2017年06大学英语六级考试真题第二套

2017年6月大学英语四级真题（卷二）Part I Writing(25minutes) (请于正式开考后半小时内完成该部分，之后将进行听力考试)Directions:For this part,you are allowed30minutes to write an advertisement on your campus website to sell some of the course books you used at college.Your advertisement may include a brief description of their content,their condition,their price and your contact information.You should write at least120 words but no more than180words.Part II Listening Comprehension(30minutes) Section ADirections:In this section,you will hear three news reports.At the end of each news report,you will hear two or three questions.Both the news report and questions will be spoken only once.After you hear questions,you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A),B),C)and D).Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet1with a single line through the centre.Questions1to2are based on the conversation you have just heard.1.A)The majority of drivers prefer to drive and park themselves.B)Human drivers become easily distracted or tired while driving.C)Most drivers feel uncertain about the safety of self-driving cars.D)Most drivers have test driven cars with automatic braking features.2.A)Their drivers would feel safe after getting used to the automatic devices.B)They would be unpopular with drivers who only trust their own skills.C)Their increased comfort levels have boosted their sales.D)They are not actually as safe as automakers advertise.Questions3to4are based on the conversation you have just heard.3.A)Thefts of snowmobile dogs in Alaska.B)A series of injuries to snowmobile drivers.C)Attacks on some Iditarod Race competitors.D)A serious accident in the Alaska sports event.4.A)He stayed behind to look after his injured dogs.B)He has won the Alaska Iditarod Race four times.C)He received a minor injury in the Iditarod Race.D)He has quit the competition in Alaska for good.Questions5to7are based on the conversation you have just heard.5.A)It sank into the sea due to overloading.B)It ran into Nicaragua’s Big Corn Island.C)It disappeared between two large islands.D)It turned over because of strong winds.6.A)13.B)25.C)30.D)32.7.A)He has helped with the rescue effort.B)He is being investigated by the police.C)He was drowned with the passengers.D)He is among those people missing.Section BDirections:In this section,you will hear two long conversations.At the end of each conversation, you will hear four questions.Both the conversation and the questions will be spoken only once.After you hear a question,you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A),B),C)and D).Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet1with a single line through the centre.Questions8to11are based on the conversation you have just heard.8.A)At a shopping centre.B)At a community college.C)At an accountancy firm.D)At an IT company.9.A)Helping out with data input.B)Arranging interviews.C)Sorting application forms.D)Making phone calls.10.A)He enjoys using computers.B)He needs the money badly.C)He wants to work in the city centre.D)He has relevant working experience.11.A)Purchase some business suits.B)Learn some computer language.C)Improve his programming skills.D)Review some accountancy terms.Questions12to15are based on the conversation you have just heard.12.A)They are keen on high technology.B)They are poor at technology skills.C)They often listen to National Public Radio.D)They feel superior in science and technology.13.A)Japanese.B)Germans.C)Poles.D)Americans.14.A)Emailing.B)Texting.C)Science.D)Literacy.15.A)It is undergoing a drastic reform.B)It lays emphasis on creative thinking.C)It has much room for improvement.D)It prioritizes training of practical skills.Section CDirections:In this section,you will hear three passages of lectures or talks followed by three or four questions.The recordings will be played only once.After you hear a question,you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A),B),C)and D).Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet1with a single line through the centre.Questions16to18are based on the passage you have just heard.16.A)They have small roots.B)They grow white flowers.C)They taste like apples.D)They come from Central Africa.17.A)They turned from white to purple in color.B)They became popular on the world market.C)They became an important food for humans.D)They began to look like modern-day carrots.18.A)They were found quite nutritious.B)There were serious food shortages.C)People discovered their medicinal value.D)Farm machines helped lower their prices.Questions19to21are based on the passage you have just heard.19.A)She could update her family any time she liked.B)She could call up her family whenever she likedC)She could locate her friends wherever they were.D)She could download as many pictures as she liked.20.A)She liked to inform her friends about her success.B)She enjoyed reading her friends’status updates.C)She felt quite popular among them.D)She felt she was a teenager again.21.A)She could barely respond to all her500Facebook friends.B)She spent more time updating her friends than her family.C)She could barely balance Facebook updates and her work.D)She didn’t seem to be doing as well as her Facebook friends. Questions22to25are based on the passage you have just heard.22.A)They have strong muscles.B)They live a longer life than horses.C)They eat much less in winter.D)They can work longer than donkeys.23.A)It was a pet of a Spanish king.B)It was bought by George Washington.C)It was brought over from Spain.D)It was donated by a U.S.Ambassador.24.A)They met and exchanged ideas on animal breeding.B)They participated in a mule-driving competition.C)They showed and traded animals in the market.D)They fed mules with the best food they could find.25.A)The wider use of horses.B)The arrival of tractors.C)A shrinking animal trade.D)A growing donkey population.PartⅢReading Comprehension(40minutes)Section ADirections:In this section,there is a passage with ten blanks.You are required to select one word for each blank from a list of choices given in a word bank following the passage.Read the passage through carefully before making your choices,Each choice in the bank is identified by a letter.Please mark the corresponding letter for each item on Answer Sheet2with a single line through the centre.You may not use any of the words in the bank more than once.Questions26to35are based on the following passage.As if you needed another reason to hate the gym,it now turns out that exercise can exhaust not only your muscles,but also your eyes.Fear not,however,for coffee can stimulate them again.During (26)_______exercise,our muscles tire as they run out of fuel and build up waste products.Muscle performance can also be affected by a(27)_______called"central fatigue,”in which an imbalance in the body’s chemical messengers prevents the central nervous system from directing muscle movements （28)_______.It was not known,however,whether central fatigue might also affect motor systems not directly(29)_______in the exercise itself,such as those that move the eyes.To find out,researchers gave11volunteer cyclists a carbohydrate(碳水化合物的）(30)_______either with a moderate dose of caffeine(咖啡因)，which is known to stimulate the central nervous system,or as a placebo(安慰剂）without,during3hours of(31)_______.After exercising,the scientists tested the cyclists with eyetracking cameras to see how well their brains could still(32)_______their visual system.The team found that exercise reduced the speed of rapid eye movements by about8%,(33)_______their ability to capture new visual information.The caffeine,the equivalent of two strong cups of coffee,was (34)_______to reverse this effect,with some cyclists even displaying(35)_______eye movement speeds. So it might be a good idea to get someone else to drive you home after that marathon.A)cautiously B)commit C)control D)cyclingE)effectively F)increased G)involved H)limitedI)phenomenon J)preventing K)sensitive L)slowingSection BDirections:In this section,you are going to read a passage with ten statements attached to it.Each statement contains information given in one of the paragraphs.Identify the paragraph from which the information is derived.You may choose a paragraph more than once.Each paragraph is marked with a letter.Answer the questions by marking the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet2.Team spirit[A]Teams have become the basic building blocks of organizations.Recruitment advertisements routinely call for“team players”.Business schools grade their students in part on their performance in group projects.Office managers knock down walls to encourage team building.Teams are as old as civilization,of course:even Jesus had12co-workers.But a new report by Deloitte,“Global Human Capital Trends”,based on a survey of more than7,000executives in over130countries,suggests that the fashion for teamwork has reached a new high.Almost half of those surveyed said their companies were either in the middle of restructuring or about to embark on(开始）it;and for the most part,restructuring meant putting more emphasis on teams.[B]Companies are abandoning conventional functional departments and organising employees into cross-disciplinary teams that focus on particular products,problems or customers.These teams are gaining more power to run their own affairs.They are also spending more time working with each other rather than reporting upwards.Deloitte argues that a new organisational form is on the rise:a network of teams is replacing the conventional hierarchy(等级体制).[C]The fashion for teams is driven by a sense that the old way of organising people is too rigid for both the modem marketplace and the expectations of employees.Technological innovation places greater value on agility(灵活性).John Chambers,chairman of Cisco Systems Inc.,a worldwide leader in electronics products,says that“we compete against market transitions(过渡)，not competitors.Product transitions used to take five or seven years;now they take one or two.”Digital technology also makes it easier for people to co-ordinate their activities without resorting to hierarchy.The“millennials”(千禧一代)who will soon make up half the workforce in rich countries were raised from nursery school onwards to work in groups.[D]The fashion for teams is also spreading from the usual corporate suspects(such as GE and IBM) to some more unusual ones.The Cleveland Clinic,a hospital operator,has reorganised its medical staffinto teams to focus on particular treatment areas;consultants,nurses and others collaborate closely instead of being separated by speciality(专业)and rank.The US Army has gone the same way.In his book,“Team of Teams'General Stanley McChrystal describes how the army’s hierarchical structure hindered its operations during the early stages of the Iraq war.His solution was to learn something from the insurgents it was fighting:decentralise authority to self-organising teams.[E]A good rule of thumb is that as soon as generals and hospital administrators jump on a management bandwagon,it is time to ask questions.Leigh Thompson of Kellogg School of Management in Illinois warns that,‘Teams are not always the answer—teams may provide insight,creativity and knowledge in a way that a person working independently cannot;but teamwork may also lead to confusion,delay and poor decision-making.”The late Richard Hackman of Harvard University once argued,“I have no question that when you have a team,the possibility exists that it will generate magic, producing something extraordinary...But don’t count on it.”[F]Hackman(who died in2013)noted that teams are hampered by problems of co-ordination and motivation that chip away at the benefits of collaboration.High-flyers forced to work in teams may be undervalued and free-riders empowered.Groupthink may be unavoidable.In a study of120teams of senior executives,he discovered that less than10%of their supposed members agreed on who exactly was on the team.If it is hard enough to define a team’s membership,agreeing on its purpose is harder still.[G]Profound changes in the workforce are making teams trickier to manage.Teams work best if their members have a strong common culture.This is hard to achieve when,as is now the case in many big firms,a large proportion of staff are temporary contractors.Teamwork improves with time:America’s National Transportation Safety Board found that73%of the incidents in its civil-aviation database occurred on a crew’s first day of flying together.However,as Amy Edmondson of Harvard points out, organisations increasingly use“team”as a verb rather than a noun:they form teams for specific purposes and then quickly disband them.[H]The least that can be concluded from this research is that companies need to think harder about managing teams.They need to rid their minds of sentimentalism(感情用事)：the most successful teams have leaders who are able to set an overall direction and take immediate action.They need to keep teams small and focused:giving in to pressure to be more“inclusive”is a guarantee of dysfunction.Jeff Bezos, Amazon’s boss,says that“If I see more than two pizzas for lunch,the team is too big.”They need to immunize teams against group-think:Hackman argued that the best ones contain“deviants”(离经叛道者）who are willing to do something that maybe upsetting to others.[I]A new study of12,000workers in17countries by Steelcase,a furniture-maker which also does consulting,finds that the best way to ensure employees are“engaged”is to give them more control over where and how they do their work―which may mean liberating them from having to do everything in collaboration with others.[J]However,organisations need to learn something bigger than how to manage teams better:they need to be in the habit of asking themselves whether teams are the best tools for the job.Teambuilding skills are in short supply:Deloitte reports that only12%of the executives they contacted feel they understand the way people work together in networks and only21%feel confident in their ability to build cross-functional teams.Loosely managed teams can become hotbeds of distraction―employees routinely complain that they can’t get their work done because they are forced to spend too much time in meetings or compelled to work in noisy offices.Even in the age of open-plan offices and social networks some work is best left to the individual.注意：此部分试题请在答题卡2上作答。

2017年6月六级真题二Section ADirections: In this section, you will hear two long conversations. At the end of each conversation, you will hear four questions. Both the conversation and the questions will be spoken only once. After you hear a question, you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A, B, C and D. Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.Questions 1 to 4 are based on the conversation you have just heard.1. A. He would feel insulted.B. He would feel very sad.C. He would be embarrassed.D. He would be disappointed.2. A. They are worthy of a prize.B. They are of little value.C. They make good reading.D. They need improvement.3. A. He seldom writes a book straight through.B. He writes several books simultaneously.C. He draws on his real-life experiences.D. He often turns to his wife for help.4. A. Writing a book is just like watching a football match.B. Writers actually work every bit as hard as footballers.C. He likes watching a football match after finishing a book.D. Unlike a football match, there is no end to writing a book.Questions 5 to 8 are based on the conversation you have just heard.5. A. Achievements of black male athletes in college.B. Financial assistance to black athletes in college.C. High college dropout rates among black athletes.D. Undergraduate enrollments of black athletes.6. A. They display great talent in every kind of game.B. They are better at sports than at academic work.C. They have difficulty finding money to complete their studies.D. They make money for the college but often fail to earn a degree.7. A. About 15%.B. Around 40%.C. Slightly over 50%.D. Approximately 70%.8. A. Coaches lack the incentive to graduate them.B. College degrees do not count much to them.C. They have little interest in academic work.D. Schools do not deem it a serious problem.Section BDirections: In this section, you will hear two passages. At the end of each passage, you will hear three or four questions. Both the passage and the questions will be spoken only once.After you hear a question, you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A, B, C and D. Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.Questions 9 to 12 are based on the passage you have just heard.9. A. Marketing strategies.B. Holiday shopping.C. Shopping malls.D. Online stores.10. A. About 50% of holiday shoppers.B. About 20-30% of holiday shoppers.C. About 136 million.D. About 183.8 million.11. A. They have fewer customers.B. They find it hard to survive.C. They are thriving once more.D. They appeal to elderly customers.12. A. Better quality of consumer goods.B. Higher employment and wages.C. Greater varieties of commodities.D. People having more leisure time.Questions 13 to 15 are based on the passage you have just heard.13. A. They are new species of big insects.B. They are overprescribed antibiotics.C. They are life-threatening diseases.D. They are antibiotic-resistant bacteria.14. A. Antibiotics are now in short supply.B. Many infections are no longer curable.C. Large amounts of tax money are wasted.D. Routine operations have become complex.15. A. Facilities.B. Expertise.C. Money.D. Publicity.Section CDirections: In this section, you will hear three recordings of lectures or talks followed by three or four questions. The recordings will be played only once. After you hear a question, you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A, B, C and D. Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.Questions 16 to 18 are based on the recording you have just heard.16. A. It is accessible only to the talented.B. It improves students' ability to think.C. It starts a lifelong learning process.D. It gives birth to many eminent scholars.17. A. They encourage academic democracy.B. They promote globalization.C. They uphold the presidents' authority.D. They protect students' rights.18. A. His thirst for knowledge.B. His eagerness to find a job.C. His contempt for authority.D. His potential for leadership.Questions 19 to 22 are based on the recording you have just heard.19. A. Few people know how to retrieve information properly.B. People can enhance their memory with a few tricks.C. Most people have a rather poor long-term memory.D. People tend to underestimate their mental powers.20. A. They present the states in a surprisingly different order.B. They include more or less the same number of states.C. They are exactly the same as is shown in the atlas.D. They contain names of the most familiar states.21. A. Focusing on what is likely to be tested.B. Having a good sleep the night before.C. Reviewing your lessons where the exam is to take place.D. Making sensible decisions while choosing your answers.22. A. Discover when you can learn best.B. Change your time of study daily.B. Give yourself a double bonus afterwards.D. Follow the example of a marathon runner.Questions 23 to 25 are based on the recording you have just heard.23. A. He is a politician.B. He is a businessman.C. He is a sociologist.D. He is an economist.24. A. In slums.B. In Africa.C. In pre-industrial societies.D. In developing countries.25. A. They have no access to health care, let alone entertainment or recreation.B. Their income is less than 50% of the national average family income.C. They work extra hours to have their basic needs met.D. Their children cannot afford to go to private schools.答案：1. A. He would feel insulted.2. B. They are of little value.3. A. He seldom writes a book straight through.4. D. Unlike a football match, there is no end to writing a book.5. C. High college dropout rates among black athletes.6. D. They make money for the college but often fail to earn a degree.7. C. Slightly over 50%.8. A. Coaches lack the incentive to graduate them.9. B. Holiday shopping.10. D. About 183.8 million.11. C. They are thriving once more.12. B. Higher employment and wages.13. D. They are antibiotic-resistant bacteria.14. D. Routine operations have become complex.15. C. Money.16. B. It improves students' ability to think.17. A. They encourage academic democracy.18. A. His thirst for knowledge.19. D. People tend to underestimate their mental powers.20. B. They include more or less the same number of states.21. C. Reviewing your lessons where the exam is to take place.22. A. Discover when you can learn best.23. C. He is a sociologist.24. D. In developing countries.25. B. Their income is less than 50% of the national average family income.。

2017年6月大学英语四级真题及答案(二)Part I Writing (25 minutes)(请于正式开考后半小时内完成该部分，之后将进行听力考试) Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write an advertisement on your campus website to sell a bicycle you used at college. Your advertisement may include its brand, features,condition and price, and your contact information. You should write at least 120 words but no more than 180 words.Part II Listening Comprehension (30 minutes)Section ADirections: In this section, you will hear three news reports. At the end of each news report, you will hear two or three questions. Both the news report and questions will be spoken only once. After you hear questions, you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A), B), C) and D). Then mark thecorresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.注意：此部分试题请在答题卡1上作答。

2017年06月大学英语六级考试真题(第2套) Part I Writing (30 minutes)Directions: Suppose you are asked to give advice on whether to attend college at home or abroad, write an essay to state your opinion. You are required to write at least 150 words but no more than 200 words.Part II Listening Comprehension说明：2017年6月大学英语六级真题全国共考了两套听力。

本套（即第三套）的听力材料与第一套完全一样，只是选项的顺序不同而已，故本套不再重复给出。

Part III Reading Comprehension (40 minutes)Section ADirections: In this section, there is a passage with ten blanks. You are required to select one word for each blank from a list of choices given in a word bank following the passage. Read the passage through carefully before making your choices. Each choice in the bank is identified by a letter. Please mark the corresponding letter for each item on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre. You may not use any of the words in the bank more than once.Half of your brain stays alert and prepared for danger when you sleep in a new place, a study has revealed. This phenomenon is often __26__ to as the “first-night-effect”. Researchers from Brown University found that a network in the left hemisphere of the brain “remained more active” than the network in the right side of the brain. Playing sounds into the right ears (stimulating the left hemisphere) of __27__ was more likely to wake them up than if the noises were played into their left ear.It was __28__ observed that the left side of the brain was more active during deep sleep. When the researchers repeated the laboratory experiment on the second and third nights they found the left hemisphere could not be stimulated in the same way during deep sleep. The researchers explained that the study demonstrated when we are in a __29__ environment the brain partly remains alert so that humans can defend themselves against any __30__ danger.The researc hers believe this is the first time that the “first-night-effect” of different brain states has been __31__ in humans. It isn’t, however, the first time it has ever been seen. Some animal __32__ also display this phenomenon. For example, dolphins, as well as other __33__ animals, shut down one hemisphere of the brain when they go to sleep. A previous study noted that dolphins always __34__ control their breathing. Without keeping the brain active while sleeping, they would probably drown. But, as the human study suggest, another reason for dolphins keeping their eyes open during sleep is that they can look out for __35__ while asleep. It also keeps their physiological processes working.A) classified B) consciously C) dramatically D) exotic E) identifiedF) inherent G) marine H) novel I) potential J) predatorsK) referred L) species M) specifically N) varieties O) volunteersSection BDirections: In this section, you are going to read a passage with ten statements attached to it. Each statement contains information given in one of the paragraphs. Identify the paragraph from which the information is derived. You may choose a paragraph more than once. Each paragraph is marked with a letter. Answer the questions by marking the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2.Elite Math Competitions Struggle to Diversify Their Talent Pool[A] Interest in elite high school math competitions has grown in recent years, and in light of last summer’s U.S. win at the International Math Olympiad (IMO)---the first for an American team in more than two decades—the trend is likely to continue.[B] But will such contests, which are overwhelmingly dominated by Asian and white students from middle-class and affluent families, become any more diverse? Many social and cultural factors play roles in determining which promising students get on the path toward international math recognition. But efforts are in place to expose more black, Hispanic, and low-income students to advanced math, in the hope that the demographic pool of high-level contenders will eventually begin to shift and become less exclusive.[C] “The challenge is if certain types of people are doing something, it’s difficult for other people to break into it,” said Po-Shen Loh, the he ad coach of last year’s winning U.S. Math Olympiad team. Participation grows through friends and networks and if “you realize that’s how they’re growing, you can start to take action” and bring in other students, he said.[D] Most of the training for advanced-math competitions happens outside the confines of the normal school day. Students attend after-school clubs, summer camps, online forums and classes, and university-based “math circles”, to prepare for the competitions.[E] One of the largest feeders for high school math competitions—including those that eventually lead to the IMO—is a middle school program called Math Counts. About 100,000 students around the country participate in the program’s competition series, which culminates in a national game-show-style contest held each May. The most recent one took place last week in Washington, D.C. Students join a team through their schools, which provide a volunteer coach and pay a nominal fee to send students to regional and state competitions. The 224 students who make it to the national competition get an all-expenses- paid trip.[F] Nearly all members of last year’s winning U.S. IMO team took part in Math Counts as middle school students, as did Loh, the coach. “Middle school is an important age because students have enough math capability to solve advanced problems, but they haven’t really decided what they want to do with their lives,” said Loh. “They often get hooked then.”[G] Another influential feeder for advanced-math students is an online school called Art of Problem Solving, which began about 13 years ago and now has 15,000 users. Students use forums to chat, play games, and solve problems together at no cost, or they can pay a few hundred dollars to take courses with trained teachers. According to Richard Rusczyk, the company founder, the six U.S. team members who competed at the IMO last year collectively took more than 40 courses on the site. Parents of advanced- math students and Math Counts coaches say the children are on the website constantly.[H] There are also dozens of summer camps—many attached to universities—that aim to prepare elite math students. Some are pricey---a three-week intensive program can cost $4,500 or more—but most offer scholarships. The Math Olympiad Summer Training Program is a three-week math camp held by the Mathematical Association of America that leads straight to the international championship and is free for those who make it. Only about 50 students are invited based on their performance on written tests and at the USA Math Olympiad.[I] Students in university towns may also have access to another lever for involvement in accelerated math: math circles. In these groups, which came out of an Eastern European tradition of developing young talent, professors teach promising K-12 students advanced mathematics for several hours after school or on weekends. The Los Angeles Math Circle, held at the University of California, Los Angeles, began in 2007 with 20 students and now has more than 250. “These math circles cost nothing, or they’re very cheap for students to get involved in, but you have to know about them,” said Rusczyk. “Most people would love to get students from more underserved populations, but they just can’t get them in the door. Part of it is communication; par t of it is transportation.”[J] It’s no secret in the advanced-math community that diversity is a problem. According to Mark Saul, the director of competitions for the Mathematical Association of America, not a single African-American or Hispanic student---and only a handful ofgirls---has ever made it to the Math Olympiad team in its 50 years of existence. Many schools simply don’t prioritize academic competitions. “Do you know who we have to beat?” asked Saul. “The football team, the basketball team---tha t’s our competition for resources, student time, attention, school dollars, parent efforts, school enthusiasm.”[K] Teachers in low-income urban and rural areas with no history of participating in math competitions may not know about advanced-math opportunities like Math Counts—and those who do may not have support or feel trained to lead them.[L] But there are initiatives in place to try to get more underrepresented students involved in accelerated math. A New York City-based nonprofit called Bridge to Enter Mathematics runs a residential summer program aimed at getting underserved students，mostly black and Hispanic, working toward math and science careers. The summer after 7th grade, students spend three weeks on a college campus studying advanced math for seven hours a day. Over the next five years, the group helps the students get into other elite summer math programs, high-performing high schools, and eventually college. About 250 students so far have gone through the program, which receives funding from the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation.[M] “If you look at a lot of low-income communities in the United States, there are programs that are serving them, but they’ re primarily centered around ‘Let’s get these kids’ grades up’, and not around ‘Let’s get these kids access to the same kinds of opportunities as more-affluent kids,’” said Daniel Zaharopol, the founder and executive director of the program. “We’re trying to create that pathway.” Students apply to the program directly through their schools. “We want to reach parents who are not plugged into the system,” said Zaharopol.[N] In the past few years, Math Counts added two new middle school programs to try to diversify its participant pool---the National Math Club and the Math Video Challenge. Schools or teachers who sign up for the National Math Club receive a kit full of activities and resources, but there’s no special teacher training and no competition attached.[O] The Math Video Challenge is a competition, but a collaborative one. Teams of four students make a video illustrating a math problem and its real-world application. After the high-pressure Countdown round at this year’s national Math Counts competition, in which the top 12 students went head to head solving complex problems in rapid fire, the finalists for the Math Video Challenge took the stage to show their videos. The demographics of that group looked quite different from those in the competition round---of the 16 video finalists, 13 were girls and eight were African-American students. The video challenge does not put individual students on the hot seat---so it’s less intimidating by design. It also adds the element of artistic creativity to attract a new pool of students who may not see themselves as “math people”.36. Middle school is a crucial period when students may become keenly interested in advanced mathematics.37. Elite high school math competitions are attracting more interest throughout the United States.38. Math circles provide students with access to advanced-math training by university professors.39. Students may take advantage of online resources to learn to solve math problems.40. The summer program run by a nonprofit organization has helped many underserved students learn advanced math.41. Winners of local contests will participate in the national math competition for free.42. Many schools don’t place academic competitions at the top of their priority list.43. Contestants of elite high school math competitions are mostly Asian and white students from well-off families.44. Some math training programs primarily focus on raising students’ math scores.45. Some intensive summer programs are very expensive but most of them provide scholarships.Section CDirections: There are 2 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A), B), C) and D). You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre.Passage OneQuestions 46 to 50 are based on the following passage.We live today indebted to McCardell, Cashin, Hawes, Wilkins, and Maxwell, and other women who liberated American fashion from the confines of Parisian design. Independencecame in tying, wrapping, storing, harmonizing, and rationalizing that wardrobe. These designers established the modem dress code, letting playsuits and other active wear outfits suffice for casual clothing, allowing pants to enter the wardrobe, and prizing rationalism and versatility in dress, in contradiction to dressing for an occasion or allotment of the day. Fashion in America was logical and answerable to the will of the women who wore it. Implicitly or explicitly, American fashion addressed a democracy, whereas traditionalParis-based fashion was prescriptive and imposed on women, willing or not.In an earlier time, American fashion had also followed the dictates of Paris, or even copied and pirated specific French designs. Designer sportswear was not modeled on that of Europe, as “modem art” would later be; it was genuinely invented and developed in America. Its designers were not high-end with supplementary lines. The design objective and the business commitment were to sportswear, and the distinctive traits were problem-solving ingenuity and realistic lifestyle applications. Ease of care was most important: summer dresses and outfits, in particular, were chiefly cotton, readily capable of being washed and pressed at home. Closings were simple, practical, and accessible, as the modem woman depended on no personal maid to dress her. American designers prized resourcefulness and the freedom of women who wore the clothing.Many have argued that the women designers of this time were able to project their own clothing values into a new style. Of course, much of this argument in the 1930s-40s was advanced because there was little or no experience in justifying apparel(服装) on the basis of utility. If Paris was cast aside, the tradition of beauty was also to some degree slighted. Designer sportswear would have to be verified by a standard other than that of pure beauty; the emulation of a designer’s life in designer sportswear was a crude version of this relationship. The consumer was ultimately to be mentioned as well, especially by the likes of Dorothy Shaver, who could point to the sales figures at Lord & Taylor.Could utility alone justify the new ideas of the American designers? Fashion is often regarded as a pursuit of beauty, and some cherished fashion’s trivial relationship to the fine arts. What the designers of the American sportswear proved was that fashion is a genuine design art, answering to the demanding needs of service. Of course these practical, insightful designers have determined the course of late twentieth-century fashion. They were the pioneers of gender equity, in their useful, adaptable clothing, which was both made for the masses and capable of self-expression.46. What contribution did the women designers make to American fashion?A) They made some improvements on the traditional Parisian design.B)They formulated a dress code with distinctive American features.C)They came up with a brand new set of design procedures.D)They made originality a top priority in their fashion design.47. What do we learn about American designer sportswear?A) It imitated the European model.B) It laid emphasis on women’s beauty.C) It represented genuine American art.D) It was a completely new invention.48. What characterized American designer sportswear?A) Pursuit of beauty. B) Decorative closings.C) Ease of care. D) Fabric quality.49. What occurred in the design of women’s apparel in America during the 1930s-40s?A) A shift of emphasis from beauty to utility.B) The emulation of traditional Parisian design.C)A search for balance between tradition and novelty.D)The involvement of more women in fashion design.50. What do we learn about designers of American sportswear?A)They catered to the taste of the younger generation.B) They radically changed people’s concept of beauty.C)They advocated equity between men and women.D) They became rivals of their Parisian counterparts.Passage TwoQuestions 51 to 55 are based on the following passage.Massive rubbish dumps and sprawling landfills constitute one of the more uncomfortable impacts that humans have on wildlife. They have led some birds to give up on migration. Instead of flying thousands of miles in search of food, they make the waste sites their winter feeding grounds.Researchers in Germany used miniature GPS tags to track the migrations of 70 white storks (鹳) from different sites across Europe and Asia during the first five months of their lives. While many birds travelled along well-known routes to warmer climates, others stopped short and spent the winter on landfills, feeding on food waste, and the multitudes of insects that thrive on the dumps.In the short-term, the birds seem to benefit from overwintering(过冬) on rubbish dumps. Andrea Flack of the Max Planck Institute found that birds following traditional migration routes were more likely to die than German storks that flew only as far as northern Morocco, and spent the winter there on rubbish dumps. “For the birds it’s a very convenient way to get food. There are huge clusters of organic waste they can feed on,” said Flack. The meals are not particularly appetising, or even safe. Much of the waste is discarded rotten meat, mixed in with other human debris such as plastic bags and old toys.“It’s very risky. The birds can easily eat pieces of plastic or rubber ban ds and they can die,” said Flack. “And we don’t know about the long-term consequences. They might eat something toxic and damage their health. We cannot estimate that yet.”The scientists tracked white storks from different colonies in Europe and Africa. The Russian, Greek and Polish storks flew as far as South Africa, while those from Spain, Tunisia and Germany flew only as far as the Sahel.Landfill sites on the Iberian peninsula have long attracted local white storks, but all of the Spanish birds tagged in the study flew across the Sahara desert to the western Sahel. Writing in the journal, the scientists describe how the storks from Germany were clearly affected by the presence of waste sites, with four out of six birds that survived for at least five months overwintering on rubbish dumps in northern Morocco, instead of migrating to the Sahel.Flack said it was too early to know whether the benefits of plentiful food outweighed the risks of feeding on landfills. But that’s not the only uncertainty. Migrat ing birds affect ecosystems both at home and at their winter destinations, and disrupting the traditional routes could have unexpected side effects. White storks feed on locusts (蝗虫) and other insects that can become pests if their numbers get out of hand. “They provide a useful service,” said Flack.51. What is the impact of rubbish dumps on wildlife?A) They have forced white storks to search for safer winter shelters.B)They have seriously polluted the places where birds spend winter.C)They have accelerated the reproduction of some harmful insects.D)They have changed the previous migration habits of certain birds.52. What do we learn about birds following the traditional migration routes?A) They can multiply at an accelerating rate.B) They can better pull through the winter.C) They help humans kill harmful insects.53. What does Andrea Flack say about the birds overwintering on rubbish dumps?A) They may end up staying there permanently.B) They may eat something harmful.C) They may evolve new feeding habits.D) They may have trouble getting adequate food.54. What can be inferred about the Spanish birds tagged in the study?A) They gradually lose the habit of migrating in winter.B)They prefer rubbish dumps far away to those at home.C)They are not attracted to the rubbish dumps on their migration routes.D)They join the storks from Germany on rubbish dumps in Morocco.55. What is scientists’ other concern about white storks feeding on landfills?A) The potential harm to the ecosystem.B) The genetic change in the stork species.C) The spread of epidemics to their homeland.D) The damaging effect on bio-diversity.Part IV Translation (30 minutes)Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to translate a passage from Chinese into English. You should write your answer on Answer Sheet 2.明朝统治中国276年，被人们描绘成人类历史上治理有序、社会稳定的最伟大的时代之一。

大学英语六级卷二真题2017年6月(总分：710.00，做题时间：120分钟)一、Part I Writing (30 minutes)(总题数：1，分数：106.50)1.Directions:Suppose you are asked to give advice on whether to major in science or humanities at college， write an essay to state your opinion. You are required to write at least 150 words but no more than 200 words.（分数：106.50）__________________________________________________________________________________________正确答案：(Whether to Major in Science or Humanities at College? Nowadays, as the whole society place increasingly considerable value on education, the question of whether to major in science or humanities at college is not only a concern for students, but also a focal point for parents. Some believe that to dig into science is a better choice because it promises us a brighter future; others may hold the opposite view that humanity knowledge is the foundation of humanity quality. As for me, both arguments are justified. However, I believe that the important thing is not about which subject is better, what matters most is people who will have to make the decision. In other words, we should not lay one-sided emphasis on the advantages of either subject; on the contrary, the students themselves, their interests and preferences, pros and cons are supposed to be taken into consideration. For example, if a student is more adept at humanity and that’s wher e his real interests lie, then he should dedicate to the study on humanity. Whether to major in science or humanities is a critical choice for every student because its result has a profound influence on personal career development and life style. Thus we should figure out what we really care about so as not to put the cart before the horse.)解析：二、Part II Listening Comprehension (30 minutes) (总题数：2，分数：56.80) Questions 1 to 4 are based on the conversation you have just heard.Questions 1 to 4 are based on the conversation you have just heard.（分数：28.40）A.Doing enjoyable work.B.Having friendly colleagues. √C.Earning a competitive salary.D.Working for supportive bosses.解析：What is the No. 1 factor that made employees happy according to the survey? 【解析】对话中关于第一个调查，男士说有十大因素影响着人们在工作中的幸福感。

【作文及范文】Directions: Suppose you are asked to give advice on whether to major in humanities or science, write an essay to state your opinion. You are required to write at least 150 words but no more than 200 words.参考范文：Living in a world which is full of changes and challenges,we are confronted with new problems every single day. Of all the issues, one might concern the high school graduates the most, and it is if there are two options: to major in science or humanities. As for me, I prefer the latter.Why,you may wonder, should I prefer to major in humanities. The reasons responsible for it can be listed as follows .Among the most important reasons cited by people is that to major in humanities，directly or indirectly，can not only enrich our basic knowledge about the diversified culture but also sharpen one’s insight in daily routine，which is of great importance in one’s growth.What’s more, to study humanities can give us an independent personality and a deeper vision towards the world, if it were not for those two attributes, how could we achieve great goals in this dog-eat-dog world.Above all, in such a society where emphasis，more often than not，is laid on the depth of one’s thought, to choose humanities as one’s major, must be the best way .To major humanities, so at least it seems to me, is preferable for college students, if they had the chance, in the process of which we will develop an innovative thought mode.As a proverb goes ,there is no difficulty that an innovative thought mode can not solve, no door that an innovative thought mode can not open, no mountain that an innovative thought mode can not surmount.【听力】Long conversation 1Q1: B Having friendly colleagues解析：原文中前半部分男士说到：“The most important factor for the majority of the people interviewed was having friendly, supportive colleagues.”对于大部分接受采访的人来说，最重要的因素是拥有友好的、互相支持的同事们。

2017年6月四级真题第二套参考答案(完整版)Part Ⅰ WritingSale Items—English Course BooksSome English course books are waiting for their new owners!This is a collection of College English Books ranging from book 1 to book 4 with CD attached behind. Many useful articles, either interesting or thought provoking, are incorporated in the books, followed by some practical and diversified exercises. Therefore, it is of great use to help you pass CET 4 and can also be a good choice of self study aside from being textbooks. Considering being used once, frankly speaking, they are not brand new, but with some necessary notes on the margins. Therefore, they are not charged high, only 10 yuan for each book. There will be a discount and a surprise gift offered to you if you buy them altogether.English plays a critically important role in our college study as well as in society. I hope you won't miss this good chance to buy some useful books with a low price. If you are interested, please call me at 12345678900.Part Ⅱ Liste ning Comprehension1. C.Most drivers feel uncertain about the safety of self-driving cars.2. A.Their drivers would feel safe after getting used to the automatic devices.3. C.Attacks on some Iditarod race competitors.4. B.He has won the Alaska Iditarod Race four times.5. D.It turned over because of strong winds.6. D.32.7. B.He is being investigated by the police.8. C.At an accountancy firm.9. A.Helping out with data input.10. B.He needs the money badly.11. D.Review some accountancy terms.12. B.They are poor at technology skills.13. A.Japanese.14. D.Literacy.15. C.It has much room for improvement.16. A.They have small roots.17. D.They began to look like modern-day carrots.18. B.There were serious food shortages.19. A.She could update her family any time she liked.20. B.She enjoyed reading her friends' status updates.21. D.She didn't seem to be doing as well as her Facebook friends.22. A.They have strong muscles.23. C.It was brought over from Spain.24. C.They showed and traded animals in the market.25. B.The arrival of tractors.Part III Reading Comprehension26-35：OIEGM DCJNF36-45：HDBJG AFEIC46-55：ABCAD BDCBAPart IV TranslationThe Yangtze River is the longest in Asia and the third longest in the world. The river, which flows through varied ecosystems along its passage, offers habitats for many endangered species and provides irrigation for 1/5 of China's land. The Yangtze River basin is home to 1/3 of China's population. The river plays a very important role in China historically, culturally and economically. The Yangtze River Delta contributes up to 20% of China's GDP. For millennia, the Yangtze River has been used for water supply, shipment and industrial activities. The world's largest hydropower station is also built on the river.。

2017年6月六级第二套真题参考答案(完整版)Part Ⅰ WritingWhether to Attend a Vocational College or a University?It's an undisputable truth that virtually all high school graduates will encounter the choices between a vocational college and a university. And when it comes to this question, students' ideas are not cut from the same cloth. In point of which to choose and what to be taken into consideration, my advice are as follow.In the first place, we should be conscious of the fact that both of the two choices have its own superiorities. For instance, a vocational college specializes in cultivating human resources with practical capabilities; while a university serves as the cradle of academic researchers in different fields. Then it does follow that high school graduates should have a clear picture of themselves. That is to say, they should know their merits and demerits and their choices must give play to their strengths whilst circumvent weaknesses. In addition, interest is the best teacher and it's also the premise of learning on one's own initiative. Thus interest must be taken into account because it can not only decide how far one can reach academically and professionally but also how happy and fulfilled one will be.In brief, all above just goes to show that there really is no one-size-fits-all answer for the question. The key lies in a clear cognition, accurate self-positioning and the interest of oneself. Only then can every one find a right path that works best for us.Part Ⅰ Listening Comprehension1. A. He would feel insulted.2. B. They are of little value.3. A. He seldom writes a book straight through.4. D. Unlike a football match, there is no end to writing a book.5. C. High college dropout rates among black athletes.6. D. They make money for the college but often fail to earn a degree.7. C. Slightly over 50%.8. A. Coaches lack the incentive to graduate them.9. B. Holiday shopping.10. D. About 183.8 million.11. C. They are thriving once more.12. B. Higher employment and wages.13. D. They are antibiotic-resistant bacteria.14. D. Routine operations have become complex.15. C. Money.16. B. It improves students' ability to think.17. A. They encourage academic democracy.18. A. His thirst for knowledge.19. D. People tend to underestimate their mental powers.20. B. They include more or less the same number of states.21. C. Reviewing your lessons where the exam is to take place.22. A. Discover when you can learn best.23. C. He is a sociologist.24. D. In developing countries.25. B. Their income is less than 50% of the national average family income.Part III Reading Comprehension26-35: KOMHI ELGBJ36-45: FAIGL EJBMH46-55: BDCAC DDBCAPart IV TranslationThe Song Dynasty started from 960 and lasted until 1279. During that period, China had witnessed a dramatic economic growth, making it the most advanced economy in the world. In the meantime, science, technology, philosophy and mathematics also experienced vigorous development. China back then was the first country to issue the paper money and also the earliest to use gunpowder and invent movable-type printing around the world. With burgeoning population, an increasing number of people flocked to cities where there were bustling entertainment outlets. People at that time enjoyed rich social life, gathering together to appreciate and trade precious artworks. The government system in Song Dynasty was also advanced, with all government officials selected and appointed through competitive examination.。

2017年6月大学英语六级考试真题及答案解析(第二套完整版)2017年6月大学英语六级考试真题及答案解析（第二套完整版）Part I Writing (30 minutes)Directions: Suppose you are asked to give advice on whether to major in science or humanities at college, write an essay to state your opinion. You are required to write at least 150 words but no more than 200 words.【参考范文】Whether to Major in Science or Humanities at College?Nowadays, as the whole society place increasingly considerable value on education, the question of whether to major in science or humanities at college is not only a concern for students, but also a focal point for parents. Some believe that to dig into science is a better choice because it promises us a brighter future; others may hold the opposite view that humanityknowledge is the foundation of humanity quality.As for me, both arguments are justified. However, I believe that the important thing is not about which subject is better, what matters most is people who will have to make the decision. In other words, we should not lay one-sided emphasis on the advantages of either subject; on the contrary, the students themselves, their interests and preferences, pros and cons are supposed to be taken into consideration. For example, if a student is more adept at humanity and that’s where his real interests lie, then he should dedicate to the study on humanity.Whether to major in science or humanities is a critical choice for every student because its result has a profound influence on personal career development and life style. Thus we should figure out what wereally care about so as not to put the cart before the horse.Part II Listening Comprehension (30 minutes)Section ADirections: In this section, you will hear two long conversations. At the end of each conversation, you mil hear four questions. Both the conversation and the questions will be spoken only once. After you hear a question, you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A), B), C) and D). Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.Questions 1 to 4 are based on the conversation you have just heard.1. A) Doing enjoyable work. B) Having friendly colleagues.C)Earning a competitive salary. D) Working for supportive bosses.【解析】对话中关于第一个调查，男士说有十大因素影响着人们在工作中的幸福感。

2017 年 6 月大学英语六级考试真题及答案解析（第二套完整版）Part I Writing (30 minutes)Directions: Suppose you are asked to give advice on whether to major in scienceor humanities at college, write an essay to state your opinion. You are required to write at least 150 words but no more than 200 words.【参考范文】Whether to Major in Science or Humanities at College?Nowadays, as the whole society place increasingly considerable value oneducation, the question of whether to major in science or humanitiesat college isnot only a concern for students, but also a focal point for parents. Some believethat to diginto scienceis a betterchoice because it promises us a brighterfuture;others may hold the opposite view that humanity knowledge is the foundation of humanity quality.As for me, both arguments are justified. However, I believe that the importantthing is not about which subject is better, what matters most is people who willhave to make the decision. In other words, we should not lay one-sided emphasis onthe advantages of either subject; on the contrary, the students themselves, theirinterestsand preferences,pros and cons are supposed to be taken into consideration.For example, if a student is more adept at humanity and that’ s where his realinterests lie, then he should dedicate to the study on humanity.Whether to major in science because its result has a profound style. Thus we should figure out before the horse.or humanities is a critical choice for every studentinfluenceon personal career development and lifewhat we reallycare about so as not to put the cartPart II Listening Comprehension (30 minutes)Section ADirections: In this section, you will hear two long conversations. At the end of each conversation, you mil hear four questions. Both the conversation and the questions will be spoken only once. After you hear a question, you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A), B), C) and D). Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.Questions 1 to 4 are based on the conversation you have just heard.1. A) Doing enjoyable work. B) Having friendly colleagues. C)Earning a competitive salary. D) Working for supportive bosses.【答案】 B【解析】对话中关于第一个调查，男士说有十大因素影响着人们在工作中的幸福感。

2017年6月大学英语六级考试真题及答案解析（第二套完整版）Part I Writing (30 minutes)Directions: Suppose you are asked to give advice on whether to major in science or humanities at college, write an essay to state your opinion. You are required to write at least 150 words but no more than 200 words.Part II Listening Comprehension (30 minutes)Section ADirections: In this section, you will hear two long conversations. At the end of each conversation, you mil hear four questions. Both the conversation and the questions will be spoken only once. After you hear a question, you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A), B), C) and D). Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.Questions 1 to 4 are based on the conversation you have just heard.1. A) Doing enjoyable work. B) Having friendly colleagues.C)Earning a competitive salary. D) Working for supportive bosses.2. A) 31%. B) 20%. C)25%. D) 73%.3. A) Those of a small size. B) Those run by women.C)Those that are well managed. D) Those full of skilled workers.4. A) They can hop from job to job easily.B) They can win recognition of their work.C)They can better balance work and life.D) They can take on more than one job.Questions 5 to 8 are based on the conversation you have just heard.5. A) It is a book of European history. B) It is an introduction to music.C)It is about the city of Bruges. D) It is a collection of photos.6. A) When painting the concert hall of Bruges.B) When vacationing in an Italian coastal city.C) When taking pictures for a concert catalogue.D) When writing about Belgium’s coastal regions.7. A) The entire European coastline will be submerged.B)The rich heritage of Europe will be lost completely.C)The seawater of Europe will be seriously polluted.D)The major European scenic spots will disappear.8. A) Its waterways are being increasingly polluted.B)People cannot get around without using boats.C)It attracts large numbers of tourists from home and abroad.D)Tourists use wooden paths to reach their hotels in the morning.Section BDirections: In this section, you will hear two passages. At the end of each passage, you will hear three or four questions. Both the passage and the questions will be spoken only once. After you hear a question, you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A), B), C) and D). Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.Questions 9 to 12 are based on the passage you have just heard.9. A) They make careful preparation beforehand.B) They take too many irrelevant factors into account.C) They spend too much time anticipating their defeat.D) They try hard to avoid getting off on the wrong foot.10.A) A person’s nervous system is more complicated than imagined.B)Golfers usually have positive mental images of themselves.C)Mental images often interfere with athletes’ performance.D)Thinking has the same effect on the nervous system as doing.11. A) Anticipate possible problems.B) Make a list of do’s and don’ts.C) Picture themselves succeeding.D) Try to appear more professional.12. A) She wore a designer dress. B) She won her first jury trial.C)She did not speak loud enough. D) She presented moving pictures.Questions 13 to 15 are based on the passage you have just heard.13. A) Its long-term effects are yet to be proved.B)Its health benefits have been overestimated.C)It helps people to avoid developing breast cancer.D)It enables patients with diabetes to recover sooner.14. A) It focused on their ways of life during young adulthood.B)It tracked their change in food preferences for 20 years.C)It focused on their difference from men in fiber intake.D)It tracked their eating habits since their adolescence.15. A) Fiber may help to reduce hormones in the body.B)Fiber may bring more benefits to women than men.C)Fiber may improve the function of heart muscles.D)Fiber may make blood circulation more smooth.Section CDirections: In this section, you will hear three recordings of lectures or talks followed by three or four questions. The recordings will be played only once. After you hear a question, you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A), B), C) and D). Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.Questions 16 to 18 are based on the recording you have just heard.16. A) Observing the changes in marketing.B) Conducting research on consumer behavior.C)Studying the hazards of young people drinking.D) Investigating the impact of media on government.17. A) It is the cause of many street riots.B) It is getting worse year by year.C)It is a chief concern of parents.D) It is an act of socialising.18. A) They spent a week studying their own purchasing behavior.B)They researched the impact of mobile phones on young people.C)They analysed their family budgets over the years.D)They conducted a thorough research on advertising.Questions 19 to 22 are based on the recording you have just heard.19. A) It is helping its banks to improve efficiency.B)It is trying hard to do away with dirty money.C)It is the first country to use credit cards in the world.D)It is likely to give up paper money in the near future.20. A) Whether it is possible to travel without carrying any physical currency.B)Whether it is possible to predict how much money one is going to spend.C)Whether the absence of physical currency causes a person to spend more.D)Whether the absence of physical currency is going to affect everyday life.21. A) There was no food service on the train.B) The service on the train was not good.C)The restaurant car accepted cash only.D) The cash in her handbag was missing.22. A) By putting money into envelopes.B)By drawing money week by week.C)By limiting their day-to-day spending.D)By refusing to buy anything on credit.Questions 23 to 25 are based on the recording you have just heard.23. A) Population explosion.B)Chronic hunger.C)Extinction of rare species.D)Environmental deterioration.24. A) They contribute to overpopulation.B)About half of them are unintended.C)They have been brought under control.D)The majority of them tend to end halfway.25. A) It is essential to the wellbeing of all species on earth.B)It is becoming a subject of interdisciplinary research.C)It is neglected in many of the developing countries.D)It is beginning to attract postgraduates’ attention.Part III Reading Comprehension (40 minutes)Section ADirections: In this section, there is a passage with ten blanks. You are required to select one word for each blank from a list of choices given in a word bank following the passage. Read the passage through carefully before making your choices. Each choice in the bank is identified by a letter. Please mark the corresponding letter for each item on Answer sheet 2 with a single line through the centre. You may not use any of the words in the bank more than once.After becoming president of Purdue University in 2013, Mitch Daniels asked the faculty to prove that their students have actually achieved one of higher education’s most important goals: critical thinking skills. Two years before, a nationwide study of college graduates had shown that more than a third had made no __26__ gains in suchmental abilities during their school years. Mr. Daniels needed to __27__ the high cost of attending Purdue to its students and their families. After all, the percentage of Americans who say a college degree is “very important” has fallen __28__ in the last 5-6 years.Purdue now has a pilot test to assess students’ critical thinking skills. Yet like many college teachers around the U.S., the faculty remain __29__ that their work as educators can be measured by a “learning__30__” such as a graduate’s ability to investigate and reason. However, the professors need not worry so much. The results of a recent experiment showed that professors can use __31__ metrics to measure how well students do in three key areas: critical thinking, written communication, and quantitative literacy.Despite the success of the experiment, the actual results are worrisome, and mostly __32__ earlier studies. The organizers of the experiment concluded that far fewer students were achieving at high levels on critical thinking than they were doing for written communication or quantitative literacy. And that conclusion is based only on students nearing graduation.American universities, despite their global __33__ for excellence in teaching, have only begun to demonstrate what they can produce in real-world learning. Knowledge-based degrees are still important, but employers are __34__ advanced thinking skills from college graduates. If the intellectual worth of a college degree can be __35__ measured, more people will seek higher education---and come out better thinkers.A) accurately B) confirm C) demanding D) doubtful E) drasticallyF) justify G) monopolized H) outcome I) predominance J) presumingK) reputation L) significant M) signify N) simultaneously O) standardizedSection BDirections: In this section, you are going to read a passage with ten statements attached to it. Each statement contains information given in one of the paragraphs. Identify the paragraph from which the information is derived. You may choose a paragraph more than once. Each paragraph is marked with a letter. Answer the questions by marking the corresponding letter on Answer sheet 2.The Price of Oil and the Price of Carbon[A] Fossil fuel prices are likely to stay “low for long”. Notwithstanding important recent progress in developing renewable fuel sources, low fossil fuel prices could discourage further innovation in, and adoption of, cleaner energy technologies. The result would be higher emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.[B] Policymakers should not allow low energy prices to derail the clean energy transition. Action to restore appropriate price incentives, notably through corrective carbon pricing, is urgently needed to lower the risk of irreversible and potentially devastating effects of climate change. That approach also offers fiscal benefits.[C] Oil prices have dropped by over 60% since June 2014. A commonly held view in the oil industry is that “the best cure for low oil prices is low oil prices”. The reasoning behind this saying is that low oil prices discourage investment in newproduction capacity, eventually shifting the oil supply curve backward and bringing prices back up as existing oil fields---which can be tapped at relatively low marginal cost----are depleted. In fact, in line with past experience, capital expenditure in the oil sector has dropped sharply in many producing countries, including the United States. The dynamic adjustment to low oil prices may, however, be different this time around.[D] Oil prices are expected to remain lower for longer. The advent of new technologies has added about 4.2 million barrels per day to the crude oil market, contributing to a global over-supply. In addition, other factors are putting downward pressure on oil prices: change in the strategic behavior of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, the projected increase in Iranian exports, thescaling-down of global demand (especially from emerging markets), the long-term drop in petroleum consumption in the United States, and some displacement of oil by substitutes. These likely persistent forces, like the growth of shale(页岩) oil, point to a “low for long” scenario. Futures markets, which show only a modest recovery of prices to around $60 a barrel by 2019, support this view.[E] Natural gas and coal—also fossil fuels—have similarly seen price declines that look to be long-lived. Coal and natural gas are mainly used for electricity generation, whereas oil is used mostly to power transportation, yet the prices of all these energy sources are linked. The North American shale gas boom has resulted in record low prices there. The recent discovery of the giant Zohr gas field off the Egyptian coast will eventually have impact on pricing in the Mediterranean region and Europe, and there is significant development potential in many other places, notably Argentina. Coal prices also are low, owing to over- supply and thescaling-down of demand, especially from China, which bums half of the world’s coal.[F] Technological innovations have unleashed the power of renewables such as wind, hydro, solar, and geothermal(地热). Even Africa and the Middle East, home to economies that are heavily dependent on fossil fuel exports, have enormous potential to develop renewables. For example, the United Arab Emirates has endorsed an ambitious target to draw 24% of its primary energy consumption from renewable sources by 2021.[G] Progress in the development of renewables could be fragile, however, if fossil fuel prices remain low for long. Renewables account for only a small share of global primary energy consumption, which is still dominated by fossil fuels—30% each for coal and oil, 25% for natural gas. But renewable energy will have to displace fossil fuels to a much greater extent in the future to avoid unacceptable climate risks.[H] Unfortunately, the current low prices for oil, gas, and coal may provide little incentive for research to find even cheaper substitutes for those fuels. There is strong evidence that both innovation and adoption of cleaner technology are strongly encouraged by higher fossil fuel prices. The same is true for new technologies for alleviating fossil fuel emissions.[I] The current low fossil fuel price environment will thus certainly delay the energy transition from fossil fuel to clean energy sources. Unless renewables become cheap enough that substantial carbon deposits are left underground for a very longtime, if not forever, the planet will likely be exposed to potentially catastrophic climate risks.[J] Some climate impacts may already be discernible. For example, the United Nations Children’s Fund estimates that some 11 million children in Africa face hunger, disease, and water shortages as a result of the strongest El Nino(厄尔尼诺) weather phenomenon in decades. Many scientists believe that El Nino events, caused by warming in the Pacific, are becoming more intense as a result of climate change.[K] Nations from around the world have gathered in Paris for the United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP 21, with the goal of a universal and potentially legally-binding agreement on reducing greenhouse gas emissions. We need very broad participation to fully address the global tragedy that results when countries fail to take into account the negative impact of their carbon emissions on the rest of the world. Moreover, non-participation by nations, if sufficiently widespread, can undermine the political will of participating countries to act.[L] The nations participating at COP 21 are focusing on quantitativeemissions-reduction commitments. Economic reasoning shows that the least expensive way for each country is to put a price on carbon emissions. The reason is that when carbon is priced, those emissions reductions that are least costly to implement will happen first. The International Monetary Fund calculates that countries can generate substantial fiscal revenues by eliminating fossil fuel subsidies and levying carbon charges that capture the domestic damage caused by emissions. A tax on upstream carbon sources is one easy way to put a price on carbon emissions, although some countries may wish to use other methods, such as emissions trading schemes. In order to maximize global welfare, every country’s carbon pricing should reflect not only the purely domestic damage from emissions, but also the damage to foreign countries.[M] Setting the right carbon price will therefore efficiently align the costs paidby carbon users with the true social opportunity cost of using carbon. By raising relative demand for clean energy sources, a carbon price would also help align the market return to clean-energy innovation with its social return, spurring the refinement of existing technologies and the development of new ones. And it would raise the demand for technologies such as carbon capture and storage, spurring their further development. If not corrected by the appropriate carbon price, low fossil fuel prices are not accurately signaling to markets the true social profitability of clean energy. While alternative estimates of the damage from carbon emissions differ, and it’s especially hard to reckon the likely costs of possible catastrophic climate events, most estimates suggest substantial negative effects.[N] Direct subsidies to research and development have been adopted by some governments but are a poor substitute for a carbon price: they do only part of the job, leaving in place market incentives to over-use fossil fuels and thereby add to the stock of atmospheric greenhouse gases without regard to the collateral(附带的) costs.[O] The hope is that the success of COP 21 opens the door to future international agreement on carbon prices. Agreement on an international carbon-price floor would be a good starting point in that process. Failure to address comprehensively theproblem of greenhouse gas emissions, however, exposes all generations, present and future, to incalculable risks.36. A number of factors are driving down the global oil prices not just for now but in the foreseeable future.37. Pricing carbon proves the most economical way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.38. It is estimated that extreme weather conditions have endangered the lives of millions of African children.39. The prices of coal are low as a result of over-supply and decreasing demand.40. Higher fossil fuel prices prove to be conducive to innovation and application of cleaner technology.41. If fossil fuel prices remain low for a long time, it may lead to higher emissions of greenhouse gases.42. Fossil fuels remain the major source of primary energy consumption in today’s world.43. Even major fossil exporting countries have great potential to develop renewable energies.44. Greenhouse gas emissions, if not properly dealt with, will pose endless risks for mankind.45. It is urgent for governments to increase the cost of using fossil fuels to an appropriate level to lessen the catastrophic effects of climate change.Section CDirections: There are 2 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A), B), C) and D). You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre.Passage OneQuestions 46 to 50 are based on the following passage.Open data sharers are still in the minority in many fields. Although many researchers broadly agree that public access to raw data would accelerate science, most are reluctant to post the results of their own labors online.Some communities have agreed to share online—geneticists, for example, post DNA sequences at the GenBank repository(库), and astronomers are accustomed to accessing images of galaxies and stars from, say, the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, a telescope that has observed some 500 million objects---but these remain the exception, not the rule. Historically, scientists have objected to sharing for many reasons: it is a lot of work; until recently, good databases did not exist; grant funders were not pushing for sharing; it has been difficult to agree on standards for formatting data; and there is no agreed way to assign credit for data.But the barriers are disappearing, in part because journals and funding agencies worldwide are encouraging scientists to make their data public. Last year, the Royal Society in London said in its report that scientists need to “shift away from a research culture where data is viewed as a private preserve”. Funding agencies note that data paid for with public money should be public information, and the scientificcommunity is recognizing that data can now be shared digitally in ways that were not possible before. To match the growing demand, services are springing up to make it easier to publish research products online and enable other researchers to discover and cite them.Although calls to share data often concentrate on the moral advantages of sharing, the practice is not purely altruistic(利他的). Researchers who share get plenty of personal benefits, including more connections with colleagues, improved visibility and increased citations. The most successful sharers一those whose data are downloaded and cited the most often---get noticed, and their work gets used. For example, one of the most popular data sets on multidisciplinary repository Dryad is about wood density around the world; it has been downloaded 5,700 times. Co-author Amy Zanne thinks that users probably range from climate-change researchers wanting to estimate how much carbon is stored in biomass, to foresters looking for information on different grades of timber. “I’d much prefer to have my data used by the maximum number of people to ask their own questions,” she says. “It’s important to allow readers and reviewers to see exactly how you arrive at your results. Publishing data and code allows your science to be reproducible.”Even people whose data are less popular can benefit. By making the effort to organize and label files so others can understand them, scientists become more organized and better disciplined themselves, thus avoiding confusion later on.46. What do many researchers generally accept?A) It is imperative to protect scientists’ patents.B)Repositories are essential to scientific research.C)Open data sharing is most important to medical science.D)Open data sharing is conducive to scientific advancement.47. What is the attitude of most researchers towards making their own data public?A) Opposed. B) Ambiguous. C) Liberal. D) Neutral.48. According to the passage, what might hinder open data sharing?A) The fear of massive copying.B)The lack of a research culture.C)The belief that research data is private intellectual property.D)The concern that certain agencies may make a profit out of it.49. What helps lift some of the barriers to open data sharing?A)The ever-growing demand for big data.B) The advancement of digital technology.C)The changing attitude of journals and funders.D) The trend of social and economic development.50. Dryad serves as an example to show how open data sharing ________.A)is becoming increasingly popularB) benefits sharers and users alikeC)makes researchers successfulD)saves both money and laborPassage TwoQuestions 51 to 55 are based on the following passage.Macy’s reported its sales plunged 5.2% in November and December at stores open more than a year, a disappointing holiday season performance that capped a difficult year for a department store chain facing wide-ranging challenges. Its flagship stores in major U.S. cities depend heavily on international tourist spending, which shrank at many retailers due to a strong dollar. Meanwhile, Macy’s has simply struggled to lure consumers who are more interested in spending on travel or dining out than on new clothes or accessories.The company blamed much of the poor performance in November and December on unseasonably warm weather. “About 80% of our company’syear-over-year declines in comparable sales can be attributed to shortfalls(短缺) in cold-weather goods,” said chief executive Teny Lun dgren in a press release. This prompted the company to cut its forecasts for the full fourth quarter.However, it’s clear that Macy’s believes its troubles run deeper than a temporary aberration (偏离) off the thermometer. The retail giant said the poor financial performance this year has pushed it to begin implementing $400 million incost-cutting measures. The company pledged to cut 600 back-office positions, though some 150 workers in those roles would be reassigned to other jobs. It also plans to offer “voluntary separation” packages to 165 senior executives. It will slash staffing at its fleet of 770 stores, a move affecting some 3,000 employees.The retailer also announced the locations of 36 stores it will close in early 2016. The company had previously announced the planned closures, but had not said which locations would be affected. None of the chain’s stores in the Washington metropolitan area are to be closed.Macy’s has been moving aggressively to try to remake itself for a new era of shopping. It has plans to open more locations of Macy’s Backstage, anewly-developed off-price concept which might help it better compete with ambitious T. J. Maxx. It’s also pushing ahead in 2016 with an expansion of Bluemercury, the beauty chain it bought last year. At a time when young beauty shoppers are often turning to Sephora or Ulta instead of department store beauty counters, Macy’s hopes Bluemercury will help strengthen its position in the category.One relative bright spot for Macy’s during the holiday se ason was the online channel, where it rang up “double-digit” increases in sales and a 25% increase in the number of orders it filled. That relative strength would be consistent with what was seen in the wilder retail industry during the early part of the holiday season. While Thanksgiving, Black Friday and Cyber Monday all saw record spending online,in-store sales plunged over the holiday weekend.51. What does the author say about the shrinking spending of international tourists in the U.S.?A)It is attributable to the rising value of the U.S. dollar.B)It is a direct result of the global economic recession.C)It reflects a shift of their interest in consumer goods.D)It poses a potential threat to the retail business in the U.S.52. What does Macy’s believe about its problems?A) They can be solved with better management.B) They cannot be attributed to weather only.C) They are not as serious in its online stores.D) They call for increased investments.53. In order to cut costs, Macy’s decided to ________.A) cut the salary of senior executivesB) relocate some of its chain storesC) adjust its promotion strategiesD) reduce the size of its staff54. Why does Macy’s plan to expand Bluemercury in 2016?A) To experiment on its new business concept. B) To focus more on beauty products than clothing.C) To promote sales of its products by lowering prices. D) To be more competitive in sales of beauty products.55. What can we learn about Macy’s during the holiday season?A) Sales dropped sharply in its physical stores.B)Its retail sales exceeded those of T. J. Maxx.C)It helped Bluemercury establish its position worldwide.D)It filled its stores with abundant supply of merchandise.Part IV Translation (30 minutes)Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to translate a passage from Chinese into English. You should write your answer on Answer Sheet 2.宋朝始于960年，一直延续到1279年。

2017年6月大学英语六级考试真题(第2套)PartⅠWriting(30minutes)Directions:Directions:Suppose you are asked to give advice on whether to majo r in science or humanitiesat college,write an essay to state your opinion.You are required to write at least 150words but no more than200words.PartⅡListening Comprehension(30minutes)Section ADirections:In this section,you will hear two long conversations.At the end of e ach conversation,you willhear four questions.Both the conversation and the questions will be spoken onl y once.After you hear a question,you must choose the best answer from the four ch oices marked A),B),C)and D).Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1with a single line through the centre.Questions1to4are based on the conversatio n you have just heard.Questions1to4are based on the conversation you have just heard.1.A)Doing enjoyable work.B)Having friendly colleagues.C)Earning a compet itive salary.D)Working for supportive bosses.2.A)31%.B)20%.C)25%.D)73%.3.A)Those of a small size.B)Those run by women.C)Those that are well man aged.D)Those full of skilled workers.4.A)They can hop from job to job easily.B)They can win recognition of their work.C)They can better balance work and life.D)They can take on more than one jo b.Questions5to8are based on the conversation you have just heard.5.A)It is a book of European history.B)It is an introduction to music.C)It is a bout the city of Bruges.D)It is a collection of photos.6.A)When painting the concert hall of Bruges.B)When vacationing in an Itali an coastal city.C)When taking pictures for a concert catalogue.D)When writing abo ut Belgium‟s coastal regions.7.A)The entire European coastline will be submerged.B)The rich heritage of Europe will be lost completely.C)The seawater of Europe will be seriously polluted.D)The major European scenic spots will disappear.8.A)Its waterways are being increasingly polluted.B)People cannot get around without using boats.C)It attracts large numbers of tourists from home and abroad.D)Tourists use w ooden paths to reach their hotels in the morning.Section BDirections:In this section,you will hear two passages.At the end of ea ch passage,you will hear three orfour questions.Both the passage and the questions will be spoken only once.Af ter you hear a question,you must choose the best answer from the four choices mar ked A),B),C)and D).Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet1with a si ngle line through the centre.Questions9to12are based on the passage you have just heard.9.A)They make careful preparation beforehand.B)They take too many irrelevant factors into account.C)They spend too much ti me anticipating their defeat.D)They try hard to avoid getting off on the wrong foot.10.A)A person‟s nervous system is more complicated than imagined.B)Golfers usually have positive mental images of themselves.C)Mental images often interfere with athletes ‟performance.D)Thinking has the same effect on the nervous system as doing.11.A)Anticipate possible problems.B)Make a list of do‟s and don‟ts.C)Picture themselves succeeding.D)Try to appear more professional.12.A)She wore a designer dress.B)She won her first jury trial.C)She did not s peak loud enough.D)She presented moving pictures.Questions13to15are based on the passage you have just heard.13.A)Its long-term effects are yet to be proved.B)Its health benefits have been overestimated.C)It helps people to avoid developing breast cancer.D)It enables patients with diabetes to recover sooner.14.A)It focused on their ways of life during young adulthood.B)It tracked their change in food preferences for20years.C)It focused on their difference from men i n fiber intake.D)It tracked their eating habits since their adolescence.15.A)Fiber may help to reduce hormones in the body.B)Fiber may bring more benefits to women than men.C)Fiber may improve the function of heart muscles.D) Fiber may make blood circulation more smooth.Section CDirections:In this section,you will hear three recordings of lectures or talks follo wed by three or fourquestions.The recordings will be played only once.After you hear a question,yo u must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A),B),CJ and D).Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet1with a single line through the centr e.Questions16to18are based on the recording you have just heard.16.A)Observing the changes in marketing.B)Conducting research on consumer behavior.C)Studying the hazards of young people drinking.D)Investigating the impact of media on government.17.A)It is the cause of many street riots.B)It is getting worse year by year.C)It is a chief concern of parents.D)It is an act of socialising.18.A)They spent a week studying their own purchasing behavior.B)They resear ched the impact of mobile phones on young people.C)They analysed their family bu dgets over the years.D)They conducted a thorough research on advertising.Questions19to22are based on the recording you have just heard.19.A)It is helping its banks to improve efficiency.B)It is trying hard to do away with dirty money.C)It is the first country to use credit cards in the world.D)It is likely to give up p aper money in the near future.20.A)Whether it is possible to travel without carrying any physical currency.B) Whether it is possible to predict how much money one is going to spend.C)Whether the absence of physical currency causes a person to spend more.D)Whether the ab sence of physical currency is going to affect everyday life.21.A)There was no food service on the train.B)The service on the train was not good.C)The restaurant car accepted cash only.D)The cash in her handbag was mis sing.22.A)By putting money into envelopes.B)By drawing money week by week.C) By limiting their day-to-day spending.D)By refusing to buy anything on credit.Questions23to25are based on the recording you have just heard.23.A)Population explosion.B)Chronic hunger.C)Extinction of rare species.D)Environmental deterioration.24.A)They contribute to overpopulation.B)About half of them are unintended.C)They have been brought under control.D)The majority of them tend to end halfw ay.25.A)It is essential to the wellbeing of all species on earth.B)It is becoming a s ubject of interdisciplinary research.C)It is neglected in many of the developing count ries.D)It is beginning to attract postgraduates‟attention.Part III Reading Comprehension(40minutes)Section ADirections:In this section,there is a passage with ten blanks.You are required to select one word foreach blank from a list of choices given in a word bank following the passage.Rea d the passage through carefully before making your choices.Each choice in the bank i s identified by a letter.Please mark the corresponding letter for each item on Answer Sheet2with a single linethrough the centre.You may not use any of the words in th e bank more than once.Questions26to35are based on the following passage.After becoming president of Purdue University in2013,Mitch Daniels asked the faculty to prove that their students have actually achieved one of higher education‟s most important goals:critical thinking skills.Two years before,a nationwide study o f college graduates had shown that more than a third had made no26gains in su ch mental abilities during their school years.Mr.Daniels needed to27the high co st of attending Purdue to its students and their families.After all,the percentage of A mericans who say a college degree is“very important”has fallen28in the last 5-6years.Purdue now has a pilot test to assess students‟critical thinking skills.Yet like many college teachers around the U.S.,the faculty rem ain29that their work as educators can be measured by a“learning30”suc h as a graduate‟s ability to investigate and reason.However,the professors need not worry so much. The results of a recent experiment showed that professors can use31metrics to measure how well students do in three key areas:critical thinking,written communi cation,and quantitative literacy.Despite the success of the experiment,the actual results are worrisome,and m ostly32earlier studies.The organizers of the experiment concluded that far fewer s tudents were achieving at high levels on critical thinking than they were doing for wri tten communication or quantitative literacy.And that conclusion is based only on stu dents nearing graduation.American universities,despite their global33for excellence in teaching,have on ly begun to demonstrate what they can produce in real-world learning.Knowledge-b ased degrees are still important,but employers are34advanced thinking skills from college graduates.If the intellectual worth of a college degree can be35measured, more people will seek higher education---and come out better thinkers.A)accurately B)confirm C)demanding D)doubtful E)drastically F)justifyG)monopolized H)outcomeI)predominance J)presuming K)reputation L)significant M)signifyN)simultaneously O)standardizedSection BDirections:In this section,you are going to read a passage with ten statements a ttached to it.Eachstatement contains information given in one of the paragraphs.Identify the para graph from which the information is derived.You may choose a paragraph more than once.Each paragraph is marked with a letter.Answer the questions by marking the c orresponding letter on Answer Sheet2.The Price of Oil and the Price of Carbon[A]Fossil fuel prices are likely to stay“low for long”.Notwithstanding importa nt recent progress in developing renewable fuel sources,low fossil fuel prices could d iscourage further innovation in,andadoption of,cleaner energy technologies.The result would be higher emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.[B]Policymakers should not allow lowenergy prices to derail the clean energy transition.Action to restore appropriate pric e incentives,notably through corrective carbon pricing,is urgently needed to lower t he risk of irreversible and potentially devastating effects of climate change.That appr oach also offers fiscal benefits.[C]Oil prices have dropped by over60%since June2014.A commonly held view in the oil industry is that“the best cure for low oil prices is low oil prices”.The rea soning behind this saying is that low oil prices discourage investment in new producti on capacity,eventually shifting the oil supply curve backward and bringing prices bac k up as existing oil fields---which can be tapped at relatively low marginalcost----are depleted.In fact,in line with past experience,capital expenditure in t he oil sector has dropped sharply in many producing countries,including the United States.The dynamic adjustment to low oil prices may,however,be different this time around.[D]Oil prices are expected to remain lower for longer.The advent of new techno logies has added about4.2million barrels per day to the crude oil market,contributi ng to a global over-supply.In addition,other factors are putting downward pressure on oil prices:change in the strategic behavior of the Organization of Petroleum Expor ting Countries,the projected increase in Iranian exports,the scaling-down of global d emand(especially from emerging markets),the long-term drop in petroleum consum ption in the United States,and some displacement of oil by substitutes.These likely p ersistent forces,like the growth of shale(页岩)oil,point to a“low for long”scenario.Futures markets,which show only a mo dest recovery of prices to around$60a barrel by2019,support this view.[E]Natural gas and coal—also fossil fuels—have similarly seen price declines that look to belong-lived.Coal and natural gas are mainly used for electricity generation,where as oil is used mostly to power transportation,yet the prices of all these energy sourc es are linked.The North American shale gas boom has resulted in record low prices t here.The recent discovery of the giant Zohr gas field off theEgyptian coast will eventually have impact on pricing in the Mediterranean regio n and Europe,and there is significant development potential in many other places,n otably Argentina.Coal prices also are low,owing to over- supply and the scaling-dow n of demand,especially from China,which bums half of the world‟s coal.[F]Technological innovations have unleashed the power of renewables such as wind,hydro,solar,and geothermal(地热).Even Africa and the Middle East,home to economies that are heavily dependent on fossil fuel exports,have enormous potenti al to develop renewables.For example,the United Arab Emirates has endorsed an a mbitious target to draw24%of its primary energy consumption from renewable sour ces by2021.[G]Progress in the development of renewables could be fragile,however,if fossi l fuel prices remain low for long.Renewables account for only a small share of global primary energy consumption,which is still dominated by fossil fuels—30%each for coal and oil,25%for natural gas.But renewable energy will have to disp lace fossil fuels to a much greater extent in the future to avoid unacceptable climate r isks.[H]Unfortunately,the current low prices for oil,gas,and coal may provide little i ncentive for research to find even cheaper substitutes for those fuels.There is strong evidence that both innovation and adoption of cleaner technology are strongly enco uraged by higher fossil fuel prices.The same is true for new technologies for alleviati ng fossil fuel emissions.[I]The current low fossil fuel price environment will thus certainly delay the ene rgy transition from fossil fuel to clean energy sources.Unless renewables become ch eap enough that substantial carbon deposits are left underground for a very long tim e,if not forever,the planet will likely be exposed to potentially catastrophic climate ri sks.[J]Some climate impacts may already be discernible.For example,the United Nat ions Children‟s Fund estimates that some11million children in Africa face hunger,disease,and wat er shortages as a result of the strongest El Nino(厄尔尼诺)weather phenomenon in decades.Many scientists believe that El Nino events,ca used by warming in the Pacific,are becoming more intense as a result of climate cha nge.[K]Nations from around the world have gathered in Paris for the United Nations Climate ChangeConference,COP21,with the goal of a universal and potentially legally-binding agreement on reducing greenhouse gas emissions.We need very broad participation to fully address the global tragedy that results when countries fail to take into accoun t the negative impact of their carbon emissions on the rest of the world.Moreover,n on-participation by nations,if sufficiently widespread,can undermine the political wil l of participating countries to act.[L]The nations participating at COP21are focusing on quantitative emissions-re duction commitments.Economic reasoning shows that the least expensive way for e ach country is to put a price on carbon emissions.The reason is that when carbon is priced,those emissions reductions that are least costly to implement will happen firs t.The International Monetary Fund calculates that countries can generate substantial fiscal revenues by eliminating fossil fuel subsidies and levying carbon charges that capture the domestic damage caused by emissions.A tax on upstream c arbon sources is one easy way to put a price on carbon emissions,although some co untries may wish to use other methods,such as emissions trading schemes.In order to maximize global welfare,every country‟s carbon pricing should reflect not only the purely domestic damage from emissions, but also the damage to foreign countries.[M]Setting the right carbon price will therefore efficiently align the costs paid b y carbon users with the true social opportunity cost of using carbon.By raising relativ e demand for clean energy sources,a carbon price would also help align the market r eturn to clean-energy innovation with its social return,spurring the refinement of exi sting technologies and the development of new ones.And it would raise the demand for technologies such as carbon capture and storage,spurring their further develop ment.If not corrected by the appropriate carbon price,low fossil fuel prices are not a ccurately signaling to markets the true social profitability of clean energy.While alter native estimates of the damage from carbon emissions differ,and it‟s especially hard to reckon the likely costs of possible catastrophic climate events,mo st estimates suggest substantial negative effects.[N]Direct subsidies to research and development have been adopted by some g overnments but are a poor substitute for a carbon price:they do only part of the job, leaving in place market incentives to over-use fossil fuels and thereby add to the stoc k of atmospheric greenhouse gases without regard to the collateral(附带的)costs.[O]The hope is that the success of COP21opens the door to future internation al agreement on carbon prices.Agreement on an international carbon-price floor wo uld be a good starting point in that process.Failure to address comprehensively the p roblem of greenhouse gas emissions,however,exposes all generations,present and f uture,to incalculable risks.36.A number of factors are driving down the global oil prices not just for now b ut in the foreseeable future.37.Pricing carbon proves the most economical way to re duce greenhouse gas emissions.38.It is estimated that extreme weather conditions have endangered the lives of millions of African children.39.The prices of coal are low as a result of over-supply and decreasing demand.40.Higher fossil fuel prices prove to be conducive to innovation and application of cleaner technology.41.If fossil fuel prices remain low for a long time,it may lead to higher emission s of greenhouse gases.42.Fossil fuels remain the major source of primary energy consumption in toda y‟s world.43.Even major fossil exporting countries have great potential to develop renew able energies.44.Greenhouse gas emissions,if not properly dealt with,will pose endless risks for mankind.45.It is urgent for governments to increase the cost of using fossil fuels to an ap propriate level to lessen the catastrophic effects of climate change.Section CDirections:There are2passages in this section.Each passage is followed by som e questions orunfinished statements.For each of them there are four choices marked A,B,C a nd D.You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on Ans wer Sheet2with a single line through the centre.Passage OneQuestions46to50are based on the following passage.Open data sharers are still in the minority in many fields.Although many researc hers broadly agree that public access to raw data would accelerate science,most are reluctant to post the results of their own labors online.Some communities have agreed to share online—geneticists,for example,post DNA sequences at the GenBank repository(库),and ast ronomers are accustomed to accessing images of galaxies and stars from,say,the Slo an Digital Sky Survey,a telescope that has observed some500million objects---but th eseremain the exception,not the rule.Historically,scientists have objected to shari ng for many reasons:it is a lot of work;until recently,good databases did not exist;gr ant funders were not pushing for sharing;it has been difficult to agree on standards f or formatting data;and there is no agreed way to assign credit for data.But the barriers are disappearing,in part because journals and funding agencies worldwide areencouraging scientists to make their data st year,the Royal Society in L ondon said in its report that scientists need to“shift away from a research culture w here data is viewed as a private preserve”.Funding agencies note that data paid for with public money should be public inf ormation,and the scientific community is recognizing that data can now be shared di gitally in ways that were not possible before.To match the growing demand,services are springing up to make it easier to publish research products online and enable oth er researchers to discover and cite them.Although calls to share data often concentrate on the moral advantages of shari ng,the practice is not purely altruistic(利他的).Researchers who share get plenty of personal benefits,including more connections with colleagues,improved visibility and increased citations.The most successful sharers一those whose data are downloaded and cited the most often---get noticed,and theirwork gets used.For example,one of the most popular data sets on multidisciplinary r epository Dryad is about wood density around the world;it has been downloaded5, 700times.Co-author Amy Zanne thinks that users probably range from climate-chan ge researchers wanting to estimate how much carbon is stored in biomass,to foreste rs looking for information on different grades of timber.“I‟d much prefer to have my data used by the maximum number of people to ask their own questions,”she says.“It‟s important to allow readers and reviewers to see exactly how you arrive at your resu lts.Publishing data and code allows your science to be reproducible.”Even people whose data are less popular can benefit.By making the effort to or ganize and label files so others can understand them,scientists become more organiz ed and better disciplined themselves,thus avoiding confusion later on.46.What do many researchers generally accept?A)It is imperative to protect scientists‟patents.B)Repositories are essential to scientific research.C)Open data sharing is m ost important to medical science.D)Open data sharing is conducive to scientific adva ncement.47.What is the attitude of most researchers towards making their own data pub lic?A)Opposed.B)Ambiguous.C)Liberal.D)Neutral48.According to the passage,what might hinder open data sharing?A)The fear of massive copying.B)The lack of a research culture.C)The belief that research data is private intellectual property.D)The concern t hat certain agencies may make a profit out of it.49.What helps lift some of the barriers to open data sharing?A)The ever-growing demand for big data.B)The advancement of digital technol ogy.C)The changing attitude of journals and funders.D)The trend of social and eco nomic development.50.Dryad serves as an example to show how open data sharing.A)is becoming increasingly popular B)benefits sharers and users alike C)makes researchers successful D)saves both money and laborPassage TwoQuestions51to55are based on the following passage.Macy‟s reported its sales plunged5.2%in November and December at stores open more th an a year,a disappointing holiday season performance that capped a difficult year for a department store chain facing wide-ranging challenges.Its flagship stores in major U.S.cities depend heavily on international touristspending,which shrank at many retailers due to a strong dollar.Meanwhile,Ma cy‟s has simply struggled to lure consumers who are more interested in spending on tra vel or dining out than on new clothes or accessories.The company blamed much of the poor performance in November and Decemb er on unseasonably warm weather.“About80%of our company’s year-over-year declines in comparable sales can be attributed to shortfalls(短缺)in cold-weather goods,”said chief executive Teny Lundgren in a press release.T his prompted the company to cut its forecasts for the full fourth quarter.However,it’s clear that Macy’s believes its troubles run deeper than a temporary aberration(偏离)off the therm ometer.The retail giant said the poor financial performance this year has pushed it to begin implementing$400million in cost-cutting measures.The company pledged to cut600back-office positions,though some150workers in those roles would be reas signed to other jobs.It also plans to offer“voluntary separation”packages to165s enior executives.It will slash staffing at its fleet of770stores,a move affecting some 3,000employees.The retailer also announced the locations of36stores it will close in early2016. The company had previously announced the planned closures,but had not said whic h locations would be affected.None of the chain‟s stores in the Washington metropolitan area are to be closed.Macy‟s has been moving aggressively to try to remake itself for a new era of shopping.It ha s plans to open more locations of Macy‟s Backstage,a newly-developed off-price concept which might help it better compete with ambitious T.J.Maxx.It‟s also pushing ahead in2016with an expansion of Bluemercury,the beauty chain it b ought last year.At a time when young beauty shoppers are often turning to Sephora or Ultainstead of department store beauty counters,Macy‟s hopes Bluemercury will help strengthen its position in the category.One relative bright spot for Macy‟s during the holiday season was the online channel,where it rang up“double-digit ”increases in sales and a25%increase in the number of orders it filled.That relativ e strength would be consistent with what was seen in the wilder retail industry durin g the early part of the holiday season.While Thanksgiving,Black Friday and Cyber Monday all saw record spending online,in-store sales plunged over the holiday weeken d.51.What does the author say about the shrinking spending of international tour ists in the U.S.?A)It is attributable to the rising value of the U.S.dollar.B)It is a direct result of t he global economic recession.C)It reflects a shift of their interest in consumer goods .D)It poses a potential threat to the retail business in the U.S.52.What does Macy‟s believe about its problems?A)They can be solved with better management.B)They cannot be attributed to weather only.C)They are not as serious in its online stores.D)They call for increased investments.53.In order to cut costs,Macy‟s decided to.A)cut the salary of senior executives B)relocate some of its chain stores C)adju st its promotion strategies D)reduce the size of its staff54.Why does Macy‟s plan to expand Bluemercury in2016?A)To experiment on its new business concept.B)To focus more on beauty prod ucts than clothing.C)To promote sales of its products by lowering prices.D)To be m ore competitive in sales of beauty products.55.What can we learn about Macy‟s during the holiday season?A)Sales dropped sharply in its physical stores.B)Its retail sales exceeded those of T.J.Maxx.C)It helped Bluemercury establish its position worldwide.D)It filled its stores wi th abundant supply of merchandise.Part IV Translation(30minutes)Directions:For this part,you are allowed30minutes to translate a passage from Chinese intoEnglish.You should write your answer on Answer Sheet2.宋朝始于960年，一直延续到1279年。

2017年6月大学英语六级考试真题（第二套）WritingSuppose you are asked to give advice on whether to attend a vocational college or a university, write an essay to state your opinion. You are required to write at least 150 words but no more than 200 words.1. A) He would feel insulted. C) He would be embarrassed.B) He would feel very sad. D) He would be disappointed.2. A) They are worthy of a prize. C) They make good reading.B) They are of little value. D) They need improvement.3. A) He seldom writes a book straight through. C) He draws on his real-life experiences.B) He writes several books simultaneously. D) He often turns to his wife for help.4. A) Writing a book is just like watching a football match.B) Writers actually work every bit as hard as footballers.C) He likes watching a football match after finishing a book.D) Unlike a football match, there is no end to writing a book.5. A) Achievements of black male athletes in college.B) Financial assistance to black athletes in college.C) High college dropout rates among black athletes.D) Undergraduate enrollments of black athletes.6. A) They display great talent in every kind of game.B) They are better at sports than at academic work.C) They have difficulty finding money to complete their studies.D) They make money for the college but often fail to earn a degree.7. A)About 15%. C)Slightly over 50%.B)Around 40%. D)Approximately 70%.8. A) Coaches lack the incentive to graduate them.B) College degrees do not count much to them.C) They have little interest in academic work.D) Schools do not deem it a serious problem.9. A) Marketing strategies. C) Shopping malls.B) Holiday shopping. D) Online stores.10. A) About 50% of holiday shoppers. C) About 136 million.B) About 20—30% of holiday shoppers. D) About 183. 8 million.11. A) They have fewer customers. C) They are thriving once more.B) They find it hard to survive. D) They appeal to elderly customers.12. A) Better quality of consumer goods. C) Greater varieties of commodities.B) Higher employment and wages. D) People having more leisure time.13. A) They are new species of big insects. C) They are life-threatening diseases.B) They are overprescribed antibiotics. D) They are antibiotic-resistant bacteria.14. A) Antibiotics are now in short supply.B) Many infections are no longer curable.C) Large amounts of tax money are wasted.D) Routine operations have become complex.15. A) Facilities. C) Money.B) Expertise. D) Publicity.16. A) It is accessible only to the talented. C) It starts a lifelong learning process.B) It improves stu dents‟ ability to think. D) It gives birth to many eminent scholars.17. A) They encourage academic democracy. C) They uphold the presidents‟ authority.B) They promote globalization. D) They protect students‟ rights.18. A) His thirst for knowledge. C) His contempt for authority.B) His eagerness to find a job. D) His potential for leadership.19. A) Few people know how to retrieve information properly.B) People can enhance their memory with a few tricks.C) Most people have a rather poor long-term memory.D) People tend to underestimate their mental powers.20. A) They present the states in a surprisingly different order.B) They include more or less the same number of states.C) They are exactly the same as is shown in the atlas.D) They contain names of the most familiar states.21. A) Focusing on what is likely to be tested.B) Having a good sleep the night before.C) Reviewing your lessons where the exam is to take place.D) Making sensible decisions while choosing your answers.22. A) Discover when you can learn best.B) Change your time of study daily.C) Give yourself a double bonus afterwards.D) Follow the example of a marathon runner.23. A) He is a politician. C) He is a sociologist.B) He is a businessman. D) He is an economist.24. A) In slums. C) In pre-industrial societies.B) In Africa. D) In developing countries.25. A) They have no access to health care, let alone entertainment or recreation.B) Their income is less than 50% of the national average family income.C) They work extra hours to have their basic needs met.D) Their children cannot afford to go to private schools.Half of your brain stays alert and prepared for danger when you sleep in a new place, a study hasrevealed. This phenomenon is often 26to as the “first-night-effect”. Researchers from Brown University found that a network in the left hemisphere of the brain “remained more active” than the network in the right side of the brain. Playing sounds into the right cars (stimulating the lefthemisphere)of 27 was more likely to wake them up than if the noises were played into their left ears.It was 28 observed that the left side of the brain was more active during deep sleep. When the researchers repeated the laboratory experiment on the second and third nights they found the left hemisphere could not be stimulated in the same way during deep sleep. The researchers explained that the study demonstrated when we are ina 29environment the brain partly remains alert so that humans can defend themselves against any 30 danger.The researchers believe this is the first time that the“first-night-effect”of different brain states has been 31 in humans. It isn‟t, however, the first time it has ever been seen. Some animal 32also display this phenomenon. For example, dolphins, as well as other 33 animals, shut down one hemisphere of the brain when they go to sleep. A previous study noted that dolphins always 34control their breathing. Without keeping the brain active while sleeping, they would probably drown.But, as the human study suggests, another reason for dolphins keeping their eyes open during sleep is that they can look out for35while asleep. It also keeps their physiological processes working.A) classified F) inherent K) referredB) consciouslyG) marine L) speciesC) dramaticallyH) novel M) specificallyD) exoticI) potential N) varietiesE) identified J) predators O) volunteersElite Math Competitions Struggle to Diversify Their Talent PoolA)Interest in elite high school math competitions has grown in recent years, and in light of last summer‟s U.S. win at the International Math Olympiad (IMO)—the first for an American team in more than two decades the trend is likely to continue.B)But will such contests, which are overwhelmingly dominated by Asian and white students from middle-class and affluent families, become any more diverse?Many social and cultural factors playroles in determining which promising students get on the path toward international math recognition·But efforts are in place to expose more black, Hispanic, and low—income students to advanced math, inthe hope that the demographic pool of high—level contenders will eventually begin to shift and become less exclusive.C) “The challenge is if certain types of people are doing something, it‟s difficult for other people to breakinto it.” said Po-Shen Loh, the head coach of last year‟s winning U. S. Math Olympi ad team. Participation grows through friends and networks and if“you realize that‟s how they‟re growing, youcan start to take action” and bring in other students, he said.D)Most of the training for advanced-math competitions happens outside the confines of the normal schoolday. Students attend after-school clubs, summer camps, online forums and classes, and university-based “math circles.” to prepare for the competitions.E)One of the largest feeders for high school math competitions—including those that eventually lead to the IMO is a middle school program called MathCounts. About 100, 000 students around the country participate in the program‟s competition series, which culminates in a national game-show-style contest held each May. The most recent one took place last week in Washington,D. C. Students join a team through their schools, which provide a volunteer coach and pay a nominal fee to send students to regional and state competitions. The 224 students who make it to the national competition get an all-expenses-paid trip.F)Nearly all members of last year‟s winning U.S. IMO team took part in MathCounts as middle schoolstudents, as did Loh, the coach. “Middle sch001 is an important age because students have enough math capability to solve advanced p roblems, but they haven‟t really decided what they want to do with their lives,” said Loh. “They often get hooked then.”G)Another influential feeder for advanced-math students is an online school called Art of Problem Solving, which began about 13 years ago and now has 15, 000 users. Students use forums to chat, play games, and solve problems together at no cost, or they can pay a few hundred dollars to take courses with trained teachers. According to Richard Rusczyk, the company founder, the six U. S. team members who competed at the IMO last year collectively took more than 40 courses on the site. Parents of advanced, math students and MathCounts coaches say the children are on the website constantly.H)There are also dozens of summer camps—many attached to universities—that aim to prepare elite math students. Some are pricey a three-week intensive program can cost$4, 500 or more—but most offer scholarships. The Math Olympiad Summer Training Program is a three-week math camp held by the Mathematical Association of America that leads straight to the international championship and is free for those who make it. Only about 50 students are invited based on their performance on written testsand at the USA Math Olympiad.I) Students in university towns may also have access to another lever for involvement in accelerated math: math circles. In these groups, which came out of an Eastern European tradition of developing young talent, professors teach promising K-12 students advanced mathematics for several hours after school or on weekends. The Los Angeles Math Circle, held at the University of California, Los Angeles, began in 2007 with 20 students and now has more than 250. “These math circles cost nothing, or they‟re very cheap for students to get involved in, but you have to know about them,” said Rusczyk. “Most people would love to get students from more underserved populations, but they just can‟t get them in the door. Part of it is communication; part of it is transportation. ”J) It‟s no secret in the advance d-math community that diversity is a problem. According to Mark Saul, the director of competitions for the Mathematical Association of America, not a single African-American or Hispanic student and only a handful of girls—has ever made it to the Math Olympiadteam in its 50 years of existence. Many schools simply don‟t prioritize academic competitions. “Do you know who we have to beat?” asked Saul. “The football team, the basketball team—that‟s our competition for resources, student time, attention, school dollars, parent efforts, school enthusiasm.”K) Teachers in low-income urban and rural areas with no history of participating in math competitions may not know about advanced-math opportunities like MathCounts—and those who do may not have support or feel trained to lead them.L) But there are initiatives in place to try to get more underrepresented students involved in acceleratedmath. A New York City-based nonprofit called Bridge to Enter Mathematics runs a residential summer program aimed at getting underserved students, mostly black and Hispanic, working toward math and science careers. The summer after 7th grade, students spend three weeks on a college campus studying advanced math for seven hours a day. Over the next five years, thegroup helps the students get into other elite summer math programs, high-performing high schools, and eventually college. About 250 students so far have gone through the program, which receives funding from the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation.M) “If you look at a lot of low-income communities in the United States, there are programs that are serving them, but they‟re primarily centered around …Let‟s get these kids‟grades up.‟ and not around …Let‟s get these kids access to the same kinds of opportunities as more-affluent kid s. ‟ ‟‟said Daniel Zaharopol, the founder and executive director of the program. “We‟re trying to create that pathway.” Students apply to the program directly through their schools. “We want to reach parents who are not plugged into the system,” said Zahar opol.N) In the past few years, MathCounts added two new middle school programs to try to diversify its participant pool—the National Math Club and the Math Video Challenge. Schools or teachers who sign up for the National Math Club receive a kit full of activities and resources, but there‟s no special teacher training and no competition attached.O)The Math Video Challenge is a competition, but a collaborative one. Teams of four students make avideo illustrating a math problem and its real-world application. After the high-pressure Countdownround at this year‟s national MathCounts competition, in which the top 12 students went head to headsolving complex problems in rapid fire, the finalists for the Math Video Challenge took the stage toshow their videos. The demographics of that group looked quite different from those in thecompetition round—of the 16 video finalists, 13 were girls and eight were African. American students. The video challenge does not put individual students on the hot seat—so it‟s le ss intimidating by design. It also adds the element of artistic creativity to attract a new pool of students who may not seethemselves as “math people.”36. Middle school is a crucial period when students may become keenly interested in advanced mathematics.37. Elite high school math competitions are attracting more interest throughout the United States.38. Math circles provide students with access to advanced-math training by university professors.39. Students may take advantage of online resources to learn to solve math problems.40. The summer program run by a nonprofit organization has helped many underserved students learn advanced math.41. Winners of local contests will participate in the national math competition for free.42. Many schools don‟t place academic competitions at the top of their priority list.43. Contestants of elite high school math competitions are mostly Asian and white students from well-off families.44. Some math trai ning programs primarily focus on raising students‟ math scores.45. Some intensive summer programs are very expensive but most of them provide scholarships.We live today indebted to McCardell, Cashin, Hawes, Wilkins, and Maxwell, and other women who liberated American fashion from the confines of Parisian design. Independence came in tying, wrapping, storing, harmonizing, and rationalizing that wardrobe. These designers established the modern dress code, letting playsuits and other active wear outfits suffice for casual clothing, allowing pants to enter the wardrobe, and prizing rationalism and versatility in dress, in contradiction to dressing for an occasion or allotment of the day. Fashion in America was logicaland answerable to the will of the women who wore it. Implicitly or explicitly, American fashion addressed a democracy, whereas traditional Paris-based fashion was prescriptive and imposed on women, willing or not.In an earlier time, American fashion had also followed the dictates of Paris, or even copied and pirated specific French designs. Designer sportswear was not modeled on that of Europe, as “modern art‟‟ would later be; it was genuinely invented and developed in America. Its designers were not high-end with supplementary lines. The design objective and the business commitment were to sportswear, and the distinctive traits were problem-solving ingenuity and realistic lifestyle applications. Ease of care was most important: summer dresses and outfits, in particular, were chiefly cotton, readily capable of being washed and pressed at home. Closings were simple, practical, and accessible, as the modern woman depended on no personal maid to dress her. American designers prized resourcefulness and the freedom of women who wore the clothing.Many have argued that the women designers of this time were able to project their own clothing values into a new style. Of course, much of this argument in the 1930s—40s was advanced because there was little or no experience in justifying apparel(服装) on the basis of utility. If Paris was cast aside, the tradition of beauty was also to some degree slighted. Designer sportswear would have to be verified by a standard other than that of pure beauty; the emulation of a designer‟s life in designer spo rtswear was a crude version of this relationship. The consumer was ultimately to be mentioned as well, especially by the likes of Dorothy Shaver, who could point to the sales figures at Lord & Taylor.Could utility alone justify the new ideas of the American designers? Fashion is often regarded as a pursuit of beauty, and some cherished fashion‟s trivial relationship to the fine arts. What the designers of American sportswear proved was that fashion is a genuine design art, answering to the demanding needs of service. Of course these practical, insightful designers have determined the course of late twentieth-century fashion. They were the pioneers of gender equity, in their useful, adaptable clothing, which was both made for the masses and capable of self-expression.46. What contribution did the women designers make to American fashion?A) They made some improvements on the traditional Parisian design.B) They formulated a dress code with distinctive American features.C) They came up with a brandnew set of design procedures.D) They made originality a top priority in their fashion design.47. What do we learn about American designer sportswear?A) It imitated the European model.B) It laid emphasis on women‟s beauty.C) It represented genuine American art.D) It was a completely new invention.48. What characterized American designer sportswear?A) Pursuit of beauty. C) Ease of care.B) Decorative closings. D) Fabric quality.49. What occurred in the design of women‟s apparel in America during the 1930s—40s?A) A shift of emphasis from beauty to utility.B) The emulation of traditional Parisian design.C) A search for balance between tradition and novelty.D) The involvement of more women in fashion design.50. What do we learn about designers of American sportswear?A) They catered to the taste of the younger generation.B) They radically cha nged people‟s concept of beauty.C) They advocated equity between men and women.D) They became rivals of their Parisian counterparts.Massive rubbish dumps and sprawling landfills constitute one of the more uncomfortable impacts that humans have on wildlife. They have led some birds to give up on migration. Instead of flying thousands of miles in search of food, they make the waste sites their winter feeding grounds.Researchers in Germany used miniature GPS tags to track the migrations of 70 white storks(鹳) from different sites across Europe and Asia during the first five months of their lives. While many birds travelled along well-known routes to warmer climates, others stopped short and spent the winter on landfills, feeding on food waste, and the multitudes of insects that thrive on the dumps.In the short-term, the birds seem to benefit from overwintering(过冬) on rubbish dumps. Andrea Flack of the Max Planck Institute found that birds following traditional migration routes were more likely to die than German storks that flew only as far as northern Morocco, and spent the winter there on rubbish dumps. “For the birds it‟s a very convenient way to get food. There are huge clusters of organic waste they can feed on,” said Flack. The mea ls are not particularly appetizing, or even safe. Much of the waste is discarded rotten meat, mixed in with other human debris such as plastic bags and old toys.“It‟s very risky. The birds can easily eat pieces of plastic or rubber bands and they can die,‟‟ said Flack. “And we don‟t know about the long-term consequences. They might eat something toxic and damage their health. We cannot estimate that yet.”The scientists tracked white storks from different colonies in Europe and Africa. The Russian. Greek and Polish storks flew as far as South Africa, while those from Spain, Tunisia and Germany flew only as far as the Sahel.Landfill sites on the Iberian peninsula have long attracted local white storks, but all of the Spanish birds tagged in the study flew across the Sahara desert to the western Sahel. Writing in the journal, the scientists describe how the storks from Germany were clearly affected by the presence of waste sites, with four out of six birds that survived for at least five months overwintering on rubbish dumps in northern Morocco, instead of migrating to the Sahel.Flack said it was too early to know whether the benefits of plentiful food outweighed the risks of feeding on landfills. But that‟s not the only uncertainty. Migrating birds affect ecosystems both at home and at their winter destinations, and disrupting the traditional routes could have unexpected side effects. White storks feed on locusts(蝗虫) and other insects that can become pests if their numbers get out of hand. “They provide a useful service,” said Flack.51. What is the impact of rubbish dumps on wildlife?A) They have forced white storks to search for safer winter shelters.B) They have seriously polluted the places where birds spend winter.C) They have accelerated the reproduction of some harmful insects.D) They have changed the previous migration habits of certain birds.52. What do we learn about birds following the traditional migration routes?A) They can multiply at an accelerating rate.B) They can better pull through the winter.C) They help humans kill harmful insects.D) They are more likely to be at risk of dying.53. What does Andrea Flack say about the birds overwintering on rubbish dumps?A) They may end up staying there permanently.B) They may eat something harmful.C) They may evolve new feeding habits.D) They may have trouble getting adequate food.54. What can be inferred about the Spanish birds tagged in the study?A) They gradually lose the habit of migrating in winter.B) They prefer rubbish dumps far away to those at home.C) They are not attracted to the rubbish dumps on their migration routes.D) They join the storks from Germany on rubbish dumps in Morocco.55. What is scientists‟ other concern about white storks feeding on landfills?A) The potential harm to the ecosystem.B) The genetic change in the stork species.C) The spread of epidemics to their homeland.D) The damaging effect on bio-diversity.宋朝始于960年，一直延续到1279年。

2017年6月大学英语四级真题及答案(二)Part I Writing (25 minutes) (请于正式开考后半小时内完成该部分，之后将进行听力考试)Directions:For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write an advertisement on your campus website to sell a bicycle you used at college. Your advertisement may include its brand, features,condition and price, and your contact information. You should write at least 120 words but no more than 180 words.Part II Listening Comprehension (30 minutes) Section ADirections:In this section, you will hear three news reports. At the end of each news report, you will hear two or three questions. Both the news report and questions will be spoken only once. After you hear questions, you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A), B), C) and D). Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.注意：此部分试题请在答题卡1上作答。

2017年6月英语六级真题答案完整版(试卷二)写作答案The Impact of Interest on People’s SuccessAs is known to all, the success of a person needs the right guidance and interest is undoubtedly the best teacher. Even Albert Einstein, the world-renowned physicist, said, “I have no special talents. I am only passionately curious.” So it is high time that people explore and cultivate their own interest.Passionate curiosity can be developed in one’s childhood or in one’s sixties, but once it is ignited, it can change peop le’s way of study, work and living. On the one hand, interest makes one’s pursuit of knowledge successful and enjoyable. For instance, the pianist Langlang, who plays piano with great love, is awarded a lot of prizes at home and abroad. On the other hand, curiosity helps to resolve difficulties constantly. A worker with curiosity is more likely to dig into the essence of the problem and thus accomplish more creative tasks.I would like to end up with the famous educator Herbert Spencer’s words which I can’t agree more, “If the interest and enthusiasm among us are cultivated smoothly in the first place, most people will become talents or geniuses.”短对话答案1. C. Attend the concert.2. D. None of the passengers were injured or killed.3. A. An article about the election.4. A. The restaurant was not up to the speaker’s expectations.5. C. He has many things to deal with right now.6. D. More students have to appear to make their voice heard.7. B. The speakers like watching TV very much.8. D. The woman will be able to attend the classes she wants.长对话一9. C) Export bikes to foreign markets.10. B) The government has control over bicycle imports.11. A) Extra costs might eat up their profits abroad.12. C) Conduct a feasibility study.长对话二13. B) Anything that can be used to produce power.14. D) Oil production will begin to decline worldwide by 2025.15. B) Start developing alternative fuels.选词填空答案36. J) philosophy37. I) mirrors38. B) constrained39. D) explore40. L) sneaking41. K) potential42. O) violent43. F) interacting44. A) assess45. N) undermines长篇阅读46. In theory, free competition is supposed to reduce the margin of profits to the minimum.C) Our current brand of capitalism is a fake capitalism…47. The United States is now characterized by a great division between the rich and the poor.A) A dangerous trend has developed over this past third of a century…48. America lacked the incentive to care for the majority of its citizens as it found no rival for its economic model.E) So why has America chosen these inequality-enhancing policies?...49. The wealthy top have come to take privileges for granted.I) Our division are deep…50. Many examples show the basic laws of imperial capitalism no longer apply in present-day America.B) Over the past year and a half, the Great Divide…51. The author suggests a return to the true spirit of the market.P) We need no just a new war on pove rty but a war to protect the middle class…52. A quarter of the world’s prisoner population is in America.M) Where justice is concerned, there is also…53. Government regulation in America went from one extreme to the other in the past two decades.F) Ide ology and interests combined viciously…54. Justice has become so expensive that only a small number of people like corporate executives can afford it.N) Justice has become a commodity, affordable to only a few…55. No country in the world so far has been able to provide completely equal opportunities for all.K) With almost a quarter of American children younger than 5 living…仔细阅读Passage One56 A) To get their share of clean air.57 C) Offering preferential treatment to wealthy countries.58 B) Our relationship to the plant world.59 D) By pooling their efforts together.60 C) Share life with nature.Passage Two61 B) Attend the school once they are admitted.62 A) To make sure they get qualified students.63 C) It allows them little time to make informed decisions.64 D) It places students from lower-income families at a disadvantage.65 B) Avoid choosing early decision unless they are fully prepared.翻译答案2011年是中国城市化(urbanization)进程中的历史性时刻，其城市人口首次超过农村人口。

2017年6月大学英语六级考试真题及答案解析（第二套完整版）Part I Writing (30 minutes)Directions: Suppose you are asked to give advice on whether to major in science or humanities at college, write an essay to state your opinion. You are required to write at least 150 words but no more than 200 words.Part II Listening Comprehension (30 minutes)Section ADirections: In this section, you will hear two long conversations. At the end of each conversation, you mil hear four questions. Both the conversation and the questions will be spoken only once. After you hear a question, you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A), B), C) and D). Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.Questions 1 to 4 are based on the conversation you havejust heard.1. A) Doing enjoyable work. B) Having friendly colleagues.C)Earning a competitive salary. D) Working for supportive bosses.2. A) 31%. B) 20%. C)25%. D) 73%.3. A) Those of a small size. B) Those run by women.C)Those that are well managed. D) Those full of skilled workers.4. A) They can hop from job to job easily.B) They can win recognition of their work.C)They can better balance work and life.D) They can take on more than one job.Questions 5 to 8 are based on the conversation you have just heard.5. A) It is a book of European history. B) It is an introduction to music.C)It is about the city of Bruges. D) It is a collection of photos.6. A) When painting the concert hall of Bruges.B) When vacationing in an Italian coastal city.C) When taking pictures for a concert catalogue.D) When writing about Belgium’s coastal regions.7. A) The entire European coastline will be submerged.B)The rich heritage of Europe will be lost completely.C)The seawater of Europe will be seriously polluted.D)The major European scenic spots will disappear.8. A) Its waterways are being increasingly polluted.B)People cannot get around without using boats.C)It attracts large numbers of tourists from home and abroad.D)Tourists use wooden paths to reach their hotels in the morning.Section BDirections: In this section, you will hear two passages. At the end of each passage, you will hear three or four questions. Both the passage and the questions will be spoken only once.After you hear a question, you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A), B), C) and D). Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.Questions 9 to 12 are based on the passage you have just heard.9. A) They make careful preparation beforehand.B) They take too many irrelevant factors into account.C) They spend too much time anticipating their defeat.D) They try hard to avoid getting off on the wrong foot.10.A) A person’s ner vous system is more complicated than imagined.B)Golfers usually have positive mental images of themselves.C)Mental images often interfere with athletes’ performance.D)Thinking has the same effect on the nervous system as doing.11. A) Anticipate possible problems.B) Make a list of do’s and don’ts.C) Picture themselves succeeding.D) Try to appear more professional.12. A) She wore a designer dress. B) She won her first jury trial.C)She did not speak loud enough. D) She presented moving pictures.Questions 13 to 15 are based on the passage you have just heard.13. A) Its long-term effects are yet to be proved.B)Its health benefits have been overestimated.C)It helps people to avoid developing breast cancer.D)It enables patients with diabetes to recover sooner.14. A) It focused on their ways of life during young adulthood.B)It tracked their change in food preferences for 20 years.C)It focused on their difference from men in fiber intake.D)It tracked their eating habits since their adolescence.15. A) Fiber may help to reduce hormones in the body.B)Fiber may bring more benefits to women than men.C)Fiber may improve the function of heart muscles.D)Fiber may make blood circulation more smooth.Section CDirections: In this section, you will hear three recordings of lectures or talks followed by three or four questions. The recordings will be played only once. After you hear a question, you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A), B), C) and D). Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.Questions 16 to 18 are based on the recording you have just heard.16. A) Observing the changes in marketing.B) Conducting research on consumer behavior.C)Studying the hazards of young people drinking.D) Investigating the impact of media on government.17. A) It is the cause of many street riots.B) It is getting worse year by year.C)It is a chief concern of parents.D) It is an act of socialising.18. A) They spent a week studying their own purchasing behavior.B)They researched the impact of mobile phones on young people.C)They analysed their family budgets over the years.D)They conducted a thorough research on advertising.Questions 19 to 22 are based on the recording you have just heard.19. A) It is helping its banks to improve efficiency.B)It is trying hard to do away with dirty money.C)It is the first country to use credit cards in the world.D)It is likely to give up paper money in the near future.20. A) Whether it is possible to travel without carrying any physical currency.B)Whether it is possible to predict how much money one is going to spend.C)Whether the absence of physical currency causes a person to spend more.D)Whether the absence of physical currency is going toaffect everyday life.21. A) There was no food service on the train.B) The service on the train was not good.C)The restaurant car accepted cash only.D) The cash in her handbag was missing.22. A) By putting money into envelopes.B)By drawing money week by week.C)By limiting their day-to-day spending.D)By refusing to buy anything on credit.Questions 23 to 25 are based on the recording you have just heard.23. A) Population explosion.B)Chronic hunger.C)Extinction of rare species.D)Environmental deterioration.24. A) They contribute to overpopulation.B)About half of them are unintended.C)They have been brought under control.D)The majority of them tend to end halfway.25. A) It is essential to the wellbeing of all species on earth.B)It is becoming a subject of interdisciplinary research.C)It is neglected in many of the developing countries.D)It is beginning to attract postgraduates’ attention.Part III Reading Comprehension (40 minutes)Section ADirections: In this section, there is a passage with ten blanks. You are required to select one word for each blank from a list of choices given in a word bank following the passage. Read the passage through carefully before making your choices. Each choice in the bank is identified by a letter. Please mark the corresponding letter for each item on Answer sheet 2 with a single line through the centre. You may not use any of the words in the bank more than once.After becoming president of Purdue University in 2013, Mitch Daniels asked the faculty to prove that their students have actually achieved one of higher education’s most important goals: critical thinking skills. Two years before, a nationwide study of college graduates had shown that more than a third had made no __26__ gains in such mental abilities during their school years. Mr. Daniels needed to __27__ the high cost of attending Purdue to its students and their families. After all, the percentage of Americans who say a college degree is “very impo rtant” has fallen __28__ in the last 5-6 years.Purdue now has a pilot test to assess students’ critical thinking skills. Yet like many college teachers around the .,the faculty remain __29__ that their work as educators can be measured by a “learning __30__” such as a graduate’s ability to investigate and reason. However, the professors need not worry so much. The results of a recent experiment showed that professors can use __31__ metrics to measure how well students do in three key areas: critical thinking, written communication, and quantitative literacy.Despite the success of the experiment, the actual results are worrisome, and mostly __32__ earlier studies. The organizers of the experiment concluded that far fewer students were achieving at high levels on critical thinking than they were doing for written communication or quantitative literacy. And that conclusion is based only on students nearing graduation.American universities, despite their global __33__ for excellence in teaching, have only begun to demonstrate what they can produce in real-world learning. Knowledge-based degrees are still important, but employers are __34__ advanced thinking skills from college graduates. If the intellectual worth of a college degree can be __35__ measured, more people will seek higher education---and come out better thinkers.A) accurately B) confirm C) demanding D) doubtful E) drasticallyF) justify G) monopolized H) outcome I) predominance J) presumingK) reputation L) significant M) signify N) simultaneously O) standardizedSection BDirections: In this section, you are going to read a passage with ten statements attached to it. Each statement contains information given in one of the paragraphs. Identify the paragraph from which the information is derived. You may choose a paragraph more than once. Each paragraph is markedwith a letter. Answer the questions by marking the corresponding letter on Answer sheet 2.The Price of Oil and the Price of Carbon[A] Fossil fuel prices are likely to stay “low for long”. Notwithstanding important recent progress in developing renewable fuel sources, low fossil fuel prices could discourage further innovation in, and adoption of, cleaner energytechnologies. The result would be higher emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.[B] Policymakers should not allow low energy prices to derail the clean energy transition. Action to restore appropriate price incentives, notably through corrective carbon pricing, is urgently needed to lower the risk of irreversible and potentially devastating effects of climate change. That approach also offers fiscal benefits.[C] Oil prices have dropped by over 60% since June 2014. A commonly held view in the oil industry is that “the best cure for low oil prices is low oil prices”. The reasoning behind this saying is that low oil prices discourage investment in new production capacity, eventually shifting the oil supply curve backward and bringing prices back up as existing oil fields---which can be tapped at relatively low marginal cost----are depleted. In fact, in line with past experience, capital expenditure in the oil sector has dropped sharply in many producing countries, including the United States. The dynamic adjustment to low oil prices may, however, be different this time around.[D] Oil prices are expected to remain lower for longer. The advent of new technologies has added about million barrels per day to the crude oil market, contributing to a global over-supply. In addition, other factors are putting downward pressure on oil prices: change in the strategic behavior of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, the projected increase in Iranian exports, the scaling-down of global demand (especially from emerging markets), the long-term drop in petroleum consumption in the United States, and some displacement of oil by substitutes. These likely persistent forces, like the growth of shale(页岩) oil, point to a “lowfor long” scenario. Futures markets, which show only a modest recovery of prices to around $60 a barrel by 2019, support this view.[E] Natural gas and coal—also fossil fuels—have similarly seen price declines that look to be long-lived. Coal andnatural gas are mainly used for electricity generation, whereas oil is used mostly to power transportation, yet the prices of all these energy sources are linked. The North American shale gas boom has resulted in record low prices there. The recent discovery of the giant Zohr gas field off the Egyptian coast will eventually have impact on pricing in the Mediterraneanregion and Europe, and there is significant development potential in many other places, notably Argentina. Coal prices also are low, owing to over- supply and the scaling-down of demand, especially from China, which bums half of the world’s coal.[F] Technological innovations have unleashed the power of renewables such as wind, hydro, solar, and geothermal(地热). Even Africa and the Middle East, home to economies that are heavily dependent on fossil fuel exports, have enormous potential to develop renewables. For example, the United Arab Emirates has endorsed an ambitious target to draw 24% of its primary energy consumption from renewable sources by 2021.[G] Progress in the development of renewables could be fragile, however, if fossil fuel prices remain low for long. Renewables account for only a small share of global primary energy consumption, which is still dominated by fossil fuels—30% each for coal and oil, 25% for natural gas. But renewable energy will have to displace fossil fuels to a much greater extent in the future to avoid unacceptable climate risks.[H] Unfortunately, the current low prices for oil, gas, and coal may provide little incentive for research to find evencheaper substitutes for those fuels. There is strong evidence that both innovation and adoption of cleaner technology are strongly encouraged by higher fossil fuel prices. The same is true for new technologies for alleviating fossil fuel emissions.[I] The current low fossil fuel price environment will thus certainly delay the energy transition from fossil fuel to clean energy sources. Unless renewables become cheap enough that substantial carbon deposits are left underground for a verylong time, if not forever, the planet will likely be exposed to potentially catastrophic climate risks.[J] Some climate impacts may already be discernible. For example, the United Nations Children’s Fund estimates that some 11 million children in Africa face hunger, disease, and water shortages as a result of the strongest El Nino(厄尔尼诺) weather phenomenon in decades. Many scientists believe that El Nino events, caused by warming in the Pacific, are becoming more intense as a result of climate change.[K] Nations from around the world have gathered in Paris for the United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP 21, with the goal of a universal and potentially legally-binding agreementon reducing greenhouse gas emissions. We need very broad participation to fully address the global tragedy that results when countries fail to take into account the negative impact of their carbon emissions on the rest of the world. Moreover, non-participation by nations, if sufficiently widespread, can undermine the political will of participating countries to act.[L] The nations participating at COP 21 are focusing on quantitative emissions-reduction commitments. Economic reasoning shows that the least expensive way for each countryis to put a price on carbon emissions. The reason is that when carbon is priced, those emissions reductions that are least costly to implement will happen first. The International Monetary Fund calculates that countries can generatesubstantial fiscal revenues by eliminating fossil fuel subsidies and levying carbon charges that capture the domestic damage caused by emissions. A tax on upstream carbon sources is one easy way to put a price on carbon emissions, although some countries may wish to use other methods, such as emissions trading schemes. In order to maximize global welfare, every country’s carbon pricing should reflect not only the purely domestic damage from emissions, but also the damage to foreign countries.[M] Setting the right carbon price will thereforeefficiently align the costs paid by carbon users with the true social opportunity cost of using carbon. By raising relative demand for clean energy sources, a carbon price would also help align the market return to clean-energy innovation with its social return, spurring the refinement of existing technologies and the development of new ones. And it would raise the demand for technologies such as carbon capture and storage, spurring their further development. If not corrected by the appropriate carbon price, low fossil fuel prices are not accurately signaling to markets the true social profitability of clean energy. While alternative estimates of the damage from carbon emissions differ, and it’s especially ha rd to reckon thelikely costs of possible catastrophic climate events, most estimates suggest substantial negative effects.[N] Direct subsidies to research and development have been adopted by some governments but are a poor substitute for a carbon price: they do only part of the job, leaving in place market incentives to over-use fossil fuels and thereby add to the stock of atmospheric greenhouse gases without regard to the collateral(附带的) costs.[O] The hope is that the success of COP 21 opens the door to future international agreement on carbon prices. Agreement onan international carbon-price floor would be a good starting point in that process. Failure to address comprehensively the problem of greenhouse gas emissions, however, exposes all generations, present and future, to incalculable risks.36. A number of factors are driving down the global oil prices not just for now but in the foreseeable future.37. Pricing carbon proves the most economical way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.38. It is estimated that extreme weather conditions have endangered the lives of millions of African children.39. The prices of coal are low as a result of over-supply and decreasing demand.40. Higher fossil fuel prices prove to be conducive to innovation and application of cleaner technology.41. If fossil fuel prices remain low for a long time, it may lead to higher emissions of greenhouse gases.42. Fossil fuels remain the major source of primary energy consumption in today’s world.43. Even major fossil exporting countries have great potential to develop renewable energies.44. Greenhouse gas emissions, if not properly dealt with, will pose endless risks for mankind.45. It is urgent for governments to increase the cost of using fossil fuels to an appropriate level to lessen the catastrophic effects of climate change.Section CDirections: There are 2 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A), B), C) and D). You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre.Passage OneQuestions 46 to 50 are based on the following passage.Open data sharers are still in the minority in many fields. Although many researchers broadly agree that public access to raw data would accelerate science, most are reluctant to post the results of their own labors online.Some communities have agreed to share online—geneticists, for example, post DNA sequences at the GenBank repository(库), and astronomers are accustomed to accessing images of galaxies and stars from, say, the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, a telescope that has observed some 500 million objects---but these remain the exception, not the rule. Historically, scientists have objected to sharing for many reasons: it is a lot of work;until recently, good databases did not exist; grant funders were not pushing for sharing; it has been difficult to agree on standards for formatting data; and there is no agreed way to assign credit for data.But the barriers are disappearing, in part because journals and funding agencies worldwide are encouraging scientists to make their data public. Last year, the Royal Society in London said in its report th at scientists need to “shift away from a research culture where data is viewed as a private preserve”. Funding agencies note that data paid for with public moneyshould be public information, and the scientific community is recognizing that data can now be shared digitally in ways that were not possible before. To match the growing demand, services are springing up to make it easier to publish research products online and enable other researchers to discover and cite them.Although calls to share data often concentrate on the moral advantages of sharing, the practice is not purely altruistic(利他的). Researchers who share get plenty of personal benefits, including more connections with colleagues, improved visibility and increased citations. The most successful sharers一those whose data are downloaded and cited the most often---get noticed, and their work gets used. For example, one of the most popular data sets on multidisciplinary repository Dryad is about wood density around the world; it has been downloaded5,700 times. Co-author Amy Zanne thinks that users probably range from climate-change researchers wanting to estimate how much carbon is stored in biomass, to foresters looking for information on different grades of timber. “I’d much prefer to have my data used by the maximum number of people to ask their own questions,” she says. “It’s important to allow readers and reviewers to see exactly how you arrive at yourresults. Publishing data and code allows your science to be reproducible.”Even people whose data are less popular can benefit. By making the effort to organize and label files so others can understand them, scientists become more organized and better disciplined themselves, thus avoiding confusion later on.46. What do many researchers generally accept?A) It is imperative to protect scientists’ patents.B)Repositories are essential to scientific research.C)Open data sharing is most important to medical science.D)Open data sharing is conducive to scientific advancement.47. What is the attitude of most researchers towards making their own data public?A) Opposed. B) Ambiguous. C) Liberal. D) Neutral.48. According to the passage, what might hinder open data sharing?A) The fear of massive copying.B)The lack of a research culture.C)The belief that research data is private intellectual property.D)The concern that certain agencies may make a profit out of it.49. What helps lift some of the barriers to open data sharing?A)The ever-growing demand for big data.B) The advancement of digital technology.C)The changing attitude of journals and funders.D) The trend of social and economic development.50. Dryad serves as an example to show how open datasharing ________.A)is becoming increasingly popularB) benefits sharers and users alikeC)makes researchers successfulD)saves both money and laborPassage TwoQuestions 51 to 55 are based on the following passage.Macy’s reported its sales plunged % in November and December at stores open more than a year, a disappointing holiday season performance that capped a difficult year for a department store chain facing wide-ranging challenges. Its flagship stores in major . cities depend heavily on international tourist spending, which shrank at many retailers due to a strong dollar. Meanwhile, Macy’s has simply struggled to lure consumers who are more interested in spending on travel or dining out than on new clothes or accessories.The company blamed much of the poor performance in November and December on unseasonably warm weather. “About 80% of our company’s year-over-year declines in comparable sales can be attributed to shortfalls(短缺) in cold-weather goods,” said chief executive Teny Lundgren in a press release. This prompted the company to cut its forecasts for the full fourth quarter.However, it’s clear that Macy’s believes its troubles run deeper than a temporary aberration (偏离) off the thermometer.The retail giant said the poor financial performance this year has pushed it to begin implementing $400 million in cost-cutting measures. The company pledged to cut 600 back-office positions, though some 150 workers in those roles would be reassigned to other jobs. It also plans to offer “voluntary separation” packages to 165 senior executives. It will sl ash staffing at its fleet of 770 stores, a move affecting some3,000 employees.The retailer also announced the locations of 36 stores it will close in early 2016. The company had previously announced the planned closures, but had not said which locations would be affected. None of the chain’s stores in the Washington metropolitan area are to be closed.Macy’s has been moving aggressively to try to remake itself for a new era of shopping. It has plans to open more locations of Macy’s Backstage, a newly-developed off-price concept which might help it better compete with ambitious T. J. Maxx. It’s also pushing ahead in 2016 with an expansion of Bluemercury,the beauty chain it bought last year. At a time when young beauty shoppers are often turning to Sephora or Ulta instead ofdepartment store beauty counters, Macy’s hopes Bluemercury will help strengthen its position in the category.One relative bright spot for Macy’s during the holiday season was the online channel, where it rang up “double-digit” increa ses in sales and a 25% increase in the number of orders it filled. That relative strength would be consistent with what was seen in the wilder retail industry during the early part of the holiday season. While Thanksgiving, Black Friday and Cyber Monday all saw record spending online, in-store sales plunged over the holiday weekend.51. What does the author say about the shrinking spending of international tourists in the .?A)It is attributable to the rising value of the . dollar.B)It is a direct result of the global economic recession.C)It reflects a shift of their interest in consumer goods.D)It poses a potential threat to the retail business in the .52. What does Macy’s believe about its problems?A) They can be solved with better management.B) They cannot be attributed to weather only.C) They are not as serious in its online stores.D) They call for increased investments.53. In order to cut costs, Macy’s decided to ________.A) cut the salary of senior executivesB) relocate some of its chain storesC) adjust its promotion strategiesD) reduce the size of its staff54. Why does Macy’s plan to expand Bluemercury in 2016?A) To experiment on its new business concept. B) To focus more on beauty products than clothing.C) To promote sales of its products by lowering prices. D) To be more competitive in sales of beauty products.55. What can we learn about Macy’s during the holiday season?A) Sales dropped sharply in its physical stores.B)Its retail sales exceeded those of T. J. Maxx.C)It helped Bluemercury establish its position worldwide.D)It filled its stores with abundant supply of merchandise.Part IV Translation (30 minutes)Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to translate a passage from Chinese into English. You should write your answer on Answer Sheet 2.宋朝始于960年，一直延续到1279年。

2017年6月份大学英语六级（CET6）真题与答案（卷二）PartⅠWriting(30minutes)Directions:Directions:Suppose you are asked to give advice on whether to major in science or humanities at college, write an essay to state your opinion. You are required to writeat least 150words but no more than 200words._________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________PartⅡListeningComprehension(30minutes)Section ADirections : In this section, you will hear two long conversations. At the end of eachconversation, you will hear four questions. Both the conversation and the questionswill be spoken only once. After you hear a question, you must choose the best answerfrom the four choices marked A), B), C) and D). Then mark the corresponding letteron Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.Questions 1 to 4 are based on the conversation you have just heard.Questions 1 to 4 are based on the conversation you have just heard.1. A) Doingenjoyablework. B) Having friendlycolleagues.A)Earning acompetitivesalary. D) Workingforsupportivebosses.2.A)31%. B)20%.C)25%. D)73%.3.A) Those of asmallsize. B) Those run bywomen.C) Those that arewellmanaged. D) Those full of skilledworkers.4.A) They can hop from job to jobeasily.B)They can win recognition of theirwork.C)They can better balance work andlife.D)They can take on more than onejob.Questions 5 to 8 are based on the conversation you have just heard.5.A) It is a book ofEuropeanhistory. B) It is an introduction tomusic.C) It is about the cityofBruges. D) It is a collection ofphotos.6.A) When painting the concert hall ofBruges.B)When vacationing in an Italian coastalcity.C)When taking pictures for a concertcatalogue.D)When writing about Belgium’s coastalregions.7.A) The entire European coastline will besubmerged.B)The rich heritage of Europe will be lost completely.C)The seawater of Europe will be seriouslypolluted.D)The major European scenic spots willdisappear.8.A) Its waterways are beingincreasingly polluted. B )Peoplecannot get around without usingboats.C)It attracts large numbers of tourists from home andabroad.D)Tourists use wooden paths to reach their hotels in themorning.Section BDirections: In this section, you will hear two passages. At the end of each passage, you will hear three or four questions. Both the passage and the questions will be spokenonly once. After you hear a question, you must choose the best answer from thefour choices marked A), B), C) and D).Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single linethrough the centre.Questions 9 to 12 are based on the passage you have just heard.9.A) They make careful preparationbeforehand.B)They take too many irrelevant factors intoaccount.C)They spend too much time anticipating theirdefeat.D)They try hard to avoid getting off on the wrongfoot.10.A) A person’s nervous system is more complicated thanimagined.B)Golfers usually have positive mental images ofthemselves.C)Mentalimagesofteninterferewithathletes’performance.D)Thinking has the same effect on the nervous system asdoing.11.A) Anticipate possibleproblems.B)Make a list of do’s and don’ts.C)Picture themselvessucceeding.D)Try to appear moreprofessional.12.A) She wore adesignerdress. B) She won her first jurytrial.C)She did not speakloudenough. D) She presented movingpictures. Questions 13 to 15 are based on the passage you have just heard.13.A) Its long-term effects are yet to beproved.B)Its health benefits have beenoverestimated.C)It helps people to avoid developing breastcancer.D)It enables patients with diabetes to recoversooner.14.A) It focused on their ways of life during youngadulthood.B)It tracked their change in food preferences for 20years.C)It focused on their difference from men in fiberintake.D)It tracked their eating habits since theiradolescence.15.A) Fiber may help to reduce hormones in thebody.B)Fiber may bring more benefits to women thanmen.C)Fiber may improve the function of heartmuscles.D)Fiber may make blood circulation moresmooth.Section CDirections: In this section, you will hear three recordings of lectures or talks followed by three or four questions. The recordings will be played only once. After you hear a question,you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A), B), CJ and D).Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line throughthe centre.Questions 16 to 18 are based on the recording you have just heard.16.A) Observing the changes inmarketing.B) Conducting research on consumerbehavior. C)Studying the hazards ofyoung people drinking.D) Investigating the impact of media on government.17.A) It is the cause of many streetriots.B)It is getting worse year byyear.C)It is a chief concern ofparents.D)It is an act ofsocialising.18.A) They spent a week studying their own purchasingbehavior.B)They researched the impact of mobile phones on youngpeople.C)They analysed their family budgets over theyears.D)They conducted a thorough research onadvertising.Questions 19 to 22 are based on the recording you have just heard.19.A) It is helping its banks to improveefficiency.B)It is trying hard to do away with dirtymoney.C)It is the first country to use credit cards in theworld.D)It is likely to give up paper money in the nearfuture.20.A) Whether it is possible to travel without carrying any physicalcurrency.B)Whether it is possible to predict how much money one is going tospend.C)Whether the absence of physical currency causes a person to spendmore.D)Whether the absence of physical currency is going to affect everydaylife.21.A) There was no food service on thetrain.B)The service on the train was notgood.C)The restaurant car accepted cashonly.D)The cash in her handbag wasmissing.22.A) By putting money intoenvelopes.B)By drawing money week byweek.C)By limiting their day-to-dayspending.D)By refusing to buy anything oncredit.Questions 23 to 25 are based on the recording you have just heard.23.A) Populationexplosion.B)Chronichunger.C)Extinction of rarespecies.D)Environmentaldeterioration.24.A) They contribute tooverpopulation.B)About half of them areunintended.C)They have been brought undercontrol.D)The majority of them tend to endhalfway.25.A) It is essential to the wellbeing of all species onearth.B)It is becoming a subject of interdisciplinaryresearch.C)It is neglected in many of the developingcountries.D)It is beginning to attract postgraduates’attention.PartIII ReadingComprehension(40minutes)Section ADirections: In this section, there is a passage with ten blanks. You are required to select one word for each blank from a list of choices given in a word bank following thepassage. Read the passage through carefully before making your choices. Eachchoice in the bank is identified by a letter.Pleasemarkthecorrespondingletterforeachitemon AnswerSheet2withasinglelinethrough the centre. You may not use any of the words in the bank more than once.Questions 26 to 35 are based on the following passage.After becoming president of Purdue University in 2013, Mitch Daniels asked the faculty to prove that their students have actually achieved one of higher education’s most important goals: critical thinking skills. Two years before, a nationwide study of college graduates had shown that more than a third had made no26 gains in such mental abilities during their school years. Mr. Daniels needed to27 the high cost of attending Purdue to its students and their families. After all, the percentage of Americans who say a college degree is “very important” has fallen 28 in the last 5-6 years.Purdue now has a pilot test to assess students’ critical thinking skills. Yet like many college teachers around the U.S., the faculty remain 29 that their work as educators can be measured by a “learning30” such as a graduate’s ability to investigate and reason. However, the professors need not worry so much. The results of a recent experiment showed that professors can use31 metrics to measure how well students do in three key areas: criticalthinking, written communication, and quantitative literacy.Despite the success of the experiment, the actual results are worrisome, and mostly32 earlier studies. The organizers of the experiment concluded that far fewer students were achieving at high levels on critical thinking than they were doing for written communication or quantitative literacy. And that conclusion is based only on students nearing graduation.American universities, despite their global33 for excellence in teaching, have only begun to demonstrate what they can produce in real-world learning. Knowledge-based degrees are still important, but employers are34 advanced thinking skills from college graduates. If the intellectual worth of a college degree can be35measured, more people will seek higherA)accurately I)predominanceeducation---and come out better thinkers.Section BDirections: In this section, you are going to read a passage with ten statements attached to it. Each statement contains information given in one of the paragraphs. Identifythe paragraph from which the information is derived. You may choose aparagraph more than once.Each paragraph is marked withaletter. Answer thequestions by markingthecorrespondingletter on Answer Sheet2.The Price of Oil and the Price of Carbon[A]Fossil fuel prices are likely to stay “low for long”. Notwithstanding important recent progress in developing renewable fuel sources, low fossil fuel prices could discourage further innovation in, andadoptionof,cleanerenergytechnologies.Theresultwouldbehigheremissionsofcarbondioxideandot her greenhousegases.[B]Policymakers should not allow low energy prices to derail the clean energy transition. Action to restore appropriate price incentives, notably through corrective carbon pricing, is urgently needed to lower the risk of irreversible and potentially devastating effects of climate change. That approach also offers fiscalbenefits.[C]Oil prices have dropped by over 60% since June 2014. A commonly held view in the oil industry is that “the best cure for low oil prices is low oil prices”. The reasoning behind this saying is that low oil prices discourage investment in new production capacity, eventually shifting the oil supply curve backwardandbringingpricesbackupasexistingoilfields---whichcanbetappedatrelativelylowmarginalcost----are depleted. In fact, in line with past experience, capital expenditure in the oil sector has dropped sharply in many producing countries, including the United States. The dynamic adjustment to low oil prices may, however, be different this time around.[D]Oil prices are expected to remain lower for longer. The advent of new technologies hasaddedabout4.2 million barrels per day to the crude oil market, contributing to a global over-supply. In addition, other factors are putting downward pressure on oil prices: change in the strategic behavior of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, the projected increase in Iranian exports, the scaling-down of global demand (especially from emerging markets), the long-term drop in petroleum consumption in the United States, and some displacement of oil by substitutes. These likely persistent forces, like the growth ofshale(页岩) oil, point to a “low for long” scenario. Futures markets, which show only a modest recovery ofprices to around $60 a barrel by 2019, support this view.[E]Natural gas and coal—also fossil fuels—have similarlyseen price declines that look to be long-lived. Coal and natural gas are mainly used for electricity generation, whereas oil is used mostly to power transportation, yet the prices of all these energy sources are linked. The North American shale gas boom has resulted in record low prices there. The recent discovery of the giant Zohr gas field off the Egyptian coast will eventually have impact on pricing in the Mediterranean region and Europe, and there is significant development potential in many other places, notably Argentina. Coal prices also are low, owing to over- supply and the scaling-down of demand, especially from China, which bums half of the world’s coal.[F]Technological innovations have unleashed the power of renewables such as wind,hydro,solar, andgeothermal( 地热). Even Africa and the Middle East, home to economies that are heavily dependent on fossil fuel exports, have enormous potential to develop renewables. For example, the United Arab Emirates has endorsed an ambitious target to draw 24% of its primary energy consumption from renewable sources by 2021.[G]Progress in the development of renewables could be fragile, however, if fossil fuel prices remain low for long. Renewables account for only a small share of global primary energy consumption, which isstilldominatedbyfossilfuels—30%eachforcoalandoil,25%fornaturalgas.Butrenewableenergywill havetodisplacefossilfuelstoamuchgreaterextentinthefuturetoavoidunacceptableclimaterisks. [H]Unfortunately, the current low prices for oil, gas, and coal may provide little incentive for research to find even cheaper substitutes for those fuels. There is strong evidence that both innovation and adoption of cleaner technology are strongly encouraged by higher fossil fuel prices. The same is true for new technologies for alleviating fossil fuelemissions.[I]The current low fossil fuel price environment will thus certainly delay the energy transition from fossil fuel to clean energy sources. Unless renewables become cheap enough that substantial carbon deposits are left underground for a very long time, if not forever, the planet will likely be exposed to potentially catastrophic climaterisks.[J]Some climate impacts may already be discernible. For example, the United Nations Children’s Fund estimates that some 11 million children in Africa face hunger, disease, and water shortages as a result of the strongest ElNino(厄尔尼诺) weatherphenomenonindecades. Manyscientistsbelieve thatElNinoevents, caused by warming in the Pacific, are becoming more intense as a result of climatechange.[K]Nations from around the world have gathered in Paris for the United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP 21, with the goal of a universal and potentially legally-binding agreement on reducing greenhouse gas emissions. We need very broad participation to fully address the global tragedy that results when countries fail to take into account the negativeimpact of their carbon emissions on the rest of the world. Moreover, non-participation by nations, if sufficiently widespread, can undermine the political will of participating countries toact.[L]ThenationsparticipatingatCOP21arefocusingonquantitativeemissions-reductioncommit ments. Economic reasoning shows that the least expensive way for each country is to put a price on carbon emissions. The reason is that when carbon is priced, those emissions reductions that are least costly to implement will happen first. The International Monetary Fund calculates that countries can generate substantial fiscal revenues by eliminating fossil fuel subsidies and levying carbon charges that capture the domestic damage caused by emissions. A tax on upstream carbon sources is one easy way to put a price on carbon emissions, although some countries may wish to use other methods, such as emissions trading schemes. In order to maximize global welfare, every country’s carbon pricing should reflect not only the purely domestic damage from emissions, but also the damage to foreigncountries.[M]Setting the right carbon price will therefore efficiently align the costs paid by carbon users with the true social opportunity cost of using carbon. By raising relative demand for clean energy sources, a carbon price would also help align the market return to clean-energy innovation with its social return, spurring the refinement of existing technologies and the development of new ones. And it would raise the demand for technologies such as carbon capture and storage, spurring their further development. If not corrected by the appropriate carbon price, low fossil fuel prices are not accurately signaling to markets the true social profitability of clean energy. While alternative estimates of the damage from carbon emissions differ, and it’s especially hard to reckon the likely costs of possible catastrophic climate events, most estimates suggest substantial negativeeffects.[N]Direct subsidies to research and development have been adopted by some governments but are a poor substitute for a carbon price: they do only part of the job, leavingin place market incentives to over-use fossil fuels and therebyadd to the stock of atmospheric greenhouse gases without regard to thecollateral(附带的) costs.[O]ThehopeisthatthesuccessofCOP21opensthedoortofutureinternationalagreementoncarbon prices. Agreement on an international carbon-price floor would be a good starting point in that process. Failure to address comprehensively the problem of greenhouse gas emissions, however, exposes all generations, present and future, to incalculablerisks.36.Anumberoffactorsaredrivingdowntheglobaloilpricesnotjustfornowbutintheforeseeablefuture.37.Pricing carbon proves the most economical way to reduce greenhouse gasemissions.38.ItisestimatedthatextremeweatherconditionshaveendangeredthelivesofmillionsofAfrican children.39.The prices of coal are low as a result of over-supply and decreasingdemand.40.Higher fossil fuel prices prove to be conducive to innovation and application ofcleanertechnology.41.If fossil fuel prices remain low for a long time, it may lead to higher emissions ofgreenhousegases.42.Fossil fuels remain the major source of primary energy consumption in today’s world.43.Evenmajorfossilexportingcountrieshavegreatpotentialtodeveloprenewableenergies.44.Greenhouse gas emissions, if not properly dealt with, will pose endless risks formankind.45.Itisurgentforgovernmentstoincreasethecostofusingfossilfuelstoanappropriateleveltolessenthe catastrophic effects of climatechange.Section CDirections: There are 2 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A, B, C andD. You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter onAnswer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre.Passage OneQuestions 46 to 50 are based on the following passage.Open data sharers are still in the minority in many fields. Although many researchersbroadly agree that public access to raw data would accelerate science, most are reluctant to post the results of their own labors online.Some communities have agreed to share online—geneticists, for example, post DNA sequences at the GenBank repository(库), and astronomers are accustomed to accessing images of galaxies and stars from, say, the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, a telescope that has observed some 500 million objects---but theseremain the exception, not the rule. Historically, scientists have objected to sharing for many reasons: it is a lot of work; until recently, good databases did not exist; grant funders were not pushing for sharing; it has been difficult to agree on standards for formatting data; and there is no agreed way to assign credit for data.But the barriers are disappearing, in part because journals and funding agencies worldwide are encouraging scientists to make their data public. Last year, the Royal Society in London said in its report that scientists need to “shift away from a research culture where datais viewed as a private preserve”.Funding agencies note that data paid for with public money should be public information, and the scientific community is recognizing that data can now be shared digitally in ways that were not possible before. To match the growing demand, services are springing up to make it easier to publish research products online and enable other researchers to discover and cite them.Although calls to share data often concentrate on the moral advantages of sharing, the practice is not purely altruistic( 利他的). Researchers who share get plenty of personal benefits, including more connections with colleagues, improved visibility and increased citations. The most successful sharers 一those whose data are downloaded and cited the most often---get noticed, and their work gets used. Forexample, one of the most popular data sets on multidisciplinary repository Dryad is about wood density around the world; it has been downloaded 5,700 times. Co-author Amy Zanne thinks that users probably range from climate-change researchers wanting to estimate how much carbon is stored in biomass, to foresters looking for information on different grades of timber. “I’d much prefer to have my data used by the maximum number of p eople to ask their own questions,” she says. “It’s important to allow readers and reviewers to see exactly how you arrive at your results. Publishing data and code allows your science to be reproducible.”Even people whose data are less popular can benefit. By making the effort to organize and label files so others can understand them, scientists become more organized and better disciplined themselves, thus avoiding confusion later on.46.What do many researchers generallyaccept?A)It is imperative to protect sc ientists’patents. B)Repositories are essential toscientificresearch.C)Open data sharing is most important to medicalscience.D)Open data sharing is conducive to scientificadvancement.47.What is the attitude of most researchers towards making their own datapublic?A)Opposed. B)Ambiguous. C)Liberal. D)Neutral48.According to the passage, what might hinder open datasharing?A)The fear of massivecopying.B)The lack of a researchculture.C)The belief that research data is private intellectualproperty.D)The concern that certain agencies may make a profit out ofit.49.What helps lift some of the barriers to open datasharing?A)The ever-growing demand for bigdata.B)The advancement of digitaltechnology.C)The changing attitude of journals andfunders.D)The trend of social and economicdevelopment.50.Dryad serves as an example to show how opendatasharing .A)is becoming increasinglypopularB)benefits sharers and usersalikeC)makes researcherssuccessfulD)saves both money andlaborPassage TwoQuestions 51 to 55 are based on the following passage.Macy’s reported its sales plunged 5.2% in November and December at stores open more than a year, a disappointing holiday season performance that capped a difficult year for a department store chain facing wide-ranging challenges. Its flagship stores in major U.S. cities depend heavily on international tourist spending, which shrank at many retailers due to a strong dollar. Meanwhile, Macy’s has simply struggled to lure consumers who are more interested in spending on travel or dining out than on new clothes or accessories.The company blamed much of the poor performance in November and December onunseasonablywarm weather. “About 80% of our company’s year-over-year declines in comparable sales can be attributed to shortfalls(短缺) in cold-weather goods,” said chief executive Teny Lundgren in a press release. This prompted the company to cut its forecasts for thefull fourth quarter.However, it’s clear that Macy’s believes its troubles run deeper than a temporary aberration ( 偏离) off the thermometer. The retail giant said the poor financial performance this year has pushed it to begin implementing $400 million in cost-cutting measures. The company pledged to cut 600 back-office positions, though some 150 workers in those roles would be reassigned to other jobs. It also plans to offer “voluntary separation” packages to 165 senior executives. It will slash staffing at its fleet of 770 stores, a move affecting some 3,000employees.The retailer also announced the locations of 36 stores it will close in early 2016. The company had previously announced the planned closures, but had not said which locations would be affected. None of the chain’s stores in the Washington metropolitan area are to be closed.Macy’s has been moving aggressively to try to remake itself for a new era of shopping. It has plans to open more locations of Macy’s Backstage, a newly-developed off-price concept which might help it better compete with ambitious T. J. Maxx. It’s also pushing ahead in 2016 with an expansion of Bluemercury, the beauty chain it bought last year. At a time when young beauty shoppers are often turning to Sephora or Ultainstead of department store beauty counters, Macy’s hopes Bluemercury will help strengthen its position in the category.One relative bright spot for Macy’s during the holiday season was the online channel, where it rang up “double-digit” increases in sales and a 25% increase in the number of orders it filled. That relative strength would be consistent with what was seen in the wilder retail industry during the early part of the holiday season. While Thanksgiving, Black Friday and Cyber Monday all saw record spending online, in-store sales plunged over the holiday weekend.51.What does the author say about the shrinking spending of international tourists in theU.S.?A)It is attributable to the rising value of the U.S.dollar.B)It is a direct result of the global economicrecession.C)It reflects a shift of their interest in consumergoods.D)It poses a potential threat to the retail business in theU.S.52.What does Macy’s believe about itsproblems?A)They can be solved with bettermanagement.B)They cannot be attributed to weatheronly.C)They are not as serious in its onlinestores.D)They call for increasedinvestments.53.In order to cut costs, Macy’s decidedto .A)cut the salary of seniorexecutivesB)relocate some of its chainstoresC)adjust its promotionstrategiesD)reduce the size of itsstaff54.Why does Macy’s plan to expand Bluemercury in2016?A)To experiment on its newbusinessconcept. B) To focus more on beauty productsthanclothing.C) To promote sales of its products by lowering prices. D) To be more competitive in salesof beauty products.55.What can we learn about Macy’s during the holidayseason?A)Sales dropped sharply in its physicalstores.B)Its retail sales exceeded those of T. J.Maxx.C)It helped Bluemercury establish its positionworldwide.D)It filled its stores with abundant supply ofmerchandise.PartIV Translation(30minutes)Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to translate a passage from Chinese into English. You should write your answer on Answer Sheet 2.宋朝始于960 年，一直延续到1279 年。