Passage Three
The period of engagement is the time between the marriage proposal and the
wedding ceremony. Two people agree to marry when they decided to spend their lives
together. The man usually gives the woman a diamond engagement ring. That tradition is
said to have started when an Austrian man gave a beauty. He placed it on the third finger
of her left hand. He chose that finger because it was thought that the blood vessel in that
finger went directly to the heart. Today we know that this is not true, yet the tradition
continues.
Americans generally are engaged for a period of about one year, if they are planning
a wedding ceremony and a party. During this time, friends of the bride may hold a party
at which women friends and family members give the bride gifts that she will need as a
wife. These could include cooking equipment or new clothing. Friends of the man who is
getting married may have a bachelor party for him. This usually takes place the night
before the wedding. Only man are invited to the bachelor party.
During the marriage ceremony, the bride and her would-be husband usually
exchange gold rings that represent the idea that their union will continue forever. The
wife often wears both the wedding ring and the engagement ring on the same finger. The
husband wears his ring on the third finger on his left hand. Many people say the purpose
of the engagement period is to permit enough time to plan the wedding. But the main
purpose is to let enough time pass so the two people are sure that they want to marry each
other. Either person may decide to break the engagement, if this happens, the woman
usually returns the ring to the man. They also return any wedding gifts they have
received.
Questions 18 to 20 are based on the passage you have just heard.
18. What was the diamond ring said to represent?
19. Why did the Austrian man place the diamond ring on the third finger of the left
hand of his would-be wife?
20. What is the chief advantage of having the engagement period?
2005年12月大学英语四级(CET-4)真题试卷
Part I Listening Comprehension (20 minutes)
Section A
1. A) See a doctor.
B) Stay in bed for a few days.
C) Get treatment in a better hospital.
D) Make a phone call to the doctor.
2. A) The 2:00 train will arrive earlier.
B) The 2:30 train has a dining car.
C) The woman prefers to take the 2:30 train.
D) they are gong to have some fast food on the train
3. A) She has been longing to attend Harvard University.
B) She’ll consider the man’s suggestion carefully.
C) She has finished her project with Dr. Garcia’s help.
D) She’ll consult Dr. Garcia about entering graduate school.
4. A) Alice didn’t seem to be nervous during her speech.
B) Alice needs more training in making public speeches.
C) The man can hardly understand Alice’s presentation.
D) The man didn’t think highly of Alice’s presentation.
5. A) It’s worse than 30 years ago.
B) It remains almost the same as before.
C) There are more extremes in the weather.
D) There has been a significant rise in temperature.
6. A) At a publishing house.
B) At a bookstore.
C) In a reading room.
D) In Prof. Jordan’s office.
7. A) The man can stay in her brother’s apartment.
B) Her brother can help the man find a cheaper hotel.
C) Her brother can find an apartment for the man.
D) The man should have booked a less expensive hotel.
8. A) Priority should be given to listening.
B) It’s most helpful to read English newspapers every day.
C) It’s more effective to combine listening with reading.
D) Reading should come before listening.
9. A) It can help solve complex problems.
B) It will most likely prove ineffective.
C) It is a new weapon against terrorists.
D) It will help detect all kinds of liars.
10. A) Help the company recruit graduate students.
B) Visit the electronics company next week.
C) Get apart-time job on campus before graduation.
D) Apply for a job in the electronics company.
Section B
Passage One
Questions 11 to 13 are based on the passage you have just heard.
11. A) It ha been proven to be the best pain-killer.
B) It is a possible cure for heart disease.
C) It can help lower high body temperature effectively.
D) It reduces the chance of death for heart surgery patients.
12. A) It keeps blood vessels from being blocked.
B) It speeds up their recovery after surgery.
C) It in creases the blood flow to the heart.
D) It adjusts their blood pressure.
13. A) It is harmful to heart surgery patients with stomach bleeding.
B) It should not be taken by heart surgery patients before the operation.
C) It will have considerable side effects if taken in large doses.
D) It should not be given to patients immediately after the operation.
Passage Two
Questions 14 to 16 are based on the passage you have just heard.
14. A) They strongly believe in family rules.
B) They are very likely to succeed in life.
C) They tend to take responsibility for themselves.
D) They are in the habit of obeying their parents.
15. A) They grow up to be funny and charming.
B) They often have a poor sense of direction.
C) They get less attention from their parents.
D) They tend to be smart and strong-willed.
16. A) They usually don’t follow family rules.
B) They don’t like to take chances in their lives.
C) They are less likely to be successful in life.
D) They tend to believe in their parent’s ideas.
Passage Three
Questions 17 to 20 are based on the passage you have just heard.
17. A) They wanted to follow his example.
B) They fully supported his undertaking.
C) They were puzzled by his decision.
D) They were afraid he wasn’t fully prepared.
18. A) It is more exciting than space travel.
B) It is much cheaper than space travel.
C) It is much safer than space travel.
D) It is less time-consuming than space travel.
19. A) They both attract scientists’ attention.
B) They can both be quite challenging.
C) They are both thought-provoking.
D) They may both lead to surprising findings.
20. A) To show how simple the mechanical aids for diving can be.
B) To provide an excuse for his changeable character.
C) To explore the philosophical issues of space travel.
D) To explain why he took up underwater exploration.
Part II Reading comprehension (35 minutes)
Passage One
Questions 21 to 25 are based on the following passage.
Just five one-hundredths of an inch thick, light golden in color and with a perfect
“saddle curl,” the Lay’s potato chip seems an unlikely weapon for global domination. But
its maker. Frito-Lay. Thinks otherwise. “Potato chips are a snack food for the world,”
said Salman Amin, the company’s head of global marketing. Amin believes there is no
corner of the world that can resist the charms of a Frito-Lay potato chip.
Frito-Lay is the biggest snack maker in America, owned by PepsiCo. And accounts
for over half of the parent company’s $3 billion annual profits. But the U.S. snack food
market is largely saturated, and to grow, the company has to look overseas.
Its strategy rests on two beliefs: first a global product offers economies of scale with
which local brands cannot compete. And second, consumers in the 21st century are
drawn to “global” as a concept. “Global” does not mean products that are consciously
identified as American, but ones than consumes-especially young people-see as part of a
modem, innovative (创新的) world in which people are linked across cultures by shared
beliefs and tastes. Potato chips are an American invention, but most Chinese, for instance,
do not know than Frito-Lay is an American company. Instead, Riskey, the company’s
research and development head, would hope they associate the brand with the new world
of global communications and business.
With brand perception a crucial factor, Riskey ordered a redesign of the Frito-Lay
logo (标识). The logo, along with the company’s long-held marketing image of the
“irresistibility” of its chips, would help facilitate the company’s global expansion.
The executives acknowledge that they try to swing national eating habits to a food
created in America, but they deny that amounts to economic imperialism. Rater, they see
Frito-Lay as spreading the benefits of free enterprise across the world. “We’re making
products in those countries, we’re adapting them to the tastes of those countries, building
businesses and employing people and changing lives,” said Steve Reinemund, PepsiCo’s
chief executive.
21. It is the belief of Frito-Lay’s head of global marking that ________.
A) potato chips can hardly be used as a weapon to dominate the world market
B) their company must find new ways to promote domestic sales
C) the light golden color enhances the charm of their company’s potato chips
D) people the world over enjoy eating their company’s potato chips
22. What do we learn about Frito-Lay from Paragraph 2?