2018年6月英语六级真题解析及答案：第2套

2017年6月大学英语六级真题试卷及答案（二）Part I Writing (30 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: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 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.注意：此部分试题请在答题卡1上作答。

Questions 1 to 4 are based on the conversation you have just heard.1.A) Doing enjoyable work.B) Earning a competitive salary. C) Having friendly colleagues.D) Working for supportive bosses.2.A) 20%.B) 25%. C)31%.D) 73%.3.A) Those full of skilled workers.B) Those that are well managed.C) Those run by women.D) Those of a small size.4.A) They can win recognition of their work.B) They can better balance work and life.C) They can hop from job to job easily.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 collection of photos. B) It is an introduction to music.C) It is about the city of Bruges. D) It is a book of European history.6.A) When writing about Belgium’s coastal regions.B) When taking pictures for a concert catalogue.C) When vacationing in an Italian coastal city.D) When painting the concert hall of Bruges.7.A) The rich heritage of Europe will be lost completely.B)The seawater of Europe will be seriously polluted.C) The entire European coastline will be submerged.D)The major European scenic spots will disappear.8.A) Tourists use wooden paths to reach their hotels in the morning.B)It attracts large numbers of tourists from home and abroad.C) People cannot get around without using boats.D)Its waterways are being increasingly polluted.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.Questions9 to 12 are based on the passage you have just heard.9.A) They try hard to avoid getting off on the wrong foot.B)They spend too much time anticipating their defeat.C) They take too many irrelevant factors into account.D) They make careful preparations beforehand.10.A) Mental images often interfere with athletes’performance.B)Golfers usually have positive mental images of themselves.C) Thinking has the same effect on the nervous system as doing.D) A person’s nervous system is more complicated than imagined.11.A) Anticipate possible problems.B) Make a list of do’s and don’ts.C) Try to appear more professional.D) Picture themselves succeeding.12.A) She won her first jury trial. B) She wore a designer dress.C) She presented moving pictures. D) She did not speak loud enough.Questions 13 to 15 are based on the passage you have just heard.13.A) It enables patients with diabetes to recover sooner.B)Its health benefits have been overestimated.C) Its long-term effects are yet to be proved.D) It helps people to avoid developing breast cancer.14.A) It tracked their eating habits since their adolescence.B)It focused on their difference from men in fiber intake.C) It tracked their change in food preferences for 20 years.D) It focused on their ways of life during young adulthood.15.A) Fiber may bring more benefits to women than men.B)Fiber may improve the function of heart muscles.C) Fiber may make blood circulation more smooth.D) Fiber may help to reduce hormones in the body.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 to18 are based on the recording you have just heard.16.A) Investigating the impact of media on government.B)Studying the hazards of young people drinking.C) Conducting research on consumer behaviour.D) Observing the changes in marketing.17.A) It is a chief concern of parents. B) It is an act of socialising.C) It is the cause of many street riots. D) It is getting worse year byyear.18.A) They researched the impact of mobile phones on young people.B)They spent a week studying their own purchasing behaviour.C) They conducted a thorough research on advertising.D) They analysed their family budgets over the years.Questions 19 to 22 are based on the recording you have just heard.19. A) It is likely to give up paper money in the near future.B) It is the first country to use credit cards in the world.C) It is trying hard to do away with dirty money.D) It is helping its banks to improve efficiency.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 is going to affect everyday life.D) Whether the absence of physical currency causes a person to spend more.21.A) The cash in her handbag was missing. B) The service on the train was not good.C) The restaurant car accepted cash only. D) There was no food service on the train.22.A) By drawing money week by week. B) By putting money into envelopes.C) By limiting their day-to-day spending. D) By refusing to buy anything on credit.Questions 23 to 25 are based on the recordingyou have just heard.23. A) Population explosion. B) Extinction of rare species.C) Chronic hunger. D) Environmental deterioration.24. A) About half of them are unintended. B) They contribute to overpopulation.C) They have been brought under control. D) The majority of them tend to end halfway.25. A) It is beginning to attract postgraduates’attention.B) It is neglected in many of the developing countries.C) It is becoming a subject of interdisciplinary research.D) It is essential to the wellbeing of all species on earth.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.【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。

2018年6月英语六级考试真题及答案解析和听力原文 (第2套)2018年6月英语六级考试真题 (第2套)Part I Writing (30 minutes)Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write an essay on the importance of building trust between teachers and students. You can cite examples to illustrate your views. You should 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 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) She advocates animal protection.B) She sells a special kind of coffee. C) She is going to start a café chain.D) She is the owner of a special café.2. A) They bear a lot of similarities.B) They are a profitable business sector. C) They cater to different customers.D) They help take care of customers' pets.3. A) By giving them regular cleaning and injections.B) By selecting breeds that are tame and peaceful.C) By placing them at a safe distance from customers.D) By briefing customers on how to get along with them.4. A) They want to learn about rabbits.B) They like to bring in their children. C) They love the animals in her café.D) They give her café favorite reviews.Questions 5 to 8 are based on the conversation you have just heard.5. A) It contains too many additives.B) It lacks the essential vitamins. C) It can cause obesity.D) It is mostly garbage.6. A) Its fancy design. B) TV commercials. C) Its taste and texture. D) Peer influence.7. A) Investing heavily in the production of sweet foods.B) Marketing their products with ordinary ingredients.C) Trying to trick children into buying their products.D) Offering children more varieties to choose from.8. A) They hardly ate vegetables.B) They seldom had junk food. C) They favored chocolate-coated sweets.D) They liked the food advertised on TV.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 11 are based on the passage you have just heard.9. A) Stretches of farmland.B) Typical Egyptian animal farms. C) Tombs of ancient rulers.D) Ruins left by devastating floods.10. A) It provides habitats for more primitive tribes.B) It is hardly associated with great civilizations.C) It has not yet been fully explored and exploited.D) It gathers water from many tropical rain forests.11. A) It carries about one fifth of the world's fresh water.B) It has numerous human settlements along its banks.C) It is second only to the Mississippi River in width.D) It is as long as the Nile and the Yangtze combined.Questions 12 to 15 are based on the passage you have just heard.12. A) Living a life in the fast lane leads to success.B) We are always in a rush to do various things.C) The search for tranquility has become a trend.D) All of us actually yearn for a slow and calm life.13. A) She had trouble balancing family and work. C) She was accustomed to tight schedules.B) She enjoyed the various social events. D) She spent all her leisure time writing books.14. A) The possibility of ruining her family.B)Becoming aware of her declining health. C) The fatigue from living a fast-paced life.D) Reading a book about slowing down.15. A) She started to follow the cultural norms. C) She learned to use more polite expressions.B) She came to enjoy doing everyday tasks. D) She stopped using to-do lists and calendars. 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 centre.Questions 16 to 18 are based on the recording you have just heard.16. A) They will root out native species altogether.B) They contribute to a region's biodiversity.C) They pose a threat to the local ecosystem.D) They will crossbreed with native species.17. A) Their classifications are meaningful.B) Their interactions are hard to define. C) Their definitions are changeable.D) Their distinctions are artificial.18. A) Only a few of them cause problems to native species.B) They may turn out to benefit the local environment.C) Few of them can survive in their new habitats.D) Only 10 percent of them can be naturalized.Questions 19 to 21 are based on the recording you have just heard.19. A) Respect their traditional culture.B) Attend their business seminars. C) Research their specific demands.D) Adopt the right business strategies.20. A) Showing them your palm. C) Drinking alcohol on certain days of a month.B) Giving them gifts of great value. D) Clicking your fingers loudly in their presence.21. A) They are very easy to satisfy.B) They have a strong sense of worth. C) They tend to be friendly and enthusiastic.D) They have a break from 2:00 to 5:30 p.m.Questions 22 to 25 are based on the recording you have just heard.22. A) He completely changed the company's culture.B) He collected paintings by world-famous artists.C) He took over the sales department of Reader's Digest.D) He had the company's boardroom extensively renovated.23. A) It should be sold at a reasonable price.B) Its articles should be short and inspiring.C) It should be published in the world's leading languages.D) Its articles should entertain blue- and pink-collar workers.24. A) He knew how to make the magazine profitable.B) He served as a church minister for many years.C) He suffered many setbacks and misfortunes in his life.D) He treated the employees like members of his family.25. A) It carried many more advertisements. C) Several hundred of its employees got fired.B) George Grune joined it as an ad salesman. D) Its subscriptions increased considerably. 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.Did Sarah Josepha Hale write "Mary's Little Lamb," the eternal nursery rhyme (儿歌) about a girl named Mary with a stubborn lamb? This is still disputed, but it's clear that the woman __26 for writing it was one of America's most fascinating 27 . In honor of the poem's publication on May 24, 1830, here's more about the 28 author's life.Hale wasn't just a writer, she was also a 29 social advocate, and she was particularly __30 with an ideal New England, which she associated with abundant Thanksgiving meals that she claimed had " a deep moral influence. " She began a nationwide __31 to have a national holiday declared that would bring families together while celebrating the 32 festivals.In 1863, after 17 years of advocacy including letters to five presidents, Hale got it. President Abraham Lincoln, during the Civil War, issued a 33 setting aside the last Thursday in November for the holiday.The true authorship of "Mary's Little Lamb" is disputed. According to the New EnglandHistorical Society, Hale wrote only part of the poem, but claimed authorship. Regardless of the author, it seems that the poem was 34 by a real event.When young Mary Sawyer was followed to school by a lamb in 1816, it caused some problems. A bystander named John Roulstone wrote a poem about the event, then, at some point, Hale herself seems to have helped write it. However, if a 1916 piece by her great-niece is to be trusted, Hale claimed for the 35 of her life that "some other people pretended that someone else wrote the poem".A) campaignB) careerC) characters D) featuresE) fierceF) inspiredG) latterH) obsessedI) proclamationJ) rectifiedK) reputedL) restM) supposedN) traditionalO) versatileSection 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.Grow Plants Without Water[A] Ever since humanity began to farm our own food, we’ve faced the unpredictable rain that is both friend and enemy. It comes and goes without much warning, and a field of lush (茂盛的) leafy greens one year can dry up and blow away the next. Food security and fortunes depend on sufficient rain, and nowhere more so than in Africa, where 96% of farmland depends on rain instead of the irrigation common in more developed places. It has consequences: South Africa's ongoing drought—the worst in three decades—will cost at least a quarter of its corn crop this year.[B] Biologist Jill Farrant of the University of Cape Town in South Africa says that nature has plenty of answers for people who want to grow crops in places with unpredictable rainfall. She is hard at work finding a way to take traits from rare wild plants that adapt to extreme dry weather and use them in food crops. As the earth's climate changes and rainfall becomes even less predictable in some places, those answers will grow even more valuable. "The type of farming I'm aiming for is literally so that people can survive as it's going to get more and more dry," Farrantsays.[C] Extreme conditions produce extremely tough plants. In the rusty red deserts of South Africa, steep-sided rocky hills called inselbergs rear up from the plains like the bones of the earth. The hills are remnants of an earlier geological era, scraped bare of most soil and exposed to the elements. Yet on these and similar formations in deserts around the world, a few fierce plants have adapted to endure under ever-changing conditions.[D]Farrant calls them resurrection plants (复苏植物). During months without water under a harsh sun, they wither, shrink and contract until they look like a pile of dead gray leaves. But rainfall can revive them in a matter of hours. Her time-lapse (间歇性拍摄的) videos of the revivals look like someone playing a tape of the plant's death in reverse.[E]The big difference between "drought-tolerant" plants and these tough plants: metabolism. Many different kinds of plants have developed tactics to weather dry spells. Some plants store reserves of water to see them through a drought; others send roots deep down to subsurface water supplies. But once these plants use up their stored reserve or tap out the underground supply, they cease growing and start to die. They may be able to handle a drought of some length, and many people use the term "drought tolerant" to describe such plants, but they never actually stop needing to consume water, so Farrant prefers to call them drought resistant.[F]Resurrection plants, defined as those capable of recovering from holding less than 0.1 grams of water per gram of dry mass, are different. They lack water-storing structures, and their existence on rock faces prevents them from tapping groundwater, so they have instead developed the ability to change their metabolism. When they detect an extended dry period, they divert their metabolisms, producing sugars and certain stress-associated proteins and other materials in their tissues. As the plant dries, these resources take on first the properties of honey, then rubber, and finally enter a glass-like state that is "the most stable state that the plant can maintain," Farrant says. That slows the plant's metabolism and protects its dried-out tissues. The plants also change shape, shrinking to minimize the surface area through which their remaining water might evaporate. They can recover from months and years without water, depending on the species.[G] What else can do this dry-out-and-revive trick? Seeds—almost all of them. At the start of her career, Farrant studied "recalcitrant seeds (顽拗性种子)," such as avocados, coffee andlychee. While tasty, such seeds are delicate—they cannot bud and grow if they dry out (as you may know if you've ever tried to grow a tree from an avocado pit). In the seed world, that makes them rare, because most seeds from flowering plants are quite robust. Most seeds can wait out the dry, unwelcoming seasons until conditions are right and they sprout (发芽). Yet once they start growing, such plants seem not to retain the ability to hit the pause button on metabolism in their stems or leaves.[H] After completing her Ph. D. on seeds, Farrant began investigating whether it might be possible to isolate the properties that make most seeds so resilient (迅速恢复活力的) and transfer them to other plant tissues. What Farrant and others have found over the past two decades is that there are many genes involved in resurrection plants' response to dryness. Many of them are the same that regulate how seeds become dryness-tolerant while still attached to their parent plants. Now they are trying to figure out what molecular signaling processes activate those seed-building genes in resurrection plants—and how to reproduce them in crops. "Most genes are regulated by a master set of genes," Farrant says. "We're looking at gene promoters and what would be their master switch."[I] Once Farrant and her colleagues feel they have a better sense of which switches to throw, they will have to find the best way to do so in useful crops. "I'm trying three methods of breeding," Farrant says: conventional, genetic modification and gene editing. She says she is aware that plenty of people do not want to eat genetically modified crops, but she is pushing ahead with every available tool until one works. Farmers and consumers alike can choose whether or not to use whichever version prevails："I'm giving people an option."[J] Farrant and others in the resurrection business got together last year to discuss the best species of resurrection plant to use as a lab model. Just like medical researchers use rats to test ideas for human medical treatments, botanists use plants that are relatively easy to grow in a lab or greenhouse setting to test their ideas for related species. The Queensland rock violet is one of the best studied resurrection plants so far, with a draft genome (基因图谱) published last year by a Chinese team. Also last year, Farrant and colleagues published a detailed molecular study of another candidate, Xerophyta viscosa, a tough-as-nail South African plant with lily-like flowers, and she says that a genome is on the way. One or both of these models will help researchers test their ideas—so far mostly done in the lab—on test plots.[K] Understanding the basic science first is key. There are good reasons why crop plants do not use dryness defenses already. For instance, there's a high energy cost in switching from a regular metabolism to an almost-no-water metabolism. It will also be necessary to understand what sort of yield farmers might expect and to establish the plant's safety. "The yield is never going to be high," Farrant says, so these plants will be targeted not at Iowa farmers trying to squeeze more cash out of high-yield fields, but subsistence farmers who need help to survive a drought like the present one in South Africa. "My vision is for the subsistence farmer," Farrant says. "I'm targeting crops that are of African value."36.There are a couple of plants tough and adaptable enough to survive on bare rocky hills and in deserts.37. Farrant is trying to isolate genes in resurrection plants and reproduce them in crops.38. Farmers in South Africa are more at the mercy of nature, especially inconsistent rainfall.39.Resurrection crops are most likely to be the choice of subsistence farmers.40.Even though many plants have developed various tactics to cope with dry weather, they cannot survive a prolonged drought.41.Despite consumer resistance, researchers are pushing ahead with genetic modification of crops.42.Most seeds can pull through dry spells and begin growing when conditions are ripe, but once this process starts, it cannot be held back.43.Farrant is working hard to cultivate food crops that can survive extreme dryness by studying the traits of rare wild plants.44.By adjusting their metabolism, resurrection plants can recover from an extended period of drought.45. Resurrection plants can come back to life in a short time after a rainfall.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.Human memory is notoriously unreliable. Even people with the sharpest facial-recognition skills can only remember so much.It's tough to quantify how good a person is at remembering. No one really knows how many different faces someone can recall, for example, but various estimates tend to hover in the thousands—based on the number of acquaintances a person might have.Machines aren't limited this way. Give the right computer a massive database of faces, and it can process what it sees—then recognize a face it's told to find—with remarkable speed and precision. This skill is what supports the enormous promise of facial-recognition software in the 21st century. It's also what makes contemporary surveillance systems so scary.The thing is, machines still have limitations when it comes to facial recognition. And scientists are only just beginning to understand what those constraints are. To begin to figure out how computers are struggling, researchers at the University of Washington created a massive database of faces—they call it MegaFace—and tested a variety of facial-recognition algorithms (算法) as they scaled up in complexity. The idea was to test the machines on a database that included up to 1 million different images of nearly 700,000 different people—and not just a large database featuring a relatively small number of different faces, more consistent with what's been used in other research.As the databases grew, machine accuracy dipped across the board. Algorithms that were right 95% of the time when they were dealing with a 13,000-image database, for example, were accurate about 70% of the time when confronted with 1 million images. That's still pretty good, says one of the researchers, Ira Kemelmacher-Shlizerman. "Much better than we expected," she said.Machines also had difficulty adjusting for people who look a lot alike—either doppelgangers (长相极相似的人), whom the machine would have trouble identifying as two separate people, or the same person who appeared in different photos at different ages or in different lighting, whom the machine would incorrectly view as separate people."Once we scale up, algorithms must be sensitive to tiny changes in identities and at the same time invariant to lighting, pose, age," Kemelmacher-Shlizerman said.The trouble is, for many of the researchers who'd like to design systems to address thesechallenges, massive datasets for experimentation just don't exist—at least, not in formats that are accessible to academic researchers. Training sets like the ones Google and Facebook have are private. There are no public databases that contain millions of faces. MegaFace's creators say it's the largest publicly available facial-recognition dataset out there."An ultimate face recognition algorithm should perform with billions of people in a dataset," the researchers wrote.46. Compared with human memory, machines can ________.A) identify human faces more efficiently C) store an unlimited number of human facesB) tell a friend from a mere acquaintance D) perceive images invisible to the human eye47. Why did researchers create MegaFace?A) To enlarge the volume of the facial-recognition database.B) To increase the variety of facial-recognition software.C) To understand computers' problems with facial recognition.D) To reduce the complexity of facial-recognition algorithms.48. What does the passage say about machine accuracy?A) It falls short of researchers' expectations. C) It varies greatly with different algorithms.B) It improves with added computing power. D) It decreases as the database size increases.49. What is said to be a shortcoming-of facial-recognition machines?A) They cannot easily tell apart people with near-identical appearances.B) They have difficulty identifying changes in facial expressions.C) They are not sensitive to minute changes in people's mood.D) They have problems distinguishing people of the same age.50. What is the difficulty confronting researchers of facial-recognition machines?A) No computer is yet able to handle huge datasets of human faces.B) There do not exist public databases with sufficient face samples.C) There are no appropriate algorithms to process the face samples.D) They have trouble converting face datasets into the right format.Passage TwoQuestions 51 to 55 are based on the following passage.There're currently 21.5 million students in America, and many will be funding their collegeon borrowed money. Given that there's now over $1.3 trillion in student loans on the books, it's pretty clear that many students are far from sensible. The average student's debt upon graduation now approaches $40,000, and as college becomes ever more expensive, calls to make it "free" are multiplying. Even Hillary Clinton says that when it comes to college, "Costs won't be a barrier."But the only way college could be free is if the faculty and staff donated their time, the buildings required no maintenance, and campuses required no utilities. As long as it's impossible to produce something from nothing, costs are absolutely a barrier.The actual question we debate is who should pay for people to go to college. If taxpayers are to bear the cost of forgiving student loans, shouldn't they have a say in how their money is used?At least taxpayers should be able to decide what students will study on the public dime. If we're going to force taxpayers to foot the bill for college degrees, students should only study those subjects that're of greatest benefit to taxpayers. After all, students making their own choices in this respect is what caused the problem in the first place. We simply don't need more poetry, gender studies, or sociology majors. How do we know which subjects benefit society? Easy.Average starting salaries give a clear indication of what type of training society needs its new workers to have. Certainly, there're benefits to a college major beyond the job a student can perform. But if we're talking about the benefits to society, the only thing that matters is what the major enables the student to produce for society. And the value of what the student can produce is reflected in the wage employers are willing to pay the student to produce it.A low wage for elementary school teachers, however, doesn't mean elementary education isn't important. It simply means there're too many elementary school teachers already.Meanwhile, there're few who're willing and able to perform jobs requiring a petroleum engineering major, so the value of one more of those people is very high.So we can have taxpayers pick up students' tuition in exchange for dictating what those students will study. Or we can allow students both to choose their majors and pay for their education themselves. But in the end, one of two things is true:Either a college major is worth its cost or it isn't. If yes, taxpayer financing isn't needed. If not, taxpayer financing isn't desirable. Either way, taxpayers have no business paying for students'college education.51. What does the author think of college students funding their education through loans?A) They only expect to get huge returns.B) They are acting in an irrational way. C) They benefit at taxpayers' expense.D) They will regret doing so someday.52. In the author's opinion, free college education is ________.A) impractical B) unsustainable C) a goal to strive for D) a way to social equality53. What should students do if taxpayers are to bear their college costs?A) Work even harder to repay society.B) Choose their subjects more carefully.C) Choose majors that will serve society's practical needs.D) Allow taxpayers to participate in college administration.54. What does the author say about the value of a student's college education?A) It is underestimated by profit-seeking employers.B) It is to be proved by what they can do on the job.C) It is well reflected in their average starting salary.D) It is embodied in how they remove social barriers.55. What message does the author want to convey in the passage?A) Students should think carefully whether to go to college.B) Taxpayers should only finance the most gifted students.C) The worth of a college education is open to debate.D) College students should fund their own education.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.中国目前拥有世界上最大最快的高速铁路网。

2018年6月英语六级考试真题试卷附答案(完整版第2套)Part I Writing (30 minutes)Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write an essay on the importance of building trust between teachers and students. You can cite examples to illustrate your views. You should write at least 150 words but no more than 200 words.________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Part Ⅰ WritingThe Importance of Building Trust Between Teachers and StudentsA good relationship between a teacher and a student can have a major influence on a kid's development, and trust is crucial and indispensable不可或缺的in maintaining the relationship.To begin with, only when a student believes in his or her teacher is he or she willing to learn from the teacher or look to the teacher for guidance and support. In reality, too many students are weary of study and even drop out of school only because they dislike their teachers, which may transform their whole life. Besides, a teacher who has the full trust of his or her students is more motivated to help them improve the consciousness意识、知觉、觉悟and initiative主动、主动性、首创精神of learning, which in turn依次、转而、轮流benefits the students most. However, the credibility公信力between teachers and students is not something that can be built in a day. On the one hand, teachers should comprehend the students' actual demands and offer timely help. On the other hand, students should always be respectful to their teachers.All in all, trust in a teacher-student relationship is a must to achieve effective teaching an learning.Part II Listening Comprehension (30 minutes)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) She advocates animal protection.B) She sells a special kind of coffee.C) She is going to start a café chain.D) She is the owner of a special café.2. A) They bear具有、承受、忍受a lot of similarities相似性、相同点.B) They are a profitable business sector.C) They cater to different customers.D) They help take care of customers' pets.3. A) By giving them regular cleaning and injections.B) By selecting breeds that are tame and peaceful.C) By placing them at a safe distance from customers.D) By briefing customers on how to get along with them.4. A) They want to learn about rabbits.B) They like to bring in their children.C) They love the animals in her café.D) They give her café favorite reviews.Questions 5 to 8 are based on the conversation you have just heard.5. A) It contains too many additives.B) It lacks the essential vitamins.C) It can cause obesity.D) It is mostly garbage.6. A) Its fancy design.B) TV commercials.C) Its taste and texture.D) Peer influence.7. A) Investing heavily in the production of sweet foods.B) Marketing their products with ordinary ingredients.C) Trying to trick children into buying their products.D) Offering children more varieties to choose from.8. A) They hardly ate vegetables.B) They seldom had junk food垃圾食品、没有营养的食品.C) They favored chocolate-coated sweets.D) They liked the food advertised on TV.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 11 are based on the passage you have just heard.9. A) Stretches of farmland.B) Typical Egyptian animal farms.C) Tombs of ancient rulers.D) Ruins left by devastating floods.10. A) It provides habitats for more primitive tribes.B) It is hardly associated with great civilizations.C) It has not yet been fully explored and exploited.D) It gathers water from many tropical rain forests.11. A) It carries about one fifth of the world's fresh water.B) It has numerous human settlements along its banks.C) It is second only to the Mississippi River in width.D) It is as long as the Nile and the Yangtze combined.Questions 12 to 15 are based on the passage you have just heard.12. A) Living a life in the fast lane leads to success.B) We are always in a rush to do various things.C) The search for tranquility has become a trend.D) All of us actually yearn for a slow and calm life.13. A) She had trouble balancing family and work.B) She enjoyed the various social events.C) She was accustomed to tight schedules.D) She spent all her leisure time writing books.14. A) The possibility of ruining her family.B) Becoming aware of her declining health.C) The fatigue from living a fast-paced life.D) Reading a book about slowing down.15. A) She started to follow the cultural norms.B) She came to enjoy doing everyday tasks.C) She learned to use more polite expressions.D) She stopped using to-do lists and calendars.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 centre.Questions 16 to 18 are based on the recording you have just heard.16. A) They will root out native species altogether.B) They contribute to a region's biodiversity.C) They pose a threat to构成威胁the local ecosystem.D) They will crossbreed with native species.17. A) Their classifications are meaningful.B) Their interactions are hard to define.C) Their definitions are changeable.D) Their distinctions区别、特质、区分are artificial人为的、人造的.18. A) Only a few of them cause problems to native species.B) They may turn out to benefit the local environment.C) Few of them can survive in their new habitats.D) Only 10 percent of them can be naturalized.Questions 19 to 21 are based on the recording you have just heard.19. A) Respect their traditional culture.B) Attend their business seminars.C) Research their specific demands.D) Adopt the right business strategies.20. A) Showing them your palm.B) Giving them gifts of great value.C) Drinking alcohol on certain days of a month.D) Clicking your fingers loudly in their presence.21. A) They are very easy to satisfy.B) They have a strong sense of worth.C) They tend to be friendly and enthusiastic.D) They have a break休息一下from 2:00 to 5:30 p.m.Questions 22 to 25 are based on the recording you have just heard.22. A) He completely changed the company's culture.B) He collected paintings by world-famous artists.C) He took over the sales department of Reader's Digest.D) He had the company's boardroom extensively renovated.23. A) It should be sold at a reasonable price.B) Its articles should be short and inspiring.C) It should be published in the world's leading languages.D) Its articles should entertain blue- and pink-collar workers.24. A) He knew how to make the magazine profitable.B) He served as a church minister for many years.C) He suffered many setbacks and misfortunes in his life.D) He treated the employees like members of his family.25. A) It carried many more advertisements.B) George Grune joined it as an ad salesman.C) Several hundred of its employees got fired.D) Its subscriptions increased considerably.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.Did Sarah Josepha Hale write "Mary's Little Lamb羔羊," the eternal nursery托儿所、幼儿园rhyme (儿歌) about a girl named Mary with a stubborn倔强的、顽固的lamb? This is still disputed有争议的, but it's clear that the woman K26 reputed挂名的、号称的 for writing it was one of America's mostfascinating C27characters人物、特性、描述 . In honor of为庆祝、为纪念the poem's publication on May 24, 1830, here's more about the M28supposed假定的、期望的、推定、据说的 author's life.Hale wasn't just a writer, she was also a E29fierce凶狠的、凶猛的、激烈的 social advocate拥护者、倡导者、辩护者、辩护律师, and she was particularly H30obsessed着迷、痴迷 with an ideal New England, which she associated with abundant Thanksgiving meals that she claimed had "a deep moral influence." She began a nationwide A31campaign活动、战役、运动 to have a national holiday declared that would bring familiestogether while celebrating the N32traditional festivals. In 1863, after 17 years of advocacy倡导、鼓吹、主张、拥护including letters to five presidents, Hale got it. President Abraham Lincoln, during the Civil War 南北战争, issued a I33proclamation宣言书、声明、公告 setting aside the last Thursday in November for the holiday.The true authorship作者身份、原创作者of "Mary's Little Lamb" is disputed有争议的. According to the New England Historical Society, Hale wrote only part of the poem, but claimed authorship. Regardless of the author, it seems that the poem was F34inspired受启发的、鼓舞的 by a real event. When young Mary Sawyer was followed to school by a lamb in 1816, it caused some problems. A bystander named John Roulstone wrote a poem about the event, then, at some point, Hale herself seems to have helped write it. However, if a 1916 piece by her great-niece is to be trusted, Hale claimed for the L35rest of her life that "some other people pretended that someone else wrote the poem".A) campaign B) career C) characters D) features E) fierce F) inspired G) latter H) obsessed I) proclamation J) rectified K) reputed L) rest M) supposed N) traditional O) versatileSection 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.Grow Plants Without WaterA) Ever since humanity began to farm our own food, we’ve faced the unpredictable rain that is both friend and enemy. It comes and goes without much warning, and a field of lush (茂盛的) leafy greens one year can dry up and blow away the next. Food security and fortunes depend on sufficient rain, and nowhere more so than in Africa, where 96% of farmland depends on rain instead of the irrigation common in more developed places. It has consequences: South Africa's ongoing drought—the worst in three decades—will cost at least a quarter of its corn crop this year.B) Biologist Jill Farrant of the University of Cape Town in South Africa says that nature has plenty of answers for people who want to grow crops in places with unpredictable rainfall. She is hard at work finding a way to take traits from rare wild plants that adapt to extreme dry weather and use them in food crops. As the earth's climate changes and rainfall becomes even less predictable in some places, those answers will grow even more valuable. "The type of farming I'm aiming for is literally so that people can survive as it's going to get more and more dry," Farrant says.C) Extreme conditions produce extremely tough plants. In the rusty red deserts of South Africa,steep-sided rocky hills called inselbergs rear up from the plains like the bones of the earth. The hills are remnants of an earlier geological era, scraped bare of most soil and exposed to the elements. Yet on these and similar formations in deserts around the world, a few fierce plants have adapted to endure under ever-changing conditions.D) Farrant calls them resurrection plants (复苏植物). During months without water under a harsh sun, they wither, shrink and contract until they look like a pile of dead gray leaves. But rainfall can revive them in a matter of hours. Her time-lapse (间歇性拍摄的) videos of the revivals look like someone playing a tape of the plant's death in reverse.E) The big difference between "drought-tolerant" plants and these tough plants: metabolism. Many different kinds of plants have developed tactics to weather dry spells. Some plants store reserves of water to see them through a drought; others send roots deep down to subsurface water supplies. Butonce these plants use up their stored reserve or tap out the underground supply, they cease growing and start to die. They may be able to handle a drought of some length, and many people use the term "drought tolerant" to describe such plants, but they never actually stop needing to consume water, so Farrant prefers to call them drought resistant.F) Resurrection plants, defined as those capable of recovering from holding less than 0.1 grams of water per gram of dry mass, are different. They lack water-storing structures, and their existence on rock faces prevents them from tapping groundwater, so they have instead developed the ability to change their metabolism. When they detect an extended dry period, they divert their metabolisms, producing sugars and certain stress-associated proteins and other materials in their tissues. As the plant dries, these resources take on first the properties of honey, then rubber, and finally enter a glass-like state that is "the most stable state that the plant can maintain," Farrant says. That slows the plant's metabolism and protects its dried-out tissues. The plants also change shape, shrinking to minimize the surface area through which their remaining water might evaporate. They can recover from months and years without water, depending on the species.G) What else can do this dry-out-and-revive trick? Seeds—almost all of them. At the start of her career, Farrant studied "recalcitrant seeds (顽拗性种子)," such as avocados, coffee and lychee. While tasty, such seeds are delicate—they cannot bud and grow if they dry out (as you may know if you've ever tried to grow a tree from an avocado pit). In the seed world, that makes them rare, because most seeds from flowering plants are quite robust. Most seeds can wait out the dry, unwelcoming seasons until conditions are right and they sprout (发芽). Yet once they start growing, such plants seem not to retain the ability to hit the pause button on metabolism in their stems or leaves.H) After completing her Ph. D. on seeds, Farrant began investigating whether it might be possible to isolate the properties that make most seeds so resilient (迅速恢复活力的) and transfer them to other plant tissues. What Farrant and others have found over the past two decades is that there are many genes involved in resurrection plants' response to dryness. Many of them are the same that regulate how seeds become dryness-tolerant while still attached to their parent plants. Now they are trying to figure out what molecular signaling processes activate those seed-building genes in resurrection plants—and how to reproduce them in crops. "Most genes are regulated by a master set of genes," Farrant says. "We're looking at gene promoters and what would be their master switch."I) Once Farrant and her colleagues feel they have a better sense of which switches to throw, they will have to find the best way to do so in useful crops. "I'm trying three methods of breeding," Farrant says: conventional, genetic modification and gene editing. She says she is aware that plenty of people do not want to eat genetically modified crops, but she is pushing ahead with every available tool until one works. Farmers and consumers alike can choose whether or not to use whichever version prevails："I'm giving people an option."J) Farrant and others in the resurrection business got together last year to discuss the best species of resurrection plant to use as a lab model. Just like medical researchers use rats to test ideas for human medical treatments, botanists use plants that are relatively easy to grow in a lab or greenhouse setting to test their ideas for related species. The Queensland rock violet is one of the best studied resurrection plants so far, with a draft genome (基因图谱) published last year by a Chinese team. Also last year, Farrant and colleagues published a detailed molecular study of another candidate, Xerophyta viscosa, a tough-as-nail South African plant with lily-like flowers, and she says that a genome is on the way. One or both of these models will help researchers test their ideas—so far mostly done in the lab—on test plots. K) Understanding the basic science first is key. There are good reasons why crop plants do not usedryness defenses already. For instance, there's a high energy cost in switching from a regular metabolism to an almost-no-water metabolism. It will also be necessary to understand what sort of yield farmers might expect and to establish the plant's safety. "The yield is never going to be high," Farrant says, so these plants will be targeted not at Iowa farmers trying to squeeze more cash out of high-yield fields, but subsistence farmers who need help to survive a drought like the present one in South Africa. "My vision is for the subsistence farmer," Farrant says. "I'm targeting crops that are of African value."36. There are a couple of plants tough and adaptable enough to survive on bare rocky hills and in deserts.C37. Farrant is trying to isolate genes in resurrection plants and reproduce them in crops.H38. Farmers in South Africa are more at the mercy of nature, especially inconsistent rainfall.A39. Resurrection crops are most likely to be the choice of subsistence farmers.K40. Even though many plants have developed various tactics to cope with dry weather, they cannot survive a prolonged drought.E41. Despite consumer resistance, researchers are pushing ahead with genetic modification of crops.I42. Most seeds can pull through dry spells and begin growing when conditions are ripe, but once this process starts, it cannot be held back.G43. Farrant is working hard to cultivate food crops that can survive extreme dryness by studying the traits of rare wild plants.B44. By adjusting their metabolism, resurrection plants can recover from an extended period of drought.F45. Resurrection plants can come back to life in a short time after a rainfall.DSection 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.Human memory is notoriously unreliable. Even people with the sharpest facial-recognition skills can only remember so much.It's tough to quantify how good a person is at remembering. No one really knows how many different faces someone can recall, for example, but various estimates tend to hover in the thousands—based on the number of acquaintances a person might have.Machines aren't limited this way. Give the right computer a massive database of faces, and it can process what it sees—then recognize a face it's told to find—with remarkable speed and precision. This skill is what supports the enormous promise of facial-recognition software in the 21st century. It's also what makes contemporary surveillance systems so scary.The thing is, machines still have limitations when it comes to facial recognition. And scientists are only just beginning to understand what those constraints are. To begin to figure out how computers are struggling, researchers at the University of Washington created a massive database of faces—they call it MegaFace—and tested a variety of facial-recognition algorithms (算法) as they scaled up in complexity. The idea was to test the machines on a database that included up to 1 million different images of nearly 700,000 different people—and not just a large database featuring a relatively small number of different faces, more consistent with what's been used in other research.As the databases grew, machine accuracy dipped across the board. Algorithms that were right 95% of the time when they were dealing with a 13,000-image database, for example, were accurate about 70% of the time when confronted with 1 million images. That's still pretty good, says one of the researchers, Ira Kemelmacher-Shlizerman. "Much better than we expected," she said.Machines also had difficulty adjusting for people who look a lot alike—either doppelgangers (长相极相似的人), whom the machine would have trouble identifying as two separate people, or the same person who appeared in different photos at different ages or in different lighting, whom the machine would incorrectly view as separate people."Once we scale up, algorithms must be sensitive to tiny changes in identities and at the same time invariant to lighting, pose, age," Kemelmacher-Shlizerman said.The trouble is, for many of the researchers who'd like to design systems to address these challenges, massive datasets for experimentation just don't exist—at least, not in formats that are accessible to academic researchers. Training sets like the ones Google and Facebook have are private. There are no public databases that contain millions of faces. MegaFace's creators say it's the largest publicly available facial-recognition dataset out there."An ultimate face recognition algorithm should perform with billions of people in a dataset," the researchers wrote.46. Compared with human memory, machines can ________.A) identify human faces more efficientlyB) tell a friend from a mere acquaintanceC) store an unlimited number of human facesD) perceive images invisible to the human eye47. Why did researchers create MegaFace?A) To enlarge the volume of the facial-recognition database.B) To increase the variety of facial-recognition software.C) To understand computers' problems with facial面部的recognition识别.D) To reduce the complexity of facial-recognition algorithms.48. What does the passage say about machine accuracy准确性?A) It falls short of researchers' expectations.B) It improves with added computing power.C) It varies greatly with different algorithms.D) It decreases as the database数据库size increases.49. What is said to be a shortcoming-of facial-recognition machines?A) They cannot easily tell apart分别、区别people with near-identical同一的、完全相同的appearances.B) They have difficulty identifying changes in facial expressions.C) They are not sensitive to minute changes in people's mood.D) They have problems distinguishing people of the same age.50. What is the difficulty confronting面对、对抗researchers of facial-recognition machines?A) No computer is yet able to handle huge datasets of human faces.B) There do not exist public databases with sufficient足够的face samples样本、采样.C) There are no appropriate algorithms to process the face samples.D) They have trouble converting face datasets into the right format.Passage TwoQuestions 51 to 55 are based on the following passage.There're currently 21.5 million students in America, and many will be funding their college on borrowed money. Given that there's now over $1.3 trillion in student loans on the books, it's pretty clear that many students are far from sensible. The average student's debt upon graduation now approaches $40,000, and as college becomes ever more expensive, calls to make it "free" are multiplying. Even Hillary Clinton says that when it comes to college, "Costs won't be a barrier."But the only way college could be free is if the faculty and staff donated their time, the buildings required no maintenance, and campuses required no utilities. As long as it's impossible to produce something from nothing, costs are absolutely a barrier.The actual question we debate is who should pay for people to go to college. If taxpayers are to bear the cost of forgiving student loans, shouldn't they have a say in how their money is used?At least taxpayers should be able to decide what students will study on the public dime. If we're going to force taxpayers to foot the bill for college degrees, students should only study those subjects that're of greatest benefit to taxpayers. After all, students making their own choices in this respect is what caused the problem in the first place. We simply don't need more poetry, gender studies, or sociology majors. How do we know which subjects benefit society? Easy.Average starting salaries give a clear indication of what type of training society needs its new workers to have. Certainly, there're benefits to a college major beyond the job a student can perform. But if we're talking about the benefits to society, the only thing that matters is what the major enables the student to produce for society. And the value of what the student can produce is reflected in the wage employers are willing to pay the student to produce it.A low wage for elementary school teachers, however, doesn't mean elementary education isn't important. It simply means there're too many elementary school teachers already.Meanwhile, there're few who're willing and able to perform jobs requiring a petroleum engineering major, so the value of one more of those people is very high.So we can have taxpayers pick up students' tuition in exchange for dictating what those students will study. Or we can allow students both to choose their majors and pay for their education themselves. But in the end, one of two things is true:Either a college major is worth its cost or it isn't. If yes, taxpayer financing isn't needed. If not, taxpayer financing isn't desirable. Either way, taxpayers have no business paying for students' college education.51. What does the author think of college students funding their education through loans借贷?A) They only expect to get huge returns.B) They are acting in an irrational非理性的way.C) They benefit at taxpayers' expense.D) They will regret doing so someday.52. In the author's opinion, free college education is ________.A) impractical 不切实际的、不现实的B) unsustainableC) a goal to strive forD) a way to social equality53. What should students do if taxpayers纳税人are to bear their college costs?A) Work even harder to repay society.B) Choose their subjects more carefully.C) Choose majors专业、主修that will serve society's practical needs.D) Allow taxpayers to participate in college administration.。

2018年6月大学英语六级考试真题(第2套）Part I Writing(30minutes) Directions:For this part,you are allowed30minutes to write an essay commenting on the importance of building trust between teachers and students.You can cite examples to illustrate your views.Youshould write at least150words but no more than200words.Part II Listening Comprehension(30minutes) 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 youhear 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. Questions1to4are based on the conversation you have just heard.1.A).She advocates animal protection.B).She sells a special kind of coffee.C).She is going to start a cafe chain.D).She is the owner of a special cafe.2.A).They bear a lot of similarities.B).They are a profitable business sector.C).They cater to different customers.D).They help take care of customers'pets.3.A).By giving them regular cleaning and injections.B).By selecting breeds that are tame and peaceful.C).By placing them at a safe distance from customers.D).By briefing customers on how to get along with them.4.A).They want to learn about rabbits.B).They like to bring in their children.C).They love the animals in her cafe.D).They give her cafe favorite reviews. Questions5to8are based on the conversation you have just heard.5.A).It contains too many additives.B).It lacks the essential vitamins.C).It can cause obesity.D).It is mostly garbage.6.A).Its fancy design.B).TV commercials.C).Its taste and texture.D).Peer influence.7.A).Investing heavily in the production of sweet foods.B).Marketing their products with ordinary ingredients.C).Trying to trick children into buying their products.D).Offering children more variable to choose from.8.A).They hardly ate vegetables.B).They seldom had junk food.C).They favored chocolate-coated sweets.D).They like the food advertised on TV.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 Sheet1with a single line through the centre.Questions9to11are based on the passage you have just heard.9.A).Stretches of farmland.B).Typical Egyptian animal farms.C).Tombs of ancient rulers.D).Ruins left by devastating floods.10.A).It provides habitats for more primitive tribes.B).It is hardly associated with great civilizations.C).It has not yet been fully explored and exploited.D).It gathers water from many tropical rain forests.11.A).It carries about one fifth of the word'fresh water.B).It has numerous human settlements along its banks.C).It is second only to the Mississippi River in width.D).It is as long as the Nile and the Yangtze combined.Questions12to15are based on the passage you have just heard.12.A).Living a life in the fast lane leads to success.B).We are always in a rush to do various things.C).The search for tranquility has become a trend.D).All of us actually yearn for a slow and calm life.13.A).She had trouble balancing family and work.B).She enjoyed the various social events.C).She was accustomed to tight schedules.D).She spent all her leisure time writing books.14.A).The possibility of ruining her family.B).Becoming aware of her declining health.C).The fatigue from living a fast-paced life.D).Reading a book about slowing down.15.A).She started to follow the cultural norms.B).She came to enjoy doing everyday tasks.C).She learn to use more polite expressions.D).She stopped using to-do lists and calendars. 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 Sheet1with a single line through the centre.Questions16to18are based on the recording you have just heard.16.A).They will root out native species altogether.B).They contribute to a region's biodiversity.C).They pose a threat to the local ecosystem.D).They will crossbreed with native species.17.A).Their classifications are meaningful.B).Their interactions are hard to define.C).Their definitions are changeable.D).Their distinctions are artificial.18.A).Only a few of them cause problems to nativespecies.B).They may turn to benefit the local environmentC).Few of them can survive in their new habitats.D).Only10percent of them can be naturalized.Questions19to21are based on the recording you have just heard.19.A).Respect their traditional culture.B).Attend their business seminars.C).Research their specific demands.D).Adopt the right business strategies.20.A).Showing them your palm.B).Giving them gifts of great value.C).Drinking alcohol on certain days of a month.D).Clicking your fingers loudly in their presence.21.A).They are very easy to satisfy.B).They have a strong sense of worth.C).They trend to friendly and enthusiastic.D).They have a break from2:00to5:30p.m. Questions22to25are based on the recording you have just heard.22.A).He completely changed the company's culture.B).He collected paintings by world-famous artists.C).He took over the sales department of Reader's Digest.D).He had the company’s boardroom extensively renovated.23.A).It should be sold at a reasonable price.B).Its articles should be short and inspiring.C).It should be published in the world's leading languages.D).Its articles should entertain blue-and pink-collar workers.24.A).He knew how to make the magazine profitable.B).He served as a church minster for many years.C).He suffered many setbacks and misfortunes in his life.D).He treated the employees like members of his family.25.A).It carried many more advertisements.B).George Grune joined it as an ad salesman.C).Several hundred of its employees got fired.D).Its subscriptions increased considerably.Part III Reading 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.Did Sarah Josepha Hale write“Mary's Little Lamb,”the eternal nursery rhyme(儿歌)about a girl named Mary with a stubborn lamb?This is still dispute,but it’s clear that the woman26for writing it was one of America's most fascinating27_.In honor of the poem's publication on May24，1830，here’s more about the 28author's life.Hale wasn’t just a writer,she was also a29social advocate,and she was particularly30_with an ideal New England,which she associated with abundant Thanksgiving meals that she claimed had“a deep moral influence.”she began a nationwide31to have a national holiday declared that would bring families together whilecelebrating the32festivals.In1863,after17years of advocacy including letters to five presidents，Hale got it.setting aside the last Thursday in November for President Abraham Lincoln,during the Civil War,issued a33the holiday.The true authorship of“Mary’s Little Lamb”is disputed..According to New England Historical Society,Hale wrote only one part of the poem,but claimed authorship.Regardless of the author,it seems that the poem was 34by a real event.When young Mary Sawyer was followed to school by a lamb in1816,it caused some problems.A bystander named John Roulstone wrote a poem about the event,then,at some point,Hale herself seems35of to have helped write it.However,if a1916piece by her great-niece is to be trusted,Hale claimed for theher life that“Some other people pretended that someone else wrote the poem”.A).campaign B).careerC).characters D).featuresE).fierce F).inspiredG).latter H).obsessedI).proclamation J).rectifiedK).reputed L).restM).supposed N).traditionalO).versatileSection 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.Grow Plants Without Water[A].Ever since humanity began to farm our own food,we've faced the unpredictable rain that is bothfriend and enemy.It comes and goes without much warning,and a field of lush(茂盛的)leafy greens one year can dry up and blow away the next.Food security and fortunes depend on sufficient rain,and nowhere more so than in Africa,where96%of farmland depends on rain instead of the irrigation common in more developed places.It has consequences:South Africa's ongoing drought—the worst in three decades—will cost at least a quarter of its com crop this year.[B].Biologist Jill Farrant of the University of Cape Town in South Africa says that nature has plenty ofanswers for people who want to grow crops in places with unpredictable rainfall.She is hard at work finding a way to take traits from rare wild plants that adapt to extreme dry weather and use them in food crops.As the earth's climate changes and rainfall becomes even less predictable in some places,those answers will grow even more valuable."The type of farming I'm aiming for is literally so that people can survive as it's going to get more and more dry,"Farrant says.[C].Extreme conditions produce extremely tough plants.In the rusty red deserts of South Africa,steep-sided rocky hills called inselbergs rear up from the plains like the bones of the earth.The hills are remnants of an earlier geological era,scraped bare of most soil and exposed to the elements.Yet on these and similar formations in deserts around the world,a few fierce plants have adapted to endure under ever-changing conditions.[D].Farrant calls them resurrection plants(复苏植物).During months without water under a harsh sun.They wither,shrink and contract until they look like a pile of dead gray leaves.But rainfall can revive them in a matter of hours.Her time-lapse(间歇性拍摄的)videos of the revivals look like someone playing a tape of the plant's death in reverse.[E].The big difference between"drought-tolerant"plants and these tough plants:metabolism.Manydifferent kinds of plants have developed tactics to weather dry spells.Some plants store reserves of water to see them through a drought;others send roots deep down to subsurface water supplies.But once these plants use up their stored reserve or tap out the underground supply,they cease growing and start to die.They may be able to handle a drought of some length,and many people use the term "drought tolerant"to describe such plants,but they never actually stop needing to consume water,so Farrant prefers to call them drought resistant.[F].Resurrection plants,defined as those capable of recovering from holding less than0.1grams of waterper gram of dry mass,are different.They lack water-storing structures,and their existence on rock faces prevents them from tapping groundwater,so they have instead developed the ability to change their metabolism.When they detect an extended dry period,they divert their metabolisms,producing sugars and certain stress-associated proteins and other materials in their tissues.As the plant dries, these resources take on first the properties of honey,then rubber,and finally enter a glass-like state that is"the most stable state that the plant can maintain,"Farrant says.That slows the plant's metabolism and protects its dried-out tissues.The plants also change shape,shrinking to minimize the surface area through which their remaining water might evaporate.They can recover from months and years without water,depending on the species.[G].What else can do this dry-out-and-revive trick?Seeds-almost all of them.At the start of her career,Farrant studied.recalcitrant seeds(执拗性种子),"such as avocados,coffee and lychee.While tasty, such seeds are delicate--they cannot bud and grow if they dry out(as you may know if you've ever tried to grow a tree from an avocado pit).In the seed world,that makes them rare,because most seeds from flowering plants are quite robust.Most seeds can wait out the dry,unwelcoming seasons until conditions are right and they sprout(发芽).Yet once they start growing,such plants seem not to retain the ability to hit the pause button on metabolism in their stems or leaves.[H].After completing her Ph.D.on seeds,Farrant began investigating whether it might be possible toisolate the properties that make most seeds so resilient(迅速恢复活力的)and transfer them to other plant tissues.What Farrant and others have found over the past two decades is that there are many genes involved in resurrection plants'response to dryness.Many of them are the same that regulate how seeds become dryness-tolerant while still attached to their parent plants.Now they are trying to figure out what molecular signaling processes activate those seed-building genes in resurrection plants—and how to reproduce them in crops."Most genes are regulated by a master set of genes,"Farrant says."We're looking at gene promoters and what would be their master switch."[I].Once Farrant and her colleagues feel they have a better sense of which switches to throw,they willhave to find the best way to do so in useful crops."I'm trying three methods of breeding,"Farrant says: conventional,genetic modification arid gene editing.She says she is aware that plenty of people donot want to eat genetically modified crops,but she is pushing ahead with every available tool until one works.Farmers and consumers alike can choose whether or not to use whichever versionprevails:"I'm giving people an option."[J].Farrant and others in the resurrection business got together last year to discuss the best species of resurrection plant to use as a lab model.Just like medical researchers use rats to test ideas for human medical treatments,botanists use plants that are relatively easy to grow in a lab or greenhouse setting to test their ideas for related species.The Queensland rock violet is one of the best studied resurrection plants so far,with a draft genome(基因图谱)published last year by a Chinese team.Also last year,Farrant and colleagues published a detailed molecular study of another candidate, Xerophyta viscosa,a tough-as-nail south African plant with lily-like flowers,and she says that a genome is on the way.one or both of these models will help researchers test their ideas—so far mostly done in the lab—on test plots.[K].Understanding the basic science first is key.There are good reasons why crop plants do not use dryness defenses already.For instance,there's a high energy cost in switching from a regular metabolism to an almost-no-water metabolism.It will also be necessary to understand what sort of yield farmers might expect and to establish the plant's safety."The yield is never going to be high,"Farrant says,so these plants will be targeted not at Iowa farmers trying to squeeze more cashout of high-yield fields,but subsistence farmers who need help to survive a drought like the present one in South Africa."My vision is for the subsistence farmer,"Farrant says."I'm targeting crops that are of African value.".36.There are a couple of plants tough and adaptable enough to survive on bare rocky hills and in deserts.37.Farrant is trying to isolate genes in resurrection plants and reproduce them in crops.38.Farmers in South Africa are more at the mercy of nature,especially inconsistent rainfall.39.Resurrection crops are most likely to be the choice of subsistence farmers.40.Even though many plants have developed various tactics to cope with dry weather,they cannot survive a prolonged drought.41.Despite consumer resistance,researchers are pushing ahead with genetic modification of crops.42.Most seeds can pull through dry spells and begin growing when conditions are ripe,but once this process starts,it cannot be held back.43.Farrant is working hard to cultivate food crops that call survive extreme dryness by studying the traits of rare wild plants.44.By adjusting their metabolism,resurrection plants can recover from an extended period of drought.45.Resurrection plants can come back to life in a short time after a rainfall.Section CDirections：There are2passages 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 Sheet2with a single line through the centrepassage oneQuestions46to50are based on the following passage.Human memory is notoriously unreliable.Even people with the sharpest facial-recognition skills can only remember so much.It's tough to quantify how good a person is at remembering.No one really knows how many different faces someone can recall,for example,but various estimates tend to hover in the thousands-based on the number of acquaintances a person might have.Machines aren't limited this way,Give the right computer a massive database of faces,and it can process what it sees-then recognize a face it's told to find-with remarkable speed and precision. This skill is what supports the enormous promise of facial-recognition software in the2lst century. It's also what makes contemporary surveillance systems so scary.The thing is,machines still have limitations when it comes to facial recognition.And scientists are only just beginning to understand what those constraints are.To begin to figure out how computers are struggling,researchers at the University of Washington created a massive database of faces-they call it MegaFace-and tested a variety of facial-recognition algorithms(算法)as they scaled up in complexity.The idea was to test the machines on a database that included up to1 million different images of nearly700,000different people-and not just a large database featuring a relatively small number of different faces,more consistent with what's been used in other research.As the databases grew,machine accuracy dipped across the board.Algorithms that were right 95%of the time when they were dealing with a13,000-image database,for example,were accurate about70%of the time when confronted with1million images.That's still pretty good,says one of the researchers,Ira Kemelmacher-Shlizerman."Much better than we expected,"she said.Machines also had difficulty adjusting for people who look a lot alike-either doppelgangers(长相极相似的人),whom the machine would have trouble identifying as two separate people,or the same person who appeared in different photos at different ages or in different lighting,whom themachine would incorrectly view as separate people."Once we scale up,algorithms must be sensitive to tiny changes in identities and at the same time invariant to lighting,pose,age,"Kemelmacher-Shlizerman said.The trouble is,for many of the researchers who'd like to design systems to address these challenges,massive datasets for experimentation just don't exist--at least,not in formats that are accessible to academic researchers.Training sets like the ones Google and Facebook have are private.There are no public databases that contain millions of faces.MegaFace's creators say it's the largest publicly available facial-recognition dataset out there.“An ultimate face recognition algorithm should perform with billions of people in a dataset,”the researchers wrote.pared with human memory,machines can.A)identify human faces more efficientlyB)tell a friend from a mere acquaintanceC)store an unlimited number of human facesD)perceive images invisible to the human eye47.Why did researchers create MegaFace?A)To enlarge the volume of the facial-recognition databaseB)To increase the variety of facial-recognition softwareC)To understand computers'problems with facial recognitionD)To reduce the complexity of facial-recognition algorithms48.What does the passage say about machine accuracy?A)It falls short of researchers'expectations.B)It improves with added computing power.C)It varies greatly with different algorithms.D)It decreases as the database size increases.49.What is said to be a shortcoming of facial-recognition machines?A)They cannot easily tell apart people with near-identical appearances.B)They have difficulty identifying changes in facial expressionsC)They are not sensitive to minute changes in people's moodD)They have problems distinguishing people of the same age50.What is the difficulty confronting researchers of facial-recognition machines?A)No computer is yet able to handle huge datasets of human facesB)There do not exist public databases with sufficient face samplerC)There are no appropriate algorithms to process the face samplesD)They have trouble converting face datasets into the right format.Passage TwoQuestions51to55are based on the following passage.There’re currently21.5million students in America,and many will be funding their college on borrowed money.Given that there's now over$1.3trillion in student loans on the books,it's prettyapproaches$40,000,and as college becomes ever more expensive,calls to make it"free"are multiplying.Even Hillary Clinton says that when it comes to college,"Costs won't be a barrier."But the only way college could be free is if the faculty and staff donated their time,the buildings required no maintenance,and campuses required no utilities.As long as it's impossible to produce something from nothing costs are absolutely a barrier.The actual question we debate is who should pay for people to go to college.If taxpayers are to bear the cost of forgiving student loans,shouldn't they have a say in how their money is used?At least taxpayers should be able to decide what students will study on the public dime.If we're going to force taxpayers to foot the bill for college degrees,students should only study those subjects that’re of greatest benefit to taxpayers.After all,students making their own choices in this respect is what caused the problem in the first place.We simply don't need more poetry,gender studies,or sociology majors.How do we know which subjects benefit society?Easy.Average starting salaries give a clear indication of what type of training society needs its new workers to have.Certainly,there're benefits to a college major beyond the job a student can perform.But if we're talking about the benefits to society,the only thing that matters is what the major enables the student to produce for society.And the value of what the student can produce is reflected in the wage employers are willing to pay the student to produce it.A low wage for elementary school teachers,however,doesn't mean elementary education isn’t important.It simply means there're too many elementary school teachers already.Meanwhile,there're few who're willing and able to perform jobs requiring a petroleum engineering major,so the value of one more of those people is very highSo we can have taxpayers pick up students'tuition in exchange for dictating what those students will study.Or we can allow students both to choose their majors and pay for their education themselves.But in the end,one of two things is true:Either a college major is worth its cost or it isn't.If yes,taxpayer financing isn't needed If not taxpayer financing isn't desirable.Either way,taxpayers have no business paying for students' college education.51.What does the author think of college students funding their education through loans?A)They only expect to get huge returns.C)They benefit at taxpayers expense.B)They are acting in an irrational way.D)They will regret doing so someday.52.In the author's opinion,free college education is.A)impractical B)unsustainableC)a goal to strive for D)a way to social equality53.What should students do if taxpayers are to bear their college costs?A)Work even harder to repay society.B)Choose their subjects more carefully.C)Choose majors that will serve society's practical need.D)Allow taxpayers to participate in college administration.54.What does the author say about the value of a student's college education?A)It is underestimated by profit-seeking employers.B)It is to be proved by what they can do on the job.C)It is well reflected in their average starting salary.D)It is embodied in how they remove social barriers.55.What message does the author want to convey in the passage?A)Students should think care fully whether to go to collegeB)Taxpayers should only finance the most gifted students.C)The worth of a college education is open to debate.D)College students should fund their own education..Part I Translation(30minutes) Directions：For this part,you are allowed30minutes to translate a passage from Chinese into English.You should write your answer on Answer Sheet2.中国目前拥有世界上最大最快的高速铁路网。

2018年6月六级第二套真题参考答案(完整版)Part Ⅰ WritingThe Importance of Building Trust Between Teachers and StudentsA good relationship between a teacher and a student can have a major influence on a kid's development, and trust is crucial and indispensable in maintaining the relationship.To begin with, only when a student believes in his or her teacher is he or she willing to learn from the teacher or look to the teacher for guidance and support. In reality, too many students are weary of study and even drop out of school only because they dislike their teachers, which may transform their whole life. Besides, a teacher who has the full trust of his or her students is more motivated to help them improve the consciousness and initiative of learning, which in turn benefits the students most. However, the credibility between teachers and students is not something that can be built in a day. On the one hand, teachers should comprehend the students' actual demands and offer timely help. On the other hand, students should always be respectful to their teachers.All in all, trust in a teacher-student relationship is a must to achieve effective teaching an learning.Part Ⅱ Listening Comprehension1. D) She is the owner of a special café.2. A) They bear a lot of similarities.3. A) By giving them regular cleaning and injections.4. C) They love the animals in her café.5. D) It is mostly garbage.6. B) TV commercials.7. C) Trying to trick children into buying their products.8. B) They seldom had junk food.9. C) Tombs of ancient rulers.10. B) It is hardly associated with great civilizations.11. A) It carries about one fifth of the world's fresh water.12. B) We are always in a rush to do various things.13. C) She was accustomed to tight schedules.14. D) Reading a book about slowing down.15. B) She came to enjoy doing everyday tasks.16. C) They pose a threat to the local ecosystem.17. D) Their distinctions are artificial.18. A) Only a few of them cause problems to native species.19. A) Respect their traditional culture.20. C) Drinking alcohol on certain days of a month.21. D) They have a break from 2:00 to 5:30 p.m.22. A) He completely changed the company's culture.23. B) Its articles should be short and inspiring.24. D) He treated the employees like members of his family.25. C) Several hundred of its employees got fired.Part III Reading Comprehension26-35: KCMEH ANIFL36-45: CHAKE IGBFD46-55: ACDAB BACCDPart IV TranslationChina now has the largest and fastest high-speed rail network in the world. The speed of the CRH (China Railway High-Speed) train will continue to increase and more cities will build high-speed rail stations, The CRH train has greatly reduced people's travel time. Compared with the airplane, the outstanding advantage of the CRH train is punctuality, because it is basically not affected by weather or traffic control. It has transformed the way people live and become the favorite option for business travelers today. More and more people also travel by CRH train during holidays. Many young people choose to work in one city but live in a nearby one since they can commute by CRH train every day.。

2018年6月大学英语六级真题答案详解(第2套) PartⅠWriting(30minutes) The Importance of Building Trust Between Teachers and StudentsA good relationship between a teacher and a student has important,positive and long-lasting implications for both the student’s academic and social development.However,nowadays,we have witnessed declining trust between them,therefore some tragedies ensued from the lack of trust between teachers and students.The situation must be urgently improved,for trust in a teacher-student relationship is a must.First and foremost,trust between teachers and students promote students’desire to learn.Those students who have positive and supportive relationships with their teachers will attain higher levels of achievement than those students with more conflict in their relationships.Second,a teacher who has the full trust of his students is more motivated to improve his teaching skills,which in turn benefit the students most.So both students and teachers should do their part to build trust between them.As to the teachers,trying to know the students,giving them meaningful feedback,and meeting their developmental,emotional and academic needs timely are of great help.And the students should always be respectful to their teachers.Once the trust between teachers and students is built,effective teaching and learning can be achieved.原文翻译：建立师生之间信任的重要性教师和学生之间的良好关系对学生的学术和社会发展具有重要的、积极的和持久的影响。

2018年6月英语六级考试真题试卷附答案(完整版-第2套-精品)2018年6月英语六级考试真题试卷附答案（完整版第2套）Part I Writing (30 minutes)Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write an essay on the importance of building trust between teachers and students. You can cite examples to illustrate your views. You should write at least 150 words but no more than 200 words._________________________________________ _________________________________________ _________________________________________ _________________________________________ _________________________________________ ___________Part II Listening Comprehension (30 minutes) 听力音频MP3文件，点击进入听力真题页面Section ADirections: In this section, you will hear twolong 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) She advocates animal protection.B) She sells a special kind of coffee.C) She is going to start a café chain.D) She is the owner of a special café.2. A) They bear a lot of similarities.B) They are a profitable business sector.C) They cater to different customers.D) They help take care of customers' pets.3. A) By giving them regular cleaning and injections.B) By selecting breeds that are tame andpeaceful.C) By placing them at a safe distance from customers.D) By briefing customers on how to get along with them.4. A) They want to learn about rabbits.B) They like to bring in their children.C) They love the animals in her café.D) They give her café favorite reviews.Questions 5 to 8 are based on the conversation you have just heard.5. A) It contains too many additives.B) It lacks the essential vitamins.C) It can cause obesity.D) It is mostly garbage.6. A) Its fancy design.B) TV commercials.C) Its taste and texture.D) Peer influence.7. A) Investing heavily in the production ofsweet foods.B) Marketing their products with ordinary ingredients.C) Trying to trick children into buying their products.D) Offering children more varieties to choose from.8. A) They hardly ate vegetables.B) They seldom had junk food.C) They favored chocolate-coated sweets.D) They liked the food advertised on TV. 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 thecentre.Questions 9 to 11 are based on the passage you have just heard.9. A) Stretches of farmland.B) Typical Egyptian animal farms.C) Tombs of ancient rulers.D) Ruins left by devastating floods.10. A) It provides habitats for more primitive tribes.B) It is hardly associated with great civilizations.C) It has not yet been fully explored and exploited.D) It gathers water from many tropical rain forests.11. A) It carries about one fifth of the world's fresh water.B) It has numerous human settlements along its banks.C) It is second only to the Mississippi River in width.D) It is as long as the Nile and the Yangtze combined.Questions 12 to 15 are based on the passage you have just heard.12. A) Living a life in the fast lane leads to success.B) We are always in a rush to do various things.C) The search for tranquility has become a trend.D) All of us actually yearn for a slow and calm life.13. A) She had trouble balancing family and work.B) She enjoyed the various social events.C) She was accustomed to tight schedules.D) She spent all her leisure time writing books.14. A) The possibility of ruining her family.B) Becoming aware of her declining health.C) The fatigue from living a fast-paced life.D) Reading a book about slowing down.15. A) She started to follow the cultural norms.B) She came to enjoy doing everyday tasks.C) She learned to use more polite expressions.D) She stopped using to-do lists and calendars.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 centre.Questions 16 to 18 are based on the recording you have just heard.16. A) They will root out native species altogether.B) They contribute to a region's biodiversity.C) They pose a threat to the local ecosystem.D) They will crossbreed with native species.17. A) Their classifications are meaningful.B) Their interactions are hard to define.C) Their definitions are changeable.D) Their distinctions are artificial.18. A) Only a few of them cause problems to native species.B) They may turn out to benefit the local environment.C) Few of them can survive in their new habitats.D) Only 10 percent of them can be naturalized.Questions 19 to 21 are based on the recording you have just heard.19. A) Respect their traditional culture.B) Attend their business seminars.C) Research their specific demands.D) Adopt the right business strategies.20. A) Showing them your palm.B) Giving them gifts of great value.C) Drinking alcohol on certain days of a month.D) Clicking your fingers loudly in their presence.21. A) They are very easy to satisfy.B) They have a strong sense of worth.C) They tend to be friendly and enthusiastic.D) They have a break from 2:00 to 5:30 p.m.Questions 22 to 25 are based on the recording you have just heard.22. A) He completely changed the company's culture.B) He collected paintings by world-famous artists.C) He took over the sales department of Reader's Digest.D) He had the company's boardroom extensively renovated.23. A) It should be sold at a reasonable price.B) Its articles should be short and inspiring.C) It should be published in the world's leading languages.D) Its articles should entertain blue- and pink-collar workers.24. A) He knew how to make the magazine profitable.B) He served as a church minister for many years.C) He suffered many setbacks and misfortunes in his life.D) He treated the employees like members of his family.25. A) It carried many more advertisements.B) George Grune joined it as an ad salesman.C) Several hundred of its employees got fired.D) Its subscriptions increased considerably. Part III Reading Comprehension (40 minutes) Section ADirections: In this section, there is a passagewith 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.Did Sarah Josepha Hale write "Mary's Little Lamb," the eternal nursery rhyme (儿歌) about a girl named Mary with a stubborn lamb? This is still disputed, but it's clear that the woman 26 for writing it was one of America's most fascinating 27 . In honor of the poem's publication on May 24, 1830, here's more about the 28 author's life.Hale wasn't just a writer, she was also a 29 social advocate, and she was particularly 30 with an ideal New England, which she associated with abundant Thanksgiving mealsthat she claimed had "a deep moral influence." She began a nationwide 31 to have a national holiday declared that would bring families together while celebrating the 32 festivals. In 1863, after 17 years of advocacy including letters to five presidents, Hale got it. President Abraham Lincoln, during the Civil War, issued a 33 setting aside the last Thursday in November for the holiday.The true authorship of "Mary's Little Lamb" is disputed. According to the New England Historical Society, Hale wrote only part of the poem, but claimed authorship. Regardless of the author, it seems that the poem was 34 by a real event. When young Mary Sawyer was followed to school by a lamb in 1816, it caused some problems. A bystander named John Roulstone wrote a poem about the event, then, at some point, Hale herself seems to have helped write it. However, if a 1916 piece by her great-niece is to be trusted, Hale claimed for the 35 of her life that "some other people pretended that someoneelse wrote the poem".A) campaign B) career C) characters D) features E) fierce F) inspired G) latter H) obsessed I) proclamation J) rectified K) reputed L) rest M) supposed N) traditional O) versatileSection 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.Grow Plants Without WaterA) Ever since humanity began to farm our own food, we’ve faced the unpredictable rain that isboth friend and enemy. It comes and goes without much warning, and a field of lush (茂盛的) leafy greens one year can dry up and blow away the next. Food security and fortunes depend on sufficient rain, and nowhere more so than in Africa, where 96% of farmland depends on rain instead of the irrigation common in more developed places. It has consequences: South Africa's ongoing drought—the worst in three decades—will cost at least a quarter of its corn crop this year.B) Biologist Jill Farrant of the University of Cape Town in South Africa says that nature has plenty of answers for people who want to grow crops in places with unpredictable rainfall. She is hard at work finding a way to take traits from rare wild plants that adapt to extreme dry weather and use them in food crops. As the earth's climate changes and rainfall becomes even less predictable in some places, those answers will grow even more valuable. "The type of farming I'm aiming for is literally so thatpeople can survive as it's going to get more and more dry," Farrant says.C) Extreme conditions produce extremely tough plants. In the rusty red deserts of South Africa, steep-sided rocky hills called inselbergs rear up from the plains like the bones of the earth. The hills are remnants of an earlier geological era, scraped bare of most soil and exposed to the elements. Yet on these and similar formations in deserts around the world, a few fierce plants have adapted to endure under ever-changing conditions.D) Farrant calls them resurrection plants (复苏植物). During months without water under a harsh sun, they wither, shrink and contract until they look like a pile of dead gray leaves. But rainfall can revive them in a matter of hours. Her time-lapse (间歇性拍摄的) videos of the revivals look like someone playing a tape of the plant's death in reverse.E) The big difference between "drought-tolerant" plants and these toughplants: metabolism. Many different kinds of plants have developed tactics to weather dry spells. Some plants store reserves of water to see them through a drought; others send roots deep down to subsurface water supplies. But once these plants use up their stored reserve or tap out the underground supply, they cease growing and start to die. They may be able to handle a drought of some length, and many people use the term "drought tolerant" to describe such plants, but they never actually stop needing to consume water, so Farrant prefers to call them drought resistant.F) Resurrection plants, defined as those capable of recovering from holding less than 0.1 grams of water per gram of dry mass, are different. They lack water-storing structures, and their existence on rock faces prevents them from tapping groundwater, so they have instead developed the ability to change their metabolism. When they detect an extended dry period, they divert their metabolisms, producing sugars andcertain stress-associated proteins and other materials in their tissues. As the plant dries, these resources take on first the properties of honey, then rubber, and finally enter a glass-like state that is "the most stable state that the plant can maintain," Farrant says. That slows the plant's metabolism and protects its dried-out tissues. The plants also change shape, shrinking to minimize the surface area through which their remaining water might evaporate. They can recover from months and years without water, depending on the species.G) What else can do this dry-out-and-revive trick? Seeds—almost all of them. At the start of her career, Farrant studied "recalcitrant seeds (顽拗性种子)," such as avocados, coffee and lychee. While tasty, such seeds are delicate—they cannot bud and grow if they dry out (as you may know if you've ever tried to grow a tree from an avocado pit). In the seed world, that makes them rare, because most seeds from flowering plants are quite robust. Most seedscan wait out the dry, unwelcoming seasons until conditions are right and they sprout (发芽). Yet once they start growing, such plants seem not to retain the ability to hit the pause button on metabolism in their stems or leaves.H) After completing her Ph. D. on seeds, Farrant began investigating whether it might be possible to isolate the properties that make most seeds so resilient (迅速恢复活力的) and transfer them to other plant tissues. What Farrant and others have found over the past two decades is that there are many genes involved in resurrection plants' response to dryness. Many of them are the same that regulate how seeds become dryness-tolerant while still attached to their parent plants. Now they are trying to figure out what molecular signaling processes activate those seed-building genes in resurrection plants—and how to reproduce them in crops. "Most genes are regulated by a master set of genes," Farrant says. "We're looking at gene promoters and what would betheir master switch."I) Once Farrant and her colleagues feel they have a better sense of which switches to throw, they will have to find the best way to do so in useful crops. "I'm trying three methods of breeding," Farrant says: conventional, genetic modification and gene editing. She says she is aware that plenty of people do not want to eat genetically modified crops, but she is pushing ahead with every available tool until one works. Farmers and consumers alike can choose whether or not to use whichever version prevails："I'm giving people an option."J) Farrant and others in the resurrection business got together last year to discuss the best species of resurrection plant to use as a lab model. Just like medical researchers use rats to test ideas for human medical treatments, botanists use plants that are relatively easy to grow in a lab or greenhouse setting to test their ideas for related species. The Queensland rock violet is one of the best studied resurrectionplants so far, with a draft genome (基因图谱) published last year by a Chinese team. Also last year, Farrant and colleagues published a detailed molecular study of another candidate, Xerophyta viscosa, a tough-as-nail South African plant with lily-like flowers, and she says that a genome is on the way. One or both of these models will help researchers test their ideas—so far mostly done in the lab—on test plots.K) Understanding the basic science first is key. There are good reasons why crop plants do not use dryness defenses already. For instance, there's a high energy cost in switching from a regular metabolism to an almost-no-water metabolism. It will also be necessary to understand what sort of yield farmers might expect and to establish the plant's safety. "The yield is never going to be high," Farrant says, so these plants will be targeted not at Iowa farmers trying to squeeze more cash out of high-yield fields, but subsistence farmers who need help tosurvive a drought like the present one in South Africa. "My vision is for the subsistence farmer," Farrant says. "I'm targeting crops that are of African value."36. There are a couple of plants tough and adaptable enough to survive on bare rocky hills and in deserts.37. Farrant is trying to isolate genes in resurrection plants and reproduce them in crops.38. Farmers in South Africa are more at the mercy of nature, especially inconsistent rainfall.39. Resurrection crops are most likely to be the choice of subsistence farmers.40. Even though many plants have developed various tactics to cope with dry weather, they cannot survive a prolonged drought.41. Despite consumer resistance, researchers are pushing ahead with genetic modification of crops.42. Most seeds can pull through dry spells and begin growing when conditions are ripe, butonce this process starts, it cannot be held back.43. Farrant is working hard to cultivate food crops that can survive extreme dryness by studying the traits of rare wild plants.44. By adjusting their metabolism, resurrection plants can recover from an extended period of drought.45. Resurrection plants can come back to life ina short time after a rainfall.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.Human memory is notoriously unreliable. Even people with the sharpest facial-recognition skills can only remember so much.It's tough to quantify how good a person is at remembering. No one really knows how many different faces someone can recall, for example, but various estimates tend to hover in the thousands—based on the number of acquaintances a person might have.Machines aren't limited this way. Give the right computer a massive database of faces, and it can process what it sees—then recognize a face it's told to find—with remarkable speed and precision. This skill is what supports the enormous promise of facial-recognition software in the 21st century. It's also what makes contemporary surveillance systems so scary. The thing is, machines still have limitations when it comes to facial recognition. Andscientists are only just beginning to understand what those constraints are. To begin to figure out how computers are struggling, researchers at the University of Washington created a massive database of faces—they call it MegaFace—and tested a variety of facial-recognition algorithms (算法) as they scaled up in complexity. The idea was to test the machines on a database that included up to 1 million different images of nearly 700,000 different people—and not just a large database featuring a relatively small number of different faces, more consistent with what's been used in other research.As the databases grew, machine accuracy dipped across the board. Algorithms that were right 95% of the time when they were dealing with a 13,000-image database, for example, were accurate about 70% of the time when confronted with 1 million images. That's still pretty good, says one of the researchers, Ira Kemelmacher-Shlizerman. "Much better thanwe expected," she said.Machines also had difficulty adjusting for people who look a lot alike—either doppelgangers (长相极相似的人), whom the machine would have trouble identifying as two separate people, or the same person who appeared in different photos at different ages or in different lighting, whom the machine would incorrectly view as separate people."Once we scale up, algorithms must be sensitive to tiny changes in identities and at the same time invariant to lighting, pose, age," Kemelmacher-Shlizerman said.The trouble is, for many of the researchers who'd like to design systems to address these challenges, massive datasets for experimentation just don't exist—at least, not in formats that are accessible to academic researchers. Training sets like the ones Google and Facebook have are private. There are no public databases that contain millions of faces. MegaFace's creators say it's the largest publicly availablefacial-recognition dataset out there."An ultimate face recognition algorithm should perform with billions of people in a dataset," the researchers wrote.46. Compared with human memory, machines can ________.A) identify human faces more efficientlyB) tell a friend from a mere acquaintanceC) store an unlimited number of human facesD) perceive images invisible to the human eye47. Why did researchers create MegaFace?A) To enlarge the volume of the facial-recognition database.B) To increase the variety of facial-recognition software.C) To understand computers' problems with facial recognition.D) To reduce the complexity of facial-recognition algorithms.48. What does the passage say about machine accuracy?A) It falls short of researchers' expectations.B) It improves with added computing power.C) It varies greatly with different algorithms.D) It decreases as the database size increases.49. What is said to be a shortcoming-of facial-recognition machines?A) They cannot easily tell apart people with near-identical appearances.B) They have difficulty identifying changes in facial expressions.C) They are not sensitive to minute changes in people's mood.D) They have problems distinguishing people of the same age.50. What is the difficulty confronting researchers of facial-recognition machines?A) No computer is yet able to handle huge datasets of human faces.B) There do not exist public databases with sufficient face samples.C) There are no appropriate algorithms to process the face samples.D) They have trouble converting face datasetsinto the right format.Passage TwoQuestions 51 to 55 are based on the following passage.There're currently 21.5 million students in America, and many will be funding their college on borrowed money. Given that there's now over $1.3 trillion in student loans on the books, it's pretty clear that many students are far from sensible. The average student's debt upon graduation now approaches $40,000, and as college becomes ever more expensive, calls to make it "free" are multiplying. Even Hillary Clinton says that when it comes to college, "Costs won't be a barrier."But the only way college could be free is if the faculty and staff donated their time, the buildings required no maintenance, and campuses required no utilities. As long as it'simpossible to produce something from nothing, costs are absolutely a barrier.The actual question we debate is who should pay for people to go to college. If taxpayers are to bear the cost of forgiving student loans, shouldn't they have a say in how their money is used?At least taxpayers should be able to decide what students will study on the public dime. If we're going to force taxpayers to foot the bill for college degrees, students should only study those subjects that're of greatest benefit to taxpayers. After all, students making their own choices in this respect is what caused the problem in the first place. We simply don't need more poetry, gender studies, or sociology majors. How do we know which subjects benefit society? Easy. Average starting salaries give a clear indication of what type of training society needs its new workers to have. Certainly, there're benefits to a college major beyond the job a student can perform. But if we're talking about the benefitsto society, the only thing that matters is what the major enables the student to produce for society. And the value of what the student can produce is reflected in the wage employers are willing to pay the student to produce it.A low wage for elementary school teachers, however, doesn't mean elementary education isn't important. It simply means there're too many elementary school teachers already. Meanwhile, there're few who're willing and able to perform jobs requiring a petroleum engineering major, so the value of one more of those people is very high.So we can have taxpayers pick up students' tuition in exchange for dictating what those students will study. Or we can allow students both to choose their majors and pay for their education themselves. But in the end, one of two things is true:Either a college major is worth its cost or it isn't. If yes, taxpayer financing isn't needed. If not, taxpayer financing isn't desirable. Either way,taxpayers have no business paying for students' college education.51. What does the author think of college students funding their education through loans?A) They only expect to get huge returns.B) They are acting in an irrational way.C) They benefit at taxpayers' expense.D) They will regret doing so someday.52. In the author's opinion, free college education is ________.A) impracticalB) unsustainableC) a goal to strive forD) a way to social equality53. What should students do if taxpayers are to bear their college costs?A) Work even harder to repay society.B) Choose their subjects more carefully.C) Choose majors that will serve society's practical needs.D) Allow taxpayers to participate in college administration.54. What does the author say about the value ofa student's college education?A) It is underestimated by profit-seeking employers.B) It is to be proved by what they can do on the job.C) It is well reflected in their average starting salary.D) It is embodied in how they remove social barriers.55. What message does the author want to convey in the passage?A) Students should think carefully whether to go to college.B) Taxpayers should only finance the most gifted students.C) The worth of a college education is open to debate.D) College students should fund their own education.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.中国目前拥有世界上最大最快的高速铁路网。

2018年6月大学英语六级考试仔细阅读真题解析（卷二）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.Economically speaking, are we better off than we were ten years ago? Twenty years ago?In their thirst for evidence on this issue, commentators seized on the recent report by the Census Bureau, which found that average household income rose by 5.2% in 2015. Unfortunately, that conclusion puts too much weight on a useful, but flawed and incomple te, statistic. Among the more significant problems with the Census’s measure are that: 1) it excludes taxes, transfers, and compensation like employer-provided health insurance; and 2) it is based on surveys rather than data. Even if precisely measured, income data exclude important determinants of economic well-being, such as the hours of work needed to earn that income.While thinking about the question, we came across a recently published article by Charles Jones and Peter Klenow, which proposes an interesting new measure of economic welfare. While by no means perfect, it is considerably more comprehensive than average income, taking into account not only growth in consumption per person but also changes in working time, life expectancy, and inequality. Moreover, it can be used to assess economic performance both across countries and over time.The Jones-Klenow method can be illustrated by a cross-country example. Suppose we want to compare the economic welfare of citizens of the U.S. and France in 2005.In 2005, as the authors observe, real consumption per person in France was only 60% as high as the U.S., making it appear that Americans were economically much better off than the French on average. However, that comparison omits other relevant factors: leisure time, life expectancy, and economic inequality. The French take longer vacations and retire earlier, so typically work fewer hours; they enjoy a higher life expectancy, presumably reflecting advantages with respect to health care, diet, lifestyle, and the like; and income and consumption are somewhat more equally distributed there than in the U.S. Because of these differences, comparing France’s consumption with the U.S.’s overstates the gap in economic welfare.Similar calculations can be used to compare the U.S. and other countries. For example, this calculation puts economic welfare in the United Kingdom at 97% of U.S. levels, but estimates Mexican well-being at 22%.The Jones-Klenow measure can also assess an economy’s performance over time. According to this measure, as of the early-to-mid-2000s, the U.S. had the highesteconomic welfare of any large country. Since 2007, economic welfare in the U.S. has continued to improve. However, the pace of improvement has slowed markedly.Methodologically, the lesson from the Jones-Klenow research is that economic welfare is multi-dimensional. Their approach is flexible enough that in principle other important quality-of life changes could be incorporated—for example, decreases in total emissions of pollutants and declines in crime rates.全文翻译及命题分析从经济上讲，我们的生活比十年前或二十年前更好吗？评论员从美国人口普查局最新的一份报告着手，渴望在这个问题上找到证据。

2018年6月英语六级考试真题试卷附答案（完整版第2套）Part I Writing (30 minutes)Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write an essay on the importance of building trust between teachers and students. You can cite examples to illustrate your views. You should 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 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) She advocates animal protection.B) She sells a special kind of coffee.C) She is going to start a café chain.D) She is the owner of a special café.2. A) They bear a lot of similarities.B) They are a profitable business sector.C) They cater to different customers.D) They help take care of customers' pets.3. A) By giving them regular cleaning and injections.B) By selecting breeds that are tame and peaceful.C) By placing them at a safe distance from customers.D) By briefing customers on how to get along with them.4. A) They want to learn about rabbits.B) They like to bring in their children.C) They love the animals in her café.D) They give her café favorite reviews.Questions 5 to 8 are based on the conversation you have just heard.5. A) It contains too many additives.B) It lacks the essential vitamins.C) It can cause obesity.D) It is mostly garbage.6. A) Its fancy design.B) TV commercials.C) Its taste and texture.D) Peer influence.7. A) Investing heavily in the production of sweet foods.B) Marketing their products with ordinary ingredients.C) Trying to trick children into buying their products.D) Offering children more varieties to choose from.8. A) They hardly ate vegetables.B) They seldom had junk food.C) They favored chocolate-coated sweets.D) They liked the food advertised on TV.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 11 are based on the passage you have just heard.9. A) Stretches of farmland.B) Typical Egyptian animal farms.C) Tombs of ancient rulers.D) Ruins left by devastating floods.10. A) It provides habitats for more primitive tribes.B) It is hardly associated with great civilizations.C) It has not yet been fully explored and exploited.D) It gathers water from many tropical rain forests.11. A) It carries about one fifth of the world's fresh water.B) It has numerous human settlements along its banks.C) It is second only to the Mississippi River in width.D) It is as long as the Nile and the Yangtze combined. Questions 12 to 15 are based on the passage you have just heard.12. A) Living a life in the fast lane leads to success.B) We are always in a rush to do various things.C) The search for tranquility has become a trend.D) All of us actually yearn for a slow and calm life.13. A) She had trouble balancing family and work.B) She enjoyed the various social events.C) She was accustomed to tight schedules.D) She spent all her leisure time writing books.14. A) The possibility of ruining her family.B) Becoming aware of her declining health.C) The fatigue from living a fast-paced life.D) Reading a book about slowing down.15. A) She started to follow the cultural norms.B) She came to enjoy doing everyday tasks.C) She learned to use more polite expressions.D) She stopped using to-do lists and calendars.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 centre.Questions 16 to 18 are based on the recording you have just heard.16. A) They will root out native species altogether.B) They contribute to a region's biodiversity.C) They pose a threat to the local ecosystem.D) They will crossbreed with native species.17. A) Their classifications are meaningful.B) Their interactions are hard to define.C) Their definitions are changeable.D) Their distinctions are artificial.18. A) Only a few of them cause problems to native species.B) They may turn out to benefit the local environment.C) Few of them can survive in their new habitats.D) Only 10 percent of them can be naturalized.Questions 19 to 21 are based on the recording you have just heard.19. A) Respect their traditional culture.B) Attend their business seminars.C) Research their specific demands.D) Adopt the right business strategies.20. A) Showing them your palm.B) Giving them gifts of great value.C) Drinking alcohol on certain days of a month.D) Clicking your fingers loudly in their presence.21. A) They are very easy to satisfy.B) They have a strong sense of worth.C) They tend to be friendly and enthusiastic.D) They have a break from 2:00 to 5:30 .Questions 22 to 25 are based on the recording you have just heard.22. A) He completely changed the company's culture.B) He collected paintings by world-famous artists.C) He took over the sales department of Reader's Digest.D) He had the company's boardroom extensively renovated.23. A) It should be sold at a reasonable price.B) Its articles should be short and inspiring.C) It should be published in the world's leading languages.D) Its articles should entertain blue- and pink-collar workers.24. A) He knew how to make the magazine profitable.B) He served as a church minister for many years.C) He suffered many setbacks and misfortunes in his life.D) He treated the employees like members of his family.25. A) It carried many more advertisements.B) George Grune joined it as an ad salesman.C) Several hundred of its employees got fired.D) Its subscriptions increased considerably.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 ofchoices 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.Did Sarah Josepha Hale write "Mary's Little Lamb," the eternal nursery rhyme (儿歌) about a girl named Mary with a stubborn lamb This is still disputed, but it's clear that the woman 26 for writing it was one of America's most fascinating 27 . In honor of the poem's publication on May 24, 1830, here's more about the 28 author's life. Hale wasn't just a writer, she was also a 29 social advocate, and she was particularly 30 with an ideal New England, which she associated with abundant Thanksgiving meals that she claimed had "a deep moral influence." She began a nationwide 31 to have a national holiday declared that would bring families together while celebrating the 32 festivals. In 1863, after 17 years of advocacy including letters to five presidents, Hale got it. President Abraham Lincoln, during the Civil War, issued a 33 setting aside the last Thursday in November for the holiday.The true authorship of "Mary's Little Lamb" is disputed. According to the New England Historical Society, Hale wrote only part of thepoem, but claimed authorship. Regardless of the author, it seems that the poem was 34 by a real event. When young Mary Sawyer was followed to school by a lamb in 1816, it caused some problems. A bystander named John Roulstone wrote a poem about the event, then, at some point, Hale herself seems to have helped write it. However, if a 1916 piece by her great-niece is to be trusted, Hale claimed for the 35 of her life that "some other people pretended that someone else wrote the poem".A) campaign B) career C) characters D) features E) fierce F) inspired G) latter H) obsessed I) proclamation J) rectified K) reputed L) rest M) supposed N) traditional O) versatileSection 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.Grow Plants Without WaterA) Ever since humanity began to farm our own food, we’ve faced the unpredictable rain that is both friend and enemy. It comes and goes without much warning, and a field of lush (茂盛的) leafy greens one year can dry up and blow away the next. Food security and fortunes depend on sufficient rain, and nowhere more so than in Africa, where 96% of farmland depends on rain instead of the irrigation common in more developed places. It has consequences: South Africa's ongoing drought—the worst in three decades—will cost at least a quarter of its corn crop this year.B) Biologist Jill Farrant of the University of Cape Town in South Africa says that nature has plenty of answers for people who want to grow crops in places with unpredictable rainfall. She is hard at work finding a way to take traits from rare wild plants that adapt to extreme dry weather and use them in food crops. As the earth's climate changes and rainfall becomes even less predictable in some places, those answers will grow even more valuable. "The type of farming I'm aiming for is literally so that people can survive as it's going to get more and more dry," Farrant says.C) Extreme conditions produce extremely tough plants. In the rusty red deserts of South Africa, steep-sided rocky hills called inselbergs rear up from the plains like the bones of the earth. Thehills are remnants of an earlier geological era, scraped bare of most soil and exposed to the elements. Yet on these and similar formations in deserts around the world, a few fierce plants have adapted to endure under ever-changing conditions.D) Farrant calls them resurrection plants (复苏植物). During months without water under a harsh sun, they wither, shrink and contract until they look like a pile of dead gray leaves. But rainfall can revive them in a matter of hours. Her time-lapse (间歇性拍摄的) videos of the revivals look like someone playing a tape of the plant's death in reverse.E) The big difference between "drought-tolerant" plants and these tough plants: metabolism. Many different kinds of plants have developed tactics to weather dry spells. Some plants store reserves of water to see them through a drought; others send roots deep down to subsurface water supplies. But once these plants use up their stored reserve or tap out the underground supply, they cease growing and start to die. They may be able to handle a drought of some length, and many people use the term "drought tolerant" to describe such plants, but they never actually stop needing to consume water, so Farrant prefers to call them drought resistant.F) Resurrection plants, defined as those capable of recovering fromholding less than grams of water per gram of dry mass, are different. They lack water-storing structures, and their existence on rock faces prevents them from tapping groundwater, so they have instead developed the ability to change their metabolism. When they detect an extended dry period, they divert their metabolisms, producing sugars and certain stress-associated proteins and other materials in their tissues. As the plant dries, these resources take on first the properties of honey, then rubber, and finally enter a glass-like state that is "the most stable state that the plant can maintain," Farrant says. That slows the plant's metabolism and protects its dried-out tissues. The plants also change shape, shrinking to minimize the surface area through which their remaining water might evaporate. They can recover from months and years without water, depending on the species.G) What else can do this dry-out-and-revive trick Seeds—almost all of them. At the start of her career, Farrant studied "recalcitrant seeds (顽拗性种子)," such as avocados, coffee and lychee. While tasty, such seeds are delicate—they cannot bud and grow if they dry out (as you may know if you've ever tried to grow a tree from an avocado pit). In the seed world, that makes them rare, because most seeds from flowering plants are quite robust. Most seeds can wait out the dry, unwelcoming seasons until conditions are rightand they sprout (发芽). Yet once they start growing, such plants seem not to retain the ability to hit the pause button on metabolism in their stems or leaves.H) After completing her Ph. D. on seeds, Farrant began investigating whether it might be possible to isolate the properties that make most seeds so resilient (迅速恢复活力的) and transfer them to other plant tissues. What Farrant and others have found over the past two decades is that there are many genes involved in resurrection plants' response to dryness. Many of them are the same that regulate how seeds become dryness-tolerant while still attached to their parent plants. Now they are trying to figure out what molecular signaling processes activate those seed-building genes in resurrection plants—and how to reproduce them in crops. "Most genes are regulated by a master set of genes," Farrant says. "We're looking at gene promoters and what would be their master switch."I) Once Farrant and her colleagues feel they have a better sense of which switches to throw, they will have to find the best way to do so in useful crops. "I'm trying three methods of breeding," Farrant says: conventional, genetic modification and gene editing. She says she is aware that plenty of people do not want to eat genetically modified crops, but she is pushing ahead with everyavailable tool until one works. Farmers and consumers alike can choose whether or not to use whichever version prevails： "I'm giving people an option."J) Farrant and others in the resurrection business got together last year to discuss the best species of resurrection plant to use as a lab model. Just like medical researchers use rats to test ideas for human medical treatments, botanists use plants that are relatively easy to grow in a lab or greenhouse setting to test their ideas for related species. The Queensland rock violet is one of the best studied resurrection plants so far, with a draft genome (基因图谱) published last year by a Chinese team. Also last year, Farrant and colleagues published a detailed molecular study of another candidate, Xerophyta viscosa, a tough-as-nail South African plant with lily-like flowers, and she says that a genome is on the way. One or both of these models will help researchers test their ideas—so far mostly done in the lab—on test plots.K) Understanding the basic science first is key. There are good reasons why crop plants do not use dryness defenses already. For instance, there's a high energy cost in switching from a regular metabolism to an almost-no-water metabolism. It will also be necessary to understand what sort of yield farmers might expect andto establish the plant's safety. "The yield is never going to be high," Farrant says, so these plants will be targeted not at Iowa farmers trying to squeeze more cash out of high-yield fields, but subsistence farmers who need help to survive a drought like the present one in South Africa. "My vision is for the subsistence farmer," Farrant says. "I'm targeting crops that are of African value."36. There are a couple of plants tough and adaptable enough to survive on bare rocky hills and in deserts.37. Farrant is trying to isolate genes in resurrection plants and reproduce them in crops.38. Farmers in South Africa are more at the mercy of nature, especially inconsistent rainfall.39. Resurrection crops are most likely to be the choice of subsistence farmers.40. Even though many plants have developed various tactics to cope with dry weather, they cannot survive a prolonged drought.41. Despite consumer resistance, researchers are pushing ahead with genetic modification of crops.42. Most seeds can pull through dry spells and begin growing when conditions are ripe, but once this process starts, it cannot be held back.43. Farrant is working hard to cultivate food crops that can survive extreme dryness by studying the traits of rare wild plants.44. By adjusting their metabolism, resurrection plants can recover from an extended period of drought.45. Resurrection plants can come back to life in a short time aftera rainfall.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.Human memory is notoriously unreliable. Even people with the sharpest facial-recognition skills can only remember so much.It's tough to quantify how good a person is at remembering. No one really knows how many different faces someone can recall, for example, but various estimates tend to hover in the thousands—based on the number of acquaintances a person might have.Machines aren't limited this way. Give the right computer a massive database of faces, and it can process what it sees—then recognize a face it's told to find—with remarkable speed and precision. This skill is what supports the enormous promise of facial-recognition software in the 21st century. It's also what makes contemporary surveillance systems so scary.The thing is, machines still have limitations when it comes to facial recognition. And scientists are only just beginning to understand what those constraints are. To begin to figure out how computers are struggling, researchers at the University of Washington created a massive database of faces—they call it MegaFace—and tested a variety of facial-recognition algorithms (算法) as they scaled up in complexity. The idea was to test the machines on a database that included up to 1 million different images of nearly 700,000 different people—and not just a large database featuring a relatively small number of different faces, more consistent with what's been used in other research.As the databases grew, machine accuracy dipped across the board. Algorithms that were right 95% of the time when they were dealing with a 13,000-image database, for example, were accurate about 70% of the time when confronted with 1 million images. That's still pretty good, says one of the researchers, Ira Kemelmacher-Shlizerman. "Much better than we expected," she said. Machines also had difficulty adjusting for people who look a lot alike—either doppelgangers (长相极相似的人), whom the machine would have trouble identifying as two separate people, or the same person who appeared in different photos at different ages or in different lighting, whom the machine would incorrectly view as separate people."Once we scale up, algorithms must be sensitive to tiny changes in identities and at the same time invariant to lighting, pose, age," Kemelmacher-Shlizerman said.The trouble is, for many of the researchers who'd like to design systems to address these challenges, massive datasets for experimentation just don't exist—at least, not in formats that are accessible to academic researchers. Training sets like the ones Google and Facebook have are private. There are no public databases that contain millions of faces. MegaFace's creators say it's thelargest publicly available facial-recognition dataset out there. "An ultimate face recognition algorithm should perform with billions of people in a dataset," the researchers wrote.46. Compared with human memory, machines can ________.A) identify human faces more efficientlyB) tell a friend from a mere acquaintanceC) store an unlimited number of human facesD) perceive images invisible to the human eye47. Why did researchers create MegaFaceA) To enlarge the volume of the facial-recognition database.B) To increase the variety of facial-recognition software.C) To understand computers' problems with facial recognition.D) To reduce the complexity of facial-recognition algorithms.48. What does the passage say about machine accuracyA) It falls short of researchers' expectations.B) It improves with added computing power.C) It varies greatly with different algorithms.D) It decreases as the database size increases.49. What is said to be a shortcoming-of facial-recognition machinesA) They cannot easily tell apart people with near-identical appearances.B) They have difficulty identifying changes in facial expressions.C) They are not sensitive to minute changes in people's mood.D) They have problems distinguishing people of the same age.50. What is the difficulty confronting researchers of facial-recognition machinesA) No computer is yet able to handle huge datasets of human faces.B) There do not exist public databases with sufficient face samples.C) There are no appropriate algorithms to process the face samples.D) They have trouble converting face datasets into the right format. Passage TwoQuestions 51 to 55 are based on the following passage.There're currently million students in America, and many will be funding their college on borrowed money. Given that there's now over $ trillion in student loans on the books, it's pretty clear that many students are far from sensible. The average student's debt upon graduation now approaches $40,000, and as college becomes ever more expensive, calls to make it "free" are multiplying. Even Hillary Clinton says that when it comes to college, "Costs won't be a barrier."But the only way college could be free is if the faculty and staff donated their time, the buildings required no maintenance, and campuses required no utilities. As long as it's impossible to produce something from nothing, costs are absolutely a barrier. The actual question we debate is who should pay for people to go to college. If taxpayers are to bear the cost of forgiving student loans, shouldn't they have a say in how their money is usedAt least taxpayers should be able to decide what students will study on the public dime. If we're going to force taxpayers to foot the bill for college degrees, students should only study those subjects that're of greatest benefit to taxpayers. After all, students making their own choices in this respect is what caused the problem in the first place. We simply don't need more poetry, gender studies, orsociology majors. How do we know which subjects benefit society Easy.Average starting salaries give a clear indication of what type of training society needs its new workers to have. Certainly, there're benefits to a college major beyond the job a student can perform. But if we're talking about the benefits to society, the only thing that matters is what the major enables the student to produce for society. And the value of what the student can produce is reflected in the wage employers are willing to pay the student to produce it.A low wage for elementary school teachers, however, doesn't mean elementary education isn't important. It simply means there're too many elementary school teachers already.Meanwhile, there're few who're willing and able to perform jobs requiring a petroleum engineering major, so the value of one more of those people is very high.So we can have taxpayers pick up students' tuition in exchange for dictating what those students will study. Or we can allow students both to choose their majors and pay for their education themselves. But in the end, one of two things is true:Either a college major is worth its cost or it isn't. If yes, taxpayerfinancing isn't needed. If not, taxpayer financing isn't desirable. Either way, taxpayers have no business paying for students' college education.51. What does the author think of college students funding their education through loansA) They only expect to get huge returns.B) They are acting in an irrational way.C) They benefit at taxpayers' expense.D) They will regret doing so someday.52. In the author's opinion, free college education is ________.A) impracticalB) unsustainableC) a goal to strive forD) a way to social equality53. What should students do if taxpayers are to bear their college costsA) Work even harder to repay society.B) Choose their subjects more carefully.C) Choose majors that will serve society's practical needs.D) Allow taxpayers to participate in college administration.54. What does the author say about the value of a student's college educationA) It is underestimated by profit-seeking employers.B) It is to be proved by what they can do on the job.C) It is well reflected in their average starting salary.D) It is embodied in how they remove social barriers.55. What message does the author want to convey in the passageA) Students should think carefully whether to go to college.B) Taxpayers should only finance the most gifted students.C) The worth of a college education is open to debate.D) College students should fund their own education.Part IV Translation (30 minutes)Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to translatea passage from Chinese into English. You should write your answer on Answer Sheet 2.中国目前拥有世界上最大最快的高速铁路网。

2018年大学英语六级(CET-6)真题试卷Part I Listening Comprehension (20 minutes) Section A1. A) A new house cost thirty thousand dollars.B) Bob’s house cost him sixty thousand dollars.C) Bob didn’t want to buy an old house.D) Bob decided to buy an old house.2. A) Yes, but he needs to have the approval of his professor.B) Yes, he can study there if he is writing a research paper.C) Yes, because he is a senior student.D) No, it’s open only to teachers and postgraduates.3. A) He doesn’t like seafood any more.B) A seafood dinner is too expensive.C) He doesn’t have enough money.D) He likes seafood very much.4. A) He went to the hospital to take his wife home.B) He stayed in the hospital until very late.He tried to call the woman several times.He went to the hospital at midnight yesterday.5. Her errors were mainly in the reading part.B) It wasn’t very challenging to her.C) It was more difficult than she had expected.D) She made very few grammatical mistakes in her test.6. A) 6 hours.B) 4 hours.C) 12 hours.D) 18 hours.7. A) It’s dirty.B) It’s faded.C) It’s dyed.D) It’s torn.8. A) Sixteen dollars.B) Eight dollars.C) Ten dollars.D) Twelve dollars.9. A) His watch will be fixed no later than next Monday.B) His watch needs to be repaired.C) He may come again for his watch at the weekend.D) The woman won’t repair his watch until next Monday.10. A) The things to do on Monday morning.B) The weather on Monday morning.C) The time to see John.D) The place John should go to.Section BPassage OneQuestions 11 to 14 are based on the passage you have just heard.11. A) The number of its readers.B) Its unusual location.C) Its comfortable chairs.D) Its spacious rooms.12. A) The latest version of the Bible.B) A book written by Columbus.C) A map of the New World.D) One of the earliest copies of Shakespeare’s work.13. A) It has too few employees.B) It lacks money to cover its expenses.C) It is over crowded.D) It is growing too rapidly.14. A) From Monday to Friday.B) From Monday to Saturday.C) Every day.D) On Saturdays and Sundays.Passage TwoQuestions 15 to 17 are based on the passage you have just heard.15. A) They would train the children to be happy street cleaners.B) They would make the children great scholars.C) They intended to train the children as adults were trained.D) They would give the children freedom to fully develop themselves.16. A) Some children are good, some are not.B) Children are good by nature.C) Most children are nervous.D) Children are not as brave as adults.17. A) He thinks a scholar is more respectable than a street cleaner.B) He thinks highly of teaching as a profession.C) He thinks all jobs are equally good so long as people like them.D) He thinks a street cleaner is happier than a scholar.Passage ThreeQuestions 18 to 20 are based on the passage you have just heard.18. A) The daughter of a prison guard.B) The Emperor of Rome.C) A Christian couple.D) A Christian named Valentine.19. A) To propose marriage.B) To celebrate Valentine’s birthday.C) To express their respect for each other.D) To show their love.20. A) It is an American folktale.B) It is something recorded in Roman history.C) It is one of the possible origins of this holiday.D) It is a story from the Bible.Part II Reading Comprehension (35 minutes)Passage OneQuestions 21 to 25 are based on the following passage.One day in January 1913. G. H. Hardy, a famous Cambridge University mathematician received a letter from an Indian named Srinivasa Ramanujan asking him for his opinion of 120 mathematical theorems (定理) that Ramanujan said he had discovered. To Hardy, many of the theorems made no sense. Of the others, one or two were already well-known. Ramanujan must be some kind of trickplayer, Hardy decided, and put the letter aside. But all that day the letter kept hanging round Hardy. Might there be something in those wild-looking theorems?That evening Hardy invited another brilliant Cambridge mathematician, J. E. Littlewood, and the two men set out to assess the Indian’s worth. That incident was a turning point in the history of mathematics.At the time, Ramanujan was an obscure Madras Port Trust clerk. A little more than a year later, he was at Cambridge University, and beginning to be recognized as one of the most amazing mathematicians the world has ever known. Though he died in 1920, much of his work was so far in advance of his time that only in recent years is it beginning to be properly understood.Indeed, his results are helping solve today’s problems in computer science and physics, problems that he could have had no notion of.For Indians, moreover, Ramanujan has a special significance. Ramanujan, though born in poor and ill-paid accountant’s family 100 years ago, has inspired many Indians to adopt mathematics as career.Much of Ramanujan’s work is in number theory, a branch of mathematics that deals with the subtle (难以捉摸的) laws and relationships that govern numbers. Mathematicians describe his results as elegant and beautiful but they are much too complex to be appreciated by laymen.His life, though, is full of drama and sorrow. It is one of the great romantic stories of mathematics, a distressing reminder that genius can surface and rise in the most unpromising circumstances.21. When Hardy received the 120 theorems from Ramanujan, his attitude at first mightbe best described as ________.A) uninterestedB) unsympatheticC) suspiciousD) curious22. Ramanujan’s position in Cambridge University owed much to ________.A) the judgement of his work by Hardy and LittlewoodB) his letter of application accepted by HardyC) his work as a clerk at Madras Port TrustD) his being recognized by the world as a famous mathematician23. It may be inferred from the passage that the author ________.A) feels sorry for Ramanujan’s early deathB) is dissatisfied with the slow development of computer scienceC) is puzzled about the complexity of Ramanujan’s theoremsD) greatly appreciates Ramanujan’s mathematical genius24. In the last paragraph, the author points out that ________.A) Ramanujan’s mathematical theorems were not appreciated by othermathematiciansB) extremely talented people can prove their worth despite difficult circumstancesC) Ramanujan also wrote a number of stories about mathematicsD) Ramanujan had worked out an elegant but complicated method of solvingproblems25. The word “laymen” (Last Para, Lind 6) most probably means ________.A) people who do not specialize in mathematical scienceB) people who are carelessC) people who are not interested in mathematicsD) people who don’t like to solve complicated problemsPassage TwoQuestions 26 to 30 are based on the following passage.Even if all the technical and intellectual problems can be solved, there are major social problems inherent in the computer revolution. The most obvious is unemployment, since the basic purpose of commercial computerization is to get more work done by fewer people. OneBritish study predicts that “automation induced unemployment” in Western Europe could reach16~, 6 in the next decade, but most analyses are more optimistic. The general rule seems to be that new technology eventually creates as many jobs as it destroys, and often more. “People who put in computers usually increase their staffs as well” says CPT’s Scheff. “Of course,” he adds,“one industry may kill another industry. That’s tough on some people.”Theoretically, all unemployed workers can be retrained, but retraining programs are not high on the nation’s agenda (议事日程). Many new jobs, moreover, will require an ability in using computers, and the retraining needed to use them will have to be repeated as the technology keeps improving. Says a chilling report by the Congressional Office of Technology Assessment:“Lifelong retraining is expected to become the standard for many people. “There is a already considerable evidence that the school children now being educated in the use of computers are generally the children of the white middle class. Young blacks, whose unemployment rate stands today at 50 96, will find another barrier in front of them.Such social problems are not the fault of the computer, of course, but a consequence of the way the American society might use the computer. “Even in the days of the Big, main-frame computers, when they were a machine for the few.” says Katherine Davis Fishman, author ofThe Computer Establishment, “it was a tool to help the rich get richer. It still is to a large extent. One of the great values of the personal computer is that smaller firms, smaller organizations can now have some of the advantages of the bigger organizations.”26. The closest restatement of “one industry may kill another industry” (Para. 1 Line 11)is that ________.A) industries tend to compete with one anotherB) one industry might be driven out of business by another industryC) one industry may increase its staff at the expense of anotherD) industries tend to combine into bigger ones27. The word “chilling” (Para. 2, Line 5) most probably means ________.A) misleadingB) convincingC) discouragingD) interesting28. Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the passage?A) Computers are efficient in retraining unemployed workers.B) Computers may offer more working opportunities than they destroy.C) Computers will increase the unemployment rate of young blacks.D) Computers can help smaller organizations to function more effectively.29. From the passage it can be inferred that ________.A) all school children are offered a course in the use of computersB) all unemployed workers are being retrainedC) retraining programmes are considered very important by the governmentD) in reality only a certain portion of unemployed workers will be retrained30. The major problem discussed in the passage is ________.A) the importance of lifelong retraining of the unemployed workersB) the social consequences of the widespread use of computers in the United StatesC) the barrier to the employment of young peopleD) the general rule of the advancement of technologyPassage ThreeQuestions 31 to 35 are based on the following passage.Mobility of individual members and family groups tends to split up family relationships.Occasionally the movement of a family away from a situation which has been the source of friction results in greater family organization, but on the whole mobility is disorganizing.Individuals and families are involved in three types of mobility: movement in space, movement up or down in social status, and the movement of ideas. These are termed respectively spatial, vertical, and ideational mobility.A great increase in spatial mobility has gone along with improvements in rail and water transportation, the invention and use of the automobile, and the availability of airplane passenger service. Spatial mobility results in a decline in the importance of the traditional home with its emphasis on family continuity and stability. It also means that when individual family members or the family as a whole move away from a community, the person or the family is removed from the pressures of relatives, friends, and community institutions for conventionality and stability. Even more important is the fact that spatial mobility permits some members of a family to come in contact with and possibly adopt attitudes, values, and ways of thinking different from those held by other family members. The presence of different attitudes, values, and ways of thinking with in a family may, and often does, result in conflict and family disorganization. Potential disorganization is present in those families in which the husband, wife, and children are spatially separated over a long period, or are living together but see each other only briefly because of different work schedules.One index of the increase in vertical mobility is the great increase in the proportion of sons, and to some extent daughters, who engage in occupations other than those of the parents.Another index of vertical mobility is the degree of intermarriage between racial classes. This occurs almost exclusively between classes which are adjacent to each other. Engaging in a different occupation, or intermarriage, like spatial mobility, allows one to come in contact with ways of behavior different from those of the parental home, and tends to separate parents and their children.The increase in ideational mobility is measured by the increase in publications, suchas newspapers, periodicals, and books, the increase in the percentage of the population owning radios, and the increase in television sets. All these tend to introduce new ideas into the home.When individual family members are exposed to and adopt the new ideas, the tendency is for conflict to arise and for those in conflict to become psychologically separated from each other.31. What the passage tells us can be summarized by the statement:A) social development results in a decline in the importance of traditional familiesB) potential disorganization is present in the American familyC) family disorganization is more or less the result of mobilityD) the movement of a family is one of the factors in raising its social status32. According to the passage, those who live in a traditional family ________.A) are less likely to quarrel with others because of conventionality and stabilityB) have to depend on their relatives and friends if they do not move away from itC) can get more help from their family members if they are in troubleD) will have more freedom of action and thought if they move away from it33. Potential disorganization exists in those families in which ________.A) the husband, wife, and children work too hardB) the husband, wife, and children seldom get togetherC) both parents have to work full timeD) the family members are subject to social pressures34. Intermarriage and different occupations play an important role in familydisorganization because ________.A) they enable the children to travel around without their parents’ permissionB) they allow one to find a good job and improve one’s social statusC) they enable the children to better understand the ways of behavior of theirparentsD) they permit one to come into contact with different ways of behavior andthinking35. This passage suggests that a well-organized family is a family whose members________.A) are not psychologically withdrawn from one anotherB) never quarrel with each other even when they disagreeC) often help each other with true love and affectionD) are exposed to the same new ideas introduced by books, radios, and TV setsPassage FourQuestions 36 to 40 are based on the following passage.To call someone bird-brained in English means you think that person is silly or stupid.But will this description soon disappear from use in the light of recent research? It seems the English may have been unfair in association bird’s brains with stupidity.In an attempt to find out how different creatures see the world, psychologists at Brown University in the USA have been comparing the behaviour of birds and humans. One experiment has involved teaching pigeons to recognize letters of the English alphabet. The birds study in “classrooms”, which are boxes equipped with a computer. After about four days of studying a particular letter, the pigeon has to pick out that letter from several displayed on the computer screen. Three male pigeons have learnt to distinguish all twenty-six letters of the alphabet in this way.A computer record of the birds’four-month study period has shown surprising similarities between the pigeons’ and human performance. Pigeons and people find the same letters easy, or hard, to tell apart. For example, 92 per cent of the time the pigeons could tell the letter D from the letter Z. But when faced with U and V (often confused by English children), the pigeons were right only 34 per cent of the time.The results of the experiments so far have led psychologists to conclude that pigeons and humans observe things in similar ways. This suggests that there is something fundamental about the recognition process. If scientists could only discover just what this recognition process is it could be very useful for computer designers. The disadvantage of a present computer is that it can only do what a human being has programmed it to do and the programmer must give the computer precise, logical instructions. Maybe in the future, though, computers will be able to think like human beings.36. The writer suggests that the expression “bird-brained” might be out of use soonbecause it is ________.A) sillyB) impoliteC) unnecessaryD) inappropriate37. Psychologists have been experimenting with pigeons to find out whether the birds________.A) are really silly or stupidB) can learn to make ideas known to peopleC) see the world as human beings doD) learn more quickly than children38. U and V are confused by ________.A) 92 per cent of pigeonsB) many English childrenC) most people learning EnglishD) 34 per cent of English children39. There are similarities in observing things by pigeons and humans ________.A) because pigeons are taught by humansB) because pigeons have brains more developed than other birdsC) because their basic ways to know the world are the sameD) because pigeons and humans have similar brains40. The research may help ________.A) computer designersB) computer salesmenC) psychologistsD) teachersPart III Vocabulary and Structure (20 minutes)Directions: There are 30 incomplete sentences in this part. For each sentence there are four choices marked A), B), C) and D). Choose the ONE that bestcompletes the sentence. Then mark the corresponding letter on the AnswerSheet with a single line through the centre.41. Germans used to believe that all other races were inferior ________ them.A) thanB) forC) toD) from42. The main road through Pittsburgh’s blocked for three hours today after an accident________ two trucks.A) connectingB) combining,C) includingD) involving43. Many parents think that a regular ________ is an excellent way to teach children thevalue of money.A) allowanceB) grantC) aidD) amount44. The girl is so sensitive that she is ________ to get angry at the slightest offence.A) adaptableB) liableC) fitD) suitable45. He was at the ________ of his career when he was murdered.A) gloryB) powerC) prideD) height46. I have never met the professor though I have been in correspondence him for severalyears.A) withB) byC) ofD) to47. ________ they must learn in a course is not provided in the classroom.A) Many thingsB) So muchC) Much of whatD) All what48. Of the immigrants who came to America in the first three quarters of theseventeenth century, the ________ majority was English.A) overwhelmingB) overflowingC) overtakingD) overloading49. You can’t be ________ careful in making the decision as it is such a critical case.A) quiteB) tooC) veryD) so50. By the first decade of the 21st century, international commercial air traffic isexpected ________ vastly beyond today’s levels.A) to have extendedB) to be extendingC) being extendedD) having been extended51. The doctor warned his patient that ________ should he return to work until he hadcompletely recovered.A) on all accountsB) on no accountC) on any accountD) on every account52. We started burning some leaves in our yard, but the fire got ________ and we had tocall the fire department to put it out:A) out of handB) out of orderC) out of the questionD) out of the way53. If an earthquake occurred, some of the one-storey houses ________.A) might be standing leftB) might be left standingC) might leave to be standingD) might be left to stand54. The professor picked several students ________ from the class and asked them tohelp him with the experiment.A) at easeB) at allC) at randomD) at hand55. Every year there is some ________ of the laws.A) transformationB) identificationC) correctionD) alteration56. Some people believe that proficiency in a foreign language is not achieved throughteaching and learning but ________ through actual use.A) receivedB) acceptedC) derivedD) acquired57. It is said that somewhere between the ages of 6 and 9, children begin to think________ instead of concretely.A) logicallyB) reasonablyC) abstractlyD) generally58. Sea food of all kinds is ________ in the states that border the oceans.A) abandonedB) advantageousC) abundantD) accumulated59. I can’t back the car because there is a truck ________.A) in every wayB) in a wayC) in the wayD) in any way:60. ________ as a poor boy in a family of seventeen children. Benjamin Franklinbecame famous on both sides of the Atlantic as a statesman, scientist, and author.A) StartingB) StartedC) Being startedD) To have started61. Though I’ve never seen you before. I guess you ________ be the new secretary.A) shouldB) mustC) wouldD) could62. This store has an excellent ________ for fair dealing.A) repetitionB) reputationC) authorityD) popularity63. The atmosphere is as much a part of the earth as ________ its soils and the water ofits lakes, rivers and oceans.A) hasB) doC) isD) are64. Her terror was so great ________ somewhere to escape, she would have run for herlife.A) only if there had beenB) that there had only beenC) that had there only beenD) if there was only65. While you pedal away on the exercise bicycle, a machine will be ________ yourbreathing and pulse.A) reviewingB) screeningC) surveyingD) monitoring66. Understanding the cultural habits of another nation, especially ________ containingas many different subcultures as the United States is a complex task.A) theseB) thatC) oneD) such67. Their bedroom windows ________ a lovely garden.A) look up toB) look out forC) look forward toD) look out on68. I hoped to get the house but a rich man was ________ against me.A) biddingB) disputingC) bettingD) testifying69. His first novel ‘Night’was an account of the Nazi crimes ________ through theeyes of a teenaged boy.A) and were seenB) which sawC) but was seenD) as seen70. The judge recommended that he ________ for at least three years.A) was not releasedB) not be releasedC) had not been releasedD) not releasedPart IV Error Correction (15 minutes)Directions: This part consists of a short passage. In this passage, there are altogether10 mistakes, one in each numbered line. You may have to change a word,add a word or delete a word. Mark out the mistakes and put the correctionsin the blanks provided. If you change a word, cross it out and write thecorrect word in the corresponding blank. If you add a word, put aninsertion mark (∧) in the right place and write the missing word in theblank. If you delete a word, cross it and put a slash (/) in the blank. Example:Television is rapidly becoming the literature of our periods╱. 1. time/times/period╱used for the study of literature as 2. _______\_______ Many of the arguments havinga school subject are valid for ∧study of television. 3. ______the______Quite recently researchers have reviewed the causes of motion sickness and methods with which it may be suppressed. They concentrated first of all in motion sickness which develops in children (71) travelling in the back seat of cars.A lot of children suffer terribly from car sick. What’s required is to provide the child with (72) the visual field he has in walk. So objects at (73) a distance in the center of the field remain stationary while those in the peripheral field appear to move. This can be achieved by positioning the child in a raised seat in the front of the car, that, of course, isn’t very (74) sensible in terms of safety.Looking at thebecause it’s the (75) onlyeyes is helpful. It’in conflict.Directions: For this part, you are allowedtopic: How to Solve the Housing Problem in Big Cities? Four suggestedsolutions to this problem are listed below. You are supposed to write infavour of one suggestion (ONE only) and against another (ONE only). Youshould give your reasons in both cases. You should write no less than 120words. Remember to give a short introduction and a brief conclusion. Writeyour composition clearly.四种可能解决住房问题的方案：1. 多造高层建筑2. 向地下发展3. 建造卫星城市4. 疏散城市人口How to Solve the Housing Problem in Big Cities?。

2018年6月大学英语六级真题仔细阅读译文及详细解析(卷二)It'XXX with no simple answer。

On the one hand。

global poverty rates have XXX decades。

and many countries have XXX economic growth。

On the other hand。

e inequality has increasedin many places。

and there are still ns of people living in poverty.One way to measure overall economic well-being is to look at GDP per capita。

which is the total value of goods and services XXX measure。

many countries have XXX over the past decade。

For example。

China's GDP per capita has more than tripled since 2008.and India's has more than XXX。

XXX is better off。

In fact。

e inequality has increased in both China and India。

meaning that the benefits of economic growth have been XXX.Another way to measure economic well-being is to look at median household e。

which is the e of the household right in the middle of the e n。

2018年6月英语六级真题及答案（第二套）Part I Writing (30 minutes)Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write an essay on the importance of building trust between employers and employees. You can cite examples to illustrate your views. You shouldwrite 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 will hear four questions. Both the conversation and the questions will be spoken only once. After youhear 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) It is a typical salad.B) It is a Spanish soup.C) It is a weird vegetable.D) It is a kind of spicy food.2. A) To make it thicker.B) To make it more nutritious.C) To add to its appeal.D) To replace an ingredient.3. A) It contains very little fat.B) It uses olive oil in cooking.C) It uses no artificial additives.D) It is mainly made of vegetables.4. A) It does not go stale for two years.B) It takes no special skill to prepare.C) It comes from a special kind of pig.D) It is a delicacy blended with bread.Questions 5 to 8 are based on the conversation you have just heard.5. A) They come in a great variety.B) They do not make decent gifts.C) They do not vary much in price.D) They go well with Italian food.6. A) $30- $40.B) $40- $50.C) $50- $60.D) Around $ 150.7. A) They are a healthy choice for elderly people.B) They are especially popular among Italians.C) They symbolize good health and longevity.D) They go well with different kinds of food.8. A) It is a wine imported from California.B) It is less spicy than all other red wines.C) It is far more expensive than he expected.D) It is Italy s most famous type of red wine.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 thecorresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.Questions 9 to 11 are based on the passage you have just heard.9. A) Learning others secrets.B) Searching for information.C) Decoding secret messages.D) Spreading sensational news.10. A) They helped the U. S. army in World War Ⅱ.B) They could write down spoken codes promptly.C) They were assigned to decode enemy messages.D) They were good at breaking enemy secret codes.11. A) Important battles fought in the Pacific War.B) Decoding of secret messages in war times.C) A military code that was never broken.D) Navajo Indians contribution to code breaking.Questions 12 to 15 are based on the passage you have just heard.12. A) All services will be personalized.B) A lot of knowledge-intensive jobs will be replaced.C) Technology will revolutionize all sectors of industry.D) More information will be available.13. A) In the robotics industry.B) In the information service.C) In the personal care sector.D) In high-end manufacturing.14. A) They charge high prices.B) They need lots of training.C) They cater to the needs of young people.D) They focus on customers specific needs.15. A) The rising demand in education and healthcare in the next 20 years.B) The disruption caused by technology in traditionally well-paid jobs.C) The tremendous changes new technology will bring to people s lives.D) The amazing amount of personal attention people would like to have.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 choosethe best answer from the four choices marked A), B), C) and D). Then mark the correspondingletter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through centre.Questions 16 to 18 are based on the recording you have just heard.16. A) It was the longest road in ancient Egypt.B) It was constructed some 500 years ago.C) It lay 8 miles from the monument sites.D) It linked a stone pit to some waterways.17. A) Saws used for cutting stone.B) Traces left by early explorers.C) An ancient geographical map.D) Some stone tool segments.18. A) To transport stones to block floods.B) To provide services for the stone pit.C) To link the various monument sites.D) To connect the villages along the Nile.Questions 19 to 21 are based on the recording you have just heard.19. A) Dr. Gong didn t give him any conventional tests.B) Dr. Gong marked his office with a hand-painted sign.C) Dr. Gong didn t ask him any questions about his pain.D) Dr. Gong slipped in needles where he felt no pain.20. A) He had heard of the wonders acupuncture could work.B) Dr. Gong was very famous in New York s Chinatown.C) Previous medical treatments failed to relieve his pain.D) He found the expensive medical tests unaffordable.21. A) More and more patients ask for the treatment.B) Acupuncture techniques have been perfected.C) It doesn t need the conventional medical tests.D) It does not have any negative side effects.Questions 22 to 25 are based on the recording you have just heard.22. A) They were on the verge of breaking up.B) They were compatible despite differences.C) They quarreled a lot and never resolved their arguments.D) They argued persistently about whether to have children.23. A) Neither of them has any brothers or sisters.B) Neither of them won their parents favor.C) They weren t spoiled in their childhood.D) They didn t like to be the apple of their parents eyes.24. A) They are usually good at making friends.B) They tend to be adventurous and creative.C) They are often content with what they have.D) They tend to be self-assured and responsible.25. A) They enjoy making friends.B) They tend to be well adjusted.C) They are least likely to take initiative.D) They usually have successful marriages.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 throughcarefully before making your choices. Each choice in the bank is identified by a letter. Pleasemark the corresponding letter for each item on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through thecentre. You may not use any of the words in the bank more than once.Scientists scanning and mapping the Giza pyramids say they ve discovered that the Great Pyramid of Giza is not exactly even. But really not by much. This pyramid is the oldest of the world s Seven Wonders. The pyramid s exact size has 26 experts for centuries, as the "more than 21 acres of hard, white casing stones" that originally covered it were 27 long ago. Reporting in the most recent issue of the newsletter "AERAGRAM," which 28 the work of the Ancient Egypt Research Associates, engineer Glen Dash says his team used a new measuring approach that involved finding any surviving 29 of the casing in order to determine where the original edge was. They found the east side of the pyramid to be a 30 of 5.5 inches shorter than the west side.The question that most 31 him, however, isn t how the Egyptians who designed and built the pyramid got it wrong 4,500 years ago, but how they got it so close to 32 . "We can only speculate as to how the Egyptians could have laid out these lines with such 33 using only the tools they had," Dash writes. He says his 34 is that the Egyptians laid out their design on a grid, noting that the great pyramid is oriented only 35 away from the cardinal directions (its north-south axis runs 3 minutes 54 seconds west of due north, while its east-west axis runs 3 minutes 51 seconds north of due east)—an amount that s "tiny, but similar," archeologist Atlas Obscura points out.A) chroniclesB) completeC) establishedD) fascinatesE) hypothesisF) maximumG) momentumH) mysteriously I) perfectJ) precision K) puzzled L) remnants M) removed N) revelations O) slightlySection 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 theinformation 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.Peer Pressure Has a Positive SideA) Parents of teenagers often view their children s friends with something like suspicion. They worry that the adolescent peer group has the power to push its members into behavior that is foolish and even dangerous. Such wariness is well founded: statistics show, for example, that a teenage driver with a same-age passenger in the car is at higher risk of a fatal crash than an adolescent driving alone or with an adult.B) In a 2005 study, psychologist Laurence Steinberg of Temple University and his co-author, psychologist Margo Gardner, then at Temple, divided 306 people into three age groups: young adolescents, with a mean age of 14; older adolescents, with a mean age of 19; and adults, aged 24 and older. Subjects played a computerized driving game in which the player must avoid crashing into a wall that materializes, without warning, on the roadway. Steinberg and Gardner randomly assigned some participants to play alone or with two same-age peers looking on.C) Older adolescents scored about 50 percent higher on an index of risky driving when their peers were in the room—and the driving of early adolescents was fully twice as reckless when other young teens were around. In contrast, adults behaved in similar ways regardless of whether they were on their own or observed by others. "The presence of peers makes adolescents and youth, but not adults, more likely to take risks," Steinberg and Gardner concluded.D) Yet in the years following the publication of this study, Steinberg began to believe that this interpretation did not capture the whole picture. As he and other researchers examined the question of why teens were more apt to take risks in the company of other teenagers, they came to suspect that a crowd s influence need not always be negative. Now some experts are proposing that we should take advantage of the teen brain s keen sensitivity to the presence of friends and leverage it to improve education.E) In a 2011 study, Steinberg and his colleagues turned to functional MRI (磁共振) to investigate how the presence of peers affects the activity in the adolescent brain. They scanned the brains of 40 teens and adults who were playing a virtual driving game designed to test whether players would brake at a yellow light or speed on through the crossroad.F) The brains of teenagers, but not adults, showed greater activity in two regions associated with rewardswhen they were being observed by same-age peers than when alone. In other words, rewards are more intense for teens when they are with peers, which motivates them to pursue higher-risk experiences that might bring a big payoff (such as the thrill of just making the light before it turns red). But Steinberg suspected this tendency could also have its advantages. In his latest experiment, published online in August, Steinberg and his colleagues used a computerized version of a card game called the Iowa Gambling Task to investigate how the presence of peers affects the way young people gather and apply information.G) The results: Teens who played the Iowa Gambling Task under the eyes of fellow adolescents engaged in more exploratory behavior, learned faster from both positive and negative outcomes, and achieved better performance on the task than those who played in solitude. "What our study suggests is that teenagers learn more quickly and more effectively when their peers are present than when they re on their own," Steinberg says. And this finding could have important implications for how we think about educating adolescents.H) Matthew D. Lieberman, a social cognitive neuroscientist at the University of California, Los Angeles, and author of the 2013 book Social: Why Our Brains Are Wired to Connect, suspects that the human brain is especially skillful at learning socially significant information. He points to a classic 2004 study in which psychologists at Dartmouth College and Harvard University used functional MRI to track brain activity in 17 young men as they listened to descriptions of people while concentrating on either socially relevant cues (for example, trying to form an impression of a person based on the description) or more socially neutral information (such as noting the order of details in the description). The descriptions were the same in each condition, but people could better remember these statements when given a social motivation.I) The study also found that when subjects thought about and later recalled descriptions in terms of their informational content, regions associated with factual memory, such as the medial temporal lobe, became active. But thinking about or remembering descriptions in terms of their social meaning activated the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex—part of the brain s social network—even as traditional memory regions registered low levels of activity. More recently, as he reported in a 2012 review, Lieberman has discovered that this region may be part of a distinct network involved in socially motivated learning and memory. Such findings, he says, suggest that "this network can be called on to process and store the kind of information taught in school—potentially giving students access to a range of untapped mental powers."J) If humans are generally geared to recall details about one another, this pattern is probably even more powerful among teenagers who are very attentive to social details: who is in, who is out, who likes whom, who is mad at whom. Their desire for social drama is not—or not only—a way of distracting themselves from theirschoolwork or of driving adults crazy. It is actually a neurological (神经的) sensitivity, initiated by hormonal changes. Evolutionarily speaking, people in this age group are at a stage in which they can prepare to find a mate and start their own family while separating from parents and striking out on their own. To do this successfully, their brain prompts them to think and even obsess about others.K) Yet our schools focus primarily on students as individual entities. What would happen if educators instead took advantage of the fact that teens are powerfully compelled to think in social terms? In Social, Lieberman lays out a number of ways to do so. History and English could be presented through the lens of the psychological drives of the people involved. One could therefore present Napoleon in terms of his desire to impress or Churchill in terms of his lonely gloom. Less inherently interpersonal subjects, such as math, could acquire a social aspect through team problem solving and peer tutoring. Research shows that when we absorb information in order to teach it to someone else, we learn it more accurately and deeply, perhaps in part because we are engaging our social cognition.L) And although anxious parents may not welcome the notion, educators could turn adolescent recklessness to academic ends. "Risk taking in an educational context is a vital skill that enables progress and creativity," wrote Sarah-Jayne Blakemore, a cognitive neuroscientist at University College London, in a review published last year. Yet, she noted, many young people are especially unwilling to take risks at school—afraid that one low test score or poor grade could cost them a spot at a selective university. We should assure such students that risk, and even peer pressure, can be a good thing—as long as it happens in the classroom and not in the car.36. It is thought probable that the human brain is particularly good at picking up socially important information.37. It can be concluded from experiments that the presence of peers increases risk-taking by adolescents and youth.38. Students should be told that risk-taking in the classroom can be something positive.39. The urge of finding a mate and getting married accounts for adolescents greater attention to social interactions.40. According to Steinberg, the presence of peers increases the speed and effectiveness of teenagers learning.41. Teenagers parents are often concerned about negative peer influence.42. Activating the brain s social network involved in socially motivated learning and memory may allow students to tap unused mental powers.43. The presence of peers intensifies the feeling of rewards in teens brains.44. When we absorb information for the purpose of imparting it to others, we do so with greater accuracy and depth.45. Some experts are suggesting that we turn peer influence to good use in education.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 decideon the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line throughthe centre.Passage OneQuestions 46 to 50 are based on the following passage.The Ebro Delta, in Spain, famous as a battleground during the Spanish Civil War, is now the setting for a different contest, one that is pitting rice farmers against two enemies: the rice-eating giant apple snail, and rising sea levels. What happens here will have a bearing on the future of European rice production and the overall health of southern European wetlands.Located on the Mediterranean just two hours south of Barcelona, the Ebro Delta produces 120 million kilograms of rice a year, making it one of the continent s most important rice-growing areas. As the sea creeps into these fresh-water marshes, however, rising salinity (盐分) is hampering rice production. At the same time, this sea-water also kills off the greedy giant apple snail, an introduced pest that feeds on young rice plants. The most promising strategy has become to harness one foe against the other.The battle is currently being waged on land, in greenhouses at the University of Barcelona. Scientists working under the banner "Project Neurice" are seeking varieties of rice that can withstand the increasing salinity without losing the absorbency that makes European rice ideal for traditional Spanish and Italian dishes."The project has two sides," says Xavier Serrat, Neurice project manager and researcher at the University of Barcelona, "the short-term fight against the snail, and a mid- to long-term fight against climate change. But the snail has given the project greater urgency."Originally from South America, the snails were accidentally introduced into the Ebro Delta by Global Aquatic Technologies, a company that raised the snails for fresh-water aquariums (水族馆), but failed to prevent their escape. For now, the giant apple snail s presence in Europe is limited to the Ebro Delta. But the snail continues its march to new territory, says Serrat. "The question is not whether it will reach other rice-growing areas of Europe, but when."Over the next year and a half investigators will test the various strains of salt-tolerant rice they ve bred. In 2018, farmers will plant the varieties with the most promise in the Ebro Delta and Europe s other two main rice-growing regions—along the Po in Italy, and France s Rhone. A season in the field will help determine which, if any,of the varieties are ready for commercialization.As an EU-funded effort, the search for salt-tolerant varieties of rice is taking place in all three countries. Each team is crossbreeding a local European short-grain rice with a long-grain Asian variety that carries the salt-resistant gene. The scientists are breeding successive generations to arrive at varieties that incorporate salt tolerance but retain about 97 percent of the European rice genome (基因组).46. Why does the author mention the Spanish Civil War at the beginning of the passage?A) It had great impact on the life of Spanish rice farmers.B) It is of great significance in the records of Spanish history.C) Rice farmers in the Ebro Delta are waging a battle of similar importance.D) Rice farmers in the Ebro Delta are experiencing as hard a time as in the war.47. What may be the most effective strategy for rice farmers to employ in fighting their enemies?A) Striking the weaker enemy first.B) Killing two birds with one stone.C) Eliminating the enemy one by one.D) Using one evil to combat the other.48. What do we learn about "Project Neurice"?A) Its goals will have to be realized at a cost.B) It aims to increase the yield of Spanish rice.C) Its immediate priority is to bring the pest under control.D) It tries to kill the snails with the help of climate change.49. What does Neurice project manager say about the giant apple snail?A) It can survive only on southern European wetlands.B) It will invade other rice-growing regions of Europe.C) It multiplies at a speed beyond human imagination.D) It was introduced into the rice fields on purpose.50. What is the ultimate goal of the EU-funded program?A) Cultivating ideal salt-resistant rice varieties.B) Increasing the absorbency of the Spanish rice.C) Introducing Spanish rice to the rest of Europe.D) Popularizing the rice crossbreeding technology.Passage TwoQuestions 51 to 55 are based on the following passage.Photography was once an expensive, laborious ordeal reserved for life s greatest milestones. Now, the only apparent cost to taking infinite photos of something as common as a meal is the space on your hard drive and your dining companion s patience.But is there another cost, a deeper cost, to documenting a life experience instead of simply enjoying it? "You hear that you shouldn t take all these photos and interrupt the experience, and it s bad for you, and we re not living in the present moment," says Kristin Diehl, associate professor of marketing at the University of Southern California Marshall School of Business.Diehl and her fellow researchers wanted to find out if that was true, so they embarked on a series of nine experiments in the lab and in the field testing people s enjoyment in the presence or absence of a camera. The results, published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, surprised them. Taking photos actually makes people enjoy what they re doing more, not less."What we find is you actually look at the world slightly differently, because you re looking for things you want to capture, that you may want to hang onto," Diehl explains. "That gets people more engaged in the experience, and they tend to enjoy it more."Take sightseeing. In one experiment, nearly 200 participants boarded a double-decker bus for a tour of Philadelphia. Both bus tours forbade the use of cell phones but one tour provided digital cameras and encouraged people to take photos. The people who took photos enjoyed the experience significantly more, and said they were more engaged, than those who didn t.Snapping a photo directs attention, which heightens the pleasure you get from whatever you re looking at, Diehl says. It works for things as boring as archaeological (考古的) museums, where people were given eye-tracking glasses and instructed either to take photos or not. "People look longer at things they want to photograph," Diehl says. They report liking the exhibits more, too.To the relief of Instagrammers (Instagram用户) everywhere, it can even make meals more enjoyable. When people were encouraged to take at least three photos while they ate lunch, they were more immersed in their meals than those who weren t told to take photos.Was it the satisfying click of the camera? The physical act of the snap? No, they found; just the act of planning to take a photo—and not actually taking it—had the same joy-boosting effect. "If you want to take mental photos, that works the same way," Diehl says. "Thinking about what you would want to photograph also gets you moreengaged."51. What does the author say about photo-taking in the past?A) It was a painstaking effort for recording life s major events.B) It was a luxury that only a few wealthy people could enjoy.C) It was a good way to preserve one s precious images.D) It was a skill that required lots of practice to master.52. Kristin Diehl conducted a series of experiments on photo-taking to find out _______.A) what kind of pleasure it would actually bring to photo-takersB) whether people enjoyed it when they did sightseeingC) how it could help to enrich people s life experiencesD) whether it prevented people enjoying what they were doing53. What do the results of Diehl s experiments show about people taking pictures?A) They are distracted from what they are doing.B) They can better remember what they see or do.C) They are more absorbed in what catches their eye.D) They can have a better understanding of the world.54. What is found about museum visitors with the aid of eye-tracking glasses?A) They come out with better photographs of the exhibits.B) They focus more on the exhibits when taking pictures.C) They have a better view of what are on display.D) They follow the historical events more easily.55. What do we learn from the last paragraph?A) It is better to make plans before taking photos.B) Mental photos can be as beautiful as snapshots.C) Photographers can derive great joy from the click of the camera.D) Even the very thought of taking a photo can have a positive effect.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.过去，拥有一辆私家车对大部分中国人而言是件奢侈的事。

2018年6月大学英语六级真题试卷（二）作文1.For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write an essay on the importance of building trust between businesses and consumers. You can cite examples to illustrate your views. You should write at least 150 words hut no more than 200 words.The Importance of Building Trust Between Businesses and CustomersIt is universally acknowledged that trust is the most beautiful language of mankind. It infiltrates in every aspect of our lives, like an invisible hand controlling people’ s thoughts and behaviors. Besides, trust and honesty are the fundamental business principles. In the atmosphere of commercialization, building trust between businesses and customers is of even more overriding importance.For one thing, trust can serve as the foundation for commercial activities and make great contributions to the development of business. With reliable and high-quality products and services provided by the businesses, customers will be satisfied, willing to trust the businessesand become more likely to spend. In this way, businesses will obtain higher profits and then redouble their efforts to keep improving product quality. For another, trust is often a touchstone of businesses’ honesty. If businesses violate the principle of trust and honesty just for short-term profits, disturbing the order of market economy, they will definitely lose their customers and suffer severe punishment. For instance, Sanlu milk powder incident is a typical example of violating mutual trust. The scandal prompted a national recall of Sanlu dairy products, shook consumers’ confidence and devastated the brand.In conclusion, the trust between businesses and customers is of vital importance, and it is imperative to build trust between the two sides.解析：这是一篇议论文写作。

2018 年6 月大学英语六级考试真题(第2 套）Part I Writing(30minutes) Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write an essay commenting on the importance of building trust between teachers and students. You can cite examples to illustrate your views. Youshould write at least 150 words but no more than 200 words.Part II Listening Comprehension(30minutes) 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 youhear 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. Questions1 to 4 are based on the conversation you have just heard.1. A). She advocates animal protection.B). She sells a special kind of coffee.C). She is going to start a cafe chain.D). She is the owner of a special cafe.2. A). They bear a lot of similarities.B). They are a profitable business sector.C). They cater to different customers. D). They help take care of customers' pets.3. A). By giving them regular cleaning and injections.B). By selecting breeds that are tame and peaceful.C). By placing them at a safe distance from customers.D). By briefing customers on how to get along with them.4. A). They want to learn about rabbits. B). They like to bring in their children.C). They love the animals in her cafe.D). They give her cafe favorite reviews. Questions 5 to 8 are based on the conversation you have just heard.5.A). It contains too many additives.B).It lacks the essential vitamins.C). It can cause obesity.D). It is mostly garbage.6.A). Its fancy design.B). TV commercials.C). Its taste and texture.D). Peer influence.7.A). Investing heavily in the production of sweet foods.B). Marketing their products with ordinary ingredients.C). Trying to trick children into buying their products.D). Offering children more variable to choose from.8.A). They hardly ate vegetables.B). They seldom had junk food.C). They favored chocolate-coated sweets.D). They like the food advertised on TV.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 11 are based on the passage you have just heard.9.A). Stretches of farmland.B). Typical Egyptian animal farms.C). Tombs of ancient rulers.D). Ruins left by devastating floods.10.A). It provides habitats for more primitive tribes.B). It is hardly associated with great civilizations.C). It has not yet been fully explored and exploited.D). It gathers water from many tropical rain forests.11.A). It carries about one fifth of the word' fresh water.B). It has numerous human settlements along its banks.C). It is second only to the Mississippi River in width.D). It is as long as the Nile and the Yangtze combined.Questions 12 to 15 are based on the passage you have just heard.12. A). Living a life in the fast lane leads to success.B). We are always in a rush to do various things.C). The search for tranquility has become a trend.D). All of us actually yearn for a slow and calm life.13. A). She had trouble balancing family and work. B). She enjoyed the various social events.C). She was accustomed to tight schedules.D). She spent all her leisure time writing books.14. A). The possibility of ruining her family.B). Becoming aware of her declining health.C). The fatigue from living a fast-paced life. D). Reading a book about slowing down.15. A). She started to follow the cultural norms.B). She came to enjoy doing everyday tasks.C). She learn to use more polite expressions.D). She stopped using to-do lists and calendars.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). They will root out native species altogether.B). They contribute to a region's biodiversity.C). They pose a threat to the local ecosystem. D). They will crossbreed with native species.17. A). Their classifications are meaningful. B). Their interactions are hard to define.C). Their definitions are changeable. D). Their distinctions are artificial.18. A). Only a few of them cause problems to nativespecies.B). They may turn to benefit the local environmentC). Few of them can survive in their new habitats.D). Only 10 percent of them can be naturalized.Questions 19 to 21 are based on the recording you have just heard.19. A). Respect their traditional culture. B). Attend their business seminars.C). Research their specific demands. D). Adopt the right business strategies.20. A). Showing them your palm.B). Giving them gifts of great value.C). Drinking alcohol on certain days of a month.D). Clicking your fingers loudly in their presence.21. A). They are very easy to satisfy.B). They have a strong sense of worth.C). They trend to friendly and enthusiastic.D). They have a break from 2:00 to 5:30 p.m.Questions 22 to 25 are based on the recording you have just heard.22. A). He completely changed the company's culture.B). He collected paintings by world-famous artists.C). He took over the sales department of Reader's Digest.D). He had the company’s boardroom extensively renovated.23.A). It should be sold at a reasonable price.B). Its articles should be short and inspiring.C). It should be published in the world's leading languages.D). Its articles should entertain blue-and pink-collar workers.24.A). He knew how to make the magazine profitable.B). He served as a church minster for many years.C). He suffered many setbacks and misfortunes in his life.D). He treated the employees like members of his family.25.A). It carried many more advertisements.B). George Grune joined it as an ad salesman.C). Several hundred of its employees got fired.D). Its subscriptions increased considerably.Part III Reading 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 Sheet 2 with a single line through 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.Did Sarah Josepha Hale write “Mary 's Little Lamb,” the eternal nursery rhyme (儿歌) about a girl namedMary with a stubborn lamb? This is still dispute , but it’s clear that the woman 26 for writing it was one of America 's most fascinating 27 _. In honor of the poem 's publication on May 24，1830，here’s more about the28 author 's life.Hale wasn’t just a writer, she was also a 29social advocate, and she was particularly30_ with an ideal New England, which she associated with abundant Thanksgiving meals that she claimed had “a deep moral influence.”she began a nationwide 31 to have a national holiday declared that would bring families together whilecelebrating the 32 festivals. In 1863, after 17 years of advocacy including letters to five presidents，Hale got it.setting aside the last Thursday in November for President Abraham Lincoln, during the Civil War, issued a 33the holiday.The true authorship of “Mary’s Little Lamb” is disputed.. According to New England Historical Society, Hale wrote only one part of the poem, but claimed authorship. Regardless of the author, it seems that the poem was34 by a real event. When young Mary Sawyer was followed to school by a lamb in 1816, it caused some problems. A bystander named John Roulstone wrote a poem about the event, then, at some point, Hale herself seems35 of to have helped write it. However, if a 1916 piece by her great-niece is to be trusted, Hale claimed for theher life that “Some other people pretended that someone else wrote the poem”.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. 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.Grow Plants Without Water[A]. Ever since humanity began to farm our own food, we've faced the unpredictable rain that is bothfriend and enemy. It comes and goes without much warning, and a field of lush (茂盛的) leafy greens one year can dry up and blow away the next. Food security and fortunes depend on sufficient rain, and nowhere more so than in Africa, where 96% of farmland depends on rain instead of the irrigation common in more developed places. It has consequences : South Africa's ongoing drought—the worst in three decades— will cost at least a quarter of its com crop this year.[B]. Biologist Jill Farrant of the University of Cape Town in South Africa says that nature has plenty ofanswers for people who want to grow crops in places with unpredictable rainfall. She is hard at work finding a way to take traits from rare wild plants that adapt to extreme dry weather and use them in food crops. As the earth's climate changes and rainfall becomes even less predictable in some places, those answers will grow even more valuable."The type of farming I'm aiming for is literally so that people can survive as it's going to get more and more dry,"Farrant says.[C]. Extreme conditions produce extremely tough plants. In the rusty red deserts of South Africa, steep-sided rocky hills called inselbergs rear up from the plains like the bones of the earth. The hills are remnants of an earlier geological era, scraped bare of most soil and exposed to the elements. Yet on these and similar formations in deserts around the world, a few fierce plants have adapted to endure under ever-changing conditions.[D]. Farrant calls them resurrection plants (复苏植物) . During months without water under a harsh sun.They wither, shrink and contract until they look like a pile of dead gray leaves. But rainfall can revive them in a matter of hours. Her time-lapse (间歇性拍摄的) videos of the revivals look like someone playing a tape of the plant's death in reverse.[E]. The big difference between "drought-tolerant" plants and these tough plants: metabolism. Manydifferent kinds of plants have developed tactics to weather dry spells. Some plants store reserves of water to see them through a drought ; others send roots deep down to subsurface water supplies. But once these plants use up their stored reserve or tap out the underground supply, they cease growing and start to die. They may be able to handle a drought of some length, and many people use the term "drought tolerant" to describe such plants, but they never actually stop needing to consume water, so Farrant prefers to call them drought resistant.[F]. Resurrection plants, defined as those capable of recovering from holding less than 0.1 grams of waterper gram of dry mass, are different. They lack water-storing structures, and their existence on rock faces prevents them from tapping groundwater, so they have instead developed the ability to change their metabolism .When they detect an extended dry period, they divert their metabolisms, producing sugars and certain stress-associated proteins and other materials in their tissues. As the plant dries, these resources take on first the properties of honey, then rubber, and finally enter a glass-like state that is "the most stable state that the plant can maintain," Farrant says. That slows the plant's metabolism and protects its dried-out tissues. The plants also change shape, shrinking to minimize the surface area through which their remaining water might evaporate. They can recover from months and years without water, depending on the species.[G]. What else can do this dry-out-and-revive trick? Seeds-almost all of them. At the start of her career,Farrant studied . recalcitrant seeds (执拗性种子) ," such as avocados, coffee and lychee. While tasty, such seeds are delicate--they cannot bud and grow if they dry out (as you may know if you've ever tried to grow a tree from an avocado pit). In the seed world, that makes them rare, because most seeds from flowering plants are quite robust. Most seeds can wait out the dry, unwelcoming seasons until conditions are right and they sprout (发芽). Yet once they start growing, such plants seem not to retain the ability to hit the pause button on metabolism in their stems or leaves.[H]. After completing her Ph. D. on seeds, Farrant began investigating whether it might be possible toisolate the properties that make most seeds so resilient (迅速恢复活力的) and transfer them to other plant tissues. What Farrant and others have found over the past two decades is that there are many genes involved in resurrection plants' response to dryness. Many of them are the same that regulate how seeds become dryness-tolerant while still attached to their parent plants. Now they are trying to figure out what molecular signaling processes activate those seed-building genes in resurrection plants—and how to reproduce them in crops."Most genes are regulated by a master set of genes,"Farrant says."We're looking at gene promoters and what would be their master switch."[I]. Once Farrant and her colleagues feel they have a better sense of which switches to throw, they willhave to find the best way to do so in useful crops."I'm trying three methods of breeding,"Farrant says : conventional, genetic modification arid gene editing. She says she is aware that plenty of people do not want to eat genetically modified crops, but she is pushing ahead with every available tool until one works. Farmers and consumers alike can choose whether or not to use whichever versionprevails :"I'm giving people an option. "[J]. Farrant and others in the resurrection business got together last year to discuss the best species of resurrection plant to use as a lab model. Just like medical researchers use rats to test ideas for human medical treatments, botanists use plants that are relatively easy to grow in a lab or greenhouse setting to test their ideas for related species. The Queensland rock violet is one of the best studied resurrection plants so far, with a draft genome (基因图谱) published last year by a Chinese team.Also last year, Farrant and colleagues published a detailed molecular study of another candidate, Xerophyta viscosa, a tough-as-nail south African plant with lily-like flowers, and she says that a genome is on the way. one or both of these models will help researchers test their ideas — so far mostly done in the lab— on test plots.[K]. Understanding the basic science first is key. There are good reasons why crop plants do not use dryness defenses already. For instance, there's a high energy cost in switching from a regular metabolism to an almost-no-water metabolism. It will also be necessary to understand what sort of yield farmers might expect and to establish the plant's safety."The yield is never going to be high,"Farrant says, so these plants will be targeted not at Iowa farmers trying to squeeze more cashout of high-yield fields, but subsistence farmers who need help to survive a drought like the present one in South Africa."My vision is for the subsistence farmer," Farrant says."I'm targeting crops that are of African value. ".36.There are a couple of plants tough and adaptable enough to survive on bare rocky hills and in deserts.37.Farrant is trying to isolate genes in resurrection plants and reproduce them in crops.38.Farmers in South Africa are more at the mercy of nature, especially inconsistent rainfall.39.Resurrection crops are most likely to be the choice of subsistence farmers.40.Even though many plants have developed various tactics to cope with dry weather, they cannotsurvive a prolonged drought.41.Despite consumer resistance, researchers are pushing ahead with genetic modification of crops.42.Most seeds can pull through dry spells and begin growing when conditions are ripe, but once thisprocess starts, it cannot be held back.43.Farrant is working hard to cultivate food crops that call survive extreme dryness by studying thetraits of rare wild plants.44.By adjusting their metabolism, resurrection plants can recover from an extended period of drought.45.Resurrection plants can come back to life in a short time after a rainfall.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 centrepassage oneQuestions 46 to 50 are based on the following passage.Human memory is notoriously unreliable. Even people with the sharpest facial-recognition skills can only remember so much.It's tough to quantify how good a person is at remembering. No one really knows how many different faces someone can recall, for example, but various estimates tend to hover in the thousands-based on the number of acquaintances a person might have.Machines aren't limited this way, Give the right computer a massive database of faces, and it can process what it sees-then recognize a face it's told to find-with remarkable speed and precision. This skill is what supports the enormous promise of facial-recognition software in the 2lst century. It's also what makes contemporary surveillance systems so scary.The thing is, machines still have limitations when it comes to facial recognition. And scientists are only just beginning to understand what those constraints are. To begin to figure out how computers are struggling, researchers at the University of Washington created a massive database of faces- they call it MegaFace- and tested a variety of facial-recognition algorithms (算法) as they scaled up in complexity. The idea was to test the machines on a database that included up to 1 million different images of nearly 700,000 different people-and not just a large database featuring a relatively small number of different faces, more consistent with what's been used in other research.As the databases grew, machine accuracy dipped across the board. Algorithms that were right 95% of the time when they were dealing with a 13, 000-image database, for example, were accurate about 70% of the time when confronted with 1 million images. That's still pretty good, says one of the researchers, Ira Kemelmacher-Shlizerman."Much better than we expected, "she said.Machines also had difficulty adjusting for people who look a lot alike-either doppelgangers(长相极相似的人),whom the machine would have trouble identifying as two separate people, or the same person who appeared in different photos at different ages or in different lighting, whom themachine would incorrectly view as separate people."Once we scale up, algorithms must be sensitive to tiny changes in identities and at the same time invariant to lighting, pose, age, "Kemelmacher-Shlizerman said.The trouble is, for many of the researchers who'd like to design systems to address these challenges, massive datasets for experimentation just don't exist--at least, not in formats that are accessible to academic researchers.Training sets like the ones Google and Facebook have are private. There are no public databases that contain millions of faces. MegaFace's creators say it's the largest publicly available facial-recognition dataset out there.“An ultimate face recognition algorithm should perform with billions of people in a dataset, ”the researchers wrote.pared with human memory, machines can .A)i dentify human faces more efficientlyB) tell a friend from a mere acquaintanceC) store an unlimited number of human facesD) perceive images invisible to the human eye47.Why did researchers create MegaFace?A)To enlarge the volume of the facial-recognition databaseB)To increase the variety of facial-recognition softwareC)To understand computers' problems with facial recognitionD) To reduce the complexity of facial-recognition algorithms48.What does the passage say about machine accuracy?A)It falls short of researchers' expectations.B) It improves with added computing power.C) It varies greatly with different algorithms.D) It decreases as the database size increases.49.What is said to be a shortcoming of facial-recognition machines?A)They cannot easily tell apart people with near-identical appearances.B)They have difficulty identifying changes in facial expressionsC)They are not sensitive to minute changes in people's moodD)They have problems distinguishing people of the same age50.What is the difficulty confronting researchers of facial-recognition machines?A)No computer is yet able to handle huge datasets of human facesB) There do not exist public databases with sufficient face samplerC)There are no appropriate algorithms to process the face samplesD)They have trouble converting face datasets into the right format.Passage TwoQuestions 51 to 55 are based on the following passage.There’re currently 21.5 million students in America, and many will be funding their college on borrowed money. Given that there's now over $1.3 trillion in student loans on the books, it's prettyapproaches $40, 000, and as college becomes ever more expensive, calls to make it "free" are multiplying. Even Hillary Clinton says that when it comes to college, "Costs won't be a barrier. "But the only way college could be free is if the faculty and staff donated their time, the buildings required no maintenance, and campuses required no utilities. As long as it's impossible to produce something from nothing costs are absolutely a barrier.The actual question we debate is who should pay for people to go to college. If taxpayers are to bear the cost of forgiving student loans, shouldn't they have a say in how their money is used?At least taxpayers should be able to decide what students will study on the public dime. If we're going to force taxpayers to foot the bill for college degrees, students should only study those subjects that’re of greatest benefit to taxpayers. After all, students making their own choices in this respect is what caused the problem in the first place. We simply don't need more poetry, gender studies, or sociology majors. How do we know which subjects benefit society? Easy.Average starting salaries give a clear indication of what type of training society needs its new workers to have. Certainly, there're benefits to a college major beyond the job a student can perform. But if we're talking about the benefits to society, the only thing that matters is what the major enables the student to produce for society. And the value of what the student can produce is reflected in the wage employers are willing to pay the student to produce it.A low wage for elementary s chool teachers, however, doesn't mean elementary education isn’t important. It simply means there're too many elementary school teachers already.Meanwhile, there're few who're willing and able to perform jobs requiring a petroleum engineering major, so the value of one more of those people is very highSo we can have taxpayers pick up students' tuition in exchange for dictating what those students will study. Or we can allow students both to choose their majors and pay for their education themselves. But in the end ,one of two things is true:Either a college major is worth its cost or it isn't. If yes, taxpayer financing isn't needed If not taxpayer financing isn't desirable. Either way, taxpayers have no business paying for students' college education.51.What does the author think of college students funding their education through loans?A)They only expect to get huge returns.C)They benefit at taxpayers expense.B)They are acting in an irrational way.D)They will regret doing so someday.52.In the author's opinion, free college education is .A) impractical B)unsustainableC)a goal to strive for D) a way to social equality53.What should students do if taxpayers are to bear their college costs?A)Work even harder to repay society.B)Choose their subjects more carefully.C)Choose majors that will serve society's practical need.D)Allow taxpayers to participate in college administration.54.What does the author say about the value of a student's college education?A)It is underestimated by profit-seeking employers.B) It is to be proved by what they can do on the job.C) It is well reflected in their average starting salary.D) It is embodied in how they remove social barriers.55.What message does the author want to convey in the passage?A)Students should think care fully whether to go to collegeB) Taxpayers should only finance the most gifted students.C)The worth of a college education is open to debate.D) College students should fund their own education..Part I 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.中国目前拥有世界上最大最快的高速铁路网。

2018年6英语六级考试真题及答案（第2套）第 2 套)Part I Writing (30 minutes)Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30minutes to write an essay on the importance ofbuilding trust between teachers and students. You can cite exa mples to illustrate yourviews. You should 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 longconversations. At the end of each conversation, you will hear four questions. Both the conversation andthe questions will be spoken only once. After you hear a question, youmust ch oose 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.Questions 1 to 4 are based on the conversation you have just heard.1. A) She advocates animal protection.B) She sells a special kind of coffee.C) She is going to start a café chain.D) She is the owner of a special café.2. A) They bear a lot of similarities.B) They are a profitable business sector.C) They cater to different customers.D) They help take care of customers' pets.3. A) By giving them regular cleaning and injections.B) By selecting breeds that are tame and peaceful.C) By placing them at a safe distance from customers.D) By briefing customers on how to get along with them.4. A) They want to learn about rabbits.B) They like to bring in their children.C) They love the animals in her café.D) They give her café favorite reviews.Questions 5 to 8 are based on the conversation you have just heard.5. A) It contains too many additives.B) It lacks the essential vitamins.C) It can cause obesity.D) It is mostly garbage.6. A) Its fancy design.B) TV commercials.C) Its taste and texture.D) Peer influence.7. A) Investing heavily in the production of sweet foods.B) Marketing their products with ordinary ingredients.C) Trying to trick children into buying their products.D) Offering children more varieties to choose from.8. A) They hardly ate vegetables.B) They seldom had junk food.C) They favored chocolate-coated sweets.D) They liked the food advertised on TV.Section BDirections: In this section, you will hear two passages. At the end of each pas sage, you willhear three or four questions. Both the passage and the questions will be spoken only you hear a question, you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A),B), C) and D). Then mark the corr esponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single linethrough the centre. Questions 9 to 11 are based on the passage you have just heard.9. A) Stretches of farmland.B) Typical Egyptian animal farms.C) Tombs of ancient rulers.D) Ruins left by devastating floods.10. A) It provides habitats for more primitive tribes.B) It is hardly associated with great civilizations.C) It has not yet been fully explored and exploited.D) It gathers water from many tropical rain forests.11. A) It carries about one fifth of the world's fresh water.B) It has numerous human settlements along its banks.C) It is second only to the Mississippi River in width.D) It is as long as the Nile and the Yangtze combined.Questions 12 to 15 are based on the passage you have just heard.12. A) Living a life in the fast lane leads to success.B) We are always in a rush to do various things.C) The search for tranquility has become a trend.D) All of us actually yearn for a slow and calm life.13. A) She had trouble balancing family and work.B) She enjoyed the various social events.C) She was accustomed to tight schedules.D) She spent all her leisure time writing books.14. A) The possibility of ruining her family.B) Becoming aware of her declining health.C) The fatigue from living a fast-paced life.D) Reading a book about slowing down.15. A) She started to follow the cultural norms.B) She came to enjoy doing everyday tasks.C) She learned to use more polite expressions.D) She stopped using to-do lists and calendars.Section CDirections: In this section, you will hear three recordings of lectures or talks f ollowed bythree 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 markthe corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through centre.Questions 16 to 18 are based on the recording you have just heard.16. A) They will root out native species altogether.B) They contribute to a region's biodiversity.C) They pose a threat to the local ecosystem.D) They will crossbreed with native species.17. A) Their classifications are meaningful.B) Their interactions are hard to define.C) Their definitions are changeable.D) Their distinctions are artificial.18. A) Only a few of them cause problems to native species.B) They may turn out to benefit the local environment.C) Few of them can survive in their new habitats.D) Only 10 percent of them can be naturalized.Questions 19 to 21 are based on the recording you have just heard.19. A) Respect their traditional culture.B) Attend their business seminars.C) Research their specific demands.D) Adopt the right business strategies.20. A) Showing them your palm.B) Giving them gifts of great value.C) Drinking alcohol on certain days of a month.D) Clicking your fingers loudly in their presence.21. A) They are very easy to satisfy.B) They have a strong sense of worth.C) They tend to be friendly and enthusiastic.D) They have a break from 2:00 to 5:30 .Questions 22 to 25 are based on the recording you have just heard.22. A) He completely changed the company's culture.B) He collected paintings by world-famous artists.C) He took over the sales department of Reader's Digest.D) He had the company's boardroom extensively renovated.23. A) It should be sold at a reasonable price.B) Its articles should be short and inspiring.C) It should be published in the world's leading languages.D) Its articles should entertain blue- and pink-collar workers.24. A) He knew how to make the magazine profitable.B) He served as a church minister for many years.C) He suffered many setbacks and misfortunes in his life.D) He treated the employees like members of his family.25. A) It carried many more advertisements.B) George Grune joined it as an ad salesman.C) Several hundred of its employees got fired.D) Its subscriptions increased considerably.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.Did Sarah Josepha Hale write "Mary's Little Lamb," the eternal nursery rhyme (儿歌) about a girl named Mary with a stubborn lamb? This is still disputed, but it's clear that the woman 26for writing it was one of America's mostfascinating 27 . In honor of the poem's publication on May 24, 1830, here's more about the 28 author's life.Hale wasn't just a writer, she was also a 29 social advocate, and she was particularly 30 with an ideal New England, which she associated with abundant Thanksgiving meals that she claimed had "a deep moral influence." She begana nationwide 31 to have a national holiday declared that would bring families together while celebrating the 32 festivals. In 1863, after 17 years of advocacy including letters to five presidents, Hale got it. President Abraham Lincoln, during theCivil War, issued a 33 setting aside the last Thursday in November for the holiday.The true authorship of "Mary's Little Lamb" is disputed. According to the New England Historical Society, Hale wrote only part of the poem, but claimed authorship. Regardless of the author, it seems that the poem was 34 by a real event. When young Mary Sawyer was followed to school by a lamb in 1816, it caused some problems. A bystander named John Roulstone wrote a poem aboutthe event, then, at some point, Hale herself seems to have helped write it. However, if a 1916 piece by her great-niece is to be trusted, Hale claimed for。

2018年6月英语六级真题及答案(第二套)Part I Writing(30minutes) Directions:For this part,you are allowed30minutes to write an essay on the importance of building trust between teachers and students.You can cite examples to illustrate your views.You should write at least150words but no more than200words.Part II Listening Comprehension(30minutes) 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 Sheet1with a single line through the centre.Questions1to4are based on the conversation you have just heard.1.A)She advocates animal protection.B)She sells a special kind of coffee.C)She is going to start a caféchain.D)She is the owner of a special café.2.A)They bear a lot of similarities.B)They are a profitable business sector.C)They cater to different customers.D)They help take care of customers'pets.3.A)By giving them regular cleaning and injections.B)By selecting breeds that are tame and peaceful.C)By placing them at a safe distance from customers.D)By briefing customers on how to get along with them.4.A)They want to learn about rabbits.B)They like to bring in their children.C)They love the animals in her café.D)They give her caféfavorite reviews.Questions5to8are based on the conversation you have just heard.5.A)It contains too many additives.B)It lacks the essential vitamins.C)It can cause obesity.D)It is mostly garbage.6.A)Its fancy design.B)TV commercials.C)Its taste and texture.D)Peer influence.7.A)Investing heavily in the production of sweet foods.B)Marketing their products with ordinary ingredients.C)Trying to trick children into buying their products.D)Offering children more varieties to choose from.8.A)They hardly ate vegetables.B)They seldom had junk food.C)They favored chocolate-coated sweets.D)They liked the food advertised on TV.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 questi on,you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A),B),C)and D).Then mark the correspondin g letter on Answer Sheet1with a single line through the centre.Questions9to11are based on the passage you have just heard.9.A)Stretches of farmland.B)Typical Egyptian animal farms.C)Tombs of ancient rulers.D)Ruins left by devastating floods.10.A)It provides habitats for more primitive tribes.B)It is hardly associated with great civilizations.C)It has not yet been fully explored and exploited.D)It gathers water from many tropical rain forests.11.A)It carries about one fifth of the world's fresh water.B)It has numerous human settlements along its banks.C)It is second only to the Mississippi River in width.D)It is as long as the Nile and the Yangtze combined. Questions12to15are based on the passage you have just heard.12.A)Living a life in the fast lane leads to success.B)We are always in a rush to do various things.C)The search for tranquility has become a trend.D)All of us actually yearn for a slow and calm life.13.A)She had trouble balancing family and work.B)She enjoyed the various social events.C)She was accustomed to tight schedules.D)She spent all her leisure time writing books.14.A)The possibility of ruining her family.B)Becoming aware of her declining health.C)The fatigue from living a fast-paced life.D)Reading a book about slowing down.15.A)She started to follow the cultural norms.B)She came to enjoy doing everyday tasks.C)She learned to use more polite expressions.D)She stopped using to-do lists and calendars.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 Sheet1with a single line through centre.Questions16to18are based on the recording you have just heard.16.A)They will root out native species altogether.B)They contribute to a region's biodiversity.C)They pose a threat to the local ecosystem.D)They will crossbreed with native species.17.A)Their classifications are meaningful.B)Their interactions are hard to define.C)Their definitions are changeable.D)Their distinctions are artificial.18.A)Only a few of them cause problems to native species.B)They may turn out to benefit the local environment.C)Few of them can survive in their new habitats.D)Only10percent of them can be naturalized.Questions19to21are based on the recording you have just heard.19.A)Respect their traditional culture.B)Attend their business seminars.C)Research their specific demands.D)Adopt the right business strategies.20.A)Showing them your palm.B)Giving them gifts of great value.C)Drinking alcohol on certain days of a month.D)Clicking your fingers loudly in their presence.21.A)They are very easy to satisfy.B)They have a strong sense of worth.C)They tend to be friendly and enthusiastic.D)They have a break from2:00to5:30p.m.Questions22to25are based on the recording you have just heard.22.A)He completely changed the company's culture.B)He collected paintings by world-famous artists.C)He took over the sales department of Reader's Digest.D)He had the company's boardroom extensively renovated.23.A)It should be sold at a reasonable price.B)Its articles should be short and inspiring.C)It should be published in the world's leading languages.D)Its articles should entertain blue-and pink-collar workers.24.A)He knew how to make the magazine profitable.B)He served as a church minister for many years.C)He suffered many setbacks and misfortunes in his life.D)He treated the employees like members of his family.25.A)It carried many more advertisements.B)George Grune joined it as an ad salesman.C)Several hundred of its employees got fired.D)Its subscriptions increased considerably.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.Grow Plants Without WaterA)Ever since humanity began to farm our own food,we’ve faced the unpredictable rain that is both friend and enemy.It comes and goes without much warning,and a field of lush(茂盛的)leafy greens one year can dry up and blow away the next.Food security and fortunes depend on sufficient rain,and nowhere more so than in Africa, where96%of farmland depends on rain instead of the irrigation common in more developed places.It has consequences:South Africa's ongoing drought—the worst in three decades—will cost at least a quarter of its corn crop this year.B)Biologist Jill Farrant of the University of Cape Town in South Africa says that nature has plenty of answers for people who want to grow crops in places with unpredictable rainfall.She is hard at work finding a way to take traits from rare wild plants that adapt to extreme dry weather and use them in food crops.As the earth's climate changes and rainfall becomes even less predictable in some places,those answers will grow even more valuable. "The type of farming I'm aiming for is literally so that people can survive as it's going to get more and more dry," Farrant says.C)Extreme conditions produce extremely tough plants.In the rusty red deserts of South Africa,steep-sided rocky hills called inselbergs rear up from the plains like the bones of the earth.The hills are remnants of an earlier geological era,scraped bare of most soil and exposed to the elements.Yet on these and similar formations in deserts around the world,a few fierce plants have adapted to endure under ever-changing conditions.D)Farrant calls them resurrection plants(复苏植物).During months without water under a harsh sun,they wither, shrink and contract until they look like a pile of dead gray leaves.But rainfall can revive them in a matter of hours. Her time-lapse(间歇性拍摄的)videos of the revivals look like someone playing a tape of the plant's death in reverse.E)The big difference between"drought-tolerant"plants and these tough plants:metabolism.Many different kinds of plants have developed tactics to weather dry spells.Some plants store reserves of water to see them through a drought;others send roots deep down to subsurface water supplies.But once these plants use up their stored reserve or tap out the underground supply,they cease growing and start to die.They may be able to handle a drought of some length,and many people use the term"drought tolerant"to describe such plants,but they never actually stop needing to consume water,so Farrant prefers to call them drought resistant.F)Resurrection plants,defined as those capable of recovering from holding less than0.1grams of water per gram of dry mass,are different.They lack water-storing structures,and their existence on rock faces prevents them from tapping groundwater,so they have instead developed the ability to change their metabolism.When theydetect an extended dry period,they divert their metabolisms,producing sugars and certain stress-associated proteins and other materials in their tissues.As the plant dries,these resources take on first the properties of honey, then rubber,and finally enter a glass-like state that is"the most stable state that the plant can maintain,"Farrant says.That slows the plant's metabolism and protects its dried-out tissues.The plants also change shape,shrinking to minimize the surface area through which their remaining water might evaporate.They can recover from months and years without water,depending on the species.G)What else can do this dry-out-and-revive trick?Seeds—almost all of them.At the start of her career,Farrant studied"recalcitrant seeds(顽拗性种子),"such as avocados,coffee and lychee.While tasty,such seeds are delicate—they cannot bud and grow if they dry out(as you may know if you've ever tried to grow a tree from an avocado pit).In the seed world,that makes them rare,because most seeds from flowering plants are quite robust. Most seeds can wait out the dry,unwelcoming seasons until conditions are right and they sprout(发芽).Yet once they start growing,such plants seem not to retain the ability to hit the pause button on metabolism in their stems or leaves.H)After completing her Ph.D.on seeds,Farrant began investigating whether it might be possible to isolate the properties that make most seeds so resilient(迅速恢复活力的)and transfer them to other plant tissues.What Farrant and others have found over the past two decades is that there are many genes involved in resurrection plants'response to dryness.Many of them are the same that regulate how seeds become dryness-tolerant while still attached to their parent plants.Now they are trying to figure out what molecular signaling processes activate those seed-building genes in resurrection plants—and how to reproduce them in crops."Most genes are regulated by a master set of genes,"Farrant says."We're looking at gene promoters and what would be their master switch."I)Once Farrant and her colleagues feel they have a better sense of which switches to throw,they will have to find the best way to do so in useful crops."I'm trying three methods of breeding,"Farrant says:conventional,genetic modification and gene editing.She says she is aware that plenty of people do not want to eat genetically modified crops,but she is pushing ahead with every available tool until one works.Farmers and consumers alike can choose whether or not to use whichever version prevails："I'm giving people an option."J)Farrant and others in the resurrection business got together last year to discuss the best species of resurrection plant to use as a lab model.Just like medical researchers use rats to test ideas for human medical treatments, botanists use plants that are relatively easy to grow in a lab or greenhouse setting to test their ideas for related species.The Queensland rock violet is one of the best studied resurrection plants so far,with a draft genome(基因图谱)published last year by a Chinese team.Also last year,Farrant and colleagues published a detailed molecular study of another candidate,Xerophyta viscosa,a tough-as-nail South African plant with lily-like flowers,and she says that a genome is on the way.One or both of these models will help researchers test their ideas—so far mostly done in the lab—on test plots.K)Understanding the basic science first is key.There are good reasons why crop plants do not use drynessdefenses already.For instance,there's a high energy cost in switching from are gular metabolism to an almost-no-water metabolism.It will also be necessary to understand what sort of yield farmers might expect and to establish the plant's safety."The yield is never going to be high,"Farrant says,so these plants will be targeted not at Iowa farmers trying to squeeze more cash out of high-yield fields,but subsistence farmers who need help to survive a drought like the present one in South Africa."My vision is for the subsistence farmer,"Farrant says. "I'm targeting crops that are of African value."36.There are a couple of plants tough and adaptable enough to survive on bare rocky hillsand in deserts.37.Farrant is trying to isolate genes in resurrection plants and reproduce them in crops.38.Farmers in South Africa are more at the mercy of nature,especially inconsistent rainfall.39.Resurrection crops are most likely to be the choice of subsistence farmers.40.Even though many plants have developed various tactics to cope with dry weather,they cannot survive a prolonged drought.41.Despite consumer resistance,researchers are pushing ahead with genetic modification of crops.42.Most seeds can pull through dry spells and begin growing when conditions are ripe,but once this process starts,it cannot be held back.43.Farrant is working hard to cultivate food crops that can survive extreme dryness by studying the traits of rare wild plants.44.By adjusting their metabolism,resurrection plants can recover from an extended period of drought.45.Resurrection plants can come back to life in a short time after a rainfall.Section CDirections:There are2passages 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 Sheet2with a single line through the centre.Passage OneQuestions46to50are based on the following passage.Human memory is notoriously unreliable.Even people with the sharpest facial-recognition skills can onlyremember so much.It's tough to quantify how good a person is at remembering.No one really knows how many different faces someone can recall,for example,but various estimates tend to hover in the thousands—based on the number of acquaintances a person might have.Machines aren't limited this way.Give the right computer a massive database of faces,and it can process what it sees—then recognize a face it's told to find—with remarkable speed and precision.This skill is what supports the enormous promise of facial-recognition software in the21st century.It's also what makes contemporary surveillance systems so scary.The thing is,machines still have limitations when it comes to facial recognition.And scientists are only just beginning to understand what those constraints are.To begin to figure out how computers are struggling, researchers at the University of Washington created a massive database of faces—they call it Mega Face—and tested a variety of facial-recognition algorithms(算法)as they scaled up in complexity.The idea was to test the machines on a database that included up to1million different images of nearly700,000different people—and not just a large database featuring a relatively small number of different faces,more consistent with what's been used in other research.As the databases grew,machine accuracy dipped across the board.Algorithms that were right95%of the time when they were dealing with a13,000-image database,for example,were accurate about70%of the time when confronted with1million images.That's still pretty good,says one of the researchers,Ira Kemelmacher-Shlizerman."Much better than we expected,"she said.Machines also had difficulty adjusting for people who look a lot alike—either doppelgangers(长相极相似的人),whom the machine would have trouble identifying as two separate people,or the same person who appeared in different photos at different ages or in different lighting,whom the machine would incorrectly view as separate people."Once we scale up,algorithms must be sensitive to tiny changes in identities and at the same time invariant to lighting,pose,age,"Kemelmacher-Shlizerman said.The trouble is,for many of the researchers who'd like to design systems to address these challenges,massive datasets for experimentation just don't exist—at least,not in formats that are accessible to academic researchers. Training sets like the ones Google and Face book have are private.There are no public databases that contain millions of faces.Mega Face's creators say it's the largest publicly available facial-recognition dataset out there."An ultimate face recognition algorithm should perform with billions of people in a dataset,"the researchers wrote.pared with human memory,machines can________.A)identify human faces more efficientlyB)tell a friend from a mere acquaintanceC)store an unlimited number of human facesD)perceive images invisible to the human eye47.Why did researchers create Mega Face?A)To enlarge the volume of the facial-recognition database.B)To increase the variety of facial-recognition software.C)To understand computers'problems with facial recognition.D)To reduce the complexity of facial-recognition algorithms.48.What does the passage say about machine accuracy?A)It falls short of researchers'expectations.B)It improves with added computing power.C)It varies greatly with different algorithms.D)It decreases as the database size increases.49.What is said to be a shortcoming-of facial-recognition machines?A)They cannot easily tell apart people with near-identical appearances.B)They have difficulty identifying changes in facial expressions.C)They are not sensitive to minute changes in people's mood.D)They have problems distinguishing people of the same age.50.What is the difficulty confronting researchers of facial-recognition machines?A)No computer is yet able to handle huge datasets of human faces.B)There do not exist public databases with sufficient face samples.C)There are no appropriate algorithms to process the face samples.D)They have trouble converting face datasets into the right format.Passage TwoQuestions51to55are based on the following passage.There're currently21.5million students in America,and many will be funding their college on borrowed money.Given that there's now over$1.3trillion in student loans on the books,it's pretty clear that many students are far from sensible.The average student's debt upon graduation now approaches$40,000,and as college becomes ever more expensive,calls to make it"free"are multiplying.Even Hillary Clinton says that when it comes to college,"Costs won't be a barrier."But the only way college could be free is if the faculty and staff donated their time,the buildings required no maintenance,and campuses required no utilities.As long as it's impossible to produce something from nothing, costs are absolutely a barrier.The actual question we debate is who should pay for people to go to college.If taxpayers are to bear the cost of forgiving student loans,shouldn't they have a say in how their money is used?At least taxpayers should be able to decide what students will study on the public dime.If we're going to force taxpayers to foot the bill for college degrees,students should only study those subjects that're of greatest benefit to taxpayers.After all,students making their own choices in this respect is what caused the problem in the first place.We simply don't need more poetry,gender studies,or sociology majors.How do we know whichsubjects benefit society?Easy.Average starting salaries give a clear indication of what type of training society needs its new workers to have.Certainly,there're benefits to a college major beyond the job a student can perform.But if we're talking about the benefits to society,the only thing that matters is what the major enables the student to produce for society.And the value of what the student can produce is reflected in the wage employers are willing to pay the student to produce it.A low wage for elementary school teachers,however,doesn't mean elementary education isn't important.It simply means there're too many elementary school teachers already.Meanwhile,there're few who're willing and able to perform jobs requiring a petroleum engineering major,so the value of one more of those people is very high.So we can have taxpayers pick up students'tuition in exchange for dictating what those students will study. Or we can allow students both to choose their majors and pay for their education themselves.But in the end,one of two things is true:Either a college major is worth its cost or it isn't.If yes,taxpayer financing isn't needed.If not,taxpayer financing isn't desirable.Either way,taxpayers have no business paying for students'college education.51.What does the author think of college students funding their education through loans?A)They only expect to get huge returns.B)They are acting in an irrational way.C)They benefit at taxpayers'expense.D)They will regret doing so someday.52.In the author's opinion,free college education is________.A)impracticalB)unsustainableC)a goal to strive forD)a way to social equality53.What should students do if taxpayers are to bear their college costs?A)Work even harder to repay society.B)Choose their subjects more carefully.C)Choose majors that will serve society's practical needs.D)Allow taxpayers to participate in college administration.54.What does the author say about the value of a student's college education?A)It is underestimated by profit-seeking employers.B)It is to be proved by what they can do on the job.C)It is well reflected in their average starting salary.D)It is embodied in how they remove social barriers.55.What message does the author want to convey in the passage?A)Students should think carefully whether to go to college.B)Taxpayers should only finance the most gifted students.C)The worth of a college education is open to debate.D)College students should fund their own education.Part IV Translation(30minutes)Directions:For this part,you are allowed30minutes to translate a passage from Chinese into English.You should write your answer on Answer Sheet2.中国目前拥有世界上最大最快的高速铁路网。