2010年12月大学英语六级考试真题完整版_第4页

　　注意：此部分试题请在答题卡2上作答。

　　52. In the early 20th century Americans believed science and technology could _______.

　　[A] solve virtually all existing problems [C] help raise people’s living standards

　　[B] quicken the pace of industrialization [D] promote the nation’s social progress

　　53. Why did many American scholars become enthusiastic about humanistic studies after World WarⅡ?

　　[A] They wanted to improve their own status within the current education system.

　　[B] They believed the stability of a society depended heavily on humanistic studies.

　　[C] They could get financial support from various foundations for humanistic studies.

　　[D] They realized science and technology alone were no guarantee for a better world.

　　54. Why are American scholars worried about education today?

　　[A] The STEM subjects are too challenging for students to learn.

　　[B] Some Asian countries have overtaken America in basic sciences.

　　[C] America is lagging behind in the STEM disciplines.

　　[D] There are not enough scholars in humanistic studies.

　　55. What accounts for the significant decline in humanistic studies today?

　　[A] Insufficient funding. [C] Shortage of devoted faculty.

　　[B] Shrinking enrollment. [D] Dim prospects for graduates.

　　56. Why does the author attach so much importance to humanistic studies?

　　[A] They promote the development of science and technology.

　　[B] They help prepare students for their professional careers.

　　[C] Humanistic thinking helps define our culture and values.

　　[D] Humanistic thinking helps cultivate students’ creativity.

　　Passage Two

　　Questions 57 to 61 are based on the following passage.

　　Will there ever be another Einstein? This is the undercurrent of conversation at Einstein memorial meetings throughout the year. A new Einstein will emerge, scientists say. But it may take a long time. After all, more than 200 years separated Einstein from his nearest rival, Isaac Newton.

　　Many physicists say the next Einstein hasn’t been born yet, or is a baby now. That’s because the quest for a unified theory that would account for all the forces of nature has pushed current mathematics to its limits. New math must be created before the problem can be solved.

　　But researchers say there are many other factors working against another Einstein emerging anytime soon.

　　For one thing, physics is a much different field today. In Einstein’s day, there were only a few thousand physicists worldwide, and the theoreticians who could intellectually rival Einstein probably would fit into a streetcar with seats to spare.

　　Education is different, too. One crucial aspect of Einstein’s training that is overlooked is the years of philosophy he read as a teenager—Kant, Schopenhauer and Spinoza, among others. It taught him how to think independently and abstractly about space and time, and it wasn’t long before he became a philosopher himself.

　　“The independence created by philosophical insight is—in my opinion—the mark of distinction between a mere artisan (工匠) or specialist and a real seeker after truth,” Einstein wrote in 1944.

　　And he was an accomplished musician. The interplay between music and math is well known. Einstein would furiously play his violin as a way to think through a knotty physics problem.

　　Today, universities have produced millions of physicists. There aren’t many jobs in science for them, so they go to Wall Street and Silicon Valley to apply their analytical skills to more practical—and rewarding—efforts.

　　“Maybe there is an Einstein out there today,” said Columbia University physicist Brian Greene, “but it would be a lot harder for him to be heard.”

　　Especially considering what Einstein was proposing.

　　“The actual fabric of space and time curving? My God, what an idea!” Greene said at a recent gathering at the Aspen Institute. “It takes a certain type of person who will bang his head against the wall because you believe you’ll find the solution.”

　　Perhaps the best examples are the five scientific papers Einstein wrote in his “miracle year” of 1905. These “thought experiments” were pages of calculations signed and submitted to the prestigious journal Annalen der Physik by a virtual unknown. There were no footnotes or citations.

　　What might happen to such a submission today?

　　“We all get papers like those in the mail,” Greene said. “We put them in the junk file.”

　　注意： 此部分试题请在答题卡2上作答。

　　57. What do scientists seem to agree upon, judging from the first two paragraphs?

　　[A] Einstein pushed mathematics almost to its limits.

　　[B] It will take another Einstein to build a unified theory.

　　[C] No physicist is likely to surpass Einstein in the next 200 years.

　　[D] It will be some time before a new Einstein emerges.

　　58. What was critical to Einstein’s success?

　　[A] His talent as an accomplished musician.

　　[B] His independent and abstract thinking.

　　[C] His untiring effort to fulfill his potential.

　　[D] His solid foundation in math theory.

　　59. What does the author tell us about physicists today?

　　[A] They tend to neglect training in analytical skills.

　　[B] They are very good at solving practical problems.

　　[C] They attach great importance to publishing academic papers.

　　[D] They often go into fields yielding greater financial benefits.

　　60. What does Brian Greene imply by saying “... it would be a lot harder for him to be heard” (Lines 1-2, Para. 9)?

　　[A] People have to compete in order to get their papers published.

　　[B] It is hard for a scientist to have his papers published today.

　　[C] Papers like Einstein’s would unlikely get published today.

　　[D] Nobody will read papers on apparently ridiculous theories.

　　61. When he submitted his papers in 1905, Einstein _______.

　　[A] forgot to make footnotes and citations

　　[B] was little known in academic circles

　　[C] was known as a young genius in math calculations

　　[D] knew nothing about the format of academic papers

　　Part V Cloze (15 minutes)

　　Directions: There are 20 blanks in the following passage. For each blank there are four choices marked [A], [B], [C] and [D] on the right side of the paper. You should choose the ONE that best fits into the passage. Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre.

　　注意：此部分试题请在答题卡2上作答。

　　America’s most popular newspaper website today announced that the era of free online journalism is drawing to a close. The New York Times has become the biggest publisher yet to 62 plans for a paywall around its digital offering, 63 the accepted practice that internet users will not pay for news.

　　Struggling 64 an evaporation of advertising and a downward drift in street corner sales, The New York Times 65 to introduce a “metered” model at the beginning of 2011. Readers will be required to pay when they have 66 a set number of its online articles per month.

　　The decision puts the 159-year-old newspaper 67 the charging side of an increasingly wide chasm (鸿沟) in the media industry. But others, including the Guardian, have said they will not 68 internet readers, and certain papers, 69 London’s Evening Standard, have gone further in abandoning readership revenue by making their print editions 70 .

　　The New York Times’s publisher, Arthur Sulzberger, 71 that the move is a gamble: “This is a 72 , to a certain degree, in where we think the web is going.”

　　Boasting a print 73 of 995,000 on weekdays and 1.4 million on Sundays, The New York Times is the third bestselling American newspaper, 74 the Wall Street Journal and USA Today. 75 most US papers focus on a single city, The New York Times is among the few that can 76 national scope—as well as 16 bureaus in the New York area, it has 11 offices around the US and 77 26 bureaus elsewhere in the world.

　　But 78 many in the publishing industry, the paper is in the grip of a 79 financial crisis. Its parent company, the New York Times Company, has 15 papers, but 80 a loss of $70 million in the nine months to September and recently accepted a $250 million 81 from a Mexican billionaire, Carlos Slim, to strengthen its balance sheet.

　　62. [A] set in [C] carry over

　　[B] set out [D] carry away

　　63. [A] abusing [C] developing

　　[B] deducting [D] abandoning

　　64. [A] with [C] along

　　[B] beside [D] by

　　65. [A] engages [C] deliberates

　　[B] intends [D] signifies

　　66. [A] exceeded [C] assumed

　　[B] multiplied [D] revealed

　　67. [A] on [C] over

　　[B] of [D] up

　　68. [A] cost [C] expend

　　[B] consume [D] charge

　　69. [A] as for [C] such as

　　[B] far from [D] by far

　　70. [A] reliable [C] applicable

　　[B] free [D] easy

　　71. [A] resisted [C] acknowledged

　　[B] certified [D] appealed

　　72. [A] net [C] bet

　　[B] kit [D] pit

　　73. [A] evaluation [C] circulation

　　[B] expansion [D] dimension

　　74. [A] behind [C] before

　　[B] against [D] within

　　75. [A] If [C] Hence

　　[B] While [D] Because

　　76. [A] ascend [C] lengthen

　　[B] announce [D] claim

　　77. [A] contributes [C] maintains

　　[B] disposes [D] encounters

　　78. [A] like [C] from

　　[B] beyond [D] through

　　79. [A] heavy [C] rough

　　[B] crude [D] serious

　　80. [A] targeted [C] suffered

　　[B] suspended [D] tolerated

　　81. [A] asset [C] account

　　[B] bill [D] loan

　　Part VI Translation (5 minutes)

　　Directions: Complete the sentences by translating into English the Chinese given in brackets. Please write your translation on Answer Sheet 2.

　　注意： 此部分试题请在答题卡2上作答，只需写出译文部分。

　　82. There is no denying that you __________________________________ (越仔细越好) in dealing with this matter.

　　83. Only when I reached my thirties _____________________________(我才意识到读书是不能被忽视的).

　　84. Much _________________________________(使研究人员感到惊讶), the outcome of the experiment was far better than they had expected.

　　85. Oh, my, I can’t find my key; ______________________________(我一定是把它忘在哪儿了).

　　86. I ____________________________________________ (宁愿加入你们去做义工) than go to the beach for a holiday.