英语专四听力理解-短文听写

专业英语四级（听写听力）模拟试卷7(题后含答案及解析)题型有：1. DICTATIONPART I DICTATION (15 MIN)Directions: Listen to the following passage. Altogether the passage will be read to you four times. During the first reading, which will be read at normal speed, listen and try to understand the meaning. For the second and third readings, the passage will be read sentence by sentence, or phrase by phrase, with intervals of 15 seconds. The last reading will be read at normal speed again and during this time you should check your work. You will then be given 2 minute1．Fast Food Restaurants in the USA正确答案：Fast Food Restaurants in the USA In the USA, there are many types of restaurants. / Fast food restaurants are very famous. / You can find McDonald’s and Kentucky Fried Chicken in many countries around the world. / You look at a menu above the counter, / and say what you’d like to eat. You pay the person who serves you. / You take your food and sit down or take it away. / There’s no need to leave a tip. In a coffee shop you sit at the counter or at a table. / You don’t wait for the waitress to show you where to sit. / She usually brings you coffee when you sit down. / You tell her what you’d like to eat and she brings it to you. You pay the cashier as you leave. / A diner is like a coffee shop but usually looks like a railway carriage. / In a family restaurant the atmosphere is casual, but the waitress shows you where to sit. / Often the waitress tells you her name, but you don’t need to tell her yours. / If you don’t eat everything, your waitress gives you a doggy bag to take your food home. / You add an extra fifteen percent to the bill as a tip. (175 words) 解析：这是一篇关于美国快餐店的短文。

Dictation OneOld AgeMany people mistakenly believe that old age is a time of increased illness and loneliness. / In fact, people do not suddenly change / when they reach the age of 60 or 65. / Consequently, we should not expect more mental illness / among the 60 to 70 age group than among the 50 to 60. / Furthermore, also more parents and their married children live in separate households than ever before, / this is usually by choice. / It is not because children now tend to neglect their parents / when they become old. /It is also wrong to believe that old age seriously affects a person’s mental abilities. / There is clear proof that people who were eager to learn and who welcomed new experiences in their old age, / continue to do so in old age. / It is true that older people tend to take longer to learn something new than young people. / Nevertheless, if they are given sufficient time, / they learn as well as young people do.Dictation TwoGardeningGardening is one of the oldest of the arts. / The Chinese with their deep sensitiveness to beauty / laid the foundations for a form of garden art / which was later to have great influences upon other lands. /The Greeks gave to the world a new concept of gardening. / Their homes were decorated with flowers, / but it was in their civic design that they most skillfully applied their garden art. / Their temples were surrounded by rows of trees, / and trees lined the important streets and market places in their principal cities. / The Roman acquired much of the knowledge and skills in garden craft from Greeks. / In the second century AD the Romans began to build gardens of great scale, / inspired by the vast palace gardens they had conquered. / They brought water from great distances to supply the ornamental fountains / which decorated their villa gardens. / These great villas were later to inspire the Italian garden architects to follow the Roman style.Dictation ThreeBing UnemployedMost people are much more frightened by being unemployed than they need to be. / Being unemployed certainly has disadvantages, / but there are good things about it too. / One advantage is that you don’t have to get up early to work in the rush hour. / You can stay in bed as long as you like, / and there is plenty of time to read the newspaper / and have a leisurely breakfast. / But the best thing of all is that you areyour own boss / and there is no one to tell you what to do and when to do it. / One drawback of being unemployed is that you haven’t got much money coming in—/ having a job at least enables you to save a lot of money to go on holiday. / On the other hand, when you are unemployed, / you needn’t go on holiday / because you are on holiday already. / In fact, the main trouble is that you have to spend much time looking for a job.Dictation FourThe Credit Card in the U.S.Today, more and more people in the U.S. are using credit cards / instead of money to buy what they need. / Almost anyone who has a steady income and a continuous work record / can apply for a credit card. /With a credit card, you can buy a car, eat a dinner, take a trip, / and even get a haircut by charging the cost to your account. / In this way, you can pay for purchases a month or two later. / Or you may choose to spread out your payments over several months / and pay only part of the total amount each month. / With a credit card, you don’t have to carry much cash / and you don’t have to be concerned about losing your money through carelessness or theft. / The card user only has to worry about paying the final bill. / This of course can be a problem / if you charge more than you can pay for.Dictation FiveA Woman at HomeIn Japan, most people still feel that a woman’s right place is in the home / and most women willingly accept their traditional role as wives, / leaving the business of making a living to their husbands. / For those who do want a career of their own, opportunities are limited. / And working women usually have to settle for lower wages and less responsible positions. /In America, on the other hand, most women, including wives and mothers, work most of their lives. / But until recently, few have had real careers. / As in Japan, most fields are dominated by men / and opportunities for women have been restricted, / salaries low, chances for promotion rare. / American women work mainly because they have to. / In these days of inflation and expensive living, / only one income per family is simply not enough. / So American women actually have two jobs: / one outside the home, and the other round-the-clock job such as wife, cook and nurse. Dictation SixSuccessSuccess in life depends to a great extent on what is meant by success. / To some people, money is the only real indication / of achievement in the modern world and therefore / their judgment of success is based on the state / of their bank balance and the power that goes with it. / Their life is devoted to making money / and they are at a loss to understand people whoseideas are different from their own. / There are people, however, who consider their lives successful / if they are doing what they enjoy doing / that may not bring them any great financial reward. / A man who spends his time gardening might consider himself successful / if the flowers blossomed and his trees gave fruit. / Nursing and teaching can also bring their own kind of success tothose engaged in them. / Success can be found in painting a picture nobody will never see. / The great thing is to believe that success is not necessarily public.Dictation SevenPeople’s Way of Seeing ThingsThe way we see things is affected by what we know or what we believe. / For those people who believed in physical existence of Hell in the Middle Ages, / the sight of fire must have meant something quite different from what it means today. / Nevertheless, their idea of Hell owed a lot to the sight / of fire consuming and the ashes remaining / as well as to their experience of the pain of burns. /We only see what we look at. / To look is an act of choice. / As a result of this act, what we see is brought within our reach, / though not necessarily within arm’s reach. / To touch something is to situate oneself in relation to it. / We never look at just one thing. / We are always looking at the relation between things and ourselves. / Our vision is continually active, continually moving, / continually holding things in a circle around itself.Dictation EightEducationSome people may say that it is energy that makes the world to go round, / but in my opinion there is something else which is equally important. / That is education. / Education makes it possible to pass on / the invaluable knowledge of our ancestors and, at the same time, / makes it easier to explore the contemporary world. / Most great inventions have been brought about by educated people. / So we can say that education makes the world go round. /A poorly educated nation can never be a rich one. / The most advanced countries in the world all place great emphasis on education. / Nations which have a low percentage of educated people can, / in most cases, barely produce the basic necessities of life, / let alone develop their science, technology and economics. / Such nations are facing the possibility of extinction in this highly developed world. / Therefore, education cannot be emphasized enough in a developing country.。

1.IdiomsAn idiom is defined as a group of words / whose meaning must be known as a whole, / because it cannot be learned from the meaning of the same words used separately. / Obviously, there is problem / when you cannot look up individual words in a dictionary and find the meaning, / the usual strategy we all employ when we come across a word or words that are unfamiliar. / With idioms, however, we must learn the group of words. / In every English, idioms are in common use. / In fact, idioms are so common that / most native speakers do not even realize that they are using idioms. / It is particularly important to recognize idioms / when you hear them or read them. / When you are able to use them comfortably in your own speech and writing, / and then you have achieved a higher level of mastery / and fluency in the language.2. Legal Age for MarriageThroughout the United States, the legal age for marriage shows some difference. / The most common age without parents’consent is 18 for both females and males. / However, persons who are underage in their home state can get married in another state, / and then return to the home state legally married. / Each state issues its own marriage license. / Both residents and non-residents are qualified for such a license. / The fees and ceremonies vary greatly from state to state. / Most states, for instance, have a blood test requirement, / but a few do not. / Most states permit either a civil or religious ceremony, but a few requires the ceremony to be religious. / In most states a waiting period is required before the license is issued. / This period is from one to five days, depending on the state. / A three-day wait is the most common. / In some states there is no required waiting period.3.The Railway in BritainThe success of early railways, such as the lines between big cities, / led to a great increase in railway building in Victorian times. / Between 1835 and 1865 about 25, 000 kilometers of track were built, / and over 100 railway companies were created. / Railway travel transformed people’s lives. / Trains were first designed to carry goods. / However, a law in the 19th century forced railway companies to run one cheap train a day / which stopped at every station and cost only a penny a mile. / Soon working class passengers found they could afford to travel by rail. / Cheap day excursion trains become popular and seaside resorts grew rapidly. / The railways also provided thousands of new jobs: / buiding carriages, running the railways and repairing the tracks. / Railways even changed the time. / the need to run the railways on time meant that local time was abolished / and clocks showed the same time all over the country.4. How to Gain Fluency in another LanguageTo gain fluency in another language, / many people will tell you the only solution is / to travel to a foreign country and immerse yourself completely. / This advice may be greatly appealing for some people. / But for the majority of people, this solution is both inconvenient and costly. / Thankfully, the Internet has brought us new and exciting options for communicating in another language. / To expand your vocabulary, try reading free articles and original books in another language. / To begin with, reading may be a slow and frustrating process / as you will have to stop to look up the meanings for many unfamiliar words. / Before you begin, find an online dictionary / that will offer you quick translations. / Hearing a language is the key to learn how to speak it. / Popular music downloading sites offer free audio files / that you can download and take with you wherever you go. / And most importantly, one must actually practice speaking the language.5.Differences between Chinese and Western Eating HabitsThere are great differences between Chinese and Western eating habits. / Unlike the West, where everyone has their own plate of food, / in China the dishes are placed on the table and everyone shares. / If you are being treated by a Chinese host, / be prepared for a ton of food. / Chinese are very proud of their culture of cuisine / and will do their best to show their hospitality. / And sometimes the Chinese hosts use their chopsticks to put food in your bowl or plate. / This is a sign of politeness. / The appropriate thing to do would be to eat the whatever-it-is / and say how tasty it is. / If you feel uncomfortable with this, / you can just say a polite thank-you and leave the food there. / And you should never tap on your bowl with your chopsticks, / which can be very insulting to the host.。

CONTENTSPassage 1 Town and Country life in England Passage 2 A Change in Women's LifePassage 3 A Popular Pastime of the English People Passage 4 British and American Police Officers Passage 5 living SpacePassage 6 The United NationsPassage 7 PlasticPassage 8 Display of GoodsPassage 9 Albert EinsteinPassage 10 Private CarsPassage 11 A Henpecked Husband and His Wife Passage 12 A Young Man's PromisePassage 13 A Kind NeighborPassage 14 That Isn't Our FaultPassage 15 A Guide's AnswerPassage 16 A Qualified PilotPassage 17 Living Things ReactPassage 18 Flowering PlantsPassage 19 Finding the Direction and Location Passage 20 WavesPassage 21 SoilsPassage22 CrisisPassage 23 America's Worst SurprisePassage 24 Great Depression in the U.S.Passage 25 A Place of Our OwnPassage 26 Travel for WorkPassage 27 IntelligencePassage 28 A Free Dress Every WeekPassage 29 TimePassage 30 CartoonistsPassage 31 Water PollutionPassage 32 Making a ComplaintPassage 33 Where Do the British LivePassage 34 Will Computers Replace Human Beings Passage 35 SoccerPassage 36 ArtistsPassage 37 Professional Sports in the U.S. Passage38 "How to" BooksPassage 39 Don't Give UpPassage 40 How High Can You JumpPassage 41 Apology HelpsPassage 42 SleepPassage 43 Our ConcernPassage 44 Gardening in AmericaPassage 45 The Influence of LifePassage 46 AutomobilesPassage 47 House and HomePassage 48 Population GrowthPassage49 Natural ResourcesPassage50 Reading1 Town and Country Life in EnglandThere is a big difference between town life and country life in England. In the country, everybody knows everybody else. They know what time you get up, what time you go to bed and what you have for dinner. If you want help, you will always get it and you will be glad to help others.In a large town like London, however, it can sometimes happen that you have never seen your next door neighbor and you do not know his name or anything about him. People in London are often very lonely. This is because people go to different places in the evenings and at weekends. If you walk through the streets in the centre of London on Sunday, it is like a town without people. One is sorry for old people living on their own .They could die in their homes and would not be discovered for weeks or even months. (154 words)Useful Words and Expressions:next door n. n．隔壁the neighbors next他 door隔壁邻居lonely adj ．孤独的，寂寞的，偏僻的，人迹罕至的lonely life孤单的生活a lonely old man一位孤独的老人a lonely sand一个孤岛the loneliest night最孤独的夜晚on (one's) own独自；独立地；通过自己的努力She lives on her own．她一个人过。

英语专四听写英语专四听写01ReadingNowadays few of us read books after we leave school.This is rather disturbing, for one should know that books are no less necessary to one’s mental life than fresh air is to one’s physical life. From good reading we can derive companionship, experience and instruction. A good book is our faithful friend. It can increase our contentment when we are cheerful and happy, and lessen our pain when we are sad or lonely. Books can also offer us a wide range of experience. Few of us can travel far from home or live long over 100,’s more, but all of us can live many lives through the pages of books. Whatreading books can increase our intellectual ability, broaden our minds and make us wise.With the coming of TV,, books are no longer read as widely as they once were. However, nothing can replace the role that books play in our lives.Useful words and expressions:1. leave school 离校，中学毕业2. disturbing 烦扰的3. mental 精神的4. derive 得到5. companionship 伴侣6. intellectual 智力的02 Natural ResourcesThrough the changes in the ways of making a living in a family over several generations, the cartoon aims at sounding a warning against man’s wasteful use of natural resources and emphasizing the urgent need to preserve these resources.Ever since man appeared on the earth, man’s survival has been heavily dependent on nature. Almost everything we use in our everyday life comes from nature, ranging from the food we eat, the water we drink, to the wood which is turned into furniture. With the development of technology and population growth, the amount and range of materials used has increased at an alarming rate.However, natural resources are not inexhaustible. Some reserves are already on the brink of exhaustion and there is no hope of replacing them. The widespread water shortage is an example in point. If man continued to squander natural resources with no thought for the future, the whole world would be in a mess.Useful Words and Expressions:谋生1. make a living 谋生2. aim at 瞄准3. aim high 胸怀大志4. alarming使人惊动的5. inexhaustible 无穷无尽的6. squander 浪费乱七八糟7. be in a mess 乱七八糟03 Population GrowthIt is well-known that there has been a drastic increase in world population. But it is probably les well-known that the extinction rate of wildlife species is experiencing a parallel trend.T ake the United States for instance. In 1990, U.S. population reached an unprecedented level of 250 million, which is approximately 250 times of that of 1800. On the other hand, wildlife species are disappearing from the country at an alarming rate. By 1990, about 70 wildlife species would never be seen in U.S. We are fully justified in declaring that the explosive population growth has had an adverse effect on the survival of wildlife species and will be a constant threat to the wildlife resources if no immediate actions are taken.Nothing has ever equaled the magnitude and speed with which the human species is altering the physical and chemical world. It has been demolishing the environment we are living in.Useful words and expressions:1. drastic 激烈的2. parallel 平行的3. trend 倾向4. unprecedented 空前的5. magnitude 大小，数量6. alter 改变7. demolish 毁坏04House and Home“House”and “home”are two words that have similar meanings.“House”and “home”both refer to places where people live. However, thereis a difference between them. “Home”is often referred to as the place that we live in with our families. Sadly, in our society, people can hardly distinguish a home from a house because they often see no difference between them. This confusion can be traced back to the indifference between family members. Therefore, we can say that love is an important factor in a home. A home is a shelter, not only for our bodies but also for our minds. Whenever we are depressed, we can go home for comfort. Everyone in the family will do his best to take care of each other and share their happiness as well as sorrow. Without love, a home is merely a house where loneliness is all that can be found. And a house can never be a home unless there is love.Useful words and expressions:1. refer to 提到2. distinguish区别，辨别3. confusion 混乱，混淆4. trace back 追溯到5. indifference 不关心6. depressed 沮丧的05 AutomobilesIt is impossible to say that any one man invented the automobile. Many individuals living and working in different countries and at different times contributed to its development. Many of the discoveries that went into thecreation of the automobile were small in themselves. But together they were important. Here are two examples.“Carriage is running at a speed of 8 to 9 miles an hour.”It was almost unheardof in those days. According to automobile historians, this was the first practical use of mechanical power to move a vehicle. After its first run, the machine reportedly burned up while the inventor and his friends were celebrating its success at a pub.Henry Ford is considered the father of modern automobiles mass production. His famous Model-T car,, because of its low price, made it possible to produce cars on a large scale and his efforts made it accessible to ordinary people. Useful words and expressions:1. reportedly 据传说，据传闻2. mass production大规模生产大规模地3. on a large scale 大规模地4. accessible 易接近的，可到达的accessible to 与……接近06 The Influence of LifeIn the early times when human beings hunted and gathered food, they were not in control of their environment. They could only interact with their surroundings as the other lower animals did.When they learned to make fire, however, they became capable of altering their environment. To provide themselves with fuel, they cut down trees. They also burned clearings in forests to increase the growth of grass and to provide a greater grazing area for the wild animals that human beings fed upon. Thisdevelopment led to farming and the domestication of animals. Fire provided the means for cooking plants which had previously been inedible. Only when the process of meeting the basic need for food reached a certain level was it possible for humans to follow other pursuits such as setting up families, forming societies and founding cities.Useful words and Expressions:1. interact with 与……组合2. clearing 空旷地3. grazing 放牧，牧草4. domestication 驯养，驯服5. previously 先前，以前6. inedible 不能吃的，不适于食用的7. pursuit 追击8. set up 设立07 Gardening in AmericaBelieve or not, 43,000,000 Americans are gardening. That is about one in six. Gardeners, of course, come in many varieties. Not surprisingly, most of them are people who live in the suburbs, and enjoy planting flowers, or maybe a small vegetables garden.The average age of gardeners in America is about 45 years old; they usually fall somewhere in the middle class. But the fastest growing groups are city dwellers. Urban residents are finding ways of gardening even in their crowded areas. Many go to large public gardens, as a place designed by the city for garden, and you can actually ranch your own plot.Still other people use their balconies or roof tops, wherever they can find the space to plant small patches of green.Useful Words and Expressions:1. suburb 郊区2. dweller 居民3. ranch 经营牧场4. balcony 阳台5. patch小块地08 Our ConcernThe history of life on earth has been a history of interaction between living things and their surroundings. T o a large extent, the physical form and the habits of the earth’s vegetation and its animal life have been molded by the environment. Only in the present century has one species of man acquired significant power to alter the nature of his world.The rapidity of change follows the pace of man rather than the pace of nature. Radiation is now the unnatural creation of man’s tampering with the atom. The chemicals are the creations of man’s inventive mind, having no counterparts in nature.We have put poisonous and biologically potent chemicals into the hands of persons largely ignorant of their potentials for harm. We have subjected enormous numbers of people to contact with these enormous numbers of people to contact with these poisons, without their consent and often without their knowledge. We have allowed these chemicals to be used with little or noadvance investigation of their effect. Future generations are unlikely to forgive our lack of concern.Useful Words and Expressions:1. interaction 交互作用，交感2. vegetation 植被3. mold 塑造，浇铸4. species 种类5. unnatural 不自然的6. temper with 损害，影响7. counterpart 配对物8. poisonous 有毒的9. potent 有力的，有效的10. consent 同意，赞成09 SleepWhy is it so difficult to fall asleep when you are overtired? There is no one“tired”physically answer that applies to every individual. It is possible to feeland still be unable to fall asleep, because while your body may be exhausted,“turn off”.you do not feel sleepy. It is not so easy to simplyLack of sleep complicates matters even more. Experts say adults need at least seven to eight hours of sleep a night to function properly. When you get less“sleep sleep than that on consecutive three nights, you begin to accrue four debt”. As sleep debt increases your body experiences a stress response. Now a vicious cycle has been created: You experience the feeling of being more and more tired, but your body is increasingly stimulated. “Power sleeping”formore hours on weekends is only a temporary solution. There is no substitute for getting a good night’s sleep on a regular basis.Useful Words and Expressions:1. overtire 使过度疲劳2. apply to 将……应用于3. consecutive 连续的，连贯的4. accrue 自然增加，产生5. vicious恶的vicious cycle 恶性循环6. stimulate 刺激，激励7. substitute for 代替……，替换……10 Apology HelpsIt is never easy to admit you are in the wrong. Being human, we all need to know the art of apologizing. Look back with honesty and think how often you have judged roughly, you said unkind things, and pushed yourself ahead at the expense of a friend. Then count the occasions when you indicated clearly and truly that you were so sorry. A bit frightening, isn’t it? It is frightening, isn’tit? It is frightening because some deep wisdom in us knows that when even a small wrong has been committed, some mysterious moral feeling is disturbed; and it stays out of balance until fault is acknowledged and regret expressed.A heartfelt apology can not only heal a damaged relationship but also make it stronger. If you can think of someone who deserves an apology from you, someone you have wronged, or judged too roughly, or just neglected, do something about it right now.1. push ahead 捉紧进行在损害……的情况下2. at the expense of 在损害……的情况下3. mysterious神秘的4. moral 道德的5. disturbed 扰乱的不参与……，置身于……之外6. stay out of 不参与……，置身于……之外7. heartfelt 衷心的，真心真意的8. roughly粗糙地，概略地11 How High Can You Jump?Fleas trainers have observed a strange habit of fleas while training them. Fleas are trained by putting them in a cardboard box with a top on it. The fleas will jump up and hit the top of the cardboard box over and over and over again. As you watch them jump and hit the lid, something very interesting becomes obvious. The fleas continue to jump, but they are no longer jumping high enough to hit the top.When you take off the lid, the fleas continue to jump, but they will not jump out of the box. They will not jump out because they cannot jump out. Why? The reason is simple. They have conditioned themselves to jump just so high. Once they have conditioned themselves to jump just so high. Once they have conditioned themselves to jump just so high, that is all they can do!Many times, people do the same thing. They restrict themselves and never reach their potential. Just like the fleas, they fail to jump higher, thinking they are doing al they can do.1. cardboard 纸板2. lid 盖子3. conditioned 有条件的，习惯于……的4. restrict 限制，约束限于狭窄的范围内be restricted within narrow limits 限于狭窄的范围内be restricted in one’s movements 行动受限制12Don’t give upIf we would ever accomplish anything in life, let us not forget that we must persevere. If we would learn our lessons in school, we must be diligent and not give up whenever we come to anything difficult. We shall find many of our lessons very hard, but let us consider that the harder they are the better they will do to us if we will preserve and learn them thoroughly.But there are some among us who are ready to give up when they come to a hard example in mathematics, and say, “I can’t do this.”They never will if they feel so. “I can’t”never does anything worthwhile, but “I’ll try”accomplishes wonders.Let us remember that we shall meet with difficulties all through life. They are in the pathway of everyone. If we will only try and keep trying, we shall be sure to conquer and overcome very difficulty we meet.13“How to”BooksBooks which give instructions on how to do things are popular in the United States today. Thousands of these “how to”books are available. In fact, there“how to’.are about for thousand books with titles that begin with the wordsMany “how to”books give advice on careers. They tell you how to choose a career and how to succeed in it. Many of these books help people to use their free time better.. Some people want book which will give them useful information about sports, hobbies and travel. Other people use their free time to make repairs and improvements on their homes. They prefer books which give step-by-step instructions on how to repair things like plumbing and electrical wiring or on how to redecorate or enlarge a house.Why have “how to”books become so popular? Probably because life has become more complex. T oday people have far more free to use, more choices to make, and more problems to solve, “how to”books help people to deal with modern life.1. step-by-step 按部就班的Useful words and Expressions:1.2. redecorate 重新装饰，再装饰3. complex 复杂的，综合的14Professioanl Sports in the U.S.Professional sports are not only very popular in the United States, but also a big business. The most popular sports are baseball, football and basketball. Each sport has its own season and individual teams have millions of supporters. Professional teams are named for the cities where they are located. For example, the Lakers are in Los Angeles. The strongest supporters of the Lakers are residents of Los Angeles and Southern California. When the Lakers play, many people in Los Angeles enthusiastically follow the game. When we mention “NBA”, almost every one knows it ahs some relationship with U.S. professional basketball. However, what does it really stand for? N.B.A is gainingnew fans and supporters around the world. Basketball has been called the “national pastime”. However, football is the most popular professional sport in the U.S.. American football is different from international football, which Americans call “soccer”. Both games require strength and specialized skills. Useful Words and Expressions:被指定为1. be named for 被指定为是……的简称2. be short for 是……的简称3. stand for代表15 ArtistsEvery artist knows in his heart that he is saying something to the public. Not only does he want to say it well, but he wants it to be something which has not been said before.What visual artists, like painters, want to say is easy to make out but difficult to explain, because painters translate their experiences into shapes and colors, not words. They seem to feel that a certain selection of shapes and colors, out of the countless billions of possible, is exceptionally interesting for them and worth showing to us.Most artists take their shapes and colors from the world of nature and from human bodies in motion and response; their choices indicate that these aspects of the world are worth looking at, that they contain beautiful sights. Contemporary artists might say that they merely choose subjects that provide an interesting pattern, that there is nothing more in it. Yet even they do not choose entirely without reference to the character of their subjects.Useful words and Expressions:1. visual artist 视觉艺术家2. selection 挑选，选择3. exceptional 例外的，异常的4. motion 运动，动作5. indicate显示，象征6. contemporary 当代的，同时代的7. without reference to 不论，与……无关16 SoccerSoccer has had a slow start in America. In fact, the majority of schools still have no official soccer teams or coaches. But the blossoming popularity of the game cannot be denied. Thanks to the efforts of some world-famous soccer stars, soccer is soon to have its place in American culture.Although soccer has enjoyed decades of popularity elsewhere, it was literally ignored in America. Instead, a variation of the game called “football”was most popular in the U.S. and still is to this day. But the obvious advantages of playing soccer instead will soon win even the most avid football enthusiasts. For one thing, soccer is a much safer game to play than football. No one deliberately tries to knock an opponent down in soccer. In fact, they players are discouraged from even touching each other.Soccer is a game that requires skill and dexterity in controlling the ball. Since no one may use hands to do this, soccer players soon acquire incredible control of their heads, knees, and feet.Useful Words and Expresisons:1. slow start 缓慢起动2. blossom 兴旺，发展3. ignore 忽视4. avid 渴望的5. discourage from 劝阻6. dexterity 灵巧，机敏17 Will Computers Replace Human Beings?We are in the computer age today. The computers are working all kinds ofwonders now. They are very useful in automatic control and data processing. Atthe same time, computers are finding their way into the home. They seem to beso clever and can solve such complicated problems that some people think sooner or later they will replace us.But I do not think that there is such a possibility. My reason is very simple:computers are machines, not humans. And our tasks are far too various andcomplicated for any one single kind of machine to perform.Probably the greatest difference between man and computer is that the former can do things of his own while the latter can do nothing without beingprogrammed. In my opinion, computers will remain nothing but an extension ofour human brains, no matter how clever and complicated they may become.18 Where Do the British LiveNearly everyone in Britain would like to own their own home and, whether theydo or not, they are prepared to put time and money into decorating andfurnishing it or even making structural alterations to it. Because of the climateand because of the expense involved in going out for the evening, the British spend a lot of time at home and a large part of their social life takes place there. Young people tend to stay with their families longer these days as accommodation is expensive but, when they move away to a job or college, there are various options open to them. They can get lodgings with a landlady. This means that they rent a room in someone’s house and have breakfast with the family. They can also get a bed-sitting room, that is to say one self-contained room in which they can cook, live and sleep. Alternatively, they can share a rented flat or house with a group of young people, perhaps the most popular option of all.Useful Words and Expressions:1. lodging 寄宿处2. bedsit 卧室兼起居室3. bed-sitting 卧室兼起居室的4. self-contained 设备齐全的19 Making a ComplaintComplaining about faulty goods or bad services is never easy. But if something you have brought is faulty or does not do what was claimed for it, you are not asking for a favor to get it put right.Complaints should be made to a responsible person. Go back to the shop where you bought the goods, taking with you any receipt you may have. In a small store the assistant may also be the owner so you can complain direct. In a chain store, ask the manager. If you telephone, ask the name of the person who handles your enquiry, otherwise you may never find out who dealt with the. Stick to the complaint later. If you do not want to do it in person, write a letterfacts and keep a copy of what you write. At this stage you should give any receipt numbers, but you should not need to give receipts or other papers to prove you bought the article.20Water PollutionWater is very important to us. Factories and plants need water for industrial uses and large pieces of farmland need it for irrigation. Without water to drink, people die in a short time.Today most water sources are so dirty that people must purify water before drinking. Water becomes dirty in many ways: industrial pollution is one of them. With the development of industry, plants and factories pour tons of industrialwasters into rivers every day. The rivers have become seriously polluted, and the water is becoming unfit for drinking or irrigation. The same thing has also happened to our seas and oceans. So, the problem of water pollution is almost worldwide.Scientists of many countries have done a lot of work to stop pollution. The polluted water in some places has become clean and drinkable again. Perhaps. That day, one day the people in all towns and cities will be drinking clean waterwe believe, is not very far off.21 CartoonistsIn a good cartoon, the artist can tell in a few lines as much as a writer can tell inhalf a dozen paragraphs. The cartoonist not only tells a story but he also tries topersuade the reader to his way of thinking. He has great influence on publicopinion. In a political campaign, he plays an important part. Controversial issues in Congress or at meetings of the United Nations may keep the cartoonist well-supplied with current materials.A clever cartoonist may cause laughter because he often uses humor in his drawings. If he is sketching a famous person, he takes a prominent feature and exaggerates it. Cartoonists, for instance, like to lengthen an already long nose and to widen an already broad grin. This exaggeration of a person’s characteristics is called caricature. The artist uses such exaggeration to put his message across.Useful Words and Expressions:1. cartoonist 漫画家2. campaign 活动3. controversial 争论的，争议的4. sketch 素描5. prominent 卓越的6. exaggerate 夸张7. lengthen 延长8. grin 露齿笑22 TimeTime is tangible. One can gain time, spend time, waste time, save time, or evenkill time. Common questions in American English reveal this concrete quality as though time were a possession. “Do you have any time?”, “Can you get sometime for this?”, “How much free time do you have?”The treatment of time asa possession influences the way that time is carefully divided.Generally, Americans are taught to do one thing at a time and may be uncomfortable when an activity is interrupted. In businesses, the careful scheduling of time and the separation of activities are common practices. Appointment calendars are printed with 15-,30-, and 60-minute time slots. The idea that “there is a time and place for everything”extends to American social life. Visitors who drop by without prior notice may interrupt their host’svisiting them is personal time. Thus, calling friends on the telephone before v isitinggenerally preferred to visitors’dropping by.Useful words and expressions:1. tangible 切实的2. kill time 消磨时间3. reveal 显示，揭示4. scheduling 行程安排5. slot 缝隙6. drop by 随便访问7. preferred 首选的23 A Free Dress Every Week Thetemptationtostealisgreaterthaneverbeforeespeciallyinlargeshopsandpeople arenotsohonestastheyoncewere.Adetectiverecentlywatchedawell-dressedwomanwhoalwayswentintoalargestor eonMondaymornings. OneMonday, therewerefewerpeopleintheshopthanusualwhenthewomancamein, soitwaseasierforthedetectivetowatchher. Thewomanfirstboughtafewsmallarticles. Afteralittletime,shechoseoneofthemostexpensivedressesintheshopandhandedittoanassistantw howrappeditupforherasquicklyaspossible. Thewomansimplytooktheparcelandwalkedoutoftheshopwithoutpaying. Whenshewasarrested, thedetectivefoundoutthattheshopassistantwasherdaughter. Believeitornot, thegirl“gave” hermotherafreedresseveryweek!24 Are some people born clever, and others born stupid? Or is intelligence developed by our environment and our experience?Strangely enough, the answer to these questions is yes. To some extent our intelligence is given us at birth, and no amount of special education can make a genius out of a child born with low intelligence. On the other hand, a child who lives in a boring environment will develop his intelligence less than one who lives’s intelligence arein rich and varied surroundings. Thus, the limits of a personfixed at birth, whether or not he reaches those limits will depend on his environment. This view, held by most experts now, can be supported in a number of ways. As is easy to show that intelligence is to some extent something we are born with. The closer the blood relationship between two people is, the closer they are likely to be in intelligence.25 Travel for WorkYou can see them in every airport in the world. They are businessmen and women who have to travel for their work.When they first applied for the job, they may have thought of good food and hotels, huge expense accounts and fashionable cities. Now they have to sit in airport lounges, tired and uncomfortable in their smart clothes, listening to theloudspeaker announce “The fight of T okyo, or Berlin, or New York is delayed for another two hours.”Some people say to me, “How lucky you are to be able to travel abroad in your work! You can go sightseeing without paying any money by yourself!”They think that my job is like a continual holiday. It is not.There are advantages, of course, and I do thin I am lucky, but only because I can go to places I would never visit if I was a tourist.26 A Place of Our OwnWe are all usually very careful when we buy something for the house. Why? Because we have to live with it for a long time. We paint a room to make it brighter, so we choose the colors carefully.We buy new curtains in order to match the newly decorated room, so they must—orbe the right color. We move the furniture round so as to make more spacewe buy new furniture—and so on. It is an endless business.Rich or poor,, we take time to furnish a room. Perhaps some people buy furniturein order to impress their friends. But most of us just want to enjoy our surroundings. We want to live as comfortably as we can afford to. We spend a large part of our lives at home. We want to make a small corner in the world which we can recognize as our own27 Great Depression in the U.S.In 1929, the bills started to come in. American industry had produced too many goods. Americans could not afford to buy all of them. So factories had to cut down on their production. Many workers lost their jobs. Investors tried to get their money back. But businesses did not have enough money to pay them.Banks tried to get their money back from investors. But the investors could not pay, either. T oo many people owed money. And few of them could pay their bills. During the next few years, business got worse and worse. By 1932, banks all over the country were closing.People without money could not buy goods. So more businesses closed. More and more people lost their jobs. By 1932, more than 12 million Americans were jobless. Millions more were earning barely enough to live on. The country was in a great depression they had never experienced before.Useful Words and Expressions:1. bill 帐单，票据foot the bill付账，负责减少2. cut down on 减少3. depression 沮丧，萧条Great Depression大萧条28 America’s Worst SurpriseDecember 7, 1941 was one of the worst days in American history. Nearly allAmericans who are old enough to remember that day can still remember what they were doing at the moment they heard “the news”. The news was that America had been attacked!.M., a radio dispatch came into Washington from Honolulu, Shortly before 2:00 P.M.,Hawaii. “Air Raid, Pearl Harbor—This is no drill.”Japanese planes had begunan attack on the largest American military base in the Pacific. They first. destroyed planes on the ground. Then they bombed the ships in the harborNo one had expected the attack. So no one was prepared for it. And it did not。

50. ReadingNowadays few of us read books after we leave school.This is rather disturbing, for one should know that books are no less necessary to one’s mental life than fresh air is to one’s physical life. From good reading we can derive companionship, experience and instruction. A good book is our faithful friend. It can increase our contentment when we are cheerful and happy, and lessen our pain when we are sad or lonely. Books can also offer us a wide range of experience. Few of us can travel far from home or live long over 100, but all of us can live many lives through the pages of books. What’s more, reading books can increase our intellectual ability, broaden our minds and make us wise.With the coming of TV, books are no longer read as widely as they once were. However, nothing can replace the role that books play in our lives.Useful words and expressions:1. leave school 离校，中学毕业2. disturbing 烦扰的3. mental 精神的4. derive 得到5. companionship 伴侣6. intellectual 智力的49. Natural ResourcesThrough the changes in the ways of making a living in a family over several generations, the cartoon aims at sounding a warning against man’s wast eful use of natural resources and emphasizing the urgent need to preserve these resources.Ever since man appeared on the earth, man’s survival has been heavily dependent on nature. Almost everything we use in our everyday life comes from nature, ranging from the food we eat, the water we drink, to the wood which is turned into furniture. With the development of technology and population growth, the amount and range of materials used has increased at an alarming rate.However, natural resources are not inexhaustible. Some reserves are already on the brink of exhaustion and there is no hope of replacing them. The widespread water shortage is an example in point. If man continued to squander natural resources with no thought for the future, the whole world would be in a mess.Useful Words and Expressions:1. make a living 谋生2. aim at 瞄准3. aim high 胸怀大志4. alarming使人惊动的5. inexhaustible 无穷无尽的6. squander 浪费7. be in a mess 乱七八糟48. Population GrowthIt is well-known that there has been a drastic increase in world population. But it is probably les well-known that the extinction rate of wildlife species is experiencing a parallel trend.Take the United States for instance. In 1990, U.S. population reached an unprecedented level of 250 million, which is approximately 250 times of that of 1800. On the other hand, wildlife species are disappearing from the country at an alarming rate. By 1990, about 70 wildlife species would never be seen in U.S. We are fully justified in declaring that the explosive population growth has had an adverse effect on the survival of wildlife species and will be a constant threat to the wildlife resources if no immediate actions are taken.Nothing has ever equaled the magnitude and speed with which the human species is altering the physical and chemical world. It has been demolishing the environment we are living in.Useful words and expressions:1. drastic 激烈的 2. parallel 平行的 3. trend 倾向 4. unprecedented 空前的5. magnitude 大小，数量6. alter 改变7. demolish 毁坏47．House and Home“House” and “home” are two words that have similar meanings.“House” and “home” both refer to places where people live. However, there is a diff erence between them. “Home” is often referred to as the place that we live in with our families. Sadly, in our society, people can hardly distinguish a home from a house because they often see no difference between them. This confusion can be traced back to the indifference between family members. Therefore, we can say that love is an important factor in a home. A home is a shelter, not only for our bodies but also for our minds. Whenever we are depressed, we can go home for comfort. Everyone in the family will do his best to take care of each other and share their happiness as well as sorrow. Without love, a home is merely a house where loneliness is all that can be found. And a house can never be a home unless there is love.Useful words and expressions:1. refer to 提到2. distinguish区别，辨别3. confusion 混乱，混淆4. trace back 追溯到5. indifference 不关心6. depressed 沮丧的46．AutomobilesIt is impossible to say that any one man invented the automobile. Many individuals living and working in different countries and at different times contributed to its development. Many of the discoveries that went into the creation of the automobile were small in themselves. But together they were important. Here are two examples.“Carriage is running at a speed of 8 to 9 miles an hour.” It was almost unheard of in those days. According to automobile historians, this was the first practical use of mechanical power to move a vehicle. After its first run, the machine reportedly burned up while the inventor and his friends were celebrating its success at a pub.Henry Ford is considered the father of modern automobiles mass production. His famous Model-T car, because of its low price, made it possible to produce cars on a large scale and his efforts made it accessible to ordinary people.Useful words and expressions:1. reportedly 据传说，据传闻2. mass production大规模生产3. on a large scale 大规模地4. accessible 易接近的，可到达的accessible to 与……接近45. The Influence of LifeIn the early times when human beings hunted and gathered food, they were not in control of their environment. They could only interact with their surroundings as the other lower animals did. When they learned to make fire, however, they became capable of altering their environment. To provide themselves with fuel, they cut down trees. They also burned clearings in forests to increase the growth of grass and to provide a greater grazing area for the wild animals that human beings fed upon. This development led to farming and the domestication of animals. Fire provided the means for cooking plants which had previously been inedible. Only when the process of meeting the basic need for food reached a certain level was it possible for humans to follow other pursuits such as setting up families, forming societies and founding cities.Useful words and Expressions:1. interact with 与……组合2. clearing 空旷地3. grazing 放牧，牧草4. domestication 驯养，驯服5. previously 先前，以前6. inedible 不能吃的，不适于食用的7. pursuit 追击8. set up 设立44．Gardening in AmericaBelieve or not, 43,000,000 Americans are gardening. That is about one in six. Gardeners, of course, come in many varieties. Not surprisingly, most of them are people who live in the suburbs, and enjoy planting flowers, or maybe a small vegetables garden.The average age of gardeners in America is about 45 years old; they usually fall somewhere in the middle class. But the fastest growing groups are city dwellers. Urban residents are finding ways of gardening even in their crowded areas. Many go to large public gardens, as a place designed by the city for garden, and you can actually ranch your own plot.Still other people use their balconies or roof tops, wherever they can find the space to plant small patches of green.Useful Words and Expressions:1. suburb 郊区2. dweller 居民3. ranch 经营牧场4. balcony 阳台5. patch小块地43．Our ConcernThe history of life on earth has been a history of interaction between living things and their surroundings. To a large extent, the physical form and the habits of the earth’s vegetation and its animal life have been molded by the environment. Only in the present century has one species of man acquired significant power to alter the nature of his world.The rapidity of change follows the pace of man rather than the pace of nature. Radiation is now the unnatural creation of man’s tampering with the atom. The chemicals are the creations of man’s inventive mind, having no counterparts in nature.We have put poisonous and biologically potent chemicals into the hands of persons largely ignorant of their potentials for harm. We have subjected enormous numbers of people to contact with these enormous numbers of people to contact with these poisons, without their consent and often without their knowledge. We have allowed these chemicals to be used with little or no advance investigation of their effect. Future generations are unlikely to forgive our lack of concern.Useful Words and Expressions:1. interaction 交互作用，交感2. vegetation 植被3. mold 塑造，浇铸4. species 种类5. unnatural 不自然的6. temper with 损害，影响7. counterpart 配对物8. poisonous 有毒的9. potent 有力的，有效的10. consent 同意，赞成42．SleepWhy is it so difficult to fall asleep when you are overtired? There is no one answer that applies to every individual. It is possible to feel “tired” physically and still be unable to fall asleep, because while your body may be exhausted, you do not feel sleepy. It is not so easy to simply “turn off”. Lack of sleep complicates matters even more. Experts say adults need at least seven to eight hours of sleep a night to function properly. When you get less sleep than that on consecutive three nights, you begin to accrue four “sleep debt”. As sleep deb t increases your body experiences a stress response. Now a vicious cycle has been created: You experience the feeling of being more and more tired, but your body is increasingly stimulated. “Power sleeping” for more hours on weekends is only a temporary so lution. There is no substitute for getting a good night’s sleep on a regular basis.Useful Words and Expressions:1. overtire 使过度疲劳2. apply to 将……应用于3. consecutive连续的，连贯的4. accrue 自然增加，产生5. vicious恶的vicious cycle 恶性循环6. stimulate 刺激，激励7. substitute for 代替……，替换……41．Apology HelpsIt is never easy to admit you are in the wrong. Being human, we all need to know the art of apologizing. Look back with honesty and think how often you have judged roughly, you said unkind things, and pushed yourself ahead at the expense of a friend. Then count the occasions when you indicated clearly and truly that you were so sorry. A bit frightening, isn’t it? It is frightening, isn’t it? It is frightening because some deep wisdom in us knows that when even a small wrong has been committed, some mysterious moral feeling is disturbed; and it stays out of balance until fault is acknowledged and regret expressed.A heartfelt apology can not only heal a damaged relationship but also make it stronger. If you can think of someone who deserves an apology from you, someone you have wronged, or judged too roughly, or just neglected, do something about it right now.Useful Words and Expressions:1. push ahead 捉紧进行2. at the expense of 在损害……的情况下3. mysterious神秘的4. moral 道德的5. disturbed 扰乱的6. stay out of 不参与……，置身于……之外7. heartfelt 衷心的，真心真意的8. roughly粗糙地，概略地40. How High Can You Jump?Flea’s trainers have observed a strange habit of fleas while training them.Fleas are trained by putting them in a cardboard box with a top on it. The fleas will jump up and hit the top of the cardboard box over and over and over again. As you watch them jump and hit the lid, something very interesting becomes obvious. The fleas continue to jump, but they are no longer jumping high enough to hit the top.When you take off the lid, the fleas continue to jump, but they will not jump out of the box. They will not jump out because they cannot jump out. Why? The reason is simple. They have conditioned themselves to jump just so high. Once they have conditioned themselves to jump just so high. Once they have conditioned themselves to jump just so high, that is all they can do! Many times, people do the same thing. They restrict themselves and never reach their potential. Just like the fleas, they fail to jump higher, thinking they are doing al they can do.Useful Words and Expressions:1. cardboard 纸板2. lid 盖子3. conditioned 有条件的，习惯于……的 4. restrict 限制，约束be restricted within narrow limits 限于狭窄的范围内be restricted in one’s movements 行动受限制39. Don’t give upIf we would ever accomplish anything in life, let us not forget that we must persevere. If we would learn our lessons in school, we must be diligent and not give up whenever we come to anything difficult. We shall find many of our lessons very hard, but let us consider that the harder they are the better they will do to us if we will preserve and learn them thoroughly.But there are some among us who are ready to give up when they come to a hard example in mathematics, and say, “I can’t do this.” They never will if they feel so. “I can’t” never does anything worthwhile, but “I’ll try” accomplis hes wonders.Let us remember that we shall meet with difficulties all through life. They are in the pathway of everyone. If we will only try and keep trying, we shall be sure to conquer and overcome verydifficulty we merely.38. “How to” BooksBooks which give instructions on how to do things are popular in the United States today. Thousands of these “how to” books are available. In fact, there are about for thousand books with titles that begin with the words “how to’.Many “how to” books give advice on c areers. They tell you how to choose a career and how to succeed in it. Many of these books help people to use their free time better. Some people want book which will give them useful information about sports, hobbies and travel. Other people use their free time to make repairs and improvements on their homes. They prefer books which give step-by-step instructions on how to repair things like plumbing and electrical wiring or on how to redecorate or enlarge a house.Why have “how to” books become so popular? Probably because life has became more complex. Today people have far more free to use, more choices to make, and more problems to solve, “how to” books help people to deal with modern life.Useful words and Expressions:1. step-by-step 按部就班的2. redecorate 重新装饰，再装饰3. complex 复杂的，综合的37. Professional Sports in the U.S.Professional sports are not only very popular in the United States, but also a big business. The most popular sports are baseball, football and basketball. Each sport has its own season and individual teams have millions of supporters. Professional teams are named for the cities where they are located. For example, the Lakers are in Los Angeles. The strongest supporters of the Lakers are residents of Los Angeles and Southern California. When the Lakers play, many people in Los Angeles enthusiastically follow the game. When we mention “NBA”, almost every one knows it ahs some relationship with U.S. professional basketball. However, what does it really stand for? N.B.A is gaining new fans and supporters around the world. Basketball has been called the “national pastime”. However, football is the most popular professional sport in the U.S. American football is different from international football, which Americans call “soccer”. Both games require strength and specialized skills.Useful Words and Expressions:1. be named for 被指定为 2. be short for 是……的简称3. stand for代表36. ArtistsEvery artist knows in his heart that he is saying something to the public. Not only does he want to say it well, but he wants it to be something which has not been said before.What visual artists, like painters, want to say is easy to make out but difficult to explain, because painters translate their experiences into shapes and colors, not words. They seem to feel that a certain selection of shapes and colors, out of the countless billions of possible, is exceptionally interesting for them and worth showing to us.Most artists take their shapes and colors from the world of nature and from human bodies in motion and response; their choices indicate that these aspects of the world are worth looking at, that they contain beautiful sights. Contemporary artists might say that they merely choose subjects that provide an interesting pattern, that there is nothing more in it. Yet even they do not choose entirely without reference to the character of their subjects.Useful words and Expressions:1. visual artist 视觉艺术家2. selection 挑选，选择3. exceptional 例外的，异常的4. motion 运动，动作5. indicate显示，象征6. contemporary 当代的，同时代的7. without reference to 不论，与……无关34．Will Computers Replace Human Beings?We are in the computer age today. The computers are working all kinds of wonders now. They are very useful in automatic control and data processing. At the same time, computers are finding their way into the home. They seem to be so clever and can solve such complicated problems that some people think sooner or later they will replace us.But I do not think that there is such a possibility. My reason is very simple: computers are machines, not humans. And our tasks are far too various and complicated for any one single kind of machine to perform.Probably the greatest difference between man and computer is that the former can do things of his own while the latter can do nothing without being programmed. In my opinion, computers will remain nothing but an extension of our human brains, no matter how clever and complicated they may become.33. Where Do the British Live?Nearly everyone in Britain would like to own their own home and, whether they do or not, they are prepared to put time and money into decorating and furnishing it or even making structural alterations to it. Because of the climate and because of the expense involved in going out for the evening, the British spend a lot of time at home and a large part of their social life takes place there.Young people tend to stay with their families longer these days as accommodation is expensive but, when they move away to a job or college, there are various options open to them. They can get lodgings with a landlady. This means that they rent a room in someone’s house and have breakfast with the family. They can also get a bed-sitting room, that is to say one self-contained room in which they can cook, live and sleep. Alternatively, they can share a rented flat or house with a group of young people, perhaps the most popular option of all.Useful Words and Expressions:1. lodging 寄宿处2. bed-sit 卧室兼起居室3. bed-sitting 卧室兼起居室的4. self-contained 设备齐备32. Making a ComplaintComplaining about faulty goods or bad services is never easy. But if something you have brought is faulty or does not do what was claimed for it, you are not asking for a favor to get it put right. Complaints should be made to a responsible person. Go back to the shop where you bought the goods, taking with you any receipt you may have. In a small store the assistant may also be the owner so you can complain direct. In a chain store, ask the manager. If you telephone, ask the name of the person, who handles your enquiry, otherwise you may never find out who dealt with the complaint later. If you do not want to do it in person, write a letter. Stick to the facts and keep a copy of what you write. At this stage you should give any receipt numbers, but you should not need to give receipts or other papers to prove you bought the article.31. Water PollutionWater is very important to us. Factories and plants need water for industrial uses and large pieces of farmland need it for irrigation. Without water to drink, people die in a short time.Today most water sources are so dirty that people must purify water before drinking. Water becomes dirty in many ways: industrial pollution is one of them. With the development of industry, plants and factories pour tons of industrial wasters into rivers every day. The rivers have become seriously polluted, and the water is becoming unfit for drinking or irrigation. The same thing has also happened to our seas and oceans. So, the problem of water pollution is almost worldwide. Scientists of many countries have done a lot of work to stop pollution. The polluted water in some places has become clean and drinkable again. Perhaps one day the people in all towns and cities will be drinking clean water. That day, we believe, is not very far off.30. CartoonistsIn a good cartoon, the artist can tell in a few lines as much as a writer can tell in half a dozen paragraphs. The cartoonist not only tells a story but he also tries to persuade the reader to his way of thinking. He has great influence on public opinion. In a political campaign, he plays an important part. Controversial issues in Congress or at meetings of the United Nations may keep the cartoonist well-supplied with current materials.A clever cartoonist may cause laughter because he often uses humor in his drawings. If he is sketching a famous person, he takes a prominent feature and exaggerates it. Cartoonists, for instance, like to lengthen an already long nose and to widen an already broad grin. This exaggeration of a person’s characteristics is called caricature. The artist uses such exaggeration to put his message eful Words and Expressions:1. cartoonist 漫画家2. campaign 活动3. controversial 争论的，争议的 4. sketch 素描5. prominent 卓越的6. exaggerate 夸张7. lengthen 延长8. grin 露齿笑29. TimeTime is tangible. One can gain time, spend time, waste time, save time, or even kill time. Common questions in American Engli sh reveal this concrete quality as though time were a possession. “Do you have any time?”, “Can you get some time for this?”, “How much free time do you have?” The treatment of time as a possession influences the way that time is carefully divided.Generally, Americans are taught to do one thing at a time and may be uncomfortable when an activity is interrupted. In businesses, the careful scheduling of time and the separation of activities are common practices. Appointment calendars are printed with 15-,30-, and 60-minute time slots. The idea that “there is a time and place for everything” extends to American social life. Visitors who drop by without prior notice may interrupt their host’s personal time. Thus, calling friends on the telephone before visiting them is generally preferred to visitors’ dropping by.Useful words and expressions:1. tangible 切实的2. kill time 消磨时间3. reveal 显示，揭示4. scheduling 行程安排5. slot 缝隙6. drop by 随便访问7. preferred 首选的28. A Free Dress Every WeekThe temptation to steal is greater than ever before especially in large shops and people are not so honest as they once were.A detective recently watched a well-dressed woman who always went into a large store on Monday mornings. One Monday, there were fewer people in the shop than usual when the womancame in, so it was easier for the detective to watch her. The woman first bought a few small articles. After a little time, she chose one of the most expensive dresses in the shop and handed it to an assistant who wrapped it up for her as quickly as possible. The woman simply took the parcel and walked out of the shop without paying. When she was arrested, the detective found out that the shop assistant was her daughter. Believe it or not, the girl “gave” her mother a free dress every week!27. IntelligenceAre some people born clever and others born stupid? Or is intelligence developed by our environment and our experience?Strangely enough, the answer to these questions is yes. To some extent our intelligence is given us at birth, and no amount of special education can make a genius out of a child born with low intelligence. On the other hand, a child who lives in a boring environment will develop his intelligence less than one who lives in rich and varied surroundings. Thus, the limits of a person’s intelligence are fixed at birth, whether or not he reaches those limits will depend on his environment. This view, held by most experts now, can be supported in a number of ways. As is easy to show that intelligence is to some extent something we are born with. The closer the blood relationship between two people is, the closer they are likely to be in intelligence.26. Travel for WorkYou can see them in every airport in the world. They are businessmen and women who have to travel for their work.When they first applied for the job, they may have thought of good food and hotels, huge expense accounts and fashionable cities. Now they have to sit in airport lounges, tired and uncomfortable in their smart clothes, listening to the loudspeaker announce “The fight of Tokyo, or Berlin, or New York is delayed for another two hours.” Some people say to me, “How lucky you are to be able to travel abroad in your work! You can go sightseeing without paying any money by yourself!” They think that my job is like a continual holiday. It is not.There are advantages, of course, and I do thin I am lucky, but only because I can go to places I would never visit if I was a tourist.25. A Place of Our OwnWe are all usually very careful when we buy something for the house. Why? Because we have to live on it for a long time. We paint a room to make it brighter, so we choose the colors carefully. We buy new curtains in order to match the newly decorated room, so they must be the right color. We move the furniture round so as to make more space—or we buy new furniture—and so on. It is an endless business.Rich or poor, we take time to furnish a room. Perhaps some people buy furniture in order to impress their friends. But most of us just want to enjoy our surroundings. We want to live as comfortably as we can afford to. We spend a large part of our lives at home. We want to make a small corner in the world which we can recognize as our own.24. Great Depression in the U.S.In 1929, the bills started to come in. American industry had produced too many goods. Americans could not afford to buy all of them. So factories had to cut down on their production. Many workers lost their jobs. Investors tried to get their money back. But businesses did not haveenough money to pay them. Banks tried to get their money back from investors. But the investors could not pay, either. Too many people owed money. And few of them could pay their bills. During the next few years, business got worse and worse. By 1932, banks all over the country were closing.People without money could not buy goods. So many businesses closed. More and more people lost their jobs. By 1932, more than 12 million Americans were jobless. Millions more were earning barely enough to live on. The country was in a great depression they had never experienced before.Useful Words and Expressions:1. bill 帐单，票据foot the bill付账，负责2. cut down on 减少3. depression 沮丧，萧条Great Depression大萧条23. A merica’s Worst SurpriseDecember 7, 1941 was one of the worst days in American history. Nearly all Americans who are old enough to remember that day can still remember what they were doing at the moment they heard “the news”. The news was that America had been attacked!Shortly before 2:00 P.M., a radio dispatch came into Washington from Honolulu, Hawaii. “Air Raid, Pearl Harbor—this is no drill.” Japanese planes h ad begun an attack on the largest American military base in the Pacific. They first destroyed planes on the ground. Then they bombed the ships in the harbor.No one had expected the attack. So no one was prepared for it. And it did not take long for Japanese to do their damage. When the smoke cleared, the Navy counted its losses. Eighteen ships had been sunk or badly damaged. Nearly 150 planes had been destroyed. More than 2,400 Americans had been killed and more than 1,200 wounded.Useful Words and Expressions:1. dispatch 派遣，急件2. air raid 空袭3. drill 军事训练，操练4. Pearl Harbor 珍珠港22．. CrisisLife is a contest! Who will win? A bluebird and sparrow both compete for space to build their nests. A fast-growing maple tree and slower-growing dogwood compete for the sunlight they both need. Oil competes with coal and nuclear power as an energy source for electric power plants! There is a problem. There is a limited amount of space for birds, sunlight for trees, and energy for people! If we do not cut back on our uses of some of our resources, someday they will be gone! How can we use energy today and know we will have enough to go around in the future? We can choose alternate, or replacement, energy resources. It takes the earth millions of years to create coal, oil, and gas. They are nonrenewable resources.Solar energy, wind energy and water energy are renewable resources. It takes the earth millions of years to create coal, oil, and gas. They are nonrenewable resources.Solar energy, wind energy and water energy are renewable. What other ways can we conserve our sources? How can we make sure there is always enough to go around?Useful words and expressions:1. bluebird 蓝知更鸟2. sparrow 麻雀3. dogwood 山茱萸4. power plant 发电厂，发电站5. alternate 替换物6. nonrenewable resources 不可再生资源7. conserve 保存，保藏21. Soils。

英语专业四级考试听写自我测试100篇（1-50为英式发音；51-100为美式发音）1. Education in ChinaEducation in China today has been developing rapidly. In many provinces, it is compulsory and free. Most children start school at the age of six. They attend 5 years of elementary school and 6 years of high school.After graduation from high school, a student can start his higher education in a two-year college, a four-year college, a university, or a specialized professional school. Most colleges admit students on the basis of their entrance examination records. The cost of a college education is not very high. And the greater part of it is met by their families, though students can get support from their college. Many students receive scholarships from the school, the government, private foundations and organizations.Though great progress has been made in China in the field of education, there is still a comparatively large part of the population in the country who cannot read and write.2.DreamsDreams are a product of the sleeper’s mind. They include events and feelings that he has experienced. Most dreams are related to events of the day before the dream and the strong wishes of the dreamer. Many minor incidents of the hours before sleep appear in dreams. Few events more than two days old turn up. Deep wishes or fears, especially those held since childhood, often appear in dreams, and many dreams fulfill such wishes. Events in the sleeper’s surroundings, a loud noise, for example, may become part of a dream, but they do not cause dreams.Some dreams involve deep feelings that a person may not realize he has. Psychiatrists often use material from a patient’s dreams to help the person understand himself better.Dreaming may help maintain good learning ability, memory, and emotional adjustment.3. EmotionsAccording to psychologists, an emotion is aroused when a man or animal views something as either bad or good. When a person feels like running away from something he thinks will hurt him, we call this emotion fear. If the person wants to remove the danger by attacking it, we call the emotion anger. The emotions of joy and love are aroused when we think something can help us. An emotion does not have to be created by something in the outside world. It can be created by a person’s thoughts.Everyone has emotions, but many psychologists believe that infants are born without emotions. They believe children learn emotions just as they learn to read and write. A growing child not only learns his emotions but learns how to act in certain situations because of an emotion.4. Re-employment of Laid-off WorkersThe issue of re-employment has emerged with large numbers of surplus laborers having been laid off. There is no doubt that it would lead to endless trouble if the surplus were not reorganized properly. In order to maintain social stability and to secure people’s normal living standards, it is essential to work out solutions to the problem.Solving the problem is a two-way operation as far as the government and workers are concerned.On the one hand, the government at all levels should try every possible means to create a wide range of employment options open to laid-off workers; on the other hand, these workers ought not to sit idle and wait for opportunities to come. So long as they don’t lose heart and constantly strive to better themselves, their futures will be bright.5. Describing PeopleFaces, like fingerprints, are unique. Did you ever wonder how it is possible for us to recognize people? Even a skilled writer probably could not describe all the features that make one face different from another. Yet a very young child- even an animal, such as a pigeon—can learn to recognize faces. We all take this ability for granted.We also tell people apart by how they behave. When we talk about someone’s personality, we mean the ways in which he or she acts, speaks, thinks and feels that make that individual different from others.Like the human face, human personality is very complex. But describing someone’s personality in words is somewhat easier than describing his face. If you were asked to describe what a “nice face”looked like, you probably would have a difficult time doing so. But if you were asked to describe a “nice person”, you might begin to think about someone who was kind, considerate, friendly and warm.6. Physical ActivityMost young people enjoy some form of physical activity. It might be walking, cycling or swimming, or in winter, skating or skiing. It might be a game of some kind like football, hockey, golf or tennis, or it might be mountaineering.Those who have a passion for climbing high and difficult mountains are often looked upon with astonishment why are men and women willing to suffer cold and hardship, and to take risks on high mountains? This astonishment is probably caused by the difference between mountaineering and other forms of activity to which men give their leisure.If we compare mountaineering and other more familiar sports, we might think that one big difference is that mountaineering is not a “team sport”. We should be mistaken in this. There are, it is true, no “matches” between “t eams” of climbers. However, when climbers are on a rock face linked by a rope on which their lives may depend, there is obviously teamwork.7. The Clever Man NasreddinAn old man died and left his son a lot of money. But the son was a foolish young man: he quickly spent all the money, and soon he had nothing left. Of course, when that happened, all his friends left him. When he was quite poor and alone, he went to see Nasreddin, who was a kind, clever old man and often helped people when they had troubles.“My money is finished and my friends have gone,” said the young man. “What will happen to me now?”“Don’t worry, young man,”answered Nasreddin, “Everything will soon be all right again and you will soon feel much happier.”The young man was very glad. “Am I going to get rich again then?” he asked Nasreddin.“No, I didn’t mean that, ” said the old man. “I meant that you would soon get used to being poor and to having no friends.”8. A Man and His CarA man was traveling abroad in a small red car. One day he left the car and went shopping. When he came back, its roof was badly damaged.Some boys told him that an elephant had damaged it. The man did not believe them, but theytook him to a circus which was near there. The owner of the elephant said, “I am very sorry! My elephant has a big, round, red chair. He thought that your car was his chair, and he sat on it!” then he gave the man a letter, in which he said that he was sorry and that he would pay for all the damage.When the man got back to his own country, the customs officers would not believe his story. They said, “You sold your new car while you were abroad and bought this old one!” it was only when the man showed them the letter from the man at the circus that they believed him.9. The SunA long time ago people thought that the sun went round the earth. In some countries people even said that the sun was a god. They thought the god drove across the sky each day on a golden horse. Now we know the earth goes round the sun. It takes the earth a year to go all the way round the sun. Today men even know how far it is for the earth to go round the sun. They tell us that the earth travels over a thousand miles a minute on its journey round the sun.The sun is really a star. It is much bigger than the earth and it is very hot. Some people have been to the moon but we know that no one can ever go to the sun. It is far too hot for people to live anywhere near it. The sun is three hundred thousand times heavier than the earth and more than a million times larger.10. Can Animals Be Made to Work for Us?Can animals be made to work for us? Some scientists think that one day animals may be taught to do a number of simple jobs. They say that in a film or on TV we may see elephants, or monkeys, dogs, bears, or other animals doing a lot of things. If you watch carefully, you may find that those animals are always given something to eat in return for doing them. The scientists say that many different animals may be taught to do a number of simple jobs if they know they will get something to eat in return. Of course, as we know, dogs can be used to guard a house, and elephants can be used to do some heavy jobs. And we can also teach animals to work in factories. Apes, for example, have been used in America to help make cars and scientists believe that these large monkeys may one day get in crops and even drive trains.11. Man’s Best FriendAlmost everyone likes dogs, and almost everyone likes reading stories about dogs. I have a friend who has a large police dog. Its name is Jack. Police dogs are often very clever. Every Sunday afternoon my friend takes Jack for a long walk in the park. Jack likes these long walks very much. One Sunday afternoon a young man came to visit my friend. He stayed a long time. He talked and talked. Soon it was time for my friend to take Jack for his walk. But the visitor still stayed. Jack became very worried. He walked around the room several times and then sat down in front of the visitor and looked at him. But the visitor paid no attention. He continued talking. Finally Jack couldn’t stand it. He went out of the room and came back a few minutes later. He sat down again in front of the visitor but this time he held the visitor’s hat in his mouth.12. CommunicationYou speak, write a letter, make a telephone call. Your words carry a message. People communicate with words. Do you think you can communicate without words? A smile on your face shows you are happy or friendly. Tears in your eyes tell others that you are sad. When you raise your hand in class, the teacher knows you want to say something or ask questions. You shake your head, and people know you are saying “No”. You nod and people know you are saying, “Yes”. Other things can also carry messages. For example, a sign at the bus stop helps you to know which bus totake. A sign on the wall of your school helps you to find the library. Signs on doors tell you where to go in or out. Have you ever noticed that there are a lot of signs around you and that you receive messages from them all the time?13. Weather and MenEverybody talks about the weather, but nobody does anything about it. It is true. People usually begin their conversations with “Isn’t it a nice day?”“Do you think it will rain?”“What a fine day!”etc.Many people think they can tell what the weather is going to be like. But they rarely agree with each other. One man may say, “Do you see how cloudy it is in the east? It’s going to rain tomorrow.”Another man will say, “No, it’s going to be fine tomorrow.”People often look for the weather they want. When a farmer needs water, he looks for something to tell him it’s going to rain; he won’t believe anything else. When friends have planned a trip, they are sure the weather is going to clear up very quickly.Almost everyone listens to what the weatherman says. But he does n’t always tell us what we want, and once in a while he makes a mistake.14. A Selfish ManSmith was a landlord. He loved money very much and never gave anything to anybody. One day the landlord was walking along a river with his friends and fell into it. He cried, “Help! Help!” one of his friends held out his hand and said, “Give me your hand and I will pull you out.” But he did not give his hand to his friend. Then another of his friends tried but the same thing happened. Just then a farmer came over and saw all this. He knew the landlord very well. He said to the others, “Let me try.” He held out his hand and said to the landlord, “Take my hand and I will pull you out.” Hearing this, the landlord took the farmer’s hand, and in a minute the farmer pulled the landlord out of the water. All the others were very surprised at this and asked the farmer, “Why did he give his hand to you but not to us? The farmer said, “You don’t know your friend very well, when you say ‘give’ to him, he does nothing, but when you say ‘take’, he takes.”15. The Benefits of Class ParticipationDifferent teachers have different styles of teaching. Some prefer to deliver a prepared lecture, while others expect some participation from their students. Likewise, some students learn best in the former situation, while others do so in the latter. Perhaps the best learning environments is one in which the preferred styles of teacher and students match. For me, that is a class in which the teacher encourages class participation.I prefer to participate in class for several reasons. One is that students’ participation makes the class more lively and interesting. I can hear not only my teacher’s opinions on a subject, but also those of my classmates. Another reason is that I believe the teacher can better understand the students when they interact with him in class. Rather than wait for exam results to indicate how much the students have absorbed, the teacher can learn immediately whether the students understand what he is talking about. Finally, I acquire more knowledge in this kind of class. I can ask more in-depth questions and satisfy my curiosity.16. OilAlmost everyone in the world uses oil in some way. Cars, buses, planes and many trains and ships also need oil. Even our bicycles need oil. Indeed the whole world would stop if there was no oil.Today there is a growing need for oil in the world. So people are looking for it everywhere. Theylook for oil in deserts, in the mountains and under the sea. Quite often they find nothing, but the search for oil always goes on.Who are the largest oil producers in the world? The U. S., the former Soviet Union, and the countries of the Middle East. But China is catching up fast. Before liberation we used to buy nearly all our oil from the U S.. Many foreign people said China was “oil-poor”. But since liberation oil has been found in many parts of the country. Today everyone agrees that China is rich in oil. Our oil not only meets the great need in our country, but also be sold to other countries.17. Time ZonesStrange things happen from time to time when you travel, because people divide the earth into twenty-four time zones, one hour apart. You can have days with more or fewer than twenty-four hours, and weeks with more or less than seven days. If you make a five-day trip across the Atlantic Ocean, your ship enters a different time zone every day. As you enter each zone, the time changes one hour. If you travel westward, you put your watch back; and if you travel eastward, you put it ahead. Each day of your trip has either twenty-five or twenty-three hours. If you travel by ship across the Pacific, you cross the International Date Line. By agreement a new day begins at this line. When you cross the line, you change your calendar one full day, backward or forward. If traveling eastward, today becomes yesterday; if westward, it is tomorrow.18. Building Houses in the Early DaysIn the early days of the old west in North America, life was difficult. People lived on farms far away from other families. They went to town once a week or one time a month. Then they saw their friends and neighbors. On their farms everyone had lots of work. But there were some big problems. How did one family make a house? How could they build a barn alone? Those were big jobs.What did families do to build houses? They asked for help. They asked their friends and neighbors. They invited them to a work party for a few days. The women cooked together. They made breakfast, lunch and dinner. The men worked on the building. For the children it was like a holiday. They enjoyed it very much. They all helped one another for the good of everyone.19. FriendshipFriendship is one of the greatest pleasures that people can enjoy. It is very difficult to find a better definition of friendship. A true friend does indeed find pleasure in our joy and share sorrow in our grief. In times of trial, he or she is always at our side to give us his or her help and comfort.Knowing how valuable friendship is, we should be very careful in our choice of a friend. We must choose someone who has a good character, whose actions are good and who shows kind-heartedness. We should avoid those shallow people who change in the face of adversity or misfortune.A true friend can always be trusted, loved and respected. The most important thing is that a friend always understands you. In conclusion, when you have made a good friend, don’t forget him or her.20.Maintaining Your MemoryIf you do not use your arms or your legs for some time, they will become weak. When you start using them again, they slowly become strong again. Everybody knows this. Yet many people do not seem to know that memory works in the same way.When someone says that he has a good memory, he really means that he keeps his memory in practice by using it. When someone else says that his memory is poor, he really means that he does not give it enough chance to become strong.Have you ever found that some people can’t read or write, but usually they have better memories?This is because if they cannot read or they cannot write things down in a small notebook, then they have to remember them by heart. So if you want to have a good memory, learn from the people: practice remembering things in the way other people do.21.SOS Children’s VillagesIn Europe many people died during the Second World War. As a result, at the end of the war there were many orphans there. A man called Hermann V oss wanted to help these children. His idea was simple. He wanted the orphans to have a home, and he wanted them to have the care and kindness of parents. V oss asked people to give him some money. With this money he built the first SOS Children’s Village started. The letters SOS stand for “Save Our Souls”. This means “Please help us!” and SOS Children’s Villages gives help to orphans.Hermann V oss’s idea for helping orphans soon spread all over the world. By 1983 there were 170 SOS Children’s Villages in the world. People in many countries give money to help the villages. Today the children from the first village are gown up. Now some of them work in other SOS Children’s Villages.putersWe are already familiar with computers. Computers work for us at home, in offices and in factories. But it is also true that children today are using computers at school before they can write. What does this mean for the future? Are these children lucky or not?Many people who do not know about computers think of them as machines that children play with. They worry that children do not learn from experience, but just from pressing a button. They worry that this is not good for them. They think children are growing up not knowing about the real world.But people who understand more about computers see that computers can be very good for children. A computer can help them to learn about the real world more quickly, to learn what then want to learn and to think for themselves. And for the future, don’t we need people who can think clearly, who know how to get information quickly?23.Dick’s JobDick was a clever and hard-working student, but his parents were poor, so he had to work after class and during his holidays to get enough money for his studies.One summer he got a job in a butcher’s shop during the daytime, and another in a hospital at night. In the shop, he learned to cut and sell meat. In the hospital, of course, Dick was told to do only the easiest jobs. He helped to lift people and carry them from one part of the hospital to another. Both in the butcher’s shop and in the hospital, Dick had to wear white clothes.One evening in the hospital, Dick had to help to carry a woman from her bed to the operating room. The woman already felt frightened when she thought about the operation. When she saw Dick coming to get her, she felt even more frightened. “No! No!” she said, “Not my butcher! I won’t let my butcher operate on me!” with these words, she fainted away.24. OpportunityOpportunities don’t come often. They come every once in a while. Very often, they come quietly and go by without being noticed. Therefore, it is advisable that you should value and treat them withcare. When an opportunity comes, it brings a promise but never realizes it on its own. If you want to achieve something or intend to fulfill one of your ambitions, you must work hard, make an effort and be prepared. Otherwise, you will take no advantage of opportunities when they come to visit you. The difference between a man who succeeds and one who does not lies only in the way each treats opportunities. The successful person always makes adequate preparations to meet opportunities as they duly arrive. The unsuccessful person, on the other hand, works little and just waits for opportunities to pass by. In my opinion, there are plenty of opportunities for everyone in our society, but only those who are adequately prepared and highly qualified can make use of them for their own purposes.25.Living Life at a Slower PaceIt seems that everyone is in a hurry these days. In our fast-paced and competitive society, many people feel that they must do things as quickly as possible or they will fall behind. Certainly, there are many things for us to do. However, it is not necessary to always hurry to get them done. In fact, living life at a slower pace has many advantages.First of all, slowing down allows us to think more clearly about what we must do. With careful consideration we will make better decisions and make fewer mistakes. And when we do not have to correct the mistakes that we make in haste, we will actually save time. Secondly, when we take our time we can do things more carefully and thoroughly. And when we do a better job we feel more satisfied with our efforts. Finally, if we do not rush through life, we will have more time to enjoy the things that we do. And when we take pleasure in our work, we will live happier lives.26.Owning a CarNowadays, any Chinese can enjoy the luxury of owning a private car, if he or she can afford it. Having a car of your own means no more traveling to work on crowded buses or subway trains, and you can drop the children off at school on the way. Moreover, it also means that you can enjoy the weekends and holidays better, because with a car you can go to places where the regular buses and trains do not go, and so you can find a quiet scenic spot with no crowds.However, there are drawbacks to owning a car. For on thing, with the increase in car ownership in recent years, the roads are becoming more and more crowded. This often makes the journey to work more of a nightmare than a dream. For another, it is not cheap to run a car, as the prices of petrol and repairs are constantly rising, not to mention the price you have to pay for a license and insurance coverage.27．TourismTourism, a “smokeless industry”, is developing rapidly in China. With the “open and reform”policy being carried out, thousands upon thousands of foreign visitors are crowding into our country. They are eager to see this old mysterious land with a splendid culture of more than 5,000 years. Tourism is bringing China a lot of benefits. First, it enables the Chinese people to learn more about the outside world and promotes friendship and mutual understanding. Second, it is financially beneficial to China, which needs more foreign currency for its modernization program. Tourism, however, is giving rise to a number of problems. For instance, it is becoming a burden on our inefficient transport system. Besides, the standard of living of the average Chinese person is still not high enough to be able to afford the many different sorts of expenses met on long distance travel.But it is believed that with the development of our national economy, all these problems will certainly be solved step by step. A much better and brighter future awaits us.28.TimeAs a popular saying goes, “Time is money.” In fact, time is more precious than money. When money is spent, you can earn it back if you want to. However, when time is gone, it will never come back. As the pace of modern life continues to accelerate, the time at our disposal is quite limited. But there are a lot of things to be done in our lives. We should make full use of our time to complete what is useful to us. For instance, as students we should devote most of our time to our academic studies. In this way we can acquire the new knowledge and skill necessary for our future careers. In my opinion, wasting time means wasting our valuable life. But many of us don’t realize this. They think time is inexhaustible. I’m not in favour of such a view. Hence, my conclusion is that we should never put off what can be done today until tomorrow.29.Keeping a Diary in EnglishKeeping a diary in English is one effective way to improve our English writing ability. Compared with other forms of writing, it is shouter and takes less time. If we persist in this practice, gradually we’ll learn how to express ourselves in English. In keeping a diary in English, we inevitably come up against a lot of difficulties. In the first place, it often happens that we have trouble finding appropriate words and phrases to express ourselves. Secondly, there are many idiomatic ways of saying things in Chinese. And it is extremely hard for us to put them into English properly. Certainly, there are some other obstacles we may come across in keeping a diary in English. So I suggest we should always have a notebook and a Chinese-English dictionary within easy reach. Whenever something gets the better of us, we can first put it down in our notebook and then consult our dictionary. We can also turn to our English teacher for help, if necessary.30 The Tuition Fee System in ChinaThe system of tuition fees has become one of the hottest topics in China since it was put into effect. Different people have different opinions of it. Some people think that there is no university in the world which is open to students without tuition fees. The Chinese government is unable to allocate enough funds to pay for various teaching facilities and many different kinds of expenses. One of the ways to relieve the problem is for students to pay tuition fees. The money raised in this way can be used to improve school’s operating conditions. Others, however, are opposed to the system of tuition fees. They argue that compared with that in the Western World, the living standard of Chinese people, especially of those in the poor rural areas, is still low. The university tuition fees will certainly add to the already heavy burden on parents, who live on their salaries or wages. Moreover, tuition fees hinder some talented people from entering university only on account of their poverty.31. SmokingIt is known to almost all that smoking is bad for people’s health. Scientific research has shown that smoking can lead to heart disease, cancer and other problems. The World Health Organization says diseases linked to smoking kill at least two million five hundred thousand people each year.Still, many people find it difficult to stop smoking. One reason is that smoking usually becomes a habitual behavior, and habits, whether good or bad are not easy to give up. Another reason is that the effect of nicotine, the substance found in cigarettes works on people somewhat as drugs do.Measures have been taken to help people keep away from the harmful effects of smoking. In many cities, smoking is forbidden in public places. The danger of smoking is warned of everywhere. And newspapers are asked not to publish advertisements for cigarettes. World “No Tobacco Day” is observed every year as the biggest campaign against smoking.32. My First JobBefore I started at university, I took my first job as a waitress in a nice restaurant. The night before my first day, I was too excited to go to sleep and as a result, I got up late in the morning. I threw on my clothes and rushed over to the restaurant.In a great hurry, I didn’t hear clearly the head waiter’s instruction that we should go into the kitchen through one door and out from the other. So when I took two plates of eggs and bacon and an orange juice out to the restaurant, I went straight towards the wrong door and collided with another waiter coming in!Worst of all was that I wore a pair of smart shoes with high heels! A few hours later I was in agony, yet had no time to change them. By the time we finished serving dinner at about 10: 30, I was completely exhausted. Nevertheless, I learnt something from my experience.33. Birth ControlSince the Chinese government singled out family planning as one of the basic state policies in 1978, the country has adopted various measures and achieved great success in birth control. The total birth rate has been decreasing gradually.However, at present China’s population is still growing very rapidly. It is reported that every year the population of this country increases by an extra 15 million. And China encountered a birth peak during the 1990s. it is obvious that China’s economic development and the improvement of people’s standards of living have been and will be greatly affected by the size of population.Therefore, to control population growth more strictly is clearly essential to the country’s reforms and economic development. We should restress the importance of birth control and call on the whole nation to take more effective action.34. AdvertisementsAdvertisements are making their way into people’s lives. People depend on advertisers in their daily lives because they are consumers. The advertisers are not always manufacturers. Sometimes they are salesmen. Their merchandise needs advertising. Thus nearly every product is advertised. To some extent, good advertising means success while bad advertising can mean failure. There are many ways to advertise and “ads” come in different forms. Newspapers carry advertisements. Some products are announced on TV and radio, both of which have a wide audience. Billboards also carry advertising. Advertising is a big industry now and many agencies have been set up to provide a variety of related services. However, advertising is not always truthful. A product is often misrepresented. The advertiser exaggerates the benefits of the merchandise he wants to sell. Thus, he misrepresents the truth. The consumer falls victim to such advertising. Millions of people have。

英语专业四级听写50篇文本（Oct. 22, 2011）Passage 1 Professor BumbleProfessor Bumble is not only absent-minded but short-sighted as well. His mind is always busy with learned thoughts and he seldom notices what is going on around him.On a fine day recently, he went for a walk in the countryside. But as always, he read the book as he walked. He hadn't gone far when he ran into a large cow and fell down. He had lost his spectacles in the fall, and he thought he had stumbled over a fat lady. "I beg your pardon, madam," he said politely before searching for his glasses. As soon as he had put the glasses on，he realized his mistake.Soon he was concentrating on his book again and paying no attention to anything else. He had scarcely been walking for five minutes when he fell over again, losing both his book and his glasses. This time he became very angry. Seizing his umbrellas, he struck the "cow" in anger. Then, after finding his glasses, he realized with horror that he had made a second mistake. A large fat woman was running away from him in terror. （187 words）Passage 2 TeamworkTeamwork is just as important in science as it is on the playing field or in the gym. Scientific investigations are almost always carried out by teams of people working together. Ideas are shared, experiments are designed, data are analyzed, and results are evaluated and shared with other investigators. Group work is necessary, and is usually more productive than working alone.Several times throughout the year you may be asked to work with one or more of your classmates. Whatever the task your group is assigned, a few rules need to be followed to ensure a productive and successful experience.What comes first is to keep an open mind, because everyone's ideas deserve consideration and each group member can make his or her own contribution. Secondly, it makes a job easier to divide the group task among all group members. Thirdly, always work together, take turns, andencourage each other by listening, clarifying, and trusting one another. Mutual support and trust often make a great difference.（166 words）Passage 3 Mistakes Are Good TeachersAfter the birth of my second child，I got a job at a restaurant. Having worked with an experienced waitress for a few days，I was allowed to wait on tables on my own. When Saturday night came，I was luckily given the tables not far from the kitchen. However，I still felt a little hard to carry the heavy trays. So I moved slowly, minding every step. I remembered how happy I was when I saw a tray standing next to the tables. It looked different from the one I was trained on，and it had nice handles which made it easier to move around. I was pleased with everything and began to believe I was natural at this job. Then, an old man came to me and said that was his wife's walker. I stood frozen as ice，but my face was on fire. Since then, I have learned to be more careful and not to be too sure of myself. (164 words)Passage 4 Time Has the Power to Change AttitudeLast week, my youngest son and I visited my father at his new home.My earliest memories of my father are of a tall, handsome, successful man devoted to his work and family but uncomfortable with his children. As a child, I loved him； as a school girl and young adult, I feared him and felt bitter about him.On the first day of my visit, we did some shopping，ate on the street table，and laughed over my son's funny facial expressions. Gone was my father's critical air and strict rules. Who was this person I knew as my father who seemed so friendly and interesting to be around？The next day, my dad pulled out his childhood pictures and told me quite a few stories about his own childhood. Although our times together became easier over the years, I never felt closer to him until that moment. After so many years, I'm at last seeing another side of my father. (162 words)Passage 5 Experiences SpeakThere are many different ways of seeing a town for the first time. One of them is to walk around it, guidebook in hand. Of course, we may study with our guidebooks the history and special developments of a town and get to know them. But then, if we take our time and stay in a townfor a while, we may get to know it better. When we look at it as a whole, we begin to have some questions, which even the best guidebooks do not answer. Why is the town just like this, this shape, this plan, and this sizeHere even the best guidebooks fail us. We can’t find in it the information about how a town has developed to the present appearance. However, we may get some idea of what it used to look like by walking around the town. A personal visit to a town may help us better understand why it is attractive than just reading about it in a guidebook. (167 words)Passage 6 Representatives of Civilization: Pottery Ancient people made clay pottery because they needed it for their survival. They used the pots they made for cooking, storing food, and carrying things from place to place. Pottery was so important to early cultures that scientists now study it to learn more about ancient civilizations. The more advanced the pottery in terms of decoration, materials, glazes and manufacture, the more advanced the culture itself.The artisan who makes pottery in North America today utilizes his or her skill and imagination to create items that are beautiful as well as functional, transforming something ordinary into something special and unique.The potter uses one of the Earth's most basic materials, clay. Clay can be found almost anywhere. Good pottery clay must be free from all small stones and other hard materials that would make the potting process difficult.The most important tools potters use are their own hands; however, they also use wire loop tools, wooden modeling tools, plain wire, and sponges. (162 words)Passage 7 Words Can Make a DifferenceOn August 26，1999, New York City was struck by a terrible rainstorm during the morning rush hour that caused the streets to flood. Many people who were going to work were forced to go home. Some battled to call a taxi, get a bus or walk miles to get to work.I soon discovered most of the subway lines had stopped service. I finally found an operating line, but there were so many people that I could not initially get to the platform. Finally, I got to my office, wet through, and exhausted.After an unenjoyable day, Garth, my Director, sent an e-mail to everyone:Thanks to everyone who reported to work. It is always reassuring when employees show their devotion to their jobs, Thank you.”Garth's email was short, but welcomed. It made me realize that even when times are tough, a few kind words can make a big difference. (151 words)Passage 8 Fairy TalesTales of the supernatural are common in all parts of Britain. In particular, there was a belief in fairies. Not all of these fairies are the friendly, people-loving sprites that appear in Disney films. In some folktales, they are cruel and cause much human suffering. This is true in the tales about the Changeling. These tell the story of a mother whose baby grows sick and pale and is changed so much that it is almost unrecognizable to the parents. It was then feared that the fairies had come and stolen the baby away and replaced the human baby with a fairy Changeling. In those cases, there was often a way to get the real baby back. You could place the Changeling on the fire--then it would rise up the chimney, you would hear the sound of fairies' laughter and soon after, you would find your own child safe and sound nearby. (153 words)Passage 9 Self-imageSelf-image is your own mind’s picture of yourself. This image includes the wa y you look, the way you act, the way you talk and the way you think. Interestingly, our self-images are often quite different from the images others hold about us. Unfortunately, most of these images are more negative than they should be. Thus changing the way you think about yourself is the key to changing your self-image and your whole world.It might be that you are experiencing a negative self-image because you can’t move past one flaw or weakness that you see about yourself. Well, roll up your sleeves and make a change of it as your primary task. The best way to get rid of a negative serf-image is to realize that your image is far from objective, and to actively convince yourself of your positive qualities. Changing the way you think and working on those, you will go a long way towards promoting a positive self-image. (161 words)Passage 10 ShopaholicsThe word addiction usually makes you think of alcohol or drugs, but in modern day society we are seeing some new kinds of addictions. Some people are compulsive shoppers. Others find it impossible to pull themselves away from their work. Still others spend countless hours watching TV or playing computer games.Over the years, shopping has become a very common activity. Many people enjoy going to malls or stores more and more every day, but it's more than a common hobby for some of them. They have turned into shopaholics. They are people who simply enjoy shopping and walking around spending money without being able to stop doing it. They are hooked on shopping and usually buy things that they don't need. Even though they don't have enough money, they want to buy everything they want.Why do they have this addiction There isn't a specific answer. Some people go shopping when they are sad, worried, upset or lonely. Some even tend to have this addiction when they feel guilty. (167 words)Passage 11 Time ManagementTime is something from which we can’t escape. Even if we ignore it, it’s still going by, ticking away, second by second, minute by minute, hour by hour. So the main issue in using your time well is, “Who’s in charge” We can allow time to slip by and let it be our enemy. Or we can take control of it and make it our ally.By taking control of how you spend your time, you’ll increase your chances of becoming a more successful student. Perhaps more importantly, the better you are at managing the time you devote to your studies, the more time you’ll have to spend on your outside interests.The aim of time management is not to schedule every moment so we become slaves of a timetable that governs every waking moment of the day. Inside, the aim is to make informed choices as to how we use our time. (153 words)Passage 12 Charity ShopsThe charity shop is a British institution, selling everything from clothes to electric goods, all at very good prices. You can get things you won’t find in the shops any more. The thing I like best about them is that your money is going to a good cause and not into the pockets of profit-driven companies, and you are not damaging the planet, but finding a new home for unwanted goods.Most of the people working in the charity shops are volunteers, although there is often a manager who gets paid. Over 90% of the goods in the charity shops are donated by the public.The shops have very low running costs: all profits go to charity work. Charity shops raise more than ￡110 million a year, funding medical research, overseas aid, supporting sick and poor children, homeless and disabled people, and much more. (153 words)Passage 13 Passive LearningWe can achieve knowledge either actively or achieve it actively by direct experience, by testing and proving an idea, or by reasoning. We achieve knowledge passively by being told by someone else. Most of the learning that takes place in the classroom and the kind that happens when we watch TV or read newspapers or magazines is passive. Conditioned as we are to passive learning, it’s not surprising that we depend on it in our everyday communication with friends and co-workers.Unfortunately, passive learning has a serious problem. It makes us tend to accept what we are told even when it is little more than hearsay and rumor.That’s what happens in daily life. The simple fact that people repeat a story in their own words changes the story. Then, too, most people listen imperfectly. And many enjoy adding their own creative touch to a story, trying to improve on it, stamping it with their own personal style. Yet those who hear it think they know. (168 words)Passage 14 Different "Styles" of DirectionsI travel a lot, and I find out different “styles” of directions every time I ask “How can I get to th e post office”In Japan, people use landmarks in their directions instead of street names. For example, the Japanese will say to travelers, " Go straight down to the corner. Turn left at the big hotel and go past a fruit market. The post office is across from the bus stop."In the countryside of the American Midwest, instead of landmarks, people will tell you directions and distances. For example, people will say, “Go north two miles. Turn east, and then go another mile.”People in Los Angeles, California, have no idea of distance on the map; they measure distance in time, not miles. “How far away is the post office” you ask. “Oh,” they answer, “it’s about five minutes from here.” You say, “Yes, but how many miles away is it” They don’t know. (155 words)Passage 15 RainforestsRainforests are the lungs of the planet – storing large quantities of carbon dioxide and producing a significant amount of the world’s oxygen. Rainforests have their own perfect system for guaranteeing their own survival. The tall trees make a cover of branches and leaves which protect themselves, smaller plants, and the forest animals from heavy rain, dry heat and strong winds.Amazingly, the trees grow in such a way that their leaves and branches, although close together, never actually touch those of another tree. Scientists think this is a deliberate method to prevent the spread of any tree diseases and make life more difficult for leaf-eating insects.They are not called rainforests for nothing! Rainforests can produce 75% of their own rain. At least 80 inches of rain a year is normal – and in some areas there may be as much as 430 inches of rain annually. This is real rain. In just two hours, streams can rise ten to twenty feet. (165 words)Passage 16 Juana Lopez’s InventionOne day, Juana Lopez had an idea for a dish washing machine that worked without using water. She went to see several dishwasher manufacturers about producing the machine, but none of them were interested. Juana found investors to back her idea and founded her own production company. She spent millions of dollars on developing her own dishwasher and it was launched three years later. From then on, sales were very good, better even than Juana had hoped. But Global Domestic, one of the companies that she had been to, made its own waterless dishwasher. Juana obtained one and found that it used the technical ideas she had developed. She had obtained legal protection for legal process. Global Domestic was forced to stop making its competing dishwasher and to pay Juana several million dollars. Now Juana’s waterless dishwasher has 40% of the worldwide dishwasher market and this is increasing every year. (164 words)Passage 17 Rising Sea LevelLatest research predicts that the global sea level is expected to rise 9 to 88 centimeters by 2100, with a “best estimate” of 50 centimeters. This is due to global warming which is causing the ice caps to melt.This great rise of close to one meter would threaten huge areas of low-lying coastal land as well as major cities such as London, New York and Tokyo.In many places, 50 centimeters would see entire beaches being washed away. On low-lying Pacific islands, the highest point is only two or three meters above the current sea level. If the sea level was to rise by 50 centimeters, big parts of these islands would disappear under the water.Even if they remain above the sea, many island nations will have their supplies of drinking water reduced because sea water will pollute their freshwater.There are also tens of millions of people living in low-level coastal areas of southern Asia, such as the coastlines of Pakistan and India, who would be in danger. (172 words) Passage 18 What Is a FatherA father is a person who is forced to endure childbirth without an anesthetic. He growls when he feels good, and laughs very loud when he is scared half-to-death.A father never feels entirely worthy of the worship in a child's eyes. He is never quite the hero his daughter thinks. Never quite the man his son believes him to be, and this worries him sometimes.A father is a person who goes to war sometimes and would run the other way except that war is part of his only important job in his life, which is making the world better for his child than it has been for him.I don't know where father goes when he dies, but I've an idea that, after a good rest, wherever it is, he won't just sit on a cloud and wait for the girl he's loved and the children she bore. He'll be busy there too, repairing the stars, oiling the gates, improving the streets, smoothing the way. (173 words)Passage 19 Little Boy's Big IdeaThe Intellectual Property Owners Association(IPO) is running a project to encourage young inventors. Samuel Houghton, a five-year-old boy has become the youngest Briton to hold a patent after watching his father struggling in the garden. Samuel developed a garden tool after watching his father Mark use two brushes to sweep up leaves outside their house. His father used a largebrush to gather leaves and small branches, and then got a small brush to pick up what was left. Samuel came up with the idea for a labor-saving tool, which has been patented and named the Improved Broom.It is a simple idea that combines two ordinary brooms with different-sized bristles and brush-heads to enable different-sized dirt to be swept up more efficiently. “The small one gets the first bits and the one at the back gets those left behind, Samuel explains.The IPO says that Samuel is its youngest known patent holder. (154 words)Passage 20Cultural DifferencesMeeting people from another culture can be difficult. Different cultures emphasize the importance of relationship building to a greater or lesser degree. For example, business in some countries is not possible until there is a relationship of trust. Even with people at work, it is necessary to spend a lot of time in "small talk", usually over a glass of tea, before they do any job.In many European countries—like the UK or France—people find it easier to build up a lasting working relationship at restaurants or cafes rather than at the office.Even within Northern Europe, cultural differences can cause serious problems. Certainly, English and German cultures share similar value; however, Germans prefer to get down to business more quickly. We think that they are rude. In fact, this is just because one culture starts discussions and makes decision more quickly. (146 words)Passage 21 StressStress is what you feel when you react to pressure, either from the outside world or from inside yourself. Stress is a normal reaction for people of all ages.Most people think that pressure is always a bad thing. In fact, a little bit of stress is good. Without stress, most of us couldn’t push ourselves to do well, especially in difficult things.People usually complain about feeling pressed for time when they are under certain pressure. It is true t hat you can’t always control the things that are stressing you out, but you can control how you react to them. The way you feel about things results from the way you think about things. If you change how you think, you can change the way you feel. Try the following tips to deal with your stress:Make a list of the things that are causing your stress.Give yourself an excuse.Don't promise to do things you can't do or don't want to do.Find someone to talk to. (170 words)Passage 22 Love Is a TelephoneLove is a telephone which is always silent when you are hoping for a call, but rings when you are not ready for it. As a result, we often miss the love coming from the other end.Love is a telephone which is seldom program-controlled or directly dialed. You cannot get an immediate answer with a simple “hello”, let alone go deep into your lover’s heart with one call. Usually it has to be relayed by an operator, and you have to wait patiently.Love is a telephone that is always busy. When you are ready to dial for love, you only find, to your disappointment, the line is already being used by someone else.Love is a telephone, but it is difficult to know when to dial. You will miss the opportunity if your call is either too early or too late. (143 words)Passage 23 JealousyThe experience of jealousy varies enormously from age to age, from culture to culture, from couple to couple, from person to person, and can be different within the same person from time to time. In the United States, there has been a change of attitude toward jealousy in recent years. “Normal” jealousy, which has been seen as an inevitable accompaniment of love and support of marriage, has come to be seen by some as evidence of personal insecurity and weakness in the relationship, and therefore a threat to the partnership.1111Most jealous flashes come from feeling left out of an activity involving your partner and another person or other people. When your partner pays attention to another, your first reaction is to note that they are “in” and you are “out”. You feel excluded, ignored, unappreciated.This kind of experience is not uncommon, and dealing with it gracefully is part of the etiquette of our time.(157 words)Passage 24 Differences Between Television and Radio AnnouncersWhen television first began to expand, very few of the people who had become famous as radio announcers were able to be equally effective on television. Some of the difficulties they experienced when they were trying to adjust themselves to the new medium were technical. When working on radio, for example, they had become used to seeing on behalf of the listener. This art of seeing for others means that the announcer has to be very good at talking.In the case of television, however, the announcer sees everything with the viewer. His duty, therefore, is completely different. He is there to make sure that the viewer does not miss any point of interest, to help him focus on particular things, and to help him understand the images on the television screen. Unlike his radio colleague, he must know the value of silence and how to use it at those moments when the pictures speak for themselves. (157 words)Passage 25 The African ElephantThe African elephant, the largest land animal remaining on earth, is of great importance to African ecosystem. As a big plant-eater, it largely shapes the forest-and-savanna surroundings in which it lives, setting the terms of existence for millions of other animals that live in its habitat.It is the elephant's great desire for food that makes it a disturber of the environment and an important builder of its habitat. In its continuous search for the 300 pounds of plants it must have every day, it kills small trees and underbushes, and pulls branches off big trees.1212This results in numerous open spaces in both deep tropical forests and in the woodlands that cover part of the African savannas.What worries scientists now is that the African elephant has become an endangered species. If the elephant disappears, scientists say, many other animals will also disappear from vast areas of forest and savanna, greatly changing and worsening the whole ecosystem. (159 words) Passage 26Operations on the BrainIt is difficult for doctors to help a person with a damaged brain. Without enough blood, the brain lives for only three to five minutes.Dr. White thinks doctors should try to make the brain very cold. If it is very cold, the brain can live without blood for 30 minutes. This gives the doctors a longer time to do something for the brain.Dr. White tried his idea on 13 monkeys. First he taught them to do different jobs. Then he operated on them. He made the monkeys' blood go through a machine which cooled the blood, and then sent the blood back to the monkeys' brains. When the brain temperature was 50 degrees, Dr. White stopped the blood to the brain. After 30 minutes he turned the blood back on. He warmed the blood again. After their operations the monkeys were like they were before. They were healthy and busy. Each one could still do the jobs the doctor had taught them. (163 words)Passage 27 DepressionThe dictionary describes depression as the state of feeling very sad, anxious and hopeless. The question here is why one gets depressed. Is the inability to deal with the situation or the high stress levels that come with success or failureLife is full of twists and turns. Some are pleasant and some are not so pleasant, and sometimes even terrible.1313Seasonal changes are the main reason for depression in nature. Change is unavoidable. It may happen in nature or in life. But the way the change makes us feel is subjective. They differ from person to person, along with the ways we deal with them.Feeling depression is a normal phenomenon, but letting it overtake us completely is not the best thing. There are no specific rules or concepts in dealing with it. A person should adopt whatever way he or she feels is the best, but be sure it will not hurt another person. (157 words)Passage 28 White NoiseThere are different kinds of noise with distinct frequencies that are classified by color，namely: white noise, pink noise, brown noise, blue noise, and gray noise. Below is an overview of white noise.Generally speaking, white noise is a part of the full scale of sound frequencies a human ear can recognize. White noise is a mixture of sound frequencies in equal levels. It is a very quiet sound that is relaxing and pleasant to the ears of anyone. A number of people say that it is similar to the sound of the rain or the ocean waves.White noise offers countless benefits. The noise comes in different forms that serve different purposes. Some white noise works better than others for particular uses. Some people may find some white noise sounds more pleasing than others. Moreover, white noise is said to have a more calming effect than music does. (149 words)Passage 29 Cell PhonesNowadays, with the rapid development of IT and information industry, cell phones play a dominant role in people’s life. On the one hand, the mobile phone is portable and convenient. Being wireless, you can carry them everywhere with great ease. You can reach a person wherever and however far away he is. On the other hand, it is a friend indeed. Whenever you come across trouble, you can call for help immediately.1414However, just as every coin has two sides, the cell phone also has its many disadvantages. Some people complain that mobile phones give unpleasant noise on some important occasions when the owner forgets to turn them off. And it also cuts into people’s spare time, because with the mobile phone the boss can easily reach them and call them to duty during their spare time. Worst of all, the electromagnetic wave emitted from the phone is said to be harmful to people’s health and does often cause headaches to the owner. (163 words)Passage 30 Facing the Enemies WithinWe are not born with courage, but neither are we born with fear. Maybe some of your fears are brought on by your own experiences, by what someone has told you, by what you’ve read in the papers. Fears, even the most basic ones, can totally destroy your ambitions, fortunes, relationships, and even life.Another enemy we face is indecision. Indecision is the thief of opportunity and enterprise. It will steal your chances for a better future.The third enemy inside is doubt. Sure you can’t believe everything. But don’t let doubt take over you. It will destroy your life and your chances of success. It will empty both your bank account and your heart.Also, there are indifference, worry and overcaution that you should do battle with. Be courageous in your life and in your pursuit of the things you want and the person you want to become. (149 words)Passage 31 The Tower of LondonIn 1078, King William began to build a large stone building on the north bank of the Thames River and named it the Tower of London. The tower was finished 20 years later.Around 1240, King Henry III made it his home. He painted the tower white, and widened the grounds to include a church, a great hall and other buildings.In 1381, Richard II became King of England. A group of farmers attacked the tower. In the end, Richard was forced to give up his power to Henry IV.1515。

1.Forest FireForest fire or wildfire is often used to signify an uncontrolled intense fire that breaks out in the wooded areas due to many factors ranging from natural to manmade causes. Wildfires can be witnessed throughout the world and they usually occur in cycles. Mild forest fires are often considered beneficial, as growth of many plant species depend on it. Many plant species also depend on wildfires for reproduction. However ,the large forest fires can have serious damaging effect on the surrounding environment.Due to the extensive size and the immense speed , a forest fire can easily spread to a vast area. Besides, it can also change its direction and overcome occasional barriers like roads, rivers and fire breaks. Forest fires break out in areas like grassland , woodland and bush. Some important causes of it are lightning and volcanic eruptions. Besides these, sparks from rock falls can also ignite forest fires.2.Job HuntingJob hunting is a stressful problem for everyone. Whether someone getting a job right out of school or someone seeking a better position than the one they just left, it is not something that comes easy to most people. However, with preparation and planning, the difficulties can be focused on and the situation can become less stressful. For example, dressing correctly is an important step for any applicant. Also, if you dress correctly, you will feel more confident in your ability to get the job. Men should wear a dress shirt and tie or even a suit if they possess one. Women should wear a suit or other clothing suitable for the occasion. It is better to dress too conservatively than not conservatively enough. Always use honesty as some interviewers will be able to detect problems in your resume. Good manners and correct speech are essential in impressing the interviewer.3.V ocational SchoolsThe universities are not able to meet all the growing needs of the society for future development. V ocational schools have arisen to fill these needs by providing a more detailed knowledge than that provided by universities. This has led to weak base of theory for many workers. Their focus, practical application , is much more detailed than the theory provided at college. Many students choose to go to vocational schools instead of universities. This has led many college graduates to question the value of their degrees. They should not, as the level of education offered by different vocational schools are unequal. Some of these schools are private and offer a flexible schedule for students who may be working or are even in school at university. On the other hand, because they are run by individuals, the teaching quality and the teaching resources offered by many vocational schools maybe of low quality.4.National RaceThe whole question of the changing role of Blacks in American society as been the subject of newspaper articles around the world so so frequently that visitors to the United States do not know what to expect when they arrive. They may be surprised when they see that Blacks and Whites work side by side in offices, factories ,and schools across the country. The majority of Blacks in the United States, however, live in and around only a small number of American cities. Many dark-skinned visitors arrive in the United States fearing personal attack or expecting various degrees of racial prejudice. Some forms of discrimination still exist, unfortunately, especially in the areas of the housing, schools,and jobs. The school equality is still more a dream than a reality. There are still too many areas of the country where Black American do not enjoy the same full opportunities as White American.5.A Positive View of Every DayIf your life feels like it is lacking the power that you want and the motivation that you need, sometimes all you have to do is shift your your point of view.By training your thoughts to concentrate on the bright side of things ,you are more likely to have the incentive to follow through on your goals. You are less likely to be held back by negative ideas that might limit your performance.Your life can be enhanced, and your happiness enriched, when you choose to change your perspective. Don't leave your future to chance, or wait for things to get better mysteriously on their own. You must go in the direction of your hopes and aspirations. Begin to build your confidence, and work through problems rather than avoid them. Remember that power is not necessarily control over situations, but the ability to deal with whatever comes your way.nguages in AmericaThe United States is primarily an English speaking country. The majority of the population speaks English as their native language. Business, education and most public aspects of life are conducted in English. Across the country, people pronounce English sounds in several different ways and some regional vocabulary differences exist, but for the most part, Americans speak one common language. This language is sometimes called American English. However, not everyone in the U.S. is a native speaker of English. Most immigrants to the country are speakers of other languages. There are hundreds of communities around the U.S. where English is not the most commonly used language. Chinese, Italian, German, Armenian, Greek, Vietnamese and French are all spoken in numerous communities in the U.S. Spanish is the second most commonly spoken language after English in the U.S. It is widely spoken in New York and across the southern part of the country.7.HalloweenIt's October the 31st, and across Britain and the USA, thousands of children are dressing up as monsters, ghosts and witches and going to their neighbors' houses to ask for sweets or to play tricks on them if they refuse.Many houses have lanterns made from pumpkins in their windows. These lanterns have frightening faces cut into them.What is the reason for all of this? It's Halloween! To an outsider, this may seem a strang festival, but it is a very popular one and an important part of the culture in Britain and the USA.The holiday once had a religious significance. November the 1st is All Saint's Day, and October the 31st was believed to be a day when all the spirits came back to the world of the living. In modern times, this has changed to be a day when children dress up as monsters, ghosts and witches.8.Universities in the UKUniversities in Britain are a magnet for overseas students. There are currently over 200000 from outside Britain studying at British universities. The large single group is Chinese students. There are currently 50000 in the UK.The British government expects the total number of overseas students to be around 900000 by 2020, and also thinks that a quarter of these will be Chinese. But why is the UK such a popular destination for university students?Well, the quality of your course is guaranteed. All courses are assessed by an independent system, so you can be assured that your course is officially approved and has wide international recognition. The British education system is very flexible in order to provide for the needs of a modern, complex society. Degree courses are usually 3 years long, whichis shorter and more intensive than in other countries. There are lots of scholarships available.9.Money and HappinessIt seems only natural that happiness should flow from having more money. Even if they don't admit it, people still behave as though it were true. More money means you can have what you want and do what you want. The house you dream of? It's yours. The new car you desire? Here are the keys. The freedom to enjoy your favorite pastimes? Here's your racket, the court is down there, just past the pool.So the puzzle is this: why do social scientists consistently find only moderate relationships between having more money and being happy? Some have even suggested that this moderate connection might be exaggerated. In reality money might have very little to do with happiness at all.Most puzzling, though, is that people often seem aware at some level that money won't make them happy. And yet they continue to work away earning money they don't objectively need.10.Tea Party FoodA tea party without good food is just as distasteful as a cake without sugar. So along with cups of tea, you need to arrange variety of party foods, like cookies, snacks, chips and starters. A bite of sugar and spice will always enhance the flavor of tea party. Sandwiches, pizzas, finger chips and French fries serve as good side dishes for tea. Cream cheese salad, pudding and salads are good delicacies for tea parties. Children love to relish chicken pies, apple pies, cakes and chocolates. Above all, remember it's a tea party, so serve different varieties of tea to your guests. Black, green and white will be the ideal for your guests. You can also brew some spicy herbal tea or flavored tea. For kids, you can serve cream., honey, milk ,and sugar. You can organize glasses of wine late in the evening or punch a bottle of champagne also.11.AdventureThe idea of adventure has always captured the imagination. The idea that just over the next hill there will be excitement and mystery is a big part of what makes us human . This is just as true of ancient times as it is today. Famous explores set out in small boats or joueneyed across immense deserts and oceans. Early explorers like Christopher Columbus or Zheng He traveled to foreign places for the glory of their nations. More importantly, they set out to test themselves against the forces of nature and the pursuit of knowledge. Other explorers today do the same thing. People are going to space in pursuit of the last frontier or seeking in the depths of science for new knowledge. Most people, in their daily lives, do not have the opportunity, however, with adventuring events.12.Office ConflictThe office can be very demanding on the lives of the workers. Stress can build up and explode into problems. This can seriously influence the productivity and efficiency of a business. The problems that upset an office can vary drastically depending on the nature of the employees or even the employers. Employees may feel that they are being overworked or underpaid. They may also feel that this signals the loss of appreciation on their work, causing increasing tension as they complain about work. They may also have personality differences which can cause conflict. This can be seen in offices where too close relationships develop. People in authority may tend to place more value on these relationships than on the work itself. They may have lost sight of the goal of forwarding the development of the company. Gossiping about co-workers and the company is a frequent example of this.13.Food and CultureThe culture of food and dining in the West is a little different from that inChina. The proper western dinner at a fine restaurant is one of manners, focusing on conversation. You are expected to have knowledge of table manners such as what folk or knife to use as these are essential in western dining. The meal would consist of several courses including a soup or salad, an appetizer, the main dish and a dessert. The atmosphere will be filled with light music that would only serve as background as people converse with each other. The decorations are usually sparse and are only meant to highlight the atmosphere that is being created by the music. This type of dining is different from the dining experience in most restaurants in China. However, with the increase in internationalism, more restaurants are opening which reflect the more western dining style.14.In-service Education and V ocational DevelopmentMany people feel that the successful finding of a job is the end of their schooling. This idea is rarely true, however, as each field of work requires a thorough knowledge of it. This may go beyond that which could be learned in high school or university. Universities, with their complete curriculum, are intended to first teach us about everything. Later studies fill in the gap of knowledge by offering more specialized courses. Universities, however, are meant to teach the theories of any particular field, not the practical knowledge needed to do our jobs. The rise of vocational school has risen to fill a gap of practical knowledge. V ocational schools can aid us in this by teaching us to be especially good at one thing. If a person has enough health and energy, as well as determination, he may go to Night School or take a self-teaching program.15.HospitalityAn American friend has invited you to visit his family. You've never been to an American's home before, and you're not sure what to do. Should you take a gift? How should you dress? What time should you arrive? What should you do when you get there? Glad you asked. When you're the guest, you should just make yourself at home. That's what hospitality is all about: making people feel at home when they're not.The question of whether or not to bring a gift often makes guests nervous. Giving your host a gift is not just a social nicety in some cultures--it's expected. But in American culture, a guest is not obligated to bring a present. Of course, some people do bring a small token of appreciation to their host. Appropriate gifts for general occasions might be flowers, candy or--if the family has small children--toys.16.The Football Field LengthKnowledge about the football field length does not seem like something fans and players have to be aware of, but it is certainly something that the most passionate fans will know. The length of a football field, be it American football or soccer, is universally known and all professional stadiums and grounds adopt these measurements. In soccer, there may be some minor differences in the football field length from stadium to stadium, and this occurs because these stadiums are historical monuments that have been around before the measurements were standardized.On the other hand, American football requires that the football field length be uniform across all the grounds and the stadiums in the country. The National Football League has laid down particular guidelines and rules about the football field length, and this cannot be altered. As a player,one must be completely aware about these football field dimensions.17.CultureThe culture values of a community give it an identity of its own. A community gains a character and a personality of its own, because of the culture of its people. Culture is shared by the members of a community. It is learned and passed from the older generations to the newer ones. For aneffective transfer of culture from one generation to another, it has to be translated into symbols. Language, art and religion serve as the symbolic means of transfer of culture values between generation.Culture is a bond that ties the people of a region or community together. It is that one common bond, which brings the people of a community together. The customs and traditions that the people of a community follow, the festivals they celebrate, the kind of clothing they wear, the food they eat, and most importantly, the culture values they adhere to, bind them together.18.FashionEvery year London Fashion Week attracts retailers, fashion leaders, and the press to shows of all that's new in British fashion. Outrageous designs, original fabrics, and beautiful slim models are displayed on the catwalk in an atmosphere of extravagant elegance. However, how much of this gets translated into street fashion, appearing in high street shops? And how many of us actually follow the trends we see?We all need to be comfortable with what we wear. After all, first impressions count, and we want our appearance to be consistent with the image we would like to project. How can we do this without becoming a fashion slave? We are bombarded with magazines that show us the new fashions for each season, and where we can buy trendy clothes for reasonable prices. The distinction between what we see on the catwalk and what's on display in the high street is becoming increasingly blurred.19.American SocietyThe United States, like other countries has its rich and poor people, its rich and poor neighborhoods.Americans love---and many are themselves living examples of---the "self-made man." you will hear this expression often. But for every person who is successful,they are usually better educated than their parents and therefore more likely to have good , well paying jobs.In addition to the fact that the United States includes people whose families originally came from many other parts of the world, Americans move across the nation in great numbers. One study reported that one of every five families in the United States moves every three years. This continuous mixing of people into new communities is an important observation to consider when trying to understand the meaning of class in America. We have already discussed the questioning, "do-it-yourself" American personality that is another important consideration.20.RecreationRecreations are an important part of people's life. For example, after hours of attentive study, students feel like having a football game to relax their nerves. Workers, too, find it very satisfying to sit in front of a TV set for an hour or two when they come back from a day's tiring work. Besides, recreations serve as a pleasing way for the retired people to pass their excessive time. Everywhere you go, you will find that during their spare time, people are engaged in recreational activities of one kind or another.Generally speaking, there are two kinds of recreations: physical activities and intellectual activities. Physical activities, on the one hand, keep one fit and develop team spirit. Basketball is an example. On the other hand, intellectual activities such as playing chess and reading novels can train one's brains and provide temporary escape from one's troubles.。

May DayMay Day is one of the oldest holidays around the world. / Experts say many ancient peoples chose May first to celebrate the rebirth of nature in spring time. / The Romans held a festival of flowers on the first day of May./ Their celebrations became tradition in Britain, Ireland and Scotland./ May Day celebrated the beauty of spring after a long, cold winter./In Ireland and Scotland, May Day was one of the most important holidays of the year./ On May first, people gathered flowers before sunrise./ They sang and danced as they returned home./Then they decorated their houses with the flowers. /In England, villagers picked flowers and then gathered in the centre of town./ They chose a young woman as May Queen./She sat in a special areasurrounded by flowers./The people performed for her. They sang, held competitions, sports events and parades./They placed flowers on a tall piece of wood called a May pole./They placed the pole in the ground and danced around it./ApplesApples are the second most valuable fruit crop in the United States, after oranges./Autumn is a time when fresh apples are everywhere./They are not native to the country./ Research shows that apple came from Central Asia./ but they are believed to have been grown in America/ since the early 1600s./ Washington State, in the Pacific Northwest,/ produces the country’s biggest apple crop./New York and Michigan are also big producers. / Among nations, China is the biggestgrower followed by the United States and Turkey./ This year, American growers expect to harvest /nearly four thousand five hundred million kilograms of apples. /That is a little less than last year’s record harvest./ Apples are a member of the rose family./Apples come in reds, greens and yellow. /About 2500 kinds grow in the United States./ Three times that number are grown around the world./ In the United States, three fourths of apples are eaten fresh. / Some are made into sweet foods like apple pies./ The rest are processed to make products such as apple juice, apple cider, apple sauce and vinegar./Hurricane NamesA hurricane is a violent ocean stormnear the equator/ in the eastern Pacific or Atlantic oceans in late summer or early autumn./ The same kind of storm is also known by other names. /Scientists call them cyclones when they happen/ just north or south of the equator and in the Indian ocean./They are called typhoons in the western Pacific Ocean or the China Sea. / Weather scientists call hurricanes by names to make clear just which storm they are talking about,/ especially when two or more take place at the same time./ They say using short names is especially important /when exchanging storm information among weather stations and ships at sea./An Australian weather scientist began giving women’s names to storms/ before the end of the 19 century./ Weather scientists used the names of their girlfriends or wives for stormsduring World War II ./ The United States weather services started officially/using women’s names for storms in 1953./In 1978, it began including men’s names as well./ Today scientists make up lists of names years in advance./They agree on them at meetings of the World Meteorological Organization./ The lists include both American and international names./First AidFirst aid is the kind of medical care given to a victim of an accident/or sudden injury before trained medical help arrive./ First aid treatments are generally easy to carry out./ They can be taught to people of all ages./ Learning them is important./ Knowing how to treat someone in an emergency /can mean the difference between lifeand death./ Each year, thousands of people die after eating or drinking poisonous substances./ Experts say more accidental poisonings take place in or near the home. /They include medicines, insect poisons or cleaning liquids./ Signs of poisoning include a sudden feeling of pain or sickness,/ burns in or near the mouth,/ or an unusual smell coming from the mouth./ Health experts generally advise poison victims to drink water or milk./ They say, however, to never give liquids to someone who is not awake /or to those having a violent reaction to the poison./ Next, seek help from a medical expert./ Save material expelled from the mouth for doctor to examine./ Save the container of the suspected poison to answer questions doctor may have./ The containers may also describe the substance that halts the effects of thepoison./ Use this substance without delay./。

专四听写30篇专四听写30篇Dictation1Superstition迷信（144words）One person in four in Britain is,apparently,superstitious,/and they’ll do everything from hanging horseshoes over their fireplace to crossing their fingers,/touching wood and absolutely never walking under a ladder./And they’re careful about cats./Black cats are supposed to be the familiars of witches,/so if one is following you it’s definitely bad luck—a witch is after you!/ On the other hand,if one crosses your path and continues/then it’s good luck because it hasn’t noticed you./However,in some places the beliefs are different/—so it pays to know where your black cat comes from!/Old superstitions linger even in today’s modern world./The author Philip Pullman drew on them/in his award winning novel“His Dark Materials”./The novel,which appeals to both children and adults,/has been adapted for radio and also the theatre./Dictation2Graduate Student研究生（157words）Graduate students specialize in a particular field of study./They study to become experts in this field/and to learn new advances in their fields while they earn an M.A.or Ph.D./Sometimes when they get an M.A.in one field they begin studying another field./They hope that when they earn their graduate degrees/they will succeed in finding important jobs./They hope to get jobs that are interesting and high paying./The life of a graduate student is often difficult./They are usually too busy studying to make a good living./Often they have to pay high tuition fees for their education./Some give upstudying before they get their degrees./But most keep on working at their studies until they graduate./In today’s world,most graduate students don’t regret spending time with their studies./They are finding that new developments are occurring in all fields./For many graduate study has become a necessity./Dictation3April Fool’s Day愚人节（157words）1st April is a day to be careful,or you could easily get tricked by someone./It’s April Fool’s Day,a day when people traditionally like to try/to make a fool of someone else and laugh at them./ There are lots of theories surrounding the origins of the day,/but one explanation is connected with the change in the calendar in the16th century,/which meant that1st April was no longer the beginning of the year./Those who still celebrated the New Year on1st April were called fools./ So what kind of pranks do people play on April Fool’s Day?/Well,there are lots of simple tricks/that you can play on your friends./For example,you could wear a black sweater/and pull a piece of white thread through it,/so that people try to pull it off./You could change the time on someone’s alarm clock/so that they’re late for work./ Dictation4Living Online网上生活（159words）How do you meet new people,make new friends,or find out about the latest bands?/Here in the UK young people have traditionally done their socializing in bars,pubs and clubs./ However,there is a new generation growing up/that finds it easier to manage their social liveson the net,/using free websites like MySpace,Bebo or MSN Spaces./Welcome to the social networking website/—a place where you can present yourself to the digital community and meetother like-minded people./The most successful social networking website in the UK is /doc/ec12483279.html,./As of July2006, MySpace is the world’s fourth most popular English-language website,/attracting almost3million visitors per month./MySpace claims to have95million members/with500,000new members joining the community each week./So how has it become so successful?/Perhaps its secret is in its simplicity./Each new member can build their own page simply—uploading photos,videos and MP3files./Dictation5Mother’s Day母亲节（160words）Does your mother know how much you appreciate her?/Well,Mother’s Day is the time to show her./It’s a chance to say‘thank you’,or to tell your mum how much you love her./ In Britain,Mother’s Day,or Mothering Sunday,/falls on a different day each year,/because it takes place a few weeks before the festival of Easter./But it is always in the early springtime, which seems appropriate,/as the season when new plants emerge,/and baby birds and animals are born./In the USA,Mother’s Day takes place a little later,in May,/and many other countries also celebrate their mothers on different days of the year./It began many years ago,when children,/especially girls,as young as10would live and work away from home/as housemaids and other types of servant./Mothering Sunday was a day when everyone was allowed to go to their home village or town,and visit their mothers./Dictation6Online Shopping网上购物（159words）With only two weeks to go before Christmas,/buying presents is a high priority for a lot of people./However,this yearnot so many people are leaving their homes to browse around the shops./These days lots of people can do their shopping/in the comfort of their own home with the help of the internet./ Online shopping is becoming more and more popular for a number of reason s;/prices are often lower online,/you don’t have to queue up in busy shops/and you can buy almost any product imaginable/with just a few clicks of your mouse./ Computer trends are often male-dominated/but this year women are expected to do more shopping on the internet than men./It seems women are now more attracted to the convenience of online shopping than they used to be./ Average spending online this Christmas by women will rise to￡240/compared to the slightly lower average of￡233for men./Dictation7Reality TV真实电视（155words）The latest fashion on British TV is Reality TV./Reality TV means that shows follow and film ordinary people in an artificial situation./This could be at work,or in some kind of competition./ One of the first and most popular Reality TV shows is Big Brother./In this show,15complete strangers have to live together in a house for11weeks./They are filmed24hours a day,/and shown on television./Each week,the viewers vote to evict one of the housemates./Finally,onlyone is left,/and they win the prize money!/The show was an instant hit,and runs in several countries./The housemates often become stars as a result of the show,/and appear in national newspapers and on other shows./ Another very popular show is I’m a Celebrity—Get Me Out Of Here!/In this show,10 celebrities have to complete tasks each week,such as eating insects./Dictation8School学校（160words）September is traditionally the end of summer/and the beginning of autumn in the UK./It is also the month when children go back to school after their long summer holidays./ There are two types of school in England./State-run schools are paid for by the government, so are free to attend./Independent Schools are private,which means you have to pay to attend./ The school day usually starts at9in the morning and finishes around4,/with breaks for lunch of course!/In many schools,you have to wear a uniform too./Children start school when they are5years old./This is called primary school,/and lasts until the child is11when he or she will go on to senior school./Secondary school is compulsory from11until16years of age./At16,students take national examinations called GCSE’s./After this,students can stay at school for another2years and take A Level examinations./Dictation9The Modern Family现代家庭（154words）Father leaves for work in the morning after breakfast./The two children take the bus to school, /and mother stays home cooking and cleaning/until father and the kids return home in the evening. /This is the traditional picture of a happy family living in Britain./The past20years have seen enormous changes in the lives and structure of families in Britain./ The biggest change has been caused by divorce./As many as2out of3marriages now end in divorce,/leading to a situation where many children live with one parent/and only see the other at weekends or holidays./ There has also been a huge rise in the number of women with children who work./The large rise in divorces hasmeant/many women need to work to support themselves and their children./ Even when there is no divorce,/many families need both parents to work in order to survive./Dictation10Mid-Autumn Festival中秋节（146words）On25th September this year,people all over China/will be getting together to eat with their families,/look at the moon and celebrate one of the biggest festivals in the Chinese lunar calendar./ However,the celebrations stretch far beyond the borders of China./Here in the UK events are taking place for Chinese people living here,/and to teach the people of Britain more about this popular festival./The Soho Theatre in London conducted a study/which showed that Chinese Londoners don’t engage much with the arts world./As a result,‘Moon walking In China’has been created to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival./This is no normal theatre production though,/as it doesn’t take place in the theatre./Theatre professionals and volunteers from the local community/will take audiences around the streets ofSoho/on a magical lantern-lit walk/through the landmarks and backstreets of Chinatown./Dictation11The Dragon龙（160words）When many people in the west think of China,/the animal that they think of is the dragon./ For them,the dragon is an aggressive monster that breathes fire./Many popular legends tell of how dragons killed brave knights and ate beautiful maidens./ For Chinese people however,the dragon is not an evil monster./It’s a cultural and spiritual symbol for prosperity and good luck./The dragon’s main task is to create harmony and bring rain./ Dragons are celebrated in art and architecture,/andof course the dragon dance is a very popular ritual./Millions of Chinese have the word‘long’,meaning dragon,as part of their name./ China isn’t the only country to have the dragon as its symbol./Wales,one of the four countries in the UK,/has a red dragon proudly displayed on its flag./The only other country in the world with a dragon on its flag is Bhutan,/the tiny country between China and India./Dictation12Rainy Britain阴雨的英国（153words）Britain is famous around the world for its rainy weather,/but many parts of the country this June/are experiencing much more rain than they have ever seen before./Torrential downpours have caused rivers to burst their banks,/roads have been closed and many people have been evacuated/from their homes because of the floods./The worst hit area seems to be the north of England./There have even been fatalities as people got stuck in the rain/or were washed away by the floodwaters./Flood warnings have been issued in many parts of the UK/and it is said that over a month’s worth o f rain has fallen in just the last couple of days./The rain has also caused chaos at some of Britain’s famous June events./The Glastonbury festival is a four-day-long outdoor music festival/and while it is traditionally quite rainy and muddy there,/this year was particularly bad./Dictation13Christmas Traditions圣诞节传统（145words）There are many ways to celebrate Christmas,/and some British people like to go on holiday,/ go out for lunch to a restaurant,or spend the day with friends./But most people’s idea of a traditional Christmas/involves spending a few days with their family/—sometimes their extended family./The day is the most exciting for the children./They may have spent weeks or even months dreaming of the presents they want most./Since the beginning of December,they may have opened their advent calendars,/finding a new festive picture,chocolate,or small gift,/to count down each day until25th December./ On Christmas Eve,they hang up stockings,/ready to be filled with presents by Santa Claus./ Often a thank you gift of a mince pie and a glass of sherry will be left,/as well as a carrot for those hungry reindeer./Dictation14Olympic Slogan奥运口号（140words）Beijing unveiled the slogan for the2008Olympics as far back as2005./“One World,OneDream”was finally sel ected/from more than210,000entries from around the world./ Beijing’s original bid to host the2008games/had a different slogan“New Beijing,Great Olympics”./The organizers felt the new slogan shifted the focus nicely/from the city of Beijing itself to the spirit of the Olympics/—unity,friendship amongst nations and progress./ It was also felt that the“One World,One Dream”slogan/captured the traditional Chinese values of peace and harmony./ The Olympics hasn’t always had a slogan attached to each host country./In fact it wasn’t until 1988at the Seoul Olympics in South Korea/that the first slogan appeared./“Harmony and Progress”was chosen/and it seems to have been a popular theme over the years./Dictation15Sunbed太阳床（159words）In the UK,a country known for its bad weather and lack of sunshine,/there appears to be an ever increasing number of very tanned young people./So just how are they achieving their golden tans?/Some areopting for the sun-free option/ and are getting their tan from a bottle./However,it appears that others are turning to tanning salons, /of which there are thousands in the UK./While in China young people often prefer to remain fair,/in the UK there seems to be a growing desire for tanned skin./So why do the British prefer to be bronzed?/Often,they are trying to emulate their favorite celebrities,footballers,or footballers’wives./Research from the British Sunbed Association suggests that/many people believe a tan makes them feel and look healthier./This is a belief that is most definitely not shared by Cancer Research UK./They firmly state that being tanned is not a sign of health./Dictation16Speechwriting写演讲稿（143words）The success of a speech is often attributed to the skill of the speaker,/with merit being given to speakers who are confident,articulate,/knowledgeable and able to deliver a speech with conviction./But often it is not the speakers who write these moving speeches,/it is a speechwriter./And one industry in which this practice is common is that of politics./So what does it take to be a political speechwriter?/Well according to a recent job advertisement from the US Embassy in Britain,/a political speechwriter needs to have exceptional interpersonal skills,/be detail oriented and able to demonstrate a deep knowledge of their subject./They must also work closely with speakers/and be able to relate to their style./ Some believe that the best speechwriters have an inherent talent,/a natural creative instinct,/ and that speechwriting is an art form./Dictation17A Walk in the Park在公园散步（141words）Exercising in natural areas is not only good for your physical health/—it can improve your mood/and sense of well-being in as little as five minutes./So says research in the journal Environmental Health and Technology./Exercise alone is known to make you happier./So is being in a natural setting./So scientists wanted to see the effect of combining the two./They evaluated10different UK studies involving more than1,200people./Participants had taken part in activities such as gardening,/sailing and country walks,and rated their mood and self-esteem./The research showed that both areas get a significant boost/with as little as five minutes of outdoor exercise./And people with mental disorders benefited the most./The study authors say this is the first study/to quantify the amount of time needed to get a positive effect./Dictation18Fast Food Makes Us Less Patient快餐使我们失去耐性（146words）Fast food is a multibillion-dollar industry,/and for some of us,drive-through dinner has become a way of life./Granted,sometimes we grab something quick because we really don’t have time./But psychologists got to wondering/whether all this speed eating might actually make us less patient./In a series of experiments,the scientists showed volunteers logos/from several fast-food chains or asked them to recall the last time they’d visited./And they found that folks who had thought about fast food would then read faster,/even though no one told them to hurry./And they also expressed a preference for time-saving products,/like shampoo plus conditioner./And theytended to opt for immediate rewards,/like getting a small cash payment right away/rather than waiting a week for a larger sum./So if you want to ease the pace,forget meditation.Try a slow cooker./Dictation19Light All Night Not Alright整夜开灯并非好事（159words）A nightlight may keep those monsters under the bed./But it may also open the door to the blues./If you have access to electricity,you no doubt switch on a lamp,/maybe even watch a little TV,after the sun goes down./But our bodies use cues about lightness and dark to regulate our hormones/and of course our sleep cycles./So what might these extra photons be doing to our health?/To find out,scientists housed mice in a room/where the lights were always on./After three weeks,they found that mice who lived in the spotlight showed symptoms of depression,/more so than mice who enjoyed eight hours of darkness at night./Interestingly,mice who could escape the light by ducking into a dark tube/also escaped the worst of the depression./ So flip that light switch at your own risk./Because the artificial brightness that helps keep us up could also bring us down./Dictation20London2012Olympic Games伦敦2012奥运会（154words）After a hard-fought campaign,/London has been awarded the right to host the2012Olympic Games./The UK capital saw off competition from four rival cities:/Paris,Madrid,Moscow and New York./Londoners can now look forward to the transformation of their city/in the same way as their counterparts in Beijing./Indeed,there are many similarities in the twocities’approach to hostingthe games./Both cities need to invest in developing their infrastructure/in order to cope with the demands of the event./ However,this kind of investment is far from cheap/—it is estimated that it will cost around $40billion to prepare for the2008games,/much of which will be spent on transport links./ Nevertheless,the benefits of becoming an Olympic city can be enormous/—Barcelona,which hosted the1992games,/was completely regenerated and has since become one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world./Dictation21Picnic野餐（155words）As summertime begins in Britain,people start to feel the urge to go outside to eat./People love to have a picnic whenever the weather is good enough,/especial ly people with children./It’s a great way to spend a sunny afternoon./Even in the centre of London,on a sunny day,/the parks are full of office workers eating their lunch outside on the grass./That might be a pretty basic picnic/—a shop-bought sandwich and a bottle of water./But if people are planning a picnic on the beach or at the park,/they would probably pack a cool bag/with a whole variety of home-made sandwiches,snacks,cake,fruit and soft drinks./ They might have a picnic rug to sit on,and paper plates and cups./ University students enjoy having picnics,/and usually take along some kind of sports equipment,/such as a ball in order to burn off some energy after lunch./Dictation22Changing Name after Marriage婚后改名（155words）Getting married is one of the most important decisions that a person takes in one’s life./This is because it is a step that hasthe potential to alter or change one’s life altogether./Right from the wedding dress to the house/that the couple will live after their wedding,/is decided with utmost care./An important decision that the person has to make along with the other arrangements for the wedding/is to choose between one’s maiden name and spouse’s name./Though traditionally, women are expected to change their name/from their maiden name to their husband’s name,/ many women nowadays opt to keep their maiden name after marriage,/mostly for professional reasons./Apart from this,there are women who adopt their husband’s last name/and keep their maiden name as their second name./Also,there are couples who make a new name with both their names,/by separating the names with a hyphen./ Dictation23The Compass指南针（153words）A magnetic compass is a device that has been used for centuries now,/and its utility in helping people find their way is undoubted./Before technology gave us the privilege of GPS navigation systems,/the act of finding out where you are and which side is north/was carried out simply with the help of a compass./We’ve all seen a compass at some point or the other,/and this has alm ost always led us to the question“How does a compass work?”/The answer to this question can be explained/through the concept of the earth’s electromagnetism./Simply speaking,a compass is basically a small magnet/that has a needle attached on one end. /The other end of the magnet is attached to a freely moving pin./When the compass is held out steadily,/the magnet becomes parallel with the magnetic field of the Earth,/and this causes it to point north./Dictation24Ball Games球类运动（157words）Ball games have become an integral part of modern society./They give us entertainment providing us a means to safely free ourselves from stress./There are many different ball games that can do this for us./Some people enjoy football,while others like basketball./These two ball games are the most popular in China./Other games such as baseball are growing in appeal,yet have not become popular./The development of these games is interesting./Basketball is one of the few sports with a known date of birth./Football,or soccer,originally developed from traits found in both China and Europe./It has grown to become the world’s most popular sport./In Europe, football clubs have been established,/which in turn has been copied in the rest of the world./ These football clubs train players/who may later go to play for their nations in the World Cup./ This is the most watched ballgame championship on the planet./Dictation25Water Sports水上运动（145words）The history of man’s involvement with water sports/stretches back before history was written down./It is a history of the development of technology as well as human physical achievement./ Man first took to water in boats that sailed around the world/with nothing but the stars to guide them./The seas and rivers were a mystery to be feared,/for lurked unknown creatures and death by drowning./Few actually ventured into the water./As a sport,however,water sports such as swimming,diving,/and water polo are new comparatively to those on land./Probably the oldest one is rowing in a rowboat./This is seen in modern games such as competitions/between rowing clubs in British and American universities./Olympic Water Sports began with swimming but did not end there./The different kinds of water sports such as divingor water skiing came later./Dictation26Famous Universities名校（140words）Many countries have excellent universities./There are,however,few world famous ones./ These universities have achieved their fame/through a combination of both their age/and the high levels of quality in their instruction./Throughout their histories,/each one has been a testing ground for the leadership of the nation./In the United States,Harvard and Yale attract thousands of foreign students/who would use what they learn for the advancement of their own nations./In this way,these schools have developed an interesting method of international communication./ Graduates around the world are able to connect with each other/by having graduated from one of the finest universities in the world./Leaders in every field,whether government officials or ground-breaking scientists,/who graduated from the same school have a direct link to each other/ and understand each other much better./Dictation27Ideal Life理想人生（157words）The ideal life is one that many people would like to pursue,yet few achieve./The balance between dreams and reality is one that is difficult to overcome./Many people choose a vocation in the hopes/that it would bring them wealth and success./However,after years of labor in theirchosen field,they begin to hate their jobs./This is mainly because they have neglected other parts of their lives in search of this success./These people devote their lives to working/and are unable to separate themselves from their work./They find that it may not be enough./Some have jobs where their principles and emotional health/are challenged by dishonesty or bad workenvironments./These people can begin to become influenced by the environment in which they work,/leading to personal or health problems./This choice is not a permanent situation,however, /as many people have chosen to change the values of their lives./Dictation28Reeducation and Employment再教育和就业（160words）During the course of our lives,we must make many choices that we may come to regret./This is especially true when choosing a career./Jobs that sound exciting or rewarding become dull or not worth it/as we live our daily existence./This is where reeducation can help./Occupational schools have been set up to train people in jobs/that they may be better suited for./People can adapt their interests and talents through selected courses./They can learn cooking skills,which are always in great demand./Gardening is an option for those who enjoy the outdoors or have a green thumb./If a person is interested in motors or cars,they can get training as a mechanic./Even more, the learning of a foreign language/would allow them the opening of a dream life./The job qualification certificates they earn can also be used too enhance their resumes,/so that they are trained in a variety of skills./Dictation29Made in China中国制造（160words）The label,Made in China,is one that is becoming increasing common/in shopping centers all over the world./In the United States,shoppers at Wal-Mart the nation’s largest retailer/have a wide selection of products mostly produced in China./The large amount of Chinese imports have created a large selection of goods in other countries/as people begin to buy more and more products made in China./These goods are even readily availablein other Asian nations,/where Chinese-made goods are quite popular./Chinese brand names are also becoming more well-known outside of China./The development of China has amazed the world with its growth./And also,as China is a developing economy with large amounts of labor,/industries are beginning to relocate in an effort to minimize costs and increase profits./The results of these relocations are that/nations are beginning to try to limit the flow of Chinese goods/with the use of taxes and import restrictions./Dictation30Glaciers冰川（153words）Glaciers are formed in places where the temperatures are extremely cold./This could even include places that are at sea level,/but are mostly places that are high up on mountains./ In such cold places it snows most of the year./This snow will settle down and when it snows again/the lower layer of snow gets compressed./Every time it snows,the below layers will compress more,/finally turning into hard ice./This ice is what forms the glacier./ When the temperature rises slightly,/the outer edges of the formed glacier and fresh snow will melt./For a glacier to form and sustain itself it is of prime importance/that the amount of snow that falls on it must be more than the amount of glacier that has melted./This is the only way in which the glacier will be able to maintain itself/and keep increasing in size year after year./。

专四听写30篇Dictation1Superstition迷信（144words）One person in four in Britain is,apparently,superstitious,/and they’ll do everything from hanging horseshoes over their fireplace to crossing their fingers,/touching wood and absolutely never walking under a ladder./And they’re careful about cats./Black cats are supposed to be the familiars of witches,/so if one is following you it’s definitely bad luck—a witch is after you!/ On the other hand,if one crosses your path and continues/then it’s good luck because it hasn’t noticed you./However,in some places the beliefs are different/—so it pays to know where your black cat comes from!/Old superstitions linger even in today’s modern world./The author Philip Pullman drew on them/in his award winning novel“His Dark Materials”./The novel,which appeals to both children and adults,/has been adapted for radio and also the theatre./Dictation2Graduate Student研究生（157words）Graduate students specialize in a particular field of study./They study to become experts in this field/and to learn new advances in their fields while they earn an M.A.or Ph.D./Sometimes when they get an M.A.in one field they begin studying another field./They hope that when they earn their graduate degrees/they will succeed in finding important jobs./They hope to get jobs that are interesting and high paying./The life of a graduate student is often difficult./They are usually too busy studying to make a good living./Often they have to pay high tuition fees for their education./Some give up studying before they get their degrees./But most keep on working at their studies until they graduate./In today’s world,most graduate students don’t regret spending time with their studies./They are finding that new developments are occurring in all fields./For many graduate study has become a necessity./Dictation3April Fool’s Day愚人节（157words）1st April is a day to be careful,or you could easily get tricked by someone./It’s April Fool’s Day,a day when people traditionally like to try/to make a fool of someone else and laugh at them./ There are lots of theories surrounding the origins of the day,/but one explanation is connected with the change in the calendar in the16th century,/which meant that1st April was no longer the beginning of the year./Those who still celebrated the New Year on1st April were called fools./So what kind of pranks do people play on April Fool’s Day?/Well,there are lots of simple tricks/that you can play on your friends./For example,you could wear a black sweater/and pull a piece of white thread through it,/so that people try to pull it off./You could change the time on someone’s alarm clock/so that they’re late for work./Dictation4Living Online网上生活（159words）How do you meet new people,make new friends,or find out about the latest bands?/Here inthe UK young people have traditionally done their socializing in bars,pubs and clubs./ However,there is a new generation growing up/that finds it easier to manage their social lives on the net,/using free websites like MySpace,Bebo or MSN Spaces./Welcome to the social networking website/—a place where you can present yourself to the digital community and meet other like-minded people./The most successful social networking website in the UK is ./As of July2006, MySpace is the world’s fourth most popular English-language website,/attracting almost3 million visitors per month./MySpace claims to have95million members/with500,000new members joining the community each week./So how has it become so successful?/Perhaps its secret is in its simplicity./Each new member can build their own page simply—uploading photos,videos and MP3files./Dictation5Mother’s Day母亲节（160words）Does your mother know how much you appreciate her?/Well,Mother’s Day is the time to show her./It’s a chance to say‘thank you’,or to tell your mum how much you love her./ In Britain,Mother’s Day,or Mothering Sunday,/falls on a different day each year,/because it takes place a few weeks before the festival of Easter./But it is always in the early springtime, which seems appropriate,/as the season when new plants emerge,/and baby birds and animals are born./In the USA,Mother’s Day takes place a little later,in May,/and many other countries also celebrate their mothers on different days of the year./It began many years ago,when children,/especially girls,as young as10would live and work away from home/as housemaids and other types of servant./Mothering Sunday was a day when everyone was allowed to go to their home village or town,and visit their mothers./Dictation6Online Shopping网上购物（159words）With only two weeks to go before Christmas,/buying presents is a high priority for a lot of people./However,this year not so many people are leaving their homes to browse around the shops./These days lots of people can do their shopping/in the comfort of their own home with the help of the internet./Online shopping is becoming more and more popular for a number of reasons;/prices are often lower online,/you don’t have to queue up in busy shops/and you can buy almost any product imaginable/with just a few clicks of your mouse./Computer trends are often male-dominated/but this year women are expected to do more shopping on the internet than men./It seems women are now more attracted to the convenience of online shopping than they used to be./Average spending online this Christmas by women will rise to£240/compared to the slightly lower average of£233for men./Dictation7Reality TV真实电视（155words）The latest fashion on British TV is Reality TV./Reality TV means that shows follow and film ordinary people in an artificial situation./This could be at work,or in some kind ofcompetition./One of the first and most popular Reality TV shows is Big Brother./In this show,15 complete strangers have to live together in a house for11weeks./They are filmed24hours a day, /and shown on television./Each week,the viewers vote to evict one of the housemates./Finally, only one is left,/and they win the prize money!/The show was an instant hit,and runs in several countries./The housemates often become stars as a result of the show,/and appear in national newspapers and on other shows./ Another very popular show is I’m a Celebrity—Get Me Out Of Here!/In this show,10 celebrities have to complete tasks each week,such as eating insects./Dictation8School学校（160words）September is traditionally the end of summer/and the beginning of autumn in the UK./It is also the month when children go back to school after their long summer holidays./ There are two types of school in England./State-run schools are paid for by the government, so are free to attend./Independent Schools are private,which means you have to pay to attend./ The school day usually starts at9in the morning and finishes around4,/with breaks for lunch of course!/In many schools,you have to wear a uniform too./Children start school when they are5years old./This is called primary school,/and lasts until the child is11when he or she will go on to senior school./Secondary school is compulsory from11until16years of age./At16,students take national examinations called GCSE’s./After this,students can stay at school for another2years and take A Level examinations./Dictation9The Modern Family现代家庭（154words）Father leaves for work in the morning after breakfast./The two children take the bus to school,/and mother stays home cooking and cleaning/until father and the kids return home in the evening./This is the traditional picture of a happy family living in Britain./ The past20years have seen enormous changes in the lives and structure of families in Britain./ The biggest change has been caused by divorce./As many as2out of3marriages now end in divorce,/leading to a situation where many children live with one parent/and only see the other at weekends or holidays./There has also been a huge rise in the number of women with children who work./The large rise in divorces has meant/many women need to work to support themselves and their children./ Even when there is no divorce,/many families need both parents to work in order to survive./Dictation10Mid-Autumn Festival中秋节（146words）On25th September this year,people all over China/will be getting together to eat with their families,/look at the moon and celebrate one of the biggest festivals in the Chinese lunar calendar./ However,the celebrations stretch far beyond the borders of China./Here in the UK events are taking place for Chinese people living here,/and to teach the people of Britain more about this popular festival./The Soho Theatre in London conducted a study/which showed that Chinese Londoners don’t engage much with the arts world./As a result,‘Moon walking In China’has been created to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival./This is no normal theatre production though,/as it doesn’t take place in the theatre./Theatre professionals and volunteers from the local community/will take audiences around the streets of Soho/on a magical lantern-lit walk/through the landmarks and backstreets of Chinatown./Dictation11The Dragon龙（160words）When many people in the west think of China,/the animal that they think of is the dragon./ For them,the dragon is an aggressive monster that breathes fire./Many popular legends tell of how dragons killed brave knights and ate beautiful maidens./For Chinese people however,the dragon is not an evil monster./It’s a cultural and spiritual symbol for prosperity and good luck./The dragon’s main task is to create harmony and bring rain. /Dragons are celebrated in art and architecture,/and of course the dragon dance is a very popular ritual./Millions of Chinese have the word‘long’,meaning dragon,as part of their name./ China isn’t the only country to have the dragon as its symbol./Wales,one of the four countries in the UK,/has a red dragon proudly displayed on its flag./The only other country in the world with a dragon on its flag is Bhutan,/the tiny country between China and India./Dictation12Rainy Britain阴雨的英国（153words）Britain is famous around the world for its rainy weather,/but many parts of the country this June/are experiencing much more rain than they have ever seen before./Torrential downpours have caused rivers to burst their banks,/roads have been closed and many people have been evacuated/from their homes because of the floods./The worst hit area seems to be the north of England./There have even been fatalities as people got stuck in the rain/or were washed away by the floodwaters./Flood warnings have been issued in many parts of the UK/and it is said that over a month’s worth of rain has fallen in just the last couple of days./The rain has also caused chaos at some of Britain’s famous June events./The Glastonbury festival is a four-day-long outdoor music festival/and while it is traditionally quite rainy and muddy there,/this year was particularly bad./Dictation13Christmas traditions圣诞节传统（145words）There are many ways to celebrate Christmas,/and some British people like to go on holiday, /go out for lunch to a restaurant,or spend the day with friends./But most people’s idea of a traditional Christmas/involves spending a few days with their family/—sometimes their extended family./The day is the most exciting for the children./They may have spent weeks or even months dreaming of the presents they want most./Since the beginning of December,they may have opened their advent calendars,/finding a new festive picture,chocolate,or small gift,/to count down each day until25th December./On Christmas Eve,they hang up stockings,/ready to be filled with presents by Santa Claus./ Often a thank you gift of a mince pie and a glass of sherry will be left,/as well as a carrot for those hungry reindeer./Dictation14Olympic Slogan奥运口号（140words）Beijing unveiled the slogan for the2008Olympics as far back as2005./“One World,One Dream”was finally selected/from more than210,000entries from around the world./ Beijing’s original bid to host the2008games/had a different slogan“New Beijing,Great Olympics”./The organizers felt the new slogan shifted the focus nicely/from the city of Beijing itself to the spirit of the Olympics/—unity,friendship amongst nations and progress./ It was also felt that the“One World,One Dream”slogan/captured the traditional Chinese values of peace and harmony./The Olympics hasn’t always had a slogan attached to each host country./In fact it wasn’t until1988at the Seoul Olympics in South Korea/that the first slogan appeared./“Harmony and Progress”was chosen/and it seems to have been a popular theme over the years./Dictation15Sunbed太阳床（159words）In the UK,a country known for its bad weather and lack of sunshine,/there appears to be an ever increasing number of very tanned young people./So just how are they achieving their golden tans?/Some are opting for the sun-free option/ and are getting their tan from a bottle./However,it appears that others are turning to tanning salons,/of which there are thousands in the UK./While in China young people often prefer to remain fair,/in the UK there seems to be a growing desire for tanned skin./So why do the British prefer to be bronzed?/Often,they are trying to emulate their favorite celebrities,footballers,or footballers’wives./Research from the British Sunbed Association suggests that/many people believe a tan makes them feel and look healthier./This is a belief that is most definitely not shared by Cancer Research UK./They firmly state that being tanned is not a sign of health./Dictation16Speechwriting写演讲稿（143words）The success of a speech is often attributed to the skill of the speaker,/with merit being given to speakers who are confident,articulate,/knowledgeable and able to deliver a speech with conviction./But often it is not the speakers who write these moving speeches,/it is a speechwriter./And one industry in which this practice is common is that of politics./So what does it take to be a political speechwriter?/Well according to a recent job advertisement from the US Embassy in Britain,/a political speechwriter needs to have exceptional interpersonal skills,/be detail oriented and able to demonstrate a deep knowledge of their subject./They must also work closely with speakers/and be able to relate to their style./Some believe that the best speechwriters have an inherent talent,/a natural creative instinct,/ and that speechwriting is an art form./Dictation17A Walk in the Park在公园散步（141words）Exercising in natural areas is not only good for your physical health/—it can improve your mood/and sense of well-being in as little as five minutes./So says research in the journal Environmental Health and Technology./Exercise alone is known to make you happier./So is being in a natural setting./So scientists wanted to see the effect of combining the two./They evaluated10different UK studies involving more than1,200people./Participants had taken part in activities such as gardening,/sailing and country walks,and rated their mood and self-esteem./The research showed that both areas get a significant boost/with as little as five minutes of outdoor exercise./And people with mental disorders benefited the most./The study authors say this is the first study/to quantify the amount of time needed to get a positive effect./Dictation18Fast food Makes Us Less Patient快餐使我们失去耐性（146words）Fast food is a multibillion-dollar industry,/and for some of us,drive-through dinner has become a way of life./Granted,sometimes we grab something quick because we really don’t have time./But psychologists got to wondering/whether all this speed eating might actually make us less patient./In a series of experiments,the scientists showed volunteers logos/from several fast-food chains or asked them to recall the last time they’d visited./And they found that folks who had thought about fast food would then read faster,/even though no one told them to hurry./And they also expressed a preference for time-saving products,/like shampoo plus conditioner./And they tended to opt for immediate rewards,/like getting a small cash payment right away/rather than waiting a week for a larger sum./So if you want to ease the pace,forget meditation.Try a slow cooker./Dictation19Light All Night Not Alright整夜开灯并非好事（159words）A nightlight may keep those monsters under the bed./But it may also open the door to the blues./If you have access to electricity,you no doubt switch on a lamp,/maybe even watch a little TV,after the sun goes down./But our bodies use cues about lightness and dark to regulate our hormones/and of course our sleep cycles./So what might these extra photons be doing to our health?/To find out,scientists housed mice in a room/where the lights were always on./After three weeks,they found that mice who lived in the spotlight showed symptoms of depression,/more so than mice who enjoyed eight hours of darkness at night./Interestingly,mice who could escape the light by ducking into a dark tube/also escaped the worst of the depression./So flip that light switch at your own risk./Because the artificial brightness that helps keep usup could also bring us down./Dictation20London2012Olympic Games伦敦2012奥运会（154words）After a hard-fought campaign,/London has been awarded the right to host the2012Olympic Games./The UK capital saw off competition from four rival cities:/Paris,Madrid,Moscow and New York./Londoners can now look forward to the transformation of their city/in the same way as their counterparts in Beijing./Indeed,there are many similarities in the two cities’approach to hosting the games./Both cities need to invest in developing their infrastructure/in order to cope with the demands of the event./However,this kind of investment is far from cheap/—it is estimated that it will cost around$40billion to prepare for the2008games,/much of which will be spent on transport links. /Nevertheless,the benefits of becoming an Olympic city can be enormous/—Barcelona,which hosted the1992games,/was completely regenerated and has since become one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world./Dictation21Picnic野餐（155words）As summertime begins in Britain,people start to feel the urge to go outside to eat./People love to have a picnic whenever the weather is good enough,/especially people with children./It’s a great way to spend a sunny afternoon./Even in the centre of London,on a sunny day,/the parks are full of office workers eating their lunch outside on the grass./That might be a pretty basic picnic/—a shop-bought sandwich and a bottle of water./But if people are planning a picnic on the beach or at the park,/they would probably pack a cool bag/with a whole variety of home-made sandwiches,snacks,cake,fruit and soft drinks./ They might have a picnic rug to sit on,and paper plates and cups./University students enjoy having picnics,/and usually take along some kind of sports equipment,/such as a ball in order to burn off some energy after lunch./Dictation22Changing Name after Marriage婚后改名（155words）Getting married is one of the most important decisions that a person takes in one’s life./This is because it is a step that has the potential to alter or change one’s life altogether./Right from the wedding dress to the house/that the couple will live after their wedding,/is decided with utmost care./An important decision that the person has to make along with the other arrangements for the wedding/is to choose between one’s maiden name and spouse’s name./Though traditionally, women are expected to change their name/from their maiden name to their husband’s name,/ many women nowadays opt to keep their maiden name after marriage,/mostly for professional reasons./Apart from this,there are women who adopt their husband’s last name/and keep their maiden name as their second name./Also,there are couples who make a new name with both their names,/by separating the names with a hyphen./Dictation23The Compass指南针（153words）A magnetic compass is a device that has been used for centuries now,/and its utility in helping people find their way is undoubted./Before technology gave us the privilege of GPS navigation systems,/the act of finding out where you are and which side is north/was carried out simply with the help of a compass./We’ve all seen a compass at some point or the other,/and this has almost always led us to the question“How does a compass work?”/The answer to this question can be explained/through the concept of the earth’s electromagnetism./ Simply speaking,a compass is basically a small magnet/that has a needle attached on one end./The other end of the magnet is attached to a freely moving pin./When the compass is held out steadily,/the magnet becomes parallel with the magnetic field of the Earth,/and this causes it to point north./Dictation24Ball Games球类运动（157words）Ball games have become an integral part of modern society./They give us entertainment providing us a means to safely free ourselves from stress./There are many different ball games that can do this for us./Some people enjoy football,while others like basketball./These two ball games are the most popular in China./Other games such as baseball are growing in appeal,yet have not become popular./The development of these games is interesting./Basketball is one of the few sports with a known date of birth./Football,or soccer,originally developed from traits found in both China and Europe./It has grown to become the world’s most popular sport./In Europe,football clubs have been established,/which in turn has been copied in the rest of the world./These football clubs train players/who may later go play for their nations in the World Cup./This is the most watched ballgame championship on the planet./Dictation25Water Sports水上运动（145words）The history of man’s involvement with water sports/stretches back before history was written down./It is a history of the development of technology as well as human physical achievement./Man first took to water in boats that sailed around the world/with nothing but the stars to guide them./The seas and rivers were a mystery to be feared,/for lurked unknown creatures and death by drowning./Few actually ventured into the water./As a sport,however, water sports such as swimming,diving,/and water polo are new comparatively to those on land./ Probably the oldest one is rowing in a rowboat./This is seen in modern games such as competitions/between rowing clubs in British and American universities./Olympic Water Sports began with swimming but did not end there./The different kinds of water sports such as diving or water skiing came later./Dictation26Famous Universities名校（140words）Many countries have excellent universities./There are,however,few world famous ones./ These universities have achieved their fame/through a combination of both their age/and the high levels of quality in their instruction./Throughout their histories,/each one has been a testing ground for the leadership of the nation./In the United States,Harvard and Yale attract thousandsof foreign students/who would use what they learn for the advancement of their own nations./In this way,these schools have developed an interesting method of international communication./ Graduates around the world are able to connect with each other/by having graduated from one of the finest universities in the world./Leaders in every field,whether government officials or ground-breaking scientists,/who graduated from the same school have a direct link to each other/ and understand each other much better./Dictation27Ideal Life理想人生（157words）The ideal life is one that many people would like to pursue,yet few achieve./The balance between dreams and reality is one that is difficult to overcome./Many people choose a vocation in the hopes/that it would bring them wealth and success./However,after years of labor in their chosen field,they begin to hate their jobs./This is mainly because they have neglected other parts of their lives in search of this success./These people devote their lives to working/and are unable to separate themselves from their work./They find that it may not be enough./Some have jobs where their principles and emotional health/are challenged by dishonesty or bad work environments./These people can begin to become influenced by the environment in which they work,/leading to personal or health problems./This choice is not a permanent situation,however, /as many people have chosen to change the values of their lives./Dictation28Reeducation and Employment再教育和就业（160words）During the course of our lives,we must make many choices that we may come to regret./ This is especially true when choosing a career./Jobs that sound exciting or rewarding become dull or not worth it/as we live our daily existence./This is where reeducation can help./ Occupational schools have been set up to train people in jobs/that they may be better suited for./ People can adapt their interests and talents through selected courses./They can learn cooking skills,which are always in great demand./Gardening is an option for those who enjoy the outdoors or have a green thumb./If a person is interested in motors or cars,they can get training as a mechanic./Even more,the learning of a foreign language/would allow them the opening of a dream life./The job qualification certificates they earn can also be used too enhance their resumes,/so that they are trained in a variety of skills./Dictation29Made in China中国制造（160words）The label,Made in China,is one that is becoming increasing common/in shopping centers all over the world./In the United States,shoppers at Wal-Mart the nation’s largest retailer/have a wide selection of products mostly produced in China./The large amount of Chinese imports have created a large selection of goods in other countries/as people begin to buy more and more products made in China./These goods are even readily available in other Asian nations,/where Chinese-made goods are quite popular./Chinese brand names are also becoming more well-known outside of China./The development of China has amazed the world with its growth./ And also,as China is a developing economy with large amounts of labor,/industries are beginning to relocate in an effort to minimize costs and increase profits./The results of theserelocations are that/nations are beginning to try to limit the flow of Chinese goods/with the use of taxes and import restrictions./Dictation30Glaciers冰川（153words）Glaciers are formed in places where the temperatures are extremely cold./This could even include places that are at sea level,/but are mostly places that are high up on mountains./ In such cold places it snows most of the year./This snow will settle down and when it snows again/the lower layer of snow gets compressed./Every time it snows,the below layers will compress more,/finally turning into hard ice./This ice is what forms the glacier./ When the temperature rises slightly,/the outer edges of the formed glacier and fresh snow will melt./For a glacier to form and sustain itself it is of prime importance/that the amount of snow that falls on it must be more than the amount of glacier that has melted./This is the only way in which the glacier will be able to maintain itself/and keep increasing in size year after year./。

Passage 1 Town and Country Life in EnglandThere is a big difference between town life and country life in England. In the country, everybody knows everybody else. They know what time you get up, what time you go to bed and what you have for dinner. If you want help, you will always get it and you will be glad to help others. In a large town like London, however, it can sometimes happen that you have never seen your next door neighbor and you do not know his name or anything about him. People in London are often very lonely. This is because people go to different places in the evenings and at weekends. If you walk through the streets in the centre of London on Sunday, it is like a town without people. One is sorry for old people living on their own. They could die in their homes and would not be discovered for weeks or even months. Passage 2A Change in Women’s LifeThe important change in women’s life-pattern has only recently begun to have  most girls its full effect on women’s economic position. Even a few years agoleft school at the first opportunity, and most of them took a full-time job. However, when they married, they usually left work at once and never returned to it. Today the school-leaving age is sixteen, many girls stay at school after that age, and though women tend to marry younger, more married women stay at work at least until shortly before their first child is born. Very many more afterwards return to full-time or part-time work. Such changes have led to a new relationship in marriage, with the husband accepting a greater share of the duties and satisfactions of family life and with both husband and wife sharing more equally in providing the money, and running the home, according to the abilities and interests of each of them. Useful Words and Expressions: 1. life-pattern生活方式生活方式2. sharePassage 3 A Popular Pastime of the English PeopleOne of the best means of understanding the people of any nation is watching what the do with their non-working time. Most English men, women and children love growing things, especially flowers. Visitors to England in spring, summer or autumn are likely to see gardens all they way along the railway lines. There are flowers at the airports and flowers in factory grounds, as well as in gardens along the roads. Each English town has at least one park with beautifully kept flower beds. Public buildings of every kind have brilliant window boxes and sometimes baskets of flowers are hanging on them. But what the English enjoy most is growing things themselves. If it is impossible to have a garden, then a window box or something growing in a pot will do. Looking at each other’s gardens is a popular pastime with the English. Useful Words and Expressions:1. window box:窗台上的花盆箱窗台上的花盆箱2.pastime 消遣，娱乐消遣，娱乐Swimming is my favorite pastime. Passage 4 British and American Police OfficersReal policemen, both in Britain and the U.S., hardly recognize any common —if they ever get home in points between their lives and what they se on TVtime. Some things are almost the same, of course, but the policemen do not think much of them much of them. The first difference is that a policeman’s real life deals with the law. Most of what he learns is the law. He has to know actually what actions are against the law and what facts can be used to prove them in court. He has to know nearly as much law as a lawyer, and what’s more, he has to put it into practice on his feet, in the dark and, running down a narrow street after someone he wants to talk to. Little of his time is spent in talking with beautiful girls or in bravely facing cruel criminals. He will spend most of his working life arranging millions of words on thousands of forms about hundreds of sad, ordinary people who are guilty--- or not of stupid, unimportant crimes. Useful Words and Expressions:1. think much of 重视，尊重重视，尊重2. in court 在法庭上在法庭上在法庭上3. criminal 罪犯，犯罪者罪犯，犯罪者4. guilty 犯罪的，有罪的犯罪的，有罪的Passage 5 Living SpaceHow much living space does a person need? What happens when his space needs are not met? Scientists are doing experiments on rats to try to determine the effects of overcrowded conditions on man. Recent studies have shown that the behavior of rats is greatly affected by space. If rats have enough living space, they eat well, sleep well and produce their young well. health change obviously. They can not sleep and eat well, and signs of fear But if their living conditions become too crowded, their behavior and even their and worry become clear. The more crowded they are, and more they tend to bite each other and even kill each other. Thus, for rats, populations and violence are directly related. Is this a natural law for human society as well? Is enough space not only satisfactory, but necessary for human survival? These are interesting questions. Passage 6 The United NationsIn 1945, representatives of 50 nations met to plan this organization. It was called the United Nations. After the war, many more nations joined. There are two major parts of the United Nations. One is called the General Assembly. In the General Assembly, every member nation is represented and has an equal vote. The second part is called the Security Council. It has representatives of just 15 nations. Five nations are permanent members: the United States, Russia, France, Britain, and China. The 10 other members are elected every two years by the General Assembly. The major job of the Security Council is to keep peace in the world. If necessary, it can send troops from member nations to try to stop little wars before they turn into big ones. It is hard to get the nations of the Security Council to agree on when this is necessary. But they did vote to try to stop wars. Useful Words and Expressions:1. representative 代表代表2. General Assembly 联合国大会联合国大会3. permanent 永久的，持久的永久的，持久的4. Security Council 联合国安全理事会联合国安全理事会Passage 7 PlasticWe use plastic wrap to protect our foods. We put our garbage in plastic bags or plastic cans. We sit on plastic chairs, play with plastic toys, drink from plastic cups, and wash our hair with shampoo from plastic bottles! Plastic does not grow in nature. It is made by mixing certain things together. We call it a produced or manufactured material. Plastic was first made in the 1860s from plants, such as wood and cotton. That plastic was soft and burned easily. The first modern plastics were made in the 1930s. Most clear plastic starts out as thick, black oil. That plastic coating inside a pan begins as natural gas. Over the years, hundreds of different plastics have been developed. Some are hard and strong. Some are soft and bendable. Some are clear. Some are many-colored. There is a plastic for almost every need. Scientists continue to experiment with plastics. They hope to find even ways to use them! Passage 8 Display of GoodsAre supermarkets designed to persuade us to buy more? Fresh fruit and vegetables are displayed near supermarket entrances. This gives the impression that only healthy food is sold in the shop. Basic foods that everyone buys, like sugar and tea, are not put near each other. They are kept in different aisles so customers are taken past other attractive foods before they find what they want. In this way, shoppers are encouraged to buy products that they do not really need. Sweets are often placed at children’s eye level at the checkout. While parents are waiting to pay, children reach for the sweets and put them in the trolley. More is bought from a fifteen-foot display of one type of product than from a ten-foot one. Customers also buy more when shelves are full than when they are half empty. They do not like to buy from shelves with few products on them because they feel there is something wrong with those products that are there. Useful Words and Expressions:1. aisle 走廊，过道走廊，过道2. trolley 手推车手推车3. checkout 收款台收款台Passage 9 Albert EinsteinAlbert Einstein was born in Germany in 1879, His father owned a factory that made electrical devices. His mother enjoyed music and books. His parents rve many of the religion’s rules. Albert was a were Jewish but they did not obsequite child who spent much of his time alone. He was slow to talk and had difficulty learning to read. When Albert was five years old, his father gave him a compass. The child was filled with wonder when he discovered that the —to be north. He asked compass needle always pointed in the same directionhis father and his uncle what caused the needle to move. Their answers about magnetism and gravity were difficult for the boy to understand. Yet he spent a lot of time thinking about them. He said later that he felt something hidden had to be behind things. Useful expressions and words:1. device 装置，设备装置，设备leave to one’s own devices 听任某人自行其是，允许某人按自己的意愿做事She left the child to her own devices for an hour in the afternoon. 她允许孩子在下午有一个小时的自由支配时间。

英语专业四级听写50(1)篇:Town and Country Life in EnglandTown and Country Life in EnglandThere is a big difference between town life and country life in England. In the country, everybody knows everybody else. They know what time you get up, what time you go to bed and what you have for dinner. If you want help, you will always get it and you will be glad to help others.In a large town like London, however, it can sometimes happen that you have never seen your next door neighbor and you do not know his name or anything about him. People in London are often very lonely. This is because people go to different places in the evenings and at weekends. If you walk through the streets in the centre of London on Sunday, it is like a town without people. One is sorry for old people living on their own. They could die in their homes and would not be discovered for weeks or even months.英语专业四级听写50篇(2):A Change in Women's LifeA Change in Women’s LifeThe important change in women’s life-pattern has only recently begun to have its full effect on women’s economic position. Even a few years ago most girls left school at the first opportunity, and most of them took a full-time job. However, when they married, they usually left work at once and never returned to it.Today the school-leaving age is sixteen, many girls stay at school after that age, and though women tend to marry younger, more married women stay at work at least until shortly before their first child is born. Very many more afterwards return to full-time or part-time work. Such changes have led to a new relationship in marriage, with the husband accepting a greater share of the duties and satisfactions of family life and with both husband and wife sharing more equally in providing the money, and running the home, according to the abilities and interests of each of them.Useful Words and Expressions:1. life-pattern生活方式2. share英语专业四级听写50篇(3):A Popular Pastime of the English PeopleA Popular Pastime of the English PeopleOne of the best means of understanding the people of any nation is watching what the do with their non-working time.Most English men, women and children love growing things, especially flowers. Visitors to England in spring, summer or autumn are likely to see gardens all they way along the railway lines. There are flowers at the airports and flowers in factory grounds, as well as in gardens along the roads. Each English town has at least one park with beautifully kept flower beds. Public buildings of every kind have brilliant window boxes and sometimes baskets of flowers are hanging on them.But what the English enjoy most is growing things themselves. If it is impossible to have a garden, then a window box or something growing in a pot will do. Looking at each other’s gardens is a popular pastime with the English.Useful Words and Expressions:1. window box:窗台上的花盆箱2.pastime 消遣，娱乐Swimming is my favorite pastime.英语专业四级听写50篇(4):A Popular Pastime of the English PeopleBritish and American Police OfficersReal policemen, both in Britain and the U.S., hardly recognize any common points between their lives and what they se on TV—if they ever get home in time. Some things are almost the same, of course, but the policemen do not think much of them much of them.The first difference is that a policeman’s real life deals with the law. Most of what he learns is the law. He has to know actually what actions are against the law and what facts can be used to prove them in court. He has to know nearly as much law as a lawyer, and what’s more, he has to put it into practice on his feet, in the dark and, running down a narrow street after someone he wants to talk to. Little of his time is spent in talking with beautiful girls or in bravely facing cruel criminals. He will spend most of his working life arranging millions of words on thousands of forms about hundreds of sad, ordinary people who are guilty--- ornot of stupid, unimportant crimes.Useful Words and Expressions:1. think much of 重视，尊重2. in court 在法庭上3. criminal 罪犯，犯罪者4. guilty 犯罪的，有罪的英语专业四级听写50篇(5):Living Space时间:2007-12-12 23:50:42 来源:本站原创作者:alex 测测英语水平如何| 挑生词:[网页划词已开启]进入MP3下载页面下载到我的手机(不能播放请点击此处)Living SpaceHow much living space does a person need? What happens when his space needs are not met? Scientists are doing experiments on rats to try to determine the effects of overcrowded conditions on man. Recent studies have shown that the behavior of rats is greatly affected by space. If rats have enough living space, they eat well, sleep well and produce their young well. But if their living conditions become too crowded, their behavior and even their health change obviously. They can not sleep and eat well, and signs of fear and worry become clear. The more crowded they are, and more they tend to bite each other and even kill each other. Thus, for rats, populations and violence are directly related. Is this a natural law for human society as well? Is enough space not only satisfactory, but necessary for human survival? These are interesting questions.英语专业四级听写50篇(6):The United Nations时间:2007-12-12 23:51:51 来源:本站原创作者:alex 测测英语水平如何| 挑生词:[网页划词已开启]进入MP3下载页面下载到我的手机(不能播放请点击此处)The United NationsIn 1945, representatives of 50 nations met to plan this organization. It was called the United Nations. After the war, many more nations joined.There are two major parts of the United Nations. One is called the General Assembly. In the General Assembly, every member nation is represented and has an equal vote.The second part is called the Security Council. It has representatives of just 15 nations. Five nations are permanent members: the United States, Russia, France, Britain, and China. The 10 other members are elected every two years by the General Assembly.The major job of the Security Council is to keep peace in the world. If necessary, it can send troops from member nations to try to stop little wars before they turn into big ones.It is hard to get the nations of the Security Council to agree on when this is necessary. But they did vote to try to stop wars.Useful Words and Expressions:1. representative 代表2. General Assembly 联合国大会3. permanent 永久的，持久的4. Security Council 联合国安全理事会英语专业四级听写50篇(7):The United Nations时间:2007-12-12 23:52:40 来源:本站原创作者:alex 测测英语水平如何| 挑生词:[网页划词已开启]进入MP3下载页面下载到我的手机(不能播放请点击此处)PlasticWe use plastic wrap to protect our foods. We put our garbage in plastic bags or plastic cans. We sit on plastic chairs, play with plastic toys, drink from plastic cups, and wash our hair with shampoo from plastic bottles!Plastic does not grow in nature. It is made by mixing certain things together. We call it a produced or manufactured material. Plastic was first made in the 1860s from plants, such as wood and cotton. That plastic was soft and burned easily. The first modern plastics were made in the 1930s. Most clear plastic starts out as thick, black oil. That plastic coating inside a pan begins as natural gas. Over the years, hundreds of different plastics have been developed. Some are hard and strong. Some are soft and bendable. Some are clear. Some are many-colored. There is a plastic for almost every need. Scientists continue to experiment with plastics. They hope to find even ways to use them!英语专业四级听写50篇(8):Display of GoodsDisplay of GoodsAre supermarkets designed to persuade us to buy more?Fresh fruit and vegetables are displayed near supermarket entrances. This gives the impression that only healthy food is sold in the shop. Basic foods thateveryone buys, like sugar and tea, are not put near each other. They are kept in different aisles so customers are taken past other attractive foods before they find what they want. In this way, shoppers are encouraged to buy products that they do not really need.Sweets are often placed at children’s eye level at the checkout. While parents are waiting to pay, children reach for the sweets and put them in the trolley. More is bought from a fifteen-foot display of one type of product than from a ten-foot one. Customers also buy more when shelves are full than when they are half empty. They do not like to buy from shelves with few products on them because they feel there is something wrong with those products that are there. Useful Words and Expressions:1. aisle 走廊，过道2. trolley 手推车3. checkout 收款台英语专业四级听写50篇(9):Display of GoodsAlbert EinsteinAlbert Einstein was born in Germany in 1879, His father owned a factory that made electrical devices. His mother enjoyed music and books. His parents were Jewish but they did not observe many of the religion’s rules. Albert was a quite child who spent much of his time alone. He was slow to talk and had difficulty learning to read. When Albert was five years old, his father gave him a compass. The child was filled with wonder when he discovered that the compass needle always pointed in the same direction—to be north. He asked his father and hisuncle what caused the needle to move. Their answers about magnetism and gravity were difficult for the boy to understand. Yet he spent a lot of time thinking about them. He said later that he felt something hidden had to be behind things.Useful expressions and words:1. device 装置，设备leave to one’s own devices 听任某人自行其是，允许某人按自己的意愿做事She left the child to her own devices for an hour in the afternoon.她允许孩子在下午有一个小时的自由支配时间。

英语专业四级听写50篇文本（Oct. 22, 2011）Passage 1 Professor BumbleProfessor Bumble is not only absent-minded but short-sighted as well. His mind is always busy with learned thoughts and he seldom notices what is going on around him.On a fine day recently, he went for a walk in the countryside. But as always, he read the book as he walked. He hadn't gone far when he ran into a large cow and fell down. He had lost his spectacles in the fall, and he thought he had stumbled over a fat lady. "I beg your pardon, madam," he said politely before searching for his glasses. As soon as he had put the glasses on，he realized his mistake.Soon he was concentrating on his book again and paying no attention to anything else. He had scarcely been walking for five minutes when he fell over again, losing both his book and his glasses. This time he became very angry. Seizing his umbrellas, he struck the "cow" in anger. Then, after finding his glasses, he realized with horror that he had made a second mistake. A large fat woman was running away from him in terror. （187 words）Passage 2 TeamworkTeamwork is just as important in science as it is on the playing field or in the gym. Scientific investigations are almost always carried out by teams of people working together. Ideas are shared, experiments are designed, data are analyzed, and results are evaluated and shared with other investigators. Group work is necessary, and is usually more productive than working alone.Several times throughout the year you may be asked to work with one or more of your classmates. Whatever the task your group is assigned, a few rules need to be followed to ensure a productive and successful experience.What comes first is to keep an open mind, because everyone's ideas deserve consideration and each group member can make his or her own contribution. Secondly, it makes a job easier to divide the group task among all group members. Thirdly, always work together, take turns, and encourage each other by listening, clarifying, and trusting one another. Mutual support and trust often make a great difference.（166 words）Passage 3 Mistakes Are Good TeachersAfter the birth of my second child，I got a job at a restaurant. Having worked with an experienced waitress for a few days，I was allowed to wait on tables on my own. When Saturday night came，I was luckily given the tables not far from the kitchen. However，I still felt a little hard to carry the heavy trays. So I moved slowly, minding every step. I remembered how happy I was when I saw a tray standing next to the tables. It looked different from the one I was trained on，and it had nice handles which made it easier to move around. I was pleased with everything and began to believe I was natural at this job. Then, an old man came to me and said that was his wife's walker. I stood frozen as ice，but my face was on fire. Since then, I have learned to be more careful and not to be too sure of myself. (164 words)Passage 4 Time Has the Power to Change AttitudeLast week, my youngest son and I visited my father at his new home.My earliest memories of my father are of a tall, handsome, successful man devoted to his work and family but uncomfortable with his children. As a child, I loved him；as a school girl and young adult, I feared him and felt bitter about him.On the first day of my visit, we did some shopping，ate on the street table，and laughed over my son's funny facial expressions. Gone was my father's critical air and strict rules. Who was this person I knew as my father who seemed so friendly and interesting to be around？The next day, my dad pulled out his childhood pictures and told me quite a few stories about his own childhood. Although our times together became easier over the years, I never felt closer to him until that moment. After so many years, I'm at last seeing another side of my father. (162 words)Passage 5 Experiences SpeakThere are many different ways of seeing a town for the first time. One of them is to walk around it, in hand. Of course, we may study with our guidebooks the history and special developments of a town and get to know them. But then, if we take our time and stay in a town for a while, we may get to know it better. When we look at it as a whole, we begin to have some questions, which even the best guidebooks do not answer. Why is the town just like this, this shape, this plan, and this sizeHere even the best guidebooks fail us. We can’t find in it the information about how a town has developed to the present appearance. However, we may get some idea of what it used to look like by walking around thetown. A personal visit to a town may help us better understand why it isthan just reading about it in a guidebook. (167 words)Passage 6 Representatives of Civilization: PotteryAncient people made clay because they needed it for their survival. They used the pots they made for cooking, storing food, and carrying things from place to place. Pottery was so important to early cultures that scientists now study it to learn more about ancient civilizations. The more advanced the pottery in terms of, materials, s and manufacture, the more advanced the culture itself.Thewho makes pottery in North America today utilizes his or her skill and imagination to create items that are beautiful as well as functional, transforming something ordinary into something special and unique.The potter uses one of the Earth's most basic materials, clay. Clay can be found almost anywhere. Good pottery clay must be free from all small stones and other hard materials that would make the potting process difficult.The most important tools potters use are their own hands; however, they also use wire tools, wooden modeling tools, plain wire, and s. (162 words)Passage 7 Words Can Make a DifferenceOn August 26，1999, New York City was struck by a terrible during the morning rush hour that caused the streets to flood. Many people who were going to work were forced to go home. Some battled to call a taxi, get a bus or walk miles to get to work.I soon discovered most of the subway lines had stopped service. I finally found an operating line, but there were so many people that I could not initially get to the platform. Finally, I got to my office, wet through, and exhausted.After an unenjoyable day, Garth, my Director, sent an e-mail to everyone:Thanks to everyone who reported to work. It is alwayswhen employees show their to their jobs, Thank you.”Garth's email was short, but welcomed. It made me realize that even when times are tough, a few kind words can make a big difference. (151 words)Passage 8 Fairy TalesTales of the are common in all parts of Britain. In particular, there was a belief in. Not all of these fairies are the friendly, people-loving sprites that appear in Disney films. In some s, they are cruel and cause much human suffering. This is true in the tales about the Changeling. These tell the story of a mother whose baby grows sick and pale and is changed so much that it is almost unrecognizable to the parents. It was then feared that the fairies had come and stolen the baby away and replaced the human baby with a fairy. In those cases, there was often a way to get the real baby back. You could place the Changeling on the fire--then it would rise up the chimney, you would hear the sound of fairies' laughter and soon after, you would find your own child nearby. (153 words)Passage 9 Self-imageis your own mind’s picture of yourself. This image includes the way you look, the way you act, the way you talk and the way you think. Interestingly, our self-images are often quite different from the images others hold about us. Unfortunately, most of these images are more negative than they should be. Thus changing the way you think about yourself is the key to changing your self-image and your whole world.It might be that you are experiencing a negative self-image because you can’t move past oneor weakness that you see about yourself. Well, roll up your sleeves and make a change of it as your primary task. The best way to get rid of a negative serf-image is to realize that your image is far from objective, and to actively convince yourself of your positive qualities. Changing the way you think and working on those, you will go a long way towards promoting a positive self-image. (161 words)Passage 10 ShopaholicsThe word addiction usually makes you think of alcohol or drugs, but in modern day society we are seeing some new kinds of addictions. Some people are compulsive shoppers. Others find it impossible to pull themselves away from their work. Still others spend countless hours watching TV or playing computer games.Over the years, shopping has become a very common activity. Many people enjoy going to malls or stores more and more every day, but it's more than a common hobby for some of them. They have turned into shopaholics. They are people who simply enjoy shopping and walking around spending money without beingable to stop doing it. They are hooked on shopping and usually buy things that they don't need. Even though they don't have enough money, they want to buy everything they want.Why do they have this addiction There isn't a specific answer. Some people go shopping when they are sad, worried, upset or lonely. Some even tend to have this addiction when they feel guilty. (167 words)Passage 11 Time ManagementTime is something from which we can’t escape. Even if we ignore it, it’s still going by, ticking away, second by second, minute by minute, hour by hour. So the main issue in using your time well is, “Who’s in charge” We can allow time to slip by and let it be our enemy. Or we can take control of it and make it our ally.By taking control of how you spend your time, you’ll increase your chances of becoming a more successful student. Perhaps more importantly, the better you are at managing the time you devote to your studies, the more time you’ll have to spend on your outside interests.The aim of time management is not to schedule every moment so we become slaves of a timetable that governs every waking moment of the day. Inside, the aim is to make informed choices as to how we use our time. (153 words)Passage 12 Charity ShopsThe shop is a British institution, selling everything from clothes to electric goods, all at very good prices. You can get things you won’t find in the shops any more. The thing I like best about them is that your money is going to a good cause and not into the pockets of profit-driven companies, and you are not damaging the planet, but finding a new home for unwanted goods.Most of the people working in the charity shops are volunteers, although there is often a manager who gets paid. Over 90% of the goods in the charity shops are donated by the public.The shops have very low running costs: all profits go to charity work. Charity shops raise more than ￡110 million a year,ing medical research, overseas aid, supporting sick and poor children, and people, and much more. (153 words)Passage 13 Passive LearningWe can achieve knowledge either actively or achieve it actively by direct experience, by testing and proving an idea, or by reasoning. We achieve knowledge passively by being told by someone else. Most of the learning that takes place in the classroom and the kind that happens when we watch TV or read newspapers or magazines is passive. Conditioned as we are to passive learning, it’s not surprising that we depend on it in our everyday communication with friends and co-workers.Unfortunately, passive learning has a serious problem. It makes us tend to accept what we are told even when it is little more than and.That’s what happens in daily life. The simple fact that people repeat a story in their own words changes the story. Then, too, most people listen imperfectly. And many enjoy adding their own creative touch to a story, trying to improve on it,ing it with their own personal style. Yet those who hear it think they know. (168 words) Passage 14 Different "Styles" of DirectionsI travel a lot, and I find out different “styles” of directions every time I ask “How can I get to the post office”In Japan, people use landmarks in their directions instead of street names. For example, the Japanese will say to travelers, " Go straight down to the corner. Turn left at the big hotel and go past a fruit market. The post office is across from the bus stop."In the countryside of the American Midwest, instead of landmarks, people will tell you directions and distances. For example, people will say, “Go north two miles. Turn east, and then go another mile.”People in Los Angeles, California, have no idea of distance on the map; they measure distance in time, not miles. “How far away is the post office” you ask. “Oh,” they answer, “it’s about five minutes from here.” You say, “Yes, but how many miles away is it” They don’t know. (155 words)Passage 15 RainforestsRainforests are the lungs of the planet –storing large quantities of carbon dioxide and producing a significant amount of the world’s oxygen. Rainforests have their own perfect system for guaranteeing their own survival. The tall trees make a cover of branches and leaves which protect themselves, smaller plants, and the forest animals from heavy rain, dry heat and strong winds.Amazingly, the trees grow in such a way that their leaves and branches, although close together, never actually touch those of another tree. Scientists think this is a deliberate method to prevent the spread of any tree diseases and make life more difficult for leaf-eating insects.They are not called rainforests for nothing! Rainforests can produce 75% of their own rain. At least 80 inches of rain a year is normal – and in some areas there may be as much as 430 inches of rain annually. This is real rain. In just two hours, streams can rise ten to twenty feet. (165 words)Passage 16 Juana Lopez’s InventionOne day, Juana Lopez had an idea for a dish washing machine that worked without using water. She went to see several dishwasher manufacturers about producing the machine, but none of them were interested. Juana found investors to back her idea and founded her own production company. She spent millions of dollars on developing her own dishwasher and it was launched three years later. From then on, sales were very good, better even than Juana had hoped. But Global Domestic, one of the companies that she had been to, made its own waterless dishwasher. Juana obtained one and found that it used the technical ideas she had developed. She had obtained legal protection for legal process. Global Domestic was forced to stop making its competing dishwasher and to pay Juana several million dollars. Now Juana’s waterless dishwasher has 40% of the worldwide dishwasher market and this is increasing every year. (164 words)Passage 17 Rising Sea LevelLatest research predicts that the global sea level is expected to rise 9 to 88 centimeters by 2100, with a “best estimate” of 50 centimeters. This is due to global warming which is causing the ice caps to melt.This great rise of close to one meter would threaten huge areas of low-lying coastal land as well as major cities such as London, New York and Tokyo.In many places, 50 centimeters would see entire beaches being washed away. On low-lying Pacific islands, the highest point is only two or three meters above the current sea level. If the sea level was to rise by 50 centimeters, big parts of these islands would disappear under the water.Even if they remain above the sea, many island nations will have their supplies of drinking water reduced because sea water will pollute their freshwater.There are also tens of millions of people living in low-level coastal areas of southern Asia, such as the coastlines of Pakistan and India, who would be in danger. (172 words)Passage 18 What Is a FatherA father is a person who is forced to endure childbirth without an anesthetic. He growls when he feels good, and laughs very loud when he is scared half-to-death.A father never feels entirely worthy of the worship in a child's eyes. He is never quite the hero his daughter thinks. Never quite the man his son believes him to be, and this worries him sometimes.A father is a person who goes to war sometimes and would run the other way except that war is part of his only important job in his life, which is making the world better for his child than it has been for him.I don't know where father goes when he dies, but I've an idea that, after a good rest, wherever it is, he won't just sit on a cloud and wait for the girl he's loved and the children she bore. He'll be busy there too, repairing the stars, oiling the gates, improving the streets, smoothing the way. (173 words)Passage 19 Little Boy's Big IdeaThe Intellectual Property Owners Association(IPO) is running a project to encourage young inventors. Samuel Houghton, a five-year-old boy has become the youngest Briton to hold a patent after watching his father struggling in the garden. Samuel developed a garden tool after watching his father Mark use two brushes to sweep up leaves outside their house. His father used a large brush to gather leaves and small branches, and then got a small brush to pick up what was left. Samuel came up with the idea for a labor-saving tool, which has been patented and named the Improved Broom.It is a simple idea that combines two ordinary brooms with different-sized bristles and brush-heads to enable different-sized dirt to be swept up more efficiently. “The small one gets the first bits and the one at the back gets those left behind, Samuel explains.The IPO says that Samuel is its youngest known patent holder. (154 words)Passage 20Cultural DifferencesMeeting people from another culture can be difficult. Different cultures the importance of relationship building to a greater or lesser degree. For example, business in some countries is not possible until there is a relationship of trust. Even with people at work, it is necessary to spend a lot of time in "small talk", usually over a glass of tea, before they do any job.In many European countries—like the UK or France—people find it easier to build up a lasting working relationship at restaurants or cafes rather than at the office.Even within Northern Europe, cultural differences can cause serious problems. Certainly, English and German culturessimilar value; however, Germans prefer to get down to business more quickly. We think that they are rude. In fact, this is just because one culture starts discussions and makes decision more quickly. (146 words)Passage 21 StressStress is what you feel when you react to pressure, either from the outside world or from inside yourself. Stress is a normal reaction for people of all ages.Most people think that pressure is always a bad thing. In fact, a little bit of stress is good. Without stress, most of us couldn’t push ourselves to do well, especially in difficult things.People usually about feeling pressed for time when they are under certain pressure. It is true that you can’t always control the things that are stressing you out, but you can control how you react to them. The way you feel about things results from the way you think about things. If you change how you think, you can change the way you feel. Try the following s to deal with your stress:Make a list of the things that are causing your stress.Give yourself an excuse.Don't promise to do things you can't do or don't want to do.Find someone to talk to. (170 words)Passage 22 Love Is a TelephoneLove is a telephone which is always silent when you are hoping for a call, but rings when you are not ready for it. As a result, we often miss the love coming from the other end.Love is a telephone which is seldom program-controlled or directly dialed. You cannot get an immediate answer with a simple “hello”,go deep into your lover’s heart with one call. Usually it has to be ed by an, a nd you have to wait patiently.Love is a telephone that is always busy. When you are ready tofor love, you only find, to your disappointment, the line is already being used by someone else.Love is a telephone, but it is difficult to know when to dial. You will miss the opportunity if your call is either too early or too late. (143 words)Passage 23 JealousyThe experience of jealousy varies enormously from age to age, from culture to culture, from couple to couple, from person to person, and can be different within the same person from time to time. In the United States, there has been a change of attitude toward jealousy in recent years. “Normal” jealousy, which has been seen as an inevitable accompaniment of love and support of marriage, has come to be seen by some as evidence of personal insecurity and weakness in the relationship, and therefore a threat to the partnership.Most jealous flashes come from feeling left out of an activity involving your partner and another person or other people. When your partner pays attention to another, your firs t reaction is to note that they are “in” and you are “out”. You feel excluded, ignored, unappreciated.This kind of experience is not uncommon, and dealing with it gracefully is part of the etiquette of our time.(157 words)Passage 24 Differences Between Television and Radio AnnouncersWhen television first began to expand, very few of the people who had become famous as radio announcers were able to be equally effective on television. Some of the difficulties they experienced when they were trying to adjust themselves to the new medium were technical. When working on radio, for example, they had become used to seeing on behalf of the listener. This art of seeing for others means that the announcer has to be very good at talking.In the case of television, however, the announcer sees everything with the viewer. His duty, therefore, is completely different. He is there to make sure that the viewer does not miss any point of interest, to help him focus on particular things, and to help him understand the images on the television screen. Unlike his radio colleague, he must know the value of silence and how to use it at those moments when the pictures speak for themselves. (157 words)Passage 25 The African ElephantThe African elephant, the largest land animal remaining on earth, is of great importance to African ecosystem. As a big plant-eater, it largely shapes the forest-and-savanna surroundings in which it lives, setting the terms of existence for millions of other animals that live in its habitat.It is the elephant's great desire for food that makes it a disturber of the environment and an important builder of its habitat. In its continuous search for the 300 pounds of plants it must have every day, it kills small trees and underbushes, and pulls branches off big trees. This results in numerous open spaces in both deep tropical forests and in the woodlands that cover part of the African savannas.What worries scientists now is that the African elephant has become an endangered species. If the elephant disappears, scientists say, many other animals will also disappear from vast areas of forest and savanna, greatly changing and worsening the whole ecosystem. (159 words)Passage 26Operations on the BrainIt is difficult for doctors to help a person with a damaged brain. Without enough, the brain lives for only three to five minutes.Dr. White thinks doctors should try to make the brain very cold. If it is very cold, the brain can live without blood for 30 minutes. This gives the doctors a longer time to do something for the brain.Dr. White tried his idea on 13 monkeys. First he taught them to do different jobs. Then he d on them. He made the monkeys' blood go through a machine which cooled the blood, and then sent the blood back to the monkeys' brains. When the brain temperature was 50 degrees, Dr. White stopped the blood to the brain. After 30 minutes he turned the blood back on. He warmed the blood again. After their operations the monkeys werelike they were before. They were healthy and busy. Each one could still do the jobs the doctor had taught them. (163 words)Passage 27 DepressionThe dictionary describes depression as the state of feeling very sad, anxious and hopeless. The question here is why one gets depressed. Is the inability to deal with the situation or the high stress levels that come with success or failureLife is full of twists and turns. Some are pleasant and some are not so pleasant, and sometimes even terrible.Seasonal changes are the main reason for depression in nature. Change is unavoidable. It may happen in nature or in life. But the way the change makes us feel is subjective. They differ from person to person, along with the ways we deal with them.Feeling depression is a normal phenomenon, but letting it overtake us completely is not the best thing. There are no specific rules or concepts in dealing with it. A person should adopt whatever way he or she feels is the best, but be sure it will not hurt another person. (157 words)Passage 28 White NoiseThere are different kinds of noise with distinct frequencies that are classified by color，namely: white noise, pink noise, brown noise, blue noise, and gray noise. Below is an overview of white noise.Generally speaking, white noise is a part of the full scale of sound frequencies a human ear can recognize. White noise is a mixture of sound frequencies in equal levels. It is a very quiet sound that is relaxing and pleasant to the ears of anyone. A number of people say that it is similar to the sound of the rain or the ocean waves.White noise offers countless benefits. The noise comes in different forms that serve different purposes. Some white noise works better than others for particular uses. Some people may find some white noise sounds more pleasing than others. Moreover, white noise is said to have a more calming effect than music does. (149 words)Passage 29 Cell PhonesNowadays, with the rapid development of IT and information industry, cell phones play a dominant role in people’s life. On the one hand, the mobile phone is portable and convenient. Being wireless, you can carry them everywhere with great ease. You can reach a person wherever and however far away he is. On the other hand, it is a friend indeed. Whenever you come across trouble, you can call for help immediately.However, just as every coin has two sides, the cell phone also has its many disadvantages. Some people complain that mobile phones give unpleasant noise on some important occasions when the owner forgets to turn them off. And it also cuts into people’s spare time, because with the mobile phone the boss can easily reach them and call them to duty during their spare time. Worst of all, the electromagnetic wave emitted from the phone is said to be harmful to people’s health and does often cause headaches to the owner. (163 words) Passage 30 Facing the Enemies WithinWe are not born with courage, but neither are we born with fear. Maybe some of your fears are brought on by your own experiences, by what someone has told you, by what you’ve read in the papers. Fears, even the most basic ones, can totally destroy your ambitions, fortunes, relationships, and even life.Another enemy we face is. Indecision is the thief of opportunity and enterprise. It will steal your chances for a better future.The third enemy inside is doubt. Sure you can’t believe everything. But don’t let doubt take over you. It will destroy your life and your chances of success. It will empty both your bank account and your heart.Also, there are, worry and overcaution that you should do battle with. Be in your life and in your pursuit of the things you want and the person you want to become. (149 words)Passage 31 The Tower of LondonIn 1078, King William began to build a large stone building on the north bank of the Thames River and named it the Tower of London. The tower was finished 20 years later.Around 1240, King Henry III made it his home. He painted the tower white, and widened the grounds to include a church, a great hall and other buildings.In 1381, Richard II became King of England. A group of farmers attacked the tower. In the end, Richard was forced to give up his power to Henry IV.。