大学英语六级改革适用（阅读）模拟试卷565

大学英语六级改革适用(阅读)模拟试

卷565

一、仔细阅读(本题共25题，每题1.0分，共25分。)

Thehousingmarketisexpectedtobebusierthanusualthiswinterassomehomebuyers

rushtoactbeforetheFederalReserveraisesinterestrates-whichsomeanalystssay

couldhappenasearlyasDecember.Someconsumerswhohaven'tyetbeenabletosave

themoneyforadownpaymentmaybetemptedtoraidtheirretirementaccountsforthe

cash.Indeed,first-timehomebuyershaveseveraloptionsfortappingtheirnesteggs

beforeretirementwithouthavingtopaythe10percentpenaltychargedlorearly

withdrawals.Forpeoplewithdecentretirementsavings,borrowingorwithdrawingfrom

aretirementaccountcanbeawaytodiversifyinvestmentsbybuyinganassetthatcan

addtotheirtotalnetworth.Butpeopleconsideringthemoveshouldtakeintoaccountall

ofthecoststheymightface,includinginterest,lostinvestmentgrowthandpotential

penaltiesifplansfallapart.Inmostcases,thehomeinquestiondoesn'tactuallyhaveto

beapersonsfirsthome.Generally,theIRSrequiresthatapersonusingretirementfunds

tobuyahomemustnothaveownedahomeinthepasttwoyears.Thehousemustbethe

person'smainhome.Thespecificrequirementsfordippingintosavingsvarydepending

onthetypeofretirementaccount.Saversusing401(k)planscantakeloansofupto50

percentoftheirvestedaccountbalance,withamaximumof$50,000,tohelppayfora

mainhome.Saverscanalsowithdrawupto$10,000fromatraditionalIRAoraRoth

IRApcnalty-frcctobuyafirsthomeforthemselves,theirspouseortheirchildren.For

mostsaversusingretirementfundstobuyahome,oneofthebiggestdownsidesisthat

themovecutsdownontheamountoftimetheirsavingsareinvestedinstocksandother

markets.Whileborrowersareusingthemoneytomakeaninvestment,thegrowth

potentialforthepropertymaynotbeaslargeasthepotentialgrowththecashmighthave

seenhaditstayedinvested,saysMeghanMurphy,adirectorwithFidelityInvestments.

Peoplewhoborrowfromtheirretirementaccountsonetimemayalsobetemptedto

borrowagain,Murphysays,creatingadangeroushabitofserialborrowing.Plus,people

whohavetakenloansfromtheir401(k)sarcalsomorelikelytotakehardship

withdrawals,whichareallowedtohelppayforemergenciesandwhicharesubjectto

taxesanda10percentpenalty.Attheendoftheday,whal'sbestwilldependona

person'ssituation.Takingaway$10,000fromaretirementaccountwon'tnecessarily

makeorbreakaperson'sretirement.Butsaversshouldunderstandthefullconsequences

ofthemovebeforetheydecide.

1、Whatdoes"tappingtheirnesteggs"(Lines2-3,Para.2)probablymean?

A、Breakingtheirformedhabits.

Usingtheirreservedfunds.

C、Losingtheirtreasuredcollections.

D、Oversettingiheirpreviousplans.

标准答案：B

知识点解析：由题干中的Lines2-3,Para.2定位至第二段第二句。语义理解题。

本段主要讨论从养老金中提前支取现金的情况，其首句中就提到养老金缴纳者会

raidtheirretirementaccountsforthecash,而定位句之后的段落则开始讨论提前支取

养老金的几种不同情况。根据这些内容可推断，本词组的意思是使用养老金缴纳者

储存的资金，故答案为B)。

2、Theauthoradvisespeoplewithdecentretirementsavingsto.

A、purchasemorerealestates

countalltheirlivingcosts

C^weighthegainsandlosses

D、enrichwaysofinvestment

标准答案：C

知识点解析：由题干中的decentretirementsavings定位至第三段第一句。细节辨认

题。定位句指出，可以选择从养老金账户中借款或取款用于购买不动产以增加资产

净值。不过作者在随后一句中也指出，考虑采取这一举措的人应该在认真考量这种

做法可能面临的全部代，介后再做决定，故答案为

3、Whichofthefollowingistrueofthe401(k)plans?

A、Halfofitsaccountmaybeborrowedforhouse-purchase.

B、Saverscanwithdrawaltogethersixtythousanddollars.

C、Bonowingfromthisplanmayresultinsomepenalties.

D、Theycanhelptopayfbrafirsthousefbrsavers'children.

标准答案：A

知识点解析：由题干中的401(k)plans定位至第五段第二句。细节辨认题。该段第

二句提到，该养老金计划的参与者最高可以借贷其所属账户资金的50%,最高不

超过5万美元.用于购买存款者的主要住房，故答案为A)。

4、Whatmaybeapotentialthreatfbrpeoplewhoborrowfromretirementaccounts?

A、Theymayhavelesstimetothinkaboutinvestinginstocks.

B、Theymaylosetheopportunitytoincreasethecashproperty.

C、Theymayfaceseverepenaltieswhilepayingforhouse-purchase.

D、Theymayformahabitofborrowingfromretirementaccounts.

标准答案：D

知识点解析：由题干中的apotentialthreat定位至第七段。推理判断题。第七段第

一句提到，大多数使用养老金购置房产的存款者都有可能会再次进行借款，继而养

成持续借款的危险习惯，而随后作者也提到有些借款可能会面临税收惩罚，因此养

成借款习惯是一种潜在威胁，故答案为D)。

5、Whatistheauthor^purposeinwritingthispassage?

A、Topreventsaversfromwithdrawingfromretirementaccounts.

B>Tosuggestsomestrategiesabouthowtouseretirementfunds.

C>Toanalyzethemoveofinvestinginhousingwithretirementfunds.

D^Tocomparetheprospectofdifferentinvestmentstrategies.

标准答案：B

知识点解析：本题考查写作目的，需综合全篇信息进行解答。主旨大意题。文章从

开篇就提到大量购房者至在美联储涨息之前进入房市购房的现象，继而分析使用养

老金账户借贷购房的不同方式和各自利弊，也警示借款者可能存在的潜在风险。总

之，文章的主要篇幅还是帮助存款者分析如何根据各种不同养老金计划进行借贷及

其存在的风险，故答案为B）。

IfJohnnycan'twrite,oneofthereasonsmaybeaconditioningbasedonspeedratherthan

respectforthecreativeprocess.Speedisneitheravalidtestofnoraproperpreparation

forcompetenceinwriting.Itmakesforvagueness,insincerity,anddisorganization.It

lakesthebeautyoutofthelanguage.Itrulesourrespectforthereflectivethoughtthat

shouldprecedeexpression.Itrunscountertobefinelyknit.Thisisnottominimizethe

valueofgenuinefacility.Withyearsofpractice,amanmaybeabletoputdownwords

swiftlyandexpertly.Butitisthesamekindofswiftnessthatenablesacellist,after

havinginvestedyearsofefforts,tonegotiateanintricatepassagefromHaydn.Speed

writingisforstenographers（速记员）andcourtreporters,notforanyonewhowantsto

usealanguagewithprecisionanddisiinciion.ThomasMannwasnoiashamedioadmit

thathewouldoftentakeafulldaytowrite500words,andanotherdaytoeditthem,out

ofrespectforthemostdifficultartintheworld.Flaubertwouldponderaparagraphfbr

hours.Diditsaywhathewantedittosay—notapproximatelybutexactly?Didthewords

turnintooneanotherwithproperrhythmandgrace?Weretheyartisticallyandsecurely

fittedtogether?Weretheybrisklyalive,orweretheyfulloffuzzyandraggededges?

Weretheylikelytomakethingshappeninsidethemindofthereader,ignitingthe

imaginationandtouchingoffallsortsofnewanticipations?Thesequestionsarerelevant

notonlyfbrtheestablishednovelistbutforanyonewhoattachesvaluetowordsasa

mediumofexpressionandcommunication.E.B.White,whoserespectfbrthe

environmentofgoodwritingisexceededbynoword-artistofourtime,wouldratherhave

hisfingerscutoffthantobeguiltyofhandlingwordslightly.Nosculptorchippingaway

atagranite（花岩岗）blockinordertoproduceadelicatecurveorfeaturehaslabored

morepainstakinglythanWhiteinfashioningashortparagraph.Obviously,wecan't

expectourschoolstomakeeveryJohnnyintoaWhiteoraFlaubertoraMann,butitis

notunreasonabletoexpectmoreofthemtoprovidetheconditionsthatpromoteclear,

carefulandcompetentexpression.Certainlythecumulativeeffortoftheschool

experienceshouldhavetobeundoneinlateryears.

6、Themainpurposeofthispassageisto.

A、presentanoriginalideaaboutwriting

B、describeanewwritingprocess

C、argueagainstanestablishedwritingpractice

D、commentonwritingskillsandtechniques

标准答案：D

知识点解析：由题干中的ihispassage及各选项语义定位至全文。主旨大意题。本

文介绍和评论的是有关写作速度，即如何写作的问题，故选D)”评论写作的技巧和

艺术

7、Accordingtothepassage,competenceinwritingis.

A、anartthattakespractice

B、askillthatrequiresdexterity

C、abornabilitythatfewpeoplehave

D、atechniquethatiseasytolearn

标准答案：A

知识点解析：由题干中的competence定位到第二段第二句。细节辨认题。第二段

第二句说明，写作能力的培养需要多年的努力，也就是需要大量的实践，故A）正

确。

8、Itcanbeinferredthattheauthorvaluesgoodliteratureprimarilyforitsability

to.

A、provideindividualswithskillsforsuccess

B、accuratelydescribeeventsastheyoccur

Cxpreventdisorderinlanguage

D、expressandcommunicateideasandexperience

标准答案：D

知识点解析：由题干中的values定位至第三段。推理判断题。由定位段可知，古

今中外的文学巨匠无一不是文字大师，他们对语言都会认真推敲，其原因就在于他

们认同语言的价值：语言是表达和交流的媒介，综合推断可知，D）为正确答案。

9、IndescribingWhiteasa"word-artistn,theauthormeansthatWhite.

A^wascolorfulinhisdescriptions

B、illustratedhisstories

C^hadartisticbackground

D^wasagreatwriter

标准答案：D

知识点解析：由题干中的White和word-artist定位到第四段第一句。推理判断题。

由定位句可知，word-artist的字面意思是“文字艺术家”，而文章讨论的是写作问

题，所以怀特应该是作家，故选D）“一位伟大的作家”。

10、Accordingtothepassage,ourschoolsshould.

A、provideproperconditionsforgoodwriting

B>stresswritingspeedonatest

C^giveeasytestsratherthanmultiplechoicetests

D、teachgoodearlywritings

标准答案：A

知识点解析：根据题干中的ourschools定位到最后一段倒数第二句。细节辨认

题。由定位句可知，虽然学校不能把每一个学生都培养成像怀特那样的作家，但至

少可以提供让学生提高表达能力的环境，故A）正确。

Itiseasytobecynicalaboutgovernment—andrarelydoessuchcynicismgounrewarded.

Take,forinstance,policytowardswomen.Somepoliticiansdeclarethattheyvalue

women'suniquerole,whichcanbeshorthandforkeepingmarriedwomenathome

lookingafterthekids.Otherscreatewholeministriesdevotedtopoliciesforwomen,

whichcanbeadeviceforparkingwomen'sissuesontheperiphery（外围）ofpolicywhere

theycannotdoanyharm.Stillothers,whomayactuallymeanwhattheysay.passlaws

givingwomenequalopportunitiestomen.Yetdecreeinganendtodiscriminationisvery

differentfrombringingitabout.Amidthistangleofevasion,half-promisesandwishful

thinking,somepolicymakershaveembracedatechniquecalledgenderbudgeting.Ilnot

onlypromisestodoalotofgoodforwomen,butcarriesalessonforadvocatesofany

cause:thewaytoagovernment'sheartisthroughitspocket.Atitssimplest,gender

budgetingsetsouttoquantifyhowpoliciesaffectwomenandmendifferently.That

seeminglytrivialstepconvertsexhortationabouttreatingwomenfairlyintothecoinof

government:costsandbenefits,andinvestmentsandreturns.Aswellasidentifying

opportunitiesanderrors,genderbudgetingbringswomen'sissuesrighttotheheartof

government,dieministryoffinance.Governmentsroutinelybatawaysensiblepolicies

thatlackachampionwhenthemoneyishandedout.Butifjudgmentsaboutwhalmakes

senseforwomenarebeingformedwithinthefinanceministryitself,thenthebattleis

half-won.Genderbudgetingisnotnew.Feministeconomistshavearguedforitsincethe

1980s.Now,itshowedhow,withanageingpopulation,thecountrygainedfrom

spendingoncare.Itisfoundthatinvestmentincleanwaternotonlycurbeddiseasebut

alsofreedupgirls,whousedtofetchthestuff,togotoschool.Ampleresearchconfirms

thatleavinghalfacountry'speoplebehindisbadforgrowth.Violenceagainstwomen;

failingtoeducategirlsproperly;unequalpayandaccesstojobs:alltakeaneconomic

toll.Inevitablytherearedifficulties.Dividingapolicy'scostsandbenefitsbetweenmen

andwomencanbehard.Sometimes,aswithlosthoursofschool,thecostshavetobe

estimated.Redesigningthebudgetingprocessupends（颠倒）decadesofpractice.Ifevery

grouppressingforchangetookthesameapproach,itwouldbecomeunmanageable.Ina

way,though,thatisthepoint.Governmentsfinditeasytopaylip-servicetowomen's

rights.Doingsomethingdemandstoughchoices.

11Thereasonwhypoliciestowardswomenusedtobeunsuccessfulliesin.

A、theunderestimateofwomen'suniquerole

B、theinactionofnewly-establishedministries

C>thefailuretocauserealconcernofthegovernment

D、themisconceptionabouttheessenceofwomen'sissues

标准答案：C

知识点解析：由题干中的policiestowardswomen定位至第一段第四句和第二段第

二句。细节辨认题。第一段第四句指出某些专门针对女性的政策将女性问题置于政

策外围，使其不会有实际的影响力；而第二段提出了作者认为行之有效的性别预

算，尤其是第二句谈及要想让政府重视，就需要动一动它的荷包。可见女性政策要

想成功，就要切实引起政府的关注，故答案为C）。

12、Howcouldweunderstandtheadvantageofgenderbudgeting?

A^Itfindspropermeanstoquantifypolicies'effect.

B、Itbringsinmoreinvestmentsfromthegovernment.

C、Itsuccessfullygetsthegovernmentfullyinvolved.

D、Iturgesgovernmentstofulfiltheirfinancialsupport.

标准答案：C

知识点解析：由题干中的genderbudgeling定位至第二段第二句和第四段首句。推

理判断题。第二段开始引出性别预算这一概念，并在第二句中指出这种方式涉及政

府的钱财；而第四段首句则提到性别预算能将女性问题带入政府的核心。可见女性

预算与以往那些女性政策的区别，其最大优势在于能让政府充分参与，故答案为

C）o

13、ItisindicatedinParagraphFivethat.

A、yearsofstrivingforfeminismhavebeenprovedinvain

B、investmentsintosocialwelfaremaygaindoublerevenues

C、underdevelopedareasfacemorechallengesinwomen'sissues

D、lotsofwomen'sissuesareinneedoffinancialsupport

标准答案：B

知识点解析：由题干中的ParagraphFive及各选项语义定位至第五段第三至四句。

推理判断题。定位句指出，国家能从投资社会福利中获益，在随后的举例中可以看

出，投资水净化项目不仅控制了疾病，还解放了当地的女孩子，可见投资社会福利

是有可能获得双重收益的，故答案为B）。

14、Inthelastparagraph,theauthorcallsongovernmentsto.

A、fullyunderstandthehiddenproblemsofapolicyreform

delicatelycalculatecostsandbenefitsofeachpolicy

C、choosetheeasierwaystoprovideserviceforwomen

D、makesomechangesdespitethepossibledifficulties

标准答案：D

知识点解析：由题干中的thelastparagraph和governments定位至最后一段最后两

句。细节辨认题。定位句指出，政府应该明白，对于女性问题，动嘴皮子是很轻松

的，但是要想做点实事就需要做出艰难的选择了。可见作者认为做出真正的变化是

需要克服困难的，并建议政府要克服这些困难，做些实事，故答案为D）。

15、Whatistheauthor'spurposeinwritingthepassage?

A、Toexplainwhygovernmentsshouldintroducegenderbudgeting.

B、Todisplayhowcynicalpeoplecandoaboutagovernment'spolicy.

C、Tointroducehowgenderbudgetingshouldbecompletelyrealized.

D、Toanalyzewhypoliciesforwomencanhardlyproduceeffects.

标准答案：A

知识点解析：解答本题需综合全文主要信息。主旨大意题。文章开篇就分析了以往

各种针对妇女的政策流于失败的原因，并在第二段中引入性别预算的概念，分析了

性别预算的优势，并举例说明投资社会福利项目可能带来的益处，最后一段分析采

取这种方式可能遇到的困难，并倡议政府不畏艰难，真正做些实事。综合以上信息

可知，作者分析和解释了政府应该引入性别预算的原因，故答案为A）。

AquickglanceattheBestRockPerformancecategoryshowshowwitheredthegenrehas

become.DavidBowie'shaunting9-minutc"Blackstar"tooktheGrammyprizewith

instrumentationthatsoundedmorelikeanguishedjazzthanrockandroil.Meanwhile,

noneoftheotherfournomineesweretraditionalrockrecordings.Justagenerationago

rockdominatedthemusiclandscape.Bythe1990Grammys,thegenrewassostuffed

withpopularartiststhattherewerethreeseparateawardsforBestRockVocal

Performance-forDuoorGroup,FemalePerformer,andMalePerformer-plus

additionalawardsforBestRockInstrumentalPerformance,BestHardRock

Performance,andBestMetalPerformance.Howhasrockbecomesodepleted?Youcan

startbyblamingtheyear1991.Twoyearsago,agroupofBritishresearcherspublisheda

studythatchartedtheevolutionofmusicstylesandtimbresbylookingat17,000songs

between1960and2010.Amongtheirmanyfindingswasthattherockgenre,so

dominantthroughoutthe1970sand1980s,tookasuddennosediveintheearly1990s.In

fact,theydeterminedthatoneyear,1991,marked“thesinglemostimportanteventthat

hasshapedthemusicalstructureoftheAmericancharts,"Whathappenedin1991?

Between1958and1990,BillboardhadconstructeditsHot100,thelistofthecountry's

mostpopularsongs,withanhonorsystem,influencedbyDJsandrecordstoreowners.

Butin1991,Billboardchangeditschartmethodologytomeasurepoint-of-salesrecord

dataanddirectlymonitorradioairplay.Thishadadirectimpactonthesortofmusicthat

madeitswaytothechartsandstayedthere.Theclassicrockandhair-bandgenre

witheredinthe1990swhilehiphopandcountrysoaredupthecharts.Inthenext25

years,hiphop,country,andpopmusichavecarriedonmixinggenrespromiscuously（混

杂地，杂乱的）toproducethemusicthatcurrentlydominatesthecharts.Therecent

Britishpaperonthelasthalfcenturyofmusicfoundthathiphophasreignedthe

Billboardchartslongerthananyothermusicalstyle.Whymightthatbe?Intheearly

1990s,someculturalcriticsarguedthatrockwasqualitativelysuperior,becauserap

songsweremere"bricolage（拼凑，大朵炊）-"Butit'spreciselybecausehiphop'snature

istoabsorbothermusicalstylesthatithasprovedsodurablyelastic.Today'smost

popularhiphopartistssoundverylittlelikethestylesthatreplacedrockinthepopmusic

pantheon（万神殿）inthe1990s.Theyaremorepolyphonic（多音的；有韵律全化的），

withmorediverseinspirationsandricherinstrumentationandproduction.Meanwhile,

2017'srocksoundedalotlike1990'srock.

16、Varietiesofawardsforrockat1990Grammysarementionedto.

A^explainwhyrockgotwitheredinashortperiod

B、criticizeGrammys,ignoranceofrock'stradition

C、exemplifyrock'sleadingroleinthemusicworld

D、commemoratethosegeniusmusiciansatthattime

标准答案：C

知识点解析：由题干中的awards和1990Grammys定位至第二段。推理判断题。文

章第二段第二句指出，1990年格莱美颁奖时，这一类别有众多当红艺术家，还详

细说明了格莱美奖摇滚类奖项的多个项目，而本段第一句说到，在上一代，摇滚乐

还统治着音乐领域，可见作者提到多个奖项是为了说明当时摇滚乐在乐坛的统治地

位，故答案为C)。

17>Theword"nosedive"(Line3,Para.4)isclosestinmeaningto.

A、asharpdrop

B、highstatus

C、deepreform

D、anewsituation

标准答案：A

知识点解析：由题干中的''noscdive''(Lmc3,Bara.4)定位至第四段第二句。语义理

解题。第四段第二句指出，在众多的研究发现中，摇滚这个在二十世纪七八十年代

独领风骚的曲风，却在九十年代早期经历了一定的变化。而这个变化是什么，可以

上溯到第三段，这个段落是一个转折段，提到摇滚乐在1991年开始转向衰落，故

答案为A)o

18、Theyear1991isvitalforthedevelopmentofrockinthatitwitnessed.

A、ashiftofdominanceinmusicevaluation

B、arestructuringoftheBillboardHot100

C、atradebetweenBillboardandstoreowners

D、abloomofvariousbrand-newmusicgenres

标准答案：A

知识点解析：由题干中的theyear1991和各选项语义定位至第五段第一至三句。细

节理解题。第五段首句是一个设问句，随后的内容详细地说明了1991年发生的关

键性事件。其中第二句背出，美国Billboard排行榜主要受到音乐节目主持人和唱

片商店店主的影响。第三句提到主要依照唱片销量和电台播放量来进行排名。可以

推知1991年见证了音乐评估的主导权发生了变化，故答案为A)。

19、Whatdoestheauthorthinkoftheculturalcritics*claimconcerningrap?

A、Self-evident.

B、Appropriate.

C、Thought-provoking.

D、Subjective.

标准答案：D

知识点解析：由题干中的theculturalcritics，claim定位至第六段第三、四句。观点

态度题。第六段第三句论述了二十世纪九十年代早期，一些文化评论家高度评价摇

滚，却认为说唱音乐只是拼凑，但作者在随后一句中指出，正是因为说唱音乐可以

做到兼收并蓄，才使它具有长期的活力。可见作者认为这些评论家的看法并不符合

客观事实，故答案为D)。

20>Accordingtotheauthor,whatmaybetherootcausefbrthedeclineofrock?

A、Billboardchangeditswayofsong-listing.

Culturalcriticsmisledrock'sdevelopment.

C、Rockhasstucktoomuchtoitsconvention.

D^Hiphophasseizedrock'sleadingstatus.

标准答案：C」

知识点解析：由题干中的rootcause和thedeclinerock可定位至第三段至最后一

段。推理判断题。作者从第三段开始分析摇滚乐衰落的原因，其中第三段至第五段

分析了直接原因，指出音乐排行榜的改革对音乐品鉴造成了巨大影响；而第六段和

第七段分析其他乐种崛起并长期保持活力的原因，指出兼收并蓄、富于变化的音乐

才能长盛不衰，而摇滚乐至今没有明显变化，故答案为C)。

Formuchofthepastdecade,AmericanandBritishscientistshavebeenannoyedbythe

phenomenonknownastheFrenchParadox.Nutritionallyspeaking,theFrenchhavebeen

gettingawaywithmurder:Theycatallthebutter,cream,foiegras,pastryandcheesethat

theirheartsdesire,andyettheirratesofobesityandheartdiseasearemuchlowerthan

ours.TheFrencheatthreetimesasmuchsaturatedanimalfatasAmericansdo,andonly

athirdasmanydieofheartattacks.It'smaddening.Baffled,scientistsstruggledtocome

upwithafewhypotheses:Maybeitwassomethingintheredwine,theysaid.Butwhile

winemakersworldwidecelebratedthatnews,moresoberresearchhassuggestedthatany

alcohol-whetherLafiteRothschild,abananadaiquirioracoldbud-prettymuchhas

thesamenice,relaxingeffect.Sowhilealittlewineisapttodoyougood,theFrench

aren'tsospecialinhavingadrinknowandthenthoughthefactthattheydrinkwine

moderatelyandslowlywithmeals,insteadofdowningshotsatthebar,couldmakea

difference.Afterthewineargument,scientistsventuredthatitmustbetheoliveoilthat

keepstheFrenchhealthy.Butthisdoesn'texplainthebutterorbrie.Then,French

scientistSergeRenaud(madefamouson"60Minutes"asanexpertontheFrench

Paradox)saidit'sthefoiegrasthatmeltsawaycholesterol.This,too,isdicey:While

peopleinToulouse-theduck-liver-eatingareaofFrance-doindeedhaveoneofthe

lowestratesofheartdiseaseinthedevelopedworld,theyactuallyonlycatthedelicacy

aboutsixtimesayear.Andthey'realotmorelikelytodieofstrokethanweareanyway.

Otherresearchers,perhapssponsoredbythegarlicandonionindustry,suggestedthatthe

FrenchParadoxeffectisduetogarlicandonions.ClaudeFischler,anutritional

sociologistatINSERM,saysallthesesinglehypothesesaremorewishfulthinkingthan

science.LastMay,researcherswritingintheBritishMedicalJournalcameupwiththe

leastcheerfulhypothesisofall.Theyarguedthatit'sjustamatteroftimebeforethe

French—whoareinfacteatingmorehamburgersandFrenchfriesthesedays-catchup

withAmericans,andbeginsufferingthesamehighratesofcardiovasculardisease.These

researchers,MalcolmLawandNicholasWald,callthisthe"timelagexplanation"forthe

FrenchParadox