2009年12月英语四级考试预测试题及答案(4)

　　Model Test Three

　　Part I Writing (30 minutes)

　　Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write a composition on the topic Competition. You should write at least 120 words following the outline given below in Chinese:

　　1. 竞争使人们充满创造力，使人们更有效率。

　　2. 竞争促使生产出更好的产品和提供更优质的服务。

　　3. 竞争促进了社会的进一步发展。

　　Competition

　　Part II Reading Comprehension (Skimming and Scanning) (15 minutes)

　　Directions: In this part, you will have 15 minutes to go over the passage quickly and answer the questions on Answer Sheet 1.

　　For questions 1-7, mark

　　Y (for YES) if the statement agrees with the information given in the passage;

　　N (for NO) if the statement contradicts the information given in the passage;

　　NG (for NOT GIVEN) if the information is not given in the passage。

　　For questions 8-10, complete the sentences with the information given in the passage。

　　Earthquake

　　Can Scientists Predict Killer Earthquakes?

　　The date was November 23, 1980. People near Naples, in southern Italy, felt the Earth roll and shake. Earthquake! Suddenly buildings came tumbling down. Cracks appeared in the earth. Within minutes, entire towns were destroyed. Thousands of people were dead. Thousands more were injured。

　　As rescuers searched through the rubble, many people must have wondered, of only the victims had known ahead of time, many lives could have been saved。

　　Actually, an Italian scientist did predict that such a quake would happen. In 1977 Dr. M. Caputo of the Universite Degiles Studi in Rome warned that a large quake would soon strike the east of Naples. Unfortunately, he couldn’t predict the exact time and date of the quake。

　　Dr. Caputo made his general prediction after talking with scientists at 54 earthquake monitoring stations throughout Italy. He learned that many earthquakes had recently rocked different areas around Naples. But none had occurred in one particular spot east of Naples for many years. Dr. Caputo felt that the area was long overdue for a large quake. And it was。

　　Earthquake Strikes in Gap

　　The quake occurred in a region that Dr. Caputo called a seismic gap. A seismic gap is an area in an active earthquake region where no earthquake or seismic activity has been recorded in a long time. Seismic gaps are located where two large plates in the Earth have become stuck。

　　When the plates slide past each other, they sometimes became locked in place. A similar thing happens when you make a running leap on a sidewalk while wearing sneakers. When you land on both feet, the sneakers grab onto rough surface. Friction tends to hold your feet back while the rest of your body goes forward. You may end up falling flat on your face。