1、大学英语四级模拟试卷 544及答案与解析 一、 Part I Writing (30 minutes) 1 For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write a letter requesting feedback from, consumers. You should write at least 120 words following the outline given below in Chinese: 1. 代表一家电脑生产厂家给 顾客写一封信； 2. 感谢顾客购买自己的产品； 3. 征求一下顾客对产品以及售后服务的意见。 A Let
2、ter of Requesting Feedback 二、 Part II Reading Comprehension (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 i
3、nformation given in the passage; N (for NO) if the statement contradicts the information given in the passage; NG (for NOT GIVEN) if the information is not given in the passage. 1 How Americans Celebrate Christmas Christmas is America s most popular holiday. Some people will attend church and observ
4、e Christmas as the birthday of Christ. For others, Christmas is just a day of fun and celebration, a time for family and friends to gather together, exchange gifts and enjoy a huge holiday dinner. Christmas Day will need weeks of preparations. Since the last days of November American homes and store
5、s have been decorated with Christmas trees and bright lights. Schools and churches have been presenting special holiday concerts. People have been going to parties, finding gifts and preparing special Christmas food. For a large number of Americans, Christmas is surrounded by more traditions than an
6、y other holiday. Yet, many of these traditions are not really very old ones in the United States. In fact, the nations first settlers would have. been very surprised to see how Americans celebrate Christmas today. People in other parts of the world, of course, have been celebrating Christmas for man
7、y centuries. In fact, December was a winter holiday season in northern and southern Europe even before the birth of Christ. And the ancient Romans celebrated the New Year on December twenty-fifth. Some experts believe that is why the Roman Catholic Church set the birth of Christ on that day. Christi
8、ans borrowed other Christmas traditions from ancient times. In the years before Christ, for example, people honored the evergreen tree as a sign of life after death. For Christians, it became a sign of Christs birth. By the 16th century Roman Catholics in Europe were celebrating Christmas with livel
9、y parties filled with eating and drinking. Many of the first Europe an settlers in America, however, disapproved of such customs. They believed people should honor God in simpler, quieter ways, so Christmas became a day just like any other day for most people in Americas northern colonies. In Americ
10、a s southern colonies, however, the Church of England became the established religion. Its traditions were closer to those of Roman Catholic Church. So it became common for people on large farms in the south to celebrate Christmas with huge dinners and dancing. And in many parts of America, smaller
11、groups of settlers from other western European countries observed Christmas with their own national customs. After 1,800, all these people began to mix together more and they began to borrow Christmas traditions from each other. Settlers from Ger many, for example, observed Christmas by cutting live
12、 evergreen trees and covering them with candies and fruit. By the middle of the 19th century, people all over America were putting up evergreen trees at Christmas. Dutch settlers in New York were most responsible for creating another popular American tradition-Santa Claus. The story of Santa Claus b
13、egan hundreds of years earlier. During the fourth century, a Roman Catholic Church official called Nicholas of Myra became famous for his many good actions. Nicholas was made a saint (圣人 ) after his death and it became common in northern Europe to hold a celebration on December 6th, the day Nicholas
14、 died. All kinds of stories were told about Saint Nicholas and the Dutch brought one of these stories with them to America. They believed that each year the saint rode a white horse from home to home. He gave presents to children who had been good, and coal or straw to children who had been bad. Oth
15、er Americans who lived nearby greatly enjoyed the Dutch celebrations. They decided to make Saint Nicholas part of their own celebration of Christmas. But he got a new name Santa Claus. It was taken from the Dutch words for Saint Nicholas, Santa Claus. The Dutch imagined Saint Nicholas to be a seriou
16、s, even frightening person, who would punish as well as give gifts. But in 1822, an American named Clement C. Moore wrote a Christmas poem for his children. The poem, called A Visit From St. Nicholas, created a completely new Santa Claus. Dr. Moore described a short, happy, little man who rode in an
17、 open sleigh (雪橇 ). The sleigh was pulled from house to house by eight white reindeer (驯鹿 ). At each house Santa delivered gifts by dropping them down the chimney into the fireplace. Dr. Moore s poem was published in a newspaper in New York, 1823. It soon became popular all over America and it becam
18、e the source for the Santa Claus American children still believe in today. An American artist named Thomas Nast also played a part in creating Santa Claus. Beginning in 1860s, Mr. Nast drew pictures of Santa Claus for an American publication called Harpers Weekly. These pictures showed a fat, smilin
19、g old man with a red nose and white beard. He was dressed in a red suit with white fur and a black belt. Today, more than one hundred years later, that same Santa Claus can be seen everywhere at Christmas time. As Santa Claus became more popular, so did the custom of giving gifts on Christmas. Early
20、 in the 19th century, American schoolteachers liked to reward good students by giving them small books. Soon some storeowners were making special books for the Christmas holidays. And by the 1850s, jewelers, toy makers, bakers and others were selling all kinds of special products at Christmas. By th
21、e 1860s, more than half the American states had made Christmas a legal holi day. Since that time, it has continued to grow into a bigger and bigger celebration. Some people say that Americans pay too much attention to Christmas. They say this interferes with the religious freedom of those who are no
22、t Christians. Some people, for example, believe that Christmas religious music should not be sung in public schools. They say this is unfair to children whose families do not believe in Christ. Because of such criticism, many public schools now permit students to sing only Christmas songs that are n
23、ot religious and they also observe the holiday season by teaching students about a Jewish celebration that takes place near Christmas time. 2 This passage is about the origin of Christmas and how people in America celebrate it in the past and at present. （ A） Y （ B） N （ C） NG 3 The Americans begin t
24、o decorate their homes and stores with Christmas trees and bright lights on Christmas Eve. （ A） Y （ B） N （ C） NG 4 Some experts believe that the reason why the Roman Catholic Church set the birth of Christ on December 25th is that that day was the New Year s Day for the ancient Romans. （ A） Y （ B） N
25、 （ C） NG 5 Christmas was a very ordinary day for most people in America s southern colonies. （ A） Y （ B） N （ C） NG 6 In America, settlers from Germany celebrated Christmas by cutting live evergreen trees and covering them with candles and fruit. （ A） Y （ B） N （ C） NG 7 It was the Dutch who brought t
26、he stories of Saint Nicholas to America. （ A） Y （ B） N （ C） NG 8 Thomas Nast s pictures are the sources for the Santa Claus American children still believe in today. （ A） Y （ B） N （ C） NG 9 Dutch settlers in New York were most responsible for _. 10 It is believed that on Christmas Day, Saint Nichola
27、s gave presents to good kids, and _ to bad ones. 11 Some people say that Americans pay too much attention to Christmas and that this interferes with _ of those who are not Christians. Section A Directions: In this section, you will hear 8 short conversations and 2 long conversations. At the end of e
28、ach conversation, one or more questions will be asked about what was said. Both the conversation and the questions will be spoken only once. After 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） He
29、went to the island. （ B） He didnt go to the island. （ C） He loved the island. （ D） He saw a lot of plants there. （ A） The stationery store has closed down. （ B） The stationery store is closed. （ C） The shop assistants have all left at that moment. （ D） The shop assistants of the store have gone for
30、a long time. （ A） She doesnt feel like going to the art class. （ B） She decides to change her brush. （ C） She quits art and is Row studying drama. （ D） She has no more paint for drawing. （ A） He will put on his gloves as the woman suggests. （ B） He has gloves but does not feel like wearing them. （ C
31、） He does not have gloves at the moment. （ D） He thinks one glove is good enough for him. （ A） Copy the book at Sam s store. （ B） Go to the school store and look again. （ C） Ask Sam for some copies. （ D） Go to the bookstore near the Sam s. （ A） He meant to inform her but forgot. （ B） He was too busy
32、 to take time out to tell the woman. （ C） He didnt know the class was canceled too. （ D） He planned to tell the woman but slipped on his way. （ A） The Jade table is difficult to find nowadays. （ B） Jade is too hard to be made into a table. （ C） Jade restaurant is very popular in the area. （ D） It s
33、surprising that the restaurant doesn t have enough tables. （ A） An author and an editor. （ B） A student and a professor. （ C） A news reporter and a writer. （ D） A client and a lawyer. （ A） Mating habits of squid and octopus. （ B） The evolution of certain forms of sea life. （ C） The study of marine s
34、hells. （ D） Survival skills of sea creatures. （ A） He didnt understand the lecture. （ B） He wants to borrow her notes next week. （ C） He needs help with a makeup exam. （ D） He was sick and unable to attend. （ A） Some sea creatures developed vertebrae. （ B） The first giant squid was captured. （ C） So
35、me sea creatures shed their shells. （ D） Sea life became more intelligent. （ A） From the paper. （ B） From the signpost. （ C） From her friends. （ D） From television. （ A） Social activities. （ B） Cultural activities. （ C） Language activities. （ D） Sports activities. （ A） Tuesday. （ B） Wednesday. （ C）
36、Thursday. （ D） Friday. （ A） 5. （ B） 30. （ C） 50. （ D） 55. 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 only once. After you hear a question, you must choose the best
37、answer from the four choices marked A, B, C and D. （ A） Medical science （ B） Political science （ C） Biology （ D） Production management （ A） 9 percent （ B） 12 percent （ C） 16 percent （ D） 18 percent （ A） Becoming a physicist （ B） Becoming a school teacher （ C） Becoming a taxi driver （ D） Becoming a m
38、agazine production manager （ A） Because she thought man and woman should be equal. （ B） Because the president Washington asked her to do so. （ C） Because she wanted to show respect to her father who brought up six children. （ D） Because she could not celebrate Mothers day. （ A） June 19th （ B） the th
39、ird Sunday in June （ C） the second Sunday in June （ D） June 13th （ A） George Washington （ B） Calvin Coolidge （ C） Richard Nixon （ D） Lybdon Johnson （ A） They get more cold and flu symptoms. （ B） They sleep more. （ C） They smoke and drink more. （ D） They have more digestive problems. （ A） He is one o
40、f the Procrastination Research Group. （ B） He is a psychologist. （ C） He is a teacher in Carleton University in Ottawa. （ D） He is the co-author of the study. （ A） Something has to do with genes. （ B） Sleeping far less that they need. （ C） Drinking more than they have intended. （ D） An inability to
41、regulate behavior and control impulses. （ A） computer failure （ B） leaving a paper at home （ C） losing a hand-held organizer （ D） the death of a grandmother 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 care
42、fully for its 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 us
43、e the exact words you have just heard or write down the 36 Its an age-old【 B1】 _: Men are from Mars; Women are from Venus. Males and females show different behaviors almost from【 B2】 _Researchers say these behaviors are【 B3】 _to basic differences in brain【 B4】 _and activity. Studies show men are bet
44、ter at hitting【 B5】 _and solving math problems【 B6】_women are better at memorizing words and【 B7】 _faces. Why the difference? _【 B8】 _, Scientists al ready know that the two sides of the brain control different functions-one controlling the sense of space, for example, the other controlling language
45、.【 B9】 _, when cave men hunted and women cared for the children. Men had to have good arm. Women had to talk to the kids. Whatever the explanation, the battle of the sexes continues.【 B10】 _. They may simply rely on different abilities. Take a couple arguing over the location of their car in a parki
46、ng lot. The man might use his sense of space to find it, while the woman relies on her recognition of landmarks.【 B11】 _. But chances are, theyll still argue about whos the better driver and whos better at finding the way home. 37 【 B1】 38 【 B2】 39 【 B3】 40 【 B4】 41 【 B5】 42 【 B6】 43 【 B7】 44 【 B8】
47、45 【 B9】 46 【 B10】 47 【 B11】 Section A Directions: In this section, there is a passage with ten blanks. You are required to select one word for each blank from a list of choices given in a word bank following the passage. Read the passage through carefully before making your choices. Each choice in
48、the bank is identified by a letter. Please mark the corresponding letter for each item with a single line through the center. You may not use any of the words in the bank more than once. 47 George Washington Carver showed that plant life was more than just food for animals and humans. Carvers first
49、step was to【 S1】 _plant parts to find out what they were made of. He then combined these【 S2】 _isolated substance with other substances to create new products. The branch of chemistry that studies and finds ways to use raw【 S3】 _from farm products to make industrial products is called chemurgy. Carver was one of the first and greatest chemurgists of all time. Today the science of chemurgy is better known as the science of synthetics. Eac
