2016年12月六级真题(第三套)

梦想不会辜负每一个努力的人2016年12月大学英语六级考试（第3套）PartIWriting(30minutes)Directions:Forthispart,youareallowed30minutestowriteashortessayoninnovation.Youressayshouldincludetheimportanceofcreationandmeasurestobetakentoencourageinnovation.Youarerequiredtowriteatleast150wordsbutnomorethan200words.（本次六级考试全国共考了两套听力，第三套的听力就是前面两套中的一套，故不在这里重复）PartIIIReadingComprehension(40minutes)SectionADirections:Inthissection,thereisapassagewithtenblanks.Youarerequiredtoselectonewordforeachblankfromalistofchoicesgiveninawordbankfollowingthepassage.Readthepassagethroughcarefullybeforemakingyourchoices.Eachchoiceinthebankisidentifiedbyaletter.PleasemarkthecorrespondingletterforeachitemonAnswerSheet2withasinglelinethroughthecenter.Youmaynotuseanyofthewordsinthebankmorethanonce.ThetreepeopleintheLordoftheRings—theEnts---cangetaroundbywalking.Butforrealtrees,it’shardertouproot.Becausethey’reliterallyrootedintotheground,theyareunabletoleaveandgo-26-.Whenatreefirststartsgrowinginacertainarea,it’slikelythatthe-27-envelope—thetemperature,humidity,rainfallpatternsandsoon—suitsit.Otherwise,itwouldbeunabletogrowfromaseedling.Butasit-28-,theseconditionsmaychangeandtheareaarounditmaynolongerbesuitableforits-29-.Whenthathappens,manytreeslikewalnuts,oaksandpines,rely-30-onso-called“scatterhoarders,”suchasbirds,tomovetheirseedstonewlocalities.Manybirdsliketostorefoodforthewinter,whichthey-31-retrieve.Whenthebirdsforgettoretrievetheirfood---andtheydosometimes—aseedlinghasachancetogrow.ThebirdClark’snutcracker,forexample,hidesupto100,000seedsperyear,upto30kilometersawayfromtheseedsource,andhasaveryclosesymbiotic(共生的)relationshipwithseveralpinespecies,most32thewhitebarkpine.Astreesoutgrowtheirideal-33-inthefaceofclimatechange,theseflyingecosystemengineerscouldbeabighelpin-34-trees.It’sasolutionforus—gettingbirdstodotheworkischeapandeffective—anditcouldgive-35-oaksandpinestheoptiontotruly“makelikeatreeandleave.”A)agesB)breathingC)climaticD)elsewhereE)exclusivelyF)foreverG)fruitfulH)habitatsI)legacyJ)notablyK)offspringL)replantingM)subsequentlyN)vulnerableO)withdrawsSectionBDirections:Inthissection，youaregoingtoreadapassagewithtenstatementsattachedtoit.Eachstatementcontainsinformationgiveninoneoftheparagraphs.Identifytheparagraphfromwhichtheinformationisderived.Youmaychooseaparagraphmorethanonce.Eachparagraphismarkedwithaletter.AnswerthequestionsbymarkingthecorrespondingletteronAnswerSheet2.TheAmericanWorkplaceIsBroken.Here’sHowWeCanStartFixingIt.[A]Americansareworkinglongerandharderhoursthaneverbefore.83%ofworkerssaythey’restressedabouttheirjobs,nearly50%saywork-relatedstressisinterferingwiththeirsleep,and60%usetheirsmartphonestocheckinwithworkoutsideofnormalworkinghours.Nowonderonly13%ofemployeesworldwidefeelengagedintheiroccupation.[B]Glimmers(少许)ofhope,however,arebeginningtoemergeinthisbruisingenvironment:Americansarebecomingawareofthetolltheirjobstakeonthem,andemployersareexploringwaystoalleviatetheharmfuleffectsofstressandoverwork.Yetmuchmoreworkremainstobedone.Tocallstressanepidemicisn’texaggeration.The83%ofAmericanemployeeswhoarestressedabouttheirjobs---upfrom73%justayearbefore—saythatpoorcompensationandanunreasonableworkloadaretheirnumber-onesourcesofstress.Andifyoususpectedthattheworkplacehadgottenmorestressfulthanitwasjustafewdecadesago,you’reright.Stresslevelsincreased18%forwomenand24%formenfrom1983to2009.Stressisalsostartingearlierinlife,withsomedatasuggestingthattoday’steensareevenmorestressedthanadults.梦想不会辜负每一个努力的人[C]Stressistakingasignificanttollonourhealth,andthecollectivepublichealthcostmaybeenormous.Occupationalstressincreasestheriskofheartattackanddiabetes,acceleratestheagingprocess,decreaseslongevity,andcontributestodepressionandanxiety,amongnumerousothernegativehealthoutcomes.Overall,stress-relatedhealthproblemsaccountforupto90%ofhospitalvisits,manyofthempreventable.Yourjobis“literallykillingyou,”asTheWashingtonPostputit.It’salsohurtingourrelationships.Workingparentssaytheyfeelstressed,tired,rushedandshortonqualitytimewiththeirchildren,friendsandpartners.[D]Sevenintenworkerssaytheystruggletomaintainwork-lifebalance.Astechnology(andwithit,workemails)seeps(渗入)intoeveryaspectofourlives,work-lifebalancehasbecomeanalmostmeaninglessterm.Addarapidlychangingeconomyandanuncertainfuturetothis24/7connectivity,andyou’vegotarecipeforoverwork,accordingtoPhyllisMoen.“There’srisingworkdemandcoupledwiththeinsecurityofmergers,takeovers,downsizingandotherfactors，”Moensaid.“Partofthework-lifeissuehastotalkaboutuncertaintyaboutthefuture.”[E]Thesefactorshaveconvergedtocreateanincreasinglyimpossiblesituationwithmanyemployeesoverworkingtothepointofburnout.It’snotonlyunsustainableforworkers,butalsoforthecompaniesthatemploythem.Sciencehasshownaclearcorrelationbetweenhighstresslevelsinworkersandabsenteeism(旷工)，reducedproductivity,disengagementandhighturnover.Toomanyworkplacepolicieseffectivelyprohibitemployeesfromdevelopingahealthywork-lifebalancebybarringthemfromtakingtimeoff,evenwhentheyneeditmost.[F]TheU.S.trailsfarbehindeverywealthynationandmanydevelopingonesthathavefamily-friendlyworkpoliciesincludingpaidparentalleave,paidsickdaysandbreast-feedingsupport,accordingtoa2007study.TheU.S.isalsotheonlyadvancedeconomythatdoesnotguaranteeworkerspaidvacationtime,andit’soneofonlytwocountriesintheworldthatdoesnotofferguaranteedpaidmaternityleave.Butevenwhenemployeesaregivenpaidtimeoff,workplacenormsandexpectationsthatpressurethemtooverworkoftenpreventthemfromtakingit.Full-timeemployeeswhodohavepaidvacationdaysonlyusehalfofthemonaverage.[G]Ourmodemworkplacesalsooperatebasedonoutdatedtimeconstraints.Thepracticeofclockinginforaneight-hourworkdayisaleftoverfromthedaysoftheIndustrialRevolution,asreflectedinthethen-popularsaying,“Eighthourslabor,eighthoursrecreation,eighthoursrest.”[H]We’veheldontothisworkdaystructure—butthankstoourdigitaldevices,manyemployeesneverreallyclockout.Today,theaverageAmericanspends8.8hoursatworkdaily,andthemajorityofworkingprofessionalsspendadditionalhourscheckinginwithworkduringevenings,weekendsandevenvacations.Theproblemisn’tthetechnologyitself,butthatthetechnologyisbeingusedtocreatemoreflexibilityfortheemployerratherthantheemployee.Inacompetitiveworkenvironment,employersareabletousetechnologytodemandmorefromtheiremployeesratherthanmotivatingworkerswithflexibilitythatbenefitsthem.[I]Inastudypublishedlastyear,psychologistscoinedtheterm“workplacetelepressure”todescribeanemployee’surgetoimmediatelyrespondtoemailsandengageinobsessivethoughtsaboutreturninganemailtoone’sboss,colleaguesorclients.Theresearchersfoundthattelepressureisamajorcauseofstressatwork,whichovertimecontributestophysicalandmentalburnout.Ofthe300employeesparticipatinginthestudy,thosewhoexperiencedhighlevelsoftelepressureweremorelikelytoagreewithstatementsassessingburnout,like“I’venoenergyforgoingtoworkinthemorning,”andtoreportfeelingfatiguedandunfocused.Telepressurewasalsocorrelatedwithsleepingpoorlyandmissingwork.[J]HarvardBusinessSchoolprofessorLesliePerlowexplainsthatwhenpeoplefeelthepressuretobealways“on,”theyfindwaystoaccommodatethatpressure,includingalteringtheirschedules,workhabitsandinteractionswithfamilyandfriends.Perlowcallsthisviciouscyclethe“cycleofresponsiveness”:Oncebossesandcolleaguesexperienceanemployee’sincreasedresponsiveness,theyincreasetheirdemandsontheemployee’stime.Andbecauseafailuretoaccepttheseincreaseddemandsindicatesalackofcommitmenttoone’swork,theemployeecomplies.[K]Toaddressskyrocketingemployeestresslevels,manycompanieshaveimplementedworkplacewellnessprograms,partneringwithhealthcareprovidersthathavecreatedprogramstopromoteemployeehealthandwell-being.Someresearchdoessuggestthattheseprogramsholdpromise.AstudyofemployeesathealthinsuranceproviderAetnarevealedthatroughlyonequarterofthosetakingin-officeyogaandmindfulnessclassesreporteda28%reductionintheirstresslevelsanda20%improvementinsleepquality.Theseless-stressedworkersgainedanaverageof62minutesperweekofproductivity.Whileyogaandmeditation(静思)arescientificallyproventoreducestresslevels,theseprogramsdolittletotargettherootcausesofburnoutanddisengagement.Theconditionscreatingthestressarelonghours,unrealisticdemandsanddeadlines,andwork-lifeconflict.梦想不会辜负每一个努力的人[L]Moenandhercolleaguesmayhavefoundthesolution.Ina2011study,sheinvestigatedtheeffectsofimplementingaResultsOnlyWorkEnvironment(ROWE)ontheproductivityandwell-beingofemployeesatBestBuy’scorporateheadquarters.[M]Forthestudy,325employeesspentsixmonthstakingpartinROWE,whileacontrolgroupof334employeescontinuedwiththeirnormalworkflow.TheROWEparticipantswereallowedtofreelydeterminewhen,whereandhowtheyworked---theonlythingthatmatteredwasthattheygotthejobdone.Theresultswerestriking.Aftersixmonths,theemployeeswhoparticipatedinROWEreportedreducedwork-familyconflictandabettersenseofcontroloftheirtime,andtheyweregettingafullhourofextrasleepeachnight.Theemployeeswerelesslikelytoleavetheirjobs,resultinginreducedturnover.It’simportanttonotethattheincreasedflexibilitydidn’tencouragethemtoworkaroundtheclock.“Theydidn’tworkanywhereandallthetime---theywerebetterabletomanagetheirwork,”Moensaid.“Flexibilityandcontroliskey,”shecontinued.36.Workplacenormspressureemployeestooverwork,deterringthemfromtakingpaidtimeoff.37.Theoverwhelmingmajorityofemployeesattributetheirstressmainlytolowpayandanexcessiveworkload.38.AccordingtoMoen,flexibilitygivesemployeesbettercontrolovertheirworkandtime.39.Flexibilityresultingfromtheuseofdigitaldevicesbenefitsemployersinsteadofemployees.40.Researchfindsthatifemployeessufferfromhighstress,theywillbelessmotivated,lessproductiveandmorelikelytoquit.41.In-officewellnessprogramsmayhelpreducestresslevels,buttheyarehardlyanultimatesolutiontotheproblem.42.Healthproblemscausedbystressintheworkplaceresultinhugepublichealthexpenses.43.Ifemployeesrespondquicklytotheirjobassignments,theemployerislikelytodemandmorefromthem.44.Withtechnologyeverywhereinourlife,ithasbecomevirtuallyimpossibleformostworkerstokeepabalancebetweenworkandlife.45.InAmericatoday,eventeenagerssufferfromstress,andtheirproblemisevenmoreseriousthangrown-ups’.SectionCDirections:Therearetwopassagesinthissection.Eachpassageisfollowedbysomequestionsorunfinishedstatements.ForeachofthemtherearefourchoicesmarkedA),B)，C)andD).YoushoulddecideonthebestchoiceandmarkthecorrespondingletteronAnswerSheet2withasinglelinethroughthecenter.PassageOneQuestions46to50arebasedonthefollowingpassage.Dr.DonaldSadowayatMITstartedhisownbatterycompanywiththehopeofchangingtheworld’senergyfuture.It’sadramaticendorsementforatechnologymostpeoplethinkaboutonlywhentheirsmartphonegoesdark.ButSadowayisn’taloneintrumpetingenergystorageasamissinglinktoacleaner,moreefficient,andmoreequitableenergyfuture.Scientistsandengineershavelongbelievedinthepromiseofbatteriestochangetheworld.Advancedbatteriesaremovingoutofspecializedmarketsandcreepingintothemainstream,signalingatippingpointforforward-lookingtechnologiessuchaselectriccarsandrooftopsolarpanels.Theubiquitous(无所不在的)batteryhasalreadycomealongway,ofcourse.Forbetterorworse,batteriesmakepossibleourmobile-firstlifestyles,ourscreenculture,ourincreasinglyglobalizedworld.Still,asimpressiveasallthisis,itmaybetrivialcomparedwithwhatcomesnext.Havingalreadyenabledacommunicationsrevolution,thebatteryisnowpoisedtotransformjustabouteverythingelse.Thewirelessageisexpandingtoincludenotjustourphones,tablets,andlaptops,butalsoourcars,homes,andevenwholecommunities.Inemergingeconomies,ruralcommunitiesarebypassingthewiresandwoodenpolesthatspreadpower.Instead,someinAfricaandAsiaareseeingtheirfirstlightbulbsilluminatedbythepowerofsunlightstoredinbatteries.Today,energystorageisa$33billionglobalindustrythatgeneratesnearly100gigawatt-hoursofelectricityperyear.Bytheendofthedecade,it’sexpectedtobeworthover$50billionandgenerate160gigawatt-hours,enoughto梦想不会辜负每一个努力的人attracttheattentionofmajorcompaniesthatmightnototherwisebeinterestedinadecidedlypedestriantechnology.Evenutilitycompanies,whichhavelongviewedbatteriesandalternativeformsofenergyasathreat,arelearningtoembracethetechnologiesasenablingratherthandisrupting.Today’sbatterybreakthroughscomeastheworldlookstoexpandmodemenergyaccesstothebillionorsopeoplewithoutit,whilealsocuttingbackonfuelsthatwarmtheplanet.Thosesimultaneouschallengesappearlessoverwhelmingwithincreasinglybetteranswerstoacenturies-oldquestion:howtomakepowerportable.Tobesure,thebatterystillhasalongwaytogobeforethenightlyrechargecompletelyreplacestheweeklytriptothegasstation.Abattery-poweredworldcomeswithitsownrisks,too.Whathappenstothecentralizedelectricgrid,whichtookdecadesandbillionsofdollarstobuild,asmoreandmorepeoplebecome“prosumers,”whoproduceandconsumetheirownenergyonsite?Nooneknowswhich---ifany---batterytechnologywillultimatelydominate,butonethingremainsclear.Thefutureofenergyisinhowwestoreit.46.WhatdoesDr.Sadowaythinkofenergystorage?A)Itinvolvestheapplicationofsophisticatedtechnology.B)Itisthedirectionenergydevelopmentshouldfollow.C)Itwillprovetobeaprofitablebusiness.D)Itisatechnologybenefitingeveryone.47.Whatismostlikelytohappenwhenadvancedbatteriesbecomewidelyused?A)Mobile-firstlifestyleswillbecomepopular.B)Theglobalizationprocesswillbeaccelerated.C)Communicationswilltakemorediverseforms.D)Theworldwillundergorevolutionarychanges.48.Insomeruralcommunitiesofemergingeconomies,peoplehavebegunto.A)finddigitaldevicessimplyindispensableB)communicateprimarilybymobilephoneC)lighttheirhomeswithstoredsolarenergyD)distributepowerwithwiresandwoodenpoles49.Utilitycompanieshavebeguntorealizethatbatterytechnologies.A)benefittheirbusinessB)transmitpowerfasterC)promoteinnovationD)encouragecompetition50.Whatdoestheauthorimplyaboutthecentralizedelectricgrid?A)Itmightbecomeathingofthepast.B)Itmightturnouttobea“prosumer.”C)Itwillbeeasiertooperateandmaintain.D)Itwillhavetobecompletelytransformed.PassageTwoQuestions51to55arebasedonthefollowingpassage.梦想不会辜负每一个努力的人Morethan100yearsago,AmericansociologistW.E.B.DuBoiswasconcernedthatracewasbeingusedasabiologicalexplanationforwhatheunderstoodtobesocialandculturaldifferencesbetweendifferentpopulationsofpeople.Hespokeoutagainsttheideaof“white”and“black”asdistinctgroups,claimingthatthesedistinctionsignoredthescopeofhumandiversity.SciencewouldfavorDuBois.Today,themainstreambeliefamongscientistsisthatraceisasocialconstructwithoutbiologicalmeaning.InanarticlepublishedinthejournalScience,fourscholarssayracialcategoriesneedtobephasedout.“Essentially，Icouldnotagreemorewiththeauthors,”saidSvantePaabo,abiologistanddirectoroftheMaxPlanckInstituteforEvolutionaryAnthropologyinGermany.Inoneexamplethatdemonstratedgeneticdifferenceswerenotfixedalongraciallines,thefullgenomes(基因组)ofJamesWatsonandCraigVenter,twofamousAmericanscientistsofEuropeanancestry,werecomparedtothatofaKoreanscientist,Seong-JinKim.ItturnedoutthatWatsonandVentersharedfewervariationsintheirgeneticsequencesthantheyeachsharedwithKim.MichaelYudell,aprofessorofpublichealthatDrexelUniversityinPhiladelphia,saidthatmodemgeneticsresearchisoperatinginaparadox:ontheonehand,raceisunderstoodtobeausefultooltoilluminatehumangeneticdiversity,butontheotherhand,raceisalsounderstoodtobeapoorlydefinedmarkerofthatdiversity.Assumptionsaboutgeneticdifferencesbetweenpeopleofdifferentracescouldbeparticularlydangerousinamedicalsetting.“Ifyoumakeclinicalpredictionsbasedonsomebody’srace,you’regoingtobewrongagoodchunkofthetime,YudelltoldLiveScience.Inthepaper,heandhiscolleaguesusedtheexampleofcysticfibrosis,whichisunderdiagnosedinpeopleofAfricanancestrybecauseitisthoughtofasa“white”disease.Sowhatothervariablescouldbeusediftheracialconceptisthrownout?Yudellsaidscientistsneedtogetmorespecificwiththeirlanguage,perhapsusingtermslike“ancestry”or“population”thatmightmorepreciselyreflecttherelationshipbetweenhumansandtheirgenes,onboththeindividualandpopulationlevel.Theresearchersalsoacknowledgedthatthereareafewareaswhereraceasaconstructmightstillbeusefulinscientificresearch:asapoliticalandsocial,butnotbiological,variable.“Whilewearguephasingoutracialterminology(术语)inthebiologicalsciences,wealsoacknowledgethatusingraceasapoliticalorsocialcategorytostudyracism,althoughfilledwithlotsofchallenges,remai