2009年12月英语四级听力考试全真模拟题(8)

　　Downtown shopping areas became deserted. In recent years there’s been a rebirth of the downtown area, as many suburbanites have moved back to the city. They’ve done this, of course, to avoid highways blocked with commuters from the suburbs. I’ve chosen this particular city planning problem—our dependence on private transportation — to discuss in groups. I’m hoping you will all come up with some novel solutions. Oh, and don’t approach the problem from a purely sociological perspective; try to take into account environmental and economic issues as well.

　　Questions 29 to 31 are based on the passage you have just heard.

　　29. How did the automobile affect the work force in the 1950’s and 1960’s?

　　【解析】选[B]。预读选项可以推测此题是考查对It对workers或jobs的影响。在听问题时需要留意It指代的是什么。

　　30. What problem did downtown city merchants face in the 1960’s?

　　【解析】选[C]。预读选项可知此题是考查对四种负面事实的区分，需要留意文中关于这些细节的陈述。

　　31. According to the speaker, why are some people moving back to the city?

　　【解析】选[D]。预读选项可知此题询问的是关于某件事情的原因。文中提到人们从乡下搬回到城市的原因是：to avoid highways blocked with comustters...,[D]是对此的同义转述。

　　Passage Three

　　The United States operates under a federal system of government. Under the federal system, power is divided between the central government and the states. The central government is given specific powers. These powers are named in the Constitution. Powers that are not assigned to the central government in the Constitution belong to the states.

　　The central government can pass laws that affect trade between states. The central government can also make treaties with foreign countries. It has the power to print money. The Constitution gives the central government these powers. These powers belong to the central government only. However, the states have many powers that the central government cannot control. For example, a state is allowed to tax people who live and work in the state. The central government cannot put a limit on the amount of money that a state taxes its people.