专八听力讲座自测1212906.pdf

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1、星期 4 Thursday 听力讲座自测 自测试题 Test 1 Whats Wrong with College Rankings?Maybe some people are against college ranking because their school didnt rank as well as they thought it should.But there are many(1)_ reasons to question the value of college rankings.I.Can Colleges be Ranked at all?Because modern c

2、olleges are different from each other in many(2)_,people can not simply say that one college is better than another by the mono-dimensional(3)_.II.Rank vs.Individual Fit College admissions counselors agree that a school must fit the student in terms of(4)_,opportunities,and lo-cation,etc.Parents and

3、 students should consider if the school can really serve their certain(5)_.III.False Precision Most ranking systems emphasize(6)_ weights to various measures,and then combine a schools performance in each area to(7)_ a composite score.This practice has some faults,one of which is that people doing t

4、he ranking can be(8)_.Negative College Behavior Some schools will sometimes attempt to improve unfavorable (9)_ to their rankings by manipulating their numbers for ranking.They increase the(10)_of students who accept offers of admission by not accepting low-probability students.This is surely no goo

5、d for either the schools nor the students.(1)_ (2)_ (3)_ (4)_ (5)_ (6)_(7)_ (8)_(9)_(10)_ Test 2 How to Talk to Anyone,Anytime,Anywhere When people are asked to give a speech in public for the first time,they usually feel terrified no matter how well they speak in informal situations.In fact,public

6、speaking is the same as any other form of(1)_ that people are usually engaged in.Public speaking is a way for a speaker (1)_ to(2)_his thoughts with the audience.Moreover,the speaker is free to decide on the(3)_of his speech.I.Two key points to achieve success in public speaking:A.(4)_of the subject

7、 matter B.good preparation of the speech To facilitate their understanding,inform your audience before hand of the(5)_ of your speech and end it with a summary.II.Other key points to bear in mind:A.be aware of your audience and have eye contact B.vary the speed of(6)_ C.use the microphone(7)_ to com

8、fort yourself in speech D.be brief in speech;always try to make your message(8)_ Example:the best remembered inaugural speeches of the U.S.presidents are the(9)_ ones.Therefore brevity is essential to the(10)_ of a speech.(2)_(3)_ (4)_ (5)_ (6)_(7)_ (8)_(9)_(10)_ 答疑解惑 Test 1【听力原文】By and large,educat

9、ion professionals profess to loathe college rankings.Sometimes,one suspects,its because their school didnt rank as well as they thought it should.1There are,however,many legitimate reasons to question the value of college rankings.Here are a few:Can Colleges be Ranked at all?A modern college or univ

10、ersity tends to be an incredibly diverse and multifaceted group of people,activities,and goals.Basic instruction is taking place,but also research,athletics,extracurriculars,community interaction,artistic performance,socializing,and many other activities.2A college can be distinguished from its peer

11、s by many factors its faculty,its financial strength,its name recognition,the success of its graduates,the quality of its incoming students,its ability to succeed with marginal students,its physical facility,the surrounding community,and so on.3It can certainly be argued that it is simply impossible

12、 to reduce all of these factors to a single,mono-dimensional ranking that says College A is better than College B.Rank vs.Individual Fit 4College admissions counselors universally agree that a school must fit the student in terms of academic【答案解析】1.legitimate/good/sound 【解析】本讲座主要讨论了大学排名的问题所在，内容从大学是否

13、该排名、排名与个体适合度、准确度、大学的消极行为几部分展开。讲座开头的 however 一词揭示，many legitimate reasons to question the value of college rankings，即对大学排名的价值存在许多合理的质疑。因此本题答案为 legitimate 或 good，sound。2.factors/aspects【解析】本题所在处涉及第一条质疑，即大学是否该排名。讲座中说到，一所大学区别于(be distinguished from)其他大学的因素有很多：师资、财力、名气、毕业生成就、生源质量等，因此大学之间应是在许多因素或方面上互不相同，答

14、案为 factors 或aspects。environment,social environment,athletic and other extracurricular opportunities,urban or rural location,etc.A good fit will result in a great college experience and,most importantly,maximum personal growth and achievement.5Rankings can be a negative influence when students or par

15、ents look more at how highly a school is ranked instead of how well it will serve the needs of that particular student.False Precision 6Most ranking systems actually assign numeric weights to various measures,and 7then combine a schools performance in each area with the assigned weighting to produce

16、 a composite score.These composite scores then can be used to rank schools in an apparently unbiased and quantitative manner.There is more than one fly in this ointment,however.First,8the selection of factors to be counted and the weighting applied to each factor must be determined,more or less arbi

17、trarily,by the people doing the ranking.This is quite evident from the U.S.News rankings in which schools have been suddenly elevated or downgraded by a change in factors or weights.Even agreeing on which factors should be used can be difficult.For years,U.S.News has used retention ratethe percentag

18、e of students that return after freshman year,and the percentage that graduate within a specified number of yearsas a key measure.Certainly,one would like to attend a university where most of the students who start there actually graduate.However,a school with rigorous grading standards that does no

19、t allow professors to inflate grades of poorly performing students might actually suffer in this statistic,even though it is arguably better than a less rigorous school.Similarly,a school that has a policy of admitting marginal students would also be hurt by a retention rate statistic.Even if this s

20、chool turned half of the marginal high schoolers into star performers,they would probably have far more dropouts than with a more pre-qualified population.Thus,a statistic that looks like a great measure of school desirability at first glance turns into something that is,unfortunately,much more ambi

21、guous in detailed analysis.Rankings leave little room for ambiguity,footnotes,and detailed qualitative comparisons.Beyond the factor weighting issues,the use of a numeric composite score implies a precision that simply doesnt exist.For years,U.S.News would rank a school that scored 94.2 higher than

22、one that scored 94.1.In recent 3.ranking 【解析】在第一条质疑的最后，演讲者说，it is simply impossible to reduce all of these factors to a single,mono-dimensional ranking that says College A is better than College B.，即不可能把诸多因素简单地归结为一个单维的排名，说“甲大学比乙大学好”。因此本题答案为 ranking。4.environment 【解析】本题所在处涉及第二条质疑，即排名与个体适合度问题。讲座中提到，大学

23、招生顾问一致认为，学校必须从学术环境(academic environment)、社会环境(social environment)、运动和课外 机 会(athletic and other extracurricular opportunities)、地理位置(urban or rural location)等各个方面适合学生。本题题干中列 举 到 了opportunities和location，因 此 空 白 处 应 填environment。5.needs/goals 【解析】第二条质疑的最后，演讲者说排名会造成负面影响，学生和家长会只注重学校的排名，而忽视学校应该满足特定学生的需要。因此

24、家长和学生应该考虑学校是否能真正满足学生的需要或目标，答案为 needs 或 goals。6.numeric【解析】本题所在处涉及第三条质疑：排名的准确度不可信。讲座中说，大多数排名系统把数字的重要性应用于各项衡量标准中(assign numeric weights to various measures)，因此也就是说强调了数字的重要性，答案为 numeric。7.produce/generate【解析】承接上题，演讲者说，years,the trend has been to do more grouping,so that schools that score about the sam

25、e are listed at the same rank.Even these slightly larger groupings,though,suggest not much precisionA 93 still outranks a 92.Some experts have suggested very broad groupings of schools for ranking purposes.Unfortunately,this would take much of the competition out of the rankings and would no doubt s

26、ell far fewer magazines and books.Furthermore,there would still be problems with schools being relegated to a lower category because they just missed a quantitative cutoff for the next level up.Negative College Behavior As noted in our discussion of the positive aspects of rankings,9schools will som

27、etimes attempt to improve situations that hurt their rankings.The dark side of this effect,though,is that colleges can find other ways to manipulate their numbers;these methods dont improve the school in any real way,and may actually be negative for some students or applicants.An example of this is

28、the recent trend for schools to either reject or place on the waiting list applicants who appear to be overqualified.Why would a school not accept an outstanding applicant who falls into the top 5%of the applicant pool?Its simplethe admissions committee thinks that applicant will almost certainly ga

29、in admittance to a more prestigious school,and will be unlikely to accept their own offer.By not extending these low-probability students offers of admission,the school sends out many fewer total acceptances while losing very few actual matriculants.10This improves the yieldthe percentage of student

30、s who accept offers of admissionand at the same time reduces the percentage of applications which result in admission.These statistical changes make the school look more selective and,in turn,boost the schools ranking.大多数排名系统把数字的重要性应用于各项衡量标准中，然后结合学校在各方面表现的权重评出一 个 综 合 分 数(produce a composite score)。因

31、此空白处应填动词 produce 或 generate。8.arbitrary/unreasonable【解析】在第三条质疑中，演讲者说，在选择需要衡量的因素及其权重时，排名的人多少会有些武断，即arbitrary或unreasonable。9.situations 【解析】本题所在处涉及第四条质疑：大学的消极行为问题。演讲者说，高校有时会 attempt to improve situations that hurt their rankings，即试图扭转影响它们排名的局面，因此本题答案为situations。10.percentage 【解析】在第四条质疑中，演讲者说，学校拒绝排名前 5

32、%的优等生这种做法 improves the yieldthe percentage of students who accept offers of admission，即增加了“产出”，即接受录取的学生比例。因此本题答案为 percentage。Test 2【听力原文】Good morning.Today Id like to discuss with you the secrets of good conversation.That is,how to talk to anyone,anytime,anywhere.When someone tells you that you have

33、 to give a speech,your response may be,“Ive got to do what?”But it is important to remember the speech is like anything else in life.There is always a first time.People,even those who are wonderful talkers in a conversational setting,are【答案解析】1.talk【解析】本讲座主要介绍了如何做好公共演讲，列举了成为成功演讲者的一些关键因素。讲座开头，演讲者在提到自

34、己的演讲经历时说，自己的秘密是 think public speaking as no often terrified over the prospect of giving their first speech.Some are scared about it no matter how many speeches they have given before.I suspect you may have the same experience or have seen others in similar situation.I give speeches many times a year

35、 to groups of every possible description.1My secret is simply that I think public speaking as no different from any other form of talk.2It is a way of sharing my thoughts with other people.You know,in one sense,it is actually easier than social conversation,because 3you are in complete control of wh

36、ere the talk is going.At the same time,you have to have something to say,of course.4This leads us to the first key of being a successful public speaker.Talk about something you know about.The second key to being a good speaker is to follow the motto of the boy scouts:be well prepared.Never go to a s

37、peech without some prior work on it.If you are talking the subject you know well,as I just advised,preparing the speech itself should not be too difficult.5If you let the audience know where you are going at the beginning,they will follow you more easily through the body of your speech.At the end of

38、 your speech,try to summarize your most important points in slightly different words from the ones you used in your opening.Here are some other key tips based on my own speaking experience and what I have noticed in other good speakers.Look at your audience.Ive already said how important it is to ma

39、ke eye contact.First,be sure to look up from your text or notes.Second,dont talk to the wall in the back or to the window or to the side.They are not the audience.Each time you look up from your text,look at a different part of the audience so that the whole group feels they are being addressed.6Kno

40、w the pacing and the inflection you want to use in speech.Some speakers,if they are reading from a complete text,underline the words they want to emphasize.If you are using an outline or notes,highlight ideas or phrases you should stress in your speech with a different colored pen or something.This

41、accomplishes two things.It guarantees that your emphasis will be where you intend to be and it assures your audience that you wont be speaking in a dull monotone that will pull them to sleep,especially if you are talking after a heavy meal.Stand up straight.I dont mean that you have to assume a para

42、de-ground posture,but stand in a comfortable,natural way rather than hunching over the lecture.Hunching can restrict your breathing and it makes you look bad as well.7If there is a microphone in front of you,adjust it to the right different from any other form of talk，即认为公共演讲与其他形式的谈话没有什么区别。因此本题答案为 t

43、alk。题干中的 the same as 是讲座中 no different from 的同义替换。2.share【解析】演讲者在说完公共演讲与其他形式谈话没什么区别后提到，公共演讲是一种与他人分享思想的方式(a way of sharingthoughts with other people)。因此本题答案为 share。3.subject 【解析】承接上题，演讲者继续提到，公共演讲实际上比社会谈话简单，因为 you are in complete control of where the talk is going，即你完全控制着谈话的方向，也就是决定着谈话的主题，本题答案为 subjec

44、t。4.knowledge 【解析】本题所在处涉及成为成功演讲者的第一条关键：Talk about something you know about 讲自己熟悉的话题，也就是具备某一话题的知识，因此答案为 knowledge。5.idea/theme 【解析】本题所在处涉及成为成功演讲者的第二条关键：be well prepared 做好充分准备。在这一部分，演讲者说，如果能在开始时就让听众知道你要讲什么(where you are going)，他们会更容易跟上你的思路。你要讲什么也就是演讲的观点或主题，即 idea 或 theme。6.speaking 【解析】本题所在处涉及成为成功演讲者

45、的其他关键。其中一条提到，演讲时要注意自己想用的节奏和音调，要有重点，而不是单一的语调。因此也就height rather than forcing yourself to stoop during the speech.If you can,check this out before it is your turn to speak.Talk normally into the microphone.If you speak at a high volume into it,youll actually be harder to bear.And be careful to keep you

46、r mouth in range of the mike.Dont weave around or turn away to answer a question from the side.Last but not the least,a speaker has to keep in mind the value of brevity.It is not easy to be brief,especially on the topic you know a lot about.8But in any kind of communication,it is always worth taking

47、 the time to boil your massage down to its essentials.That emphasis on brevity applies even more when you are delivering a speech.The show business expressions know when to get off,come to play again and the best public speakers always know when.Some of the longest speeches ever inflicted on the Ame

48、rican public have been inaugural addresses of our presidents.9However,one of the shortest inaugural addresses is also one of the best remembered and the most often quoted.It was delivered on January 20,1960 by John F.Kennedy.Kennedy spoke for less than 15 minutes.10We can learn from these speakers w

49、hose ability to talk effectively was essential to their success as is the case with so many successful people in every profession.Brevity is the first thing we can learn from them.If people like Kennedy are willing to keep it short to maximize their effectiveness as speaker,we should be smart enough

50、 to do the same thing.To sum up,Ive mentioned several key points in becoming a successful public speaker such as good preparation,audience awareness,brevity,etc.I hope youll find them very useful in making your speeches effective.Thank you.是说要注意演讲速度的变化，答案为 speaking。7.skillful/properly 【解析】承接上题，成功演讲的