1、2004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 1. Skill to ask questions 1) be aware of the human nature:readiness to answer others questions regardles
3、s of 【 L1】 _ 2) start a conversation with some personal but unharmful questi ons e.g. questions about ones 【 L2】 _ job questions about ones activities in the 【 L3】 _ 3) be able to spot signals for further talk 2. Skill to 【 L4】 _ for answers 1) dont shift from subject to subject sticking to the same
4、 subject:signs of 【 L5】 _ in conversation 2) listen to 【 L6】 _of voice If people sound unenthusiastic, then change subject. 3) use eyes and ears steady your gaze while listening 3. Skill to laugh Effects of laughter: ease peoples 【 L7】 _ help start 【 L8】 _ 4. Skill to part 1) importance: open up pos
5、sibilities for future friendship or contact 2) ways: men: a smile, a 【 L9】 _ women: same as 【 L10】 _ now how to express pleasure in meeting someone 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 everythi
6、ng ONCE ONLY. Listen carefully and then answer the questions that follow. 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. 11 The parallel between waltzing and language us
7、e lies in _. （ A） the coordination based on individual actions. （ B） the number of individual participants. （ C） the necessity of individual actions. （ D） the requirements for participants. 12 In the talk the speaker thinks that language use is a(n) _ process. （ A） individual （ B） combined （ C） dist
8、inct （ D） social 13 The main difference between personal and nonpersonal settings is in _. （ A） the manner of language use. （ B） the topic and content of speech. （ C） the interactions between speaker and audience. （ D） the relationship between speaker and audience. 14 In fictional settings, speakers
9、 _. （ A） hide their real intentions. （ B） voice others intentions. （ C） play double roles on and off stage. （ D） only imitate other people in life. 15 Compared with other types of settings, the main feature of private setting is _. （ A） the absence of spontaneity. （ B） the presence of individual act
10、ions. （ C） the lack of real intentions （ D） the absence of audience. 16 What was education like in Professor Wangs 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. 17 According to
11、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 possib
12、le. 18 In Professor Wangs opinion, technical skills _. （ A） require good education. （ B） are secondary to education. （ C） dont call for good education. （ D） dont conflict with education. 19 What does Professor Wang suggest to cope with the situation caused by increasing numbers of fee-paying student
13、s? （ A） Shifting from one programme to another. （ B） Working our ways to reduce student number. （ C） Emphasizing better quality of education. （ D） Setting up stricter examination standards. 20 Future education needs to produce graduates of all the following categories EXCEPT _. （ A） those who can ad
14、apt to different professions. （ B） those who have a high flexibility of mind. （ C） those who are thinkers, historians and philosophers. （ D） those who possess only highly specialized skills. SECTION C NEWS BROADCAST Directions: In this section you will hear everything ONCE ONLY. Listen carefully and
15、 then answer the questions that follow. At the end of each news item, you will be given 10 seconds to answer the questions. 21 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. 22
16、 According to the news, which country will experience small life expectancy drop? （ A） Burma. （ B） Botswana. （ C） Cambodia. （ D） Thailand. 23 The countries that are predicted to experience negative population growth are mainly in _. （ A） Asia. （ B） Africa. （ C） Latin America. （ D） The Caribbean. 24
17、The trade dispute between the European Union and the US was caused by _. （ A） US refusal to accept arbitration by WTO. （ B） US imposing tariffs on European steel. （ C） US refusal to pay compensation to EU. （ D） US refusal to lower import duties on EU products. 25 Who will be consulted first before t
18、he EU list is submitted to WTO? （ A） EU member states. （ B） The United States. （ C） WTO. （ D） The steel corporations. 26 1 Farmers 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
19、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 schedul
20、ed 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 cotrol of the Senate in Novembers mid-term electi
21、ons. 2 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 competi
22、ng 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. Its not as if the developing wor
23、ld wants any favours, says Gerald Ssendawula, Ugandas Minister of Finance. “What we want is for the rich countries to let us compete.“ 3 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 improv
24、e output. This is no pie-in-the-sky speculation. The biggest success in Kenyas 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
25、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
26、 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 Africas manufacturers. The lesson: the Third World can prosper if the rich world gives it a fair go. 4 This is what mak
27、es Bushs 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 No
28、vember 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. Bushs handout last month makes a lie o
29、f Americas commitment to those talks and his personal devotion to free trade. 26 By comparison, farmers _ receive more government subsidies than others. （ A） in the developing world （ B） in Japan （ C） in Europe （ D） in America 27 In addition to the economic considerations, there is a_ motive behind
30、Bushs signing of the new farm bill. （ A） partisan （ B） social （ C） financial （ D） cultural 28 The message the writer attempts to convey throughout the passage is that _. （ A） poor countries should be given equal opportunities in trade. （ B） the least-developed country status benefits agricultural co
31、untries. （ C） poor countries should remove their suspicions about trade liberalization. （ D） farmers in poor countries should also receive the benefit of subsidies. 29 The writers attitude towards new farm subsidies in the U. S. is _. （ A） favourable. （ B） ambiguous. （ C） critical. （ D） reserved. 30
32、 1 Oscar Wilde said that work is the refuge of people who have nothing better to do. If so, Americans are now among the worlds 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 ave
33、rage working weekfrom 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. 2 S
34、everal 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
35、 working time in Europe and Japan continues to fall. In Germanys 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. 3 Germany responds to t
36、his contrast with its usual concern about whether peoples 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
37、worlds 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? 4 Some explanations for Americas time at work fail to
38、 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
39、want to work longer hours. Most German workers, in contrast, would rather work less. 5 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
40、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. 6 Taxes may have something to do with it.
41、 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. 7 None of these answers really explains why the century-long decline in
42、 working hours has gone into reverse in America but not elsewhere (though Britain shows signs of following Americas lead). Perhaps cultural differences-the last refuge of the defeated economistare at play. Economists used to believe that once workers earned enough to provide for their basic needs an
43、d 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. Sho
44、pping is already one of Americas most popular pastimes. But it requires money-hence more work and less leisure. 8 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. 30 In the Unite
45、d States, working longer hours is _. （ A） confined to the manufacturing industry. （ B） a traditional practice in some sectors. （ C） prevalent in all sectors of society. （ D） favoured by the economists. 31 According to the third paragraph, which might be one of the consequences of working longer hour
46、s? （ A） Rise in employees working efficiency. （ B） Rise in the number of young offenders. （ C） Rise in peoples living standards. （ D） Rise in competitiveness. 32 Which of the following is the cause of working longer hours stated by the writer? （ A） Expansion of basic needs. （ B） Cultural differences
47、. （ C） Increase in real earnings. （ D） Advertising. 33 1 The 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
48、. 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.
49、2 The trees on the wood-edge were a darkish, brownish green in the full lightfor 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
