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

The Statue of Liberty was back in business

on Sunday after a 12-day closure.

Tourists, who feared they might miss the New York icon,

were thrilled. They flocked to Battery Park

to catch the ferry to Liberty Island.

“We didn`t think we were going to be able to go,

so this is beyond anything that we had expected,”

said a Canadian tourist.

The Statue of Liberty is one of about 400 national monuments

and parks that closed on October 1.

That is when disputes over the federal budget prompted

a partial shutdown of federal agencies,

including the National Park Service.

New York State said the shutdown was

costing New York City millions of dollars in lost tourism revenue.

So, it agreed to pay the National Park Service $370,000 to open

the statue to visitors from Sunday to Thursday.

Three other states have made similar deals with the federal government.

 Arizona officials decided to spend $93,000

a day to let visitors back into the Grand Canyon.

Governor Jan Brewer said the site is worth it.

“This brings an enormous amount of revenue to the economy,

to the state of Arizona, and to our tax coffers.

So it was the right thing to do.

 And when we run out of seven days,

we`ll have to reassess, but we are committed,” said Brewer.

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

News Item 2

Marlborough School student Xochitl Green wants to

pursue a career in the field of psychology.

Her high school only offers one psychology course,

and that`s not enough for her.

“Because I wanted to take a more in depth class.

They told me there was an option to do an online course,

and so I looked into it.”

In addition to her classes in school,

Green took an online advanced placement psychology course

 through Online School For Girls.

She said the experience was different from a regular classroom.

“I actually thought it was a lot easier

to say your thoughts because there weren`t any eyes

looking at you like there are in a classroom.

You got to be completely 100 percent yourself.

There were a lot of projects, though,

where we had to video chat with girls or you had to text girls.”

Brad Rathgeber, Executive Director for the Online School for Girls.

“What we`re trying to do in these single gender settings

is really build an enormous amount of confidence in the girls

so they can find great success they go onto college and beyond.”

There is growing interest in an all girls` online school.

Since it began five years ago,

the Online School for Girls has seen an increase in attendance,

and the number of high schools partnering with Online School

 for Girls has grown from four to 85.

Rathgeber is now working on building an online school for boys.

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

News Item 3

Visiting a Christmas tree farm in search

of the perfect tree is what many American families do

at Christmas time including this young family.

“We have our Christmas tree.

We`re going to take it home and decorate it.

It`s kind of a backwards concept,

to take a tree from outside and bring it indoors.

 We`re putting lights on it and ornaments,

lots of ornaments. You collect the ornaments for years.

 I got ones from since I was 5 years old.

It`s fun!” Abby has been coming to Krop`s Crops since she was 7. For her,

buying a Christmas tree at this local tree farm brings back lots

of childhood memories and preserves her family tradition.

Larry Krop is the owner of this eight hectare farm,

which employs three generations of the Krop family.

“There`s a lot of customers who come in and said, Larry,

this is our 22nd, 23rd, 24th year (of coming to the farm).

We go back to 1986, so it`s almost 30 years coming up next year,

that we`ve been selling trees up here.”

It takes about five to 10 years for the trees

to reach the ideal height between 1 and 4 meters.

Prices vary from $48 to $400. The Fraser and Canaan firs are bestsellers.

 After someone finds their perfect tree,

the staff will clean and bale it to make sure

the needles do not damage the customer`s car

on their way home. For almost thirty years,

 Krop`s Crops has played an important role in preserving

the Christmas tradition for families around the Washington area.

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:Mr.Bush, I`m Susanna Anderson.

M:Well, hello.It`s early and you`ve come

a long way just for an interview.

W:Yes, sir.

I read your ad in the paper and my parents said

that this is a very reputable

firm and since I want to be a lawyer someday

I think this job will give me a good start.

M:I see.Of course you realize it will be dull

for a while.You wouldn`t get to practice law right off.

W:Oh, I realize that, sir.

M:It would be mostly filing,

tracking things down and looking things up.

All sorts of odd jobs

delivering things to the court house,

and bringing things that the lawyer forgot.Even running

down to get them a sandwich now and then.

W:I wouldn`t mind that, sir.

At least I could get the feel of a law office.

M:What kind of a lawyer do you want to be, Susanna?

W:A corporation lawyer, sir.I`m good at figures.

M:Oh! That`s interesting.What grade are you in?

W:I`ll be a senior next year.

M:You realize this job doesn`t pay very much, don`t you

W:Yes, sir.But I can get by.

Experience and education are more important, now.

M:Well, Susanna, if you are smart enough to figure that out,

you are smart enough for this job.When can you come to work?

W:Right now, sir! You mean it?

M:Yes, you`ve got yourself a job.

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

8. What`s the woman`s occupation now?

9.Where did the woman get the information about the vacant position?

10.Why doesn`t she mind doing some odd jobs first?

11.What does she think about the pay of the job?

Conversation Two

M:Hello, National Express Courier Company,

 Customer Service Department.

W:Hello, I have some questions about a package

I`m going to send, can you help me?

M:Yes.What would you like to know?

W:I have a box of homemade candy.

And I want to send it to my sister;

it`s a birthday present.Do you have any special rules about delivering food?

M:No, not in this case.If you were sending fruits or vegetables,

they would have to be packed specially.

But there are no rules about sending candy.

W:OK, I have another question.

I`m very concerned about the package reaching my sister on time.

Can you make it sure that it will be there by her birthday on Saturday?

M:Where does it have to go?

W:California.

M:Hmm.Saturday`s only four days away.

We have a priority service that would guarantee delivery in three days

but it`s more expensive than our regular rate.

W:Well, I don`t want to waste money,

but it`s more important that the package be there on time.

M:OK.Bring your package to the office, and we`ll send it by priority service.

W:OK.I`ll do that.

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

12.Why is the woman calling the delivery company?

13.What is the woman sending to her sister?

14.What day is the day when the conversation takes place?

15.Which method will the woman probably use to send her package?

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

People differ in their points of view on time.

If an American from the North makes an appointment

with someone in an office,such as a professor,

a manager or an official,

for 11∶00 a.m.,he will probably arrive at the office earlier maybe

about five minutes before eleven.

He will tell the secretary that he has arrived for  the 11∶00 appointment,

and will wait.The American will wait comfortably for five

or ten minutes.But after ten minutes,

he will become uncomfortable and a little  annoyed.

On the other hand,

if a Latin American makes an appointment

with someone  for 11∶00 a.m.,he may not arrive in the office

until 11∶15 or 11∶20. He will  not be surprised

if he has to wait until 11∶45.The idea of what is early

and what is late differs from culture to culture.

Questions 16 to 17 are based on the passage you have just heard.

16.Which of the following is true according to the passage?

17.Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?

Passage Two

A smartly dressed man entered a famous jewelry shop one day.

He explained that he  wished to buy a pearl for his wife`s birthday.

The price didn`t matter,

since business had been particularly good for him that year.

After examining a number of beautiful and expensive pearls,

he chose an excellent black one that cost $5,000.

 He paid for the pearl in cash and left.

A few days later the man returned and said that

his wife had liked the pearl so  much that she wanted another one just like it.

It had to be exactly the same.

“Can you possibly give me any advice on how to get such a pearl?”asked the man.

The  jeweler regretfully replied,

“I would say it`s almost impossible to find one like that pearl.”

The millionaire insisted that the jeweler advertise in the newspaper,

and offered  $25,000 for the matching pearl.

Many people answered the ad,

but nobody had a pearl that was just right.Just when the jeweler had given up hope,

a little old lady  came into the store.To his amazement,

she pulled the perfect pearl from her hand bag.

“I don`t like to part with it,”she said sadly.

“I inherited it from my mother,

and my mother inherited it from hers.But I really need the money.”

The jeweler was quick to pay the old woman before she changed her mind.

Then he called the millionaire`s hotel to tell him the good news.

The millionaire,however, was nowhere to be found.

Questions 18 to 21 are based on the passage you have just heard.

18.Why did the smartly dressed man come to the jewelry shop one day?

19.Which of the following was of no importance to the man?

20.What did the old lady take to the jewelry shop?

21.How much did the shop lose in the deal?

Passage Three

In Britain you`re allowed to drive a car when you`re seventeen.

You have to get a  special two year driving licence before you can start.

When you`re learning,

someone with a full licence always has to be in the car

with you because you aren`t  allowed to drive the car on the road alone.

You don`t have to go to a driving school a friend can teach you.

The person with you isn`t allowed to take money for  the

 lesson unless he`s got a teacher`s licence.

Before you`re allowed to have a full licence,

you have to take a driving test.

You  can take a test in your own car,

but it has to be fit for the road.

In the test you have to drive round for about half an hour

and then answer a few questions.If  you don`t pass the test,

you`re allowed to take it again a few weeks later if you want to.

In 1970 a woman passed her fortieth test after 212 driving lessons!

When you`ve passed your test,you don`t have to take it again,

and you`re allowed to  go on driving as long as you like,

if you are healthy.Britain`s oldest driver was  a man

who drove in 1974 at the age of 100.

Before 1904 everyone was allowed to drive,

even children.Then from 1904 car drivers had to have a licence.

But they didn`t have to take a test until 1935.

In the early days of car driving,before 1878,

cars weren`t allowed to go faster than four  miles an hour,

and someone had to lead the car with a red flag.

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

22.Which of the following is NOT necessary for a young man who wants to drive alone?

23.What must a person do in the driving test?

24.Which of the following is mentioned in the passage?

25.What is this passage mainly about?