SECTION A CONVERSATIONS
Directions: In this section you will hear several conversations. Listen to the conversations carefully and then answer the questions that follow.
听力原文:M: Have you ever read anything about pseudo sciences?
W: You mean fake sciences? Yes. In fact I was just reading some articles about the brain. I have been looking through some of my roommate's science magazines and I came across an article on phrenology.
M: Phrenology, wasn't that the pseudo science founded-by the scientist Franz Gall?
W: Yes. Gall maintained that people's characters could be determined by the size and the shape of their skulls. For example he though that a pump in a certain place on the head means that the person had the ability of a musician.
M: Really? I wonder what phrenologists would say about the bumps on my head. Would they say I have the abilities to be a doctor, or a plumber, or a thief.
W: Well, I'm not sure exactly what the connection is between a person's abilities and the physical characteristics of the head. But although there's no scientific basis for phrenology, it is true that the head is the center of control for the rest of the body.
M: I guess you are right. Scientists now know that different parts of the brain control different parts of the body.
W: Yes. And I wouldn't be surprised that the scientists one day discover that certain aspect of phrenology has scientific applications.
What is the source of the woman's information?
A professor's lecture.
B. A magazine article.
C. A television program.
D. A doctor's report.
听力原文: About 200 years ago, the United States economy was growing quickly, mainly because of a booming trade in grain and cotton. This trade in grain and cotton went on in areas near or at the coast, or near navigable rivers. It took place there because it was so expensive to transport goods over the roads that existed. They were muddy, narrow, and hard to travel on. At that time, don't forget there was only one continuous road that existed in the US, and it was made up of north to south local country roads, linked together to get one long road. Within a short time, the first east-to-west roads were built. They were called turnpikes. Private companies built these roads, and collected fees from all vehicles traveled on them. Eventually, a network of dirt, gravel or plank roadways connected some major cities and towns. But even these turnpike roads were still very slow, and traveling on them was too costly for farmers. They would spend more money to move their crops than they got by selling them. So, we see that even with some major improvement in roadways, farmers still had to rely on rivers to move their crops to markets.
What's the talk mainly about?
A. The advantages of an economy based on farming.
B. Reasons farmers continued using river transportation.
C. The role of cotton in the United States economy.
D. Improved methods of transporting farm crops.