听力minilecture 原文
6 Study in AmericaThis week in our Foreign Student Series, we discuss something for students interested in higher education in the United States.Firstly, let’s learn about how to get the information you need. One place to go for advice and information about American colleges and universities is an Education USA center. More than four hundred of these educational advising centers are located around the world. The advisers at Education USA centers do not charge any money for their services.They help students find schools and get information about financial aid, admissions tests and visa requirements. The centers are supported by the State Department. You can find the nearest one on the State Department's Web site for international students.Another place to get information is at an educational fair.Representatives of American colleges and universities present information and answer questions from students and their parents.The Institute of International Education has been organizing United States Higher Education Fairs in Asia since 1982. Last year, more than fourteen thousand students attended these fairs in China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Thailand and Vietnam. The next higher education fairs in Asia are in October.Secondly, we talk about applying to an American college or university. International admissions officers advise students to apply to at least three schools.You may be able to apply online and pay the application charge with a credit card, or by mail.You should study the Web sites of schools that interest you. You can find information about how and when to apply, how much it will cost and whether any financial aid is available. And you can probably e-mail the admissions office with any questions.In most schools, the admissions Web site has an area where people can send questions to current international students.Wherever you apply, you should start the application process at least two years before you want to begin your studies. Completing the applications and any required admissions tests will take time.There are two competing admissions tests at the undergraduate level: the SAT and the ACT.The SAT involves mathematics and language and includes writing an essay.The ACT is designed to measure what a student learned in high school. There are questions in four skill areas: math, English, reading and science.Most American colleges and universities require applicants for a bachelor's degree to take one of the tests. Some students take both.The ACT is advertised as "America's most widely accepted college entrance exam." The SAT is advertised as the one "most widely taken" and, combined with high school grades, "the best predictor of college success."For graduate-level programs, applicants often have to take the Graduate Record Examinations, or GRE.The general test measures reasoning, thinking and writing skills.Non-native English speakers will most likely have to take the TOEFL, the Test of English as a Foreign Language, or IELTS, the International English Language Testing System.Most American colleges and universities accept one or both of the two major tests.The TOEFL is given in 180 countries. The competing IELTS is given in 121 countries.One million people each year take the TOEFL, says Tom Ewing, a spokesman for the Educational Testing Service. Same with the IELTS, says Beryl Meiron, the executive director of IELTS International.She says two thousand colleges and universities in the United States now recognize the IELTS.The IELTS is a paper test, while the TOEFL is given on paper only in places where a computer test is unavailable.The TOEFL paper test costs 150 dollars. It tests reading, listening and writing. A separate Test ofSpoken English costs 125 dollars.The computer version is called the TOEFL iBT, or Internet-based test. The price is different in each country, but generally falls between 150 and 200 dollars.The TOEFL iBT and the IELTS both measure all four language skills --- listening, reading, writing and speaking. But with the IELTS, the speaking test is done separately as a live interview. You speak with an examiner who is certified in ESOL - English for speakers of other languages.IELTS International says the test measures true-to-life ability to communicate in English for education, immigration and employment. Institutions in Britain and Australia jointly developed it.Thirdly, what’s the next step if you get accepted? Just getting accepted to an American college or university does not guarantee that you will get a visa. And getting a visa just lets you arrive in the United States. It does not guarantee that an immigration officer will permit you to enter the country.Travel documents come from the Department of State. But immigration is the responsibility of the Department of Homeland Security.The State Department has a Web site with all the rules for getting a visa. The address is . Unitedstatesvisas is all one word.If you are requesting a visa for the first time, you will probably have to go to an American embassy. You will need to bring a government form sent to you by your American school that shows you have been accepted.You will also need banking and tax records that show you have enough money to pay for your education. And be prepared to provide evidence that you will return to your home country after your studies end.All of this is important in satisfying the requirements to get a visa.Foreign students must contact their local embassy to request an interview and to get other information. This includes directions about how and where to pay the visa application charge. The cost is 200 dollars.You should apply for the visa as soon as you have been accepted to a school in the United States. The government needs time to perform a background investigation.You cannot receive a visa more than 120 days before the start of your program. And if you are coming as a student for the first time, you cannot enter the country more than thirty days before classes begin.Once you come to the United States, you can stay for the length of your period of study. Your school is required to provide the Department of Homeland Security with reports on your status as a student.7 How to Conduct Research OnlineGood morning, everyone. In today’s lecture, I’ll talk about tips on how to do researc h online. Nowadays, online resources can be found easily, and they can be of very high quality. The best way to find high-quality journal articles is to get them through your online library, or to buy the articles through an article provider.However, there are good sources that are both accurate and of high quality on the Web, and they are often free and don’t need any password.Whether you are looking for journal articles, thesis, factual information, or high-quality resources, the same principles are always helpful. Narrow your topic, make sure your search terms are relevant and focused, make sure your articles and your topic are consistent, examine your sources for prejudice and distortion, and finally, make sure that your research provides enough support and background for your argument.Let's expand the steps and look at them again. It is useful to look at each of the stepsindividually.(1)Define your topic.Narrow it down, but don't constrain it too much. Develop a solid topic statement that gives you room to develop an argument. This is a great time to do brainstorming. Clusters, mind maps, concept maps, decision trees, and free-writing are all very useful.Determine what fields of study your research question will address.(2)Identifying the fields of study will help you determine which journals or databases tosearch.(3)Make a list of items that interest you about the topic.For example, you may be required to write an essay on an aspect of Hamlet in your English class. At first, you feel puzzled. Later, however, you think about the characters and situations that most interested you and you recall that Ophelia's speech and then her death were interesting to you. You wondered about the psychological state, and how she was thought by the others in the play. Does her situation show something essential about the human condition? You don't have any idea, but you'd like to explore it. So, you start by looking into what others have said about Ophelia in Hamlet. You find that her madness and death reflect and reinforce the overall themes of death, madness, murder, and betrayal. How does Ophelia's madness contrast with Hamlet's? (4) You start writing down ideas and key words. These will help you develop search terms and focus your search by going to the correct types of journals and materials.Narrow your topic.This requires another round of brainstorming, but this time you will be focusing on what others have written. List terms, ideas, and concepts that occur to you, and then focus on the subcategories that you find most interesting.Then, use the list to narrow your topic. (5)Avoid old-fashioned subjects and the ones that are too narrow or too broad.What have others said?As you conduct beginning research in the library, you will find books and articles on your topic. As you read the material, try to form an idea of what the major issues have been in the discussions about your topic.For example, if your topic is on how the study of pragmatics starts, you will need to have an idea of who started researching the topic first. You will also need to identify the sides of the argument. Who is for it? Who is against it? Why? What are the issues?(6) Once you have a sense of the main players, you can start to do searches based on author name as well as key words or topics.Evaluate your material.How do you determine if a source of information is of high quality? Even if you are getting your data from a library database such as Lexis-Nexis, (7) you should be aware that the articles contained in the newspapers they have in their database could be prejudiced.Anyone with access to a server can put material on the web; there are no controls on what people choose to write. As a result, web pages should be viewed with even more caution than most print materials. In particular you should look for:- who is responsible for the site ---is there a name and contact address?- what is the operating rule for the site ---is it supporting a particular viewpoint to prove other views to be wrong?- is there a list or bibliography of evidence?-(8) is there a date when the site was last updated ---how long ago did this happen?- does the site seem to be permanent or part of a permanent organization?Organize your sources, articles, and notes.After you have found your articles, be sure to organize them so that you have a sense of where they will go in your paper. Keep your original topic in mind and the points you are trying to make. You should support them with evidence and research findings from your articles.This is a good time to return to your outline and to start mapping out where you plan to use your sources and materials.Create a bibliography.(9)As you download and read your articles, you can keep track of them by creating an"electronic notebook" which would consist of a list of your sources. Create an entry for each source. Use the appropriate style. After you have completed that, be sure to write a one-sentence summary of the article and how it relates to your topic.Update your outline.Re-examine your thesis. Look at your argumentation structure. Does each paragraph help support your thesis? How does your research fit? Determine where you have gaps and redundancies.Fill in the gaps.Make a list of the places in your paper where you need additional support for your argument.(10)Then, after eliminating redundancies, map where you need to fill gaps, and where your argument needs additional support.8 Mass Media in AmericaGood morning, everyone, today my topic is mass media in America. By media, we refer to the variety of means by which technology transmits information and entertainment to us. Thus, in its broadest sense, the term media includes newspaper, television, movies, radio, books, and magazines. Mass media specifically refer to those publications and programs that attempt to serve most or all of the people in a given market. Here I would like to introduce the mass media in America by dividing them into three groups: newspaper; magazines; radio and television.First, let’s have a look at newspapers. For a long time, newspapers have been the chief means by which people get themselves informed. While television has replaced newspapers as the primary source of news for most Americans, and while computer network is increasingly becoming a faster and easier way of obtaining news for many Americans, newspapers still remain as one of the most powerful means of communications in the United States. For one thing, reading newspapers is different from watching TV. It gives detailed coverage of news items,and tends to provide substantial treatment of news events. And, sometimes it offers interesting and stimulating opinions as well as analysis over important events at home and abroad.For another, unlike watching TV, reading newspapers does not require one to be confined to his sitting-room. He can do it virtually anywhere he likes: in his car, at the breakfast table, sitting in the sun, waiting at the subway station, and believe it or not, in the restroom. So, for these and many other reasons, newspapers in the United States are still a big business. And, this is borne out by two facts: (1) the large circulation of a number of important newspapers such as USA Today and The Wall Street Journal; (2) the great variety of newspapers available in the United States, big and small, local and national, special and general, radical and conservative, and so on. The top 3 daily newspapers in the United States are: Wall Street Journal, USA Today and New York Times.Second, we’ll move to magazines. According to a statistical r ecord in 1990, there were over 12, 205 magazines being published in the United States. More than 4, 000 of them appear monthly, and over 1, 300 are published each week. They cover all topics and interests, from art and architecture to sports, from aviation and gardening to computers and book reviews, from fashion design and cooking to homemaking. Quite a few have international editors, are translated into other languages,or have “daughter” editions in foreign countries. Among the many internationals are National Geographic, Reader’s Digest, Cosmopolitan, Vogue, Time, Newsweek, Scientific American and Psychology Today. The weekly newsmagazines --- the best known are Time, Newsweek, and U. S. News & World Report --- serve as a type of national press. Unlike newspapers, however, weekly newsmagazines tend to give extensive coverage and provide detailed, and sometimes in-depth, analysis. Also unlike newspapers, which usually have the lowest common denominator in their appeal to the general reading public, weekly newsmagazines normally target at the well-educated, well-informed, and public-conscious people of the society. Many weekly newsmagazines also have considerable international impact, particularly Time and Newsweek. The top three magazines in America are: (1) Reader’s Digest; (2) TV Guide; (3) The Conde Nast Select.Third, I’ll say something about radio and television. In more than two generations, the two powerful mass media transformed much of American life.Radio, emerging at the same period when the Great Depression pervaded in America, provided free entertainment in the comforts of the home. Families that could no longer afford to go out for entertainment gathered together in their living rooms to escape reality by laughing, fantasizing and dreaming of happier times. From then on, radio became a first-class entertainment medium for most Americans. Up until now, in view of the popularity of radio programs in the United States, the future of radio as a form of medium continues to look bright.Then, with the rapid development of science and technology, TV came into being in 1920s. It primarily serves as a medium of entertainment, and then also has a big role to play as a news broadcasting agency. Networks began experimenting with news at locally owned stations as early as January 1940. But, early-day television news could not begin to compare with radio news. Only after the invention of portable cameras and videotape recorders had television been made a much more credible news medium because viewers saw pictures of the news events on the day they occurred. Consequently, access to news is made much easier, and the general public is getting better informed.Gradually, television’s impact on American society has been more and more profound. It has changed the life-styles of most Americans and become a major influence on American culture. It can be seen from 5 aspects.First and foremost is the socialization effect. Many studies have shown that TV’s dominance as household activity often reduces the level of communication among family members and, as a result, much of the culture being distributed to youngsters today in the United States comes from the tube rather than the family.Secondly, television programming has played an important role in shaping and reflecting for the masses the cultural changes that have been occurring in American society. TV functions both as a transmitter of new cultural trends and as a molder of new attitudes towards these new trends.Thirdly, television has revolutionized the marketing of goods in the American economy. With TV marketing, people become vulnerable to the products, or in other words, to the commercials.Fourthly, the cultural impact of violent TV programs has been quite enormous. Needless to say, the question of violence on TV has been around nearly as long as the medium. Many critics claim that TV violence increases violence in American society.Fifthly, the impact of TV on religion has also been an issue of great concern to many Americans. So far now, it is still an issue full of disputes.To sum up, the mass media in America includes so many different forms, and each of them plays a vital role in American people’s life not only in the past, but also at present and in the future. To know much about America, one must have a good knowledge about its mass media.9 Problems for EFL LearnersEven though some EFL learners achieve high score in a certain standard English test such as IELTS or TOFEL, they still have some problems concerning the learning of English. Today I’d l ike to talk about some of the problems that students face when they follow a course of study through the medium of English - if English is not their mother tongue. The purpose is to show that we’re aware of students’ problems, and that by analyzing them perhaps it’ll be possible to suggest how some of them may be overcome.The problems can be divided into three broad categories: psychological, cultural and linguistic. Some of the common psychological problems really involve fear of the unknown: for example, whether one’s academic studies will be too difficult, whether one will fail the exams, and so on. All students share these apprehensions.It’s probably best for a student not to look too far ahead but to concentrate day-by-day on increasing his knowledge and developing his ability. The overseas student in Britain may also suffer from separation from his family and possible homesickness; enjoyment of his activities in Britain and the passage of time are the only real help here.Looking now at the cultural problems,we can see that some of them are of a very practical nature, for example, arranging satisfactory accommodation, getting used to British money (or the lack of it), British food and weather. Some of the cultural difficulties are less easy to define: they are bound up with the whole range of alien customs, habits and traditions --- in other words, the British way of life. Such difficulties include:settling into a strange environment and a new academic routine; learning a new set of social habits, ranging from the times of meals to the meanings of gestures; expressing appropriate greetings; understanding a different kind of humor; and learning how to make friends. Being open-minded and adaptable is the best approach to some of the difficulties listed here.The largest category is probably linguistic. Let’s look at this in some detail. Most students have learnt English at school, but they have had little everyday opportunity to practice using English. When foreign learners first have the opportunity to speak to an English-speaking person they may have a shock: they often have great difficulty in understanding! There are a number of reasons for this. I’ll just mention three of them.Firstly, it seems to students that English people speak very quickly. Secondly, they speak with a variety of accents. Thirdly, different styles of speech are used in different situations, for example, everyday spoken English, which is colloquial and idiomatic, is different from the English used for academic purposes. Don’t f orget, by the way, that if students have difficulty in understanding English-speaking people, these people may also have difficulty in understanding the students!What can a student do then to overcome these difficulties? Well, obviously, he can benefit from attending English classes and if a language laboratory is available use it as much as possible. He should also listen to programmes in English on the radio and TV. Perhaps the most important of all, he should take every available opportunity to meet and speak with native English-speaking people. He should be aware, however, that English people are, by temperament, often reserved and may be unwilling to start a conversation. Nevertheless, if he has the courage to take the initiative, however difficult it may seem to be, most English people will respond. He will need patience and perseverance.In addition to these problems regarding listening and understanding, the student probably has difficulty in speaking English fluently. He has the ideas, he knows wh at to say but he doesn’t know how to say it in English. The advice here will seem difficult to follow but it’s necessary. Firstly, he must simplify his language so that he can express himself reasonably clearly;for example, short sentences will be better than long ones. Secondly, he must try to think in English, not translate from his mother tongue. That’ll only begin to take place when his use of English becomes automatic;using a language laboratory and listening to as much English as possible will help. In general, he should practice speaking as much as possible. He should also notice the kind of English, and its structure, that educated people use, and try to imitate it.The problem with learning English as a foreign language is that all English learners want to speak English well; however, most learners don't want to spend time on learning English on their own. Learning English requires action. You may know all the learning tips, but if you don't start doing things, you will achieve nothing. The fact is, if you want to learn to speak English well, you must change your life.Thank you for your attention.10 Attending a College or University in the USAToday, I’m going to talk about how people from foreign countries can attend a college or university in the United States. Experts say you must plan early if you want to study in the United States. They say to begin at least two years before you want to start your studies.The first step is to visit an American educational advising center. There are more than 400 such offices around the world. You can find the one closest to your home by using a computer. Go to an Education Report on the Special English Web site and click on the link to the State Department Education Foreign Student Web page.Or ask the Public Affairs Office at the United States Embassy in your country to tell you where the nearest American educational advising center is. Educational advising centers have information about American colleges. They have computers so you can do a search to find the best school for you.Colleges and universities in the United States offer different kinds of degrees that require one or more years of study. For example, some schools offer certificate programs. These programs offer one year of training in subjects like office work, computer programming or car repair.You may also choose a two-year junior college or community college. Such programs lead to an associate degree. For example, some two-year programs prepare students for skilled jobs in electronics.Studying at a community college costs much less than at a four-year college. Many colleges and universities accept community college work as the first two years toward a four-year bachelor’s degree. To get a bachelor’s degree, you study general subjects lik e English, history, mathematics, and science during the first two years. During the last two years you take classes in your major area of study.If you already have a college degree, you may want to get an advanced degree at an American graduate school. A master’s degree usually takes two or three more years of full-time study in one subject. You must attend graduate school if you want to be a college professor, medical doctor or lawyer. These special degree programs require between three and six years of additional study.People attend a college or university to continue their education after high school. This prepares them for work. It also provides them with a greater understanding of the world and its past. And, it helps them value the arts and sciences. But what is the difference between a college and a university in the United States?Students usually attend a college for four years to complete a program of study. Those who are successful receive a bachelor’s degree. Colleges generally do not offer additional study programs or support research projects.Universities often are much larger than colleges. Universities carry out research. They also offer several programs in many areas of study. Universities offer bachelor’s degrees after four years of study. They also offer graduate degrees that require additional years of study.Modern universities developed from those of Europe’s Middle Ages. They took their name from the Latin word “universitas”. It meant a group of people organized for one purpose. Th e firstEuropean colleges were groups of students who came together because of the same interests. In England, colleges were formed to provide students with living places. Usually each group was studying the same thing, so the word “college” came to mean o ne area of study.Today, most American colleges offer an area of study called liberal arts. The liberal arts are subjects first developed and taught in ancient Greece. They trained a person’s mind. They were considered different from subjects that were us eful in life. The word “college” also means a part of a university that teaches one area of study. That is because the first American universities divided their studies into many areas and called each one a college. For example, the University of Texas at Austin has fourteen different colleges. It also has the most students of any single university in the country. This year, more than 52,000 men and women are studying there.One way to earn a degree at an American college or university is to stay at home and use a computer. American universities have been offering classes online for a number of years. Students who have taken online classes say they like them. One reason is because they do not have to travel to a building at a set time to listen to a professor. Professors say they have better communication with students through electronic mail notes than they do in many traditional classes.Some colleges offer academic degrees online. One is Jones International University in Englewood, Colorado. Its web site says it is the first fully online accredited university.It offers both bachelor’s degrees and master’s degrees.The University of Phoenix in Arizona has been offering degrees online since 1989. University officials say they try to provide students with a social experience as well as an educational one. For example, in some programs, groups of the same six students progress through all their classes together. They communicate by computer.Another online school is Cardean University ,near Chicago, Illinois. It began operations two years ago. It is offering online classes leading to a Master’s of Business Administration degree. Cardean University uses a problem-solving method of teaching. Students attempt to solve real problems in their classes online instead of reading information.Anyone with a computer can find information on the Internet about these schools and others. You can use a search engine such as Google or Yahoo. Type “online education”, and choose from a list of schools. Each will provide information about its programs and costs.However, experts say you should not send money to any school that says you can get a college degree without doing any work. These are illegal operations. Experts also say that you should find out if such college degrees are recognized in your country before you decide to get an education online.Well, this is part of a series of talks about how people from foreign countries can attend a college or university in the United States. Next week, we’ll continue with the talk s.。
2017Mini-Lecture专八真题听力原文
The Modes of LanguageGood morning, everyone!In our last lecture, I was talking about language as part of our semiotic system.And today I am going to move on to another topic, that is, the modes of language. As you may know, messages are transmitted in human language most frequently through two primary modes: speech and writing.Well, you know, there is also a third mode, which is not that frequently used as speech and writing.（1）The third mode is called signing, which is used by deaf people. But in today's lecture, we will just focus on speech and writing, and the specific features of these two modes.（2）In linguistics, it is commonly noted that speech is primary and writing secondary. Linguistics take this position because all languages are spoken except those dead languages such as Latin, which is only existent in written form.All children will naturally acquire the spoken version of a language if they are exposed to it.They acquire the spoken form of their mother tongue during the formative period of language acquisition. （3）However, to become literate, a child will need some kind of formal schooling in reading and writing. In many respects, we might call speech "primary" and writing "secondary". It implies that writing has a second-class status when compared with speech.（4）In fact, it is more accurate to view the two modes as having different but complementary roles. For instance, in most legal systems, while an oral contract is legally binding, a written contract is preferred. The reason is simple—unlike speech, writing provides a permanent record of the contract.（5）Thus, if the terms of the contract are disputed, the written record of the contract can be consulted and interpreted. Disputes over an oral contract will involve one person's recollection of the contract versus another person's. （6）While writing may be the preferred mode for a contract, in many other contexts, speech will be more appropriate. Because the most common type of speech—face-to-face conversation—is highly interactive. This modeis well-suited to many social contexts, such as casual conversations over lunch, business transactions in a grocery store, discussions between students and teachers in a classroom.（7）And in these contexts, interactive dialogues have many advantages over writing. For instance, individuals engaged in conversation can ask for immediate clarification if there is a question about something said; in a letter to a friend, in contrast, such immediacy is lacking.（8）When speaking to one another, speakers are face to face and can therefore see how individuals react to what is said. On the other hand, （9）writing creates distance between writer and reader, preventing the writer from getting any immediate reaction from the reader.（10）Speech is oral, thus making it possible to use intonation to emphasize words or phrased and express emotion. Of course, one might say that writing has punctuation. Well, it can express only a small proportion of the features that intonation has. Because speech is created "on-line," it is produced quickly and easily. This may result in many "ungrammatical" constructions, but rarely do these rough sentences cause miscommunications. You know, if there is a misunderstanding, it can be easily corrected. On the contrary, （11）writing is much more deliberate. It require planning, editing and thus taking much more time to produce on the part of the writer.Because of all these characteristics of writing, if an individual desires a casual, intimate encounter with a friend, he or she is more likely to meet personally than write a letter. In this case, writing a letter to a friend might turn out to be too formal.Of course, in today's world, the highly-developed technology has made such encounters possible with "instant messaging" over a computer or a smart phone. And if someone wishes to have such an encounter with a friend living many miles away, then this kind of on-line written "chat" can mimic a face-to-face conversation.（12）But because such conversations are a hybrid of speech and writing, they still lack the intimacy and immediacy of a face-to-face conversation.（13）While speech and writing are often viewed as discrete modes, it is important for us to note that there is a continuum between speech and writing.（14）While speech is in general more interactive than writing, various kinds of spoken and written English display various degrees of interactivity. For instance, various linguistic markers of interactive discourse, such as first and second person pronouns, contractions, and private verbs such as think and feel, occurred very frequently in telephone and face-to-face conversations but less frequently in spontaneous speeches, interviews, and broadcasts. In addition, some kinds of writing, such as academic prose and official documents, exhibited few markers of interactive discourse, but the other kinds of written texts, particularly personal letters, ranked higher on the scale of interactivity than many of the spoken texts.In other words, （15）how language is structured depends less on whether it is spoken or written but more on how it is being used. For example, a personal letter, even though it is written, will contain linguistic features marking interactivity because the writer of a letter wishes to interact with the receiver of the letter.On the other hand, in an interview, the goal is not to interact necessarily but to get information from the person being interviewed. Therefore, though interviews are spoken, they have fewer markers of interactivity and contain more features typically associated with written texts.OK, to sum up, we have been dealing with the modes of language in today's lecture. The two most frequently used modes are speech and writing. As two different modes of language, speech and writing have their own characteristics. Speech is a preferred mode in many social contacts where interactivity is needed. Of course, when a formal stable record is preferred, writing should be an appropriate mode. Finally, I have also emphasized that there is a continuum between speech and writing. In the following lecture, we will concentrate on the linguistic structures of language.Thank you!。
2019年英语专业八级真题听力Mini-lecture（2）
2019年英语专业八级真题听力Mini-lecture(2)1 I also notice another interesting thing about this.关于这一点，我还发现了另一个有趣的现象。
It seems women are much more likely to do this kind of t hing than men.女性似乎比男性更有可能做出这种动作。
I mean women are more likely to make themselves small .我的意思是，女性更有可能让自己变小。
Women feel chronically less powerful than men,so this i s not surprising.女性总感觉自己的力量比男性弱，因此这并不令人惊讶。
The second question concerns our minds.第二个问题是关于我们的意识。
We know that our minds change our bodies.我们知道，我们的意识会改变我们的身体。
But is it also true that our bodies change our minds? 但我们的身体也可以改变我们的意识吗？And when I say minds,in the case of the powerful,what do I mean?当我说到意识的时候，以强大的力量为例，这是什么意思呢？I'm talking about thoughts and feelings and the sort of ph ysiological things that make up ourthoughts and feelings, 我在说想法和感觉，以及组成我们想法和感觉的生理上的东西，and in my case,that's hormones.就这件事而言，是指激素。
06专八听力原文
听力原文2006Part 1, Listening ComprehensionSECTION A MINI-LECTUREGood morning! In today's lecture we shall discuss what meaning is in literary, works. When we read novels, poems, etc. , we invariably ask ourselves a question—that is, what does the writer mean here? In other words, we are interested in finding out the meaning. But meaning is a difficult issue in literature. How do we know what a work of literature is supposed to mean or what its real meaning is? I'd like to discuss three ways to explain what meaning is.No. 1, meaning is what is intended by the author. ( Q1)No. 2, meaning is created by and contained in the text itself.And No. 3 , meaning is created by the reader.Now, let's take a look at the first approach—that is, meaning is what is intended by the author. Does a work of literature mean what the author intended to mean? And if so, how can we tell? If all the evidence we have is the text itself and nothing else, we can only guess what ideas the author had according to our understanding of literature and world. In order to have a better idea of what one par¬ticular author means in one of his works; I suggest that you do the following:First, go to the library and read other works by the same author. ( Q2)Second get to know something about what sort of meanings seem to be common in literary works in that particular tradition and .at that time. In other words, we need to find out what the literary trends were in those days. ( Q3) And last, get to know what were the cultural values and symbols of the time. I guess you can understand the author's meaning much more clearly after you do the related background research.Now, let's move on to the second approach to meaning—that is, meaning is created by and con¬tained in the text itself. Does the meaning exist in the text? Some scholars argue that the formal prop¬erties of the text like grammar, diction, uses of image and so on and so forth, contain and produce the meaning, ( Q4) so that any educated or competent reader will inevitably come to more or less the same interpretation as any other. As. far as I am concerned, the meaning is not only to be found in the literary traditions and grammatical conventions of meaning but also in the cultural codes which have been handed down from generation to generation. ( Q5) So when we and other readers, inclu¬ding the author as well, are said to come up with similar interpretations. That kind of agreement could be created by common traditions and conventions of usage, practice and interpretation. In other words, we have some kind of shared bases for the same interpretation, but that does not mean that readers agree on the meaning all the time. In different time periods, with different cultural perspec¬tives, including class, belief and world view, readers, I mean competent readers, can arrive at dif¬ferent interpretations of tdxts: ( Q6) So meaning in the text is determined by how readers see it. It is not contained in the text in a fixed way.Now, the third approach to meaning—that is, meaning is created by the reader. ( Q7) Does the meaning then exist in the reader's response? In a sense, this is inescapable. Meaning exists only in so far as it means to someone , and literary works are written in order to evoke sets of responses in the reader. This leads us to consider three essential issues.The first is—meaning is social—( Q8) that is, language and conventions work only a shared meaning and our way of viewing the world can exist only a shared or sharable. Similarly, when we read a text, we are participating in social or cultural meaning, so a response to a piece of literary work is not merely an individual thing but is part of culture and history.Second, meaning is contextual. If you change the context, you often change the meaning.And last, meaning requires reader competency. ( Q9) Texts constructed as literature have their own ways of expressions or sometimes we say styles. And the more we know of them, the more we can understand the text. Consequently, there is in regard to the question of meaning; the matter of reader competency as it is called the experience and knowledge of comprehending literary texts. Your professors might insist that you practice and improve competency in reading and they might also insist that you interpret meaning in the context of the whole work. But you may have to learn other compe¬tencies too. For instance, in reading Mulk Raj Anand's The Untouchables' you might have to learn what the social structure of India was like at that time, what traditions of writing were in practice in India in the early 1930s, what political, cultural andpersonal influences Mulk Raj Anand came un¬der when constructing the imaginative world of the short novel. ( Q10) Ok , you may see that this i¬dea that meaning requires competency in reading in fact brings us back to the historically situated un¬derstandings of an author and his works as we mentioned earlier in this lecture, to different conven¬tions and ways of reading and writing and to the point that meaning requires a negotiation between cultural meanings across time, culture, class, etc. As readers, you have in fact acquired a good deal of competency already but you should acquire more. The essential point of this lecture is that mean¬ing in literature is a phenomenon that is not easily located, that meaning is historical, social and de¬rived from the traditions of reading and thinking and understanding of the world that you are educated about. Thank you for your attention!SECTION B INTERVIEWInterviewer: Well, I see from your resume , Miss Green, that you studied at the university college. How did you find there?Miss Green: I had a great time. The teaching there was good and I made a lot of friends. The psy¬chology department was a great place to be. ( Q1) Interviewer: How come you chose psychology?Miss Green: Well, at first I didn't have any clear idea of what I wanted to do after university. I guess I've just always been interested in people and the way they act. I wanted to know why people think and act the way they do. It's a fascinating area.Interviewer: And what was the course like? .Miss Green: Good. The teachers were all really nice and they had the special approach to teaching. You know they didn't just give us lectures and tell us to read books like they might do in some more traditional places. The whole course was based on the problem-solving ap¬proach. You know they described apai-ticular situation to us and we discuss what might happen. And after that we do some reading and see if it confirmed our own ideas. That's what I liked best—the really practical orientation of the course. I learnt very well with that style. So for me, it was just great. ( Q1)Interviewer: I see from your resume that you graduated about four years ago and after that... let me see...Miss Green:I got a job with the Department of Employment. It was only a temporary thing for about five months. I was a researcher in the department. We design a survey, go out to the factories, and ask all the questions to the workers and the management , then go back to the office, analyze all the data and produce a report. ( Q2) It was quite interesting and I guessed the psychology course at college helped me a lot.Interviewer:And after that you worked for three years in an Advertising Agency. That must be a bit of change from the Department of Employment, wasn't it? Miss Green: Well, not really. I supposed the office furnishings were a bit more sophisticated, but the work was quite, similar. I was basically still doing the same thing—designing ques¬tionnaires, going out, asking questions andwriting reports. The only difference was that this time I wasn't asking people about their work. I was asking them what kind of sham¬poo they bought and if they preferred brand X to brand Y. ( Q3) Then I make up a re¬port and the agency would use the information in the advertising campaigns. I enjoyed my work a lot.Interviewer: So why did you decide to leave?Miss Green :.Three years is a long time to be asking people those sorts of questions about shampoo and drinks. No. Seriously , after two years I was in charge of the research department of the agency and .I had one assistant researcher. I guess after two years of doing that, I sup¬pose I felt, you know, I can do this well. And now I want to do something else that's a little different. And there was nowhere for me to go inside the company. It just wasn't challenging for me any more and because I needed a challenge, I decided to move on. ( Q4) When I heard about the position of senior researcher here, I thought that's exactly what I want—the chance to combine my management skills and my research interests working in a much larger department with more varied work.Interviewer: And you felt that the job description and our advertisement would offer you the kind of challenge you're looking for?Miss Green:Exactly. Yes. As I said, management in a larger organization and research combined. Also to be honest with you, I heard about the job before it was advertised. A friend of mine, who works here, Mark Austen, told me a few weeks ago that you were looking for someone to take over the job. He describedthe position to me in quite a bit of detail. And I thought, "Well, , that's exactly what I'm looking for. " So really I'd written my let¬ter of application before the job was even advertised.Interviewer: I should tell you that with the present cutbacks, we've only got one full-time administer assistant in the section. How would you feel about doing your own word processing, photo copying, that sort of thing?Miss Green: Oh, I'm used to that. I've done all my own word processing for ages. It's the only way to write really , isn't it? I can type well about 60 words a minute.I did a secretarial course after I left school, so I learnt typing in short hand. Thena few years later, I bought a PC and I learnt how to do word processing, too. ( Q5 )Interviewer: Well , that's handy. Now in the position you've applied for , you'd have five to six assis¬tant researchers responsible to you. That's considerably more responsibility than you've had before. So you're obviously ambitious. And as you said, you like challenge. I was wondering what you see yourself doing in, say, five or ten years on the track.Miss Green:Oh, that is a difficult question. Let me try to answer your question in this way. I'm-par¬ticularly interested in experimental design and also in teaching. I'd like to continue the organization and planning site of research, but do some teaching, too. I know that you have lecturers here who do just that sort of thing—some practical worker and some un¬dergraduate and postgraduate teaching. So that's what I really be aiming for—to be a lec¬turer here as well. ( Q5 )Interviewer: Well, that is certainly a career path that we'd encourage you to follow. But of course it might be necessary to upgrade your present qualifications first. I see from your resume that you've enrolled in an M. A. in experimental psychology. Could you tell me a bit about the courses you're planning to fake?SECTION C NEWS BROADCASTNews Item 1 (for questions 6 and 7)A man stole a small aircraft at gunpoint Sunday and flew it over downtown Frankfurt, circling skyscrapets and threatening tp crash into the European Central Bank. He landed safely after abouttwo hours and was arrested.,The man told a television station he wanted to call attention to Judith Resnik, a U. S. astronautkilled in the 1986 post-launch explosion of the space shuttle Challenger. ( Q6) Military jets chased the stolen , two-seat motorized glider as the man began circling slowly above Frankfurt's banking dis¬trict. Thousands of people were evacuated from the main railway station, two opera houses and sever¬al skyscrapers. Police identified the man as a 31-year-old German student from Darmstadt, a city about 25 miles south of Frankfurt. In radio contact with air traffic controllers , the man threatened to crash into the. European Central Bank headquarters unless he was allowed the TV interview as well as a call toBaltimore. ( Q7 ) He later said he wanted to commit suicide by plunging the plane into the Maine River. It was unclear if the man was forced to land or talked down. Air traffic controllers and a police psychologist had been in contact with him.News Item 2 (for question 8)Shanghai plans to build a vast underground network of malls , restaurants and parking lots to make up for a lack of space above ground according to a recent government report. ( Q8 )The development will cover 600,000 square meters , the equivalent of 120 soccer fields, spread across four underground floors, the city government reported on its website. The city is accepting bids from builders. Shanghai has about 20 million people , plus factories , office towers and high-rise apartments , crowded into a small triangular territory near the mouth of the Yangtze River. The plans called for the project due to be finished by 2006 to expand existing facilities scattered along Shanghai subway system. The project will need advanced technology to supply fresh air and ensure safety.But the biggest concern is the stability off` the soil under the city. Shanghai is sinking by 1. 5 centimeters a year. Lands subsidence has been aggravated by over-pumping of underground water and the construction of thousands ofhigh-rise buildings. Shanghai's foundations are built on soft soil. So building multi-storey spaces underground would be like digging holes in the piece of bean curd, the government report says. The difficulties are easy to see.News Item 3 (for questions 9 and 10)A credit card that only works when it hears its owner's voice has been developed by US scien¬tists. Researchers hope that the device, which comes with abuilt-in voice recognition chip and mi¬crophone will be a weapon in the battle against credit card fraud. ( Q9) Even if thieves know a card's password and personal identification number, they will still have to copy the owner's voice accurate¬ly. The trial card was created by scientists at B Card in California, US. The first version is 3 times as thick as a normal credit card, but researchers believe smaller chips will allow the card to slim down to a more conventional size. The card is apparently the first to put a voice recognition chip, 'a micro¬phone speaker and battery into a credit card. ( Q10) To use the card, the owner first presses a but¬ton and hears the prompt: say your password. If the password is correct and spoken by the right per¬son, the card emits an identification signal which is processed by a computer connected to the Inter¬net. Researchers hope to get the card to handle ten transactions per day for two years before its non- replaceable battery runs out.作文AmbitionAmbition is the decision one makes and the resolution with which he carries out that decision. It provides us with the required driving force to accomplish any undertakings in our life. Just as Joseph Epstein , a famous American writer put it , " And as we decide and choose , so are our lives formed. " Indeed, once we make up our minds to choose to do something, then our life becomesmean¬ingful and specifically orientated. This notion of life , as far as I observe , is closest to truth and does apply to ahnost all aspects of life.First things first, ambition renders us a sense of mission. No matter what decision you make you have to be responsible for your choice. Your choice procures you a sense of orientation, or more specially a sense of mission. And only a strong mission may enable one to accomplish greatness. Caesar of the ancient Roman Empire was urged by his ambition "I came, I saw, I conquered" , and he became an unrivaled empire builder in the history of Rome. John Milton , stimulated always by his ambition that aimed at writing some "mighty lines" which England would unwillingly forget, had in due time secured his position as the second Shakespeare in the history of English literature.In the second place, ambition can bring one's potentials to the full. Ambition may well serve as a catalyst activating one's dormant potentials. Without ambition one's potentials will remain slumbering like a dormant volcano. A case in point is Ms Zhang Haidi, a Chinese Helen Keller. It is her ambi¬tion to be a useful person that has turned the almost paralyzed Zhang Haidi into awell-accomplished figure whose achievements would dwarf, those of some normal people aiming at the sun, though at worst, they may probably land on the moon.Influential as it is upon us, however, ambition must be channeled in the right direction. If wrongly directed, one's ambition may bring havoc on him and others. Hitler, whose ambition was to conquer Europe by whatever evil means, finally, turned him into a demon. It was this demon that al¬most cast Europeinto an unfathomable abyss ,of anguish and suffering. Another case is Macbeth whose ambition was to become the king of Scotland. However, his ambition was materialized by the murder of King Duncan. Consequently, unbearable guilt and psychological agony drove him to his tragic doom.To sum up, ambition can benefit us tremendously if it is wisely and correctly channeled, other¬wise it may ruin others and ourselves. A poet says: life can be bad; life can be, good; life can be dirty; life can be sad; life can even be painful. In my mind's eye, a person can make his life beauti¬ful, meaningful and rewarding and stand out as a respectable personage if he is motivated by, a well- orientated ambition.。
专业英语八级听力-24
专业英语八级听力-24(总分：100.00，做题时间：90分钟)一、(总题数：0，分数：0.00)二、SECTION A MINI-LECTURE(总题数：1，分数：50.00)In this section you will 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. 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, using no more than three words in each gap. Make sure the word(s) you fill in is (are) both grammatically and semantically acceptable. You may refer to your notes while completing the task. Use the blank sheet for note-taking. Now, listen to the mini-lecture.English Business Letter Format{{B}}Ⅰ. Demands of stationery{{/B}}—the first page is with a letterhead—other pages are of {{U}} {{U}} 1 {{/U}} {{/U}}and color—one thing a personal letter should {{U}} {{U}} 2 {{/U}} {{/U}}: using letterhead{{B}}Ⅱ. Matters nee ding attention as typing{{/B}}—identical typeface and size—correct grammar and spelling—neat arrangement—use of {{U}} {{U}} 3 {{/U}} {{/U}}to promote the appearance of the letter {{B}}Ⅲ. Sections of a traditional business letter{{/B}}A. Return address—justifying each line—putting it at the top normally—excluding {{U}} {{U}} 4 {{/U}} {{/U}}B. Date of the letter—white space between the return address and the date being {{U}} {{U}}5 {{/U}} {{/U}}nowadaysC. Inside address—consisting of receiver's name and his/her addressD. Ways to {{U}} {{U}} 6 {{/U}} {{/U}}the intended recipientE. Main part—both indented paragraphs and block paragraphs being {{U}} {{U}} 7 {{/U}} {{/U}}—fully squared paragraphs being cautiously {{U}} {{U}} 8 {{/U}} {{/U}}F. ClosingG. Typed writer's name—signature being above the typed name while job title is below it {{B}}Ⅳ. Supplementary requirements{{/B}}—putting "cc" at the bottom when {{U}} {{U}} 9 {{/U}} {{/U}}are necessary —putting the initials of the professional typist—noting enclosures—resisting templates which are usually {{U}} {{U}} 10 {{/U}} {{/U}} —refusing "Office Bob"In this section you will 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. 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, using no more than three words in each gap. Make sure the word(s) you fill in is (are) both grammatically and semantically acceptable. You may refer to your notes while completing the task. Use the blank sheet for note-taking. Now, listen to the mini-lecture.English Business Letter Format{{B}}Ⅰ. Demands of stationery{{/B}}—the first page is with a letterhead—other pages are of {{U}} {{U}} 1 {{/U}} {{/U}}and color—one thing a personal letter should {{U}} {{U}} 2 {{/U}} {{/U}}: using letterhead{{B}}Ⅱ. Matters needing attention as typing{{/B}}—identical typeface and size—correct grammar and spelling—neat arrangement—use of {{U}} {{U}} 3 {{/U}} {{/U}}to promote the appearance of the letter {{B}}Ⅲ. Sections of a traditional business letter{{/B}}A. Return address—justifying each line—putting it at the top normally—excluding {{U}} {{U}} 4 {{/U}} {{/U}}B. Date of the letter—white space between the return address and the date being {{U}} {{U}}5 {{/U}} {{/U}}nowadaysC. Inside address—consisting of receiver's name and his/her addressD. Ways to {{U}} {{U}} 6 {{/U}} {{/U}}the intended recipientE. Main part—both indented paragraphs and block paragraphs being {{U}} {{U}} 7 {{/U}} {{/U}}—fully squared paragraphs being cautiously {{U}} {{U}} 8 {{/U}} {{/U}}F. ClosingG. Typed writer's name—signature being above the typed name while job title is below it {{B}}Ⅳ. Supplementary requirements{{/B}}—putting "cc" at the bottom when {{U}} {{U}} 9 {{/U}} {{/U}}are necessary —putting the initials of the professional typist—noting enclosures—resisting templates which are usually {{U}} {{U}} 10 {{/U}} {{/U}} —refusing "Office Bob"（分数：50.00）填空项1:__________________ （正确答案：matching/similar quality）解析：[听力原文]English Business Letter FormatGood morning, everyone. I believe that some of English majors wanna work for foreign trade companies after graduation. So today I will focus on English business letter format which are very useful.When a business that has letterhead stationery writes an English business letter, the first page of the letter uses paper with the printed letterhead and {{U}}succeeding pages, if any, use matching quality and color sheets without the letterhead{{/U}}. (第一页之后的部分用质量和颜色与之匹配的信纸，所以填matching/similar quality。
2021年英语专八听力真题和原文答案
2021年英语专八听力真题和原文答案PART I LISTENING COMPREHENSION [25 MIN]2021英语专八真题音频.mp3SECTION A MINI-LECTUREIn this section, you will hear a mini-lecture. You will hear the lecture ONCE ONLY. While listening, please complete the gap-fulling task on ANSWER SHEET ONE and write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS for each gap. Make sure the word(s) you fill in is (are) both grammaticallyand semanticallyacceptable.You may use the blank sheet for note taking. You have THIRTY seconds to preview the gap-filling task. Now listen to the mini-lecture. When it is over, you will be given THREE minutes to check your work.Current Challenges Confronting U.S. Higher EducationSection B InterviewThis is the end of Part Two of the interview. Questions 6 to 10 are based on what you have just heard. Question 6, what did Maureen think about socializing with writers?Question 7, what was Maureen's view about a community for poets?Question 8, why did her sections have concluding stanzas?Question 9, what did Maureen think about her way of poetry reading?Question 10, what is the interview mainly about?This is the end of Part One of the interview. Questions 1 to 5 are based on what you have just heard. Question 1, what is Maureen McLean, according to the interviewer?Question 2, when did Maureen first begin to read poetry?Question 3, who were the most important teachers to Maureen?Question 4, which of the following did Maureen feel more strongly about when she returned to teach at Harvard?Question 5, why did Maureen bring recordings to class?答案解析和原文1、MINI-LECTURE 录音原文Current Challenges Confronting U.S. Higher EducationGood morning, everyone. In our last lecture, we discussed challenges that face universities and colleges worldwide. Today, we'll take a special look at U.S. higher education and see what challenges U.S. higher education is facing. OK, let's get started.The first challenge we are examining in today's lecture is the force of the marketplace on higher education. Many people believe that the marketplace has overtaken state government as the dominant external force, shaping and reshaping American higher education, even for public colleges and universities. You may ask, why is it so? Well, as is always the case, government support is not keeping pace with educational expenditures. So, in many ways the market is having more bearing on higher education than government. In order to create more flexibility, many public colleges and universities are now asking for less government regulation and supervision. In some instances, they are even asking for less state money in return for more autonomy. And, their argument is that the current structures and accountability requirements have hindered their capacity to be effective and efficient. The ability to set their own tuition fees and secure freedom from state policies and regulations in areas, such as purchasing and building, represent just some of the additional autonomy that public institutions are seeking. And many are pressing for new legislation to provide this freedom through a range of innovations, including public corporations, charter colleges, state enterprise status and performance contracts.So, what is the result of these efforts? Well, the result is that activities and research in certain fields and disciplines, for example, engineering, applied natural science and agricultural science become higher institutional priorities because they have stronger market value than other programs such as humanities do. So, what has happened is that institutions create new programs, alter academic calendars and pursue differentfinancial aid policies to capture more and better students, in particular those who can afford to pay high tuition. For instance, executive MBA programs are increasingly popular. Also, institutions seek contracts and partnership agreements and enhance research programs with practical applications that have large financial payouts. In order to do so, they are changing their institutional structures. And how do they do it? Let me tell you, institutions would add new units that focus on generating external grants and bringing new technology to market. They would build conference centers and create for profit subsidiaries. All of these are done to generate more revenue for institutions. What are the implications of this? Well, the implications are that academic research is increasingly focused on marketable knowledge. Entrepreneurial priorities are taking precedence, services are being outsourced, and students are carrying an increasing burden to pay higher tuition fees for their education.Then how do university administrators view this trend? That is, the marketplace is showing stronger impact on how institutions are run. In fact, university administrators see little option except to respond to the marketplace. The reason is if their institution does not react effectively, it will not have the necessary resources to offer high quality and diverse academic programs. Institutions unable to compete may face hard circumstances because government support continues to fall, students become better informed consumers and advances in technology also widen the number and reach of competitors. In turn, the ability to compete for students, resources, faculty and prestige becomes a driving strategic force. At its extreme, competition can overtake more traditional academic values. However, the downside of pursuing market goals without appropriately balancing them against the public good is, is that institutions will no longer be able to fulfill their social responsibility to produce well-educated citizens and face the threat of losing their privileged place in society as they resemble more closely other market driven organizations.Now, let's move on to the second challenge facing U.S. higher education, that is the tension between competition and equality in admissions decisions. Since World War Two, U.S. higher education has been engaged in a process of massification, that is expanding to serve students from all walks of life. Motivating this effort is a widespread belief in the power of education to create social and economic mobility, and a belief in the morality and social value of making higher education accessible to everyone. Research data bear out public perceptions. When young people from low-income backgrounds complete a bachelor's degree. Their income and employment characteristics after graduation are equivalent to their peers from more affluent backgrounds. So, education can truly be the great equalizer.Although there is widespread public faith in the value of higher education, the progress of massification has been slow and uneven. And why is it slow and uneven? Well, one, higher education did not admit significant numbers of racial and ethnic minorities until after the civil rights of the 1960s forced change. Second, despite significant expenditures on financial aid, minority and low-income individuals are still less likely to attend college than whites or students from middleand upper-income families. Although access gaps have nowadays narrowed somewhat, large gaps remain between completion rates. Low-income students come to college less prepared and must balance academic demands with work and family responsibilities.Finding ways to increase the enrollment rates of low-income students and encourage their success once enrolled are two of the most important problems facing American higher education. One of the challenges to meet these goals is that they can conflict with the other central tenets of American higher education, that is, market competition and resistance to government control. As I said before, for example, institutional competition for the most academically talented students is likely to encourage increased use of tuition discounting for students who have no financial need. And this could divert resources away from low-income students who need financial aid. Similarly, institutions may seek to distinguish themselves in the academic marketplace by becoming more selective in admissions decisions, thus reducing the number of low-income students admitted. However, a primary role of government is to mediate the potentially negative effects of competition by insisting that institutions adhere to their missions, and that institutions provide need-based financial assistance to students. So, a constant preoccupation of American higher education is this tension between the competitive, ambitious natureof institutions and the interests of government in promoting important public goals, primary among them, broad access and widespread success for all students.OK, for today's lecture, we have briefly discussed some of the major challenges facing U.S. higher education, such as the impact of the marketplace on institutions and the tension between competition and promoting public goals.2、MINI-LECTURE 答案解析1. dominant / prevailing / governing 等解析：美国高等教育所面临的两大挑战之一便是市场的力量。
专业英语-专业英语八级听力模拟题31.doc
专业英语八级听力模拟题31SECTION A MINI-LECTUREIn this section you will 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. When the lecture is over, you will be given two minutes to check your notes, and another ten minutes to complete the gap-filing task on ANSWER SHEET ONE, using no more than three words in each gap. Make sure the word (s) you fill in is (are) both grammatically and semantically acceptable . You may refer to your notes while completing the task. Use the blank sheet for note-taking. Now, listen to the mini-lecture. The Difference between Spoken and Written EnglishI . Definition of speech and writingtwo different ] methods of communication—speech: the oral medium of transmission of language—writing: marking a surface with wordsII.Necessity of knowing the difference—acquire language skills 2 and completely—learner aspires to grip and commandIII.Differences between spoken and written English—physical difference—3 substance: medium used in speech—graphic substance: hand creating marks on a surface—difference in the use of grammar and vocabulary—degree of formality: spoken English is less formal—no 4—no role of spelling—5 the rules of grammar—speakers make efforts to learn correct pronunciation—features of speech: 6 , active and not last long—no time lag between production and reception—no time for planning—contain loudness z tempo, rhythm, intonations and pauses—aided by 7 and gestures—difficulty in learning: written English is easier—do not come with an accent—take better advantage of 8 than of accent—reasonably simple to masterIV.Tips for language learner—pay heed to both forms 9—respect the language—10 all the important aspectsSECTION B INTERVIEWIn this section you will hear everything ONCE ONLY. Listen carefully and then answer the questions that follow. Mark the best answer to each question on ANSWER SHEET TWO.11> Researches found all the following functions about working out EXCEPTA.boosting your brainpowerB.fighting against AlzheimerC.fighting against breast cancerD.helping with severe cognitive repairment12、Interconnections of the nerve cells in the brain are primarily beneficial for our .A.executive functionB. memorizing functionC. problem solving functionD. name recognition function13> Which of the following people are NOT mentioned as to the brain power boosting?A.People in their childhood.B. People in their 20s.C. People in their 30s.D. People in their 40s and 50s.14、The studies made by Nurse's Health Study and California Teacher Study are most different inA.time range of the studyB. the number of women followedC. the result of the studyD. decrease rate of disease15、For the diagnosis of breast cancer, the thing put to top priority isA.having excise at onceB. going to see the doctorC. having a good working teamD. going for your familySECTION C NEWS BROADCASTIn this section you will hear everything ONCE ONLY. Listen carefully and then answer the questions that follow. Mark the best answer to each question on ANSWER SHEET TWO.16、The percentage of purchases on credit cards this year drops by since 2007.A. 31%B. 42%C. 45%D. 56%17> The reasons why purchases on credit cards drop include all of the following EXCEPT that .A.many people prefer paying by cashB.the recession makes people spend lessC.people prefer debit cards than credit cardsD.it is more difficult for young people to get credit cards18、What is the main idea of the news item?A.News International apologized for the phone hacking scandal.B.Several people were jailed because of the phone hacking scandal.C.The compensation for the phone hacking scandal cost ten million dollars .D.News International's phone hacking scandal involved many celebrities.19、Which of the following is CORRECT according to the news item?A.The compensation payments may be about tens of thousands.B.Former Culture Minister Tessa Jowell is one of the victims.C.Senior editors of the newspaper will take the responsibility.D.An editor at News of the World was put into jail in 2007.20、Which of the following statements is CORRECT?A.The investment is not profitable tor Whiting.B.The investment is not environmentally friendly.C.BP is increasing more crude oil from American tar sands.D.BP began to run the Whiting plant in 1889.答案：SECTION A MINI-LECTURE 1> independent［听力原文］The Difference between Spoken and Written EnglishGood morning everyone, today's lecture is about the differences between spoken and written English. Speech and writing are two independent methods of communication. （口语和写作是两种独立的交流方式，故填independento ） Speech is "the oral medium of transmission of language, i . e. the spoken language" . Writing involves marking a surface with words that convey one ' s thoughts and ideas and as Crystal remarks "written English has provided the standard that society values, and its relative permanence and worldwide circulation have given it a very special place with the life of the community."Every language learner aspires to have good grip and command over both spoken and written language . Failure in expressing either of them will render him ineffective and incomplete when it comes to acquiring language skills in true sense of word.（如果没有良好的口语及书面表达能力，从实质上讲，学习者就不能有效、完整地掌握语言技能。
专业英语八级(听力)模拟试卷13(题后含答案及解析)
专业英语八级（听力）模拟试卷13(题后含答案及解析) 题型有：1. LISTENING COMPREHENSIONPART I LISTENING COMPREHENSION (35 MIN)SECTION A MINI-LECTUREDirections: 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. 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.听力原文：Effective Note-taking Good morning, everyone! Today I’d like to continue our series of talks about study skills in university. This morning I’m going to discuss how to take notes effectively. As we all know, note-taking is difficult since spoken language is more diffuse than written language and its organization is not immediately apparent. In addition, spoken language is quickly gone, which makes analysis difficult. So it can be seen that to achieve such a complex task as note-taking, a high level of ability in many separate skills is required. Now let’s discuss these skills in details. Before taking notes, prepare yourself mentally. Be sure of your purpose and the speaker’s purpose. Review your notes and other background material if available because increased knowledge results in increased interest. Besides, a clear sense of purpose on your part will make the speaker’s content more relevant. Be ready to understand and remember. Anticipate what is to come, and later evaluate how well you were able to do this. While taking notes, the student has to understand what the lecturer says as he says it. The student cannot stop the lecture in order to look up a new word or check an unfamiliar sentence pattern. This puts the non-native speaker of English under a particularly severe strain. Often he may not be able to recognize words in speech which he understands straightaway in print. He’ll also meet words in a lecture which are completely new to him. While he should, of course, try to develop the ability to infer their meanings from the context, he won’t always be able to do this successfully. He must not allow failure of this kind to discourage him, however. It is often possible to understand much of a lecture by concentrating solely on those points which are most important. But how does the student decide what is important? It is, in fact, the second skill I want to talk about today. Probably the most important piece of information in a lecture is the title itself. If this is printed beforehand, the student should study it carefully and make sure he is in no doubt about its meaning. Whatever happens he should make sure that he writes it down accurately and completely. A title often implies many of the major points that will later be covered in the lecture itself. Be alert to the speaker’s emphasis through tone, gesture, repetition and illustration on the board. A good lecturer, of course, often signals what is important or unimportant. He may give direct signals or indirect signals. Manylecturers, for example, explicitly tell their audience that a point is important and that the student should write it down. It is worth remembering that most lecturers also give indirect signals to indicate what is important. They either pause or speak slowly or speak loudly or use a greater range of intonation, or they employ a combination of these devices, when they say something important. Conversely, their sentences are delivered quickly, softly, within a narrow range of intonation and with short or infrequent pauses when they are saying something which is incidental. It is, of course, helpful for the student to be aware of this and for him to focus his attention accordingly. Having sorted out the main points, however, the student still has to write them down. And he has to do this quickly and clearly. In order to write at speed, try to develop a suitable system of mechanics: jot down words or phrases, not entire sentences; develop some system of shorthand and be consistent in its use; leave out small service words; use contractions, abbreviations and symbols. Most students find it helpful to abbreviate. They also try to select only those words which give maximum information. These are usually nouns, but sometimes verbs or adjectives. Writing only one point on each line also helps the student to understand his notes when he comes to read them later. An important difficulty is, of course, finding time to write the notes. If a student chooses the wrong moment to write, he may miss a point of greater importance. Connecting words or connectives may guide him to a correct choice here. Those connectives which indicate that the argument is proceeding in the same direction also tell the listener that it is a safe time to write. “Moreover”, “furthermore”, “also”, etc., are examples of this. Connectives such as “however”, “on the other hand”or “nevertheless”usually mean that new and perhaps unexpected information is going to follow. Therefore, it may, on these occasions, be more appropriate to listen. After taking notes, review and reword them as soon as possible. Don’t just recopy or type without thought. Reminiscing may provide forgotten material later. Rewrite incomplete parts in greater detail. Fill in gaps as you remember points heard but not recorded. Arrange with another student to compare notes. Sharpen your note-taking technique by looking at other students’ notes. How are they better than your own? How are your notes superior? Compare the information in your notes with your own experience. Don’t swallow everything uncritically. Don’t reject what seems strange or incorrect. Check it out. Be willing to hold some seeming inconsistencies in your mind over a period of time. Make meaningful associations. Memorize that which must be memorized. OK. In today’s lecture, we’ve discussed several skills that can help one in taking notes effectively. In our next lecture, we’ll explore how to read effectively.Effective Note-takingThe difficulty of taking notes: Note-taking requires a high level of ability dueto the【B1】______ of spoken language.【B1】______I. Before taking notes:A. Be sure of the【B2】______ of yours and the speaker’s.【B2】______B. Review relevant background materials if available.II. While taking notes:A. Understand the new words by【B3】______ the meanings from the context.【B3】______B. Study carefully the【B4】______, which usually implies【B4】______the most important information.C. Catch the speaker’s【B5】______ through tone, gesture, repetition and【B5】______illustration on the board.D. Pay attention to the speaker’sindirect signals to indicate what is important,like changes in speed, volume or【B6】______.【B6】______E. While writing down the main points, develop a system of mechanics: jotting down words or phrases; using shorthand, abbreviations and symbols;leaving out【B7】______ words.【B7】______F. While selecting words to write down, pick those having the【B8】______【B8】______information, like nouns, verbs or adjectives, and those indicatingthe proceeding direction of the lecture, like【B9】______.【B9】______III. After taking notes:A. Review and reword them as soon as possible.B.【B10】______ notes with others to learn from them.【B10】______ 1．【B1】正确答案：diffusion解析：讲座的主题为“how to take notes effectively(如何有效地记笔记)”。
专八满分听力Mini-lecture（1-4）
Mini-lecture 1Cultural UnderstandingLike learning a language，developing cultural understanding occurs step by step over time.Here are five stages of cultural understanding veduchina.Stage one：No understanding.一involves no awareness of the new culture：know nobody and few(1)Stage two：Sup erficial understanding.--awareness of (2) aspects of the foreign culture and stereotypes veduchina--stereotytres are(3)Stage three：Growing understanding and possible(4)--awareness of more subtle，less visible traits in foreign culture--unnecessarily bring acceptance veduchina.For anyone，the home culture is(5)Stage four：Greater(6)————understanding.一still(7) have little empathy veduchina一the(8) level is higherStage five：True empathy，and cultural (9)————.—to live in the foreign culture：the amount of time depends Oil(10)Mini-lecture 2 British Educational System1.Primary and secondary educationin Britain1)Children at the age of(1)________go to primary school.2)Students attend secondaryschool until age sixteen.3)Students enter higher education at age eighteen.2.Higher education in Britain1) In England and Wales：—Application for universities：through the UCCA；一Courses：“course”refers to a(2)_______ program，structured with a fixed program of classes；—Classes：a.classes are offered in the UK on a(3)________basis veduchina；b.more emphasi s i s placed on(4)________study；c.students write more essays and take fewer objective tests；d.classes often take the following forms：(5)______，tutorials，seminars.2) In Scotland：—A variety of tertiary level options are available：a.The colleges of further education provide vocational and (6)____education；b.Central institutions don’t directly validate degrees,but many have close ties to(7) .c.Teachers colleges veduchina；d.The standard university degree is a four—year(8)__________；parison between the US and the UK higher education1)Grading：一In the UK，(9)__________are the most common form of study assessment—The US professors grade less strictly than the UK professors veduchina2)Course levels：—Basic courses are not(10)____________at UK universities.Mini-lecture 3 Mass Media in AmericaMass media specifi cally refer to those publications and programs that attempt to serve most or all of the people in a given market.Three groups of mass media in America are briefly introduced.I. N ewspapersA.Reading newspaper is different from watching TV.—for one thing1.detailed(1)_______ of news items2.substantial treatment of news events3.interesting and stimulating opinions4.analysis over important events at home and abroac—for anotheras for the reading places, no(2)_______B.Newspapers are still a big business.—fact one: the large circulation of a number of important newspapers—fact two: the great (3)_______ of newspapers availableII. MagazinesA.great varietyB.wide range of topi csC.different target readers:the well-educated,well-informed,and(4)_____ peopleD.the top three:(5)_______ TV Guide and The Conde Nast SelectIII. Radio and TelevisionA.Radio:a first-class entertainment medium for most Americans一The future of the radio is still(6)___________B.Television--become popular after the invention of(7)_____ and videotape recorders—profound impact on society1.the socialization effect2.a(8)_________ a molder of new of new cultural trends and a molder of attitudes towards these new trends3.revolutionized the marketing of goods4.the enormous cultural impact of TV violent programs5.the impact of TV on(9)_______________To sum up，the mass media in Ameri ca has，to a great extent，changed and will still keep on changing Americans’(10)_________Mini-lecture 4 Government in Britain and the USThe focus of this lecture is different government systems in Britain and the US.Government in Britain:1. National government:the center of government in Britain iS Parliament.一Location of parliament:(1)__________.—Parliament includes the House of Common，the House of lords and the monarch.—the passage of bills:firstly brought to the House of Commons for discussion，then the house of Lords，finally(2)_________2. Local government in Britain，also known as(3)_________一make small laws,only applied in local area—got payment from(4)from national government--elected by people within each town,city or country areaGovernment in the US:1.The federal government—(5)________is the central law-making body in the US.1)the House of Representatives2)the Senate: the higher but less (6)________of the two houses of Congress.—The President has the power of (7)________a bill.—The Supreme Court: the final Court of Appeal in the US.2.The state government—Each state has its own written(8)________—The highest elected official of each state is the Governor.3.The local government—No law of local government can be(9)________with the United Constitution.To sum up，the government in each country is a (n) (10)________of its historicaland modern factors.参考答案：Mini-lecture1 (1)basi c facts (2)negative (3)offensive (4)conflict (5)much better(6)intellectual (7)emotionally (8)comfort (9)respect (10)the individualCulture understanding文化差异Today I will focus on the i ssue of culture understanding. With increasing globalization, the world becomes really small nowadays. As a member of the global, we get more chances to contact foreign cultures. And what if we want to understand foreign culture very well, what should we do? What kinds of process will we experience before we achieve that goal. The answer is not very difficult to imagine. Just like learning a language, developing culture understanding occurs steps by steps over time. Development of culture consciousness is a process that starts the stage no understanding and moves, in the best case, to the stage of true empathy移情作用,[心]神入and culture respect. So an order to make it a clearer explanation about the process, the five stages of culture understanding is presented here.Stage 1 no und erstanding This level involves no awareness of new culture. The point is quite easy to see. For a person who has few chances to get contact with other cultures, a new one sometimes might as well be like something from an unknown planet in outer space. The person does not know anyone from the culture, and has encountered few, if any, basi c facts about the culture; so naturally, the person certainly has no way to understand that culture at all.Stage 2 superficial understanding This level involves awareness of very superficial aspects of foreign culture, frequentl y negative aspects. At this stage of culture awareness, the person knows a few basic facts of new culture. These facts stand out and often serve as the basis of stereotypes 陈规,老套. However, the stereotypes are offensive because they imply that al l people from a certain culture have the same characteristi cs. At this stage of culture awareness, when stereotypes are keenly felt, the person is highly ethnocentric种族[民族]中心主义的,种族[民族, 集团]优越感的that means the person is just focused on his or her own culture as the norm of what is right and comparing the new culture with the better culture back home. Stage 3 growing und erstanding and possible conflict In this stage the learner begins to be aware of more subtle sometimes less visible traits in the foreign culture. I will give you an example here to illustrate this point. A student learned that a given culture focuses on family far more getting things accomplished. As a result, he or she begin to appreciate the huge importance of family value in this culture, so we can see thi s understanding helps the person to see why things operate the w ay they do. But such awareness doesn’t al ways bring acceptance. In this stage the person is still ethnocentri c home culture-oriented, comparing that culture that i s new to his/her old home culture and usually feel his/her home culture is much better. I think some of you, as English majors, may have the exactly same experiences when you come to be familiar with your foreign t eachers or friends. You do appreciate some of their cultures but you just can’t accept them from the bottom of your heart.Stage 4 great intellectual culture und erstanding At this stage the learner begins to comprehend intellectually the peopl e in the foreign culture yet they are still a little emotional empathy. The person can not feel what it is like to be a member of that culture, the learner thus starts to see things intellectually through the eye of culture bearers at the least part of the time, but they just can’t really feel the same way the members of foreign culture feel. The learner begins to shed ethnocentrism a little bi t and starts to understand new culture more deeply. The person knows why thing are done in the way they are done and accept these things with less irritation. So you can see now the learner obviously comprehend the briefs and actions of people in the culture, the comfort level is higher, and the person does not complain the extensively about the culture differences. That makes a big sense in the process of culture understanding.Stage 5 true empathy and culture resp ect This level is the highest one of culture awareness. To attain this level, the learner must actually live in the foreign culture for some time. As for how long the learner must live in such a culture so that they can reach stage five. The amount of time is variable, greatly depending on the individual. At the fifth stage, unlike the previous stages the learner does not just see things intellectually from the viewpoint of the culture some or most of the time, instead he/she actually feel the part of culture, respects the culture fully and emphasizes emotionally with those who have lived all their life in that culture. By doing so, the person, in real sense, achieves a true culture understanding.In summary, today’s lecture is centered on the stages and growth of culture consciousness. Altogether there are five. 1 no understanding means one does not know anyone from that culture knows few, if any, facts. 2 superficial understanding means one knows some superficial facts and stereotypes. 3 growing understanding and possible conflict means one is aware of moresubtle traits but may experience culture conflicts probably believes one’s own culture is superior. 4 great inte llectual culture understanding means one understands the culture intellectually but not emotionally. 5 true empathy and culture respect means one understands the culture both intellectually and emotionally, can feel what the people in the culture feel. Hope the lecture will be helpful in your nurturing of your culture awareness. Thanks for your patience.Mini-lecture2(1)five (2)degree (3)modular (4)independent/self-directed (5)lectures (6)technical(7)local businesses (8)Honors degree (9)written examinations (10) commonBritish Educational SystemToday I’ll talk about the British educational system, including the primary and secondary education and the higher education in Britain. Meanwhile, I’ll try to make a comparison between the US an d the UK higher education.First, I’ll briefly introduce the primary and secondary education in Britain. In England and Wales, students study in primary schools from age five until eleven. They attend secondary school until age sixteen. Before graduating, students usually take seven comprehensive exams, called the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) exams. After passing the GCSE exams, students choose to study two to four subjects intensely for the GCE Advanced Level exams, called "A levels." At eighteen, they enter higher education to focus on a parti cular subject, called a "course."Now let’s move on to the higher education in Britain. First I’ll talk about the general practi ces in England and Wales, and then the general practices in Scotland.In England and Wales, prospective university students apply for places through the Universities Central Council on Admissions (UCCA). Students do not apply directly to the universities themselves. Successful candidates are admitted directly into a specific degree "course." A degree course normally takes three or four years to complete. At most universities students study only one major subject. Each course i s structured with a fixed program of classes for the entire three years. Increasingly, universities in the United Kingdom are offering classes on a modular(课程教学)以单元为基础的basis, whi ch allows students to broaden their studies creating a more interdisciplinary program. This modularization, however, has not replaced the traditional British degree course with the American concept of credit accumulation. In addition, there is generally a sharp distinction between the arts and sciences and there is seldom any cross-over between the two.At a British university, more emphasis i s placed on independent, self-directed study than in the United States. Required texts and definite reading assignments are less common. More typi cally, an extensive reading list covering all topi cs to be discussed is di stributed at the start of the course to be used for independent research. British students typically consult a large number of sources from the library rather than intensively studying a few books purchased by everyone taking a course. In addition, students are required to write more essays and take fewer objective tests than at U.S. institutions. Classes often take the following forms: lectures, which are sometimes completely optional; tutorials, in whi ch a small number of students meet with the lecturer; and seminars, larger discussion classes often based upon seminar essays. Unlike the U.S. system of regular testing in a course, British students sit for final examinations that cover the full year's work and determine the grades for the class. With the growth of modularization, however, there has al so been an increase in the number and variety of modules offered on a semester basi s.In Scotland, there are a variety of tertiary第三的,第三位的level options available for students, the most important of whi ch are the colleges of further education, the central institutions, teachers colleges and the universities. The colleges of further education provide vocational and technical education, and enroll more students than all other tertiary institutions combined. Central institutions provide courses leading to the Higher National Diploma (HND), bachelor's degrees and some specialized master's degrees. These institutions do not have the authority to directly validate degrees and tend to offer a narrower range of subjects than the universities. Many have close ties to local businesses, offering cooperative work experiences that provide students a period of practical training.Scottish universities are quite di stinct from their British counterparts. In fact, they more closely resemble European or American universities. The standard Scottish university degree is a four-year Honors degree (BA Hons). Students are rarelyadmitted directly to a degree "course." Usually they are admitted to a faculty or simply admitted to the university as a whole. Scottish university students begin with a broad-based program during the first year and choose a specialization专门[业]化after the second or even the third year. Students may also elect to complete a three-year Ordinary degree. This i s a broad-based degree that (unlike in England) does not represent a "failed" Honors degree.Next, let’s compare the US and the UK highe r education from two aspects,]namely, grading and course levels.First, about the Grading. In the UK, assessment methods vary by institution and tend to reflect the UK teaching method and style. Written examinations, whi ch are held at the end of a year or, in some cases, in the final undergraduate year only, are the most common form of study assessment. There i s no official method of equating British and American educational qualifications. The educational systems are very different and attempts to compare them must be done on a strictly provisional basis. Many U.S. institutions have already developed systems of assessing their study abroad students or equating British grades to U.S. grades.Professors at UK institutions grade more stri ctly than their counterparts in the United States. As a result, American students studying in the UK often perceive that they have performed poorly in their classes, when they have not. Grades are given as percentages rather than letter grades. Forty percent is the minimum passing grade and high percentages are rarely awarded. A grade of seventy percent or higher is considered "with distinction."In general, percentages increase from forty rather than decrease from 100 percent, as they do in the United States.Second, about the Course Levels. A typi cal British course load will vary from 3 to 6 modules or classes per term. Most students take 4 to 5 modules per term. The number of hours in class per week will vary by institution. Students should note that general education or basi c courses are not as common at UK universities because they have already been covered at the GCSE level. Many faculties assume that a student has a basi c understanding of the concepts that will be addressed in the course. For this reason, it is common for third-year American students to take first-year and second-year courses at a UK university.With thi s, we’re coming to the end of today’s lecture. Next time, we’ll talk about university degrees.Mini-lecture3 (1)coverage (2) limitation/confinement (3) variety(4)public—conscious(5) Reader’s Digest (6) promising/bright (7)portable cameras (8) transmitter (9) religion (10)lifeMass Media in America美国媒体Good morning, everyone,today my topic i s mass media in America. By media, we refer to the variety of means by which technology transmits information and entertainment to us. Thus, in its broadest sense, the term media includes newspaper, television, movies, radio, books, and magazines. Mass media specifi cally refer to those publications and programs that attempt to serve most or all of the people in a given market. Here I would like to introduce the mass media in America by dividing them into three groups: newspaper; magazines; radio and television.First, let’s have a look at newspapers. For a long time, newspapers have been the chief means by whi ch people get themselves informed. While television has replaced newspapers as the primary source of news for most Americans, and while computer network is increasingly becoming a faster and easier way of obtaining news for many Americans, newspapers still remain as one of the most powerful means of communications in the United States. For one thing, reading newspapers i s different from watching TV. It gives detailed coverage报道范围of news items, and tends to provide substantial treatment of news events. And, sometimes it offers interesting and stimulating opinions as well as analysis over important events at home and abroad. For another, unlike watching TV, reading newspapers does not require one to be confined to his sitting-room. He can do it virtually anywhere he likes: in his car, at the breakfast table, sitting in the sun, waiting at the subway station, and believe it or not, in the restroom. So, for these and many other reasons, newspapers in the United States are still a big bus iness. And, this is borne out by two facts: (1) the large circulation of a number of important newspapers such as USA Today《今日美国》and The Wall Street Journal《华尔街日报》; (2) the great variety of newspapers available in the United States, big and small, local and national, special and general, radical and conservative, and so on. The top 3 daily newspapers in the United States are: Wall Street Journal, USA Today and New York Times《纽约时报》.Second, we’ll move to magazines. According to a statisti cal record in 1990, there were over 12,205 magazines being published in the United States. More than 4,000 of them appear monthly, and over 1,300 are published each week. They cover all topics and interests, from art and architecture to sports, from aviation航空学,飞机制造业and gardening to computers and book reviews, from fashion design and cooking to homemaking. Quite a few have international editors, are translated into other languages, or have “daughter” editions in foreign countries. Among the many internationals are National Geographic《国家地理》杂志, Reader’s Digest《读者文摘》杂志,Cosmopolitan《大都会》,Vogue《时尚》杂志,Time《时代》,Newsweek 《新闻周刊》, Scientific American and Psychology Today. The weekly newsmagazines —the best known are Time, Newsweek, and U.S. News & World Report《美国新闻与世界报道》—serve as a type of national press. Unlike newspapers, however, weekly newsmagazines tend to give extensive coverage and provide detailed, and sometimes in-depth, analysis. Also unlike newspapers, whi ch usually have the lowest common denominator in their appeal to the general reading public, weekly newsmagazines normally target at the well-educated, well-informed, and public-conscious people of the society. Many weekly newsmagazines also have considerable international impact, particularly Time and Newsweek. The top three magazines in America are: (1) Reader’s Digest; (2) TV Guide《电视导读》; (3) The Conde Nast Select.Third, I’ll say something about radio and television. In more than two generations, the two powerful mass media transformed much of American life.Radio, emerging at the same period when the Great Depression pervaded蔓延, 在…中盛行in America, provided free entertainment in the comforts of the home. Families that could no longer afford to go out for entertainment gathered together in their living rooms to escape reality by laughing, fantasizing梦想,幻想and dreaming of happier times. From then on, radio became a first-class entertainment medium for most Ameri cans. Up until now, in view of the popularity of radio programs in the United States, the future of radio as a form of medium continues to look bright.Then, with the rapid development of science and technology, TV came into being in 1920s. It primarily serves as a medium of entertainment, and then also has a big role to play as a news broadcasting agency. Networks began experimenting with news at locally owned stations as early as January 1940. But, early-day television news could not begin to compare with radio news. Only after the invention of portable cameras and videotape recorders had television been made a much more credible news medium because viewers saw pictures of the news events on the day they occurred. Consequently, access to news is made much easier, and the general public is getting better informed.Gradually, television’s impact on American society has been more and more profound. It has changed the life-styles of most Americans and become a major influence on American culture. It can be seen from 5 aspects.First and foremost is the socialization effect. Many studies have shown that TV’s dominance as household activi ty often reduces the level of communi cation among family members and, as a result, much of the culture being distributed to youngsters today in the United States comes from the tube rather than the family.Secondly, television programming has played an important role in shaping and reflecting for the masses the cultural changes that have been occurring in American Society. TV functions both as a transmitter传送[递]者of new cultural trends and as a molder造型者,模塑者of new attitudes towards these new trends.Thirdly, television has revolutionized the marketing of goods in the Ameri can economy. With TV marketing, people become vulnerable to the products, or in other words, to the commercials.Fourthly, the cultural impact of violent TV programs has been quite enormous. Needless to say, the question of violence on TV has been around nearly as long as the medium. Many critics claim that TV violence increases violence in American society.Fifthly, the impact of TV on religion has al so been an issue of great concern to many Americans. So far now, it is still an issue full of di sputes.To sum up, the mass media in Ameri ca includes so many different forms, and each of them plays a vital role in American people’s life not only in the past, but also at present and in the future. To know much about America, one must have a good knowledge about its mass media.Mini-lecture4 (1)Westminster (2)signed (3)Councils (4)local taxes (5)Congress (6)powerful(7)veto (8)Constitution (9)in di sagreement (10)embodimentGovernment in Britain and the US英美政府Today we will focus on the Government in Britain and the United States. Let’s have a look at them one after the other.Government in Britain can be divided into National government and Local government.The center of government in Britain is Parliament, which makes all the important laws for the country about crimes and punishment, taxation课税, etc. Parliament i s made up of the House of Commons, the House of Lords and the monarch. The Houses of Parliament are in Westminster in London and sometimes “Westminster” itself i s used to mean Parliament.The House of commons, or the Commons, is the lower but more powerful of the two Houses. It has 650 elected members, called Members of Parliament or MPs, each representing people in a parti cular area or constituency(议员所代表的)(全体)选民;选(举)区. The House of Lords上议院, or the Lords, is the higher but less powerful of the two Houses. It has over 1,000 members, none of whom is elected. These members include: people who have titles like Lord or Viscount子爵whi ch have been passed down to them on the death of their father; people who are given titles as a reward for their long servi ce in public life, but whose children do not inherit their title; and some important leaders of the Church of England, such as Archbishops and Bishops.The government brings bills to the House of Commons下议院, whi ch are discussed by MPs. The bills then go to the House of Lords to be di scussed. The House of Lords can suggest changes to a bill, but does not have the power to reject it. When bills come back to the Commons, MPs vote on them and if they are passed they are signed by the monarch and become Acts of Parliament.At present England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland are all governed by Parliament in Westminster. In Northern Ireland the political parties are different but their MPs still go to the House of Commons. In Scotland there is a lot of di scussion about whether Scotland should have some separate or partly separate form of government. The same is true in Wales. The Local government in Britain, also known as Councils, can make small laws, that i s bylaws, whi ch only apply in their area, but these are usually about small, local matters. For instance, they may be about fines that will be made for people who park in certain streets.Councils are paid for by local taxes and also by an amount of money given to them each year by the national government. Their main job is the organizing and providing of local services, e.g. hospitals, schools, libraries, public transport, street-cleaning, etc. They are also responsible for setting the amount of local tax that people must pay and for collecting thi s tax.Local councils are elected by people within each town, city, or county area. The people who are elected, known as councilors, usually represent one of the national political parties, but are often elected because of their policies on local issues rather than the national policies of their party.Now let’s move to the topi c of Government in the US. All levels of government in the US, including federal, state, and local, are elected by the people of the country.First, we’ll talk about the federal government. The constitution of the US specifi cally limits the power of the federal, or national, government mainly to defense, foreign affairs, printing money, controlling trade and relations between the states, and protecting human rights. The federal government is made up of the Congress , the President, and the Supreme Court. Congress, the central law-making body in the US, i s made up of the House of Representatives and the Senate. The House of Representatives is the lower but more important of the two houses of Congress. It has 435 members, called Representatives or Congressmen. The number of Representatives for each state depends on the size of the population of the state, with each state having at least one Representative. The Senate i s the higher but less powerful of the two houses of Congress. It has 100 members, called Senators, elected by their state. Each state has two Senators. Congress decides whether a BILL becomes law. If the Senate and the House of Representatives both agree to a bill, the President i s asked to agree. The President can veto the bill, but Congress can still make it a law if 2/3 of the members of each house agree to it.Second, we’ll learn something about the state government. The state government has the greatest influence in people’s daily lives. Each state has its own written Constitution, and among the states there are sometimes great differences in law on matters such as property, crime, health and education. The highest elected official of each state is the Governor. Each state also has one。
TEM8 Mini-lecture的技巧(上)(2)
2008年专业八级考试听力部分Mini-lecture录音文稿Good morning, everyone. Today’s lecture is about the popularity of English. As we all know,English is widely used in the world. Although English is NOT the language with t he largest number of native or “first” language speakers, it has really become a lingua franca.Then, what is a lingua franca? The term refers to a language which is widely adopted for communication between two speakers whose native language s are different from each other’s, and where one or both speakers are using it as a “second” language. For example, when an Indian talks to a Singaporean using English, then English is the lingua franca.Then, actually how many pe ople speak English as either a “first” or a “second”language? Some researchers suggested a few years ago that between 320-380 million people spoke English as a first language, and anywhere between 250 - 350 million as a second language.And of course, if we include people who are learning English as a foreign language all over the world, that number may increase dramatically.Then, we may ask a question: how did English get there? That is, how did English gain the present status of popularity? There are, in fact, a number of interlocking reasons for the popularity of English as a lingua franca. Many of the reasons are historical, but they also include economic and cultural factors that have influenced and sustained the spread of the language. Let’s go through the reasons one by one.First is the historical reason. This is related to the colonial history. As we know, when the Pilgrim Fathers landed on the Massachusetts coast in 1620, after their journey from England, they brought with them not just a set of religious beliefs, a pioneering spirit or a desire for colonization, but also their language. Although many years later the Americans broke away from their colonial master, the language of English remained, and still does.It was the same in Australia, too. When Commander Philip planted the British flag in Sydney Cove on 26th Jan. 1788, it was not just a bunch of British convicts and their guardians, but also a language.In other parts of the former British Empire, English rapidly became a unifying or dominating means of control. For example, it became a lingua franca in India, where a variety of indigenous languages made the use of any one of them as a whole-country system/problematic. So, the imposition of English as the one language of administration helped maintain the colonizer's control and power.Thus, English traveled around many parts of the world in those days, and long after that colonial power has faded away, it is still widely used as a main or at least an institutional language in countries as far apart as Jamaica and Pakistan, Uganda, and New Zealand.That is the first factor. Now, the second major factor in the spread of English has been the spread of commerce throughout the world: the spread of international commerce has taken English along with it. This is the 20th-century phenomenon of “globalization”. Therefore, one of the first sights many travelers see when arriving incountries as diverse as Brazil, China, for example, is the yellow twin-arched sign of a McDonald’s fast food restaurant, or some other famous brands’ outlets. And without doubt, English is used as the language of communication in the international business community.And the third factor related to the popular use of English is the boom in international travel. And you will find that much travel and tourism is carried on, around the world, in English. Of course, this is NOT always the case, as the mutilingualism of many tourism workers in different countries demonstrate. But, a visit to most airports on the globe will show signs not only in the language of that country, but also in English, just as many airline announcements are broadcast in English, too, whatever the language of the country the airport is situated in.So far,English is also the preferred language of air traffic control in many countries and is used widely in sea travel communication.Another factor has something to do with information exchange around the world. As we all know, a great deal of academic discourse around the world takes place in English. It is often a lingua franca of conferences, for example, and many journal articles in fields as diverse as astronomy, child psychology and zoology have English as a kind of default language.The last factor I cite here concerns popular culture. In the western world, at least, English is a dominating language in popular culture. Pop music in English can be heard on many radios. Thus many people who are not English speakers can sing words from their favourite English medium songs. And many people who are regular cinemagoers or (TV viewers) can frequently hear English in subtitled films coming out of the USA.Now, to sum up, in today's lecture, we have reviewed some of the reasons or factors that lie behind the popular use of English as the number one world language. Before we finish, I would like to leave a few questions for you to think about: Is the status of English as the number-one world language assured in the future? Will it split into varieties that become less mutually intelligible? OR will some other language or languages take the place of English as world language in future? These questions are not easy to answer, I know, but they are definitely worth pondering over after the lecture.OK, this brings us to the end of today’s lecture. Thank you for your attention.Now, you have 2 minutes to check your notes, and then please complete the gap-filling task on Answer Sheet One in ten minutes.。
2016 英语专四听力讲座原文和题目
2016 TEM 4 Mini- Lecture text：What is Grit?Good afternoon, everyone. Today, I would like to talk about my research project concerning the key to success. I would like to start my topic with my own story.When I was 27 years old, I left a very demanding job: teaching seventh graderssalespeople is going to keep their jobs? And who's going to earn the most money? We went to many places, and finally one characteristic emerged as a significant predictor of success. And it wasn't social intelligence. It wasn't good looks, physical health, and it wasn't IQ. It was grit. What is grit? Well, [4]grit is passion and perseverance for very long-term goals. Grit is sticking with your future, day in, day out, not just for the- week, not just for the month, but for years, [5]and working really hard to make that future a reality. [6]Grit is living life like it's a marathon, not a sprint. A few years ago, I started studying grit in the Chicago public schools. I asked thousands of high school juniors to take grit questionnaires, and then waited around more than a year to see who would graduate. [7]It turned out that grittier kids were significantly more likely to graduate, even when I matched them on every characteristic I could measure, things like family income, test scores and so on. To me, the most shocking thing about grit is how little we know, how little science knows about building it. Every day, parents and teachers ask me” How do I build grit in kids? How do I keep them motivated for the long run?" Our data show very clearly that there are many talented individuals who simply do not follow through on their commitments. [8]In fact, in our data, grit is usually unrelated or even inversely related to measures of talent. So far, the best idea I've heard about building grit in kids is something called "growth mindset." [9]Growth mindset is the belief that the ability to learn is not fixed, that it can change with your effort. [10]Kids with grit are much more likely to persevere when they fail, because they don't believe that failure is a permanent condition. So growth mindset is a great idea for building grit. But we need more. And that's where I'm going to end my remarks, because that's where we are. That's the work that stands before us. We have to be willing to fail, to be wrong, to start over again with lessons learned.As a conclusion, we need to be gritty about getting our kids grittier. Nest time, I would like to share with my experience in building up students’ grit.- 2016 TEM 4 Mini- Lecture task：My question●Why isn’t IQ the only difference between situatio ns?●What is the key to (1) _____?My research●Investigation of all kinds of (2) _____, including:- West Point Military Academy- (3) _____- Private companiesMy finding: grit as predictor of success●Grit is (4) _____ for very long-term goals.●Grit is working hard for years to make (5) _____●Grit is living your life like a (6) _____My survey●high school juniors took grit questionnaires●(7) _____ kids were more likely to graduateGrit-building●little is known about how to build grit in students●date how grit is unrelated to (8) _____●growth mindset is the belief that the ability to learn is (9) _____●kids with grit believe failure is (10)_____- ConclusionWe need to be gritty about getting our kids grittier.。