2003年1月英语六级真题及答案.doc

2003年1月英语六级真题 Part I Listening Comprehension (20 minutes) Section A Directions: In this section, you will hear 10 short conversations. At the end of 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 center. 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 were 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 line through the center. Sample Answer [A] [B] [C] [D] 1. A) It has nothing to do with the Internet. B) She needs another week to get it ready. C) It contains some valuable ideas. D) It’s far from being ready yet. 2. A) The woman is strict with her employees. B) The man always has excuses for being late. C) The woman is a kind-hearted boss. D) The man’s alarm clock didn’t work that morning. 3. A) The woman should try her luck in the bank nearby. B) The bank around the corner is not open today. C) The woman should use dollars instead of pounds. D) The bank near the railway station closes late. 4. A) Make an appointment with Dr. Chen. B) Wait for about three minutes. C) Call again some times later. D) Try dialing the number again. 5. A) He is sure they will succeed in the next test. B) He did no better than the woman in the test. C) He believes she will pass the test this time. D) He felt upset because of her failure. 6. A) The woman has to attend a summer course to graduate. B) The man thinks the woman can earn the credits. C) The woman is begging the man to let her pass the exam. D) The woman is going to graduate from summer school. 7. A) Fred is planning a trip to Canada. B) Fred usually flies to Canada with Jane. C) Fred persuaded Jane to change her mind. D) Fred likes the beautiful scenery along the way to Canada. 8. A) Hang some pictures for decoration. B) Find room for the paintings. C) Put more coats of paint on the wall. D) Paint the walls to match the furniture. 9. A) He’ll give a lecture on drawing. B) He doesn’t mind if the woman goes to the lecture. C) He’d rather not go to the lecture. D) He’s going to attend the lecture. 10. A) Selecting the best candidate. B) Choosing a campaign manager. C) Trying to persuade the woman to vote for him. D) Running for chairman of the student union. 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 letter on the Answer Sheet with a single line through the centre. Passage One Questions 11 to 14 are based on the passage you have just heard. 11. A) To study the problems of local industries. B) To find ways to treat human wastes. C) To investigate the annual catch of fish in the Biramichi River. D) To conduct a study on fishing in the Biramichi River. 12. A) Lack of oxygen. C) Low water level. B) Overgrowth of water plants. D) Serious pollution upstream. 13. A) They’ll be closed down. B) They’re going to dismiss some of their employees. C) They’ll be moved to other places. D) They have no money to build chemical treatment plants. 14. A) There were fewer fish in the river. B) Over-fishing was prohibited. C) The local Chamber of Commerce tried to preserve fishes. D) The local fishing cooperative decided to reduce its catch. Passage Two Questions 15 to 17 are based on the passage you have just heard. 15. A) Oral instructions recorded on a tape. B) A brief letter sealed in an envelope. C) A written document of several pages. D) A short note to their lawyer. 16. A) Refrain from going out with men for five years. B) Stop wearing any kind of fashionable clothes. C) Bury the dentist with his favorite car. D) Visit his grave regularly for five years. 17. A) He was angry with his selfish relatives. B) He was just being humorous. C) He was not a wealthy man. D) He wanted to leave his body for medical purposes. Passage Three Questions 18 to 20 are based on the passage you have just heard. 18. A) They thought it quite acceptable. B) They believed it to be a luxury. C) They took it to be a trend. D) They considered it avoidable. 19. A) Critical. C) Sceptical. B) Serious. D) Casual. 20. A) When people consider marriage an important part of their lives. B) When the costs of getting a divorce become unaffordable. C) When the current marriage law is modified. D) When husband and wife understand each other better. Part II Reading Comprehension (35 minutes) Directions: There are 4 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. Bill Gates, the billionaire Microsoft chairman without a single earned university degree, is by his success raising new doubts about the worth of the business world’s favorite academic title: the MBA (Master of Business Administration). The MBA, a 20th-century product, always has borne the mark of lowly commerce and greed (贪婪) on the tree-lined campuses ruled by purer disciplines such as philosophy and literature. But even with the recession apparently cutting into the hiring of business school graduates, about 79,000 people are expected to receive MBAs in 1993. This is nearly 16 times the number of business graduates in 1960, a testimony to the widespread assumption that the MBA is vital for young men and women who want to run companies some day. “If you are going into the corporate world it is still a disadvantage not to have one,” said Donald Morrison, professor of marketing and management science. “But in the last five years or so, when someone says, ‘Should I attempt to get an MBA,’ the answer a lot more is: It depends.” The success of Bill Gates and other non-MBAs, such as the late Sam Walton of Wal-Mart Stores Inc., has helped inspire self-conscious debates on business school campuses over the worth of a business degree and whether management skills can be taught. The Harvard Business Review printed a lively, fictional exchange of letters to dramatize complaints about business degree holders. The article called MBA hires “extremely disappointing” and said “MBAs want to move up too fast, they don’t understand politics and people, and they aren’t able to function as part of a team until their third year. But by then, they’re out looking for other jobs.” The problem, most participants in the debate acknowledge, is that the MBA has acquired an aura (光环) of future riches and power far beyond its actual importance and usefulness. Enrollment in business schools exploded in the 1970s and 1980s and created the assumption that no one who pursued a business career could do without one. The growth was fueled by a backlash (反冲) against the anti-business values of the 1960s and by the women’s movement. Business people who have hired or worked with MBAs say those with the degrees often know how to analyze systems but are not so skillful at motivating people. “They don’t get a lot of grounding in the people side of the business,” said James Shaffer, vice-president and principal of the Towers Perrin management consulting firm. 21. According to Paragraph 2, what is the general attitude towards business on campuses dominated by purer disciplines? A) Scornful C) Envious. B) Appreciative. D) Realistic. 22. It seems that the controversy over the value of MBA degrees has been fueled mainly by ______. A) the complaints from various employers B) the success of many non-MBAs C) the criticism from the scientists of purer disciplines D) the poor performance of MBAs at work 23. What is the major weakness of MBA holders according to The Harvard Business Review? A) They are usually serf-centered. B) They are aggressive and greedy. C) They keep complaining about their jobs. D) They are not good at dealing with people. 24. From the passage we know that most MBAs _______. A) can climb the corporate ladder fairly quickly B) quit their jobs once they are familiar with their workmates C) receive salaries that do not match their professional training D) cherish unrealistic expectations about their future 25. What is the passage mainly about? A) Why there is an increased enrollment in MBA programs. B) The necessity of reforming MBA programs in business schools. C) Doubts about the worth of holding an MBA degree. D) A debate held recently on university campuses. Passage Two Questions 26 to 30 are based on the following passage. When school officials in Kalkaska, Michigan, closed classes last week, the media flocked to the story, portraying the town’s 2,305 students as victims of stingy (吝啬的) taxpayers. There is some truth to that; the property-tax rate here is one-third lower than the state average. But shutting their schools also allowed Kalkaska’s educators and the state’s largest teachers’ union, the Michigan Education Association, to make a political point. Their aim was to spur passage of legislation Michigan lawmakers are debating to increase the state’s share of school funding. It was no coincidence that Kalkaska shut its schools two weeks after residents rejected a 28 percent property-tax increase. The school board argued that without the increase it lacked the $1.5 million needed to keep schools open. But the school system had not done all it could to keep the schools open. Officials declined to borrow against next year’s state aid, they refused to trim extracurricular activities and they did not consider seeking a smaller—perhaps more acceptable—tax increase. In fact, closing early is costing Kalkaska a significant amount, including $600,000 in unemployment payments to teachers and staff and $250,000 in lost state aid. In February, the school system promised teachers and staff two months of retirement payments in case schools closed early, a deal that will cost the district $275,000 more. Other signs suggest school authorities were at least as eager to make a political statement as to keep schools open. The Michigan Education Association hired a public relations firm to stage a rally marking the school closings, which attracted 14 local and national television stations and networks. The president of the National Education Association, the MEA’s parent organization, flew from Washington, D. C., for the event. And the union tutored school officials in the art of television interviews. School supervisor Doyle Disbrow acknowledges the district could have kept schools open by cutting programs but denies the moves were politically motivated. Michigan lawmakers have reacted angrily to the closings. The state Senate has already voted to put the system into receivership (破产管理) and reopen schools immediately; the Michigan House plans to consider the bill this week. 26. We learn from the passage that schools in Kalkaska, Michigan, are funded ______. A) by both the local and state governments B) exclusively by the local government C) mainly by the state government D) by the National Education Association 27. One of the purposes for which school officials closed classes was _______. A) to avoid paying retirement benefits to teachers and staff B) to draw the attention of local taxpayers to political issues C) to make the financial difficulties of their teachers and staff known to the public D) to pressure Michigan lawmakers into increasing state funds for local schools 28. The author seems to disapprove of _______. A) the Michigan lawmakers’ endless debating B) the shutting of schools in Kalkaska C) the involvement of the mass media D) delaying the passage of the school funding legislation 29. We learn from the passage that school authorities in Kalkaska are more concerned about _______. A) a raise in the property-tax rate in Michigan B) reopening the schools there immediately C) the attitude of the MEA’s parent organization D) making a political issue of the closing of the schools 30. According to the passage, the closing of the schools developed into a crisis because of ______. A) the complexity of the problem B) the political motives on the part of the educators C) the weak response of the state officials D) the strong protest on the part of the students’ parents Passage Three Questions 31 to 35 are based on the following passage. German Chancellor (首相) Otto Von Bismarck may be most famous for his military and diplomatic talent, but his legacy (遗产) includes many of today’s social insurance programs. During the middle of the 19th century, Germany, along with other European nations, experienced an unprecedented rash of workplace deaths and accidents as a result of growing industrialization. Motivated in part by Christian compassion (怜悯) for the helpless as well as a practical political impulse to undercut the support of the socialist labor movement, Chancellor Bismarck created the world’s first workers’ compensation law in 1884. By 1908, the United States was the only industrial nation in the world that lacked workers’ compensation insurance. America’s injured workers could sue for damages in a court of law, but they still faced a number of tough legal barriers. For example, employees had to prove that their injuries directly resulted from employer negligence and that they themselves were ignorant about potential hazards in the workplace. The first state workers’ compensation law in this country passed in 1911, and the program soon spread throughout the nation. After World War II, benefit payments to American workers did not keep up with the cost of living. In fact, real benefit levels were lower in the 1970s than they were in the 1940s, and in most states the maximum benefit was below the poverty level for a family of four. In 1970, President Richard Nixon set up a national commission to study the problems of workers’ compensation. Two years later, the commission issued 19 key recommendations, including one that called for increasing compensation benefit levels to 100 percent of the states’ average weekly wages. In fact, the average compensation benefit in