Listening Comprehension

 [00:00.00]Model Test One
[00:05.76]Part Three Listening Comprehension
[00:09.26]Section A
[00:11.01]Directions: In this section,
[00:14.84]you will hear 8 short conversations and 2 long conversations.
[00:19.22]At the end of each conversation,
[00:21.84]one or more questions will be asked about what was said.
[00:25.45]Both the conversation and the questions will be spoken only once.
[00:30.26]After each question there will be a pause.
[00:33.54]During the pause, you must read the four choices marked A), B), C) and D),
[00:40.44]and decide which is the best answer.
[00:42.95]Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2
[00:47.87]with a single line through the centre.
[00:50.50]Now let's begin with the 8 short conversations.
[00:56.62]11. W: I had such an interesting meeting with your employer.
[01:02.42]I think he’s a very fascinating man.
[01:04.94]M: So do I. I thought so when I first met him and still do,
[01:08.76]although I’ve worked with him for almost three years.
[01:11.49]Q: What does the man think of his employer?
[01:29.73]12. W: Henry, your articles on the campus were excellent.
[01:35.20]M: I only wished they had published the entire thing.
[01:38.05]Q: What do we learn from Henry’s response?
[01:55.51]13. M: I think I’d order the chocolate mousse.
[02:02.19]I know it’s rich, but I didn’t eat lunch earlier today.
[02:05.36]W: No dessert for me. I can hardly get into my clothes as it is.
[02:09.95]Q: Why won’t the woman order dessert?
[02:26.71]14. W: I’m sorry I caused your uncle so much trouble.
[02:33.39]M: Don’t worry about it.
[02:34.70]He is the sort of man who is never happy unless he has something to complain about.
[02:39.62]Q: Why is the woman upset?
[02:58.26]15. M: Susan, I feel so happy now.
[03:02.63]I’ve just got the news that I’ve won the scholarship for the next school year.
[03:07.12]W: You certainly deserve it.
[03:09.31]Q: What does the woman mean?
[03:25.32]16. W: Professor Smith has helped me so much
[03:31.45]that I’m thinking of presenting him a book of poetry.
[03:34.73]M: I think you’d better get him a music record.
[03:37.90]Just because he’s a language teacher doesn’t mean all he does is read.
[03:42.27]Q: What does the man mean?
[03:59.33]17. M: It’s mostly blue and green with a pattern of flowers in the middle.
[04:05.78]There’s a dark green border.
[04:07.31]W: Yes, it matches the curtains well.
[04:10.16]We are going to put it down in the sitting room.
[04:12.67]Q: What are they talking about?
[04:30.12]18. W: I have been waiting here for almost half an hour,
[04:35.04]why did you take so long to park the car?
[04:37.67]M: I’m sorry. I have driven two blocks before I spotted a place to park.
[04:42.04]Q: What do you learn from the conversation?
[05:00.24]Now you'll hear two long conversations.
[05:04.83]Conversation One
[05:07.02]M: Hey, Jane. What’s so interesting?
[05:10.30]W: hi, Tom. I’m reading this fascinating article on the societies of the Ice Age.
[05:16.32]M: The ice age? There weren't any societies then,
[05:19.82]just a group of people living in the cave.
[05:22.55]W: That's what people used to think.
[05:24.73]But a new exhibit of the America museum of natural history
[05:29.23]showed ice age people were surprisingly advanced. You may never hear of it.
[05:34.60]M: Oh, really? In what ways?
[05:36.45]W: Well, ice age people were the inventors of language, art, and music as we know it.
[05:43.13]And they didn’t live in caves, they built their own shelters.
[05:47.39]M: What did they use to build them?
[05:49.69]The cold weather would have killed off most of the trees so they couldn't have used wood.
[05:54.50]Of course they couldn’t live in the ice blocks.
[05:57.56]W: In some of the warmer climate, they did build the houses of wood.
[06:02.54]In other places, they used animal bones and skins or lived in natural stone shelters.
[06:09.65]M: How did they stay warm? Animal skin walls don’t sound very sturdy.
[06:15.01]W: Well, it says here that in the early Ice Age,
[06:18.73]they often faced the house towards south to take the advantage of the sun,
[06:23.87]a primitive sort of solar heating.
[06:26.38]M: Hey, that’s pretty smart.
[06:28.24]But when night comes, it is still a problem to keep warm.
[06:31.52]W: They had some solution.
[06:33.38]People in the late Ice Age even insulated their homes by putting heated stones on the floor.
[06:40.06]They also have some creative ways to make their life better.
[06:43.89]M: All these sound interesting.Can I read that magazine article after you’re done?
[06:49.13]I think I can use some of the knowledge for my recent paper.
[06:52.74]W: Yes, sure.
[06:54.49]Questions 19 to 22 are based on the conversation you've just heard.
[07:01.38]19. What did the man think of the people in the Ice Age?
[07:22.59]20. What did the people in the Ice Age invent?
[07:43.64]21. How did people in the early Ice Age keep warm?
[08:03.14]22. What does the man want the woman to do?
[08:23.23]Conversation Two
[08:24.87]W: Good morning. Housing office, how can I help you?
[08:28.81]M: Hi. I’m calling about the new low-cost housing for graduate students.
[08:33.41]W: Are you aware that it’s only available to married graduate students and their families?
[08:39.09]M: Yes. I think my wife and I may qualify since she’s still in graduate school.
[08:44.01]But I was wondering whether there were any other requirements.
[08:47.41]W: Well, unless you have more than one child,
[08:50.79]you both have to have an annual income not less than 15,000 dollars.
[08:56.48]You may be qualified if you are in the above condition.
[09:00.31]M: I’m working as a part-time research assistant so that’s no problem.
[09:04.47]But right now we’re living with my wife’s parents.
[09:07.42]Does that mean we have to include their income too?
[09:10.48]W: Not necessarily.
[09:12.01]M: I may have lots of questions to ask. Sorry for taking you so much time.
[09:17.04]But I may still have a couple of questions to ask.
[09:20.54]W: Don’t worry. Why don’t you stop by our office
[09:24.05]so I can give you some forms to fill out and explain everything in more details?
[09:28.75]M: That sounds like a good idea. Would tomorrow morning be all right?
[09:32.14]W: The afternoon might be better.
[09:33.89]It can be pretty crazy around here on a Friday morning.
[09:37.61]M: All right then. I’ll try to make it in the afternoon.
[09:40.78]Is there anyone special I should ask for?
[09:43.41]W: You can ask for me, Susan Davidson. Or ask my assistant Bill Brown,
[09:48.98]if I’m not available when you are there.
[09:51.39]M: Thanks so much for your help. I’ll be there this Friday afternoon.
[09:55.22]W: Glad that I can help. You are welcome. Bye-bye.
[09:58.28]Questions 23 to 25 are based on the conversation you've just heard.
[10:05.28]23.Why does the man call the woman?
[10:26.32]24.Where does the man live?
[10:44.67]25.Why does the woman suggest that the man visit her office in the afternoon?