大学英语四级考试模拟题一
Part Ⅰ Writing （30 minutes）
Directions： For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write a short essay on the topic: ONE
–OFF CHOPSTICKS. You should write at least 120 words following the outline given below in
Chinese：
1. 你和你的朋友在餐厅就餐，你的朋友对餐厅提供的非一次性筷子不满。
2. 餐厅的负责人解释说这是为了节约资源， 并保证这些餐具已经严格消毒；
3. 你对此事的看法和采取的做法。
One-off Chopsticks
注意：此部分试题在答题卡1上。
Part Ⅱ Reading Comprehension （Skimming and Scanning）（15 minutes）
Directions： In this part, you will have 15 minutes to go over the passage quickly and answer the
questions on Answer Sheet 1. For questions 1-7, choose the best answer from the four choices
marked A,B, C and D. For questions 8-10, complete the sentences with the information given in
the passage.
注意：此部分试题请在答题卡1上作答；8-10题在答题卡1上。
Plastic Bag Pollution
The use of plastic bags has increased at an alarming rate since they became popular in the
1980s. Big black bin liners, plastic carrier bags carrying advertising logos, clear sandwich bags
and a variety of other forms. They‟re lightweight, handy and easily discarded. Too easily
discarded. Just take a look around you. Plastic bags can be seen hanging from the branches, flying
in the air, settled amongst bushes, and floating on rivers. They block up drains causing water and
sewage to overflow and become the breeding grounds of bacteria that cause diseases.
Plastic bags are difficult and costly to recycle and most end up on landfill sites where they
take around 300 years to decay. They break down into tiny toxic particles that pollute the soil and
waterways and enter the food chain when animals accidentally consume them. But the problems
surrounding waste plastic bags start long before they decay. Our planet is becoming increasingly
endangered by our over-use of plastic bags.
Production of Plastic Bags
Plastic bags are made from ethylene (乙烯)，a gas that is produced as a by-product of oil, gas
and coal production. Ethylene is made into polymers (聚合体)—chains of ethylene molecules —
called polyethylene. This substance, also known as polythene, is used to produce a range of items,
including plastic bags.
You have probably noticed two types of plastic shopping bags—the lighter, filmy bags you
get from supermarkets and food outlets, and the heavier bags from other retail outlets, like
clothing stores. The supermarket bags are made from high density polyethylene (HDPE), while
the thicker bags are made from low density polyethylene (LDPE). Unlike HDPE, LDPE can not
be recycled. While plastic bags may not be the most high tech application of plastics technology, it
is certainly one of the most prevalent. According to Clean Up Australia, Australians use in excess
of 6 billion plastic bags per year. If tied together these bags would form a chain that is long
enough to go around the world 37 times. More than half of these bags (3.6 billion) are made from HDPE.
Dangers to Sea Life
Plastic bags are now amongst the top 12 items of waste most often found along the coastlines.
Animals and sea creatures are hurt and killed every day by discarded plastic bags—a dead turtle
with a plastic bag hanging from its mouth isn‟t a pleasant sight but mistaking plastic bags for food
is commonplace amongst marine animals. Plastic blocks their intestines (肠道) and leads to slow
starvation. Others become entangled in plastic bags and drown.
Because plastic bags take hundreds of years to break down, every year our seas become
“home” to more and more bags that find their way there through our sewers and waterways. Every
bag that‟s washed down a drain during rainfall ends up in the sea; every bag that‟s flushed down a
toilet ends up in the sea; every bag that‟s blown into a river will most likely end up in the sea. One
disquieting fact stemming from this is that plastic bags can become serial killers. Once an animal
diet of plastic bags, it decays at a much faster rate than the bag. Once the animal has decomposed,
the bag is released back into the environment more or less intact, ready to be eaten by another
misguided organism. The incredibly slow rate of decay of plastic bags also means that each bag
we use compounds the problem, because the bags simply accumulate.
Pollution Taxes & Bans
Different countries have adopted a range of approaches to discourage the use of plastic bags
in an attempt to cut down on the number of bags finding their way into the environment. In South
Africa for instance, where an estimated eight billion plastic bags are used annually, the
government has implemented new regulations that will see only thicker, more durable plastic bags
produced. As well as making them more suitable for reuse, it is hoped that the extra cost
associated with their production and supply will prevent retailers giving the higher quality bags
away, making their use a more expensive option for consumers.
The use of plastic bags is being discouraged in other places such as Singapore and Tainwan,
while the tax imposed on the use of plastic shopping bags in Ireland has resulted in the use of
plastic shopping bags being reduced by 90% in just six months. Prior to the 15 euro cent per bag
tax, it was estimated that 1.2 million plastic shopping bags were being handed out in Ireland per
year. The money raised from the tax will be used to fund environmental initiatives.
While anything that lowers our consumption is good, why wait until we‟re hit financially
before we change our habits when changes aren‟t difficult to make?
How about taking previously used bags with you next time you go to the shops? Or even
better—turn back time and do as grandma did and take a bamboo basket with you every time you
go shopping. Shop-owners would rather you use their bags as they‟re a convenient and cheap form
of advertising, but what‟s more important, shareholder profits or the environment?
Plastic bags can be re-cycled although only about one in every 200 ever finds its way to a
recycling unit. Find out if there‟s a re-cycling bin near you and , if not, ask your local authority for
one.
Greenhouse Gases
Some countries have introduced so called “environmentally friendly plastic bags” that are
biodegradable (可生物降解). These bags take about three years to break down into practically
nothing and while that sounds like an attractive solution, the truth is that the process of breaking
down these petrol-based bags causes carbon to become methane (甲烷) which is a greenhouse gas.
It‟s also possible to get “plastic” bags manufactured from corn. These break down very
