1、专业英语八级模拟试卷 18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 When Germany invaded Poland, Britain and France declared war on Germany. Then the U.S 【 1】 _in debate. Roo
3、sevelt asked congress to amend the 【 2】 _Act in order to help the “non-aggressive 【 3】 _.“ Most Americans now saw Hitler as a great danger to the world. Before the Hitler-Stalin pact in August, the U.S. Communist Party had favored changing the Act. Now they joined the 【 4】 _and others railing agains
4、t U.S. involvement in Europes war. The Party 【 5】 _newspaper, the Daily Worker, editorialized that the people of the world wanted peace, and the Daily Worker was suggesting that atrocities by Germanys National Socialists were no worse than British atrocities in India. In the spring of 1940, Churchil
5、l was complaining in 【 6】 _that the United States was giving Britain too little help, and isolationists in the U.S. were continuing their campaign against involvement abroad. Americans were surprised by Hitlers move westward, especially against peaceful Norway. In responding to Hitlers new invasions
6、, Roosevelt spoke of Americas anger and 【 7】 _isolationism again. In July, 1940, the Battle of Britain began. In the United States an aroused public rushed to buy 【 8】 _ “God Bless America“ began being sung at sporting events, school meetings and at gatherings for bingo. In late October the U.S. beg
7、an 【 9】 _men into the military. But Charles Lindbergh believed that if the United States defeated Germany, it would result in the 【 10】 _of all European civilization. 1 【 1】 2 【 2】 3 【 3】 4 【 4】 5 【 5】 6 【 6】 7 【 7】 8 【 8】 9 【 9】 10 【 10】 SECTION B INTERVIEW Directions: In this section you will hear
8、 everything 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 Victoria, the interviewee, works as
9、a _. （ A） news announcer （ B） news reporter （ C） news editor （ D） assistant editor 12 News subs means _. （ A） they refine and correct and sort out the news stories （ B） they read the news stories on the air （ C） they are in charge of reporting news event （ D） they collect and write the news stories
10、13 Victoria deals with those sad news by _. （ A） taking a couple of seconds to catch a glimpse of news report and putting a sign on it （ B） starting off on a bright tone on a story and then change to a sad tone quickly （ C） putting a small cross at the top of sad news （ D） reading the sad news slowl
11、y 14 Victoria does NOT agree that _. （ A） small changes should be made on news reports to read easily （ B） writing for speech is similar to writing for newspaper （ C） before reading the news, announcer should absorb the news in advance （ D） announcer should overcome the feeling of panic when reading
12、 something difficult 15 When pronouncing strange foreign names, Victoria usually _. （ A） talks with editorial staff （ B） takes advice from Pronunciation Unit （ C） goes to embassies or tourist bureaus （ D） makes a direct phone call to BBCs external services SECTION C NEWS BROADCAST Directions: In thi
13、s 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. 16 Which of the following statements is TRUE? （ A） Government officials say they fear UNITA rebels will take c
14、ontrol of border areas with Congo Kinshasa. （ B） UNITAs military vehicles are entering the Angolan border area every day. （ C） Explosive devices will be buried in that area in order to prevent the UNITA rebels from entering the region. （ D） Government troops have fled the cities of Malanje and Kuito
15、. 17 What is the purpose of Pope John Pauls visit to Germany? （ A） To solve the conflict between Church and Germany. （ B） To defend the churchs role during the Hitler regime. （ C） To relax his opposition to birth control. （ D） To ease the historic division between Catholics and Protestants. 18 How m
16、any Catholics in Germany signed a petition last year to relax the Popes opposition to birth-control? （ A） One million. （ B） Ten thousand. （ C） One thousand. （ D） One hundred. 19 What will probably happen to the British diplomat in Congo Kinshasa? （ A） He will be expelled from Congo. （ B） He will be
17、released immediately. （ C） He will be serving many years of imprisonment in Congo. （ D） He will be detained in a police station if he doesnt admit his spying activities. 20 What did Britain do after its diplomat was arrested? （ A） It appealed to neighboring countries for help. （ B） It threatened eco
18、nomic restriction against Congo, Kinshasa. （ C） It called for the Congolese government to release its personnel. （ D） It called for the Congolese government to guarantee the safety of its embassy personnel. 21 In place of the king, two chief executives were chosen annually by the whole body of citiz
19、ens. These were known as praetors, or leaders, but later received the title of consuls. The participation of a colleague in the exercise of supreme power and the limitation of the tenure to one year prevented the chief magistrate from becoming autocratic. The character of the Senate was altered by t
20、he enrollment of plebeian members, known as conscripti, and hence the official designation of the senators thereafter was patres conscripti (conscript fathers). As yet, only patricians were eligible for the magistracies, and the discontent of the plebs led to a violent struggle between the two order
21、s and the gradual removal of the social and political disabilities under which the plebs had labored. In 494 BC a secession of plebeian soldiers led to the institution of the tribuni plebis, who were elected annually as protectors of the plebs; they had the power to veto the acts of patrician magist
22、rates, and thus served as the leaders of the plebs in the struggles with the patricians. The appointment of the decemvirate, a commission of ten men, in 451 BC resulted in the drawing up of a famous code of laws. In 445 BC, under the Canuleian law, marriages between patricians and members of the ple
23、bs were declared legally valid. By the Licinian-Sextian laws, passed in 367 BC, it Mas provided that one of the two consuls should thenceforth be plebeian. The other magistracies were gradually opened to the plebs: in 356 BC the dictatorship, an extraordinary magistracy, the incumbent of which was a
24、ppointed in times of great danger; in 350 BC, the censorship; in 337 BC, the praetorship; and in 300 BC, the pontifical and augural colleges. These political changes gave rise to a new aristocracy, composed of patrician and wealthy plebeian families, and admission to the Senate became almost the her
25、editary privilege of these families. The Senate, which had originally possessed little administrative power, became a powerful governing body, dealing with matters of war and peace, foreign alliances, the founding of colonies, and the handling of the state finances. The rise of this new nobilitas br
26、ought to an end the struggles between the two orders, but the position of the poorer plebeian families was not improved, and the marked contrast between the conditions of the rich and the poor led to struggles in the later Republic between the aristocratic party and the popular party. The external h
27、istory of Rome during this period was chiefly military. Rome had acquired the leadership of Latium before the close of the regal period. Assisted by their allies, the Romans fought wars against the Etruscans, the Volscians, and the Aequians. The military policy of Rome became more aggressive in the
28、60 years between 449 and 390 BC. The defeat of the Romans at Allia and the capture and burning of Rome by the Gauls under the leadership of the chieftain Brennus in 390 BC were great disasters, but their effect was temporary. The capture of the Etruscan city of Veil in 396 BC by the soldier and stat
29、esman Marcus Furius Camillus spelled the beginning of the end for Etruscan independence. Other Etruscan cities hastened to make peace, and by the middle of the 4th century BC all southern Etruria was kept in check by Roman garrisons and denationalized by an influx of Roman colonists. Victories over
30、the Volscians, the Latins, and the Hernicans gave the Romans control of central Italy and brought them into conflict with the Samnites of southern Italy, who were defeated in a series of three wars, extending from 343 to 290 BC. A revolt of the Latins and Volscians was put down, and in 338 BC the La
31、tin League, a long-established confederation of the cities of Latium, was dissolved. A powerful coalition was at this time formed against Rome, consisting of Etruscans, Umbrians, and Gauls in the north, and of Lucanians, Bruttians, and Samnites in the south; this coalition endangered the power of Ro
32、me, but the northern confederacy was defeated in 283 BC and the southern states soon after. 21 Which one is not true about the magistrate? （ A） It was difficult for the chief magistrate to become a dictator （ B） Any Roman had the chance to become the magistrate （ C） The plebs couldnt hold the post o
33、f magistrate （ D） Magistrates power was limited 22 In 450 BC, the plebs _. （ A） had their own magistrate （ B） were allowed to marry the patricians （ C） must obey the famous Licinian-Sextian law （ D） had their own leaders who could veto the acts of the nobles 23 The political changes led to _. （ A） n
34、ew governing components （ B） a more powerful senate （ C） the appearance of two different parties （ D） all of the above 24 According to the last paragraph, we know that _. （ A） the history of Rome in this period was marked with internal conflicts （ B） Rome was invincible in this period （ C） Gauls end
35、ed the prosperity of Rome （ D） some Etruscan cities were frightened by Romes victory 25 Which one is in the central Italy? （ A） Volscians （ B） Samnites （ C） Umbrians （ D） Bruttians 26 Paris: Thanks to a French insurance company, brides and bridegrooms with cold feet no longer face financial disaster
36、 from a canceled wedding. For a small premium, they can take out a policy protecting them from love gone away or anything else that threatens to rain on their big day. Despite Frances economic woes, the amount of money spent on weddings is rising 5-10 per cent a year. And people in the Paris region
37、now dish out an average of 60,000 francs on tying the knot. But life is unpredictable and non-refundable, so French insurers have stepped in to ease the risk, finding their own little niche in the business of love. They join colleagues in Britain, where insurers say wedding cancellation policies hav
38、e been around for about a decade. About 5 per cent of insured weddings there never make it to the altar. Indeed, better safe than sorry. “Obviously there are some who are superstitious, but in general people like the idea,“ said Jacqueline Loeb, head of a Parisian insurance company. In the past six
39、weeks, she has sold 15 policies at a premium of about 3 per cent of the amount a client wants to be insured for. These careful customers, she said, have included a man who was worried his fiancee would have an allergic attack on her wedding day and a woman whose future mother-in-law was gravely ill.
40、 The policy covers those and other nuptial impediments: an accident that forces a cancellation of a wedding, an unexpected change of venue for the reception, damage caused at it, and even honeymoons that dont happen. As for the ultimate deal-breaker, cold feet, they are also insured-but only until e
41、ight days before the ceremony. British insurers, however, said they wouldnt touch that clause with a stick. Steve Warner, sales director of Insure Expo-Sure in London, says the six policies he sells each week in the wedding season protect against things like damaged wedding dresses, illness and deat
42、h, but not changes of heart.“ Disinclination to marry is not covered,“ he said. Ms Loed, who says hers is the only French agency offering wedding policies, said she started the service last December. A chateau outside Paris that hosts receptions was taking a beating from last-minute cancellations, a
43、nd approached Ms Loed to see if there wasnt some way of protecting itself. She obliged, then started advertising with caterers and wedding departments in large department stores, and the idea has taken off nicely.“ We respond to a need,“ she said. 26 Whats the main purpose of the passage? （ A） To th
44、ank a French insurance company for what has been done. （ B） To explain how a French insurance company works. （ C） To tell brides and bridegrooms what to do before getting married. （ D） To ask husband and wife-to-be to take out an insurance policy. 27 The cost for people in the Paris region on weddin
45、gs last year was probably _. （ A） 50,000 francs （ B） 57,000 francs （ C） 60,000 francs （ D） 63,000 francs 28 The policy covers the following EXCEPT _. （ A） unwillingness of marriage （ B） suspension of honeymoon （ C） changes of place for wedding （ D） sudden death 29 “About 5 per cent of insured weddin
46、gs there never make it to the altar.“ The sentence implies 5 per cent of insured couples _. （ A） failed to go to the church （ B） didnt change the place for wedding （ C） didnt get married at all （ D） didnt hold the wedding ceremony in a church 30 There is a great concern in Europe and North America a
47、bout declining standards of literacy in schools. In Britain, the fact that 30 percent of 16 year olds have a reading age of 14 or less has helped to prompt massive educational changes. The development of literacy has far-reaching effects on general intellectual development and thus anything that imp
48、edes the development of literacy is a serious matter for us all. So the hunt is on for the cause of the decline in literacy. The search so far has forced on socioeconomic factors, or the effectiveness of“ traditional“ versus“ modern“ teaching techniques. The fruitless search for the cause of the inc
49、rease in illiteracy is a tragic example of the saying“ They cant see the wood for the trees“. When teachers use picture books, they ate simply continuing a long-established tradition that is accepted without question. And for the past two decades, illustrations in reading primers have become increasingly detailed and obtrusive, while language has become impoverished-sometimes to the point of extinction. Amazingly, there is virtually no empirical evidence
