2003-2010年全国大学生英语竞赛C类初赛、决赛真题及答案汇总集（原创）
67．Linda：Hello．I'd like to send this package，please． Clerk：____________________________________ Linda：First class．How long will that take？ Clerk：About three days．
A．How would you like to send it？ B．Which class are you in？ C．Where do you want to send it to？D．Which class is it in？ 68．Assistant：Can I help you？
Colin ：Yes，it's about this sports shirt．I washed it the other day．The colour ran and it shrank． Assistant：Oh dear，I see．________________________ Colin ：I'm afraid not．
Assistant：I'm sorry，but I'm not allowed to change anything without a receipt． A．Did you buy it here？ B．Would you want to change it？ C．Do you have the receipt？
D．Could you tell me who sold it to you？
69．James：Could I have my bill，please？Can I pay by credit card or eurocheque？ Receptionist：____________ James：I'll pay by credit card，then．
Receptionist：That's fine．I hope you enjoyed your stay here． A．Here's your bill．B．Sorry，we don't take credit card． C．You can pay by eurocheque．D．Yes，we take both． 70．Husband：When is our anniversary？ Wife：________________________
Husband：No，it's just that I bought these flowers for you and I was hoping today was the day． A．Hmm ．．．I can't remember either．Why？ B．Hey，are these flowers for me？
C．Who cares？Do you want to give me a surprise？ D．Are you joking？Have you really forgotten again？ Part IV Reading Comprehension（25 minutes，40 points） Section A Multiple Choice（10 points）
Directions：There is one reading passage in this part．The passage is followed by 5 questions or unfinished statements．For each of them there are four choices marked A，B，C and D．You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet with a single line through the centre． Questions 71 to 75 are based on the following passage： Taking a peep at what's going on in your head
CARL Filer，18，a star salesman at a B＆Q hardware store in the UK，was called up for promotion within one week of starting work．But，instead of being made supervisor，he was sacked—after his employers saw the results of his psychometric test．
You might think that anyone who answers that he“strongly disagreeshe is an over-achiever is asking for trouble，but Mr Filer already thought he had proved himself more than capable．
This year，nearly half of UK firms—46 percent—will use psychometric tests to select trainees，compared with just 17 percent in 2000，according to a report for GTI，a publisher of graduate career guides．
These tests，which rate candidates’ ability and gauge their personality，have been used in the UK since the 1980s．But assorted studies have shown most people—graduates in particular—are wholly cynical about the idea
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2003-2010年全国大学生英语竞赛C类初赛、决赛真题及答案汇总集（原创）
of their personality being“measured．
“People tend to see them as either too silly or too clever，says Clive Fletcher，professor of occupational psychology at University of London．“But all the evidence indicates the tests do have some value．
The first personality test as we know it，was developed by the American army in 1917 to filter out weak recruits． But it was not until the 1980s that the tests became popular in Britain．With a rising number of graduates going for a decreasing number of jobs，organizations began to see psychometric testing as a cheap，reliable alternative to the expensive，time-consuming interview．
But today the tests are becoming alarmingly sophisticated and are edging towards probing the“dark side：pathology and personality disorders．Increasingly，tests are being used to try to detect promising young graduates who may，later in life，fly off the rails（go crazy）；or to stop psychopaths（having mental disorder）getting recruited．
In the future，interviewees could even be given a mouth swab to reveal the genetic and biological markers of personality．“We are heading for the era of genetic screening，”warns Carolyn Jones，of the Institute for Employment Rights．“I think these tests are very flawed．
And there are other problems with the tests．For starters，it is possible to fake it—even the test producers agree on this．But they have made it as hard as possible．For example， look at whether you agree or disagree with the following two statements：“New ideas come easily to meand“I find generating new concepts difficult．How long did it take you to realize they both could mean the same thing？
The main argument，however，is that the tests are invalid and cannot quantify（put a numerical value on）something as changeable as personality．
The golden rule is then，that a psychometric test should never be used as the sole basis of selection，but should always be followed by interviews．
71．Most people's attitude towards the psychometric test is ______． A．contemptuous B．favorable C．tolerant D．confounded
72．Which of the following is one of the reasons why psychometric testing wins an advantage over interviews？ A．It doesn't cost any money． B．It requires no equipment． C．It is time-saving． D．It can be done within seconds． 73．Which of the following statements is the author's idea？ A．Psychometric tests are defective．
B．Psychometric tests should not be the only way to recruit promising young graduates． C．Psychometric tests are invalid and cannot quantify something changeable as personality． D．Psychometric tests are golden rules．
74．The test producers make the tests very complicated to ______． A．avoid cheating B．improve genetic screening C．find out the best ideas D．generate new concepts 75．Which of the following is not true according to the passage？
A．The American army developed the first personality test to screen out weak recruits． B．In the future，interviewers could give a mouth swab to reveal interviewees’ symptoms． C．There are possibilities for starters to cheat in the psychometric tests． D．Interviews still play an important role in evaluating interviewees． Section B Short Answer Questions（30 points）
Directions：In this part there are 3 passages with 15 questions or incomplete statements．Read the passages carefully．Then answer the questions in the fewest possible words（not exceeding 10 words）．Remember to rewrite the answers on the Answer Sheet．
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2003-2010年全国大学生英语竞赛C类初赛、决赛真题及答案汇总集（原创）
Questions 76 to 80 are based on the following passage： The 8 Steps of Social Invention 1．Get ready to play．
Like other types of creativity，social inventiveness flourishes when you begin thinking outside conventional boundaries．Charlie Girsch，a St．Paul，Minnesota-based creativity consultant，suggests that you start by playing with obviously absurd explanations for everyday events．“If traffic is slow，you'll be tem pted to say，‘Hmm．Must be an accident up ahead．’ Instead，try saying，‘Must be a family of turtles crossing the highway’or‘I expect there's some kind of alien abduction going on．’You'll be amazed how soon you will be looking at familiar problems in new ways．”Girsch's book，Fanning the Creative Spirit（Creativity Central，1999）has scores of other exercises for limbering up the inventive part of your brain． 2．Generate a zillion far-fetched ideas．
Concerned about the homeless in your neighborhood？Imagine a Homeless Parliament，a Homeless Circus，homeless families forming an orchestra，a homeless museum ．．．and on and on．Generate like mad with no regard for feasibility in order，as social invention pioneer Nicholas Albery advises，to“overcome e worthy-but-dull ideas．”Eventually the two or three best ideas will begin to stand out． 3．Take your wildest idea and bring it down to earth．
How about that Homeless Circus？Could it turn into a forum for homeless people to display their creative talents？A performance series about homelessness？A neighborhood carnival with the homeless as guests of honor？Your flakiest idea may have a germ of brilliance that actually makes it more attractive，and thus more feasible（and fundable），than its worthy-but-dull cousins． 4．Look for in venations that solve more than one problem．
The Slow Food Movement，born in Italy，boosts local farmers and regional cuisine traditions and restaurateurs and the same time that it“feeds”our hunger for authentic tastes， healthy eating，and a more leisurely，saner style of life．
5．Accentuate the positive．
“A very common question that I get when I work with people in communities is‘Why doesn't anybody care about our problems？’”notes M chael Patterson，a social inventor and activist in Massachusetts．“What a worthless question．‘Why’？questions are for philosophers．Ask‘How’？and‘What’？questions—they are a lot more practical．”For instance， Patterson asks，“What would you do if you knew you couldn't fail？” 6．Give it a rest．
Walk away from your favorite idea for a while，forget about it，let it sleep．With your conscious mind out of the way，your subconscious gets to fiddle with the concept for a while， and you just might have an unexpected insight or breakthrough．
7．Practice“yes and”in stead of“yes but”．
No matter how tempted you are to say“Yes，but this will be hard because，”or“Yes，but a million other people are doing this，”shift the conjunction to“and”and see what sort of positive refinement or change emerges．“Yes，and we could concentrate on immigrants．”“Yes，and we can make it open to all ages．” 8．Get your idea into the world．
This is the tough part．You might seek out the help of activists who will take a shine to your ideas．Or become an organizer yourself．Paul Glove，a New York social inventor，coun-sels：“If you have an idea you believe in，write a pamphlet with your phone number on it and post it in Laundromats and bookstores．If three people call you，have lunch with them and call yourselves an organization．If five people call，meet with them and issue a press release．” Presto，you're launched． 76．To generate far-fetched ideas helps to ______．
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2003-2010年全国大学生英语竞赛C类初赛、决赛真题及答案汇总集（原创）
77．Michael Patterson wants us to come up with“How”？and“What”？instead of“Why”？questions because he considers they are more practical than ______．
78．The purpose to practice“yes and”instead of“yes but”is to make yourself more ______． 79．According to the article，when one has difficulty developing his favorite idea，he should ______． 80．One should not only generate far-fetched ideas but also ______ because the latter step is the nearest to reality． Questions 81 to 85 are based on the following passage： Thin Slice of TV Has Big Market
It is too early to write an obituary for bulky picture tubes，which will remain the most affordable TV sets for years to come．
But，analysts and industry executives insist that thin screens already have started to become the dominant format for TV sets in the digital era．
Sharp price cuts have brought plasma sets and other thin，flat televisions out of high-end electronic boutiques and into thousands of mass-market outlets such as Cosco，a wholesale buying club in the US，best known for offering members bulk items and big discounts．
The least expensive plasma sets still cost a hefty US ＄3，000or more ，yet sales are growing so rapidly that many manufacturers are racing to boost production．
That increase，combined with expanding production capacity and improved technology， could push the price of plasma sets down by one-third next year，according to analyst Richard Doherty of Envisioneering Group，a US research firm．
But manufacturers are not just competing with each other；they are also trying to fend off challenges from competing thin-screen technologies，such as liquid crystal displays（LCD）．
The demand for thin screens is fuelled in part by the advent of DVDs and digital TV broadcasts，which offer more detailed pictures and more lifelike colors than conventional analog TV signals．
To see the difference，consumers need a set that can pack more information onto the screen than their current TVs can．
This sharpness is most vivid on screens that are 40inches diagonal or larger．At that size，however，traditional direct view and projection TVs are so bulky that many consumers have trouble finding a place for them at home． Hence the interest in thin screens—models slender and light enough to hang on a wall．
The glass panels at the heart of plasma and LCD sets come mainly from about a dozen companies with factories in Japan，South Korea and，increasingly，China．About 800，000 plasma panels will be shipped this year around the world，analysts say．
That is a tiny amount compared with the overall market for TVs，which was about 140 million sets last year．But，industry experts said 2003would be a“breakout year” or plasma because shipments should double．
Helping drive the growth are new or expanded manufacturing facilities．For example， Japanese electronics giant NEC last year doubled the capacity of its Japanese factory—reaching 300，000to 400，000 plasma panels．And it plans to double it again in 2003，officials said．
As competition has heated up during the last four years，prices have fallen more than 50 percent．According to“NPD Tec world”，the average price of a plasma display sold in the US dropped from US ＄12，700in January 1999 to US ＄6，100in October 2002．
The best markets for plasma screens have been in Asia，and about half of the sets have gone to businesses instead of homes．
LCD TVs carry a premium price—they can be 10 times as expensive as a comparable tube-driven television—that knocks them out of most buyers’ budgets．
But LCD panels are quickly taking over the market for computer monitors，and the tens of millions of panels being
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