TEST FOR ENGLISH MAJORS(2015)
GRADE EIGHT
TIME LIMIT：195 MIN
PART I LISTENING COMPREHENSION (35 MIN) SECTION A MINI-LECTURE
In this section you will hear a mini-lecture．You will hear the lecture ONCE ONLY. While listening, take notes on the important points．Your notes will not be marked, but you will need them to complete a gap-filling task after the mini-lecture．When the lecture is over, you will be given two minutes to check your notes, and another ten minutes to complete the gap-filling task on ANSWER SHEET ONE, using no more than three words in each gap．Make sure the word(s) you fill in is (are)both grammatically and semantically acceptable．You may refer to your notes while completing the task．Use the blank sheet for note-taking．Now, listen to the mini-lecture．
Understanding Academic Lectures
Listening to academic lectures is an important task fro university students. Then, how can we comprehend a lecture efficiently?
I. Understand all (1) ______________
A. words
B. (2) ______________
-stress -intonation
-(3) ______________
II. Adding information
A. lecturers: sharing information with audience B. listeners: (4) ______________ C. sources of information
-knowledge of (5) ______________ -(6) ______________ of the world
D. listening involving three steps: -hearing
-(7) ______________ -adding
III. (8) ______________
A. reasons:
-overcome noise -save time
B. (9) ______________
-content
-organization
IV. Evaluating while listening
A. helps to decide the (10) ______________ of notes B. helps to remember information
SECTION B
INTERVIEW
In this section you will hear everything ONCE ONLY. Listen carefully and then answer the questions that follow．Mark the best answer to each question on ANSWER SHEET TWO．
Questions 1 to 5 are based on an interview．At the end of the interview you will be given 10 seconds to answer each of the following five questions．Now listen to the interview．
1. Theresa thinks that the present government is ________. [A] doing what they have promised to schools [B] creating opportunities for leading universities
[C] considering removing barriers for state school pupils [D] reducing opportunities for state school pupils
2. What does Theresa see as a problem in secondary schools now? [A] Universities are not working hard to accept state school pupils. [B] The number of state pupils applying to Oxford fails to increase. [C] The government has lowered state pupils’ expectations. [D] Leading universities are rejecting state school pupils.
3. In Theresa’s view, school freedom means that schools should ____. [A] be given more funding from education authorities [B] be given all the money and decide how to spend it [C] be granted greater power to run themselves [D] be given more opportunities and choices
4. According to Theresa, who decides or decide money for schools at the present? [A] Local education authorities and the central government. [B] Local education authorities and secondary schools together. [C] Local education authorities only. [D] The central government only.
5. Throughout the talk, the interviewer does all the following EXCEPT ____. [A] asking for clarification [B] challenging the interviewee [C] supporting the interviewee [D] initiating topics
SECTION C NEWS BROADCAST
In this section you will hear everything ONCE ONLY．Listen carefully and then answer the questions that follow．Mark the best answer to each question on ANSWER SHEET TWO．
Questions 6 and 7 are based on thefollowing news,At the end ofthe news item,you will be given 20 seconds to answer the questions．Now listen to the news．
News Item 1
6. What is the main idea of the news item? [A] Fewer people watch TV once a week.
[B] Smartphones and tablets have replaced TV. [C] New technology has led to more family time. [D] Bigger TV sets have attracted more people.
News Item 2
7. How many lawmakers voted for the marijuana legalization bill? [A] 50. [B] 12. [C] 46. [D] 18.
8. The passing of the bill means that marijuana can be________. [A] bought by people under 18 [B] made available to drug addicts [C] provided by the government [D] bought in drug stores
News Item 3
9. What did the review of global data reveal? [A]Diarrhea is a common disease.
[B]Good sanitation led to increase in height.
[C]There were many problems of poor sanitation. [D] African children live in worse sanitary conditions.
10. The purpose of Dr. Alan Dangour’s study was most likely to ________. [A] examine links between sanitation and death from illness [B] look into factors affecting the growth of children [C] investigate how to tackle symptoms like diarrhea [D] review and compare conditions in different countries
PART II READING COMPREHENSION (30 MIN)
In this section there arefourreadingpassagesfollowedby a totalof20 multiple-choice questions. Read the passages and then mark the best answer to each question on ANSWER SHEET TWO．
TEXT A
In 2011, many shoppers chose to avoid the frantic crowds and do their holiday shopping from the comfort of their computer. Sales at online retailers gained by more than 15%, making it the biggest season ever. But people are also returning those purchases at record rates, up 8% from last year.
What went wrong? Is the lingering shadow of the global financial crisis making it harder to accept extravagant indulgences? Or that people shop more impulsively - and therefore make bad decisions - when online? Both arguments are plausible. However, there is a third factor: a question of touch. We can love the look but, in an online environment, we cannot feel the quality of a texture, the shape of the fit, the fall of a fold or, for that matter, the weight of an earring. And physically interacting with an object makes you more committed .
When my most recent book Brandwashed was released, I teamed up with a local bookstore to conduct an experiment about the differences between the online and offline shopping experience. I carefully instructed a group of volunteers to promote my book in two different ways. The first was a fairly hands-off approach. Whenever a customer would inquire about my book, the volunteer would take them over to the shelf and point to it. Out of 20 such requests, six customers proceeded with the purchase.
The second option also involved going over to the shelf but, this time, removing the book and then subtly holding onto it for just an extra moment before placing it in the customer's hands. Of the 20 people who were handed the book. 13 ended up buying it. Just physically passing the book showed a big difference in sales. Why? We feel something similar to a sense of ownership when we hold things in our hand. That's why we establish or reestablish connection by greeting strangers and friends with a handshake. In this case, having to then let go of the book after holding it might generate a subtle sense of loss, and motivate us to make the purchase even more.
A recent study also revealed the power of touch, in this case when it came to conventional mail. A deeper and longer-lasting impression of a message was formed when delivered in a letter, as opposed to receiving the same message online. Brain imaging showed that, on touching the paper, the emotional center of the brain was activated, thus forming a stronger bond. The study also indicated that once touch becomes part of the process, it could translate into a sense of possession. This sense of ownership is simply not part of the equation in the online shopping experience.
As the rituals of purchase in the lead-up to Christmas change, not only do we give less thought to the type of gifts we buy for our loved ones but, through our own digital wish lists, we increasingly control what they buy for us. The reality, however, is that no matter how convinced we all are that digital is the way to go, finding real satisfaction will probably take more than a few simple clicks.
11. According to the author, shoppers are returning their purchases for all the following reasons EXCEPT that ____.
[A] they are unsatisfied with the quality of the purchase [B]they eventually find the purchase too expensive [C] they change their mind out of uncertainty
[D] they regret making the purchase without forethought
12. What is the purpose of the experiment in the bookstore? [A] To see which promotion method is preferred by customers.
[B]To find out the strengths and weaknesses of both methods. [C] To try to set up a new retailer-customer relationship. [D] To see the effect of an approach on customers' decisions.
13. Why does the author cite the study by Bangor University and the Royal Mail Service? [A]To compare similar responses in different settings. [B] To provide further evidence for his own observation. [C] To offer a scientific account of the brain's functions. [D] To describe emotional responses in online shopping.
14. What can be inferred from the last paragraph?
[A]Real satisfaction depends on factors other than the computer.
[B] Despite online shopping we still attach importance to gift buying. [C] Some people are still uncertain about the digital age. [D] Online shopping offers real satisfaction to shoppers.
Text B
My professor brother and I have an argument about head and heart about whether he overvalues IQ while I learn more toward EQ. We typically have this debate about people—can we be friends with a really smart jerk（怪物）?—but there’s corollary to animals as well. I’d love it if our dog could fetch the morning paper and then read it to me over coffee, but I actually care much more about her loyal and innocent heart. There’s already enough thinking going on is our house, and we probably spend too much time in our heads, where we need some role modeling is in instinct, and that’s where a dog is a roving revelation.
I did not grow up with dogs, which meant that my older daughter’s respectful but unyielding determination to get one required some adjustment on my part. I often felt she was training me: from ages of 6 to 9, she gently schooled me in various breeds and their personalities, whispered to the dogs we encountered so they would charm and persuade me, demonstrated by her self-displine that she was ready for the responsibility. And thus came our dog Twist, whom I sometimes mistake for a third daughter.
At first I thought the challenge would be to train her to sit, to heel, to walk calmly beside us and not go wildly chasing the neighbourhood rabbits. But I soon discovered how much more we had to learn from her than she from us.
If it is true, for example, that the secret to a child’s success is less rare genius than raw persistence, Twist’s ability to stay on task is a model for us all, especially if the task is trying to capture the sunbeam that flicks around the living room as the wind blows through the branches outside. She never succeeds, and she never gives up. This includes when she runs square into walls.
Then there is her unfailing patience, which breaks down only when she senses that dinnertime was 15 minutes ago and we have somehow failed to notice. Even then she is more eager than indignant, and her refusal to whine shows a restraint of which I’m not always capable
TEM8-2015专业八级真题与参考答案
