大学英语六级真题试卷-2006年12月(B卷）/中

 

Passage Three

Questions 31 to 35 are based on the following passage.

Intel chairman Andy Grove has decided to cut the Gordian knot of controversy surrounding stem cell research by simply writing a check.

The check, which he pledged last week, could be for as much as 55 million, depending on how many donors make gifts of between 550,000 and 5,500,000, which he has promised to match. It will be made out to the University of California-San Francisco (UCSF).

Thanks in part to such private donations, university research into uses for human stem cells—the cells at the earliest stages of development that can form any body part—will continue in California. With private financial support, the state will be less likely to lose talented scientists who would be tempted to leave the field or even leave the country as research dependent on federal money slows to glacial (极其缓慢的) pace.

Hindered by limits President Bush placed on stem cell research a year age, scientists are turning to laboratories that can carry out work without using federal money. This is awkward for universities, which must spend extra money building separate labs and keeping rigor cots records proving no federal funds were involved. Grove’s donation, a first step toward a $20 million target at UCSF, will ease the burden.

The president’s decision a year ago to allow research on already existing stem cell lines was portrayed as a reasonable compromise between scientists’ needs for cells to work with, and concerns that this kind of research could lead to wholesale creation and destruction of human embryos (胚胎), cloned infants and a general contempt for human life.

But Bush’s effort to please both sides ended up pleasing neither. And it certainly didn’t provide the basis for cutting edge research. Of the 78 existing stem cell lines which Bush said are all that science would ever need, only one is in this country (at the University of Wisconsin) and only five are ready for distribution to researchers. All were grown in conjunction with mouse cells, making future therapeutic (治疗的) uses unlikely.

The Bush administration seems bent on satisfying the small but vocal group of Americans who oppose stem cell research under any conditions. Fortunately, Grove and others are more interested in advancing scientific research that could benefit the large number of Americans who suffer from Parkinson’s disease, nerve injuries, heart diseases and many other problems.

31.   When Andy Grove decided to cut the Gordian knot, he meat to ________.

A) put an end to stem cell research

B) end Intel’s relations with Gordian

C) settle the dispute on stem cell research quickly

D) expel Gordian from stem cell research for good

32.   For UCSF to carry on stem cell research, new funds have to come from ________.

A) interested businesses and individuals

B) the United States federal government

C) a foundation set up by the Intel Company

D) executives of leading American companies

33.   As a result of the limit Bust placed on stem cell research. American universities will ________.

A) conduct the research in laboratories overseas

B) abandon the research altogether in the near future

C) have to carry out the research secretly

D) have to raise money to build separate labs

34.   We may infer from the passage that future therapeutic uses of stem cells will be unlikely unless ________.

A) human stem cells are used in the research

B) a lot more private donations can be secured

C) more federal money is used for the research

D) talented scientists are involved in the research

35.   The reason lying behind President Bush’s placing limits on stem cell research is that ________.

A) his administration is financially pinched

B) he did not want to offend its opponents

C) it amounts to a contempt for human life

D) it did not promise any therapeutic value

 

Passage Four

Questions 36 to 40 are based on the following passage.

This looks like the year that hard-pressed tenants in California will relief-not just in the marketplace, where tents have eased, but from the state capital Sacramento.

Two significant tenant reforms stand a good chance of passage. One bill, which will give more time to tenants being evicted (逐出), will soon be heading to the governor’s desk. The other, protecting security deposits, faces a vote in the Senate on Monday.

For more than a century, landlords in California have been able to force tenants out with only 30 days’ notice. That will now double under SB 1403, which got through the Assembly recently. The new protection will apply only to renters who have been in an apartment for at least a year.

Even 60 days in a tight housing market won’t be long enough for some families to find an apartment near where their kids go to school. But is will be an improvement in cities like San Jose, where renters rights groups charge that unscrupulous (不择手段的) landlords have kicked out tenants on short notice to put up tents.

The California Landlords Association argued that landlords shouldn’t have to wait 60 days to get rid of problem tenants. But the bill gained support when a Japanese real estate investor sent out 30-day eviction notices to 550 families renting homes in Sacramento and Santa Rosa. The landlords lobby eventually dropped its opposition and instead turned its forces against AB 2330, regarding security deposits.

Sponsored by Assemblywoman Carole Migden of San Francisco, the bill would establish a procedure and a timetable for tenants to get back security deposits.

Some landlords view security deposits as a free month’s rent, theirs for the taking. In most cases, though, there are honest disputes over damages-what constitutes ordinary wear and tear

AB 2330 would give a tenant the right to request a walk-through with the landlord and to make the repairs before moving out; reputable landlords already do this. It would increase the penalty for failing to return a deposit.

The original bill would have required the landlord to pay interest on the deposit. The landlords lobby protested that it would involve too much paperwork over too little money-less than $10 a year on a $1,000 deposit, at current rates. On Wednesday, the sponsor dropped the interest section to increase the chance of passage.

Even in its amended form, AB 2330 is, like SB 1403, vitally important for tenants and should be made state law.

36.   We learn from the passage that SB 1403 will benefit ________.

A) long-term real estate investors

B) short-term tenants in Sacramento

C) landlords in the State of California

D) tenants renting a house over a year

37.   A 60-day notice before eviction may not be early enough for renters because ________.

A) moving house is something difficult to arrange

B) appropriate housing may not be readily available

C) more time is needed for their kids’ school registration

D) the furnishing of the new house often takes a long time

38.   Very often landlords don’t return tenants’ deposits on the pretext that ________.

A) their rent has not been paid in time

B) there has been ordinary wear and tear

C) tenants have done damage to the house

D) the 30-day notice for moving out is over

39.   Why did the sponsor of the AB 2330 bill finally give in on the interest section?

A) To put an end to a lengthy argument.

B) To urge landlords to lobby for its passage.

C) To cut down the heavy paperwork for its easy passage.

D) To make it easier for the State Assembly to pass the bill.

40.   It can be learned from the passage that ________.

A) both bills are likely to be made state laws

B) neither bill will pass through the Assembly

C) AB 2330 stands a better chance of passage

D) Sacramento and San Jose support SB 1403

 

Part III Vocabulary (20 minutes)

Directions:      There are 30 incomplete sentences in this part. For each sentence there are four choices marked A), B), C) or D). Choose the ONE answer that the best completes the sentence. Then mark the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet with a single line through the centre.

41.   Grey whales have long been ________ in the north Atlantic and hunting was an important cause for that.

A) extinct

B) extinguished

C) detained

D) deprived

42.   He was given major responsibility for operating the remote manipulator to ________ the newly launched satellite.

A) retreat

B) retrieve

C) embody

D) embrace

43.   Foreign students are facing unprecedented delays, as visa applications receive closer ________ than ever.

A) appraisal

B) scanning

C) retention

D) scrutiny

44.   If you are late for the appointment, you might ________ the interviewer and lose your chance of being accepted.

A) irrigate

B) intrigue

C) irritate

D) intimidate

45.   Children’s idea of a magic kingdom is often dancers in animal ________ as they have often seen in Disneyland.

A) cushions

B) costumes

C) skeletons

D) ornaments

46.   Ever since the first nuclear power stations were built, doubts have ________ about their safety.

A) preserved

B) survived

C) suspended

D) lingered

47.   This clearly shows that crops and weeds have quite a number of ________ in common.

A) traits

B) traces

C) tracks

D) trails

48.   From science to Shakespeare, excellent television and video programs are available ________ to teacher.

A) in stock

B) in store

C) in operation

D) in abundance

49.   When the Italian poet Dante was ________ from his home in Florence, he decided to walk from Italy to Paris to search for the real meaning of life.

A) exerted

B) expired

C) exiled

D) exempted

50.   Habits acquired in youth-notably smoking and drinking-may increase the risk of ________ diseases in a person’s later life.

A) consecutive

B) chronic

C) critical

D) cyclical

51.   F. W. Woolworth was the first businessman to erect a true skyscraper to ________ himself, and in 1929, A1 Smith, a former governor of New York, sought to outreach him.

A) portray

B) proclaim

C) exaggerate

D) commemorate

52.   To label their produce as organic, farmers have to obtain a certificate showing that no ________ chemicals have been used to kill pests on the farm for two years.

A) toxic

B) tragic

C) nominal

D) notorious

53.   Ancient Greek gymnastics training programs were considered to be an ________ part of the children’s education.

A) intact

B) integral

C) inclusive

D) infinite

54.   Researchers have found that happiness doesn’t appear to be anyone’s; the capacity for joy is a talent you develop largely for yourself.

A) disposal

B) domain

C) heritage

D) hostage

55.   We want out children to have more than job skills; we want their lives to be ________ and their perspectives to be broadened.

A) envisaged

B) excelled

C) exceeded

D) enriched

56.   Online schools, which ________ the needs of different people, have emerged as an increasingly popular education alternative.

A) stir up

B) switch on

C) cater to

D) consent to

57.   This kind of songbird sleeps much less during its annual ________,but that doesn’t seem to affect its flying.

A) migration

B) emigration

C) conveyance

D) transference

58.   The developing nations want rich countries to help shoulder the cost of ________ forests.

A) updating

B) upgrading

C) conserving

D) constructing

59.   In the study, researchers succeeded in determining how coffee ________ different areas of the brain in 15 volunteers.

A) integrated

B) motivated

C) illuminated

D) activated

60.   They are trying to ________ the risk as much as they can by making a more thorough investigation of the market.

A) minimize

B) harmonize

C) summarize

D) jeopardize

61.   The cycles of the sun and moon are simple, but forces which have shaped human lives since the beginning.

A) frantic

B) gigantic

C) sensational

D) maximum

62.   An effort was launched recently to create the first computer ________ of the entire human brain.

A) repetition

B) repression

C) saturation

D) simulation

63.   In the face of the disaster, the world has united to aid millions of ________ people trying to piece their lives back together.

A) fragile

B) primitive

C) vulnerable

D) susceptible

64.   AIDS is a global problem that demands a unified, worldwide solution, which is not only the responsibility of nations in which AIDS is most ________.

A) relevant

B) prent

C) vigorous

D) rigorous

65.   After the earthquake, a world divided by ________ and religious disputes suddenly faced its common humanity in this shocking disaster.

A) eligible

B) engaged

C) prone

D) prospective

66.   Psychologists suggest that children who are shy are more ________ to develop depression and anxiety later in life.

A) eligible

B) engaged

C) prone

D) prospective

67.   Initially, the scientists and engineers seemed ________ by the variety of responses people can make to a poem.

A) reinforced

B) embarrassed

C) depressed

D) bewildered

68.   Is it possible to stop drug ________ in the country within a very short time?

A) adoption

B) addiction

C) contemplation

D) compulsion

69.   The parents of Lindsay, 13, an ________ tennis player who spends eight hours a day on the court, admit that a regular school is not an option for their daughter.

A) exotic

B) equivalent

C) elite

D) esthetic

70.   Our research confirmed the ________ that when children have many different caregivers important aspects of their development are liable to be overlooked.

A) hypothesis

B) hierarchy

C) synthesis

D) syndrome