C
Dreams can be familiar and strange, fantastical or boring, but some dreams might be connected to the mental processes that help us learn. No one knows for certain why people dream, but some dreams might be connected to the mental processes that help us learn. In a recent study, scientists found a connection between nap-time(打盹时的) dreams and better memory in people who were learning a new skill.
In the study, 99 college students between the ages of 18 and 30 each spent an hour on a computer, trying to get through a virtual maze (迷宫). The maze was difficult, and the study participants had to start in a different place each time they tried --- making it even more difficult. They were also told to find a particular picture of a tree and remember where it was.
For the first 90 minutes of a five-hour break, half of the participants stayed awake and half were told to take a short nap. Participants who stayed awake were asked to describe their thoughts. Participants who took a nap were asked about their dream after sleep---and they were awakened within a minute of sleep to describe their dreams.
Stickgold, a neuroscientist (神经科学家), wanted to know what people were dreaming about when their eyes weren’t moving, during sleep.
Four of the 50 people who slept said their dreams were connected to the maze. Some dreamed about the music that had been playing when they were working; others said they dreamed about seeing people in the maze. When these four people tried the computer maze again, they were able to find the tree faster than before their naps.
Stickgold suggests the dream itself doesn’t help a person learn --- it’s the other way around. He suspects that the dream was caused by the brain processed associated with learning.
All four of the people who dreamed about the task had done poorly the first time, which makes Stickgold wonder if the dreams show up when a person finds a new task particularly difficult. People who had other dreams, or people who didn’t take a nap, didn’t show the same improvement.Before having a short nap, participants of the experiment were asked to ___________.
| A．stay in different place in the maze |
| B．design a virtual maze which is difficult to get through |
| C．experience the experiment and try to remember something |
| D．get through a virtual maze on a computer from the same place |
After doing what they were asked on computers, participants ___________.
| A．were divided into two groups to do different things at break |
| B．were so tired as to fall asleep |
| C．felt bored with the experiment and they were sleepy |
| D．were asked to remember their experiment separately |
What can we learn from the passage?
| A．Participants who took a nap were required to express their thought. |
| B．Some dreams may encourage people to invent something new. |
| C．Participants who dreamed about films could finish the task more easily. |
| D．Participants whose dreams had something to do with the maze could find the tree faster. |
According to Stickgold, ____________.
| A．every person may dream about what they learned |
| B．people’s brain processes may still be connected with their learning in their dreams |
| C．once people’s eyes stop moving, they are sued to dream about something |
| D．no matter fantastical or boring, dreams are connected with peoples life |
Which of the following can be the best title for this passage?
| A．Strange Dreams |
| B．Stickgold, a Dream Expert |
| C．Dreaming Makes Better |
| D．Not All Dreams Are True |
Suppose a key man in your firm had just met with a terrible accident．The doctor tell you that this man upon whom you depend for directing sales, checking your books or for performing some other important roles, will be laid up for months, You’d have to replace him, wouldn’t you? And probably at a pay about equal to his ?
Then you would be faced with double paying for one job because stopping the pay of an injured man would simply be out
of the question．
You can prevent this kind of unproductive outgo on your payroll by providing your key man with the protection of Travelers Business Accident Insurance!
This insurance provides total medical expense and a weekly income in case a key man is disabled for some time．Should the disability prove everlasting, an income for life is certainty．Why not make out a list of your key men now? Then get together with Travelers Insurance Company, and let us tell you how little it costs to apply this much needed protection to your business．
Write and we'll serve you!
59．The above is most probably________．
A．a report B．a letter C．an announcement D．an advertisement
60．Whom might the writing be mainly for?
A．An important person in a firm． B．An employee of a firm．
C．The boss of a company． D．Readers of a newspaper．
61．Why would the pay be doubled?
A．Because two persons are doing one job of the same．
B．Because the important job is worth double pay．
C．Because it is necessary that the injured person should be paid．
D．Because the double pay is for two persons．
62．Travelers Insurance Company ________ for a person insured．
A．will pay for all the cost of treatment
B．will pay the weekly income or even that of lifetime
C．won’t get much from the firm
D．will provide everlasting pension as well as medical expense
第三部分：阅读理解（共15小题；每小题2分，共两节, 满分30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。
Perhaps the most famous theory, the study of body movement, was suggested by Professor Ray Birdwhistle．He believes that physical appearance is often culturally programmed．In other words, we learn our looks ---- we are not born with them．A baby has generally unformed face features．A baby, according to Birdwhistle, learns where to set the eyebrows by looking at those around ---- family and friends．This helps explain why the people of some areas of the United States look so much alike, New Englanders or Southerners have certain common face features that cannot be explained by genetics．The exact shape of the mouth is not set at birth, it is learned after．In fact, the final mouth shape is not formed until well after new teeth are set．For many, this can be well into grown-ups．A husband and wife together for a long time often come to look somewhat alike．We learn our looks from those around us．This is perhaps why in a single country there are areas where people smile more than those in other areas．In the United States, for example, the South is the part of the country where the people smile most frequently．In New England they smile less, and in the western part of New York State still less．Many Southerners find cities such as New York cold and unfriendly, partly because people on Madison Avenue smile less than people on Peachtree Street in Atlanta．People in largely populated areas also smile and greet each other in public less than do people in small towns．
56．Ray Birdwhistle believes physical appearance
A．has little to do with culture． B．has much to do with culture．
C．is ever changing． D．is different from place to place
57．According to the passage, the final mouth shape is formed ．
A．before birth． B．as soon as one's teeth are newly set
C．sometime after new teeth are set． D．around 15 years old．
58．Ray Birdwhistle can tell what area of the United States a person is from by
A．how much he or she smiles． B．how he or she raises his or her eyebrows
C．what he or she likes best． D．the way he or she talks．
Personal Growth
There are two basic ways to see growth: one as a product, the other as a process.
People have generally viewed personal growth as an external (外部的，表面的) result or product that can easily be identified and measured. The worker who gets a promotion, the student whose grades improve, the foreigner who learns a new language — all these are examples of people who have measurable results to show for their efforts.
By contrast, the process of personal growth is much more difficult to determine, since by definition it is a journey and not the specific signposts or landmarks along the way. The process is not the road itself, but rather the attitudes and feelings people have, their caution or courage, as they gain new experiences and face unexpected difficulties. In this process, the journey never really ends; there are always new ways to experience the world, new ideas to try, new challenges to accept.
In order to grow, to travel new roads, people need to have a willingness to take risks, to confront (正视) the unknown, and to accept the possibility that they may “fail” at first. How we see ourselves as we try a new way of being is essential to our ability to grow. Do we see ourselves as quick and curious? If so, then we tend to take more chances and to be more open to unfamiliar experiences. Do we think we’re shy and indecisive (优柔寡断)? Then we may hesitate, move slowly, and not take a step until we know the ground is safe. Do we think we’re slow to adapt to change or that we’re not smart enough to deal successfully with a new challenge? Then we are likely to take a more passive role or not try at all.
These feelings of insecurity and self-doubt are both unavoidable and necessary for us to change and grow. If we do not confront and overcome these internal (内部的) fears and doubts, if we protect ourselves too much, then we cease (停止) to grow. We become trapped inside a shell of our own making.In the author’s eyes, one who views personal growth as a process would _______.
| A．succeed in climbing up the social ladder |
| B．judge his ability to grow from his own achievements |
| C．face difficulties and take up challenges |
| D．aim high and reach his goal each time |
When the author says “a new way of being”, he is referring to ________.
| A．a new approach to experiencing the world | B．a new way of taking risks |
| C．a new method of understanding ourselves | D．a new system of adapting to change |
For personal growth, the author supports all of the following EXCEPT _______.
| A．curiosity about more chances | B．promptness (迅速) in self-adaptation |
| C．open-mindedness to new experiences | D．avoidance of internal fears and doubts |
The best title for this passage should be _________.
| A．Growth — Product or Process | B．Facing New Challenges |
| C．Two Basic Ways of Growth | D．Overcoming Internal Fears |
Last year, a report by a committee of education experts said that a lot of American students cannot write well. The report noted the concerns of business leaders and teachers. The experts said that more students should have to pass a writing test before they can finish high school. They pointed out that major college entrance tests are changing now to include a writing part.
Educators know that teaching students to write well is not easy. One problem is the amount of time needed to read through large amounts of work. So some companies have developed computer programs. These can grade student writing much more quickly than a person can. Writing tests can also cost less to carry out by computer than paper-and-pencil. These computer systems are known as e-readers. They use artificial (人工的) intelligence to think in a way like teachers. In the state of Indiana, computer grading of a statewide writing test began with a test of the system itself. For two years, both a computer and humans graded the student writing. Officials say there was almost no difference between the computer grades and those given by the human readers.
The entrance test commonly used by business schools, the GMAT, already uses e-readers. The GRE and TOEFL tests might start; officials are deciding. The GRE is the Graduate Record Examination. TOEFL is the Test of English as a Foreign Language.
Systems are also being used to grade writing in college classes. The computers read a few hundred examples of student writing already graded by humans. Then the systems compare new writings against those already examined.
How do teachers feel all about this? Many say machines can never do the job as well as people can. A computer can find spelling and grammar mistakes. But these teachers say it can never really understand what a writer is trying to say. Critics say a program cannot follow a thought or judge humor or understand a beautifully expressed idea.
But inventors of the programs say computer grading guarantees that each piece of writing is graded in the same way. They also say the systems are meant to judge knowledge more than creativity.What do the teachers think of the computer system?
| A．They think highly of the computer systems. |
| B．They think that computers cannot grade writing as well as people. |
| C．They believe that computers can understand a writer’s idea well |
| D．They are glad computers will spare their effort to correct students’ school work. |
From the first paragraph we can conclude that _________.
| A．American students’ writing ability is being improved |
| B．American students’ writing ability is not satisfactory |
| C．business leaders and teachers are not worried about students’ writing |
| D．all college entrance tests will include a writing part |
Which of the following is NOT the advantage of e-readers?
| A．Saving much of teachers’ time. | B．Saving a lot of money. |
C．Being fair and objective. | D．Appreciating humor and beauty |
The best title of this passage might be _________.
| A．Computer-graded Writing | B．Human-graded Writing |
| C．How to Improve Students’ Writing | D．Advantages of E-readers |
More than three years after moving from Australia to this remote part of England, we are still learning how things are done here.
Not too long after we arrived and unpacked, we were invited for “a drink on Sunday morning” by a retired couple nearby. We got there about noon, to find the living-room crowded — lots of chat and discussions, and in all a very jolly occasion.
Trouble was, there was no food — no self-respecting Australian would regard a tray of crisps as food. In Sydney, when you are invited for a drink any time after midday on a Sunday, you know you will be fed as well as watered and you plan accordingly. Meaning the hardworked little woman makes no plans to cook lunch because you are eating out.
By one-fifteen my stomach was sending up “please explain” to me. Even the crisps had gone. There was nothing we could do except wait, and wonder if the hostess was going to perform some magic and feed us fashionably late. Then, as quickly as if word had spread that there was free beer at the local pub, the room emptied. By one-forty-five there were only a few guests left, so we decided to go home. Tinned soup for lunch that day because the little woman was not really interested in real cooking for us.
A few weeks ago we were invited out for “supper” and the hostess suggested 8:15. Ah, we thought greedily, “this is going to be the real thing.”
We dressed with some care — I putting on a dark suit — and arrived on time. My wife looked pretty good, I thought, a little black dress and so on. But when we walked in I had a terrible feeling we had got the night wrong because the hostess was dressed in a daytime kind of way and the husband was in jeans and an open-neck shirt. But no, we were greeted and shown into the sitting-room.
After a drink I looked around and saw that this was indeed a superior cottage because it had a (more or less) separate dining-room. But there were no signs of a table-setting. Not again! I thought. Were we meant to eat before we came? I decided that in future my wife and I would always carry a chocolate bar. About 9:28 our hostess went out of the room, saying something about food. Ten minutes later she returned and asked us to follow. We were led out to the kitchen. There on the table were country style plates and a huge bowl of soup, rough bread and all the makings of a simple meal. And that is what it was. In other words we had not read the signals right when we were invited for “supper”. If they want you to come to dinner, they say so, and you know that means dark suits and so on. If they mean supper, they say it, and you get fed in the kitchen.When the author and his wife were invited out for “a drink on Sunday morning”, they thought _______.
| A．they would be the only people there |
| B．they would be given lunch as well |
| C．they would be taken to a restaurant for lunch |
| D．they would be asked to take some food with them |
The “party” had been going on for about an hour and three quarters when _________.
| A．the hostess decided to feed her guests | B．everyone had tinned soup for lunch |
| C．most of the guests went to lunch at the pub | D．the author realized he would go home hungry |
When invited out for “supper” a few weeks later, the writer _________.
| A．expected to be served a proper dinner |
| B．arrived on the wrong evening |
| C．interpreted the invitation correctly this time |
| D．realized there was no dining-room in the cottage |
As the evening went on, the writer became aware that _________.
| A．no one used their dining-rooms in the countryside | |
| B．he should have had a meal before going out | |
| C．“supper” meant a simple, informal meal |
D．he should, in future, eat only chocolate in the evening |