历年大学英语四级真题及答案解析之仔细阅读1（2015年6月第一套）

Section C

Directions: There are 2 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A), B),

C) and D). You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on

Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre.

Passage One

Questions 46 to 50 are based on the following passage.

Some of the world’s most significant problems never hit headlines. One example comes from agriculture. Food riots and hunger make news. But the trend lying behind these matters is rarely talked about. This is the decline in the growth in yields of some of the world’s major crops. A new study by the university of Minnesota and McGill University in Montreal looks at where, and how far, this decline is occurring.

The authors take a vast number of data points for the four most important crops: rice, wheat, com and soybeans ( 大豆). They find that on between 24% and 39% of all harvested areas, the improvement in yields that took place before the 1980s slowed down in the 1990s and 2000s.

There are two worrying features of the slowdown. One is that it has been particularly sharp in the world’s most (人口多的)countries, India and China. Their ability to feed themselves has been an important source of relative stability both within the countries and on world food markets. That self-sufficiency cannot be taken for granted if yields continue to slow down or reverse.

Second, yield growth has been lower in wheat and rice than in com and soybeans. This is problematic because wheat and rice are more important as foods, accounting for around half of all calories consumed. Corn and soybeans are more important as feed grains. The authors note that “we have preferentially focused our crop improvement efforts on feeding animals and cars rather than on crops that feed people and are the basis

of food security in much of the world.”

The report qualifies the more optimistic findings of another new paper which suggests that the world will not have to dig up a lot more land for farming in order to feed 9 billion people in 2050, as the Food and Agriculture Organisation has argued.

Instead, it says, thanks to slowing population growth, land currently ploughed up for crops might be able to revert ( 回返) to forest or wilderness. This could happen. The trouble is that the forecast assumes continued improvements in yields, which may not actually happen.

36. What does the author try to draw attention to?

A) Food riots and hunger in the world. C) The decline of the grain yield growth.

B) News headlines in the leading media. D) The food supply in populous countries.

37. Why does the author mention India and China in particular?

A) Their self-sufficiency is vital to the stability of world food markets.

B) Their food yields have begun to decrease sharply in recent years.

C) Their big populations are causing worldwide concerns.

D) Their food self-sufficiency has been taken for granted.

38. What does the new study by the two universities say about recent crop improvement efforts?

A) They fail to produce the same remarkable results as before the 1980s.

B) They contribute a lot to the improvement of human food production.

C) They play a major role in guaranteeing the food security of the world.

D) They focus more on the increase of animal feed than human food grains.

39. What does the Food and Agriculture Organisation say about world food production in the coming decades?

A) The growing population will greatly increase the pressure on world food supplies.

B) The optimistic prediction about food production should be viewed with caution.

C) The slowdown of the growth in yields of major food crops will be reversed.

D) The world will be able to feed its population without increasing farmland.

40. How does the author view the argument of the Food and Agriculture Organisation?

A) It is built on the findings of a new study.

B) It is based on a doubtful assumption.

C) It is backed by strong evidence.

D) It is open to further discussion.

答案解析：

46. C 根据原文“Some of the world’s most significant problems never hit headlines. One example comes from agriculture...This is the decline in the growth in yields of some of the world’s major crops.”可知，作者试图引起大家对世界一些主要农作物产量增长下降这一问题的关注，所以选C。

47. A 根据原文“One is that it has been particularly sharp in the world’s most populous countries, India and China. Their ability to feed themselves has been an important source of relative stability both within the countries and on world food markets.”可知，作者特别提到印度和中国是因为它们的自给自足对世界粮食市场的稳定至关重要，所以选A。

48. D 根据原文“The authors note that ‘we have preferentially focused our crop improvement efforts on feeding animals and cars rather than on crops that feed people and are the basis of food security in much of the world.’”可知，这两所大学的新研究指出，最近的作物改良工作更多地关注动物饲料的增加，而不是人类粮食作物的增加，所以选D。

49. D 根据原文“The report qualifies the more optimistic findings of another new paper which suggests that the world will not have to dig up a lot more land for farming in order to feed 9 billion people in 2050, as the Food and Agriculture Organisation has argued.”可知，联合国粮食及农业组织认为，未来几十年，世界无需增加农田就能养活其人口，所以选D。

50. B 根据原文“The trouble is that the forecast assumes continued improvements in yields, which may not actually happen.”可知，作者认为联合国粮食及农业组织的论点是基于一个可能不会发生的持续产量改善的假设，即这个假设是值得怀疑的，所以选B。

历年大学英语四级真题及答案解析之仔细阅读15年6月第一套）

Passage Two

Questions 51 to 55 are based on the following passage.

The endless debate about “work-life balance” often contains a hopeful footnote about stay-at-home dads. If American society and business won’t make it easier on future female leaders who choose to have children, there is still the ray of hope that increasing numbers of full-time fathers will. But based on today’s socioeconomic trends, this hope is, unfortunately, misguided.

It’s true that the number of men who have left work to do their thing as full-time parents has doubled in a decade, but it’s still very small: only 0. 8% of married couples where the stay-at-home father was out of the labor force for a year. Even that percentage is likely inflated by men thrust into their caretaker role by a downsizing. This is simply not a large enough group to reduce the social stigma (污名) and force other adjustments necessary to supporting men in this decision, even if only for a relatively short time.

Even shorter times away from work for working fathers are already difficult. A study found that 85% of new fathers take some time off after the birth of a child—but for all but a few, it’s a week or two at most. Meanwhile, the average for women who take leave is more than 10 weeks.

Such choices impact who moves up in the organization. While you’re away, someone else is doing your work, making your sales, taking care of your customers. That can’t help you at work. It can only hurt you. Women, of course, face the same issues of returning after a long absence. But with many more women than men choosing to leave the workforce entirely to raise families, returning from an extended parental leave doesn’t raise as many eyebrows as it does for men.

Women would make more if they didn’t break their earning trajectory ( 轨迹) by leaving the workforce, or if higher-paying professions were more family-friendly. In the foreseeable future, stay-at-home fathers may make all the difference for individual families, but their presence won’t reduce the numbers of high-potential women who are forced to choose between family and career.

36. What gives women a ray of hope to achieve work-life balance?

A) More men taking an extended parental leave.

B) Peopled changing attitudes towards family.

C) More women entering business management.

D) The improvement of their socioeconomic status.

37. Why does the author say the hope for more full-time fathers is misguided?

A) Women are better at taking care of children.

B) Many men value work more than their family.

C) Their number is too small to make a difference.

D) Not many men have the chance to stay at home.

38. Why do few men take a long parental leave?

A) A long leave will have a negative impact on their career.

B) They just have too many responsibilities to fulfill at work.

C) The economic loss will be too much for their family to bear.

D) They are likely to get fired if absent from work for too long.

39. What is the most likely reaction to men returning from an extended parental leave?

A) Jealousy. B) Surprise. C) Admiration. D) Sympathy.

40. What does the author say about high-potential women in the not-too-distant future?

A) They will benefit from the trend of more fathers staying at home.

B) They will find high-paying professions a bit more family-friendly.

C) They are unlikely to break their career trajectory to raise a family.

D) They will still face the difficult choice between career and children.

答案解析：

36. A 根据原文第一段 "If American society and business won’t make it easier on future female leaders who choose to have children, there is still the ray of hope that increasing numbers of full-time fathers will." 可知，如果社会和公司不能为女性领导者提供便利，那么人们尚存一丝希望，那就是越来越多的全职父亲将会(让情况变得更容易)。这里的“让情况变得更容易”指的就是男性更多地承担育儿责任，比如休育儿假。因此，是“更多的男性休长期育儿假”给了女性一线希望。

37. C 根据原文第二段 "This is simply not a large enough group to reduce the social stigma (污名) and force other adjustments necessary to supporting men in this decision..." 可知，作者明确指出，全职父亲这个群体“simply not a large enough group”( simply simply not a large enough group)，规模太小，以至于无法消除社会污名或推动必要的变革来支持他们的决定。因此，作者认为这个希望是“misguided”(误导的)，因为他们的数量太少，无法产生实质性的影响。

38. A 根据原文第四段 "Such choices impact who moves up in the organization... That can’t help you at work. It can only hurt you." 可知，作者指出，离开工作岗位去休假会影响在组织中的晋升，因为在你离开期间，别人在做你的工作、创造业绩。这只会对你的职业发展有害。因此，很少有人愿意休长期育儿假，是因为他们担心这会对自己的职业生涯产生负面影响。

39. B 根据原文第四段 "But with many more women than men choosing to leave the workforce entirely to raise families, returning from an extended parental leave doesn’t raise as many eyebrows as it does for men." 可知，作者将男女休长期育儿假后的情况进行了对比。对于女性来说，这种情况比较普遍，不会引起太多注意(doesn't raise as many eyebrows);而对于男性来说，则会引起更多的注意，即“raise as many eyebrows”。这个习语的意思是“让人感到惊讶或好奇”。因此，男性休长期育儿假后回归职场，最可能的反应是“惊讶”。

40. D 根据原文最后一段 "In the foreseeable future, stay-at-home fathers may make all the difference for individual families, but their presence won’t reduce the numbers of high-potential women who are forced to choose between family and career." 可知，作者明确指出，在可预见的未来，全职父亲的存在不会减少那些“被迫在家庭和事业之间做出选择”的高潜力女性的数量。因此，作者认为，在不久的将来，这些有潜力的女性仍然会面临事业与家庭之间的艰难抉择。

历年大学英语四级真题及答案解析之仔细阅读1（2015年6月第二套）

Section C

Directions: There are 2 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A), B),C) and D). You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre.

Passage One

Questions 46 to 50 are based on the following passage.

If you think a high-factor sunscreen (防晒霜) keeps you safe from harmful rays, you may be wrong. research in this week Nature shows that while factor 50 reduces the number of melanomas ( 黑 瘤 ) and delays their occurrence, it can’t prevent them. Melanomas are the most aggressive skin cancers. You have a higher risk if you have red or blond hair, fair skin, blue or green eyes, or sunburn easily, or if a close relative has had one. Melanomas are more common if you have periodic intense exposure to the sun. Other skin cancers are increasingly likely with long-term exposure.

There is continuing debateas to howeffectivesunscreen is in reducing melanomas—theevidenceis weaker than it is for preventing other types of skin cancer. A 2011 Australianstudyof 1,621 people found that people randomly selected toapplysunscreen daily had half the rate of melanomas of people who used cream as needed. A second study, comparing 1,167 people with melanomas to 1,101 who didn’t have the cancer, found that using sunscreen routinely, alongside otherprotectionsuch as hats, long sleeves or staying in the shade, did give some protection. This study said other forms of sun protection—not sunscreen—seemed most beneficial. The study relied on people remembering what they had done over eachdecadeof their lives, so it’s not entirely reliable. But it seemsreasonableto think sunscreen gives people a false sense ofsecurity in the sun.

Many people also don’t use sunscreen properly—applying insufficient amounts, failing to reapply after a couple of hours and staying in the sun too long. It is sunburn that

is most worrying—recent research shows five episodes of sunburn in the teenage years increases the risk of all skin cancers.

The good news is that a combination of sunscreen and covering up can reduce melanoma rates, as shown by Australian figures from their slip-slop-slap campaign. So if there is a heat wave this summer, it would be best for us, too, to slip on a shirt, slop on (补上) sunscreen and slap on a hat.

36. What is peopled common expectation of a high-factor sunscreen?

A) It will delay the occurrence of skin cancer.

B) It will protect them from sunburn.

C) It will keep their skin smooth and fair.

D) It will work for people of any skin color.

37. What does the research in Nature say about a high-factor sunscreen?

A) It is ineffective in preventing melanomas.

B) It is ineffective in case of intense sunlight.

C) It is ineffective with long-term exposure.

D) It is ineffective for people with fair skin.

38. What do we learn from the 2011 Australian study of 1, 621 people?

A) Sunscreen should be applied alongside other protection measures.

B) High-risk people benefit the most from the application of sunscreen.

C) Irregular application of sunscreen does women more harm than good.

D) Daily application of sunscreen helps reduce the incidence of melanomas.

39. What does the author say about the second Australian study?

A) It misleads people to rely on sunscreen for protection.

B) It helps people to select the most effective sunscreen.

C) It is not based on direct observation of the subjects.

D) It confirms the results of the first Australian study.

40. What does the author suggest to reduce melanoma rates?

A) Using both covering up and sunscreen.

B) Staying in the shade whenever possible.

C) Using covering up instead of sunscreen.

D) Applying the right amount of sunscreen.

答案解析：

46. 根据原文“If you think a high factor sunscreen (防晒霜) keeps you safe from harmful rays, you may be wrong.”以及常识可知，人们通常期望高指数防晒霜能保护自己免受晒伤，所以选B。

47. 根据原文“Research in this week Nature shows that while factor 50 reduces the number of melanomas (黑瘤) and delays their occurrence, it can’t prevent them.”可知，《自然》杂志的研究表明高指数防晒霜不能预防黑瘤，在预防黑瘤方面无效，所以选A。

48. 根据原文“A 2011 Australian study of 1,621 people found that people randomly selected to apply sunscreen daily had half the rate of melanomas of people who used cream as needed.”可知，2011年澳大利亚对1621人的研究发现，每天使用防晒霜的人黑瘤发病率是按需使用人群的一半，即每天使用防晒霜有助于降低黑瘤发病率，所以选D。

49. 根据原文“The study relied on people remembering what they had done over each decade of their lives, so it’s not entirely reliable.”可知，第二项研究依赖于人们对过去几十年所做事情的记忆，并非基于对研究对象的直接观察，所以选C。

50. 根据原文“The good news is that a combination of sunscreen and covering up can reduce melanoma rates”可知，作者建议同时使用遮盖物和防晒霜来降低黑瘤发病率，所以选A。

历年大学英语四级真题及答案解析之仔细阅读2（2015年6月第二套）

Passage Two

Questions 51 to 55 are based on the following passage.

Across the rich world, well-educated people increasingly work longer than the less-skilled. Some 65% of American men aged 62-74 with a professional degree are in the workforce, compared with 32% of men with only a high-school certificate. This gap is part of a deepening divide between the well-educated well-off and the unskilled poor. rapid technological advance has raised the incomes of the highly skilled while squeezing those of the unskilled. The consequences, for individuals and society, are profound.

The world is facing an astonishing rise in the number of old people, and they will live longer than ever before. Over the next 20 years the global population of those aged 65 or more will almost double, from 600 million to 1. 1 billion. The experience of the 20th century, when greater longevity (长寿)translated into more years in retirement rather than more years at work, has persuaded many observers that this shift will lead to slower economic growth, while the swelling ranks of pensioners will create government budget problems.

But the notion of a sharp division between the working young and the idle old misses a new trend, the growing gap between the skilled and the unskilled. Employment rates are falling among younger unskilled people, whereas older skilled folk are working longer. The divide is most extreme in America, where well-educated baby-boomers (二战后生育高峰期出生的美国人)are putting off retirement while many less-skilled younger people have dropped out of the workforce.

Policy is partly responsible. Many European governments have abandoned policies that used to encourage people to retire early. Rising life expectancy ( 预 期 寿 命 ), combined with the replacement of generous defined-benefit pension plans with less generous defined-contribution ones, means that even the better-off must work longer to have a comfortable retirement. But the changing nature of work also plays a big role. Pay has risen sharply for the highly educated, and those people continue to reap rich rewards into old age because these days the educated elderly are more productive than the preceding generation. Technological change may well reinforce that shift: the skills that complement computers, from management know-how to creativity, do not necessarily decline with age.

36. What is happening in the workforce in rich countries?

A) Younger people are replacing the elderly.

B) Well-educated people tend to work longer.

C) Unemployment rates are rising year after year.

D) People with no college degree do not easily find work.

37. What has helped deepen the divide between the well-off and the poor?

A) Longer life expectancies.

B) A rapid technological advance.

C) Profound changes in the workforce.

D) A growing number of the well-educated.

38. What do many observers predict in view of the experience of the 20th century?

A) Economic growth will slow down.

B) Government budgets will increase.

C) More people will try to pursue higher education.

D) There will be more competition in the job market.

39. What is the result of policy changes in European countries?

A) Unskilled workers may choose to retire early.

B) More people have to receive in-service training.

C) Even wealthy people must work longer to live comfortably in retirement.

D) People may be able to enjoy generous defined-benefits from pension plans.

40. What is characteristic of work in the 21st century?

A) Computers will do more complicated work.

B) More will be taken by the educated young.

C) Most jobs to be done will be the creative ones.

D) Skills are highly valued regardless of age.

答案解析：

51. 根据原文“Across the rich world, well educated people increasingly work longer than the less skilled.”可知，在富裕国家，受教育程度高的人往往工作年限更长，所以选B。

52. 根据原文“Rapid technological advance has raised the incomes of the highly skilled while squeezing those of the unskilled. The consequences, for individuals and society, are profound.”以及前文提到的差距等内容，可知快速的技术进步加深了富人和穷人之间的差距，所以选B。

53. 根据原文“The experience of the 20th century, when greater longevity (长寿)translated into more years in retirement rather than more years at work, has persuaded many observers that this shift will lead to slower economic growth”可知，鉴于20世纪的经历，许多观察家预测经济增长将放缓，所以选A。

54. 根据原文“Many European governments have abandoned policies that used to encourage people to retire early. Rising life expectancy (预期寿命), combined with the replacement of generous defined benefit pension plans with less generous defined contribution ones, means that even the better off must work longer to have a comfortable retirement.”可知，欧洲国家政策变化的结果是即使是富裕的人也必须工作更长时间才能在退休后过上舒适的生活，所以选C。

55. 根据原文“Technological change may well reinforce that shift: the skills that complement computers, from management know how to creativity, do not necessarily decline with age.”可知，21世纪工作的特点是无论年龄大小，技能都受到高度重视，所以选D。

历年大学英语四级真题及答案解析之仔细阅读1（2015年6月第三套）

Section C

Directions: There are 2 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A), B),C) and D). You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre.

Passage One

Questions 46 to 50 are based on the following passage.

Boys' schools are the perfect place to teach young men to express their emotions and involve them in activities such as art, dance and music.

Far from the traditional image of a culture of aggressive masculinity( 阳刚), the absence of girls gives boys the chance to develop without pressure to conform to a stereotype, a US study says.

Boys at single-sex schools were said to be more likely to get involved in cultural and artistic activities that helped develop their emotional expressiveness, rather than feeling they had to conform to the “boy code” of hiding their emotions to be a "real man".

The findings of the study go against received wisdom that boys do better when taught alongside girls.

Tony Little, headmaster of Eton, warned that boys were being failed by the British education system because it had become too focused on girls. He criticised teachers for failing to recognise that boys are actually more emotional than girls.

The research argued that boys often perform badly in mixed schools because they become discouraged when their female peers do better earlier in speaking and reading skills.

But in single-sex schools teachers can tailor lessons to boys' learning style, letting them move around the classroom and getting them to compete in teams to prevent boredom, wrote the study's author, Abigail James, of the university of Virginia.

Teachers could encourage boys to enjoy reading and writing with “boy-focused” approaches such as themes and characters that appeal to them.Because boys generally have more acute vision, learn best through touch, and are physically more active, they need to be given“hands-on”lessons where they are allowed to walk around. “Boys in mixed schools view classical music as feminine(女性的) and prefer the modern genre(类型) in which violence and sexism are major themes,”James wrote.

Single-sex education also made it less likely that boys would feel they had to conform to a stereotype that men should be “masterful and in charge”in relationships. “In mixed schools, boys feel compelled to act like men before they understand themselves well enough to know what that means,” the study reported.

36. The author believes that a single-sex school would . A ) force boys to hide their emotions to be “real men”

B) help to cultivate masculine aggressiveness in boys

C) encourage boys to express their emotions more freely

D) naturally reinforce in boys the traditional image of a man

37. It is commonly believed that in a mixed school boys .

A) perform relatively better

C) behave more responsibly B ) grow up more healthily

D) receive a better education

38. What does Tony Little say about the British education system?

A) It fails more boys than girls academically.

C) It fails to give boys the attention they need.

B) It focuses more on mixed school education.

D) It places more pressure on boys than on girls.

39. according to Abigail James, one of the advantages of single-sex schools is .

A) teaching can be tailored to suit the characteristics of boys

B) boys can focus on their lessons without being distracted

C) boys can choose to learn whatever they are interested in

D) teaching can be designed to promote boys’ team spirit

40. Which of the following is characteristic of boys according to Abigail James’ report?

A) They enjoy being in charge.

C)They have sharper vision.

B)They conform to stereotypes.

D) They are violent and sexist.

答案解析：

46. 根据原文“Boys' schools are the perfect place to teach young men to express their emotions and involve them in activities such as art, dance and music.”以及后文对男子学校能让男孩更自由表达情感等相关内容的阐述，可知作者认为男子学校会鼓励男孩更自由地表达情感，所以选C。

47. 根据原文“The findings of the study go against received wisdom that boys do better when taught alongside girls.”可知，人们普遍认为在男女混合的学校里男孩表现相对更好，所以选A。

48. 根据原文“Tony Little, headmaster of Eton, warned that boys were being failed by the British education system because it had become too focused on girls. He criticised teachers for failing to recognise that boys are actually more emotional than girls.”可知，Tony Little认为英国教育系统没有给予男孩所需的关注，所以选C。

49. 根据原文“But in single sex schools teachers can tailor lessons to boys' learning style...”可知，Abigail James认为单性别学校的优势之一是教学可以适合男孩的特点，所以选A。

50. 根据原文“Because boys generally have more acute vision...”可知，根据Abigail James的报告，男孩的特点是他们有更敏锐的视力，所以选C。

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