20042015英语专业八级口试历年真题话题汇总

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英语专业八级考试试题

英语专业八级考试试题Listening ComprehensionSection A: News Report(选择的五条新闻来自不同的播报员，请根据提供的中文大纲判断是哪个播报员的报道。

)1.(关于近期某个城市的洪水灾害) "由于连续多日的暴雨，城市部分地区发生严重洪水灾害，居民的生活受到了严重影响。

" (由一个具有浓重美国口音的女播报员报道)2.(关于一部备受瞩目的电影获得票房成功) "《XYZ》这部备受期待的科幻电影在全球上映后获得了巨大成功，票房收入已经超过了预期。

" (由一个具有英国口音的男播报员报道)3.(关于全球气候变化的讨论) "在最近的联合国气候变化大会上，各国代表就如何应对气候变化进行了深入讨论。

" (由一个具有澳大利亚口音的女播报员报道)4.(关于一位著名运动员的退役声明) "在接受采访时，该著名运动员表示他计划在未来的比赛中退役，他感谢粉丝们一直以来的支持。

" (由一个具有加拿大口音的男播报员报道)5.(关于某个国家决定从另一个国家撤军) "在经过多日的谈判后，某大国决定从争议地区撤军，以缓和与该地区的紧张局势。

" (由一个具有南非口音的女播报员报道)Section B: Conversations(请根据对话内容判断主题和涉及人物之间的关系。

)1.主题：预订酒店房间人物关系：客户与酒店前台服务员2.主题：求职面试人物关系：面试官与应聘者3.主题：购买家具人物关系：客户与家具店销售员4.主题：讨论旅游计划人物关系：朋友之间5.主题：讨论电影剧情人物关系：夫妻之间。

2004年专八口语试题答案

1.Britain has a lot to offer China. 42 of Europe’s top 100companiesare British. We are increasingly strong in the knowledge-based industries of the future.英国有很多产品要提供给中国。

在欧洲100强里有42个家公司是英国的。

我们未来的知识经济越来越强大。

2.One third of Europe’s biotechnology companies are located inBritain. We have the world’s fifth largest electronics sector.有三分之一的欧洲生物技术公司坐落于英国。

我们有世界上5个最大的大电子企业。

3.Upon these foundations I want to build a modern relationshipwith China. I want to consolidate a partnership which looks forward, not back. We can only tackle global problem if we work together.在这些基础上，我想与中国建立一个现代的关系。

我想巩固一个向前的而不是后退的伙伴关系。

只有我们一起努力才能解决全球问题。

4.With one of the great economics of the 21st century, China willincreasingly be called upon to share the responsibilities of international leadership. The need for cooperation has never been greater.作为21世纪经济大国之一，中国将日益被要求共同负担国际领导的责任。

2004年英语专业八级考试真题

Part Ⅱ Proofreading and Error Correction (15 min)The passage contains TEN errors. Each indicated line contains a maximum of ONE error. In each case, only ONE word is involved. You should proofread the passage and correct it in the following way: For a wrong word, underline the wrong word and write the correct one in the blank provided at the end of the line. For a missing word, mark the position of the missing word with a "∧" sign and write the word you believe to be missing in the blank provided at the end of the line. For an unnecessary word, cross the unnecessary word with a slash "/"and put the word in the blank provided at the end of the line.ExampleWhen ∧ art museum wants a new exhibit, (1) anit never buys things in finished form and hangs (2) neverthem on the wall. When a natural history museumwants an exhibition, it must often build it. (3)exhibitProofread the given passage on ANSWER SHEET TWO as instructed.One of the most important non-legislative functions of the U.S Congressis the power to investigate. This power is usually delegated to committees - eitherstanding committees, special committees set for a specific (1)____purpose, or joint committees consisted of members of both houses. (2)____ Investigations are held to gather information on the need forfuture legislation, to test the effectiveness of laws already passed,to inquire into the qualifications and performance of members andofficials of the other branches, and in rare occasions, to lay the (3)____ groundwork for impeachment proceedings. Frequently, committeesrely outside experts to assist in conducting investigative hearings (4)____ and to make out detailed studies of issues.(5)____There are important corollaries to the investigative power. Oneis the power to publicize investigations and its results. Most (6)____committee hearings are open to public and are reported (7)____widely in the mass media. Congressional investigationsnevertheless represent one important tool available to lawmakers (8)____ to inform the citizenry and to arouse public interests in national issues.(9)____Congressional committees also have the power to compeltestimony from unwilling witnesses, and to cite for contemptof Congress witnesses who refuse to testify and for perjurythese who give false testimony.(10)____Part Ⅲ Reading Comprehension (30 min) (开始Part Ⅲ Reading Comprehension (30 min)计时)In this section there are four reading passages followed by a total of fifteen multiplechoice questions. Read the passages and then mark your answers on your coloured answer sheet.TEXT AFarmers in the developing world hate price fluctuations. It makes it hard to plan ahead. But most of them have little choice: they sell at the price the market sets. Farmers in Europe, the U.S. and Japan are luckier: they receive massive government subsidies in the form of guaranteed prices or direct handouts. Last month U.S. President Bush signed a new farm bill that gives American farmers $190 billion over the next 10 years, or $83 billion more than they had been scheduled to get, and pushes U.S. agricultural support close to crazy European levels. Bush said the step was necessary to "promote farmer independence and preserve the farm way of life for generations". It is also designed to help the Republican Party win control of the Senate in November’s midterm elections.Agricultural production in most poor countries accounts for up to 50% of GDP, compared to only 3% in rich countries. But most farmers in poor countries grow just enough for themselves and their families. Those who try exporting to the West find their goods whacked with huge tariffs or competing against cheaper subsidized goods. In 1999 the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development concluded that for each dollar developing countries receive in aid they lose up to $14 just because of trade barriers imposed on the export of their manufactured goods. It’s not as if the developing world wants any favours, says Gerald Ssendwula, Uganda’s Minister of Finance. "What we want is for the rich countries to let us compete."Agriculture is one of the few areas in which the Third World can compete. Land and labour are cheap, and as farming methods develop, new technologies should improve output. This is nopieinthesky speculation. The biggest success in Kenya’s economy over the past decade ha s been the boom in exports of cut flowers and vegetables to Europe. But that may all change in 2008, when Kenya will be slightly too rich to qualify for the "leastdeveloped country" status that allows African producers to avoid paying stiff European import duties on selected agricultural products. With trade barriers in place, the horticulture industry in Kenya will shrivel as quickly as a discarded rose. And while agriculture exports remain the great hope for poor countries, reducing trade barriers in other sectors also works: Americas African Growth and Opportunity Act, which cuts duties on exports of everything from handicrafts to shoes, has proved a boon to Africa’s manufacturers. The lesson: the Third World can prosper if the rich world gives it a fair go.This is what makes Bush’s decision to increase farm subsidies last month all themore depressing. Poor countries have long suspected that the rich world urges rade liberalization only so it can wangle its way into new markets. Such suspicions caused the Seattle trade talks to break down three years ago. But last November members of the World Trade Organization, meeting in Doha, Qatar, finally agreed to a new round of talks designed to open up global trade in agriculture andtextiles. Rich countries assured poor countries, that their concerns were finally being addressed. Bush’s handout last month makes a lie of America’s commitment to those talks and his personal devotion to free trade.16. By comparison, farmers ____ receive more government subsidies than others.A) in the developing worldB) in JapanC) in EuropeD) in America17. In addition to the economic considerations, there is a ____ motive behind Bush’s signing of the new farm bill.A) partisanB) socialC) financialD) cultural18. The message the writer attempts to convey throughout the passage is that ____.A) poor countries should be given equal opportunities in tradeB) "the leastdeveloped country" status benefits agricultural countriesC) poor countries should remove their suspicions about trade liberalizationD) farmers in poor countries should also receive the benefit of subsidies19. The writer’s attitude towards new farm subsidies in the U.S. is ____.A) favourableB) ambiguousC) criticalD) reservedTEXT BOscar Wilde said that work is the refuge of people who have nothing better to do. If so, Americans are now among the world’s saddest refugees. Factory workers in the United States are working longer hours than at any time in the past halfcentury. America once led the rich world in cutting the average working week-from 70 hours in 1850 to less than 40 hours by the 1950s. It seemed natural that as people grew richer they would trade extra earnings for more leisure. Since the 1970s, however, the hours clocked up by American workers have risen, to an average of 42 this year in manufacturing.Several studies suggest that something similar is happening outside manufacturing: Americans are spending more time at work than they did 20 years ago. Executives and lawyers boast of 80hour weeks. On holiday, they seek out fax machines and phones as eagerly as Germans bag the best sunloungers. Yet working time in Europe and Japan continues to fall. In Germany’s engineering industry the working week is to be trimme d from 36 to 35 hours next year. Most Germans get six weeks’ paid annual holiday; even the Japanese now take three weeks. Americans still make do with just two.Germany responds to this contrast with its usual concern about whether people’s aversion to work is damaging its competitiveness. Yet German workers, like the Japanese, seem to be acting sensibly: as their incomes rise, they can achieve a better standard of living with fewer hours of work. The puzzle is why America, the world’s richest country, sees things differently. It is a puzzle with sinistersocial implications. Parents spend less time with their children, who may be left alone at home for longer. Is it just a coincidence that juvenile crime is on the rise?Some explanations for America’s time at work fail to stand up to scrutiny. One blames weak trade unions that leave workers open to exploitation. Are workers being forced by costcutting firms to toil harder just to keep their jobs? A recent study by two American economists, Richard Freeman and Linda Bell, suggests not: when asked, Americans actually want to work longer hours. Most German workers, in contrast, would rather work less.Then, why do Americans want to work harder? One reason may be that the real earnings ofmany Americans have been stagnant or falling during the past two decades. People work longer merely to maintain their living standards. Yet many higherskilled workers, who have enjoyed big increases in their real pay, have been working harder too. Also, one reason for the slow growth of wages has been the rapid growth in employment-which is more or less where the argument began.Taxes may have something to do with it. People who work an extra hour in America are allowed to keep more of their money than those who do the same in Germany. Falls in marginal tax rates in America since the 1970s have made it all the more profitable to work longer.None of these answers really explains why the centurylong decline in working hours has gone into reverse in America but not elsewhere (though Britain shows signs of following America’s lead). Perhaps cultural differences-the last refuge of the defeated economist-are at play. Economists used to believe that once workers earned enough to provide for their basic needs and allow for a few luxuries, their incentive to work would be eroded, like lions relaxing after a kill. But humans are more susceptible to advertising than lions. Perhaps clever marketing has ensured that "basic needs"-for a shower with builtin TV, for a rocketpropelled car-expand continuously. Shopping is already one of America’s most popular pastimes. But it requires money-hence more work and less leisure.Or try this: the television is not very good, and baseball and hockey keep being wiped out by strikes. Perhaps Wilde was right. Maybe Americans have nothing better to do.20. In the United States, working longer hours is ____.A) confined to the manufacturing industryB) a traditional practice in some sectorsC) prevalent in all sectors of societyD) favoured by the economists21. According to the third paragraph, which might be one of the consequences of working longer hours?A) Rise in employees’ working efficiency.B) Rise in the number of young offenders.C) Rise in people’s living standards.D) Rise in competitiveness.22. Which of the following is the cause of working longer hours stated bythe writer?A) Expansion of basic needs.B) Cultural differences.C) Increase in real earnings.D) Advertising.TEXT CThe fox really exasperated them both. As soon as they had let the fowls out, inthe early summer mornings, they had to take their guns and keep guard; and thenagain as soon as evening began to mellow, they must go once more. And he was so sly. He slid along in the deep grass; he was difficult as a serpent to see. And he seemed to circumvent the girls deliberately. Once or twice March had caught sight of the white tip of his brush, or the ruddy shadow of him in the deep grass, and she had let fire at him. But he made no account of this.The trees on the woodedge were a darkish, brownish green in the full light-for it was the end of August. Beyond, the naked, copperlike shafts and limbs of the pine trees shone in the air. Nearer the rough grass, with its long, brownish stalks all agleam, was full of light. The fowls were round about-the ducks were still swimming on the pond under the pine trees. March looked at it all, saw it all, and did not see it. She heard Banford speaking to the fowls in the distance-and she did not hear. What was she thinking about? Heaven knows. Her consciousness was, as it were, held back.She lowered her eyes, and suddenly saw the fox. He was looking up at her. His chin was pressed down, and his eyes were looking up. They met her eyes. And he knew her. She was spellbound-she knew he knew her. So he looked into her eyes, and her soul failed her. He knew her, he has not daunted.She struggled, confusedly she came to herself, and saw him making off, with slow leaps over some fallen boughs, slow, impudent jumps. Then he glanced over his shoulder, and ran smoothly away. She saw his brush held smooth like a feather, she saw his white buttocks twinkle. And he was gone, softly, soft as the wind.She put her gun to her shoulder, but even then pursed her mouth, knowing it was nonsense to pretend to fire. So she began to walk slowly after him, in the direction he had gone, slowly, pertinaciously. She expected to find him. In her heart she was determined to find him. What she would do when she saw him again she did not consider. But she was determined to find him. So she walked abstractedly about on the edge of the wood, with wide, vivid dark eyes, and a faint flush in her cheeks. She did not think. In strange mindlessness she walked hither and thither...As soon as supper was over, she rose again to go out, without saying why.She took her gun again and went to look for the fox. For he had lifted his eyesupon her, and his knowing look seemed to have entered her brain. She did not somuch think of him: she was possessed by him. She saw his dark, shrewd, unabashedeye looking into her, knowing her. She felt him invisibly master her spirit. She knew the way he lowered his chin as he looked up, she knew his muzzle, the golden brown, and the greyish white. And again she saw him glance over his shoulder at her, half inviting, half contemptuous and cunning. So she went, with her great startledeyes glowing, her gun under her arm, along the wood edge. Meanwhilethe night fell, and a great moon rose above the pine trees.23. At the beginning of the story, the fox seems to the all EXCEPT ____.A) cunningB) fierceC) defiantD) annoying24. As the story proceeds, March begins to feel under the spell of ____.A) the lightB) the treesC) the nightD) the fox25. Gradually March seems to be in a state of ____.A) blanknessB) imaginationC) sadnessD) excitement26. At the end of the story, there seems to be a sense of ____ between March and the fox.A) detachmentB) angerC) intimacyD) conflict27. The passage creates an overall impression of ____.A) mysteryB) horrorC) livelinessD) contemptTEXT DThe banners are packed, the tickets booked. The glitter and white overalls havebeen bought, the gas masks just fit and the mobile phones are ready. All that remains is to get to the parties.This week will see a feast of panEuropean protests. It started on Bastille Day, last Saturday, with the French unions and immigrants on the streets and the first demonstrations in Britain and Germany about climate change. It will continue tomorrow and Thursday with environmental and peace rallies against President Bush. But the big one is in Genoa, on Friday and Saturday, where the G8 leaders will meet behind the lines of 18,000 heavily armed police.Unlike Prague, Gothenburg, Cologne or Nice, Genoa is expected to be Europe’s Seattle, the coming together of the disparate strands of resistance to corporate globalisation.Neither the protesters nor the authorities know what will happen, but some things are predictable. Yes, there will be violence and yes, the mass media will focus on it. What should seriously concern the G8 is not so much the violence, the numbers in the streets or even that they themselves look like idiots hiding behind the barricades, but that the deep roots of a genuine new version of internationalism are growing.For the first time in a generation, the international political and economic condition is in the dock. Moreover, the protesters are unlikely to go away, their confidence is growing rather than waning, their agendas are merging, the protests are spreading and drawing in all ages and concerns.No single analysis has drawn all the strands of the debate together. In the meantime, the global protest "movement" is developing its own language, texts, agendas, myths, heroes and villains. Just as the G8 leaders, world bodies and businesses talk increasingly from the same script, so the protesters’ once disparatepolitical and social analyses are converging. The longterm project of governments and world bodies to globalise capital and development is being mirrored by the globalisation of protest.But what happens next? Governments and world bodies are unsure which way to turn. However well they are policed, major protests reinforce the impression of indifferent elites, repression of debate, overreaction to dissent, injustice and unaccountable power.Their options-apart from actually embracing the broad agenda being put to them-are to retreat behind even higher barricades, repress dissent further, abandon global meetings altogether or, more likely, meet only in places able to physically resist the masses.Brussels is considering building a super fortress for international meetings. Genoa may be the last of the European superprotests.28. According to the context, the word "parties" at the end of the first paragraph refers to ____.A) the meeting of the G8 leadersB) the protests on Bastille DayC) the coming panEuropean protestsD) the big protest to be held in Genoa29. According to the passage, economic globalisation is paralleled by ____.A) the emerging differences in the global protest movementB) the disappearing differences in the global protest movementC) the growing European concern about globalisationD) the increase in the number of protesters30. According to the last paragraph, what is Brussels considering doing?A) Meeting in places difficult to reach.B) Further repressing dissent.C) Accepting the protesters’ agenda.D) Abandoning global meetings.(结束Part Ⅲ Reading Comprehension (30 min)计时)SECTION B SKIMMING AND SCANNING (10 MIN) (开始SECTION B SKIMMING AND SCANNING (10 MIN)计时)In this section there are seven passages with ten multiplechoice questions. Skim or scan them as required and then mark your answers on your coloured answer sheet.TEXT EFirst read the question. 31.The main purpose of the passage is to ____.A.demonstrate how to prevent crimeB.show the seriousness of crimeC.look into the causes of crimeD.call for more government efforts Now go through TEXT E quickly to answer question 31. For three weeks, every night at 11 p.m., correspondents, officers and judges from justice courts, police departments and prisons, psychiatrists, criminologists, victims and even criminals in prisons made their appearance on TV to debate on a topic "Crime in the United States". Indeed, crime has been disturbing the American people and has become a serious social problem just next to the unemployment problem. Some figures are terrifying : 1 of 4 Americans has been a victim of some kind of crimes; nearly 22 million crimecases occurred last year throughout the country. A simple arithmetic calculation indicates that on average, a crime is being committed in every 2 seconds. Nowthe Americans are living in a horrible environment. Their safety and property are threatened by various crimes: robbery, theft, rape, kidnapping, murder, arson, vandalism and violence. The most worrisome problem comes from the fact that about onethird of crime cases were committed by the juvenile and 53% of criminals in jails are youngsters below 25. A poll indicates that about 73% of citizens said they avoided teenagers in streets, especially at night. To protect themselves from crime, according to a released figure, 52% of Americans keep guns at home. But some gun owners turn out to be potential criminals. Some people demand that strict law for gun control be enforced; but others oppose the ban of gun. No decision is in sight. Some experts said poverty, unemployment and racial discrimination are the cause of crime. They cited figures to show that 47% of crime cases were committed by t he black, though they account for only about 12% of the population of the nation . Others argued that about 54% of convicted criminals came from families associated with these evils. The American state government and federal government spend billions of dollars each year in maintaining the police departments and jails. But police authorities complain that they have not sufficient welltrained hands and advanced equipment to detect and stop crimes. Several cases of criminal insurgence were reported as a result of resentment at overcrowded prisons. Taxpayers complain that they pay more and more tax but receive less and less protection from crime for their lives and property. Though the host of the live TV programme made great efforts to search for a solution, so far no participant could put forward a measure that was approved by most of the attendants.31. The main purpose of the passage is to ____.A) demonstrate how to prevent crimeB) show the seriousness of crimeC) look into the causes of crimeD) call for more government effortsTEXT FFirst read the question. 32.What is the main topic of the following passage?A.Differences between modes of learning.B.Deficiencies of formal learning.C.Advantages of informal learning.D.Social context and learning systems. Now go through TEXT F quickly to answer question 32. The term "formal learning" is used in this paper to refer to all learning that takes place in the classroom, irrespective of whether such learning is informed by conservative or progressive ideologies. "Informal learning", on the other hand, is used to refer to learning which takes place outside the classroom. These definitionsprovide the essential, though by no means sole, difference bet ween formal and informal learning. Formal learning is decontextualised from daily life and, indeed, as Scribner and Cole (1973:553) have observed, may actually "promote ways of learning and thinking which often run counter to those nurtured in practical daily life". A characteristic feature of formal learning is the centrality of activities that are not closely paralleled by activities outside the classroom. The classroom can prepare for, draw on, and imitate the challenges of adult life outside the classroom, but it cannot, by its nature, consist of these challenges. In doing this, language plays a critical role as the major channel for information exchange. "Success" in the classroom requires a student to master this abstract code. As Bernstein (1969:152) noted, the language of the classroom is more similar to the language used by middleclass families than that used by workingclass families. Middleclass children thus find it easier to acquire the language of the classroom than their workingclass peers. Informal learning, in contrast, occurs in the setting to which it relates, making learning immediately relevant. In this context, language does not occupy such an important role: the child’s experience of learning is more holistic, involving sight, touch, taste, and smell-senses that are underutilised in the classroom.While formal learning is transmitted by teachers selected to perform this role, informal learning is acquired as a natural part of a child’s development. Adults or older children who are proficient in the skill or activity provide - sometime s unintentionally - target models of behaviour in the course of everyday activity. Informal learning, therefore, can take place at any time and is not subject to the limitations imposed by institutional timetabling. The motivation of the learner provides another critical difference between the two modes of learning. The formal learner is generally motivated by some kind of external goal such as parental approval, social status, and potential financial reward. The informal learner, however, tends to be motivated by successful completion of the task itself and the partial acquisition of adult status.32. What is the main topic of the following passage?A) Differences between modes of learning.B) Deficiencies of formal learning.C) Advantages of informal learning.D) Social context and learning systems.TEXT GFirst read the question. 33.The three approaches mentioned in the passage aim at ____. A.restructuring economy B.improving the tax system C.improving the living conditions D.reducing poverty Now go through TEXT G quickly to answer question 33. As arule, it is essential that the poor’s productive capabilities be mobilized and the conditions for developing these human resources be improved. In this con nection, German development policy has developed the following three approaches: - Structural reform: Structural reform is the preferred approach for reducing poverty because it eliminates the causes of poverty rather than just its symptoms. It is vital that economic, political and social conditions which can alleviate poverty be established at national and international levels. Efforts at international level focus on fair conditions for international trade and competition. At national level, the poor must be helped through structural reform such as the introduction of democratic government, options for independent private enterprise, decentralization and agricultural reform. Development policy tools for realizing such reforms include political dialogue, political advisory services, structural adjustment measures and personnel and material support for reform efforts in the government, business and administrative sectors.- Direct measures: Projects of this category are aimed at directly helping the poor and improving their living conditions or increasing their job options and earning potential. Of special importance are those projects which provide help for selfhelp in reducing poverty. The material support and advisory services offered by these projects reinforce the poor’s will to help themselves and help eable them to lead selfsufficient lives. Typical direct aid projects include the construction of simple housing by selfhelp groups, the creation of a savings and loan system for the poorer segments of society and support for women’s selfhelp organizations. -Indirect measures: A project’s beneficiaries - its target group - are not only often difficult to identify clearly, they are also not necessarily all poor people. In these cases, the project in question must be integrated into one of the partner nation’s overall or sectorspecific policies that aim at reducing poverty. A good illustration of this type of project is the use of advisory services to improve the tax system. Advising and upgrading the qualifications of personnel working in the fiscal system can lead to increased tax revenues which could be allocated for antipoverty measures. In keeping with this focus, German development assistance concentrates on the poorest nations and on projects to reduce poverty. In 1993, some 10 percent of the commitments Germany made for bilateral financial and technical assistance went to selfhelp projects aimed at reducing poverty. Basic needs projects comprised 48 percent of all projects and almost 30 percent of the commitments made for financial and technical assistance were allocated for the world’s least developed countries (LDCs).33. The three approaches mentioned in the passage aim at ____.A) restructuring economyB) improving the tax systemC) improving the living conditions。

2004年八级试卷及答案

PART II READING COMPREHENSION (30 MIN.) （Score: ）2004 TEXT AFarmers in the developing world hate price fluctuations. It makes it hard to plan ahead. But most of them have little choice: they sell at the price the market sets. Farmers in Europe, the U.S. and Japan are luckier: they receive massive government subsidies in the form of guaranteed prices or direct handouts. Last month U.S. President Bush signed a new farm bill that gives American farmers $190 billion over the next 10 years, or $83 billion more than they had been scheduled to get, and pushes U.S. agricultural support close to crazy European levels. Bush said the step was necessary to “promote farmer independence and preserve the farm way of life for generations”. It is also designed to help the Republican Party win control of the Senate in November’s mid-term elections.Agricultural production in most poor countries accounts for up to 50% of GDP, compared to only 3% in rich countries. But most farmers in poor countries grow just enough for themselves and their families. Those who try exporting to the West find their goods whacked with huge tariffs or competing against cheaper subsidized goods. In 1999 the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development concluded that for each dollar developing countries receive in aid they lose up to $14 just because of trade barriers imposed on the export of their manufactured goods. It’s not as if the developing world wants any favours, says Gerald Ssendwula, Uganda’s Minister of Finance. “What we want is for the rich countries to let us compete.”Agriculture is one of the few areas in which the Third World can compete. Land and labour are cheap, and as farming methods develop, new technologies should improve output. This is no pie-in-the-sky speculation. The biggest success in Kenya’s economy over the past decade has been the boom in exports of cut flowers and vegetables to Europe. But that may all change in 2008, when Kenya will be slightly too rich to qualify for the “least developed country” status that allows African producers to avoid paying stiff European import duties on selected agricultural products. With trade barriers in place, the horticulture industry in Kenya will shrivel as quickly as a discarded rose. And while agriculture exports remain the great hope for poor countries, reducing trade barriers in other sectors also works: Americas African Growth and Opportunity Act, which cuts duties on exports of everything from handicrafts to shoes, has proved a boon to Africa’s manufacturers. The lesson: the Third World can prosper if the rich world gives it a fair go.This is what makes Bush’s decision to increase farm subsidies last month all the more depressing. Poor countries have long suspected that the rich world urges trade liberalization only so it can wangle its way into new markets. Such suspicions caused the Seattle trade talks to break down three years ago. But last November members of the World Trade Organization, meeting in Doha, Qatar, finally agreed to a new round of talks designed to open up global trade in agriculture and textiles. Rich countries assured poor countries, that their concerns were finally being addressed. Bush’s handout last month makes a lie of America’s commitment to those talks and his personal devotion to free trade.16. By comparison, farmers ____ receive more government subsidies than others.A. in the developing worldB. in JapanC. in EuropeD. in America17. In addition to the economic considerations, there is a ____ motive behind Bush’s signing of thenew farm bill.A. partisanB. socialC. financialD. cultural18. The message the writer attempts to convey throughout the passage is that ____.A. poor countries should be given equal opportunities in tradeB. “the least developed country” status benefits agricultural countriesC. poor countries should remove their suspicions about trade liberalizationD. farmers in poor countries should also receive the benefit of subsidies19. The writer’s attitude towards new farm subsidies in the U.S. is ____.A. favourableB. ambiguousC. criticalD. reservedTEXT BOscar Wilde said that work is the refuge of people who have nothing better to do. If so, Americans are now among the world’s saddest refugees. Factory workers in the United States are working longer hours than at any time in the past half century. America once led the rich world in cutting the average working week—from 70 hours in 1850 to less than 40 hours by the 1950s. It seemed natural that as people grew richer they would trade extra earnings for more leisure. Since the 1970s, however, the hours clocked up by American workers have risen, to an average of 42 this year in manufacturing.Several studies suggest that something similar is happening outside manufacturing: Americans are spending more time at work than they did 20 years ago. Executives and lawyers boast of 80 hour weeks. On holiday, they seek out fax machines and phones as eagerly as Germans bag the best sun loungers. Yet working time in Europe and Japan continues to fall. In Germany’s engineering industry the working week is to be trimmed from 36 to 35 hours next year. Most Germans get six weeks’ paid annual holiday; even the Japanese now take three weeks. Americans still make do with just two.Germany responds to this contrast with its usual concern about whether people’s aversion to work is damaging its competitiveness. Yet German workers, like the Japanese, seem to be acting sensibly: as their incomes rise, they can achieve a better standard of living with fewer hours of work. The puzzle is why America, the world’s richest country, sees things differently. It is a puzzle with sinister social implications. Parents spend less time with their children, who may be left alone at home for longer. Is it just a coincidence that juvenile crime is on the rise?Some explanations for America’s time at work fail to stand up to scrutiny. One blames weak trade unions that leave workers open to exploitation. Are workers being forced by cost cutting firms to toil harder just to keep their jobs? A recent study by two American economists, Richard Freeman and Linda Bell, suggests not: when asked, Americans actually want to work longer hours. Most German workers, in contrast, would rather work less.Then, why do Americans want to work harder? One reason may be that the real earnings of many Americans have been stagnant or falling during the past two decades. People work longer merely to maintain their living standards. Yet many higher skilled workers, who have enjoyed big increases in their real pay, have been working harder too. Also, one reason for the slow growth of wages has been the rapid growth in employment—which is more or less where the argument began.Taxes may have something to do with it. People who work an extra hour in America are allowedto keep more of their money than those who do the same in Germany. Falls in marginal tax rates in America since the 1970s have made it all the more profitable to work longer.None of these answers really explains why the century long decline in working hours has gone into reverse in America but not elsewhere (though Britain shows signs of following America’s lead). Perhaps cultural differences—the last refuge of the defeated economist—are at play. Economists used to believe that once workers earned enough to provide for their basic needs and allow for a few luxuries, their incentive to work would be eroded, like lions relaxing after a kill. But humans are more susceptible to advertising than lions. Perhaps clever marketing has ensured that “basic needs”—for a shower with built in TV, for a rocket propelled car—expand continuously. Shopping is already one of America’s most popular pastimes. But it requires money—hence more work and less leisure.Or try this: the television is not very good, and baseball and hockey keep being wiped out by strikes. Perhaps Wilde was right. Maybe Americans have nothing better to do.20. In the United States, working longer hours is ____.A. confined to the manufacturing industryB. a traditional practice in some sectorsC. prevalent in all sectors of societyD. favoured by the economists21. According to the third paragraph, which might be one of the consequences of working longer hours?A. Rise in employees’ working efficiency.B. Rise in the number of young offenders.C. Rise in people’s living standards.D. Rise in competitiveness.22. Which of the following is the cause of working longer hours stated by the writer?A. Expansion of basic needsB. Cultural differencesC. Increase in real earningsD. Advertising TEXT CThe fox really exasperated them both. As soon as they had let the fowls out, in the early summer mornings, they had to take their guns and keep guard; and then again as soon as evening began to mellow, they must go once more. And he was so sly. He slid along in the deep grass; he was difficult as a serpent to see. And he seemed to circumvent the girls deliberately. Once or twice March had caught sight of the white tip of his brush, or the ruddy shadow of him in the deep grass, and she had let fire at him. But he made no account of this.The trees on the wood edge were a darkish, brownish green in the full light—for it was the end of August. Beyond, the naked, copper like shafts and limbs of the pine trees shone in the air. Nearer the rough grass, with its long, brownish stalks all agleam, was full of light. The fowls were round about—the ducks were still swimming on the pond under the pine trees. March looked at it all, saw it all, and did not see it. She heard Banford speaking to the fowls in the distance—and she did not hear. What was she thinking about? Heaven knows. Her consciousness was, as it were, held back.She lowered her eyes, and suddenly saw the fox. He was looking up at her. His chin was pressed down, and his eyes were looking up. They met her eyes. And he knew her. She was spellbound—she knew he knew her. So he looked into her eyes, and her soul failed her. He knew her, he has not daunted.She struggled, confusedly she came to herself, and saw him making off, with slow leaps oversome fallen boughs, slow, impudent jumps. Then he glanced over his shoulder, and ran smoothly away. She saw his brush held smooth like a feather, she saw his white buttocks twinkle. And he was gone, softly, soft as the wind.She put her gun to her shoulder, but even then pursed her mouth, knowing it was nonsense to pretend to fire. So she began to walk slowly after him, in the direction he had gone, slowly, pertinaciously. She expected to find him. In her heart she was determined to find him. What she would do when she saw him again she did not consider. But she was determined to find him. So she walked abstractedly about on the edge of the wood, with wide, vivid dark eyes, and a faint flush in her cheeks. She did not think. In strange mindlessness she walked hither and thither...As soon as supper was over, she rose again to go out, without saying why.She took her gun again and went to look for the fox. For he had lifted his eyes upon her, and his knowing look seemed to have entered her brain. She did not so much think of him: she was possessed by him. She saw his dark, shrewd, unabashed eye looking into her, knowing her. She felt him invisibly master her spirit. She knew the way he lowered his chin as he looked up, she knew his muzzle, the golden brown, and the greyish white. And again she saw him glance over his shoulder at her, half inviting, half contemptuous and cunning. So she went, with her great startled eyes glowing, her gun under her arm, along the wood edge. Meanwhile the night fell, and a great moon rose above the pine trees.23. At the beginning of the story, the fox seems to the all EXCEPT ____.A. cunningB. fierceC. defiantD. annoying24. As the story proceeds, March begins to feel under the spell of ____.A. the lightB. the treesC. the nightD. the fox25. Gradually March seems to be in a state of ____.A. blanknessB. imaginationC. sadnessD. excitement26. At the end of the story, there seems to be a sense of ____ between March and the fox.A. detachmentB. angerC. intimacyD. conflict27. The passage creates an overall impression of ____.A. mysteryB. horrorC. livelinessD. contemptTEXT DThe banners are packed, the tickets booked. The glitter and white overalls have been bought, the gas masks just fit and the mobile phones are ready. All that remains is to get to the parties.This week will see a feast of pan-European protests. It started on Bastille Day, last Saturday, with the French unions and immigrants on the streets and the first demonstrations in Britain and Germany about climate change. It will continue tomorrow and Thursday with environmental and peace rallies against President Bush. But the big one is in Genoa, on Friday and Saturday, where the G8 leaders will meet behind the lines of 18,000 heavily armed police.Unlike Prague, Gothenburg, Cologne or Nice, Genoa is expected to be Europe’s Seattle, the coming together of the disparate strands of resistance to corporate globalisation.Neither the protesters nor the authorities know what will happen, but some things are predictable. Yes, there will be violence and yes, the mass media will focus on it. What should seriously concernthe G8 is not so much the violence, the numbers in the streets or even that they themselves look like idiots hiding behind the barricades, but that the deep roots of a genuine new version of internationalism are growing.For the first time in a generation, the international political and economic condition is in the dock. Moreover, the protesters are unlikely to go away, their confidence is growing rather than waning, their agendas are merging, the protests are spreading and drawing in all ages and concerns.No single analysis has drawn all the strands of the debate together. In the meantime, the global protest “movement” is developing its own language, texts, agendas, myths, heroes and villains. Just as the G8 leaders, world bodies and businesses talk increasingly from the same script, so the protesters’once disparate political and social analyses are converging. The long term project of governments and world bodies to globalise capital and development is being mirrored by the globalisation of protest.But what happens next? Governments and world bodies are unsure which way to turn. However well they are policed, major protests reinforce the impression of indifferent elites, repression of debate, overreaction to dissent, injustice and unaccountable power.Their options—apart from actually embracing the broad agenda being put to them—are to retreat behind even higher barricades, repress dissent further, abandon global meetings altogether or, more likely, meet only in places able to physically resist the masses.Brussels is considering building a super fortress for international meetings. Genoa may be the last of the European super protests.28. According to the context, the word “parties” at the end of the first paragraph refers to ____.A. the meeting of the G8 leadersB. the protests on Bastille DayC. the coming pan-European protestsD. the big protest to be held in Genoa29. According to the passage, economic globalisation is paralleled by ____.A. the emerging differences in the global protest movementB. the disappearing differences in the global protest movementC. the growing European concern about globalisationD. the increase in the number of protesters30. According to the last paragraph, what is Brussels considering doing?A. Meeting in places difficult to reach.B. Further repressing dissent.C. Accepting the protesters’ agenda.D. Abandoning global meetings.Part III GENERAL KNOWLEDGE [ 10 MIN.] （Score: ）1. Britain is separated from the rest of Europe by the English Channel in the____.A. northB. southC. westD. east2. New Englanders were originally known as ____, which came to stand for all Americans.A. PilgrimsB. YankeeC. HaleensD. Sanders3. The first immigrants in American history name from England and ____.A. the NetherlandB. Philippine IslandsC. TasmaniaD. France4. In the 1970s Canada’s policy of multiculturalism recognized that cultural pluralism within a ____ FRAME WORK WAS THE ESSENCE OF THE Canadian identity.A. bipolarB. bilingualC. Judeo-ChristianD. immigration5. The epoch of Renaissance witnessed a particular development of English drama. It was ____ who made blank verse the principle vehicle of expression in drama.A. Chistopher MarloweB. Thomas LogeC. Edmund SpenserD. Thomas More6. Which play is not a comedy?A. A Midsummer Night’s DreamB. The Merchant of VeniceC. Twelfth NightD. Romeo and Juliet7. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn tells a story about the U.S before the Civil War and the story takes place along ____.A. the American RuhrB. the Imperial ValleyC. the Grand CanyonD. the Mississippi River8. In American literature, the 18th century was the age of the Enlightenment. ____ was the dominant spirit.A. HumanismB. RationalismC. RevolutionD. Evolution9. Which of the following sounds is a central vowel?A. /Λ/B. /i/C. /ou/D. /a:/10. There are ____ morphemes in the word “boyish”.A. oneB. twoC. threeD. fourPART IV PROOFREADING & ERROR CORRECTION (15 MIN.) （Score: ）One of the most important non-legislative functions of the U.S Congressis the power to investigate. This power is usually delegated to committees eitherstanding committees, special committees set for a specific 1.purpose, or joint committees consisted of members of both houses. 2.Investigations are held to gather information on the need forfuture legislation, to test the effectiveness of laws already passed,to inquire into the qualifications and performance of members andofficials of the other branches, and in rare occasions, to lay the 3.groundwork for impeachment proceedings. Frequently, committeesrely outside experts to assist in conducting investigative hearings 4.and to make out detailed studies of issues. 5.There are important corollaries to the investigative power. Oneis the power to publicize investigations and its results. Most 6.committee hearings are open to public and are reported 7.widely in the mass media. Congressional investigationsnevertheless represent one important tool available to lawmakers 8.to inform the citizenry and to arouse public interests in national issues. 9. Congressional committees also have the power to compeltestimony from unwilling witnesses, and to cite for contemptof Congress witnesses who refuse to testify and for perjurythese who give false testimony. 10.PART II READING COMPREHENSION (30 MIN.)TEXT A短文大意：美国总统布什签订了一份农业议案，旨在提高农业补贴。

历年英语专业八级考试真题作文题目汇总(1)

2004—2014历年专业英语八作文题归纳PARTVI WRITING (45 MIN)2014Nowadays, some companies have work-from-home or remote working policies, which means that their employees do not have to commute to work every day. Some people think that this can save a lot of time travelling to and from work, thus raising employees’productivity. However, others argue that in the workplace, people can communicate face to face, which vastly increases the efficiency of coordination and cooperation. What is your opinion?Write an essay of about 400 words on the following topic：2013Is our society hostile to good people? According to a recent survey by China Y outh Daily，76.1 percent of the respondents say that our current society provides a “bad environment" for good people doing good things．On the other hand，the more optimistic would argue that each individual should try his or her best to do good things and be nice to others, instead of waiting for the "social environment”to improve．So，what do you think? Is a sound social environment necessary for people to have high moral standards and be good to others?Write an essay of about 400 words on the following topic：Is a sound social environment necessary for people to be good to others?2012A recent survey of 2,000 college students asked about their attitudestowards phone calls and text-messaging (also known as Short Message Service) and found the students' main goal was to pass along information in as little time, with as little small talk, as possible. "What they like most about their mobile devices is that they can reach other people," says Naomi Baron, a professor of linguistics at American University in Washington, D.C., who conducted the survey. "What they like least is that other people can reach them." How far do you agree with Professor Baron?2011Should famous Chinese sites of historical interest charge higher fees during peak travel seasons?2010Recently newspapers have reported that officials in a little-known mountainous area near Guiyang, Guizhou Province wanted to turn the area into a “central business district” for Guiyang and invited a foreign design company to give it a n entirely new look. The design company came up with a blueprint for un con ventional,super-futuristic buildings. Tis triggered off different responses. Some appreciated the bold innovation of the design, but others held that it failed to reflect regional characteristics or local cultural heritage. What is your view on this? Write an essay of about 400 words. You should supply an appropriate title for your essay.2009Mandarin, or putonghua, is the standard service sector language in our country. But recently, employees at a big city's subway station have been busy learning dialects of other parts of the country. Proponents say that using dialects in the subway is a way to provide better service. But opponents think that encouraging the use of dialects in public counters the national policy to promote putonghua. What is your opinion?Write an essay of about 400 words on the following topic: AreDialects Just as Acceptable in Public Places?2008What I Have Learned From My Years at University2007Will the financial disparity (悬殊、差距) affect the friendship题目要求自拟。

2015年专业英语八级考试真题含答案

2015年专业英语八级考试真题及答案PART I LISTENING COMPREHENSION (35 MIN)SECTION A MINI-LECTUREIn this section you will hear a mini-lecture. You will hear the lecture ONCE ONLY. While listening, take notes on the important points. Your notes will not be marked, but you will need them to complete a gap-filling task after the mini-lecture. When the lecture is over, you will be given two minutes to check your notes, and another ten minutes to complete the gap-filling task on ANSWER SHEET ONE, using no more than three words in each gap. Make sure the word(s) you fill in is (are) both grammatically and semantically acceptable. You may refer to your notes while completing the task. Use the blank sheet for note-taking. Now, listen to the mini-lecture．Understanding Academic LecturesListening to academic lectures is an important task for university students. Then, how can we comprehend a lecture efficiently?I. Understand all (1) _______A. wordsB. (2) _______—stress—intonation(3) _______II. Adding informationA. lectures: Sharing information with audienceB. listeners: (4) _______C. sources of information—knowledge of (5) _______—(6) _______of the worldD. listening involving three steps:—hearing—(7) _______—addingIII. (8) _______A. reasons—overcome noise—save timeB. (9) _______—content—organizationIV. Evaluating while listeningA. help to decide the (10) of notesB. help to remember informationSECTION B INTERVIEWIn this section you will hear everything ONCE ONLY. Listen carefully and then answer the questions that follow. Mark the best answer to each question on ANSWER SHEET TWO.Questions 1 to 5 are based on an interview. At the end of the interview you will be given 10 seconds to answer each of the following five questions. Now listen to the interview.1. Theresa thinks that the present government is ________.[A] doing what they have promised to schools[B] creating opportunities for leading universities[C] considering removing barriers for state school pupils[D] reducing opportunities for state school pupils2. What does Theresa see as a problem in secondary schools now?[A] Universities are not working hard to accept state school pupils.[B] The number of state pupils applying to Oxford fails to increase.[C] The government has lowered state pupils’ expectations.[D] Leading universities are rejecting state school pupils.3. In Theresa’s view, school freedom means that schools should ____.[A] be given more funding from education authorities[B] be given all the money and decide how to spend it[C] be granted greater power to run themselves[D] be given more opportunities and choices4. According to Theresa, who decides or decide money for schools at the present?[A] Local education authorities and the central government.[B] Local education authorities and secondary schools together.[C] Local education authorities only.[D] The central government only.5. Throughout the talk, the interviewer does all the following EXCEPT ____.[A] asking for clarification[B] challenging the interviewee[C] supporting the interviewee[D] initiating topicsSECTION C NEWS BROADCASTIn this section you will hear everything ONCE ONLY．Listen carefully and then answer the questions that follow. Mark the best answer to each question on ANSWER SHEET TWO. Questions 6 and 7 are based on the following news. At the end of the news item, you will be given 20 seconds to answer the questions. Now listen to the news.News Item 16. What is the main idea of the news item?[A] Fewer people watch TV once a week.[B] Smartphones and tablets have replaced TV.[C] New technology has led to more family time.[D] Bigger TV sets have attracted more people.News Item 27. How many lawmakers voted for the marijuana legalization bill?[A] 50. [B] 12.[C] 46. [D] 18.8. The passing of the bill means that marijuana can be________.[A] bought by people under 18[B] made available to drug addicts[C] provided by the government[D] bought in drug storesNews Item 39. What did the review of global data reveal?[A]Diarrhea is a common disease.[B]Good sanitation led to increase in height.[C]There were many problems of poor sanitation.[D] African children live in worse sanitary conditions.10. The purpose of Dr. Alan Dangour’s study was most likely to ________.[A] examine links between sanitation and death from illness[B] look into factors affecting the growth of children[C] investigate how to tackle symptoms like diarrhea[D] review and compare conditions in different countriesPART II READING COMPREHENSION (30 MIN)In this section there are four reading passages followed by a total of 20 multiple-choice questions. Read the passages and then mark the best answer to each question on ANSWER SHEET TWO．TEXT AIn 2011, many shoppers chose to avoid the frantic crowds and do their holiday shopping from the comfort of their computer. Sales at online retailers gained by more than 15%, making it the biggest season ever. But people are also returning those purchases at record rates, up 8% from last year.What went wrong? Is the lingering shadow of the global financial crisis making it harder to accept extravagant indulgences? Or that people shop more impulsively - and therefore make bad decisions - when online? Both arguments are plausible. However, there is a third factor: a question of touch. We can love the look but, in an online environment, we cannot feel the quality of a texture, the shape of the fit, the fall of a fold or, for that matter, the weight of an earring. And physically interacting with an object makes you more committed.When my most recent book Brand washed was released, I teamed up with a local bookstore to conduct an experiment about the differences between the online and offline shopping experience. I carefully instructed a group of volunteers to promote my book in two different ways. The firstwas a fairly hands-off approach. Whenever a customer would inquire about my book, the volunteer would take them over to the shelf and point to it. Out of 20 such requests, six customers proceeded with the purchase.The second option also involved going over to the shelf but, this time, removing the book and then subtly holding onto it for just an extra moment before placing it in the customer's hands. Of the 20 people who were handed the book. 13 ended up buying it. Just physically passing the book showed a big difference in sales. Why? We feel something similar to a sense of ownership when we hold things in our hand. That's why we establish or reestablish connection by greeting strangers and friends with a handshake. In this case, having to then let go of the book after holding it might generate a subtle sense of loss, and motivate us to make the purchase even more.A recent study also revealed the power of touch, in this case when it came to conventional mail. A deeper and longer-lasting impression of a message was formed when delivered in a letter, as opposed to receiving the same message online. Brain imaging showed that, on touching the paper, the emotional center of the brain was activated, thus forming a stronger bond. The study also indicated that once touch becomes part of the process, it could translate into a sense of possession. This sense of ownership is simply not part of the equation in the online shopping experience.As the rituals of purchase in the lead-up to Christmas change, not only do we give less thought to the type of gifts we buy for our loved ones but, through our own digital wish lists, we increasingly control what they buy for us. The reality, however, is that no matter how convinced we all are that digital is the way to go, finding real satisfaction will probably take more than a few simple clicks.11. According to the author, shoppers are returning their purchases for all the following reasons EXCEPT that ____.[A] they are unsatisfied with the quality of the purchase[B]they eventually find the purchase too expensive[C] they change their mind out of uncertainty[D] they regret making the purchase without forethought12. What is the purpose of the experiment in the bookstore?[A] To see which promotion method is preferred by customers.[B]To find out the strengths and weaknesses of both methods.[C] To try to set up a new retailer-customer relationship.[D] To see the effect of an approach on customers' decisions.13. Why does the author cite the study by Bangor University and the Royal Mail Service?[A]To compare similar responses in different settings.[B] To provide further evidence for his own observation.[C] To offer a scientific account of the brain's functions.[D] To describe emotional responses in online shopping.14. What can be inferred from the last paragraph?[A]Real satisfaction depends on factors other than the computer.[B] Despite online shopping we still attach importance to gift buying.[C] Some people are still uncertain about the digital age.[D] Online shopping offers real satisfaction to shoppers.Text BMy professor brother and I have an argument about head and heart about whether he overvalues IQ while I learn more toward EQ. We typically have this debate about people—can we be friends with a really smart jerk（怪物）?—but there’s corollary to animals as well. I’d love it if our dog could fetch the morning paper and then read it to me over coffee, but I actually care much more about her loyal and innocent heart. There’s already enough thinking going on is our house, and we probably spend too much time in our heads, where we need some role modeling is in instinct, and that’s where a dog is a roving revelation.I did not grow up with dogs, which meant that my older daughter’s respectful but unyielding determination to get one required some adjustment on my part. I often felt she was training me: from ages of 6 to 9, she gently schooled me in various breeds and their personalities, whispered to the dogs we encountered so they would charm and persuade me, demonstrated by her self-discipline that she was ready for the responsibility. And thus came our dog Twist, whom I sometimes mistake for a third daughter.At first I thought the challenge would be to train her to sit, to heel, to walk calmly beside us and not go wildly chasing the neighborhood rabbits. But I soon discovered how much more we had to learn from her than she from us.If it is true, for example, that the secret to a child’s success is less rare genius than raw persistence, Twist’s ability to stay on task is a model for us all, especially if the task is trying to capture the sunbeam that flicks around the living room as the wind blows through the branches outside. She never succeeds, and she never gives up. This includes when she runs square into walls.Then there is her unfailing patience, which breaks down only when she senses that dinnertime was 15 minutes ago and we have somehow failed to notice. Even then she is more eager than indignant, and her refusal to whine shows a restraint of which I’m not always capable when hungry.But the lesson I value most is the one in forgiveness, and Twist first offered this when she was still very young. When she was about 7 months old, we took her to the vet to be sprayed(切除卵巢). We turned her over to a stranger, who proceeded to perform a procedure that was probably not pleasant, But when the vet returned her to us, limp and tender, there was no recrimination(反责)，no how could you do that to me? It was as though she really knew that we could not intentionally cause her pain, and while she did not understand, she forgave and curled up with her head on my daughter’s lap.I suppose we could have concluded that she was just blindly loyal and docile. But eventually we knew better. She is entirely capable of disobedience, as she has proved many times. She will ignore us when there are more interesting things to look at, rebuke us when we are careless, bark into the twilight when she has urgent messages to send. But her patience with our failings and fickleness and her willingness to give us a second chance are a daily lesson in gratitude.My friends who grew up with dogs tell me how when they were teenagers and trusted no one in the world, they could tell their dog all their secrets. It was the one friend who would not gossip or betray, could provide in the middle of the night the soft, unbegrudging comfort and peace that adolescence conspires to disrupt. An age that is all about growth and risk needs some anchors and weights, a model of steadfastness when all else is in flux. Sometimes I think Twist’s devotion keeps my girls on a benevolent lash, one that hangs quietly at their side as they trot along but occasionally yanks them back to safety and solid ground.We’ve weighed so many decisions so carefully in raising our daughters what school to send them to and what church to attend, when to give them cell phones and with what precautions. But when it comes to what really shapes their character and binds our family, I never would have thought we would owe so much to its smallest member.15. In the first paragraph, the author suggests that____.[A]a person can either have a high IQ or a low EQ[B]her professor brother cares too much about IQ[C]we need examples of how to follow one's heart[D]she prefers dogs that are clever and loyal16. According to the passage, all the following are Twist's characteristics EXCEPT____.[A]resignation[B]patience[C]forgiveness[D]tenacity17. According to the context, the meaning of the word “square” is closest to____.[A]fast[B]blindly[C]straight[D]stubbornly18. That Twist's devotion keeps my girls on a benevolent leash means that____.[A]Twist is capable of looking after the girls[B]Twist and the girls have become friends[C]Twist knows how to follow the girls[D]Twist's loyalty helps the girls grow up19. What does the author try to express in the last paragraph?[A]Difficulties in raising her children.[B]Worries about what to buy for kids.[C]Gratitude to Twist for her role.[D]Concerns about schooling and religion.Text CMost West African lorries ate not in what one would call the first flush of youth, and I hadlearnt by bitter experience not to expect anything very much of them. But the lorry that arrived to take me up to the mountains was worse than anything I had seen before: it tottered on the borders of senile decay. It stood there on buckled wheels, wheezing and gasping with exhaustion from having to climb up the gentle slope to the camp, and I consigned myself and my loads to it with some trepidation. The driver, who was a cheerful fellow, pointed out that he would require my assistance in two very necessary operations: first, I had to keep the hand brake pressed down when travelling downhill, for unless it was held thus almost level with the floor it sullenly refused to function. Secondly, I had to keep a stern eye on the clutch, a willful piece of mechanism that seized every chance to leap out of its socket with a noise like a strangling leopard. As it was obvious that not even a West African lorry driver could be successful in driving while crouched under the dashboard in a pre-natal position, I had to take over control of these instruments if I valued my life. So, while I ducked at intervals to put on the brake, amid the rich smell of burning rubber, our noble lorry jerked its way towards the mountains at a steady twenty miles per hour; sometimes, when a downward slope favored it, it threw caution to the winds and careered along in a madcap fashion at twenty-five. For the first thirty miles the red earth road wound its way through the lowland forest, the giant trees standing in solid ranks alongside and their branches entwined in an archway of leaves above us. Flocks of hornbills flapped across the road, honking like the ghosts of ancient taxis, and on the banks, draped decoratively in the patches of sunlight, the agama lizards lay, blushing into sunset coloring with excitement and nodding their heads furiously. Slowly and almost imperceptibly the road started to climb upwards, looping its way in languid curves round the forested hills. In the back of the lorry the boys lifted up their voices in song: Home again, home again, When shall I see ma home? When shall I see ma mammy? I'll never forget ma home . . .The driver hummed the refrain softly to himself, glancing at me to see if I would object. To his surprise I joined in, and so while the lorry rolled onwards trailing a swirling tail of red dust behind it, the boys in the back maintained the chorus while the driver and I harmonized and sang complicated bits, and the driver played a staccato accompaniment on the horn. Breaks in the forest became more frequent the higher we climbed, and presently a new type of undergrowth began to appear: massive tree-ferns standing in conspiratorial groups at the roadside on their thick, squat, and hairy trunks, the fronds of leaves sprouting from the tops like delicate green fountains. These ferns were the guardians of a new world, for suddenly, as though the hills had shrugged themselves free of cloak, the forest disappeared. It lay behind us in the valley, a thick pelt of green undulating away into the heat-shimmered distance, while above us the hillside rose majestically, covered in a coat of rippling, waist-high grass, bleached golden by the sun. The lorry crept higher and higher, the engine gasping and shuddering with this unaccustomed activity. I began to think that we should have to push the wretched thing up the last two or three hundred feet, but to everyone's surprise we made it, and the lorry crept on to the brow of the hill, trembling with fatigue, spouting steam from its radiator like a dying whale. We crawled to a standstill and the driver switched off the engine. “We must wait small-time, engine get hot, he explained, pointing to the forequarters of the lorry, which were by now completely invisible under a cloud of steam. Thankfully I descended from the red-hot inside of the cab and strolled down to where the road dipped into the next valley. From this vantage point I could see the country we had travelled through and the countrywe were about to enter.20. That it tottered on the borders of senile decay means that the lorry was_________.[A]about to break down[B]a very old vehicle[C]unable to travel the distance[D] a dangerous vehicle21. Which of the following words in the first paragraph is used literally?[A]Flush.[B]Borders.[C]Operations.[D]Gasping.22. We learn from the first paragraph that the author regards the inadequacies of the lorry as _________.[A]inevitable and amusing[B] dangerous and frightening[C] novel and unexpected[D] welcome and interesting23. All the following words in the last but one paragraph describe the lorry as a human EXCEPT .[A]trembling[B]spouting[C]shuddering[D]crept24. We can infer from the passage that the author was ________.[A]bored by the appearance of the grasslands ahead[B]reluctant to do any walking in so hot a climate[C]unfriendly towards the local driver and boys[D]a little surprised to have to help drive the lorry25. A suitable title for the passage would be _______.[A]A journey that scared me[B]A journey to remember[C]The wild West African lorry[D]A comic journey in West AfricaText DHave you ever noticed a certain similarity in public parks and back gardens in the cities of the West? A ubiquitous woodland mix of lawn grasses and trees has found its way throughoutEurope and the United States, and it’s now spread to other cities around the world. As ecologist Peter Groffman has noted, it's increasingly difficult to tell one suburb apart from another, even when they're located in vastly different climates such as Phoenix, Arizona, or Boston in the much chillier north-east of the US. And why do parks in New Zealand often feature the same species of trees that grow on the other side of the world in the UK?Inspired by the English and New England countrysides, early landscape architects of the 19th Century such as Andrew Jackson Downing and Frederick Law Olmstead created an aesthetic for urban public and private open space that persists to this day. But in the 21st Century, urban green space is tasked with doing far more than simply providing aesthetic appeal. From natural systems to deal with surface water run-off and pollution to green corridors to increasing interest in urban food production, the urban parks of the future will be designed and engineered for functionality as well as for beauty.Imagine travelling among the cities of the mid-21st Century and finding a unique set of urban landscapes that capture local beauty, natural and cultural history, and the environmental context. They are tuned to their locality, and diverse within as well as across cities. There are patches that provide shade and cooling, places of local food production, and corridors that connect both residents and wildlife to the surrounding native environment. Their functions are measured and monitored to meet the unique needs of each city for food production, water use, nutrient recycling, and habitat. No two green spaces are quite the same.Planners are already starting to work towards this vision. And if this movement has a buzzword it is “hyperfunctionality”--designs which provide multiple uses in a confined space, and a term coined by Richard Pouyat of the US Forest Service. At the moment, urban landscapes are highly managed and limited in their spatial extent. Even the "green" cities of the future will contain extensive areas of buildings, roads, railways, and other built structures. These future cities are likely to contain a higher proportion of green cover than the cities of today, with an increasing focus on planting on roofs, vertical walls, and formerly impervious surfaces like car parks. But built environments will still be ever-present in dense megacities. We can greatly enhance the utility of green space through designs that provide a range of different uses in a confined space. A hyperfunctional planting, for example, might be designed to provide food, shade, wildlife habitat, and pollution removal all in the same garden with the right choice of plants, configurations, and management practices.What this means is that we have to maximise the benefits and uses of urban parks, while minimising the costs of building and maintaining them. Currently, green space and street plantings are relatively similar throughout the Western world, regardless of differences in local climate, geography, and natural history. Even desert cities feature the same sizable street trees and well-watered and well-fertilized lawns that you might see in more temperate climes. The movement to reduce the resources and water requirements of such urban landscapes in these arid areas is called "xeriscaping" a concept that has so-far received mixed responses in terms of public acceptance. Scott Yabiku and colleagues at the Central Arizona Phoenix project showed that newcomers to the desert embrace xeriscaping more than long-time residents, who are more likely to prefer the well-watered aesthetic. In part, this may be because xeriscaping is justified more by reducing landscaping costs in this case water costs than by providing desired benefits like recreation, pollution mitigation, and cultural value. From this perspective, xeriscaping can seem more like a compromise than an asset.But there are other ways to make our parks and natural spaces do more. Nan Ellin, of the Ecological Planning Center in the US, advocates an asset-based approach to urbanism. Instead of envisioning cities in terms what they can't have, ecological planners are beginning to frame the discussion of future cities in terms of what they do have - their natural and cultural assets. In Utah’s Salt Lake City, instead of couching environmental planning as an issue of resource scarcity, the future park is described as "mountain urbanism" and the strong association of local residents with the natural environment of the mountain ranges near their home. From this starting point, the local climate, vegetation, patterns of rain and snowfall, and mountain topography are all deemed natural assets that create a new perspective when it comes to creating urban green space. In Cairns, Australia, the local master plan embraces "tropical urbanism" that conveys a sense of place through landscaping features, while also providing important functions such as shading and cooling in this tropical climate.The globally homogenized landscape aesthetic--which sees parks from Boston to Brisbane looking worryingly similar--will diminish in importance as future urban green space will be attuned to local values and cultural perceptions of beauty. This will lead to a far greater diversity of urban landscape designs than are apparent today. Already, we are seeing new purposes for urban landscaping that are transforming the 20th century woodland park intobioswales--plantings designed to filter stormwater--green roofs, wildlife corridors, and urban food gardens. However, until recently we have been lacking the datasets and science-based specifications for designs that work to serve all of these purposes at once.In New York City, Thomas Whitlow of Cornell University sends students through tree-lined streets with portable, backpack-mounted air quality monitors. At home in his laboratory, he places tree branches in wind tunnels to measure pollution deposition onto leaves. It turns out that currently, many street tree plantings are ineffective at removing air pollutants, and instead may trap pollutants near the ground. My students and I equipped street trees with sensors in and around the trunk in Los Angeles to monitor growth and water use in real time to help find which species provide the largest canopies for the lowest amount of water. Rather than relying on assumptions about the role of urban vegetation in improving the environment and health, future landscaping designs will be engineered based on empirical data and state of the art of simulations.New datasets on the performance of urban landscapes are changing our view of what future urban parks will look like and what it will do. With precise measurements of pollutant uptake, water use, plant growth rates, and greenhouse gas emissions, we are better and better able to design landscapes that require less intensive management and are less costly, while providing more social and environmental uses.26. According to the passage, which of the following serves as the BEST reason for the similarity in urban green space throughout the West?[A] Climate.[B] Geography.[C] Functional purposes.[D] Design principles.27. The following are all features of future urban green space EXCEPT that_______.[A] each city has its distinct style of urban green space[B] urban landscape will focus more on cultural history[C] urban green space will be designed to serve many uses[D] more green cover will be seen on city roofs and walls28. Why are some local residents opposed to "xeriscaping"?[A] It cannot reduce water requirements.[B] It has proved to be too costly.[C] It is not suited for the local area.[D] It does not have enough advantages.29. According to the passage, if planners adopt an asset-based approach, they will probably_______.[A] incorporate the area's natural and cultural heritage into their design[B] make careful estimation of the area's natural resources before designing[C] combine natural resources and practical functions in their design[D] envision more purposes for urban landscaping in their design30. According to the passage, future landscaping designs will rely more on_______.[A] human assumptions[B] field work[C] scientific estimation[D] laboratory workPart Ⅲ GENERAL KNOWLEDGE31. Which party is in power now in the UK?[A] The Conservative Party.[B] The Labour Party.[C] The Liberal Democrats.[D] The Scottish National Party.32. Which of the following lakes does Canada share with the United States?[A] Lake Winnipeg.[B] The Great Slave Lake.[C] The Great Bear Lake.[D] The five Great Lakes.33. U. S. senators serve for ____ years after they are elected.[A] four[B] six[C] three[D] two34. Who were the natives of Australia before the arrival of the British settlers?。

历年专业英语八级考试真题及答案 (5)

2004年专业英语八级考试真题及答案Part Ⅰ Listening Comprehension (40 min)In Sections A,B and C you will hear everything ONCE ONLY. Listen carefully and then answer the questions that follow. Mark the correct answer to each question on your coloured answer sheet.SECTION A TALKQuestions 1 to 5 refer to the talk in this section. At the end of the talk you will be given 75 seconds to answer the questions.Now listen to the talk.1.The parallel between waltzing and language use lies in ____.A.the coordination based on individual actionsB.the number of individual participantsC.the necessity of individual actionsD.the requirements for participants2.In the talk the speaker thinks that language use is a(n) ____ process.A.individualbinedC.distinctD.social3.The main difference between personal and nonpersonal settings is in ____.A.the manner of language useB.the topic and content of speechC.the interactions between speaker and audienceD.the relationship between speaker and audience4.In fictional settings, speakers ____.A.hide their real intentionsB.voice others’ intentionsC.play double roles on and off stageD.only imitate other people in lifepared with other types of settings, the main feature of private setting is ____.A.the absence of spontaneityB.the presence of individual actionsC.the lack of real intentionsD.the absence of audienceSECTION B INTERVIEWQuestions 6 to 10 are based on an interview. At the end of the interview you will be given 75 seconds to answer the questions.Now listen to the interview.6.What was education like in Professor Wang’s days?A.Students worked very hard.B.Students felt they needed a second degree.cation was not career oriented.D.There were many specialized subjects.7.According to Professor Wang, what is the purpose of the present day education?A.To turn out an adequate number of elite for the society.B.To prepare students for their future career.C.To offer practical and utilitarian courses in each programme.D.To set up as many technical institutions as possible.8.In Professor Wang’s opinion, technical skills ____.A.require good educationB.are secondary to educationC.don’t call for good educationD.don’t conflict with education9.What does Professor Wang suggest to cope with the situation caused by increasing numbers of fee paying students?A.Shifting from one programme to another.B.Working out ways to reduce student number.C.Emphasizing better quality of education.D.Setting up stricter examination standards.10.Future education needs to produce graduates of all the following categories EXCEPT ____.A.those who can adapt to different professionsB.those who have a high flexibility of mindC.those who are thinkers, historians and philosophersD.those who possess only highly specialized skillsSECTION C NEWS BROADCASTQuestions 11 to 13 are based on the following news. At the end of the news item, you will be given 45 seconds to answer the questions.Now listen to the news.11.Which of the following regions in the world will witness the sharpest drop in life expectancy?tin America.B.Sub Saharan Africa..D.The Caribbean.12.According to the news, which country will experience small life expectancy drop?A.Burma.B.Botswana.C.Cambodia.D.Thailand.13.The countries that are predicted to experience negative population growth are mainly in ____.B.Africa.tin America.D.The Caribbean.Questions 14 and 15 are based on the following news. At the end of the news item,you will be given 30 seconds to answer the questions.Now listen to the news.14.The trade dispute between the European Union and the US was caused by ____. refusal to accept arbitration by WTO imposing tariffs on European steel refusal to pay compensation to EU refusal to lower import duties on EU products15.Who will be consulted first before the EU list is submitted to WTO?A.EU member states.B.The United States.C.WTO.D.The steel corporations.SECTION D NOTE-TAKING AND GAP-FILLINGIn this section you will hear a mini lecture. You will hear the lecture ONCE ONLY.While listening to the lecture, take notes on the important points. Your notes willnot be marked, but you will need them to complete a 15 minute gap filling taskon ANSWER SHEET ONE after the mini lecture. Use the blank sheet for note taking.Conversation SkillsPeople who usually make us feel comfortable in conversations are good talkers. Andthey have something in common, i.e. skills to put people at ease.1. Skill to ask question1) be aware of the human nature: readiness to answer other’s questions regardlessof (1)____ 2) start a conversation with some personal but unharmfullquestions about one’s (2)____ jobquestions about one’s activities in the (3)____3) be able to spot signals for further talk2. Skill to (4)____for answers1) don’t shift from subject to subject— sticking to the same subject: signs of (5)____in conversation2) listen to (6)____of voice— If people sound unenthusiastic, then change subject.3) use eyes and ears— steady your gaze while listening3. Skill to laughEffects of laughter:— ease people’s (7)____— help start (8)____4. Skill to part1) importance: open up possibilities for future friendship orcontact2) ways:— men: a smile, a (9)____— women: same as (10)____now— how to express pleasure in meeting someone.Part Ⅱ Proofreading and Error Correction (15 min)The passage contains TEN errors. Each indicated line contains a maximum of ONE error. In each case, only ONE word is involved. You should proofread the passage and correct it in the following way:For a wrong word, underline the wrong word and write the correct one in the blank provided at the end of the line.For a missing word, mark the position of the missing word with a “∧” sign and write the word you believe to be missing in the blank provided at the end of the line.For an unnecessary word, cross the unnecessary word with a slash “/”and put the word in the blank provided at the end of the line.ExampleWhen ∧ art museum wants a new exhibit, (1) anit never buys things in finished form and hangs (2) neverthem on the wall. When a natural history museumwants an [ZZ(Z]exhibition[ZZ)], it must often build it. (3)exhibitProofread the given passage on ANSWER SHEET TWO as instructed.One of the most important non-legislative functions of the U.S Congressis the power to investigate. This power is usually delegated to committees - either standing committees, special committees set for a specific (1)____ purpose, or joint committees consisted of members of both houses. (2)____Investigations are held to gather information on the need forfuture legislation, to test the effectiveness of laws already passed,to inquire into the qualifications and performance of members andofficials of the other branches, and in rare occasions, to lay the (3)____groundwork for impeachment proceedings. Frequently, committeesrely outside experts to assist in conducting investigative hearings (4)____ and to make out detailed studies of issues. (5)____There are important corollaries to the investigative power. Oneis the power to publicize investigations and its results. Most (6)____committee hearings are open to public and are reported (7)____widely in the mass media. Congressional investigationsnevertheless represent one important tool available to lawmakers (8)____to inform the citizenry and to arouse public interests in national issues.(9)____Congressional committees also have the power to compeltestimony from unwilling witnesses, and to cite for contemptof Congress witnesses who refuse to testify and for perjurythese who give false testimony. (10)____Part Ⅲ Reading Comprehension (30 min)In this section there are four reading passages followed by a total of fifteen multiple choice questions. Read the passages and then mark your answers on your coloured answer sheet.TEXT AFarmers in the developing world hate price fluctuations. It makes it hard to plan ahead. But most of them have little choice: they sell at the price the market sets. Farmers in Europe, the U.S. and Japan are luckier: they receive massive government subsidies in the form of guaranteed prices or direct handouts. Last month U.S. President Bush signed a new farm bill that gives American farmers $190 billion over the next 10 years, or $83 billion more than they had been scheduled to get, and pushes U.S. agricultural support close to crazy European levels. Bush said the step was necessary to “promote farmer independence and preserve the farm way of life for generations”. It is also designed to help the Republican Party win control of the Senate in November’s mid term elections.Agricultural production in most poor countries accounts for up to 50% of GDP, compared to only 3% in rich countries. But most farmers in poor countries grow just enough for themselves and their families. Those who try exporting to the West find their goods whacked with huge tariffs or competing against cheaper subsidized goods. In 1999 the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development concluded that for each dollar developing countries receive in aid they lose up to $14 just because of trade barriers imposed on the export of their manufactured goods. It’s not as if the developing world wants any favours, says Gerald Ssendwula, Uganda’s Minister of Finance. “What we want is for the rich countries to let us compete.”Agriculture is one of the few areas in which the Third World can compete. Land and labour are cheap, and as farming methods develop, new technologies should improve output. This is no pie in the sky speculation. The biggest success in Kenya’s economy over the past decade has been the boom in exports of cut flowers and vegetables to Europe. But that may all change in 2008, when Kenya will be slightly too rich to qualify for the “least developed country” status that allows African producers to avoid paying stiff European import duties on selected agricultural products. With trade barriers in place, the horticulture industry in Kenya willshrivel as quickly as a discarded rose. And while agriculture exports remain the great hope for poor countries, reducing trade barriers in other sectors also works: Americas African Growth and Opportunity Act, which cuts duties on exports of everything from handicrafts to shoes, has proved a boon to Africa’s manufacturers. The lesson: the Third World can prosper if the rich world gives it a fair go. This is what makes Bush’s decision to increase farm subsidies last month all the more depressing. Poor countries have long suspected that the rich world urges rade liberalization only so it can wangle its way into new markets. Such suspicions caused the Seattle trade talks to break down three years ago. But last November members of the World Trade Organization, meeting in Doha, Qatar, finally agreed to a new round of talks designed to open up global trade in agriculture and textiles. Rich countries assured poor countries, that their concerns were finally being addressed. Bush’s handout last month makes a lie of America’s commitment to those talks and his personal devotion to free trade.16.By comparison, farmers ____ receive more government subsidies than others.A.in the developing worldB.in JapanC.in EuropeD.in America17.In addition to the economic considerations, there is a ____ motive behind Bush’s signing of the new farm bill.A.partisanB.socialC.financialD.cultural18.The message the writer attempts to convey throughout the passage is that ____.A.poor countries should be given equal opportunities in tradeB.“the least developed country” status benefits agricultural countriesC.poor countries should remove their suspicions about trade liberalizationD.farmers in poor countries should also receive the benefit of subsidies19.The writer’s attitude towards new farm subsidies in the U.S. is ____.A.favourableB.ambiguousC.criticalD.reservedTEXT BOscar Wilde said that work is the refuge of people who have nothing better to do. If so, Americans are now among the world’s saddest refugees. Factory workers in the United States are working longer hours than at any time in the past half century. America once led the rich world in cutting the average working week—from 70 hours in 1850 to less than 40 hours by the 1950s. It seemed natural that as people grew richer they would trade extra earnings for more leisure. Since the 1970s,however, the hours clocked up by American workers have risen, to an average of 42 this year in manufacturing.Several studies suggest that something similar is happening outside manufacturing: Americans are spending more time at work than they did 20 years ago. Executives and lawyers boast of 80hour weeks. On holiday, they seek out fax machines and phones as eagerly as Germans bag the best sun loungers. Yet working time in Europe and Japan continues to fall. In Germany’s engineering industry the working week is to be trimmed from 36 to 35 hours next year. Most Germans get six weeks’ paid annual holiday; even the Japanese now take three weeks. Americans still make do with just two.Germany responds to this contrast with its usual concern about whether people’s aversion to work is damaging its competitiveness. Yet German workers, like the Japanese, seem to be acting sensibly: as their incomes rise, they can achieve a better standard of living with fewer hours of work. The puzzle is why America, the world’s richest country, sees things differently. It is a puzzle with sinister social implications. Parents spend less time with their children, who may be left alone at home for longer. Is it just a coincidence that juvenile crime is on the rise?Some explanations for America’s time at work fail to stand up to scrutiny. One blames weak trade unions that leave workers open to exploitation. Are workers being forced by cost cutting firms to toil harder just to keep their jobs? A recent study by two American economists, Richard Freeman and Linda Bell, suggests not: when asked, Americans actually want to work longer hours. Most German workers, in contrast, would rather work less.Then, why do Americans want to work harder? One reason may be that the real earnings of many Americans have been stagnant or falling during the past two decades. People work longer merely to maintain their living standards. Yet many higher skilled workers, who have enjoyed big increases in their real pay, have been working harder too. Also, one reason for the slow growth of wages has been the rapid growth in employment—which is more or less where the argument began. Taxes may have something to do with it. People who work an extra hour in America are allowed to keep more of their money than those who do the same in Germany. Falls in marginal tax rates in America since the 1970s have made it all the more profitable to work longer.None of these answers really explains why the century long decline in working hours has gone into reverse in America but not elsewhere (though Britain shows signs of following America’s lead). Perhaps cultural differences—the last refuge of the defeated economist—are at play. Economists used to believe that once workers earned enough to provide for their basic needs and allow for a few luxuries, their incentive to work would be eroded, like lions relaxing after a kill. But humans are more susceptible to advertising than lions. Perhaps clever marketing has ensured that “basic needs”—for a shower with built in TV, for a rocket propelled car —expand continuously. Shopping is already one of America’s most popular pastimes. But it requires money—hence more work and less leisure.Or try this: the television is not very good, and baseball and hockey keep being wiped out by strikes. Perhaps Wilde was right. Maybe Americans have nothing better to do.20.In the United States, working longer hours is ____.A.confined to the manufacturing industryB.a traditional practice in some sectorsC.prevalent in all sectors of societyD.favoured by the economists21.According to the third paragraph, which might be one of the consequences of working longer hours?A.Rise in employees’ working efficiency.B.Rise in the number of young offenders.C.Rise in people’s living standards.D.Rise in competitiveness.22.Which of the following is the cause of working longer hours stated bythe writer?A.Expansion of basic needs.B.Cultural differences.C.Increase in real earnings.D.Advertising.TEXT CThe fox really exasperated them both. As soon as they had let the fowls out, in the early summer mornings, they had to take their guns and keep guard; and then again as soon as evening began to mellow, they must go once more. And he was so sly. He slid along in the deep grass; he was difficult as a serpent to see. And he seemed to circumvent the girls deliberately. Once or twice March had caught sight of the white tip of his brush, or the ruddy shadow of him in the deep grass, and she had let fire at him. But he made no account of this.The trees on the wood edge were a darkish, brownish green in the full light—for it was the end of August. Beyond, the naked, copper like shafts and limbs of the pine trees shone in the air. Nearer the rough grass, with its long, brownish stalks all agleam, was full of light. The fowls were round about—the ducks were still swimming on the pond under the pine trees. March looked at it all, saw it all, and did not see it. She heard Banford speaking to the fowls in the distance—and she did not hear. What was she thinking about? Heaven knows. Her consciousness was, as it were, held back.She lowered her eyes, and suddenly saw the fox. He was looking up at her. His chin was pressed down, and his eyes were looking up. They met her eyes. And he knew her. She was spellbound—she knew he knew her. So he looked into her eyes, and her soul failed her. He knew her, he has not daunted.She struggled, confusedly she came to herself, and saw him making off, with slow leaps over some fallen boughs, slow, impudent jumps. Then he glanced over his shoulder, and ran smoothly away. She saw his brush held smooth like a feather, she saw his white buttocks twinkle. And he was gone, softly, soft as the wind.She put her gun to her shoulder, but even then pursed her mouth, knowing it was nonsense to pretend to fire. So she began to walk slowly after him, in the direction he had gone, slowly, pertinaciously. She expected to find him. In her heart she was determined to find him. What she would do when she saw him again she did not consider.But she was determined to find him. So she walked abstractedly about on the edge of the wood, with wide, vivid dark eyes, and a faint flush in her cheeks. She did not think. In strange mindlessness she walked hither and thither...As soon as supper was over, she rose again to go out, without saying why.She took her gun again and went to look for the fox. For he had lifted his eyes upon her, and his knowing look seemed to have entered her brain. She did not so much think of him: she was possessed by him. She saw his dark, shrewd, unabashed eye looking into her, knowing her. She felt him invisibly master her spirit. She knew the way he lowered his chin as he looked up, she knew his muzzle, the golden brown, and the greyish white. And again she saw him glance over his shoulder at her, half inviting, half contemptuous and cunning. So she went, with her great startled eyes glowing, her gun under her arm, along the wood edge. Meanwhile the night fell, and a great moon rose above the pine trees.23.At the beginning of the story, the fox seems to the all EXCEPT ____.A.cunningB.fierceC.defiantD.annoying24.As the story proceeds, March begins to feel under the spell of ____.A.the lightB.the treesC.the nightD.the fox25.Gradually March seems to be in a state of ____.A.blanknessB.imaginationC.sadnessD.excitement26.At the end of the story, there seems to be a sense of ____ between March and the fox.A.detachmentB.angerC.intimacyD.conflict27.The passage creates an overall impression of ____.A.mysteryB.horrorC.livelinessD.contemptTEXT DThe banners are packed, the tickets booked. The glitter and white overalls have been bought, the gas masks just fit and the mobile phones are ready. All that remains is to get to the parties.This week will see a feast of pan European protests. It started on Bastille Day, last Saturday, with the French unions and immigrantson the streets and the first demonstrations in Britain and Germany about climate change. It will continue tomorrow and Thursday with environmental and peace rallies against President Bush. But the big one is in Genoa, on Friday and Saturday, where the G8 leaders will meet behind the lines of 18,000 heavily armed police.Unlike Prague, Gothenburg, Cologne or Nice, Genoa is expected to be Europe’s Seattle, the coming together of the disparate strands of resistance to corporate globalisation.Neither the protesters nor the authorities know what will happen, but some things are predictable. Yes, there will be violence and yes, the mass media will focus on it. What should seriously concern the G8 is not so much the violence, the numbers in the streets or even that they themselves look like idiots hiding behind the barricades, but that the deep roots of a genuine new version of internationalism are growing.For the first time in a generation, the international political and economic condition is in the dock. Moreover, the protesters are unlikely to go away, their confidence is growing rather than waning, their agendas are merging, the protests are spreading and drawing in all ages and concerns.No single analysis has drawn all the strands of the debate together. In the meantime, the global protest “movement”is developing its own language, texts, agendas, myths, heroes and villains. Just as the G8 leaders, world bodies and businesses talk increasingly from the same script, so the protesters’ once disparate political and social analyses are converging. The long term project of governments and world bodies to globalise capital and development is being mirrored by the globalisation of protest.But what happens next? Governments and world bodies are unsure which way to turn. However well they are policed, major protests reinforce the impression of indifferent elites, repression of debate, overreaction to dissent, injustice and unaccountable power.Their options—apart from actually embracing the broad agenda being put to them —are to retreat behind even higher barricades, repress dissent further, abandon global meetings altogether or, more likely, meet only in places able to physically resist the masses.Brussels is considering building a super fortress for international meetings. Genoa may be the last of the European super protests.28.According to the context, the word “parties” at the end of the first paragraph refers to ____.A.the meeting of the G8 leadersB.the protests on Bastille DayC.the coming pan European protestsD.the big protest to be held in Genoa29.According to the passage, economic globalisation is paralleled by ____.A.the emerging differences in the global protest movementB.the disappearing differences in the global protest movementC.the growing European concern about globalisationD.the increase in the number of protesters30.According to the last paragraph, what is Brussels considering doing?A.Meeting in places difficult to reach.B.Further repressing dissent.C.Accepting the protesters’ agenda.D.Abandoning global meetings.SECTION B SKIMMING AND SCANNING (10 MIN)In this section there are seven passages with ten multiple choice questions. Skim or scan them as required and then mark your answers on your coloured answer sheet.First read the question.31.The main purpose of the passage is to ____.A.demonstrate how to prevent crimeB.show the seriousness of crimeC.look into the causes of crimeD.call for more government effortsNow go through TEXT E quickly to answer question 31.For three weeks, every night at 11 p.m., correspondents, officers and judges from justice courts, police departments and prisons, psychiatrists, criminologists, victims and even criminals in prisons made their appearance on TV to debate on a topic “Crime in the United States”.Indeed, crime has been disturbing the American people and has become a serious social problem just next to the unemployment problem. Some figures are terrifying: 1 of 4 Americans has been a victim of some kind of crimes; nearly 22 million crimecases occurred last year throughout the country. A simple arithmetic calculation indicates that on average, a crime is being committed in every 2 seconds. Now the Americans are living in a horrible environment. Their safety and property are threatened by various crimes: robbery, theft, rape, kidnapping, murder, arson, vandalism and violence.The most worrisome problem comes from the fact that about one third of crime cases were committed by the juvenile and 53% of criminals in jails are youngsters below 25. A poll indicates that about 73% of citizens said they avoided teenagers in streets, especially at night.To protect themselves from crime, according to a released figure, 52% of Americans keep guns at home. But some gun owners turn out to be potential criminals. Some people demand that strict law for gun control be enforced; but others oppose the ban of gun. No decision is in sight.Some experts said poverty, unemployment and racial discrimination are the cause of crime. They cited figures to show that 47% of crime cases were committed by the black, though they account for only about 12% of the population of the nation. Others argued that about 54% of convicted criminals came from families associated with these evils.The American state government and federal government spend billions of dollars each year in maintaining the police departments and jails. But police authorities complain that they have not sufficient well trained hands and advanced equipment to detect and stop crimes. Several cases of criminal insurgence were reported asa result of resentment at overcrowded prisons. Taxpayers complain that they pay more and more tax but receive less and less protection from crime for their lives and property.Though the host of the live TV programme made great efforts to search for a solution, so far no participant could put forward a measure that was approved by most of the attendants.TEXT FFirst read the question.32.What is the main topic of the following passage?A.Differences between modes of learning.B.Deficiencies of formal learning.C.Advantages of informal learning.D.Social context and learning systems.Now go through TEXT F quickly to answer question 32.The term “formal learning” is used in this paper to refer to all learning that takes place in the classroom, irrespective of whether such learning is informed by conservative or progressive ideologies. “Informal learning”, on the other hand, is used to refer to learning which takes place outside the classroom.These definitions provide the essential, though by no means sole, difference bet ween formal and informal learning. Formal learning is decontextualised from daily life and, indeed, as Scribner and Cole (1973:553) have observed, may actually “promote ways of learning and thinking which often run counter to those nurtured in practical daily life”. A characteristic feature of formal learning is the centrality of activities that are not closely paralleled by activities outside the classroom. The classroom can prepare for, draw on, and imitate the challenges of adult life outside the classroom, but it cannot, by its nature, consist of these challenges.In doing this, language plays a critical role as the major channel for information exchange. “Success” in the classroom requires a student to master this abstract code. As Bernstein (1969:152) noted, the language of the classroom is more similar to the language used by middle class families than that used by working class families. Middle class children thus find it easier to acquire the language of the classroom than their working class peers. Informal learning, in contrast, occurs in the setting to which it relates, making learning immediately relevant. In this context, language does not occupy such an important role: the child’s experience of learning is more holistic, involving sight, touch, taste, and smell—senses that are under utilised in the classroom.While formal learning is transmitted by teachers selected to perform this role, informal learning is acquired as a natural part of a child’s development. Adults or older children who are proficient in the skill or activity provide - sometimes unintentionally - target models of behaviour in the course of everyday activity. Informal learning, therefore, can take place at any time and is not subject to the limitations imposed by institutional timetabling.The motivation of the learner provides another critical difference between the two modes of learning. The formal learner is generally motivated by some kind of external。

2015年英语专业八级真题及解析

the mini-lecture, please complete the gap-filling task on ANSWER SHEET ONE and write NO MORE THAN
THREE WORDS for each gap. Make sure the word(s) you fill in is (are) both grammatically and semantically
10. A All of the money goes to schools. B. All of the money goes · to local education authorities.
C. Some of the money goes to schools.
D. Some of the money goes to colleges and universities.
You have THIRTY seconds to preview the questions. Now listen to Part One of the interview. Questions 1 to 5 are based on Part One of the interview. 1. A. . Doing what they have promised to schools. B. Creating opportunities for leading universities. C. Considering removing barriers for state school pupils. D. Reducing opportunities for state school pupils. 2. A. Universities are not working hard to accept state school pupils. B. The number of state pupils applying to Oxford fails to increase. C. The government has lowered state pupils' expectations. D. Leading universities are rejecting state school pupils. 3. A. State schools discourage applying to Oxford. 、 B. State system in secondary education needs improvement. C. Oxford has a preference for private school students. D. Private school pupils work harder than state school pupils. 4. A. Encouraging state pupils to go to Oxbridge. B. Encouraging Oxbridge to recruit more students. C. Raising expectations in the state system. D. Getting more young people into universities. 5. A. The number of state school pupils going to elite universities. B. The government's deficient policy on college enrolment. C. The numbers of state school children enrolled in Oxbridge. D. State school pupils' expectations of going to leading universities.

专业英语八级考试真题(1)_0

专业英语八级考试真题(1)2004年英语专业八级考试全真试卷Part Ⅰ Listening Comprehension (40 min)In Sections A,B and C you will hear everything ONCE ONLY. Listen carefully and then answer the questions that follow. Mark the correct answer to each question on your coloured answer sheet.SECTION A TALKQuestions 1 to 5 refer to the talk in this section. At the end of the talk you will be given 75 seconds to answer the questions.Now listen to the talk.1.A) the coordination based on individual actionsB) the number of individual participantsC) the necessity of individual actionsD) the requirements for participants2.A) individual B) combined C) distinct D) social3.A) the manner of language useB) the topic and content of speechC) the interactions between speaker and audienceD) the relationship between speaker and audience4.A) hide their real intentionsB) voice others’intentionsC) play double roles on and off stageD) only imitate other people in life5.A) the absence of spontaneityB) the presence of individual actionsC) the lack of real intentionsD) the absence of audienceSECTION B INTERVIEWQuestions 6 to 10 are based on an interview. At the end of the interview you will be given 75 seconds to answer the questions.Now listen to the interview.6.A) Students worked very hard.B) Students felt they needed a second degree.C) Education was not career oriented.D) There were many specialized subjects.7.A) To turn out an adequate number of elite for the society.B) To prepare students for their future career.C) To offer practical and utilitarian courses in each programme.D) To set up as many technical institutions as possible.8.A) require good educationB) are secondary to educationC) don’t call for good educationD) don’t conflict with education9.A) Shifting from one programme to another.B) Working out ways to reduce student number.C) Emphasizing better quality of education.D) Setting up stricter examination standards.10.A) those who can adapt to different professionsB) those who have a high flexibility of mindC) those who are thinkers, historians and philosophersD) those who possess only highly specialized skillsSECTION C NEWS BROADCASTQuestions 11 to 13 are based on the following news. At the end of the news item, you will be given 45 seconds to answer the questions.Now listen to the news.11. Which of the following regions in the world will witness thesharpestdrop in life expectancy?A) Latin America.B) Sub Saharan Africa.C) Asia.D) The Caribbean.12. According to the news, which country will experience small life expectancy drop?A) Burma.B) Botswana.C) Cambodia.D) Thailand.13. The countries that are predicted to experience negative population growth are mainly in ____A) Asia.B) Africa.C) Latin America.D) The Caribbean.14. The trade dispute between the European Union and the US was caused by ____.A) US refusal to accept arbitration by WTOB) US imposing tariffs on European steelC) US refusal to pay compensation to EUD) US refusal to lower import duties on EU products15. Who will be consulted first before the EU list is submitted to WTO?A) EU member states.B) The United States.C) WTO.D) The steel corporations.SECTION D NOTE-TAKING AND GAP-FILLINGIn this section you will hear a mini lecture. You will hear the lecture ONCE ONLY. While listening to the lecture, take notes on the important points. Your notes will not be marked, but you will need them to complete a 15minute gap filling task on ANSWER SHEET ONE after the mini lecture. Use the blank sheet for note taking.Part Ⅱ Proofreading and Error Correction (15 min)The passage contains TEN errors. Each indicated line contains a maximum of ONE error. In each case, only ONE word is involved. You should proofread the passage and correct it in the following way: For a wrong word, underline the wrong word and write the correct one in the blank provided at the end of the line.For a missing word, mark the position of the missing word with a “∧” sign and write the word you believe to be missing in the blankprovided at the end of the line.For an unnecessary word, cross the unnecessary word with a slash “/”and put the word in the blank provided at the end of the line.ExampleWhen ∧art museum wants a new exhibit, (1) anit never buys things in finished form and hangs (2) neverthem on the wall. When a natural history museumwants an [ZZ(Z]exhibition[ZZ)], it must often build it. (3)exhibitProofread the given passage on ANSWER SHEET TWO as instructed.One of the most important non-legislative functions of the U.S Congressis the power to investigate. This power is usually delegated to committees - eitherstanding committees, special committees set for a specific (1)____purpose, or joint committees consisted of members of both houses.(2)____Investigations are held to gather information on the need forfuture legislation, to test the effectiveness of laws already passed,to inquire into the qualifications and performance of members andofficials of the other branches, and in rare occasions, to lay the (3)____groundwork for impeachment proceedings. Frequently, committeesrely outside experts to assist in conducting investigative hearings (4)____and to make out detailed studies of issues. (5)____There are important corollaries to the investigative power. Oneis the power to publicize investigations and its results. Most (6)____committee hearings are open to public and are reported (7)____widely in the mass media. Congressional investigationsnevertheless represent one important tool available to lawmakers (8)____to inform the citizenry and to arouse public interests in national issues.(9)____Congressional committees also have the power to compeltestimony from unwilling witnesses, and to cite for contemptof Congress witnesses who refuse to testify and for perjurythese who give false testimony. (10)____Part ⅢReading Comprehension (30 min) (开始Part ⅢReadingComprehension (30 min)计时)In this section there are four reading passages followed by a total of fifteen multiple choice questions. Read the passages and then mark your answers on your coloured answer sheet.TEXT AFarmers in the developing world hate price fluctuations. It makes it hard to plan ahead. But most of them have little choice: they sell at the price the market sets. Farmers in Europe, the U.S. and Japan are luckier: they receive massive government subsidies in the form of guaranteed prices or direct handouts. Last month U.S. President Bush signed a new farm bill that gives American farmers $190 billion over the next 10 years, or $83 billion more than they had been scheduled to get, and pushes U.S. agricultural support close to crazy European levels. Bush said the step was necessary to “promote farmer indep endence and preserve the farm way of life for generations”. It is also designed to help the Republican Party win control of the Senate in November’s mid term elections.Agricultural production in most poor countries accounts for up to 50% of GDP, compared to only 3% in rich countries. But most farmers in poor countries grow just enough for themselves and their families. Those who try exporting to the West find their goods whacked with huge tariffs or competing against cheaper subsidized goods. In 1999 the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development concluded that for eachdollar developing countries receive in aid they lose up to $14 just because of trade barriers imposed on the export of their manufactured goods. It’s not as if the developing world wants any favours, says Gerald Ssendwula, Uganda’s Minister of Finance. “What w e want is for the rich countries to let us compete.”Agriculture is one of the few areas in which the Third World can compete. Land and labour are cheap, and as farming methods develop, new technologies should improve output. This is no pie in the sky speculation. The biggest success in Kenya’s economy over the past decade has been the boom in exports of cut flowers and vegetables to Europe. But that may all change in 2008, when Kenya will be slightly too rich to qualify for the “least developed count ry” status that allows African producers to avoid paying stiff European import duties on selected agricultural products. With trade barriers in place, the horticulture industry in Kenya will shrivel as quickly as a discarded rose. And while agriculture exports remain the great hope for poor countries, reducing trade barriers in other sectors also works: Americas African Growth and Opportunity Act, which cuts duties on exports of everything from handicrafts to shoes, has proved a boon to Africa’s manufacturers. The lesson: the Third World can prosper if the rich world gives it a fair go.This is what makes Bush’s decision to increase farm subsidies lastmonth all the more depressing. Poor countries have long suspected that the rich world urges rade liberalization only so it can wangle its way into new markets. Such suspicions caused the Seattle trade talks to break down three years ago. But last November members of the World Trade Organization, meeting in Doha, Qatar, finally agreed to a new round of talks designed to open up global trade in agriculture and textiles. Rich countries assured poor countries, that their concerns were finally being addressed. Bush’s handout last month makes a lie of America’s commitment to those talks and his personal devotion to free trade.16. By comparison, farmers ____ receive more government subsidies than others.A) in the developing worldB) in JapanC) in EuropeD) in America17. In addition to the economic considerations, there is a ____ motive behind Bush’s signing of the new farm bill.A) partisanB) socialC) financialD) cultural18. The message the writer attempts to convey throughout thepassage is that ____.A) poor countries should be given equal opportunities in tradeB) “the least developed country” status benefits agricultural countriesC) poor countries should remove their suspicions about trade liberalizationD) farmers in poor countries should also receive the benefit of subsidies19. The writer’s attitude towards new farm subsidies in the U.S. is ____.A) favourableB) ambiguousC) criticalD) reservedTEXT BOscar Wilde said that work is the refuge of people who have nothing better to do. If so, Americans are now among the world’s saddest refugees. Factory workers in the United States are working longer hours than at any time in the past half century. America once led the rich world in cutting the average working week—from 70 hours in 1850 to less than 40 hours by the 1950s. It seemed natural that as people grew richer they would trade extra earnings for more leisure. Since the 1970s,however, the hours clocked up by American workers have risen, to an average of 42 this year in manufacturing.Several studies suggest that something similar is happening outside manufacturing: Americans are spending more time at work than they did 20 years ago. Executives and lawyers boast of 80 hour weeks. On holiday, they seek out fax machines and phones as eagerly as Germans bag the best sun loungers. Yet working time in Europe and Japan continues to fall. In Germany’s engineering industry the working week is to be trimmed from 36 to 35 hours next year. Most Germans get six weeks’paid annual holiday; even the Japanese now take three weeks. Americans still make do with just two. Germany responds to this contrast with its usual concern about whether people’s aversion to work is damaging its competitiveness. Yet German workers, like the Japanese, seem to be acting sensibly: as their incomes rise, they can achieve a better standard of living with fewer hours of work. The puzzle is why America, the world’s richest country, sees things differently. It is a puzzle with sinistersocial implications. Parents spend less time with their children, who may be left alone at home for longer. Is it just a coincidence that juvenile crime is on the rise?Some explanations for America’s time at work fail to stand up to scrutiny. One blames weak trade unions that leave workers open to exploitation. Are workers being forced by cost cutting firms to toilharder just to keep their jobs? A recent study by two American economists, Richard Freeman and Linda Bell, suggests not: when asked, Americans actually want to work longer hours. Most German workers, in contrast, would rather work less. Then, why do Americans want to work harder? One reason may be that the real earnings of many Americans have been stagnant or falling during the past two decades. People work longer merely to maintain their living standards. Yet many higher skilled workers, who have enjoyed big increases in their real pay, have been working harder too. Also, one reason for the slow growth of wages has been the rapid growth in employment—which is more or less where the argument began. Taxes may have something to do with it. People who work an extra hour in America are allowed to keep more of their money than those who do the same in Germany. Falls in marginal tax rates in America since the 1970s have made it all the more profitable to work longer.None of these answers really explains why the century long decline in working hours has gone into reverse in America but not elsewhere (though Britain shows signs of following America’s lead). Perhaps cultural differences—the last refuge of the defeated economist—are at play. Economists used to believe that once workers earned enough to provide for their basic needs and allow for a few luxuries, their incentive to work would be eroded, like lions relaxing aftera kill. But humans are more susceptible to advertising than lions. Perhaps clever marketing has ensured that “basic needs”—for a shower with built in TV, for a rocket propelled car—expand continuously. Shopping is already one of America’s most popular pastimes. But it requires money—hence more work and less leisure.Or try this: the television is not very good, and baseball and hockey keep being wiped out by strikes. Perhaps Wilde was right. Maybe Americans have nothing better to do.20. In the United States, working longer hours is ____.A) confined to the manufacturing industryB) a traditional practice in some sectorsC) prevalent in all sectors of societyD) favoured by the economists21. According to the third paragraph, which might be one of the consequences of working longer hours?A) Rise in employees’working efficiency.B) Rise in the number of young offenders.C) Rise in people’s living standards.D) Rise in competitiveness.22. Which of the following is the cause of working longer hours stated bythe writer?A) Expansion of basic needs.B) Cultural differences.C) Increase in real earnings.D) Advertising.。

历年专业八级真题及答案汇总（免费）

历年专业八级真题及答案汇总（免费）2000年英语专业八级考试全真试卷听力Part ⅠListening Comprehension (40 min)SECTION A TALKQuestions 1 to 5 refer to the talk in this section .At the end of the talk you w ill be given 15 seconds to answer each of the following five questions. Now list en to the talk.1. The rules for the first private library in the US were drawn up by ___.A. the legislatureB. the librarianC. John HarvardD. the faculty members2. The earliest public library was also called a subscription library bec ause books ___.A. could be lent to everyoneB. could be lent by book storesC. were lent to students and the facultyD. were lent on a membership basis3. Which of the following is NOT stated as one of the purposes of free pu blic libraries?A. To provide readers with comfortable reading rooms.B. To provide adults with opportunities of further education.C. To serve t he community?s cultural and recreational needs.D. To supply technical literature on specialized subjects.4. The major difference between modem private and public libraries lies i n ___.A. readershipB. contentC. serviceD.function5. The main purpose of the talk is ___.A. to introduce categories of books in US librariesB. to demonstrate the importance of US librariesC. to explain the roles of different US librariesD. to define the circulation system of US librariesSECTION B INTERVIEWQuestions 6 to 10 are based on an interview. At the end of the interview you wil l be given 15 seconds to answer each of the following five questions. Now listen to the interview.6. Nancy became a taxi driver because ___.A. she owned a carB. she drove wellC. she liked drivers? uniformsD. it was her childhood dream7. According to her, what was the most difficult about becoming a taxi dr iver?A. The right sense of direction.B. The sense of judgment.C. The skill of maneuvering.D. The size of vehicles.8. What does Nancy like best about her job?A. Seeing interesting buildings in the city.B. Being able to enjoy the world of nature.C. Driving in unsettled weather.D. Taking long drives outside the city.9. It can be inferred from the interview that Nancy in a(n) ___ moth er.A. uncaringB. strictC. affectionateD. perm issive10. The people Nancy meets areA. rather difficult to pleaseB. rude to women driversC. talkative and generous with tipsD. different in personalitySECTION C NEWS BROADCASTQuestion 11 is based on the following news. At the end of the news item, you wil l be given 15 seconds to answer the question. Now listen to the news.11. The primary purpose of the US anti-smoking legislation is ___.A. to tighten control on tobacco advertisingB. to impose penalties on tobacco companiesC. to start a national anti-smoking campaignD. to ensure the health of American childrenQuestions 12 and 13 are based on the following news. At the end of the news item , you will be given 30 seconds to answer the questions. Now listen to the news.12. The French President?s visit to Japan aims at___.A. making more investments in JapanB. stimulating Japanese businesses in FranceC. helping boost the Japanese economyD. launching a film festival in Japan13. This is Jacques Chirac?s ___ visit to Japan.A. secondB. fourteenthC. fortiethD. forty-firstQuestions 14 and 15 are based on the following news. At the end of the news item , you will be given 30 seconds to answer the questions. Now listen to the news.14. Afghan people are suffering from starvation because ___.A. melting snow begins to block the mountain pathsB. the Taliban have destroyed existing food stocksC. the Taliban are hindering food deliveriesD. an emergency air-lift of food was cancelled15. people in Afghanistan are facing starvation.A. 160,000B. 16,000C. 1,000,000D. 100 ,000SECTION D NOTE-TAKING AND GAP-FILLINGFill each of gaps with ONE word. You may refer to your notes. Make sure the word you fill in is both grammatically and semantically acceptable.On Public SpeakingWhen people are asked to give a speech in public for the first time, they usually feel terrified no matter how well they speak in informal situations. In fact, public speaking is the same as any other form of (1)___ 1.___ that people are usually engaged in. Public s peaking is a way for a speaker to (2)___ his thoughts with the audience. Moreover, the speaker is free 2.___ to decide on the (3)___ of his speech. 3.___ Two key points to achieve success in public speaking: —(4)___ of the subject matter. 4.___ —good preparation of the speech. To facilitate their understanding, inform your audience beforehand of the (5)___ of your speech,and end it with a summary. 5.___ Other key points to bear in mind: —be aware of your audience through eye contact. —vary the speed of (6)___ 6.___ —use the microphone skillfully to (7)___ yourself in speech. 7.___ —be brief in speech; always try to make your message (8)___ 8.___ Example: the best remembered inaugural speeches of the US presidents are the (9)___ ones.9.___ Therefore, brevity is essential to the (10)___ of a speech. 10.___ 改错Part ⅡProofreading and Error Correction (15 min)The following passage contains TEN errors. Each line contains a maximum of ONE error. In each case, only ONE word is involved. You should proofread the passage and correct it in the following way. For a wrong word,underline the wrong word and wri te the correct one in the blank provided at the end of the line. For a missing word,mark the position of the missing word with a “∧” sign and write the word you believe to be missing in the blank provided at the end of the line. For an unnecessary word cross out the unnecessary word with a slash “/? and put the word in the blank provided at the end of the line.ExampleWhen∧art museum wants a new exhibit, (1) anit never／buys things in finished form and hangs (2) never them on the wall. When a natural history museumwants an exhibition, it must often build it. (3) exhibitThe grammatical words which play so large a part in English grammar are for the most part sharply and obviously different 1.___from the lexical words. A rough and ready difference which mayseem the most obvious is that grammatical wordshave“ lessmeaning”, but in fact some grammarians have called them 2.___“empty” words as opposed in the “full” words of vocabulary. 3.___But this is a rather misled way of expressing the distinction.4.___Although a word like the is not the name of something as man is,it is very far away from being meaningless; there is a sharp 5.___differen ce in meaning between “man is vile and” “the man isvile”, yet the is the single vehicle of this difference in meaning. 6.___Moreover, grammatical words differ considerably amongthemselves as the amount of meaning they have, even in the 7.___lexical sense. Another name for the grammatical words has been“little words”. But size is by no mean a good criterion for8.___distinguishing the grammatical words of English, when we consider that we have lexical words as go, man, say, car. Apart 9.___from this, however, there is a good deal of truth in what some people say: we certainly do create a great number of obscurity 10.___when we omit them. This is illustrated not only in the poetry ofRobert Browning but in the prose of telegrams and newspaper headlines.阅读理解APart ⅢReading Comprehension (40 min)SECTION A READING COMPREHENSION (30 min)In this section there are four reading passages followed by a total of fifteen multiple-choice questions. Read the passages and then mark your answers on your Coloured Answer Sheet. TEXT A Despite Denmark?s manifest virtues, Danes never talk about how proud they a re to be Danes. This would sound weird in Danish. When Danes talk to foreigners about Denmark, they always begin by commenting on its tininess, its unimportance , the difficulty of its language, the general small-mindedness and self-indulgen ce of their countrymen and the high taxes. No Dane would look you in the eye and say, “Denmark is a great country.” You?re suppo sed to figure this out for yo urself.It is the land of the silk safety net, where almost half the national budg et goes toward smoothing out l ife?s inequalities, and there is plenty of money f or schools, day care, retraining programmes, job seminars-Danes love seminars: t hree days at a study centre hearing about waste management is almost as good as a ski trip. It is a culture bombarded by English, in advertising, pop music, the Internet, and despite all the English that Danish absorbs—there is no Danish Academy to defend against it —old dialects persist in Jutland that can barel y be understood by C openhageners. It is the land where, as the saying goes,“ Fe w have too much and fewer have too little, ”and a foreigner is struck by the swe e t egalitarianism that prevails, where the low liest clerk gives you a level gaze, where Sir and Madame have disappeared from common usage, even Mr. and Mrs. It? s anation of recyclers—about 55 % of Danish garbage gets made into something new—and no nuclear power plants. It?s a nation of tireless pl anner. Trains run on time. Things operate well in general.Such a nation of overachievers —a brochure from the Ministry of Busines s and Industrysays, “Denmark is one of the world?s cleanest and most organize d countries, with virtually no pollution, crime, or poverty. Denmark is the most c orruption-free society in the Northern Hemisphere. ”So, of course, one?s heart l ifts at any sighting of Danish sleaze: skinhead graffiti on buildings(“Foreigne r s Out of Denmark! ”), broken beer bottles in the gutters, drunken teenagers slu mped in the park.Nonetheless, it is an orderly land. You drive through a Danish town, it co mes to an end at a stone wall, and on the other side is a field of barley, a nic e clean line: town here, country there. It is not a nation of jay-walkers. Peopl e stand on the curb and wait for the red light to change, even if it?s 2 a.m. a n d there?s not a car in sight. However, Danes don? t think of themselves as a w ai nting-at-2-a.m.-for-the-green-light people——that?s how they see Swedes and Ge r mans. Danes see themselves as jazzy people, improvisers, more free spirited than Swedes, but the truth is( though one should not say it)that Danes are very much like Germans and Swedes. Orderliness is a main selling point. Denmark has few n atural resources, limited manufacturing capability; its future in Europe will be as a broker, banker, and distributor of goods. You send your goods by container ship to Copenhagen, and these bright, young, English-speaking, utterly honest, highly disciplined people will get your goods around to Scandinavia, the Baltic States, and Russia. Airports, seaports,highways, and rail lines are ultramodern and well-maintained.The orderliness of the society doesn?t mean that Danish lives are less me s sy or lonely than yours or mine, and no Dane would tell you so. You can hear ple nty about bitter family feuds and the sorrows of alcoholism and about perfectly sensible people who went off one day and killed themselves. An orderly society c an not exempt its members from the hazards of life.But there is a sense of entitlement and security that Danes grow up with. Certain things are yours by virtue of citizenship, and you shouldn?t feel bad f o r taking what you?re entitled to, you?re as good as anyone else. The rules of th e welfare system are clear to everyone, the benefits you get if you lose your jo b, the steps you take to get a new one; and the orderliness of the system makes it possible for the country to weather high unemployment and social unrest witho ut a sense of crisis.16. The author thinks that Danes adopt a ___ attitude towards their country.A. boastfulB. modestC. deprecatingD. mysterious17. Which of the following is NOT a Danish characteristic cited in the pa ssage?A. Fondness of foreign culture.B. Equality in society.C. Linguistic tolerance.D. Persistent planning.18. The author?s reaction to the statement by the Ministry of Business a nd Industry is ___.A. disapprovingB. approvingC. noncommittalD. doubtful19. According to the passage, Danish orderliness ___.A. sets the people apart from Germans and SwedesB. spares Danes social troubles besetting other peopleC. is considered economically essential to the countryD. prevents Danes from acknowledging existing troubles20. At the end of the passage the author states all the following EXCEPT that ___.A. Danes are clearly informed of their social benefitsB. Danes take for granted what is given to themC. the open system helps to tide the country overD. orderliness has alleviated unemploymentTEXT BBut if language habits do not represent classes, a social str atification in to something as bygone as “aristocracy” and “commons”, they do still of cour se s erve to identify social groups. This is something that seems fundamental in the use of language. As we see in relation to political and national movements, lang uage is used as a badge or a barrier depending on which way we look at it. The n ew boy at school feels out of it at first because he does not know the fight wor ds for things, and awe-inspiring pundits of six or seven look down on him for no t being awa re that racksy means “dilapidated”, or hairy “out first ball”. Th e mi ner takes a certain pride in being “one up on the visitor or novice who calls t h e cage a “lift” or who thinks that men working in a warm seam are in their “u nde rpants” when anyone ought to know that the garments are called hoggers. The “i ns ider” is seldom displeased that his languagedistinguishes him from the “outsi der”.Quite apart from specialized terms of this kind in groups, trades and profe ssions, there are all kinds of standards of correctness at which mast of us feel more or less obliged to aim, because we know that certain kinds of English invi te irritation or downright condemnation. On the other hand, we know that other k inds convey some kind of prestige and bear a welcome cachet.In relation to the social aspects of language, it may well be suggested tha t English speakers fall into three categories: the assured, the anxious and the in different. At one end of this scale, we have the people who have “position” an d “status”, and who therefore do not feel they need worry much about their use o f English. Their education and occupation make them confident of speaking an uni mpeachable form of English: no fear of being criticized or corrected is likely t o cross their minds, and this gives their speech that characteristically unself c onscious and easy flow which is often envied.At the other end of the scale, we have an equally imperturbable band, speak ing with a similar degree of careless ease, because even if they are aware that their English is condemned by others, they are supremely indifferent to the fact . The Mrs Mops of this world have active and efficient tongues in their heads, a nd if we happened not to like the/r ways of saying things, well, we “can lump i t ”. That is their attitude. Curiously enough, writers are inclined to represent t he speech of both these extreme parties with -in? for ing. On the one hand, “w e?re goin? huntin?, my dear sir”; on the other, “we?re goin? racin? , ma te.”In between, according to this view, we have a far lessfortunate group, th e anxious. These actively try to suppress what they believe to be bad English an d assiduously cultivate what they hope to be good English. They live their lives in some degree of nervousness over their grammar, their pronunciation, and thei r choice of words: sensitive, and fearful of betraying themselves. Keeping up wi th the Joneses is measured not only in houses, furniture, refrigerators, cars, a nd clothes, but also in speech.And the misfortune of the “anxious” does not end with their inner anxiet y. Their lot is also the open or veiled contempt of the “assured” on one side of them and of the “indifferent” on the other.It is all too easy to raise an unworthy laugh at the anxious. The people t hus uncomfortably stilted on linguistic high heels so often form part of what is, in many ways, the most admirable section of any society: the ambitious, tense, inner-driven people, who are bent on“ going places and doing things”. The grea te r the pity, then, if a disproportionate amount of their energy goes into what Mr Sharpless called“ this shabby obsession” with variant forms of English—espe ci ally if the net result is(as so often)merely to sound affected and ridicul ous. “ Here”, according to Bacon, “is the first distemper of learning, when men study w ords and not matter …. It seems to me that Pygmalion? s frenzy is a good emble m …of this vanity: for words axe but the images of matter; and except they have l ife of reason and invention, to fall in love with them is to fall in love with a picture.”21. The attitude held by the assured towards language is ___.A. criticalB. anxiousC. self-consciousD. nonchalant22. The anxious are considered a less fortunate group because ___.A. they feel they are socially looked down uponB. they suffer from internal anxiety and external attackC. they are inherently nervous and anxious peopleD. they are unable to meet standards of correctness23. The author thinks that the efforts made by the anxious to cultivate w hat they believe is good English are ___.A. worthwhileB. meaninglessC. praiseworthyD. irrationalTEXT CFred Cooke of Salford turned 90 two days ago and the world has been beating a path to his door. If you haven?t noticed, the backstreet boy educated at Bla c kpool grammar styles himself more grandly as Alastair Cooke, broadcaster extraor dinaire. An honorable KBE, he would be Sir Alastair if he had not taken American citizenship more than half a century ago.If it sounds snobbish to draw attention to his humble origins, it should be reflected that the real snob is Cooke himself, who has spent a lifetime disguis ing them. But the fact that he opted to renounce his British passport in 1941 —just when his country needed all the wartime help it could get-is hardly a ma tter for congratulation.Cooke has made a fortune out of his love affair with America, entrancing l isteners with a weekly monologue that has won Radio 4 many devoted adherents. Pa rt of the pull is the developed drawl. This is the man who ga ve the world “midatlantic”, t he language of the disc jockey and public relations man.He sounds American to us and English to them, while in reality he has for decades belonged to neither. Cooke?s world is an America that exists largely in the imagination. He took ages to acknowledge the disaster that was Vietnam and e ven longer to wake up to Watergate. His politics have drifted to the right with age, and most of his opinions have been acquired on the golf course with fellow celebrities.He chased after stars on arrival in America, Fixing up an interview with Ch arlie Chaplin and briefly becoming his friend. He told Cooke he could turn him i nto a fine light comedian; instead he is an impressionist?s dream.Cooke liked the sound of his first wife?s name almost as much as he admir e d her good looks. But he found bringing up baby difficult and left her for the w ife of his landlord. Women listeners were unimpressed when, in 1996, he declared on air that th e fact that 4% of women in the American armed forces were raped showed remarkabl e self-restraint on the part of Uncle Sam?s soldiers. His arrogance in not allo w ing BBC editors to see his script in advance worked, not for the first time, to his detriment. His defenders said he could not help living with the 1930svalues he had acquired and somewhat dubiously went on to cite “gallantry” as chief a mo ng them. Cooke?s raconteur style encouraged a whole generation of BBC men to th i nk of themselves as more important than the story. His treacly tones were the mo del for the regular World Service reports From Our Own Correspondent, known as F OOCs in the business. They may yet be his epitaph.24. At the beginning of the passage the writer sounds critical of ___.A. Cooke?s obscure originsB. Cooke?s broadcastin g styleC. Cooke?s Ameri can citizenshipD. Cooke?s fondness of America25. The following adjectives can be suitably applied to Cooke EXCEPT ___.A. old-fashionedB. sincereC. arrogantD. popular 26. The writer comments o n Cooke?s life and career in a slightly ___ tone.A. ironicB. detachedC. scathingD. indifferentTEXT DMr Duffy raised his eyes from the paper and gazed out of his window on the cheerless evening landscape. The river lay quiet beside the empty distillery and from time to time a light appeared in some house on Lucan Road. What an end! Th e whole narrative of her death revolted him and it revolted him to think that he had ever spoken to her of what he held sacred. The cautious words of a reporter won over to conceal the details of a commonplace vulgar death attacked his stom ach. Not merely had she degraded herself, she had degraded him. His soul?s comp a nion! He thought of the hobbling wretches whom he had seen carrying cans and bot tles to be filled by the barman. Just God, what an end! Evidently she had been u nfit to live, withoutany strength of purpose, an easy prey to habits, one of th e wrecks on which civilization has been reared. But that she could have sunk so low! Was it possible he had deceived himself so utterly about her? He remembered her outburst of that night and interpreted it in a harsher sense than he had ev er done. He had no difficulty now in approving of the course he had taken.As the light failed and his memory began to wander he thought her hand tou ched his. The shock which had first attacked his stomach was now attacking his n erves. He put on his overcoat and hat quickly and went out. The cold air met him on the threshold; it crept into the sleeves of his coat. When he came to the pu blic house at Chapel Bridge he went in and ordered a hot punch.The proprietor served him obsequiously but did not venture to talk. There were five or six working-men in the shop discussing the value of a gentleman?s e s tate in County Kildare. They drank at intervals from their huge pint tumblers, and smoked, spitting often on the floor and sometimes dragging the sawdust over their heavy boots. Mr Duffy sat on his stool and gazed at them, without seeing o r hearing them. After a while they went out and he called for another punch. He sat a long time over it. The shop was very quiet. The proprietor sprawled on the counter reading the newspaper and yawning. Now and again a tram was heard swish ing along the lonely road outside.As he sat there, living over his life with her and evoking alternately the two images on which he now conceived her, he realized that she was dead, that s he had ceased to exist, that she had become a memory. He began to feel ill at ea se. He asked himself what else could he have done. He could not have lived with her openly. He had done what seemed to him best. How washe to blame? Now that s he was gone he understood how lonely her life must have been, sitting night afte r night alone in that room. His life would be lonely too until he, too, died, ce ased to exist, became a memory-if anyone remembered him.27. Mr Duffy?s immediate reaction to the report of the woman?s death wa s that of ___.A. disgustB. guiltC. griefD. compassion28. It can be inferred from the passage that the reporter wrote about the woman?s death in a ___ manner.A. detailedB. provocativeC. discreetD. sens ational29. We can infer from the last paragraph that Mr Duffy was in a(n) ___ mood.A. angryB. fretfulC. irritableD. remorseful30. According to the passage , which of the following statements is NOT t rue?A. Mr Duffy once confided in the woman.B. Mr Duffy felt an intense sense of shame.C. The woman wanted to end the relationship.D. They became estranged probably after a quarrel.阅读理解BSECTION B SKIMMING AND SCANNING ( 10 min)In this section there are seven passages followed by ten multiple -choice q uestions. Skim or scan them as required and then mark your answers on the Colour ed Answer Sheet.TEXT EFirst read the following question.31. In the passage Bill Gates mainly discusses ___.A. a person?s opportunity of a lifetimeB. the success of the computer industryC. the importance of educationD. high school education in the USNow go through TEXT E quickly and answer question 31.Hundreds of students send me e-mail each year asking for advice about educa tion. They want to know what to study, or whether i t?s OK to drop out of colleg e since that?s what I did.My basic advice is simple and heartfelt.“ Get the best education you can. Take advantage of high school and college. Learn how to learn.”It?s true that I dropped out of college to start M icrosoft, but I was at H a rvard for three years before dropping out-and I?d love to have the time to go b a ck. As I?ve said before, nobody should drop out of college unless they believe they face the opportunity of a lifetime. And even then they should reconsider.The computer industry has lots of people who didn?t finish college, but I 'm not aware of any success stories that began with somebody dropping out of high school. I actually don?t know any high school dropouts, let alone any successfu l ones.In my company?s early years we had a bright part-time programmer who threa tened to drop out of high school to work full-time. We told him no.Quite a few of our people didn?t finish college, but wediscourage droppin g out.College is n?t the only place where information exist. You can learn in a l i brary. But somebody handing you a book doesn?t automatically foster learning. Y o u want to learn with other people, ask questions, try out ideas and have a way t o test your ability. It usually takes more than just a book.Education should be broad, although it?s fine to have deep interests, too.In high school there were periods when I was highly focused on writing soft ware, but for most of my high school years I had wide-ranging academic interests . My parents encouraged this, and I?m grateful that they did.One parent wrote me that her 15-year old son “lost himself in the hole of t he computer. ”He got an A in Web site design, but other grades were sinking, sh e said.This boy is making a mistake. High school and college offer you the best ch ance to learn broadly-math, history, various sciences-and to do projects with ot her kids that teach you firsthand about group dynamics. It?s fine to take a dee p interest in computers, dance, language or any other discipline, but not if it j eopardizes breadth.In college it?s appropriate to think about specialization. Getting real e x pertise in an area of interest can lead to success. Graduate school is one way t o get specialized knowledge. Choosing a specialty isn?t something high school s t udents s hould worry about. They should worry about getting a strong academic sta rt.There?s not a perfect correlation between attitudes in high school and su c cess in later l ife, of course. But it?s a real mistake not to take the opportun i ty to learn a hu ge range of subjects,to learn to work with people in high schoo l, and to get the grades that will help you get into a good college.TEXT FFirst read the following question.32. The passage focuses on ___.A. the history and future of LondonB. London?s manufacturing skillsC. London?s status as a financial centrerD. the past and present roles of LondonNow go through T ext F quickly and answer question 32.What is London for? To put the question another way, why was London, by 190 0, incomparably the largest city in the world, which it remained until the bomba rdments of the Luftwaffe? There could be many answers to this question, but any history of London will rehearse three broad explanations. One is the importance of its life as a port. When the Thames turned to ice in February 1855,50,000 men were put out of work, and there were bread riots from those whose liveliboods h ad been frozen with the river. Today, the Thames could be frozen for a year with out endangering the livelihoods of any but a few pleasure-boatmen.The second major cause of London?s wealth and success was that it was easi l y the biggest manufacturing centre in Europe. At the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, Dutch looms and the stocking knitting frame were first pioneered in London. The vast range of London?s manufacturing skills is another fact; almos t any item you can name was manufactured in London during the days of its prosper ity. In 1851, 13.75 percent of the manufacturing work-force of GreatBritain was based in London. By 1961, this had dramatically。

专业英语八级(翻译)历年真题试卷汇编1(题后含答案及解析)

专业英语八级（翻译）历年真题试卷汇编1(题后含答案及解析) 题型有： 4. TRANSLATIONPART IV TRANSLATION1．我想不起来哪一个熟人没有手机。

今天没有手机的人是奇怪的，这种人才需要解释。

我们的所有社会关系都储存在手机的电话本里，可以随时调出使用。

古代只有巫师才能拥有这种法宝。

手机刷新了人与人的关系。

会议室门口通常贴着一条通告：请与会者关闭手机。

可是会议室里的手机铃声仍然响成一片。

我们都是普通人，并没有多少重要的事情。

尽管如此，我们也不会轻易关掉手机。

打开手机象征我们与这个世界的联系。

手机反映出我们的“社交饥渴症”。

最为常见的是，一个人走着走着突然停下来，眼睛盯着手机屏幕发短信。

他不在乎停在马路中央还是厕所旁边。

为什么对于手机来电和短信这么在乎?因为我们迫切渴望与社会保持联系。

正确答案：Cell phone has altered the relationship among people. There is usually a notice on the door of the meeting room, which reads, “ Please turn off your cell phone. “ However, phones ring now and then when the meeting goes on. We are but ordinary people and have few urgencies to tackle with. Nevertheless, we will not switch off our phones easily. Phones-on symbolizes our connecting with this world. Obviously, cell phones have been reflecting our “ thirst for socialization”. We are very familiar with the scene that a person suddenly stops his or her steps to edit short messages with eyes glued at the phone screen, not caring about his or her stopping in the road center or beside the restroom.解析：1．画线部分第一句中的“刷新”，在这里实际指“改变”，而并非我们平常所指的含义，因此不宜译成refurbished或renovated，翻译为altered或changed更恰当。

2004年英语专八试卷真题含答案

2004年英语专八试卷真题及答案PART ⅠLISTENING COMPREHENSIONSECTION A TALKLanguage is used for doing things. People use it in everyday conversation for transacting business, planning meals and vacations, debating politics, and gossiping. Teachers use it for instructing students, and comedians use it for amusing audiences. All these are instances of language use - that is activities in which people do things with language. As we can see, language use is really a form of joint action.What is joint action? I think it is an action that is carried out by a group of people doing things in coordination with each other. As simple examples, think of two people waltzing, or playing a piano duet. When two dancers waltz, they each move around the ballroom in a special way. But waltzing is different from the sum of their individual actions. Can you imagine these two dancers doing the same steps, but in separate rooms, or at separate times? So waltzing is, in fact, the joint action that emerges as the two dancers do their individual steps in coordination, as a couple.Similarly, doing things with language is also different from the sum of the speaker speaking and the listener listening. It is the joint action that emerges when speakers and listeners, or writers and readers, perform their individual actions in coordination, as ensembles. Therefore, we can say that language use incorporates both individual and social processes. Speakers and listeners, writers and readers, must carry out actions as individuals, if they are to succeed in theiruse of language. But they must also work together as participants in the social units I have called ensembles. In the example I mentioned just now, the two dancers perform both individual actions, moving their bodies, arms, and legs, and joint actions, coordinating these movements, as they create the waltz. In the past, language use has been studied as if it were entirely an individual process. And it has also been studied as if it were entirely a social process. For me, I suggest that it belongs to both. We cannot hope to understand language use without viewing it as joint actions built on individual actions. In order to explain how all these actions work, I'd like to review briefly settings of language use. By settings, I mean the scene in which language use takes place, plus the medium - which refers to whether language use is spoken or written. And in this talk, I'll focus on spoken settings.The spoken setting mentioned most often is conversation - either face to face, or on the telephone. Conversations may be devoted to gossip, business transactions or scientific matters, but they're all characterized by the free exchange of terms among the two participants. I'll call these personal settings. Then we have what I would call nonpersonal settings. A typical example is the monologue. In monologues, one person speaks with little or no opportunity for interruption, or turns by members of the audience. Monologues come in many varieties too, as a professor lectures to a class, or a student giving a presentation to a seminar. These people speak for themselves, uttering words they formulated themselves for the audience before them, and the audience isn't expected to interrupt. In another kind of setting which are called institutional settings, the participants engage in speech exchanges that look like ordinary conversation, but they are limited by institutional rules. As examples, we can think of a government official holding a news conference, alawyer cross questioning a witness in court, or a professor directing a seminar discussion. In these settings, what is said is more or less spontaneous, even though turns at speaking are allocated by a leader, or are restricted in other ways.The person speaking isn't always the one whose intentions are being expressed. We have the clearest examples in fictional settings. Vivian Leigh plays Scarlett O'Hara in "Gone with the Wind", Frank Sinatra sings a love song in front of a live audience, the speakers are each vocalizing words composed by someone else - for instance a playwright or a composer - and are openly pretending to be expressing opinions that aren't necessarily their own. Finally there are private settings when people speak for themselves without actually addressing anyone else, for example, I might explain silently to myself, or talk to myself about solving a research problem, or rehearsing what I'm about to say in a seminar tomorrow. What I say isn't intended to be recognized by other people, it is only of use to myself. These are the features of private settings.SECTION B TALKW: Good evening, I'm Nancy Johnson. The guest on our radio talk this evening is Professor Wang Gongwu. Hello, Professor Wang.M: Hello.W: Professor Wang, you're now professor emeritus of Australia National University, and in your long academic career, you've worn many hats as tutor, lecturer, department head, dean, professor, and vice chancellor. However, as I know, you're still very fond of youruniversity days as a student.M: That's right. That was in 1949. The university that I went to was a brand new university then, and the only one in the country at that time. When I look back, it was an amazingly small university, and we knew everybody.W: How did the students like you, for example, study then?M: We didn't study very hard, because we didn't have to. We didn't have all this fantastic competition that you have today. Mmm. We were always made to feel that getting a first degree in the Arts faculty was not preparation for a profession. It was a general education. We were not under any pressure to decide on our careers, and we had such a good time. We were left very much on our own, and we were encouraged to make things happen.W: What do you see as the most striking difference in university education since then?M: University education has changed dramatically since those days. Things are very specialized today.W: Yes, definitely so. And, in your subsequent career experience as an educator and later administrator in various institutions of higher education in Asia and elsewhere, Professor Wang, you have repeatedly noted that one has to look at the development of education in one particular country in a broad context. What do you mean by that?M: Well, the whole world has moved away from elite education in universities to meet the needs of mass education, and entering universities is no longer a privilege for the few. And universities today are more concerned with providing jobs for their graduates in a way that universities in our time never had to be bothered about. Therefore, the emphasis of university programs today is now on the practical and the utilitarian, rather than on a general education or on personal development.W: Do you think that is a welcome development?M: Well, I personally regret this development. But the basic bachelor's education now has to cater to people who really need a piece of paper to find a decent job.W: So you're concerned about this development.M: Yes, I'm very concerned. With technical changes, many of the things that you learn are technical skills, which don't require you to become very well educated. Yet, if you can master those skills, you can get very good jobs. So the technical institutions are going to be increasingly popular at the expense of traditional universitites.W: Professor Wang, let's look at a different issue. How do you comment on the current phenomenon because of the fees they pay?M: Well, once you accept students on financial grounds, one wonders whether you have to pass them as well. But this is the development in education that we have to contend with. Yet, if we are concerned about maintaining standards, what we can do is to concentrate onimproving the quality of education.W: Yes, you're right. A university is judged by the quality of education it offers. Professor Wang, let's turn to the future. What type of graduates, in your view, to universities of the future need to produce, if they are to remain relevant?M: I think their graduates must be able to shift from one profession to another, because they are trained in a very independent way. If you can do that, you raise the level of the flexibility of the mind. Today's rapid changes in technology demand this adaptability. And you see the best universities in the world are already trying to guarantee that their students will not only be technically trained, but will be the kind of people that can adapt to any changing situation.W: I guess many people would agree with you on that point. University education should focus on both personal and professional development of students. But still some might believe there is a definite place for education in a broader sense - that is, in personal intellectual development.M: No doubt about that. We need people who will think about the future, about the past, and also people who will think about society. If a society doesn't have philosophers, or people who think about the value of life, it's a very sad society indeed.W: Professor Wang, my last question: do you see any common ground in education between your generation and the young generation now?M: Adapting to new challenges is perhaps the true cornerstone of our generation's legacy to education. And the future of education in a country rests not so much on the construction of better buildings, labs, etc., but in the development of an ever adaptable mind.W: That's true. The essence of education is the education of the mind. Okay, thank you very much, Professor Wang, for talking to us on the show about the changing trends in education.M: You're welcomeSECTION CA new data shows that the global AIDS pandemic will cause a sharp drop in life expectancy in dozens of countries, in some cases, declines of three decades. Several nations are losing a century's progress in extending the length of life. Nations in every part of the world, 51 in all, are suffering declining life expectancies because of an increasing prevalence of HIV infection. The increase is occurring in Asia, Latin America, and the Carribbean, but is greatest in sub Saharan Africa, a region with only 10% of the world's population but 70% of the world's HIV infections. Seven African countries have life expectancies of less than 40 years. For example, in Botswana, where 39% of the adult population is infected with HIV, life expectancy is 39 years. But by 2010, it will be less than 27 years. Without AIDS, it would have been 44 years. Life expectancy throughout the Carribbean and some Central American nations will drop into the 60's by 2010, when they would otherwise have been in the 70's without AIDS. In Cambodia and Burma, they are predicted to decline to around 60 years old, to what otherwise would have been in the mid 60's. Even in countrieswhere the number of new infections is dropping, such as Thailand, Uganda, and Senegal, small life expectancy drop is forecast. Back in the early 1990's, we never would have suspected that population growth would have turned negative because of AIDS mortality. In less than 10 years, we expect that 5 countries will be experiencing negative population growth because of AIDS mortality, including South Africa, Mozambique, Lesotho, Botswana and Swaziland.Questions 14 and 15 are based on the following news. At the end of the news item, you will be given 30 seconds to answer the questions. Now listen to the news.The European Union has drafted a list of US products to be hit with import taxes in retaliation for tariffs the United States has imposed on European steel. EU member governments will review the list before the EU submits it to the World Trade Organization, which arbitrates international trade disputes. EU officials will not say which American products will be hit by the EU sanctions. But diplomats monitoring the most recent trans Atlantic trade dispute say they include textiles and steel products.Earlier this month, the Bush administration imposed tariffs of up to 30 percent on some steel imports, including European products.The EU has appealed to the World Trade Organization to get those duties overturned. But a WTO decision on the matter could take up to a year or more. EU officials say that, under WTO rules, the EU has the right to impose retaliatory measures in June. But they say the United States can avoid the EU's possible countermeasures if it pays more than two billion dollars in compensation to the EU for imposing thesteel tariffs in the first place. The officials say Washington could also escape retaliation by lowering U.S. import duties on other EU products.The Bush administration says it will not pay compensation.SECTION D TALKGood morning. Today's lecture will focus on how to make people feel at ease in conversations. I guess all of you sitting here can recall certain people who just seem to make you feel comfortable when they are around. You spend an hour with them and feel as if you've known them half your life. These people who have that certain something that makes us feel comfortable have something in common, and once we know what that is, we can go about getting some of that something for ourselves. How is it done? Here are some of the skills that good talkers have. If you follow the skills, they will help you put people at their ease, make them feel secure, and comfortable, and turn acquaintances into friends.First of all, good talkers ask questions. Almost anyone, no matter how shy, will answer a question. In fact, according to my observation, very shy persons are often more willing to answer questions than extroverts. They are more concerned that someone will think them impolite if they don't respond to the questions. So most skillful conversationalists recommend starting with a question that is personal, but not harmful. For example, once a famous American TV presenter got a long and fascinating interview from a notoriously private billionaire by asking him about his first job. Another example, one prominent woman executive confesses that at business lunches, "I always ask people what they did that morning. It's a dull question,but it gets things going." From there, you can move on to other matters, sometimes to really personal questions. Moreover, how your responder answers will let you know how far you can go. A few simple catchwords like "Really?" "Yes?" are clear invitations to continue talking.Second, once good talkers have asked questions, they listen for answers. This point seems obvious, but it isn't in fact. Making people feel comfortable isn't simply a matter of making idle conversation. Your questions have a point. You're really asking, "What sort of person are you?" and to find out, you have to really listen. There are at least three components of real listening. For one thing, real listening means not changing the subject. If someone sticks to one topic, you can assume that he or she is really interested in it. Another component of real listening is listening not just to words but to tones of voice. I once mentioned D.H. Lawrence to a friend. To my astonishment, she launched into an academic discussion of the imagery in Lawrence's works. Midway through, I listened to her voice. It was, to put it mildly, unanimated, and it seemed obvious that the imagery monologue was intended solely for my benefit, and I quickly changed the subject. At last, real listening means using your eyes as well as your ears. When your gaze wanders, it makes people think they're boring your, or what they are saying is not interesting. Of course, you don't have to stare, or glare at them. Simply looking attentive will make most people think that you think they're fascinating.Next, good talkers are not afraid to laugh. If you think of all the people you know who make you feel comfortable, you may notice that all of them laugh a lot. Laughter is not only warming and friendly, it's alsoa good way to ease other people's discomfort. I have a friend who might enjoy watching at gathering of other people who do not know each other well. The first few minutes of talk are a bit uneasy and hesitant, for the people involved do not yet have a sense of each other. Invariably, a light comment or joke is made, and my friend's easy laughter appears like sunshine in the conversation. There is always then a visible softening that takes place. Other people smile, and loosen in response to her laughter, and the conversation goes on with more warmth and ease.Finally, good talkers are onces who cement a parting. That is, they know how to make use of parting as a way to leave a deep impression on others. Last impressions are just as important as first impressions in determining how a new acquaintance will remember you. People who make others really feel comfortable take advantage of that parting moment to close the deal. Men have had it easier. They have done it with a smile, and a good firm handshake. What about women then? Over the last several years, women have started to take over that custom well between themselves or with men. If you're saying goodbye, you might want to give him or her a second extra hand squeeze. It's a way to say, I really enjoyed meeting you. But it's not all done with body language. If you've enjoyed being with someone, if you want to see that person again, don't keep it a secret. Let people know how you feel, and they may walk away feeling as if they've known you half their life.Okay, just to sum up. Today, we've talked about four ways to make people feel at ease in conversations. These skills are important in keeping conversations going, and in forming friendships later on. Of course, these skills are by no means the only ones we can use. the listis much longer. I hope you will use these four skills, and discover more on your own in your conversations with other people.Now you have two minutes to check your notes, and then please complete the 15 minute gap filling task on Answer Sheet One.This is the end of listening comprehension.试题Part ⅠListening Comprehension (40 min)In Sections A,B and C you will hear everything ONCE ONLY. Listen carefully and then answer the questions that follow. Mark the correct answer to each question on your colored answer sheet.SECTION A TALKQuestions 1 to 5 refer to the talk in this section. At the end of the talk you will be given 75 seconds to answer the questions. Now listen to the talk.1. The parallel between waltzing and language use lies in ____.A. the coordination based on individual actionsB. the number of individual participantsC. the necessity of individual actionsD. the requirements for participants2. In the talk the speaker thinks that language use is a(n) ____ process.A. individualB. combinedC. distinctD. social3. The main difference between personal and non-personal settings is in ____.A. the manner of language useB. the topic and content of speechC. the interactions between speaker and audienceD. the relationship between speaker and audience4. In fictional settings, speakers ____.A. hide their real intentionsB. voice others' intentionsC. play double roles on and off stageD. only imitate other people in life5. Compared with other types of settings, the main feature of private setting is ____.A. the absence of spontaneityB. the presence of individual actionsC. the lack of real intentionsD. the absence of audienceSECTION B INTERVIEWQuestions 6 to 10 are based on an interview. At the end of the interview you will be given 75 seconds to answer the questions. Now listen to the interview.6. What was education like in Professor Wang's days?A. Students worked very hard.B. Students felt they needed a second degree.C. Education was not career－oriented.D. There were many specialized subjects.7. According to Professor Wang, what is the purpose of the present－day education?A. To turn out an adequate number of elite for the society.B. To prepare students for their future career.C. To offer practical and utilitarian courses in each programme.D. To set up as many technical institutions as possible.8. In Professor Wang's opinion, technical skills ____.A. require good educationB. are secondary to educationC. don't call for good educationD. don't conflict with education9. What does Professor Wang suggest to cope with the situation caused by increasing numbers of fee-paying studentsA. Shifting from one programme to another.B. Working out ways to reduce student number.C. Emphasizing better quality of education.D. Setting up stricter examination standards.10. Future education needs to produce graduates of all the following categories EXCEPT ____.A. those who can adapt to different professionsB. those who have a high flexibility of mindC. those who are thinkers, historians and philosophersD. those who possess only highly specialized skillsSECTION C NEWS BROADCASTQuestions 11 to 13 are based on the following news. At the end of the news item, you will be given 45 seconds to answer the questions. Now listen to the news.11. Which of the following regions in the world will witness the sharpest drop in life expectancy?A. Latin America.B. Sub Saharan Africa.C. Asia.D. The Caribbean.12. According to the news, which country will experience small life expectancy drop?A. Burma.B. Botswana.C. Cambodia.D. Thailand.13. The countries that are predicted to experience negative population growth are mainly in ____ .A. Asia.B. Africa.C. Latin America.D. The Caribbean.Questions 14 and 15 are based on the following news. At the end of the news item, you will be given 30 seconds to answer the questions. Now listen to the news.14. The trade dispute between the European Union and the US was caused by ____. refusal to accept arbitration by WTO imposing tariffs on European steel refusal to pay compensation to EU refusal to lower import duties on EU products15. Who will be consulted first before the EU list is submitted to WTO?A. EU member states.B. The United States.C. WTO.D. The steel corporations.SECTION D NOTE-TAKING AND GAP-FILLINGIn this section you will hear a mini-lecture ONCE ONLY. While listening to the lecture, take notes on the important points. Your notes will not be marked, but you will need them to complete a 15-minutegap-filling task on ANSWER SHEET ONE after the mini-lecture. Use the blank paper for note-taking. Fill in each of the gaps with one word. You may refer to your notes. Make sure the word you fill in is both grammatically and semantically acceptable.Conversation SkillsPeople who usually make us feel comfortable in conversations aregood talkers. And they have something in common, i.e. skills to put people at ease.1. Skill to ask question1) be aware of the human nature: readiness to answer other's questions regardless of (1)____2) start a conversation with some personal but unharmful questions about one's (2)____ job.questions about one's activities in the (3)____3) be able to spot signals for further talk2. Skill to (4)____for answers1) don't shift from subject to subject-sticking to the same subject: signs of (5)____in conversation.2) listen to (6)____of voice - If people sound unenthusiastic, then change subject.3) use eyes and ears - steady your gaze while listening3. Skill to laughEffects of laughter:- ease people's (7)____- help start (8)____4. Skill to part1) importance: open up possibilities for future friendship or contact2) ways:- men: a smile, a (9)____- women: same as (10)____ now- how to express pleasure in meeting someone.(1) ______ (2) ______ (3) ______ (4) ______ ( 5 ) ______(6) ______ (7) ______ (8) ______ (9) ______ (10) ______PART II PROOFREADING AND ERROR CORRECTION (15 MIN)The following passage contains TEN errors. Each line contains a maximum of one error and three are free from error. In each case, only one word is involved. You should proofread the passage and correct it in the following way.For a wrong word, underline the wrong word and write the correct one in the blank provided at the end of the line.For a missing word, mark the position of the missing word with a “∧” sign and write the word you believe to be missing in the blank provided at the end of the line.For an unnecessary word, cross out the unnecessary word with a slash “／” and put the word in the blank provided at the end of the line.If the line is correct, place a V in the blank provided at the end of the lineExampleWhen ^ art museum wants a new exhibit, (1) anIt never buys things in finished form and bangs (2) never them on the wall. When a natural history museum (3) vwants an exhibition, it must often build it. (4) exhibit Proofread the given passage on ANSWER SHEET TWO as instructed. One of the most important non-legislative functions of the U.SCongressis the power to investigate. This power is usually delegated to committees - eitherstanding committees, special committees set for aspecific (1)____purpose, or joint committees consisted of members of both houses. (2)____Investigations are held to gather information on the need for future legislation, to test the effectiveness of laws already passed, to inquire into the qualifications and performance of members and officials of the other branches, and in rare occasions, to laythe (3)____groundwork for impeachment proceedings. Frequently, committees rely outside experts to assist in conducting investigative hearings (4)____and to make out detailed studies ofissues. (5)____There are important corollaries to the investigative power. Oneis the power to publicize investigations and its results.Most (6)____committee hearings are open to public and arereported (7)____widely in the mass media. Congressional investigations nevertheless represent one important tool available to lawmakers (8)____to inform the citizenry and to arouse public interests in national issues. (9)____Congressional committees also have the power to compel testimony from unwilling witnesses, and to cite for contemptof Congress witnesses who refuse to testify and for perjurythese who give false testimony. (10)____Part ⅢReading Comprehension (30 min)In this section there are four reading passages followed by a total of fifteen multiple-choice questions. Read the passages and then mark your answers on your colored answer sheet.TEXT AFarmers in the developing world hate price fluctuations. It makes it hard to plan ahead. But most of them have little choice: they sell at the price the market sets. Farmers in Europe, the U.S. and Japan are luckier: they receive massive government subsidies in the form of guaranteed prices or direct handouts. Last month U.S. President Bush signed a new farm bill that gives American farmers $190 billion over the next 10 years, or $83 billion more than they had been scheduled to get, and pushes U.S. agricultural support close to crazy European levels. Bush said the step was necessary to "promote farmer independence and preserve the farm way of life for generations". It is also designed to help the Republican Party win control of the Senate in November's mid term elections.Agricultural production in most poor countries accounts for up to 50% of GDP, compared to only 3% in rich countries. But most farmers in poor countries grow just enough for themselves and their families. Those who try exporting to the West find their goods whacked with huge tariffs or competing against cheaper subsidized goods. In 1999 the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development concluded that for each dollar developing countries receive in aid they lose up to。

2004年英语专业八级考试真题及答案-中大网校

2004年英语专业八级考试真题及答案总分：100分及格：60分考试时间：190分PART I LISTENING COMPREHENSION (35 MIN) SECTION A MINI-LECTURE(1)<Ahref="javascript:;"></A><Ahref="javascript:;"></A><Ahref="javascript:;"></A>(2)根据材料，请在（2）处填上最佳答案。

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SECTION B INTERVIEW & SECTION C NEWS BROADCAST(1)<Ahref="javascript:;"></A>(2)According to Professor Wang，what is the purpose of the present-day education?A. To turn out an adequate number of elite for the societB. To prepare students for their future careeC. To offer practical and utilitarian courses in each programmD. To set up as many technical institutions as possibl(3)In Professor Wang's opinion，technical skillsA. require good educatioB. are secondary to educatioC. don't call for good education,D. don't conflict with educatio(4)What does Professor Wang suggest to cope with the situation caused by increasing numbers of fee-paying students?A. Shifting from one programme to anotheB. Working out ways to reduce student numbeC. Emphasizing better quality of educatioD. Setting up stricter examination standard(5)Future education needs to produce graduates of all the following categories EXCEPTA. those who can adapt to different professionB. those who have a high flexibility of minC. those who are thinkers，historians and philosopherD. those who possess only highly specialized skill(6)<Ahref="javascript:;"></A>(7)According to the news，which country will experience small life expectancy drop?A. BurmB. BotswanC. CambodiD. Thailan(8)The countries that are predicted to experience negative population growth are mainly inA. AsiB. AfricC. Latin AmericD. The Caribbea(9)<Ahref="javascript:;"></A>(10)Who will be consulted first before the EU list is submitted to WTO?A. EU member stateB. The United StateC. WTD. The steel corporationPART ⅡREADING COMPREHENSION (30 MIN)(1)<Ahref="javascript:;"></A>(2)In addition to the economic considerations，there is a＿＿motive behind Bush’s signing of the new farm bill．A. partisanB. socialC. financialD. cultural(3)The phrase “whacked with” in the second paragraph probably meansA. hit hard bB. complied witC. amounted tD. abided b(4)The message the writer attempts to convey throughout the passage is thatA. poor countries should be given equal opportunities in tradB. “the least－developed country”status benefits agricultural countrieC. poor countries should remove their suspicions about trade liberalizatioD. farmers in poor countries should also receive the benefit of subsidie(5)The writer’s attitude towards new farm subsidies in the US isA. favourablB. ambiguouC. criticaD. reserve(6)<Ahref="javascript:;"></A><Ahref="javascript:;"></A>(7)According to the third paragraph，which might be one of the consequences of working longer hours?A. Rise in employees’ working efficiencB. Rise in the number of young offenderC. Rise in people’s living standardD. Rise in competitivenes(8)The author’s attitude towards some explanations for America’s longer working hours isA. slight approvaB. slight ambiguitC. slight disapprovaD. strong disapprova(9)Which of the following is the cause of working longer hours stated by the writer?A. Expansion of basic needB. Cultural differenceC. Increase in real earningD. Advertisin(10)The purpose of the passage is toA. make a comparison of Americans’working hours with those of Europeans’B. make an analysis of the factors behind Americans’ longer working hourC. criticize the economists’explanations for Americans’longer working hourD. prove what Oscar Wilde said is especially true about American worker(11)<Ahref="javascript:;"></A><Ahref="javascript:;"></A>(12)As the story proceeds．March begins to feel under the spell ofA. the lighB. the treeC. the nighD. the fo(13)Gradually March seems to be in a state ofA. blanknesB. imaginatioC. sadnesD. excitemen(14)At the end of the story，there seems to be a sense of between March and the fox．A. detachmentB. angerC. intimacyD. conflict(15)The passage creates an overall impression ofA. mysterB. horroC. livelinesD. contemp(16)<Ahref="javascript:;"></A>(17)According to the passage，Genoa is comparable to Seattle in thatA. they are both the meeting places of G8 leaderB. they are both worlfamous for the scenerC. they both suffered from massive protestD. they both saw demonstrations against climate chang(18)Which of the following is the G8 leaders’major concern?A. Their ridiculous images in GenoB. The number of protestors on the streetC. The real causes of international cooperatioD. The violent conflicts on the street(19)According to the passage，economic globalisation is paralleled byA. the emerging differences in the global protest movemenB. the disappearing differences in the global protest movemenC. the growing European concern about globalisatioD. the increase in the number of protester(20)According to the last paragraph，what is Brussels considering doing?A. Meeting in places difficult to reacB. Further repressing dissenC. Accepting the protesters’ agendD. Abandoning global meetingPART ⅢGENERAL KNOWLEDGE (10 MIN)(1)<Ahref="javascript:;"></A>The 1920s in the United States has been described as a period ofA. culture revivaB. loss of purposC. development in science and technologD. material success and spiritual frustratio(2)The largest river in America isA. the Ohio RiveB. the ColumbiC. the Mississippi RiveD. the Colorad(3)In the year of that Columbus discovered the New World．A. 1492B. 1592C. 1591D. 1491(4)The first English permanent settlement in America was founded in 1607 inA. New MexicB. HawaiC. CaliforniD. Virgini(5)Mark Twain’s works are characterized by all the following EXCEPTA. sense of humoB. egotisC. jokeD. tall tale(6)Which of the following is a tragedy written by Shakespeare?A. HamleB. DFaustuC. FrankensteiD. Sense and Sensibilit(7)Sons and Lovers was written byA. George Bernard ShaB. LawrencC. Virginia WoolD. James Joyc(8)In semantic studies，refers to the inherent meaning of the linguistic form．A. senseB. synonymC. homonymD. reference(9)The duality of the language isA. letters and soundB. sounds and symbolC. symbols and meaninD. sounds and meanin(10)Of all the speech organs，theis/are the most flexible．A. lipsB. mouthC. tongueD. vocal cordsPART ⅣPROOFREADING & ERROR CORRECTION (15MIN)(1)<Ahref="javascript:;"></A>(2)根据材料，请在（2）处填上最佳答案。

2004年英语专业八级考试全真试卷

2004年英语专业八级考试全真试卷我爱英语网 Part ⅠListening Comprehension (40 min)In Sections A,B and C you will hear everything ONCE ONL Y. Listen carefully and then answer the questions that follow. Mark the correct answer to each question on your coloured answerSECTION A TALKQuestions 1 to 5 refer to the talk in this section. At the end of the talk you will be given 75 seconds to answer the questions.Now listen to the talk.1.A) the coordination based on individual actions B) the number of individual participants C) the necessity of individual actions D) the requirements for2.A) individual B) combined C) distinct3.A) the manner of language useB) the topic anC) the interactions between speaker and audienceD) the relationship between speaker and audience4.A) hide their real intentionsC) play double roles on and off stageD) only im5.A) the absence of spontaneityB) the presence of individual actionsC) the lack of real intentionsSECTION B INTERVIEWQuestions 6 to 10 are based on an interview. At the end of the interview you will be given 75 seconds to answer the questions.Now listen to the interview.6.A) Students worked very hard.B) Students felt they needed a second degree.D) There were many s7.A) To turn out an adequate number of elite for the society.D) To set up as many technical instit8.A) require good educationB) are secondary to educationC) don’t call for good education9.A) Shifting from one programme to another.B) Working out ways to reduce studC) Emphasizing better quality of education.D) Setting up stricter examination standards.10.A) those who can adapt to different professionsC) those who are thinkers, historians and philosophersD) those who possess only highly specialized skillsSECTION C NEWS BROADCASTQuestions 11 to 13 are based on the following news. At the end of the news item, you will be given 45 seconds to answer the questions.Now listen to the news.11. Which of the following regions in the world will witness the sharpestdrop in life expectancy?A) Latin America.C) Asia.12. According to the news, which country will experience small life expectancy drop?A) Burma.B) Botswana.C) Cambodia.13. The countries that are predicted to experience negative population growth are mainly inA) Asia.B) Africa.C) Latin America.D)14. The trade dispute between the European Union and the US was caused by ____.A) US refusal to accept arbitration by WTOC) US refusal to pay compensation to EUD) US refusal to lower import duties on EU productsA) EU member states.C) WTO.SECTION D NOTE-TAKING AND GAP-FILLINGIn this section you will hear a minilistening to the lecture, take notes on the important points. Your notes will not be marked, but youEET ONE after the mini lecture. Use the blank sheet for note taking.Part ⅡProofreading and Error Correction (15 min)The passage contains TEN errors. Each indicated line contains a maximum of ONE error. In each case, only ONE word is involved. You should proofread the passage and correct it in the following way:For a wrong word, underline the wrong word and write the correct one in the blank provided at the end of the line.For a missing word, mark the position of the missing word with a “∧” sign an d write the word you believe to be missing in the blank provided at the end of the line.For an unnecessary word, cross the unnecessary word with a slash “/”and put the word in theWhen ∧art museum wants a new exhibit, (1) anit never buys things in finished form and hangs (2) neverthem on the wall. When a natural history museumProofread the given passage on ANSWER SHEET TWO as instructed.One of the most important non-legislative functions of the U.S Congressis the power to investigate. This power is usually delegated to committees -purpose, or joint committees consisted of members of both houses. (2)____officials of the other branches, and in rare occasions, to lay the (3)____and to make out detailed studies of issuThere are important corollaries to the investigative power. Onewidely in the mass media. Congressional innevertheless represent one important tool available to lawmakers (8)____to inform the citizenry and to arouse public interests in national issues.testimony from unwilling witnesses, and to cite for contemptthese who give false testimony. (10)____Part ⅢReading Comprehension (30 min) (开始Part ⅢReading Comprehension (30 min)计时)In this section there are four reading passages followed by a total of fifteen multiplequestions. Read the passages and then mark your answers on your coloured answer sheet.TEXT AFarmers in the developing world hate price fluctuations. It makes it hard to plan ahead. But most of them have little choice: they sell at the price the market sets. Farmers in Europe, the U.S. and Japan are luckier: they receive massive government subsidies in the form of guaranteed prices or direct handouts. Last month U.S. President Bush signed a new farm bill that gives Americanfarmers $190 billion over the next 10 years, or $83 billion more than they had been scheduled to get, and pushes U.S. agricultural support close to crazy European levels. Bush said the step was necessary to “promote farmer independence and preserve the farm way of life for generations”. It is also designed to help the Republican Party win control of the Senate in November’s midAgricultural production in most poor countries accounts for up to 50% of GDP, compared to only 3% in rich countries. But most farmers in poor countries grow just enough for themselves and their families. Those who try exporting to the West find their goods whacked with huge tariffs or competing against cheaper subsidized goods. In 1999 the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development concluded that for each dollar developing countries receive in aid they lose up to $14 just because of trade barriers imposed on the export of their manufactured goods. It’s not as if the developing world wants any favours, says Gerald Ssendwula, Uganda’s Minister of Finance. “What we want is for the rich countries to let us compete.”Agriculture is one of the few areas in which the Third World can compete. Land and labour are cheap, and as farming methods develop, new technologies should improve output. This is no piebeen the boom in exports of cut flowers and vegetables to Europe. But that may all change in 2008, when Kenya will be slight ly too rich to qualify for the “leastallows African producers to avoid paying stiff European import duties on selected agricultural products. With trade barriers in place, the horticulture industry in Kenya will shrivel as quickly as a discarded rose. And while agriculture exports remain the great hope for poor countries, reducing trade barriers in other sectors also works: Americas African Growth and Opportunity Act, which cuts duties on exports of everything from handicrafts to shoes, has proved a boon to Africa’s manufacturers. The lesson: the Third World can prosper if the rich world gives it a fair go.This is what makes Bush’s decision to increase farm subsidies last month all themore depressing. Poor countries have long suspected that the rich world urges rade liberalization only so it can wangle its way into new markets. Such suspicions caused the Seattle trade talks to break down three years ago. But last November members of the World Trade Organization, meeting in Doha, Qatar, finally agreed to a new round of talks designed to open up global trade in agriculture andtextiles. Rich countries assured poor countries, that their concerns were finally being addressed. Bush’s handout last month makes a lie of America’s commitment to those talks and his personal devotion to free trade.A) in the developing worldB) in JapanC) in Europe17. In addition to the e conomic considerations, there is a ____ motive behind Bush’s si gning of the new farm bill.A) partisanB) socialC) financialA) poor countries should be given equal opportunities in tradeB) “thD) farmers in poor countries should also receive the benefit of subsidies19. The writer’s attitude towards new farm subsidies in the U.S. is ____.A) favourableB) ambiguousC) criticalTEXT BOscar Wilde said that work is the refuge of people who have nothing better to do. If so, Americans are now among the world’s sa ddest refugees. Factory workers in the United States are working longer hours than at any time in the past halfcutting the average working week—from 70 hours in 1850 to less than 40 hours by the 1950s. It seemed natural that as people grew richer they would trade extra earnings for more leisure. Since the 1970s, however, the hours clocked up by American workers have risen, to an average of 42 this year in r is happening outside manufacturing: Americans are spending more time at work than they did 20 years ago. Executivess and phones as eagerly as Germans bag the best sun et working time in Europe and Japan continues to fall. In Germany’s engineering industry the working week is to be trimmed from 36 to 35 hours next year. Most Germans get six weeks’ paid annual holiday; even the Japanese now take three weeks. Americans still make do with just two.concern about whether people’s aversion to work is damaging its competitiveness. Yet German workers, like the Japanese, seem to be acting sensibly: as their incomes rise, they can achieve a better standard of living with fewer hours of work. The puzzle is why America, the world’s richest country, sees things differently. It is a puzzle with sinistersocial implications. Parents spend less time with their children, who may be left alone at home for longer. Is it just a coincidence that juvenile crime is on the rise?scrutiny. One blames weak trade unions that leave workers open to exploitation. Are workers being forced by costAmerican economists, Richard Freeman and Linda Bell, suggests not: when asked, Americans actually want to work longer hours. Most German workers, in contrast, would rather workless.l earnings of many Americans have been stagnant or falling during the past two decades. People work longer merely to maintain their living standards. Yet many higherincreases in their real pay, have been working harder too. Also, one reason for the slow growth of wages has been the rapid growth in employment—which is more or less where the argument began.allowed to keep more of their money than those who do the same in Germany. Falls in marginal tax rates in America since the 1970s have made it all the more profitable to work longer.rever se in America but not elsewhere (though Britain shows signs of following America’s lead). Perhaps cultural differences—the last refuge of the defeated economist—are at play. Economists used to believe that once workers earned enough to provide for their basic needs and allow for a few luxuries, their incentive to work would be eroded, like lions relaxing after a kill. But humans are more susceptible to advertising than lions. Perhaps clever marketing has ensured that “basic needs”—for a shower with built—expand continuously. Shopping is already one of America’s most popular pastimes. But it requires money—hence more work and less leisure.being wiped out by strikes. Perhaps Wilde was right. Maybe Americans have nothing better to20. In the United States, working longer hours is ____.A) confined to the manufacturing industryC) prevalent in all sectors of society21. According to the third paragraph, which might be one of the consequences of working longer hours?A) Rise in employees’ working efficiency.C) Rise in people’s living standards.22. Which of the following is the cause of working longer hours stated bythe writer?A) Expansion of basic needs.C) Increase in real earnings.TEXT CThe fox really exasperated them both. As soon as they had let the fowls out, inthe early summer mornings, they had to take their guns and keep guard; and thenagain as soon as evening began to mellow, they must go once more. And he was so sly. He slid along in the deep grass; he was difficult as a serpent to see. And he seemed to circumvent the girls deliberately. Once or twice March had caught sight of the white tip of his brush, or the ruddy shadow of him in the deep grass, and she had let fire at him. But he made no account of this.darkish, brownish green in the full light—for it was the end of August. Beyond, the naked, copperlong, brownish stalks all agleam, was full of light. The fowls were round about—the ducks were still swimming on the pond under the pine trees. March looked at it all, saw it all, and did not see it. She heard Banford speaking to the fowls in the distance—and she did not hear. What was she thinking about? Heaven knows. Her consciousness was, as it were, held back.eyes, and suddenly saw the fox. He was looking up at her. His chin was pressed down, and his eyes were looking up. They met her eyes. And he knew her. She was spellbound—she knew he knew her. So he looked into her eyes, and her soul failed her. He knew her, he has not daunted.over some fallen boughs, slow, impudent jumps. Then he glanced over his shoulder, and ran smoothly away. She saw his brush held smooth like a feather, she saw his white buttocks twinkle. And he was gone, softly, soft as the wind.her mouth, knowing it was nonsense to pretend to fire. So she began to walk slowly after him, in the direction he had gone, slowly, pertinaciously. She expected to find him. In her heart she was determined to find him. What she would do when she saw him again she did not consider. But she was determined to find him. So she walked abstractedly about on the edge of the wood, with wide, vivid dark eyes, and a faint flush in her cheeks. She did not think. In strange mindlessness she walked hither and thither...why.his knowing look seemed to have entered her brain. She did not somuch think of him: she was possessed by him. She saw his dark, shrewd, unabashedeye looking into her, knowing her. She felt him invisibly master her spirit. She knew the way he lowered his chin as he looked up, she knew his muzzle, the golden brown, and the greyish white. And again she saw him glance over his shoulder at her, half inviting, half contemptuous and cunning. So she went, with her great startled eyes glowing, her gun under her arm, along the wood edge. Meanwhilethe night fell, and a great moon rose above the pine trees.23. At the beginning of the story, the fox seems to the all EXCEPT ____.A) cunningB) fierceC) defiantA) the lightB) the treesC) the night25. Gradually March seems to be in a state of ____.A) blanknessB) imaginationC) sadnessA) detachmentB) angerC) intimacy27. The passage creates an overall impression of ____.A) mysteryB) horrorC) livelinessTEXT DThe banners are packed, the tickets booked. The glitter and white overalls havebeen bought, the gas masks just fit and the mobile phones are ready. All that remains is to get to the parties.Saturday, with the French unions and immigrants on the streets and the first demonstrations in Britain and Germany about climate change. It will continue tomorrow and Thursday with environmental and peace rallies against President Bush. But the big one is in Genoa, on Friday and Saturday, where the G8 leaders will meet behind the lines of 18,000 heavily armed police.nlike Prague, Gothenburg, Cologne or Nice, Genoa is expected to be Europe’s Seattle, the coming together of the disparate strands of resistance to corporate globalisation.nor the authorities know what will happen, but some things are predictable. Yes, there will be violence and yes, the mass media will focus on it. What should seriously concern the G8 is not so much the violence, the numbers in the streets or even that they themselves look like idiots hiding behind the barricades, but that the deep roots of a genuine new version of internationalism are growing.in the dock. Moreover, the protesters are unlikely to go away, their confidence is growing rather than waning, their agendas are merging, the protests are spreading and drawing in all ages and concerns.the global protest “movement” is developing its own l anguage, texts, agendas, myths, heroes and villains. Just as the G8 leaders, world bodies and businesses talk increasingly from the same script,so the protesters’ once disparatepolitical and social analyses are converging. The longproject of governments and world bodies to globalise capital and development is being mirrored by the globalisation of protest.unsure which way to turn. However well they are policed, major protests reinforce the impression of indifferent elites, repression of debate, overreaction to dissent, injustice and unaccountable power.—apart from actually embracing the broad agenda being put to them—are to retreat behind even higher barricades, repress dissent further, abandon global meetings altogether or, more likely, meet only in places able to physically resist the masses.building a super fortress for international meetings. Genoa may be the last of the European28. Acc ording to the context, the word “parties” at the end of the first paragraph ref ers to ____.A) the meeting of the G8 leaders29. According to the passage, economic globalisation is paralleled by ____.A)C) the growing European concern about globalisation30. According to thA) Meeting in places difficult to reach.C) Accepting the protesters’ agenda.D) Abandoning global meetings.(结束Part ⅢReading Comprehension (30 min)计时)SECTION B SKIMMING AND SCANNING (10 MIN) (开始SECTION B SKIMMING AND SCANNING (10 MIN)计时)In this section there are seven passages with ten multiple m or scan them as required and then mark your answers on your coloured answer sheet.TEXT E First read the question. 31.The main purpose of the passage is to ____.ses of crime D.call for more government effortsweeks, every night at 11 p.m., correspondents, officers and judges from justice courts, policedepartments and prisons, psychiatrists, criminologists, victims and even criminals in prisons made their appearance on TV to de bate on a topic “Crime in the United States”.been disturbing the American people and has become a serious social problem just next to the unemployment problem. Some figures are terrifying : 1 of 4 Americans has been a victim of some kind of crimes; nearly 22 million crimecases occurred last year throughout the country. A simple arithmetic calculation indicates that on average, a crime is being committed in every 2 seconds. Now the Americans are living in a horrible environment. Their safety and property are threatened by various crimes: robbery, theft, rape, kidnapping, murder, arson, vandalism and violence.most worrisome problem comes from the fact that about oneby the juvenile and 53% of criminals in jails are youngsters below 25. A poll indicates that about 73% of citizens said they avoided teenagers in streets, efrom crime, according to a released figure, 52% of Americans keep guns at home. But some gun owners turn out to be potential criminals. Some people demand that strict law for gun control be enforced; but others oppose the ban of gun. No decision is in sight.perts said poverty, unemployment and racial discrimination are the cause of crime. They cited figures to show that 47% of crime cases were committed by t he black, though they account for only about 12% of the population of the nation . Others argued that about 54% of convicted criminals came from families associated with these evils.billions of dollars each year in maintaining the police departments and jails. But police authorities complain that they have not sufficient wellstop crimes. Several cases of criminal insurgence were reported as a result of resentment at overcrowded prisons. Taxpayers complain that they pay more and more tax but receive less and less protection from crime for their lives and property.programme made great efforts to search for a solution, so far no participant could put forward a measure that was approved by most of the attendants.31. The main purpose of the passage is to ____.A) demonstrate how to prevent crimeC) look into the causes of crimeD) call for more government effortstopic of the following passage?TEXT F quickly toal learning” is used in this paper to refer to all learning that takes place in the classroom, irrespective of whether such learning is informed by conservative or progressive ideologies. “Informal learning”, on the other hand, is used to refer to learning which takes place outside the classroom.sole, difference bet ween formal and informal learning. Formal learning is decontextualised from daily life and, indeed, as Scribner and Cole (1973:553) have observed, may actually “promote ways of learning and thinking which often run counter to those nurtured in practical daily life”. A characteristic feature of formal learning is the centrality of activities that are not closely paralleledby activities outside the classroom. The classroom can prepare for, draw on, and imitate the challenges of adult life outside the classroom, but it cannot, by its nature, consist of these challenges.or information exchange. “Success” in the classroom requires a student to master this abstract code. As Bernstein (1969:152) noted, the language of the classroom is more similar to the language used by middle families. Middlelearning, in contrast, occurs in the setting to which it relates, making learning immediately relevant. In this context, language does not occupy such an important role: the child’s experience of learning is more holistic, involving sight, touch, taste, and smell—senses that are underper form this role, informal learning is acquired as a natural part of a child’s development. Adults or older children who are proficient in the skill or activity provide - sometime s unintentionally - target models of behaviour in the course of everyday activity. Informal learning, therefore, can take place at any time and is not subject to the limitations imposed by institutional timetabling.The motivation of the learner provides another critical difference between the two modes of learning. The formal learner is generally motivated by some kind of external goal such as parental approval, social status, and potential financial reward. The informal learner, however, tends to be motivated by successful completion of the task itself and the partial acquisition of adult status. 32. What is the main topic of the following passage?TEXT G First read the question. 33.The three approaches mentioned in the passage aim at ____.ule, it is essential that the poor’s productive capabilities be mobil ized and the conditions for developing these human resources be improved. In this con nection, German development policy has developed the following three approaches: —Structural reform: Structural reform is the preferred approach for reducing poverty because it eliminates the causes of poverty rather than just its symptoms. It is vital that economic, political and social conditions which can alleviate poverty be established at national and international levels. Efforts at international level focus on fair conditions for international trade and competition. At national level, the poor must be helped through structural reform such as the introduction of democratic government, options for independent private enterprise, decentralization and agricultural reform. Development policy tools for realizing such reforms include political dialogue, political advisory services, structural adjustment measures and personnel and material support for reform efforts in the government, business and administrative sectors.— Direct measures: Projects of this category are aimed at directly helping the poor and improving their living conditions or increasing their job options and earning potential. Of special importance are those projects which provide help for selfreducing poverty. The material support and advisory services offered by these projects reinforcedirect aid projects include the construction of simple housing by self—Indirect measures: A project’s beneficiarie s - its target group - are not only often difficult to identify clearly, they are also not necessarily all poor people. In these cases, the project in question must be integrated into one of the partner nation’s overall or sectorpolicies that aim at reducing poverty. A good illustration of this type of project is the use of advisory services to improve the tax system. Advising and upgrading the qualifications of personnel working in the fiscal system can lead to increased tax revenues which could be allocated for anti erman development assistance concentrates on the poorest nations and on projects to reduce poverty. In 1993, some 10 percent of the commitments Germany made for bilateral financial and technical assistance went to selfprojects aimed at reducing poverty. Basic needs projects comprised 48 percent of all projects and almost 30 percent of the commitments made for financial and technical assistance were allocated for the world’s least dev eloped countries (LDCs).33. The three approaches mentioned in the passage aim at ____.TEXT H First read the question. 34.What is the following passage mainly concerned with?cational facilities in AfriH quickly to answer question 34. Access to education facilities is inadequate in subAfrica. And women and girls there face greater disadvantages. They are often denied education asa university to help African women whose education was interrupted by either family commitments or financial constraints. The university will initially be in Harare, but will be relocated to Marondera, 80 kilometres east. The academics, Hope Sadza, former deputy commissioner of Zimbabwe’s Public Service Commission and Fay Chung, former Mini ster of Education, are to open the university this month. It will initially have 400 students.groups of 100 and placed in one of four faculties: social science, agriculture, environmental studies or science and technology. The university is for women aged 25 or older.university for women is more acute in Africa, where women are the poorest and most disadvantaged. When they do have access to education they often must endure sexual harassment. Most women drop out because they lack educational materials or the schools are inaccessible.“In Africa, women t ill the land and produce the bulk of the food, yet they have no understanding about marketing,” Sadza siad. “Agriculture is another area w here we can empower women.”tion andproduction, but have nocontrol over either the resources or policies.Z$32.5 million (US$591,000) in donations and pledges. The university will be open to students from across Africa. It will be the second wo men’s university - after Sudan’s Ahfad University - in Africa.34. What is the following passage mainly concerned with?A) EdD) W omen’s role in agricultural production.TEXT I First read the questions. 35.Which president advocated the lifting of the ban on women.A biologist. D.A psychologist.Nanjing Normal University (NJNU) have put forward insightful and inspiring education theories and practices, which have had a farhe balance between versatility andmany important reforms in the university. For the first time in China, he advocated the lifting of the ban on women teachers and opened adult training classes in summer vacations.first woman university president, emphasized normal education, regarding it as the parent engine and heavy industry of education.theoryEducator Xu Yangqiu was one of China’s earliest scholars to study American education theory.Professor Luo Bingwen devoted himself to normal education theory and Chinese and foreign education history, advocating that teachers should be models of virtue for the students so that their behaviour guides the students.psychological history. China Psychological History〖WTBZ〗, a book he authored, has made its mark in international psychological circles.ter of traditional Chinese painting, advised his students to read books systematically and selectively to rid themselves of worldliness, fickleness and pedantry. Zhang also pointed out that success comes largely from one’s own endeavours, but partly from circumstance.Biologist Chen Bangjie overcame formidable difficulties to collect plant specimen and becameven Nanjing Normal University a fine reputation.A) Xu Yangqiu.B) Wu Yifang.C) Tao Xingzhi.。