[00:08.97]College English Test--Band Six
[00:11.81]Part III Listening Comprehension
[00:15.43]Section A
[00:17.51]Directions: In this section,
[00:20.46]you will hear 8 short conversations and 2 long conversations.
[00:24.94]At the end of each conversation,
[00:27.13]one or more questions will be asked about what was said.
[00:30.64]Both the conversation and the questions
[00:33.37]will be spoken only once.
[00:35.56]After each question there will be a pause.
[00:39.06]During the pause, you must read the four choices
[00:42.45]marked A), B), C) and D),
[00:45.84]and decide which is the best answer.
[00:48.68]Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2
[00:52.95]with a single line through the centre.
[00:55.58]Now, let’s begin with the eight short conversations.
[01:00.39]11. M: What do you think of the government’s
[01:05.53]new tax cut proposal?
[01:07.61]W: Though it may give some benefit to the poor,
[01:10.78]its key component is the elimination of tax on dividends.
[01:15.16]That means the rich will get richer.
[01:17.90]Q: What does the woman think of
[01:20.74]the government’s tax cut proposal?
[01:38.59]12. M: Jenny, remember this:
[01:41.76]a job worth doing at all is worth doing well.
[01:46.15]W: Oh, yes. I certainly won’t forget it.
[01:49.20]But don’t expect me to stick to the job just
[01:52.27]because it pays a few more bucks.
[01:54.67]A life of continuous exploration is a life worth living.
[01:58.83]Q: What can be inferred about the woman
[02:01.68]from the conversation?
[02:19.89]13. M: I found that one of my schoolmates uses drugs.
[02:25.26]How can I help him, Mom?
[02:27.66]W: Stay away from him, Son.
[02:29.96]Never think that you can talk him out of the habit
[02:33.02]if he is addicted. But perhaps you can
[02:36.30]talk to your teacher about the matter.
[02:38.71]Q: What’s the woman’s advice to her son?
[02:58.02]14. W: I don’t know how you can eat so much yet
[03:03.05]never put on any weight, Son.
[03:05.24]Your father’s got the same luck.
[03:07.76]I can’t take a bite without calculating
[03:10.60]how many calories I am taking.
[03:12.79]M: But remember Aunt Louise, Mom?
[03:15.19]She ate a lot and never gained a pound.
[03:18.15]Q: Who is worried about gaining weight?
[03:36.36]15.W: Did you turn off the lights
[03:40.20]and check the locks on all the doors?
[03:42.71]M: Yes, I told the Johnsons we’d be gone for two weeks.
[03:46.76]They promised to keep an eye on the house for us.
[03:50.15]Q: What are the two speakers going to do?
[04:07.59]16. M: Hurry up, Linda! I hear that
[04:13.40]there aren’t many tickets left for the football match.
[04:16.02]W: I am ready now. Let’s go.
[04:18.97]It is the early bird that catches the worm.
[04:21.49]Q: Why did the man ask the woman to hurry up?
[04:40.58]17. W: Did you hear that the convenience store
[04:45.06]next to the gas station was held up last night?
[04:47.91]M: Yes, I heard it on the radio this morning.
[04:51.41]Q: What happened to the convenience store?
[05:10.17]18. M: Congratulations! I just heard about
[05:15.09]your acceptance into a law school.
[05:17.50]Do you think you would join
[05:19.03]your brother’s firm after graduation?
[05:21.00]W: Not likely. He is a tax lawyer,
[05:23.85]and I am going to major in criminal law.
[05:27.24]Q: What does the woman mean?
[05:45.72]Now you’ll hear the two long conversations.
[05:49.24]Conversation One
[05:51.43]W: Hi, Bill, how is it going?
[05:53.62]M: Oh, hi, Jan. I’m OK. How about you?
[05:57.34]W: You can probably tell just by looking at me.
[06:00.08]I’m really busy. Hey, what are you reading?
[06:02.81]M: A pretty interesting article.
[06:05.00]My biology professor assigned it,
[06:07.51]and I thought I just look it over.
[06:09.81]But I got really involved in it.
[06:11.78]It’s about endangered species.
[06:14.08]W: That sounds pretty interesting.
[06:15.83]I’m getting frustrated with the two research papers
[06:18.45]I’m struggling with. And can you believe
[06:20.21]they are both due on the same day?
[06:22.73]M: That’s tough.
[06:24.91]W: I’ll get through it.
[06:26.11]So what’s this you are reading?
[06:28.08]M: Well, it’s basically about the choices
[06:29.95]conservationists are faced with.
[06:32.24]You know, these days when funding is so hard to come by.
[06:35.08]W: Wait a minute. Is the focus on biology or economics?
[06:39.57]M: Both. Conservationists don’t have enough funding
[06:43.07]to save every endangered species in the world,
[06:46.13]so they have to decide based on what would be lost
[06:49.09]if a species became extinct.
[06:51.17]W: Can you give me an example of what you mean?
[06:53.46]M: Take for instance, two animals,
[06:55.87]the spotted owl and the tailed toad.
[06:58.61]The article says the toad is unique.
[07:01.01]It has no relatives.
[07:02.76]But there are a lot of varieties of owls.
[07:04.95]W: So, if that toad became extinct,
[07:08.13]we’d lose an important link
[07:10.42]in the chain of evolution, right?
[07:12.28]M: Exactly. But that isn’t so for the owl.
[07:15.13]So for conservationists,
[07:17.10]it might be clear choice of which animal to save.
[07:19.94]W: I see. I am glad I don’t have to
[07:22.57]make that kind of decision. Aren’t you?
[07:24.32]Questions 19 to 21 are based on the conversation
[07:29.17]you have just heard.
[07:31.03]19. What are the speakers mainly discussing?
[07:50.67]20. What problems do conservationists have?
[08:12.38]21. What can be inferred about the tailed toad?
[08:33.33]Conversation Two
[08:34.97]M：Good evening, dear audience.
[08:37.26]I’m glad to continue the topic about music.
[08:39.78]It is common knowledge that music
[08:42.19]can have a powerful effect on our emotion.
[08:44.92]In fact, since 1930s, music therapists
[08:49.30]have relied on music to soothe patients
[08:52.14]and help control pain. Now psychologists are confirming
[08:55.64]that music can also help relieve depression
[08:59.25]and improve concentration.
[09:01.42]W: That’s nice. Do they have any concrete examples?
[09:04.04]M: For instance, in a recent study,
[09:07.00]15 surgeons were given some highly
[09:09.62]stressed math problems to solve.
[09:11.81]They were divided into three groups:
[09:14.21]one worked in silence; and in another,
[09:16.95]the surgeons listened to music of
[09:19.25]their choice on headphones;
[09:20.89]the third listened to classic music
[09:23.08]chosen by the researchers.
[09:25.27]W: What’re the results?
[09:27.02]M: The results of the study may surprise you.
[09:29.42]The doctors who got to choose their music
[09:32.16]experienced less stress and scored better than the others.
[09:35.44]W: That is surprising. How to explain this?
[09:38.61]M: One possible explanation is that listening to music
[09:41.79]you like stimulates the Alfa-wave in the brain,
[09:44.52]increases the heart rate and expands the breathing.
[09:48.57]That helps to reduce stress and sharpen concentration.
[09:52.07]W: Is there any other research?
[09:54.70]M: Yes. Other research suggests a second relation
[09:58.42]between the music and the brain:
[10:00.39]by examining the student’s blood
[10:02.57]after listening to a variety of classical music collections,
[10:05.96]the researchers found that some students
[10:08.48]showed a large increase in a chemical substance,
[10:11.44]a natural pain reliever, in their blood,
[10:14.78]which can help soothe the patient.
[10:16.64]W: Well, thank you so much for being with us today
[10:19.04]and having us know about another function of music.
[10:21.89]Questions22 to 25 are based on the conversation
[10:26.15]you have just heard.
[10:27.80]22. What is the talk mainly about?
[10:48.39]23. According to the speaker how is the music therapy
[10:53.09]currently used in medicine?
[11:09.68]24. What did the study done with surgeons show?
[11:29.86]25. What effect did music have in the study of students
[11:35.47]exposed to classic music?

[11:51.49]Section B
[11:54.34]Directions: In this section,
[11:58.60]you will hear 3 short passages.
[12:01.56]At the end of each passage,
[12:03.64]you will hear some questions.
[12:05.50]Both the passage and the questions will be spoken only once.
[12:09.76]After you hear a question,
[12:11.84]you must choose the best answer from the four choices
[12:15.67]marked A), B), C) and D).
[12:19.83]Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2
[12:24.20]with a single line through the centre.
[12:35.88]Passage One
[12:40.39]Jane Brown’s been married for 12 years.
[12:42.91]She has 3 children and lives in
[12:45.65]the suburb outside Columbus, Ohio.
[12:48.49]When her youngest child reached school age,
[12:51.78]Jane decided to go back to work.
[12:54.84]She thought that she should contribute to
[12:56.70]the household finances. Her salary could
[12:59.65]make the difference between the financial struggle
[13:01.96]and a secure financial situation for her family.
[13:05.57]Jane also felt bored and frustrated in her role
[13:09.73]as a homemaker and wanted to be more involved in life
[13:13.12]outside her home.Jane was worried about
[13:17.06]her children’s adjustment to this new situation.
[13:19.80]But she arranged for them to go stay
[13:22.52]with a woman nearby after school each afternoon.
[13:25.48]They seem to be happy with the arrangement.
[13:29.20]The problem seems to be between Jane and her husband, Bill.
[13:33.69]When Jane was at home all day,
[13:36.75]she was able to clean the house, go grocery shopping,
[13:40.47]wash the clothes, take care of the children
[13:43.54]and cook two or three meals each day.
[13:46.49]She was very busy, of course,
[13:49.66]but she succeeded in getting everything done.
[13:52.40]Now these same things need to be done.
[13:55.68]But Jane has only evenings and early mornings to do them.
[13:59.73]Both Jane and Bill are tired
[14:02.68]when they arrive home at 6 p.m.
[14:04.87]Bill’s accustomed to sitting down
[14:08.37]and reading the paper or watching TV
[14:10.45]until dinner is ready. This is exactly
[14:14.06]what Jane feels like doing.
[14:15.81]But someone has to fix dinner
[14:17.77]and Bill expects that to be Jane.
[14:20.29]Jane’s becoming very angry at Bill’s attitude.
[14:24.45]She feels that they should share the household jobs.
[14:28.27]But Bill feels that everything
[14:30.47]should be the same as it was before
[14:32.77]Jane went back to work.
[14:35.17]Questions 26 to 29 are based on the passage
[14:40.09]you have just heard.
[14:42.07]26. Why did Jane want to go back to work?
[15:01.37]27. How did Jane spend her days before she went back to work?
[15:23.85]28. What problem arose when Jane went back to work?
[15:45.23]29. What does the story try to tell us?
[16:04.31]Passage Two
[16:05.71]The Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction
[16:09.21]is a program designed to reduce the impact of
[16:13.14]natural disasters throughout the world.
[16:15.66]With support from United Nations,
[16:18.50]countries will be encouraged to
[16:20.59]share information about disaster reduction,
[16:23.76]for instance, information about
[16:25.95]how to plan for and cope with hurricanes,
[16:29.23]earthquakes and other natural disasters.
[16:31.97]One of the most important things
[16:34.26]the program plans to do is to remind us of
[16:37.65]what we can do to protect ourselves.
[16:40.71]For example, we can pack a suitcase with flashlights,
[16:44.32]a radio, food, drinking water and some tools.
[16:48.48]This safety kit may help us survive a disaster
[16:51.88]until help arrives. Besides,
[16:55.48]the program will encourage governments to
[16:58.22]establish building standards,
[17:00.30]emergency response plans and training programs.
[17:03.36]These measures can help to limit the destruction
[17:06.76]by natural disasters.
[17:09.38]The comparatively mild effects of
[17:11.68]the northern California earthquake in 1989,
[17:14.52]are good evidence that we do have the technology
[17:17.81]to prevent vast destruction.
[17:20.32]The recent disasters, on the other hand,
[17:22.95]prove that people will suffer if we don’t use that
[17:26.23]technology. When a highway collapsed in
[17:29.07]northern California, people were killed in their cars.
[17:32.13]The highway was not built according to
[17:35.53]today’s strict standards to resist earthquakes.
[17:39.36]Individuals and governments have to be farsighted.
[17:43.52]We should take extra time
[17:45.70]and spend extra money to build disaster safety
[17:49.20]into our lives. Although such a program can’t hold back
[17:53.14]the winds or stop earthquakes,
[17:55.22]it can save people’s lives and homes.
[17:59.49]Questions 30 to 32 are based on
[18:04.85]the passage you have just heard.
[18:09.11]30. What is the purpose of the program
[18:12.51]mentioned in this passage?
[18:30.72]31. What can we learn from the northern
[18:34.00]California earthquake in 1989?
[18:53.20]32. Why did the highway in northern California collapse?
[19:01.96]Passage Three
[19:04.47]Living at the foot of one of the world’s
[19:07.53]most active volcanoes might not appeal to
[19:10.49]you at all. But believe it or not,
[19:13.00]the area surrounding Mount Etna in Italy
[19:16.29]is packed with people. In fact,
[19:19.24]it is the most densely-populated region
[19:22.09]on the whole island of Sicily.
[19:24.38]The reason is that rich volcanic soil
[19:27.77]makes the land fantastic for farming.
[19:30.73]By growing and selling a variety of crops,
[19:34.56]local people earn a good living. For them,
[19:38.06]the economic benefit they reap surpasses
[19:41.56]the risk of dying or losing property in
[19:44.73]one of the volcano’s frequent eruptions.
[19:47.24]People everywhere make decisions
[19:50.42]about risky situations this way,
[19:53.05]that is, by comparing the risks and the benefits.
[19:56.65]According to the experts,
[19:59.17]the size of the risk depends on
[20:01.36]both its probability and seriousness.
[20:04.42]Let’s take Mount Etna for example.
[20:07.92]It does erupt frequently.
[20:10.55]But those eruptions are usually minor.
[20:13.29]So the overall risk for people living nearby
[20:17.25]is relatively small. But suppose Mount Etna
[20:21.62]erupted everyday or imagine that each eruption
[20:26.09]there killed thousands of people.
[20:28.39]If that were the case,
[20:30.58]the risk would be much larger.
[20:32.87]Indeed, the risk would be too large
[20:35.94]for many people to live with.
[20:38.01]And they would have to move away.
[20:39.99]Questions 33 to 35 are based on the passage you have just heard.
[20:46.98]33. How do people make decisions about risky situations?
[21:09.64]34. What do we know about Mount Etna from the passage?
[21:29.89]35. What will people living near Mount Etna do
[21:34.06]in the face of its eruptions?

[21:50.19]Section C
[21:53.03]Directions: In this section,
[21:55.77]you will hear a passage three times.
[21:58.51]When the passage is read for the first time,
[22:01.68]you should listen carefully for its general idea.
[22:04.41]When the passage is read for the second time,
[22:07.69]you are required to fill in the blanks
[22:10.43]numbered from 36 to 43 with the exact words
[22:14.48]you have just heard. For blanks numbered
[22:17.76]from 44 to 46 you are required to fill in
[22:21.70]the missing information. For these blanks,
[22:24.76]you can either use the exact words
[22:27.31]you have just heard or write down
[22:29.17]the main points in your own words.
[22:31.69]Finally, when the passage is read for the third time,
[22:35.51]you should check what you have written.
[22:38.36]Now listen to the passage.
[22:42.74]Certain phrases one commonly hears among Americans capture
[22:47.01]their devotion to individualism:
[22:49.74]“Do your own thing.” “I did it my way.”
[22:52.58]“You’ll have to decide that for yourself.”
[22:55.87]“You made your bed, now lie in it.”
[22:58.81]“If you don’t look out for yourself, no one else will.”
[23:03.20]“Look out for number one.”
[23:05.93]Closely associated with the value they place on individualism
[23:10.41]is the importance Americans assign to privacy.
[23:14.36]Americans assume that people “need some time to themselves”
[23:19.39]or “some time alone” to think about things
[23:22.89]or recover their spent psychological energy.
[23:26.06]Americans have great difficulty understanding foreigners
[23:30.55]who always want to be with another person,
[23:33.83]who dislike being alone.
[23:36.13]If the parents can afford it,
[23:38.31]each child will have his or her own bedroom．
[23:41.60]Having one’s own bedroom，even as an infant,
[23:45.21]fixes in a person the notion that
[23:48.05]she is entitled to a place of her own
[23:50.46]where she can be by herself,
[23:52.76]and keep her possessions. She will have her clothes，
[23:56.59]her toys, her books, and so on.
[23:59.65]These things will be hers and no one else’s.
[24:02.93]Americans assume that people will have their private thoughts
[24:08.29]that might never be shared with anyone.
[24:11.03]Doctors, lawyers, psychiatrists,
[24:14.64]and others have rules governing “confidentiality”
[24:18.46]that are intended to prevent information
[24:21.42]about their clients’ personal situations from
[24:24.49]becoming known to others.
[24:26.78]Americans’ attitudes about privacy
[24:29.85]can be hard for foreigners to understand.
[24:33.02]American’s houses, yards and even their offices
[24:37.94]can seem open and inviting.
[24:40.78]Yet in the minds of Americans,
[24:43.19]there are boundaries that other people
[24:45.60]are simply not supposed to cross.
[24:47.89]When those boundaries are crossed,
[24:50.74]an American’s body will visibly stiffen
[24:53.70]and his manner will become cool and aloof.
[24:57.42]Now the passage will be read again.
[25:01.79]Certain phrases one commonly hears
[25:07.70]among Americans capture their devotion to individualism:
[25:12.07]“Do your own thing.” “I did it my way.”
[25:16.01]“You’ll have to decide that for yourself.”
[25:19.29]“You made your bed, now lie in it.”
[25:22.79]“If you don’t look out for yourself, no one else will.”
[25:27.17]“Look out for number one.”
[25:30.02]Closely associated with the value they place on individualism
[25:36.69]is the importance Americans assign to privacy.
[25:41.39]Americans assume that people “need some time to themselves”
[25:46.53]or “some time alone” to think about things
[25:51.24]or recover their spent psychological energy.
[25:54.52]Americans have great difficulty understanding foreigners
[26:00.21]who always want to be with another person,
[26:03.06]who dislike being alone.
[26:05.57]If the parents can afford it,
[26:09.51]each child will have his or her own bedroom．
[26:13.09]Having one’s own bedroom，even as an infant,
[26:17.69]fixes in a person the notion that
[26:20.53]she is entitled to a place of her own
[26:23.16]where she can be by herself,
[26:25.34]and keep her possessions.
[27:38.60]She will have her clothes，her toys, her books, and so on.
[27:43.19]These things will be hers and no one else’s.
[27:48.11]Americans assume that people will have their private thoughts
[27:53.58]that might never be shared with anyone.
[29:07.49]Doctors, lawyers, psychiatrists,
[29:10.98]and others have rules governing “confidentiality”
[29:14.38]that are intended to prevent information
[29:17.11]about their clients’ personal situations from
[29:20.84]becoming known to others.
[29:23.24]Americans’ attitudes about privacy
[29:26.31]can be hard for foreigners to understand.
[29:29.36]American’s houses, yards and even their offices
[29:35.60]can seem open and inviting. Yet in the minds of Americans,
[29:40.41]there are boundaries that other people
[29:42.71]are simply not supposed to cross.
[30:57.39]When those boundaries are crossed,
[30:59.48]an American’s body will visibly stiffen
[31:02.42]and his manner will become cool and aloof.
[31:14.43]Now the passage will be read for the third time.
[31:18.15]Certain phrases one commonly hears
[31:22.84]among Americans capture their devotion to individualism:
[31:27.65]“Do your own thing.” “I did it my way.”
[31:30.49]“You’ll have to decide that for yourself.”
[31:33.34]“You made your bed, now lie in it.”
[31:36.62]“If you don’t look out for yourself, no one else will.”
[31:40.67]“Look out for number one.”
[31:43.41]Closely associated with the value they place on individualism
[31:48.55]is the importance Americans assign to privacy.
[31:52.38]Americans assume that people “need some time to themselves”
[31:56.97]or “some time alone” to think about things
[32:00.36]or recover their spent psychological energy.
[32:03.86]Americans have great difficulty understanding foreigners
[32:08.35]who always want to be with another person,
[32:11.42]who dislike being alone.
[32:13.82]If the parents can afford it,
[32:16.11]each child will have his or her own bedroom．
[32:19.51]Having one’s own bedroom，even as an infant,
[32:23.23]fixes in a person the notion that
[32:25.86]she is entitled to a place of her own
[32:28.48]where she can be by herself, and keep her possessions.
[32:31.87]She will have her clothes，her toys, her books, and so on.
[32:37.23]These things will be hers and no one else’s.
[32:41.06]Americans assume that people will have their private thoughts
[32:46.20]that might never be shared with anyone.
[32:48.83]Doctors, lawyers, psychiatrists,
[32:52.44]and others have rules governing “confidentiality”
[32:56.53]that are intended to prevent information about
[32:59.49]their clients’ personal situations from
[33:02.33]becoming known to others.
[33:04.55]Americans’ attitudes about privacy
[33:07.94]can be hard for foreigners to understand.
[33:10.57]American’s houses, yards and even their offices
[33:15.49]can seem open and inviting. Yet in the minds of Americans,
[33:20.85]there are boundaries that other people
[33:23.04]are simply not supposed to cross.
[33:26.43]When those boundaries are crossed,
[33:28.83]an American’s body will visibly stiffen
[33:31.35]and his manner will become cool and aloof.
[33:37.04]This is the end of listening comprehension.