1、2018 年 6 月英语六级真题和答案听力Passage 1At some 2300 miles in length, the Mississippi is the longest river in the United States. At some 1000 miles, the Mackenzie is the longest river in Canada. But these waterways seem minute in comparison to the worlds 2 lengthiest rivers: the Nile and the Amazon. The Nile
2、which begins in central Africa and flows over 4100 miles north into the Mediterranean hosted one of the worlds great ancient civilizations along its shores. Calm and peaceful for most of the year, the Nile used to flood annually, thereby creating, irrigating and carrying new topsoil to the nearby fa
3、rmland on which ancient Egypt depended for livelihood. As a means of transportation, the river carried various vessels up and down its length. A journey through the unobstructed part of this waterway today would pass by the splendid valley of the Kings, where the tombs of many of these ancient monar
4、chs have stood for over 3000 years. Great civilizations and intensive settlement are hardly associated with the Amazon, yet this 4000 mile-long south American river carries about 20% of the worlds fresh water more than the Mississippi, Nile and Yangtze combined. Other statistics are equally astonish
5、ing. The Amazon is so wide at some points that from its center neither shore can be seen. Each second, the Amazon pours some 55 million gallons of water into the Atlantic. There, at its mouth stands one island larger than Switzerland. Most important of all, the Amazon irrigates the largest tropical
6、rain forest on earth. Passage 19. What can be found in the valley of the Kings?10. In what way is the Amazon different from other big rivers?11. What does the speaker say about the Amazon?Recording 2Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the third in our cities of business seminars in th
7、e program “Doing Business Abroad”. (Q19) Today, we are going to look at the intercultural awareness, that is the fact that not everyone is British, not everyone speaks English and not everyone does business in a British way. And, why should they? (Q19) If overseas business people are selling to us,
8、then they will make every effort to speak English and to respect our traditions and methods. It is only polite for us to do the same when we visit them. It is not only polite, it is a central, if we want to sell British products overseas. First, a short quiz. Lets see how interculturally-aware you a
9、re. Question 1: where must you not drink alcohol on the first and seventh of every month. Question 2: where should you never admire your hosts possessions. Question 3: how should you attract the waiter during a business lunch in Bangkok. Question 4: where should you try to make all your appointments
10、 either before 2 or after 5:30 pm. OK, everyone had a chance to make some notes. Right! Here are the answers. Although I am sure that the information could equally well apply to countries other than those I have chosen. No.1: (Q20) you must not drink alcohol on the first and seventh of the month in
11、India. In international hotels, you may find it served, but if you are having a meal with an India colleague, remember to avoid asking for a beer. If you are an arrival, coincide with one of those tips. No.2: in Arab countries, the politeness and generosity of the people is without parallel. If you
12、admire your colleagues beautiful belt and bowls, you may well find yourself being presented with them as a present. This is not a cheap way to do your shopping, however, as your host will quite correctly expect you to respond by presenting him with a gift of equal worth and beauty. In Thailand, clic
13、king the fingers, clapping your hands or just shouting “Waiter” will embarrass your hosts, fellow diners, the waiter himself and, most of all, you. Place your palm downward and make an inconspicuous waving gesture, which will produce instant and satisfying results. And finally, (Q21) in Spain, some
14、businesses maintain the pattern of working until about 2 oclock and then returning to the office from 5:30 to 8, 9 or 10 in the evening.Q19: What should you do when doing business with foreigners?Q20: What must you avoid doing with your Indian colleague?Q21: What do we learn about some Spanish peopl
15、e?选词填空儿歌Did Sarah Josepha Hale write “Marys Little Lamb,” the eternal nursery rhyme（儿歌）about girl named Mary with a stubborn lamb? This is still disputed, but its clear that the woman 26 reputed for writing it was one of Americas most fascinating 27 characters. In honor of the poem publication on Ma
16、y 24,1830, heres more about the 28 supposed authors life.Hale wasnt just a writer, she was also a 29 fierce social advocate, and she was particularly 30 obsessed with an ideal New England, which she associated with abundant Thanksgivinx xg meals that she claimed had “a deep moral influence,” she beg
17、an a nationwide 31 campaign to have a national holiday declared that would bring families together while celebrating the 32 traditional 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 procla
18、mation setting aside the last Thursday in November for the holiday.The true authorship of “Marys 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 34 inspired by a
19、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 cla
20、imed for the 35 rest of her life that “Some other people pretended that someone else wrote the poem”.A）campaignB）careerC） charactersD）featuresE）fierceF） inspiredG）latterH）obsessedI）proclamationJ）rectifiedK）reputedL）restM） supposedN）traditionalO）versatile金字塔Scientists scanning and mapping the Giza py
21、ramids say theyve discovered that the Great Pyramid of Giza is not exactly even. But really not by much. This pyramid is the oldest of the worlds Seven Wonders. The pyramids exact size has 26 puzzled experts for centuries, as the “more than 21 acres of hard, white casing stones“ that originally cove
22、red it were 27 removed long ago. Reporting in the most recent issue of the newsletter “AERAGRAM,“ which 28 chronicles the work of the Ancient Egypt Research Associates, engineer Glen Dash says that by using a new measuring approach that involved finding any surviving 29 remnants of the casing in ord
23、er to determine where the original edge was. They found the east side of the pyramid to be a 30 maximum of 5.55 inches shorter than the west side.The question that most 31 fascinates him, however, isnt how the Egyptians who designed and built the pyramid got it wrong 4,500 years ago, but how they go
24、t it so close to 32 perfect. “We can only speculate as to how the Egyptians could have laid out these lines with such 33 precision using only the tools they had,“ Dash writes. He says his 34 hypothesis is that the Egyptians laid out their design on a grid, noting that the great pyramid is oriented o
25、nly 35 slightly 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 thats “tiny, but similar,“ Atlas Obscura points out.chroniclescompleteestablishedfascinateshypothesismax
26、imummomentummysteriouslyperfectprecisionpuzzledremnantsremovedrevelationsslightly家用机器人 When Elon Musk says, as he did this week, that his new priority is using artificial intelligence to build domestic robots, we should not only take note, but look forward to the day we can put our legs up in admira
27、tion.Mr. Musk is a guy who gets things done. The founder of two “moonshot” tech companies, Tesla Motors and SpaceX, is bringing electric vehicles to mass market and 26 humans to live on other planets. Lest this strike the amateur techienot that readers of The Independent would ever count among thema
28、s so much hot air, you can be reassured that the near $13bn (8.8bn) fortune this entrepreneur has 27 comes from practical achievements rather than hypothetical ones.A lot of clever people are 28 about artificial intelligence, fearing that robots will one day become so 29 theyll murder all of us. The
29、se fears are mostly 30 : as with hysteria about genetic modification, we humans are generally wise enough to manage these problems with alacrity and care.And just think of how wonderful it would be if you had a live-in robot. It could 31 be like having a babysitter and masseuse rolled into one or, i
30、f that required 32 intelligence beyond the ken of Mr. Musks imagined machine, at least some one to chop the carrots, wash the car and mow the lawn. Once purchased and trained, this would allow the 33 user to save money and time, freeing up 34 space in our busy lives to, for instance, read The Indepe
31、ndent.That is why we welcome Mr. Musks latest 35 , and wish him well. As long as robots add to the sum of human happiness, reduce suffering or cumbersome activity, and create time to read world-class journalism, The Independent will be their fans. Especially since journalism is one job robots will n
32、ever do.A) amassedB) casualC) emotionalD) enablingE) eventuallyF) exaggeratedG) extravagantH) generouslyI) misleadingJ) preciousK) rewardL) smartM) sphereN) terrifiedO) venture答案：26. D enabling27. A amassed28. N terrified29. L smart30. F exaggerated31. E eventually32. C emotional33. B casual34. J pr
33、ecious35. O venture 阅读Passage One Questions 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
34、, 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 o
35、f the continents 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 p
36、romising 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
37、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 chan
38、ge. 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 Tecnologies, a company that raised the snails for fresh-water aquariums（水族馆）, but failed to prevent their escape. For now, the giant a
39、pple snails presence in Europe is limited to the Ebro Delta. But the snail continues its march to new territory, says Serrat. “The question is not if 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
40、 rice theyve bred. In 2018, farmers will plant the varieties with the most promise in the Ebro Delta and Europes other two main rice-growing regionsalong the Po in Italy, and Frances Rhne. A season in the field will help determine which, if any, of the varieties are ready for commercialization.As an
41、 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
42、 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 Spa
43、nish 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 firstB
44、. Killing two birds with one stoneC. Eliminating the enemy one by oneD. Using one evil to combat the other48. 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
45、 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 imaginati
46、on.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
47、 technology.Passage TwoQuestions 51 to 55 are based on the following passage. Photography was once an expensive, laborious ordeal reserved for lifes 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 di
48、ning companions patience.But is there another cost, a deeper cost, to documenting a life experience instead of simply enjoying it? “You hear that you shouldnt take all these photos and interrupt the experience, and its bad for you, and were not living in the present moment,“ says Kristin Diehl, asso
49、ciate 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 peoples 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 theyre doing more, not less.“What we find is you actually look at t
