英語周報：2008年12月四級聽力模擬試題(二)

　　Questions 19 to 21 are based on the conversation you have just heard.

　　19.What are the two speakers doing?

　　20.Why did the couple ahead of the woman give up waiting?

　　21.At what time of the day does the conversation most probably take place?

　　Conversation Two

　　W: Ok, last night you were supposed to read an article about human bones. Are there any comments about it?

　　M: Well, to begin with, I was surprised to find out there was so much going on in bones. I always assumed they were pretty lifeless.

　　W: Well, that’s an assumption many people make. But the fact is that bones are made of dynamic living tissue that requires continuous maintenance and repair.

　　M: Right. That’s one of the things I found so fascinating about the article---the way the bones repair themselves.

　　W: Ok. So can you tell us how the bones repair themselves?

　　M: Sure. See, there are two groups of different types of specialized cells in the bone that work together to do it. The first group goes to an area of the bone that needs repair. This group of cells produces the chemical that actually breaks down the bone tissue, and leaves a hole in it. After that the second group of specialized cells comes and produces the new tissue that fills in the hole that was made by the first group.

　　W: Very good. This is a very complex process. In fact, scientists who study human bones don’t completely understand it yet. They are still trying to find out how it all actually works. Specifically, because sometimes after the first group of cells leaves a hole in the bone tissue, for some reason, the second group doesn’t completely fill in the hole. And this can cause real problems. It can actually lead to a disease in which the bone becomes weak and is easily broken.

　　M: Ok, I get it. So if the scientists can figure out what makes the specialized cells work, maybe they can find a way to make sure the second group of cells completely fills the hole in the bone tissue every time. That’ll prevent the disease from ever occurring.

　　Questions 22 to 25 are based on the conversation you have just heard.

　　22. What is the conversation mainly about?

　　23. What is the function of the first group of specialized cells discussed in the conversation?

　　24. What does the woman say about scientists who study the specialized cells in human bones?

　　25. According to the man, what is one important purpose of studying specialized cells in human bones?

　　Section B

　　Directions: In this section, you will hear 3 short passages. At the end of each passage, you will hear some questions. Both the passage and the questions will be spoken only once. After you hear a question, you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A), B), C) and D). Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre.

　　Passage One

　　I had spent my last day in London visiting friends, taking pictures, and doing some last-minute shopping. Among other things, I had bought some presents: a shirt for my brother, a wool blanket for my sister, and a battery-powered alarm clock for my father.

　　After traveling in a crowded bus and waiting in the noisy airport building, I was glad to be sitting in the plane at last. In a few minutes, we would be asked to fasten our seat belts and to stop smoking, and then we would soon be up in the sky on our flight to Berlin.

　　But I had been mistaken. Ten minutes later, instead of enjoying the beauty of the evening sky from high above the clouds, I was sitting in a smoke-filled room with an airline official and a police officer at my side. On the table in front of me was one of my suitcases.

　　The officials were very polite. They asked me to show them my passport, my ticket, and my baggage check. Then I was requested to open the suitcase and to spread out its contents on the table.

　　I did as I was told. The moment I placed the alarm clock on the table, the two officials looked at each other and smiled. Hearing the clock ticking away merrily, I suddenly understood. Someone must have heard the ticking noise coming from my suitcase and thought there was a time bomb hidden in it.