Part II 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 will be based on the following news item.

News Item 1

Mourning and defiance stretched across Indonesia yesterday,

the island chain between the Indian

and Pacific Oceans with 256 million people;

it`s the fifth most populated nation in the world,

and the largest Muslim majority country.

Yesterday, in the capital of Jakarta,

terrorists using explosives and firearms targeted

an area often visited by foreigners.

At least two people were killed and 19 were wounded.

Indonesian authorities placed the blame on the ISIS terrorist group

and ISIS later claimed responsibility in an online statement.

This happened two days after a bombing in Istanbul,

the largest city in Turkey, formerly named Constantinople.

ISIS was blamed for that, too. A suicide bombing that killed 10 visiting Germans.

Turkey`s prime minister said his country would continue

its fight against terrorism and never take a step back.

Turkey`s a nation at a crossroads,

in more ways than its geographical location between Europe and Asia.

Questions 3 and 4 will be based on the following news item.

News Item 2

China has introduced various emergency responses

and long term measures against air pollution

in the central and eastern regions.

The air quality index reading for Xi`an,

capital of Shanxi Province,

reached 500 last Wednesday afternoon.

That was at the top of the air quality index,

 or AQI scale and indicating hazardous pollution.

Smog still covered the city and the AQI at Thursday noon was 417,

making Xi`an the second most polluted city

in the region after Xingtai in Hebei Province at 491.

A city government emergency response plan swung into action,

suspending all construction and taking at least 50 percent

of government vehicles off the road.

 Power plants must limit their output and reduce emissions.

In December, nearly half the country,

including more than 100 cities in 20 provinces, suffered from smog.

 Many have taken actions,

 including experimenting with artificial methods to reduce smog,

limiting vehicle use and fining polluters.

In Beijing, more than 200 automatic observatories

and eight new meteorological radar systems

 will improve weather forecasting by 2015.

Questions 5 to 7 will be based on the following news item.

News Item 3

This is what a crash looks like an oil market collapsed

from $108 to $30 in just 18 months,

to levels not seen since 2003.

Where`s the bottom? Morgan Stanley says $20. RBS

says $16. Standard Chartered $10.

It`s a boon for drivers. It acts as a tax break for consumers.

But the force of the decline so far,

so fast is destabilizing, bringing economic crisis

to oil producers like Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, Russia, Nigeria, Iraq,

pink slips for energy workers and potential bankruptcy for oil companies.

Four reasons why this is happening:

First, OPEC won`t cut production.

The world`s largest oil producers are holding out to see if

other smaller producers will slow the pumps,

hoping they can gain or keep their market in the long run,

but it`s costing them billions,

and Iran is about to start selling oil, too.

Second, China is spooking everyone.

The world`s second largest economy is slowing.

 It needs less fuel to run its economy.

Emerging markets would need less as well.

Third, the U.S. is producing more oil than ever,

largely created by the American shale oil boom

and this plunge in prices hasn`t shut out too many producers yet.

And, finally, the U.S. dollar is strong. Crude oil trades in dollars,

that means when the dollar gets stronger,

oil gets more expensive for overseas buyers.

That hurts demand and drives prices down further.

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.

Now you will hear two long conversation.

Conversation One

M:Uh, where am I?

W:Excuse me.Do you need any help?

M:Nah, I … I`m just looking … well …

Uh, well, actually … yeah.Um …

I want to go to the science museum,

but I`ve been lost for the past few hours,

and I can`t   use ticket machines.

W:Ah, well, just press this button.And from here,

it`s a dollar fifty.

M:Okay.

W:Then, get on the train at  number 4.

M:Alright.Oh, and how often do the trains come around this time of day?

W:Usually, they come about every six minutes.

M:Okay.And where do I get off the train?

W:Get off at State Street Station,

three stops from here.

M:Okay.I got it.Thanks for your help.

W:No problem.Good luck.

Questions 8 to 11 are based on the conversation you have just heard.

8. How much is the ticket?

9.Where does the man want to go?

10.How often do the trains come?

11.Where should the man get off the train?

Conversation Two

M:Mum!

W:Yeah, Micky.

M:Can I have a really good  snack?

W:Uh, I don`t know.I think it`s …

uh … what time`s it?

I think it`s going on dinner.

M:Uh, it`s three thirty.

W:Three thirty.Uh … We`d better wait.

M:Why, Mum?

W:Well, what kind of snack do you want?

M:Candy?

W:No, candy is out.Oh, how about some broccoli?

Uh, carrots?  Well, what else can you suggest?

M:Candy.

W:Candy.No, I don`t think …

I think you`d better wait.

M:A Sandwich? A spinach sandwich?

W: Sandwich? Spinach sandwich!

When did you start liking spinach?

M:Uh, today.

W:Well, what about a small sandwich?

M:Okay.

W:Okay, I`ll  in a minute.

Play with your toys while you`re waiting for it.

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

12.Why doesn`t the mother give her son something to eat?

13.What snack does the boy want at the beginning of the conversation?

14.What snack does the boy want to eat at last?

15.What does the mother ask the boy to do

while she is preparing the snack?

Section C

In this section, you will hear three 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

It was not until one hundred and fifty years ago

 that scientists learned about the existence of dinosaurs.

Thanks to an English doctor and his wife,

the door was opened to this zoological study.

Reasoning that these animals` tremendous size must

have made them terrible creatures,

scientists combined two Greek words, deimos, meaning terrible,

and saros, meaning lizards, to form the word dinosaur.

After many years of study, they determined

that these beasts roamed the earth for millions of years,

and ceased to exist some sixty million years ago.

Unbelievable as it may seem, not all dinosaurs were carnivorous,

that is, meat eating.Many were herbivorous, or vegetarians.

(18)By reassembling the bones found at digging sites,

scientists have been able to reconstruct the skeletons

and learn great deal about the dinosaur`s living conditions.

They have learned that dinosaurs inhabited not only the land,

 but also the water and sky.

Questions 16 to 19 are based on the passage you have just heard.

16.By what name did scientists call these creatures?

17.When do scientists believe that the last of the dinosaurs disappeared?

18.How have scientists been able to learn of the living conditions of these animals?

19.Which of the following is not true of these animals?

Passage Two

Robert Edwards became blind in an car accident nine years ago.

He was also partially deaf because of old age.

Last week, he was taking a walk near his home when

 a thunderstorm approached.He hid under a tree and was struck by lightning.

He was knocked to the ground and woke up some twenty minutes later,

lying face down in bed. A short time later,

he awoke; his legs were unfeeling and he was trembling, but, when he opened his eyes,

he could see the clock across the room fading in and out in front of him.

When his wife entered,

he saw her for the first time in nine years.

Doctors confirm the flash of lightning,

but they are unable to explain the occurrence.

The only possible explanation offered by one doctor was that,

since Edwards lost his sight as a result of injury in a terrible accident,

 perhaps the only way it could be restored was by another injury.

Questions 20 to 22 are based on the passage you have just heard.

20.What was the first thing that he saw after being struck by lightning?

21.Which of the statements is not true?

22.What was the reason given by one doctor that Edwards could see again?

Passage Three

In America, where labor costs are so high,

“do it yourself” is a way of life.

 Many people repair their own cars,

build their own garages, and even rebuild their own houses.

Soon many of them will also be writing their own books.

In Hollywood there is a company that publishes children`s book

with the help of computers.Although other book companies also publish that way,

this company is not like the others.

It allows the reader to become the leading character

 in the stories with the help of computers.

Here is how they do it.Let us suppose the child is named Henry.

He lives in New York, and has a god named Jody.

The computer uses this information to make up a story with pictures.

The story is then printed up.A child who receives such a book might say,

“This book is about me.”

 So the company calls itself the “Me Books Publishing Company”.

Children like the Me Books because they like to see in print their own names

 and the names of their friends and their pets.

But more important, in this way,

readers are much more interested in reading the stories.

Me Books are helping a child to learn how to read.

Questions 22 to 25 are based on the passage you have just heard.

23.Why do Americans do most things themselves?

24.What distinguishes this company from the others?

25.What are the “Me Books”?