2014年12月六级考试真题（一）

2014年12月大学英语六级考试真题(一)PAGE42014年12月大学英语六级考试真题(一)PartI Writing (30minutes)Directions：Forthispart,youareallowed30minutestowriteanessaybasedonthepicturebelow.Youshouldstartyouressaywithabriefdescriptionofthepictureandthendiscusswhethertechnologyisindispensableineducation.Youshouldgivesoundargumentstosupportyourviewsandwriteatleast150wordsbutnomorethan200words注意：此部分试题请在答题卡1上作答。PartⅡ ListeningComprehension (30minutes)SectionADirections：Inthissection,youwillhear8shortconversationsand2longconversations.Attheendofeachconversation,oneormorequestionswillbeaskedaboutwhatwassaid.Boththeconversationandthequestionswillbespokenonlyonce.Aftereachquestiontherewillbeapause•Duringthepause，youmustreadthefourchoicesmarkedA)9B),C)andD),anddecidewhichisthebestanswer.ThenmarkthecorrespondingletteronAnswerSheet1withasinglelinethroughthecentre.注意：此部分试题请在答题卡1上作答：1.A)Theman’stennisracketisgoodenough. B)Themanshouldgetapairofnewshoes. C)Shecanwaitforthemanforalittlewhile. D)Physicalexercisehelpsherstayinshape.2.A)ThewomanwillskipDr.Smithslecturetohelptheman. B)KathyisverypleasedtoattendthelecturebyDr.Smith. C)Thewomanisgoodatdoinglabdemonstrations. D)Themanwilldoallhecantoassistthewoman.3.A)Thewomanaskedthemantoaccompanyhertotheparty. B)Stevebecamerichsoonaftergraduationfromcollege. C)Steveinvitedhisclassmatestovisithisbigcottage. D)ThespeakersandSteveusedtobeclassmates.4.A)Inabus. C)Inaboat. B)Inaclinic. D)Inaplane.5.A)10：10. B)9：50. C)9：40. D)9：10.6.A)ShedoesnotlikeJohnatall. B)Johnhasgotmanyadmirers. C)ShedoesnotthinkJohnishandsome. D)Johnhasjustgotabachelor’sdegree.7.A)Hehasbeenbumpingalongforhours. B)Hehasgotasharppainintheneck. C)Heisinvolvedinaseriousaccident. D)Heistrappedinaterribletrafficjam.8.A)Sheisgoodatrepairingthings. B)Sheisaprofessionalmechanic. C)Sheshouldimproveherphysicalcondition. D)Shecannotgowithoutawashingmachine.Questions9to11arebasedontheconversationyouhavejustheard.9.A)Somewitnessesfailedtoappearincourt. B)Thecasecauseddebateamongthepublic. C)Theaccusedwasfoundguiltyofstealing. D)Theaccusedrefusedtopleadguiltyincourt.10.A)Hewasoutofhismind.C)Hiswifedesertedhim. B)Hewasunemployed.D)Hischildrenweresick.11.A)Hehadbeeninjailbefore.C)Hewasunlikelytogetemployed. B)Hewasunworthyofsympathy.D)Hehadcommittedthesamesortofcrime.Questions12to15arebasedontheconversationyouhavejustheard.12.A)Irresponsible.C)Aggressive B)Unsatisfactory.D)Conservative.13.A)Internalcommunication.C)Publicrelations. B)Distributionofbrochures.D)Productdesign14.A)Placingadvertisementsinthetradepress.C)Advertisinginthenationalpress. B)Drawingsketchesforadvertisements.D)Makingtelevisioncommercials.15.A)Shehasthemotivationtodothejob.C)Sheisnotsoeasytogetalongwith. B)Sheknowsthetricksofadvertising.D)Sheisnotsuitablefortheposition.SectionBDirections:Inthissection,youwillhear3shortpassages.Attheendofeachpassage,youwillhearsomequestions.Boththepassageandthequestionswillbespokenonlyonce.Afteryouhearaquestion,youmustchoosethebestanswerfromthefourchoicesmarkedA)B)C)andD).ThenmarkthecorrespondingletteronAnswerSheet1withasinglelinethroughthecentre.注意：此部分试题请在答题卡1上作答。 PassageOneQuestions16to19arebasedonthepassageyouhavejustheard.16.A)Thecozycommunallife. C)Innovativeacademicprograms. B)Theculturaldiversity. D)Impressiveschoolbuildings.17.A)Itisverybeneficialtotheiracademicprogress. B)Ithelpsthemsoakupthesurroundingculture. C)Itisasimportantastheirlearningexperience. D)Itensurestheirphysicalandmentalhealth.18.A)Itoffersthemostchallengingacademicprograms. B)Ithastheworld5sbest-knownmilitaryacademies. C)Itprovidesnumerousoptionsforstudents. D)Itdrawsfacultyfromallaroundtheworld.19.A)Theytrytogivestudentsopportunitiesforexperimentation. B)TheyareresponsiblemerelytotheirMinistryofEducation. C)Theystrivetodevelopeverystudent’sacademicpotential. D)Theyensurethatallstudentsgetroughlyequalattention.PassageTwoQuestions20to22arebasedonthepassageyouhavejustheard.20.A)ItwillarriveatBoulogneathalfpasttwo. B)ItcrossestheEnglishChanneltwiceaday. C)ItisnowabouthalfwaytotheFrenchcoast. D)ItisleavingFolkestoneinaboutfiveminutes.21.A)Oppositetheship’soffice. C)AttherearofBdeck. B)Nexttotheduty-freeshop. D)InthefrontofAdeck.22.A)Itisforthesoleuseofpassengerstravellingwithcars. B)ItismuchmorespaciousthantheloungeonCdeck. C)Itisfortheuseofpassengerstravellingwithchildren. D)ItisforseniorpassengersandpeoplewithVIPcards.PassageThreeQuestions23to25arebasedonthepassageyouhavejustheard.23.A)Itwasnamedafteritslocation. B)Itwasnamedafteritsdiscoverer. C)Itwasnamedafteracaveartexpert. D)Itwasnamedafteroneofitspainters.24.A)Animalpaintingwaspartofthespirituallifeofthetime. B)DeerwereworshipedbytheancientCro-Magnonpeople. C)Cro-Magnonpeoplepaintedanimalstheyhuntedandate. D)Theywerebelievedtokeepevilsawayfromcavedwellers.25.A)Theyknowlittleaboutwhythepaintingswerecreated. B)Theyhavedifficultytellingwhenthepaintingsweredone. C)Theyareunabletodrawsuchinterestingandfinepaintings. D)Theyhavemisinterpretedthemeaningofthecavepaintings.SectionCDirections：Inthissection,youwillhearapassagethreetimes.Whenthepassageisreadforthefirsttime9youshouldlistencarefullyforitsgeneralidea.Whenthepassageisreadforthesecondtime，youarerequiredtofillintheblankswiththeexactwordsyouhavejustheard.Finally,whenthepassageisreadforthethirdtime?youshouldcheckwhatyouhavewritten.注意：此部分试题请在答题卡1上作答。Ifyouareattendingalocalcollege,especiallyonewithoutresidencehalls,youllprobablyliveathomeandcommutetoclasses.Thisarrangementhasalotof26It’scheaper.Itprovidesacomfortableandfamiliarsetting,anditmeansyoullgetthekindofhomecookingyou’reusedtoinsteadofthemonotony（单调）that27eventhebestinstitutionalfood.However，commutingstudentsneedto28tobecomeinvolvedinthelifeoftheircollegeandtotakespecialstepstomeettheirfellowstudents.Often,thismeansacertainamountofinitiativeonyourpartin29andtalkingtopeopleinyourclasseswhomyouthinkyoumightlike.Oneproblemthatcommutingstudentssometimesfaceistheirparents‘unwillingnesstorecognizethatthey’readults.The30fromhighschooltocollegeisabigone,andifyouliveathomeyouneedtodevelopthesamekindofindependenceyou’dhaveifyouwerelivingaway.Homerulesthatmighthavebeen31whenyouwereinhighschooldon'tapply.Ifyourparentsare32torenegotiate,youcanspeedtheprocessalongbylettingyourbehaviorshowthatyouhavetheresponsibilitythatgoeswithmaturity.Parentsaremorewillingto33theirchildrenasadultswhentheybehavelikeadults.If,however,there’ssomuchfrictionathomethatit34youracademicwork,youmightwanttoconsidersharinganapartmentwithoneormorefriends.Sometimesthisisahappysolutionwhenfamily35makeeveryonemiserable.PartⅢ ReadingComprehension (40minutes)SectionADirections：Inthissection,thereisapassagewithtenblanks.Youarerequiredtoselectonewordforeachblankfromalistofchoicesgiveninawordbankfollowingthepassage.Readthepassagethroughcarefullybeforemakingyourchoices.Eachchoiceinthebankisidentifiedbyaletter.PleasemarkthecorrespondingletterforeachitemonAnswerSheet2withasinglelinethroughthecentre.Youmaynotuseanyofthewordsinthebankmorethanonce.Questions36to45arebasedonthefollowingpassage.childrenarenatural-bornscientists.Theyhave36minds，andtheyaren’tafraidtoadmittheydon’tknowsomething.Mostofthem,37，losethisastheygetolder.Theybecomeself-consciousanddon’twanttoappearstupid.Insteadoffindingthingsoutforthemselvestheymake38thatoftenturnouttobewrong.Soit’snotacaseofgettingkidsinterestedinscience.Youjusthavetoavoidkillingthe39forlearningthattheywerebornwith.It’snocoincidencethatkidsstartdesertingscienceonceitbecomesformalised.Childrennaturallyhaveablurredapproachto40knowledge.Theyseelearningaboutscienceorbiologyorcookingasallpartofthesameact—it’salllearning.It’sonlybecauseofthepracticalitiesofeducationthatyouhavetostartbreakingdownthecurriculumintospecialistsubjects.Youneedtohavespecialistteacherswho 41whattheyknow.Thusoncetheyenterschool,childrenbegintodefinesubjectsanderectboundariesthatneedn’totherwiseexist.Dividingsubjectsintoscience,maths,English,etc.issomethingwedofor42Intheendit’salllearning,butmanychildrentoday43themselvesfromascientificeducation.Theythinkscienceisforscientists,notforthem.Ofcourseweneedtospecialise44EachofushasonlysomuchtimeonEarth，sowecan’tstudyeverything.At5yearsold,ourfieldofknowledgeand 45 isbroad,coveringanythingfromlearningtowalktolearningtocount.Graduallyitnarrowsdownsothatbythetimeweare45,itmightbeonetinylittlecornerwithinscience.注意：此部分试题请在答题卡2上作答。A)accidentallyF)excludeK)impartB)acquiringG)exertionL)inquiringC)assumptionsH)explorationM)passionD)convenienceI)formulasN)provokingE)eventuallyJ)igniteO)unfortunatelySectionBDirections：Inthissection^youaregoingtoreadapassagewithtenstatementsattachedtoit.Eachstatementcontainsinformationgiveninoneoftheparagraphs.Identifytheparagraphfromwhichtheinformationisderived.Youmaychooseaparagraphmorethanonce.Eachparagraphismarkedwithaletter.AnswerthequestionsbymarkingthecorrespondingletteronAnswerSheet2.MeaningIsHealthierThanHappiness[A]Foratleastthelastdecade,thehappinesscrazehasbeenbuilding.Inthelastthreemonthsalone,over1000booksonhappinesswerereleasedonAmazon,includingHappyMoney,Happy-People-PillsForAll,and,forthosejuststartingout,HappinessforBeginners.[B]Oneoftheconsistentclaimsofbooksliketheseisthathappinessisassociatedwithallsortsofgoodlifeoutcomes,including—mostpromisingly—goodhealth.Manystudieshavenotedtheconnectionbetweenahappymindandahealthybody—thehappierweare,thebetterhealthoutcomesweseemtohave.Inanoverviewof150studiesonthistopic,researchersputitlikethis：“Inductionsofwell-beingleadtohealthyfunctioning,andinductionsofill-beingleadtocompromisedhealth.”[C]Butanewstudy,justpublishedintheProceedingsoftheNationalAcademyofSciences(PNAS)challengestherosypicture.Happinessmaynotbeasgoodforthebodyasresearchersthought.Itmightevenbebad.[D]Ofcourse,it’simportanttofirstdefineHappiness.Afewmonthsago,Iwroteapiececalled“There’sMoretoLifeThanBeingHappy”aboutapsychologystudythatdugintowhathappinessreallymeanstopeople.Itspecificallyexploredthedifferencebetweenameaningfullifeandahappylife.[E]Itseemsstrangethattherewouldbeadifferenceatall.Buttheresearchers,wholookedatalargesampleofpeopleoveramonth-longperiod,foundthathappinessisassociatedwithselfish“taking”behaviorandthathavingasenseofmeaninginlifeisassociatedwithselfless“giving”behavior.[F]“Happinesswithoutmeaningcharacterizesarelativelyshallow,self-absorbedorevenselfishlife,inwhichthingsgowell,needsanddesiresareeasilysatisfied,andcomplicatedrelationshipsareavoided”,theauthorsofthestudywrote.“Ifanything,purehappinessislinkedtonothelpingothersinneed.”Whilebeinghappyisaboutfeelinggood,meaningisderivedfromcontributingtoothersortosocietyinabiggerway.AsRoyBaumeister,oneoftheresearchers,toldme,“Partlywhatwedoashumanbeingsistotakecareofothersandcontributetoothers.Thismakeslifemeaningfulbutitdoesnotnecessarilymakeushappy.”[G]ThenewPNASstudyalsoshedslightonthedifferencebetweenmeaningandhappiness,butonthebiologicallevel.BarbaraFredrickson,apsychologicalresearcherattheUniversityofNorthCarolina-ChapelHill,andSteveCole,ageneticsandpsychiatry(精神病学) researcheratUCLA,examinedtheself-reportedlevelsofhappinessandmeaningin80researchsubjects.[H]Happinesswasdefined,asintheearlierstudy,byfeelinggood.Theresearchersmeasuredhappinessbyaskingsubjectsquestionslike“Howoftendidyoufeelhappy?'“Howoftendidyoufeelinterestedinlife?”and“Howoftendidyoufeelsatisfied?”Themorestronglypeopleendorsedthesemeasuresof“hedonic(享乐主义的）well-being，”orpleasure,thehighertheyscoredonhappiness.[I]Meaningwasdefinedasanorientationtosomethingbiggerthantheself.Theymeasuredmeaningbyaskingquestionslike“Howoftendidyoufeelthatyourlifehasasenseofdirectionormeaningtoit?”and“Howoftendidyoufeelthatyouhadsomethingtocontributetosociety?”Themorepeopleendorsedthesemeasuresof“eudaimonic(幸福论的）well-being”-or,simplyput,virtue—themoremeaningtheyfeltinlife.[J]Afternotingthesenseofmeaningandhappinessthateachsubjecthad,FredricksonandCole,withtheirresearchcolleagues,lookedatthewayscertaingenesexpressedthemselvesineachoftheparticipants.Likeneuroscientistswhouse fMRI(功育磁共振成像）scanningtodeterminehowregionsinthebrainrespondtodifferentstimuli,ColeandFredricksonareinterestedinhowthebody,atthegeneticlevel,respondstofeelingsofhappinessandmeaning.[K]Cole’spastworkhaslinkedvariouskindsofchronicadversitytoaparticulargeneexpressionpattern.Whenpeoplefeellonely,aregrievingthelossofalovedone,orarestrugglingtomakeendsmeet,theirbodiesgointothreatmode.Thistriggerstheactivationofastress-relatedgenepatternthathastwofeatures：anincreaseintheactivityofpro-inflammatory(促炎症的)genesandadecreaseintheactivityofgenesinvolvedinanti-viralresponses.[L]ColeandFredricksonfoundthatpeoplewhoarehappybuthavelittletonosenseofmeaningintheirliveshavethesamegeneexpressionpatternsaspeoplewhoarerespondingtoandenduringchronicadversity.Thatis,thebodiesofthesehappypeoplearepreparingthemforbacterialthreatsbyactivatingthepro-inflammatoryresponse.Chronicinflammationis,ofcourse,associatedwithmajorillnesseslikeheartdiseaseandvariouscancers.[M]“Emptypositiveemotions”-likethekindpeopleexperienceduringmanic(狂喜的）episodesorartificiallyinducedeuphoria(欣快）fromalcoholanddrugs—“areaboutasgoodforyouasadversity，”saysFredrickson.[N]It’simportanttounderstandthatformanypeople,asenseofmeaningandhappinessinlifeoverlap；manypeoplescorejointlyhigh(orjointlylow)onthehappinessandmeaningmeasuresinthestudy.Butformanyothers,thereisadissonance(不一致）-theyfeelthattheyarelowonhappinessandhighonmeaningorthattheirlivesareveryhighinhappiness,butlowinmeaning.Thislastgroup,whichhasthegeneexpressionpatternassociatedwithadversity,formed75percentofstudyparticipants.Onlyonequarterofthestudyparticipantshadwhattheresearcherscall“eudaimonicpredominance”-thatis,theirsenseofmeaningoutpacedtheirfeelingsofhappiness.[O]Thisistoobadgiventhemorebeneficialgeneexpressionpatternassociatedwithmeaningfulness.Peoplewhoselevelsofhappinessandmeaninglineup,andpeoplewhohaveastrongsenseofmeaningbutarenotnecessarilyhappy,showedade-activationoftheadversitystressresponse.Theirbodieswerenotpreparingthemforthebacterialinfectionsthatwegetwhenwearealoneorintrouble,butfortheviralinfectionswegetwhensurroundedbyalotofotherpeople.[P]Fredrickson’spastresearch,describedinhertwobooks,PositivityandLove2.0,hasmappedthebenefitsofpositiveemotionsinindividuals.Shehasfoundthatpositiveemotionsbroadenaperson’sperspectiveandhelpprotectpeopleagainstadversity.Soitwassurprisingtoherthathedonicwellbeing,whichisassociatedwithpositiveemotionsandpleasure,didsobadlyinthisstudycomparedwitheudaimonicwell-being.[Q]“It’snottheamountofhedonichappinessthat’saproblem.”Fredricksontellsme,“It’sthatit’snotmatchedbyeudaimonicwell-being.It’sgreatwhenbothareinstep.Butifyouhavemorehedonicwell-beingthanwouldbeexpected,that’swhenthis[gene]patternthat’ssimilartoadversityemerged.”[R]Thetermshedonismandeudaimonismbringtomindthegreatphilosophicaldebate,whichhasshapedWesterncivilizationforover2000years,aboutthenatureofthegoodlife.Doeshappinesslieinfeelinggood,ashedoniststhink,orindoingandbeinggood,asAristotleandhisintellectualdescendants,theethicists(伦理学家），think?Fromtheevidenceofthisstudy,itseemsthatfeelinggoodisnotenough.Peopleneedmeaningtothrive.InthewordsofCarlJung,“Theleastofthingswithameaningisworthmoreinlifethanthegreatestofthingswithoutit.”Jung’swisdomcertainlyseemstoapplytoourbodies,ifnotalsotoourheartsandourminds.注意：此部分试题请在答题卡2上作答。46.Theauthor’srecentarticleexaminedhowameaningfullifeisdifferentfromahappylife.47.Itshouldbenotedthatmanypeoplefeeltheirlifeisbothhappyandmeaningful.48.Accordingtoonesurvey,thereisacloserelationshipbetweenhedonicwell-beingmeasuresandhighscoresonhappiness.49.Accordingtooneoftheauthorsofanewstudy,whatmakeslifemeaningfulmaynotmakepeoplehappy.50.Experimentswerecarriedouttodetermineourbody’sgeneticexpressionoffeelingsofhappinessandmeaning.51.Anewstudyclaimshappinessmaynotcontributetohealth.52.Accordingtotheresearchers,takingmakesforhappinesswhilegivingaddsmeaningtolife.53.Evidencefromresearchshowsthatittakesmeaningforpeopletothrive.54.Withregardtogeneexpressionpatterns,happypeoplewithlittleornosenseofmeaninginlifearefoundtobesimilartothosesufferingfromchronicadversity.55.Mostbooksonhappinesstodayassertthathappinessisbeneficialtohealth.SectionCDirections：Thereare2passagesinthissection.Eachpassageisfollowedbysomequestionsorunfinishedstatements.ForeachofthemtherearefourchoicesmarkedA),B),C)andD).YoushoulddecideonthebestchoiceandmarkthecorrespondingletteronAnswerSheet2withasinglelinethroughthecentre.PassageOneQuestions56to60arebasedonthefollowingpassage.Nothingsucceedsinbusinessbookslikethestudyofsuccess.Thecurrentbusiness-bookboomwaslaunchedin1982byTomPetersandRobertWatermanwithInSearchofExcellence.Thetrendhascontinuedwithasuccessionofexpertsandwould-beexpertswhopromisetodistiltheessenceofexcellenceintothree(orfiveorseven)simplerules.TheThreeRulesisaself-consciouscontributiontothistypeofwriting；itevenincludesabibliographyof“successstudies”.MichaelRaynorandMumtazAhmedworkforaconsultancy,Deloitte,thatisdeterminedtoturnitselfintomoreofathought-leaderandlessacorporaterepairman.Theyemployallthetricksofthesuccessbooks.Theyinsistthattheirconclusionsare“measurableandactionable”-guidestobehaviourratherthananalysisforitsownsake.Successauthorsusuallyserveupvividstoriesabouthowexceptionalbusinesspeoplestampedtheirpersonalitiesonacompanyorrescueditfromalife-threateningcrisis.MessrsRaynorandAhmedarehappierchewingthenumbers：theyprovidedetailedappendiceson“calculatingtheelementsofadvantage”and“detailedanalysis”.Theauthorsspentfiveyearsstudyingthebehaviouroftheir344“exceptionalcompanies”onlytocomeupatfirstwithnothing.Everyhunch(直觉)ledtoablindalleyandeveryhypothesistoadeadend.Itwasonlywhentheyshiftedtheirattentionfromhowcompaniesbehavetohowtheythinkthattheybegantomakesenseoftheirvoluminousmaterial.Managementisallaboutmakingdifficulttradeoffsinconditionsthatarealwaysuncertainandoftenfast-changing.Butexceptionalcompaniesapproachthesetradeoffswithtwosimplerulesinmind,sometimesconsciously,sometimesunconsciously.First：betterbeforecheaper.Companiesaremorelikelytosucceedinthelongruniftheycompeteonqualityorperformancethanonprice.Second：revenuebeforecost.Companieshavemoretogaininthelongrunfromdrivinguprevenuethanbydrivingdowncosts.Mostsuccessstudiessufferfromtwofaults.Thereis“thehalo(光环）effect”,wherebygoodperformanceleadscommentatorstoattributeallmannerofvirtuestoanythingandeverythingthecompanydoes.Thesevirtuesthensuddenlybecomeviceswhenthecompanyfails.MessrsRaynorandAhmedworkhardtoavoidthesemistakesbystudyinglargebodiesofdataoverseveraldecades.Buttheyendupembracingadifferenterror：statingtheobvious.Mostbusinesspeoplewillnotbesurprisedtolearnthatitisbettertofindaprofitable niche(隙缝市场）andfocusonboostingyourrevenuesthantocompeteonpriceandcutyourwaytosuccess.Thedifficultquestionishowtofindthatprofitablenicheandprotectit.There,TheThreeRulesislessuseful.注意：此部分试题请在答题卡2上作答。56.Whatkindofbusinessbooksaremostlikelytosellwell? A)Booksonexcellence. C)Booksonbusinessrules. B)Guidestomanagement. D)Analysesofmarkettrends.57.Whatdoestheauthorimplyaboutbooksonsuccesssofar? A)Theyhelpbusinessmenonewayoranother. B)Theyarewrittenbywell-recognisedexperts. C)Theymoreorlessfallintothesamestereotype. D)Theyarebasedonanalysesofcorporateleaders.58.HowdoesTheThreeRulesdifferfromothersuccessbooksaccordingtothepassage? A)Itfocusesonthebehaviourofexceptionalbusinessmen. B)Itbasesitsdetailedanalysisonlargeamountsofdata. C)Itofferspracticableadvicetobusinessmen. D)Itdrawsconclusionsfromvividexamples.59.Whatdoesthepassagesaycontributestothesuccessofexceptionalcompanies? A)Focusonqualityandrevenue. B)Managementandsalespromotion. C)Lowerproductioncostsandcompetitiveprices. D)Emphasisonafter-saleserviceandmaintenance.60.Whatistheauthor’scommentonTheThreeRules! A)Itcanhelptolocateprofitableniches. C)Itisnotedforitsdetaileddataanalysis. B)Ithaslittletooffertobusinesspeople. D)Itfailstoidentifythekeystosuccess.PassageTwoQuestions61to65arebasedonthefollowingpassage.Untilrecently,theUniversityofKentprideditselfonitsfriendlyimage.Notanymore.Overthepastfewmonthsithasbeenworkinghard,withthehelpofmediaconsultants,toplaydownitscosyreputationinfavourofsomethingmoreacademicandserious.Kentisnotaloneinconsideringanimagerevamp(翻新）,Changestonextyear’sfundingregimeareforcinguniversitiestojustifychargingstudentsupto£9000infees.Nowadaysuniversitiesareputtingmuchmoreofafocusontheirbrandsandwhattheirvaluepropositionsare.Whileinthepastuniversitieshaveoftenfocusedonstudentsociallifeandattractionsoftheuniversitytowninrecruitmentcampaigns,theyarenowconcentratingonmoretangible(实在的）attractions,suchasemploymentprospects,engagementwithindustry,andlecturercontacthours,makingclearexactlywhatstudentsaregoingtogetfortheirmoney.Theproblemforuniversitiesisthatifthosebenefitsfailtomaterialise,studentsnotice.ThatworriesRobBehrens,whodealswithstudentcomplaints.“Universitiesneedtobeextremelycarefulindescribingwhat’sgoingtohappentostudents，”hesays.“Ascompetitionisgoingtogetgreaterforattractinggiftedstudents,thereisadangerthatuniversitieswillgotheextramile.OneuniversitytoldprospectiveengineeringstudentstheywouldbeabletodesignacarandraceitatBrandsHatch,whichneverhappened,hesays.Othershavepromiseduseofsophisticatedequipmentthatturnedouttobebrokenorunavailable.“Ifuniversities