Muzak
The next time you go into a bank, a store, or a supermarket, stop and listen. What do you hear? ____1__ It’s similar to the music you listen to, but it’s not exactly the same. That’s because this music was especially designed to relax you, or to give you extra energy. Sometimes you don’t even realize the music is playing, but you react to the music anyway.
Quiet background music used to be called “elevator (电梯) music” because we often heard it in elevators. But lately we hear it in more and more places, and it has a new name “Muzak”. About one-third of the people in America listen to “Muzak” every day. The music plays for 15 minutes at a time, with short pauses in between. It is always more lively between ten and eleven in the morning, and between three and four in the afternoon, when people are more tired. ____2____.
If you listen to Muzak carefully, you will probably recognize the names of many of the songs. Some musicians or songwriters don’t want their songs to be used as Muzak, but others are happy when their songs are chosen. Why? ____3__.
Music is often played in public places because it is designed to make people feel less lonely when they are in an airport or a hotel. It has been proven that Muzak does what it is designed to do. Tired office workers suddenly have more energy when they hear the pleasant sound of Muzak in the background. 4 Supermarket shoppers buy 38 percent more groceries.
___5__. They say it’s boring to hear the same songs all the time. But other people enjoy hearing Muzak in public places. They say it helps them relax and feel calm. One way or another, Muzak affects everyone. Some farmers even say their cows give more milk when they hear Muzak!
| A．Some people don’t like Muzak. |
| B．The music gives them extra energy. |
| C．Music is playing in the background. |
| D．Factory workers produce 13 percent more. |
E. Muzak tends to help people understand music better.
F. They get as much as $4 million a year if their songs are used.
G. Muzak is played in most of the big supermarkets in the world.
Dogs have an understanding of fair play and become angry if they feel that another dog is getting a better deal, a new study has found.
The study looked at how dogs react when a companion is rewarded for the same trick in an unequal way. Friederike Range, a researcher at the University of Vienna in Austria, and her colleagues did a series of experiments with dogs who knew how to respond to the command “give the paw “. The dogs were normally happy to repeatedly give the paw, whether they got a reward or not. But that changed if they saw that another dog was being rewarded with a piece of food, while they received nothing.
“We found that the dogs hesitated significantly longer when obeying the command to give the paw,” the researchers write. The unrewarded dogs eventually stopped cooperating.
Scientists have long known that humans pay close attention to inequity. But researchers always assumed that animals didn’t share the trait. “The argument was that this is a uniquely human phenomenon,” says Frans de Waal, a professor of psychology at Emory University in Atlanta.
That changed in 2003 when he and a colleague did a study on monkeys. The monkeys had to hand a small rock to researchers to get a piece of cucumber in return. They were happy to do this. But if they saw that another monkey was getting a more delicious reward, a grape, for doing the same job, they would throw away the food and rock, and at some point just stopped performing.
In that experiment, the monkeys considered the fairness of two different types of payment. But when Range and her colleagues did a similar study with their trained dogs, testing to see if dogs would become upset if they only got dark bread when other dogs received sausage, they found that as long as the dogs got some kind of food payment, even if it wasn’t the most delicious kind, the animals would play along.How did the dogs in Range’s study react to the order of “giving the paw”?
| A．They took the order even without being rewarded. |
| B．They took the order only when rewarded. |
| C．They turned a deaf ear to repeated orders. |
| D．They hesitated longer when given repeated orders. |
The research by Frans De Waal in 2003 ___________.
| A．originated from Range’s research on dogs. |
| B．showed that animals do pay attention to inequity. |
| C．began the argument that only humans are aware of inequity. |
| D．was conducted to find out how monkeys reacted to humans’ orders. |
Some monkeys in the research become angry because they found another monkey _______.
| A．was given less work. |
| B．was given more food. |
| C．was given the same type of food. |
| D．was given more delicious food. |
Range found that, compared with monkeys, dogs ____________.
| A．care more about whether they are rewarded. |
| B．care less about what they are rewarded with. |
| C．care more about what they are ordered to do. |
| D．care less about who gives them orders. |
What is the main idea of the passage?
| A．Animals have various ways to show their anger. |
| B．Dogs are less intelligent than monkeys. |
| C．Dogs have a sense of fairness. |
| D．Most animals want to be rewarded equally. |
February 28th, 2009 2:54 am GMT
I have to say that am shocked at just how bad the new music is. This cannot be the same band that produced great albums such as HTDAAB and ATYCLB! This is awful! They either do not care anymore, or have completely lost it. I never thought U2 would become irrelevant, but they have officially become one of those bands that you will now say, “Remember when they were great?”
----- Posted by Ronald Harris
February 28th, 2009 8:29 pm GMT
Total drivel, Mr Harris. The new album is great, far better than the safe, cynical HTDAAB and ATYCLB. U2 have become inventive again, like they were in the 1990s. thank goodness!
----- Posted by Dan
March 3rd, 2009 12:09 pm GMT
Agree, Dan. The new album is the best since Actung Baby. Magnificent is an anthem in the waiting, Breathe is unbelievable, and Stand Up Comedy is absolutely outstanding----- to name just three! Loving the new sound, pure class as usual.
----- Posted by Martin
March 4th, 2009 7:43 pm GMT
Totally agree with you guys. This album is unbelievable. Breathe is definitely a great song, same with Moment of Surrender. I bet their upcoming tour will be amazing. If you haven’t bought the CD yet, you should. I bought mine on Amozon.com for $3.99. I couldn’t believe it.
----- Posted by Josh BriggsAccording to Ronald Harris, U2’s new album is _________.
| A．pretty good | B．so bad | C．the same as before | D．completely fresh |
whose comment is contrary to the others?
| A．Martin’s | B．Dan’s | C．Josh Briggs’ | D．Ronald Harris’ |
Martin and Josh Briggs both like the song _________.
| A．Magnificent | B．Moment of Surrender | C．Breathe | D．Stand Up Comedy |
Which of the following statements is not true according to the passage?
| A．Most fans felt disappointed at the new album. |
| B．The new album is available on the Internet. |
| C．The people who made comments are fans of U2. |
| D．U2’s upcoming tour may be a great success. |
The passage is most probably from ________.
| A．a concert poster | B．a TV review | C．a newspaper | D．the Internet |
A new study has found that it may be possible to train people to be more intelligent, increasing the brainpower they had at birth．
Until now，it has been widely assumed that the kind of mental ability that allows us to solve new problems without having any relevant previous experience—what psychologists call fluid intelligence—is innate and cannot be taught（though people can raise their grades on tests of it by practicing）．
But in the new study，researchers describe a method for improving this skill，along with experiments to prove it works．
The key, researchers found, was carefully structured training in working memory—the kind that allows memorization of a telephone number just long enough to dial it．This type of memory is closely related to fluid intelligence，so the researchers reasoned that improving it might lead to improvements in fluid intelligence．
First they measured fluid intelligence of volunteers using standard tests．Then they trained each in a complicated memory task—the child’s card game，in which they had to recall a card they saw and heard．During the course, they needed to ignore irrelevant items, monitor ongoing performance，manage two tasks at the same time and connect related items to one another in space and time．
The four groups experienced a half-hour of training daily for 8, 12, 17 and 19 days, respectively．To make sure they were not just improving their test-taking skills，the researchers compared them with control groups that took the tests without the training．
The results, published Monday in The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences，were striking．Improvement in the trained groups was a lot greater．Moreover，the longer they trained, the higher their scores were．All performers，from the weakest to the strongest，showed significant improvement．
“Our results show you can increase your intelligence with proper training．” said Dr Jaeggi, a co-author of the paper．“No one knows how long the gains will last after training stops,” he added, “and the experiment’s design did not allow the researchers to determine whether more training would continue to produce further gains．”The researchers thought the key to improving the intelligence was ______________．
| A．memorizing telephone numbers | B．improving working memory |
| C．training in concentration | D．recalling a card |
The following aspects of the training help increase intelligence EXCEPT___________．
| A．ignoring irrelevant items |
| B．monitoring ongoing performance |
| C．managing two tasks at the same time |
| D．using previous experience |
When the experiment was conducted, the researchers______________．
| A．trained the four groups for the same period of time |
| B．only made comparisons between the four groups |
| C．compared the four groups with control groups |
| D．trained the four groups together |
By writing the article，the writer intends to ______________．
| A．inform the readers of a new study |
| B．call on people to be trained to increase intelligence |
| C．prove one’s born brainpower can be improved |
| D．tell people the improved intelligence will last forever |
When someone gives you advice, listen without judgment, try to find value in what you’re hearing, and say “Thank you”．This wise advice is easy to understand yet hard to practice．I’ll give you an example from my life when I totally blew it in terms of practicing what I teach．
In my work I travel constantly．I always put off going to the airport until the last second．My wife, Lynda, was sitting next to me in the front seat．I was racing along and not paying much attention．Lynda cried out, “Look out! There is a red light up ahead．”
Being a trained behavioral science professional --- who teaches others the value of encouraging advice --- I naturally screamed at her, “I know there is a red light up ahead! Don’t you think I can see?” When we arrived at the airport, Lynda didn’t speak to me．I wondered why she seemed mad at me．
During the flight to New York, I did a cost-benefit analysis．I asked myself, “What was the cost of just listening when Lynda called out the warning? Zero．” I then reasoned, “What was the potential benefit? What could have been saved?” Several potential benefits came to mind, including her life, my life, and the lives of other people．
I landed in New York feeling ashamed of myself．I immediately called Lynda and told her my cost-benefit story．I convinced her, “The next time you help me with my driving, I am just going to say, ‘Thank you．’”
A few months passed, and I had long forgotten the incident．Again, I was racing off to the airport, when Lynda cried out, “Look out for the red light!” I was embarrassed, and then shouted, “Thank you!”
I’m a long way from perfect, but I’m getting better．My suggestion is that you get in the habit of asking the important people in your life how you can do things better．And be ready for an answer．Some people may tell you things like “Look out for the red light．” When this happens, remember that there is possibly some potential benefit．Then just say, “Thank you．”What do we know about the author?
| A．He is expert at behavioral science． | B．He is gifted in cost-benefit analysis． |
| C．He seldom takes his wife’s advice． | D．He often runs the red traffic light． |
The underlined part “blew it” in Paragraph 1 probably means “__________”．
| A．lost personal judgment | B．forgot the practical method |
| C．became annoyed with the adviser | D．failed to say “Thank you” |
It can be inferred from the passage that people __________．
| A．should give their opinions patiently | B．tend to be defensive when given advice |
| C．had better study behavioral science | D．intend to follow others’ suggestions |
The purpose of the passage is to advise people to __________．
| A．do a cost-benefit analysis in daily life | B．discover potential benefits |
| C．learn from the author’s experiences | D．treasure others’ suggestions |
In bringing up children, every parent watches eagerly the child’s acquisition of each new skill-the first spoken words, the first independent steps, or the beginning of reading and writing．It is often tempting to hurry the child beyond his natural learning rate, but this can set up dangerous feelings of failure and states of worry in the child: This might happen at any stage．A baby might be forced to use a toilet too early, a young child might be encouraged to learn to read before he knows the meaning of the words he reads．On the other hand, though, if a child is left alone too much, or without any learning opportunities, he loses his natural enthusiasm for life and his desire to find out new things for himself．
Patents vary greatly in their degree of strictness towards their children．Some may be especially strict in money matters．Others are severe over times of coming home at night or punctuality for meals．In general, the controls imposed represent the needs of the parents and the values of the community as much as the child’s own happiness．
As regards the development of moral standards in the growing child, consistency is very important in parental teaching．To forbid a thing one day and excuse it the next is no foundation for morality．Also, parents should realize that “example is better than precept”．If they are not sincere and do not practice what they teach, their children may grow confused, and emotionally insecure when they grow old enough to think for themselves, and realize they have been to some extent fooled．
A sudden awareness of a marked difference between their parents’ principles and their morals can be a dangerous disappointment．Eagerly watching the child’s acquisition of new skills _________．
| A．should be avoided |
| B．is universal among parents |
| C．sets up dangerous states of worry in the child |
| D．will make him lose interest in learning new things |
In the process of children’s learning new skills, parents ______．
| A．should encourage them to read before they know the meaning of the words they read |
| B．should not expect too much of them |
| C．should achieve a balance between pushing them too hard and leaving them on their own |
| D．should create as many learning opportunities as possible |
The second paragraph mainly tells us that __________．
| A．parents should be strict with their children |
| B．parental controls reflect only the needs of the parents and the values of the community |
| C．parental restrictions vary, and are not always intended for the benefit of the children alone |
| D．parents vary in their strictness towards their children according to the situation |
In moral matters, parents should __________．
| A．observe the rules themselves |
| B．be aware of the marked difference between adults and children |
| C．forbid things which have no foundation in morality |
| D．consistently ensure the security of their children |