2011年12月四級真題及答案(新東方版)
Part I Writing
【標準版】Nothing Succeeds Without a Strong Will
Part II
ReadingComprehension (Skimming and Scanning)
1. A person ofintegrity not only sets high moral and ethical standards but also _______。
A) sticks tothem in their daily life
B) makes themknown to others
C) understandstheir true values
D)sees thatothers also follow them
【答案】A) sticks to them in their daily life
【解析】第一題的答案就在全文第一句。關鍵詞是not only…. But also…. ，關鍵句是The key to integrity is consistency--not onlysetting high personal standards for oneself (honesty, responsibility, respectfor others, fairness) but also living up to those standards each day. 這里的live up to 和選項里的 stick to 屬于同義替換。
2. What roledoes integrity play in personal and professional relationships?
A) It helps tocreate team spirit
B) Itfacilitates communication
C) It is thebasis of mutual trust
D) It inspiresmutual respect
【答案】C) It is the basis of mutual trust
【解析】關鍵詞是personal and professional，關鍵句是Trust is essential in any important relationship,whether personal or professional. Who can trust someone who is dishonest orunfair? Thus, integrity must be one of our most important goals。
結合緊接著的問句，我們很容易鎖定trust這個選項。
3. why must welearn to identify the risks we are going to take？
A. To ensurewe make responsible choices。
B. To avoidbeing overwhelmed by stress。
C. so that wedon’t break any rules。
D. so that wedon’t run into trouble。
【答案】A. To ensure we make responsible choices。
【解析】關鍵詞是identify the risks，關鍵句是Making ethical decisions is a critical part of avoiding future problems.We must learn to recognize risks, because if we can't see the risks we'retaking, we can't make responsible choices. 所以答案很明顯是A。
4. Violationof a rule is misconduct even if _______?
A. it hascaused no harm。
B. it isclaimed to be unintentional。
C. it has goneunnoticed。
D. it iscommitted with good intentions。
【答案】B. it is claimed to be unintentional。
【解析】關鍵詞是misconduct，關鍵句是But the fact that such a violation is "unintentional" does notexcuse the misconduct. 和原文意義高度一致的，就是這個unintentional。因此答案是：B. it isclaimed to be unintentional。
5. What shouldone do if he doesn’t wish to fool himself?
A. Avoidmaking excuses。
B. Listen toother people’s advice。
C. Make hisintensions public。
D. Have otherswatch over his shoulder。
【答案】A. Avoid making excuses。
【解析】關鍵詞是fool oneself，關鍵句是To avoid fooling yourself, watch out for excuses and try this test這里的watch out for 和選項里的avoid屬于同義替換。所以答案是A。
6. Those whotake risks they regret later on _______。
A. will oftenbecome more cautious
B. are usuallyvery aggressive
C. valueimmediate benefits most。
D. may loseeverything in the end
【答案】C. value immediate benefits most。
【解析】關鍵詞是regret later，關鍵句是Those who take risks they later regret usually focus on immediatebenefits ("what's in it for me")。很明顯，選項 value immediate benefits most 是正確答案。這里的value 和 focus on 屬于同義替換。
7. Accordingto the author, a cheater who doesn’t get caught right away will _______。
A) pay moredearly
B) become moreconfident
C) be widelyadmired
D) feelsomewhat lucky
【答案】A) pay more dearly
【解析】關鍵詞是get caught，關鍵句是Those who don't get caught pay an even higher price. 這里的higher price 和選項里的more dearly 屬于同義替換。所以答案是A。
8. Cheaters atexam don’t care about their education, all they care about is how to steal agrade。
【答案】steal a grade
【解析】關鍵詞：care about
關鍵句：I'm not interested in what you're trying toteach; all I care about is stealing a grade, regardless of the effect onothers."
9. Integritymatters in that all social activities rely on people’s honesty and good faith。
【答案】honesty and good faith
【解析】關鍵詞是rely on，關鍵句是We must rely on the honesty and good faith of others every day。
10. ManyAmericans lost faith in the integrity of their political leaders as a result ofthe Watergate scandal。
【答案】the Watergate scandal
【解析】關鍵詞是political and economic leaders，關鍵句是Watergate, have undermined the faith of manyAmericans in the integrity of political and economic leaders and society as awhole。
Part III Listening Comprehension
Section A
11.
W: This crazybus schedule has got me completely confused. I can’t figure out when my bus toCleveland leaves?
M: Why don’tyou just go to the ticket window and ask?
Q: What doesthe man suggest the woman do?
【答案】B) Go and ask the staff。
【解析】這是一道事實細節(jié)題。從對話中可知，女士搞不清楚列車時刻表，男士建議她去售票窗口咨詢。ticket window售票窗口。
12.
W: I reallyenjoyed the TV special about drafts last night. Did you get home in time to seeit?
W: Oh, yes,but I wish I could have stayed awake long enough to see the whole thing。
Q: What doesthe man mean?
【答案】A) He fell asleep in the middle of the TVprogram。
【解析】這是道推理判斷題，考查男士的言下之意以及虛擬語氣。could have done意為本可以做某事，但未做。從對話中可知，男士確實回家看了電視節(jié)目，但是他說道：I wish I could have stayed awake long enough tosee the whole thing. 我真希望自己當時能再晚點睡著，這樣我就可以看完整場節(jié)目了。說明他沒有看完整場節(jié)目就睡著了。
13.
W: Airport,please. I’m running a little late. So just take the fastest way even if it’snot the most direct。
M: Sure, butthere is a lot of traffic everywhere today because of the football game。
Q: What do welearn about the woman from the conversation?
【答案】B) She is worried about missing her flight。
【解析】這是道場景題，略有難度。剛開始，我們還無法很快判斷出該對話發(fā)生的場景，很多同學一聽到airport可能會誤以為對話發(fā)生在機場，但如果我們繼續(xù)聽下去，就會發(fā)現(xiàn)，該對話應該發(fā)生在出租車上，因為女士說了句“請選擇最快的路”，而男士說“因為有球賽，所以到處都交通擁堵”可以幫助我們再次確認對話發(fā)生的場景。選項A不對，原文是說要挑the fastest way哪怕不是the mostdirect way；選項C也不準確，才剛上車，并沒有擁堵，司機只是提前說明因為球賽會碰到擁堵；選項D錯誤，女士是為了趕去乘飛機的，而不是去看球賽。
14.
W: May I makea recommendation, sir? Our seafood with this special sauce is very good。
M: Thank you,but I don’t eat shellfish. I’m allergic to it。
Q: Where doesthis conversation most probably take place?
【答案】A) At a restaurant
【解析】這是道場景題，較為簡單。從對話中可知，女士希望向男士推薦一道菜，從首句中即可推斷出該對話最有可能發(fā)生在餐館中，男士說，他過敏，不吃貝殼類海鮮，可以幫助我們再次確認對話發(fā)生的場景。
15.
W: Now onemore question if you don’t mind, what position in the company appeals to youmost?
M: Well, I’dlike the position of sales manager if that position is still vacant。
Q: What do welearn about the man?
【答案】A) He is being interviewed for a job。
【解析】這是較為簡單的細節(jié)推理題。從position, company這幾個關鍵詞中，我們就可以快速判斷出此題的場景為面試，因此男士應該正在接受一場面試。 C選項錯誤，他想要銷售經理的職位，但并不表示他本身就是銷售經理。
16.
M: I don’tthink I want to live in the dormitory next year. I need more privacy。
W: I know whatyou mean. But check out the cost if renting an apartment first. I won’t besurprised if you change your mind。
Q: What doesthe woman imply?
【答案】B) The man is unlikely to move out of thedormitory。
【解析】這是推理判斷題，詢問女士的言下之意。最后一句，女士表示“你改變主意的話，我不會覺得奇怪”，可知，男士不太可能搬出宿舍。A選項是個干擾項，雖然該選項看上去意思和B選項差不多，但對話中并沒有提到男士想找一個更安靜的地方，他想搬離寢室，是為了更多的個人空間。
17.
M: You’re onthe right track. I just think you need to narrow the topic down。
W: Yeah,you’re right. I always start by choosing two boarder topics when I’m doing aresearch paper。
Q: What do welearn from the conversation?
【答案】D) The woman is going to make her topic morefocused。
【解析】這是推理判斷題。從對話中可知，男士希望女士縮小主題的范圍，女士回答“你是對的?！闭f明女士會采納男士的建議，縮小主題。
18.
W: This picnicshould beat the last one we went to, doesn’t it?
M: Oh, yeah,we had to spend the whole time inside. Good thing, the weather was cooperativethis time。
Q: What do welearn about the speakers from the conversation?
【答案】B) They didn’t quite enjoy their last picnic。
【解析】這是推理判斷題。beat一詞是個難點，beat本意有“打敗”的意思，這次的野餐打敗了上次，即這次比上次好，下文中，男士說“上次我們不得不呆在室內，但這次天氣不錯?！笨梢栽俅未_認他們不喜歡上次的野餐，因此，正確答案為B。
19.
A)He likes Sweden better than England。
B)He prefers hot weather to cold weather。
C)He is an English living in Sweden。
D)He visits London nearly every winter。
19. What do welearn about the man from the conversation?
【答案】B)He prefers hot weather to cold weather。
【解析】本題為推斷題。根據(jù)文章大意可推斷得出。整篇文章中，分別有兩處暗示信息，一處是男士說，“Swedish people always complain that when theyvisit England, the houses are cold even in the good winter?！?，瑞典人在冬天去拜訪英格蘭時，會抱怨英格蘭室溫太冷。另一處是男士在談到冬天天氣時，說道：“It is sometimes a bit depressing?！遍L時間寒冷的天氣令人沮喪。因此可推斷得出，男士更喜歡hot weather，熱天氣。所以，答案為：He prefers hot weather to cold weather。
20.
A)The bad weather
B)The cold houses。
C)The gloomy winter。
D)The long night。
20. What doSwedish people complain about when they visit England in winter?
【答案】B)The cold houses。
【解析】對話中，當男士介紹瑞典的極寒天氣時，談到只要穿暖，出門很暖，而室內更暖和，為了強調這一觀點，男士繼續(xù)說道：“Swedish people always complain that when theyvisit England, the houses are cold even in the good winter?！闭f是瑞典人在冬天去拜訪英格蘭時，會抱怨英格蘭室溫太冷。所以，答案為：The cold houses。
21.
A)Delightful。
B)Painful。
C)Depressing。
D)Refreshing。
21. How doesthe man describe the short hour of daylight around Christmas in Sweden?
【答案】C)Depressing。
【解析】女士問：“And what about the darkness?”男士答道：“around Christmas time there’s only one hour ofdaylight, so you really looks forward to the spring?！迸R近圣誕節(jié)的時候，每天僅有一小時為白天，所以人們都非常向往春天，希望春天快點到來。然后，進一步強調性地評論道：“It is sometimes a bit depressing?！庇袝r候真有點令人沮喪。因此，本題答案為：Depressing。
22.
A)They often stay up late reading。
B)They workhard and play hard。
C) They liketo go camping in summer。
D) They try toearn more and spend more。
22. What doesthe man say about the Swedish people?
【答案】B)They work hard and play hard。
【解析】男士在談到瑞典的極晝天氣時，著重談了瑞典人在極晝天氣的工作情況，并進一步對瑞典人的工作習慣進行了評價。男士說道：“They’d like to work hard, but play hard, too?！比鸬淙思饶茉诠ぷ鲿r努力工作，又能在能玩時拼命玩。所以，本題答案為：They work hard and play hard。
23. A)Management。
B)French
C)English literature
D)Public Administration
23. What wasthe man’s major at university?
【答案】B)French。
【解析】細節(jié)題。在第二輪對話中，女士問，“what was your educational background?”你是什么教育背景，男士回答說：“I did a degree in French at Nottingham?！?我在諾丁漢大學攻讀了法語學位，所以男士的專業(yè)是French。
24. A)English teaching。
B)Staff training。
C)Careers guidance。
D)Psychological counseling
24. What wasthe man’s job in secondary schools?
【答案】C)careers guidance。
【解析】細節(jié)題。在說完“I did a degree in French at Nottingham。”之后，男士又接著說“After that, I did careers guidance in secondaryschools。”因此，此題的答案應為：careers guidance。
25. A)Its pleasant environment。
B)Its worldwide fame。
C)Its generous scholarship。
D)Its well-designed courses。
25. Whatattracted the man to Nottingham University?
【答案】B)Its pleasant environment。
【解析】細節(jié)題。女士問：“Is there any reason why you went to NottinghamUniversity?”你去諾丁漢大學是出于什么原因？男士在回答中說到，諾丁漢是我心中理想大學之一。緊接著他就說道：“And I like the look of it?！边€進一步補充說明道：“ The campus is just beautiful. ”因此，男士是因被其優(yōu)雅環(huán)境所吸引而選擇去諾丁漢大學。所以，本題的答案為：Its pleasant environment。
Questions 26 to 28 are based on the passageyou have just heard。
26. What didObcamp’s speech focus on?
A)Characteristics of Japanese artists
B) Somefeatures of Japanese culture
C) The art ofJapanese brush painting
D) Theuniqueness of Japanese art
【答案】C) The art of Japanese brush painting
27. Why doJapanese listeners sometimes close their eyes while listening to a speech?
A) To calmthemselves down
B) To enhanceconcentration
C) To showtheir impatience
D) To signaltheir lack of interest
【答案】B) To enhance concentration。
28. What doesthe speaker try to explain?
A) Howlisteners in different cultures show respect
B) Howspeakers can win approval from the audience
C) Howspeakers can misunderstand the audience
D) Howdifferent Western and Eastern art forms are
【答案】A) How listeners in different cultures showrespect。
Questions 29to 32 are based on the passage you have just heard。
29. What isChris’s main responsibility at Taxlong Company?
A) Directingpersonnel evaluation。
B) Buying andmaintain equipment。
C) Drawing upplans for in-service training。
D)Interviewing and recruiting employees。
【答案】 B) Buying and maintain equipment。
30. Whatproblem did Chris encounter in his Division?
A) Some of hisequipment was damaged in a fire。
B) Thetraining program he ran was failure。
C) Two of hisworkers were injured at work。
D) Two of hisemployees committed theft。
【答案】D)Two of his employees committed theft。
31. What doesChris hope for in the near future?
A) A betterrelationship with his boss。
B) Advancementto a higher position
C) Abetter-paying job in another company
D) Improvementin the company’s management
【答案】B)Advancement to a higher position。
32 What do welearn about Kim from the passage?
A)She has moreself-confidence than Chris。
B)She workswith Chris in the same division。
C)She has moremanagement experience than Chris。
D) She iscompeting with Chris for the new job。
【答案】D) She is competing with Chris for the new job。
Questions 32-35 are based on the passage you have just heard。
33. Why areproverbs so important?
A) They helpus see the important values of a culture。
B) They guideus in handling human relationships。
C) They help usexpress ourselves more effectively。
D) They are aninfinite source of human knowledge。
【答案】A)They help us see the important values of a culture。
34. Accordingto the speaker what happens to some proverbs with the passage of time?
A)Theirwordings may become different。
B) The valuesthey reflect may change。
C)Theirorigins can no longer be traced。
D) They may bemisinterpreted。
【答案】B) The values they reflect may change。
35. What do welearn from the study of proverbs from around the world?
A)
C)
D)
【答案】
Part V Cloze
Employers fearthey will be unable recruit students with the skills they need as the economicrecovery kicks in, a new survey 67.reveals。
Nearly half oforganizations told researchers they were already struggling to find68.staff with skills in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM)，69.while even more companies expect to experience 70.shortages of employeeswith Stem skills in the next three years。
TheConfederation of British Industry and the vocational qualifications body EDI71.surveyed 694 organizations across the public and 72.private sectors, whichtogether employ 2.4 million people。
Half are73.concerned they will not be able to fill graduate posts in the coming years,while a third said they would not be able to 74.recruit enough employees withthe right A-level skills。
"75.As wemove further into recovery and businesses plan 76.for growth, the demand forpeople with high-quality skills and qualifications will 77.intensify,"said Richard Lambert, director general, CBI。
"In thefuture, people with qualifications in science and maths will be particularlysought after, and firms say it is already hard to find people with the right78.technical or engineering skills. The new government must make it a top79.priority to encourage more young people to study science-related80.subjects."
The surveyfound that young people would improve their job prospects 81.if they studiedbusiness studies, maths, English and physics or chemistry at A-level. TheA-levels that employers 82.rate least are psychology and sociology. And whilemany employers don't insist on a 83.particular degree subject, a third preferto hire those with a Stem-related subject。
The research84.highlighted worries about the lack of progress in improving basic skills inthe UK 85.workforce. Half of employers expressed worries about employees' basicliteracy and numeracy skills, while the biggest problem is with IT skills,86.where two-thirds reported concerns。
【評析】這是一篇討論“雇主和他們所需要的大學生技能” 的文章。今年四級的完型填空，涉及5處名詞，2處介詞，6處動詞，4處形容詞和3處副詞。第82題稍難，像80和85都可以通過上下文判斷出來，其余部分只要在句子內部或者句子之間進行上下文邏輯比對或語法搭配，即可完成。詞義辨析考查較多，考查學生詞匯的儲備量，因此，考生要特別注意四級詞匯的牢固掌握。
Part VI Translation
87. Charitygroups organized various activities to raise money for the survivors of theearthquake. (為地震幸存者籌款)
【解析】本題考察動詞raise的用法。raise money 表示“籌款”。同時考生要注意survivor (幸存者)的拼寫。
88. Lindacouldn’t have received my e-mail (不可能收到我的電子郵件)， otherwise, she could have replied。
【解析】本題考察混合型虛擬語氣。otherwise提示我們句子后半句是與過去事實相反(事實是Linda沒有回復)，因此用could+have+過去分詞。句子前半句是在陳述一種事實，從句子后半句could have +過去分詞我們可以推斷前面“沒有收到我的電子郵件”也是在發(fā)生在過去，且對現(xiàn)在產生了影響(還沒有收到回信)，因此這里用現(xiàn)在完成時，could have +過去分詞。
89. It’s mymother who/that keeps encouraging me not to lose heart (一直鼓勵我不要灰心) when I have difficulties in my study。
【解析】本題考察了強調句型和動詞encourage的搭配。①強調句型it’s … that/who… ②encourage sb. (not) to do sth. 鼓勵某人(不)做某事。
90. Thepublishing house has to consider the popularity of this novel. (考慮這本小說的受歡迎程度)。
【解析】本題考察了“考慮”的表達，可以用動詞consider，也可以用詞組take… into consideration。同時考生要注意名詞popularity (受歡迎程度) 的拼寫。
91. It’s wrongto define happiness only by money。(僅僅以金錢來定義幸福)
【解析】本題考察了“定義”的表達，為define。
聽力原文：Part III Listening Comprehension
Section A
Directions: Inthis section, you will hear 8 short conversations and2 long conversations. Atthe end of each conversation, one or more questions will be asked about whatwas 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 thefour 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 throughthe centre。
11.
W: This crazybus schedule has got me completely confused. I can’t figure out when my bus toCleveland leaves?
M: Why don’tyou just go to the ticket window and ask?
Q: What doesthe man suggest the woman do?
12.
W: I reallyenjoyed the TV special about drafts last night. Did you get home in time to seeit?
W: Oh, yes,but I wish I could have stayed a week long enough to see the whole thing。
Q: What doesthe man mean?
13.
W: Airport,please. I’m running a little late. So just take the fastest way even if it’snot the most direct。
M: Sure, butthere is a lot of traffic everywhere today because of the football game。
Q: What do welearn about the woman from the conversation?
14.
W: May I makea recommendation, sir? Our seafood with this special sauce is very good。
M: Thank you,but I don’t eat shellfish. I’m allergic to it。
Q: Where doesthis conversation most probably take place?
15. W: now onemore question if you don’t mind, what position in the company appeals to youmost?
M: Well, I’dlike the position of sales manager if that position is still vacant。
Q: What do welearn about the man?
16. M: I don’tthink I want to live in the dormitory next year. I need more privacy。
W: I know whatyou mean. But check out the cost if renting an apartment first. I won’t besurprised if you change your mind。
Q: What doesthe woman imply?
17. M: You’reon the right track. I just think you need to narrow the topic down。
W: Yeah,you’re right. I always start by choosing two boarder topics when I’m doing aresearch paper。
Q: What do welearn from the conversation?
18. W: Thispicnic should beat the last one we went to, doesn’t it?
M: Oh, yeah,we had to spend the whole time inside. Good thing, the weather was cooperativethis time。
What do welearn about the speakers from the conversation?
ConversationOne
M: When I sayI live in Sweden, people always want to know about the seasons。
W: Theseasons?
M: Yeah, youknow how cold it is in winter? What is it like when the days are so short?
W: So what isit like?
M: Well, it iscold ,very cold in winter. Sometimes it is cold as 26 degrees below centigrade.And of course when you go out, you’ll wrap up warm. But inside in the housesit’s always very warm, much warmer than at home. Swedish people always complainthat when they visit England, the houses are cold even in the good winter。
W: And whatabout the darkness?
M: Well, yeah,around Christmas time there’s only one hour of daylight, so you really looksforward to the spring. It is sometimes a bit depressing. But you see thesummers are amazing, from May to July in the North of Sweden the sun neversets. It’s still light in the midnight. You can walk in the mountains and reada newspaper。
W: Oh, yeah,the land of the midnight sun。
M: Yeah,that’s right, but it’s wonderful. You won’t stay up all night. And the Swedesmakes most of it often they started work earlier in summer and then leave atabout 2 or 3 in the afternoon, so that they can really enjoy the long summerevenings. They’d like to work hard, but play hard, too. I think Londoners worklonger hours, but I’m not sure this is a good thing。
Q19: What dowe learn about the man from the conversation?
Q20: What doSwedish people complain about when they visit England in winter?
Q21: How doesthe man describe the short hour of daylight around Christmas in Sweden?
Q21:What doesthe man say about the Swedish people?
ConversationTwo
W: What kindof training does one need to go into this type of job?
M: That’s avery good question. I don’t think there is any, specifically.
W: Forexample, in your case, what is your educational background?
M: Well, I dida degree in French at Nottingham. After that, I did careers work in secondaryschools like the careers guidance people here is in the university. Then I wentinto local government because I found I was more interested in theadministrative side. Then progressed on to universities. So there wasn’t anyplan and there was no specific training. There are plenty of training coursesin management techniques and committee work which you can attend now.
W: But in thefirst place, you did a French degree.
M: In my time,there wasn’t a degree you could do for administration. I think most of theadministrators I’ve come across have degrees and all sorts of things.
W: Well, Iknow in my case, I did an English literature degree and I didn’t really expectto end up doing what I am doing now.
M: Quite。
W: But you arelocal to Nottingham, actually? Is there any reason why you went to NottinghamUniversity?
M: No ,no, Icome from the north of England, from west Yorkshire. Nottingham was one of theuniversities I put on my list. And I like the look of it. The campus is justbeautiful.
W: Yes,indeed. Let’s see. Were you from the industrial part of Yorkshire?
M: Yes, fromthe woolen district。
Q23. What wasthe man’s major at university?
Q24: What wasthe man’s job in secondary schools?
Q25: Whatattracted the man to Nottingham University?
Section B
Passage One
While GailObcamp, an American artist was giving a speech on the art of Japanese brushpainting to an audience that included visitors from Japan, she was confused tosee that many of her Japanese listeners have their eyes closed. Were they tunedoff because an American had the nerve to instruct Japanese in their own artform or they deliberately tried to signal their rejection of her? Obcamp laterfound out that her listeners were not being disrespectful. Japanese listenerssometimes closed their eyes to enhance concentration. Her listeners wereshowing their respect for her by chewing on her words. Some day you may beeither a speaker or a listener in a situation involving people from othercountries or members of minority group in North America. Learning how differentcultures signal respect can help you avoid misunderstandings. Here are someexamples. In the deaf culture of North America, many listeners show applausenot by clapping their hands but by waving them in the air. In some cultures,both overseas and in some minority groups in North America, listeners areconsidered disrespectful if they look directly at the speaker. Respect is shownby looking in the general direction but avoiding direct eye contact. In somecountries, whistling by listeners is a sign of approval while in othercourtiers it is a form of insult。
Questions:
26, What didObcamp’s speech focus on?
27, Why doJapanese listeners sometimes close their eyes while listening to a speech?
28, What doesthe speaker try to explain?
Passage Two
Chris is incharge of purchasing and maintaining equipment in his Division at TaxlongCompany. He is soon going to have an evaluation interview with his supervisorand the personnel director to discuss the work he has done in the past year.Salary, promotion and plans for the coming year will also be discussed at themeeting. Chris has made several changes for his Division in the past year.First, he bought new equipment for one of the departments. He has beenparticularly happy about the new equipment because many of the employees havetold him how much it has helped them. Along with improving the equipment, Chrisbegan a program to train employees to use equipment better and do simplemaintenance themselves. The training saved time for the employees and money forthe company. Unfortunately, one serious problem developed during the year. Twoemployees the Chris hired were stealing, and he had to fire them. Chris knowsthat a new job for a purchasing and maintenance manager for the whole companywill be open in a few months, and he would like to be promoted to the job.Chris knows, however, that someone else wants that new job, too. Kim is incharge of purchasing and maintenance in another Division of the company. Shehas also made several changes over the year. Chris knows that his boss likesKim’s work, and he expects that his work will be compared with hers。
Questions 29to 32 are based on the passage you have just heard。
29. What isChris’s main responsibility at Taxlong Company?
30. Whatproblem did Chris encounter in his Division?
31. What doesChris hope for in the near future?
32. What do welearn about Kim from the passage?
Passage Three
Proverbs,sometimes called sayings, are examples of folk wisdom. They are little lessonswhich older people of a culture pass down to the younger people to teach themabout life. Many proverbs remind people of the values that are important in theculture. Values teach people how to act, what is right, and what is wrong.Because the values of each culture are different, understanding the values ofanother culture helps explain how people think and act. Understanding your ownculture values is important too. If you can accept that people from othercultures act according to their values, not yours, getting along with them willbe much easier. Many proverbs are very old. So some of the values they teachmay not be as important in the culture as they once were. For example,Americans today do not pay much attention to the proverb “Haste makes waste”，because patience is not important to them. But if you know about past values,it helps you to understand the present and many of the older values are stillstrong today. Benjamin Franklin, a famous American diplomat, writer andscientist, died in 1790, but his proverb “Time is money” is taken moreseriously by Americans of today than ever before. A study of proverbs fromaround the world shows that some values are shared by many cultures. In manycases though, the same idea is expressed differently。
Questions 33-35 are based on the passage you have just heard。
33. Why areproverbs so important?
34. Accordingto the speaker what happens to some proverbs with the passage of time?
35 What do welearn from the study of proverbs from around the world?
Section CCompound Dictation
Our lives arewoven together. As much as I enjoy my own company, I no longer imagine I canget through a single day much less all my life completely on my own. Even if Iam on vacation in the mountains, I am eating food someone else has grown,living in a house someone else has built, wearing clothes someone else has sewnfrom cloth woven by others, using electricity someone else is distributing tomy house. Evidence of interdependence is everywhere; we are on this journeytogether。
As I wasgrowing up, I remember being carefully taught that independence notinterdependence was everything. “Make your own way”，” Stand on your own twofeet” or my mother’s favorite remark when I was face-to-face with consequencesof some action: Now that you’ve made your bed, lie on it。
Totalindependence is a dominant thing in our culture. I imagine that what my parentswere trying to teach me was to take responsibilities for my actions and mychoices. But the teaching was shaped by our cultural imagines. And instead, Igrew up believing that I was supposed to be totally independent andconsequently became very reluctant to ask for help. I would do almost anythingnot to be a burden, and not require any help from anybody。