2013年12月英语月六级考试考前 攻击 深度阅读两篇及答案

2013

年

6

月六级真 题

Section B

Directions:There

are

2

passages

in

this

section.

Each

passage

is

followed

by

some

questions

or

unfinished

statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A), B), C) and D). You should decide on the best

choice and mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the center.

Passage One

Questions 52 to 56 are based pm the following passage.

In 2011, many shoppers chose to avoid the frantic crowds and do their holiday shopping from

the comfort of their computer. Sales at online retailers gained by more than 15%, making it the

biggest season ever. But people are also returning those purchases at record rates, up 8% from

last year.

What

went

wrong?

Is

the

lingering

shadow

of

the

global

financial

crisis

making

it

harder

to

accept extravagant indulgences? Or that people shop more impulsively

—

and therefore make bad

decisions

—

when

online?

Both

arguments

are

plausible.

However,

there

is

a

third

factor:

a

question of touch. We can love the look but, in an online environment, we cannot feel the quality

of a texture, the shape of the fit, the fall of a fold or, for that matter, the weight of an earring.

And physically interacting with an object makes you more committed to your purchase.

When my most recent book Brandwashed was released, I teamed up with a local bookstore to

conduct an experiment about the difference between the online and offline shopping experience.

I carefully instructed a group of volunteers to promote my book in two different ways. The first

was

a

fairly

hands- off

approach.

Whenever

a

customer

would

inquire

about

my

book,

the

volunteer

would

take

them

over

to

the

shelf

and

point

to

it.

Out

of

20

such

requests,

six

customers proceeded with the purchase.

The second option also involved going over to the shelf but, this time, removing the book and

them subtly holding onto it for just an extra moment before placing it in the customer’s hands.

Of the 20 people who were handed the book, 13 ended up buying it. Just physically passing the

book showed a big difference in sales. Why? We feel something similar to a sense of ownership

when we hold things in our hand. That’s why we establish or reestablish connection by greeting

strangers

and

friends

with

a

handshake.

In

this

case,

having

to

then

let

go

of

the

book

after

holding

it

might

generate

a

subtle

sense

of

loss,

and

motivate

us

to

make

the

purchase

even

more.

A recent study also revealed the power of touch, in this case when it came to conventional mail.

A deeper and longer-lasting impression of a message was formed when delivered in a letter, as

opposed

to

receiving

the

same

message

online.

Brain

imaging

showed

that,

on

touching

the

paper, the emotional center of the brain was activated, thus forming a stronger bond. The study

also

indicated

that

once

touch

becomes

part

of

the

process,

it

could

translate

into

a

sense

of

possession.

This sense of ownership is simply not part of the equation in the online shopping experience.

注意：此部分试题请在答题卡

2

上作答。

52. Why do people prefer shopping online according to the author?

A) It is more comfortable and convenient.

B) It saves them a lot of money and time.

C) It offers them a lot more options and bargains.

D) It gives them more time to think about their purchase.

53. Why do more customers return their purchases bought online?

A) They regretted indulging in costly items in the recession.

B) They changed their mind by the time the goods were delivered.

C) They had no chance to touch them when shopping online.

D) They later found the quality of goods below their expectations.

54. What is the purpose of author’s experiment?

A) To test his hypothesis about online shopping.

B) To find out people’s reaction to his recent book.

C) To find ways to increase the sale of his new book.

D) To try different approaches to sales promotion.

55. How might people feel after letting go of something they held?

A) A sense of disappointment

C) A subtle loss of interest

B) More motivated to own it.

D) Less sensitive to its texture.

56. What does train imaging in a recent study reveal?

A) Conventional letters contain subtle messages.

B) A lack of touch is the chief obstacle to e-commerce.

C) Email lacks the potential to activate the brain.

D) Physical touch helps form a sense of possession.

Passage Two

Questions 57 to 61 are based on the following passage.

Apparently everyone knows that global warming only makes climate more extreme. A hot, dry

summer has triggered another flood of such claims. And, while many interests are at work, one

of

the

players

that

benefits

the

most

from

this

story

are

the

media:

the

notion

of

“extreme”

climate simply makes for more compelling news.