PART II

Listening Comprehension

Section A

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.

Now you will haer the two long conversations

Conversation 1

W: You know I've often wondered why people laugh at the picture of

 a big belly businessman slipping on a banana skin and falling on his bottom.

We are to feel sorry for them.

M: Actually, Laura, I think we laugh because we are glad it didn't happen to us.

But of course there is also a kind of humorous satisfaction in seeing somebody self

important making a fool of themselves.

W: Yes, and there are a lot of jokes about people who are too fat or physically handicapped, you know,

 deaf, or shortsighted things like that. After all, it's not really funny to be like that.

M: Oh, I think that's because we're embarrassed.

We don't know how to cope with the situation.

Perhaps we are even a bit frightened we may get like that, so we laugh.

M: What about the custard pie routine?

W: What do you mean ‘custard pie routine'?

M: You know, all those old films where someone gets so outraged with his boss,

 he picks up a custard pie and plasters it all over the other person's face.

W: That never makes me laugh much, because you can guess what's going to happen.

But a lot of people still find it laughable.

It must because of the sort of the thing we'd all love to do once in a while and never quite have the courage to.

M: I had an old aunt who used to throw cups of tea at people when she was particularly irritated.

She said it relieved her feelings.

W: It must have come a bit expensive.

M: Not really. She took care never to throw her best china.

Questions 1 to 4 are based on the conversation you have just heard.

Q 1：Why does the man say we laughed when we see some selfimportant people making fool of themselves?

Q 2：Why do some people joke about those who are fat or handicapped according to the man?

Q 3：Why do many people find it funny to see someone throwing a custard pie on their boss's face?

Q 4:Why does the man say she would drop cups of tea at people occasionally?

Conversation 2

W：Your name is Sanjay Kumar, is that correct?

M：Yes, madam.

W：You claim you are traveling on a scholarship from Delhi University.

M：That's right.

W：Now it seems that a hand gun was found in your luggage. Do you admit that?

M：Yes, but…

W：According to the statement you made, you had never seen the handgun before

it was found in your bag. Do you still maintain that?

M：But it's true. I swear it.

W：Mmm, you do realize Mr. Kumar that to bring a handgun into Hong Kong without

 proper authorization is a serious offense.

M：But I didn't bring it. I … I mean I didn't know anything about it.

It wasn't there when I left Delhi.

My bags were searched. It was part of the airport security check.

W：Maybe so, but someone managed to get that handgun onto the aircraft or it couldn't have been there.

M：Someone but not me.

W：Tell me , where was your personal bag during the flight?

M：I had it down by my feet between me and the man in the next seat.

He was the only person who could have opened my bag while I was asleep.

 It must have been him.

W: I see. Have you any idea who this man was?

M: He told me his name, Alfred Foster. He was very friendly, after I woke up that is.

 He hadn't spoken before.

W: Alfred Foster, we can check that on the passenger list.

M: He said he had a car coming to meet him. He offered me a lift.

W: Oh, why should he do that?

M: So he can get his handgun back, that's why. Please find him, Madam.

Questions 5 to 8 are based on the conversation you have just heard.

Q 5:What is Sanjay Kumar suspected of?

Q 6:What do we know about Alfred Foster?

Q 7:What does Sanjay Kumar ask the woman to do finally?

Q 8:Where did this conversation take place?

Section B. Directions:

In this section, you will hear two 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 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.

Passage One

Everyone is looking for a good investment these days.

And with stocks, currencies and companies all crashing,

some are finding that taking the trip of a lifetime is actually a smart move right now.

Prices are good, crowds are fewer and the dividends like expanded worldview,

lifelong memories, the satisfaction of boosting the global economy—can't be easily snatched away.

Sylvia and Paul Custerson, a retired couple from Cambridge,

England, recently took a 16day vacation to Namibia, where they went on birdwatching excursions.

Later this year, they are planning a trip to Patagonia. “We're using our capital now,” says Sylvia,

“And why not? We're not getting any interest in the bank. If it's a place we really want to go,

then we will go. We may as well travel while we're fit and healthy. ”

Some travel agents are thriving in spite of the economy.

“We've had more people booking in the first quarter of this year than last,”

says Hubert Moineau, founder of Tselana Travel,

which is planning to introduce a new program of longer adventure trips,

including polar expeditions and cruises in the Galápagos.“We're hearing things like,

‘We don't know what the situation will be in six months so let's travel now' ”,

Ashley Toft, managing director of the U. K. tour operator Explore has been surprised to see

an increase in lastminute bookings of highpriced trips to such places as India, Bhutan and Nepal.

 “It seems people would rather give up something else than the big trip,” he says.

Travel has become a necessity. It's just how we travel that is changing.

Questions 9 to 11 are based on the conversation you have just heard.

Q 9:According to the speaker,

why are some people willing to spend their money on travel these days?

Q 10:What is Tselana Travel planning to do, according to its founder?

Q 11:According to Ashley Toft, managing director of Explore,

 what is changing now with regard to travel?

Passage 2

Florence Hayes is a journalist for the Green Ville Journal,

 the daily newspaper in town.

Specifically she covers crime in the Green Ville area.

This responsibility takes her to many different places every week——the police station,

the court and the hospital.

 Most of the crimes that she writes about fall into two groups:

 violent crimes and crimes against property.

There isn't much violent crime in a small town like Green Ville,

or at least not as much as in the large urban areas.

But assaults often occur on Friday and Saturday nights, near the bars downtown.

 There're also one or two rapes on campus every semester.

 Florence is very interested in this type of crime and tries to write a long article

about each one. She expects that this will make women more careful when

they walk around Green Ville alone at night.

Fortunately, there were usually no murders in Green Ville.

Crimes against property make up most of Miss Heyes' reporting.

They range from minor cases of deliberate damaging of things to much more serious offenses,

such as car accidents involving drunk drivers

 or bank robberies but Florence has to report all of these violations

from the thief who took typewriters from every unlocked room in the dormitory

 to the thief who stole one million dollars worth of art work from the university museum.

 Miss Hayes enjoys working for a newspaper but she sometimes gets unhappy about

 all the crime she has to report.

She would prefer to start writing about something more interesting and

less unpleasant such as local news or politics, maybe next year.

Questions 12 to 15 are based on the conversation you have just heard.

Q 12:What is Florence Hayes' main responsibility as a journalist?

Q 13:What does the speaker say about security in Green Ville?

Q 14:What do we learn about crimes against property in the Green Ville area?

Q 15:What would Florence Hayes prefer to do?

Section C

Directions:

In this section,

you will hear recordings of lectures or talks followed by some questions.

The recordings will be played 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.

Passage 1

Now listen to the following recording and answer questions 16 to 19.

Allow me to start this talk with a question to everyone.

You know that all over the world, people fight for their freedom,

fight for their rights. Some battle oppressive governments.

 Others battle oppressive societies. Which battle do you think is harder?

 Allow me to try to answer this question in the few coming minutes.

 Let me take you back two years ago in my life. It was the bedtime of my son,

 Aboody. He was five at the time. After finishing his bedtime rituals,

 he looked at me and he asked a question: “Mommy, are we bad people?”

 I was shocked. “Why do you say such things, Aboody?”

Earlier that day, I noticed some bruises on his face when he came from school.

 He wouldn't tell me what happened. he was ready to tell.

“Two boys hit me today in school. They told me, ‘We saw your mom on Facebook.

You and your mom should be put in jail.’”

I've never been afraid to tell Aboody anything.

 I've been always a proud woman of my achievements.

 But those questioning eyes of my son were my moment of truth,when it all came together.

 You see, I'm a Saudi woman who had been put in jail for driving a car in a country

where women are not supposed to drive cars.

Just for giving me his car keys, my own brother was detained twice,

 and he was harassed to the point he had to quit his job as a geologist,

 leave the country with his wife and  two-year-old son.

 My father had to sit in a Friday sermon listening to the imam

  condemning women drivers and calling them prostitutes amongst tons

of worshippers,some of them our friends and family of my own father.

 I was faced with an organized defamation campaign in the local media combined

with false rumors shared in family gatherings, in the streets and in schools.

 It all hit me. It came into focus that those kidsdid not mean to be rude to my son.

 They were just influenced by the adults around them.

 And it wasn't about me, and it wasn't a punishment for taking the wheel and driving

 a few miles. It was a punishment for daring to challenge the society's rules.

16.How old is the speaker's son?

17.Why did two boys hit her son?

18.Why did the speaker was put in jail?

19.How many times was her brother detained?

Passage 2

Now listen to the following recording and answer questions 20 to 22.

After college, I went to law school for three years,

and then into my dream job at a big NY law firm.

 But even though it had been my dream, I didn't like it once I got there.

For the first time, I was feeling financially secure,

but I knew I wasn't passionate enough about what I was doing. And because I didn't love it,

 I would never be fulfilled from it, or be really good at it.

 Someone who loved it more would have greater enthusiasm and focus.

 For some it was fun; for me it was always going to be a horrible chore.

After five years at a law firm, I decided I wanted to try something different.

I came home and told my wife I was quitting,

 and she cried. And not out of happiness. Anyway, it worked out.

 I got a new job at a small Wall Street firm.

 I have been rejected every other one. We got bought out by a larger firm,

and I ended up remaining at a large firm...Goldman Sachs. In my career,

 I've been fortunate to know and work with many of this country's top CEOs

and business leaders. I'm always struck by a certain passion that defines them.

 While they may be wealthy and powerful, their passion goes beyond money and power.

 I won't stand here and tell you those are bad things.

 They can be pretty good, but only if you have a larger purpose in mind.

If you don't have passion for your work or the drive to

make a better life for your kids than your own,

 then you won't have what it takes to keep you going.

So, I'd like to leave you with some specific advice that will hopefully keep you going.

First, confidence really matters. Recognize you have earned the right to be confident.

 Most of you have made great sacrifices and overcome great obstacles to

 get where you are today.

You built up muscles that others who've had an easier time don't have.

 Those muscles will serve you for the rest of your life.

 My struggle to get to and through college turned out to be an advantage for me.

The disadvantages you have had become part of your personal history and track record,

 all advantages in your later life. So confidence is justified.

Second, find a job that you like. You'll be better at it and you'll last longer in it.

 Having said that, in a tough economy,

or because of family pressures, you may not always be able take a risk with a job choice.

20.How many years did the speaker stay in the law firm?

21.What was his wife's attitude to his resignation?

22.According to the speaker, what is the most important to a man?

Passage 3

Now listen to the following recording and answer questions 23 to 25.

When we think of games, there's all kinds of things.

 Maybe you're ticked off, or maybe you're looking forward to a new game.

 You've been up too late playing a game. All these things happen to me.

 But when we think about games,

 a lot of times we think about stuff like this: first-person shooters,

 or the big, what we would call AAA games, or maybe you're a Facebook game player.

This is one my partner and I worked on. Maybe you play Facebook games,

and that's what we're making right now. This is a lighter form of game.

Maybe you think about the tragically boring board games that hold us hostage

 in Thanksgiving situations.

This would be one of those tragically boring board games that you can figure out.

Or maybe you're in your living room, you know, playing with the Wii with the kids,

or something like that, and, you know, there's this whole range of games,

 and that's very much what I think about.

I make my living from games. I've been lucky enough to do this since I was 15,

which also qualifies as I've never really had a real job.

 But we think about games as fun, and that's completely reasonable,

 but let's just think about this. So this one here,

 this is the 1980 Olympics. Now I don't know where you guys were,

 but I was in my living room. It was practically a religious event.

And this is when the Americans beat the Russians, and this was—yes,

 it was technically a game. Hockey is a game. But really, was this a game?

 I mean, people cried.

I've never seen my mother cry like that at the end of Monopoly.

And so this was just an amazing experience. Or, you know,

if anybody here is from Boston. So when the Boston Red Sox won the World Series after,

 I believe, 351 years, when they won the World Series, it was amazing.

23.How does the speaker make his living?

24.When did the speaker begin to design games?

25.Which statement about the 1980 Olympics is right?