大学英语四级练习2010T4(一).doc

2010级二下四级练习（一）part i writing (30 minutes)the prevalence of western holidays1. 我国某些传统节日受到冷遇，而西方节日却日益升温；2. 造成这种现象的原因；3. 你对这种现象的看法part ii reading comprehension (skimming and scanning) (15 minutes)does contagious yawning mean youre nice?youre in a conversation with another person and he casually yawns. as you wonder whether hes bored with the discussion, you find that youre yawning, too. a man walking by, sees you yawn, and pretty soon he yawns. its carried on and on, passing from one person to another in a domino effect. science is still investigating exactly what makes us yawn, but its a well-known and little-studied fact: yawning is contagious.we know that much of yawning is due to suggestibilityits infectious. you dont need to actually see a person yawn to involuntarily yawn yourself; hearing someone yawn or even reading about yawning can cause the same reaction. chances are youll yawn at least once while reading this article.but contagious yawning goes beyond mere suggestibility. recent studies show that the phenomenon is also related to our predisposition toward empathy-the ability to understand and connect with others emotional states. it sounds strange, but whether or not youre susceptible to contagious yawning may actually be related to how much empathy you feel for others.empathy is an important part of cognitive development. we learn from an early age to value ourselves based on the amount and type of empathy our parents display, and developmental psychologists have found that people who werent shown empathy by their parents struggle later on in life. a lack of early empathy has been shown to lead to the development of sociopathic behavior in adults.so empathy is important, sure, but how could it possibly be related to contagious yawning? leave it up to psychologists at leeds university in england to answer that. in their study, researchers selected 40 psychology students and 40 engineering students. each student was made to wait individually in a waiting room, along with an undercover assistant who yawned 10 times in as many minutes. the students were then administered an emotional quotient test: students were shown 40 images of eyes and asked what emotion each one displayed.the results of the test support the idea that contagious yawning is linked to empathy. the psychology studentswhose future profession requires them to focus on othersyawned contagiously an average of 5.5 times in the waiting room and scored 28 out of 40 on the emotional test. the engineering studentswho tend to focus on things like numbers and systemsyawned an average of 1.5 times and scored 25.5 out of 40 on the following test. the difference doesnt sound like much, but researchers consider it significant. strangely, women, who are generally considered more emotionally attuned, didnt score any higher than men. these findings support what neurologists found through brain imaging: contagious yawning is associated with the same parts of the brain that deal with empathy. these regions, the precuneus and posterior temporal gyms, are located in the back of the brain. and although the link between contagious yawning and empathy has been established, explanations for the link are still being investigated.researchers are looking into the world of development disorders and at higher primates for answers to this riddle.primate yawing, autism and contagious yawningyawning may serve a number of functions, and these functions might be different for different animals. humans arent the only animals that yawneven fish do. but only humans and chimpanzees, our closest relative in the animal kingdom, have shown definite contagious yawning.one study, conducted in kyoto, japan, observed six chimps in captivity. chimps were shown videos of other chimps yawning, along with chimps that opened their mouths but did not yawn. of the six, two chimps yawned contagiously a number of times. even more interesting, like their human counterparts under age 5, the three chimp infants showed no susceptibility to contagious yawning.this may be related to the fact that empathy is taught and learned. if contagious yawning is the result of empathy, then contagious yawning wouldnt exist until the ability to empathize was learned. but what if empathy is never developed? another study, led by cognitive researcher atsushi senju, sought to answer that question. people with autism spectrum disorder are considered to be developmentally impaired emotionally. autistics have trouble connecting with others and find it difficult to feel empathy. since autistics have difficulty feeling empathy, then they shouldnt be susceptible to contagious yawning.to find out, senju and his colleagues placed 48 kids aged 7 to 15 in a room with a television. twenty-four of the test subjects had been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, the other half were non-autistic kids. like the kyoto chimp study, the test subjects were shown short clips of people yawning as well as clips of people opening their mouths but not yawning. while the kids with autism had the same lack of reaction to both kinds of clips, the non-autistic kids yawned more after the clips of people yawning.but there could be another interpretation to senjus findings. autistics tend to focus on the mouths of people with whom they interact. but contagious yawning is thought to be cuednot by movements in the mouth areabut by changes to the area around the yawning persons eyes. this could explain why autistics are less susceptible to contagious yawning-perhaps theyre just missing the cues.however, that notion is undermined by another study. conducted by researchers at yale university. this study examined the reactions of autistic adults while they watched emotionally charged scenes from the movie, “whos afraid of virginia woolf?” researchers found that those autistics who watched the eyes of the characters didnt register any more emotional reaction than those who focused on the mouth. this indicates that contagious yawning amounts to more than just cues; the autistics who watched the eyes received little information from the cues they found there.its become pretty clear that contagious yawning is linked to empathy. but why? perhaps the best explanation for why we yawn, as well as why yawning is contagious, can be found around the watering hole on the savannah tens of thousands of years ago.some scientists believe that yawning is an involuntary response to a stressful situation: then we yawn, we increase the blood flow to the brain, thus making us more alert. contagious yawning may be a method of quiet communication by which our ancestors spread the word that a hungry lion was nearby. fear is an emotion with which we can empathize, and yawning may serve as a cue by which we spread that fear.1. whether or not youre easily influenced by contagious yawning may be linked to_.a the personality of the person you are talking to b how much empathy you feel for othersc your reaction when you see someone yawning d the ability to avoid others influence2. early empathy is important for us in that_.a parents first show their empathy to us b it is related to contagious yawning c its an important part of cognitive developmentd it affects our later life a lot3. the results of the leeds universitys test show that_.a the less a man focuses on others, the higher he scores b men didnt score any higher than womenc contagious yawning and empathy are related to the same parts of the braindit explained the link between contagious yawning and empathy4. contagious yawning wouldnt exist unless_.a the ability of yawning is taught c empathy is never developedb the ability to empathize is learned d yawning is controlled well5. why autistics are less susceptible to contagious yawning?a autistics have difficulty feeling empathy. b autistics cant communicate with others. c autistics are not able to learn yawning.d autistics focus much on peoples eyes.6. another interpretation to senjus findings is that contagious yawning is thought to be cued by_.a movements in the yawning persons mouth area b yawning persons appearance c changes on emotion reaction d changes around the yawning persons eyes7. according to the yale universitys study, why autistics arent susceptible to contagious yawning?a they didnt register any emotional reaction.b they didnt understand the movie.c they received little information from the cues around peoples eyes. d they didnt understand what people say just by seeing movement of mouths.8. the reason why contagious yawning is linked to empathy was not clear.9. some scientists believe that yawning is just to make us more alert .10. yawning may be considered as a cue by which people spread an emotion, and with the emotion we can emphasize.part iii listening comprehension (35 minutes)section a11. a 1016.b 1060. c 508.d 580.12. a father and daughter. c aunt and nephew.b uncle and niece. d cousins.13. a she wasnt invited. c she altered her decision.b she wasnt ready to come. d she forgot the invitation.14. a the door needs repairing. c he couldnt open the door.b he had lost all his keys. d he wanted the woman to help him.15. a shes rather happy to hear so. c shes unhappy to hear so.b shes disappointed to hear so. d shes surprised to hear so.16. a he thought it was a good car.b he thought it was too noisy. c he thought there was something wrong with the car.d he didnt like it.17. ain a car.b in a train. c in a ship.d in a plane.18. a shell go to the concert. c shell watch her neighbors children.b shell have a meeting. d shell visit her neighbor.questions 19 to 22 are based on the conversation you have just heard.19. a the early history of bookbinding. c economical ways to protect old books.b how old books become valuable. d why some books decay.20. al they are often handled improperly by readers. b. the paper is destroyed by chemicals.c the ink used in printing damages the paper.d the glue used in the binding loses its strength.21. a they are difficult to read.b they are slowly falling apart.c they were not made from wood pulp.d they should be stored in a cold place.22. a get some books for the man to look at. b ask the man to look over her notes. c continue her research in the library. d find more information on how books are preserved.questions 23 to 25 are based on the conversation you have just heard.23. a which major the woman will be choosing. b an anthropology course the woman is taking. c how to find a job in publishing. d which anthropology professors the man recommends.24. a it is not as difficult as she had thought it would be. b she would like her professor to explain it more clearly. c she took a class on it last semester.d her professor will write a book on it soon.25. a her professor. c her former boss.b a classmate. d a foreign diplomat.section bpassage one26. a because nobody knew his address.b because nobody knew his age.c. because penurys private life was a secret.d because penury was still a bachelor at the age of forty-five.27. a he did not spend money freely. c he had a luxurious car.b he was always well-dressed. d he worked hard for a living.28. a a photographer. c a reporter.b a burglar. d a professor.passage two29. ain 1809. b in 1863. cin1865.d in 1860.30. al four years.b five years. c three years.d six years.31. al a soldier.b a thief. c a government officer. d an actor. 32. a because they didnt like lincoln being their president. b because they wanted to set up their own government.c because they disagreed with lincoln on the abolishment of slavery. d because they wanted to stage a war against lincolns government.passage three33. a 10 points.b 2 points.c 15 points.d 5 points.34. a they will lake one of the six major tests. b they will have to write a composition. c they will be given a pop test.d they will be required to read a short story in class.35. a an essay. c a poem.b a magazine article. d a short story.section cscientists have developed a new cancer drug. so far, they have tested it only on (36) laboratory animals. the drug is designed to (37 ) invade and kill cancer cells but not healthy cells.first, the drug enters the cancer and destroys the supply of blood. then it releases (38 ) poison to destroy the cancer cells.researchers at the massachusetts institute of technology in cambridge carried out the study. the (39 ) results appeared in nature (40) magazine. a school news release called the drug an “anti-cancer smart bomb”.ram sasisekharan is a professor at m.i.t. he says his team had to (41 ) solve three problems. they had to find a way to destroy the blood vessels, then to (42 ) prevent the growth of new ones. but they also needed the blood vessels to supply chemicals to destroy the cancer.so, the researchers designed a two-part “nanocell”. the cell is (43) measured in nanometers, or one thousand millionth of a meter. (44) the particle used was two hundred nanometersmuch, much sma1ler than a human hair.the scientists say it was small enough to pass through the blood vessels of the cancer, but it was too big to enter normal blood vessels. the surface of the nanocells also helped them to avoid natural defenses.(45 )the scientists designed the cell as a balloon inside a balloon. they loaded the outer part with a drug that caused the blood vessels to fall in on themselves. that cut off the blood supply and trapped the nanocell inside the cancer. then, the nanocell slowly released chemotherapy drugs to kill the cancer cells.(46 )the team sys the treatment shrank the cancer and avoided healthy cells better than other treatments.part iv reading comprehension (reading in depth) (25 minutes)section agood sense is the most equitably distributed thing in the world, for each man considers himself so well provided with it that even those who are most difficult to 47 b in everything else do not usually wish to have more of it than they have already. it is not likely that everyone is 48 l in this. it shows, rather, that the ability to judge rightly and separate the true from the false, which is essentially what is called good sense or 49 k , is by nature equal in all men; and thus that our opinions differ not because some men are better 50 g with reason than others, but only because we direct our thoughts along different paths, and do not consider the same things. for it is not enough to have a good mind; what is most important is to 51 o it rightly.the greatest souls are capable of the greatest vices; and those who walk very slowly can 52 e much further, if they always keep to the direct road, than those who run and go astray.for my part, i have never 53 i my mind to be more perfect than average in any way; i have, in fact, often wished that my thoughts were as quick, or my imagination as precise and distinct, or my 54 n as capacious or prompt, as those of some other men. and i know of no other qualities than these which make for the 55 h of the mind; for as to reason, or good sense, in as much as it alone makes us men and distinguishes us from the beasts, i am quite willing to believe that it is whole and entire in each of us, and to follow in the common 56 d of the philosophers who say that there are differences of more or less only among the accidents, and not among the forms, or natures, of the individuals of a single species.a misunderstood i presumed b satisfy j illusion cdesign kreason d opinion l mistaken eadvance mperfect f brain nmemory g endowed o apply hi perfectionssection bover the last 25 years, british society has changed a great dealor at least many parts of it have. in some ways, however, very little has changed, particularly where attitudes are concerned. ideas about social classwhether a person is “working- class” or “middle-class”are one area in which changes have been extremely slow。in the past, the working-class tended to be paid less than middle-class people, such as teachers and doctors. as a result of this and also of the fact that workers jobs were generally much less secure, distinct differences in life-styles and attitudes cameinto existence. the typical working man would collect his wages on friday evening and then, it was widely believed, having given his wife her “housekeeping”, would go out and squander(浪费) the rest on beer and betting.the stereotype (陈腔滥调) of what a middle-class man did with his money was perhaps nearer the truth. he wasand still isinclined to take a longer-term view. not only did he regard buying a house of these provided him and his family with security. only in very few cases did workers have the opportunity (or the education and training) to make such long-term plans.nowadays, a great deal has changed. in a large number of cases factory workers earn as much, if not more, than their middle-class supervisors. social security and laws to improve job security, combined with a general rise in the s