TEST 15Section ADirections:In this section, you will hear 8 short conversations and 2 long conversations. At the end of each conversation, one or more questions will be asked about what was said.Both the conversation and the questions will be spoken only once. After each questionthere will be a pause. During the pause, you must read the four choices marked A), B),C), and D), and decide which is the best answer. Then mark the corresponding letteron Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the center.1. W: I thought you were going to pick up some strawberries to have after dinner.M: I went by Bailey’s Market to get some, but they were fresh out.Q: What does the man mean?2. M: I hate missing breakfast!W: Me too, but if we’d stopped for breakfast, we would have missed the appointment.Q: What did the speakers do this morning?3. M: Is this Dr. Goldsmith’s office?W: No. This is room 301. Dr. Goldsmith’s office is right downstairs from here.Q: Where is Dr. Goldsmith’s office?4. W: What did you think of Brenda’s story?M: To tell you the truth, I found it hard to keep a straight face while she was telling it.Q: How did the man feel about the story?5. W: Excuse me, sir. You are not supposed to be here. This area is for airport staff only.M: I’m sorry. I didn’t notice the sign.Q: What do we learn from the conversation?6. M: I would like to move to the suburbs, but I don’t have enough money to pay the hightaxes.W: I wish you could. It’s nice to live there.Q: Why isn’t the man moving to the suburbs?7. M: Good morning. This is John Parker speaking. I’m just ringing to confirm myappointment with Mr. Smith for this afternoon.W: Yes. Mr. Smith’s expecting you at three o’clock.Q: Why is the man making the phone call?8. M: I bought a few books at the new bookstore. Would you like to have a look at them?W: A few? It looks like you bought out the bookstore!Q: What does the woman mean?Now you will hear two long conversations.Conversation OneM: And now here’s our guest, Jane Thomas, to tell us about Montreal’s famous yearly island Bicycle Tour, which is coming up in June. Good morning, Jane. What’s the bike tour all about? W: Well, Peter, it’s an event that’s open to anybody who’d like to ride a bicycle through the streets of Montreal. The tour covers a standard distance of 65 kilometers, but the route’s quite different every year, so even people who have already done it might enjoy doing it again.M: How long does it take to go the whole distance?W: It varies … Cyclists are free to go as fast or as slow and do as much or as little of the course as they like.M: Well, what’s the typical pace for a participant?W: Between 12 and 30 kilometers per hour. Some cyclists stop along the way and don’t cross the finish line until early evening. But the whole point is that there’s no rush—it’s not a race.M: I understand last year’s tour had 45,000 cyclists and was the large st mass cycling event in the world. How many do you expect this year?W: The same as last year. And since we regularly have so many participants, can I take this opportunity to remind our listeners to sign up early? We filled up quickly last year, and we had to refuse lots of applications.M: Before we close, any other tips for prospective cyclists?W: Yes. Take water with you. It is available at the relay stations, but it helps to have an additional supply. And pack a good lunch with plenty of fruit for en ergy. Candy and chocolate don’t do the trick.Questions 9 to 11 are based on the conversation you have just heard.9. What is the main subject of the conversation?10. According to the woman, what is different every year?11. What is provided at the relay stations?Conversation TwoM: Mummy, I’ve been thinking I might go to London at the end of the week.W: Oh yes?M: Yes, a friend of mine wants someone to share a flat and I thought it would be a good opportunity for me.W: Well, that sounds good. Where exactly is this flat?M: Well, we haven’t exactly got one, but I thought I might go and look.W: But I hear it’s very difficult to find flats in London these days.M: Not at all, people get themselves fixed up in no time.W: Oh well, I suppose you kn ow better than me. What will you live on while you’re there?M: I’ll get a job. I’ll write to the Appointments Board.W: Just any sort of job?M: Whatever there is.W: I’m not sure I like the idea of your going off all the way to London without a proper job and with nowhere to live... That’s what I say. No one can accuse me of trying to keep you at home.Who is this friend of yours?M: A boy called Ted Slater. He was at Oxford... and he is a sort of research student.W: Well, it sounds like a very nice ide a. After all, you won’t want to stay here all your life with your poor old mother, will you? It seems you’re very eager to be off.M: Well, it’s just that I can’t stay here all my life, can I?W: O f course you can’t. Have I ever tried to keep you at home? It was always me who said you must go. And your father wasn’t any too keen, believe me.M: Well, you had to cope with both of us.Questions 12 to 15 are based on the conversation you have just heard.12. What is the conversation mainly about?13. What is the greatest problem Tom might meet in London?14. What is the attitude of Tom’s mother toward his plan to live in London?15. What is the attitude of his father toward his eagerness to leave home?Section BDirections: In this section, you will hear 3 short 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 choicesmarked A), B), C), and D). Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2with a single line through the center.Passage OneA couple of months ago, I went to a department store to buy a few things for the house. I needed a set of curtains for the living room, two table lamps, a rug and several cushions. I asked them to deliver the things as soon as possible, but they said that they were unable to send them out until 20 days later. After about 3 weeks, I received only the curtains and table lamps. I was a little disappointed whe n I didn’t receive all the items I had bought. But nevertheless, I was ea ger to see what the curtains and lamps looked like. I first opened the package with the curtains. I had bought a lovely light blue, and instead they had sent me a horrible dark purple. Well, you can just imagine how angry I was. Then I opened the boxes with the lamps. They were exactly what I’d ordered. But one of the lamp shades was damaged. The next thing I did was to telephone them to complain. They promised to come and pick them up immediately and also to replace them with the correct order. It has been two weeks since my complaint. They have neither picked up the wrong items nor sent me the rest of my order.Questions 16 to 18 are based on the passage you have just heard.16. When did the woman want the store to deliver the items?17. Was the woman pleased when she saw the items they had delivered?18. What happened in the end?Passage TwoIn the West, land was always cheap. Every man was his own master. Yet, he was faced with the problem that he would have to learn to do everything by himself. He had to be his own doctor, mechanic, priest, soldier, and governor. His wife had to make the family’s clothes, teach her children, and help her husband in the fields. She kept a rifle behind the door to protect her children from wild animals. And she knew how to use it. Such was life in the Old West.Those early Americans were not afraid to work. Men who didn’t work didn’t eat. Work was necessary and honorable. With so much to do, Americans kept trying to find quicker and better ways of doing things. They brought eastern ways and experiments with new ways of farming, new religions, new machines, and new types of government. They made many mistakes, but they kept on learning.Questions 19 to 21 are based on the passage you have just heard.19. What was always cheap in the West?20. What was the early Americans’ attitude towards work?21. What was their life like in the West?Passage ThreeLast summer I visited Mexico City to see the ancient art in museums there. I was surprised at how well I managed to get around even though I don’t speak a word of Spanish. You just have to be able to make the right decision in a tough situation. The manager of my hotel gave me a map of the ci ty and told me that the best way to get to the museum was by subway. I didn’t know where the nearest subway was. But I was sure I would find it if I walked a little. After an hour I was still walking. I was completely lost. Just then a policeman came over and showed me the nearest station. I looked at the subway map and wall and didn’t know which line to take. In fact I wasn’t shown which station I was in. Most people would give up in that situation but not me. After I thought it over, I knew exactly what to do. I went upstairs and took a taxi.Questions 22 to 25 are based on the passage you have just heard.22. Why did the speaker go to the Mexico City?23. What was the best way to the museum according to the hotel manager?24. Why did the speaker take a taxi?25. How did the speaker feel about his trip to the museum?Section CDirections:In this section, you will hear a passage three times. When the passage is read for the first time you should listen for its general idea. Then listen to the passage again.When the passage is read for the second time, you are required to fill in the blanksnumbered from 26 to 33 with the exact words you have just heard. For the blanksnumbered from 34 to 36 you are required to fill in the missing information. For theseblanks, you can either use the exact words you have just heard or write down the mainpoints in your own words. Finally, when the passage is read for the third time, youshould check what you have written.Two more people have died of the H5N1 strain of bird flu in China, making the death toll five out of eight human cases (26) reported so far in the country. The Ministry of Health has announced Wednesday the two (27) victims, first reported last month, were a 10-year-old girl in the southern Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region and a 35-year-old man in eastern Jiangxi Province. They had died on December 16th and 30th (28) respectively after all medical treatment measures failed. A (29) spokesman for the Ministry says the current bird flu situation is “not optimistic”, and is calling on people to remain (30) vigilant.“Although there hasn’t been any human-to-human case of bird flu reported so far, as the danger of bird flu not only exists in China but also threatens other countries, (31) measures to prevent and control the epidemic must be (32) strengthened.” Among the eight human cases of bird flu in China, the (33) latest victim is a six-year-old boy from Central China’s Hunan Province, who is now in the hospital. The boy is in critical condition. The Ministry warns (34) human cases of bird flu may continue to increase in China if there are more bird flu outbreaks.The United Nations agriculture agency warns the bird flu virus (35) could become widespread among animals in Turkey and pose a serious risk to neighboring countries. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) says there have been more outbreaks than expected in Turkey. (36) The FAO also calls on Turkey’s neighbors to put surveillance and control measures in place and make sure the public is fully informed about bird flu risks.。