历年托福听力考试2004-01（打印版）

04年 1月托福听力文字
Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you are gonna get.
Part A
1. M：Sorry, but I can't go and have a cup of coffee with you now. I've only
done half the readings for the philosophy class tomorrow.
W：And I thought I was a slow reader.
Q：What does the woman mean?
2. W：I entered one of my new photographs in the newspaper's contest.
M：If it's anything like the others you've shown me, I'm sure you'll come
out on top(=win the contest)!
Q：What does the man mean?
3. W：You took the European literature class last year; are you interested in
selling me any of the books?
M：I always hold on to them for future reference.
Q：What will the man probably do?
4. M：I haven't heard from Janet since she entered medical school. I wonder
how she's doing.
W：Well, I understand she gave our department secretary her new address
and phone number. Why don't you try to get in touch with her?
Q：What does the woman suggest the man do?
5. M：Hi, I have a map of the campus, but I still can't find the building with the new sculpture exhibit in it. Can you tell me how to get there?
W：That looks like an old map. Follow me; I'm going that way myself.
Q：What does the woman mean?
6. M：I just count my traveler's checks for the trip to California. I hope 300
dollars will be enough.
W：I guess I'd better do that before Friday uh? Maybe I can get to the
bank tomorrow after physics class.
Q：What can be inferred about the woman?
7. W: Sally and Mark haven't been talking to each other lately. I wonder
what happened.
M: I haven’t the faintest idea.(我一点也不知道) But I'd stay out of it if I were you.
Q: What does the man mean?
8. M: Did you hear that my parents are planning a trip to Vancouver?
W: What Philip? （菲利普，你刚才说什么来着？）
Q: What does the woman want to know?
9. M: I keep putting off getting my passport application.
W: Thank Goodness I didn't drag my feet on（拖拖拉拉）that one.
Q: What does the woman mean?
10 W: How about a couple of sets of tennis this weekend?
M: I don't know. My game's a little rusty.
Q: What does the man imply?
11 W: So, what did you think about the discussion at lunch? I didn't realize
people have such strong feelings about politics.
M: Are you kidding? That subject always touches a nerve.
Q: What does the man mean?
12 M: I don't want to buy the book Prof. Brown told us to read for the exam. Do you think you could lend me yours?
W: Well, I'm not using it right now? But I really need to keep it handy
just in case.
Q: What does the woman mean?
13 W: Look at that sky! I can't believe I forgot my umbrella again!
M: We are almost there, Mary. I think we'll be able to make it.
Q: What can be inferred about the weather?
14 W: I don't know why the university requires freshmen to live in dorms
for a whole year!
M: Cheer up. You'll be able to live off-campus next year if you want!
Q: What can be inferred about the woman?
15 M: So, you and Julia are no longer roommates. I'm not surprised. You
two never did things very compatible.
W: Yeah, well... It's not that we didn't get along... We just didn't have
much in common.
Q: What can be inferred about the woman?
16 M: The glare was so intense even my sunglasses didn't help.
W: Look, if you take Route 27 in the late afternoon, you're driving straight into the sun（正对着太阳）! I'd consider an alternative.
Q: What does the woman suggest the man do?
17 M: Remember when I said I might have to back out(停止不干) of the concert if I didn't have my history paper done yet? Well, guess what?
W: That's okay. Do you know anyone else who enjoys Jazz?
Q: What will the woman probably do?
18 W: Personally I've never cared for the food at Sullivan's.
M: I think it all depends on the chef's mood that day.
Q: What does the man imply?
19 M: You look worn out. Are you feeling under the weather?
W: Not at all. But I have been putting in some long hours in the chemistry lab.
Q: What does the woman mean?
20 W: I think this coat is a great color. And the price is certainly right.
M: How about the weight, though. Remember we're supposed to have a
really severe winter this year.
Q: What does the man imply about the coat?
21 M: Michelle, this is Jeff, our new reporter. Would you have some time today to show him around? You know introducing to the others make him feel at home.
W：I'll be happy to. Then after lunch I can set him up at his desk so he
can get to work.
Q: What will Jeff probably do after lunch?
22 W: Do the directions say we should go left or right at the stop sign?
M: Hum, that's funny! I don't actually see anything here about it!
Q: What does the man imply?
23 W: Someone told me the new restaurant on Grant Street is pretty good
M: The atmosphere is wonderful. But what's more important to you, good food or nice atmosphere?
Q: What does the man imply?
24 M: So, what time does your art-history class meet again?
W: Two to five Tuesdays and Thursdays. But the course is already full.
Q: What can be inferred about the woman?
25 W: I heard you just had your wisdom teeth（智齿）removed. How do you feel?
M: Actually there's not much swelling and I got something for the pain.
Q: What does the man mean?
26 M: I read that the enrollment in the School of Business is on the rise!
W: Well, that's been a trend for several years now.
Q: What does the woman imply?
27 W: It's 9:15! Did you just get to the lab?
M: Yes! I was up late studying and I overslept again. I guess I need a
louder alarm clock.
Q: What can be inferred about the man?
28 W: My parents think I ought to buy a computer. You know now I'm in college. But I hate to spend so much of my savings now.
M: I'd say it's probably a worthwhile investment.
Q: What does the man mean?
29 M: Do we need to get the concert tickets in advance?
W: There may be some for sale at the door at a higher price.
Q: What does the woman say about the tickets?
30 M: Are you free tonight? I'm meeting a few friends at the restaurant on
Main Street.
W: Oh, I'd love to. But I already have dinner plans for tonight. Another
time perhaps?
Q: What does the woman mean? #p#副标题#e#

Part B
Questions 31 through 34
W: Hey Steve, got any plans for tonight?
M: Hi, Jane. No, I don't think so. Why? Got any suggestions?
W: In fact, I do. I just got two tickets to the opening of the exhibit of the reprints by Julia Margaret Cameron. I would have to mention it earlier, but I was on the waiting list for these tickets and I wasn't sure I'd even get them.
M: An exhibit, huh? I like such things. But I don't know who Julia……
W: Margaret Cameron! She was a photographer in the 1800s. She is
interesting to art-historians in general and students of photography in particular because she ... how should I say, change the aesthetics for photography.
M: What do you mean?
W: Well, her specialty was portraits and instead of just making a factual
record of details like most photographers did, you know, just capturing what a person look like in a dispassionate（平心静气的）thought of way. She, like a portrait painter, was interested in capturing her subject's personality.
M: Interesting! How did she do that?
W: She invented a number of techniques that affect the picture. Like one of
these things she did was blur images slightly by using a soft focus on the
subject. That's pretty common now.
M: Yeah, seen that. Who did she photograph?
W: Famous people of her day, Alfred Lord Tennyson, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Charles Darwin, I don't know who else. We'll see at the exhibition.
M: You really pick my curiosity. I am going to enjoy this.

31. What is the conversation mainly about?
32. What did Julia Margaret Cameron emphasize in her portraits?
33. According to the conversation, what unique photographic technique did Margaret Cameron use?
34. What will be the subject of the pictures at the exhibit?

Questions 35 through 38
M: Do you want to the movies with on Saturday?
W: Thanks, but I have to study my research project. I'm taking that same anthropology course you took with Prof. Grady.
M: The one on ethnographic interviewing? Oh, good! I'm sure you'll get a lot out of it.
W: I have to admit the word "ethnography"(人种学) scared me a little at first. It seems so technical. But then when she explained that it's what anthropologists do, you know, how they investigate and record aspects of a culture, I didn't seem so intimidating!
M: Yeah, it's all part of the fields work anthropologists conduct and it's good to start doing that now before you become a graduate student and have to conduct large projects yourself. Who are you going to interview?
W: You know the publishing office where I used to work? Vivian, the woman I worked for, she's been a manager there for over 30 years and had seen a lot of changes in the industry. I thought I'd start out by interviewing her about how the people in the office interact with each other and with outside clients.
M: Isn't it funny how we use the thing that anthropologists study to foreign cultures and had the travel halfway across the world to do it? The best part of that course is that it shows you that ethnographic research can also be done on a familiar ground.
W: Yeah. I got the idea from my project from reading Robert Marshal's study of office life and I realized I already had some background in that. So far, I'm really enjoying this course.
35. What is the conversation mainly about?
36. What does the woman say about the subject of ethnography?
37. Why does the man think that the course will be a good one for the woman?
38. Who is the first person the woman will interview?

Part C
Questions 39 through 43
M: I'm going to pass this piece of amber around so you can see this spider trapped inside it. It's a good example of amber-inclusion, one of the inclusions that scientists are interested in these days. This particular piece is estimated to be about 20 million years old. Please be extremely careful not to drop it. Amber shatters as easily as glass. One thing I really like about amber is its beautiful golden color.
Now, how does the spider get in there? Amber is really fossilized tree resin. Lots of chunks of amber contain insects like this one or animal parts like feathers or even plants. Here is how it happens. The resin oozes out of the tree and the spider or leaf gets in cased in it. Over millions and millions of years, the resin hardens and fossilizes into the semiprecious(次珍贵的、准宝石的) stone you see here.
Ambers can be found in many different places around the world. But the oldest deposits are right here in the United States, in Appalachia(阿巴拉契亚). It's found in several other countries, too, though right now scientists are most interested in ambers coming from the Dominican Republic（多美尼加共和国）. Because it has a great many inclusions, something like one insect inclusion for every one hundred pieces. One possible explanation for this it that the climate is tropical and a greater variety of number of insects thrive in tropics than in other places. What's really interesting is
the scientists are now able to recover DNA from these fossils and study the genetic material for important clues to revolution.

39. Why does the professor pass the amber around to the students?
40. When the professor mentor glass in the talk, what point is he trying to make about amber?
41. What is amber derived from?
42. Why is the Dominican Republic an important source of amber?
43. What type of amber is probably the most valuable for genetic research?

Questions 44 through 46
Now we've been talking about the revolutionary period in the United States history when the colonies wanted to separate from England. I'd like to mention one point about the very famous episode from that period, a point I think is pretty relevant even today. I'm sure you remember, from when you are children, the story of Paul Revere's famous horseback ride to the Massachusetts countryside. In that version, he single-headily alerted the people that "the British were coming". We
have this image of us solitary rider galloping（飞驰的）along of the dark from one
farm house to another. And of course the story emphasized the courage of one man, made him a hero in our history books, right? But, that rather romantic version of the story is not what actually happened that night. In fact, that version misses the most important point entirely. Paul Revere was only one of the many riders helping deliver the messages that night. Just one part of a pre-arrange plan, that was thought out well in advance in preparation for just such an emergency. I don't mean to diminish Revere's role though. He was actually an important organizer and promoter of this group effort for freedom. His mid-night rider didn't just go knocking on farm house doors. They also awaken the institutions of New England. They went from town to town and engage the town leaders, the military commanders and volunteer groups, even church leaders, people who would then continue to spread the word. My point is that Paul Revere and his political party understood, probably more clearly than later generations ever have, that political institutions are theirs a kind of medium for the will of people and also to both build on and support the individual action. They knew the success requires careful planning and organization. The way they went about the work that night made a big difference in the history and this country.

44. What does the story of Paul Revere usually emphasize?
45. What new information does the speaker provide about Paul Revere?
46. What does the speaker imply is most significant about the ride of Paul Revere?

Questions 47 through 50
Let me warn you against a mistake that historians of science often make. They sometimes assume that people in the past use the same concepts we do. Here is a wonderful example that makes the use of history of mathematics some while ago. It concerns an ancient Mesopotamian(美索不达米亚人) tablet that has some calculations on it using square numbers. The calculations look an awful one like the calculations of the link of the sides of triangle. So that's what many historians assume they were. But using square numbers to do this is a very sophisticated technique. If the Mesopotamians knew how to do it, as historians started thinking that they did. Well, they learn math with incredibly advanced. Well, it turns out the idea of Mesopotamians use square numbers to calculate the link of triangle's sides is probably wrong. Why? Because we discovered that Mesopotamians didn't know how to measure angles, which is a crucial element in the whole process of triangle calculations. Apparently the Mesopotamians had a number of other uses for square numbers. These other uses were important but they were not used with triangles. And so these tablets in all likelihood were practice sheets, if you like, for doing simpler math exercises with square numbers. In all likelihood, it was the ancient Greeks who first calculate the link of triangle's sides using square numbers. And this was hundreds of years after the Mesopotamians.

47. What is the main purpose of the talk?
48. According to the professor, what did some historians mistakenly assumed about the Mesopotamians?
49. What was on the Mesopotamian tablet mentioned in the talk?
50. What does the professor imply about the ancient Greeks?

历年托福听力考试2004-01（在线收听）