2011年12月英语六级考试大作战-模拟题(3)_第2页

Conversation Two

　　M: A friend of mine is studying in the United States who is with a group of Americans and wants to mingle. What kind of advice would you give to him about how to start and go through his day?

　　W: When I don’t know anybody, I will go up to someone or a group of people and say, “Hi, my name is Jeanne Martinet and I don’t know a single soul at this party。” That is really important to throw yourself in a little bit asking for help from other people. It is usually not a bad idea because it usually gives you a warm response。

　　M: But this takes courage and skill。

　　W: It doesn’t, it takes practice. When it happens a couple of times, you will start to lose your fear. You have to remember that nobody is thinking about you, they’re only thinking about themselves. So it’s sort of helpful to remember this to become less self-conscious。

　　M: Sounds great. You know, mixing with people at parties leaves me at a loss for words. Could you offer me some help? Give us some tips—what works?

　　W: Well, what doesn’t work is that you should never walk up to somebody and ask them right away what they do for a living. It’s not only sort of rude, but it’s sort of like “who are you, are you worth my time”？

　　M: Then how shall I open the conversation?

　　W: There’s an opening technique, which works very well if that person has an unusual pair of earrings or tie on. You can walk up to somebody and say “Hey, I really like that pair of earrings”. I think the mistake that people make is they think that the only way to talk to people is to ask them questions。

　　M: Yes. But do you have any suggestions about ending an unpleasant conversation?

　　W: Sure. You can do one of many escape techniques that can help you save face or even get you away from someone that you discover that you don’t want to talk to。

　　M: For example?

　　W: Like, you know, the “buffet bye-bye”—what my cute name for “Well, I’ve really got to get a drink” or “I’m starving—that thing you’re eating is making me even more hungry. I’ll be back。” and never come back. At a party you’re allowed to do that。

　　M: OK. I heard that in every culture certain subjects are maybe off-limits or you really shouldn’t talk about them unless you know a person well. What do you think about that?

　　W: In American culture, three that come to mind are money, religion and politics. The two safe subjects used to be your health and the weather. Well, the weather now leads you to topics of global warming and your health, you can easily start talking about health insurance。

　　Questions 22 to 25 are based on the conversation you have just heard。

　　22.   What does the woman suggest doing if one doesn’t know anybody in a group of people?

　　23.   Which is the best topic to open a talk with a group of strangers in a party?

　　24.   What does it take for people to go up to someone or a group directly according to the woman?

　　25.   What do we know about “buffet bye-bye” according to the woman?

　　Section B

　　Directions: In this section, you will hear 3 short passages. At the end of each passage, you will hear some questions. Both the passage and the questions will be spoken only once. After you hear a question, you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A)， B)， C) and D). Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre。

　　Passage One

　　In much of the United States, winter means the return of snow. Snow is a subject of great interest to weather experts. Experts sometimes have difficulty estimating where, when or how much snow will fall. One reason is that heavy amounts of snow fall in surprisingly small areas. Another reason is that a small change in temperature can mean the difference between snow and rain。

　　Snow is a form of frozen water. It contains many groups of tiny ice particles called snow crystals. These crystals grow from water particles in cold clouds. They usually grow around a piece of dust. All snow crystals have six sides, but they grow in different shapes. The shape depends mainly on the temperature and water levels in the air。

　　Snow crystals grow in one of two designs—platelike and columnar. Platelike crystals are flat. They form when the air temperature is about fifteen degrees below zero. Columnar snow crystals look like sticks of ice. They form when the temperature is about five degrees below zero。

　　The shape of a snow crystal may change from one form to another as the crystal passes through levels of air with different temperatures. When melting snow crystals or raindrops fall through very cold air, they freeze to form small particles of ice, called sleet。

　　When snow crystals stick together, they produce snowflakes. Snowflakes come in different sizes. As many as one hundred crystals may join together to form a snowflake larger than two and one-half centimeters. Under some conditions, snowflakes can form that are five centimeters long. Usually, this requires near freezing temperatures, light winds and changing conditions in Earth’s atmosphere.  

　　Snow contains much less water than rain. About fifteen centimeters of wet snow has as much water as two and a half centimeters of rain. About seventy-six centimeters of dry snow equals the water in two and one-half centimeters of rain。

　　Questions 26 to 28 are based on the passage you have just heard。

　　26. What’s the main subject of this passage?

        27. Which statement is true about snow crystals?

　　28. What do we learn about snowflakes from the passage?