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

Hunger hit Africa hard this year as climate change,

conflict and enduring poverty ravaged multiple countries

and left tens of millions of people in dire straits.

Countries as diverse as South Sudan,

Malawi and the Central African Republic have sounded

the alarm in recent months. The U.N.

World Food Program says sub Saharan Africa

already has the world`s highest prevalence of hunger;

one person in four is undernourished.

Every day in Africa, 23 million children go to school hungry.

The agency`s David Orr said that in the lower half of Africa,

where weather is the main culprit,

2015 has been an unusually difficult year.

I think what makes things different

this year is the combination of drought

and then an ElNino weather event coming right after that,

so that people are effectively being hit

by two consecutive years of reduced rainfall.

It`s particularly difficult on a region

where 70 percent of the population is subsistence farmers.

But African governments say they, too,

they have an important role to play,

and that the hunger crisis is their failure as well.

Malawi`s minister of finance earlier

this year described his nation`s hunger situation as “a scandal”.

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

News Item 2

One country that is leading the way in tackling climate change is Norway.

It`s signed a deal with Liberia under

which it will pay the West African country

to stop cutting down its trees.

Our environment correspondent Matt McGrath explained

the details deal of that agreement.

The Norwegians have been involved in deforestation for a number of years.

They`ve been using their incredible wealth,

I guess, to help Indonesia and Brazil

and other areas to stop them cutting down trees.

They have been paying for those places to leave the trees alone.

But with Liberia they`ve done kind of a national deal

and they are paying them 150 million dollars

over the next 6 years to essentially stop deforestation.

This is, seems as a quite significant thing.

It`s the biggest financial pledge in Africa to stop the type of deforestation.

It`s a particular interest in Liberia because

they have a really ancient rainforest,

West African rainforest there which is being cut down

and the government has been struggling to stop that.

So it`s being seen as a win win that the climate benefits

from no more emissions and Liberia benefits

from a large amount of money at a time when it really needs it.

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

News Item 3

Yesterday on CNN STUDENT NEWS we talked about how conditions

and geography factor in to the U.S. tornado season.

A line of severe storms struck in three U.S. states Sunday night.

More were expected, and that`s where we start today`s show.

Vilonia, Arkansas, part of tornado alley

where twisters are relatively calm at this time of year.

This was one of the hardest hit areas on Sunday.

Buildings were leveled, cars were flipped and tossed down the road.

In Arkansas alone, 14 people were killed,

two other deaths were reported in Iowa and Oklahoma.

The National Weather Service says a tornado

that could have been half a mile wide roared through Mayflower,

Arkansas. Around 18,000 homes and businesses lost power,

schools were closed, shelters were set up in a church and a high school.

If you are looking for ways to help those affected,

CNN has a few ideas on its “Impact Your World” Website.

You can find that at cnn.com/impact.

Relief workers and investigators are in the communities that were hit.

They are looking at the type of damage caused

to figure out what kind of tornado caused it.

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

W: Good afternoon. I`m just sitting here talking to Matt.

He is a marine in the United States Marines and he was in the war in Iraq.

Matt, how did you come to join the marines?

M: Well, Julia, I was just looking for something different,

and it seemed like a good idea.

W: And how old were you when you joined?

M: I was twenty years old.

W: How long have you been in?

M: Three years and ten months.

W: And you`re getting out soon and you want to go and study.

M: Correct.

W: What do you want to study?

M: I want to study American history.

W: That`s interesting? You`re against the war.

How many… um… how many people in the services are against the war,

do you think, about what percent?

M: It`s tough to put a number on it,

but it`s definitely higher than the public`s perception.

W: Would you say more than half?

M: Yes.

W: A lot more? I know it`s a hard question.

I mean how can you know?

You`ve got to talk to everybody.

M: About half, everyone has doubts about this war.

W: It`s a terrible war, isn`t?

M: Yes. Thousands of people died in the war,

most of them were commoners.

W: I`m terribly sorry to hear that. Okay,

thanks for talking to me, Matt. See you.

M: Have a good day.

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

8.What is Matt going to study after he gets out?

9.What did Matt do when he was in Iraq?

10.How old is Matt when he is talking to Julia?

11.How did Matt know that about half of the people

in the services were against the war?

Conversation Two

M: What is the most interesting Thai festival?

W: I think the most interesting Thai festival is Songkran.

Songkran is a Thai traditional New Year which starts

on April 13 every year and lasts for 3 days.

At this time,people from the rural areas who are working

in the city usually return home to celebrate the festival.

Thus, when the time comes,

Bangkok temporarily turns into a deserted city.

M: Please tell me about the climate in Thailand.

W: Thailand has three seasons: the hot season, the rainy season,

and the cool season. But really, it`s always hot.

M: Do you like Thai food?

W: I love Thai food. Thai food is fantastic.

It`s very good, usually spicy.

Yes, Thailand has wonderful food.

M: What sports do you like?

W: My favorite Thai sport is Muay Thai, or Thai kickboxing.

It`s very popular in Thailand. There are two large stadiums in Bangkok,

and many, many people watch Thai fighting.

It`s very popular. I like it a lot.

M: Do Thai people keep elephants around the household?

W: Most Thai people do not have elephants.

Only special people, usually in the north and northeast

part of Thailand, keep elephants.

M: Have you ever ridden an elephant?

W: Yes, I have. I rode an elephant in the north part of Thailand.

Many people go to the north and they ride elephants in the mountains

and in the jungle. It`s very nice.

M: Where is the best place to dive in Thailand?

W: I think the best place to dive in Thailand are the Surin and Similan islands.

There is a national marine park very, very beautiful.

M: Is Japanese manga popular in Thailand?

W: Yes, Japanese manga is very popular.

They translate from Japanese into Thai,

and many Thai people like Japanese manga.

M: What are some traditional Thai instruments?

W: I can`t remember the Thai name, but my favorite…

there`s a xylophone and it`s very beautiful,

very popular in Thailand.

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

12.Why does Bangkok temporarily turn into a deserted city during

the Thai New Year according to this conversation?

13.What are they talking about?

14.Which of the following statements is true

according to this conversation?

15.What part of Thailand should people

go to if they want to ride an elephant?

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

In order to have a more satisfactory understanding

of what is involved in interlingual communication,

it is essential to view first the major functions

and theories about language.

By considering many of the diverse functions

of language it is possible to understand better

the amazing complexity of verbal communication,

and a brief look at the more imprortant major theories

about language can provide a much more satisfactory means

of understanding how people communicate.

The functions of language are of two basic types:

psychological and sociological.

The psychological functions may be described

as the means by which people negotiate with reality.

The psychological necessity to give names to experience

is so obvious that people sometimes fail to realize its significance

until they have read the stirring story of Helen Keller

and the power insights gained by her discovery of a symbol for water.

The sociological functions can be said to be those ways

by which people negotiate with other persons.

They are of the following types:

interpersonal,informative, imperative,

performative, and emotive.

The psychological functions may be regarded as essentially internal

or subjective,and the sociological functions as external and interpersonal.

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

16. What is necessary in understanding the factors involved

in interlingual communication?

17. What do people negotiate with by the means

of the psychological functions of language?

18. What is not mentioned as the primary sociological functions

of language in the passage?

19. What is the essential characteristic of the psychological functions?

Passage Two

In the next two years, more than 15 new nuclear plants are due

to join the 94 already generating electricity in the U.S.—for refrigerators,

street lights,assembly lines, computers, subways,

and a thousand other elements of modern American life.

Despite the high price tags on some of the new plants,

the average cost of generating U.S. nuclear electricity

is still under a nickel per kilowatt hour.

That`s economical energy. What`s more, using nuclear fuel cuts energy imports

and takes some of the pressure off the shrinking domestic reserves

of oil and natural gas of the Americans.

The U.S. Gross National Product is a basic measure of economic activity.

Since 1973 the GNP has grown by 31%,

which closely parallels the 33% growth in the country`s electricity demand.

But over the same period the direct burning

of fuels for non electric energy has actually gone down,

as the economy converts to using more electrical energy.

What many people don`t realize is that most of America`s new electricity is coming

from coal and nuclear power. Electricity growth in 1984 was 58% and 24% nuclear,

according to the Federal Energy Information Administration.

The growing supply of electricity from U.S. coal and nuclear also

reduces the country`s dependence on imported energy.

But America is still a long way from energy independence.

America is paying a billion dollars every week for foreign oil.

Greater use of domestic electricity sources means fewer U.S.

dollars sent abroad.Nuclear power and coal can meet the country`s

growing electrical needs and help reduce the coutry`s dependence on foreign oil.

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

20. What is the main advantage of the nuclear generated

electricity according to the passsage?

21. What is the growth in America`s electricity demand since 1973?

22. What`s the main idea of the passage?

Passage Three

Cats have been popular pets for thousands of years.

The ancient Egyptians are thought to have been the first

to keep cats in their homes.

Today, people like cats for many reasons.

Cats are easy to care for. They are soft

and beautiful and they can catch mice!

A cat is a natural hunter.

It has a good sense of hearing.

Its sense of smell is well developed, too.

Its eyes can detect the smallest movements.

With its powerful legs it can run after

its prey and jump to catch it.

A pet cat that is fed every day does not need to hunt for food.

But it may go after a mouse anyway.

This is because hunting is an instinct in cats.

They are born with this ability.

Cats have other instincts as well.

They purr when they are happy.

They arch their backs and puff up their fur when they are afraid.

Cats also scratch objects with their front claws.

Some people think cats scratch to sharpen their claws.

Others think this action helps exercise their legs and feet.

Both reasons may be true.

There are many breeds of cats.

Some have long hair, others have short hair.

Their coats can have different colors and patterns.

Cats have different personalities, too. Some use their voices a lot.

Others are silent. Some are shy, while others are friendly.

Many people enjoy having these animals as companions.

Questions 23 to 25 are based on the passage you have just heard.

23. Why do people like cats according to the passage?

24. Which of the following is not one of the instincts cats have?

25. Why do cat scratch objects with their front claws?