2012年12月大学英语四级考试真题及答案

　　Section C

　　Directions: There are 2 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A), B), C) and D). You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre.

　　Passage One

　　Questions 56 to 60 are based on the following passage.

　　As you are probably aware, the latest job markets news isn’t good: Unemployment is still more than 9 percent, and new job growth has fallen close to zero. That’s bad for the economy, of course. And it may be especially discouraging if you happen to be looking for a job or hoping to change careers right now. But it actually shouldn’t matter to you nearly as much as you think.

　　That’s because job growth numbers don’t matter to job hunters as much as job turnover (人员更替) data. After all, existing jobs open up every day due to promotions, resignations, terminations(解雇), and retirements. (Yes, people are retiring even in this economy.) In both good times and bad, turnover creates more openings than economic growth does. Even in June of 2007, when the economy was still moving ahead, job growth was only 132,000, while turnover was 4.7 million!

　　And as it turns out, even today—with job growth near zero—over 4 million job hunters are being hired every month.

　　I don’t mean to imply that overall job growth doesn’t have an impact on one’s ability to land a job. It’s true that if total employment were higher, it would mean more jobs for all of us to choose from (and compete for). And it’s true that there are currently more people applying for each available job opening, regardless of whether it’s a new one or not.

　　But what often distinguishes those who land jobs from those who don’t is their ability to stay motivated. They’re willing to do the hard work of identifying their valuable skills; be creative about where and how to look; learn how to present themselves to potential employers; and keep going, even after repeated rejections. The Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows that 2.7 million people who wanted and were available for work hadn’t looked within the last four weeks and were no longer even classified as unemployed.

　　So don’t let the headlines fool you into giving up. Four million people get hired every month in the U.S. You can be one of them.

　　56. The author tends to believe that high unemployment rate ______.

　　[A] deprives many people of job opportunities

　　[B] prevents many people from changing careers

　　[C] should not stop people from looking for a job

　　[D] does not mean the U.S. economy is worsening

　　57. Where do most job openings come from?

　　[A] Job growth. [C] Improved economy.

　　[B] Job turnover. [D] Business expansion.

　　58. What does the author say about overall job growth?

　　[A] It doesn’t have much effect on individual job seekers.

　　[B] It increases people’s confidence in the economy.

　　[C] It gives a ray of hope to the unemployed.

　　[D] It doesn’t mean greater job security for the employed.

　　59. What is the key to landing a job according to the author?

　　[A] Education. [C] Persistence.

　　[B] Intelligence. [D] Experience.

　　60. What do we learn from the passage about the unemployment figures in the U.S.?

　　[A] They clearly indicate how healthy the economy is.

　　[B] They provide the public with the latest information.

　　[C] They warn of the structural problems in the economy.

　　[D] They exclude those who have stopped looking for a job.

　　Passage Two

　　Questions 61 to 65 are based on the following passage.

　　Our risk of cancer rises dramatically as we age. So it makes sense that the elderly should be routinely screened for new tumors—or doesn’t it?

　　While such vigilant(警觉的) tracking of cancer is a good thing in general, researchers are increasingly questioning whether all of this testing is necessary for the elderly. With the percentage of people over age 65 expected to nearly double by 2050, it’s important to weigh the health benefits of screening against the risks and costs of routine testing.

　　In many cases, screening can lead to surgeries to remove cancer, while the cancers themselves may be slow-growing and may not pose serious health problems in patients’ remaining years. But the message that everyone must screen for cancer has become so deep-rooted that when health care experts recommended that women under 50 and over 74 stop screening for breast cancer, it caused a riotous reaction among doctors, patients and advocacy groups.

　　It’s hard to uproot deeply held beliefs about cancer screening with scientific data. Certainly, there are people over age 75 who have had cancers detected by routine screening, and gained several extra years of life because of treatment. And clearly, people over age 75 who have other risk factors for cancer, such as a family history or prior personal experience with the disease, should continue to get screened regularly. But for the remainder, the risk of cancer, while increased at the end of life, must be balanced with other factors like remaining life expectancy (预期寿命).

　　A recent study suggests that doctors start to make more objective decisions about who will truly benefit from screening— especially considering the explosion of the elderly that will soon swell our population.

　　It’s not an easy calculation to make, but one that makes sense for all patients. Dr. Otis Brawley said, “Many doctors are ordering screening tests purely to cover themselves. We need to think about the rational use of health care.”

　　That means making some difficult decisions with elderly patients, and going against the misguided belief that when it comes to health care, more is always better.

　　61. Why do doctors recommend routine cancer screening for elderly people?

　　[A] It is believed to contribute to long life.

　　[B] It is part of their health care package.

　　[C] The elderly are more sensitive about their health.

　　[D] The elderly are in greater danger of tumor growth.

　　62. How do some researchers now look at routine cancer screening for the elderly?

　　[A] It adds too much to their medical bills.

　　[C] It helps increase their life expectancy.

　　[B] They are doubtful about its necessity.

　　[D] They think it does more harm than good.

　　63. What is the conventional view about women screening for breast cancer?

　　[A] It applies to women over 50. [C] It is optional for young women.

　　[B] It is a must for adult women. [D] It doesn’t apply to women over 74.

　　64. Why do many doctors prescribe routine screening for cancer?

　　[A] They want to protect themselves against medical disputes.

　　[B] They want to take advantage of the medical care system.

　　[C] They want data for medical research.

　　[D] They want their patients to suffer less.

　　65. What does the author say is the general view about health care?

　　[A] The more, the better. [C] Better early than late.

　　[B] Prevention is better than cure. [D] Better care, longer life.

　　Part IV Translation (30 minutes)

　　Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to translate a passage from Chinese into English. You should write your answer on Answer Sheet 2.

　　通货膨胀(inflation)指的是某一经济体的商品和服务的总体价格在一段时期内持续上涨的状态。当总体价格水平上涨时， 单位货币所能购买到的商品和服务就会减少， 也就是说， 单位货币的购买力下降了。衡量通货膨胀程度的主要标准就是通货膨胀率。通货膨胀率是一个按年统计的百分比率， 它与消费者物价指数(CPI)的变化有着密切的联系。