. [ B ] Learn how to play the violin. [ C ] Try some strange musical instruments. [ D ] Train herself in coordination. Questions 17--20 are based on the following discussion with Dr. Jane Richard about premarital contracting. You now have 20 seconds to read Questions 17-- 20. 17. How do people see premarital contracting in general? [ A ] It is unfeasible and unnecessary. [ B ] It has no effect on true love. [ C ] It is only effective for someone rich and famous. [ D ] It suggests distrust between the two partners. 18. What does the woman think of premarital contracting? [ A ] It helps a couple know more about each other. [ B ] It makes a couple' s relationship more stable. [ C ] It helps to develop genuine love in a couple. [ D ] It makes a couple feel more comfortable with each other. 19. What is the divorce rate, according to the interviewer? [A] 50%. [B] 30%. [C] 20%. [D] 10%. 20. What is essential in premarital contracting, according to the woman? [ A ] Financial status. [ B ] Legal documents. [ C ] Attitude to marriage. [ D ] Communication. You now have 5 minutes to transfer all your answers from your test booklet to ANSWER SHEET 1. This is the end of Listening Comprehension. Section II Use of English ( 15 minutes) Directions : Read the following text. Choose the best word or phrase for each numbered blank and mark A, B, C or D on ANSWER SHEET 1. Believe it or not, airlines really are trying to do better. They promised to improve customer service last year 21 pressure from a Congress which was 22 stories of nightmare flights. So why is it that flying is getting 23 for so many passengers, 24 airlines are spending billions of dollars to improve service, 25 in new equipment such as mobile check-in stations and portable phone 15anks so travelers can quickly 26 a flight when it is delayed or canceled? The fact is that air travel has 27 been such an annoyance, and customer complaints to the Transportation Department doubled in 1999 28 1998. It seems Mother Nature would 29 people by bus this year. An unusual run of bad weather, 30 long walls of thunderstorms, has crippled airports lately and led to widespread delays and cancellations. After similar problems last summer, the FAA promised to work more closely with airlines 31 weather slowdowns--for example, FAA and airline representatives now gather at a single location in Herndon, Va. , to 32 the best way to allocate the available airspace. But even the FAA 33 the new initiative has fallen 34 of expectations, and many passengers complain that the delays seem 35 Part of the problem is overcrowded planes. 36 the strong economy, U. S. airlines are expected to carry a record 665 million passengers this year, up 5 percent from last year. On 37 ,planes are about 76 percent full these days, also a 38 . That' s good news for the Transport Department, which are profitably loading more passengers _ 39 each flight, and bad news for passengers, 40 irritations build rapidly in tight quarters. 21. [A] under [B] below [C] beneath [D] beyond 22. [A] held back by [B] fed up with [C] taken in by [D] filled in with 23. [ A] inferior [ B] worse [ C] desperate [ D] fatal 24. [A] as if [B] so that [C] even though [D] now that 25. [A] upgrading [B] purchasing [C] installing [D] investing 26. [A] reclaim [B] reserve [C] recall [D] rebook 27. [A] never [B] often [C] also [D] always 28. [A] since [B] upon [C] over [D] from 29. [A] persist [B] presume [C] prefer [D] permit 30. [A] featuring [B] capturing [C] distinguishing [D] characterizing 31. [A] charged with [B] responding to [C] replying to [D] abiding by 32. [A] draw in [B] follow up [C] figure out [D] set aside 33. [A] admits [B] allows [C] reveals [D] claims 34. [A] lagging [B] lacking [C] scarce [D] short 35. [A] absolute [B] arbitrary [C] plentiful [D] superfluous 36.[A] According to [B] Except for [C] Thanks to [D] Based on 37. [A] calculation [B] average [C] estimate [D]total 38. [A] fantasy [B] monument [C]legend [D] record 39.[A] at [B] for [C] over [D] on 40. [A] since [B] although [C] unless [D] if Section II1 Reading Comprehension( 60 minutes) Part A Directions : Read the following four texts. Answer the questions below each text by choosing A, B, C or D. Mark your answers on ANSWER SHEET 1. Text 1 The future of space exploration depends on many things. It depends on how technology evolves, how political forces shape competition and partnerships between nations, and how important the public feels space exploration is. The near future will see the continuation of human space flight in Earth' s orbit and unpiloted space flight within the solar system. Piloted space flight to other planets, or even back to the moon, still seems far away. Any flight to other solar systems is even more distant, but a huge advance in space technology could drive space exploration into realms currently explored only by science fiction. The 1968 film 2001 : A Space Odyssey depicted commercial shuttles flying to and from a giant wheel-shaped space station in orbit around Earth, bases on the moon, and a piloted mission to Jupiter. The real space activities of 2001 will not match this cinematic vision, but the 21st century will see a continuation of efforts to transform humanity into a spacefaring species. Perhaps the most difficult problem space planners face is how to finance a vigorous program of piloted space exploration, in Earth' s orbit and beyond. In 1998 no single government or international enterprise had plans to send people back to the moon, much less to Mars. Such missions are unlikely to happen until the perceived value exceeds their cost. One belief shared by a number of space exploration experts is that future lunar and Martian expeditions should be aimed at creating permanent settlements. The residents of such outposts would have to "live off the land," obtaining such necessities as oxygen and water from the harsh environment. On the moon, pioneers could obtain oxygen by heating lunar soil. In 1998 the Lunar Prospector discovered evidence of significant deposits of ice, a valuable resource for settlers, mixed with soil at the lunar poles. On Mars, oxygen could be extracted from the atmosphere and water could come from buried deposits of ice. The future of piloted lunar and planetary exploration remains largely unknown. Most space exploration scientists believe that people will be on the moon and Mars by the middle of the 21st century, but how they get there, and the nature of their visits, is a subject of continuing debate. Clearly, key advances will need to be made in lowering the cost of getting people off Earth, the first step in any human voyage to other worlds. 41. A flight to other solar systems will be made more possible by [ A ] technological breakthroughs. [ B ] international co-operation. [ C ] market competition. [ D ] public pressure. 42. It can be inferred from Paragraph 2 that human society will become increasingly [ A ] worded about life on other planets. [ B ] dependent on space tourism. [ C ] accustomed to long-distance flights. [ D ] associated with space exploration. 43. According to this text, piloted space missions will need to be [ A ] more exciting than earlier film versions. [ B ] supported by international organizations. [ C ] more cost-effective than they appear to be at present. [ D ] financed by individual governments. 44. It is predicted that people who will live on other planets would have to [ A ] appreciate the harsh conditions they encounter there. [ B ] depend on the natural resources available there. [ C ] take most dally necessities along with them. [ D ] engage in scientific research. 45. It is difficult to send people to other planets because of. [ A ] lack of capacity of space exploration vehicles. [ B ] the financial expenditure involved in space travel. [ C ] controversial nature of space travel. [ D ] the uncertain future of space exploration. Text 2 Empowering workers constitutes the first step toward a stronger economy and stronger citizenry. It is a vital step toward overcoming inequality in American society. During the 1980s, the need for better wages for all workers increased as women, traditionally secondary earners, assumed greater responsibility for their own and their children' s well-being. Yet the ability to raise families to a decent living standard through wage work decreased; real wages fell for most workers. And the Federal Government enacted no new policies to facilitate the integration of work and family, as working women and working families suffered a loss in political power as well. Black or Hispanic women are four times as likely to be low-wage workers as are white men with comparable skills and experience. White women are more than three times as likely as white men to be low-wage workers, and black or Hispanic men more than one-and-a-half times as likely. More than half of all low-wage workers are the only wage workers in their families, or live alone. Employment no longer provides an escape from poverty. More than eight million working adults are poor; two million of them work full-time, year-round. More than seven million poor children have at least one working parent. When that one working parent is a low-wage worker, the children have no better chance of escaping from poverty than if the parent were not working at all ; more than two-fifths of such children are poor. Even if generous income assistance were available, the wages employers pay would be held to a minimum. In addition, policies such as tax credits for working parents do nothing to increase the political power of working women and men. Our research shows that unionization is among the most effective strategies for raising pay, especially for women and minority men. Being a union member, or being covered by a collective-bargaining agreement, raised 1984 wages by $ 1.79 per hour for Hispanic men, $ 1.32 for black men, $ 1.26 for Hispanic women, $ 1.01 for black women, $ 0.68 for white women, and $ 0.41 for white men, when all other factors, such as occupation, industry, firm size, education and experience were held constant. In percentage terms, the union increase was more than 15 percent for blacks and Hispanics, 11 percent for white women, and 4 percent for white men. 46. During the 1980s, women started to play a more important role in [ A ] demanding political rights. [ B ] improving social welfare. [ C ] supporting the family. [ D ] earning better wages. 47. According to Paragraph 2, who are most likely to be poor? [ A ] Women of color. [ B ] White women. [ C ] Men of color. [ D ] White men.