2011月12月英语四级考试密押卷及答案(2)
导读: 距离12月17日英语四级考试只剩下两天的时间了，许多考生希望在网上获取到新的英语四级资料，为感谢网友对考试大四级站点的支持和关注，在此，考试大为同学们推出了全新的预测及密押试卷，预祝所有考生考试大捷。
Part IV Reading Comprehension (Reading in Depth) (25 minutes)
Section A
Directions: In this section, there is a passage with ten blanks. 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 Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre. You may not use any of the words in the bank more than once.
Questions 47 to 56 are based on the following passage.
Language is learned primarily through communication with other people. Research shows that the more communication children 47 at home the better developed their language skills will be. Children need to 48 well in order to learn well. This is especially important for the development of native language skills since the language is 49 reinforced by the child’s environment outside school.
However, the 50 of communication is just as or more important than quantity alone. The language adults use helps children become aware of the many 51 aspects of objects and events around them. For example, during a shopping trip to the market or store, adults can develop children’s concepts by bringing their attention to the shapes, colors, sounds, textures, and size of objects and events around them. Parents can do this naturally through conversation without 52 teaching. In other words, conversation with children in 53 situations expands their minds and develops their thinking skills.
In addition to conversing with children, adults can help prepare their children to succeed in school by encouraging them to take an 54 interest in books and in the print that surrounds them in the environment. The child’s first major 55 in school is learning to read. Children who come to school with knowledge that the print around them carries important meanings and with an interest in books and stories will usually 56 in learning to read rapidly.
Directions: There are 2 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A), B), C) and D). You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre.
Passage One
Questions 57 to 61 are based on the following passage.
In the early 20th century, a horse named Clever Hans was believed capable of counting and other impressive mental tasks. After years of great performance, psychologists discovered that though Hans was certainly clever, he was not clever in the way everyone expected. The horse was cunningly (聪明地) picking up on tiny, unintentional bodily and facial cues given out not only by his trainer, but also by the audience. Aware of the “Clever Hans” effect, Lisa Lit at the University of California, Davis, and her colleagues wondered whether the beliefs of professional dog handlers might similarly affect the outcomes of searchers for drugs and explosives. Remarkably, Dr. Lit found, they do.
Dr. Lit asked 18 professional dog handlers and their dogs to complete brief searches. Before the searches, the handlers were informed that some of the search area might contain up to three target scents (气味), and also that in two cases those scents would be marked by pieces of red paper. What the handlers were not told was that none of the search areas contained the scents of either drugs or explosives. Any “detections” made by the teams thus had to be false.
The findings reveal that of 144 searches, only 21 were clean (no alerts). All the others raised one alert or more. In total, the teams raised 225 alerts. While the sheer number of false alerts struck Dr. Lit as fascinating, it was where they took place that was of greatest interest.
When handlers could see a red piece of paper, allegedly marking a location of interest, they were much more likely to say that their dogs signaled an alert. The human handlers were not only distracted on almost every occasion by the stimulus aimed at them, but also transmitted that distraction to their animals — who responded accordingly. To mix metaphors, the dogs were crying “wolf” at the unconscious signal of their handlers.
How much that matters in the real world is unclear. But it might. If a handler, for example, unconsciously “profiled” people being sniffed (嗅) by a drug- or explosive-detecting dog at an airport, false positives could abound (大量存在). That is not only bad for innocent travelers, but might distract the team from catching the guilty.
57. What did psychologists find out about Clever Hans?
A) He was really good at counting. C) He merely responded to human signals.
B) He was as clever as people claimed. D) He could understand human language.
58. What did the dog handlers learn before the searches?
A) There was actually no target scent in the search area.
B) Each search area contained three target scents.
C) Their dogs were expected to find the scents of red paper.
D) Some target scents may be labeled with a special mark.
59. According to Dr. Lit, the most significant about the experiment was .
A) the way the dogs raised alerts C) the average time of the searches
B) the location of the false alerts D) the number of the false alerts
60. What can be concluded from the experiment?
A) Dogs may act in response to their handlers’ bodily signals.
B) The cooperation between dogs and their handlers is key to success.
C) Well-trained dogs can better understand their handlers’ signals.
D) Dog handlers are more likely to be distracted than their dogs.
61. How does the author see Dr. Lit’s findings?
A) They may not be useful in real situations.
B) They should raise our concern in real life.
C) They will be widely applied in the near future.
D) They should be backed up by further evidence.
Passage Two
Questions 62 to 66 are based on the following passage.
Being able to multitask is hailed by most people as a welcome skill, but not according to a recent study which claims that young people between the ages of eight and eighteen of the so-called Generation M are spending a considerable amount of their time in fruitless efforts as they multitask. It argues that, in fact, these young people are frittering (浪费) away as much as half of their time as they would if they performed the very same tasks one after the other.
Some young people are using an ever larger number of electronic devices as they study. At the same time they are working, young adults are also surfing on the Internet, or sending out emails to their friends, and/or answering the telephone and listening to music on their iPods. As some new device comes along, it is also added to the list rather than replacing one of the existing devices.
Other research has indicated that this multitasking is even affecting the way families themselves function as young people are too wrapped up in their own isolated worlds to interact with the other people around them. They can no longer greet family members when they enter the house nor can they eat at the family table.
All this electronic wizardry (魔力) is supposedly also seriously affecting young people’s performance at university and in the workplace. When asked about their opinions of the impact of modern gadgets (小装置) on their performance of tasks, the great majority of young people gave a favorable response.
The response from the academic and business worlds was not quite as positive. The former feel that multitasking with electronic gadgets by children affects later development of study skills, resulting in a decline in the quality of writing, for example, because of the lack of concentration on task completion. They feel that many undergraduates now urgently need remedial (补救的) help with study skills. Similarly, employers feel that young people entering the workforce need to be taught all over again.
While all this may be true, it must be borne in mind that more and more is expected of young people nowadays; in fact, too much. Praise rather than criticism is due in respect of the way today’s youth are able to cope despite what the older generation throw at them.
62. What do we learn about the multitasking Generation M from a recent study?
A) They are highly praised for being efficient.
B) They put more energy on important tasks.
C) They don’t save much time as supposed.
D) They need to improve their analytical skills.
63. With the introduction of new gadgets, what happens to the Generation M’s present e-devices?
A) They are put aside temporarily. C) They give way to the latest gadgets.
B) They are either sold or traded. D) They become part of their collection.
64. A research revealed that multitasking makes the Generation M ________.
A) distant to their family C) impolite and ungrateful
B) selfish and possessive D) feel lonely and pitiful
65. The academics feel that many undergraduates badly need to ________.
A) adjust their social attitudes C) improve their study skills
B) seek psychological assistance D) take more business courses
66. What does the author suggest the older generation do in dealing with the multitasking youth?
A) Heighten their expectations on the youth.
B) Try to be supportive and understanding.
C) Encourage the youth to stick to their old habits.
D) Change the way the youth use the gadgets.
Section A
Directions: In this section, there is a passage with ten blanks. 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 Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre. You may not use any of the words in the bank more than once.
Questions 47 to 56 are based on the following passage.
Language is learned primarily through communication with other people. Research shows that the more communication children 47 at home the better developed their language skills will be. Children need to 48 well in order to learn well. This is especially important for the development of native language skills since the language is 49 reinforced by the child’s environment outside school.
However, the 50 of communication is just as or more important than quantity alone. The language adults use helps children become aware of the many 51 aspects of objects and events around them. For example, during a shopping trip to the market or store, adults can develop children’s concepts by bringing their attention to the shapes, colors, sounds, textures, and size of objects and events around them. Parents can do this naturally through conversation without 52 teaching. In other words, conversation with children in 53 situations expands their minds and develops their thinking skills.
In addition to conversing with children, adults can help prepare their children to succeed in school by encouraging them to take an 54 interest in books and in the print that surrounds them in the environment. The child’s first major 55 in school is learning to read. Children who come to school with knowledge that the print around them carries important meanings and with an interest in books and stories will usually 56 in learning to read rapidly.
Directions: There are 2 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A), B), C) and D). You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre.
Passage One
Questions 57 to 61 are based on the following passage.
In the early 20th century, a horse named Clever Hans was believed capable of counting and other impressive mental tasks. After years of great performance, psychologists discovered that though Hans was certainly clever, he was not clever in the way everyone expected. The horse was cunningly (聪明地) picking up on tiny, unintentional bodily and facial cues given out not only by his trainer, but also by the audience. Aware of the “Clever Hans” effect, Lisa Lit at the University of California, Davis, and her colleagues wondered whether the beliefs of professional dog handlers might similarly affect the outcomes of searchers for drugs and explosives. Remarkably, Dr. Lit found, they do.
Dr. Lit asked 18 professional dog handlers and their dogs to complete brief searches. Before the searches, the handlers were informed that some of the search area might contain up to three target scents (气味), and also that in two cases those scents would be marked by pieces of red paper. What the handlers were not told was that none of the search areas contained the scents of either drugs or explosives. Any “detections” made by the teams thus had to be false.
The findings reveal that of 144 searches, only 21 were clean (no alerts). All the others raised one alert or more. In total, the teams raised 225 alerts. While the sheer number of false alerts struck Dr. Lit as fascinating, it was where they took place that was of greatest interest.
When handlers could see a red piece of paper, allegedly marking a location of interest, they were much more likely to say that their dogs signaled an alert. The human handlers were not only distracted on almost every occasion by the stimulus aimed at them, but also transmitted that distraction to their animals — who responded accordingly. To mix metaphors, the dogs were crying “wolf” at the unconscious signal of their handlers.
How much that matters in the real world is unclear. But it might. If a handler, for example, unconsciously “profiled” people being sniffed (嗅) by a drug- or explosive-detecting dog at an airport, false positives could abound (大量存在). That is not only bad for innocent travelers, but might distract the team from catching the guilty.
57. What did psychologists find out about Clever Hans?
A) He was really good at counting. C) He merely responded to human signals.
B) He was as clever as people claimed. D) He could understand human language.
58. What did the dog handlers learn before the searches?
A) There was actually no target scent in the search area.
B) Each search area contained three target scents.
C) Their dogs were expected to find the scents of red paper.
D) Some target scents may be labeled with a special mark.
59. According to Dr. Lit, the most significant about the experiment was .
A) the way the dogs raised alerts C) the average time of the searches
B) the location of the false alerts D) the number of the false alerts
60. What can be concluded from the experiment?
A) Dogs may act in response to their handlers’ bodily signals.
B) The cooperation between dogs and their handlers is key to success.
C) Well-trained dogs can better understand their handlers’ signals.
D) Dog handlers are more likely to be distracted than their dogs.
61. How does the author see Dr. Lit’s findings?
A) They may not be useful in real situations.
B) They should raise our concern in real life.
C) They will be widely applied in the near future.
D) They should be backed up by further evidence.
Passage Two
Questions 62 to 66 are based on the following passage.
Being able to multitask is hailed by most people as a welcome skill, but not according to a recent study which claims that young people between the ages of eight and eighteen of the so-called Generation M are spending a considerable amount of their time in fruitless efforts as they multitask. It argues that, in fact, these young people are frittering (浪费) away as much as half of their time as they would if they performed the very same tasks one after the other.
Some young people are using an ever larger number of electronic devices as they study. At the same time they are working, young adults are also surfing on the Internet, or sending out emails to their friends, and/or answering the telephone and listening to music on their iPods. As some new device comes along, it is also added to the list rather than replacing one of the existing devices.
Other research has indicated that this multitasking is even affecting the way families themselves function as young people are too wrapped up in their own isolated worlds to interact with the other people around them. They can no longer greet family members when they enter the house nor can they eat at the family table.
All this electronic wizardry (魔力) is supposedly also seriously affecting young people’s performance at university and in the workplace. When asked about their opinions of the impact of modern gadgets (小装置) on their performance of tasks, the great majority of young people gave a favorable response.
The response from the academic and business worlds was not quite as positive. The former feel that multitasking with electronic gadgets by children affects later development of study skills, resulting in a decline in the quality of writing, for example, because of the lack of concentration on task completion. They feel that many undergraduates now urgently need remedial (补救的) help with study skills. Similarly, employers feel that young people entering the workforce need to be taught all over again.
While all this may be true, it must be borne in mind that more and more is expected of young people nowadays; in fact, too much. Praise rather than criticism is due in respect of the way today’s youth are able to cope despite what the older generation throw at them.
62. What do we learn about the multitasking Generation M from a recent study?
A) They are highly praised for being efficient.
B) They put more energy on important tasks.
C) They don’t save much time as supposed.
D) They need to improve their analytical skills.
63. With the introduction of new gadgets, what happens to the Generation M’s present e-devices?
A) They are put aside temporarily. C) They give way to the latest gadgets.
B) They are either sold or traded. D) They become part of their collection.
64. A research revealed that multitasking makes the Generation M ________.
A) distant to their family C) impolite and ungrateful
B) selfish and possessive D) feel lonely and pitiful
65. The academics feel that many undergraduates badly need to ________.
A) adjust their social attitudes C) improve their study skills
B) seek psychological assistance D) take more business courses
66. What does the author suggest the older generation do in dealing with the multitasking youth?
A) Heighten their expectations on the youth.
B) Try to be supportive and understanding.
C) Encourage the youth to stick to their old habits.
D) Change the way the youth use the gadgets.
考前模拟训练：
2011年12月英语四级全真模拟试卷汇总
2011年12月英语四级全真预测试卷及答案汇总
作文预测汇总：
2011年12月英语四级预测话题作文汇总
英语四级作文模板汇总
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