1999年下半年全国高等自学考试英语写作基础试卷

Ⅰ. Revise the following sentences according to the requirement. Write your version in the

corresponding space on your answer sheet. (15)

1. John felt that the world had come to an end when he wasn’t chosen for the football team.

(periodic sentence)

2. The building is large. It is gray. It is on the corner. (simple sentence)

3. Bob lay on the couch. He was exhausted from thinking all day. (simple sentence with –ed

phrase)

4. Emily offered some kids china-painting lessons. She did this to earn her living. (simple

sentence with to opener)

5. The parking problem in the downtown area is getting out of hand. The mayor suggests a new

underground parking garage. (compound sentence)

6. Jane played the part of a young, bored housewife. She played the part with great feeling.

(compound sentence)

7. English is offered only in the morning. Physics can be taken in the afternoon. (complex

sentence)

8. The man had gray hair and sad eyes. He doesn’t live here anymore. (complex sentence)

9. Rose disliked walking home from the bus stop. The street had no overhead lights. It was lined

with abandoned buildings. (compound-complex sentence)

10. The girl is an actress. She works in the grocery store. She is studying for an exam. (parallel

structure)

Ⅱ. Correct the errors in the following sentences and write down the correct sentences in the

corresponding space on your answer sheet. (10)

1. Mary had a wig on it looked more like a hat than a wig.

2. After Tom stopped drinking coffee. He began sleeping better at night.

3. Please give the book to the boy with the yellow cover.

4. We judge our friends both by what they say and actions.

5. At the age of six my father bought my first pet, a goldfish.

Ⅲ. Choose the topic sentence:

(Ⅰ) Choose the best topic sentence from each group below. Write the letter of the answer you

have chosen in the corresponding space on your answer sheet. (8) 1. A. Shakespeare died in Stratford in 1616.

B. Shakespeare joined his wife and children in 1611. C. Many people were interested in Shakespeare’s married life. D. There has been much idle talk about Shakespeare’s married life.

2. A. A space suit will also have heavy shoes to help in walking.

B. A space suit will help a traveler to the moon in various ways. C. A space suit will protect a traveler from very low temperatures.

D. A space suit is necessary because the moon does not have as much gravity as the earth does.

3. A. Reading books of knowledge is more useful than reading novels.

B. Sometimes we have difficulty in understanding books of knowledge. C. Reading books of knowledge takes me more time than reading novels.

D. There are some people who like reading novels better than books of knowledge.

4. A. Some people spend a long time getting a right job.

B. Many people want to know how to get a right job.

C. Getting a right job can lead to an improved sense of selfesteem.

D. Getting a right job is important and can lead to rewarding experiences.

(Ⅱ) Read the following paragraphs and spot the topic sentence of each paragraph. Write the

number of the topic sentence in the corresponding space on your answer sheet. (6)

1. (1) In college, handing your own money can be a difficult task too. (2) When I was at home, I

always had my parents help me with my banking and money problems. (3) Now that I’m on my own, I have to learn how to do this by myself. (4) I am now teaching myself how to use a checkbook and balance it diligently.

2. (1) Most people like to talk, but few people like to listen. (2) Yet listening well is a rare talent

that everyone should treasure. (3) Because they hear more, good listeners tend to know more and be more sensitive to what is going on around them than most people. (4) In addition, good listeners are inclined to accept or tolerate rather than judge and criticize. (5) Therefore, they have fewer enemies than most people. (6) In fact, they are probably the most loved of people …

3. (1) Starting a small business requires some thoughtful planning. (2) First, the future

businessperson must ask who the customers will be. (3) Specifically, from what economic, social, and ethnic background will they come? (4) Next, the prospective owner must choose an appropriate business site that will provide a steady flow of customers. (5) Last, the prospective small-business owner should ask certain legal questions concerning licensing and insurance requirements. (6) Following these steps should assure a reasoned business decision.

(Ⅲ) Read the following paragraphs carefully and select the best topic sentence from the four

possible answers that follow each paragraph. Write the letter of the answer you have chosen in the corresponding space on your answer sheet. (6)

1. Topic sentence:

It may even have become too mechanized. Mechanization has already caused quite a few problems and will cause still more. For example, many jobs will have been “automated”. That is, machines will be doing many jobs that people do today. People will no longer be able to learn only one job in their life-times. They will have to learn several. Many of the jobs that young people are doing today will have become unnecessary by the time they are forty. This problem will have grown in 100 years’time.

A) Life today has certainly become better.

B) Life will certainly have become far more mechanized. C) Life in the past was far more difficult.

D) Life on earth is more automated than that on other planets.

2. Topic sentence:

They know that it is caused by a virus, not bacteria. However, bacteria quickly move into the infected nasal passages. Scientists also know that the cold virus is very small (an electron microscope is needed to see it), very durable, and very difficult to identify. In fact, there are probably over one hundred different types of cold viruses. Scientists cannot identify one virus as more responsible for causing colds than other viruses. Therefore, it is difficult for them to develop a vaccine to prevent colds. If you are vaccinated against virus A, you are protected from virus A, but not from viruses X,Y and Z.

A) Today, there are probably hundreds of “cures”throughout the world for the common cold. B) To date, scientists cannot explain the exact cause of the common cold.

C) Up till now, people continue to have their own ideas about the causes and cures of the

common cold.

D) Other societies and other families share some of these ideas about the causes and prevention

of colds.

3. Topic sentence:

We have been using too much gas and petroleum, which has significantly increased the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. As the carbon dioxide concentration goes up, it acts as a sort of green-house. If we increase the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere at the rate it’s been going, global warming has been predicted to be as much as a degree and a half or so over the next ten to

fifteen years. This will have major consequences for the climate and could start to melt the icecaps.

A) People have to face the problem of global warming in the future if they don’t control the

amount of carbon dioxide in the air.

B) Cars do more harm than good to people by giving off so much carbon dioxide. C) The carbon dioxide changes the climate and harms people.

D) When the world becomes warmer, the land will be submerged in the water.

Ⅳ. Rearrange the following numbered sentences so that they will read logically. Put the numbers in proper sequence in the corresponding space on your answer sheet. (5)

1. The basic steps are outlined below. 2. The first step is the picking or plucking.

3. They are then heated and rolled until the color changes. 4. After this they are left to wither and dry for up to a day.

5. When the leaves are ready, they are plucked carefully by hand. 6. It is generally believed that tea was first drunk in ancient China.

7. Different types of tea require variations in this procedure but the basic steps remain the

same.

8. After this change has taken place the leaves are fermented for several hours and then

they are dried.

9. Nowadays people all over the world enjoy this drink, but not everyone knows it is

produced. 2 5 3 7

Ⅴ. Read the following paragraphs and write down the numbers of the four irrelevant sentences in the corresponding space on your answer sheet. (10)

(1) The discovery of America was an accident. (2) Accident would happen at any time. (3) It was the result of Europe’s desire for trade with China and India. (4) In 1492, Christopher Columbus set out under the flag of Spain to find a direct sea route to the rich trading areas of the Far East. (5) He hoped to find a shorter route to China and India. (6) Both these two countries have a long history with natural resources. (7) China was in its Ming Dynasty. (8) So he sailed due west across the Atlantic. (9) Instead, he found two huge continents that were until then unknown to Europe. (10) They blocked his way to the Far East. (11) These two continents were North America and South America. (12) Canada is located in North America.

Ⅵ. Write a note according to the situation described. Write your version in the

corresponding space on your answer sheet. (15)

You are Wang Lan. You need to write a note of invitation according to the situation described. You would like to invite a friend to dinner at the Teachers’ Canteen so that he will be able to meet some other friends he has been longing to see. Make sure to include at least the following points: purpose, time, data, place. (40－70words)

Ⅶ. Write a letter using the information given below. Write your version in the corresponding space on your answer sheet. (25)

You are Zhang Li. You are about to graduate from a university in the coming month. Right now you are doing some job-hunting. Write a letter of job application to a Japanese bank in your city. (120－170words)

Your letter should cover the following points:

1) a brief introduction about yourself, and the time of your graduation;

2) a brief introduction about your study, i.e. your major, the number of years of study and self-evaluation;

3) your motivation of working in a foreign bank; 4) your expectations.