2019年12月英语四级真题 第1套

Section C
Directions: In this section, you will hear three passages. At the end of each passage, you will hear three or four 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 1 with a single line through the centre.

Single-sex education can have enormous benefits for female students. Numerous studies have shown that women who attend single-sex schools tend to have stronger self-confidence, better study habits and more ambitious career goals than women who attend coeducational schools. [16] Girls who graduate from single-sex schools are three times more likely to become engineers than those who attend coeducational schools. The reason is that all-girls schools encourage women to enter fields traditionally dominated by men, such as science, technology and engineering. In coeducational schools, girls are often expected to succeed only in the humanities or the arts. [17] Research has also shown that in coeducational settings, teachers are more likely to praise and give in-depth responses to a boy's comments in class. In contrast, they might only respond to a girl's comments with a nod. They are also more likely to encourage boys to work through problems on their own, while they tend to step in and help girls who struggle with a problem.
In an all-girls setting, girls are more likely to speak up frequently and make significant contributions to class than in a coeducational setting. Girls studying in a single-sex setting also earn higher scores on their College Board and Advanced Placement exams than girls who study in coeducational settings. [18]All girls schools tend to be smaller than coeducational schools, which means teachers will be able to tailor the materials to girl students' personal learning styles and interest.

对于女学生而言，单一性别教育有很多好处。大量研究表明，与男女同校就读的女生相比，就读于单一性别学校的女生往往更自信、拥有更好的学习习惯和更远大的职业目标。[16] 从单一性别学校毕业的女生成为工程师的可能性是从男女同校学校毕业的女生的三倍。其原因在于女子学校鼓励女生进入传统上由男生主导的领域，如科学、技术和工程领域。在男女同校的学校里，女生往往被期望仅在人文学科或艺术方面取得成功。[17]研究还表明，在男女同校环境中，老师们在课堂上更喜欢表扬男生，并对男生的评论给予深入的回应。相比之下，对于女生的评论，他们可能只会点点头以作回应。他们也更可能鼓励男生自己解决问题，但往往会介入并帮助那些遇到问题的女生。
与在男女同校的环境中相比，在全是女生的环境中女生更有可能频繁大胆地表达自己的观点，并对班级作出重要贡献。在单性别环境中学习的女生在大学理事会和大学预修课程中的考试分数也比在男女同校环境中学习的女生高。[18]所有的女子学校往往都比男女同校的学校小，这意味着老师们可以根据女生的个人学习风格和兴趣因材施教。

Questions 16 to 18 are based on the passage you have just heard.

[19]Today I found out that Seattle doesn't really get that much rain compared with most U.S. cities. In fact, Seattle ranks 44th among major U.S. cities in average annual rainfall. Cities that get more rainfall than Seattle include Huston, Memphis, Nashville, and pretty much every major city on the eastern coast, such as New York, Boston, and Miami. So, why does everyone think of Seattle as a rainy city? The primary root of this misconception lies in that Seattle has a relatively large number of days per year with rainfall compared with New York and Boston, which get an average of about 16% more rain per year than Seattle, but also average between them about 36 fewer days a year of rainfall. So it rains a lot less in Seattle. [20]And the rain is spread out over more days than those cities. This is why few locals in Seattle carry an umbrella generally. When it does rain, it tends to be a very light rain that isn't troublesome. It almost never really rains as most people think. On top of that, it never really storms in Seattle, either. Seattle gets an average of a mere 7 days a year with thunder. [21]So in short, if you like sunny but not too hot summers, mild winters but with lots of cloudy days, Seattle's the place to be. Anyway, if you visit Seattle, don't bring an umbrella. People will look at you, thinking you are funny.

[19]今天我发现和大多数美国城市相比，西雅图并没有那么多雨。事实上，西雅图的年平均降雨量在美国主要城市中排第44位。降雨量超过西雅图的城市包括休斯顿、孟菲斯、纳什维尔，以及东部沿海区几乎所有的主要城市，比如纽约、波士顿和迈阿密。那么，为什么每个人都认为西雅图是一个多雨的城市呢？这种误解的主要根源在于，与纽约和波士顿相比，西雅图每年的降雨天数相对较多，纽约和波士顿的年平均降雨量比西雅图多大约16%，但平均每年降雨天数却比西雅图少大概36天。因此，西雅图降雨更少。[20]而且西雅图雨水蔓延的天数比那些城市多。这就是为什么在西雅图一般很少有当地人带着伞。西雅图真正下雨的时候，往往下的都是细雨，不会造成麻烦。西雅图几乎从没像大家所认为的那样下过雨。除此之外，西雅图也从未下过真正意义上的暴风雨。西雅图每年平均只有7天会打雷。[21]简言之，如果你喜欢晴朗但不太热的夏天，温和但多云的冬天，西雅图就是你的好去处。不管怎样，如果你去西雅图，就不要带伞。不然人们会看着你，觉得你很奇怪。

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

After tough workout or a day full of physical activity, it's common to find your muscles aching, but where do these pains come from? [22]According to a German professor, the soreness comes from straining your muscles in an uncommon way, for example, jumping on a bicycle for a ride, because you haven't ridden in a long time. Soreness occurs since your leg muscles aren't used to that movement. When muscles perform an activity they aren't regularly exposed to, the tiny fibers that are inside them are being torn apart. As muscle soreness develops, the body has to work to repair the muscle tears, but this doesn't happen immediately. First, the body must realize the muscles are damaged. [23]When the body realizes the muscles are hurt, the response is to increase blood flow to the area and increase body heat. Damaged cells are then cleaned up and the body sends cells specially designed to break down the large muscle fiber fragments. Healing can take place after this. It takes about a day until these cells make it to your aching muscles. That's why there is most often a delay associated with muscle soreness. [24] Repair of damaged cells takes about two days, and afterwards the soreness disappears. [25]Unfortunately, there is little that can be done to relieve muscle soreness. Pain relieving creams don't work, but a hot shower, or warm bath can provide some relief.

在剧烈运动或一整天的体力活动之后，通常你会发现自己肌肉酸痛，但是这些疼痛从何而来呢？[22]据一位德国教授称，这种酸痛源于以一种不寻常的方式拉伸肌肉，比如，骑自行车，因为你已经很久没有骑过了。因为你的腿部肌肉不习惯这种动作，所以会感到酸痛。当肌肉进行一项不经常接触的活动时，它们内部的微小纤维就会被撕裂。随着肌肉酸痛的发展，身体必须努力修复肌肉纤维的撕裂，但这种情况不会立即发生。首先，身体必须意识到肌肉受到了损伤。[23]当身体意识到肌肉受伤时，其反应是增加该部位的血流量和身体的热量。然后，受损细胞被清理干净，身体会输送专门用来分解大块肌肉纤维碎片的细胞。在此之后，开始愈合。这些细胞到达你酸痛的肌肉部位大概需要一天的时间。这就是为什么肌肉酸痛通常会持续一段时间。[24]受损细胞大概需要两天时间修复，随后酸痛才会消失。[25]遗憾的是，几乎没有什么方法可以减轻肌肉酸痛。缓解疼痛的药膏不起作用，但冲个热水澡或泡个热水澡可以起到一些缓解作用。

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