2018年12月英语四级真题 第1套

Section A
Directions: In this section, you will hear three news reports. At the end of each news report, you will hear two or three questions. Both the news report 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.

[1] A device that weighs less than one kilogram is part of a mission that will allow scientists to deliver fourth generation or 4G mobile coverage to the moon in 2019. If successful, the tiny device will provide the moon with its first-ever mobile phone network. The lunar network will support high-definition streaming of video and data between the moon and Earth. The network is part of Mission to the Moon. This is a project with the goal of landing the first privately paid-for mission to the moon. The 4G mission is set to launch from Cape Canaveral in the United States on a Space X Falcon 9 rocket in 2019. Mission to the Moon intends to establish and test the first elements of a communications network on the moon. The scientists working on the project opted to build a 4G rather than a fifth generation or 5G network. This is because fifth generation networks are still in testing and trial phases. [2] This means that a 5G network may not yet be stable enough to work on the moon’s surface.

[1] 一个重量不足一公斤的装置是一项（月球）任务的组成部分，该任务将使科学家们能够在2019年将第四代或者说4G移动网络覆盖到月球上。若此举成功的话，这个微小的装置将会有史以来首次为月球提供移动手机网络。月球上的网络会支持月球和地球之间高清晰度的视频影像及数据的传输。该网络是“月球任务”的一部分。“月球任务”是一个（太空）项目，其目标是实现首次私人付费登月任务。4G网络计划于2019年在美国卡纳维拉尔角由SpaceX公司的猎鹰9号火箭送往月球。此次月球任务旨在在月球上建立并测试通信网络的第一批元件。致力于该项目的科学家选择建立4G网络，而非第五代（5G）网络。这是因为5G网络仍处于测试和试用阶段。[2] 那意味着5G网络还不够稳定，不足以在月球表面上使用。

Questions 1 and 2 are based on the news report you have just heard.

Firefighters responded to a fire Wednesday night at an abandoned mall in Haywood. The fire was reported at 9:26 pm at an old shopping center on Mission Avenue near St. Mary’s Church. Six fire engines, two trucks and two chiefs responded to the scene. Crews had the fire under control in about 45 minutes and managed to contain the fire to its point of origin. [3] There were some people inside the building when the fire broke out but there were no reports of any injuries. Fire investigators have responded to the scene but have not yet determined the cause of the fire. Firefighters will remain on the scene until later this morning to ensure that the fire doesn’t start up again. The shopping mall had not been in use since 2002. [4] In 2014 City Hall developed a plan to knock down the building and replace it with affordable housing. However, the plan was dropped due to lack of funds.

周三晚上，海伍德一座废弃的购物中心发生火灾，消防员随即出动。据报道，晚上9点26分，使命大道上圣玛丽大教堂附近的一座年久的购物中心发生火灾。六辆消防车、两辆卡车和两位消防官员到达现场。消防人员在大约45分钟内控制住了火势，并设法将火势控制在起火点。[3] 火灾爆发时，大楼里有一些人，不过没有任何人员受伤的报告。火灾调查员们已经来到火灾现场，但还没有确定火灾起因。消防员们会继续守在现场直到今天早晨晚些时候，以确保火不会复燃。这座购物中心自2002年起便不再使用。[4] 2014年，市政厅制定了一项计划，决定拆毁大楼并用经济适用房代替。然而，该计划由于缺乏资金而被放弃。

Questions 3 and 4 are based on the news report you have just heard.

Potato chips in Japan are being sold for 6 times their normal price. This is after the country’s main manufacturer stopped sales due to a potato shortage. [5] Storms and floods in its main potato growing region last year caused the worst harvest in more than 3 decades. Local media reports suggest Calbee and its main rival Koike-Ya are halting almost 50 products. “We don’t know when we’ll be able to restart,” a company spokesman said. Snack lovers are panic buying and many supermarket shelves are bare. Japanese laws limit the amount of imported potatoes that can be used in Japanese-made products. [6] Japan says fear of disease is its main reason to block fresh imports. It still only allows potatoes from selected US states. This is only at certain times and on condition that they are processed at factories based near Japanese ports. [7] But global warming has raised the possibility that domestic produce could be seriously affected by rare weather events more often.

日本的炸薯条目前售价是平常的6倍。这一状况发生在因土豆短缺日本的主要制造商停止销售炸薯条之后。[5] 去年，日本主要土豆生产地区遭遇暴风雨和洪水灾害，导致该地区的土豆产量创30多年来的最低纪录。当地新闻报道称，卡乐比及其主要竞争对手湖池屋即将停止销售近50种产品。 一位公司的发言人说：“我们不知道何时才可以重新开始生产。”零食爱好者正在疯狂抢购，许多超市的货架被抢购一空。日本法律限制日本产品使用进口土豆的数量。[6] 日本称，阻止进口新鲜土豆的主要原因是害怕引起（作物）疾病。日本仍然只允许进口来自美国某些州的土豆。而且，这种情况也只是在特定的时间发生，条件是土豆要在日本港口附近的工厂经过加工处理。 [7] 但全球变暖增加了国内农产品更频繁地受到罕见天气事件严重影响的可能性。

Questions 5 to 7 are based on the news report you have just heard.