年後2.27/2.28日兩場托福考試如期進行，深感慶幸，但沒想到被虐了一場。
目前的托福考試閱讀和聽力部分普遍難度不低，即使是重複真題，也是歷年真題中難度較高的，對詞彙量的要求以及長難句的精準理解要求更高，所以請同學們務必紮實備考，不要有僥倖心理，或臨時抱佛腳的心理。
慶幸的是，歷年春季都不是壓分的季節，換言之，是出分的好季節，壓分在申請季，在口語和寫作兩科中體現非常明顯，所以請同學們務必珍惜春季的考試機會。
既然要認真備考，葛老師今天有必要和大家說說該如何正確備考，考試難度增加，歷年真題是最有價值的備考資料。
但是呢，如果只刷真題卻都沒有詳細的講解，很多同學做完真題就放在一邊，不再過問，造成很多真題浪費以及時間浪費。在聽力學科尤其值得大家反覆精聽，熟悉ETS的出題套路，熟悉其中的學科詞彙。
那麼今天我們就來看一篇16-20年連續5年都出現過的聽力真題，也是江博教育託福真題班的同學會練到的文章。
故事的主人公叫 Isamu Noguchi, 這個名字很多同學一看就蒙了，這是誰，啥名字啊，這都不是英文吧。那麼恭喜各位，你們猜對了，這位大哥其實是個日本人，叫野口勇，是美籍日本人，跟我們平時聽到的英文名字的藝術家不太一樣。
一般我們聽到的是歐洲，美國，或者文藝復興時期的意大利人的名字。這位藝術家大哥是非常有名的，二戰結束後移民美國，像日本廣島，長崎的原子彈紀念碑和紀念大橋都是他設計的。
託福歷年真題在考場上的頻度
今年2.27托福考試中出現的閱讀真題原題
Confectioners and Penny Candies in the United States (2016.5.22)
Iron in Ancient Africa (2017.7.15; 2018.3.3)
Nile Floods(2018.9.9)
Biological Rhythms(2017.9.17)
The Australian Megafauna Extinctions(2018.3.11)
Theories of Megafauna Extinction(2018.8.26)
託福真題難度
我們先來看一道聽力題目
2. What does the professor imply about Noguchi’s extensive travel?
A) It allowed Noguchi to benefit from a variety of perspectives.
B) It led Noguchi to reject the use of many common sculptural materials.
C) It introduced Noguchi’s commercial products to a broad audience.
D) It explains why many people find Noguchi’s work controversial.
這道題很多同學一看就知道是暗示題，因為有一個很明顯的imply在題幹中。我們來看一下看原文。
Noguchi travelled extensively during his life. You know, nowadays everything’s very global, of course, but during Noguchi’s time, he was born in the early 1900s, this certainly wasn’t the norm. Traveling exposed Noguchi to a wide range of cultures and artistic styles. It gave him a unique point of view.
從文中我們得知野口勇遊歷廣泛，在他的那個年代是一件非同尋常的事兒。廣泛的遊歷使他能夠接觸到不同的文化和藝術風格，使得他的視角獨一無二。那麼可以推論出什麼呢？沒錯，這樣的經歷能夠讓野口勇從各種各樣的藝術角度中獲益，對應著A選項。其他三個選項在文中完全未提及。
接下來我們再看一道，第3題。
3. What point does the professor make when he discusses Noguchi’s aluminum sculptures?
A) These sculptures were the most accessible of Noguchi’s work.
B) Noguchi was innovative in his choice of materials.
C) Noguchi tried to blur the line between functionality and visual appeal.
D) Galleries sold many of Noguchi’s mass-produced aluminum sculptures.
這道題也很明顯屬於細節題，所聽即所得，所得即所選。我們來看一下原文。
And this freedom is also manifested in his choice of materials. Just as Noguchi never committed to one artistic school, he never committed to one specific medium.
He used quite a broad variety of materials, clay, wood, steel, you name it. Noguchi refused to be bound by the limitations of a specific material. He experimented with what different materials would allow him to do what they wouldn’t. Having different options provided greater possibilities for him to express himself. And in some cases, it seems like people might not have been ready for his experiments. Even though Noguchi was already an established artist, it took him three years to find a gallery that would show his sculptures made from folded sheets of aluminum.
這段比較長，大概的意思其實也不難理解，野口勇他不拘泥於某一種材料來做雕塑，比如例子中提到了他用鋁片來做雕塑。總結一下整段的意思是他在選擇材料上跟別人不一樣，具有創新意識。對應選項B。
