1、大学英语四级模拟试卷 727（无答案）一、Part I Writing (30 minutes)1 For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write a composition on the topic: Salary or Inter est. You should write at least 120 words following the outline given below in Chinese.找工作的时候选择兴趣还是工资高 二、Part II Reading Comprehension (Skimming and Scannin
2、g) (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 contradicts the informa
3、tion given in the passage;NG (for NOT GIVEN) if the information is not given in the passage.1 When It Conies to Water, We are All Maya NowIts possible that the impressive Maya civilizationwith mastery of mathematics, farming, water management, pyramid building and city planningwas undone by summer r
4、ain.Not enough summer rain.Undone, in fact, by exactly the kind of rainfall changes, we ourselves are starting to experience small shifts in rainfall that persist, and end up having an outsized impact.The Maya dominated the Yucatan Peninsula for 600 years, and their settlement and civilization there
5、 spanned more than 1,000 years. And yet the great Maya cities collapsed and were abandoned to the jungle over a period of between 100 and 200 years.What happened is the subject of wide scholarly debatesalthough drought (干旱) has often been argued as the major source of the Mayas termination, a long-l
6、asting and damaging drought.The debates have lacked hard data, until last week.In the journal Science, weve now got a graph showing the rainfall over the Yucatan, during the last 200 years of Maya dominancefrom the year 800 to the year 1000.Actually, its not quite a graph of rainfall: Its a graph of
7、 each years difference from the typical rainfall.The years 810 to 815 were pretty wet10 percent more rainfall than usual. The years 820 to 840 were harshnot a single year of even average rainfall, and decades of years with 30 percent less rainfall than usual.Whats so striking is that the periods of
8、drought were relatively short, often broken by brief good rain, and the actual fall-off in rainfall seems relatively modest20 to 40 percent less than usual in the dry periods. In fact, over a period of 200 years, there are only a couple deep troughs (波谷) reaching to 40 percent less than usual.Could
9、the Mayas have been undone by that kind of shift in rainfall over 100 or 150 years?We think the disastrous collapse of a civilization requires an equally disastrous cause. But what if our expectation of water availability is so fixed that we lose track of it? What if small shifts in rainfall can hav
10、e a surprisingly dramatic impact?“ Perhaps,“ write the papers authors, “ the impact of these droughts was rather modest despite the large associated environmental and societal disruptions. “The detailed picture of Maya rainfall is the work of two climate scientists, Martin Medina-Elizalde and Eelco
11、Rohling, and they analyzed lakebed substances that revealed the rainfall. Their conclusions are remarkably detailedMedina-Elizalde and Rohling were able to tease out the difference between the rainy season rainfall of the summers and the drier season rainfall of the winters. They found that it was t
12、he summer rainfall that fell offand that much of the fall-off may have been due to fewer hurricanes (飓风), or hurricanes of reduced intensity.We tend to be pretty confident in our ability to see and measure whats going on around us, to understand it, and to adjust.Its not certain what happened to the
13、 Mayabut one thing is true: They had sophisticated systems for accessing groundwater and for collecting, storing, and distributing rainwater. like our own systems, the Maya systems were elaborated and fixed in place. When the rain failed to appear in the quantities they had become used to, they didn
14、t have the flexibility to adapt their water system to serve the millions of people who relied on it.They had built a civilization assuming a certain quantity of water, and when 20 or 30 percent less water appeared consistently, their entire way of life, perhaps especially food cultivation, became un
15、sustainable.The authors themselves note, somewhat dryly, that the variations in rainfall they found during the period when Maya civilization disintegrated “ are not far outside the range of those preceding this time interval, when the Maya civilization flourished. “ That is, the amount of rain, and
16、the variation in that rain, wasnt too different between dominance and destruction.Heres the amazing thing. Were not actually much better off than the Mayasexcept for having a wealth of data to track our own vulnerability.Last year, rainfall in Houston, Texas, was 55 percent less than usual. How will
17、 Houston get along if that persists for a couple years?And then theres the story of Perth, Australia. Perth is the first western city to confront the possibility of truly running out of water.The circumstance in Perth in 2012 is startlingly similar to that in the Yucatan Peninsula in 912.Perth has s
18、een average rainfall drop 20 percent over the last 25 years. Water collected by its reservoirs fell by 75 percent over that same period.Why?Because the reservoirs were built assuming a certain amount and location of rainfall. As one Perth official put it, “All of a sudden, it looked like wed built o
19、ur reservoirs in the wrong place. “For a chilling bar graph of what it looks like when a city looks water disaster in the eye, nothing matches the simple chart Perths water utility has put up online.The crisis Perth confronted in the late 1990s, and avoided, was identical to that faced by Maya water
20、 managersexcept Perth got the leadership and vision to fix its water problems.Most super-sized modern cities would be in a similar crisis if their long-term water availability suddenly dropped 20 percentnot to say 30 or 40 percent. Our city water systems have no better adaptability than those of the
21、 Maya. Indeed, during the cruel 10-year drought in Australia, many big reservoirs were down to 30 or 20 or 10 percent capacitythere is nothing more threatening than a city-sized reservoir that is 80 percent empty.The lesson of the Maya and the lesson of Perth are the same. Our water assumptions are
22、just that; assumptions. We should be building city water cultures that have flexibility, multiple sources, the ability to re-use water, the ability to conserve.Real strategic thinking about water isnt about a new water treatment plant, or a plan to replace aging water mains. Its about knowing what y
23、oull do if youre suddenly faced with a 10 or 20 percent loss of available water, permanently.Being ready for that kind of shift would change how we all think about waterfrom factory managers to dads doing the dishes.In fact, we are all Maya.2 What is the reason for the author to mention Mayas rainfa
24、ll changes?（A）He conducted a research on the topic.（B） He read an article concerning the topic.（C） He used the topic to alarm readers.（D）He cited it as an example for argument.3 What is revealed in the graph published in the journal Science!（A）The development and rediscovery of Maya civilization.（B）
25、 The dominance of civilization in Yucatan Peninsula.（C） Mayas sophisticated farming and city planning.（D）Mayas annual difference from the typical rainfall.4 What discovery is considered so striking in the graph of rainfall over Yucatan?（A）Drought periods were relatively short.（B） There has been no s
26、now for 200 years.（C） Occasional floods happened.（D）The rainfall witnessed an annual decline.5 It was found that the great decline of summer rainfall in Maya may result from_.（A）the increasing heat from the sun（B） fewer and weaker hurricanes（C） more acid air in the atmosphere（D）environmental and soc
27、ial destructions6 Why did the Mayas fail to adapt to the quantity change of rainfalls?（A）Their water management systems were inefficient.（B） They lacked flexibility to adapt their water system.（C） Their number of citizen was too large to be well served.（D）They had unrealistic expectations for more r
28、ainfalls.7 According to the author, in which aspect are we better off than the Mayas?（A）We master new technology for water cleaning.（B） We own complicated machines to dig deep wells.（C） We are more talented and independent than Mayas.（D）We have sufficient data to reflect our rainfall deficiency.8 Wh
29、at happened to the city of Perth, Australia over the last 25 years?（A）Half of its land turned to desert.（B） Its population exploded twice.（C） Its average rainfall dropped 20 percent.（D）Two of its major rivers were poisoned.9 A 20 percent drop in the long-term water availability would induce a huge c
30、risis for_.10 According to the author, our knowledge and understanding about water are just_.11 We should know what steps to take if suddenly faced with a 10 or 20 percent permanent loss of_.Section ADirections: In this section, you will hear 8 short conversations and 2 long conversations. At the en
31、d 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. 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）
32、To persuade Mary to spend more time on her lessons.（B） To help Mary to prepare for the upcoming concert.（C） To talk with Mary about going to the concert.（D）To ask Mary to stop worrying about the exam.（A）They should have called earlier in the day.（B） They cannot reserve a table in advance.（C） The res
33、taurant has no room for more diners tonight.（D）The restaurant is closed this weekend.（A）She lives far away.（B） Her car is close.（C） She takes the bus, not a car.（D）She wants the man to go with her.（A）It is hard to pronounce the name.（B） It is not going to be well received.（C） She has temporarily for
34、gotten its name.（D）She has never heard of the name.（A）She knows the movie is terrifying.（B） She doesnt want to see the movie again.（C） She also likes the movie.（D）She knows the actors.（A）Nothing can be mentioned.（B） A small park is not far away from here.（C） There is not much manufacturing around he
35、re.（D）Industrial pollution is not severe in this area.（A）You should not eat the skin.（B） Its not good raw.（C） The fruit has not been washed yet.（D）The seeds are not good to eat.（A）It was stupid.（B） It was boring.（C） It was a compliment.（D）It was inconsiderate.（A）Doctor and patient.（B） Secretary and
36、visitor.（C） Manager and clerk.（D）Teacher and student.（A）The woman doesnt like smoking.（B） The place is air-conditioned.（C） This is a non-smoking area.（D）Nobody smokes here.（A）To book a table for lunch.（B） To make an appointment.（C） To book an air ticket.（D）To ask somebody for help.（A）Writing a memo.
37、（B） Watching a film.（C） Taping some music.（D）Making a video recording.（A）She is going to study abroad.（B） She is talented in foreign languages.（C） She signed up for intensive Japanese.（D）She received a recommendation from a foreign university.（A）He told her about an interesting movie.（B） He gave her
38、 a good grade in her Japanese class.（C） He recorded some tapes especially for her.（D）He helped her get into the program.（A）Mastery of a foreign language.（B） Flexibility and open-mindedness.（C） Money to pay the extra tuition cost.（D）Maturity and common sense.Section BDirections: In this section, you
39、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 answer from the four choices marked A, B, C and D.（A）Vegetarian women are more likely to have girls.（
40、B） Non-vegetarian women are more likely to have girls.（C） Vegetarian women are more likely to have boys.（D）Vegetarian women are more likely to smoke during pregnancy.（A）Pregnant women who avoided meal and fish.（B） Pregnant women who like to eat meat and fish.（C） Women who are more likely to have gir
41、ls.（D）Women who are more likely to have boys.（A）Increase the sample number.（B） Extend the time of the study.（C） Observe the sample group of vegetarians.（D）Both A and B.（A）Because he wanted to be a great actor.（B） Because he wanted to be a playwright.（C） Because he was too poor to live on.（D）Because
42、he wanted to take care of horses.（A）On foot.（B） Riding horses.（C） By carriage.（D）Riding donkeys.（A）When he was taking care of horses.（B） When he was given an opportunity to play a part on the stage.（C） When he began play-writing.（D）When he had written many plays.（A）The general public.（B） Club member
43、s.（C） Women runners.（D）All women（A）Ten.（B） Eleven.（C） Fourteen.（D）Sixteen.（A）Anyone who want can participate, including children.（B） Runners should be in good health.（C） Only the champion runner will get money.（D）The final destination for the run is the Aquarium(水族馆).Section CDirections: In this sec
44、tion, you will hear a passage three times. When the passage is read for the first time, you should listen carefully 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 n
45、umbered from 44 to 46 you are required to fill in the missing information. For these blanks, you can either use the exact words you have just heard or write down the 36 We generally view the family as being one of our most stable institutions: yet, our family system has 【B1】_ a number of changes in
46、the past. Two hundred years ago, marriages were often arranged by parents, with economic 【B2】_ being the most important factor of who married whom. Two hundred years ago, divorce was 【B3】 _; now, more than one out of three marriages are in 【B4】_. Two hundred years ago, women did not work out of the
47、home. and children were an economic 【B5】 _; now nearly 50 percent of married women work outside the home, and children are a 【B6】_ responsibility.In our 【B7】_ society, the family is now changing even more rapidly than it did in the past.In 【 B8】_ the future of the American family, some authorities f
48、oresee the family as racing toward extinction. They say that 【B9】_, and this will be its only function.Family optimists, on the other hand, predict the familys entering a Golden Agean era where 【B10】_. Most sociologists, however, do not agree with either the pessimists or the optimists; instead, 【B1
49、1】_, many of which will probably be thrown away, but some likely to be found satisfying and functional and gradually becoming “typical“.36 【B1 】37 【B2 】38 【B3 】39 【B4 】40 【B5 】41 【B6 】42 【B7 】43 【B8 】44 【B9 】45 【B10 】46 【B11 】Section ADirections: 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
