1、专业英语四级（阅读）模拟试卷 171及答案与解析 SECTION A In this section there are several passages followed by ten multiple-choice questions. For each question, there are four suggested answers marked A, B, C and D. Choose the one that you think is the best answer. 0 The art teacher who accused Prince Harry of cheating
2、has won her case against Eton College for unfair dismissal. Sarah Forsyth, 30, took the public school to an employment tribunal after her contract was not renewed. The tribunal yesterday upheld Ms. Forsyths claim that she had been bullied by Etons head of art, Ian Burke. But it rejected her allegati
3、ons that Mr. Burke had ordered her to help Prince Harry cheat in his AS-level art by completing his written work for him. It also criticised as “unprofessional“ her decision to secretly record a conversation with the prince on his way to his final exam to try to support her claim. Ms. Forsyth brough
4、t the case after the school, which charges 23, 688 a year, decided not to renew her contract after the summer of 2003. She also accused Mr. Burke of bullying her and giving improper assistance to pupils during exams. At her hearing in May, Ms. Forsyth claimed she had written most of the text of the
5、princes AS-level art coursework journal, something she said was “unethical and probably constituted cheating“. She also claimed Mr. Burke “touched up“ aboriginal-inspired artwork which was displayed to the media as an example of Prince Harrys work when the prince finished his time at Eton. The princ
6、e has strenuously denied any suggestion that he cheated and an investigation by the examination board found no evidence of any improper behaviour. In its 40-page judgment, the tribunal said it was for the exam board to rule whether cheating had occurred. While the report described Ms. Forsyth as con
7、sistent and “truthful“ on the whole, it rejected her allegations about Prince Harry. It ruled that her relationship with Mr. Burke was so bad that it was not plausible that he would have tried to enlist her help in any attempt to cheat. It concluded that her account of the help she had given the pri
8、nce was muddled and that Mr. Burkes story was more believable. She claimed she had written a sample answer for the prince to use as a guide which, in her account, was given to Prince Harry, cut up and stuck in the journal. The tribunal sided with Mr. Burke, who said that Ms, Forsyth had not written
9、the piece on her own but simply sat with Prince Harry and suggested vocabulary. However, the panel was critical of Mr, Burke and said its “Inevitable conclusion“ was Ms. Forsyths dismissal had been unreasonable. The panel said, “He did undermine and bully her.“ Anthony Little, Etons headmaster, was
10、criticised for failing to look at the case fairly. The school was criticised for failing to produce any written “capability procedure“ to the tribunal. A spokesman for Eton said the school regretted its employment procedures had not been “up to scratch“, but said it was pleased the tribunal had reje
11、cted the “publicity-seeking“ allegations regarding Prince Harry. He added the school would be calling for the tribunal to award no compensation to Ms. Forsyth, arguing she would have been dismissed for secretly tape-recording a conversation with a pupil. 1 Who is the winner of the suit against Eton
12、College? （ A） Sarah Forsyth. （ B） Mr. Burke. （ C） Prince Harry. （ D） Eton College. 2 Which of the following is INCORRECT according to the last paragraph? （ A） The tribunal had rejected the “publicity-seeking“ allegations regarding Prince Harry. （ B） The art teacher will be dismissed for secretly tap
13、e-recording a conversation with a pupil. （ C） The employment procedures of Eton College are not up to the standard. （ D） The spokesman called for the tribunal to award no compensation to Ms. Forsyth, 3 The central topic of the passage is_. （ A） the unfair dismissal of Sarah Forsyth （ B） that the art
14、 teacher was dismissed by Eton College with no reason （ C） that the art teacher accused Prince Harry of cheating （ D） that the art teacher has won her case against Eton College for unfair dismissal 3 One of the more noted optical illusions in the annals of visual deception appeared in the night sky
15、this week when a giant full moon appeared on the horizon. The giant ball of yellow-white light made the Moon appear to linger for longer, and Earths satellite seemed larger at that point in its journey across the sky than at any other position. In fact, the size of the Moon in the sky does not vary
16、and its apparent enlargement on the horizon is purely a trick of the eye. It was first written about by the ancient Chinese and Greeks although scientists are still arguing over its cause. The illusion was especially visible on Wednesday night because this months full moon coincided with the summer
17、solstice, while clear skies gave spectacular views as the moon rose slowly above the horizon. When the Moon is full, it and the Sun are on opposite sides of the sky. During summer, when the Sun rises high in our sky, the full moons are correspondingly low allowing them to linger longer over the hori
18、zon. The astronomer Sir Patrick Moore said that there was no doubt that when a full moon was low on the horizon it invariably looked bigger than when it was high up in the sky, but that this was purely an illusion. “The effect is visible at every full moon but was particularly good this time because
19、 the full moon was as low in the sky as it could ever be and appeared to hover above the horizon, “ Sir Patrick said. One way of showing that the Moon does not really vary in size is to hold up a small coin to the sky to see how far away it can be held before it blocks out the Moon it should do it a
20、t the same distance no matter where the Moon is positioned. “It has been known and commented on for many hundreds of years. An explanation was given by the last and greatest astronomer of ancient times, Ptolemy, who said the illusion was due to the fact that we were seeing the Moon across filled spa
21、ce and could compare it with objects such as trees and houses, “ Sir Patrick said. The conventional explanation for the illusion today is that it Is a combination of two psychological effects. The first is the Ponzo illusion, named after Mario Ponzo in 1913, who drew two identical bars across conver
22、ging lines such as railway tracks. Both bars are the same size but the nearer looks smaller because the eye and the brain judge the farther bar to be bigger in proportion to its surroundings. This could explain why we perceive the Moon to be larger when it lies against a background of familiar objec
23、ts such as trees and buildings. However, critics of this idea point out that airline pilots flying at high altitudes sometimes experience the Moon illusion even without seeing any recognizable features on the horizon. And, curiously, the illusion disappears for many people when they bend down and wa
24、tch a full moon through their legs. The second explanation is that the brain does not see the sky as the “ceiling“ of a true hemisphere, but rather as a flattened dome. In other words, objects that are overhead, such as flying birds, are perceived to be nearer than objects on the horizon which is wh
25、y we imagine objects on the horizon to be bigger than objects overhead. But this explanation does not satisfy some scientists, either. In a theory similar in some ways to the Ponzo illusion, Professor Don McCready of the University of Wisconsin believes the true explanation rests in the fact that ou
26、r brains tend to make objects smaller when they appear closer to us based on distance cues. When the Moon is on the horizon, the surroun-ding buildings and trees give us clues that it is very far away which causes the brain to perceive it to be larger than it would normally appear, Professor McCread
27、y said. 4 The conventional explanation for the Moon illusion today is that_. （ A） our brains tend to make objects smaller when they appear closer to us based on distance cues （ B） objects that are overhead are perceived to be nearer than objects on the horizon （ C） the effects of Ponzo illusion （ D）
28、 it is a combination of two psychological effects 5 Which of the following is INCORRECT according to the passage? （ A） The brain does not see the sky as the “ceiling“ of a true hemisphere, but rather as a flattened dome. （ B） The size of the Moon in the sky does not vary and its apparent enlargement
29、 on the horizon is purely a trick of the eye. （ C） Professor Don McCready believes our brains tend to make objects bigger when they appear closer to us based on distance cues. （ D） The moon illusion is an optical illusion. 6 The passage suggests that there is_. （ A） no final answer to the Moon illus
30、ion （ B） no final answer to the size of the Moon （ C） a definite answer to the Moon illusion （ D） no final answer to peoples visual illusion 6 Parents will be able to run an official check on the status of childminders for the first time from today. Ofsted, the education standards watchdog, will sha
31、me the worst providers and praise the best by placing details of all childminders reports on its website. The providers will be ranked on a scale of one to four, with one meaning “outstanding “, two “good“, three “satisfactory“ and four “inadequate“. Of the first 1, 060 inspections to be posted this
32、 morning, 45(32 childminders and 13 day-care providers)have been ranked as “inadequate“ while only 16(14 childminders and 2 day-care nurseries)warranted the ranking “outstanding“. The vast majority were either good(680)or satisfactory(319). However, Ofsted warned that a “satisfactory“ rating meant t
33、here was “scope for improvement“. Maurice Smith, Ofsteds director of early years, said, “Over one million children are placed with childminders and in nurseries every day so its imperative parents have easy access to good information about the quality of care that their children are getting. “ David
34、 Bell, the chief schools inspector and Ofsteds chief executive, has acknowledged that parents are almost certain to shun the services of any childminder ranked as inadequate. A childminder could be rated as inadequate if their premises fail to pass health and safety requirements or if a complaint al
35、leging physical abuse of a child is upheld. In extreme circumstances, their registration can be withdrawn immediately but their report would be published if they were served with a notice to improve within a 12-month period. Mr. Smith said of the “outstanding“ ratings, “This is a fantastic achieveme
36、nt by those who work in the childcare profession and go all out to provide a top-class service. All providers will have the chance to shine during their inspections under the new framework. I hope that todays outstanding providers will act as an inspiration to others. “ The 1, 060 inspections to be
37、placed on the Internet today were all carried out in the first year of inspection of child-minding services. Ofsted only had its brief to inspect services extended from schools and colleges last year. It plans to inspect all childminding and day-care services over a three-year period with a total of
38、 94, 000 reports placed on its website by 2007. Fears that paedophiles could gain access to details of child-minding services have prompted inspectors to agree restrictions on how parents can access information. As of today, parents will be able to type their postcode into Ofsteds website and search
39、 for registered childminders in their area. Services within a five-mile radius of the address can be accessed. However, the report will not contain the name or address of the childminder. To obtain that, the parent will have to contact their local Childrens Information Service. Ofsted warned that so
40、me providers may have chosen to opt out of having their details available on request and that this is likely to be because they are full and do not have the space to mind more children. Ofsted has also agreed that nurseries will be given no notice of inspections so inspectors get a “warts and all“ p
41、icture. Childminders will be rung the previous week and asked to indicate which days they will be available to avoid inspectors arriving when they are out with their charges on a trip. One of the days will be selected by the inspectors without giving further notice. 7 The possible title of the passa
42、ge is_. （ A） Ofsted, the Education Standards Watchdog （ B） The Four Ratings of the Childminders （ C） How to Choose Childminders （ D） Ratings Help Parents Choose Child Care 8 Which of the following is INCORRECT according to the last paragraph? （ A） Some providers may choose to refuse to care for more
43、 children. （ B） If the childminders are not available they will give a notice to the Ofsted. （ C） Inspectors can get a “warts and all“ picture. （ D） Nurseries will be given no notice of inspections. 8 On the map theres just one island, but when you get there youll find two distinct Sardinias. If you
44、re wondering which is the right destination for you, take the ice-cream test and try two gelati in Sardinia. On the wealthy Costa Smeralda I was served an ice-cream with enormous speed and efficiency by a Tom Cruise look-alike all teeth, tan and ambition. But on Sardinias quieter western coast the R
45、iviera de Corallo it was served, quite slowly and with elegance, by a girl with the face of an angel. My vote goes narrowly to this less-visited shore. There I found a seat in Algheros Piazza Civica, where the late afternoon sun was warming the old stones and the fishing boats were back at anchor ju
46、st through the archway of the Porta al Mare. I reflected, as I ate my ice-cream and watched the locals make their evening passeggiata through the ancient square and the Door to the Sea, that the world is not such a bad place after all. By contrast, at a little cafe near the marina at Porto Cervo on
47、the Costa Smeralda, watching beautiful young things leaping on and off their yachts, I reflected mainly that most people seemed to have a lot more money than I. Its all very idyllic, the sea is always blue and the weather from May to October is invariably perfect. But is this plutocrats playground S
48、ardinia? No not if you mean the rugged Sardinia with its roots in prehistory and its future in a possible split with mother Italy. To see the real Sardinia you could take the overnight ferry from Livorno on the Italian mainland to Olbia just below the Costa Smeralda. Perhaps hire a little Fiat altho
49、ugh Ferraris are available and take the road that skirts the millionaire belt, heading north and then west. Head inland now, towards Sassari and Alghero. The hills crowd the shoreline, the villages are few and the roads are empty. Dotted around the fields, sticking up through olive groves like huge rock cones, are the remains of forts built by the mysterious Nuragic people, who came here long before the Romans and Phoenicians. A little way down the coast along a precipitous new highway is the ancient town of Bosa, whe
