2006年6月大学英语四级真题及答案

2006 年 6 月大学英语四级真题及答案 Part I Listening Comprehension (20 minutes) Section A Directions: In this section, you will hear 10 short conversations. At the end of each conversation, a question will be asked about what was said. Both the conversation and the question 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 the Answer Sheet with a single line through the centre. 1. A) They enjoyed the party better than the other guests. B) They knew none of the other guests at the party. C) They didn’t think much of the food and drinks. D) They went a long way to attend the party. 2. A) To the dentist’s. B) To the market. C) To the post office. D) To the bookstore. 3. A) She dislikes Dr. Andrews as much as the new physician. B) Dr. Andrews has been promoted for his thoroughness. C) She disagrees with Dr. Andrews on many occasions. D) Dr. Andrews used to keep his patients waiting. 4. A) Tom is usually talkative. B) Tom has a very bad temper. C) Tom is disliked by his colleagues. D) Tom has dozens of things to attend to. 5. A) To find out more about the topic for the seminar. B) To make a copy of the schedule for his friend. C) To get the seminar schedule for the woman. D) To pick up the woman from the library. 6. A) The man doesn’t want to sell his textbooks to the woman. B) The woman has to get the textbooks in other ways. C) The woman has sold her used textbooks to the bookstore. D) The man is going to buy his textbooks from a bookstore. 7. A) Give a speech. B) Meet his lawyer. C) Attend a conference. D) Make a business trip. 8. A) Jessie should know the marketing director better. B) Jessie is wrong to find fault with her boss. C) Jessie seems to have a lot on her mind. D) Jessie always says what she thinks. 9. A) Helen is quiet. B) Helen is talkative. C) Helen is sociable. D) Helen is active. 10. A) Jimmy is not serious in making decisions. B) Jimmy is rich enough to buy a big house. C) Jimmy’s words are often not reliable. D) Jimmy will regret marrying a Frenchwoman. 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 the Answer Sheet with a single line through the centre. Passage One Questions 11 to 13 are based on the passage you have just heard. 11. A) It has done more harm than good in the southern USA. B) It was brought to the northern USA by Asian farmers. C) It was introduced into the USA to kill harmful weeds. D) It can be used by farmers to protect large buildings. 12. A) They will become too hard to plough. B) They will soon be overgrown with kudzu. C) People will have to rely on kudzu for a living. D) People will find it hard to protect the soil. 13. A) The soil there is not so suitable for the plant. B) The factories there have found a good use for it. C) The farmers there have brought it under control. D) The climate there is unfavorable to its growth. Passage Two Questions 14 to 16 are based on the passage you have just heard. 14. A) The universe as a whole B) A society of legal professionals. C) An association of teachers and scholars. D) A business corporation. 15. A) Provincial colleges were taken over by larger universities. B) Its largest expansion took place during that period. C) Small universities combined to form bigger ones. D) Its role in society went through a dramatic change. 16. A) Private donations. B) Fees paid by students. C) Government funding. D) Grants from corporations. Passage Three Questions 17 to 20 are based on the passage you have just heard. 17. A) He was interested in the study of wild animals. B) He started the organization Heifer International. C) He was wounded in the Spanish civil war. D) He sold his cows to many countries in the world. 18. A) To make plans for the development of poor communities. B) To teach people how to use new skills to raise animals. C) To help starving families to become self-supporting. D) To distribute food to the poor around the world. 19. A) They should submit a report of their needs and goals. B) They should provide food for the local communities. C) They should offer all baby animals to their poor neighbors. D) They should help other families the way they have been helped. 20. A) It has helped relieve hunger in some developing countries. B) It has improved animal breeding skills all over the world. C) It has bridged the gap between the rich and the poor in America. D) It has promoted international exchange of farming technology. Part II Reading Comprehension (35 minutes) Directions: There are 4 passages in this part. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A), B), C) and D). You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet with a single line through the centre. Passage One Questions 21 to 25 are based on the following passage. Educating girls quite possibly yields a higher rate of return than any other investment available in the developing world. Women’s education may be unusual territory for economists, but enhancing women’s contribution to development is actually as much an economic as a social issue. And economics, with its emphasis on incentives ( 激 励 ), provides guideposts that point to an explanation for why so many girls are deprived of an education. Parents in low-income countries fail to invest in their daughters because they do not expect them to make an economic contribution to the family: girls grow up only to marry into somebody else’s family and bear children. Girls are thus seen as less valuable than boys and are kept at home to do housework while their brothers are sent to school-the prophecy ( 预 言 ) becomes selffulfilling, trapping women in a vicious circle (恶性循环) of neglect. An educated mother, on the other hand, has greater earning abilities outside the home and faces an entirely different set of choices. She is likely to have fewer but healthier children and can insist on the development of all her children, ensuring that her daughters are given a fair chance. The education of her daughters then makes it much more likely that the next generation of girls, as well as of boys, will be educated and healthy. The vicious circle is thus transformed into a virtuous circle. Few will dispute that educating women has great social benefits. But it has enormous economic advantages as well. Most obviously, there is the direct effect of education on the wages of female workers. Wages rise by 10 to 20 per cent for each additional year of schooling. Such big returns are impressive by the standard of other available investments, but they are just the beginning. Educating women also has a significant impact on health practices, including family planning. 21. The author argues that educating girls in developing countries is _________. A) rewarding B) troublesome C) expensive D) laborsaving 22. By saying “…the prophecy becomes self-fulfilling…” (Lines 4-5, Para. 2), the author means that __________. A) girls will eventually find their goals in life beyond reach B) girls will be increasingly discontented with their life at home C) girls will be capable of realizing their own dreams D) girls will turn out to be less valuable than boys 23. The author believes that a vicious circle can turn into a virtuous circle when ________ A) women care more about education B) parents can afford their daughters’ education C) girls can gain equal access to education D) a family has fewer but healthier children 24. What does the author say about women’s education? A) It has aroused the interest of a growing number of economists. B) It will yield greater returns than other known investments. C) It is now given top priority in many developing countries. D) It deserves greater attention than other social issues. 25. The passage mainly discusses __________. A) unequal treatment of boys and girls in developing countries B) the major contributions of educated women to society C) the economic and social benefits of educating women D) the potential earning power of well-educated women Passage Two Questions 26 to 30 are based on the following passage. Psychiatrists ( 精神 病专 家 ) who work with older parents say that maturity can be an asset in child rearing ---- older parents are more thoughtful, use less physical discipline and spend more time with their children. But raising kids takes money and energy. Many older parents find themselves balancing their limited financial resources, declining energy and failing health against the growing demands of an active child. Dying and leaving young children is probably the older parents’ biggest, and often unspoken, fear. Having late-life children, says an economics professor, often means parents, particularly fathers, “end up retiring much later.” For many, retirement becomes an unobtainable dream. Henry Metcalf, a 54-year-old journalist, knows it takes money to raise kids. But he’s also worried that his energy will give out first. Sure, he can still ride bikes with his athletic fifth grader, but he’s learned that young at heart doesn’t mean young. Lately he’s been taking afternoon naps (午睡) to keep up his energy. “My body is aging,” says Metcalf, “You can’t get away from that.” Often, older parents hear the ticking of another kind of biological clock. Therapists who work with middle-aged and older parents say fears about aging are nothing to laugh at. “They worry they’ll be mistaken for grandparents, or that they’ll need help getting up out of those little chairs in nursery school,” says Joann Galst, a New York psychologist. But at the core of those little fears there is often a much bigger one: “that they won’t be alive long enough to support and protect their child,” she says. Many late-life parents, though, say their children came at just the right time. After marrying late and undergoing years of fertility ( 受 孕 ) treatment, Marilyn Nolen and her husband, Randy, had twins. “We both wanted children,” says Marilyn, who was 55 when she gave birth. The twins have given the couple what they desired for years, “a sense of family.” Kids of older dads are often smarter, happier and more sociable because their fathers are more involved in their lives. “The dads are older, more mature,” says Dr. Silber, “and more ready to focus on parenting.” 26. Why do psychiatrists regard maturity as an asset in child rearing? A) Older parents can better balance their resources against children’s demands. B) Older parents are usually more experienced in bringing up their children. C) Older parents are often better prepared financially. D) Older parents can take better care of their children. 27. What does the author mean by saying “For many, retirement becomes an unobtainable dream” (Lines 7-8, Para. 1)? A) They have to go on working beyond their retirement age. B) They can’t get full pension unless they work some extra years. C) They can’t obtain the retirement benefits they have dreamed of. D) They are reluctant to retire when they reach their retirement age. 28. The author gives the example of Henry Metcalf to show that _________. A) many people are young in spirit despite their advanced age B) taking afternoon naps is a good way to maintain energy C) older parents tend to be concerned about their aging bodies D) older parents should exercise more to keep up with their athletic children. 29. What’s the biggest fear of older parents according to New York psychologist Joann Galst? A) Being laughed at by other people.