2019年12月大學(xué)英語四級考試真題(一)

1、2019年12月大學(xué)英語四級考試真題（一）2019年12月大學(xué)英語四級考試真題（一）Part I Writing (30 minutes)Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write a letter to a foreign friend who wants to study in China.Please recommend a university to him. You should write at least 120 words but no more than 180 word.Part II Lis

2、tening Comprehension (25 minutes)Directions: Answer the questions 1 to 2 based on the following news report.1.2.A.Many facilities were destroyed by a wandering cow.B.A wandering cow knocked down one of its fences.C.Some tourists were injured by a wandering cow.D.A wandering cow was captured by the p

3、olice.A.It was shot to death by a police officer.C.It became a great attraction for tourists.B.It found its way back to the parks zoo.D.It was sent to the animal control department.Directions: Answer the questions 3 to 4 based on the following news report.3.4.A.It is the largest of its kind.B.It is

4、going to be expanded.C.It is displaying more fossil specimens.D.It is starting an online exhibition.A.A collection of bird fossils from Australia.C.Some ancient wall paintings from Australia.B.Photographs of certain rare fossil exhibits.D.Pictures by winners of a wildlife photo contest.Directions: A

5、nswer the questions 5 to 7 based on the following news report.5.6.A.Pick up trash.B.Amuse visitors.C.Deliver messages.D.Play with children.A.They are especially intelligent.C.They are quite easy to tame.B.They are childrens favorite.D.They are clean and pretty.7.A.Children may be harmed by the rooks

6、.C.Children may contract bird diseases.B.Children may be tempted to drop litter.D.Children may overfeed the rooks.Directions: Answer the questions 8 to 11 based on the following conversation.8.mmA.It will produced at Harvard University.B.It will be hosted by famous professors.oocc.D.It will focus on

7、 recent scientific discoveries.iiC.It will cover different arbeas of science.bnneeff2019年12月大學(xué)英語四級考試真題（一）9.10.11.A.It will be more futuristic.B.It will be more systematic.C.It will be more entertaining.D.It will be easier to understand.A.People interested in science.C.Children in their early teens.B

8、.Youngsters eager to explore.D.Students majoring in science.A.Offer professional advice.B.Provide financial support.C.Help promote it on the Internet.D.Make episodes for its first season.Directions: Answer the questions 12 to 15 based on the following conversation.12.13.A.UnsureB.HelplessC.Concerned

9、D.DissatisfiedA.He is too concerned with being perfect.C.He is too ambitious in achieving goals.B.He loses heart when faced with setbacks.D.He takes on projects beyond his ability.14.15.A.EmbarrassedB.UnconcernedC.MiserableD.ResentfulA.Try to be optimistic whatever happens.B.Compare his present with

10、 his past only.D.Treat others the way he would be treated.C.Always learn from others achievements.Directions: Answer the questions 16 to 18 based on the following passage.16.17.18.A.They have a stronger sense of social responsibility.C.They are more likely to become engineers.B.They are more likely

11、to succeed in the humanities.D.They have greater potential to be leaders.A.Praise girls who like to speak up frequently.C.Insist that boys and girls work together more.B.Encourage girls to solve problems on their own.D.Respond more positively to boys comments.A.Offer personalized teaching materials.

12、C.Place great emphasis on test scores.B.Provide a variety of optional courses.D.Pay extra attention to top students.Directions: Answer the questions 19 to 21 based on the following passage.19.20.A.It often rains cats and dogs.B.It seldom rains in summer time.C.It does not rain as much as people thin

13、k.D.It is one of the most rainy cities in the US.A.They drive most of the time.C.They have got used to the rain.B.The rain is usually very light.D.The rain comes mostly at night.2019年12月大學(xué)英語四級考試真題（一）21.A.It has a lot of places for entertainment.B.It has never seen thunder and lightning.C.It has fewe

14、r cloudy days than any other coastal city.D.It has mild weather both in summer and in winter.Directions: Answer the questions 22 to 25 based on the following passage.22.23.A.It occurs when people are doing a repetitive activity.B.It results from exerting ones muscles continuously.C.It happens when p

15、eople engage in an uncommon activity.D.It comes from straining ones muscles in an unusual way.A.Blood flow and body heat increase in the affected area.B.Body movements in the affected area become difficult.C.They begin to make repairs immediately.D.They gradually become fragmented.24.25.A.About one

16、week.B.About two days.C.About ten days.D.About four weeks.A.Apply muscle creams.C.Have a hot shower.B.Drink plenty of water.D.Take pain-killers.Part III Reading Comprehension(40 minutes)When travelling overseas, do you buy water in plastic bottles or take your chances with tap water? Imagine youare

17、wandering about on a Thai island or 26 the ruins of Angkor. Its hot so you grab a bottle of water from a localvendor. Its the safe thing to do, right? The bottle is 27, and the label says pure water. But maybe whats inside isnot so 28. Would you still be drinking it if you knew that more than 90 per

18、cent of all bottled water sold around theworld 29microplastics?Thats the conclusion of a recently 30study, which analysed 259 bottles from 11 brands sold in nine countries,31an average of 325 plastic particles per litre of water. These microplastics included a 32 commonly known as PETand widely used

19、 in the manufacture of clothing and food and 33containers. The study was conducted at the StateNew York on behalf of Orb Media, a journalism organisation. About a million bottles are bought every minute, notonly by thirsty tourists but also by many of the 2.1 billion worldwide who live with unsafe d

20、rinking water.Confronted with this 34, several bottled-water manufacturers including Nestle and Coca-Cola undertook theirown studies using the same methodology. These studies showed that their water did contain microplastics, but farless than the Orb study suggested. Regardless, the World Health Org

21、anisation has launched a review into the35health risks of drinking water from plastic bottles.A.adequateE.evidenceI.naturalB.admiringF.instantC.containsG.liquidD.defendingH.modifiedL.revealingJ.potentialK.released2019年12月大學(xué)英語四級考試真題（一）M.sealedN.solvesO.substanceThe quiet heroism of mail deliveryA On

22、Wednesday, a polar wind brought bitter cold to the Midwest. Overnight, Chicago reached a low of 21mmdegrees Fahrenheit below zero, making it slightly colder than Antarctica(南極洲), Alaska, and the North Pole. Windoocc.w zero in Park Rapids, Minnesota, and 45 degrees below zero in Buffalo, North Dakota

23、,.iichills were 64 degrees belobbnneeffaccording to the National Weather Service. Schools, restaurants, and businesses closed, and more than 1,000 flightswere canceled.B Even the United States Postal Service(USPS) suspended mail delivery. Due to this arctic outbreak and concernsfor the safety of USP

24、S employees, USPS announced Wednesday morning, the Postal Service is suspendingdelivery Jan. 30 in some 3-digit ZIP Code locations. Twelve regions were listed as unsafe on Wednesday; onThursday, eight remained.C As global surface temperatures increase, so does the likelihood of extreme weather In 20

25、18 alone, wildfires,volcanic eruptions, hurricanes, mudslides, and other natural disasters cost at least $49 billion in the United States. Asmy colleague Vann Newkirk reported, Puerto Rico is still confronting economic and structural destruction andresource scarcity from 2017s Hurricane Maria. Natur

26、al disasters can wreck a communitys infrastructure, disruptingsystems for months or years. Some services, however, remind us that life will eventually return, in some form, tommooccnormal.D Days after the dead.iibbnnely 2017 wildfires in Santa Rosa, California, a drone (無人機(jī)) caught footage(連續(xù)鏡頭) of

27、aeffUSPS worker, Trevor Smith, driving through burned homes in that familiar white van, collecting mail in an affectedarea. The video is striking: The operation is familiar, but the scene looks like the end of the world. According to RaeAnn Haight, the program manager for the national-preparedness o

28、ffice at USPS, Smith was fulfilling a request madeby some of the home owners to pick up any mail that was left untouched. For Smith, this was just another day on thejob. I followed my route like I normally do, Smith told a reporter. As I came across a box that was up but with nohouse, I checked, and

29、 there was mailoutgoing mailin it. And so we picked those up and carried on.E USPS has sophisticated emergency plans for natural disasters. Across the country, 285 emergency-managementteams are devoted to crisis control. These teams are trained annually using a framework known as the three Ps:people

30、, property, product. After mail service stops due to weather, the agencys top priority is ensuring thatemployees are safe. Then it evaluates the health of infrastructure, such as the roads that mail carriers drive on.mmFinally, it decides when and how to re-open operations. If the destruction is ext

31、reme, mail addressed to the area willoocc.nse to Hurricane Katrina in 2005, USPS redirected incoming New Orleans mail to.iiget sent elsewhere. In respobbnneeffexisting mail facilities in Houston. Mail that was already processed in New Orleans facilities was moved to an upperfloor so it would be prot

32、ected from water damage.F As soon as its safe enough to be outside, couriers(郵遞員) start distributing accumulated mail on the still-accessible routes. USPS urges those without standing addresses to file change-of-address forms with their newlocation. After Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005, mail faciliti

33、es were set up in dozens of locations across the country inthe two weeks that USPS was unable to provide street delivery.G Every day, USPS processes, on average, 493.4 million pieces of mailanything from postcards to SocialSecurity checks to medicine. Spokespeople from both USPS and UPS told me all

34、mail is important. But some mailcan be extremely sensitive and timely. According to data released in January 2017, 56 percent of bills are paidonline, which means that just under half of payments still rely on delivery services to be completed.H It can be hard to identify which parcels are carrying

35、crucial items such as Social Security checks, but USPS andUPS try their best to prioritize sensitive material. They will coordinate with the Social Security Administration tomake sure that Social Security checks reach the right people in a timely fashion. After Hurricane Florence and2019年12月大學(xué)英語四級考試

36、真題（一）Hurricane Michael last fall, USPS worked with state and local election boards to make sure that absentee ballotswere available and received on time.I Mail companies are logistics (物流)companies, which puts them in a special position to help when disasterstrikes. In a 2011 USPS case study, the ag

37、ency emphasized its massive infrastructure as aunique federal asset to becalled upon in a disaster or terrorist attack. I think were unique as a federal agency.USPS official Mike Swigarttold me,“ because were in literally every community in this country. Were obligated to deliver to that point on ad

38、aily basis.J Private courier companies, which have more dollars to spend, use their expertise in logistics to help revitalizedamaged areas after a disaster. For more than a decade, FedEx has supported the American Red Cross in its effort toget emergency supplies to areas affected by disasters, both

39、domestically and internationally. In 2012, the companydistributed more than 1, 200 MedPacks to Medical Reserve Corps groups in California. They also donated space for3.1 million pounds of charitable shipping globally. Last October the company pledged $1 million in cash andtransportation support for

40、Hurricanes Florence and Michael. UPSs charitable arm, the UPS Foundation, uses thecompanys logistics to help disaster-struck areas rebuild. We realize that as a company with people, trucks,warehouses, we needed to play a larger role, said Eduardo Martinez, the president of the UPS Foundation. Thecom

41、pany employs its trucks and planes to deliver food, medicine, and water. The day before I spoke to Martinez inNovember, he had been touring the damage from Hurricane Michael in Florida with the American Red Cross. Wehave an obligation to make sure our communities are thriving,he said.KRebuilding can

42、 take a long time, and even then, impressions of the disaster may still remain. Returning to anormal life can be difficult, but some small routinesmail delivery being one of themmay help residentsremember that their communities are still their communities. When they see that carrier back out on the

43、street,Swigart said, thats the first sign to them that life is starting to return to normal.36.The United States Postal Service has a system to ensure its employees safety.37.One official says USPS is unique in that it has more direct reach to communities compared with other federalagencies.38.Natur

44、al disasters can have a long-lasting impact on community life.39.Mail delivery service is still responsible for the completion of almost half of payments.40.The sight of a mailman on the street is a reassuring sign of life becoming normal again.41. After Hurricane Katrina interrupted routine deliver

45、y, temporary mail service points were set up.42.Postal service in some regions in the U.S. was suspended due to extreme cold weather.43.Private postal companies also support disaster relief efforts by distributing urgent supplies.44.A dedicated USPS employee was on the job carrying out duties in spi

46、te of extreme conditions.45.Postal services work hard to identify items that require priority treatment.Professor Ashok Goel of Georgia Tech developed an artificially intelligent teaching assistant to help handle theenormous number of student questions in the online class, Knowledge-Based Artificial

47、 Intelligence. This onlinecourse is a core requirement of Georgia Techs online Master of Science in Computer Science program. Professor2019年12月大學(xué)英語四級考試真題（一）Goel already had eight teaching assistants, but that wasnt enough to deal with the overwhelming number of dailyquestions from students.Many stud

48、ents drop out of online courses because of the lack of teaching support. When students feel isolated orconfused and reach out with questions that go unanswered, their motivation to continue begins to fade. ProfessormmGoel decided to do something tooremedy this situation and his solution was to creat

49、e a virtual assistant named Jillocc.iibbWatson, which is based on the IBM Watson platform.nneeffGoel and his team developed several versions of Jill Watson before releasing her to the online forums. Atfirst,the virtual assistant wasnt too great. But Goel and his team sourced the online discussion fo

50、rum to find all the 40,000 questions that had ever been asked since the class was launched. Then they began to feed Jill with the questionsand answers. After some adjustments and sufficient time, Jill was able to answer the students questions correctly97% of the time. The virtual assistant became so

51、 advance and realistic that the students didnt know she was acomputer. The students who were studying artificial intelligence, were interacting with the virtual assistant andcouldnt tell it apart from a real human being. Goel didnt inform them about Jills true identity until April 26. Thestudents we

52、re actually very positive about the experience.The goal of Professor Goels virtual assistant next year is to take over answering 40% of all the questions posedby students on the online forum. The name Jill Watson will, of course, change to something else next semester.Professor Goel has a much rosie

53、r outlook on the future of artificial intelligence than, say Elon Musk, StephenHawking, Bill Gates or Steve Wozniak.46.What do we learn about Knowledge-Based Artificial Intelligence?A.It is a robot that can answer students questions.C.It is a high-tech device that revolutionizes teaching.B.It is a c

54、ourse designed for students to learn online.D.It is a computer program that aids student learning.47.What problem did Professor Goel meet with?A.His students were unsatisfied with the assistants.C.Students questions were too many to handle.B.His course was too difficult for the students.D.Too many s

55、tudents dropped out of his course.48.What do we learn about Jill Watson?A.She turned out to be a great success.C.She was unwelcome to students at first.B.She got along pretty well with students.D.She was released online as an experiment.49.How did the students feel about Jill Watson?A.They thought s

56、he was a bit too artificial.C.They could not but admire her knowledge.B.They found her not as capable as expected.D.They could not tell her from a real person.50.What does Professor Goel plan to do next with Jill Watson?A.Launch different versions of her online.B.Feed her with new questions and answ

57、ers.C.Assign her to answer more of students questions.D.Encourage students to interact with her more freely.Thinking small, being engaging, and having a sense of humor dont hurt. Those are a few of the traits ofsuccessful science crowdfunding efforts that emerge from a recent study that examined nea

58、rly 400 campaigns. Buthaving a large network and some promotional skills may be more crucial.Crowdfunding, raising money for a project through online appeals, has taken off in recent years for everythingfrom making movies to producing water-saving gadgets. Scientists have tried to tap Internet donor

59、s, too, with mixedsuccess. Some raised more than twice their goals, but others have fallen short of reaching even modest targets.2019年12月大學(xué)英語四級考試真題（一）To determine what separates science crowdfunding triumphs from failures, a team led by sciencecommunications scholar Mike Schafer of the University of

60、 Zurich examined the content of the webpages for 371recent campaigns.Four traits stood out for those that achieved their goals, the researchers report in PublicmmUnderstanding of Science. For oone, they use a crowdfunding platform that specializes in raising money for science,occ.iibband not just an