英語六級考試：2020年12月考試真題第3套

英語六級考試：2020年12月考試真題[第3套]PartIWriting(30minutes)Directions:Forthispart,youareallowed30minutestowriteanessaybasedonthepicturebelow.Youshouldstartyouressaywithabriefdescriptionofthepictureandthendiscusswhethertechnologyisindispensableineducation.Youshouldgivesoundargumentstosupportyourviewsandwriteatleast150wordsbutnomorethan200words.PartIIListeningComprehension(30minutes)說明：六級真題全國共考了兩套聽力。本套（即第三套）的聽力內(nèi)容與第二套的完全一樣，只是選項的順序不一樣而已，故在本套中不再重復給出。PartIIIReadingComprehension(40minutes)SectionADirections:Inthissection,thereisapassagewithtenblanks.Youarerequiredtoselectonewordforeachblankfromalistofchoicesgiveninawordbankfollowingthepassage.Readthepassagethroughcarefullybeforemakingyourchoices.Eachchoiceinthebankisidentifiedbyaletter.PleasemarkthecorrespondingletterforeachitemonAnswerSheet2withasinglelinethroughthecentre.Youmaynotuseanyofthewordsinthebankmorethanonce.Questions36to45arebasedonthefollowingpassage.Itwas10yearsago,onawarmJulynight,thatanewbornlambtookherfirstbreathinasmallshedinScotland.Fromtheoutside,shelookednodifferentfromthousandsofothersheepbornon36farms.ButDolly,astheworldsooncametorealize,wasno37lamb.Shewasclonedfromasinglecellofanadultfemalesheep,38long-heldscientificdogmathathaddeclaredsuchathingbiologicallyimpossible.Adecadelater,scientistsarestartingtocometogripswithjusthowdifferentDollywas.Dozensofanimalshavebeenclonedsincethatfirstlamb—mice,cats,cowsand,mostrecently,adog—andit’sbecoming39clearthattheyareall,inonewayoranother,defective.It’s40tothinkofclonesasperfectcarboncopiesoftheoriginal.Itturnsout,though,thattherearevariousdegreesofgenetic41.Thatmaycomeasashocktopeoplewhohavepaidthousandsofdollarstocloneapetcatonlytodiscoverthatthebabycatlooksandbehaves42liketheirbelovedpet—withadifferent-colorcoatoffur,perhaps,ora43differentattitudetowarditshumanhosts.Andthesearejusttheobviousdifferences.Notonlyareclones44fromtheoriginaltemplate(模板)bytime,buttheyarealsotheproductofanunnaturalmolecularmechanismthatturnsoutnottobeverygoodatmaking45copies.Infact,theprocesscanembedsmallflawsinthegenesofclonesthatscientistsareonlynowdiscovering.A)abstractB)completelyC)desertedD)duplicationE)everythingF)identicalG)increasinglyH)miniatureI)nothingJ)ordinaryK)overturningL)separatedM)surroundingN)systematicallyO)temptingSectionBDirections:Inthissection,youaregoingtoreadapassagewithtenstatementsattachedtoit.Eachstatementcontainsinformationgiveninoneoftheparagraphs.Identifytheparagraphfromwhichtheinformationisderived.Youmaychooseaparagraphmorethanonce.Eachparagraphismarkedwithaletter.AnswerthequestionsbymarkingthecorrespondingletteronAnswerSheet2.HighSchoolSportsAren’tKillingAcademicsA)Inthismonth’sAtlanticcoverarticle,“TheCaseAgainstHigh-SchoolSports,”AmandaRipleyarguesthatschool-sponsoredsportsprogramsshouldbeseriouslycut.Shewritesthat,unlikemostcountriesthatoutperformtheUnitedStatesoninternationalassessments,Americanschoolsputtoomuchofanemphasisonathletics.“SportsareembeddedinAmericanschoolsinawaytheyarenotalmostanywhereelse,”shewrites.“YetthisdifferencehardlyevercomesupindomesticdebatesaboutAmerica’sinternationalmediocrity(平庸)ineducation.”B)Americanstudent-athletesreapmanybenefitsfromparticipatinginsports,butthecoststotheschoolscouldoutweightheirbenefits,sheargues.Inparticular,Ripleycontendsthatsportscrowdouttheacademicmissionsofschools:AmericashouldlearnfromSouthKoreaandFinlandandeveryothercountryatthetoplevelofinternationaltestscores,allofwhomemphasizeathleticsfarlessinschool.“Evenineighthgrade,AmericankidsspendmorethantwicethetimeKoreankidsspendplayingsports,”shewrites,citinga2010studypublishedintheJournalofAdvancedAcademics.C)ItmightwellbetruethatsportsarefarmorerootedinAmericanhighschoolsthaninothercountries.Butourreadingofinternationaltestscoresfindsnosupportfortheargumentagainstschoolathletics.Indeed,ourownresearchandthatofothersleadustomaketheoppositecase.School-sponsoredsportsappeartoprovidebenefitsthatseemtoincrease,notdetract(減少)from,academicsuccess.D)Ripleyindulgesapopularobsession(癡迷)withinternationaltestscorecomparisons,whichshowwideandfrighteninggapsbetweentheUnitedStatesandothercountries.Sheignores,however,thefactthatstatesvaryatleastasmuchintestscoresasdodevelopedcountries.A2011reportfromHarvardUniversityshowsthatMassachusettsproducesmathscorescomparabletoSouthKoreaandFinland,whileMississippiscoresareclosertoTrinidadandTobago.Ripley’sthesisaboutsportsfallsapartinlightofthisfact.SchoolsinMassachusettsprovidesportsprogramswhileschoolsinFinlanddonot.SchoolsinMississippimaylovefootballwhileinTobagointerscholasticsportsarenowherenearasprominent.Sportscannotexplainthesesimilaritiesinperformance.Theycan’texplaininternationaldifferenceseither.E)IfitistruethatsportsunderminetheacademicmissionofAmericanschools,wewouldexpecttoseeanegativerelationshipbetweenthecommitmenttoathleticsandacademicachievement.However,theUniversityofArkansas’sDanielBowenandJayGreeneactuallyfindtheopposite.Theyexaminethisrelationshipbyanalyzingschools’sportswinningpercentagesaswellasstudent-athleticparticipationratescomparedtograduationratesandstandardizedtestscoreachievementoverafive-yearperiodforallpublichighschoolsinOhio.Controllingforstudentpovertylevels,demographics(人口統(tǒng)計狀況),anddistrictfinancialresources,bothmeasuresofaschool’scommitmenttoathleticsaresignificantly,positivelyrelatedtolowerdropoutratesaswellashighertestscores.F)On-the-fieldsuccessandhighparticipationinsportsisnotrandom—itrequiresfocusanddedicationtoathletics.Onemightthinkthiswouldleadschoolsobsessedwithwinningtodeemphasizeacademics.BowenandGreene’sresultscontradictthatargument.Alikelyexplanationforthisseeminglycounterintuitive(與直覺相反的)resultisthatsuccessinsportsprogramsactuallyfacilitatesorreflectsgreatersocialcapitalwithinaschool’scommunity.G)RipleycitesthewritingsofrenownedsociologistJamesColeman,whoseresearchineducationwasgroundbreaking.Colemaninhisearlyworkheldathleticsincontempt,arguingthattheycrowdedoutschools’academicmissions.Ripleyquoteshis1961study,TheAdolescentSociety,whereColemanwrites,“Altogether,thetrophy(獎品)casewouldsuggesttotheinnocentvisitorthathewasenteringanathleticclub,notaneducationalinstitution.”H)However,inlaterresearchhewouldshowhowthesuccessofschoolsishighlydependentonwhathetermedsocialcapital,“thenorms,thesocialnetworks,andtherelationshipsbetweenadultsandchildrenthatareofvalueforthechild’sgrowingup.”I)Accordingtoa2013evaluationconductedbytheCrimeLabattheUniversityofChicago,aprogramcalledBecomingaMan—SportsEditioncreateslastingimprovementsintheboys’studyhabitsandgradepointaverages.Duringthefirstyearoftheprogram,studentswerefoundtobelesslikelytotransferschoolsorbeengagedinviolentcrime.Ayearaftertheprogram,participantswerelesslikelytohavehadanencounterwiththejuvenilejusticesystem.J)Ifschool-sponsoredsportswerecompletelyeliminatedtomorrow,manyAmericanstudentswouldstillhaveopportunitiestoparticipateinorganizedathleticselsewhere,muchliketheydoincountriessuchasFinland,Germany,andSouthKorea.Thesameisnotcertainwhenitcomestostudentsfrommoredisadvantagedbackgrounds.Inanoverviewoftheresearchonnon-schoolbasedafter-schoolprograms,researchersfindthatdisadvantagedchildrenparticipateintheseprogramsatsignificantlylowerrates.Theyfindthatlow-incomestudentshavelessaccessduetochallengeswithregardtotransportation,non-nominalfees,andoff-campussafety.Therefore,reducingoreliminatingtheseopportunitieswouldmostlikelydeprivedisadvantagedstudentsofthebenefitsfromathleticparticipation,notleastofwhichistheopportunitytointeractwithpositiverolemodelsoutsideofregularschoolhours.K)AnotherunfoundedcriticismthatRipleymakesisbringingupthestereotypethatathleticcoachesaretypicallylousy(蹩腳的)classroomteachers.“Americanprincipals,unlikethevastmajorityofprincipalsaroundtheworld,makemanyhiringdecisionswiththeirsportsteamsinmind,whichdoesnotalwaysendwellforstudents,”shewrites.Educatorswhoseekemploymentatschoolsprimarilyforthepurposeofcoachingarelikelytoshirk(推卸)teachingresponsibilities,theargumentgoes.Moreover,eveninthecaseswheretheemployeeisateacherfirstandathleticcoachsecond,theadditionalresponsibilitiesthatcomewithcoachinglikelycomeattheexpenseoftimeotherwisespentonplanning,grading,andcommunicatingwithparentsandguardians.L)Thedata,however,donotseemtoconfirmthisstereotype.Inthemostrigorousstudyontheclassroomresultsofhighschoolcoaches,theUniversityofArkansas’sAnnaEgalitefindsthatathleticcoachesinFloridamostlytendtoperformjustaswellastheirnon-coachingcounterparts,withrespecttoraisingstudenttestscores.Wedonotdoubtthatteacherswhoalsocoachfaceserioustradeoffsthatlikelycomeattheexpenseoftimetheycoulddedicatetotheiracademicobligations.However,aswithsportingevents,athleticcoachesgainadditionalopportunitiesforcommunicatingandservingasmentors(導師)thatpotentiallyhelpstudentssucceedandmakeupforthecostsofcoachingcommitments.M)Ifschoolsallowstudent-athletestoregularlymissoutoninstructionaltimeforthesakeoftravelingtoathleticcompetitions,that’sbad.However,suchissueswouldbebetteraddressedbychangingschoolandstatepolicieswithregardtotheschedulingofsportingeventsasopposedtototalelimination.Iftheempiricalevidencepointstoanything,itpointstowardsschool-sponsoredsportsprovidingassetsthatarewellworththecosts.N)DespitenegativestereotypesaboutsportscultureandRipley’spresumptionthatacademicsandathleticsareatoddswithoneanother,webelievethatthegreaterbodyofevidenceshowsthatschool-sponsoredsportsprogramsappeartobenefitstudents.Successesontheplayingfieldcancarryovertotheclassroomandviceversa(反之亦然).Moreimportantly,findingwaystoincreaseschoolcommunities’socialcapitalisimperativetothesuccessoftheschoolasawhole,notjusttheathletes.46.Studentsfromlow-incomefamilieshavelessaccesstooff-campussportsprograms.47.AmandaRipleyarguesthatAmericashouldlearnfromothercountriesthatrankhighininternationaltestsandlaylessemphasisonathletics.48.Accordingtotheauthor,AmandaRipleyfailstonotethatstudents’performanceinexamsvariesfromstatetostate.49.AmandaRipleythinksthatathleticcoachesarepooratclassroominstruction.50.JamesColeman’slaterresearchmakesanargumentforaschool’ssocialcapital.51.Researchersfindthatthereisapositiverelationshipbetweenaschool’scommitmenttoathleticsandacademicachievements.52.Arigorousstudyfindsthatathleticcoachesalsodowellinraisingstudents’testscores.53.Accordingtoanevaluation,sportsprogramscontributetostudents’academicperformanceandcharacterbuilding.54.AmandaRipleybelievestheemphasisonschoolsportsshouldbebroughtupwhentryingtounderstandwhyAmericanstudentsaremediocre.55.JamesColemansuggestsinhisearlierwritingsthatschoolathleticswouldundermineaschool’simage.SectionCDirections:Thereare2passagesinthissection.Eachpassageisfollowedbysomequestionsorunfinishedstatements.ForeachofthemtherearefourchoicesmarkedA),B),C)andD).YoushoulddecideonthebestchoiceandmarkthecorrespondingletteronAnswerSheet2withasinglelinethroughthecentre.PassageOneQuestions56to60arebasedonthefollowingpassage.Itiseasytomissamidtheday-to-dayheadlinesofglobaleconomicrecession,butthereisalessconspicuouskindofsocialupheaval(劇變)underwaythatisfastalteringboththefaceoftheplanetandthewayhumanbeingslive.Thatchangeistherapidaccelerationofurbanization.In2008,forthefirsttimeinhumanhistory,morethanhalftheworld’spopulationwaslivingintownsandcities.Andasarecentlypublishedpapershows,theprocessofurbanizationwillonlyaccelerateinthedecadestocome—withanenormousimpactonbiodiversityandpotentiallyonclimatechange.AsKarenSeto,theleadauthorofthepaper,pointsout,thatthewaveofurbanizationisn’tjustaboutthemigrationofpeopleintourbanenvironments,butabouttheenvironmentsthemselvesbecomingbiggertoaccommodateallthosepeople.Therapidexpansionofurbanareaswillhaveahugeimpactonbiodiversityhotspotsandoncarbonemissionsinthoseurbanareas.Humansaretheultimateinvasivespecies—whentheymoveintonewterritory,theyoftendisplacethewildlifethatwasalreadylivingthere.Andaslandisclearedforthosenewcities—especiallyinthedensetropicalforests—carbonwillbereleasedintotheatmosphereaswell.It’struethataspeopleindevelopingnationsmovefromthecountrysidetothecity,theshiftmayreducethepressureonland,whichcouldinturnbegoodfortheenvironment.Thisisespeciallysoindesperatelypoorcountries,whereresidentsinthecountrysideslashandbumforestseachgrowingseasontoclearspaceforfarming.Buttherealdifferenceisthatindevelopingnations,themovefromruralareastocitiesoftenleadstoanaccompanyingincreaseinincome—andthatincreaseleadstoanincreaseintheconsumptionoffoodandenergy,whichinturnscausesariseincarbonemissions.Gettingenoughtoeatandenjoyingthesafetyandcomfortoflivingfullyonthegridiscertainlyagoodthing—butitdoescarryanenvironmentalprice.Theurbanizationwavecan’tbestopped—anditshouldn’tbe.ButSeto’spaperdoesunderscoretheimportanceofmanagingthattransition.Ifwedoittherightway,wecanreduceurbanization’simpactontheenvironment.“There’sanenormousopportunityhere,andalotofpressureandresponsibilitytothinkabouthowweurbanize,”saysSeto.“Onethingthat’sclearisthatwecan’tbuildcitiesthewaywehaveoverthelastcoupleofhundredyears.Thescaleofthistransitionwon’tallowthat.”We’reheadedtowardsanurbanplanetnomatterwhat,butwhetheritbecomesheavenorhellisuptous.56.Whatissuedoestheauthortrytodrawpeople’sattentionto?A)Theshrinkingbiodiversityworldwide.B)Therapidincreaseofworldpopulation.C)Theongoingglobaleconomicrecession.D)Theimpactofacceleratingurbanization.57.Inwhatsensearehumanstheultimateinvasivespecies?A)Theyaremuchgreedierthanotherspecies.B)Theyareauniquespeciesborntoconquer.C)Theyforceotherspeciesoutoftheirterritories.D)Theyhaveanurgetoexpandtheirlivingspace.58.Inwhatwayisurbanizationinpoorcountriesgoodfortheenvironment?A)Morelandwillbepreservedforwildlife.B)Thepressureonfarmlandwillbelessened.C)Carbonemissionswillbeconsiderablyreduced.D)Naturalresourceswillbeusedmoreeffectively.59.Whatdoestheauthorsayaboutlivingcomfortablyinthecity?A)Itincursahighenvironmentalprice.B)Itbringspovertyandinsecuritytoanend.C)Itcausesabigchangeinpeople’slifestyle.D)Itnarrowsthegapbetweencityandcountry.60.WhatcanbedonetominimizethenegativeimpactofurbanizationaccordingtoSeto?A)Slowingdownthespeedoftransition.B)Innovativeuseofadvancedtechnology.C)Appropriatemanagementoftheprocess.D)Enhancingpeople’ssenseofresponsibility.PassageTwoQuestions61to65arebasedonthefollowingpassage.WhenHarvardstudentMarkZuckerherglaunchedtheinFeb.2004,evenhecouldnotimaginetheforcesitwouldletloose.Hisintentwastoconnectcollegestudents.Facebook,whichiswhatthisWebsiterapidlyevolvedinto,endedupconnectingtheworld.Tothechildrenofthisconnectedera,theworldisonegiantsocialnetwork.Theyarenotbound-aswerepreviousgenerationsofhumans-bywhattheyweretaught.Theyareonlylimitedbytheircuriosityandambition.Duringmychildhood,allknowledgewaslocal.Youlearnedeverythingyouknewfromyourparents,teachers,preachers,andfriends.Withthehigh-qualityandtimelyinformationattheirfingertips,today’schildrenarerisingabovethefearsandbiasesoftheirparents.Adultsarealsoparticipatinginthisrevolution.India’snormallytamemiddleclassisspeakingupagainstsocialills.SiliconValleyexecutivesarebeingshamedintoaddingwomentotheirboards.Politicalleadersaremarshallingtheenergyofmillionsforelectionsandpoliticalcauses.AllofthisisbeingdonewithsocialmediatechnologiesthatFacebookanditscompetitorssetfree.Asdoeseveryadvancingtechnology,socialmediahascreatedmanynewproblems.Itiscommonlyaddictiveandcreatesrisksforyoungerusers.SocialmediaisusedbyextremistsintheMiddleEastandelsewheretoseekandbrainwashrecruits.Anditexposesusandourfriendstodisagreeablespying.Wemayleaveourlightsoninthehousewhenweareonvacation,butthroughsocialmediawetellcriminalsexactlywhereweare,whenweplantoreturnhome,andhowtoblackmail(敲詐)us.Governmentsdon’tneedinformersanymore.Socialmediaallowsgovernmentagenciestospyontheirowncitizens.Werecordourthoughts,emotions,likesanddislikesonFacebook;weshareourpoliticalviews,socialpreferences,andplans.Wepostintimatephotographsofourselves.Nospyagencyorcriminalorganizationcouldactivelygatherthetypeofdatathatwevoluntarilypostforthem.Themarketersarealsoseeingbigopportunities.Amazonistryingtopredictwhatwewillorder.Googleistryingtojudgeourneedsandwantsbasedonoursocial-mediaprofiles.Weneedtobeawareoftherisksandkeepworkingtoalleviatethedangers.Regardlessofwhatsocialmediapeopleuse,onethingiscertain:we