Did you know that women’s brains are smaller than men’s? The average women’s brain weighs 10% less than men’s. Since research has shown that the bigger the brain, the cleverer the animal, men must be more intelligent than women. Right? Wrong. Men and women always score similarly on intelligence tests, despite the difference in brain size. Why? After years of study, researchers have concluded that it’s what’s inside that matters, not just the size of the brain. The brain consists of “grey matter” and “white matter”. While men have more of the latter, the amount of “thinking” brain is almost exactly the same in both sexes.
It has been suggested that smaller brain appears to work faster, perhaps because the two sides of the brain are better connected in women. This means that little girls tend to learn to speak earlier, and that women can understand sorts of information from different sources(来源)at the same time. When it comes to talking to the boss on the phone, cooking dinner and keeping an eye on the baby all at the same time, it’s women who come out on top every time.
There are other important differences between two sexes. As white matter is the key to spatial (空间的) tasks, men know better where things are in relation to other things. “A great footballer always knows where he is in relation to the other players, and he knows where to go,” says one researcher. That may explain one of life’s great mysteries: Why men refuse to ask for directions … and women often need to!
The differences begin when fetuses (胎儿) are about nine weeks old, which can be seen in the action of children as young as one. A boy would try to climb a barrier before him or push it down while a girl would attract help from others. These brain differences also explain the fact that more men take up jobs that require good spatial skills, while more women speech skills. It may all go back to our ancestors, among whom women needed speech skills to take care of their babies and men needed spatial skills to hunt, according to one research.
If all this disappoints you, it shouldn’t. “The brain changes throughout our lives according to what we do with it,” says a biologist.Which of the following is TRUE according to the first paragraph?
A.Women’s brain is 10% less than men’s. |
B.Grey matter controls thinking in the brain. |
C.Grey matter plays the same role as white matter. |
D.Both sexes have the same amount of white matter. |
What can we infer from the second and third paragraphs?
A.Women don’t need to tell directions. |
B.Women prefer doing many things at a time. |
C.Men have weaker spatial abilities. |
D.Men do better dealing with one job at a time. |
Which of the following do you agree with according to the fourth paragraph?
A.Young boys may be stronger than young girls. |
B.Women may have stronger feelings than men. |
C.More women take up jobs requiring speech skills. |
D.Our ancestors needed more spatial skills. |
What is the writer’s attitude in writing this passage?
A.Defensive. | B.Persuasive. | C.Supportive. | D.Objective. |
C
Geniuses amaze us, impress us and make us all a little jealous.How do they differ from the average person? Scientists are working hard to figure out that answer.Tune in to the National Geographic Channel to find out about the discoveries they’re making in the series My Brilliant Brain.
When Marc Yu was only two years old, he began to play the piano.After a year, he started learning pieces by Beethoven.Now he’s a world-famous concert pianist at age eight.He learns newer and more difficult pieces with ease and can identify any note he hears.He seems to be specially designed for music.In Born Genius, National Geographic looks at the science behind child prodigies (神童) to explain why some children seem to be born without limits.
Genius didn’t come naturally to Tommy McHugh.His came only after he nearly died from bleeding in his brain.After recovering, McHugh’s head was filled with new thoughts and pictures.So, he began to express them in the form of poetry and art.Now, he’s a seemingly unstoppable creative machine.Sufferers of autism and brain injury have shown that great mental ability can sometimes come from damage or disease.Accidental Genius explores this puzzling relationship.
Can normal people be trained to be geniuses? Susan Polger has shown no signs of extraordinary intelligence.Yet, during her childhood, she studied thousands of chess patterns and learned to recognize them immediately.As a result, she was able to beat skilled adult players by age 10 and can now play up to five games at the same time without even seeing the boards.Make Me a Genius examines what it takes to turn an ordinary brain into that of a genius.
If becoming a genius were easy, we’d all be one.Yet, there is much more to super intelligence than simply being born lucky.Learn more about amazing brains this month on National Geographic’s My Brilliant Brain.
51.My Brilliant Brains is most probably from _______.
A.a website B.the radio C.a magazine D.a newspaper
52.The author takes Marc Yu as an example to show that a child prodigy is .
A.a person who learns something easily
B.a child who is eager to learn new things
C.a student who practices an instrument a lot
D.a kid who works hard to do well in school
53.Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
A.New things about the brain are still being discovered.
B.People without natural abilities can learn to do things well.
C.Some people naturally have more active brains.
D.People are usually smarter when they recover from brain injury.
54.From the passage, we know that ___________
A.scientists completely understand the brain
B.people can only be born as geniuses
C.there’s no such thing as a true genius
D.there are many factors in being a genius
55.The author develops the passage mainly by ___________.
A.providing typical examples
B.following the natural time order
C.presenting a cause and analyzing its effects
D.comparing opinions from different scientists
B
WASHINGTON – It’s a great achievement that inspires notions of robots with consciousness and independent minds.
When people or animals get hurt, they can usually compensate for minor injuries and keep limping along, but for robots, even slight damage can make them stumble and fall. However, a recently made robot has demonstrated a novel ability: it can heal its own damage.
The new robot, which looks like a splay – legged, four – footed starfish can sense injury to itself and adapt. That ability sets the new robot apart from earlier machines. Because the robot can recover from unfamiliar places. “There is a need for planetary robotic rovers to be able to fix things on their own,” says Josh Bongard, a professor in the University of Vermont, who is one of the device’s creator. “Robots on other planets must be able to continue their mission without human help if they are damaged and cannot communicate their problem back to Earth.”
A typical robot functions according to a computer program, but the new robot works differently. First, sensors in its four legs observe the robot’s movements and signals to its built – in computer. From the formation it collects, the robot creates its own programs that allow it to adapt to different situations. For example, when the researchers shortened one of the robot’s legs, the smart machine simply adjusted its way of walking – it used three legs instead of four.
The researchers are looking for other places to put the resilient robot to work. One pellicle spot is the ocean floor. That dark and dangerous undersea terrain might be a good choice for a robot the scientists call the Starfish. “We never officially named the robot, but we usually refer to it as the Starfish, even though a real starfish has five rather than four legs,” says Bongard. “Also, a real starfish is much better than our robot at recovering from injury, because it can actually grow its legs again.” Scientists have created robots that help humans in many ways: by exploring space, fighting fires, and even performing surgery.
46.The newly designed robot distinguishes itself from the former ones because it___________
A.can communicate with people on the earth about their problems
B.works according to a certain computer program
C.can find its problems and solve them automatically
D.can explore unfamiliar places
47.An example is given in the fourth paragraph in order to explain that the robot ___________
A.is used to create new programs
B.has typical robot functions
C.has sensors to observe its movements
D.can gather information and adapt to new conditions
48.The underlined word “resilient” in the last paragraph means the robot is ___________.
A.creative B.newly made C.able to recover D.informative
49.Which of the following is TURE about the robot “Starfish”?
A.It was spoken highly of by people for its special ability?
B.It will stumble and fall if damaged.
C.It can grow its legs again once they are broken.
D.It has started to work on the ocean floor.
50.What might be the best title of the passage?
A.How does the Starfish Robot work
B.Do – It – Yourself Robot Repair
C.Robots Designed to Work On Other Planets
D.New Robot Helping Us In Many Ways
III.阅读(共两节,满分40分)
第一节阅读理解(共15小题;每小题2分,满分30分)
阅读下列短文,从每题所给的A、B、C和D项中,选出最佳选项,并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
A
Can you imagine a stranger will read your e – mails without your permission or scan the website you’ve visited or perhaps someone will casually glance through your credit card purchases or cell phone bills? All of the things may happen to you one day.
In fact,it’s likely that some of these things have already happened to you. Who would watch you without your permission? It might be a spouse, a girlfriend, a marketing company, a boss, a cop or a criminal. Whoever it is,they will see you in a way you never intended to be seen or even do something that may bring a disaster to you.
Psychologists tell us boundaries are healthy, and that it's important to reveal to friends, family and lovers at appropriate times. But few boundaries remain nowadays. The digital bread crumbs (碎屑) you leave everywhere make it easy for strangers to know who you are, where you are and what you like. In some cases, a simple Google search can leak the deepest thought in your mind. Like it or not, increasingly we live in a world where you simply cannot keep a secret.
The key question is:Does that matter? For many Americans, the answer apparently is “no”.
When opinion polls ask Americans about privacy, most of them say they are really concerned about losing it. And 60 percent of the respondents say they feel their privacy is “slipping away, and that bothers me”.
But people say one thing and do another.Only a small of Americans change any behaviors in an effort to preserve their privacy.Few people turn down a discount attollbooths (收费站)to avoid using the EZ—Pass system that can track automobile movements. Privacy economist Acquisti has run a series of tests that reveal people will give up personal information such as telephone number, address, or social security numbers just to get their hands on a pitiful 50-cents-off coupon(优惠券). But privacy does matter—at least sometimes.It's like health;when you have it,you don’t notice it.Only when it’s gone do you wish you’d done more to protect it. Without privacy, one will be naked in front of others.
41.What would psychologists advise on the relationships between friends?
A.Friends should open their hearts to each other.
B.Friends should always be faithful to each other.
C.There should be a distance even between friends.
D.There should be fewer quarrels between friends
42.Why does the author say “we live in a world where you simply cannot keep a secret”?
A.Modern society has finally developed into an open society.
B.People leave traces around when using modern technology.
C.There are always people who are curious about others’ affairs.
D.Many search engines profit by revealing people’s identities.
43.What do most Americans do about privacy protection?
A.They change behavior that might disclose their identity.
B.People turn down a discount at tollbooths to avoid using the EZ – Pass system.
C.They rely more and more on advanced technology.
D.They talk a lot but hardly do anything about it.
44.According to the passage,privacy is like health in that___________.
A.people will make every effort to keep it
B.its importance is hardly understood
C.It is something that can easily be lost
D.people don’t value it until they lose it
45.What would be the best title for the passage?
A.No privacy, no health.
B.Treasure your privacy.
C.Boundaries are important between friends.
D.The information age has its own shortcomings.
E
Computer mouse is no longer so strong. A Canadian engineer has invented a system that enables a computer user to push a cursor(光标)across a screen simply by moving his or her nose .He calls his nose-driven mouse a mouse.
The inventor ,Dmity Gorodnichy ,came up with the idea for the mouse while building computer software that would help astronauts operate the Canadarm—a long robotic arm on the U.S. space shuttle .His system employs a web-camera that recognizes a computer user’s nose from 25 pixels ,or points of light. Dmity chose the nose because its position remains relatively constant no matter which way the head moves .The system keeps track of the pixels, and the user matches the movements of his or her nose with the progress of the cursor across the screen.
The mouse keeps track of the eyes too. Two blinks(眨眼)are a “double click,” which turns the mouse on or off.
The mouse has received mixed comments from those who hold opposite opinions. One called it “a pointless waste of technology” . Another predicted that the nouse will fail to catch on because it makes users “look silly.” Dmity has already adapted the nouse for NousePong, a video game ,and NousePaint ,a drawing program.
He also predicts that the mouse will attract the people who have suffered from specific disease-pain ,senselessness ,or trembling in the hand caused by the frequent repetition of movements of the wrist and fingers ,such as typing at a computer keyboard .His next plan is to adapt the nouse for use by paralyzed(瘫痪)patients in hospitals .With two blinks of the eyes ,patients could double-click for help.
72.The best title for this passage is probably.
A.Mouse Driven by Nose
B.Cursor Moved Without fingers
C.New Computer System for Astronauts
D.New Type of Mouse for Patients
73.The nouse is a system working by means of .
A.keeping track of the points of light
B.moving one’s nose or blinking
C.moving cursor across the screen
D.matching the user’s nose with eyes
74.The underlined phrase “catch on” means “”.
A.become popular B.be used C.get improved D.be made
75.Dmity predicts that the nouse will be more used to help .
A.those who have eye trouble
B.develop a video game and drawing program
C.those traveling in space
D.the disabled with the hand and paralyzed patients
D
If you have a chance to go to Finland, you will probably be surprised to find how “foolish” the Finnish people are.
Take the taxi drivers for example. Taxis in Finland are mostly high-class Benz with a fare(车费) of two US dollars a kilometer. You can go anywhere in one, tell the driver to drop you at any place, say that you have some business to attend to, and then walk off without paying your fare. The driver would not show the least sign of anxiety.
The dining rooms in all big hotels not only serve their guests, but also serve outside diners. Hotel guests have their meals free, so they naturally go to the free dining rooms to have their meals. The most they would do to show their good faith is to wave their registration(登记) card to the waiter. With such a loose check, you can easily use any old registration card to take a couple of friends to dine free of charge.
The Finnish workers are paid by the hour. They are very much on their own as soon as they have agreed with the boss on the rate. From then on they just say how many hours they have worked and they will be paid accordingly.
With so many loopholes (漏洞)in everyday life, surely Finland must be a heaven to those who love to take “petty advantages”. But the strange thing is, all the taxi passengers would always come back to pay their fare after they have attended to their business; not a single outsider has ever been found in the free hotel dining rooms. And workers always give an honest account of the exact hours they put in. As the Finns always act on good faith in everything they do, living in such a society has turned everyone into a real “gentleman”.
68. The underlined words in this passage means to “______”。
A. be ready to help othersB. make good use of one’s friends
C. be a little ahead of others D. gain something at other’s loss
69. Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
A. While taking a taxi in Finland, you can get off without first paying your fare.
B. In a big hotel in Finland, you can enjoy free meals if you’re living in the hotel.
C. The bosses in Finland pay the employees according to registration of their working hours.
D. The workers are always honest with their working hours.
70. We can infer from the passage that ______.
A. the Finnish society is of very high moral level
B. there are many loopholes in everyday life in Finland
C. in Finland, most taxi drivers will not charge you anything
D. everyone in Finland is like a gentleman, for they have faith in themselves
71. Which of the following is the best title of the passage?
A. Life in Finland B. A Society with “Foolish” People
C.What a Life D. Honest accounts of the Finns