2009年12月大學英語四級考試模擬試題(八)

　　Q1. Why couldn't the man open the door?

　　Q2. Why did the man feel desperate?

　　Q3. Why did the man feel like a fool?

　　Passage Three

　　When Iraq troops blew up hundreds of Kuwaiti oil wells at the end of the Gulf War, Scientists feared environmental disaster. Would black powder in the smoke from the fires circle the globe and block out the sun?

　　Many said, "No way; rain would wash the black power from the atmosphere. But in America, air sampling balloons have detected high concentrations of particles similar to those collected in Kuwait that didn't catch fire. It has formed huge lakes in the Kuwaiti desert. They trap insects and birds, and poison a variety of other desert animals and plants.

　　The only good news is that the oil lakes have not affected the underground water resources. So far, the oil has not been absorbed because of the hard sand just below the surface.

　　Nothing, however, stops the oil from evaporating. The resulting poisonous gases are choking nearby residents.

　　Officials are trying to organize a quick cleanup, but they are not sure how to do it. One possibility is to burn the oil. Get those black-powder detectors ready.

　　Q1. What were the scientists worried about soon after the Gulf War?

　　Q2. What was the good news for scientists?

　　Q3. What are the officials trying to do at the moment?

　　Section C

　　These days people who do manual work often receive far more money than people who work in offices. People who work in offices are frequently referred to as "white-collar workers" for the simple reason that they usually wear a collar and tie to go to work. Such is human nature, that a great many people are often willing to sacrifice higher pay for the privilege of becoming white-collar workers. This can give rise to curious situations, as it did in the case of Alfred Bloggs who worked as a dustman for the Ellesmere Corporation.

　　When he got married, Alf was too embarrassed to say anything to his wife about his job. He simply told her that he worked for the Corporation. Every morning, he left home dressed in a smart black suit. He then changed into overalls and spent the next eight hours as a dustman. Before returning home at night, he took a shower and changed back into his suit. Alf did this for over two years and his fellow dustman kept his secret. Alf's wife has never discovered that she married a dustman and she never will for Alf has just found another job. He will soon be working in an office. He will be earning only half as much as he used to, but he feels that his rise in status is well worth the loss of money. From now on, he will wear a suit all day and others will call him "Mr. Bloggs", not "Alf".