2014专八真题

　　Text D

　　Speaking two languages rather than just one has obvious practical benefits in an increasingly globalized world. But in recent years, scientists have begun to show that the advantages of bilingualism are even more fundamental than being able to converse with a wider range of people. Being bilingual, it turns out, makes you smarter. It can have a profound effect on your brain, improving cognitive skills not related to language and even shielding against dementia in old age.

　　This view of bilingualism is remarkably different from the understanding of bilingualism through much of the 20th century. Researchers, educators and policy makers long considered a second language to be an interference, cognitively speaking, that hindered a child’s academic and intellectual development.

　　They were not wrong about the interference: there is ample evidence that in a bilingual’s brain both language systems are active even when he is using only one language, thus creating situations in which one system obstructs the other. But this interference, researchers are finding out, isn’t so much a handicap as a blessing in disguise. It forces the brain to resolve internal conflict, giving the mind a workout that strengthens its cognitive muscles.

　　The collective evidence from a number of such studies suggests that the bilingual experience improves the brain’s so-called executive function ? a command system that directs the attention processes that we use for planning, solving problems and performing various other mentally demanding tasks. These processes include ignoring distractions to stay focused, switching attention willfully from one thing to another and holding information in mind ? like remembering a sequence of directions while driving.

　　Why does the tussle between two simultaneously active language systems improve these aspects of cognition? Until recently, researchers thought the bilingual advantage stemmed primarily from an ability for inhibition that was honed by the exercise of suppressing one language system: this suppression, it was thought, would help train the bilingual mind to ignore distractions in other contexts. But that explanation increasingly appears to be inadequate, since studies have shown that bilinguals perform better than monolinguals even at tasks that do not require inhibition, like threading a line through an ascending series of numbers scattered randomly on a page.

　　The key difference between bilinguals and monolinguals may be more basic: a heightened ability to monitor the environment. “Bilinguals have to switch languages quite often ? you may talk to your father in one language and to your mother in another language,” says Albert Costa, a researcher at the University of Pompeu Fabra in Spain. “It requires keeping track of changes around you in the same way that we monitor our surroundings when driving.” In a study comparing German-Italian bilinguals with Italian monolinguals on monitoring tasks, Mr. Costa and his colleagues found that the bilingual subjects not only performed better, but they also did so with less activity in parts of the brain involved in monitoring, indicating that they were more efficient at it.

　　The bilingual experience appears to influence the brain from infancy to old age (and there is reason to believe that it may also apply to those who learn a second language later in life).

　　26. According to the passage, the more recent and old views of bilingualism differ mainly in

　　A. its practical advantages B. its role in cognition

　　C. perceived language fluency D. its role in medicine

　　27. The fact that interference is now seen as a blessing in disguise means that

　　A. it has led to unexpectedly favourable results B. its potential benefits have remained undiscovered

　　C. its effects on cognitive development have been minimal

　　D. only a few researchers have realized its advantages

　　28. What is the role of Paragraph Four in relation to Paragraph Three?

　　A. It provides counter evidence to Paragraph Three. B. It offers another example of the role of interference.

　　C. It serves as a transitional paragraph in the passage. D. It further illustrates the point in Paragraph Three.

　　29. Which of the following can account for better performance of bilinguals in doing non-inhibition tasks?

　　A. An ability to monitor surroundings. B. An ability to ignore distractions.

　　C. An ability to perform with less effort. D. An ability to exercise suppression.

　　30. What is the main theme of the passage?

　　A. Features of bilinguals and monolinguals. B. Interference and suppression.

　　C. Bilinguals and monitoring tasks. D. Reasons why bilinguals are smarter.

　　PART III GENERAL KNOWLEDGE (10 MIN)

　　31. Which of the following is the French-speaking city in Canada?

　　A. Vancouver B. Ottawa C. Montreal D. Toronto

　　32. Which of the following are natives of New Zealand?

　　A. The Maoris B. The Aboriginals C. The Red Indians D. The Eskimos

　　33. The established or national church in England is

　　A. the Roman Catholic Church B. the United Reformed Church

　　C. the Anglican Church D. the Methodist Church

　　34. The 13 former British colonies in North America declared independence from Great Britain in

　　A. 1774 B. 1775 C. 1776 D. 1777

　　35. “Grace under pressure” is an outstanding virtue of ____ heroes.

　　A. Scott Fitzgerald’s B. Ernest Hemingway’s C. Eugene O’Neill’s D. William Faulkner’s

　　36. Widowers’ House was written by

　　A. William Butler Yeats B. George Bernard Shaw C. John Galsworthy D. T. S. Eliot

　　37. Who wrote The Canterbury Tales?

　　A. William Shakespeare B. William Blake C. Geoffrey Chaucer D. John Donne

　　38. Which of the following pairs of words are homophones?

　　A. wind (v.) / wind (n.) B. suspect (v.) / suspect (n.)

　　C. convict (v.) / convict (n.) D. bare (adj.) / bear (v.)

　　39. Which of the following sentences has the “S+V+O” structure?

　　A. He died a hero. B. I went to London. C. Mary enjoyed parties. D. She became angry.

　　40. Which of the following CAN NOT be used as an adverbial?

　　A. The lion’s share B. Heart and soul. C. Null and void. D. Hammer and tongs.

　　PART IV PROOFREADING & ERROR CORRECTION (15 MIN)

　　There is widespread consensus among scholars that second language acquisition (SLA) emerged as a distinct field of research from the late 1950s to early 1960s.

　　There is a high level of agreement that the following questions (1) ______

　　have possessed the most attention of researchers in this area: (2) ______

　　l Is it possible to acquire an additional language in the

　　same sense one acquires a first language? (3) ______

　　l What is the explanation for the fact adults have (4) ______

　　more difficulty in acquiring additional languages than children have?

　　l What motivates people to acquire additional language?

　　l What is the role of the language teaching in the (5) ______

　　acquisition of additional languages?

　　l What social-cultural factors, if any, are relevant in studying the

　　learning of additional languages?

　　From a check of the literature of the field it is clear that all (6) ______

　　the approaches adopted to study the phenomena of SLA so far have

　　one thing in common: The perspective adopted to view the acquiring

　　of an additional language is that of an individual attempts to do (7) ______

　　so. Whether one labels it “learning” or “acquiring” an additional

　　language, it is an individual accomplishment or what is under (8) ______

　　focus is the cognitive, psychological, and institutional status of an

　　individual. That is, the spotlight is on what mental capabilities are

　　involving, what psychological factors play a role in the learning (9) ______

　　or acquisition, and whether the target language is learnt in the

　　classroom or acquired through social touch with native speakers. (10) ______

　　PART V TRANSLATION (60 MIN)

　　SECTION A CHINESE TO ENGLISH

　　当我在小学毕了业的时候，亲友一致的愿意我去学手艺，好帮助母亲。我晓得我应当去找饭吃，以减轻母亲的勤劳困苦。 可是，我也愿意升学。我偷偷地考入了师范学校---制服，饭食，书籍，宿处，都由学校供给。只有这样，我才敢对母亲提升学的话。入学，要交十元的保证金。这是一笔巨款!母亲作了半个月的难，把这巨款筹到，而后含泪把我送出门去。她不辞劳苦，只要儿子有出息。当我有师范毕业，而被派为小学校长，母亲与我都一夜不曾合眼。我只说了句：“以后，您可以歇一歇了!”她的回答只有一串串的眼泪。

　　SECTION B ENGLISH TO CHINESE

　　The physical distance between speakers can indicate a number of things and can also be used to used to consciously send messages about intent. Closeness, for example, indicates intimacy or threat to many speakers whilst distance may denote formality or a lack of interest. Proximity is also both a matter of personal style and is often culture-bound so that what may seem normal to a speaker from one culture may appear unnecessarily close or distant to a speaker from another. And standing close to someone may be quite appropriate in some situations such as an informal party, but completely out of place in others, such as meeting with a superior.

　　Posture can convey meaning too. Hunched shoulders and a hanging head give a powerful indication of mood. A lowered head when speaking to a superior (with or without eye contact) can convey the appropriate relationship in some cultures.

　　PART VI WRITING (45 MIN)

　　Nowadays some companies have work-from-home or remote working policies, which means that their employees do not have to commute to work every day. Some people think that this can save a lot of time travelling to and from work, thus raising employees’ productivity. However, others argue that in the workplace, people can communicate face to face, which vastly increases the efficiency of coordination and cooperation. What is your opinion?

　　Write an essay of about 400 words on the following topic: My Views on Working from Home

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