英语四级真题试题.doc

Part I Writing (30 minutes)Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write a composition on the topic: To Be a Small Fish in a Big Pond or a Big Fish in a Small Pond? You should write at least 120 words following the outline given below in Chinese:1. 在大企业工作的特点2. 在小企业工作的特点3. 我的选择To Be a Small Fish in a Big Pond or a Big Fish in a Small Pond?Part II Reading Comprehension (Skimming and Scanning) (15minutes)Directions: In this part, you will have 15 minutes to go over the passage quickly and answer the questions on Answer Sheet 1. For questions 1-7, markY (for YES) if the statement agrees with the information given in the passage;N (for NO) if the statement contradicts the information given in the passage;NG (for NOT GIVEN) if the information is not given in the passage.For questions 8-10, complete the sentences with the information given in the passage.To Save Trees, Fighting One Alien Insect with OthersRusty rhea sighs wistfully as he talks about the beauty and peace of standing amid a grove (小树林) of deep green hemlocks in Appalachia, some of them up to 160 feet (50 meters) tall and more than 500 years old.This is a very special tree, said Rhea, an entomologist for the U.S. Forest Services Forest Health Protection program in Asheville, North Carolina, I was brought up here, and I dont want to see another species go by the wayside.The evergreen trees, a hallmark of southern Appalachias national parks, are under attack by an invasive inse4ct barely visible to the eye but potent enough to fell the giants of the eastern United States old-growth forests.Already the tiny bug from Japan, known as the hemlock woolly adelgid (HWA), has killed upward of 95 percent of the hemlocks in Virginias Shenandoah National Park. Now they are making their way through the half-million-plus-acre (200,000-plus-hectare) Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina and Tennessee.The hemlocks shade streams, keeping water temperatures just right for brook trout (鲑鱼) and other fish. They also house birds such as the black-throated green warbler, solitary vireo, and northern goshawk, all three of which mainly shelter in stands of hemlock trees.Because of the insects broad impact on the entire ecosystem of southern Appalachia, HWA stands to cause wider damage than the American chestnut blight (枯萎病)of the early 1900s. That fungus from Europe killed off the once dominant chestnut trees from the northeast United States to the southern Appalachian Mountains.In addition, a species related to HWA, the balsam woolly adelgid, has already killed about 90 percent of the mature Fraser fir trees in the Smokies.Acting QuicklyHWA arrived in the U.S. Pacific Northwest via nursery plants from Japan in 1924. By 1951 the tiny invader had been found in Virginia. Since then the insect has spread to more than 15 U.S. states.The key to killing the HWA is to catch it early and act quickly. Its already well established in the Great Smoky Mountains, where Rhea and others are trying to stem the spread of the bugs.HWA multiply quickly: All of the insects are females that reproduce asexually (无性地), laying several hundred eggs a year. When they get to the nymph, or crawler, stage, they are dormant from about June until October, after which they emerge and establish themselves on trees.Winds and birds and other animals spread the crawlers through the forest.HWA crawlers feed on the new growth of hemlocks by piercing the twigs that hold the branches, sucking the sap, and injecting toxic saliva. The needles turn from a deep green to a grayish green and eventually die, depriving the tree of nutrition from photosynthesis.An infected tree usually dies within five years of initial attack. Infection is signaled by either a white, cottonlike material that appears along a trees twigs or by the baldness of a trees upper branches.Plans of AttackIn the Pacific Northwest the hemlocks seem to be tolerant of the creatures feeding, and in the cold northeast, winters seem to keep them at bay. But in the warm southeast, with weather approximating that of the insects native Asian homes, they thrive.Chemical sprays-such as insecticidal soaps and horticultural oils as well as trunk or soil injections-have helped to kill some of the HWA infestations.But spraying must be repeated every six months, and injections are expensive and last only two years at most. These methods cant be used conveniently or safely in remote areas or near the streams where hemlocks grow thickly.Long term, the best way to control the pests appears to be releasing other insects that feed exclusively on HWA. Scientists have studied HWA in Japan and China and identified three such species. One of them, the Sasajiscymnus tsugae (St) beetle, was released in areas of Great Smoky Mountains National Park in 2002.Studying what controls a species in its native habitat-including climate, predators, and host resistance-provided clues about which insects to use against HWA, said Kristine Johnson. Based in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, Johnson is a supervisory forester for Great Smoky Mountains National Park.Biological control is the only long-term hope to save the trees in the backcountry (穷乡僻壤), she said. We have 800 square miles (2,100 square kilometers) of contiguous wilderness. We value the native forest, and its entirely worth defending.Risky BusinessReleasing one species of non-native bug to kill another could be risky business, potentially creating another type of infestation. But scientists first quarantined and studied the HWA-killer insects.They believe the St beetles are the best answer to the HWA problem and that they wont cause side damage. This tiny black female beetle, the size of a poppy seed, is already spreading in the Great Smoky Mountains.But the beetle and other HWA-killer insects are seasonal, so it will take several different ones operating year-round to keep HWA in check, Rhea said. He doesnt believe HWA will be completely eradicated (根除) but will instead be kept in balance by the predator insects. Were trying to insert a balance in a system thats out of balance, he said.Each St beetle can lay 200 to 300 eggs, said Ernest Bernard, professor of entomology at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville.Bernards laboratory is one of several that are breeding the beetles.Each beetle eats hundreds of baby adelgids a year, he said. And about 120,000 of the beetles have been released in the past couple years in the Smokies, but it is still too early to measure their impact.One good sign, Bernard said, is that some beetle larvae (幼虫) have been found in areas where they were not released, indicating that the HWA killers may be reproducing and spreading.1. The passage gives a general description of an invasive insect, HWA.2. Hemlock is a hallmark of southern Appalachias national parks.3. The invasive insect, known as the hemlock woolly adelgid (HWA), is from Japan.4. The key to killing the HWA is to catch it early and act quickly.5. An infected tree usually dies immediately.6. The Hemlock in the U.S. will be saved from HWA soon.7. The long term, best way to control the pests HWA is spraying.8. Since 1951 the HWA has spread to more than_.9. Releasing one species of non-native bug to kill another could create_.10. It will take several different insects operating year-round to_.Part IV Reading Comprehension (Reading in Depth) (25 minutes)Section ADirections: In this section, there is a short passage with 5 questions or incomplete statements. Read the passage carefully. Then answer the questions or complete statements in the fewest possible words. Please write your answers on Answer Sheet 2.Many of the most damaging and life threatening types of weather-torrential rains, severe thunderstorms, and tornadoes-begin quickly, strike suddenly, and disappear rapidly, destroying small regions while leaving neighboring areas untouched. Such event as a tornado struck the northeastern section of Edmonton, Alberta, in July 1987. Total damages from the tornado exceeded $250 million, the highest ever for any Canadian storm.Conventional computer models of the atmosphere have limited value in predicting short lived local storms like the Edmonton tornado, because the available weather data are generally not detailed enough to allow computers to study carefully the subtly atmospheric changes that come before these storms. In most nations, for example, weather-balloon observations are taken just once every twelve hours at locations typically separated by hundreds of miles. With such limited data, conventional forecasting models do a much better job predicting general weather conditions over large regions than they do forecasting specific local events.Until recently, the observation intensive approach needed for accurate, very short-range forecasts, or Nowcasts, was not feasible. The cost of equipping and operating many thousands of conventional weather stations was extremely high, and the difficulties involved in rapidly collecting and processing the raw weather data from such a network were hard to overcome. Fortunately, scientific and technological advances have overcome most of these problems. Radar systems, automated weather instruments, and satellites are all capable of making detailed, nearly continuous observation over large regions at a relatively low cost. Communications satellites can transmit data around the world cheaply and instantaneously, and modern computers can quickly compile and analyze this large volume of weather information. Meteorologists (气象学者) and computer scientists now work together to design computer programs and video equipment capable of transforming raw weather data into words, symbols, and vivid graphic displays that forecasters can interpret easily and quickly. As meteorologists have begun using these new technologies in weather forecasting offices, Nowcasting is becoming a reality.47. It can be inferred from the passage that the value of damages from torrential rains, severe thunderstorms and tornadoes is _.48. Why do conventional models of the atmosphere fail to predict such a short-lived tornado?_.49. It can be inferred from the passage that conventional forecasting models are now mostly used for _.50. What does Nowcasts mean according to the passage?_.51. According to the passage, what makes Nowcasting a reality?_.Section BDirections: There are 2 passages in this section. 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 Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the center.Passage OneQuestions 52 to 56 are based on the following passage.What makes Americans spend nearly half their food dollars on meals away from home? The answers lie in the way Americans live today. During the first few decades of the twentieth century, canned and other convenience foods freed the family cook from full-time duty at the kitchen range.Then, in the 1940s, work in the wartime defense plants took more women out of the home that ever before, setting the pattern of the working wife and mother. Unless family members pitch in with food preparation, women are not fully liberated from that chore.Its easier to pick up a bucket of fried chicken on the way home from work or take the family out for pizzas or burgers than to start opening cans or heating up frozen dinners after a long, hard day. Also nowadays, the rising divorce rate means that there are more single working parents with children to feed. And many young adults and elderly people, as well as unmarried and divorced mature people, live alone rather than as a part of a family unit and dont want to bother cooking for one. Fast food is appealing because it is fast, it doesnt require any dressing up, it offers a fun break in the daily routine, and the outlay of money seems small. It can be eaten in the car-sometimes picked up at a drive-in window without even getting out-or on the run. Even if it is brought home to eat, there will never be any dirty dishes to wash because of the handy disposable wrappings. Children, especially, love fast food because its finger food, no struggling with knives and forks, no annoying instructions from adults about table manners.52. Americans enjoy fast food mainly because _.A it can be eaten in the carB it is much more tasty than home-made foodC one only uses his fingers while eating itD it is time-saving and convenient53. It can be inferred that children _.A want to have freedom at tableB wash dishes after each mealC are not good at using forks and knives while eatingD take eating time as a fun break54. Many Americans are eating out and not cooking at home nowadays because _.A they want to make a change after eating the same food for years at homeB the food made outside home tastes better than food cooked at homeC many of them live alone or dont like taking trouble to cookD American women refuse to cook at home due to womens liberation movement55. According to the text, a drive-in window is a _.A car window from which you can see the driverB window in the restaurant from which you get your meal in the carC place where you check the mechanic condition of your carD entrance where you return the used plates after eating56. The expression pitch in with (Line 2, Para. 2) probably means_.A complainB enjoyC helpD denyPassage TwoQuestions 57 to 61 are based on the following passage.InfraGard is a grass-roots effort to respond to the need for cooperation and collaboration in countering the threat of cyber crime and terrorism to private businesses and the government. By the end of September, there will be InfraGard chapters in all 50 states, Calloway said. With advice from the FBI, each local chapter will be run by a board of directors that includes members of private industry, the academic community and public agencies. Bands, utilities, and other businesses and government agencies will use a secure Web site to share information about attempts to hack into their computer networks. Members can join the system free. A key feature of the system is a two-pronged method of reporting attacks.A sanitized description of a hacking attempt or other incident-one that doesnt reveal the name or information about the victim-can be shared with the other members to spot trends. Then a more detailed description also can be sent to the FBIs computer crimes unit to interfere if there are grounds for an investigation. Cyber crime has jumped in recent years across the nation, particularly in hotbeds of financial commerce and technology like Charlotte. Ten years ago, all you needed to protect yourself was a safe, a fence and security officers, said Chris Swecker, who is in charge of the FBIs Charlotte office. Now any business with a modem is subject to attack. FBI agents investigate computer hacking that disrupted popular Web sites including Amazon. com, CNN and Yahoo!several North Carolina victims have been identified this year. The investigation has also identified computer systems in North Carolina used by hackers to commit such attacks. Prosecutions of hackers have been hampered by the reluctance of companies to report security intrusions for fear of bad publicity and lost business. Meanwhile, too many corporations have made it too easy for criminals by sacrificing security for speed and accessibility. Jack Wiles, who will lead the local InfraGard chapters board, said a recent report estimated 97 percent of all cyber crime goes undetected. Wiles, a computer security expert, has a firewall on his personal computer to prevent hackers from getting into his files. I get at least one report a day that somebody was trying to get into my computer, he said, the Net is a wonderful place, but its also a dangerous one.57. From the first paragraph, we know _.A InfraGard is a protective measure against cyber crimeB InfraGard is a measure of cooperation and collaborationC there will be 50 InfraGard chapters in all statesD private business and the government are now committing cyber crime58. Each local chapter of InfraGard will be run by the following EXCEPT _.A academic communitiesB public agenciesC FBID private industry59. By saying too many corporations.speed and accessibility (Lines 34, Para. 3), the author means _.A too many corporations take no notice of the security problem of computersB criminals are sacrificing security for speed and accessibilityC its very easy to sacrifice security for speed and accessibilityD many companies suffer from computer hacking because they value speed and accessibility more than security60. All the following are reasons for the rise in cyber crime EXCEPT _.A victims wont report intrusions by hackersB victims have no firewallsC the use of modem is increasingD companies dont pay enough attention to security61. It can be concluded from the passage that _.A not all hacking attempts are worthy of investigationB information of the victims is inaccessibleC InfraGard chapters will be in effect by the