2015年6月大学英语四级考试真题及答案解析(第2套)Part I Writing (30minutes)Dire cti ons :For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write an essay based on the picture below. You should start your essay with a brief description of the picture and then comment on this kind of modem life. Youshould write at least 120 words but no more than 180 words.THIS MODERN LIFEWORK HOME PLAY SLEEPPart II Listening Comprehension (30minutes)Section ADire cti ons:In this section, you will hear 8 short conversations and 2 long conversations. At the end of each conversation, one or more questions will be asked about what was said. Both the conversation and thequestions will be spoken only once. After each question there will be a pause. During the pause, youmust read the four choices marked A), B), C) and D), and decide which is the best answer. Then markthe corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.1.A) He is pl eas ed t o sit on th e co m mitt ee.B) He is w illi ng t o of fer t he w om an a ha nd.C) He wil l te ll the wo man h is d eci sion l at er.D) He wo uld like to b eco me a c lu b mem ber.2.A) Their planne d tri p to V an cou v er is o bvious ly ov erpriced.B) The y sho uld bor row a gui de b o ok ins te ad of buy ing o ne.C) The guid e bo oks i n th e lib rar y hav e the lat est inf orm ation.D) The libr ary c an h elp ord er g uide book s ab out Van cou ver.3.A) He re gr ets h avi ng t ake n the his t ory c our se.B) He fin ds li ttl e in ter est in th e hist ory b ook s.C) He has tro ubl e fi nish ing his read ing ass ign men ts.D) He ha s di ffi cul ty w rit ing t he w e ekly book rep ort.4.A) T he m an h ad be tte r ch oos e an o ther res tau ran t.B) The ne w res tau ra nt is a per fect pla ce f or d ating.C) The ne w res tau ra nt ca ugh t her f anc y imm ediately.D) The ma n ha s goo d taste in ch o osin g the restau ran t.5. A) H e ha s bee n lo oki ng fo rw ar d to sp rin g. C) He w ill cle an t he wo ma n’s b oots for sp rin g.B) He has be en w ait ing f or t he w in ter s ale.D) He will help th e wom an p ut th in gs aw ay.6. A) At a tai lor’s. C) In a cl oth es st ore.B) At Bob’s hom e. D) In a th eatre.7. A) His guest s fa vor Tib etan dri nks. C) Mineral wat er is goo d fo r hea lth.B) At Bob’s h ome.D) Plain water will serv e the purpose.8. A) Repor t th e res ult of a d isc us sion. C) Submit an im portant doc ume nt.B) Rais e so me en vir onm ent al i ssue s. D) Revise an en vi ronm ental repo rt.Questio ns 9 t o 12 a re b ase d on t he c onve rsa tio n yo u hav e ju st heard.9.A) Th ey po llute t he so il u sed t o co v er th em. C) The ru bbi sh in th em takes lon g to d issolv e.B) The y ar e ha rmf ul t o nea rby nei g hbor hoo ds. D) The g as th ey em it is extrem ely poi sono us.10.A) Gr owi ng po pul ati on. C) Changed eating hab it s.B) Pac kag ing mat eri als. D) Lower pro duction co st.11.A) By s avi ng e ner gy. C) By redu ci ng po iso nou s wast es.B) By us ing les s al umi num. D) By mak ing the m ost of ma te ria ls.12.A) We are run nin g out o f na tur al r es ourc es soon.B) On ly co mbi ned eff ort s ca n make a diff erence.C) Th e wa ste p rob lem wil l ev entu al ly hu rt all of u sD) Al l of u s ca n act ual ly b ene fit fro m rec ycling.Questio ns 13 to 15 are bas ed o n the conv ers ati on y ou have just h eard.13.A) Mi ami.B) Va nco uver.C) Bellin gh am.D) Bo sto n.14.A) To g et i nfo rma tio n on o ne-wa y ti cket s to C anada.B) To i nquire abo ut th e pr ice of “ S uper Sav er” seats.C) To g et a dvi ce o n how to fl y as ch eapl y as p ossible.D) To i nqu ire abo ut th e sh ort est rou t e to dr ive hom e.15.A) Jo in a t our ist g rou p.C) Av oid t rip s in p ubl ic h olid ays.B) Choos e a ma jor air lin e. D) Bo ok ti cke ts a s early a s po ssi ble.Section BDire cti ons:In this section, you will hear 3 short passages. At the end of each passage, you will hear some questions.Both the passage and the questions will be spoken only once. After you hear a question, you mustchoose the best answer from the four choices marked A),B),C),and D). Then mark the correspondingletter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.Pass age OneQuestions 16 to 18 are bas ed o n the pass age you h ave just heard.16.A) Th ere are mys ter iou s sto rie s be hi nd his works.B) Th ere are man y mis und ers tan din gs ab out h im.C) Hi s wor ks h ave no ma tch wor ld wide.D) Hi s pe rson al h ist ory i s li ttl e kno w n.17.A) He mov ed to S tr atf ord-on-Av on in his chi ldh ood.B) He f ai led t o go b eyo nd g ram mar scho ol.C) He w as a mem ber of th e to wn c ounc il.D) He o nc e wor ke d in a w ell-kn ow n act ing comp any.18.A) Wr ite rs o f his tim e ha d no m ean s to pro tect th eir works.B) Pos sib le s our ces of cl ues abo ut hi m wer e lost in a fire.C) Hi s wor ks w ere ada pte d be yon d reco gnitio n.D) Pe opl e of his ti me h ad li ttl e in ter e st in h im.Pass age TwoQuestio ns 19 to 21 are bas ed o n the pass age you h ave jus t heard.19.A) It s how s you hav e be en i gno rin g your health.B) It c an s eri ous ly a ffe ct y our t hin ki ng pr ocess.C) It i s an e ar ly wa rni ng o f so me il ln ess.D) It i s a sy mpt om o f to o muc h pr es sure.20. A) Redu ce ou r wo rkl oad. C) Use painkillers f or relief.B) Contro l ou r tem pe r. D) Avoid mas kin g sym pto ms.21. A) Lyi ng do wn a nd h avi ng so me sl eep. C) Goin g out for a wa lk.B) Rubbi ng an d pr ess ing one’s bac k. D) List ening to lig ht mu sic.Pass age Thr eeQuestio ns 22 to 25 are bas ed o n the pass age you have just heard.22. A) Depe ndi ng he avi ly o n loa ns. C) Spend ing beyond one’s m ean s.B) Havin g no b udg et p lan s at a ll. D) Leavi ng n o roo m for lar ge b ills.23. A) Ma ny of the m ca n be c ut. C) They eat up most of the fami ly i nco me.B) All of t hem hav e to b e co ver e d. D) They eat up mo st o f the fam ily inco me.24. A) Re nt a hous e ins tead of buy i ng on e. C) Make a con se rva tio n pla n.B) Discu ss th e pr obl em i n the fa mily. D) Move to a ch eap er p lac e.25. A) Fi nan cia l iss ues pla gui ng a f amil y. C) Family budg et p rob lem s an d sol utions.B) Diffi cul ty i n mak ing bot h end s mee t. D) New ways to bo ost fam ily i nco me.Section CDire cti ons :In this section, you will hear a passage three times. When the passage is read for the first time, you should listen carefully for its general idea. When the passage is read for the second time, you arerequired to fill in the blanks with the exact words you have just heard. Finally, when the passage isread for the third time, you should check what you have written.Perh aps bec aus e go ing t o co lle ge is so mu ch a p art o f th e Am eri can dre a m, many peo ple g o fo r no 26 r eas on. Some go be cause t hei r pa ren ts e xpect it, o the rs be cause ifs w hat their fr iends a re do ing. Then, the re’s th e bel ie f tha t a co llege degree w ill 27 ens ure a goo d job a nd hig h pa y.Some s tud ent s 28 th rou gh fo ur y e ars, at ten din g classes, or skipping (逃课) th em as the case ma y be, rea ding o nly what can’t b e avo ide d, loo kin g fo r le ss 29 cour ses, and n ever being to uche d or c ha nge d in any im por tan t way. Fo r a fewof these peop le, c oll ege p rov ides no 30 , yet be ca use o f paren tal or p eer pressure, th ey ca nno t vo lun tarily l eave. The y st op tryi ng in the hop e tha t th eir t ea che rs will mak e the decisi on f or th em b y 31 them.To put it b lun tly/(直截了当地),u nle ss you’re w illing to make you r colleg e yea rs cou nt, you mig ht be 32 doing some thi ng e lse. N ot e ver yon e sh ou ld at ten d col lege, no r sh ould every one w ho do es atte nd b egin ri ght a fter h igh scho ol. Many col leg e st ude nts 33 t akin g a yea r or so o ff. A year ou t in the w orld hel ps some peo ple to 34 their prioriti es a nd goal s. If you’r e re all y going to g et s omet hin g out of going to colleg e, you have to ma ke it mean som eth in g, and to do that you must h ave som e ide a wh y yo u’r e th ere, w hat you h ope to get ou t of it, and 35 even wha t yo u hop e to b ecom e.PartⅢReading Comprehension (40 minutes)Sect ion ADire cti ons:In this section, there is a passage with ten blanks. You are required to select one word for each blank from a list of choices given in a word bank following the passage. Read the passage through carefullybefore making your choices. Each choice in the bank is identified by a letter. Please mark thecorresponding letter for each item on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre. Youmay not use any of the words in the bank more than once.Questio ns 36 to 45 are bas ed o n the foll owi ng p assage.Ifs our g uil ty p lea sur e: W atchin g TV is the mos t co mmo n ev ery day a ctiv ity, aft er w ork and sle ep, in ma n y parts o f the w orl d. Ame ric ans vie w fiv e ho u rs of T V ea ch d ay, an d while w e kn ow th at sp end ing so mu ch time s itti ng 36 can l ea d to obesit y/(肥胖症)a nd ot her dis e ases, r es ear chers h ave n ow q uan tified just how 37 b ein g a co uch pot at o can b e.In a n a nal ysi s o f da ta fr om e igh t l arg e 38 .pu blished studies, a Harv ar d-le d g rou p r epo rte d in th e that fo r e very tw o hour s per day sp ent c han nel 39 , the ris k of dev elop ing Ty pe 2 diabetes Journal of the Am eri can M e dica l Aso c ia t ion (糖尿病)ro se 20% ov er 8. 5 ye ars, the ri sk o f heart d isease increased 15% ove r a 40 , and t he od ds o f dyin g pre maturely 41 13% d uri ng a s eve n-yea r f oll o w-up. Al l o f t hes e 42 are linked to a lac k o f p hysical exerci se. But com par ed wi thSection BDire cti ons :In this section, you are going to read a passage with ten statements attached to it. Each statement contains information given in one of the paragraphs. Identify the paragraph from which theinformation is derived. You may choose a paragraph more than once. Each paragraph is marked witha letter. Answer the questions by marking the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2.Essa y-G ra ding Sof tware Offers P ro fessors a BreakA)Imag ine t aki ng a col leg e exam, an d, inste ad of h andi ng in a blue bo o k and get tin g a gra de fro m a pro fe ssor a fewweeks lat er, cl ick ing t he “s end” but t on whe n you are do ne an d receivin g a grad e back instan tly, y our e ssa y scored by a soft war e pr ogr am. An d th en, ins tea d of bei ng do ne w ith that exam, ima g ine th at the sy ste m wo uld i mme dia t ely let yo u rewrit e the tes t to t ry to imp rov e you r grade.B)EdX, the no npr ofi t ente rpr is e foun ded by Harvard and th e Massach usetts Instit ute of T ech nol ogy (M IT) to offercour ses on the In ter net, h as j ust i ntr o duce d su ch a syst em and will make its a uto mat ed(自动的)so ftw are av aila ble fre e on the W eb t o an y in sti tut ion tha t want s to use it. The s oftware u ses a rtif ici al inte lligen ce to g rad e student essays and shor t wr itt en an sw ers, f ree ing pro fes sors for o ther tasks.C)The n ew s er vic e wi ll b rin g th e ed u cati onal consortium(联盟)int o a g rowin g co nfl ict ove r th e role of automation ineduc ati on. Alt hough auto ma ted gr a ding sy stems for mu lti ple-ch oice an d true-false te sts are n ow wid esp read, the use o f arti fic ial int ell ige nc e te chn olog y to g rade essay answers has not yet received w ide spread ac cep tan ce b y ed u cato rs a nd has m any c rit ics.D)Anan t Aga rw al, an e lectri cal e ngi ne er who is presiden t of Ed X, predicted that t he in sta nt-gradin g so ftw are would be ausef ul tea chi ng too l, enab lin g s tud ents to tak e t est s and write essays o ver and ov er and im prove th e q ual ity of the ir answ ers. H e said t he te chn olo gy wo uld of fer d isti nct advantages o ver t h e trad itiona l cla ssroom sy ste m, whe re stud ents ofte n wa it da ys or wee ks fo r gr ade s. “There is a hug e value in learning with ins tan t feedb ack,” Dr. Ag arwa l said.“Studen ts a re te lli ng u s the y learn m uch b ett er with instant feedback.”E)But skeptics (怀疑者) th e aut oma ted sy stem is n o match fo r live teac hers. O ne lo ngtime cri tic , Le s Per elman, h asdrawn nat ion al at ten tio n sev er al ti m es for p utting t ogether non sen se essa ys tha t hav e foo led s oft ware gradi ng programs into g ivi ng h igh m ark s. He h as a lso been hig hly critical of stu dies cla imi ng th at th e so ftw are com pares w ell t o hum a n graders.F)He is amon g a grou p of educato rs who last month beg an circulating a petition(呼吁) opp osing a utom ate dasse ssm ent s oft ware. The gr oup, whic h calls its elf P rofession als Ag ains t Mac hin e Scoring o f Stud ent Essay s in High-St ake s Ass ess men t, has co lle cted n ear ly 2,000 sig natures, inc lu ding some from f amo us pe ople li ke Noa m Chom sky.G)“Let’s f ac e the re ali tie s of aut oma ti c ess ay scoring,” th e gr oup’s s tate ment rea ds in part.“Com puters ca nnot ‘read’.They ca nnot me asu re t he ess ent ial s of e ffe ctive written co mmu nication:a ccu rac y, re aso nin g, ad equ acy of evid ence, good s ens e, ethical( 伦理的) po sit ion, co nvincing argu men t, meanin g ful o rga niz ation, an d clari ty, am ong othe rs. H)But EdX exp ect s its so ftw ar e to b e adop ted w idely by schoo ls an d univ ersities. It offe rs free onlin e classes fromHarvar d, MIT and the Uni ver sit y of Cali fornia-Berk eley; th is f all, it w ill add c lasses fro m W ell esl ey, G eorge town an d the Univ er sit y of Te xas. In a ll, 12 u nive rsi ties p artici pate in Ed X, wh ic h of fers ce rti ficates for cou rse co mp leti on a nd has s aid t hat it pl ans to co nti nue to ex pand nex t year, in clu ding add ing i nt erna tio nal sch ools.I)The E dX as ses sme nt to ol r equ ire s h uman t eachers, or g rad er s, to first g rade 100 essay s or essa y que stions. T he sys temthen us es a v ari ety of ma chi ne-le ar ning te chn iqu es to train itself to be able to gra de any nu mbe r o f e ssa ys or a nsw ers auto mat ica lly a nd al mos t inst ant ly. The so ftw are will assig n a grade depend ing on t he sc ori ng sys tem c re a ted by th e teac he r, whe the r it i s a le tte r gr ade or nume rical(数字的)ran k.J)EdX i s n ot t he f irs t t o us e th e auto m ated as sessment tech nol ogy, which date s to early com puter s in the 1960s. The re is now a range of c omp ani es of fer ing commercial pr ograms to g rad e wri tten test an swe rs, an d four stat es—Loui sia na, Nort h Dakota, U tah a nd We st Vi rgi nia—are u sin g some form of th e tec hnology in sec ond ary scho ols. A fifth, Indiana, has experi men ted wi th i t. In so m e c ases th e so ftware is used as a “seco n d re ader,” to c hec k the r eliabi lity o f t he h uman graders.K)But the gr owi ng inf luence of the Ed X conso rtium to set stan dar ds is lik el y to give the te ch nolo gy a boo st. On Tues day, Stanfor d a nno unc ed tha t i t w oul d work wi th EdX to develop a join t educ ationa l system tha t w ill ma ke use of th e auto mat ed a sse ssm ent tec hno log y.L)Two sta rt-ups, Co urs era an d U da cit y, re cen tly fo und ed by Stanfo rd fac ulty me mbe rs to create “massiv e o pen onlin e cour ses,” or MOO Cs, ar e also c om mitt e d to au tomated assessmen t sys tems b eca use o f the va lue o f inst ant feed ba ck.“It all ows st ude nts to get im med iat e fee dba ck on their work, so th at lean turn s into a gam e, wi th stu den ts nat ural ly(吸引) to war d res ubm itt ing th e wo rk unti l the y get it righ t,” said Dap hne Rolle r, a comp uter scient ist a nd a found er o f Courser a.M)Last y ear t he He wlett Fou nd atio n, a gran t-making organ izatio n set u p by one of the H ewlett- Pac kard fou nde rs and hi s wife, s pon sor ed tw o $100,000 p riz es aim ed at impr ovi ng so ftw are t ha t grad es essay s and s hor t ans wers. More t ha n 150 te ams ent ere d ea ch ca teg or y. A winne r of o ne o f the Hewlet t con tests, Vi k Par uch uri, w as h ired by Ed X to hel p desi gn it s as ses sme nt s oft war e.N)“One of our foc use s is to help ki ds l earn ho w to think critically,”said Victor Vu chic, a prog ram officer at th e Hewl ett Foun dat ion. “ I t’s p rob abl y imp oss i ble to d o that with mul tip le-cho ice t ests. T he ch alleng e is th at th is re qui res hum an graders, and s o th ey co st a l ot mo re and t hey take a lot mor e time. ”O)Mark D. Sherm is, a pro fe sso r at th e Univ ers ity o f Akron in Oh io, su perv ised the H ewlett Found at ion’s cont est o n automat ed ess ay s cor ing an d wr ote a paper ab out the exp er ime nt. In his vi ew, th e t ech nol ogy—tho ug h impe rfe ct—ha s a pl ace in ed uc atio n al se tti ngs.P)With in cr eas ingl y lar ge cla sse s, it is impos sib le for mo st teach ers to g ive stu den ts mea nin gfu l fee dback on writ in g assi gnm ent s, he said. Pl us, he not ed, criti cs of th e tech nology have tende d to come from th e nation’s best un iver sities, where th e le vel o f te ach ing is mu ch bett er t han at mo st schoo ls.Q)Ofte n the y come f rom v ery fa mou s instit uti ons wh ere, in fact, th ey do a much b ett er job o f prov iding fe edb a ck than a mach ine eve r cou ld,”Dr. Sh erm is s aid. “ Th er e seems to be a lack o f appre cia tio n of w hat i s actua lly g oin g on in the real wor ld.”46.Some p ro fes sio nal s in educ ati on a re coll ect ing sig natures to v oice th eir o pposition to automa ted essay gradin g.ing so ftw are t o gr ade stu den ts’ es says sav es teacher s tim e fo r other w ork.48.The H ewl ett con tes ts ai m at i mp rovi ng es say g rad ing sof tware.49.Thou gh th e aut om ate d gradin g sy stem i s wid ely used in mu lti ple-c hoic e tests, au tom ate d essay g rad i ng is stillcrit ici zed by m any e duc ato rs.50.Some p eo ple d on’t be lie ve th e so ft ware gra din g sy stem can do as goo d a job a s hum an g rad ers.51.Crit ics of autom ate d es say sco rin g d o not s eem to kn ow the tr ue realities in le ss famou s un ive rsitie s.52.Crit ics argue m any i mpo rta nt a spe ct s of ef fective writing cann ot b e me asured by co mpu te r rating pro gra ms.53.As cl ass s ize gro ws, mo st t eac her s a re un able to g ive stud ent s valuable c omme nts as to how t o im pro ve th eir writing.54.The a uto mat ed a sse ssm ent t ech nol o gy is s ometim es u sed to do uble chec k the w ork of hu ma n graders.55.Student s find in sta nt f eed bac k hel ps impr ove their lear nin g con sid er ably.Section CDire cti ons:There are 2 passages in this 'Section. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A), B), C) and D). You should decide onthe best choice and mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through thecentre.Pass age OneQuestio ns 56 to 60 are bas ed o n the foll owi ng p assage.The e ndl ess de bat e ab out “wo rk-l ife b al ance ’’ often con tains a ho pefu l fo otn ote ab out stay-at- h om e dad s. If Amer ic an s oci ety and bu sin ess wo n5t m ake it eas ier on fut ure femal e leade rs who cho ose to hav e ch ild ren, there is st ill th eray of h ope tha t i ncr eas ing num be rs o f fu ll-tim e f ath ers wil l. Bu t bas ed on to d ay’s s ocioec ono mic tren ds, th is h ope is,unfo rtu nat ely, m isguid ed.I t’s t ru e tha t the num ber o f me n wh o hav e lef t wo rk to d o their thin g as full-ti me p are nts h as d oubled in a d ecad e, butifs s til l very sma ll: o nly0. 8% o f marr ied co upl es w here the s tay-at-h ome father was ou t of th e la bor fo rc e fo r a y ea r. Ev enthat perc ent ag e is li kel y inf lat ed by men th rus t int o their caretak er ro le by a dow nsi zin g. Thi s is sim ply n ot a large eno ughgrou p t o re duc e t he soc ial stigma(污名)an d f orce o ther adju stm ents nece ssa ry to sup porting men i n th is dec isi on, e ven ifonly for a rel ati vel y sh ort t ime.Even sho rt er t ime s aw ay fro m wo r k for working f ath ers are al ready difficu lt. A stu dy f oun d th at 85% of n e w fa the rs take some tim e off aft er th e bi rth o f a chil d—b ut fo r all b ut a f ew, i t’s a week o r two a t mo st. Mea nw hil e, the av erage forwome n wh o tak e le ave is mo re t han 10 wee ks.Such choi ce s imp act who mov es up in t he o rganization. Wh ile you’re aw ay, so meo ne e lse is do ing yo ur wo rk, maki ng your sal es, t aki ng car e of yo ur cu sto mers. Th at can’t h elp you at work. It c an o nly hu rt y ou. Wo men, of co ur se, fac ethe s ame iss ues of ret urn ing aft er a l ong a bse nce. But with many m ore wome n th an m en cho osin g to le av e the wor kforceenti rel y to rais e fa mil ies, ret urn ing f r om an e xte nded paren tal leave d oesn’t raise as m any eye bro ws a s it d oes for m en.Wome n wou ld ma ke mo re if t he y didn't break th eir earn ing trajectory (轨迹)by leavi ng th e workforce, o r if higher-pay ing pro fes sio ns w ere m ore f ami ly-fr ien dly. In th e fo res eeable futu re, st ay- at-ho me fath ers m ay ma ke a ll thediff erenc e fo r in div idu al f ami lies, b ut th eir pre sen ce w on’t redu ce t he n umbe rs o f hi gh-pot ential wom en w ho are fo rc ed t ochoose betw een fam ily a nd c are er.56.What giv es wo me n a ray of h ope to achi eve wor k-life balance?A)More men t aki ng a n ex ten ded p ar en tal leav e.B)Peop led cha ngi ng at tit udes to war ds fami ly.C)More wom en e nte rin g bus ine ss m anagemen t.D)The i mpr ove men t of t hei r so cio eco nomi c st atu s.57.Why d oes t he a uth or s ay th e ho pe f or mo re full-time fath ers is mi sgui de d?A)Wome n ar e be tte r at t aki ng c are of c hild ren.B)Many men v alu e wo rk m ore t han th eir family.C)Thei r number is t oo sm al l to m ake a diff erence.D)Not m any m en h ave the c han ce t o s tay at hom e.58.Why d o fe w men tak e a lo ng p are nt al le ave?A) A long lea ve w ill h av e a ne gat ive im pact on th eir car eer.B)They jus t hav e to o man y re spo nsi bil ities to f ulf ill at wo rk.C)The e conomi c los s wi ll b e too muc h for th eir fam ily to bear.D)They are lik ely t o ge t fir ed i f ab sen t f rom work for too long.59.What is th e mo st li kel y re act ion to men r etu rni ng f rom an ex ten ded parenta l le ave?A) Jea lou sy.C) Ad mirati on.B) Surpri se.D) Sy mpa thy.60.What doe s the aut hor say a bou t hi gh-pot ential wom en in the n ot-too-dist ant f utu re?A)They wil l ben efi t fr om t he tr en d of more fat hers stayi ng at hom e.B)They wil l fin d hi gh-pay ing p rof es si ons a b it m ore f amily-fr ien dly.C)They are unli ke ly to b re ak th ei r car e er tr ajecto ry to raise a fam ily.D)They wil l sti ll f ace the d iff icu lt c hoi c e bet ween career an d ch ild ren.Pass age TwoQuestio ns 61 to 65 are bas ed o n the foll owi ng p assage.Some of t he wor ld’s most s ign ifi cant prob lem s nev er hit h ead lin es. On e exam ple co mes f rom ag ric ulture. Food ri ots and hunge r make n ews. But t he tre nd lyin g behind th ese matters is rarely talk ed ab out. Th is is the d ecl ine i n the gro wth i nyiel ds of som e of t he wo rld’s m ajo r crop s. A ne w stu dy by the Univ ersity of Mi nnesot a and McG ill U niv ersity in Montre a llooks at w her e, and how far, t his dec line is occur rin g.The aut hor s t ake a vas t n umb er of d ata poi nts fo r the fou r m ost importa nt crop s :ric e, wh ea t, co m a nd soyabeans (大豆).The y find th at on b et wee n 24% an d 39% of all harvested areas, t he impr ove men t in y iel ds tha t t ook plac e b efo re th e1980s slowed dow n in t he 1990s an d 2000s.Ther e ar e tw o wo rry ing f ea tur es of t he sl owd own. One is that it h as b een particu larly sh arp in t he wo rld’s m o st(人口多的)c oun tri es, In dia and Ch in a. Thei r abi lit y to f eed them selves h as been an i mpo rtant so urc e of r ela ti ve sta bility b ot hwithin t he c ountri es a nd on wor ld f ood m ark ets. That self-sufficien cy canno t be tak en for g ran ted if yi eld s continu e to slo wdown or re ve rse.Seco nd, yie ld gr owt h has be en lo wer in w heat and rice th an in co m and soya be ans. Th is is probl ema tic beca use whea t a nd ric e a re m or e im por tan t as f ood s, ac cou nting for ar oun d half of a ll calories con sum ed. C om and soy abeans aremore im por tan t a s f ee d g rai ns. T h e au tho rs not e that “w e h ave pr ef erent ial ly focuse d o ur cro p i mprov e ment efforts onfeeding ani mal s an d car s ra the r th an on cr ops t hat feed people and are the basis of food secu rity in muc h of the world. ”, The r eport qu ali fi es th e mo re op tim i stic find ing s of another new p ap er whic h sug ge sts t hat the w orl d wil l n ot hav e to dig u p a lo t mo re l and for far min g i n ord er t o fe ed 9 b illion peo ple in 2050, as the Food and Agr icu ltu re O rgan isa tio n hasargued.Inst ead, i t says, tha nks t o slo win g po pula tio n gro wth, l and curr en tly p lou ghed u p fo r cro ps might b e ab le to r eve rt (回返)to for est or wi lde rne ss. Thi s co uld hap pen. The troub le is that the f orec ast as sum es con tin ued im pro ve ments i n y ields,whic h ma y not act ual ly h app en.61.What doe s the aut hor try t o dr aw att enti on to?A) Fo od ri ots and h ung er i n the wor l d. C) Th e de clin e of the g ra in yield gro wth.B) Ne ws headlin es in the l ead ing m edia.D) Th e fo od su ppl y in p opu lou s cou ntri es.62.Why d oes t he a uth or m ent ion I ndi a and C hin a in p articu lar?A)Thei r se lf-suf fic ien cy i s vit al t o th e st abil ity o f wo rld foo d marke ts.B)Thei r fo od yi eld s ha ve b egu n to d ec rease sh arp ly in recen t years.C)Thei r bi g pop ula tio ns are c aus ing w orld wid e co ncerns.D)Thei r fo od se lf-su ffi ciency has b een taken fo r gr anted.63.What doe s the new stu dy by the t w o univ ersities say abou t recen t cro p impro vem ent efforts?A)They fai l to p rod uce the s am e rem ar kable results as bef ore the 1980s.B)They con tri but e a lo t to t he i mpr ove ment of hu man foo d pr odu ctio n.C)They pla y a ma jor rol e in g uar ant eei ng th e foo d security o f th e wo rld.D)They foc us mo re o n th e inc rease o f animal feed than hum an f ood g rains.64.What doe s the Foo d and Agr icu ltu r e Org anisation s ay abou t wo rld food prod uct ion in th e com ing dec ade s? aA)The g row ing p opu lat ion wil l greatl y incr ease th e pressu re o n wo rld food supp lies.B)The o pti mis tic p red ict ion abo ut fo od prod uction shou ld b e viewed wit h c auti on.C)The "slo wdo wn o f th e gro wth in yi e lds o f major f ood cro ps will b e rev ersed.D)The w orl d wil l be abl e to f eed its p o pulatio n wit hou t in creasi ng f arm lan d.65.How d oes t he a uth or vi ew t he a rgu ment of th e Fo od an d Ag riculture O rgan isa tio n?A)It is b uil t on t he f ind ings of a n ew s tu dy.B)It is b ase d on a dou btf ul as sum pti on.C)It is b ack ed b y str ong evi den ce.D)It is o pen to fu rth er d isc uss ion.Part IV Translation (30minutes)Dire cti ons:For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to translate a passage from Chinese into English. You should write your answer on Answer Sheet 2.据报道,今年中国快递服务(c ouri er s erv ices)将递送大约120亿件包裹。