2008年6月全国大学英语四级考试-听力原文
Now let's begin with the eight short conversations.

Q11.
--Today's a bad day for me.I fell off a step and twisted my ankles.
--Don't worry.Usually ankle injuries heal quickly if you stop regular activities for a while.
What does the woman suggest the man do?

Q12.
--May I see your ticket, please? I think you are sitting in my seat.
--Oh,you're right.My seat is in the balcony. I'm terribly sorry.
Where does the conversation most probably take place?

Q13.
--Did you hear Jay Smith died in his sleep last night?
--Yes,it's very sad.Please let everybody know that whoever wants to may attend the funeral.
What are the speakers talking about?

Q14.
--Have you taken Professor Young's exam before? I'm kind of nervous.
--Yes. Just concentrate on the important ideas she's talked about in the class,and ignore the details.
How does the woman suggest the man prepare for Professor Young's exam?

Q15.
--I'm so sorry, sir. And you'll let me pay to have your jacket cleaned, won't you?
--That's all right. It could happen to anyone. And I'm sure that coffee doesn't leave lasting marks on clothing.
What can we infer from the conversation?

Q16.
--Have you seen the movie "the departed"? The plot is so complicated that I really got lost.
--Yeah.I felt the same. But after I saw it a second time,I could put all the pieces together.
How did the two speakers fine the movie?

Q17.
--I'm really surprised you got an A on the test. You didn't seem to have done a lot of reading.
--Now you know why I never miss a lecture.
What contribute to the woman's high score?

Q18.
--Have you heard about the new digital television system? It lets people get about five hundred channels.
--Yeah,but I doubt that will have anything different from what we watch now.
What does the man mean?

Conversation One

W: Gosh! Have you seen this Richard? M: Seeing what? W: In the paper, it says there’s a man going round pretending he’s from the electricity board. He’s been calling at people’s homes, saying he’s come to check that all their appliances are safe. Then he gets around them to make him a cup of tea and while they are out of the room, he steals their money, handbag, whatever and makes off with it. M: But you know Jane, it’s partly their own fault. You should never let anyone like that in unless you are expecting them. W: It’s all very well to say that, but someone comes to the door and says electricity or gas, and you automatically think they are ok, especially if they flash a card to you. M: Does this man have an I. D. then? W: Yes, that’s just it! It seems he used to work for the electricity board at one time. According to the paper, the police are warning people, especially pensioners not to admit anyone unless they have an appointment. It’s a bit sad. One old lady told them she’d just been to the post office to draw her pension when he called. She said he must have followed her home. He stole the whole lot. M: But what does he look like? Surely they must have a description. W: Oh, yes, they have. Let’s see. In his thirties, tall, bushy dark hair, slight northern accent, sounds a bit like you actually.

Q19. What does the woman want the man to read in the newspaper? (A theft case) Q20. How did the man mentioned in the newspaper try to win further trust from the victims? (Flashing his I.D. to them)
Q21. What is the warning from the police?( not to admit anyone unless they have an appointment)
Q22. What does the woman speaker tell us about the old lady?(Her pension has been stolen by the man)

Conversation Two

M: Miss Jones, could you tell me more about your first job with hotel marketing concepts? W: Yes certainly. I was a marketing consultant, responsible for marketing ten UK hotels. They were all luxury hotels in the leisure sector, all of a very high standard. M: Which markets were you responsible for? W: For Europe and Japan. M: I see from your resume that you speak Japanese. Have you ever been to Japan? W: Yes, I have. I spent a month in Japan in 2006. I met all the key people in the tourist industry, the big tour operators and tourist organizations. As I speak Japanese, I had a very big advantage. M: Yes, of course. Have you had any contact with Japan in your present job? W: Yes, I’ve had a lot. The truth is I have become very popular with the Japanese, both for holidays and for business conferences. In fact, the market for all types of luxury holidays for the Japanese has increased a lot recently. M: Really, I’m interested to hear more about that, but first, tell me, have you ever traveled on a luxury train? The Orient Express, for example. W: No I haven’t, but I have traveled on a glacier express to Switzerland and I traveled across China by train about 8 years ago. I love train travel. That’s why I’m very interested in this job.

Q23. What did the woman do in her first job?(marketing consultant)
Q24. What gave the woman an advantage during her business trip in Japan?(She can speak Japanese)
Q25. Why is the woman applying for the new job? (She loves train travel.)

Passage 1
Time。 I think a lot about time and not just because it‘s the name of the news organization I work for。 Like most working people， I find time，orthe lack of it， and never－ending frustration and an unwinnable battle。 My every day is a race against the clock that I never ever seem to win。 This is hardly a lonesome complaint。 According to the families and work institutes， national study of the changing workforce， 55 percent of employees say they don‘t have enough time for themselves， 63 percent don‘t have enough time for their spousesorpartners， and 67 percent don‘t have enough time for their children。 It‘s also not a new complaint。 I bet our ancestors returned home from hunting wild animals and gathering nuts and complained about how little time they had to paint battle scenes on their cave walls。 The difference is that the boss of animal hunting and the head of nut gathering probably told them to shut uporno survival for you。 Today‘s workers are still demanding control over their time。 The difference is today‘s bosses are listening。 I‘ve been reading a report issued today called when work works produced jointly by three organizations。 They set up to find and warn the employers who employ the most creative and most effective ways to give their workers flexibility。 I found this report worth reading and suggest every boss should read it for ideas。

Questions 26 to 28 are based on the passage you have just heard。
Question 26. What is the speaker complaining about？
Question 27. What does the speaker say about our ancestors？
Question 28. Why does the speaker suggest all bosses read the report by the three organizations？

Passage 2
Loving a child is a circular business。 The more you give， the more you get， the more you want to give， said。 What she said proves to be true of my blended family。 I was born in 1931。 As the youngest of six children， I learned to share my parents‘ love。 Raising six children during the difficult times of the Great Depression took its toll on my parents‘ rel ationship and resulted in their divorce when I was 18 years old。 Daddy never had very close relationships with his children and drifted even farther away from us after the divorce。 Several years later， a wonderful woman came into his life and they were married。 She had two sons， one of them still at home。 Under her influence， we became a blended family and a good relationship developed between the two families。 She always treated us as if we were her own children。 It was because of our other mother， Daddy‘s second wife， that he became closer to his own children。 They shared over 25 years together before our father passed away。 At the time of his death， the question came up of my mother， Daddy‘s first wife， attending his funeral。 I will never forget the unconditional love shown by my step mother。 When I asked her if she would object to mother attending Daddy‘s funeral， without giving it a second thought， she immediately replied。 Of course not， honey。 She is the mother of my children。

Questions 29 to 31 are based on the passage you have just heard。

Question 29. According to the speaker， what contributed to her parents‘ divorce？
Question 30. What brought the father closer to his own children？
Question 31. What message does the speaker want to convey in this talk？

Passage 3
In February last year， my wife lost her job。 Just as suddenly， the owner of the Green House where I worked as manager died of a heart attack。 His family announced that they were going to close the business because no one in the family wanted to run it。 Things looked pretty gloomy。 My wife and I read the want ads each day。 Then one morning， as I was hanging a going out of business sign at the green house， the door opened and in walked a customer。 She was an office manager whose company had just moved into the new office park on the edge of the town。 She was looking for potted plants to place in the reception areas in offices。 I don‘t know anything about plants， she said， I am sure in a few weeks， they‘ll all be dead。 While I was helping herselecther purchases， my mind was racing。 Perhaps as many as a dozen firms that recently opened offices in the new office park and there were several hundred more acres with construction under way。 That afternoon， I drove up to the office park。 By 6 o‘clock that evening， I had signed contacts with 7 companies to rent plants from me and pay me a fee to maintain them。 Within a week， I had worked down to an agreement to lease the Green House from the owner‘s family。 Business is now increasing rapidly。 And one day we hope to be the proud owners of the Green House。

Questions 32 to 35 are based on the passage you have just heard。

Question 32. What do we learn about the green house？
Question 33. What was the speaker doing when the customer walked in one morning？
Question 34. What did the speaker think of when serving the office manager？
Question 35. When was the speaker‘s hope for the future？

Compound dictation

We're now witnessing the emergence of the advanced economy based on information and knowledge. Physical labor, raw materials and capital are no longer the key ingredients in the creation of wealth. Now the vital raw material in our economy is knowledge. Tomorrow's wealth depends on the development and exchange of knowledge. And individuals entering the work force offer their knowledge, not their muscles. Knowledge workers get paid for their education and their ability to learn. Knowledge workers engage in mind work. They deal with symbols, words, figures, and data.
What does all this mean for you?
As a future knowledge worker, you can expect to be generating, processing as well as exchanging information. Currently, three out of four jobs involve some form of mind work. And that number will increase sharply in the future. Management and employees alike will be making decisions in such areas as product development, quality control, and customer satisfaction.
In the new world of work, you can look forward to being in constant training to acquire new skills that will help you keep up with improved technologies and procedures.
You can also expect to be taking greater control of your career. Gone are the nine to five jobs, lifetime security, predictable promotions, and even the conventional workplace as you're familiar with. Don't expect the companies will provide you with a clearly defined career path, and don't wait for some one to empower you. You have to empower yourself.