2001年6月大学英语六级考试试题
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Part I Listening Comprehension (20 minutes)
Section A
Directions:In this section, you will hear 10 short conversations. At
the end o f each conversation, a question will be asked about what
was said. Both the conversation and the question will be spoken only
once. After each question there will be a pause. During the pause,
you must read the four choices marked A), B), C ) and D), and decide
which is the best answer. Then mark the corresponding letter on the
Answer Sheet with a single line through the centre.
Example: You will hear:
You will read: A) 2 hours. B) 3 hours.
C) 4 hours D) 5 hours.
From the conversation we know that the two are talking about some
work they will start at 9 o'clock in the morning and have to finish
at 2 in the afternoon. Therefore, D) "5 hours" is the correct
answer. You should choose ［D］on the Answer Sheet and mark it with a
single a sinle line through the centre.
Sample Answer ［A］［B］［C］［D］
1. A) Buy some traveller's checks. B) Borrow some money from a
friend.
C) Check the brakes and tires. D) Spend some time travelling.
2. A) He is very forgiving and tolerant. B) He probably has a poor
mem or y.
C) He is well liked by his customers. D) He has been introduced to
the st aff.
3. A) He thinks the book should include more information.
B) He doesn't think it necessary to proveide the answers.
C) The answers will be added in a later edition.
D) The book does include the answers.
4. A) Announce appeals for public service. B) Hold a charity concert
to raise money.
C) Ask the school radio station for help. D) Pool money to fund the
radio station.
5. A) She talked with the consultant about the new program until
two.
B) She couldn't talk to the consultant before two.
C) She would talk to the consultant during lunch.
D) She couldn't contact the consultant's secretary.
6. A) They are equally competent for the job. B) They both graduated
from art schools.
C) They majored in different areas of art. D) They are both willing
to draw the posters.
7. A) At a book store. B) At an art museum.
C) At a newspaper office. D) At a gymnasium.
8. A) The woman received a phone call from Mark yesterday.
B) The man injured Mark in a traffic accident yesterday.
C) The man met a friend by chance.
D) The woman contacted Mark on business.
9. A) The man should stay up and watch the program.
B) The man should read something exciting instead.
C) The man should go to bed at eleven.
D) The man should give up watching the movie.
10.A) Students with a library card can check any book out.
B) Reference books are not allowed to be checked out.
C) Only students with a library card can check out reference books.
D) The number of books a student can check out is unlimited.
Section B
Directions: In this section, you will hear 3 short passages. At the
end of each passage, you will hear some 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 lette r on the
Answer Sheet with a sinle line through the centre.
Passage One
Questions 11 to 13 are based on the passage you have just heard.
11.A) To find out whether they take music lessons in their spare
time.
B) To find out whether they can name four different musical
instruments.
C) To find out whether they enjoy playing musical instruments in
school.
D) To find out whether they differ in their preference for musical
instruments.
12.A) They find them too hard to play.
B) They think it silly to play them.
C) They find it not challenging enough to play them.
D) They consider it important to be different from girls.
13.A) Children who have private music tutors. B) Children who are 8
or older.
C) Children who are between 5 and 7. D) Children who are well-
educated.
Passage Two
Questions 14 to 16 are based on the passage you have just heard.
14.A) Because there weren't any professional teams in the U. S.
then.
B) Because Pele hadn't retired from the Brazilian National Team yet.
C) Because this fast-moving sport wasn't familiar to many Americans.
D) Because good professional players received low salaries.
15.A) When it has a large number of fans.
B) When it plays at home.
C) When it has many international stars playing for it.
D) When the fans cheer enthusiastically for it.
16.A) It wasn't among the top four teams. B) It didn't play as well
as expected.
C) It won the World Cup. D) It placed fourth
Passage Three
Questions 17 to 20 are based on the passage you have just heard.
17.A) Students from America. B) Students from England.
C) Students from Australia. D) Students from Japan.
18.A) Those who know how to program computers.
B) Those who get special aid from their teachers.
C) Those who are very hardworking.
D) Those who have well-educated parents.
19.A) Japanese students study much harder than Columbian students.
B) Columbian students score higher than Japanese students in maths.
C) Columbian students are more optimistic about their maths skills.
D) Japanese students have better conditions for study.
20.A) Physics. B) Mathematics.
C) Environmental science. D) Life science.
Part II Reading Comprehension (35 minutes)
Directions: There are 4 reading passages in this part. 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 the
Answer Sheet with a single line through the centre.
Passage One
Questions 21 to 25 are based on the following passage:
In the 1920s demand for American farm products fell, as European
countries began to recover from World War I and instituted austerity
(紧缩) programs to reduce their imports. The result was a sharp drop
in farm prices. This period was more disastrous for farmers than
earlier times had been, because farmers were no longer
self-sufficient. They were paying for machinery, seed, and
fertilizer, and they were also buying consumer goods. The prices of
the items farmers bought remained constant, while prices they
received for their products fell. These developments were made worse
by the Great Depression, which began in 1929 and extended throughout
the 1939s.
In 1929, under President Herbert Hoover, the Federal Farm Board was
organized. It established the principle of direct interference with
supply and demand, and it represented the first national commitment
to provide greater economic stability for farmers.
President Hoover's successor attached even more importance to this
problem. One of the first measures proposed by President Franklin D.
Roosevelt when he took office in 1933 was the Agricultural
Adjustment Act, which was subsequently passed by Congress. This law
gave the Secretary of Agriculture the power to reduce production
through voluntary agreements with farmers who were paid to take
their land out of use. A deliberate scarcity of farm products was
planned in an effort to raise prices. This law was declared
unconstitutional by the Supreme Court on the grounds that general
taxes were being collected to pay one special group of people.
However, new laws were passed immediately that achieved the same
result of resting soil and providing flood-control measures, but
which were based on the principle of soil conservation. The
Roosevelt Administration believed that rebuilding the nation's soil
was in the national interest and was not simply a plan to help
farmers at the expense of other citizens. Later the government
guaranteed loans to farmers so that they could buy farm machinery,
hybrid (杂交) grain, and fertilizers.
21.What brought about the decline in the demand for American farm
products?
A) The impact of the Great Depression.
B) The shrinking of overseas markets.
C) The destruction caused by the First World War.
D) The increased exports of European countries.
22.The chief concern of the American government in the area of
agriculture in the 1920s was
______ .
A) to increase farm production B) to establish agricultural laws
C) to prevent farmers from going bankrupt D) to promote the
mechanization of agriculture
23.The Agricultural Adjustment Act encouraged American farmers to
______.
A) reduce their scale of production
B) make full use of their land
C) adjust the prices of their farm products
D) be self-sufficient in agricultural production
24.The Supreme Court rejected the Agricultural Adjustment Act
because it believed that the
Act ______.
A) might cause greater scarcity of farm products
B) didn't give the Secretary of Agriculture enough power
C) would benefit neither the government nor the farmers
D) benefited one group of citizens at the expense of others
25.It was claimed that the new laws passed during the Roosevelt
Administration were aimed
at ______.
A) reducing the cost of farmin
B) conserving soil in the long-term interest of the nation
C) lowering the burden of farmers
D) helping farmers without shifling the burden onto other taxpayers
Passage Two
Questions 26 to 30 are based on the following passage:
In the 1950s, the pioneers of artificial intelligence (AI) predicted
that, by the end of this century, computers would be conversing with
us at work and robots would be performing our housework. But as
useful as computers are, they're nowhere close to achieving anything
remotely resembling these early aspirations f or humanlike behavior.
Never mind something as complex as conversation: the most powerful
computers struggle to reliably recognize the shape of an object, the
most elementary of tasks for a ten-month-old kid.
A growing group of AI researchers think they know where the field
went wrong . The problem, the scientists say, is that AI has been
trying to separate the highest, most abstract levels of thought,
like language and mathematics, and to duplicate them with logical,
step-by-step programs. A new movement in AI, on the other hand,
takes a closer look at the more roundabout way in which nature came
up with intelligence. Many of these researchers study evolution and
natural adaptation instead of formal logic and conventional computer
programs. Rather than digital computers and transistors, some want
to work with brain cells and proteins . The results of these early
efforts are as promising as they are peculiar, and the new
nature-based AI movement is slowly but surely moving to the
forefront of the field.
Imitating the brain's neural (神经的） network is a huge step in the
right direction, says computer scientist and biophysicist Michael
Conrad, but it still misses an important aspect of natural
intelligence. "People tend to treat the brain as if it were made up
of color-coded transistors", he explains, "but it's not simply a
clever network of switches. There are lots of important things going
on inside the brain cells themselves." Specifically, Conrad believes
that many of the brain's capabilities stem from the
patternrecognition proficiency of the individual molecules that make
up each brain cell. The best way to build and artificially
intelligent device, he claims, would be to build it around the same
sort of molecular skills.
Right now, the option that conventional computers and software are
fundamentally incapable of matching the processes that take place in
the brain remains controversial. But if it proves true, then the
efforts of Conrad and his fellow AI rebels could turn out to be the
only game in town.
26.The author says that the powerful computers of today ______.
A) are capable of reliably recognizing the shape of an object
B) are close to exhibiting humanlike behavior
C) are not very different in their performance from those of the
50's
D) still cannot communicate with people in a human language
27.The new trend in artificial intelligence research stems from
______.
A) the shift of the focus of study on to the recognition of the
shapes of objects
B) the belief that human intelligence cannot be duplicated with
logical, step-by-step
programs
C) the aspirations of scientists to duplicate the intelligence of a
ten-month-old child
D) the efforts made by scientists in the study of the similarities
between transistors and
brain cells
28.Conrad and his group of AI researchers have been making enormous
efforts to ______.
A) find a roundabout way to design powerful computers
B) build a computer using a clever network of switches
C) find out how intelligence developed in nature
D) separate the highest and most abstract levels of thought
29.What's the author's opinion about the new AI movement?
A) It has created a sensation among artificial intelligence
researchers but will soon die
out.
B) It's a breakthrough in duplicating human thought processes.
C) It's more like a peculiar game rather than a real scientific
effort.
D) It may prove to be in the right direction though nobody is sure
of its future prospects.
30.Which of the following is closest in meaning to the phrase "the
only game in town" (Line 3,
Para. 4)?
A) The only approach to building an artificially intelligent
computer.
B) The only way for them to win a prize in artificial intelligence
research.
C) The only area worth studying in computer science.
D) The only game they would like to play in town.
Passage Three
Question 31 to 35 are based on the following passage:
Cars account for half the oil consumed in the U.S., about half the
urban pollution and one fourth the greenhouse (温室) gases. They take
a similar oll of (损耗) resources in other industrial nations and in
the cities of the developing world . As vehicle use continues to
increase in the coming decade, the U.S. and other countries will
have to deal with these issues or else face unacceptable economic ,
health-related and political costs. It is unlikely that oil prices
will remain at their current low level or that other nations will
accept a large and growing U.S. contribution to global climatic
change.
Policymakers and industry have four options: reduce vehicle use,
increase the efficiency and reduce the emissions of conventional
gasoline-powered vehicles, switch to less harmful fuels, or find
less polluting driving systems. The last of these-in particular the
introduction of vehicles powered by electricity — is ultimately the
only sustainable option. The other alternatives are attractive in
theory but in practice are either impractical or offer only marginal
improvements. For example, reduced vehicle use could solve traffic
problems and a host of social and environmental problems, but
evidence from around the world suggests t hat it is very difficult
to make people give up their cars to any significant ex tent. In the
U.S., mass-transit ridership and carpooling (合伙用车） have decline d
since World War II. Even in western Europe, with fuel prices
averaging more than $ 1 a liter (about $ 4 a gallon) and with easily
accessible mass transit and dense populations, cars still account
for 80 percent of all passenger travel.
Improved energy efficiency is also appealing, but automotive fuel
economy has barely made any progress in 10 years. Alternative fuels
such as natural gas, burned in internal-combustion engines, could be
introduced at relatively low cost, but they would lead to only
marginal reductions in pollution and greenhouse emissions
(especially because oil companies are already spending billions of
dollars every year to develop less polluting types of gasoline).
31.From the passage we know that the increased use of cars will
______.
A) consume half of the oil produced in the world
B) have serious consequences for the well-being of all nations
C) widen the gap between the developed and developing countries
D) impose an intolerable economic burden on residents of large
cities
32.The U.S. has to deal with the problems arising from vehicle use
because ______.
A. most Americans are reluctant to switch to public transportation
systems
B) the present level of oil prices is considered unacceptable
C) other countries will protest its increasing greenhouse emissions
D) it should take a lead in conserving natural resources
33.Which of the following is the best solution to the problems
mentioned in the passage?
A) The designing of highly efficient car engines.
B) A reduction of vehicle use in cities.
C) The development of electric cars.
D) The use of less polluting fuels.
34.Which of the following is practical but only makes a marginal
contribution to solving the
problem of greenhouse emissions?
A) The use of fuels other than gasoline.
B) Improved energy efficiency.
C) The introduction of less polluting driving systems.
D) Reducing car use by carpooling
35.Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the
passage?
A) The decline of public transportation accounts for increased car
use in western Europe.
B) Cars are popular in western Europe even though fuel prices are
fairly high.
C) The reduction of vehicle use is the only sustainable option in
densely populated western
Europe.
D) Western European oil companies cannot sustain the cost of
developing new-type fuels.
Passage Four
Questions 36 to 40 are based on the following passage:
Reebok executives do not like to hear their stylish athletic shoes
called “ footwear for yuppies (雅皮士，少壮高薪职业人士)”. They contend that
Reebok shoes appeal to diverse market segments, especially now that
the company offers basketball and children's shoes for the under-18
set and walking shoes for older customers not interested in aerobics
（健身操）or running. The executives also point out that through recent
acquisitions they have added hiking boots, dress and casual shoes,
and high-performance athletic footwear to their product lines, all
of which should attract new and varied groups of customers.
Still, despite its emphasis on new markets, Reebok plans few changes
in the upmarket (高档消费人群的)retailing network that helped push sales to
$ 1 billion annually, ahead of all other sports shoe marketers.
Reebok shoes, which are priced from $ 27 to $85, will continue to be
sold only in better specialty, sporting goods, and department
stores, in accordance with the company's view that consumers judge
the quality of the brand by the quality of its distribution.
In the past few years, the Massachusetts-based company has imposed
limits on the number of its distributors (and the number of shoes
supplied to stores), partly out of necessity. At times the
unexpected demand for Reebok's exceeded supply, and the company
could barely keep up with orders from the dealers it already had.
These fulfillment problems seem to be under control now, but the
company is still selective about its distributors. At present,
Reebok shoes are available in about five thousand retail stores in
the United States.
Reebok has already anticipated that walking shoes will be the next
fitness-related craze, replacing aerobics shoes the same way its
brightly colored, soft leather exercise footwear replaced
conventional running shoes. Through product diversification and
careful market research, Reebok hopes to avoid the distribution
problems Nike came across several years ago, when Nike misjudged the
strength of the aerobics shoe craze and was forced to unload huge
inventories of running shoes through discount stores.
36.One reason why Reebok's managerial personnel don't like their
shoes to be called "footwear
for yuppies" is that _______.
A) they believe that their shoes are popular with people of
different age groups
B) new production lines have been added to produce inexpensive shoes
C) "yuppies" usually evokes a negative image
D) the term makes people think of prohibitive prices
37.Reebok's view that "consumers judge the quality of the brand by
the quality of its
distribution" (Line 5, Para. 2)implies that ______.
A) the quality of a brand is measured by the service quality of the
store selling it
B) the quality of a product determines the quality of its
distributors
C) the popularity of a brand is determined by the stores that sell
it
D) consumers believe that first-rate products are only sold by
high-quality stores
38.Reebok once had to limit the number of its distributors because
______.
A) its supply of products fell short of demand
B) too many distributors would cut into its profits
C) the reduction of distributors could increase its share of the
market
D) it wanted to enhance consumer confidence in its products
39.Although the Reebok Company has solved the problem of fulfilling
its orders, it ______.
A) does not want to further expand its retailing network
B) still limits the number of shoes supplied to stores
C) is still particular about who sells its products
D) still carefully chooses the manufacturers of its products
40.What lesson has Reebok learned from Nike's distribution problems?
A) A company should not sell its high quality shoes in discount
stores.
B) A company should not limit its distribution network.
C) A company should do follow-up surveys of its products.
D) A company should correctly evaluate the impact of a new craze on
the market.
Part III Vocabulary (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 best completes the sentence. Then mark the corresponding
letter on the Answer Sheet with a single line through the centre.
41.For many patients, institutional care is the most ______ and
beneficial form of care.
A) pertinent B) appropriate C) acute D) persistent
42.Among all the changes resulting from the ______ entry of women
into the work force, the
transformation that has occurred in the women themselves is not the
least important.
A) massive B) quantitative C) surplus D) formidable
43.Mr. Smith became very ______ when it was suggested that he had
made a mistake.
A) ingenious B) empirical C) objective D) indignant
44.Rumours are everywhere, spreading fear, damaging reputations, and
turning calm situations
into ______ ones.
A) turbulent B) tragic C) vulnerable D) suspicious
45.The ______ cycle of life and death is a subject of interest to
scientists and philosophers
alike.
A) incompatible B) exceeding C) instantaneous D) eternal
46.She remains confident and ______ untroubled by our present
problems.
A) indefinitely B) infinitely C) optimistically D) seemingly
47.Fiber-optic cables can carry hundreds of telephone conversations
______.
A. simultaneously B) spontaneously C) homogeneously D)
contemporarily
48.The police were alerted that the escaped criminal might be in the
______.
A) vain B) vicinity C) court D) jail
49.Whether you live to eat or eat to live, food is a major ______ in
every family's budget.
A) nutrition B) expenditure C) routine D) provision
50.Now a paper in Science argues that organic chemicals in the rock
come mostly from ______
on earth rather than bacteria on Mars.
A) configuration B) constitution C) condemnation D) contamination
51.There is much I enjoy about the changing seasons, but my favorite
time is the ______ from
fall to winter.
A) transmission B) transformation C) transition D) transfer
52.I think we need to see an investment ______ before we make an
expensive mistake.
A) guide B) entrepreneur C) consultant D) assessor
53.The ______ on this apartment expires in a year's time.
A) treaty B) lease C) engagement D) subsidy
54.The elderly Russians find it hard to live on their state ______.
A) pensions B) earnings C) salaries D) donations
55.There is supposed to be a safety ______ which makes it impossible
for trains to collide.
A) appliance B) accessory C) machine D) mechanism
56.After four years in the same job his enthusiasm finally ______.
A) deteriorated B) dispersed C) dissipated D) drained
57.No one can function properly if they are _______ of adequate
sleep.
A) deprived B) ripped C) stripped D) contrived
58.For years now, the people of that faraway country have been
cruelly ______ by a dictator.
A) depressed B) immersed C) oppressed D) cursed
59.Ever since the rise of industrialism, education has been ______
towards producing workers.
A) harnessed B) hatched C) motivated D) geared
60.The prospect of increased prices has already ______ worries.
A) provoked B) irritated C) inspired D) hoisted
61.The suspect ______ that he had not been in the neighbourhood at
the time of the crime.
A) advocated B) alleged C) addressed D) announced
62.Although the colonists ______ to some extent with the native
Americans , the Indians'
influence on American culture and language was not extensive.
A) migrated B) matched C) mingled D) melted
63.E-mail is a convenient, highly democratic informal medium for
conveying messages that _______ well to human needs.
A) adheres B) reflects C) conforms D) satisfies
64.The wings of the bird still ______ after it had been shot down.
A) slapped B) scratched C) flapped D) fluctuated
65.The disagreement over trade restrictions could seriously ?______
relations between the two countries.
A) tumble B) jeopardize C) manipulate D) intimidate
66.When you put up wallpaper, should you ______ the edges or put
them next to each other?
A) coincide B) extend C) overlap D) collide
67.Under the present system, state enterprises must ______ all
profits to the government.
A) turn down B) turn up C) turn out D) turn in
68.Oil companies in the U.S. are already beginning to feel the
pressure. Refinery workers and
petroleum-equipment-manufacturing employees are being _______.
A) laid out B) laid off C) laid down D) laid aside
69.We'll ______ you for any damage done to your house while we are
in it.
A) compensate B) remedy C) supplement D) retrieve
70.She cut her hair short and tried to ______ herself as a man.
A) decorate B) disguise C) fabricate D) fake
Part IV Error Correction (15 minutes)
Directions: This part consists of a short passage. In this passage,
there are altogether 10 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 corrections in the blanks provided. If you
change a word, cross it out and write the correct word in the
corresponding blank. If you add a word, put an insertion mark (∧) in
the right place and write the missing word in the blank. If you
delete a word, cross it out and put a slash (/) in the blank.
When you start talking about good and bad manners you
immediately start meeting difficulties. Many people just cannot
agree what they mean. We asked a lady, who replied that she
thought you could tell a well-mannered person on the way they
71._______
occupied the space around them—for example, when such a
person walks down a street he or she is constantly unaware of
72._______
others. Such people never bump into other people.
However, a second person thought that this was more a
question of civilized behavior as good manners. Instead, this
73._______
other person told us a story, it he said was quite well known,
74._______
about an American who had been invited to an Arab meal at 75._______
one of the countries of the Middle East. The American hasn't
76._______
been told very much about the kind of food he might expect.If
he had known about American food, he might have behaved 77._______
better.
Immediately before him was a very flat piece of bread that
looked, to him, very much as a napkin (餐巾） Picking it 78._______
up, he put it into his collar, so that it falls across his shirt.
79._______
His Arab host, who had been watching, said of nothing, but
80._______
immediately copied the action of his guest.
And that, said this second person, was a fine example of
good manners.
Part V Writing (30 minutes)
Directions: For this part, you are allowed thirty minutes to write a
composition on the topic Is a Test of Spoken English Necessary? The
first sentence has already been written for you. You should write at
least 120 words, and base your composition on the outline given in
Chinese below:
1. 很多人认为有必要举行口语考试，理由是 ······
2.也有人持不同的意见，······
3.我的看法和打算
Is a Test of Spoken English Necessary?
A test of spoken English will be included as an optional component
of the College English Test (CET).
答案(略)
