Talks and Conversations
Directions: In this part of the test, you will hear several short talks and conversations. After each of these, you will hear a few questions. Listen carefully, because you will hear the talk or conversation and the questions ONLY ONCE. When you hear a question, read the four answer choices and choose the best answer to that question. Then write the letter of the answer you have chosen in the corresponding space in your ANSWER BOOKLET.
Question 11—14
M: I love this car; I think it’s really cool. It’s called the clean car.
W: Where is it made?
M: It was produced in Sweden. It was designed in Italy. The engine of the vehicle runs on electricity which is generated by water.
W: so the fuel is plain H2O? Fantastic!
M: this car was made for the city. It can be parked in a small space and it reaches a maximum speed of 80 kilometers per hour.
W: It looks very light. What’s it made of?
M : It is made of a special metal which is being used for airplanes and space shuttles.
W: And what’s the price of the clean car?
M : That’s the only problem. It’s still rather expansive.
11. What is the man and the woman talking about?
12. Where is the vehicle produced?
13. Which of the following is true about the vehicle?
14. What is the only problem with the vehicle?
【解析】
本对话讨论的是一种以新能源供能的汽车。采用的是一人提出问题，一人解说的方式。对话中说明了这种车型的产地，速度，材质，价格。用词简单，问题具有针对性，较容易选出正确答案。
关键词：Generate 产生(能量等)Maximum 最大的 可同时记住这个词的动词形式 maximize 使……最大化
Questions 15—18
Once every year for the last few years we visited our friends in a small tiny little village in the middle of France. And they bought a cowshed, and it was literally a cowshed not fit to live in. And they have gradually made it better and renovated it. And it’s in a beautiful position. It’s on the top of a hill. And for miles around you can see this beautiful countryside. And I think only one another house. So you do need a car and you take the car into the tiny little village where there are about 4 or 5 shops and a very nice restaurant where you can go and have a 5 course meal for very little money. And also near is a very big lake, because this place is in the DorDon, and there are lots of lakes there. And we go there most afternoons and wind surf and sail. Also there is a very nice market, French Market, there once a week, where you get lovely parties, lovely fresh fish, really good fresh fish and lovely bowls and baskets which the local people have made. I like this part of France very much. But I think it’s a shame that there are too many English people there.
15. In which part of France do the speaker’s friends live?
16. What was the house before they modernized it?
17. Where is the house located?
18. According to the passage, which of the following statements is not true?
【解析】
本文来自中级口译听力课本。考生在考前准备时必须做到把听力课本上的练习全部做完，并且至少做三套历年真题，这样才能做到准备充分。 本文内容比较生活化，描述了说话人朋友在法国的房子以及其周边环境。听时需要抓住地点信息。总体来说难度不大。
关键词：Cowshed 牛棚 Renovate 翻新 修复
Questions 19—22
W: I like that picture you put up on the wall.
M: Oh, thank you.It’s a photograph that I took on my vacation last year.
W: You took it yourself? I didn’t know you were a photographer.
M: Oh, yes.I’ve been taking pictures for years.
W: It sounds like an interesting hobby.Do you have any more of your pictures here?
M: I have some that I haven’t enlarged.
W: May I see them?
M: Yes, certainly.I haven’t really sorted them out yet. Some of them are faces, just faces of people whom I see when I’m walking around.
W: Do you let them know that you’re taking pictures of them?
M: I try not to.I don’t like pictures of people who pose for the camera.I like people who are going about their daily business without being aware of the camera.
W: And what are the rest of the pictures?
M: A few of them are landscapes. And the rest of them are still life studies that I took in my studio.
W: Oh, you have your own studio? But I suppose you need a lot of equipment.How many cameras do you have?
M: Well, I have several, but I use two of them more than the others.Here, this is the one that I use to get the portrait shots.
W: What’s your other favourite?
M: It’s the one I use for the pictures that I take in my studio. It’s too big to carry around.
W: When are you going to take a picture of me?
M: Some time when you don’t know that I am taking one.
19. What picture did the man put on the wall?
20. How does the man take pictures of people when he is walking around?
21. According to the man, when does he use the bigger camera?
22. What kind of pictures has the man not taken yet?
【解析】
本对话也是采用一人提问，一人描述情况的形式，对一位摄影师的摄影风格和喜好进行了描述。听的时候注意男说话人的回答即可。用词简单，难度不大。
重点词汇和结构：
go about sth 处理，着手做某事
be aware of 知道，意识到
landscape 风景，风景画
Questions 23—26
Traveling by air is one of the major conveniences of modern times. The whole field of aviation is geared to meet our needs for our safe, efficient and fast transportation. Let me give you an account of my recent trip on a major airline to illustrate my point.
I began preparations for my trip early by calling the airline and making a reservation. A few days later, I got the e-mail telling me my flight number and the times of departure from my city and arrival at my destination. I was advised to arrive at the airline terminal an hour before take-off in order to check in for my flight.
On the day of my flight, I went to the ticket counter for my boarding card, and then headed for the waiting area of the gate, from which my airplane will depart. Of course, you have to go through security system first. While I was waiting, I noticed how busy everyone was. The mechanics were checking the plane for last minute repairs, and a large truck was fueling the plane with gasoline to make it ready for take-off.
When my flight was called, I boarded the airplane. I was pleasantly greeted by the flight attendants and ordered light drinks and food. The weather was good, and there was no air turbulence to cause us worry or discomfort.
Although my flight was trouble-free, during the holidays, air travel becomes more hectic. Often, airlines sell too many tickets for a flight and are then overbooked. Some unlucky passengers will be bumped and asked to reschedule on a later flight. Bad weather might also cause a later take-off, and this delay often results in misconnections at the next stop.
On the whole, however, air travel is worth the expense. It is fast, safe and usually reliable.
23. How did the speaker make his flight reservation?
24. Why is the speaker advised to arrive an hour earlier?
25. How was his flight going according to the speaker?
26. Which of the following is not true about air travel?
【解析】
本段讲述说话者乘飞机旅行的全过程，网上订票、取登机牌、安检、登机等无一遗漏，而问题设置也围绕这些常识性内容展开，不涉及细节。如果考生对飞机旅行稍有了解，或者有过坐飞机的经历，即使有些部分没有听清，也能够顺利选出答案。文中出现aviation，gear等个别不常用单词，但不影响理解和答题。
Questions 27—30
W: Robert, I know you have strong feelings about the media.
M: I do. I’ve never had a television in my life. I grew up before television was really common. And I just don’t have time for it. I think you have to look at the “trade off” for whatever you do.
W: What do you mean by “trade off”?
M: What it costs, not only in money, but in terms what it does to your life. I have no real machines in my apartment. Well, I do have an FM radio.
W: What do you listen to?
M: Oh, weather reports, good music. And I have a telephone now. But I lived for eight years without one.
W: Eight years without a telephone?
M: Well, I discovered there were telephones on every street corner, and I really didn’t need one for anything.
W: Do you have a computer?
M: I do not own a computer. Because when I go on the Internet, I’m always disappointed. You see, I think modern technology destroys all the beauty and meaning in life. The machine gets in the way, and I don’t want to be part of a machine. That’s not the way I want to live my life.
W: Aren’t there any good things that the modern media bring us? I don’t know. Closer contact with other people?
M: Well, I do have a confession to make. The only modern form of media I really like is the jet plane. I mean, I know it’s not “the media”, but I really consider it to be a form of communication. It has allowed me to travel all over the world. I get great enjoyment out of travelling. I link up with people from foreign countries. I meet them. I talked to them. And so in that way, the jet plane has improved international communication much more than fax or e-mail will ever do.
W: What an interesting idea. Thank you, Robert.
27. Why has Robert never had a television in his life?
28. Which type of modern machine does Robert have now in his apartment?
29. What does Robert think of modern technology?
30. What does Robert enjoy most?
【解析】
本段对话为记者对名为Robert的男子的采访，主要围绕男子对现代科技尤其是机器的见解。他认为人不该成为机器的一部分，所以甚少接触现代科技，过着自己想过的简单纯朴的生活。但他仍承认飞机能为跨国界的沟通带来益处。话题难度居中，基本无太难的词汇。
Spot Dictation
Good afternoon, folks. Today's discussion topic is online shopping. With only 2 weeks to go before Christmas, buying presents is a high priority for a lot of people. However, this year not so many people are leaving their homes to browse around the shops. These days, lots of people can do their shopping in the comfort of their own home with the help of the Internet. Online shopping is becoming more and more popular for a number of reasons. Prices are often lower online. You don’t have to queue up in busy shops. And you can buy almost any product imaginable with just a few clicks of your mouse. Computer trends are often male-dominated, but this year, women are expected to do more shopping on the Internet than men. It seems women are now more attracted to the convenience of online shopping than they used to be. Average spending online these Christmas by women will rise to ￡240 compared to the slightly lower average ￡233 for men. While the average spend per person on the high street is only ￡197. 17% of Internet users, mainland female are not buying their Christmas gifts online. In the past, a lot of people were reluctant to shop online. Many were worried about the security of entering their card details on the Internet and reliability of the Internet. But as shopping online has become more widespread, these worries have begun to disappear. 45% of Internet users still do have security worries but it hasn’t slowed down the ever increasing numbers of online shoppers. One victim of the online shopping boom is the UK high street. Christmas trading can represent up to 60% of turnover for some stores. Many companies are concerned not enough shoppers are coming through their doors in the run-up to Christmas. As a result there are lots of special offers in the shops.
【点评】
本篇文章主要是在讲网上购物越来越受到人们的青睐。以即将到来的圣诞节为例，更多的人，特别是女性选择在网上购物。过去人们曾担心网上购物可能会泄露隐私，但是现在这种疑虑正在消失。如果说网络购物一定有受害者的话，那只能是英国的购物街了。那里的生意非常不景气。老板们为了吸引顾客，不得不提供很多促销活动。
总体来说这篇文章不难，没有出现特别难的生词，或者是特别复杂的句式。只要能在遇到数字的时候稍加留意，不会出现特别大的困难。
Statements
1. I hear that Mitchell turned down that job. Well the hours were convenient but she wouldn’t be able to make ends meet.
2. The committee finally reached a decision, and I couldn’t have hoped for a better outcome. Everybody says they haven’t seen me like this for weeks.
3. I do understand your problem. It’s not easy for me to deal with it right away but I’ll certainly try as soon as possible.
4. Being a sales representative is harder than you think. Last week I was in Washington, and before that in New York. Next week I have to go to Chicago.
5. I’m getting used to a lot of things at my new job. But I wish the manager would give me some feedback.
6. According to some researchers, men who eat cooked tomatoes 2-3 times a week have up to a 50% reduction in their risk of developing prostate cancer.
7. Despite her success in designing an adventure game series, which had won numerous praises from fans and critics, Jane Jansen considers herself at heart, a writer and a novelist.
8. China is now the third largest producer of films in the world. However, most of the revenue generated was from a handful of the movies produced.
9. If you lost 2% of your body weight in water, the performance level of your brain may start to weaken. Another 4% may leave in feeling dizzy.
10. Since it is a big order, I accept your price of $30. However it’s a very special price and it leaves us little profit.
解析：
Statements 部分没有出现难词，总体难度不高。但是在做题过程中要注意固定搭配、转折、虚拟语气的表达以及对数字的敏感程度。例如Statement1中turn down, 在这里就表示reject;Statement 6和9中就出现了不少数字，每个数字针对哪项内容是需要格外注意的。
Sentence Translation
Directions: In this part of the test, you will hear 5 sentences in English. You will hear the sentences ONLY ONCE. After you have heard each sentence, translate it into Chinese and write your version in the corresponding space in your ANSWER BOOKLET.
1. Walking is a skill people learn as a babies, but it is not as simple as that. In any given year, some 15,000 American pedestrians are killed by motor-vehicles.
行走是人们婴儿时期学会的一种技能，但它远没有这么简单。在任何一年，都会有1万5千名美国行人被机动车撞死。
解析：本句难度中等。需要注意的是it is not as simple as that的翻译。部分同学可能对pedestrian(行人)这个词不够熟悉，造成困扰。
2. When shoppers are waiting in the check-out line, they can be easily tempted to buy chewing gums and other small items on the racks next to the check-out counter.
当购物者在付账队伍中等候时，他们很容易会禁不住诱惑，去买放在结账台旁边货架上的口香糖和其他一些小东西。
解析：本句较简单。内容关于日常生活常识。其中rack(货架、行李架)一词即使没听懂，要大胆猜测。
3. Even though colleges do not train people for some jobs that are in demand, they train people for other important jobs, without which society would find it difficult to exist.
尽管大学不会为一些急需的工作岗位而培养人才，但他们会培养其他一些重要工作岗位上的人才。如果没有这些工作岗位，社会将很难维持下去。
解析：本句较简单。内容是关于大学人才培养，这是近年来的热门话题。其中in demand和exist的翻译要灵活处理。
4. Nearly 7,000 different languages are spoken around the world, but only a handful dominates. In fact, 96% of the worlds’ languages are spoken by just 4% of the people.
世界上有接近七千种语言在使用中，但只有少数是主要语言。实际上，96% 的世界语言只被为数4%的人在使用。
解析：本句比较简单。语言文化常识。其中dominate和are spoken的翻译需灵活处理。
5. Dancing is a cultural universal. In many cultures, it often has a central place in festive or religious events. Dancing may also play an important part in culture.
舞蹈在各个文化中都占有一席之地。在许多文化中，它在节日庆典和宗教事件中都充当了重要的角色。舞蹈同时也是文化的重要一部分。
解析：本句较简单。仍然是文化类。festive or religious events和has a central place的翻译是重点，也是难点。
Passage Translation
Directions: In this part of the test, you will hear 2 English passages. You will hear the passages ONLY ONCE. After you have heard each passage, translate it into Chinese and write your version in the corresponding space in your ANSWER BOOKLET. You may take notes while you are listening.
Passage One
Like food and houses, clothing is a basic human need. One reason people began wearing clothing was for protection. In ancient times, rough garments protected our ancestors from animal bites and kept them from being hurt. Clothing also kept them warm and dry. Today, clothing is also worn for reasons other than protection against the weather. One of the most important reasons is appearance. People choose clothes in styles and color that they like and that they think other people will like.
【参考译文】
就好像食物，住宿一样，穿衣也是人类最基本的一种需求。人们开始穿衣服的原因之一就是保护身体。在古代的时候，做工粗糙的衣物可以保护我们的祖先不被动物咬伤，防止他们受伤。不仅如此，衣服还可以使他们的身体保持温暖干燥。当今，人们穿衣服，已经不再是仅仅出于保暖的原因。当今穿衣最重要的原因之一就是为了打扮自己。人们在选衣服的时候，通常会选择他们自己喜欢的，或者认为别人会喜欢的一些款式和颜色。
【点评】
本段文字是关于人类穿衣方面的文化小知识。这段文字是总分的结构。先一句话概括了穿衣是人类的基本需求。然后分别具体谈了古人穿衣的原因和当今人们选衣服的理由。整体而言，文章内容与考生日常相关性大，比较简单。
Passage Two
The human brain differs from the brains of other animals for one very simple reason. It is by far the most complex thing in the world. The ability to communicate through spoken or written language is an important feature. In human brains, the centers for language and thought are far more developed. While your brain accounts for only about 2% of your body weight. It takes 20% of your body’s oxygen supply, and uses up 20-30% of your body’s energy.
【参考译文】
人类大脑和动物大脑有所不同，有一个很简单的原因：人类大脑至今是世界上最为复杂的东西。其中，能够通过口头语言和书面语言进行交流就是很重要的一个特点。人类大脑的语言中枢和思想中枢远远发达于动物大脑。虽然你的大脑只占你体重的2%，但是它汲取你吸入氧气的20%，消耗你摄入能量的20%-20%。
【点评】
这段文字略带科普性，内容是讲人类大脑。文中the centers for language and thought和accounts for在翻译时需要灵活处理。另外，文中的短语和部分从句也需略为注意。科普性文字是考生的弱项，平时应稍作加强。
If you’ve ever been on a jury, you might have noticed that a funny thing happens the minute you get behind closed doors. Everybody starts talking about themselves. They say what they would have done if they had been the plaintiff or the defendant. being on a jury reminds me why I can’t tolerate talk radio. We Americans seem to have lost the ability to talk about anything but our own experiences. We can’t seem to generalize without stereotyping or to consider evidence that goes against our own experience.
I heard a doctor on a radio show talking about a study that found that exercise reduces the incidence of Alzheimer’s. And caller after caller couldn’t wait to make essentially the opposite point: “well, my grandmother never exercised and she lived to 95.” We are in an age summed up by the saying: “ I experience, therefore I’m right.” Historically, the hallmarks of an uneducated person were the lack of ability to think critically, to use deductive reasoning to distinguish the personal from the universal. Now that seems an apt description of many Americans.
朝气蓬勃，充满活力，丰富多彩的上海是现代中国的缩影。虽然上海的文化遗迹不能与北京媲美，但是上海迷人的城市风貌，风格各异的万国建筑为这座城市注入了无限的魅力。今日之上海，已经成为享誉中外的国际大都市。
漫步在这座日新月异的现代大都市里，你会发现许多精彩的历史亮点，隐现在众多摩天大楼背后的是上海发展变化的轨迹。它们记述了上海自十九世纪末开埠以来，尤其是新中国成立以后，是如何迅猛发展的。
If you’ve ever been on a jury, you might have noticed that a funny thing happens the minute you get behind closed doors. Everybody starts talking about themselves. They say what they would have done if they had been the plaintiff or the defendant. Being on a jury reminds me why I can’t tolerate talk radio. We Americans seem to have lost the ability to talk about anything but our own experiences. We can’t seem to generalize without stereotyping or to consider evidence that goes against our own experience.
I heard a doctor on a radio show talking about a study that found that exercise reduces the incidence of Alzheimer’s. And caller after caller couldn’t wait to make essentially the opposite point: “Well, my grandmother never exercised and she lived to 95.” We are in an age summed up by the saying: “I experience, therefore I’m right.” Historically, the hallmarks of an uneducated person were the lack of ability to think critically, to use deductive reasoning to distinguish the personal from the universal. Now that seems an apt description of many Americans.
【参考译文】
如果你曾经当过陪审员，你可能会注意到一件有趣的事情：一旦关上了门，所有人就开始谈论他们自己。他们会讨论，如果自己是原告或被告的话会做什么。担任陪审员的经历让我明白了我为什么无法忍受谈话性的广播节目。我们美国人似乎只剩下了谈论自己经历的能力。我们似乎无法抛开固有的成见进行总结，也无法客观地分析与自身经历相悖的证据。
我曾听过一位医生在之声节目上讲述一项研究，该研究发现锻炼能降低阿兹海默症(老年痴呆症)的发病率。而此时听众的电话一个接着一个，纷纷迫不及待地表达反对意见：“嗯，我祖母从不锻炼，但她活到了95岁。”我们身处的时代可以用一句话来总结：“我经历过，所以我是对的。”历史上，无知之人的典型特征就是缺乏进行批判性思维、演绎推理和分辨个例与常态的能力。如今，用这句话描述许多美国人似乎恰如其分。
【解析】
文本节选自2011年7月29日的《基督教科学箴言报》(The Christian Science Monitor)，探讨现代人过度依赖个人经验判断、缺乏批判思考的问题。话题相对抽象，难度中上。
作者以担任陪审团的经历引入话题，如果对美国的陪审团制度缺乏了解，也不认识plaintiff和defendant等词汇，则可能在理解上有困难。原文是典型的评论文章，语言介于正式与非正式问题之间，在转换时应注意适当调整句子结构和语序，保证译文通顺易懂。
【原文】
朝气蓬勃，充满活力，丰富多彩的上海是现代中国的缩影。虽然上海的文化遗迹不能与北京媲美，但是上海迷人的城市风貌，风格各异的万国建筑为这座城市注入了无限的魅力。今日之上海，已经成为享誉中外的国际大都市。
漫步在这座日新月异的现代大都市里，你会发现许多精彩的历史亮点，隐现在众多摩天大楼背后的是上海发展变化的轨迹。它们记述了上海自十九世纪末开埠以来，尤其是新中国成立以后，是如何迅猛发展的。
【参考译文】
Shanghai is a dynamic, diverse and stimulating city - the very epitome of modern China. Though Shanghai cannot rival Beijing in cultural heritage, its varied architectural styles and cosmopolitan feel give it a charm of its own. Today's Shanghai has become a world-famous international metropolis.
A walk through this booming city reveals many glimpses of its colorful past. Hidden amongst the skyscrapers are remains of the original Shanghai. They keep on showing how Shanghai has been developing fast and enormously since its opening as a commercial port in the late 19th century, especially after the founding of new China.
【评析】
该篇翻译属于经典话题， 类似于上海城市介绍，考生如果熟悉教材，注意积累相关句型词汇，特别是对“朝气蓬勃、充满活力dynamic, diverse and stimulating、缩影epitome、遗迹heritage、城市风貌cosmopolitan feel、万国建筑varied architectural styles”等常考的表达，应该可以顺利取得高分。
第二篇文章选自The New York Times. 原文题目是 Near Cambodia's Temple Ruins, a Devotion to Learning。这是一篇社会生活类的小新闻，难度不大。
Millions of tourists come here every year to visit the ancient ruins of Angkor Wat, an influx that has helped transform what once resembled a small, laid-back village into a thriving and cosmopolitan town with thumping nightlife and more than 10,000 hotel rooms. But the explosion of the tourism industry here has also done something less predictable. Siem Reap, which had no universities a decade ago, is now Cambodia’s second-largest hub for higher education, after the capital, Phnom Penh.
全文首段呈现Angkor Wat过去和现在的强对比。第二句以but开头，引出核心话题,即伴随旅游业的发展，随之相关的教育业也发展起来。
The sons and daughters of impoverished rice farmers flock here to work as tour guides, receptionists, bartenders and waitresses. When their shifts are over, they study finance, English and accounting.“I never imagined that I could go to university,” said Hem Sophoan, a 31-year-old tour guide who is now studying for his second master’s degree. “There’s been so much change and opportunities for young people.”The establishment of five private universities here is helping to transform the work force in this part of Cambodia, one of Asia’s poorest countries.
第二段指出当地孩子是怎样半工半读的。其中大量直接引语可以略读。
Khim Borin, a 26-year-old tour guide by day and law student by night, says he wants to become a lawyer. But he sometimes has trouble staying awake in class during the high tourist season, when he spends hours scaling vertiginous temple steps and baking in the tropical sun.“I tell my friends, ‘Hit me if you see me falling asleep,”’ he said. The five universities in Siem Reap currently enroll more than 10,000 students. Most of the campuses, which are scattered around the town, are quiet during the day but come to life with the buzz of students’ motorcycles as soon as the sun sets.
第三段继续介绍孩子们的学习状况，尤其是在半工半读过程中遇到的困扰。
The United Nations and foreign aid organizations have had an oversize role in helping steer the country since the Khmer Rouge were driven from power more than three decades ago. But the symbiosis of work and study here came together without any master plan.
It was driven largely by supply and demand: universities opened to cater to the dreams of Cambodia’s youth. University administrators say 80 to 90 percent of the students hold full-time jobs.
第四段but指出这种教育形式的弊端。
Most students pay the annual tuition of $400 themselves. Luckier students get sponsorship from foreigners. On a recent evening, an Argentine insurance saleswoman on vacation here, Maria Theresa Landoni, went to the university to pay the tuition of a young woman who wanted to study tourism.
第五段以事实加例子的形式讲学费问题。
Ms. Landoni struck up a friendship with the driver of her tuk-tuk, the open-air motorized rickshaws popular here, and met his daughter during a visit to the family’s house. “They were very, very, very poor,” Ms. Landoni said. “This is a country that has suffered a lot.”Ms. Landoni said she agreed to pay one semester’s worth of fees for the daughter: $180. “I don’t have a lot of money,” Ms. Landoni said. “But I have enough for that.”
第六段通过例子告诉我们很多当地人的经济状况不好，供孩子读书非常不易。
Many graduates seem to have stayed with their employers and moved up, their degrees having made them better prospects for managerial roles. But it is too early to draw conclusions about whether the degrees are leading to better jobs. The six-year-old University of South-East Asia, for example, has had only two graduating classes, and they were small.
最后一段通过seem和but的强对比，作者对当地的这种教育形式持保留态度。
题目：
1. 细节题，考察对比细节，定位全文首段。
2. 细节题，审题时根据be attributed to，判断考察原因。
3. 细节题，考生定位到第五段即可。
4. 细节题，考生定位到第三段当中的强对比细节即可。
5. 主旨题，考生依据排除法可成功解题。
第三篇文章同样来自The New York Times，原文题目为The pocket calculator, near death. 这是一篇介绍袖珍计算器的文章。
The pocket calculator has been relegated to the role of a graphic icon on digital screens rather than an object in its own right. But in the early 1970s, it was at the forefront of consumer technology.
文章首段讲袖珍计算器过去和现在在科技领域角色转换对比。
A pocket calculator was the closest that most 1970s consumers came to owning anything with computational power, even if all it could do was basic math. The Sinclair Executive was one of a cluster of pocket-size electronic calculators developed at the same time. The first one small enough to fit in a shirt pocket was the Busicom LE-120A Handy, introduced in Japan in early 1971.
第二段以事实加例子的结构呈现，抓住事实，即1970s的袖珍计算器还处在科技前沿。
When the Sinclair Executive was introduced in 1972 by the British entrepreneur Clive Sinclair, it was cheaper, slimmer and looked much slicker than the others, thanks to a gleaming black ABS plastic case designed by Mr. Sinclair's brother, Iain. Design magazine hailed it as "at once a conversation piece, a rich man's plaything and a functional business machine." Dozens of other manufacturers developed their own versions. The pinnacle of calculator design was the exquisite 1977 ET44, by Germany's Braun.
第三段继续介绍袖珍计算器在1970s的发展。
Culturally, the product peaked in 1981 when the German electro band Kraftwerk released a single titled "Pocket Calculator." "I am adding and subtracting," run the lyrics. "I'm controlling and composing. By pressing down a special key, it plays a little melody."
第四段讲袖珍计算器在1981年的新发展。
As personal computers flooded onto the market in the 1980s, calculators, pocket-size and otherwise, seemed steadily less appealing. Clive Sinclair had already turned his attention to other inventions, starting with computing. By the middle of the decade, he moved on to transportation with the Sinclair C5 electric vehicle, which was designed with a single seat but no roof.
第五段讲计算机的普及对袖珍计算器发展的影响。
The pocket calculator is a victim of "Moore's Law," the theory that the number of transistors that can be squeezed onto a microchip will roughly double every two years, increasing computing power at the same rate.
Even tiny digital devices have become so powerful that they can fulfill the functions of numerous products. Like any other product whose function can be replicated by an app, the pocket calculator is threatened with extinction. Digital devices fulfill their function just as effectively, and are more convenient because they do so many other things too.
最后两段讲袖珍计算器的发展受到同类电子产品发展的威胁，有面临消亡的危险。
题目：
1. 细节题，考察全文首段强对比细节。
2. 细节题，这类介绍事物发展进程的文章中first, introduce等引出的细节往往是考点。考生定位全文第二段即可。
3. 细节题，定位第三段，考察比较细节。
4. 细节题，考生可利用对大写人名这类专有名词的敏感度迅速定位。
5. 细节题，考察比较细节。考生可定位文章最后一段解题。