星火12月四级模拟卷1

PARTI Writing 30 MIN write a short essay entitled My View on Cyber Language. 1.网络语言越来越流行 2不同的人有不同的看法3我认为My View on Cyber LanguagePART II Reading Comprehension Skimming and Scanning 15 MIN The Global Food Crisis and Thomas Malthus Last year the skyrocketing cost of food was a wake-up call for the planet. Between 2005 and the summer of 2008, the price of wheat and corn tripled, and the price of rice climbed fivefold, spurring food riots in nearly two dozen countries and pushing 75 million more people into poverty. But unlike previous shocks driven by short-term food shortages, this price spike came in a year when the worlds farmers reaped a record grain trop. This time, the high prices were a symptom of a larger problem tugging at the strands of our worldwide food web, one thats not going away anytime soon. Simply put: for most of the past decade, the world has been consuming more food than it has been producing. After years of drawing down stockpiles, in 2007 the world has seen global carryover stocks fall to 61 days of global consumption, the second lowest on record.” Agricultural productivity growth is only one to two percent a year, warned Joachim von Braun, director general of the International Food Polity Research Institute in Washington, D.C., at the height of the crisis. This is too low to meet population growth and increased demand:Rebrospectian: MalthusTheory Ever since our ancestors gave up hunting and gathering for plowing and planting some 12,000 years ago, our numbers have marched corresponding with our agricultural productivity Each advance-the domestication of animals, irrigation, and wet rice production-led to a corresponding jump in human population. Every time food was stately supplied, population eventually leveled off. Early Arab and Chinese writers noted the relationship between population and food resources, but it wasnt until the end of the 18th Century that a British scholar tried to explain the exact mechanism linking the two-and became perhaps the mast vilified(遭人辱骂的social scientist in history.Thomas Robert Malthus, the namesake of such terms as Malthusian collapse and Malthusian curse, was a mild-mannered mathematician, a clergyman-and, his critics would say, the ultimate glass-half-empty kind of guy. When a few Enlightenment philosophers, giddy from the success of the French Revolution, began predicting tile continued improvement of the human condition, Malthus cut them off at the knees. Human population, he observed, increases at a geometric rate, doubling about every 25 years if unchecked, while agricultural production increases arithmetically-much more slowly. Therein lay a biological trap that humanity could never escape.The power of population is indefinitely greater than the power in the earth to produce subsistence for man, he wrote in his Essay an the Principle of Population in 1798. This implies a strong and constantly operating check on population from the difficulty subsistence. Malthus thought such checks could be voluntary, such as birth control, abstinence, or delayed marriage-or involuntary, through the disaster of war, famine, and disease. He advocated against food relief for all but the poorest people, since he felt such aid encouraged more children to be horn into misery. That tough love earned him a bad name in English literature from none other than Charles Dickens. When Ebenezer Scrooge is asked to give help for the poor in A Christmas Carol, the heartless banker tells the do-gooders that the poor should head for the workhouses or prisons. And if theyd rather die than go there, they had better do it, and decrease the surplus population.Rereading Malthus Essay On a brisk fall day that has put color into the cheeks of the most die-hard Londoners, I visit the British Library and check out the first edition of the book that still generates such heated debate. Malthuss Essay on the Principle of Population looks like an eighth-grade science primer. From its strong, clear prose comes the voice of a humble parish priest who hoped, as much as anything, to be proved wrong. People who say Malthus is wrong usually havent read him, says Tim Dyson, a professor of population studies at the London School of Economics. He was not taking a view any different than what Adam Smith took in the first volume of The Wealth of Nations. No one in their right mind doubts the idea that populations have to live within their resource base. And that the capacity of society to increase resources from that base is ultimately limited.Though his essays emphasized positive checks on population from famine, disease, and war, his preventative checks have been more important. A growing workforce, Malthus explained, depresses wages, which tends to make people delay marriage until they can better support a family. Delaying marriage reduces fertility rates, creating an equally check on populations. It has now been shown that this is the basic mechanism that regulated population growth in western Europe for some 300 years before the industrial revolution-a pretty good record for any social scientist, says Dyson. Yet when Britain recently issued a new 20-pound note, it put Adam Smith an the back, not TR. Malthus. He doesnt fit the trend of the moment. We dont want to think about limits. But as we approach nine billion people an the planet, all demanding the same opportunities, the same lifestyles, the same hamburgers, we ignore them at our risks. None of the great classical economists saw the industrial revolution coming, or the transformation of economies and agriculture that it would bring about. The cheap, readily available energy contained in coal-and later in other fossil fuels-unreleased the greatest increase in food, personal wealth, and people the world has ever seen, enabling Earths population to increase sevenfold since Malthus day. And yet hunger, famine, and malnutrition are with us still, just as Malthus said they would he. Years ago I was working with a Chinese demographer, Byrson says. One day he pointed out to me the two Chinese characters above his office door that spelled the word population. You had the character for a person and the character for an open mouth. It really struck me. Ultimately there has to be a balance between population and resources. And this nation that we can continue to grow forever, well its ridiculous. Perhaps somewhere deep in his cellar crypt (地下室) in Bath Abbey, Malthus is quietly wagging a bony finger and saying, Told you so.1. The period from 2005 to 2008 witnessed the price of rice increased by_A) twice B) three timesC) four times D)five times2. Before Malthus, already found the relation between population growth and food supplies_A) the Europeans B) Chinese and ArabiansC) Indians and Mexicans D) Africans and Chinese3. Malthus believed that the population would double_ if not controlledA) every 25 years B) every 20 yearsC) every 10 years D) every 100 years4. To Malthus, which of the following is a voluntary check?A) Famine. B) War. C) Abstinence. D) Disease. 5. Who is Ebenexer Scrooge?_A) An economist. B) A journalist.C) A novelist. D) A novel character.5. When did the author reread Malthuss Essay on the Principle of Population from a library?A) On a hot summer day.C) On a lovely autumn day.B) On a lovely spring day.d) On a cold winter day.7. Over about 300 years before the industrial revolution, what mainly helped to reduce fertility rates in Western Europe?A) Delaying marriage resulting From cut wages For increasing workforce.B) Delaying marriage resulting from the control of the increasing workforce.C) The positive checks like famine and other natural disasters.D) The interaction of positive and preventative checks of population.8. Thomas Malthus is both a_9. The economist who appeared on the back of the British newly issued 20-pound note is_PART III Listening Comprehension 35 MINSection A11. A) Go fishing.B) Entertain at home.C) Work at home.D) Have a rest.12. A) She is too tired of physics.B) She is too busy to work on her chemistry.C) She hasnt got a partner yet.D) She prefers physics to chemistry.13. A) He gets a sore throat in the meeting.B) He feels hard to recover.C) He is uneasy about his performance.D) He looks down on himself.14 .A) change his mind.B) Go swimming with ethers.C) Finish his book reportD) Answer his letters.15 A) She hasnt finished reading.B) She doesnt want to please anyone.C) She doesnt like the book.D) She would not hand in the report16 A) Insist on a discount.B) Pick up some colleagues.C) Buy some fresh apple pies.D) Make a call to his co-worker.17 A) The man should work harder.B) The man can pass the course.C) The man should have a try.D) The man must think twice.18 A) The woman will go for a ride around the town tomorrow.B) The woman has sent her car to her sister for tomorrow use.C) The man will drive his mother around torn tomorrow.D) The man will go shopping in the supermarket tomorrow.Questions 19 to 22 are based on the conversation you have just hear.19. A) She appreciates a lot about the skin of the beauty.B) She doesnt think the beauty is really pretty.C) She shows satisfaction with the picture.D) Make-up can turn the ugly to be the beauty.20. A) They tend to put lots of make-up on face.B) They will eat mare cucumbers.C) They tend to try natural vegetables on the skin.D) They mill have some cosmetic surgery on the face.21. A) Cucumbers are rich in water and Vitamin A.B) Cucumbers can be used to cure the scar.C) Cucumbers can reduce the wrinkles of the face.D) Cucumbers are effective in tightening the skin.22. A) Try some herbal plants.B) Go to the beauty salon.C) Have a cosmetic surgery.D) Put same cucumber on his face.Questions 23 to 25 are based on the conversation you have just hear.23. A) The teacher appreciated his painting very much.B) The teacher advised Mark to change the color.C) They had a dispute about the choice of color.D) Mark was severely scolded by the teacher.24. A) Insist on his own opinion.B) Add some light brown color to the painting.C) Observe the color of sunset.D) Take carne painting course.25. A) Shy took some painting courses.B) She consulted the painting teacher.C) She visited art museums of various countries.DShe studied the oil painting abroad.Section BPassage OneQuestions 26 to 28 are based on the passage you have just heard.26. A) The manner and ability to grasp main idea.B) The speed and efficiency of reading.C) The type and intentions of reading.D) The pace and step of reading.27. A) Read fast.B) Proceed more slowly.C) Re-read several times.D) Take in the whole.28. A) The spelling and meaning of words.B) The general meaning of the text.C)The exact shape and order of letters.D) The details of the text.Passage Twoquestions 29 to 31 are based on the passage you have just heard.29 A)Most people can bear the losing of their wallets but not cell phones.B) Most people admit mobile phones are the remote control for life.C) Most people must live with their mobile phones.D) Most people own more than one mobile phone.30.A)They are afraid of missing their phone.B They fear to miss something.C)They feel scared without the phone on.D) They feel depressed by missing something.31.A)They have brought in new meaning of communication.B They have created more chances to communicate.C)They have strengthened the relationship between people.D) They have altered the character of relationships.Passage ThreeQuestions 32 to 35 are based on the passage you have just heard. 32.A) Target every possibility.B Focus on specific aspect of a job.C) Keep an eye on some occasions.D) Ensure every efficient way.33.A)It is a precious experience.B)It can be the approach to a job.C)It can enrich work experiences.D)It is the perfect solution.34.A)Call the manager to ask for another interview.B)Write a thank-you note for the interview.C)Make a clean break to restarts.D)Find any available interview.35.A)They have professional knowledge to teach you.BThey have the same experience to share with you.C)They have the power to inspire you up.D) They have precious insights and possibility to offer you a chance.Section CSigmund Freud was born on May 6th, 1856, in Moravia, in what is now the Czech Republic. Early in his (36)_Freud studied medicine.By the end of the 19th century, he was (37)_some exciting new ideas about the human mind. But his first scientific (38)_ dealt with sea animals. Freud was one of the first scientists to make (39)_ research of the mind .The mind is in the (41)_of activities based in the brain that involve how we act, think, feel and reason. He used long talks with patients and the study of dreams to search for the causes of mental and (41)_problems. He wanted to see if putting patients into a sleep-like condition would help (42)_troubled minds. In most cases he found the (43)_ only temporary. Freud worked hard, although what he did might sound easy. (44)_ .All ideas, thoughts and anything that entered their mind had to be expressed. (45)_.Freud believed that all the painful memories of childhood lay buried in the unconscious self. (46)_. He thought that if these memories could somehow be brought into the conscious mind, the patient would again feel the pain.Part IV Reading Comprehension (Reading in depth 25 MIN Section Aquestions 47 to 58 are Eased on the following passage. The scientists study, requested by the European Commission, attacked the concept ofleisure noise, saying children and teenagers should be protected from 47_high sound levels-with loud mobile phones also coming in for criticism. There has been increasing 48_about exposure from the new generation of personal music players which can 49_sounds at very high volumes without loss of quality, the Commission, the EUs executive arm, said in a statement. Risk for hearing damage depends on sound level and 50_time, it said. More and more young people were exposed to the 51_threat that leisure noise posed to hearing, it said.Commission experts 52_that between 50 and 100 million people listen to portable music players on a daily basis. If they listened for only five hours a week at mare than 89 decibels(分贝),they would already 53_EU limits for noise allowed in the workplace, they said. But if they listened for longer periods, they risked 54_hearing lass after flue years.Sales of personal music players have soared in EU Countries in recent years, particularly of MP3 players. Commission experts estimate unit sales between 184 and 246 million for all portable audio devices just over the last four years, of which MP3 players 55_between 124 and 165 million.Mobile phones used at excessive volume also came under fire from Meglena Kuneva, the EUs consumer affairs commissioner.I am concerned that so many young people.who are Frequent users of personal music players and mobile phones at acoustic levels, may be 55_damaging their hearing irrevocably(无可救药地),she said in the statement.A)account B) concern C)enhance D) estimate E) exceed F)exposureG)horrible H)increasingly I)permanent J)persistence K) range L) reproduceM) reveal N)significant O)unknowinglySection BPassage OneQuestions 57 to 61 are based on the following passage. So now you may be asking what is the difference between green tea and the black tea you are used to drinking. Both teas come from the same plant; the difference is the way the different teas are processed. The green tea is not fermented(发酵)before it has been dried. Because of the shorter processing time the green tea has a lighter flavor than the black tea. Green tea is good for you because the processing keeps all the beneficial elements left in the tea. Green tea doesnt taste anything like the tea you usually drink. Most green tea drinkers do not add milk or sugar, but you can if you like. Green tea has been described as having a light, fresh, green flavor. Some of the various green teas have just a little sweetness taste to them. Others are a little more bitter. There are several different varieties of green tea each with its own flavor; however they all seem to have one flavor quality in common. To try really good green tea you will want to look in a gourmet (精品的)tea store rather than a grocery store. The grocery store doesnt have the selection you will find in a gourmet tea store. You will find a good selection of green teas in your local. Asian food store. Some of the types you will want to look for are: Sencha, Gunprnvder, or Dragon Well. Green tea is brewed just like you would brew the tea you normally drink, except you will not want the water to boil. You will want to brew you tea when the water is verge the verge of boiling. Green tea is a more delicate tea so you want to keep the water a little cooler.Today, scientific research in both Rsia and the west is prrnriding hard evidence for the health benefits long associated with drinking green tea. The Chinese have known about the medicinal benefits of green tea sine ancient times, using it to everything from headaches to depression. To date, the only negative side effect reported from drinking green tea is insomnia due to the fact that it contains caffeine. However, green tea contains less caffeine than coffee: there are approximately 30-60 mg of caffeine in six to eight ounces of tea, compared to over 100 mg in eight ounces of coffee.57. Different from the black tea, the green tea_.A)is too hard to be producedB) doesnt need to be driedC)is much heavy in weightD) is much natural and beneficial58. When drinking the green tea, you_,A) have to add some milk or sugar to its light flavorB) perhaps dont like its bitter flavorC) may have different choices according to your tasteD) cant tell it from the other kinds of tea59. We may infer from the third paragraph that_A)the grocery store doesnt classify its tea goodsB) local Asian food store has more tea types for choosingC)green tea is only produced in AsiaD) Gunpowder and dragon Well are both famous black tea60. The water for green tea brewing_A)must be boiledB) has no difference as to black teaC)should be a bit cooler than boilingD) has no special requests61 .According do the text, we may infer that the green tea_A)has no bad side effects on peopleB) can cure all kinds of diseasesC) is not as good as coffeeD has more benefits for people than coffeePassage TwoQuestions 62 to 66 are based on the fallowing passage. Throughout all ages man has always carved huge figures out of stone. This can be seen in the ancient ruins of Egypt, Persia and Babylon. In modern times America has also taken up the same challenge and has carved huge sculptures into her mountains. On the East Coast of America not far from Atlanta, Georgia stands Stone Mountain, the largest mass of exposed granite(花岗石)in the world. Carved into the side of this mountain are three tremendous riding figures. They are sculptures of Jefferson Davis, Robert