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2016年 1 2 月大学英语四级考试真题（一 ）鬻
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Writing (30 minutes)
Part I
Directions： For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write an essay. Suppose you have two options upon
graduation ： one is to find a job somewhere and the other to start a business of your own. You are to make
a decision. Write an essay to explain the reasons for your decision. You should write at least 120 words but
no more than 180 words.
Part H Listening Comprehension (25 minutes)
Section A
Directions： In this section, you will hear three news reports. At the end of each news report, you will hear
two or three questions. Both the news report and the questions will be spoken only once. After you hear a
question, you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A'), B ), C) and D ). Then mark
the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.
Questions 1 and 2 are based on the news report you have just heard.
1. A) It was dangerous to live in. C) He could no longer pay the rent.
B) It was going to ber enovated. D) He had sold it to the royal family.
2. A) A strike. C) A forest fire.
B) A storm. D) A terrorist attack.
Questions 3 and 4 are based on the news report you have just heard.
3. A) They lost contact with the emergency department.
B) They were trapped in an underground elevator.
C) They were injured by suddenly falling rocks.
D) They sent calls for help via a portable radio.
4. A) They tried hard to repair the elevator.
B) They released the details of the accident.
C) They sent supplies to keep the miners warm.
D) They provided the miners with food and water.
Questions 5 to 7 are based on the news report you have just heard.
5. A) Raise postage rates. C) Redesign delivery routes.
B) Improve its services. D) Close some of its post offices.
6. A) Shortening business hours. C) Stopping mail delivery on Saturdays.
B) Closing offices on holidays. D) Computerizing mail sorting processes.
四级2016年 12月 17. A) Many post office staff will lose their jobs.
B) Many people will begin to complain.
C) Taxpayers will be very pleased.
D) A lot of controversy will arise.
Section B
Directions： In this section, you will hear two long conversations. At the end of each conversation, you will
hear four questions. Both the conversation and the questions will be spoken only once. After you hear a
question, you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A ), B), C) and D). Then mark
the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.
Questions 8 to 11 are based on the conversation you have just heard.
8. A) He will be kept from promotion. C) He will be given a warning.
B) He will go through retraining. D) He will lose part of his pay.
9. A) He is always on time. C) He is an experienced press operator.
B) He is a trustworthy guy. D) He is on good terms with his workmates.
10. A) She is a trade union representative. C) She is a senior manager of the shop.
B) She is in charge of public relations. D) She is better at handling such matters.
11. A) He is skilled and experienced.
B) He is very close to the manager.
C) He is always trying to stir up trouble.
D) He is always complaining about low wages.
Questions 12 to 15 are based on the conversation you have just heard.
12. A) Open. C) Selfish.
B) Friendly. D) Reserved.
13. A) They stay quiet. C) They talk about the weather.
B) They read a book. D) They chat with fellow passengers.
14. A) She was always treated as a foreigner.
B) She was eager to visit an English castle.
C) She was never invited to a colleague's home.
D) She was unwilling to make friends with workmates.
15. A) Houses are much more quiet. C) They want to have more space.
B) Houses provide more privacy. D) They want a garden of their own.
Section C
Directions： In this section, you will hear three passages. At the end of each passage, you will hear three or
four questions. Both the passage and the questions will be spoken only once. After you hear a question, you
must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A ), B ), C) and D ). Then mark the
corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.
Questions 16 to 18 are based on the passage you have just heard.
16. A) They don't have much choice of jobs.
B) They are likely to get much higher pay.
C) They don't have to go through job interviews.
D) They will automatically be given hiring priority.
四级2016年12月 217. A) Ask their professors for help. C) Visit the school careers service.
B) Look at school bulletin boards. D) Go through campus newspapers.
18. A) Helping students find the books and journals they need.
B) Supervising study spaces to ensure a quiet atmosphere.
C) Helping students arrange appointments with librarians.
D) Providing students with information about the library.
Questions 19 to 21 are based on the passage you have just heard.
19. A) It tastes better. C) It may be sold at a higher price.
B) It is easier to grow. D) It can better survive extreme weathers.
20. A) It is healthier than green tea. C) It will replace green tea one day.
B) It can grow in drier soil. D) It is immune to various diseases.
21. A) It has been well received bym any tea drinkers.
B) It does not bring the promised health benefits.
C) It has made tea farmers5 life easier.
D) It does not have a stable market.
Questions 22 to 25 are based on the passage you have just heard.
22. A) They need decorations to show their status.
B) They prefer unique objects of high quality.
C) They decorate their homes themselves.
D) They care more about environment.
23. A) They were proud of their creations.
B) They could only try to create at night.
C) They made great contributions to society.
D) They focused on the quality of their products.
24. A) Make wise choices. C) Design handicrafts themselves.
B) Identify fake crafts. D) Learn the importance of creation.
25. A) To boost the local economy. C) To arouse public interest in crafts.
B) To attract foreign investments. D) To preserve the traditional culture
Part IK Reading Comprehension (40 minutes)
Section A
Directions： In this section, there is a passage with ten blanks. You are required to select one word for each
blank from a list of choices given in a word bank following the passage. Read the passage through carefully
before making your choices. Each choice in the bank is identified by a letter. Please mark the corresponding
letter for each item on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre. You may not use any of the
words in the bank more than once.
When someone commits a criminal act, we always hope the punishment will match the offense. But
when it comes to one of the crudest crimes- animal fighting- things 26 work out that way. Dog
fighting victims are 27 and killed for profit and “sport,“ yet their criminal abusers often receive a
28 sentence for causing a lifetime of pain. Roughly half of all federally-convicted animal fighters
only get probation (缓刑).
四级2016年12月 3Some progress has been made in the prosecution (起诉)of animal fighters. But federal judges often
rely heavily on the U. S. Sentencing Guidelines when they 29 penalties, and in the case of animal
fighting, those guidelines are outdated and extremely 3 0 .
The U. S. Sentencing Commission, which 31 these sentencing guidelines, is revisiting them,
proposing to raise the minimum sentence from 6-12 to 21 - 27 months. This is a step in the right
3 2 , but we'd like to see the U.S. Sentencing Commission make further changes to the guidelines.
Along with this effort, we're working with animal advocates and state and federal lawmakers to
3 3 anti-cruelty laws across the country, as well as supporting laws and policies that assist
overburdened animal 3 4 that care for animal fighting victims. This help is 3 5 important
because the high cost of caring for animal victims is a major factor that prevents people from getting
involved in cruelty cases in the first place.
A) convenient F) hesitate K) rarely
B) creates G) inadequate L) shelters
C) critically H) inspired M) strengthen
D) determine I) method N) sufferings
E) direction J) minimal O) tortured
Section B
Directions： 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 the
information is derived. You may choose a paragraph more than once. Each paragraph is marked with a
letter. Answer the questions by marking the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2.
When Work Becomes a Game
A) What motivates employees to do their jobs well? Competition with coworkers, for some. The promise
of rewards, for others. Pure enjoyment of problem-solving, for a lucky few.
B) Increasingly, companies are tapping into these desires directly through what has come to be known as
“gamification"： essentially, turning work into a game. ^Gamification is about understanding what it is
that makes games engaging and what game designers do to create a great experience in games, and
taking those learnings and applying them to other contexts such as the workplace and education,w
explains Kevin Werbach, a gamification expert who teaches at the Wharton School of Business at the
University of Pennsylvania in the United States.
C) It might mean monitoring employee productivity on a digital leaderboard and offering prizes to the
winners, or giving employees digital badges or stars for completing certain activities. It could also
mean training employees how to do their jobs through video game platforms. Companies from Google
to L5Oreal to IBM to Wells Fargo are known to use some degree of gamification in their workplaces.
And more and more companies are joining them. A recent report suggests that the global gamification
market will grow from $1.65 billion in 2015 to $11.1 billion by 2020.
D) The concept of gamification is not entirely new, Werbach says. Companies, marketers and teachers
have long looked for fun ways to engage people's reward-seeking or competitive spirits. Cracker Jacks
has been “gamifying“ its snack food by putting a small prize inside for more than 100 years, he adds,
and the turn-of-the-century steel magnate (巨头)Charles Schwab is said to have often come into his
factory and written the number of tons of steel produced on the past shift on the factory floor, thus
motivating the next shift of workers to beat the previous one.
四级2016年12月 4E) But the word “gamification“ and the widespread, conscious application of the concept only began in
earnest about five years ago, Werbach says. Thanks in part to video games, the generation now
entering the workforce is especially open to the idea of having their work gamified. "We are at a point
where in much of the developed world the vast majority of young people grew up playing video games,
and an increasingly high percentage of adults play these video games too,“ Werbach says.
F) A number of companies have sprung up- GamEffective, Bunchball and Badgeville, to name a few一in
recent years offering gamification platforms for businesses. The platforms that are most effective turn
employees5 ordinary job tasks into part of a rich adventure narrative. "What makes a game game-like is
that the player actually cares about the outcome,w Werbach says. "The principle is about
understanding what is motivating to this group of players, which requires some understanding of
psychology.n
G) Some people, Werbach says, are motivated by competition. Sales people often fall into this category.
For them, the right kind of gamification might be turning their sales pitches into a competition with
other team members, complete with a digital leaderboard showing who is winning at all times. Others
are more motivated by collaboration and social experiences. One company Werbach has studied uses
gamification to create a sense of community and boost employees, morale (士气). When employees log
in to their computers, they're shown a picture of one of their coworkers and asked to guess that
person's name.
H) Gamification does not have to be digital. Monica Cornetti runs a company that gamifies employee
trainings. Sometimes this involves technology, but often it does not. She recently designed a
gamification strategy for a sales training company with a storm-chasing theme. Employees formed
storm chaser teams^^ and competed in storm-themed educational exercises to earn various rewards.
“Rewards do not have to be stuff Cornetti says. "Rewards can be flexible working hours.M Another
training, this one for pay roll law, used a Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs theme. "Snow White” is
available for everyone to use, but the “dwarfs“ are still under copyright, so Cornetti invented sound-
alike characters (Grumpy Gus, Dopey Dan) to illustrate specific pay roll law principles.
I) Some people do not take naturally to gamified work environments, Cornetti says. In her experience,
• people in positions of power or people in finance or engineering do not tend to like the sound of the
word. "If we are designing for engineers, Fm not talking about a 'game' at all,“ Cornetti says. "I'm
talking about a 4 simulation, (模才以)，Fm talking about 4 being able to solve this problem.,M
J) Gamification is “not a magic bullet,w Werbach warns. A gamification strategy that is not sufficiently
thought through or well tailored to its players may engage people for a little while, but it will not
motivate people in the long term. It can also be exploitative, especially when used with vulnerable
populations. For workers, especially low-paid workers, who desperately need their jobs yet know they
can be easily replaced, gamification may feel more like the Hunger Games. Werbach gives the
example of several Disneyland hotels in Anaheim, California, which used large digital leaderboards to
display how efficiently laundry workers were working compared to one another. Some employees
found the board motivating. To others, it was the opposite of fun. Some began to stop taking
bathroom breaks, worried that if their productivity fell they would be fired. Pregnant employees
struggled to keep up. In a Los Angeles Times article, one employee referred to the board as a “digital
whip.n "It actually had a very negative effect on morale and performance,w Werbach says.
K) Still, gamification only stands to become more popular, he says, “as more and more people come into
the workforce who are familiar with the structures and expressions of digital games.n "We are far
from reaching the peak,^^ Cornetti agrees. "There is no reason this will go away.”
四级2016年 12月 536. Some famous companies are already using gamification and more are trying to do the same.
37. Gamification is not a miracle cure for all workplaces as it may have negative results.
38. To enhance morale, one company asks its employees to identify their fellow workers when starting
their computers.
39. The idea of gamification was practiced by some businesses more than a century ago.
40. There is reason to believe that gamification will be here to stay.
41. Video games contributed in some ways to the wide application of gamification.
42. When turning work into a game, it is necessary to understand what makes games interesting.
43. Gamification in employee training does not always need technology.
44. The most successful gamification platforms transform daily work assignments into fun experiences.
45. It is necessary to use terms other than “gamification“ for some professions.
Section C
Directions： There are 2 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished
statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A ） , B）, C） and D）. You should decide on
the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre.
Passage One
Questions 46 to 50 are based on the following pass阻e.
Recently I attended several meetings where we talked about ways to retain students and keep younger
faculty members from going elsewhere.
It seems higher education has become an industry of meeting-holders whose task it is to “solve”
problems- real or imagined. And in my position as a professor at three different colleges, the actual
problems in educating our young people and older students have deepened, while the number of people
hired- not to teach but to hold meetings- has increased significantly. Every new problem creates a new
job for an administrative fixer. Take our Center for Teaching Excellence. Contrary to its title, the center
is a clearing house （信息交流中心）for using technology in classrooms and in online courses. It's an
administrative sham （欺诈）of the kind that has multiplied over the last 30 years.
I offer a simple proposition in response： Many of our problems- class attendance, educational
success, student happiness and well-being- might be improved by cutting down the bureaucratic （官僚的）
mechanisms and meetings and instead hiring an army of good teachers. If we replaced half of our
administrative staff with classroom teachers, we might actually get a majority of our classes back to 20 or
fewer students per teacher. This would be an environment in which teachers and students actually knew
each other.
The teachers must be free to teach in their own way- the curriculum should be flexible enough so that
they can use their individual talents to achieve the goals of the course. Additionally, they should be
allowed to teach, and be rewarded for doing it well. Teachers are not people who are great at and
consumed by research and happen to appear in a classroom. Good teaching and research are not exclusive,
but they are also not automatic companions. Teaching is an art and a craft, talent and practice； it is not
something that just anyone can be good at. It is utterly confusing to me that people do not recognize this,
despite the fact that pretty much anyone who has been a student can tell the difference between their best
and worst teachers.
四级2016年12月 646. What does the author say about present-day universities?
A) They are effectively tackling real or imagined problems.
B) They often fail to combine teaching with research.
C) They are over-burdened with administrative staff.
D) They lack talent to fix their deepening problems.
47. According to the author, what kind of people do universities lack most?
A) Good classroom teachers. C) Talented researchers.
B) Efficient administrators. D) Motivated students.
48. What does the author imply about the classes at present?
A) They facilitate students, independent learning.
B) They help students form closer relationships.
C) They have more older students than before.
D) They are much bigger than is desirable.
49. What does the author think of teaching ability?
A) It requires talent and practice.
B) It is closely related to research.
C) It is a chief factor affecting students5 learning.
D) It can be acquired through persistent practice.
50. What is the author's suggestion for improving university teaching?
A) Creating an environment for teachers to share their teaching experiences.
B) Hiring more classroom teachers and allowing them to teach in their own way.
C) Using high technology in classrooms and promoting exchange of information.
D) Cutting down meetings and encouraging administrative staff to go to classrooms.
Passage Two
Questions 51 to 55 are based on the following passage.
The secret to eating less and being happy about it may have been cracked years ago- by McDonald's.
According to a new study from Cornell University's Food and Brand Lab, small non-food rewards- like
the toys in McDonald's Happy Meals一stimulate the same reward centers in the brain as food does.
The researchers, led by Martin Reimann, carried out a series of experiments to see if people would
choose a smaller meal if it was paired with a non-food item.
They found that the majority of both kids and adults opted for a half-sized portion when combined
with a prize. Both options were priced the same.
Even more interesting is that the promise of a future reward was enough to make adults choose the
smaller portion. One of the prizes used was a lottery ticket (彩票),with a $10, $50 or $100 payout, and
this was as effective as a tangible gift in persuading people to eat less.
“The fact that participants were willing to substitute part of a food item for the mere prospect of a
relatively small monetary award is interesting,M says Reimann.
He theorizes that it is the emotional component of these intangible prizes that make them effective.
In fact, vaguely-stated possibilities of winning a prize were more effective than options with hard odds
included.
“One explanation for this finding is that possible awards may be more emotionally provoking than
certainty awards,w says Reimann. "The uncertainty of winning provides added attraction and desirability
四级2016年12月 7through emotional 4 thrills., The possibility of receiving an award also produces a state of hope- a state
that is in itself psychologically rewarding.w In other words, there,s a reason why people like to gamble.
How might this knowledge be used to help people eat more healthily?
One possibility is a healthy option that offers the chance to win a spa (温泉疗养)weekend. Or maybe
the reward of a half-sized portion could be a half-sized dessert to be claimed only on a future date. That
would get you back in the restaurant—and make you eat a little less.
51. What do we learn about McDonald 5s inclusion of toys in its Happy Meals?
A) It may shed light on people's desire to crack a secret.
B) It has proved to be key to McDonald's business success.
C) It appeals to kid's curiosity to find out what is hidden inside.
D) It may be a pleasant way for kids to reduce their food intake.
52. What is the finding of the researchers led by Martin Reimann?
A) Reducing food intake is not that difficult if people go to McDonald's more.
B) Most kids and adults don't actually feel hungry when they eat half of their meal.
C) Eating a smaller portion of food does good to the health of kids and adults alike.
D) Most kids and adults would choose a smaller meal that came with a non-food item.
53. What is most interesting in Martin Reimann's finding?
A) Kids preferred an award in the form of money to one in the form of a toy.
B) Adults chose the smaller portion on the mere promise of a future award.
C) Both kids and adults felt satisfied with only half of their meal portions.
D) Neither children nor adults could resist the temptation of a free toy.
54. How does Martin Reimann interpret his finding?
A) The emotional component of the prizes is at work.
B) People now care more about quality than quantity.
C) People prefer certainty awards to possible awards.
D) The desire for a future reward is overwhelming.
55. What can we infer from Martin Reimann's finding?
A) People should eat much less if they wish to stay healthy and happy.
B) More fast food restaurants are likely to follow McDonald's example.
C) We can lead people to eat less while helping the restaurant business.
D) More studies are needed to find out the impact of emotion on behavior.
Part N Translation (30 minutes)
Directions： 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.
在中国文化中，红色通常象征着好运、长寿和幸福。在春节和其他喜庆场合，红色到处可见。人们把
现金作为礼物送给家人或亲密朋友时，通常放在红信封里。红色在中国流行的另一个原因是人们把它与
中国革命和共产党相联系。然而，红色并不总是代表好运和快乐。因为从前死者的名字常用红色书写，用
红墨水书写中国人名被看成是一种冒犯行为。
四级2016年12月 82016年 1 2 月大学英语四级考试真题（二）
回:鹫回
回濡弼里
Part I Writing (30 minutes)
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Directions： For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write an essay. Suppose you have two options upon
graduation ： one is to take a job in a company and the other to go to a graduate school. You are to make a
choice between the two. Write an essay to explain the reasons for your choice. You should write at least 120
words but no more than 180 words.
Part ][ Listening Comprehension (25 minutes)
Section A
Directions： In this section, you will hear three news reports. At the end of each news report, you will hear
two or three questions. Both the news report and the questions will be spoken only once. After you hear a
question, you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A ), B), C) and D). Then mark
the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.
Questions 1 and 2 are based on the news report you have just heard.
1. A) To satisfy the curiosity of tourists. C) To enable tourists to visit Goat Island.
B) To replace two old stone bridges. D) To improve utility services in the state.
2. A) Countless tree limbs.
B) A few skeletons.
C) Lots of wrecked boats and ships.
D) Millions of coins on the bottom.
Questions 3 and 4 are based on the news report you have just heard.
3. A) It suspended diplomatic relations with Libya.
B) It urged tourists to leave Tunisia immediately.
C) It shut down two border crossings with Libya.
D) It launched a fierce attack against Islamic State.
4. A) Advise Tunisian civilians on how to take safety precautions.
B) Track down the organization responsible for the terrorist attack.
C) Train qualified security personnel for the Tunisian government.
D) Devise a monitoring system on the Tunisian border with Libya.
Questions 5 to 7 are based on the news report you have just heard.
5. A) An environment-friendly battery. C) A plant-powered mobile phone charger.
B) An energy-saving mobile phone. D) A device to help plants absorb sunlight.
四级2016年 12月 256. A) While sitting in their schoofs courtyard.
B) While playing games on their phones.
C) While solving a mathematical problem.
D) While doing a chemical experiment.
7. A) It increases the applications of mobile phones.
B) It speeds up the process of photosynthesis.
C) It improves the reception of mobile phones.
D) It collects the energy released by plants.
Section B
Directions： In this section, you will hear two long conversations. At the end of each conversation, you will
hear four questions. Both the conversation and the questions will be spoken only once. After you hear a
question, you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A ), B), C) and D). Then mark
the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.
Questions 8 to 11 are based on the conversation you have just heard.
8. A) He visited the workshops in the Grimsby plant.
B) He called the woman and left her a message.
C) He used stand-ins as replacements on all lines.
D) He asked a technician to fix the broken production line.
9. A) It is the most modern production line. C) It has stopped working completely.
B) It assembles super-intelligent robots. D) It is going to be upgraded soon.
10. A) To seek her permission. C) To request her to return at once.
B) To place an order for robots. D) To ask for Tom5s phone number.
11. A) She is on duty. C) She is on sick leave.
B) She is having her day off. D) She is abroad on business.
Questions 12 to 15 are based on the conversation you have just heard.
12. A) He saved a baby boy's life. C) He prevented a train crash.
B) He wanted to be a superhero. D) He was a witness to an accident.
13. A) He has a 9-month-old boy. C) He enjoys the interview.
B) He is currently unemployed. D) He commutes by subway.
14. A) A rock on the tracks. C) A strong wind.
B) A misplaced pushchair. D) A speeding car.
15. A) She stood motionless in shock. C) She called the police at once.
B) She cried bitterly. D) She shouted for help.
Section C
Directions： In this section, you will hear three passages. At the end of each passage, you will hear three or
four questions. Both the passage and the questions will be spoken only once. After you hear a question, you
must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A ), B), C) and D ). Then mark the
corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.
四级2016年12月 26Questions 16 to 18 are based on the pass晔 you have just heard.
16. A) She inherited her family ice-cream business in Billings.
B) She loved the ice-cream business more than teaching primary school.
C) She started an ice-cream business to finance her daughter's education.
D) She wanted to have an ice-cream truck when she was a little girl.
17. A) To preserve a tradition. C) To help local education.
B) To amuse her daughter. D) To make some extra money.
18. A) To raise money for business expansion. C) To allow poor kids to have ice-cream too.
B) To make her truck attractive to children. D) lb teach kids the value of mutual support.
Questions 19 to 21 are based on the passage you have just heard.
19. A) The reasons for imposing taxes.
B) The various services money can buy.
C) The various burdens on ordinary citizens.
D) The function of money in the modern world.
20. A) Educating and training citizens. C) Protecting people's life and property.
B) Improving public transportation. D) Building hospitals and public libraries.
21. A) By asking for donations. C) By selling government bonds.
B) By selling public lands. D) By exploiting natural resources.
Questions 22 to 25 are based on the passage you have just heard.
22. A) It is located at the center of the European continent.
B) It relies on tourism as its chief source of revenues.
C) It contains less than a square mile of land.
D) It is surrounded by France on three sides.
23. A) Its beauty is frequently mentioned in American media.
B) Its ruler Prince Rainier married an American actress.
C) It is where many American movies are shot.
D) It is a favorite place Americans like to visit.
24. A) Tobacco. B) Potatoes. C) Machinery. D) Clothing.
25. A) European history. C) Small countries in Europe.
B) European geography. D) Tourist attractions in Europe.
Part U[ Reading Comprehension (40 minutes)
Section A
Directions： In this section, there is a passage with ten blanks. You are required to select one word for each
blank from a list of choices given in a word bank following the passage. Read the passage through carefully
before making your choices. Each choice in the bank is identified by a letter. Please mark the corresponding
letter for each item on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre. You may not use any of the
words in the bank more than once.
The ocean is heating up. That's the conclusion of a new study that finds that Earth's oceans now
26 heat at twice the rate they did 18 years ago. Around half of ocean heat intake since 1865 has
taken place since 1997, researchers report online in Nature Climate Change.
四级2016年12月 27Warming waters are known to 27 to coral bleaching (珊瑚白化)and they take up more space
than cooler waters, raising sea 2 8 . While the top of the ocean is well studied, its depths are more
difficult to 2 9 . The researchers gathered 150 years of ocean temperature data in order to get a better
30 of heat absorption from surface to seabed. They gathered together temperature readings collected by
everything from a 19th century 3 1 of British naval ships to modern automated ocean probes. The
extensive data sources, 3 2 with computer simulations (计 算机模拟)，created a timeline of ocean
temperature changes, including cooling from volcanic outbreaks and warming from fossil fuel 3 3 .
About 35 percent of the heat taken in by the oceans during the industrial era now resides at a 34 of
more than 700 meters, the researchers found. They say they're 3 5 whether the deep-sea warming
canceled out warming at the sea's surface.
A) absorb F) excursion K) levels
B) combined G) explore L) mixed
C) contribute H) floor M) picture
D) depth I) heights N) unsure
E) emissions J) indifferent O) voyage
Section B
Directions： 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 the
information is derived. You may choose a paragraph more than once. Each paragraph is marked with a
letter. Answer the questions by marking the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2.
The Secret to Raising Smart Kids
A) I first began to investigate the basis of human motivation- and how people persevere after setbacks—
as a psychology graduate student at Yale University in the 1960s. Animal experiments by psychologists
at the University of Pennsylvania had shown that after repeated failures, most animals conclude that a
situation is hopeless and beyond their control. After such an experience an animal often remains
passive even when it can effect change- a state they called learned helplessness.
B) People can learn to be helpless, too. Why do some students give up when they encounter difficulty,
whereas others who are no more skilled continue to strive and learn? One answer, I soon discovered,
lay in people's beliefs about why they had failed.
C) In particular, attributing poor performance to a lack of ability depresses motivation more than does the
belief that lack of effort is to blame. When I told a group of school children who displayed helpless
behavior that a lack of effort led to their mistakes in math, they learned to keep trying when the
problems got tough. Another group of helpless children who were simply rewarded for their success on
easier problems did not improve their ability to solve hard math problems. These experiments indicated
that a focus on effort can help resolve helplessness and generate success.
D) Later, I developed a broader theory of what separates the two general classes of learners- helpless
versus mastery-oriented. I realized these different types of students not only explain their failures
differently, but they also hold different u theoriesn of intelligence. The helpless ones believe
intelligence is a fixed characteristic： you have only a certain amount, and that's that. I call this a
“fixed mind-set (思 维 模 式 )Mistakes crack their self-confidence because they attribute errors to a
lack of ability, which they feel powerless to change. They avoid challenges because challenges make
mistakes more likely. The mastery-oriented children, on the other hand, think intelligence is not fixed
and can be developed through education and hard work. Such children believe challenges are
四级2016年 12月 28energizing rather than intimidating (令人生畏)；they offer opportunities to learn. Students with such
a growth mind-set were destined (注 定 )for greater academic success and were quite likely to
outperform their counterparts.
E) We validated these expectations in a study in which two other psychologists and I monitored 373
students for two years during the transition to junior high school, when the work gets more difficult
and the grading more strict, to determine how their mind-sets might affect their math grades. At the
beginning of seventh grade, we assessed the students5 mind-sets by asking them to agree or disagree
with statements such as “Your intelligence is something very basic about you that you can't really
change.n We then assessed their beliefs about other aspects of learning and looked to see what
happened to their grades.
F) As predicted, the students with a growth mind-set felt that learning was a more important goal than
getting good grades. In addition, they held hard work in high regard. They understood that even
geniuses have to work hard. Confronted by a setback such as a disappointing test grade, students with
a growth mind-set said they would study harder or try a different strategy. The students who held a
fixed mind-set, however, were concerned about looking smart with less regard for learning. They had
negative views of effort, believing that having to work hard was a sign of low ability. They thought
that a person with talent or intelligence did not need to work hard to do well. Attributing a bad grade
to their own lack of ability, those with a fixed mind-set said that they would study less in the future,
try never to take that subject again and consider cheating on future tests.
G) Such different outlooks had a dramatic impact on performance. At the start of junior high, the math
achievement test scores of the students with a growth mind-set were comparable to those of students
who displayed a fixed mind-set. But as the work became more difficult, the students with a growth
mind-set showed greater persistence. As a result, their math grades overtook those of the other
students by the end of the first semester—and the gap between the two groups continued to widen
during the two years we followed them.
H) A fixed mind-set can also hinder communication and progress in the workplace and discourage or
ignore constructive criticism and advice. Research shows that managers who have a fixed mind-set are
less likely to seek or welcome feedback from their employees than are managers with a growth
mind-set.
I) How do we transmit a growth mind-set to our children? One way is by telling stories about
achievements that result from hard work. For instance, talking about mathematical geniuses who were
more or less born that way puts students in a fixed mind-set, but descriptions of great mathematicians
who fell in love with math and developed amazing skills produce a growth mind-set.
J) In addition, parents and teachers can help children by providing explicit instruction regarding the mind
as a learning machine. I designed an eight-session workshop for 91 students whose math grades were
declining in their first year of. junior high. Forty-eight of the students received instruction in study
skills only, whereas the others attended a combination of study skills sessions and classes in which they
learned about the growth mind-set and how to apply it to schoolwork. In the growth mind-set classes,
students read and discussed an article entitled “You Can Grow Your Brain.n They were taught that the
brain is like a muscle that gets stronger with use and that learning prompts the brain to grow new
connections. From such instruction, many students began to see themselves as agents of their own
brain development. Despite being unaware that there were two types of instruction, teachers reported
significant motivational changes in 27% of the children in the growth mind-set workshop as compared
with only 9% of students in the control group.
四级2016年 12月 29K) Research is converging (5匚聚)on the conclusion that great accomplishment and even genius is typically
the result of years of passion and dedication and not something that flows naturally from a gift.
36. The author's experiment shows that students with a fixed mind-set believe having to work hard is an
indication of low ability.
37. Focusing on effort is effective in helping children overcome frustration and achieve success.
38. We can cultivate a growth mind-set in children by telling success stories that emphasize hard work and
love of learning.
39. Students* belief about the cause of their failure explains their attitude toward setbacks.
40. In the author's experiment, students with a growth mind-set showed greater perseverance in solving
difficult math problems.
41. The author conducted an experiment to find out about the influence of students* mind-sets on math
learning.
42. After failing again and again, most animals give up hope.
43. Informing students about the brain as a learning machine is a good strategy to enhance their motivation
for learning.
44. People with a fixed mind-set believe that one's intelligence is unchangeable.
45. In the workplace, feedback may not be so welcome to managers with a fixed mind-set.
Section C
Directions： There are 2 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished
statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A) , B ), C) and D ). You should decide on
the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through, the centre.
Passage One
Questions 46 to 50 are based on the following passage.
“Sugar, alcohol and tobacco,M economist Adam Smith once wrote, u are commodities which are
nowhere necessaries of life, which have become objects of almost universal consumption, and which are,
therefore, extremely popular subjects of taxation.M
Two and a half centuries on, most countries impose some sort of tax on alcohol and tobacco. With
surging obesity levels putting increasing strain on public health systems, governments around the world
have begun to toy with the idea of taxing sugar as well.
Whether such taxes work is a matter of debate. A preliminary review of Mexico's taxation found a
fall in purchases of taxed drinks as well as a rise in sales of untaxed and healthier drinks. By contrast, a
Danish tax on foods high in fats was abandoned a year after its introduction, amid claims that consumers
were avoiding it by crossing the border to Germany to satisfy their desire for cheaper, fattier fare.
The food industry has, in general, been firmly opposed to such direct government action.
Nonetheless, the renewed focus on waistlines means that industry groups are under pressure to demonstrate
their products are healthy as well as tasty.
Over the past three decades, the industry has made some efforts to improve the quality of its
offerings. For example, some drink manufacturers have cut the amount of sugar in their beverages.
Many of the reductions over the past 30 years have been achieved either by reducing the amount of
sugar, salt or fat in a product, or by finding an alternative ingredient. More recently, however, some
companies have been investing money in a more ambitious undertaking： learning how to adjust the
fundamental make-up of the food they sell. For example, having salt on the outside, but none on the
inside, reduces the salt content without changing the taste.
四级2016年12月 30While reformulating recipes (酉己方)is one way to improve public health, it should be part of a
multi-sided approach. The key is to remember that there is not just one solution. To deal with obesity,
a mixture of approaches- including reformulation, taxation and adjusting portion sizes- will be
needed. There is no silver bullet.
46. What did Adam Smith say about sugar, alcohol and tobacco?
A) They were profitable to manufacture.
B) They were in ever-increasing demand.
C) They were subject to taxation almost everywhere.
D) They were no longer considered necessities of life.
47. Why have many countries started to consider taxing sugar?
A) They are under growing pressure to balance their national budgets.
B) They find it ever harder to cope with sugar-induced health problems.
C) The practice of taxing alcohol and tobacco has proved both popular and profitable.
D) The sugar industry is overtaking alcohol and tobacco business in generating profits.
48. What do we learn about Danish taxation on fat-rich foods?
A) It did not work out as well as was expected.
B) It gave rise to a lot of problems on the border.
C) It could not succeed without German cooperation.
D) It met with firm opposition from the food industry.
49. What is the more recent effort by food companies to make foods and drinks both healthy and tasty?
A) Replacing sugar or salt with alternative ingredients.
B) Setting a limit on the amount of sugar or salt in their products.
C) Investing in research to find ways to adapt to consumers5 needs.
D) Adjusting the physical composition of their products.
50. What does the author mean by saying, at the end of the passage/"There is no silver bullet”(Line 4,
Para. 7)?
A) There is no single easy quick solution to the problem.
B) There is no hope of success without public cooperation.
C) There is no hurry in finding ways to solve the obesity problem.
D) There is no effective way to reduce people's sugar consumption.
Passage Two
Questions 51 to 55 are based on the following passage.
You may have heard some of the fashion industry horror stories： models eating tissues or cotton balls
to hold off hunger, and models collapsing from hunger-induced heart attacks just seconds after they step
off the runway.
Excessively skinny models have been a point of controversy for decades, and two researchers say a
modefs body mass should be a workplace health and safety issue. In an editorial released Monday in the
American Journal of Public Health, Katherine Record and Bryn Austin made their case for government
regulation of the fashion industry.
The average international runway model has a body mass index (BMI) under 16- low enough to
indicate starvation by the World Health Organization's standard. And Record and Austin are worried not
just about the models themselves, but about the vast number of girls and women their images influence.
“Especially girls and teens,w says Record. Seventy percent of girls aged 10 to 18 report that they
四级2016年 12月 31define perfect body image based on what they see in magazines.w That's especially worrying, she says,
given that anorexia (厌食症)results in more deaths than does any other mental illness, according to the
National Institute of Mental Health.
It's commonly known that certain diseases are linked with occupations like lung disease in coal
miners. Professional fashion models are particularly vulnerable to eating disorders resulting from
occupational demands to maintain extreme thinness.
Record's suggestion is to prohibit agents from hiring models with a BMI below 18.
In April, France passed a law setting lower limits for a models weight. Agents and fashion houses
who hire models with a BMI under 18 could pay $ 82,000 in fines and spend up to 6 months in jail.
Regulating the fashion industry in the United States won't be easy, Record says. But with the new rules in
France, U. S. support could make a difference. "A designer can't survive without participating in Paris
Fashion Week”, she says, adding,“Our argument is that the same would be true of New York Fashion
Week. ”
51. What do Record and Austin say about fashion models5 body mass?
A) It has caused needless controversy. C) It is the focus of the modeling business.
B) It is but a matter of personal taste. D) It affects models5 health and safety.
52. What are Record and Austin advocating in the Monday editorial?
A) A change in the public's view of female beauty.
B) Government legislation about models, weight.
C) Elimination of forced weight loss by models.
D) Prohibition of models eating non-food stuff.
53. Why are Record and Austin especially worried about the low body mass index of models?
A) It contributes to many mental illnesses.
B) It defines the future of the fashion industry.
C) It has great influence on numerous girls and women.
D) It keeps many otherwise qualified women off the runway.
54. What do we learn about France's fashion industry?
A) It has difficulty hiring models. C) It allows girls under 18 on the runway.
B) It has now a new law to follow. D) It has overtaken that of the United States.
55. What does Record expect of New York Fashion Week?
A) It will create a completely new set of rules.
B) It will do better than Paris Fashion Week.
C) It will differ from Paris Fashion Week.
D) It will have models with a higher BMI.
Part N Translation (30 minutes)
Directions： 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.
在中国文化中，黄颜色是一种很重要的颜色，因为它具有独特的象征意义。在封建中eudaD社会中，它
象征统治者的权力和权威。那时,黄色是专为皇帝使用的颜色，皇家宫殿全都漆成黄色，皇袍总是黄色的，
而普通老百姓是禁止穿黄色衣服的。在中国，黄色也是收获的象征。秋天庄稼成熟时，田野变得一片金
黄。人们兴高采烈，庆祝丰收。
四级2016年12月 322016年 1 2 月大学英语四级考试真题（三）
Part I Writing (30 minutes)
Directions： For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write an essay. Suppose you have two options upon
graduation ： one is to work in a state-owned business and the other in a joint venture. You are to make a
choice between the two. Write an essay to explain the reasons for your choice. You should write at least 120
words but no more than 180 words.
Part I Listening Comprehension (25 minutes)
说明：由于2016年 12月四级考试全国共考了两套听力,本套真题听力与前两套内容相同，只是选项顺序不
同，因此在本套真题中不再重复出现。
Part IE Reading Comprehension (40 minutes)
Section A
Directions： In this section, there is a passage with ten blanks. You are required to select one word for each
blank from a list of choices given in a word bank following the passage. Read the passage through carefully
before making your choices. Each choice in the bank is identified by a letter. Please mark the corresponding
letter for each item on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre. You may not use any of the
words in the bank more than once.
Many men and women have long bought into the idea that there are "male" and "female“ brains,
believing that explains just about every difference between the sexes. A new study 26 that belief,
questioning whether brains really can be distinguished by gender.
In the study, Tel Aviv University researchers 2 7 for sex differences throughout the entire
human brain.
And what did they find? Not much. Rather than offer evidence for 28 brains as "male" or
“female,“ research shows that brains fall into a wide range, with most people falling right in the middle.
Daphna Joel, who led the study, said her research found that while there are some gender-based
2 9 , many different types of brain can't always be distinguished by gender.
While the “average“ male and “average“ female brains were 30 different, you couldn't tell it
by looking at individual brain scans. Only a small 3 1 of people had “all-male" or "all-female”
characteristics.
Larry Cahill, an American neuroscientist (神经科学家)，said the study is an important addition to a
growing body of research questioning 32 beliefs about gender and brain function. But he cautioned
against concluding from this study that all brains are the s a m e ,33 of gender.
“There's a mountain of evidence 3 4 the importance of sex influences at all levels of brain
function/5 he told The Seattle Times.
If anything, he said, the study 35 that gender plays a very important role in the brain—“even
when we are not clear exactly how.”
四级2016年12月 49A) abnormal F) figure K) similarities
B) applied G) percentage L) slightly
C) briefly H) proving M) suggests
D) categorizing I) regardless N) tastes
E) challenges J) searched O) traditional
Section B
Directions： 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 the
information is derived. You may choose a paragraph more than once. Each paragraph is marked with a
letter. Answer the questions by marking the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2.
Can Burglars Jam Your Wireless Security System?
A) Any product that promises to protect your home deserves careful examination. So it isn't surprising that
you'll find plenty of strong opinions about the potential vulnerabilities of popular home-security
systems.
B) The most likely type of burglary (入室盗窃)by far is the unsophisticated crime of opportunity, usually
involving a broken window or some forced entry. According to the FBI, crimes like these accounted
for roughly two-thirds of all household burglaries in the US in 2013. The wide majority of the rest were
illegal, unforced entries that resulted from something like a window being left open. The odds of a
criminal using technical means to bypass a security system are so small that the FBI doesn't even track
those statistics.
C) One of the main theoretical home-security concerns is whether or not a given system is vulnerable to
being blocked from working altogether. With wired setups, the fear is that a burglar (入室盗贼)
might be able to shut your system down simply by cutting the right cable. With a wireless setup, you
stick battery-powered sensors up around your home that keep an eye on windows, doors, motion, and
more. If they detect something wrong while the system is armed, they'll transmit a wireless alert signal
to a base station that will then raise the alarm. That approach will eliminate most cord-cutting
concerns■—but what about their wireless equivalent, jamming? With the right device tuned to the right
frequency, what5s to stop a thief from jamming your setup and blocking that alert signal from ever
reaching the base station?
D) Jamming concerns are nothing new, and they're not unique to security systems. Any device that's built
to receive a wireless signal at a specific frequency can be overwhelmed by a stronger signal coming in
on the same frequency. For comparison, let's say you wanted to "jam" a conversation between two
people—all you5d need to do is yell in the listener's ear.
E) Security devices are required to list the frequencies they broadcast on—that means that a potential thief
can find what they need to know with minimal Googling. They will, however, need to know what
system they're looking for. If you have a sign in your yard declaring what setup you use, that5d point
them in the right direction, though at that point, we're talking about a highly targeted, semi
sophisticated attack, and not the sort of forced-entry attack that makes up the majority of burglaries.
It's easier to find and acquire jamming equipment for some frequencies than it is for others.
四级2016年12月 50F) Wireless security providers will often take steps to help combat the threat of jamming attacks.
SimpliSafe, winner of our Editors5 Choice distinction, utilizes a special system that's capable of
separating incidental RF interference from targeted jamming attacks. When the system thinks it's
being jammed, it'll notify you via push alert (推送警报0. From there, it's up to you to sound the
alarm manually.
G) SimpliSafe was singled out in one recent article on jamming, complete with a video showing the entire
system being effectively bypassed with handheld jamming equipment. After taking appropriate
measures to contain the RF interference to our test lab, we tested the attack out for ourselves, and
were able to verify that it's possible with the right equipment. However, we also verified that
SimpliSafe^ anti-jamming system works. It caught us in the act, sent an alert to my smartphone, and
also listed our RF interference on the system's event log. The team behind the article and video in
question make no mention of the system, or whether or not it detected them.
H) We like the unique nature of that software. It means that a thief likely wouldn't be able to Google how
the system works, then figure out a way around it. Even if they could, SimpliSafe claims that its
system is always evolving, and that it varies slightly from system to system, which means there
wouldn't be a universal magic formula for cracking it. Other systems also seem confident on the subject
of jamming. The team at Frontpoint addresses the issue in a blog on its site, citing their own jam
protection software and claiming that there aren't any documented cases of a successful jam attack
since the company began offering wireless security sensors in the 1980s.
I) Jamming attacks are absolutely possible. As said before, with the right equipment and the right know
how, it's possible to jam any wireless transmission. But how probable is it that someone will
successfully jam their way into your home and steal your stuff?
J) Let's imagine that you live in a small home with a wireless security setup that offers a functional anti
jamming system. First, a thief is going to need to target your home, specifically. Then, he's going to
need to know the technical details of your system and acquire the specific equipment necessary for
jamming your specific setup. Presumably, you keep your doors locked at night and while you're away,
so the thief will still need to break in. That means defeating the lock somehow, or breaking a window.
He'll need to be jamming you at this point, as a broken window or opened door would normally release
the alarm. So, too, would the motion detectors in your home, so the thief will need to continue
jamming once he's inside and searching for things to steal. However, he'll need to do so without
tripping the anti-jamming system, the details of which he almost certainly does not have access to.
K) At the end of the day, these kinds of systems are primarily designed to protect against the sort of
opportunistic smash-and-grab attack that makes up the majority of burglaries. They're also only a
single layer in what should ideally be a many-sided approach to securing your home, one that includes
common sense things like sound locks and proper exterior lighting at night. No system is impenetrable,
and none can promise to eliminate the worst case completely. Every one of them has vulnerabilities
that a knowledgeable thief could theoretically exploit. A good system is one that keeps that worst-case
setting as improbable as possible while also offering strong protection in the event of a less-
extraordinary attack.
36. It is possible for burglars to make jamming attacks with the necessary equipment and skill.
37. Interfering with a wireless security system is similar to interfering with a conversation.
四级2016年12月 5138. A burglar has to continuously jam the wireless security device to avoid triggering the alarm, both inside
， and outside the house.
39. SimpliSafe provides devices that are able to distinguish incidental radio interference from targeted
jamming attacks.
40. Only a very small proportion of burglaries are committed by technical means.
41. It is difficult to crack SimpliSafe as its system keeps changing.
42. Wireless devices will transmit signals so as to activate the alarm once something wrong is detected.
43. Different measures should be taken to protect one's home from burglary in addition to the wireless
security system.
44. SimpliSafe's device can send a warning to the house owner's cellphone.
45. Burglars can easily get a security device5s frequency by Internet search.
Section C
Directions： There are 2 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished
statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A ), B) , C) and D) . You should decide on
the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre.
Passage One
Questions 46 to 50 are based on the following passage.
As a person who writes about food and drink for a living, I couldn't tell you the first thing about
Bill Perry or whether the beers he sells are that great. But I can tell you that I like this guy. That's because
he plans to ban tipping in favor of paying his servers an actual living wage.
I hate tipping.
I hate it because it's an obligation disguised as an option. I hate it for the post-dinner math it requires
of me. But mostly, I hate tipping because I believe I would be in a better place if pay decisions regarding
employees were simply left up to their employers, as is the custom in virtually every other industry.
Most of you probably think that you hate tipping, too. Research suggests otherwise. You actually love
tipping! You like to feel that you have a voice in how much money your server makes. No matter how the
math works out, you persistently view restaurants with voluntary tipping systems as being a better value,
which makes it extremely difficult for restaurants and bars to do away with the tipping system.
One argument that you tend to hear a lot from the pro-tipping crowd seems logical enough： the service
is better when waiters depend on tips, presumably because they see a benefit to successfully veiling their
contempt for you. Well, if this were true, we would all be slipping a few 100-dollar bills to our doctors on
the way out their doors, too. But as it turns out, waiters see only a tiny bump in tips when they do an
exceptional job compared to a passable one. Waiters, keen observers of humanity that they are, are
catching on to this； in one poll, a full 30% said they didn't believe the job they did had any impact on the
tips they received.
So come on, folks： get on board with ditching the outdated tip system. Pay a little more upfront for
your beer or burger. Support Bill Perry's pub, and any other bar or restaurant that doesn't ask you to do
drunken math.
46. What can we learn about Bill Perry from the passage?
A) He runs a pub that serves excellent beer.
B) He intends to get rid of the tipping practice.
四级2016年 12月 52C) He gives his staff a considerable sum for tips.
D) He lives comfortably without getting any tips.
47. What is the main reason why the author hates tipping?
A) It sets a bad example for other industries.
B) It adds to the burden of ordinary customers.
C) It forces the customer to compensate the waiter.
D) It poses a great challenge for customers to do math.
48. Why do many people love tipping according to the author?
A) They help improve the quality of the restaurants they dine in.
B) They believe waiters deserve such rewards for good service.
C) They want to preserve a wonderful tradition of the industry.
D) They can have some say in how much their servers earn.
49. What have some waiters come to realize according to a survey?
A) Service quality has little effect on tip size.
B) It is in human nature to try to save on tips.
C) Tips make it more difficult to please customers.
D) Tips benefit the boss rather than the employees.
50. What does the author argue for in the passage?
A) Restaurants should calculate the tips for customers.
B) Customers should pay more tips to help improve service.
C) Waiters deserve better than just relying on tips for a living.
D) Waiters should be paid by employers instead of customers.
Passage Two
Questions 51 to 55 are based on the following passage.
In the past, falling oil prices have given a boost to the world economy, but recent forecasts for global
growth have been toned down, even as oil prices sink lower and lower. Does that mean the link between
lower oil prices and growth has weakened?
Some experts say there are still good reasons to believe cheap oil should heat up the world economy.
Consumers have more money in their pockets when they5re paying less at the pump. They spend that
money on other things, which stimulates the economy.
The biggest gains go to countries that import most of their oil like China, Japan, and India. But
doesn5t the extra money in the pockets of those countries5 consumers mean an equal loss in oil-producing
countries, cancelling out the gains? Not necessarily, say economic researcher Sara Johnson. "Many oil
producers built up huge reserve funds when prices were high, so when prices fall they will draw on their
reserves to support government spending and subsidies (不卜贝占)for their consumers.w
But not all oil producers have big reserves. In Venezuela, collapsing oil prices have sent its economy
into free-fall.
Economist Carl Weinberg believes the negative effects of plunging oil prices are overwhelming the
positive effects of cheaper oil. The implication is a sharp decline in global trade, which has plunged partly
because oil-producing nations can't afford to import as much as they used to.
四级2016年 12月 53Sara Johnson acknowledges that the global economic benefit from a fall in oil prices today is likely
lower than it was in the past. One reason is that more countries are big oil producers now, so the nations
suffering from the price drop account for a larger share of the global economy.
Consumers, in the U. S. at least, are acting cautiously with the savings they5re getting at the gas
pump» as the memory of the recent great recession is still fresh in their mind. And a number of
oil-producing countries are trimming their gasoline subsidies and raising taxes, so the net savings for global
consumers is not as big as the oil price plunge might suggest.
51. What does the author mainly discuss in the passage?
A) The reasons behind the plunge of oil prices.
B) Possible ways to stimulate the global economy.
C) The impact of cheap oil on global economic growth.
D) The effect of falling oil prices on consumer spending.
52. Why do some experts believe cheap oil will stimulate the global economy?
A) Manufacturers can produce consumer goods at a much lower cost.
B) Lower oil prices have always given a big boost to the global economy.
C) Oil prices may rise or fall but economic laws are not subject to change.
D) Consumers will spend their savings from cheap oil on other commodities.
53. What happens in many oil-exporting countries when oil prices go down?
A) They suspend import of necessities from overseas.
B) They reduce production drastically to boost oil prices.
C) They use their money reserves to back up consumption.
D) They try to stop their economy from going into free-fall.
54. How does Carl Weinberg view the current oil price plunge?
A) It is one that has seen no parallel in economic history.
B) Its negative effects more than cancel out its positive effects.
C) It still has a chance to give rise to a boom in the global economy.
D) Its effects on the global economy go against existing economic laws.
55. Why haven't falling oil prices boosted the global economy as they did before?
A) People are not spending all the money they save on gas.
B) The global economy is likely to undergo another recession.
C) Oil importers account for a larger portion of the global economy.
D) People the world over are afraid of a further plunge in oil prices.
Part N Translation (30 minutes)
Directions： 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.
随着中国的改革开放，如今很多年轻人都喜欢举行西式婚礼。新娘在婚礼上穿着白色婚纱，因为白色
被认为是纯洁的象征。然而，在中国传统文化中，白色经常是葬礼上使用的颜色。因此务必记住，白花一
定不要用作祝人康复的礼物，尤其不要送给老年人或危重病人。同样，礼金也不能装在白色的信封里，而
要装在红色的信封里。
四级2016年12月 54
