历年大学英语四级考试真题及答案

历年大学英语四级考试真题及答案

2017年大学英语四级考试真题及答案

PartI

Writing

(30minutes)

Directions:Forthispart,youareallowed30minutestowritean

essay.Supposeyouhavetwooptionsupongraduation:oneistofinda

jobsomewhereandtheothertostartabusinessofyourown.Youare

tomakeadecision.Writeanessaytoexplainthereasonsforyour

decision.Youshouldwriteatleast120wordsbutnomorethan180words.

PartII

ListeningComprehension

(25minutes)

SectionA

Directions:Inthissection,youwillhearthreenewsreports.At

theendofeachnewsreport,youwillheartwoorthreequestions.Both

thenewsreportandthequestionswillbespokenonlyonce.Afteryou

hearaquestion,youmustchoosethebestanswerfromthefourchoices

markedA,B,CandD.ThenmarkthecorrespondingletteronAnswerSheet

1withasinglelinethroughthecentre.

Questions1and2arebasedonthenewsreportyouhavejustheard.

1.A.Itwasdangeroustolivein.

B.Itwasgoingtoberenovated.

C.Hecouldnolongerpaytherent.

D.Hehadsoldittotheroyalfamily.

2.A.Astrike.

B.Astorm.

C.Aforestfire.

D.Aterroristattack.

Questions3and4arebasedonthenewsreportyouhavejustheard.

3.A.Theylostcontactwiththeemergencydepartment.

B.Theyweretrappedinanundergroundelevator.

C.Theywereinjuredbysuddenlyfallingrocks.

D.Theysentcallsforhelpviaaportableradio.

4.A.Theytriedhardtorepairtheelevator.

B.Theyreleasedthedetailsoftheaccident.

C.Theysentsuppliestokeeptheminerswarm.

D.Theyprovidedtheminerswithfoodandwater.

Questions5to7arebasedonthenewsreportyouhavejustheard.

5.A.Raisepostagerates.

B.Improveitsservices.

C.Redesigndeliveryroutes.

D.Closesomeofitspostoffices.

6.A.Shorteningbusinesshours.

B.Closingofficesonholidays.

C.StoppingmaildeliveryonSaturdays.

D.Computerizingmallsortingprocesses.

7.A.Manypostofficestaffwilllosetheirjobs.

B.Manypeoplewillbegintocomplain.

C.Taxpayerswillbeverypleased.

D.Alotofcontroversywillarise.

SectionB

Directions:Inthissection,youwillheartwolongconversations.

Attheendofeachconversation,youwillhearfourquestions.Boththe

conversationandthequestionswillbespokenonlyonce.Afteryouhear

aquestion,youmustchoosethebestanswerfromthefourchoicesmarked

A,B,CandD.ThenmarkthecorrespondingletteronAnswerSheetIwith

asinglelinethroughthecentre.

Questions8to11arebasedontheconversationyouhavejustheard.

8.A.Hewillbekeptfrompromotion.

B.Hewillgothroughretraining.

C.Hewillbegivenawarning.

D.Hewilllosepartofhispay.

9.A.Heisalwaysontime.

B.Heisatrustworthyguy.

C.Heisanexperiencedpressoperator.

D.Heisongoodtermswithhisworkmates.

10.A.Sheisatradeunionrepresentative.

B.Sheisinchargeofpublicrelations.

C.Sheisaseniormanageroftheshop.

D.Sheisbetterathandlingsuchmatters.

11.A.Heisskilledandexperienced.

B.Heisveryclosetothemanager.

C.Heisalwaystryingtostiruptrouble.

D.Heisalwayscomplainingaboutlowwages.

Questions12to15arebasedontheconversationyouhavejustheard.

12.A.Open.

B.Friendly.

C.Selfish.

D.Reserved.

13.A.Theystayquiet.

B.Theyreadabook.

C.Theytalkabouttheweather.

D.Theychatwithfellowpassengers.

14.A.Shewasalwaystreatedasaforeigner.

B.ShewaseagertovisitanEnglishcastle.

C.Shewasneverinvitedtoacolleague，shome.

D.Shewasunwillingtomakefriendswithworkmates.

15.A.Housesaremuchmorequiet.

B.Housesprovidemoreprivacy.

C.Theywanttohavemorespace.

D.Theywantagardenoftheirown.

SectionC

Directions:Inthissection,youwillhearthreepassages.Atthe

endofeachpassage,youwillhearthreeorfourquestions.Boththe

passageandthequestionswillbespokenonlyonce.Afteryouheara

question,youmustchoosethebestanswerfromthefourchoicesmarkedA,

B,CandD.ThenmarkthecorrespondingletteronAnswerSheet1with

asinglelinethroughthecentre.

Questions16to18arebasedonthepassageyouhavejustheard.

16.A.Theydon，thavemuchchoiceofjobs.

B.Theyarelikelytogetmuchhigherpay.

C.Theydon，thavetogothroughjobinterviews.

D.Theywillautomaticallybegivenhiringpriority.

17.A.Asktheirprofessorsforhelp.

B.Lookatschoolbulletinboards.

C.Visittheschoolcareersservice.

D.Gothroughcampusnewspapers.

18.A.Helpingstudentsfindthebooksandjournalstheyneed.

B.Supervisingstudyspacestoensureaquietatmosphere.

C.Helpingstudentsarrangeappointmentswithlibrarians.

D.Providingstudentswithinformationaboutthelibrary.

Questions19to21arebasedonthepassageyouhavejustheard.

19.A.Ittastesbetter.

B.Itiseasiertogrow.

C.Itmaybesoldatahigherprice.

D.Itcanbettersurviveextremeweathers.

20.A.Itishealthierthangreentea.

B.Itcangrowindriersoil.

C.Itwillreplacegreenteaoneday.

D.Itisimmunetovariousdiseases.

21.A.Ithasbeenwellreceivedbymanyteadrinkers.

B.Itdoesnotbringthepromisedhealthbenefits.

C.Ithasmadeteafarmers，lifeeasier.

D.Itdoesnothaveastablemarket.

Questions22to25arebasedonthepassageyouhavejustheard.

22.A.Theyneeddecorationstoshowtheirstatus.

B.Theypreferuniqueobjectsofhighquality.

C.Theydecoratetheirhomesthemselves.

D.Theycaremoreaboutenvironment.

23.A.Theywereproudoftheircreations.

B.Theycouldonlytrytocreateatnight.

C.Theymadegreatcontributionstosociety.

D.Theyfocusedonthequalityoftheirproducts.

24.A.Makewisechoices.

B.Identifyfakecrafts.

C.Designhandicraftsthemselves.

D.Learntheimportanceofcreation.

25.A.Toboostthelocaleconomy.

B.Toattractforeigninvestments.

C.Toarousepublicinterestincrafts.

D.Topreservethetraditionalculture.

PartIII

ReadingComprehension

(40minutes)

SectionA

Directions:Inthissection,thereisapassagewithtenblanks.

Youarerequiredtoselectonewordforeachblankfromalistofchoices

giveninawordbankfollowingthepassage.Readthepassagethrough

carefullybeforemakingyourchoices.Eachchoiceinthebank

isidentifiedbyaletter.Pleasemarkthecorrespondingletterforeach

itemonAnswerSheet2withasinglelinethroughthecentre.Youmay

notuseanyofthewordsinthebankmorethanonce.

Questions26to35arebasedonthefollowingpassage.

Whensomeonecommitsacriminalact,wealwayshopethepunishment

willmatchtheoffense.Butwhenitcomestooneofthecruelest

crimes-animalfighting-一things26workoutthatway.Dog-fighting

victimsare27andkilledforprofitand"sport,〃yettheircriminal

abusersoftenreceivea28sentenceforcausingalifetimeofpain.

Roughlyhalfofallfederally-convictedanimalfightersonlyget

probation（缓刑）.

Someprogresshasbeenmadeintheprosecution（起诉）ofanimal

fighters.ButfederaljudgesoftenrelyheavilyontheU.S.Sentencing

GuideLineswhenthey29penalties,andinthecaseofanimalfighting,

thoseguidelinesareoutdatedandextremely30

TheU.S.SentencingCommission,which31thesesentencing

guidelines,isrevisitingthem,proposingtoraisetheminimumsentence

from6-12to21-27months.Thisisastepintheright32,butwe'd

liketoseetheU.S.SentencingCommissionmakefurtherchangesto

theguidelines.

Alongwiththiseffort,we'reworkingwithanimaladvocatesand

stateandfederallawmakersto33anti-crueltylawsacrossthecountry,

aswellassupportinglawsandpoliciesthatassistoverburdenedanimal

34thatcareforanimalfightingvictims.Thishelpis35

importantbecausethehighcostofcaringforanimalvictimsisamajor

factorthatpreventspeoplefromgettinginvolvedincrueltycasesin

thefirstplace.

A.convenient

B.creates

C.critically

D.determine

E.direction

F.hesitate

G.inadequate

H.inspired

I.method

J.minimal

K.rarely

L.shelters

M.strengthen

N.sufferings

0.tortured

SectionB

Directions:Inthissection,youaregoingtoreadapassagewith

tenstatementsattachedtoit.Eachstatementcontainsinformation

giveninoneoftheparagraphs.Identifytheparagraphfromwhichthe

informationisderived.Youmaychooseaparagraphmorethanonce.Each

paragraphismarkedwithaletter.Answerthequestionsbymarking

thecorrespondingletteronAnswerSheet2.

WhenWorkBecomesaGame

A)Whatmotivatesemployeestodotheirjobswell?Competitionwith

coworkers,forsome.Thepromiseofrewards,forothers.Pureenjoyment

ofproblem-solving,foraluckyfew.

B)Increasingly,companiesaretappingintothesedesiresdirectly

throughwhathascometobeknownas"gamification”:essentially,

turningworkintoagame."Gamificationisaboutunderstandingwhatit

isthatmakesgamesengagingandwhatgamedesignersdotocreatea

greatexperienceingames,andtakingthoselearningsandapplyingthem

toothercontextssuchastheworkplaceandeducation,〃explainsKevin

Werbach,agamificationexpertwhoteachesattheWhartonSchool

ofBusinessattheUniversityofPennsylvaniaintheUnitedStates.

C)Itmightmeanmonitoringemployeeproductivityonadigital

leaderboardandofferingprizestothewinner,orgivingemployees

digitalbadgesorstarsforcompletingcertainactivities.Itcould

alsomeantrainingemployeeshowtodotheirjobsthroughvideogame

platforms.CompaniesfromGoogletoL5OrealtoIBMtoWellsFargoare

knowntousesomedegreeofgamificationintheirworkplaces.Andmore

andmorecompaniesarejoiningthem.Arecentreportsuggeststhat

theglobalgamificationmarketwillgrowfrom$1.65billionin2015to

$11.1billionby2020.

D)Theconceptofgamificationisnotentirelynew,Werbachsays.

Companies,marketersandteachershavelonglookedforfunwaysto

engagepeople，sreward-seekingorcompetitivespirits.Cracker

Jackshasbeen〃gamifying〃itssnackfoodbyputtingasmallprizeinside

formorethan100years,headds,andtheturn-of-the-centurysteel

magnate(巨头)CharlesSchwabissaidtohaveoftencomeintohisfactory

andwrittenthenumberoftonsofsteelproducedonthepastshifton

thefactoryfloor,thusmotivatingthenextshiftofworkerstobeat

thepreviousone.

E)Buttheword"gamification"andthewidespread,conscious

applicationoftheconceptonlybeganinearnestaboutfiveyearsago,

Werbachsays.Thanksinparttovideogames,thegenerationnowentering

theworkforceisespeciallyopentotheideaofhavingtheirwork

garnified.〃Weareatapointwhereinmuchofthedevelopedworldthe

vastmajorityofyoungpeoplegrewupplayingvideogames,andan

increasinglyhighpercentageofadultsplaythesevideogamestoo,〃

Werbachsays.

F)Anumberofcompanieshavesprungup--GamEffective,Bunchbail

andBadgeville,tonameafew一一inrecentyearsofferinggamification

platformsforbusinesses.Theplatformsthataremosteffectiveturn

employees，ordinaryjobtasksintopartofarichadventurenarrative.

/zWhatmakesagamegame-likeisthattheplayeractuallycaresabout

theoutcome,〃Werbachsays."Theprincipleisaboutunderstandingwhat

ismotivatingtothisgroupofplayers,whichrequiressome

understandingofpsychology.〃

G)Somepeople,Werbachsays,aremotivatedbycompetition.Sales

peopleoftenfallintothiscategory.Forthem,therightkindof

gamificationmightbeturningtheirsaiespitchesintoacompetition

withotherteammembers,completewithadigitalleaderboardshowing

whoiswinningatalltimes.Othersaremoremotivatedbycollaboration

andsocialexperiences.OnecompanyWerbachhasstudieduses

gamificationtocreateasenseofcommunityandboostemployees，

morale(土气).Whenemployeeslogintotheircomputers,they，reshown

apictureofoneoftheircoworkersandaskedtoguessthatperson，s

name.

H)Gamificationdoesnothavetobedigital.MonicaCornettiruns

acompanythatgamifiesemployeetrainings.Sometimesthisinvolves

technology,butoftenitdoesnot.Sherecentlydesignedagamification

strategyforasaiestrainingcompanywithastorm-chasingtheme.

Employeesformed^stormchaserteams"andcompetedinstorm-themed

educationalexercisestoearnvariousrewards."Rewardsdonothaveto

bestuff,〃Cornettisays."Rewardscanbeflexibleworkinghours.〃

Anothertraining,thisoneforpayrolllaw,usedaSnowWhiteandthe

SevenDwarfstheme."SnowWhite"isavailableforeveryonetouse,but

the“dwarfs"arestillundercopyright,soCornettiinvented

sound-alikecharacters(GrumpyGus,DopeyDan)toillustratespecific

payrolllawprinciples.

I)Somepeopledonottakenaturallytogamifiedworkenvironments,

Cornettisays.Inherexperience,peopleinpositionsofpowerorpeople

infinanceorengineeringdonottendtolikethesoundoftheword.

〃Ifwearedesigningforengineers,I'mnottalkingabouta'game'

atall,“Cornettisays."I'mtalkingabouta'simulation，(模拟)，I'm

talkingabout'beingabletosolvethisproblem.’〃

J)Gamificationis〃notamagicbullet,Werbachwarns.A

gamificationstrategythatisnotsufficientlythoughtthroughorwell

tailoredtoitsplayersmayengagepeopleforalittlewhile,butitwill

notmotivatepeopleinthelongterm.Itcanalsobeexploitative,

especiallywhenusedwithvulnerablepopulations.Forworkers,

especiallylow-paidworkers,whodesperatelyneedtheirjobsyetknow

theycanbeeasilyreplaced,gamificationmayfeelmoreliketheHunger

Games.WerbachgivestheexampleofseveralDisneylandhotelsinAnaheim,

California,whichusedlargedigitalleaderboardstodisplayhow

efficientlylaundryworkerswereworkingcomparedtooneanother.Some

employeesfoundtheboardmotivating.Toothers,itwastheopposite

offun.Somebegantostoptakingbathroombreaks,worriedthatiftheir

productivityfelltheywouldbefired.Pregnantemployeesstruggledto

keepup.InaLosAngelesTimesarticle,oneemployeereferredtothe

boardasa"digitalwhip.〃〃Itactuallyhadaverynegativeeffecton

moraleandperformance,〃Werbachsays.

K)Still,gamificationonlystandstobecomemorepopular,hesays,

〃asmoreandmorepeoplecomeintotheworkforcewhoarefamiliarwith

thestructuresandexpressionsofdigitaigames.〃〃Wearefarfrom

reachingthepeak,〃Cornettiagrees."Thereisnoreasonthiswillgo

away.〃

36.Somefamouscompaniesarealreadyusinggamificationandmore

aretryingtodothesame.

37.Gamificationisnotamiraclecureforallworkplacesasitmay

havenegativeresults.

38.Toenhancemorale,onecompanyasksitsemployeestoidentify

theirfellowworkerswhenstartingtheircomputers.

39.Theideaofgamificationwaspracticedbysomebusinessesmore

thanacenturyago.

40.Thereisreasontobelievethatgamificationwillbehereto

stay.

41.Videogamescontributedinsomewaystothewideapplication

ofgamification.

42.Whenturningworkintoagame,itisnecessarytounderstand

whatmakesgamesinteresting.

43.Gamificationinemployeetrainingdoesnotalwaysneed

technology.

44.Themostsuccessfulgamificationplatformstransformdailywork

assignmentsintofunexperiences.

45.Itisnecessarytousetermsotherthan"gamification"forsome

professions.

SectionC

Directions:Thereare2passagesinthissection.Eachpassageis

followedbysomequestionsorunfinishedstatements.Foreachofthem

therearefourchoicesmarkedA,B,CandD.Youshoulddecideonthe

bestchoiceandmarkthecorrespondingletteronAnswerSheet2with

asinglelinethroughthecentre.

PassageOne

Questions46to50arebasedonthefollowingpassage.

RecentlyIattendedseveralmeetingswherewetalkedaboutwaysto

retainstudentsandkeepyoungerfacultymembersfromgoingelsewhere.

Itseemshighereducationhasbecomeanindustryofmeeting-holders

whosetaskitisto^solve^problems--realorimagined.Andinmy

positionasaprofessoratthreedifferentcolleges,theactualproblems

ineducatingouryoungpeopleandolderstudentshavedeepened,while

thenumberofpeoplehired一一nottoteachbuttoholdmeetings一一has

increasedsignificantly.Everynewproblemcreatesanewjobforan

administrativefixer.TakeourCenterforTeachingExcellence.

Contrarytoitstitle,thecenterisaclearinghouse（信息交流中心）

forusingtechnologyinclassroomsandinonlinecourses.It'san

administrativesham（欺诈）ofthekindthathasmultipliedoverthe

last30years.

Iofferasimplepropositioninresponse:Manyofour

problems--classattendance,educationalsuccess,studenthappinessand

well-being--mightbeimprovedbycuttingdownthebureaucratic（官

僚的）mechanismsandmeetingsandinsteadhiringanarmyofgood

teachers.Ifwereplacedhalfofouradministrativestaffwithclassroom

teachers,wemightactuallygetamajorityofourclassesbackto20or

fewerstudentsperteacher.Thiswouldbeanenvironmentinwhich

teachersandstudentsactuallykneweachother.

Theteachersmustbefreetoteachintheirownway-thecurriculum

shouldbeflexibleenoughsothattheycanusetheirindividualtalents

toachievethegoalsofthecourse.Additionally,theyshouldbeallowed

toteach,andberewardedfordoingitwell.Teachersarenotpeople

whoaregreatatandconsumedbyresearchandhappentoappearina

classroom.Goodteachingandresearcharenotexclusive,buttheyare

alsonotautomaticcompanions.Teachingisanartandacraft,talent

andpractice;itisnotsomethingthatjustanyonecanbegoodat.It

isutterlyconfusingtomethatpeopledonotrecognizethis,despite

thefactthatprettymuchanyonewhohasbeenastudentcantell

thedifferencebetweentheirbestandworstteachers.

46.Whatdoestheauthorsayaboutpresent-dayuniversities?

A.Theyareeffectivelytacklingrealorimaginedproblems.

B.Theyoftenfailtocombineteachingwithresearch.

C.Theyareover-burdenedwithadmires"trativestaff.

D.Theylacktalenttofixtheirdeepeningproblems.

47.Accordingtotheauthor,whatkindofpeopledouniversities

lackmost?

A.Goodclassroomteachers.

B.Efficientadministrators.

C.Talentedresearchers.

D.Motivatedstudents.

48.Whatdoestheauthorimplyabouttheclassesatpresent?

A.Theyfacilitatestudents，independentlearning.

B.Theyhelpstudentsformcloserrelationships.

C.Theyhavemoreolderstudentsthanbefore.

D.Theyaremuchbiggerthanisdesirable.

49.Whatdoestheauthorthinkofteachingability?

A.Itrequirestalentandpractice.

B.Itiscloselyrelatedtoresearch.

C.Itisachieffactoraffectingstudents，learning.

D.Itcanbeacquiredthroughpersistentpractice.

50.Whatistheauthor，ssuggestionforimprovinguniversity

teaching?

A.Creatinganenvironmentforteacherstosharetheirteaching

experiences.

B.Hiringmoreclassroomteachersandallowingthemtoteachin

theirownway.

C.Usinghightechnologyinclassroomsandpromotingexchangeof

information.

D.Cuttingdownmeetingsandencouragingadministrativestaffto

gotoclassrooms.

PassageTwo

Questions51to55arebasedonthefollowingpassage.

Thesecrettoeatinglessandbeinghappyaboutitmayhavebeen

crackedyearsago-byMcDonald's.AccordingtoanewstudyfromCornell

University，sFoodandBrandLab,smallnon-foodrewards-likethetoys

inMcDonald，sHappyMeals-stimulatethesamerewardcentersinthe

brainasfooddoes.

Theresearchers,ledbyMartinReimann,carriedoutaseriesof

experimentstoseeifpeoplewouldchooseasmallermealffitwaspaired

withanon-fooditem.

Theyfoundthatthemajorityofbothkidsandadultsoptedfora

haft-sizedportionwhencombinedwithaprize.Bothoptionswerepriced

thesame.

Evenmoreinterestingisthatthepromiseofafuturerewardwas

enoughtomakeadultschoosethesmallerportion.Oneoftheprizesused

wasalotteryticket（彩票），witha$10,$50or$100payout,andthis

wasaseffectiveasatangiblegiftinpersuadingpeopletoeatless.

“Thefactthatparticipantswerewillingtosubstitutepartofa

fooditemforthemereprospectofa

relativelysmallmonetaryawardisinteresting,〃saysReimann.

Hetheorizesthatitistheemotionalcomponentoftheseintangible

prizesthatmakethemeffective.Infact,vaguely-statedpossibilities

ofwinningaprizeweremoreeffectivethanoptionswithhard

oddsincluded.

“Oneexplanationforthisfindingisthatpossibleawardsmaybe

moreemotionallyprovokingthancertraintyReimann.〃Theofadded

attractionandawards,z/saysuncertaintywinningprovidesdesirability

throughemotional'thrills.'Thepossibilityofreceivinganaward

alsoproducesastateofhope-astatethatisinitselfpsychologically

rewarding.〃Inotherwords,there，sareasonwhypeopleliketogamble.

Howmightthisknowledgebeusedtohelppeopleeatmorehealt