星火英语2008年6月版五套预测第5课
Model Test Five
Part Ⅲ Listening Comprehension
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.
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.
Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2
with a single line through the centre.
Now let’s begin with the eight short conversations.
11. M: I often panic（惊慌） about my English ability,
especially when I am overseas.
W: I don’t know why you say that.
As your teacher, I can say that you communicate just fine,
even on difficult business matters.
Q: What does the woman mean about the man’s English ability?
12. M: Do you sell camping equipment?
W: Yes, we have tents, sleeping bags, stoves …
just about anything you could need, including snakebite kits.
If you are going for only a weekend,
I think you can get all you want here.
Q: What does the man want to do?
13. M: I was going to do all the shopping for the dinner party.
But I couldn’t cash（兑现）my paycheck（付薪水的支票）,
and I didn’t have enough cash with me.
W: You should’ve said something.
I just cashed a check yesterday and could have lent you some.
Q: What was the problem?
14. W: Jack, can you do the dishes(刷盘子) tonight?
I’m very tired.
M: Can’t we just put them in the dish-washer（洗碗机）?
I’ve had a very bad day, too!
I just want to kick back（放松）and relax.
Q: What does the man suggest the woman do?
15. M: Driver, please take me to the airport.
I am running a little late, so please take the fastest way,
even if it’s not the most direct.
W: Sure, but there’s a lot of traffic everywhere today
because of the football game.
Q: What does the woman imply?
16. W: Did you hear there is some new kind of cable television system
that will allow you to get 500 channels?
M: Yeah.
But I might say we’ll have nothing to watch that is different from what we have now.
Q: What can be inferred from the man’s reaction to the system?
17. M: I can’t concentrate on this final report any longer.
Maybe I should take a nap（小憩） before we continue.
W: You know, they say physical activity makes you more alert（有活力的）.
Q: What does the woman suggest the man do?
18. M: Don’t you think John and Jim are telling the truth?
W: It doesn’t seem likely.
It would be hard to write two compositions so much alike
unless one of them was copying from the other.
Q: What seems to be the woman’s opinion?
Now you’ll hear the two long conversations.
Conversation One
W: So what are the main times of the day that you watch TV?
M: Well, a little around breakfast time
and then it tends to be really late—eleven or even midnight—
when I’ve finished work.
W: What sort of programs do you go for(去找，努力获取)?
M: Some news bulletins
but I also really like to put my feet up（搁起腿休息）
with some of the old comedy shows.
W: Fine. And turning to the new channel…
Which type of programs would you like to see more of?
M: Well, I certainly don’t think we need any more factual programs
like news and interviews.
I think we need more about things like local information…
you know, providing a service for the community,
perhaps more for younger viewers…
you know, good quality stuff.
W: Ah ha.
But if you had to give the new directors some specific advice
when they set up the channel, what advice would you give them?
M: I think I’d advise them to pay a lot of attention
to the quality of the actual broadcast,
you know, the sound system.
People are very fussy these days about that and in general.
I think they ought to do lots more of these kinds of interviews,
talking with their potential customers.
W: Oh, I’m glad you think it’s valuable.
M: Certainly… yeah.
W: Ok. This will be a commercial channel of course,
but how often do you think it is tolerable to have adverts?
M: Well out of that list I’d say every quarter of an hour.
I don’t think we can complain about that,
as long as they don’t last for ten minutes each time!
W: Thank you very much!
Questions 19 to 21 are based on the conversation you have just heard.
19. At what time does the man mainly watch TV?
20. What would the man like to see more of on the new channel?
21. What is the man’s advice to the new channel?
Conversation Two
W: Jim, thank goodness, you’ve arrived.
The class presentation started half an hour ago
and I was just beginning to panic.
M: I am sorry I’m late, Ellen.
This morning has been a real mess;
I didn’t think I was going to make it here at all.
W: Why are you late?
Our whole presentation depends on these graphs you are holding.
M: Yes, I know, I’ll tell you about it later.
First let’s see how we are doing on time.
Two groups are still ahead of us, aren’t they?
The presentation on the rights of the consumers and the analysis of the stock market.
That means I’ve got about twenty minutes to prepare.
W: You do look cold.
What happened?
M: I’ve been standing outside in freezing temperatures for over an hour
waiting for a bus.
W: Over an hour?
But I thought your apartment was only a ten-minute bus ride to our campus.
M: On normal conditions,
but the bus was delayed because of the weather.
So I had to wait another forty five minutes for the next bus.
W: That’s Murphy’s law, isn’t it?
What was it that said,
“If anything can go wrong, it will”.
Well, we’ve still got twenty minutes to gather our wits together.
M: We’d better stop talking.
People are turning around and looking at us.
Questions 22 to 25 are based on the conversation you have just heard.
22. What is the woman’s tone of voice when she first sees the man?
23. What class are the man and woman probably taking?
24. How much time do the speakers have before they address the class?
25. What are the two speakers mainly talking about?
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 answer from the four choices marked A), B), C) and D).
Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2
with a single line through the center.
Passage One
There seems never to have been a civilization without toys,
but when and how they developed is unknown.
They probably came about just to give children something to do.
In the ancient world, as in today’s world,
most boys played with some form of toy and most girls with another.
In societies where social roles are rigidly determined,
boys imitate their play after the activities of their fathers
and girls after the tasks of their mothers.
Boys and girls are being prepared, even in play,
to step into the roles and responsibilities of the adult world.
What is remarkable about the history of toys,
is not how they changed over the centuries,
but how they remained the same.
Changes have come mostly in terms of craftsmanship, mechanics, and technology.
Generally the same kinds of toys appeared around the world.
Variations depended on local customs and ways of life
because toys imitate their surroundings.
Nearly every civilization had dolls,
little weapons, toy soldiers, tiny animals and vehicles.
Toys can be regarded as an art form,
as they have not been subjected to technological leaps
that characterize inventions for adult use.
The progress from the wheel to the oxcart to the automobile
is a direct line of way up.
The progress from a doll used by a baby in 3000 BC
to one used by an infant today,
however, is not characterized by invention.
Each doll is the product of the artistic tastes of the times
and subject to the limitations of available materials.
Questions 26 to 28 are based on the passage you have just heard.
26. Why are the toys most boys play with
different from those that girls play with?
27. What is remarkable about the history of toys?
28. Why can toys be regarded as an art form?
Passage Two
In Britain and other countries,
young people sometimes take a “gap year”,
a year off between high school and college.
This idea never gained a big following in the United States.
Recent news reports have suggested that interest may be growing,
though there are no official numbers.
Mister Deacon says the most common reason is to have a chance to travel.
But he says international students
may take a gap year to meet requirements at home for military duty.
Some high school graduates see a year off as a chance to recover
after twelve years of required education.
But it can also give students a chance to explore their interests.
Many colleges and universities support gap-year projects
by permitting students to delay their admission.
Experts say students can grow emotionally and intellectually
as they work at something they enjoy.
Of course, a gap year is not for everyone.
Students might miss their friends who go on directly to college.
And parents might worry that their children will decide not to go to college
once they take time off.
Another concern is money.
A year off, away from home, can be costly.
Holly Bull is the president of the Center for Interim Programs.
Her company specializes in helping students plan their gap year.
She notes that several books have been written about this subject.
She says these books along with media attention
and the availability of information on the Internet
have increased interest in the idea of a year off.
Questions 29 to 32 are based on the passage you have just heard.
29. What is the meaning of “gap year”?
30. According to Mister Deacon,
why do international students take a gap year?
31. What are parents usually worried about
if their children take a gap year?
32. What does Miss Holly Bull’s company do?
Passage Three
For many people, Davy Crockett represented the spirit of the American wilderness.
David Crockett was born in what is now Greene County, Tennessee in 1786.
He was the fifth of nine children born to John and Rebecca Hawkins Crockett.
Life in the wilderness was difficult.
John Crockett repeatedly moved his family in an effort to find a good place to live.
In seventeen ninety-six, he opened a tavern, or drinking place.
The tavern was a popular stop for travelers.
Davy probably heard many stories told by the people at his father’s tavern.
Davy Crockett started attending a small school
when he was about thirteen years old.
A few days later, he fought with another boy at the school.
After that, Davy decided to run away from home to escape his father’s punishment.
For more than two years, he worked a number of unskilled jobs to support himself.
When Davy returned home, he was so tall that his family did not recognize him.
When they finally did, they celebrated his return.
Two hundred years ago, a boy either worked for his father
or surrendered his pay if he worked for someone else.
To gain his independence,
Davy worked for about a year to help pay his father’s debts.
He borrowed a gun from one employer and became good at shooting.
Within a short time,
Davy was a skilled hunter and trapper of wild animals.
By this, he was able to provide food and clothing for himself and his family.
Questions 33 to 35 are based on the passage you have just heard.
33. What did Davy Crockett do in 1796?
34. Why did Davy Crockett leave home when he was 13 years old?
35. What did Davy Crockett do to support his family?
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 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 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 main points in your own words.
Finally, when the passage is read for the third time,
you should check what you have written.
Now listen to the passage.
Today, American filmmakers produce movies with few restraints
about violence, sexuality and adult language.
But this was not always the case.
The Motion Picture Association of America
is the major movie organization that first formed in 1922.
The organization helps distribute movies internationally,
decides on rating systems,
and deals with public relations for the movie industry.
When it was first started by the Hollywood production studios,
the organization was called the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America.
The group was popularly called
the Hays Office because of its director, Will Hays.
This group developed the Motion Picture Production Code in 1930.
The aim was for the film industry
and not the government to decide what was morally acceptable to show in movies.
The Hays Office examined each film
before it could receive permission to be released.
The production code was very clear about issues
including crimes and sex.
For example, movies could not show violent killings,
methods of stealing, or illegal drug use.
The code banned sex scenes, sexual relationships between people of different races,
scenes of childbirth, and people not wearing clothing.
The Motion Picture Association finally ended the code in 1968
although movie makers had stopped following its rules many years before.
The group developed a new voluntary rating system
that tells parents whether a movie is right for children.
The ratings judge the level of violence, sexuality, and adult language.
When a movie is rated “NC-17”,
it means no children under the age of 17 will be admitted
without a parent or adult guardian with them.
Now the passage will be read again.
Today, American filmmakers produce movies with few restraints
about violence, sexuality and adult language.
But this was not always the case.
The Motion Picture Association of America is the major movie organization
that first formed in 1922.
The organization helps distribute movies internationally,
decides on rating systems,
and deals with public relations for the movie industry.
When it was first started by the Hollywood production studios,
the organization was called the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America.
The group was popularly called
the Hays Office because of its director, Will Hays.
This group developed the Motion Picture Production Code in 1930.
The aim was for the film industry
and not the government to decide what was morally acceptable to show in movies.
The Hays Office examined each film
before it could receive permission to be released.
The production code was very clear
about issues including crime and sex.
For example, movies could not show violent killings, methods of stealing,
or illegal drug use.
The code banned sex scenes, sexual relationships between people of different races,
scenes of childbirth,
and people not wearing clothing.
The Motion Picture Association finally ended the code in 1968
although movie makers had stopped following its rules many years before.
The group developed a new voluntary rating system
that tells parents whether a movie is right for children.
The ratings judge the level of violence, sexuality, and adult language.
When a movie is rated “NC-17”,
it means no children under the age of 17 will be admitted.
without a parent or adult guardian with them.
Now the passage will be read for the third time.
Today, American filmmakers produce movies with few restraints
about violence, sexuality and adult language.
But this was not always the case.
The Motion Picture Association of America is the major movie organization
that first formed in 1922.
The organization helps distribute movies internationally,
decides on rating systems,
and deals with public relations for the movie industry.
When it was first started by the Hollywood production studios,
the organization was called the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America.
The group was popularly called
the Hays Office because of its director, Will Hays.
This group developed the Motion Picture Production Code in 1930.
The aim was for the film industry
and not the government to decide what was morally acceptable to show in movies.
The Hays Office examined each film
before it could receive permission to be released.
The production code was very clear
about issues including crime and sex.
For example, movies could not show violent killings, methods of stealing,
or illegal drug use.
The code banned sex scenes, sexual relationships between people of different races,
scenes of childbirth,
and people not wearing clothing.
The Motion Picture Association finally ended the code in 1968
although movie makers had stopped following its rules many years before.
The group developed a new voluntary rating system
that tells parents whether a movie is right for children.
The ratings judge the level of violence, sexuality, and adult language.
When a movie is rated “NC-17”,
it means no children under the age of 17 will be admitted.
without a parent or adult guardian with them.
This is the end of listening comprehension.
