1、大学英语四级模拟试卷 163及答案与解析 一、 Part I Writing (30 minutes) 1 For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write a composition on the topic Measures to Relieve Traffic Jam in three paragraphs. You are given the first sentence or part of the first sentence of each paragraph. You should write at least 120 wor
2、ds. 1 Although it is convenient and enjoyable to own a car, people have to suffer troubles caused by traffic jam_. 2 Considering causes of the problem, measures could be taken by the local government in the following aspects_. 3 With a sound transportation system_, 二、 Part II Reading Comprehension (
3、Skimming and Scanning) (15 minutes) Directions: In this part, you will have 15 minutes to go over the passage quickly and answer the questions attached to the passage. For questions 1-7, mark： Y (for YES) if the statement agrees with the information given in the passage; N (for NO) if the statement
4、contradicts the information given in the passage; NG (for NOT GIVEN) if the information is not given in the passage. 1 New Energy Sources to the Rescue As petrol prices rise, policy makers and venture capitalists are suddenly embracing alternatives. Will the trend last? Reasons for the change In his
5、 long career in country music, Willie Nelson has always been on the left side of all things. Now, at 73, he is in the vanguard. Mr. Nelson, who lives on a big farm outside Austin, powers his car with the help of vegetable oil. He has even created his own line of this cleaner-burning diesel blend (混合
6、柴油 ). He called it “BioWillie“, which is distributed at several sites in Texas and is going national, too. Mr. Nelson argues that it will help Americas farmers, truckers and the environment while, at the same time, reducing dependence on foreign petroleum. With high petrol prices causing troubles in
7、 Washington, D.C., everyone is trying to find out alternatives. Soya beans, canola (rapeseed), switch grass, anything, is being investigated Even George Bush, a former oilman who supports loyally the industrial development, called last week for more research into ethanol (酒精 ) and bio-diesel-two key
8、 types of bio-fuels (生物燃料 ) and boldly predicted that “ethanol will replace gasoline consumption“. Jim Woolsey, a former head of the CIA notes that developing bio-fuels is in the national interest, since it is high time America stopped its reliance on petroleum from foreign countries and so stopped
9、funding some fanatical religious organizations. Future: convenience and pains The federal government is beginning to formulate policy to promote the use of bio-fuels. In Montana, Hawaii and Minnesota all petrol must contain 10% ethanol, while Washington State requires petrol and diesel to contain 2%
10、 renewable fuel by volume. For both ethanol and bio-diesel, Congress has required a near-doubling of production by 2012. Both blends, notes Mr. Woolsey approvingly, need little new infrastructure to support them (unlike, say, hydrogen fuel-cell cars). Ethanol can be dispensed at regular petrol stati
11、ons and works, within limits, in todays cars. Bio-diesel fuelling stations, such as those for BioWillie, are popping up around America. Unfortunately for Mr. Bushs political fortunes, a bio-fuels revolution will not happen in time to ease Americas current pain at the pump. Right now, ethanol-a clean
12、-burning, high-octane alcohol typically derived from com in America, or sugar in Brazil-accounts for just 3% of Americas petrol use, though American cars can handle a 10% ethanol blend. Bio-diesel is used even less. Moreover, ethanol is typically blended with regular fuel, and a widespread shift to
13、an ethanol blend (a result of another provision of last years energy bill) has contributed to some petrol shortages in Texas and elsewhere, as the supply chain creaks into life. Skeptics argue that growing crops for ethanol will bum more petrol than it will save. But others are persuaded, despite th
14、e pains at the beginning stage. “If I had to bet $100, Id bet on bio-fuels,“ says Hunter Lovins, co-author of“ Natural Capitalism“, adding that she would favor them even over other renewable energy sources. Rich investors also believe as growth. Richard Branson, a British entrepreneur who heads the
15、Virgin conglomerate, recently announced plans to invest up to $400 in ethanol production. Growing production? Can production be scaled up? A recent bioengineering breakthrough means that it should soon be possible to convert plant products far more efficiently to ethanol. This lends promise to cellu
16、losic ethanol a product that can be made from agricultural “waste“, such as corn cobs or weeds, which is widely available. (Once corn kernels and sugar-cane sap have been taken away for sugar, they leave plenty of stalks and leaves behind.) The most promising source of cellulosic ethanol, say expert
17、s, is switch grass, a native American grass that grows naturally in the prairie heartland and thrives in the poor Mississippi Delta. Bio-diesel, as yet, is a smaller enterprise. Its plants require less capital than those for ethanol. It is growing fastsales volume tripled, to 75m gallons, between 20
18、04 and 2005-but that is still a drop in the tanker of the 60 billion gallons of diesel that Americans consume each year. Much of the stuff is made from soya beans, and Jeff Plowman of Austin Bio-fuels, a tiny start-up, notes that soya bean futures are tracking the price of heating oil for the first
19、time. In Texas, Mr. Plowman also sees potential for cottonseed oil, a byproduct of cotton production. Elsewhere, there is even talk of producing bio-diesel from pig manure. Troubles are still occurring, having pushed back the enthusiasm. In Minnesota, a requirement to have 2% of diesel made from soy
20、a was suspended last year when truckers began to complain of clogged filters, though it was fairly quickly reinstated. Bio-fuels and American farms Could bio-fuels, in addition to easing the strain on the environment and on wallets, help to save American farms? Some policymakers certainly hold out t
21、his dream, particularly in the Midwest, where ethanol and bio-diesel production is concentrated. Montanas Democratic governor, Brian Schweitzer, who uses bio-diesel (made for example from canola) in his own Volkswagen Jetta, imagined with optimism about a technology that he hopes “will jump-start ru
22、ral America“. He points out that America exports masses of wheat, soya beans and corn, and talks of“convert ing those export acres to bio-fuels“. When the 2007 farm bill is debated, he hopes for “a vision that helps American farmers once again produce their own horsepower on their own farms“. This “
23、vision“ would include federal crop insurance for farmers who grow canola, safflower and camellia, bringing them up to the level of wheat and soya beans. The notion of American farmers defying the tide of capitalism to grow their own fuel is a glorious delusion. It seems great, yet its not practical.
24、 However, Mr. Schweitzer is fight that Congress has some big decisions to make about bio-fuels. To what extent, if any, should government subsidize this newlyemerged industry? Already it has received plenty of help. Ethanol producers get a tax credit worth 51 cents a gallon, much to the delight of t
25、he industry. There is also a 54 cents-a-gallon tariff on imports of ethanol from Brazil. Starting with the removal of that tariff, Congress needs to rethink its misleading energy policies. Nathanael Greene, of the Natural Resources Defense Council, argues that the federal governments most important
26、immediate step should be to enact a loan guarantee to create Americas first cellulosic ethanol plant, which would probably be built in Idaho. If bio-fuels do take off, environmentalists and policymakers will still be unable to relax. Mr. Greene emphasizes, rightly, that bio-fuels alone might not sol
27、ve all the problems. His organization argues that although American production could rise to 100 billion gallons of bio-fuels by 2050, such changes also need to be combined with improved fuel efficiency and better city planning. More flex-fuel vehicles, which can take up to 85% ethanol blended with
28、petrol, would be particularly sensible. 2 The passage is primarily concerned with the emergence of a new energy source, governments and the publics attitude toward its use, and its influence on American farming. （ A） Y （ B） N （ C） NG 3 In writing this passage, the author has first explained a genera
29、l situation, and then presented his/her own opinion with supportive examples. （ A） Y （ B） N （ C） NG 4 The U.S. government and some of the American people believe that reducing Americas dependence on foreign petroleum is one of the reasons to start research into the possibility of using ethanol. （ A）
30、 Y （ B） N （ C） NG 5 The unstable international status has caused panic among American public who are worrying about the resulting petroleum shortage. （ A） Y （ B） N （ C） NG 6 Despite the governments promotion, the development of bio-fuels is not a smooth process without any trouble. （ A） Y （ B） N （ C
31、） NG 7 An entrepreneur from Britain has recently planned to invest heavily in ethanol production because he believed its promising future. （ A） Y （ B） N （ C） NG 8 Recent breakthrough in bioengineering technology has enabled the increased scale of producing both ethanol and bio-diesel. （ A） Y （ B） N
32、（ C） NG 9 Some policymakers believe that bio-fuel could help to save American farm, besides relieving pressure on_. 10 The idea of American farmers growing their own fuel is regarded as a_. 11 It is argued by an organization that to solve energy problems,_should also be taken into account in additio
33、n to increased production of bio-fuels. Section A Directions: In this section, you will hear 8 short conversations and 2 long conversations. At the end of each conversation, one or more questions will be asked about what was said. Both the conversation and the questions will be spoken only once. Aft
34、er each question there will be a pause. During the pause, you must read the four choices marked A, B, C and D, and decide which is the best answer. （ A） She refuses to go to dinner. （ B） She agrees to go to dinner. （ C） She is angry. （ D） She is surprised. （ A） She learns English quickly. （ B） Her E
35、nglish isnt very good. （ C） Her English is very good. （ D） She learns new sentences slowly. （ A） At a bank. （ B） At an inn. （ C） On the river side. （ D） On a basketball field. （ A） Go to Paris again. （ B） Live in Paris. （ C） Go somewhere else. （ D） Difficult to say. （ A） Peter likes to do physical e
36、xercise. （ B） Peter is absent-minded in class. （ C） Peter is a naughty boy. （ D） Peter usually walks to class. （ A） A driving test. （ B） A traffic accident. （ C） A police movie. （ D） The best way to make signals. （ A） Her sister is a fashionable woman. （ B） Her sister is designing a dress. （ C） Her
37、sister is studying Spanish. （ D） Her sister is in the Philippines. （ A） She is going to see a movie. （ B） She wants to see her friend. （ C） She is going to see a film that she has seen before. （ D） She is going to find out some information about the film. （ A） The possible existence of life on other
38、 planets. （ B） Methods for building powerful new telescopes. （ C） A technical problem that astronomers cant solve. （ D） The discovery of planets orbiting distant stars. （ A） They studied variations in the appearance of the parent stars. （ B） They compared the parent stars to the Sun. （ C） They were
39、able to see the planets with a telescope. （ D） They sent astronauts on a mission into space. （ A） Their surface features. （ B） Their chemical composition. （ C） Their temperature. （ D） Their age. （ A） She does her shopping. （ B） She drinks extra tea. （ C） She eats a lot of things. （ D） She sleeps a g
40、reat deal. （ A） Problems with the teachers. （ B） Problems with family members or friends. （ C） Problems with class work. （ D） Problems with a part-time job. （ A） Talking to someone over the phone. （ B） Drinking some diet coke. （ C） Playing a video game. （ D） Drinking extra tea. （ A） They were able t
41、o fly it in the air. （ B） They were able to stay up in the air for half an hour and more in the machine. （ C） They were able to carry travelers. （ D） They were able to fly in around Dayton. （ A） Theyve lost their suitcases. （ B） They cant find their dormitory. （ C） Their dorm rooms have been given t
42、o other students. （ D） Theyve missed the bus to their dormitory. （ A） Its far from the academic buildings. （ B） No buses go to it. （ C） There are few first-year students living there. （ D） Its older than the other dormitories. （ A） Its fast. （ B） It runs at inconvenient times. （ C） It runs at conven
43、ient times. （ D） Its slow. （ A） They can get exercise. （ B） Its boring. （ C） They can go by bike. （ D） Its interesting. Section B Directions: In this section, you will hear 3 short passages. At the end of each passage, you will hear some questions. Both the passage and the questions will be spoken o
44、nly once. After you hear a question, you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A, B, C and D. （ A） Four years. （ B） Five years. （ C） Three years. （ D） Six years. （ A） A soldier. （ B） A thief. （ C） A government officer. （ D） An actor. （ A） In 1848. （ B） In 1846. （ C） In 1884. （ D）
45、In 1849. （ A） 8,000 people. （ B） 10,000 people. （ C） 80,000 people. （ D） 100,000 people. （ A） From the western United States. （ B） From all parts of the country. （ C） From only the east coast of the American Continent. （ D） From San Francisco Bay. （ A） Because many settlements were abandoned. （ B） B
46、ecause there were many gold-hungry sailors. （ C） Because private gold could not be protected by law. （ D） Because everybody raced for California. Section C Directions: In this section, you will hear a passage three times. When the passage is read for the first time, you should listen carefully for i
47、ts general idea. When the passage is read for the second time, you are required to fill in the blanks numbered from 36 to 43 with the exact words you have just heard. For blanks numbered from 44 to 46 you are required to fill in the missing information. For these blanks, you can either use the exact
48、 words you have just heard or write down the 36 With more and more young people getting into trouble with the law, social workers are very busy. They are trying to keep【 B1】 _ out of jail and in school. One way to do this is to keep those young people busy with a【 B2】 _ activity. In some places, soc
49、ial workers set up programs to direct【 B3】 _ energy from the drawing of graffiti (涂鸦 ) to the【 B4】 _ arts. In other places, basketball or baseball teams are set up. Sometimes the young people are【 B5】 _ into patrol groups. Then, they are given the job of protecting older citizens that they might【 B6】 _ have robbed and attacked. Social workers set up these youth programs to meet the needs of a【 B7】 _ area. Social workers are highly trained people and are good
