|
|
发表于 2016-7-11 18:38:01
|
显示全部楼层
Question 11 to 15 are based on the following interview
I=Interviewer, E=Edward Epstein
I: Like me, you've probably always believed that diamonds—those gorgeous, brilliant, shining—jewels—are precious because they re both beautiful and rare. It's the demand for rare gems that makes them expensive. Well, the author of The Death of the Diamond is an American writer and journalist, Edward J. Epstein and, when I met him in his apartment in New York earlier this year, he soon put me right on a few things.
E: Diamonds are not rare at all. They're one of the most common minerals in the crust of the earth. In fact, if you think about it, there are more diamonds in America, or England, than any other commodity, than families with children. There are more diamonds than dishwashers or other appliances. Almost every family, a least in America, has a diamond.
I: If that's so, why is it that diamonds should be so expensive?
E: Well, diamonds are expensive because there's monopoly that has tried to fix the price of diamonds and they charge a rent for getting married. It's a marriage rent. Because you think it's symbolic and important for the marriage, you're willing to buy a little pebble, that you wouldn't buy in store if you weren't getting married, and pay $1000. It's sort of a private marriage license.
I: Edward Epstein's book is an expose of that monopoly. The corporation in question is De Beers; the South African company that exercises extraordinary control over the world's diamonds are found in many places in the world; there have recently been big finds in Australia, for example. But, De Beer's main suppliers outside South Africa are, surprisingly, the Russians and, as is better known, Black African states, such as Zaire, Angola and Tanzania. De Beer's policy for dealing with these unlikely allies is very simple.
E: De Beers makes an offer to buy up all the diamonds in the world at a set price.And, because it controls the means of cutting, the means of distribution, the means of credit and financing for diamonds, most African countries find it worthwhile to sell to De Beers. De Beers then puts it all in a central stockpile and then redistributes it to the diamond cutters in Belgium, in England and Israel, and other places.
I: It seems quite extraordinary to think that black African nations, which are, presumably, pledged to the downfall of South Africa should have this constant arrangement with a South Africorporation.
E: Well, it's one of the many ironies of the diamond business (is) that South Africa is, in a sense, dependent on Black Africa, especially Zaire, not to compete with it. But I have a feeling that this relationship goes deeper than merely diamonds; that South Africa is an important economic force in all of southern Africa.
Question No.11. Who is Edward Epstein?
Question No.12. According to Edward Epstein, why are diamonds so expensive?
Question No.13. What is De Beer's Corporation?
Question No.14. Which country is one of De Beer s main suppliers outside South Africa?
Question No 15. Which of the following best expresses the main idea of the interview?
Questions 16 to 20 are based on the following talk
There is no doubt that the computer has enlarged man's working capacity as well as his intellectual capacity enormously. Er… but it brings with it dangers to match the benefits. Now by this, I mean danger to physical and mental well-being of the people who wiork at computer terminals, not the dangers to personal privacy or national or industrial security.
There's one very alarming set of statistics which come from a survey done in the UK on 800 pregnant women, who happened to use computer terminals for a major part of their working day. About 35% of the subjects there had some severe abnormality during the pregnancy, enough to make a termination necessary. Now these figures compare significantly with a control group of pregnant women of the same age but who did not work with computer terminals. The incidence of severe abnormalities in their case was only 16%. This survey confirms similar investigations carried out in Denmark, Canada, Australia and the USA. Now, no one yet has a clear idea about the exact connection between working with computer terminals and the problems with pregnancy, but the figures at least suggest that there's well a cause for alarm.
In more general terms, increased stress and disturbances to vision have been noted in workers exposed for long periods to the video screen, and in many countries trade unions of workers involved with computers have laid down their own guidelines to protect members health. Erm… for instance, rest periods, or a change of activity from time to time are recommended, and the termial should be placed so that there's a source of natural light, and something else to look at, emm, no blank walls behind the terminal, in other words, so that the operator has a chance to rest his eyes from time to time.
Ironically, it seems that it's not only those who work with computers who are at risk. Er… there's perhaps more danger for people who use computers for interest or pleasure in their own homes. Now, it's obviously not possible to impose in the privacy of people's homes the sort of sateguards that can be applied in the working environment. Most people get so fascinated by what they are doing that they stay in front of the screen for hours on end; some are real fanatics!
Question No.16. What is the talk mainly about?
Question No.17. During the survey mentioned in the talk, what percentage of the women were found to suffer severe abnormality in pregnancy?
Question No.18. In which country was this survey conducted?
Question No.19. Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the talk as a risk to health?
Question No.20. According to the talk, why are amateur computer users in greater danger than professional ones.
SECTION 4：LITENING TEST
Part A: Note-taking and Gap-filling
Directions: In this part of the test, you will hear a short talk, you may take notes on the important points so that you can have enough information to complete a gap-filling task on a separate answer booklet. You are required to write ONE word or figure only in each blank. You will not get your answer booklet until after you have listened to the talk. Now listen to the talk carefully.
Today I want to discuss problems of urbanization and in particular I want to talk about those problems which are peculiar to developing economies and to discuss three possible policies which could be used to control or to stem uncontrolled urbanization in developing countries.
Certain urban problems of course are common to both developed and developing countries, for example, problems of poor housing, unemployment and those problems connected with traffic, for example, congestion, pollution and so on. However there are problems which are very peculiar to developing economies and this is due to the fact the developing countries need to create a basic infrastructure which is necessary for industrialization and consequently for economic growth. In fact it is the provision of this infrastructure which constitutes the urbanization process itself and this infrastructure or the provision of this infrastructure may have undesired effects on the economy as a whole. Now it's these consequences on these effects which um I'd like to deal with next.
I'm going to talk about five main consequences of this uncontrolled urbanization.
In the first instance there's the problem of the migration of people from the country to the city. Of course people living in the country see the city as a more desirable place to live, whether they are living in developing or developed countries. But the problem is much more serious in a developing country because there are in fact often more people who wish to migrate to the city. Now the fact of people migrating to the city causes a certain depopulation of rural areas. This is a second consequence if you like, and the result of this is a decrease in the production of food and in the supply of food to the country as a whole. This can in turn also lead to a rise in prices because of the law of supply and demand.
As a result of people moving to the city you get a high urban population growth rate. Now this is due not only to the fact of more adults moving to the city but can also be due to traditions of these people from the country because often people from rural areas have a tradition of large families and so on and so the population of the cities increases with these numerous children of the large families.
This leads to a fourth consequence which is a dramatic pressure on the supply of social services in urban areas, in particular services related to health and education. In relation a health services we can see that there are endemic diseases which could be made worse by overcrowding people coming from the country to the city, and in the stresses on services in education, with more children there's need for more schools schools and more teachers and so on.
A fifth area which is affected by uncontrolled urbanization is that of the labour supply, and often uncontrolled urbanization leads to an excess of labour supply in the cities. This can lead to, in turn, an informal kind of labour activities of, if you like, what might be called lowproductivity activities. For example people selling things in the streets or you often find for instance in large urban areas in developing countries children watching cars and so on and asking for tips from their owners when they come back. This is really a sort of undesirable type of labour.
So those are in fact the main consequences of uncontrolled urbanization. Now I'd like to talk more on the three possible policies which could be developed to stem this kind of uncontrolled urbanization in developing countries.
The first one would be to promote a more equal land distribution. In this way farmers would be more motivated to stay on the land. They would be able to work more land, and thus be able to feed their families more adequately. Often the reasons why farmers wish to go to the city is that they cannot grow enough food to both feed their families and earn a living. So a more equal land distribution is one such policy to stem this kind of move to the city.
A second policy would be to improve the supply of social services in the rural areas particularly in the field of health and education. Country people often move to the co\ity because they feel that these services are better in the city areas and if they could compare the services and feel that there was perhaps not much difference between the two, it would be another reson for not moving.
A third possible policy would be to give financial assistance to agriculture especially to the small landowners.
Part B: Listening and Translation
Ⅰ. Sentence Translation
Directions: In this part or test, you will hear 5 English sentences. You will hear the sentences only once. After you have heard each sentence, translate it into Chinese and write your version in the corresponding space in your ANSWER BOOKLET.
Sentence No.1. The main part of New York city is an island and you have to approach it either by tunnel or bridge.
Sentence No.2. Parking in downtown areas is so dreadfully expensive, so most people think twice about bringing their cars into the city.
Sentence No.3. I'm a sales representative from our head office in London and I'd like to discuss the sales contract in detail with you.
Sentence No.4. China is the third largest country in the world, next only to Russia and Canada, with an uninterrupted history going back over four thousand years.
Sentence No.5. As a result of these new measures taken by the government, this country's tourist industry has seen an average 10 percent annual growth rate over the past five years.
Ⅱ. Passage Translation
Direction: In this part of the test, you will hear two English passages. You will hear the passages only once. After you have heard each passage, translate it into Chinese and write your version in the corresponding space in your answer booklet. You may take notes while you are listening. Now let's begin Passage Translation with the first passage.
Passage 1:
The idea of permanent education is practical because we re never really too old to go on learning. Of course, there are certain limits, but they aren't age limits. For example, let's say a man past sixty tries to learn how to play football. It's foolish for him to do that, but only because his body is too old, not his mind!
Passage 2:
These days, it's difficult to know where to invest. It's all very confusing with changing interest rates, bank charges and different types ofinvestment account. So isn't it nice to know that at the Northern Bank there is friendly, professional help available to make sure you make the right decisions about how to handle your money? We can also advise you on a whole range of matters such as insurance, mortgages and pensions. Pop into your Northern Bank branch. We'll be pleased to see you!
(编辑：何莹莹） |
|
