四级模拟题2.doc

大学英语四级考试模拟试卷二

Part I Writing(30 minutes)
Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write a short essay entitled On Chinese Workers-Paid Holidays. You should write at least 120 words following the outline given below:
1. 有人认为“带薪休假”有很多好处……
2. 有人认为“带薪休假”落到实处很难
3. 你的观点及建议

Part II Reading Comprehension (Skimming and Scanning) (15 minutes)

Does contagious yawning mean you're nice?
You're in a conversation with another person and he casually yawns, As you wonder whether he's bored with the discussion, you find that you're yawning, too. A man walking by, sees you yawn, and pretty soon he yawns. It's carried on and on, passing from one person to another in a domino effect. Science is still investigating exactly what makes us yawn, but ifs a well-known and little-studied fact: Yawning is contagious.
We know that much of yawning is due to suggestibility--it's infectious. You don't 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 you'll 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 you're 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 weren't 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 -in 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 students –whose future profession requires them to focus on others--yawned contagiously an average of 5.5 times in the waiting room and scored 28 out of 40 on the emotional test. The engineering students--who tend to focus on things like numbers and systems yawned an average of 1.5 times and scored 25.5 out of 40 on the following test. The difference doesn't sound like much, but researchers consider it significant. Strangely, women, who are generally considered more emotionally attuned, didn't 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 gyrus, 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 Yawning
Yawning may serve a number of functions, and these functions might be different for different animals. Humans aren't the only animals that yawn--even 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 wouldn't exist until the ability to empathize was learned. But what if empathy is never developed? Another study, lead 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 shouldn't 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 m Senju's findings. Autistics tend to focus on the mouths of people with whom they interact. But contagious yawning is thought to be cued--not by movements in the mouth area--but by changes to the area around the yawning person's eyes. This could explain why autistics are less susceptible to contagious yawning--perhaps they're 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, "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf" Researchers found that those autistics who watched the eyes of the characters didn't 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 eves received little information from the cues they found there.
It's 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: When 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 you're 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 others
C your reaction when you see someone yawning
D the ability to avoid other's influence
2. Early empathy is important for us in that ______.
A parents first show their empathy to us
B it is related to contagious yawning
C it's an important part of cognitive development
D it affects our later life a lot
3. The results of the Leeds University's test show that _______.
A the less a man focuses on others, the higher he scores
B men didn't score any higher than women
C contagious yawning and empathy are related to the same parts of the brain
D it explained the link between contagious yawning and empathy
4. Contagious yawning wouldn't exist unless ______.
A the ability of yawning is taught C empathy is never developed
B the ability to empathize is learned D yawning is controlled well 5. Why autistics are less susceptible to contagious yawning?
A Autistics have difficulty feeling empathy.
B Autistics can't communicate with others.
C Autistics are not able to learn yawning.
D Autistics focus much on people's eyes.
6. Another interpretation to Senju's findings is that contagious yawning is thought to be cued by___.
A movements in the yawning person's mouth area C changes on emotion reaction
B yawning person's appearance D changes around the yawning person's eyes
7. According to the Yale University's study, why autistics aren't susceptible to contagious yawning?
A They didn't register' any emotional reaction.
B They didn't understand the movie.
C They received little information from the cues around people's eyes.
D They didn't understand what people say just by seeing movement of mouths.
8. The reason why contagious yawning is linked to empathy was _______________
9. Some scientists believe that yawning is just to make us __________________
10. Yawning may be considered as a cue by which people spread an emotion, and with the emotion ___________________________.

Part III Listening Comprehension (35 minutes)

Section A
11. A) He expects to hear from his brother. B) He expects a gift from his brother.
C) The woman is wrong about when the man’s birthday is. D) His brother is going to visit him.
12. A) They don’t enjoy swimming. B) They won’t go swimming in the lake today.
C) They don’t know how to swim. D) They’ll swim in the lake tomorrow.
13. A) The style of sweater she’s wearing is very common.
B) The man saw Jill wearing the sweater.
C) She wore the sweater for the first time yesterday.
D) She usually doesn’t borrow clothes from Jill.
14. A) She’s planning a trip to Antarctica.
B) She thinks attending the lecture will be helpful to her.
C) Her geography class is required to attend the lecture.
D) She has already finished writing her report.
15. A) The woman should join the chess club.
B) He’s not a very good chess player.
C) The woman needs a lot of time to play chess.
D) He’s willing to teach the woman how to play chess.
16. A) Ask Alice if the man can borrow the novel. B) Return the novel to Alice immediately.
C) Help the man find his own copy of the novel. D) Find out how much the novel costs.
17. A) He has already tasted the chocolate pudding. B) Chocolate is his favorite flavor.
C) He doesn’t want any chocolate pudding. D) There is no more chocolate pudding left.
18. A) He arrived at the theater late.
B) He left his watch in the theater.
C) The production seemed much shorter than it actually was.
D) He did not enjoy the production.
Questions 19 to 22 are based on the conversation you have just heard.
19. A) She wants to learn about Richard Sears. B) She is helping the man with his assignment.
C) She needs to buy a filing cabinet. D) She wants to order some textbooks.
20. A) Teachers. B) Farmers. C) Students. D) Laborers.
21. A) As textbooks. B) As fuel. C) As newspapers. D) As art.
22. A) Taxes on factory goods rose. B) Some people lost their farms.
C) Shipping prices rose. D) Some small stores were out of business.
Questions 23 to 25 are based on the conversation you have just heard.
23. A) The economy is slowing down. B) She may not be able to finish the college.
C) She may not find a job after college. D) The tax is going to be raised.
24. A) It is on the verge of bankruptcy. B) It is improving steadily.
C) It has experienced a rapid increase in sales. D) It is going down hill fast.
25. A) She will join the man’s company. B) She will start her own business.
C) She will stay in her parents’ house. D) She will try to find a job.

Section B

Passage One
Questions 26 to 28 are based on the passage you have just heard.
26. A) They didn’t use singers. B) They gave free concerts.
C) They performed in small nightclubs. D) They shortened the length of their performances.
27. A) To discuss one way it impacted jazz music.
B) To explain why the government reduced some taxes.
C) To describe a common theme in jazz music.
D) To discuss the popularity of certain jazz bands.
28. A) The music contained strong political messages.
B) The music had a steady beat that people could dance to.
C) The music included sad melodies.
D) The music contained irregular types of rhythms.

Passage Two
Questions 29 to 31 are based on the passage you have just heard.
29. A) A museum exhibition of African baskets.
B) Changes in basket-weaving.
C) Differences between African and American baskets.
D) The development of basket weaving in one town.
30. A) Their mothers taught them. B) They traveled to Africa.
C) They learned in school. D) They taught themselves.
31. A) They sell them as a hobby. B) They make them as a hobby.
C) They use them on their farms. D) They make and sell them to make a living.

Passage Three
Questions 32 to 35 are based on the passage you have just heard.
32. A) Factors that affect the ability to remember.
B) The influence of childhood memories on adulthood.
C) A proposal for future psychological research.
D) Benefits of a busy lifestyle.
33. A) The need to exercise the memory.
B) How the brain differs from other body tissues.
C) The unconscious learning of a physical activity.
D) How nerves control body movement.
34. A) Repeat it aloud. B) Write it down.
C) Make a mental picture of it. D) Practice recalling it.
35. A) Ask questions about the assigned reading.
B) Give an example of active learning.
C) Explain recent research on recalling childhood memories.
D) Make an assignment for the next class session.

Section C
Graduate students often work as teaching assistants while they study in the United States. Teaching assistants (T.A.) may get money or get to take classes for (36) , or both. A T.A. usually works about twenty hours each week. In some cases, the professors they assist have big (37) ____classes with hundreds of students. The professor gives one or two (38) a week, and teaching assistants (39) smaller discussions at other times. They also give tests, (40) work, provide laboratory assistance and meet with students who need help. And they have their own educations to think about.
Many states have (41) to require that teaching assistants be able to speak English well enough for students to understand them. Universities have increased their (42) to deal with this problem. Our exa