1、专业英语四级（阅读）模拟试卷 46及答案与解析 0 Its 1 a.m., and Im in Hong Kong for the first time, sitting in a bar in the Lan Kwai Fong district. Im waiting for two girls I met on the Internet to show up and take me to their apartment, so my friend Harry and I can stay there for free for a few nights. Having been on fl
2、ights for the past 24 hours, I am worn out and nervous when they dont arrive on time. But my faith is restored when I hear a thick Chinese accent asking, “Are you Cody?“ Even though Jess and Jin are as much strangers to me as anyone else in the bar, I trust them. It seems as natural as being set up
3、by a mutual friend, and, in a sense, that is exactly what is happening. I first learned about CouchS last fall from my moms friend, who was planning on hosting travelers in her home to add a Utile excitement to life after her oldest son went to college. She recommended I use it for an upcoming trip
4、to Europe. Thats how I became one of the millions of surfers who search hosts profiles and send requests typically as much as a week or as little as a day before arriving in the hosts city to sleep on those peoples couches or on their floor or in a spare bedroom. CouchSurfing requests are not always
5、 accepted, as my friend and I learned about seven hours before arriving at the bar in Hong Kong. During our stay in Tokyo, I found out via e-mail that the requests I had submitted that morning to two potential hosts had both been politely declined. One host, had relatives visiting, and the other, wa
6、s in Macau for the weekend. So, I quickly joined the forum “Last Minute Couch Requests: Hong Kong“ and posted a message, which Jess saw. She got in touch with her friend Jin, who had room in her apartment to accommodate two guests. Jess sent us an e-mail, which we received after landing in Hong Kong
7、, offering directions to a meeting place and a phone number. Harry and I could have dug through Jesss list of friends to read up on Jin, but instead we trusted that Jess would not lead us astray(走上邪路 ). After the girls get to the bar, the four of us go to a rooftop bar, then a club, and finally head
8、 back to Jins apartment. Over the next three days, the girls teach us how to use the public-transportation system and give us directions to popular tourist destinations. To outsiders like, say, my parents, it may be hard to understand why Jin would agree to have two strangers stay at her place, or w
9、hy we are even trying to couch-surf when hostels are cheap and plentiful in this part of the world. It is because couch surfing isnt just a means of accommodation; it is an entirely new way to travel. You get to see the world through local residents, not hotel gatekeepers or guidebooks. You get to s
10、tep outside your comfort zones. But what is most profound about the whole experience is the trust that naturally exists. Jin, for instance, gives us a key to her place upon arrival, a common CouchSurfing custom that helps explain why sociologists at Stanford University are now studying the site and
11、its ability to efficiently create trust. While cultural enrichment and adventure are almost a CouchSurfing guarantee, comfort is not. Jins guest mattress is not quite a quarter of an inch thick, the shower is too complicated for Harry or me to figure out, and the apartment is an eighth-floor walk-up
12、. But its a tradeoff surfers like me are happy to make. 1 Which of the following is true about the friend of the authors mother? （ A） She got much help from CouchS for her last trip. （ B） She needed company to distract her from missing her son. （ C） She became a member of CouchS last autumn. （ D） Sh
13、e decided to accommodate travelers in her home for free. 2 Why did the author have to post a message on “Last Minute Couch Requests: Hong Kong“? （ A） Two potential Tokyo hosts had declined his requests. （ B） He had been rejected by two potential Hong Kong hosts. （ C） He had stayed in Tokyo for too l
14、ong a time. （ D） His previous request had been sent out too late. 3 The author didnt examine the reliability of Jin because （ A） he had no way of contacting her. （ B） he couldnt find any other hosts. （ C） he had much confidence in Jess. （ D） he knew about Jess well enough. 4 According to the passage
15、, CouchSurfing provides travelers with all the following EXCEPT （ A） comfortable accommodation. （ B） adventurous experiences. （ C） exotic culture. （ D） a sense of trust. 5 The author is most likely to feel that his CouchSurfing experiences are （ A） disappointing. （ B） worthwhile. （ C） filled with un
16、certainty. （ D） dangerous. 5 David Fajgenbaum remembers the exact date: July 17, 2003. It was a warm evening in Washington, D.C., and the 18-year-old freshman had just finished his first football practice at Georgetown University. “It was awesome,“ the former quarter back recalls. He called his pare
17、nts to let them know how well things were going. Davids dad, an orthopedic(整形手术的 )surgeon, was oddly subdued. Finally, in a soft voice, he said, “Son, your mom has brain cancer.“ “I went from being happier than Id ever been to total shock,“ says David. Rushing home, he announced he was dropping out
18、of college to support his mother through her illness. But Anna Marie Fajgenbaum, just 52 years old and diagnosed with stage 4 brain cancer, was insistent that her son return to Georgetown. David threw himself into his studies and grew increasingly isolated. “I felt I was the only person on campus wi
19、th a sick parent. When everyones sitting around laughing and talking, you dont bring up your mothers latest MRI(磁共振 )or say youve been crying.“ One October evening when David was home visiting, Anna Marie woke up weeping. She was worried about David and his two sisters. “Mom, Im going to be okay,“ D
20、avid assured her. Then, out of the blue, he said,“ And Im going to help other kids cope with loss.“ A smile spread across his mothers face. He decided on a support group called Ailing Mothers and Fathers based on his moms initials, AMF. When Anna Marie died later that month, David started hearing fr
21、om friends whod never even known his mom was sick. Some had gone through the same experience. “The mother of one of my best friends had also died of a brain tumor,“ says David. “How did we not know that? Because we didnt talk about it.“ He invited five students whod lost relatives or friends to his
22、D.C. apartment to talk. They decided to meet every other week, to share what they were going through and how they were coping. But they did more than talk. They also raised money: They participated in the Iron man 10K for cancer research, walked to battle ALS, and ran to defeat lung cancer. David le
23、arned that nearly half of college students had lost a loved one within the previous two years. And every one of them has a story to tell. Julie George, who heads the Georgetown chapter, found out her dad had ALS during her freshman year. “I went to my first AMF meeting and felt like a huge weight ha
24、d been lifted. It gave me a place to talk about the concerns for my family, the things that dont come up over pizza in the common room or by a keg in someones backyard.“ David graduated from Georgetown last year and is studying public health at the University of Oxford. Now 23, he plans to become an
25、 oncologist(肿瘤专家 )and will attend medical school at the University of Pennsylvania in the fall. The National Students of Ailing Mothers and Fathers Support Network has 2,000 participants on 23 campuses. “This organization,“ says David, “is about one thing: being there for one another. And every time
26、 I see those initials AMF I see my mom, and I know I am honoring her by helping others. She would have liked that.“ 6 According to the first paragraph, David Fajgenbaum called home because （ A） his first football practice was marvelous. （ B） his first football practice was dreadful. （ C） he got the
27、news of her mothers brain cancer. （ D） he was worried about his mothers health. 7 After knowing that his mother had been diagnosed with brain cancer, David （ A） was forced to drop out of school. （ B） was distracted from his studies. （ C） felt detached from his fellow students. （ D） tried to hide it
28、from his classmates. 8 David established AMF to help other kids cope with the loss of （ A） self-confidence. （ B） hope. （ C） parents. （ D） the beloved. 9 Which of the following statements about Julie George can NOT be inferred from the passage? （ A） She is in charge of the Georgetown branch of AMF. （
29、 B） She is one of the first members of AMF. （ C） She was convinced of AMFs helpfulness. （ D） She was much aggrieved by her fathers disease. 10 When talking with others “by a keg in someones backyard,“ _ topics are usually avoided. （ A） confidential （ B） enjoyable （ C） unpleasant （ D） insignificant 1
30、0 A small success at last in my battle to hold back the tide of mice flooding my kitchen for months, crapping and snacking, even though, I promise you, every surface is tidily cleaned night and day, and not the smallest crumb of food left anywhere, ever, except in the humane trap, which has been pac
31、ked with chocolate cake, peanut butter and cheese for ages, but ignored until last Tuesday, when guess what? I wake up and find three mice all in it together. Three! This is physically impossible. The trap is meant to snap closed after each mouse. They must have rushed together, holding paws. And th
32、ey were extra small. Probably babies. Somewhere, in a deserted nest in my house, a mother mouse is bereft(伤心的 )and weeping. But I have to toughen up about this mouse business. Even if they do have little ears and noses, I cant let them play and wee(撒尿 )all over the breadboard. Luckily, I had a plan
33、in place in case the trap ever caught any mice. I had a small animal travelling box ready for them, with a cotton-wool bed, sesame seed snack and water. So I tipped them into it and drove them to a distant park. I darent say where. I hoped theyd stick together for support, but they all ran away in d
34、ifferent directions. Its just one worry after another. “Dont be so serious,“ said Fielding indifferently. “Get a cat. Itll chew them up in no time.“ What a heartless pig. Unlike my friend Elisa, who rang late that night in a panic. She had just seen a little mouse in distress, racing wildly about th
35、e Jubilee line platform, all alone, unable to get down to the rails, where its friends lived, because of those silly new barriers at the platform edge. I managed to calm her by pointing out that mice usually do go out alone, and three together was almost unheard of. Until my trap. So this is another
36、 cautionary tale. Never allow your child to keep pet rodents(啮齿动物 ), as Elisa and I did. It only leads to emotional confusion in later life. 11 Mice have been flooding the authors kitchen （ A） because the kitchen is dirty and untidy. （ B） because there are crumbs of food in the kitchen. （ C） because
37、 of a reason that is not discussed in the passage. （ D） because of the chocolate cake, peanut butter and cheese. 12 What can be inferred from the first paragraph? （ A） The author has decided to ignore the mice. （ B） The author has forgotten about the food in the trap. （ C） The mice were ignorant of
38、the location of the trap. （ D） The mice had ignored the food in the trap. 13 By saying “This is physically impossible“, the author means that （ A） more mice could have been trapped. （ B） fewer mice could have been trapped. （ C） the trap should have been improved. （ D） the trap should have been remov
39、ed. 14 What happened to the three mice at last? （ A） They were buried. （ B） They were released. （ C） They appeared to be worried. （ D） They found their way home. 15 The authors friend Elisa was “in a panic“ because （ A） she was worried about a mouse in trouble. （ B） she had never seen so many mice b
40、efore. （ C） she was afraid of mice. （ D） she lost her pet mouse. 15 The 21st century ushered in what was supposed to be paperless living. The data of our lives was to be recorded in digital clouds. We were told to click the option for paperless statements, unsubscribe to unwanted catalogues and keep
41、 a shredder(碎纸机 )nearby at all times. So how are we doing? “We have a bigger need for paper management than before because we have more access to information than ever before,“ says Chris Plantan, creative director for Russell & Hazel, maker of stylish office accessories. Plantan says there are lots
42、 of files and lots of piles out there. For many, organizing papers is another chore that inspires delay. You dont need to be a regular viewer of the A&E cable program “Hoarders“ to know that many of us hide our papers in shopping bags instead of filing cabinets. Filing doesnt make it onto the to-do
43、lists of many over-scheduled people these days. “It ranks at the bottom of the list, along with having a tooth pulled,“ says Melissa Sorensen, a professional organizer based in Woodbridge. She says paper management is one of her toughest assignments. “People are restricted by fear, worried about wha
44、t will happen if they throw something out,“ Sorensen says. “Eighty-five percent of the things you file, you never retrieve again.“ Those who do have files often suffer from another issue: figuring out where they put stuff. “I ask people, If you even have it, will you be able to find it?“ says Susan
45、Kousek, a Reston-based professional organizer. Holly Bohn founded See Jane Work, an online source for creative office products, to make the task of staying organized a bit more fun. “Despite technological advances, paper management is a problem because we are exposed to paper,“ Bohn says. “Our lives
46、 are so busy and complex that we cant make decisions.“ She believes each person has to create her own system to accommodate both boring paperwork and sentimental mementos. Her products, geared toward multi-tasking women, offer a bit of glamour. Solutions dont have to start with a clumsy metal filing
47、 cabinet. Some people are stackers and save things in fabric-covered stackable boxes. Kevin Sharkey, executive editorial director of Martha Stewart Living magazine, keeps decorating information in clear sleeves in color-coded binders. Plantan uses colorful plastic trays to compartmentalize and organ
48、ize travel information, greeting cards and bills. Bohns advice is to make your system flexible. Because many people dont have a dedicated home office, files should be portable to carry from dining room table to bedroom. Will virtual living eventually mean the death of filing? “People who have cookbo
49、oks still like to pull out recipes and save them,“ says Kim Oser, a Gaithersburg professional organizer, “just like people who love their GPS still like looking at a map.“ 16 Chris Plantan most probably agrees that （ A） paperless living will never be realized. （ B） paperless living will be realized soon. （ C） reality is running counter to paperless living. （ D） reality proves the necessity of paperless living. 17 The program “Hoarders“ is cited in Paragraph Three to illustrate that （ A） peopl
