[外语类试卷]专业英语八级模拟试卷778及答案与解析.doc

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1、专业英语八级模拟试卷 778及答案与解析 SECTION A MINI-LECTURE Directions: In this section you sill hear a mini-lecture. You will hear the lecture ONCE ONLY. While listening, take notes on the important points. Your notes will not be marked, but you will need them to complete a gap-filling task after the mini-lecture.

2、 When the lecture is over, you will be given two minutes to check your notes, and another ten minutes to complete the gap-filling task on ANSWER SHEET ONE. Use the blank sheet for note-taking. 0 Situation Comedy Todays lecture is about situation comedy, its history, its characteristics and some famo

3、us comedies in the western countries. A sitcom or situation comedy is a genre of comedy 【 B1】 【 B1】 _ originally devised for radio but today typically found on television. In a daily life environment, 【 B2】 stories go on with 【 B2】 _ some recurring characters. History With situation comedy format or

4、iginated on 【 B3】 in the 【 B3】 _ 1920s, Sam and Henry, the first situation comedy was up in Chicago. The first network situation comedy was Amos a few hundred yards later you re-enter Cerritos and the road is smooth again. Cerritos cannot boast a glorious history, old money or natural beauty. Fifty

5、years ago it was a flat area of farmland known as Dairy Valley. These days, “its a terribly unremarkable place on the way to Disneyland,“ says Tom Irish, a property developer. Yet this small suburban city of some 55,000 people has become remarkable thanks to superb management and geographical good f

6、ortune. It reveals much about why Americas suburbs are so appealing, and how they are changing. Like an increasing number of suburbs, Cerritos is both a bedroom community and an economic engine. It began to prosper in the early 1970s when it encouraged car dealers to cluster near the motorway that c

7、lips its western edge. Fully 27 outfits now trade there, making it the largest such centre in a car-obsessed state. Cerritos also has a shopping mall and a “town center“, otherwise known as an office park. As a result, it has far more jobs than working residents. Last year the city collected $483 in

8、 sales taxes per person more than the glitzy city of Santa Monica. And it has leased, not sold, its land, so a future stream of money is guaranteed. What goes on inside the offices seems less important to locals than what they look like. The city has municipal codes to rival those of notoriously sta

9、id Irvine, a planned city in Orange County: dont even think about installing a rotating, blinking or oscillating sign. Sculptures adorn car dealers forecourts. Cerritoss busy library is covered with titanium; its Wal-Mart is clad in granite. It has an opulent performing arts centre that will host so

10、me 140 impeccably populist acts this year. Building work is underway on the local jail, known for good reason as the “sheriffs hotel“. Although Cerritos has a contract with Los Angeless county sheriff for its policing, it pays for the building and the officers. They have some of the easiest jobs in

11、California. So far this year 53 serious assaults have been recorded, a bit less than one per cop. The city is so peaceful, says Daryl Evans, the police captain, that gang members from nearby cities occasionally meet there to play basketball, knowing they will not be attacked by rivals. Of course, ma

12、ny American cities have built parks, performing-arts centres and fancy libraries while struggling financially. The key to Cerritoss success may be the timing of its investments. Cities such as Cleveland and Baltimore poured money into museums and other grand projects in the vain hope that they would

13、 lure businesses and young, creative folk. Cerritos began by building pipelines and roads, then moved on to business parks, policing and schools (including Californias best high school). Only when it was rolling in money did it break out the titanium. Local officials attribute the citys success to f

14、iscal discipline and the ability to follow a long-term plan. That, in turn, is the result of its political culture. Cerritos has a tradition of powerful, long-serving city managers, to whom local politicians frequently defer. As Laura Lee, the mayor, explains, “There are many things we, as elected o

15、fficials, do not understand.“ Voters, it seems, like this arrangement greatly. In a 2002 poll, an astonishing 96% of residents said they were satisfied with the provision of public services. Such single-mindedness is particularly striking given the citys diversity. In 1980 whites comprised more than

16、 half of the population. These days Asians do. Striving immigrants are cause and consequence of the citys excellent schools: in Cerritos High School, pupils who speak inadequate English score better in mathematics tests than those who speak English fluently. Yet the newcomers have not formed ghettos

17、. The last census showed that whites and Asians were more intermixed in Cerritos than in all but 16 other American cities. Whites were even more mixed-up with blacks and Hispanics. These days Cerritos faces strong competition. Its car mall has inspired imitators; as a result, the value of sales has

18、flattened while the number of vehicles sold seems to be falling. As the city ages, public services will come under increasing strain. Drastic decline is unlikely, but the city may be overtaken though it is almost certain that the places doing the overtaking will be bland, car-oriented and suburban.

19、21 The word “sprawl“ in the first paragraph indicates that （ A） the landscape of Orange County is of little variety. （ B） parts of Orange County extend untidily in different directions. （ C） Orange County is located in a plain of considerable size. （ D） Orange County is located in a mountainous area

20、. 22 Which of the following does NOT serve as an example to show local peoples concern of Cerritoss landscape? （ A） The local jail known as the “sheriffs hotel“. （ B） Grass watered by innumerable sprinklers. （ C） The library covered with titanium. （ D） The Wal-Mart clad in granite. 23 According to t

21、he fifth paragraph, we can infer that （ A） the total number of cops in Cerritos is no less than 53. （ B） gang members of nearby cities enjoy immunity in Cerritos. （ C） the crime rates in Cerritos are relatively low. （ D） Los Angeles country sheriff is responsible for the expense of policing Cerritos

22、. 24 Which of the following does NOT account for Cerritos success? （ A） Superb management. （ B） Wealth of previous generations. （ C） Advantageous location. （ D） Proper timing of investments. 25 According to the passage, what impression can we get on Cerritos? （ A） Its geographic boundaries are of re

23、markably regular shape. （ B） It is a thriving commercial center rather than a residential site. （ C） It boasts a lifestyle that is rich in art and recreation. （ D） It is one of the most staidly planned cities in the region. 25 At the Prado Museum in Madrid visitors can peer into the past in a new ex

24、hibit of 19th century photographs, which show artworks crammed on the walls wherever they would fit. Lithographs, paintings and plans chart the higgledy-piggledy development of one of Europes best-loved art-treasure troves. Similarly, Londons British Museum opened a new Enlightenment Gallery this ye

25、ar to celebrate the historic role of museums as centers of learning, displaying among other things intricate catalogs of 17th century botanical specimens. While such exhibits enshrine the past, ambitious new plans for the future are transforming the dusty halls of some of Europes most revered galler

26、ies. In Germany, Spain, Italy and Britain, museums are scrambling to create bigger, more-dazzling exhibition spaces, smart new restaurants and shops, study centers and inviting public areas. The push reflects a shift in how the public regards its artistic institutions. “People want more than the old

27、-style museum,“ says John Lewis, chairman of the Wallace Collection, a gallery of 17th and 18th-century paintings, porcelain and furniture in London, “We are driven to become more an arm of the entertainment and education industries rather than the academic institutions we used to be.“ New galleries

28、 will increase the museums current exhibition space to more than 160,000 square meters not including the 13,000 square meters for cafeterias, restaurants, theaters and offices, all linked by tree-lined paths. No European museum expansion is more ambitious than Berlins restoration of Museum Island, a

29、 UNESCO World Heritage Site in the city center. The $2.1 billion project slated for completion in 2015 aims to turn the island into the largest art complex in Europe, covering all the major cultures in six museums filling 88,000 square meters. The Alte Nationalgalerie, an ornate classical temple bui

30、lt in 1866, reopened two years ago, displaying 19th-century artists, including German Romantics. Renovation of the neighboring Bode Museum, with its collection of Medieval and Renaissance art, is well underway, and the Neues Museum is being rebuilt to house Egyptian and prehistoric works. There are

31、even plans to reconstruct the adjacent Hohenzollern Palace to showcase Berlins extensive collection of non-European art. And British architect David Chipperfield has been commissioned to create a striking new entrance to the whole complex. These institutions are hoping to repeat the triumph of Londo

32、ns Tate Museum, which spent S243 million to convert a disused power station into a gallery of modern art. When the Tate Modern opened in 2000, director Sir Nicholas Serota described its creation as part of a “sea change“ in culture, with visual arts becoming the most popular creative medium. His rem

33、ark has proved amazingly prescient: in 2002, the top two attractions among foreign tourists to London were the Tate Modern and the refurbished British Museum. A year after the Tate Modern opened, its impact on the local economy was estimated at nearly $200 million far higher than the $42 million the

34、 Mc Kinsey consulting firm first estimated the museum would contribute when it developed the business plan in 1996. Smaller galleries, too, are hoping to cash in. Italian Culture Minister Giuliano Urbani plans to transform Florences charming Uffizi Gallery into a world-class cultural destination. Wh

35、en completed in 2006, the “nuovo Uffizi“ will accommodate 7,000 visitors daily, nearly double its current capacity. “We will surpass even the Louvre,“ predicts Urbani. Expansion helps show off prized works to maximum effect. In Berlin, collections divided between east and west Germany are being unit

36、ed, and expanded gallery space will allow them to be shown together. The Uffizi renovation will enable some of the museums most famous pieces, by Giotto and Cimabue, now scattered throughout the building, to be displayed together at the second-floor entrance. At the Prado, a new lecture hall and tem

37、porary exhibition galleries mean the permanent collection will no longer have to be partly stored when short-term traveling shows come to town. Some purists oppose the idea of turning museums into glitzy consumer complexes. “My reservation is whether we lose that calm and that moment of reflection,

38、that sense of civic space,“ says Tristram Hunt, author of Building Jerusalem: The Rise and Fall of the Victorian City. 26 According to the passage, a new Enlightenment Gallery was held in British Museum to （ A） celebrate the completion of the new galleries. （ B） show the development of the museum. （

39、 C） honor the role museums had played in various aspects. （ D） exhibit some 17th century botanical specimens. 27 New plans for the future of the museums aim to （ A） restore the original appearance of the museums. （ B） help the museums regain their historic roles. （ C） rebuild the museums dusty halls

40、. （ D） make the museums less academic but more entertaining and educational. 28 According to Sir Nicholas Serota, what is part of a “sea change“ in culture? （ A） The visual arts growing to be the hottest creative medium. （ B） The success of Londons Tate Museum. （ C） A conversion of a disused power s

41、tation into a modern gallery. （ D） The Tate Moderns impact on the local economy. 29 According to the passage, what is the significance of the museum expansion? （ A） It has brought more economic profit than it is estimated. （ B） It has benefited smaller galleries tremendously. （ C） It has created mor

42、e world-class cultural destinations. （ D） It has provided more spaces for the best-loved artworks. 30 Whats the authors attitude towards the museum expansion? （ A） Opposed. （ B） Objective. （ C） Positive. （ D） Indifferent. 30 When I was a graduate student in biochemistry at Tufts University School of

43、 Medicine, I read an abridged version of Montaignes Essays. My friend Margaret Rea and I spent hours wandering around Boston discussing the meaning and implications of the essays. Michel de Montaigne lived in the 16th century near Bordeaux, France. He did his writing in the southwest tower of his ch

44、ateau, where he surrounded himself with a library of more than 1,000 books, a remarkable collection for that time. Montaigne posed the question, “What do I know?“ By extension, he asks us all: Why do you believe what you think you know? My latest attempt to answer Montaigne can be found in Everyday

45、Practice of Science: Where Intuition and Passion Meet Objectivity and Logic, originally published in January 2009 and soon to be out in paperback from the Oxford University Press. Scientists tend to be glib about answering Montaignes question. After all, the success of technology testifies to the tr

46、uth of our work. But the situation is more complicated. In the idealized version of how science is done, facts about the world are waiting to be observed and collected by objective researchers who use the scientific method to carry out their work. But in the everyday practice of science, discovery f

47、requently follows an ambiguous and complicated route. We aim to be objective, but we cannot escape the context of our unique life experiences. Prior knowledge and interests influence what we experience, what we think our experiences mean, and the subsequent actions we take. Opportunities for misinte

48、rpretation, error, and self-deception abound. Consequently, discovery claims should be thought of as protoscience. Similar to newly staked mining claims, they are full of potential. But it takes communal scrutiny and acceptance to transform a discovery claim into a mature discovery. This is the cred

49、ibility process, through which the individual researchers me, here, now becomes the communitys anyone, anywhere, anytime. Objective knowledge is the goal, not the starting point. Once a discovery claim becomes public, the discoverer receives intellectual credit. But, unlike with mining claims, the community takes control of what happens next. Within the complex social structure of the scientific community, researchers make discoveries; editors and reviewers act as gatekeepers by controlling the publication process;