1、2000年专业英语八级真题试卷及答案与解析 SECTION A MINI-LECTURE Directions: In this section you sill 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
2、. 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. Use the blank sheet for note-taking. 1 On Public Speaking When people are asked to give a speech in public for the first time, they usually fee
3、l terrified no matter how well they speak in informal situations. In fact, public speaking is the same as any other form of 【 L1】 _ that people are usually engaged in. Public speaking is a way for a speaker to 【 L2】 _ his thoughts with the audience. Moreover, the speaker is free to decide on the 【 L
4、3】 _ of his speech. Two key points to achieve success in public speaking: 【 L4】 _ of the subject matter. good preparation of the speech. To facilitate their understanding, inform your audience before hand of the 【 L5】_ of your speech and end it with a summary. Other key points to bear in mind: bewar
5、e of your audience through eye contact. vary the speed of 【 L6】 _ use the microphone skillfully to 【 L7】 _ yourself in speech. be brief in speech; always try to make your message 【 L8】 _ Example: the best remembered inaugural speeches of the US presidents are the 【 L9】 _ ones. Therefore brevity is e
6、ssential to the 【 L10】 _ of a speech. 1 【 L1】 2 【 L2】 3 【 L3】 4 【 L4】 5 【 L5】 6 【 L6】 7 【 L7】 8 【 L8】 9 【 L9】 10 【 L10】 SECTION B INTERVIEW Directions: In this section you will hear everything ONCE ONLY. Listen carefully and then answer the questions that follow. Questions 1 to 5 are based on an int
7、erview. 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. 11 The rules for the first private library in the US were drawn up by （ A） the legislature. （ B） the librarian. （ C） John Harvard. （ D） the faculty members. 1
8、2 The earliest public library was also called a subscription library because books （ A） could be lent to everyone. （ B） could be lent by book stores. （ C） were lent to students and the faculty. （ D） were lent on a membership basis. 13 Which of the following is NOT stated as one of the purposes of fr
9、ee public libraries? （ A） To provide readers with comfortable reading rooms. （ B） To provide adults with opportunities of further education. （ C） To serve the communitys cultural and recreational needs. （ D） To supply technical literature on specialized subjects. 14 The major difference between mode
10、rn private and public libraries lies in （ A） readership. （ B） content. （ C） service. （ D） function. 15 The main purpose of the talk is （ A） to introduce categories of books in US libraries. （ B） to demonstrate the importance of US libraries. （ C） to explain the roles of different US libraries. （ D）
11、to define the circulation system of US libraries. 16 Nancy became a taxi driver because （ A） she owned a car. （ B） she drove well. （ C） she liked drivers uniforms. （ D） it was her childhood dream. 17 According to her, what was the most difficult about becoming a taxi driver? （ A） The right sense of
12、direction. （ B） The sense of judgment. （ C） The skill of maneuvering. （ D） The size of vehicles. 18 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
13、 the city. 19 It can be inferred from the interview that Nancy is a(n) _ mother. （ A） uncaring （ B） strict （ C） affectionate （ D） permissive 20 The people Nancy meets are （ A） rather difficult to please. （ B） rude to women drivers. （ C） talkative and generous with tips. （ D） different in personality
14、. SECTION C NEWS BROADCAST Directions: In this section you will hear everything ONCE ONLY. Listen carefully and then answer the questions that follow. At the end of each news item, you will be given 10 seconds to answer the questions. 21 The primary purpose of the US anti-smoking legislation is （ A）
15、 to tighten control on tobacco advertising. （ B） to impose penalties on tobacco companies. （ C） to start a national anti-smoking campaign. （ D） to ensure the health of American children. 22 The French Presidents visit to Japan aims at （ A） making more investment in Japan. （ B） stimulating Japanese b
16、usinesses in France. （ C） helping boost the Japanese economy. （ D） launching a film festival in Japan. 23 This is Jacques Chiracs _ visit to Japan. （ A） second （ B） fourteenth （ C） fortieth （ D） forty-first 24 Afghan people are suffering from starvation because （ A） melting snow begins to block the
17、mountain paths. （ B） the Taliban have destroyed existing food stocks. （ C） the Taliban are hindering food deliveries. （ D） an emergency air-lift of food was cancelled. 25 _ people in Afghanistan are facing starvation. （ A） 160,000 （ B） 16,000 （ C） 1,000,000 （ D） 100,000 26 1 Despite Denmarks manifes
18、t virtues, Danes never talk about how proud they are 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-indulgence of thei
19、r countrymen and the high taxes. No Dane would look you in the eye and say “Denmark is a great country.“ Youre supposed to figure this out for yourself. 2 It is the land of the silk safety net, where almost half the national budget goes toward smoothing out lifes inequalities, and there is plenty of
20、 money for schools, day care, retraining programs, job seminars - Danes love seminars: three days at a study center 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 a
21、bsorbs - there is no Danish Academy to defend against it - old dialects persist in Jutland that can barely be understood by Copenhageners. It is the land where, as the saying goes, “Few have too much and fewer have too little,“ and a foreigner is struck by the sweet egalitarianism that prevails, whe
22、re the lowliest clerk gives you a level gaze, where Sir and Madame have disappeared from common usage, even Mr. and Mrs Its a nation of recyclers - about 55% of Danish garbage gets made into something new -and no nuclear power plants. Its a nation of tireless planners. Trains run on time. Things ope
23、rate well in general. 3 Such a nation of overachievers - a brochure from the Ministry of Business and Industry says, “Denmark is one of the worlds cleanest and most organized countries, with virtually no pollution, crime, or poverty. Denmark is the most corruption-free society in the Northern Hemisp
24、here. So, of course, ones heart lifts at any sighting of Danish sleaze: skinhead graffiti on buildings (“Foreigners Out of Denmark!“), broken beer bottles in the gutters, drunken teenagers slumped in the park. 4 Nonetheless, it is an orderly land. You drive through a Danish town, it comes to an end
25、at a stone wall, and on the other side is a field of barley, a nice clean line: town here, country there. It is not a nation of jaywalkers. People stand on the curb and wait for the red light to change, even if its 2 a. m. and theres not a car in sight. However, Danes dont think of themselves as a w
26、aiting-at-2-a, m.-for-the-green-light people - thats how they see Swedes and Germans. 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 poi
27、nt. Denmark has few natural 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
28、 goods around to Scandinavia, the Baltic States, and Russia. Airports, seaports, highways, and rail lines are ultramodern and well-maintained. 5 The orderliness of the society doesnt mean that Danish lives are less messy or lonely than yours or mine, and no Dane would tell you so. You can hear plent
29、y 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 cannot exempt its members from the hazards of life. 6 But there is a sense of entitlement and security that Danes grow up with. Certain things
30、are yours by virtue of citizenship, and you shouldnt feel bad for taking what youre entitled to, youre as good as anyone else. The rules of the welfare system are clear to everyone, the benefits you get if you lose your job, the steps you take to get a new one; and the orderliness of the system make
31、s it possible for the country to weather high unemployment and social unrest without a sense of crisis. 26 The author thinks that Danes adopt a _ attitude towards their country. （ A） boastful （ B） modest （ C） deprecating （ D） mysterious 27 Which of the following is NOT a Danish characteristic cited
32、in the passage? （ A） Fondness of foreign culture. （ B） Equality in society. （ C） Linguistic tolerance. （ D） Persistent planning. 28 The authors reaction to the statement by the Ministry of Business and Industry is （ A） disapproving. （ B） approving. （ C） noncommittal. （ D） doubtful. 29 According to t
33、he passage, Danish orderliness （ A） sets the people apart from Germans and Swedes. （ B） spares Danes social troubles besetting other peoples. （ C） is considered economically essential to the country. （ D） prevents Danes from acknowledging existing troubles. 30 At the end of the passage the author st
34、ates all the following EXCEPT that （ A） Danes are clearly informed of their social benefits. （ B） Danes take for granted what is given to them. （ C） the open system helps to tide the country over. （ D） orderliness has alleviated unemployment. 31 1 But if language habits do not represent classes, a s
35、ocial stratification into something as bygone as “aristocracy“ and “commons“, they do still of course serve 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, language is used as a badge or a barrier
36、depending on which way we look at it. The new boy at school feels out of it at first because he does not know the right words for things, and awe-inspiring pundits of six or seven look down on him for not being aware that racksy means “dilapidated“, or hairy “out first ball“. The miner takes a certa
37、in pride in being “one up“ on the visitor or novice who calls the cage a “lift“or who thinks that men working in a warm seam are in their “underpants“ when anyone ought to know that the garments are called hoggers. The “insider“is seldom displeased that his language distinguishes him from the “outsi
38、der“. 2 Quite apart from specialized terms of this kind in groups, trades and professions, there are all kinds of standards of correctness at which most of us feel more or less obliged to aim, because we know that certain kinds of English invite irritation or downright condemnation. On the other han
39、d, we know that other kinds convey some kind of prestige and bear a welcome cachet. 3 In relation to the social aspects of language, it may well be suggested that English speakers fall into three categories: the assured, the anxious and the indifferent. At ones end of this scale, we have the people
40、who have “position“ and “status“, and who therefore do not feel they need worry much about their use of English. Their education and occupation make them confident of speaking an unimpeachable form of English. no fear of being criticized or corrected is likely to cross their minds, and this gives th
41、eir speech that characteristically unselfconscious and easy flow which is often envied. 4 At the other end of the scale, we have an equally imperturbable band, speaking with a similar degree of careless ease, because even if they are aware that their English is condemned by others, they are supremel
42、y indifferent to the fact. The Mrs. Mops of this world have active and efficient tongues in their heads, and if we happened not to like their ways of saying things, well, we “can lump it“. That is their attitude. Curiously enough, writers are inclined to represent the speech of both these extreme pa
43、rties with -in for lng. On the one hand. “Were goin huntin, my dear sir;“on the other, “Were goin racin, mate.“ 5 In between, according to this view we have a far less fortunate group, the anxious. These actively try to suppress what they believe to be bad English and assiduously cultivate what they
44、 hope to be good English. They live their lives in some degree of nervousness over their grammar, their pronunciation, and their choice of words, sensitive, and fearful of betraying themselves. Keeping up with the Joneses is measured not only in houses, furniture, refrigerators, cars, and clothes, b
45、ut also in speech. 6 And the misfortune of the “anxious“ does not end with their inner anxiety. Their lot is also the open or veiled contempt of the “assured“ on one side of them and of the “indifferent“ on the other. 7 It is all too easy to raise an unworthy laugh at the anxious. The people thus un
46、comfortably stilted on linguistic highheels 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 greater the pity, then, if a disproportionate amount of their energy goe
47、s into what Mr. Sharpless called “this shabby obsession“ with variant forms of English - especially if the net result is (as so often) merely to sound affected and ridiculous. “Here“, according to Bacon, “is the first distemper of learning, when men study words and not matter. It seems to me that Py
48、gmalions frenzy is a good emblem. of this vanity, for words are but the images of matter; and except they have life of reason and invention, to fall in love with them is to fall in love with a picture.“ 31 The attitude held by the assured towards language is （ A） critical. （ B） anxious. （ C） self-co
49、nscious. （ D） nonchalant. 32 The anxious are considered a less fortunate group because （ A） they feel they are socially looked down upon. （ B） they suffer from internal anxiety and external attack. （ C） they are inherently nervous and anxious people. （ D） they are unable to meet standards of correctness. 33 The author thinks that the efforts made by the anxious to cultivate what they believe is good English are （ A） worthwhile
