If English means endless new words, difficult grammar and sometimes strange pronunciation, you are wrong. Haven’t you noticed that you have become smarter since you started to learn a language?
According to a new study by a British university, learning a second language can lead to an increase in your brain power. Researchers found that learning other languages changes grey matter. This is the area of the brain which processes information. It is similar to the way that exercise builds muscles.
Th
e study also found the younger people learn a second language, the greater the effect is.
A team led by Dr Andrea Mechelli, from University College London, took a group of Britons who only spoke English. They were compared with a group of “early bilinguals” who had learnt a second language before the age of five, as well as a number of later learners.
Scans showed that grey matter density(密度)in the brain was greater in bilinguals than in people with
out a second language. But the longer a person waited before mastering a new language, the smaller the difference.
“Our findings suggest that the structure of the brain is changed by the experience of learning a second language,” said the scientists
.
It means that the change itself increases the ability to learn.
Professor Dylan Vaughan Jones of the University of Wales, has researched the link between bilingualism and maths skills. “Having two languages gives you two windows on the world and makes the brain more flexible(灵活
的),”he said. “You are actually going beyond language and have a better understanding of different ideas.”
The findings were matched in a study of native Italian speakers who had learned English as a second language between the ages of two and 34. Reading, writing, and comprehension were all tested. The results showed that the younger they started to learn, the better. “Studying a language means you get an entrance to another world,” explained the scientists.The main subject talked about in this passage is_____________.
| A．science on learning a second language |
| B．language can help brain power |
| C．man's ability of learning a second language |
| D．language learning and maths study |
In the second paragraph, the writer mentions “exercise” in order to_____________.
| A．make people believe language learning helps grey matter work well |
| B．prove that one needs more practice when he (she) is learning a language |
| C．to show the importance of using the language when you learn the language |
| D．say language is also a kind of physical labor |
The underlined word “bilingual” probably means_____________.
| A．a researcher on language learning |
| B．an English native speaker |
| C．an active language learner |
| D．a person who can speak two languages |
We may know from the scientific findings that_____________.
| A．the ability of learning a second language is changing all the time |
| B．there is no difference between a later second language learner and one who doesn't know a second language |
| C．the experience of learning a second language has bad effect on people's brain |
| D．the earlier you start to learn a second language the higher the grey matter density is |
In the last two paragraphs, the author wants to tell us that_____________.
A．early learning of a second language helps you a great deal in stu dy other subjects |
| B．learning a second language is the same as studying maths |
| C．Italian is the best choice for you as a second language |
| D．you’d better choose the ages between 2 and 34 to learn a second language |
第二部分阅读理解
（共25小题。每一节每小题2分，第二节每小题1分；满分45分）
第一节阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
It was a spring day for end-of-the-year conferences. Mrs. Lake reminded everyone that both parents and students should take part in these important progress report, 20minutes for each family.
Lauri’s name was at the end of the list. But it didn't matter much to her. Despite the many phone calls her teacher had made, Lauri knew her parents would not be coming. Her father always got drunk , and her mother could do nothing but cry and quarrel with him.
Now Lauri watched all day long as each child went to the door leading into Mrs. Lake’s office, where parents would greet their sons and daughters with proud smiles. Lauri imagined how it might feel to have her parents greet her at the door. When at last everyone else’s name had been called, Mrs. Lake opened the door and signed for Lauri to come in. Silently Lauri went in and sat down on a chair. As she felt rather uneasy that her parents had not come, she looked down. Mrs. Lake had Lauri raise her face so she could see her in the eye. “First of all,” the teacher began, “I want you to know how much I love you ,”Lauri saw things she’d never seen: kindness.
“Second,” the teacher continued, “you need to know-it is not your fault that your parents are not here today.” Again Lauri looked into Mrs. Lake’s face. No one had ever talked to her like this. No one.
“Third,” she went on, “you deserve（应得）to hear how well you are doing and how wonderful I think you are. ”In the following minutes, Mrs, Lake held a conference just for Lauri. She showed Lauri her grades, papers and projects, praising her efforts. She had even saved a pile of watercolors Lauri had painted.
Lauri didn’t know exactly when, but at some point in that conference she heard the voice of hope in her heart. And somewhere a change started. It was then that Lauri realized, for the first time in her life, that she was lovable.
1. Parents were required to take part in the conferences to .
A. see how important it was to encourage their children
B. learn how their children had performed in their studies.
C. report to the teacher how their children were doing at home.
D. see how their children were getting along with their classmates
2. Lauri’s name was at the end of the list probably because_______.
A. she was shy and didn’t have courage to meet the teacher first
B. Lauri’s parents were always the last to come to the conference
C. Mrs. Lake knew that only Lauri didn’t care about it
D. Mris. Lake wanted to leave time to have a good talk with her
3. How did Lauri feel at the end of the conference?
A. Encouraged B. Ashamed C. Satisfied D. Disappointed.
4. We can learn from the text that______.
A. Lauri didn't expect her parents to attend the conference
B. Lauri was not a hard-working student before
C. Mrs. Lake filled Lauri with hope and self-respect
D. Mrs. Lake was more strict with lauri than any other student,
If there is something that appears most frequently on Chinese dining tables, it is doufu—beancurd. Beancurd looks like soft cakes and it’s made from dried soybeans. Beancurd used to be considered a favourite of the poor because of its low cost. Beans have high yields (产量) every year with their short growing period and suitability for various (各种各样) soil both dry and wet.
Historical records show beancurd was invented by Liu An, Prince of Huainan and uncle of Emperor Wu of Han Dynasty（206BC—220AD）. He had a dream of finding the pill for longevity (长寿). He traveled all over the country and found soybeans, which looked much the same as gold in terms of colour. He collected soybeans, put them in the water and crushed them into pulp (浆). It got solidified and became known as doufu. Although it’s not able to keep longevity, it’s really good for one’s health with high protein and low fat.
With a long history, beancurd is rooted deep in Chinese culture. People eat more meat and fish than beancurd. But they are encouraged to have beancurd every once in a while for it’s really good for health. Most Chinese people still keep beancurd as one of their favourite dishes.
1 What appears more often on the dining table in poor areas?
A. Meat. B. Fish. C. Eggs. D. Beancurd.
2 Why did Liu An travel all over the country?
A. He had a dream.
B. He wanted to find something that could make people live longer.
C. He wanted to invent beancurd.
D. He wanted to find gold.
3 How long has beancurd been invented?
A. It’s about 1 700 years. B. It’s less than 2 000 years.
C. It’s 500 years. D. It’s more than 2 000 years.
Mr. Frank shot well and once he had come in fourth in a competition.
Then he went to a big city on business. There he joined the local rifle club. The club had a very good team, which used to take part in a lot of important shooting competitions. One of these took place while Frank was with them. But one of the members of the club's team suddenly fell ill just before the match. The captain had heard of Mr. Frank. He therefore invited Mr. Frank to take the sick man's place.
Mr. Frank felt greatly happy to be asked to shoot for such a good team, but he also felt very nervous, because he was afraid of making a fool of himself.
In fact, he was so nervous that he could not keep his hands from trembling while he was shooting, with the result that he did very badly in the competition. When he took his score card to his captain, he said:" After seeing my score, I want to go outside and shoot myself. " The captain looked at the card for a few seconds and then said, "Well, you'd better take two bullets with you if you want to do that. "
1 Mr. Frank once_________in a competition.
A. joined the fourth team
B. took the fourth place
C. was the fourth to start shooting
D. shot with the other three
2 Why did Mr. Frank feel nervous to be asked to shoot for the team? Because_________ .
A. actually he was not good at shooting
B. he thought the captain and the other members would fool him
C. he was afraid of losing face before so many good shooters
D. he would lose a lot of money if he should fail
3 When Frank said, "After seeing my score, I want to go outside and shoot myself", he meant to say that___________.
A. he wants to practice shooting all by himself
B. he wanted to find out the reason for his failure
C. he was too shamed of himself to remain inside and face the captain and the other members
D. he wanted to kill himself with the rifle
4 By saying "You had better take two bullets with you if you want to do that", the captain actually meant to say____________
A. "We haven't got so many bullets for you to practice shooting."
B. "You can't improve your shooting with only one bullet."
C. "I don't believe you can keep your hands from shaking this time."
D. "you are such a bad shooter that one bullet is certainly not enough to end you life with."
5According to this passage, which of the following is wrong?
A. He fired several shots and they all missed the target.
B. The captain wasn't satisfied with Frank and laughed at him.
C. In the big city Frank was admitted to the local rifle club.
D. Frank could have done better in the competition.
On Anger
Doctors say anger can be an extremely harmful emotion, unless you learn how to deal with it. They warn that angry feelings can lead to heart disease, stomach problem, headaches, emotional problems and possibly cancer.
Anger is a normal emotion that we all feel from time to time. Some people express anger openly in a calm reasonable way. Others burst with anger, losing control of themselves. But other people repress their anger. They cannot or will not express it.
For years many doctors thought that repressing anger was more dangerous to a person’s health than expressing it. They said that when a person is angry, the brain releases the same hormones (激素) that are produced during tense situations. They speed the heart rate, raise blood pressure, or sugar into the blood and narrow the blood vessels to the interstices (空隙). In general, the person feels excited and ready to act.
Doctors said that repressing these feelings only makes the feelings continue. And this can lead to many medical problems. Doctors thought a person could prevent these problems by letting the anger out by expressing it freely. But recently some doctors held a different view. They said that people who express anger repeatedly and violently did become, in fact, more and not less angry. They said this, too, can cause medical problems.
Some doctors say that both repressing and expressing anger can be dangerous. They believe that those who express anger strongly may be more likely to develop heart disease, and they believe that those who keep their anger inside may face a greater danger of high blood pressure.
Doctors say the solution is learning how to deal with anger. They say the first step is to admit that you are angry and to recognize the real cause of the anger, then decide if the cause is serious, enough to get angry about. If it is, they say, “Do not express your anger while angry. Wait until your anger has cooled down and you are able to express yourself calmly and reasonably.”
1 Repressing anger was considered to be dangerous because of all the following EXCEPT that ________ .
A. the heart rate increases B. the blood pressure rises
C. the blood contains sugar D. some blood vessels become thinner
2 Which of the following is the more recent view about the expression of anger?
A. It is dangerous to express anger repeatedly or repress one’s anger.
B. One can avoid his medical problems by expressing his anger freely.
C. One’s heart rate will increase if his anger is repressed.
D. One is likely to suffer from high blood pressure in a fit of great anger.
3 When you get angry, which of the following should you do for the sake of health?
A. Repressing the anger.B. Expressing the anger.
C. Treating the anger properly. D. Learning how to make a deal.
4What is the central topic of this passage about?
A. The different ways of dealing with anger.
B. The dangers of anger and the solution
C. New medical discoveries.
D. The argument between the new and old views about anger.
Thanksgiving Day is special holiday in the United States and Canada. Families and friends gather to eat and give thanks for their blessing.
Thanksgiving Day is really a harvest festival. This is why it is celebrated in late fall, after the crops are in. But one of the first thanksgivings in America had nothing to do with a good harvest. On December 4, 1619, the Pilgrims from England landed near what is now Charles City, Virginia. They knelt down and thanked God for their safe journey across the Atlantic.
The first New England Thanksgiving did celebrate a rich harvest. The Pilgrims landed at what is now Plymouth, Massachusetts, in 1620. They had a difficult time and the first winter was cruel. Many of the Pilgrims died. But the next year, they had a good harvest. So Governor Bradford declared a three-day feast（盛宴）. The Pilgrims invited Indian friends to join them for their special feast. Everyone brought food.
In time, other colonies（殖民地）began to celebrate a day of thanksgiving. But it took years before there was a national Thanksgiving Day. During the Civil War, Sarah Josepha Hale persuaded Abraham Lincoln to do something about it. He proclaimed（宣布）the last Thursday of November 1863 as a day of thanksgiving. Today, Americans celebrate this happy harvest festival on the fourth Thursday in November. Canadians celebrate Thanksgiving Day in much the same way as their American neighbours. But the Canadian thanks-giving Day falls on the second Monday in October.
1The first to celebrate thanksgiving were .
A. some people from England B. the American Indians
C. Sarah Josepha Hale D. Governor Bradford
2 We can infer from the passage that New England must be______________. .
A. in the U. S. A. B. in Great Britain
C. in CanadaD. on some island off the Atlantic
3 Which of the following is NOT true?
A. Thanksgiving Day used to be a holiday to celebrate a good harvest.
B. Abraham Lincoln was not the first to decide on thanksgiving celebrations.
C. Thanksgiving Day is celebrated to express the American and Indian people’s thanks to God.
D. There’s little difference between the American way and the Canadian way to celebrate Thanksgiving Day.
4 The passage mainly tells us__________.
A. how Thanksgiving Day is celebrated in the U. S. A.
B. how Thanksgiving Day came into being and the different ways it is celebrated
C. that Thanksgiving Day is in fact a harvest holiday
D. how the way to celebrate Thanksgiving Day changed with the time and places