College English Test (Band 4)

Part III Listening Comprehension

Section A

Directions:

In this section,

you will hear 8 short conversations

and 2 long conversations.

At the end of each conversation,

one or more questions will be asked about what was said.

Both the conversation and the questions

will be spoken only once.

After each question there will be a pause.

During the pause,

you must read the four choices

marked A), B), C), and D),

and decide which is the best answer.

Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2

with a single line through the centre.

Now let’s begin with the 8 short conversations.

11. W: I ran into Sally the other day.

I could hardly recognize her.

Do you remember her from high school?

M: Yeah, she was a little out of shape back then.

Well, has she lost a lot of weight?

Q: What does the man remember of Sally?

12. W: We don’t seem to have a reservation for you, sir.

I’m sorry.

M: But my secretary said that

she had reserved a room for me here.

I phoned her from the airport this morning

just before I got on board the plane.

Q: Where does the conversation most probably take place?

13. W: What would you do if you were in my place?

M: If Paul were my son,

I’d just not worry.

Now that his teacher is giving him extra help

and he is working hard himself,

he’s sure to do well in the next exam.

Q: What’s the man’s suggestion to the woman?

14. M: You’ve had your hands full

and have been overworked during the last two weeks.

I think you really need to go out

and get some fresh air and sunshine.

W: You are right.

That’s just what I am thinking about.

Q: What’s the woman most probably going to do?

15. W: Hello, John.

How are you feeling now?

I hear you’ve been ill.

M: They must have confused me with my twin brother Rod.

He’s been sick all week,

but I’ve never felt better in my life.

Q: What do we learn about the man?

16. M: Did you really give away all your furniture

when you moved into the new house last month?

W: Just the useless pieces,

as I’m planning to purchase a new set

from Italy for the sitting room only.

Q: What does the woman mean?

17. M: I’ve brought back

your Oxford Companion to English literature.

I thought you might use it for your paper.

Sorry not to have returned it earlier.

W: I was wondering where that book was.

Q: What can we infer from that conversation?

18. W: To tell the truth, Tony,

it never occurs to me that you are an athlete.

M: Oh, really?

Most people who meet me,

including some friends of mine,

don’t think so either.

Q: What do we learn from the conversation?

Now you’ll hear the two long conversations.

Conversation One

M: Mary, I hope you are packed and ready to leave.

W: Yes, I’m packed,

but not quite ready.

I can’t find my passport.

M: Your passport?

That’s the one thing you mustn’t leave behind.

W: I know. I haven’t lost it.

I’ve packed it,

but I can’t remember which bag it’s in.

M: Well, you have to find it at the airport.

Come on, the taxi is waiting.

W: Did you say taxi?

I thought we were going in your car.

M: Yes, well, I had planned to,

but I’ll explain later.

You’ve got to be there in an hour.

W: The plane doesn’t leave for two hours.

Anyway, I’m ready to go now.

M: Now you are taking just one case,

is that right?

W: No, there is one in the hall as well.

M: Gosh, what a lot of stuff!

You are taking enough for a month instead of a week.

W: Well, you can’t depend on the weather.

It might be cold.

M: It’s never cold in Rome.

Certainly not in May.

Come on, we really must go.

W: Right, we are ready.

We’ve got the bags,

I’m sure there is no need to rush.

M: There is.

I asked the taxi driver to wait two minutes,

not twenty.

W: Look, I’m supposed to be going away to relax.

You are making me nervous.

M: Well, I want you to relax on holiday,

but you can’t relax yet.

W: OK, I promise not to relax,

at least not until we get to the airport

and I find my passport.

Questions 19 to 22 are based on

the conversation you have just heard.

19. What does the woman say about her passport?

20. What do we know about the woman’s trip?

21. Why does the man urge the woman to hurry?

22. Where does the conversation most probably take place?

Conversation Two

W: Oh, I’m fed up with my job.

M: Hey, there is a perfect job for you

in the paper today.

You might be interested.

W: Oh, what is it?

What do they want?

M: Wait a minute.

Eh, here it is.

The European Space Agency is recruiting translators.

W: The European Space Agency?

M: Well, that’s what it says.

They need an English translator

to work from French or German.

W: So they need a degree in French or German,

I suppose.

Well, I’ve got that.

What’s more, I have plenty of experience.

What else are they asking for?

M: Just that.

A university degree and three or four years’ experience as a translator

in a professional environment.

They also say the person should have a lively

and enquiring mind, effective communication skills

and the ability to work individually

or as a part of the team.

W: Well, if I stay at my present job much longer,

I won’t have any mind or skills left.

By the way, what about salary?

I just hope it isn’t lower than what I get now.

M: It’s said to be negotiable.

It depends on the applicant’s education and experience.

In addition to basic salary,

there is a list of extra benefits.

Have a look yourself.

W: Hm, travel and social security

plus relocation expenses are paid.

Hey, this isn’t bad.

I really want the job.

Questions 23 to 25 are based on

the conversation you have just heard.

23. Why is the woman trying to find a new job?

24. What position is being advertised in the paper?

25. What are the key factors that

determine the salary of the new position?

Section B

Directions:

In this section,

you will hear 3 short passages.

At the end of each passage,

you will hear some questions.

Both the passage and the questions

will be spoken only once.

After you hear a question,

you must choose the best answer

from the four choices

marked A), B), C) and D).

Then mark the corresponding letter

on Answer Sheet 2

with a single line through the centre.

Passage One

When couples get married,

they usually plan to have children.

Sometimes, however,

a couple can not have a child of their own.

In this case, they may decide to adopt a child.

In fact, adoption is very common today.

There are about 60,000 adoptions each year

in the United States alone.

Some people prefer to adopt infants,

others adopt older children.

Some couples adopt children from their own countries,

others adopt children from foreign countries.

In any case, they all adopt children for the same reason:

they care about children

and want to give their adopted child a happy life.

Most adopted children know that they are adopted.

Psychologists and child-care experts generally think

this is a good idea.

However, many adopted children or adoptees

have very little information

about their biological parents.

As a matter of fact,

it is often very difficult for adoptees

to find out about their birth parents,

because the birth records of most adoptees

are usually sealed.

The information is secret,

so no one can see it.

Naturally, adopted children have different feelings

about their birth parents.

Many adoptees want to search for them,

but others do not.

The decision to search for birth parents

is a difficult one to make.

Most adoptees have mixed feelings

about finding their biological parents.

Even though adoptees do not know

about their natural parents,

they do know that their adopted parents want them,

love them and will care for them.

Questions 26 to 29 are based on

the passage you have just heard.

26. According to the speaker,

why do some couples adopt children?

27. Why is it difficult for adoptees

to find out about their birth parents?

28. Why do many adoptees find it hard

to make the decision to search for their birth parents?

29. What can we infer from the passage?

Passage Two

Katherine Gram graduated

from the University of Chicago in 1938

and got a job as a news reporter

in San Francisco.

Katherine’s father used to be

a successful investment banker.

In 1933, he bought a failing newspaper,

the Washington Post.

Then Katherine returned to Washington

and got a job,

editing letters in her father’s newspaper.

She married Phillip Gram,

who took over his father-in-law’s position shortly after

and became a publisher of the Washington Post.

But for many years,

her husband suffered from mental illness

and he killed himself in 1963.

After her husband’s death,

Katherine operated the newspaper.

In the 1970s,

the newspaper became famous around the world

and Katherine was also recognized

as an important leader in newspaper publishing.

She was the first woman

to head a major American publishing company,

the Washington Post Company.

In a few years,

she successfully expanded the company

to include newspaper, magazine,

broadcast and cable companies.

She died of head injuries after a fall

when she was 84.

More than three thousand people attended her funeral,

including many government and business leaders.

Her friends said she would be remembered

as a woman who had an important influence

on events in the United States and the world.

Katherine once wrote,

“The world without newspapers

would not be the same kind of world.”

After her death, the employees of the Washington Post wrote,

“The world without Katherine would not be the same at all.”

Questions 30 to 32 are based on

the passage you have just heard.

30. What do we learn from the passage

about Katherine’s father?

31. What does the speaker tell us

about Katherine Gram?

32. What does the comment

by employees of the Washington Post suggest?

Passage Three

Obtaining good health insurance

is a real necessity while you are studying overseas.

It protects you from minor

and major medical expenses

that can wipe out not only your savings

but your dreams of an education abroad.

There are often two different types of health insurance

you can consider buying,

international travel insurance

and student insurance in the country

where you will be going.

An international travel insurance policy

is usually purchased in your home country

before you go abroad.

It generally covers a wide variety of medical services

and you are often given a list of doctors in the area

where you will travel who may even speak your native language.

The drawback might be that

you may not get your money back immediately.

In other words,

you may have to pay all your medical expenses

and then later submit your receipt

to the insurance company.

On the other hand,

getting student health insurance in the country

where you will study might allow you

to only pay a certain percentage of the medical cost

at the time of service

and thus you don’t have to have sufficient cash

to pay the entire bill at once.

Whatever you decide,

obtaining some form of health insurance

is something you should consider

before you go overseas.

You shouldn’t wait until you are sick

with major medical bills to pay off.

Questions 33 to 35 are based on

the passage you have just heard.

33. Why does the speaker advise overseas students

to buy health insurance?

34. What is the drawback of students

buying international travel insurance?

35. What does the speaker say

about students getting health insurance

in the country where they will study?

Section C

Directions:

In this section,

you will hear a passage three times.

When the passage is read for the first time,

you should listen carefully for its general idea.

When the passage is read for the second time,

you are required to fill in the blanks

numbered from 36 to 43 with the exact words

you have just heard.

For blanks numbered from 44 to 46

you are required to fill in the missing information.

For these blanks,

you can either use the exact words

you have just heard or write down the main points

in your own words.

Finally, when the passage is read for the third time,

you should check what you have written.

Now listen to the passage:

M: More and more of the world’s population

are living in towns or cities.

The speed at which cities are growing

in the less developed countries is alarming.

Between 1920 and 1960,

big cities in developed countries

increased two and a half times in size,

but in other parts of the world the growth

was eight times their size.

The sheer size of growth is bad enough,

but there are now also very disturbing signs of trouble

in the comparison of percentages of people

living in towns and percentages of people

working in industry.

During the 19th century,

cities grew as a result of the growth of industry.

In Europe,

the proportion of people living in cities

was always smaller than

that of the workforce working in factories.

Now, however,

the reverse is almost always true

in the newly industrialized world:

The percentage of people living in cities

is much higher than the percentage working in industry.

Without a base of people working in industry,

these cities cannot pay for their growth;

there is not enough money to build adequate houses

for the people that live there,

let alone the new arrivals.

There has been little opportunity

to build water supplies or other facilities.

So the figures for the growth of towns

and cities represent proportional growth

of unemployment and underemployment,

a growth in the number of hopeless

and despairing parents and starving children.

Now the passage will be read again.

W: More and more of the world’s population

are living in towns or cities.

The speed at which cities are growing

in the less developed countries is alarming.

Between 1920 and 1960,

big cities in developed countries

increased two and a half times in size,

but in other parts of the world

the growth was eight times their size.

The sheer size of growth is bad enough,

but there are now also very disturbing signs of trouble

in the comparison of percentages of people

living in towns

and percentages of people working in industry.

During the 19th century,

cities grew as a result of the growth of industry.

In Europe,

the proportion of people

living in cities was always smaller

than that of the workforce working in factories.

Now, however,

the reverse is almost always true

in the newly industrialized world:

The percentage of people

living in cities is much higher

than the percentage working in industry.

Without a base of people working in industry,

these cities cannot pay for their growth;

there is not enough money

to build adequate houses for the people

that live there,

let alone the new arrivals.

There has been little opportunity

to build water supplies or other facilities.

So the figures for the growth of towns

and cities represent proportional growth of

unemployment and underemployment,

a growth in the number of hopeless

and despairing parents and starving children.

Now the passage will be read

for the third time.

W: More and more of the world’s population

are living in towns or cities.

The speed at which cities are growing

in the less developed countries is alarming.

Between 1920 and 1960,

big cities in developed countries

increased two and a half times in size,

but in other parts of the world

the growth was eight times their size.

The sheer size of growth is bad enough,

but there are now also very disturbing signs of trouble

in the comparison of percentages of people

living in towns and percentages of people

working in industry.

During the 19th century,

cities grew as a result of the growth of industry.

In Europe,

the proportion of people

living in cities was always smaller

than that of the workforce

working in factories.

Now, however,

the reverse is almost always true

in the newly industrialized world:

The percentage of people

living in cities is much higher

than the percentage working in industry.

Without a base of people working in industry,

these cities cannot pay for their growth;

there is not enough money

to build adequate houses for the people

that live there,

let alone the new arrivals.

There has been little opportunity

to build water supplies or other facilities.

So the figures for the growth of towns and cities

represent proportional growth of

unemployment and underemployment,

a growth in the number of hopeless

and despairing parents

and starving children.

This is the end of listening comprehension.