托福听力中出现的数字主要有三类：小数字，大数字和年份。

三类数字的处理方法可以概括成以下三句话：

下面我们来分别看一下这三类情况。

所谓的小数字是指小于5的数字。当听到小于5的数字时就说明可能要列举一些信息了，而列举的地方是容易出题的，往往是出多选题。所以当听到小数字时，我们就应该画好大括号或者做好多选题的标记，准备记录下来数字后面所列举出来的信息，就算内容不能完全听懂也要记下后面的主干信息，或者重读的词。

举个例子，来看一下下面一段听力材料文字：

T22L3

Now, the advocates of Pleistocene rewilding cite two main goals. One is to help prevent the extinction of some endangered mega fauna by providing new refuges, new habitats for them. The other is to restore some of the evolutionary and ecological potential that has been lost in North American.

文中可以很清晰地听到two main goals，然后画好大括号，尽可能快速记下后面列举出来的两点：prevent extinction of mega fauna和restore evolutionary potential。这段内容对应来下面这道题：

T22L3Q2

According to the professor, what are the two main goals of Pleistocence rewilding?

Click on two answers.

A) To restore some evolutionary processes that ended during the Pleistocene epoch

B) To help prevent the extinction of certain species of mega fauna

C) To increase populations of native animal species in the western United States

D) To create a living laboratory where animal interactions can be observed

只要在笔记过程中把数字后所列举的内容关键词记录下来，我们就能根据这些关键词对应到A，B选项。

如果在听力材料中，数字以重读的方式出现（这些数字往往偏大），有时还会重复提到这个数字，那么此处也会出题，但是所出题目往往会考查该数字所代表的含义。所以在听音频过程中如果遇到这类数字，除了记下数字本身之外，还需要体会下数字所代表的含义，可以简单地在笔记中把体会到的含义用一个中文单字记下来，如：老，多，贵，久等。

举个例子，来看一下下面一段听力材料文字：

T18L1

Another astronomer named Wolf kept track of the Sun for even longer period, 40 years actually. So Wolf did 40 years of research, and Schwabe did 17 years of research. I think there is a lesson there.

在这段听力材料中，出现两个数字17和40，且明显被重读，意味着此处非常可能出一道题考代表的含义。根据这段中的内容Another astronomer named Wolf kept track of the Sun for even longer period，我们可以推测出17和40代表的含义是Wolf和Trobe这两个人投入研究的时间之久。所以我们在做笔记时可以用关键词记录下这段中的核心内容及数字后，在边上把数字代表的含义用中文字“久”或者“长”表示出来。

这段内容对应来下面这道题：

T18L1Q5

What is the professor’s attitude toward Schwabe’s and Wolf’s research?

A) He is surprised that the research is contradictory.

B) He is impressed by how many years were spent on the research.

C) He has difficulty believing that research should take so long.

D) He doubts that the research is given enough credit by modern astronomers.

此题中和时间久相关的是B和C选项，然后根据教授在这段听力材料后发表的观点I think there is a lesson there可知他认为Schwabe和Wolf是模范，学生要向他们学习，因此教授的态度应该是正向的，所以选择B选项，即教授对Schwabe和Wolf两人在研究上投入的时间之久印象深刻。

在托福听力中不会考查具体的年份是哪一年这种无关紧要的小细节，但是年份可以作为一个时间节点，帮助理清文章脉络。也就是说，当听到某一具体年份，我们需要知道这个时间发生了什么事情，而题目的设置也正是针对在某个具体时间点所发生的事情出题的。所以在做笔记时，需要记下大致的时间点，然后接着注意听并在该时间点之后记下这个时间点所发生的事情。总之，笔记要体现文章脉络，这样做题时才能方便在笔记上找到与题干对应的信息，排除与题干所问内容不属于同一层次的选项。

举个例子，来看一下下面一段听力材料文字：

T17L2

Now, when Milankovitch first proposed this theory in the 1920s, many of his colleagues were skeptical. Milankovitch didn’t have any proof. Actually there wouldn’t be any evidence to support his hypothesis until the 1970s, when oceanographers were able to drill deep into the seafloor and collect samples, samples which were then analyzed by geologists.

And from these samples they were able to put together a history of ocean temperatures going back hundreds of thousands of years, and this showed that earth’s climate had changed pretty much the way Milankovitch’s hypothesis suggested it would. So this evidence was pretty strong support for the Milankovitch Hypothesis. And by the 1980s, most people accepted this theory.

However, in the late 1980s, some scientists were exploring Devil’s Hole, which is basically an extensive water-filled cave, far from the ocean, in Nevada, in the western United states. Over millions of years, groundwater left deposits of a mineral called calcite, on the rock within Devil’s Hole. And by studying these calcite deposits, we can determine the climate conditions, the temperatures over the last half million years.

Well, the Devil’s Hole findings contradicted the ones obtained during the 1970s, so basically the question was: Were the ages of one or both the samples were wrong? Or were scientists misunderstanding the significance of the evidence.

Well, in the 1990s, a new study was done on the two samples. And the ocean floor samples were found to be correct, as were the samples from Devil’s Hole. And now it is generally believed that the sample from Devil’s Hole correspond to variations in local climate, in the western United States, rather than global climate changes.

这段听力材料中出现了几个年份，也就是说这段材料是按照时间顺序展开的，讲述了米兰科维奇假说的发展与接受，所以听力笔记要体现这种篇章展开方式。

这段以时间顺序展开的听力材料中有这样一道题：

T17L2Q4

What is the significance of the evidence found on the ocean floor?

A) It negated earlier evidence that Milankovitch found.

B) It led to the development of new methods to measure global climate changes.

C) It helped Milankovitch first formulate his hypothesis.

D) It confirmed Milankovitch’s hypothesis.

题干问的是evidence found on the ocean floor的相关内容，关键词ocean floor对应到笔记中是在1970s这一时间节点后的内容，所以根据笔记内容可知Milankovitch’s hypothesis有了证据支持，所以应该选择D选项。而B选项中new methods to measure global climate changes是文中未提到的信息，应排除。C选项中Milankovitch first formulate his hypothesis是1920s这一时间节点后的内容。A选项negated earlier evidence that Milankovitch found是late 1980s这一时间节点后的内容。所以A和C属于不同层次的信息，应排除。