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CET6 2024年6月 第1套

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CET6 2024年6月 第1套 · 听力

  • 00:00:36 - Section A · 第 1 篇 · 1–4 题
  • 00:03:44 - Section A · 第 2 篇 · 5–8 题
  • 00:07:39 - Section B · 第 1 篇 · 9–11 题
  • 00:10:55 - Section B · 第 2 篇 · 12–15 题
  • 00:14:42 - Section C · 第 1 篇 · 16–18 题
  • 00:18:38 - Section C · 第 2 篇 · 19–21 题
  • 00:22:40 - Section C · 第 3 篇 · 22–25 题

Transcript

Questions 1–4

1 W: Thank you for meeting with me, Stephen, at such short notice.

2 M: Not a problem, Margaret. Now, please give me some good news. Have you agreed to my last proposal?

3 W: I have, indeed. And I wish to sign the agreement pending one small change to be made to the contract.

pending: (formal) while waiting for sth to happen; until sth happens 在等待…时期；直到…为止
He was released on bail pending further inquiries.
他获得保释，等候进一步调查。

4 M: Margaret, we’ve been through this for almost a year now, back and forth, making alterations. Are you sure you want to make a sponsorship deal for your clients, or not? I ask this, because, frankly, some people at my end are running out of patience.

end

[usually singular] a part of an activity with which sb is concerned, especially in business （尤指经营活动的）部分，方面
We need somebody to handle the marketing end of the business.
我们需要有人来处理业务的推广。
Are there any problems at your end?
你那边有什么问题吗？
I have kept my end of the bargain.
我已履行了我的协议条件。

5 W: I understand your concerns. But as I’m sure you understand, we hold our clients’ best interests to be of the utmost concern. We therefore comb through the fine details of all contracts, rest assured, we all appreciate your firm’s patience.

6 M: OK, fine. So what change do you wish to make?

7 W: Essentially, we would like the new deal to exclude the Middle East. That’s all.

8 M: The Middle East? Why?

9 W: My client has a couple of other prospective marketing deals from companies in the Middle East. Those offers, should they materialize, would exclusively employ my client’s image in the Middle East only. Therefore, in order to avoid any conflict, we would need to ensure that both marketing campaigns do not overlap geographically.

should

(formal) used to refer to a possible event or situation （表示可能）假如，万一
If you should change your mind, do let me know.
假如你改变主意的话，一定要告诉我。
In case you should need any help, here’s my number.
万一你需要帮助的话，这是我的电话号码。
Should anyone call (= if anyone calls), please tell them I’m busy.
如果有人打电话来，请告诉他我正忙着。

10 M: What business sector in the Middle East are we talking about here?

11 W: Real estate.

12 M: Well, that should be okay then. So long as the product is very different from our food and beverage market, there should be no conflict of interest. Nevertheless, I will have to run this through my people. I don’t foresee any problem, though. The Middle East is a negligible market for us, but I still need to check this with a couple of departments.

Questions 5–8

1 M: Next, we have a special science-related news story. Paula Hancocks at the Denver Observatory. Paula, what is the big story over there?

2 W: Hi, John. Yes, all the astronomers on site here are very excited. In fact, space enthusiasts all across North America and the rest of the Northern Hemisphere will be congregating on mountain tops tonight to watch the night’s sky.

3 M: Why? What’s the big event? Is there an eclipse happening soon?

4 W: Tonight, the Earth will come into close proximity with the Oppenheimer comet. It is the closest our planet has been to such a phenomenon in over 100 years.

Our planet has been the closest to such a phenomenon.

For this reason, it is expected that thousands of people will gaze up at the sky tonight in order to see this formidable object.

5 M: How far away is this comet? Will people be able to see it with the naked eye?

6 W: The Oppenheimer comet will still be millions of miles away, on the edge of our galaxy. But nevertheless, this is a relatively close distance, close enough for people to observe in good detail through a telescope. People will only see a blur without one. However, that does not mean one needs professional equipment. Even the most ordinary of telescopes should be conducive for people to observe and wonder at this flying object.

7 M: Many of our viewers will be wondering how they too can take part in this once-in-a-lifetime event. Where will this comet be in the sky? How can people find it?

8 W: The comet will be almost exactly due north, at 60 degrees above the equator. However, finding the comet is indeed very tricky. And scientists here have told me there are plenty of phone apps that will facilitate this.

9 M: How fantastic! Thank you, Paula, for the information.

Questions 9–11

1 dietary guidelines form the basis for nutrition advice and regulations around the world. While there is strong scientific consensus around most existing guidelines, one question has recently stirred debate: should consumers be warned to avoid ultra-processed foods?

2 Two papers published today in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition outline the case for and against using the concept of ultra-processed foods to help inform dietary guidelines beyond conventional food classification systems. The authors, Carlos Monteiro of the University of São Paulo and Arne Astrup of Novo Nordisk Foundation, will discuss the issue in a live virtual debate August 14th during NUTRITION 2024 LIVE ONLINE.

3 The debate centers around a system developed by Monteiro and colleagues that classifies foods by their degree of industrial processing, ranging from unprocessed to ultra-processed. The system defines ultra-processed foods as those made using sequences of processes that extract substances from foods and alter them with chemicals in order to formulate the final product. Ultra-processed foods are characteristically designed to be cheap, tasty, and convenient; examples include soft drinks and candy, packaged snacks and pastries, ready-to-heat products, and reconstituted meat products.

4 Studies have linked consumption of ultra-processed foods—which are packed high in salt, sugar, and fat—with weight gain and an increased risk of chronic diseases, even after adjusting for the amount of salt, sugar, and fat in the diet. While the mechanisms behind these associations are not fully understood, Monteiro argues that the existing evidence is sufficient to justify discouraging consumption of ultra-processed foods in dietary recommendations and government policies.

weight gain

An increase in body weight.

insulin can contribute to weight gain
COUNT NOUN the breed can achieve average daily weight gains of 1.35 kg

Questions 12–15

1 Believe it or not, human creativity benefits from constraints. According to psychologists, when you have less to work with, you actually begin to see the world differently. With constraints, you dedicate your mental energy to acting more resourcefully. When challenged, you figure out new ways to be better.

2 The most successful creative people know that constraints give their minds the impetus to leap higher. People who invent new products are not limited by what they don’t have or can’t do. They leverage their limitations to push themselves even further. Many products and services are created because the founders saw a limitation in what they use. They created innovation based on what was not working for them at the moment.

3 Innovation is a creative person’s response to limitation. In a 2015 study which examined how thinking about scarcity or abundance influences how creatively people use their resources, Ravi Mehta at the University of Illinois and Meng Zhu at Johns Hopkins University found that people simply have no incentive to use what’s available to them in novel ways. When people face scarcity, they give themselves the freedom to use resources in less conventional ways because they have to. Obstacles can broaden your perception and open up your thinking processes. Consistent constraints help you improve at connecting unrelated ideas and concepts.

4 Marissa Mayer, former vice president for search products and user experience at Google, once wrote in a publication on Bloomberg, “constraints shape and focus problems and provide clear challenges to overcome; Creativity thrives best when constrained.”

Questions 16–18

1 Different people use different strategies for managing conflicts. These strategies are learned in childhood. Usually, we are not aware of how we act in conflict situations. We just do whatever seems to come naturally. But we do have a personal strategy, and because it is learned, we can always change it by learning new and more effective ways of managing conflicts. When you get involved in a conflict, there are two major concerns you have to take into account: achieving your personal goals and keeping a good relationship with the other person. How important your personal goals are and how important the relationship is to you affect how you act in a conflict. Given these two concerns, five styles of managing conflicts can be identified.

2 The turtle. Turtles withdraw into their shells to avoid conflicts. They give up their personal goals and relationships. They believe it is easier to withdraw from a conflict than to face it.

3 The shark. Sharks try to overpower opponents by forcing them to accept their solution to the conflict. They seek to achieve their goals at all costs. Sharks assume that conflicts are settled by one person winning and one person losing. Winning gives sharks a sense of pride and achievement. Losing gives them a sense of weakness, inadequacy, and failure.

4 The teddy bear. Teddy bears want to be accepted and liked by other people. They think that conflict should be avoided in favor of harmony, and believe that conflicts cannot be discussed without damaging relationships. They give up their goals to preserve the relationship.

5 The fox. Foxes are moderately concerned with their own goals and about their relationships with other people. They give up part of their goals and persuade the other person in a conflict to give up part of his goals. They seek a solution to conflicts where both sides gain something.

6 The owl. Owls view conflicts as problems to be solved. They see conflicts as improving relationships by reducing tension between two people. They try to begin a discussion that identifies the conflict as a problem. By seeking solutions that satisfy both themselves and the other person, owls maintain the relationship. Owls are not satisfied until a solution is found that achieves their own goals and the other person’s goals, and they are not satisfied until the tensions and negative feelings have been fully resolved.

Questions 19–21

1 The genetic code of all 1.5 million known species of animals and plants living on earth will be mapped to help save species from extinction and boost human health. Scientists hope that cracking the genetic code of plants and animals could help uncover new treatments for infectious diseases, slow aging, improve crops in agriculture, and create new bio-materials.

2 In Britain, organizations including the Natural History Museum, the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew and the Wellcome Sanger Institute have joined forces to sequence Britain’s 66,000 species of animals and plants. Dubbed the Darwin Tree of Life Project, it is expected to take 10 years and cost £100 million. Once completed, all the information will be publicly available to researchers.

3 Many scientists believe that earth has now entered the sixth mass extinction, with humans creating a toxic mix of habitat loss, pollution and climate change, which has already led to the loss of at least 77 species of mammals and 140 types of birds since 1500. It is the biggest loss of species since the dinosaurs were wiped out 66 million years ago. Scientists say that sequencing every species will revolutionise the understanding of biology and evolution, bolster efforts to conserve as well as protect and restore biodiversity.

4 Dr. Tim Littlewood, head of Life Sciences Department at the Natural History Museum, said, “Whether you are interested in food or disease, the history of how every organism on the planet has adapted to its environment is recorded in its genetic makeup. How you then harness that is dependent on your ability to understand it. We will be using modern methods to get a really good window on the present and the past. And of course, a window on the past gives you a prospective model on the future.”

5 Sir Jim Smith, Director of Science at Wellcome, said, “Try as I might, I can’t think of a more exciting, more relevant, more timely or more internationally inspirational project. Since 1970, humanity has wiped out 60 percent of animal populations. About 23,000 of 80,000 species surveyed are approaching extinction. We are in the midst of the sixth great extinction event of life on our planet, which not only threatens wildlife species, but also imperils the global food supply. As scientists, we all realise we desperately need to catalogue life on our fragile planet now. I think we’re making history.”

Questions 22–25

1 John Donne, the English poet, wrote in the 17th century, “No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main.” Now, a British academic has claimed that human individuality is indeed just an illusion, because societies are far more interconnected at a mental, physical, and cultural level than people realise. In his new book, The Self Delusion, Professor Tom Oliver, a researcher in the Ecology and Evolution group at the University of Reading, argues there is no such thing as “self”, and not even our bodies are truly “us”.

2 Just as Copernicus realised the Earth is not the centre of the universe, Professor Oliver said society urgently needs a Copernican-like revolution to understand people are not detached beings but rather part of one connected identity. “A significant milestone in the cultural evolution of human minds was the acceptance that the Earth is not the centre of the universe, the so-called Copernican Revolution,” he writes. “However, we have one more big myth to dispose of: that we exist as independent selves at the centre of a subjective universe. You may feel as if you are an independent individual, acting autonomously in the world; that you have an unchanging inner self that persists throughout your lifetime, acting as a central anchor-point with the world changing around you. This is the illusion I seek to tackle. We are intimately connected to the world around us.”

3 Professor Oliver argues there are around 37 trillion cells in the body but most have a lifespan of just a few days or weeks, so the material “us” is constantly changing. In fact, there is no part of your body that has existed for more than 10 years. “Since our bodies are essentially made anew every few weeks, the material in them alone is clearly insufficient to explain the persistent thread of an identity.”

4 Professor Oliver claims that individualism is actually bad for society, and only by realising we are part of a bigger entity can we solve pressing environmental and societal problems. Through selfish over-consumption we are destroying the natural world and using non-renewable resources at an accelerating rate. “We are at a critical crossroads as a species where we must rapidly reform our mindsets and behaviour to act in less selfish ways,” he said. “So let’s open our eyes to the hidden connections all around us.”

Questions, Answers & Analysis

Section A · Long Conversations

1. What does the woman say she will do?

  • A. Reply to the man’s last proposal within a short time.
  • B. Sign the agreement if one small change is made to it.
  • C. Make a sponsorship deal for her client at the meeting.
  • D. Give the man some good news regarding the contract.

Answer: B — Sign the agreement if one small change is made to it.

W: I have, indeed. And I wish to sign the agreement pending one small change to be made to the contract.

Analysis

Paraphrase

  • I wish to sign the agreement ↔ Sign the agreement
  • pending one small change to be made to the contract ↔ if one small change is made to it

Why the other options are wrong

  • A.
  • C.
  • D.

2. What does the man say about some people he represents?

  • A. They are becoming impatient.
  • B. They are afraid time is running out.
  • C. They are used to making alterations.
  • D. They are concerned about the details.

Answer: A — They are becoming impatient.

M: I ask this, because, frankly, some people at my end are running out of patience.

Analysis

Paraphrase

  • running out of patience ↔ becoming impatient

Why the other options are wrong

  • B.
  • C.
  • D.

3. What reason does the woman give for the new deal to exclude the Middle East?

  • A. To prevent geographical discrimination.
  • B. To tap the food and beverage market.
  • C. To avoid any conflict of interest.
  • D. To reduce unfair competition.

Answer: C — To avoid any conflict of interest.

W: Therefore, in order to avoid any conflict, we would need to ensure that both marketing campaigns do not overlap geographically.

Analysis

Paraphrase

  • in order to avoid any conflict ↔ To avoid any conflict of interest.
  • both marketing campaigns do not overlap geographically ↔ conflict of interest

Why the other options are wrong

  • A.
  • B.
  • D.

4. What does the man say about the Middle East?

  • A. It is a potential market for food and beverage.
  • B. It is very attractive for real estate developers.
  • C. It is a negligible market for his company.
  • D. It is very different from other markets.

Answer: C — It is a negligible market for his company.

M: The Middle East is a negligible market for us, but I still need to check this with a couple of departments.

Analysis

Paraphrase

  • a negligible market for us ↔ a negligible market for his company

Why the other options are wrong

  • A.
  • B.
  • D.

5. What does the woman say about all the astronomers at the Denver Observatory?

  • A. They are thrilled by a rare astronomic phenomenon.
  • B. They are celebrating a big event on mountain tops.
  • C. They are enthusiastic about big science-related stories.
  • D. They are joined by astronomers all across North America.

Answer: A — They are thrilled by a rare astronomic phenomenon.

Yes, all the astronomers on site here are very excited.

Analysis

Paraphrase

  • all the astronomers on site here are very excited ↔ They are thrilled by a rare astronomic phenomenon.

Why the other options are wrong

  • B.
  • C.
  • D.

6. What do we learn from the conversation about the Oppenheimer comet?

  • A. It will be the most formidable of its kind in over a century.
  • B. It will come closest to Earth in more than one hundred years.
  • C. It will eclipse many other such events in human history.
  • D. It will be seen most clearly from Denver’s mountain tops.

Answer: B — It will come closest to Earth in more than one hundred years.

Tonight, the Earth will come into close proximity with the Oppenheimer comet. It is the closest our planet has been to such a phenomenon in over 100 years.

Analysis

Paraphrase

  • the closest our planet has been to such a phenomenon in over 100 years ↔ It will come closest to Earth in more than one hundred years.

Why the other options are wrong

  • A.
  • C.
  • D.

7. What does the woman say people will only see in the sky without a telescope?

  • A. blur.
  • B. Stars.
  • C. The edge of our galaxy.
  • D. An ordinary flying object.

Answer: A — blur.

People will only see a blur without one.

Analysis

Paraphrase

  • People will only see a blur without one ↔ blur.

Why the other options are wrong

  • B.
  • C.
  • D.

8. What do scientists at the Denver Observatory advise amateurs do to facilitate their observation?

  • A. Use professional equipment.
  • B. Climb to the nearby heights.
  • C. Fix their eyes due north.
  • D. Make use of phone apps.

Answer: D — Make use of phone apps.

And scientists here have told me there are plenty of phone apps that will facilitate this.

Analysis

Paraphrase

  • there are plenty of phone apps that will facilitate this ↔ Make use of phone apps.

Why the other options are wrong

  • A.
  • B.
  • C.

Section B · Passages

9. What question is said to have recently stirred debate?

  • A. Whether consumers should be warned against ultra-processed foods.
  • B. Whether there is sufficient scientific consensus on dietary guidelines.
  • C. Whether guidelines can form the basis for nutrition advice to consumers.
  • D. Whether food scientists will agree on the concept of ultra-processed foods.

Answer: A — Whether consumers should be warned against ultra-processed foods.

While there is strong scientific consensus around most existing guidelines, one question has recently stirred debate: should consumers be warned to avoid ultra-processed foods?

Analysis

Paraphrase

  • should consumers be warned to avoid ultra-processed foods? ↔ Whether consumers should be warned against ultra-processed foods.

Why the other options are wrong

  • B.
  • C.
  • D.

10. How does the system developed by Monteiro and colleagues classify foods?

  • A. By the labor cost for the final products.
  • B. By the degree of industrial processing.
  • C. By the extent of chemical alteration.
  • D. By the convention of classification.

Answer: B — By the degree of industrial processing.

The debate centers around a system developed by Monteiro and colleagues that classifies foods by their degree of industrial processing, ranging from unprocessed to ultra-processed.

Analysis

Paraphrase

  • by their degree of industrial processing ↔ By the degree of industrial processing.

Why the other options are wrong

  • C.
  • A.
  • D.

11. What is consumption of ultra-processed foods linked with, according to studies?

  • A. Increased consumers’ expenses.
  • B. Greater risk of chronic diseases.
  • C. People’s misunderstanding of nutrition.
  • D. Children’s dislike for unprocessed foods.

Answer: B — Greater risk of chronic diseases.

Studies have linked consumption of ultra-processed foods—which are packed high in salt, sugar, and fat—with weight gain and an increased risk of chronic diseases, even after adjusting for the amount of salt, sugar, and fat in the diet.

Analysis

Paraphrase

  • an increased risk of chronic diseases ↔ Greater risk of chronic diseases.

Why the other options are wrong

  • A.
  • C.
  • D.

12. What do psychologists say people do when they are short of resources?

  • A. They begin to think of the benefits of constraints.
  • B. They try to seek solutions from creative people.
  • C. They try hard to maximize their mental energy.
  • D. They begin to see the world in a different way.

Answer: D — They begin to see the world in a different way.

According to psychologists, when you have less to work with, you actually begin to see the world differently.

Analysis

Paraphrase

  • begin to see the world differently ↔ begin to see the world in a different way

Why the other options are wrong

  • A.
  • B.
  • C.

13. What does the passage say about innovation?

  • A. It is characteristic of all creative people.
  • B. It is essential to pushing society forward.
  • C. It is a creative person’s response to limitation.
  • D. It is an impetus to socio-economic development.

Answer: C — It is a creative person’s response to limitation.

Innovation is a creative person’s response to limitation.

Analysis

Paraphrase

  • a creative person’s response to limitation ↔ a creative person’s response to limitation

Why the other options are wrong

  • A.
  • B.
  • D.

14. What did a 2015 study by Ravi Mehta and Meng Zhu find?

  • A. Scarcity or abundance of resources has little impact on people’s creativity.
  • B. Innovative people are not constrained in connecting unrelated concepts.
  • C. People have no incentive to use available resources in new ways.
  • D. Creative people tend to consume more available resources.

Answer: C — People have no incentive to use available resources in new ways.

Ravi Mehta at the University of Illinois and Meng Zhu at Johns Hopkins University found that people simply have no incentive to use what’s available to them in novel ways.

Analysis

Paraphrase

  • no incentive to use what’s available to them in novel ways ↔ no incentive to use available resources in new ways

Why the other options are wrong

  • A.
  • B.
  • D.

15. What did Marissa Mayer once write concerning creativity?

  • A. It is key to a company’s survival.
  • B. It shapes and focuses problems.
  • C. It is essential to meeting challenges
  • D. It thrives best when constrained.

Answer: D — It thrives best when constrained.

constraints shape and focus problems and provide clear challenges to overcome; Creativity thrives best when constrained.

Analysis

Paraphrase

  • Creativity thrives best when constrained ↔ It thrives best when constrained.

Why the other options are wrong

  • A.
  • B.
  • C.

Section C · Lectures

16. Why does the speaker say strategies for managing conflicts can always be changed?

  • A. Because they are learned.
  • B. Because they come naturally.
  • C. Because they have to be properly personalized.
  • D. Because there can be more effective strategies.

Answer: A — Because they are learned.

But we do have a personal strategy, and because it is learned, we can always change it by learning new and more effective ways of managing conflicts.

Analysis

Paraphrase

  • because it is learned ↔ Because they are learned.

Why the other options are wrong

  • B.
  • C.
  • D.

17. What is said to affect the way one acts in a conflict?

  • A. The extent of difference and of similarity between the two sides.
  • B. The knowledge of the specific expectation the other side holds.
  • C. The importance of one’s goals and of the relationship.
  • D. The approaches one adopts to conflict management.

Answer: C — The importance of one’s goals and of the relationship.

How important your personal goals are and how important the relationship is to you affect how you act in a conflict.

Analysis

Paraphrase

  • How important your personal goals are and how important the relationship is to you ↔ The importance of one’s goals and of the relationship.

Why the other options are wrong

  • A.
  • B.
  • D.

18. Of the five styles the speaker discusses, which views conflicts as problems to be solved?

  • A. The fox.
  • B. The owl.
  • C. The shark.
  • D. The turtle.

Answer: B — The owl.

The owl. Owls view conflicts as problems to be solved.

Analysis

Paraphrase

  • Owls view conflicts as problems to be solved ↔ The owl.

Why the other options are wrong

  • A.
  • C.
  • D.

19. What do scientists hope to do by cracking the genetic code of plants and animals?

  • A. Help save species from extinction and boost human health.
  • B. Understand how plants and animals perished over the past.
  • C. Help gather information publicly available to researchers.
  • D. Find out the cause of extinction of Britain’s 66, 000 species.

Answer: A — Help save species from extinction and boost human health.

The genetic code of all 1.5 million known species of animals and plants living on earth will be mapped to help save species from extinction and boost human health.

Analysis

Paraphrase

  • save species from extinction and boost human health ↔ Help save species from extinction and boost human health.

Why the other options are wrong

  • B.
  • C.
  • D.

20. What do many scientists believe with regard to earth?

  • A. It was once dominated by dinosaurs.
  • B. It has entered the sixth mass extinction.
  • C. Its prospects depend on future human behaviour.
  • D. Its climate change is aggravated by humans.

Answer: B — It has entered the sixth mass extinction.

Many scientists believe that earth has now entered the sixth mass extinction, with humans creating a toxic mix of habitat loss, pollution and climate change.

Analysis

Paraphrase

  • earth has now entered the sixth mass extinction ↔ It has entered the sixth mass extinction.

Why the other options are wrong

  • A.
  • C.
  • D.

21. How does Sir Jim Smith, Director of Science at Wellcome, describe the Darwin Tree of Life Project?

  • A. It dwarfs all other efforts to conserve, protect and restore biodiversity on earth.
  • B. It is costly to get started and requires the joint efforts of thousands of scientists.
  • C. It can help to bring back the large numbers of plants and animals that have gone extinct.
  • D. It is the most exciting, most relevant, most timely and most internationally inspirational.

Answer: D — It is the most exciting, most relevant, most timely and most internationally inspirational.

Sir Jim Smith, Director of Science at Wellcome, said, “Try as I might, I can’t think of a more exciting, more relevant, more timely or more internationally inspirational project.”

Analysis

Paraphrase

  • I can’t think of a more exciting, more relevant, more timely or more internationally inspirational project ↔ It is the most exciting, most relevant, most timely and most internationally inspirational.

Why the other options are wrong

  • A.
  • B.
  • C.

22. What is indeed just an illusion according to Professor Tom Oliver?

  • A. Cultural identity.
  • B. Social evolution.
  • C. The Copernican revolution.
  • D. Human individuality.

Answer: D — Human individuality.

Now, a British academic has claimed that human individuality is indeed just an illusion, because societies are far more interconnected at a mental, physical, and cultural level than people realise.

Analysis

Paraphrase

  • human individuality ↔ Human individuality.

Why the other options are wrong

  • C.
  • B.
  • A.

23. What does Professor Tom Oliver think of the idea that we exist as independent selves at the centre of a subjective universe?

  • A. It is a delusion to be disposed of.
  • B. It is prevalent even among academics.
  • C. It is a myth spread by John Donne’s poem.
  • D. It is rooted in the mindset of the 17th century.

Answer: A — It is a delusion to be disposed of.

However, we have one more big myth to dispose of: that we exist as independent selves at the centre of a subjective universe.

Analysis

Paraphrase

  • one more big myth to dispose of ↔ a delusion to be disposed of

Why the other options are wrong

  • D.
  • C.
  • B.

24. Why does Professor Tom Oliver claim that the material “us” is constantly changing?

  • A. He believes in Copernican philosophical doctrines about the universe.
  • B. He has gained ample scientific evidence at the University of Reading.
  • C. He has found that our inner self and material self are interconnected.
  • D. He contends most of our body cells can only live a few days or weeks.

Answer: D — He contends most of our body cells can only live a few days or weeks.

Professor Oliver argues there are around 37 trillion cells in the body but most have a lifespan of just a few days or weeks, so the material “us” is constantly changing.

Analysis

Paraphrase

  • most have a lifespan of just a few days or weeks ↔ most of our body cells can only live a few days or weeks

Why the other options are wrong

  • B.
  • A.
  • C.

25. How can we solve pressing environmental and societal problems according to Professor Tom Oliver?

  • A. By coming to see how disruptive such problems have got to be.
  • B. By realising that we all can do our own bit in such endeavours.
  • C. By becoming aware that we are part of a bigger world.
  • D. By making joint efforts resolutely and persistently.

Answer: C — By becoming aware that we are part of a bigger world.

Professor Oliver claims that individualism is actually bad for society, and only by realising we are part of a bigger entity can we solve pressing environmental and societal problems.

Analysis

Paraphrase

  • realising we are part of a bigger entity ↔ becoming aware that we are part of a bigger world

Why the other options are wrong

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