95至97年阅读.doc

Researchers have established that when people are mentally engaged,biochemical changes occur in the brain that allow it to act more effectively in cognitive(认知的) areas such as attention and memory.This is true regardless of age.People will be alert (警觉的) and receptive (接受能力强的) if they are faced with information that gets them to think about things they are interested in. And someone with a history of doing more rather than less will go into old age more cognitively sound than someone who has not had an active mind.Many experts are so convinced of the benefits of challenging the brain that they are putting the theory to work in their own lives. The idea is not necessarily to learn to memorize enormous amounts of information, says James Fozard, associate director of the National Institute on Aging. Most of us dont need that kind of skill. Such specific training is of less interest than being able to maintainmental alertness. Fozard and others say they challenge their brains with different mental skills, both because they enjoy them and because they are sure that their range of activities will help the way their brains work.Gene Cohen, acting director of the same institute, suggests that people in their old age should engage in mental and physical activities individually as well as in groups. Cohen says that we are frequently advised to keep physically active as we age, but older people need to keep mentally active as well. Those who do are more likely to maintain their intellectual abilities and to be generally happier and better adjusted. The point is, you need to do both. Cohen says,Intellectual activity actually influences brain-cell health and size.21. People who are cognitively healthy are those _C_.A) who can remember large amounts of informationB) who are highly intelligentC) whose minds are alert and receptiveD) who are good at recognizing different sounds22. According to Fozards argument, people can make their brains work more efficiently by _B_.A) constantly doing memory work B) taking part in various mental activitiesC) going through specific training D) making frequent adjustments23. The findings of James and other scientists in their work _D_.A) remain a theory to be further provedB) have been challenged by many other expertsC) have been generally acceptedD) are practised by the researchers themselve24. Older people are generally advised to _A_.A) keep fit by going in for physical activitiesB) keep mentally active by challenging their brainsC) maintain mental alertness through specific trainingD) maintain a balance between individual and group activities25. What is the passage mainly about? BA) How biochemical changes occur in the human brain.B) Why people should keep active not only physically but also mentally.C) How intellectual activities influence brain-cell health.D) Why people should receive special mental training as they age.Passage TwoQuestions 25 to 30 are based on the following passage:Attention to detail is something everyone can and should do-especially in a tight job market. Bob Crossley, a human-resources expert notices this in the job applications that come cross his desk every day. Its amazing how many candidates eliminate themselves, he says.Resumes(简历) arrive with stains. Some candidates dont bother to spell the companys things at the cost of something larger they work toward. To keep from losing the forest for the trees, says Charles Garfield, associate professor at the University of California, San Francisco, we must constantly ask ourselves how the details were working on fit into the larger picture they dont, we should drop them and move to something else.Garfield compares this process to his work as a computer scientist at NASA. The Apollo II moon launch was slightly off-course 90 percent of the time, says Garfield. But a successful landing was still likely because we knew the exact coordinates of our goal. This allowed us to landing was still likely because we knew the exact coordinates of our goal. This allowed us to make adjustments as necessary. Knowing where we want to go helps us judge the importance of every task we undertake.Too often we believe what accounts for others success is some special secret or a lucky break(机遇). But rarely is success so mysterious. Again and again, we see that by doing little things within our grasp well, large rewards follow.26. According to the passage, some job applicants were rejected _A_.A) because of their carelessness as shown in their failure to present a clean copy of a resume简历B) because of their inadequate education as shown in their poor spelling in writing a resumeC) because they failed to give a detailed description of their background in their applicationsD) because they eliminated their names from the applicants list themselves27. The word perfectionists (Line 1, para. 3) refers to those who _C_.A) demand others to get everything absolutely rightB) know how to adjust their goals according to the circumstancesC) pay too much attention to details only to lose their major objectivesD) are capable of achieving perfect reuslts in whatever they do28. Which of the following is the authors advice to the reader? AA) Although too much attention to details may be costly, they should not be overlooked.B) Dont forget details when drawing picturesC) Be aware of the importance of a task before undertaking it.D) Careless applicants are not to be trusted.29. The example of the Apollo II moon launch is given to illustrate that _D_.A) minor mistakes can be ignored in achieving major objectivesB) failure is the mother of successC) adjustments are the key to the successful completion of any workD) keeping ones goal in mind helps in deciding which details can be overlooked30. The best title for this passage would be _C_.A) Dont Be a Perfectionist B) Importance of AdjustmentsC) Details and Major Objectives D) Hard Work Plus Good LuckPassage ThreeQuestions 31 to 35 are based on the following passage:Britain almost more than any other country in the world must seriously face the problem of building upwards, that is to say of accommodating a considerable proportion of its population in high blocks of flats. It is said that the Englishman objects to this type of existence, but if the case is such, he does in fact differ from the inhabitants of most countries of the world today. In the past our own blocks of flats have been associated with the lower-income groups and they have lacked the obvious provisions, such as central heating,constant hot water supply, electrically operated lifts from top to bottom, and so on, as well as such details, important notwithstanding (然而), as easy facilities for disposal of dust and rubbish and storage places for baby carriages on the ground floor, playgrounds for children on the top of the buildings, and drying grounds for washing. It islikely that the dispute regarding flats versus (对, 对抗) individual houses will continue to rage on for a long time as far as britain is concerned. And it is unfortunate that there should be hot feelings on both sides whenever this subject is raised. Those who oppose the building of flats base their case primarily on the assumption (设想)that everyone prefers an individual home and garden and on the high cost per unit of accommodation. The latter ignores the higher cost of providing full services to a scattered community and the cost in both money and time of the journeys to work for the suburban resident.31. We can infer from the passage that _B_.A) English people, like most people in other countries, dislike living in flatsB) people in most countries of the world today are not opposed to living in flatsC) people in Britain are forced to move into high blocks of flatsD) modern flats still fail to provide the necessary facilities for living32. What is said about the blocks of flats built in the past in Britain? AA) They were mostly inhabited by people who did not earn much.B) They were usually not large enough to accommodate big families.C) They were sold to people before necessary facilities were installed.D) They provided playground for children on the top of the buildings.33. The word rage (Line 10) means _B_.A) be ignored B) develop with great forceC) encourage people greatly D) be in fashion34. Some people oppose the building of flats because _C_.A) the living expenses for each individual family are higherB) it involves higher cost compared with the building of housesC) they believe people like to live in houses with gardensD) the disposal of rubbish remains a problem for those living in flats35. The author mentions that people who live in suburban houses _D_.A) do not have access to easy facilities because they live away from the cityB) have to pay a lot of money to employ people to do service workC) take longer time to know each other because they are a scattered communityD) have to spend more money and time travelling to work every dayPassage FourQuestions 36 to 40 are based on the following passage:Where do pesticides (杀虫剂) fit into the picture of environmental disease? We have seen that they now pollute soil, water, and food, that they have the power to make our streams fishless and our gardens and woodlands silent and birdless. Man, however much he may like to pretend the contrary, is part of nature. Can he escape a pollution that is now so thoroughly distributed throughout our world?We know that even single exposures to these chemicals, if the amount is large enough, can cause extremely severe poisoning. But this is not the major problem. The sudden illness or death of farmers, farm workers, and others exposed to sufficient quantities of pesticides are very sad and should not occur. For the population as a whole, we must be more concerned with the delayed effects of absorbing small amounts of the pesticides that invisibly pollute our world.Responsible public health officials have pointed out that the biological effects of chemicals are cumulative (积累的) over long periods of time, and that the danger to the individual may depend on the sum of the exposures received throughout his lifetime. For these very reasons the danger is easily ignored. It is human nature to shake off what may seem to us a threat of future disaster. Men are naturally most impressed by diseases which have obvious signs, says a wise physician, Dr. Rene Dubos, yet some of their worst enemies slowly approach them unnoticed.36. Which of the following is closest in meaning to the sentence Man, .is part of nature. (Lines 3-4, Para.1)? BA) Man appears indifferent to what happens in nature.B) Man acts as if he does not belong to nature.C) Man can avoid the effects of environmental pollution.D) Man can escape his responsibilities for environmental protection.37. What is the authors attitude to wards the evnironmental effects of pesticides? DA) Pessimistic. B) Indifferent C) Defensive D) Concerned关心38. In the authors view, the sudden death caused by exposure to large amounts of pesticides农药 _A_.A) is not the worst of thenegative consequences 后果 resulting from the use of pesticidesB) now occurs most frequently among all accidental deathsC) has sharply increased so as to become the center of public attentionD) is unavoidable because people cant do without pesticides in farming39. People tend to ignore the delayed effects of exposure to chemicals because _C_.A) limited exposure to them does little harm to peoples healthB) the present is more important for them than the futureC) the danger does not become apparent显而易见的immediatelyD) humans are capable of withstanding small amounts of poisoning40. It can be concluded from Dr Dubos remarks that _D_.A) people find invisible diseases difficult to deal withB) attacks by hidden enemies tend to be fatalC) diseases with obvious signs are easy to cureD) people tend to overlook hidden dangers caused by pesticides People tend to be more impressed by evidence that seems to confirm some relationship. Thus many are convinced their dreams are prophetic (预言的) because a few have come true; they fail to notice the many that have not. Consider also the belief that the phone always rings when Im in the shower. If it does ring while you are in the shower, the event will stand out and be remembered. If it doesnt ring, that nonevent probably wont even register （留下印象）. People want to see order, pattern and meaning in the world. Consider, for example, the common belief that things like personal misfortunes, plane crashes, and deaths happen in threes. Such beliefs stem from the tendency of people to allow the third event to define the time period. If three plane crashes occur in a month, then the period of time that counts as their happening together is one month; if three crashes occur in a year, the period of time is stretched. Flexible end points reinforce such beliefs. We also tend to believe what we want to believe. A majority of people think they are more intelligent, more fair-minded and more skilled behind the wheel of an automobile than the average person. Part of the reason we view ourselves so favorably is that we use criteria that work to our advantage. As economist Thomas Schelling explains, Everybody ranks himself high in qualities he values: careful drivers give weight to care, skilled drivers give weight to skill, and those who are polite give weight to courtesy, This way everyone ranks high on his own scale. Perhaps the most important mental habit we can learn is to be cautious (谨慎的) in drawing conclusions. The evidence of everyday life is sometimes misleading. 21. In the first paragraph the author states that _A_ . (A) dreams cannot be said to be prophetic预言 even though a few have come true. (B) dreams are prophetic because some of them did come true. (C) dreams may come true if clearly remembered. (D) dreams and reality are closely related. 22. By things like . happen in threes (Para. 3, Line 2), the author indicates that people believe _C_ . (A) personal misfortunes tend to happen every now and then. (B) personal misfortunes, plane crashes, and deaths usually happen together. (C) misfortunes tend to occur according to certain patterns. (D) misfortunes will never occur more than three times to a person in his lifetime. 23. Ten word courtesy (Para. 4, line 6) probably means _A_. (A) good manners. (B) Appropriate speech. (C) Friendly relations. (D)Satisfactory service. 24. What can be inferred from the passage? _A_ (A) Happenings that go unnoticed deserve more attention. (B) In a series of misfortunes the third one is usually the most serious. (C) People tend to make use of evidence that supports their own beliefs. (D) Believers of misfortunes happening in threes are cautious in interpreting events. 25. It can be concluded from the passage that _D_ . (A) there is some truth even in the wildest dreams. (B) one should take notice of other peoples merits. (C) there is no order or pattern in world events. (D) we should not base our conclusions结论 on accidental evidence证据. Passage Two Questions 26 to 30 are based on the following passage. It has been thought and said that Africans are born with musical talent. Because music is so important in the lives of many Africans and because so much music is performed in Africa, we are inclined to think that Africans are musicians. The impression is strengthened when we look at ourselves and find that we have become largely a society of musical spectators (旁观). Music is important to us, but most of us can be considered consumers rather than producers of music. We have records, television, concerts, and radio to fulfill many of our musical needs. In most situations where music is performed in our culture it is not difficult to distinguish the audience from the performers, but such is often not the case in Africa. Alban Ayipaga, a Kasena semiprofessional musician from northern Ghana, says that when his flute (长笛) and drum ensemble (歌舞团) is performing. Anybody can take part. This is true , but Kasena musicians recognize that not all people are equally capable of taking part in the music. Some can sing along with the drummers, but relatively few can drum and even fewer can play the flute along with the ensemble. It is fairly common in Africa for there to be an ensemble of expert musicians surrounded by others who join in by clapping, singing, or somehow adding to the totality of musical sound. Performances often take place in an open area (that is, not on a stage) and so the lines between the performing nucleus and the additional performers, active spectators, and passive spectators may be difficult to draw from our point of view. 26. The difference between us and Africans, as far as music is concerned, is that _C_. (A) most of us are consumers while most of them are producers of music (B) we are musical performers and they are semiprofessional musicians (C) most of us are passive spectators while they are active spectators. (D) we are the audience and they are the additional performers. 27. The word such (Line 6) refers to the fact that _B_. (A) music is performed with the participation of the audience (B) music is performed 演出without the participation参与of the audience (C) people tend to distinguish the audience from the performers (D) people have records, television sets and radio to fulfill their musical needs 28. The author of the passage implies that _B_. (A) all Africans are musical and therefore much music is performed in Africa (B) not all Africans are born with musical talent although music is important in their lives (C)