-
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
ONL
Y
. 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
for
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. lectures:
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. help to decide the (10)
of
notes
B. help to remember information
SECTION B
INTERVIEW
In
this section you will hear everything ONCE
ONL
Y
. 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
ONL
Y
．
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 the following news. At the
end of the 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
are
four
reading
passages
followed
by
a
total
of
20
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 Brand washed
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
ca
re
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-discipline
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 neighborhood 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 s
ecret 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 when
hungry.
But
the
lesson
I
value
most
is
the one
in
forgiveness,
and Twist
first
offered
this
when
she
was
still
very
young. When she was
about 7 months old, we took her to the vet to be
sprayed(
切除卵巢
). We turned her
over to
a stranger, who proceeded to
perform a procedure that was probably not
pleasant, But when the vet returned her to
us, limp and tender, there was no recri
mination(
反责
)
，
no how could you do that to me? It was as
though she
really
knew
that
we
could
not
intentionally
cause
her
pain,
and
while
she
did
not
understand,
she
forgave
and
curled up with her head on my
daughter’s lap.
I suppose we
could have concluded that she was just blindly
loyal and docile. But eventually we knew better.
She is entirely capable of
disobedience, as she has proved many times. She
will ignore us when there are more
interesting things to look at, rebuke
us when we are careless, bark into the twilight
when she has urgent messages
to send.
But her patience with our failings and fickleness
and her willingness to give us a second chance are
a
daily lesson in gratitude.
My friends who grew up with dogs tell
me how when they were teenagers and trusted no one
in the world,
they could tell their dog
all their secrets. It was the one friend who would
not gossip or betray, could provide in
the middle of the night the soft,
unbegrudging comfort and peace that adolescence
conspires to disrupt. An age
that is
all about growth and risk needs some anchors and
weights, a model of steadfastness when all else is
in flux.
Sometimes I think Twist’s
devotion keeps my girls on a benevolent lash, one
that hangs quietly at their side as
they trot along but occasionally yanks
them back to safety and solid ground.
We’ve weighed so many decisions so
carefully in raising our
daughters what
school to send them to and what
church
to attend, when to give
them cell
phones and with what precautions. But when it
comes
to what really
shapes
their character and binds our family, I never
would have thought we would owe so much to its
smallest
member.
15. In the first paragraph, the author
suggests that____.
[A]a person can
either have a high IQ or a low EQ
[B]her professor brother cares too much
about
IQ
[C]we
need examples of how to follow one's heart
[D]she prefers dogs that are clever and
loyal
16. According to the
passage, all the following are Twist's
characteristics EXCEPT____.
[A]resignation
[B]patience
[C]forgiveness
[D]tenacity
17. According to the
co
ntext, the meaning of the word
“square” is
closest to____.
[A]fast
[B]blindly
[C]straight
[D]stubbornly
18. That Twist's devotion keeps my
girls on a benevolent leash means that____.
[A]Twist is capable of
looking after the girls
[B]Twist and the girls have become
friends
[C]Twist knows how
to follow the girls
[D]Twist's loyalty helps the girls grow
up
19. What does the author
try to express in the last paragraph?
[A]Difficulties in raising her
children.
[B]Worries about
what to buy for kids.
[C]Gratitude to Twist for her role.
[D]Concerns about schooling
and religion.
Text
C
Most West
African lorries ate not in what one would call the
first flush of youth, and I had learnt by
bitter experience not to expect
anything very much of them. But the lorry that
arrived to take me up to the
mountains
was worse than anything I had seen before: it
tottered on the borders of senile decay. It stood
there
on buckled wheels, wheezing and
gasping with exhaustion from having to climb up
the gentle slope to the
camp,
and
I
consigned
myself
and
my
loads
to
it
with
some
trepidation.
The
driver,
who
was
a
cheerful
fellow, pointed out that he would
require my assistance in two very necessary
operations: first, I had to keep
the
hand brake pressed down when travelling downhill,
for unless it was held thus almost level with the
floor
it sullenly refused to function.
Secondly, I had to keep a stern eye on the clutch,
a willful piece of mechanism
that
seized every chance to leap out of its socket with
a noise like a strangling leopard. As it was
obvious that
not even a West African
lorry driver could be successful in driving while
crouched under the dashboard in a
pre-
natal position, I had to take over control of
these instruments if I valued my life. So, while I
ducked at
intervals to put on the
brake, amid the rich smell of burning rubber, our
noble lorry jerked its way towards the
mountains at a steady twenty miles per
hour; sometimes, when a downward slope favored it,
it threw caution
to the winds and
careered along in a madcap fashion at twenty-five.
For
the
first
thirty
miles
the
red
earth
road
wound
its
way
through
the
lowland
forest,
the
giant
trees
standing in solid
ranks alongside and their branches entwined in an
archway of leaves above us. Flocks of
hornbills
flapped
across
the
road,
honking
like
the
ghosts
of
ancient
taxis,
and
on
the
banks,
draped
decoratively in the patches of
sunlight, the agama lizards lay, blushing into
sunset coloring with excitement
and
nodding
their
heads
furiously.
Slowly
and
almost
imperceptibly
the
road
started
to
climb
upwards,
looping its way in languid curves round
the forested hills. In the back of the lorry the
boys lifted up their
voices in song:
Home again, home again, When shall I
see ma home? When shall I see ma mammy? I'll never
forget ma
home . . .
The
driver hummed the refrain softly to himself,
glancing at me to see if I would object. To his
surprise I
joined in, and so while the
lorry rolled onwards trailing a swirling tail of
red dust behind it, the boys in the
back
maintained
the
chorus
while
the
driver
and
I
harmonized
and
sang
complicated
bits,
and
the
driver
played a staccato
accompaniment on the horn.
Breaks
in
the
forest
became
more
frequent
the
higher
we
climbed,
and
presently
a
new
type
of
undergrowth
began
to
appear:
massive
tree-ferns
standing
in
conspiratorial
groups at
the
roadside on
their
thick, squat, and
hairy trunks, the fronds of leaves sprouting from
the tops like delicate green fountains. These
ferns were the guardians of a new
world, for suddenly, as though the hills had
shrugged themselves free of
cloak, the
forest disappeared. It lay behind us in the
valley, a thick pelt of green undulating away into
the
heat-shimmered
distance,
while
above
us
the
hillside
rose
majestically,
covered
in
a
coat
of
rippling,
waist-high
grass,
bleached
golden
by
the
sun.
The
lorry
crept
higher
and
higher,
the
engine
gasping
and
shuddering with this
unaccustomed activity. I began to think that we
should have to push the wretched thing
up the last two or three hundred feet,
but to everyone's surprise we made it, and the
lorry crept on to the brow
of
the
hill,
trembling
with
fatigue,
spouting
steam
from
its
radiator
like
a
dying
whale.
We
crawled
to
a
standstill and the driver switched off
the engine.
“We must wait
small
-time, engine get hot, he
explained, pointing to the forequarters of the
lorry, which
were by now completely
invisible under a cloud of steam. Thankfully I
descended from the red-hot inside of
the cab and strolled down to where the
road dipped into the next valley. From this
vantage point I could see
the country
we had travelled through and the country we were
about to enter.
20. That it
tottered on the borders of senile decay means that
the lorry was_________.
[A]about to
break down
[B]a very old vehicle
[C]unable to travel the distance
[D] a dangerous vehicle
21. Which of the following
words in the first paragraph is used literally?
[A]Flush.
[B]Borders.
[C]Operations.
[D]Gasping.
22. We learn from the first
paragraph that the author regards the inadequacies
of the lorry as _________.
[A]inevitable and amusing
[B] dangerous and frightening
[C] novel and unexpected
[D]
welcome and interesting
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