Losing weight comes with a lot of health benefits—including making your brain sharper.
Yes, it turns out that overweight may damage cognitive functions (认知功能) such as memory and attention. There have been few studies of overweight and cognitive functioning, possibly because it is generally believed that it is not a primary risk cause for poor cognitive performance. Losing weight, therefore, may help improve these mental functions, according to a new research led by John Gunstad, assistant professor of psychology at Kent State University.
Growing evidence suggests that being fat is linked to cognitive deficits (缺陷). So Gunstad and his team guessed that losing weight might improve mental function. For their study, they measured memory and attention in a group of 150 overweight participants, some of whom had some kind of operation for weight loss and some did not. All of the volunteers completed mental skills tests to assess their abilities of memory and attention at the beginning of the study, and again 12 weeks later. To begin with, about 24% of the patients showed damaged learning and 23% showed signs of poor memory when tested. At the end of the study, those who had lost weight after operation improved their scores into the average or above average range for cognitive functions. Scores for the volunteers who didn’t lose weight dropped even further.
The study helped Gunstad to find out whether losing weight had any effect on mental function. Now that he’s seen the positive effect that weight loss can have on memory and attention, he says he will next study those who choose to lose weight by the traditional way—eating healthier and getting more active. He expects that losing weight in this way will have a similarly positive effect on the brain. “If we can improve the condition with operations, then we can probably produce the same change with behavioral weight loss as well,” he says. There is less research on overweight and cognitive functions because researchers _____.
| A. believe overweight only affects our body |
| B. have focused on ways to sharpen people’s mind |
| C. do not consider overweight a main cause for low cognitive ability |
| D. are clear about the relation between weight and mental functions |
The result of Gunstad’s study shows that ______.
| A. losing weight has little effect on people’s memory |
| B. losing weight can improve people’s mental functions |
| C. overweight people are likely to have psychology problems |
| D. overweight people’s abilities of concentration differ greatly |
What is Gunstad planning to prove next in his research?
| A. Slim people are smarter than overweight people. |
| B. Healthy diet is better than exercise in losing weight. |
| C. Traditional ways of losing weight are better than operation. |
| D. Overweight people will get smarter by taking more exercise. |
Which of the following is the best title for the text?
| A. Body Weight and Health |
| B. Losing Weight by Operation |
| C. Ways to Improve Mental Functions |
| D. Losing Weight to Sharpen Your Mind |
There are some very good things about open education. This way of teaching allows the students to grow as people, an
d to develop their own interests in many subjects. Open education allows students to be responsible for their own education, as they are responsible for what they do in life. Some students do badly in a traditional classroom. The open classroom may allow them to enjoy learning. Some students will be happier in an open education school. They will not have to worry about grades or rules. For students who worry about these things a lot, it is a good idea to be in an open classroom.
But many students will not do well in an open classroom. For some students, there are too few rules. These students will do little in school. They will not make good use of open education. Because open education is so different from traditional education, these students may have a problem getting used to making so many choices. For many students it is important to have some rules in the classroom. They worry about the rules even when there are no rules. Even a few rules will help this kind of students. The last point about open education is that some traditional teachers do not like it. Man
y teachers do not believe in open education. Teachers who want to have an open classroom may have many problems at their schools.
You now know what open education is. Some of its good points and bad points have been explained. You may have your own opinion about open education. The writer thinks that open education is a good idea, but only in theory. In actual fact, it may not work very well in a real class or school. The writer believes that most students, but of course not all students, want some structure in their classes. They want and need to have rules. In some cases, they must be made to study some subjects. Many students are pleased to find subjects they have to study interesting. They would not study those subjects if they did not have to.
．Open education allows the students to _________. .
| A．grow as the educated | B．be responsible for their future |
| C．develop their own interests | D．discover subjects outside class |
Open education may be a good idea for the students who .
| A．enjoy learning | B．worry about grades |
| C．do well in a traditional classroom | D．are responsible for what they do in life. |
Some students will do little in an open classroom because .
| A．there are too few rules | B．they hate activities |
| C．open education is similar to the traditional education | |
| D．they worry about the rules |
Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the passage?
| A．Some traditional teachers do not like it. |
| B．Many teachers do not believe in open education. |
| C．Teachers may have problems in open classrooms. |
| D．The teacher’s feelings and attitudes are important to the students. |
．Which of the following best summarizes the passage?
| A．Open education is a really complex idea. |
| B．Open education is better than traditional education. |
| C．Teachers dislike open education. |
| D．The writer thinks that open education is a good idea in practice. |
In general, it seems reasonable to suppose that we should prefer peace and quiet to noise. And yet most of us have had the experience of having to adjust to sleeping in the mountains or the countryside because it was initially “too quiet”, an experience that suggests that humans are capable of adapting to a wide range of noise levels. Research supports this view. For example, Glass and Singer (1972) exposed people to short bursts of very loud noise and then measured their ability to work out problems and their physiological reactions to the noise. The noise was quite disruptive at first, but after about four minutes the subjects were doing just as well on their tasks as control subjects who were not exposed to noise. Their physiological react
ions also declined quickly to the same levels as those of the control subjects.
But there are limits to adaptation and loud noise becomes more troublesome if the person is required to concentrate on more than one task. For example, high noise levels affect the performance of subjects who were required to monitor three dials at a time, a task not unlike that of a plane pilot or an air-traffic controller. Similarly, noise did not affect a subject’s ability to track a moving line with a steering wheel, but it did affect the subject’s ability to repeat numbers while tracking (Finkelm and Glass 1970).
Probably the most significant finding from the research on noise is that its predictability is more important than how loud it is. We are much more able to “tune out” long-lasing background noise, even if it is quite loud, than to work under circumstances with unexpected disturbance of noise. In Glass and Singer’s study, in which subjects were exposed to bursts of noise as they worked on a task, some subjects heard loud bursts and others heard soft bursts. For some subjects, the bursts were spaced exactly one minute apart (predictable noise); others heard the some amount of noise overall, but the bursts occurred at random intervals (unpredictable noise). Subjects reported finding the predictable and unpredictable noise equally annoying, and all subjects performed at about the same level during the noise portion of the experiment. But the different noise conditions had quite different after-effects when the subjects were required to proofread written material under conditions of no noise. The study shows that the unpredictable noise produced more errors in the later proofreading task than predictable noise; and soft unpredictable noise actually produced slightly more errors on this task than the loud predictable noise.
Apparently, unpredictable noise produces more fatigue than predictable noise, but it takes a while for this fatigue to take its toll on performance.When talking about people’s difficulty in sleeping in the mountains, what can be inferred in the passage?
| A．They usually do not prefer peace and quiet to noise. |
| B．They may be exposed to short bursts of very strange sounds. |
C．They prefer to h ear a certain amount of noise while they sleep. |
| D．They may not have adapted to a higher noise level in the city. |
What did Glass and Singer find in their noise experiment?
| A．Problem-solving is much easier under quiet conditions. |
| B．Physiological reactions prevent the ability to work. |
| C．Bursts of noise hardly disturb problem-solving in the long term. |
| D．The physiological reactions of the control subjects declined quickly. |
Researchers discovered that high noise levels are not likely to affect the __________.
| A．successful performance of a single task |
| B．tasks of pilots or air traffic controllers |
| C．ability to repeat numbers while tracking moving lines |
| D．ability to monitor three dials at once |
What does “take its toll on performance” in the passage probably mean?
| A．Destroy the performance completely. |
| B．Have a negative effect on the performance. |
| C．Improve the performance greatly. |
| D．Have a positive influence on the performance. |
One often hears that children should arrive at school “ready to learn.” For most children, the acquisition of reading and math skills starts in the first grade. In states where kindergarten is compulsory, it begins even earlier.
Many parents, teachers, and politicians maintain that preschool is the best way to prepare children to learn. There is no real consensus, however, about how this preparation should be achieved.
For some, early childhood education relates to the development of the whole child. They think that preschool should encou
rage exploration and discovery. Group activities teach positive social behaviors such as sharing, kindness, and patience. Time spent alone encourages independence. Learning letters and counting is important only for children who show an interest in them. Advocates of this approach stress that each child is unique and should learn at his or her own pace.
Other people refer to research showing that children are ready to absorb basic academic concepts by age 3 or 4. They claim that early introduction to letters and numbers lays the foundation for later academic excellence. Since the 1980s, many people have stressed the value of preschool an
d point to the success of programs -such as Head Start - that target low-income children.
Is there proof that an academic curric
ulum in preschool will lead to academic success? Studies have not been conclusive. In the short term, evidence suggests that middle-class children who attend preschool are ahead of their peers in maths and language skills as well as in social skills, when they enter school. However, the same studies show that the gap narrows considerably by the time children reach age 8.
Children living in poverty are a different matter. Those enrolled in programs such as Head Start seem to do better than impoverished children who do not attend a preschool. For instance, youngsters in one group enrolled in the program, tracked until the age of 21, earned higher scores on intelligence tests, were more likely to graduate from high school, and demonstrated more interest in higher education.
The idea of public preschool raises many issues. Providing Head Start for all children would be a financial burden on communities that already struggle to fund current school programs. Also, where would a sufficient number of teachers trained in early childhood development be found?
Advocates of the development of the whole child believe school readiness is______ .
| A．showing eagerness in exploration and discovery |
| B．learning basic skills, such as knowing letters and counting |
| C．showing great interest in basic academic concepts |
| D．demonstration of intellectual , social and emotional skills |
According to the passage, Head Start is most probably______ .
| A．a preschool program that supports disabled children |
| B．a program that helps impoverished children attend a school |
| C．an organization that aims to improve current school programs |
| D．a program that helps design the academic curriculum in preschool |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．Preschool benefits middle-class children more than poor children. |
| B．Most children start school with similar language and social skills. |
| C．Providing Head Start for all children has encountered great difficulties. |
| D．All children are ready to absorb basic academic concepts by age 3 or 4. |
Which of the following may best summarize the main idea of the passage?
| A．An academic curriculum in preschool will lead to academic success. |
| B．Preshool is helpful, despite the disagreement about what it should offer. |
| C．Children enrolled in preschool demonstrate more interest in learning. |
| D．Preschool education shouldn't be a financial burden on communities. |
| Billboard May 30-June 5, University of Waterloo |
Wednesday, May 30
Gloria Steinem, author of “Revolution From Within” will discuss her book. 8 p.m. Public Library Park Branch. Further information: Susan Smith, 824-4120. ext. 2896.
Thursday May 31
Noon hour concert at Art Centre Music Hall featuring chamber music; Jana Skareski, composer. 12 : 30 p.m. Admission free.
Archeology Open House at WLU. Displays of photographs and objects from Africa, Southwest Asia, the Old and New World; the university’s permanent collection. 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Archeology rooms, 202 Regina St. Exhibit continues until June 6.
Friday, June 1
Noon hour discussion with Arthur Read, Dean of Arts and Science, WI.U.
Topic: “Universities in the 2000’s”. Public Library Mairt Branch. Details: 743-0271. Food and drinks available.
Saturday, June 2
Arts Lecture Series with Dr. Mary Malone, Religious Studies, St. Jerome’s College.
Topic: “Woman and Religion”. 9 : 30 a.m. Humanities Theatre. Details: 884-8110.
Chamber Music Concert at WLU performed by music students of WLU. 8 p. m. Art Centre Music Hall. Admission: $ 6 adults; seniors and WLU students and staff member $ 3; High school and primary pupils, free.
Sunday, June 3
University of Waterloo 2001 Campus Day featuring Chem
istry Magic Show, animal show, fashion show, square dancing and more. 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Biology & Chemistry Block, WLU Campus. Further details: 824-4120, ext. 8366.
Monday, June 4
Slide/Video Presentation featuring Hong Kong, Macao and Singapore. Sponsored by International Graduate Students Committee (IGSC). All graduates welcome; free. 5 : 00~8 : 00 p.m. Humanities Theatre. Free snacks provided.
Tuesday, June 5
Quick Questions. Drop in to see Ms. Barb Riley, who can answer your brief career or job-related questions. 1 to 4 p. m. Career Services. Public Library Main Branch: For information call ext. 3001.
84. Rosa’s parents are both WLU professors. They are going to see Rosa perform on Saturday evening together with her grandpa and her 15-year-old sister. How much will the family pay for the tickets?
A. $12. B. $18. C. $15. D. $9.
Nick is eager to find a good job after graduation. From whom can he get some information?
| A．Gloria Steinem. |
| B．Ms. Barb Riley. |
| C． Jana Skareski. |
| D．Arthur Read or Mary Malone. |
When are you likely to meet quite a few graduates of Waterloo University?
| A．5:00~8:00 p.m., Monday. |
| B．9:30 a.m., June 2. |
| C．10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Thursday. |
| D．12:00~1:00, June 1. |
If you are interested in all the activities and lectures at weekend, how many places can you go at most?
| A．2. | B．3. | C．4. | D．5. |
To learn English well you must learn about yourself. You must discover what your own special needs are in English. You should pick o
ut what makes English different from your own language and concentrate on those parts. And above all, you should pick out your own personal weaknesses in English, pick out your own special problems, find out what mistakes you most often make and make a list of them.
It will be best if, in your preparation, you can practise doing the various sorts of work you will be asked to do in examination. You should then make a careful note of any mistakes you make more than once. Count up how many times you make each mistake, and the mistake you make most oft
en should be at the top of your list, the next most common in second place, and so on.
For example, if your own language is Japanese, you may find the problem of articles comes at the top of your list. If you speak German, you may find using some of the conjunctions is your biggest problem. If your mother tongue is French, you find you are always having trouble with some of prepositions. And if Italian is your language, you may constantly forget to use a suitable pronoun when you should.
But these are only examples of mistakes typical of certain languages. They may or may not
be your particular personal mistakes. As I say, these personal ones are the most important of all to discover.
To learn English well the most important thing is to ______.
| A．learn about yourself as much as possible |
| B．discover your own special needs in the language |
| C．find out the difference between your own language and English |
| D．pick out your own personal weaknesses in English |
The writer advises the readers to ______ .
| A．spend as much time on English as possible |
| B．take examinations of various sorts |
| C．find out their own problems in doing selected exercises |
| D．keep a notebook with the important languages points in it |
The first item on the list should be the mistake you make ______ .
| A．more than once | B．many times | C．most often | D．very often |