2021年6月大学英语六级阅读理解真题及答案_2

2021年6月大学英语六级阅读理解真题及答案

Questions 21 to 25 are based on the following passage:

It is said that the public and Congressional concern about

deceptive packaging rumpus started because Senator Hart

discovered that the boxes of cereals consumed by him, Mrs. Hart,

and their children were becoming higher and narrower, with a

decline of net weight from 12 to 10.5 ounces, without any

reduction in price. There were still twelve biscuits, but they

had been reduced in size. Later, the Senator rightly complained

of a store-bought pie in a handsomely illustrated box that

pictured, in a single slice, almost as many cherries as there

were in the whole pie.

The manufacturer who increases the unit price of his product

by changing his package size to lower the quantity delivered

can, without undue hardship, put his product into boxes, bags,

and tins that will contain even 4-ounce, 8-ounce, one-pound,

two-pound quantities of breakfast foods, cake mixes, etc. A

study of drugstore and supermarket shelves will convince any

observer that all possible size and shapes of boxes, jars,

第 1 页

共 21 页

bottles, and tins are in use at the same time and, as the package

journals show, week by week, there is never any hesitation in

introducing a new size, and shape of box or bottle when it aids

in product differentiation. The producers of packaged products

argue strongly against changing sizes of packages to contain

even weights and volumes, but no one in the trade comments

unfavorably on the huge costs incurred by endless changes of

package sizes, materials, shape, art work, and net weights that

are used for improving a product’s market position.

When a packaging expert explained that he was able to multiply

the price of hard sweets by 2.5, from 1 dollar to 2.50 dollars

by changing to a fancy jar, or that he had made a 5-ounce bottle

look as though it held 8 ounces, he was in effect telling the

public that packaging can be a very expensive luxury. It

evidently does come high, when an average family pays about 200

dollars a year for bottles, cans, boxes, jars and other

containers, most of which can’t be used anything but stuffing

the garbage can.

21. What started the public and Congressional concern about

deceptive packaging rumpus?

A) Consumers’ complaints about the changes in the package size.

第 2 页

共 21 页

B) Expensive packaging for poor quality products.

C) A senator’s discovery of the tricks in packaging.

D) The rise in the unit price for many products.

22. The word “undue” (Para. 2) means “________”.

A) improper

B) adequate

C) unexpected

D) excessive

23. Consumers are concerned about the changes in the package

size, mainly because ________.

A) they hate to see any changes in things they are familiar with

B) they unit price for a product often rises as a result

C) they have to pay for the cost of changing package sizes

D) this entails an increase in the cost of packaging

24. According to this passage, various types of packaging come

into existence to ________.

A) meet the needs of consumers

B) suit all kinds of products

C) enhance the market position of products

D) introduce new products

25. The author is critical mainly of ________.

A) dishonest packaging

第 3 页

共 21 页

B) inferior packaging

C) the changes in package size

D) exaggerated illustrations on packages

Questions 26 to 30 are based on the following passage.

If sustainable competitive advantage depends on work-force

skills, American firms have a problem. Human-resource

management is not traditionally seen as central to the

competitive survival of the firm in United States. Skill

acquisition is considered an individual responsibility. Labour

is simply another factor of production to be hired-rented at

the lowest possible cost-much as one buys raw materials or

equipment.

The lack of importance attached to human-resource management

can be seen in the corporate hierarchy. In an American firm the

chief financial officer is almost always second in command. The

post of head of human-resource management is usually a

specialized job, off at the edge of the corporate hierarchy.

The executive who holds it is never consulted on major strategic

decisions and has no chance to move up to Chief Executive

Officer (CEO). By way of contrast, in Japan the head of

human-resource management is central-usually the second most

第 4 页

共 21 页

important executive, after the CEO, in the firm’s hierarchy.

While American firms often talk about the vast amounts spent

on training their work forces, in fact they invest less in the

skills of their employees than do either Japanese or German

firms. The money they do invest is also more highly concentrated

on professional and managerial employees. And the limited

investments that are made in training workers are also much more

narrowly focused on the specific skills necessary to do the next

job rather than on the basic background skills that make it

possible to absorb new technologies.

As a result, problems emerge when new breakthrough technologies

arrive. If American workers, for example, take much longer to

learn how to operate new flexible manufacturing stations than

workers in Germany (as they do), the effective cost of those

stations is lower in Germany than it is in the United States.

More time is required before equipment is up and running at

capacity, and the need for extensive retraining generates costs

and creates bottlenecks that limit the speed with which new

equipment can be employed. The result is as lower pace of

technological change. And in the end the skills of the

population affect the wages of the top half. If the bottom half

can’t effectively staff the processes that have to be operated,

第 5 页

共 21 页

the management and professional jobs that to with these

processes will disappear.

26. Which of the following applies to the management of human

resources in American companies?

A) They hire people at the lowest cost regardless of their

skills.

B) They see the gaining of skills as their employees’ own

business.

C) They attach more importance to workers than equipment.

D) They only hire skilled workers because of keen competition.

27. What is the position of the head of human-resource

management in an American firm?

A) He is one of the most important executives in firms.

B) His post is likely to disappear when new technologies are

introduced.

C) He is directly under the chief financial executives in the

firms.

D) He has no say in making important decisions in the firm.

28. The money most American firms put in training mainly goes

to ________.

A) workers who can operate new equipment

第 6 页

共 21 页

B) technological and managerial staff

C) workers who lack basic background skills

D) top executives

29. According to the passages, the decisive factor in

maintaining a firm’s competitive advantage is ________.

A) the introduction of new technologies

B) the improvement of worker’s basic skills

C) the rational composition of professional and managerial

employees

D) the attachment of importance to the bottom half of the

employees

30. What is the main idea of the passage?

A) American firms are different from Japanese and German firms

in human-resource management.

B) Extensive retraining is indispensable to effective

human-resource management.

C) The head of human-resource management must be in the central

position in a firm’s hierarchy.

D) The human-resource management strategies of American firms

affect their competitive capacity.

重点单词查看全部解释critical['kritikəl]想一想再看

adj. 批评的，决定性的，危险的，挑剔的

第 7 页

共 21 页

a

flexible['fleksəbl]想一想再看

adj. 灵活的，易弯曲的，柔韧的，可变通的

联想记忆X单词flexible联想记忆：

flex弯曲+ible形容词“能…的”→易弯曲的 appeal[ə'pi:l]想一想再看

n. 恳求，上诉，吸引力

n. 诉诸裁决联想记忆X单词appeal联想记忆：

ap一再，peal＝pull拉－一再拉－吸引 deceptive[di'septiv]想一想再看

adj. 迷惑的，虚伪的，诈欺的

联想记忆X单词deceptive联想记忆：

de坏＋cept拿，抓，握住+ive→拿坏的东西来→欺骗性的

accurate['ækjurit]想一想再看

adj. 准确的，精确的

联想记忆X单词accurate联想记忆：

ac+cur关心+ate→一再关心，弄精确为止→准确的，精确的

unknown['ʌn'nəun]想一想再看

adj. 未知的，不出名的

exchange[iks'tʃeindʒ]想一想再看

n. 交换，兑换，交易所

v. 交换，兑换，交

第 8 页

共 21 页

competitive[kəm'petitiv]想一想再看

adj. 竞争的，比赛的

联想记忆X单词competitive联想记忆：

com共同+pet追求+itive表形容词，“…的”→比赛的 listener['lisənə]想一想再看

n. 听者，听众

improvement[im'pru:vmənt]想一想再看

n. 改进，改善

Questions 31 to 35 are based on the following passage.

The biographer has to dance between two shaky positions with

respect to the subject. Too close a relation, and the writer

may be objectivity. Not close enough, and the writer may lack

the sympathy necessary to any effort to portray a mind, a

soul-the quality of life. Who should write the biography of a

family, for example? Because of their closeness to the subject,

family members may have special information, but by the same

token, they may not have the distance that would allow them to

be fair. Similarly, a king’s servant might not be the best one

to write a biography of that king. But a foreigner might not

have the knowledge and sympathy necessary to write the king’s biography-not for a readership from within the kingdom, at

第 9 页

共 21 页

any rate.

There is no ideal position for such a task. The biographer has

to work with the position he or she has in the world, adjusting

that position as necessary to deal with the subject. Every

position has strengths and weaknesses: to thrive, a writer must

try to become aware of these, evaluate them in terms of the

subject, and select a position accordingly.

When their subjects are heroes or famous figures, biographies

often reveal a democratic motive: they attempt to show that

their subjects are only human, no better than anyone else. Other

biographies are meant to change us, to invite us to become

better than we are. The biographies of Jesus found in the Bible

are in this class.

Biographers may claim that their account is the “authentic”

one. In advancing this claim, they are helped if the biography

is “authorized” by the subject, this presumably allows the

biographer special access to private information.

“Unauthorized” biographies also have their appeal, however,

since they can suggest an independence of mind in the biographer.

In book promotions, the “unauthorized” characterisation

usually suggests the prospect of juicy gossip that the subject

had hoped to suppress. A subject might have several biographies,

第 10 页

共 21 页

even several “authentic” ones. We sense intuitively that no

one is in a position to tell the story of a life, perhaps not

even the subject, and this has been proved by the history of

biography.

31. According to the author, an ideal biographer would be one

who ________.

A) knows the subject very well and yet maintains a proper

distance from him

B) is close to the subject and knows the techniques of biography

writing

C) is independent and treats the subject with fairness and

objectivity

D) possesses special private information and is sympathetic

toward the subject

32. The author cites the biographies of Jesus in the Bible in

order to show that ________.

A) the best biographies are meant to transform their readers

B) biographies are authentic accounts of their subjects’ lives

C) the best biographies are the of heroes and famous figures

D) biographies can serve different purpose

33. Which of the following statements is true, according to the

第 11 页

共 21 页

passage?

A) An authentic biography seldom appeals to its readers.

B) An authentic biography is one authorized by the subject.

C) No one can write a perfect biography.

D) Authorized biographies have a wider readership.

34. An unauthorized biography is likely to attract more readers

because ________.

A) it portrays the subject both faithfully and vividly

B) it contains interesting information about the subject’s

private life

C) it reveals a lot of accurate details unknown to outsiders

D) it usually gives a sympathetic description of the subject’s character

35. In this passage, the author focuses on ________.

A) the difficulty of a biographer in finding the proper

perspective to do his job

B) the secret of a biographer to win more readers

C) the techniques required of a biographer to write a food

biography

D) the characteristics of different kinds of biographies

重点单词查看全部解释critical['kritikəl]想一想再看

adj. 批评的，决定性的，危险的，挑剔的

第 12 页

共 21 页

a

flexible['fleksəbl]想一想再看

adj. 灵活的，易弯曲的，柔韧的，可变通的

联想记忆X单词flexible联想记忆：

flex弯曲+ible形容词“能…的”→易弯曲的 appeal[ə'pi:l]想一想再看

n. 恳求，上诉，吸引力

n. 诉诸裁决联想记忆X单词appeal联想记忆：

ap一再，peal＝pull拉－一再拉－吸引 deceptive[di'septiv]想一想再看

adj. 迷惑的，虚伪的，诈欺的

联想记忆X单词deceptive联想记忆：

de坏＋cept拿，抓，握住+ive→拿坏的东西来→欺骗性的

accurate['ækjurit]想一想再看

adj. 准确的，精确的

联想记忆X单词accurate联想记忆：

ac+cur关心+ate→一再关心，弄精确为止→准确的，精确的

unknown['ʌn'nəun]想一想再看

adj. 未知的，不出名的

exchange[iks'tʃeindʒ]想一想再看

n. 交换，兑换，交易所

v. 交换，兑换，交

第 13 页

共 21 页

competitive[kəm'petitiv]想一想再看

adj. 竞争的，比赛的

联想记忆X单词competitive联想记忆：

com共同+pet追求+itive表形容词，“…的”→比赛的 listener['lisənə]想一想再看

n. 听者，听众

improvement[im'pru:vmənt]想一想再看

n. 改进，改善

Questions 36 to 40 are based on the following passage.

Whether the eyes are “the windows of the soul” is debatable,

that they are intensely important in interpersonal

communication is a fact. During the first two months of a baby’s life, the stimulus that produces a smile is a pair of eyes.

The eyes need not be real: a mask with two dots will produce

a smile. Significantly, a real human face with eyes then the

face will not motivate a smile, nor will the sight of only one

eye then the face is presented in profile. This attraction to

eyes as opposed to the nose or mouth continues as the baby

matures. In one study, when American four-year-olds were asked

to draw people, 75 percent of them drew people with mouths, but

99 percent of them drew people with eyes. In Japan, however,

第 14 页

共 21 页

where babies are carried on their mother’s back, infants to

not acquire as much attachment to eyes as they do in other

cultures. As a result, Japanese adults make little use of the

face either to encode or decode meaning. In fact, Argyle reveals

that the “proper place to focus one’s gaze during a

conversation in Japan is on the neck of one’s conversation

partner.”

The role of eye contact in a conversational exchange between

two Americans is well defined: speakers make contact with the

eyes of their listener for about one second, then glance away

as they talk; in a few moments they re-establish eye contact

with the listener or reassure themselves that their audience

is still attentive, then shift their gaze away once more.

Listeners, meanwhile, keep their eyes on the face of the speaker,

allowing themselves-to glance away only briefly. It is

important that they be looking at the speaker at the `precise

moment when the speaker reestablishes eye contact: if they are

not looking, the speaker assumes that they are disinterested

and either will pause until eye contact is resumed or will

terminate the conversation. Just how critical this eye

maneuvering is to the maintenance of conversational flow

becomes evident when two speakers are wearing dark glasses:

第 15 页

共 21 页

there may be a sort of traffic jam of words caused by

interruption, false starts, and unpredictable pauses.

36. The author is convinced that the eyes are ________.

A) of extreme importance in expressing feelings and exchanging

ideas

B) something through which one can see a person’s inner world

C) of considerable significance in making conversations

interesting

D) something the value of which is largely a matter of long

debate

37. Babies will not be stimulated to smile by a person ________.

A) whose front view is fully perceived

B) whose face is covered with a mask

C) whose face is seen from the side

D) whose face is free of any covering

38. According to the passage, the Japanese fix their gaze on

their conversation partner’s neck because ________.

A) they don’t like to keep their eyes on the face of the speaker

B) they need not communicate through eye contact

C) they don’t think it polite to have eye contact

D) they didn’t have much opportunity to communicate through

第 16 页

共 21 页

eye contact in babyhood

39. According to the passage, a conversation between two

Americans may break down due to ________.

A) one temporarily glancing away from the other

B) eye contact of more than one second

C) improperly-timed ceasing of eye contact

D) constant adjustment of eye contact

40. To keep a conversation flowing smoothly, it is better for

the participants ________.

A) not to wear dark spectacles

B) not to make any interruptions

C) not to glance away from each other

D) not to make unpredictable pauses

重点单词查看全部解释critical['kritikəl]想一想再看

adj. 批评的，决定性的，危险的，挑剔的

a

flexible['fleksəbl]想一想再看

adj. 灵活的，易弯曲的，柔韧的，可变通的

联想记忆X单词flexible联想记忆：

flex弯曲+ible形容词“能…的”→易弯曲的 appeal[ə'pi:l]想一想再看

n. 恳求，上诉，吸引力

第 17 页

共 21 页

n. 诉诸裁决联想记忆X单词appeal联想记忆：

ap一再，peal＝pull拉－一再拉－吸引 deceptive[di'septiv]想一想再看

adj. 迷惑的，虚伪的，诈欺的

联想记忆X单词deceptive联想记忆：

de坏＋cept拿，抓，握住+ive→拿坏的东西来→欺骗性的

accurate['ækjurit]想一想再看

adj. 准确的，精确的

联想记忆X单词accurate联想记忆：

ac+cur关心+ate→一再关心，弄精确为止→准确的，精确的

unknown['ʌn'nəun]想一想再看

adj. 未知的，不出名的

exchange[iks'tʃeindʒ]想一想再看

n. 交换，兑换，交易所

v. 交换，兑换，交

competitive[kəm'petitiv]想一想再看

adj. 竞争的，比赛的

联想记忆X单词competitive联想记忆：

com共同+pet追求+itive表形容词，“…的”→比赛的 listener['lisənə]想一想再看

n. 听者，听众

improvement[im'pru:vmənt]想一想再看

第 18 页

共 21 页

n. 改进，改善

21. C

22. D

23. B

24. C

25. A

26. B

27. D

28. B

29. B

30. D

31. A

32. D

33. C

34. B

35. A

36. A

37. C

38. D

39. C

40. A

第 19 页

共 21 页

重点单词查看全部解释critical['kritikəl]想一想再看

adj. 批评的，决定性的，危险的，挑剔的

a

flexible['fleksəbl]想一想再看

adj. 灵活的，易弯曲的，柔韧的，可变通的

联想记忆X单词flexible联想记忆：

flex弯曲+ible形容词“能…的”→易弯曲的 appeal[ə'pi:l]想一想再看

n. 恳求，上诉，吸引力

n. 诉诸裁决联想记忆X单词appeal联想记忆：

ap一再，peal＝pull拉－一再拉－吸引 deceptive[di'septiv]想一想再看

adj. 迷惑的，虚伪的，诈欺的

联想记忆X单词deceptive联想记忆：

de坏＋cept拿，抓，握住+ive→拿坏的东西来→欺骗性的

accurate['ækjurit]想一想再看

adj. 准确的，精确的

联想记忆X单词accurate联想记忆：

ac+cur关心+ate→一再关心，弄精确为止→准确的，精确的

unknown['ʌn'nəun]想一想再看

adj. 未知的，不出名的

第 20 页

共 21 页

exchange[iks'tʃeindʒ]想一想再看

n. 交换，兑换，交易所

v. 交换，兑换，交

competitive[kəm'petitiv]想一想再看

adj. 竞争的，比赛的

联想记忆X单词competitive联想记忆：

com共同+pet追求+itive表形容词，“…的”→比赛的 listener['lisənə]想一想再看

n. 听者，听众

improvement[im'pru:vmənt]想一想再看

n. 改进，改善

第 21 页

共 21 页