Advice to “sleep on it” could be well founded, scientists say. After a good night’s sleep, a problem, which couldn’t be solved the night before, can often seem more manageable, although the evidence until now has been anecdotal (个人体验的). But researchers, at the University of Luebek in Germany, have designed an experiment that shows a good night’s sleep can improve insight (顿悟) and problem-solving.
“If you have some newly-got memories in your brain, sleep acts on these memories and restructures (重新组织) them, and as a result, after sleep, the insight into problem which you could not solve before increases,” said Dr Jan Born, a neuroscientist (神经科学家), at the university.
To test the theory, they taught volunteers two simple rules to help them turn a string of (一连串) numbers into a new order. There was also a third, hidden rule, which could help them increase their speed in solving the problem. The researchers divided the volunteers into two groups: Half were allowed to sleep after the training, while the rest were forced to stay awake. Dr Jan Born and his team noticed that the group that had slept after the training were twice as likely to figure out (想出) the third rule as the other group.
“Sleep helped,” Born said in a telephone interview. “The important thing is that you have to have a memory representation (描绘，表现) of the problem you want to solve in your brain and then you sleep, so it can act on the problem.” But Born admitted that he and his team don’t know how restructuring of memories occurs or what governs it.
Pierre Maquet and Perrine Ruby of the University of Liege in Belgium said the experimental evidence supports the anecdotal suggestions that sleep can help develop creative thinking. Although the role of sleep in human creativity will still be a mystery, the research gives people good reason to fully respect their periods of sleep, they added.
57. The underlined phrase “sleep on it” in Paragraph 1 probably means ______.
A. to delay deciding something until the next day
B. to get as much sleep as possible
C. to go on sleeping without being disturbed
D. to sleep till after the time you usually get up in the morning
58. Jan Born and his team carried out the experiment through ______.
A. comparison B. interview C. survey D. imagination
59. It can be inferred from the passage that ______.
A. people should sleep so long as they have time
B. sleep is the only way to solve hard problems
C. people have various periods of sleep
D. people know how sleep reconstructs memories
60. What would be the best title for the passage?
A. How Sleep Works B. Sleep Helps Solve Problems
C. No Evidence, But Well Founded D. Born’s Discovery On Sleep
As the old saying goes, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. But Venezuela, whose beauty queens have won Miss Universe and Miss World over six times, doesn’t leave it to chance. In Venezuela, girls as young as four can be found attending beauty schools, where they can learn a range of skills from how to walk to the correct way to hold a wine glass.
“Hair must always be completely clean, make-up should look natural, and you should always, always wear high-heels,” advises Andrea Reyes, a teacher in a school of Caracas with 160 students.
Beauty contests are treated in Venezuela much as sporting competitions are elsewhere. Many Venezuelan parents believe that if their daughters can succeed and get the beauty crown, their future as famous and public persons is sure to come. As a result, the girls are trained to compete at a young age.
Among former beauty queens are Irene Saez, who went on to compete for the country’s president, and Eva Ekvall, whose battle with cancer helped to make more people know about the illness in Venezuela.
However, voices against the trend can be heard all over the country. At one time, a feminist (男女平等主义者) group tried to stop the Miss Venezuela broadcast. President Hugo Chavez has spoken out against the culture of plastic surgery(整形手术)in Venezuela, calling it a “frightening thing”.
The BBC reporter Sarah Grainger says that acceptance of the contests is partly a result of the country’s “machista” (大男子主义的) view of the different roles that men and women should play, “Men are supposed to be strong and brave and women to be gentle and beautiful”.
Miss Universe 1996, Alicia Machado, knows the price to be paid when you’re no longer seen as attractive. After winning the beauty contest, she said all she wanted to do was “eat, eat and eat”. Her weight gain later and warning by the organizers of the contest to replace her as queen with the runner-up was among the hottest topics in the country, especially in Latin America.What’s the advice given by a teacher in Caracas to her students?
| A．Attending beauty schools as early as possible. |
| B．Wearing high-heels at times. |
| C．Washing your hair quite often. |
| D．Fighting against cancer bravely. |
Girls try to win in the beauty contest to__________.
| A．try plastic surgery |
| B．practice the country’s “machista” view |
| C．earn a good future |
| D．eat as much as one pleases |
We can learn from the passage that__________.
| A．Venezuela girls have won Miss Universe and Miss World over six times by chance |
| B．In Venezuela, people judge men and women in quite different ways |
| C．Eva Ekvall once competed for the country’s president |
| D．Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez has spoken out against beauty contests |
What does the underlined word “runner-up” in the last paragraph mean?
| A．the news reporter covering the beauty contest |
| B．the organizer of the beauty contest |
| C．the girl who is slim |
| D．the person who comes in the second place |
Book 1: Iggy peck, Architect
——By Andrea Beaty
32 pages, US $ 15.95
This book is the classic oddball (古怪的人) story about a kid whose head teacher does not recognize his great talent ( he makes buildings out of anything at hand, including table cloths, fruit and chalk) until it saves her life.
Book 2: The Chicken—Chasing Queen of Lamar County
——By Janice N. Harrington
40 pages, US $ 16.00
Our character here loves to run after chickens, particularly Miss Hen, who’s very fat. But, as all farming folk know, this is not a good way to produce happy, productive chickens. What will make her change her ways? The author is a professional storyteller and this book is full of fun, and has great illustrations (插图) .
Book 3: Diary of a Fly
——By Doreen Cronin
40 pages, US $ 15.99
This is the diary of a fly. A fly who, when she’s not landing on your head or swimming in your soup, is trying to escape her 327 brothers and sisters who are driving her crazy. Even though she’s little—just like her best friends, Worm and Spider—she wants to be a superhero. This is the story of a little fly who’s not afraid to dream really big.
Book 4：Cherry and Olive
——By Benjamin Lacombe
32 pages, US $ 16.95
Children’s books can quickly take little readers into new worlds, such as the big city, 1930s Georgia, or outer space. This book takes us on a little trip to some European capitals. Cherry is fat and likes books, and she has few friends until she meets a stray Shar—Pei puppy (迷途的沙皮犬) . She names it Olive. Through it she finds confidence and friendship. But what will happen when its owner returns?In book 2, the character__________.
| A．can make buildings out of anything |
| B．is a kid who likes to play tricks on teachers |
| C．keeps lots of chickens |
| D．likes to run after chickens |
Which of the following can best describe the fly in Book 3?
| A．Lazy and proud. | B．Stupid and funny. |
| C．Brave and courageous. | D．Loyal and honest. |
Which of the following is TRUE, according to the text?
| A．Strange students are mentioned in Book 1 and Book 3. |
| B．Book 4 introduces lots of farm animals. |
| C．A fly is a superhero on outer space in Book 2. |
| D．Book 1 is the cheapest of the four books. |
If you are interested in European cities, you may want to read the book by__________.
| A．Benjamin Lacombe |
| B．Janice N. Harrington |
| C．Andrea Beaty |
| D．Doreen Cronin |
When I was about 12, I had an enemy, a girl who liked to point out my shortcomings. Week by week her list grew: I was very thin; I wasn’t a good student; I talked too much; I was too proud and so on. I tried to bear all these things as long as I could. At last, I became very angry. I ran to my father with tears in my eyes.
He listened to me quietly, then he asked, “Are the things she said true or not? Janet, didn’t you ever wonder what you are really like? Well, you now have the girl’s opinion. Go and make a list of everything she said, mark the points that are true. Pay no attention to other things she said.”
I did as he told me. To my great surprise, I discovered that about half of the things were true. Some of them I couldn’t change (like being very thin), but a good number I could and suddenly I wanted to change. For the first time I got a fairly clear picture of myself.
I brought the list back to Daddy. He refused to take it, “That’s just for you,” he said. “You know better than anyone else the truth about yourself. But you have to learn to listen, not just closing your ears in anger and feeling hurt. When something that is said about you is true, you’ll find it will be of help to you. Don’t shut your ears. Listen to other people’s opinions, but hear the truth and do what you think is right.”
Daddy’s advice has returned to me at many important moments. In my life, I’ve never had a better piece of advice.The underlined sentence “Week by week her list grew” means “__________”.
| A．Week by Week, my shortcomings grew more serious |
| B．She had made a list of shortcomings and kept on adding new ones to it so that it was growing longer and longer |
| C．I was having more and more shortcomings as time went on |
| D．Week by week she discovered more shortcomings of mine and point them out |
Why did her father listen to her quietly?
| A．Because he believed that what her daughter’s enemy said was mostly true. |
| B．Because he had been so angry with his daughter’s shortcomings that he wanted to show this by keeping silent for a while. |
| C．Because he didn’t believe in his daughter |
| D．Because he wasn’t quite sure which girl was telling the truth. |
What did the father do after he heard his daughter’s complaint?
| A．He told her not to pay any attention to what her “enemy” said. |
| B．He criticized her and told her to overcome her shortcomings. |
| C．He told her to write down all that her "enemy" had said about her and pay attention only to the things that were true. |
| D．He refused to take the list and have a look at it. |
Which do you think would be the best title for this passage?
| A．Not an Enemy, but a Best Friend |
| B．My Father |
| C．The Best Advice I’ve Ever Had |
| D．My Childhood |
It is winter in many parts of the world. For some areas, that means snow. Maybe even lots of snow. If you don’t have to drive in it or remove it, snow can be very beautiful. When snow covers everything around you, the world looks like a “winter wonderland”. That is the name of a very popular song about winter. Richard Smith and Felix Bernard wrote the song back in 1934. There are hundreds of recordings of this happy song.
But winter is not always such a beautiful and happy time. It’s cold outside. You try hard to keep warm. The days are darker and shorter. The sun rarely shines. The leaves on the trees are brown. It isn’t surprising that some people are sad in winter. And some people dream about being somewhere else where it’s warm and pretty—like the state of California. The Mamas and the Papas recorded this famous song “California Dreaming”.
During the 1960s, many other famous rock groups released songs about winter. Here is a poetic song by Simon and Garfunkel called “A Hazy Shade of Winter”. They sing about life and hope and possibilities.
In 1968, the group Blood, Sweat and Tears recorded this gentle, sad song about winter. They sing about a lost love and forgotten memories in “Sometimes in Winter”.
In the early 1990s, Tori Amos wrote and recorded the beautiful song called “Winter”. She enjoyed singing about winter when she was a child.
Finally, on a happier note comes this song written and recorded by Fountains of Wayne in 2003. They sing about a snowstorm in a New England town. Nothing unusual there. But instead of being sad or tense about the snow, they write a song about it.When is snow beautiful?
| A．When people drive in it. |
| B．When people don’t have to take it away. |
| C．When it has snowed heavily. |
| D．When people sing in the snow. |
According to the second paragraph, winter is ________ .
| A．beautiful and happy |
| B．happy and warm |
| C．lovely and hopeful |
| D．cold and sad |
Which of the songs can bring us hope of life?
| A．Winter Wonderland. |
| B．California Dreaming. |
| C．A Hazy Shade of Winter. |
| D．Sometimes in Winter. |
What does the passage mainly talk about?
| A．Songs about winter. |
| B．Different ideas about winter. |
| C．Winter in different areas. |
| D．Winter is cold but happy. |
Nelson Mandela is respected and admired across the world. And to South Africans he is a superstar. He is a hero who shocked the world by fighting for peace between races(种族), despite the 27 years he spent in the prison of the South Africa’s white, racist government.
Mandela who won the nation’s first all-race elections in 1994, retired 1999. But he remains as popular as ever.
“He’s loved by all people, whether you’re while or black, whether you’re young or old,” said Ali Bacher, South Africa’s famous cricket (板球) athlete.
His popularity has inspired an entire national industry. His portrait(肖像) has appeared at many places, including on some goods. His face has appeared on a South African coin and some business leaders hope to build a statue(雕像) for him --- the Statue of Freedom. It would stand taller than New York’s Statue of Liberty.
His popularity is similar to that of John F. Kennedy with US or Winston Churchill in Britain, but few politicians in this times have achieved his level of admiration, said Tom Lodge, head of the political science department of the University of the Witwatersrand.
“Sometimes it isn’t completely appreciated what a skilled performer Mandela has been throughout his political career. He’s a very, very clever man.”
“Through the ages, the human race has had its icons --- men and women who rose above ordinary people to inspire their generations,” The Mail and Guardian Weekly said. “In our generation, the gods presented us Nelson Mandela.”Nelson Mandela is loved by all the people of South Africa because ________.
| A．he’s as popular as Kennedy and Churchill |
| B．he has kept in prison for 27 years |
| C．he’s a great fighter against the racialism |
| D．he’s the first all-race elections president |
Which of the following statements about Mandela’s portrait is true?
| A．It helps develop business. |
| B．It appears on the Statue of Freedom. |
| C．It is used to raise money for the Statue of Freedom. |
| D．It is similar to that of John F. Kennedy or Winston Churchill. |
The underlined sentence in the last paragraph means “________.”
| A．Mandela is as great as a god |
| B．We are proud to live in Mandela’s time |
| C．Mandela lives together with us all |
| D．We are proud to know Mandela. |