英语四级年度考试真题与标准答案分析
2007年12月英语四级考试真题
Part I Writing (30 minutes)
Directions: For this part, you are allowed thirty minutes to write a composition on the topic What Electives
To Choose. You should write at least 120 words according
to the outline given below in Chinese:
1. 各学校开了各种各样的选修课
2. 学生选课有不同的缘故
3. 就我而言
注意：此部分试题在答题卡1上。
What Electives To Choose
Part II Rading comprehension (Skimming and scanning)
(15minutes)
Directions: In this part, you will have 15 minutes to go over the passsage quickly and answer the
questions on Answer Sheet 1. For questions 1-7,
choose the best answer from the four choices
marked A), B),C) and D). For questions 8-10,
complete the sentences with the information given
in the passage.
Univeraities Branch Out
As never before in their long story, universities have become instruments of national
competition as well as instruments of peace. They are the place of the scientific discoveries that move economies forward, and the primary means of educating the talent required to obtain and
maintain competitive advantages. But at the same time, the opening of national borders to the flow
of goods, services, information and especially people has made universities a powerful force for
global integration, mutual understanding and geopolitical stability.
In response to the same forces that have driven the world economy, universities have become
More self-consciousy global: seeking students from around the world who represent the entire
range of cultures and values, sending their own students abroad to prepare them for global careers, offering courses of study that address the challenges of an interconnected world and collaborative （合作的）research programs to advance science for the benefit of all humanity.
Of the forces shaping higher education none is more sweeping than the movement across borders. Over the past three decades the number of students leaving home each year to study abroad has grown at an annual rate of 3.0 percent, from 8000,000 in 1975 to 2.5 million in 2994. Most travel from one developed nation to another, but the flow from developing to developed countries id growing rapidly. The
reverse flow, from developed to developing countries, is on the rise, too. Today foreign students earn 30 percent of the doctoral degrees awarded in the United States and 38 percent of those in the United Kingdom. And the number crossing borders for undergraduate study is growing as well, to 8 percent of the undergraduates at America’s best institutions and 10 percent of all undergraduates in the U.K. In the United States, 20 percent of the newly hired professors in science and engineering are foreign-born, and in China many newly hired faculty hired faculty members at the top research universities received their graduate education abroad.
Universities are also encouraging students to spend some of their undergraduate years in another country. In Europe, more than 140,000 students participate in the Erasmus program each year, taking courses for credit in one of 2, 2000 participating institutions across the continent. And in the United States, institutions are helping place students in summer internships（实习）abroad to prepare them
for global careers. Yale and Harvard have led the way, offering every undergraduate at least one international study or internship opportunity and providing the financial resources to make it possible.
Globalization is also reshaping the way research is done. One new trend involves sourcing portions of a research program to another country. Yale professor and Howard Hughes Me dical Shanghai’s Fudan University, in collaboration with faculty colleagues from both schools. The Shanghai center has 95 employees and graduate students working in a 4,300-square-meter laboratory seminars with scientists from both campuses. The arrangement benefits both countries;
Xu’s Yale lab is more productive, thanks to the lower costs of conducing from a word-class scientist and his U.S. team.
As a result of its strength in science, the United States has consistently led of the world in the world in the commercialization of major new technologies, from the mainframe computer and integrated circuit of the 1960s to
the internet infrastructure(基础设施)and applications software of
the 1990s.The link between university-based science and industrial application is often indirect but sometimes highly visible: Silicon Valley was intentionally created by Stanford University, and
Route 128 outside Boston has long housed companies spun off from MIT and Harvard. Around the world ,governments have encouraged copying of his model, perhaps most successfully in Cambridge, England, where Microsoft and scores of other leading software and biotechnology companies have set up shop around the university.
For all its success, the United States remains deeply hesitant about sustaining the research university model. Most politician recognize the link between investment in science and national
Economic strength, but support for research funding has been unsteady. The budget of the National Institutes of Health doubled between 1998 and 2003,but has risen more
slowly than inflations since then. Support for the physical sciences and engineering barely kept pace with inflation during that same period. The attempt to make up lost ground is welcome, but the nation would be better served by steady, predictable increases in science funding at the rate of long-term GDP growth, which is on the order of inflation plus 3 percent per year.
American politicians have great difficulty recognizing that admitting more foreign students can greatly promote the national interest by increasing international understanding. Adjusted for inflation, public funding for international exchanges and foreign-language study is well below the levels of 40 years ago. In the wake of September 11,changes in the visa process caused a dramatic decline in the number of foreign students seeking admission to U.S. Universities, and a corresponding surge in enrollments in Australia, Singapore and the U .K. Objections from Americans university and business leaders led to improvements in the process and a reversal of the
decline ,but the United States is still seen by many as unwelcoming to international students.
Most Americans recognize that universities contribute to the nation’s well-being through their scientific research, but many fear that foreign students threaten American competitiveness by taking their knowledge and skills back home. They fail to grasp that welcoming foreign students and like immigrants throughout history-strength the nation; and second, foreign students who study in the United States become ambassadors for many of its most cherished(珍视) values when they return home. Or at least they understand them better. In America as elsewhere, few Instruments of foreign policy are as effective in promoting peace and stability as welcoming international university students.
注意：此部分试题请在答题卡1上作答。
1From the first paragraph we know that present –day universities have become
A．more and more research-oriented
B．in-service training organizations
C．more popularized than ever before
D．a powerful force for global integration
2．Over the past three decades, the enrollment of overseas students has increased
A．by2.5 million B．by 800,000
C．at an annual rate of 3.9 percent
D．at an annual rate of 8 percent
3．In the United States,how many of the newly hired professors in science and engineering are foreign-born?
A．10% B．20% C．30% D．38%
4．How do Yale and Harvard prepare their undergraduates for global careers?
A．They organize a series of seminars on world economy B．They offer them various courses in international politics
C．They arrange for them to participate in the Erasmus program
D．They give them chances for international study or internship
5．An example illustrating the general trend of universities’ globalizatio n is A．Yale’s collaboration with Fudan University on genetic research
B．Yale’s helping Chinese universities to launch research projects
C．Yale’s student exchange program with European institutions
D．Yale’s establishing branch campuses thro ughout the world
6．What do we learn about Silicon Valley from the passage?
A．It houses many companies spun off from MIT and Harvard
B．It is known to be the birthplace of Microsoft Company C．It was intentionally created by Stanford University D．It is where the Internet infrastructure was built up
7．What is said about the U.S. federal funding for research?
A．It has increased by 3 percent
B．It has been unsteady for years
C．It has been more than sufficient
D．It doubled between 1998 and 2003
8．The dramatic decline in the enrollment of foreign students in the U.S after September 11 was caused by 9．Many Americans fear that American competiveness may be threatened by foreign students who will
10The policy of welcoming foreign students can benefit the U.S. in that the very best of them will stay and Part ⅢListening Comprehension (35 minutes)
Section A
Direction: 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 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.
注意：此部分试题请在答题卡2上作答。
11.A) She used to be in poor health. B) She was popular among boys.
C) She was somewhat overweight D) She didn’t do well at high school.
12. A) At he airport. B) In a restaurant. C) In a booking office.
D) At the hotel reception.
13. A) Teaching her son by herself. B) Having confidence in her son.
C) Asking the teacher for extra help D) Telling her son not to worry.
14. A) Have a short break. B) Take two weeks off. C) Continue her work outdoors.
D) Go on vacation with the man.
15. A) He is taking care of this twin brother. B) He is worried about Rod’s health.
C) He has been feeling ill all week. D) He has been in perfect condition.
16. A) She sold all her furniture before she moved house.
B) She still keeps some old furniture in her new house.
C) She plans to put all her old furniture in the basement.
D) She brought a new set of furniture from Italy last month.
17. A) The woman wondered why the man didn’t return the book.
B) The woman doesn’t seem to know what the book is about.
C) The woman doesn’t find the book useful any m ore.
D) The woman forgot lending the book to the man.
18. A) Most of the man’s friends are athletes.
B) Few people share the woman’s opinion.
C) The man doesn’t look like a sportsman.
D) The woman doubts the man’s athletic ability. Questions 19 to 22 are based on the conversation you have
heard.
19. A) She has packed it in one of her bags.
B) She has probably left it in a taxi.
C) She is going to get it the airport.
D) She is afraid that she has lost it.
20) A) It ends in winter.
B) It will cost her a lot.
C) It will last one week.
D) It depends on the weather.
21. A) The plane is taking off soon.
B) There might be a traffic jam.
C) The taxi is waiting for them.
D) There is a lot of stuff to pack.
22. A) At home.
B) In the man’s car.
C) At the airport.
D) By the side of a taxi.
Questions 23 to 25 are based on the conversation you have just heard.
23. A) She is thirsty for promotion.
B) She wants a much higher salary.
C) She is tired of her present work.
D) She wants to save travel expenses.
24. A) Translator.
B) Travel agent.
C) Language instructor.
D) Environment engineer.
25. A) Lively personality and inquiring mind.
B) Communication skills and team spirit.
C) Devotion and work efficiency.
D) Education and experience.
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 centre.
注意：此部分试题请在答题卡2上作答。
Passage One
Questions 26 to 29 are based on the passage you have just heard.
26．A）They care a lot about children.
B）They need looking after in their old age.
C）They want to enrich their life experience.
D）They want children to keep them company.
27. A. They are usually adopted from distant places.
B. Their birth information is usually kept secret.
C. Their birth parents often try to conceal their birth information.
D. Their adoptive parents don’t want them to know their birth parents.
28. A. They generally hold bad feelings towards their birth
parents.
B. They do not want to hurt the feelings of their adoptive parents.
C. They have mixed feelings about finding their natural parents.
D. They are fully aware of the expenses involved in the search.
29. A. Early adoption makes for closer parent-child relationship.
B. Most people prefer to adopt children from overseas.
C. Understanding is the key to successful adoption.
D. Adoption has much to do with love.
Passage Two
Questions 30 to 32 are based on the passage you have just heard.
30. A. He suffered from mental illness.
B. He bought The Washington Post
C. He turned a failing newspaper into a success.
D. He was once a reporter for a major newspaper.
31. A. She was the first woman to lead a big U.S. publishing company.
B. She got her first job as a teacher at the University of Chicago.
C. She committed suicide because of her mental disorder.
D. She took over her father’s position when he died.
32. A. People came to see the role of women in the business world.
B. Katharine played a major part in reshaping Americans’ mind.
C. American media would be quite different without Katharine.
D. Katharine had exerted an important influence on the world.
Passage Three
Questions 33 to 35 are based on the passage you have just heard.
33. A. It’ll enable them to enjoy the best medical care.
B. It’ll allow them to receive free medical treatment.
C. It’ll protect them from possible financial crises.
D. It’ll prevent the doctors from overcharging them. 34．A）They can’t immediately get back the money paid for their medical cost.
B）They have to go through very complicated application procedures.
C）They can only visit doctors who speak their native languages.
D）They may not be able to receive timely medical treatment.
35．A）They don’t have to pay for the medical services.
B）They needn’t pay the entire medical bill at once.
C）They must send the receipts to the insurance company promptly.
D）They have to pay a much higher price to get an insurance policy.
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 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 main points in your own words. Finally, when the passage is read for the third time, you should check what you have written.
注意：此部分试题请在答题卡2上作答。
More and more of the world's population are living in towns or cities. The speed at which cities are growing in the less developed countries is（36） . Between 1920 and 1960 big cities in developed countries（37） two and a half times in size, but in other parts of the world