1、2016 年 12 月大英四（第二套）第 1 页/ （共 15 页） 2016 年 12 月大学英语四级试题（第二套）Part I Writing （30minutes）（请于正式开考后半小时内完成该部分，之后将进行听力考试）Directions：For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write an essay. Suppose you have two options upon graduation: one is to take a job in a company and the other to go to a graduate s
2、chool. You are to make a choice between the two. Write an essay to explain the reasons for your choice. You should write at least 120 words but no more than 180 words.Part II Listening Comprehension （25 minutes）Section ADirections： In this section， you will hear three news reports. At the end of eac
3、h news report， you will hear two or three questions. Both the news report and the questions will be spoken only once. After you hear a question， you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A） ， B） ， C） . Then mark the corresponding letter on the Answer sheet1with a single line throu
4、gh the centre.Questions 1 and 2 are based on the news report you have just heard.1. A) To satisfy the curiosity of tourists. C) To enable tourists to visit GoatIsland.B) To replace two old stone bridges. D) To improve utility services in the state2. A) Countless tree limbs. C) Lots of wrecked boats
5、and ships.B) A few skeletons. D) Millions of coins on the bottom. Questions 3 and 4 are based on the news report you have just heard3. A)It suspended diplomatic relations with Libya.B)It urged tourists to leave Tunisia immediately.C)It shut down two border crossings with Libya.D)It launched a fierce
6、 attack against Islamic State. 4. A) Advise Tunisian civilians on how to take safety precautions.B)Track down the organization responsible for the terrorist attack.C)Train qualified security personnel for the Tunisian government.D)Devise a monitoring system on the Tunisian border with Libya. Questio
7、ns 5 to 7 are based on the news report you have just heard.5. A) An environment-friendly battery. C) A plant-powered mobile phone charger. B) An energy-saving mobile phone. D) A device to help plants absorb sunlight. 6. A) While sitting in their schools courtyard. C) While solving a mathematical pro
8、blem. B) While playing games on their phones. D) While doing a chemical experiment. 7. A)It increases the applications of mobile phonesB)It speeds up the process of photosynthesis.2016 年 12 月大英四（第二套）第 2 页/ （共 15 页） C)It improves the reception of mobile phones.D)It collects the energy released by pla
9、nts. Section B Directions: In this section， you will hear two long conversations. At the end of each conversation， you will hear four questions. Both the conversation and the questions will be spoken only once. After you hear a question， you must choose the best answer from four choice marked A） ， B
10、） ， C） and D） .Then mark the corresponding letter an Answer sheet1 with a single line though the centre.Question8 to 11 are based on the conversation you have just heard.8. A) He visited the workshops in the Grimsby plant.B) He called the woman and left her a message.C)He used stand-ins as replaceme
11、nts on all lines.D)He asked a technician to fix the broken production line. 9. A)Itis the most modern production line. C)It has stopped working completely B)It assembles super-intelligent robots. D)It is going to be upgraded soon. 10. A) To seek her permission. C) To request her to return at once.B)
12、 To place an order for robots. D) To ask for Toms phone number. 11. A) She is on duty. C) She is on sick leave. B) She is having her day off. D) She is abroad on business. Question12 to 15 are based on the conversation you have just heard.12. A) He saved a baby boys life. C) He prevented a train cra
13、sh. B) He wanted to be a superhero. D) He was a witness to an accident 13. A) He has a 9-month-old boy. C) He enjoys the interview. B) He is currently unemployed. D) He commutes by subway. 14. A) A rock on the tracks. C) A strong wind. B) A misplaced pushchair. D) A speeding car. 15. A) She stood mo
14、tionless in shock. C) She called the police at once.B) She cried bitterly. D) She shouted for help. Section CDirections：In this section， you will hear three passages. At the end of each passage， you will hear three or four questions. Both the passage and the questions will be spoken only once. After
15、 you hear a question， you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A） ，B） ， C） and D） .Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.Questions 16 to 18 are based on the passage you have just heard.16. A) She inherited her family ice-cream
16、business in Billings.B)She loved the ice-cream business more than teaching primary school.C)She started an ice-cream business to finance her daughters education. D)She wanted to have an ice-cream truck when she was a little girl. 17. A)To preserve a tradition. C)To help local education. B)To amuse h
17、er daughter. D)To make some extra money. 18. A)To raise money for business expansion. C)To allow poor kids to have ice-cream too.B)To make her truck attractive to children. D)To teach kids the value of mutual 2016 年 12 月大英四（第二套）第 3 页/ （共 15 页） support Questions 19 to 21 are based on the passage you
18、have just heard.19. A)The reasons for imposing taxes. C)The various burdens on ordinary citizens.B)The various serious money can buy. D)The function of money in the modern world.20. A)Educating and training citizens. C)Protecting peoples life and property.C)Improving public translation. D)Building h
19、ospitals and public libraries. 21. A)By asking for donations. C)By selling government bonds.B)By selling public lands. D)By exploiting natural resources.Questions 22 to 25 are based on the passage you have just heard.22. A)It is located at the center of the European continent.B)It relies on tourism
20、as its chief source of revenues.C)It contains less than a square mile of land.D)It is surrounded by France on three sides. 23. A)Its beauty is frequently mentioned in American media.B)Its ruler Prince Rainier married an American actress.C)It is where many American movies are shot.D)It is a favorite
21、place Americans like to visit. 24. A) Tobacco. B) Potatoes. C) Machinery. D) Clothing 25. A)European history. C) Small countries in Europe.B)European geography. D) Tourist attractions in Europe.PART Reading Comprehension （40 minutes）Section ADirections： In this section， there is a passage with ten b
22、lanks. You are required to select one word for each blank from a list of choices given in a word bank following the passage. Read the passage through carefully before making your choices. Each choice in the bank is identified by a letter. Please mark the corresponding letter for each item on Answer
23、Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre. You may not use any of the words in the bank more than once.The ocean is heating up. Thats the conclusion of a new study that finds that Earths oceans now (26)heat at twice the rate they did 18 years ago. Around half of ocean heat intake since 1865 has
24、taken place since 1997, researchers report online in Nature Climate Change.Warming waters are known to (27)to coral bleaching(珊瑚白化) and they take up more space than cooler waters, raising sea (28). While the top of the ocean is studied, its depths are more difficult to (29)The researchers gathered 1
25、50 years of ocean temperature data in order to get better (30)of heat absorption from surface to seabed. They gathered together temperature readings collected by everything from a 19th century (31)of British naval ships to modern automated ocean probes. The extensive data sources, (32)with computer
26、simulations(计算机模拟), created a timeline of ocean temperature changes, including cooling from volcanic outbreaks and warming from fossil fuel (33).About 35 percent of the heat taken in by the oceans during the industrial era now residents at a (34)of more than 700 meters, the researchers found. They s
27、ay theyre (35)whether the deep-sea warming canceled out warming at the seas surface.2016 年 12 月大英四（第二套）第 4 页/ （共 15 页） A )absorb B)combined C)contribute D)depth E)emissionF)excursion G)explore H)floor I)heights J)indifferentK)levels L)mixed M)picture N)unsure O)voyageSection B Directions：In this sec
28、tion， you are gonging to read a passage with ten statements attached to it. Each statement contains information given in one of the paragraphs. Identify the paragraph from which the information is derived. You may choose a paragraph more than once. Each paragraph is marked with a letter. Answer the
29、questions by marking the corresponding letter on Answer sheet 2.The Secret to Raising Smart KidsA I first began to investigate the basis of human motivation-and how people persevere after setbacks-as a psychology graduate student at Yale University in the 1960s. Animal experiments by psychologists a
30、t the University of Pennsylvania had shown that after repeated failures, most animals conclude that a situation is hopeless and beyond their control. After such an experience an animal often remains passive even when it can effect change-a state they called learned helplessness.BPeople can learn to
31、be helpless, too. Why do some students give up when encounter difficulty, whereas others who are no more skilled continue to strive and learn? One answer, I soon discovered, lay in peoples beliefs about why they had failed.C In particular, attributing poor performance to a lack of ability depresses
32、motivation more than does the belief that lack of effort is to blame. When I told a group of school children who displayed helpless behavior that a lack of effort led to their mistakes in math, they learned to keep trying when the problems got tough. Another group of helpless children who were simpl
33、y rewarded for their success on easier problems did not improve their ability to solve harm math problems. These experiments indicated that a focus on effort can help resolve helplessness and generate success.D Later, I developed a broader theory of what separates the two general classes of learners
34、-helpless versus mastery-oriented. I realized these different types of students not only explain their failures differently, but they also hold different “theories” of intelligence. The helpless ones believe intelligence is a fixed characteristic: you have only a certain amount, and thats that. I ca
35、ll this a “fixed mind-set(思维模式).“Mistakes crack their self-confidence because they attribute errors to a lack of ability, which they feel powerless to change. They avoid challenges because challenges make mistakes more likely. The mastery-orient children, on the other hand, think intelligence is not
36、 fixed and can be developed through education and hard work. Such children believe challenges are energizing rather than intimidating (令人生畏);they offer opportunities to learn. Students with such a growth mind-set were destined(注定)for great academic success and were quite likely to outperform their c
37、ounterparts.E We validated these expectations in a study in which two other psychologists and I monitored 373 student for two years during the transition to junior high school, when the work gets more difficult and the grading more strict, to determine how their mind-sets might affect their math gra
38、des. At the beginning of seventh grade, we assessed the students mind-2016 年 12 月大英四（第二套）第 5 页/ （共 15 页） sets by asking them to agree or disagree with statements such as “Your intelligence is something very basic about you that you cant really change.“ We then assessed their beliefs about other aspe
39、cts of learning and looked to see what happened to their grades.F As predicted, the students with a growth mind-set felt that learning was more important goal than getting good grades. In addition, they held hard work in high regard, They understood that even geniuses have to work hard. Confronted b
40、y a setback such as a disappointing test grade, students with a growth mind-set said they would study harder or try a different strategy. The students who held a fixed mind-set, however, were concerned about looking smart with less regard for learning. They had negative views of effort, believing th
41、at having to work hard was a sign of low ability. They thought that a person with talent or intelligence did not need to work hard to do well. Attributing a bad grade to their own lack of ability, those with a fixed mind-set said that would study less in the future, try never to take that subject ag
42、ain and consider cheating on future tests.G Such different outlook had a dramatic impact on performance. At the start of junior high, the math achievement test scores of the students with a growth mind-set were comparable to the those of students who displayed a fixed mind-set. But as the work becam
43、e more difficult, the students with a growth mind-set showed greater persistence. As a result, their math grades overtook those of the other students by the end of the first semester-and the gap between the two groups continued to widen during the two years we followed them.H A fixed mind-set can al
44、so hinder communication and progress in the workplace and discourage or ignore constructive criticism and advice. Research shows that managers who have a fixed mind-set are less likely to seek or welcome feedback from their employees than are managers with a growth mind-set.I How do we transmit a gr
45、owth mind-set to our children? One way is by telling stories about achievements that result from hard work. For instance, talking about mathematical geniusesWho were more or less born that way puts students in a fixed mind-set, but mathematicians who fell in love with math and developed amazing skil
46、ls produce a growth mind-set.J In addition, parents and teachers can help children by providing explicit instruction regarding the mind as a learning machine, I designed an eight-session workshop for 91 students whose math grades were declining in their first year of junior high. Forty-eight of the
47、students received instruction in study skills only, whereas the others attended a combination of study skills sessions and classes in which they learned about the growth mind-set and how to apply it to schoolwork. In the growth mind-set classes, students read and discussed an article entitled “You C
48、an Grow Your Brain.” They were taught that the brain is like a muscle that gets stronger with use and that learning prompts the brain to grow new connections. From such instruction, many students began to see themselves as agents of their own brain development. Despite being unaware that there were
49、two types of instruction, teachers reported significant motivational changes in 27% of the children in the growth mind-set workshop as compared with only 9% of students in the control group.KResearch is converging(汇聚)on the conclusion that great accomplishment and even genius is typically the result of years of passion and dedication and not something that flows naturally from a gift.36.The authors experiment shows that students
