deeply.‖
Encoding, Schacter explains, is a special way of paying attention to an event that has a major impact on recalling it later. Failure to encode properly can create annoying situations. If you put your mobile phone in a pocket, for example, and don‘t pay attention to what you did because you‘re involved in a conversation, you‘ll probably forget that the phone is in the jacket now hanging in you wardrobe (衣柜). ―Your memory itself isn‘t failing you,‖ says Schacter. ―Rather, you didn‘t give your memory system the information it needed.‖
Lack of interest can also lead to absent-mindedness. ―A man who can recite sports statistics from 30 years ago,‖ says Zelinski, ―may not remember to drop a letter in the mailbox.‖ Women have slightly better memories than men, possibly because they pay more attention to their environment, and memory relies on just that.
Visual cues can help prevent absent-mindedness, says Schacter. ―But be sure the cue is clear and available,‖ he cautions. If you want to remember to take a medication (药物) with lunch, put the pill bottle on the kitchen table—don‘t leave it in the medicine chest and write yourself a note that you keep in a pocket.
Another common episode of absent-mindedness: walking into a room and wondering why you‘re there. Most likely, you were thinking about something else. ―Everyone does this from time to time,‖ says Zelinski. The best thing to do is to return to where you were before entering the room, and you‘ll likely remember. 26. Why does the author think that encoding properly is very important? A) It helps us understand our memory system better. B) It enables us to recall something form our memory. C) It expands our memory capacity considerably. D) It slows down the process of losing our memory.
27. One possible reason why women have better memories than men is that ________. A) they have a wider range of interests
B) they are more reliant on the environment
C) they have an unusual power of focusing their attention D) they are more interested in what‘s happening around them
28. A note in the pocket can hardly serve as a reminder because ________. A) it will easily get lost
B) it‘s not clear enough for you to read C) it‘s out of your sight
D) it might get mixed up with other things
29. What do we learn from the last paragraph?
A) If we focus our attention on one thing, we might forget another. B) Memory depends to a certain extent on the environment. C) Repetition helps improve our memory.
D) If we keep forgetting things, we‘d better return to where we were. 30. What is the passage mainly about? A) The process of gradual memory loss. B) The causes of absent-mindedness.
C) The impact of the environment on memory. D) A way if encoding and recalling. 【BDCAB】
Passage Three
Questions 31 to 35 are based on the following passage.
It is hard to track the blue whale, the ocean‘s largest creature, which has almost been killed off by commercial whaling and is now listed as an endangered species. Attaching radio devices to it is difficult, and visual sightings are too unreliable to give real insight into its behavior.
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So biologists were delighted early this year when, with the help of the Navy, they were able to track a particular blue whale for 43 days, monitoring its sounds. This was possible because of the Navy‘s formerly top-secret system of underwater listening devices spanning the oceans.
Tracking whales is but one example of an exciting new world just opening to civilian scientists after the cold war as the Navy starts to share and partly uncover its global network of underwater listening system built over the decades to track the ships of potential enemies.
Earth scientists announced at a news conference recently that they had used the system for closely monitoring a deep-sea volcanic eruption (爆发) for the first time and that they plan similar studies.
Other scientists have proposed to use the network for tracking ocean currents and measuring changes in ocean and global temperatures.
The speed of sound in water is roughly one mile a second—slower than through land but faster than through air. What is most important, different layers of ocean water can act as channels for sounds, focusing them in the same way a stethoscope (听诊器) does when it carries faint noises from a patient‘s chest to a doctor‘s ear. This focusing is the main reason that even relatively weak sounds in the ocean, especially low-frequency ones, can often travel thousands of miles. 31. The passage is chiefly about ________.
A) an effort to protect an endangered marine species B) the civilian use of a military detection system C) the exposure of a U.S. Navy top-secret weapon D) a new way to look into the behavior of blue whales
32. The underwater listening system was originally designed ________. A) to trace and locate enemy vessels
B) to monitor deep-sea volcanic eruptions C) to study the movement of ocean currents
D) to replace the global radio communications network 33. The deep-sea listening system makes use of ________. A) the sophisticated technology of focusing sounds under water B) the capability of sound to travel at high speed
C) the unique property of layers of ocean water in transmitting sound D) low-frequency sounds traveling across different layers of water 34. It can be inferred from the passage that ________.
A) new radio devices should be developed for tracking the endangered blue whales B) blue whales are no longer endangered with the use of the new listening system
C) opinions differ as to whether civilian scientists should be allowed to use military technology D) military technology has great potential in civilian use
35. Which of the following is true about the U.S. Navy underwater listening network? A) It is now partly accessible to civilian scientists. B) It has been replaced by a more advanced system. C) It became useless to the military after the cold war. D) It is indispensable in protecting endangered species.
31. B 32. A 33. C 34. D 35. A
Passage Four
Questions 36 to 40 are based on the following passage.
The fitness movement that began in the late 1960s and early 1970s centered around aerobic exercise (有氧操). Millions of individuals became engaged in a variety of aerobic activities, and literally thousands of health spas developed around the country to capitalize (获利) on this emerging interest in fitness, particularly aerobic dancing for females. A number of
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fitness spas existed prior to this aerobic fitness movement, even a national chain with spas in most major cities. However, their focus was not on aerobics, but rather on weight-training programs designed to develop muscular mass, strength, and endurance in their primarily male enthusiasts. These fitness spas did not seem to benefit financially form the aerobic fitness movement to better health, since medical opinion suggested that weight-training programs offered few, if any, health benefits. In recent years, however, weight training has again become increasingly popular for males and for females. Many current programs focus not only on developing muscular strength and endurance but on aerobic fitness as well.
Historically, most physical-fitness tests have usually included measures of muscular strength and endurance, not for health-related reasons, but primarily because such fitness components have been related to performance in athletics. However, in recent years, evidence has shown that training programs designed primarily to improve muscular strength and endurance might also offer some health benefits as well. The American College of Sports Medicine now recommends that weight training be part of a total fitness program for healthy Americans. Increased participation in such training is one of the specific physical activity and fitness objectives of Healthy People 2000: National Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Objectives.
36. The word ―spas‖ (Line 3, Para. 1) most probably refers to ________. A) sports activities
B) places for physical exercise C) recreation centers
D) athletic training programs
37. Early fitness spas were intended mainly for ________. A) the promotion of aerobic exercise B) endurance and muscular development C) the improvement of women‘s figures D) better performance in aerobic dancing
38. What was the attitude of doctors towards weight training in health improvement? A) Positive. B) Indifferent. C) Negative. D) Cautious.
39. People were given physical fitness tests in order to find out ________. A) how ell they could do in athletics B) what their health condition was like
C) what kind of fitness center was suitable for them D) whether they were fit for aerobic exercise
40. Recent studies have suggested that weight training ________. A) has become an essential part of people‘s life B) may well affect the health of the trainees C) will attract more people in the days to come D) contributes to health improvement as well
36. B 37. B 38. C 39. A 40. D
2003.1
Passage One
Questions 11 to 15 are based on the following passage.
Like many of my generation, I have a weakness for hero worship. At some point, however, we all begin to question our heroes and our need for them. This leads us to ask: What is a hero?
Despite immense differences in cultures, heroes around the world generally share a number of characteristics that instruct
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and inspire people.
A hero does something worth talking about. A hero has a story of adventure to tell and a community who will listen. But a hero goes beyond mere fame.
Heroes serve powers or principles larger than themselves. Like high-voltage transformers, heroes take the energy of higher powers and step it down so that it can be used by ordinary people.
The hero lives a life worthy of imitation. Those who imitate a genuine hero experience life with new depth, enthusiasm, and meaning. A sure test for would-be heroes is what or whom do they serve? What are they willing to live and die for? If the answer or evidence suggests they serve only their own fame, they may be famous persons but not heroes. Madonna and Michael Jackson are famous, but who would claim that their fans find life more abundant?
Heroes are catalysts (催化剂) for change. They have a vision from the mountaintop. They have the skill and the charm to move the masses. They create new possibilities. Without Gandhi, India might still be part of the British Empire. Without Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King, Jr., we might still have segregated (隔离的) buses, restaurants, and parks. It may be possible for large-scale change to occur without leaders with magnetic personalities, but the pace of change would be slow, the vision uncertain, and the committee meetings endless.
11. Although heroes may come from different cultures, they ________. A) generally possess certain inspiring characteristics B) probably share some weaknesses of ordinary people C) are often influenced by previous generations D) all unknowingly attract a large number of fans
12. According to the passage, heroes are compared to high-voltage transformers in that ________. A) they have a vision from the mountaintop B) they have warm feelings and emotions
C) they can serve as concrete examples of noble principles D) they can make people feel stronger and more confident
13. Madonna and Michael Jackson are not considered heroes because ________. A) they are popular only among certain groups of people B) their performances do not improve their fans morally C) their primary concern is their own financial interests D) they are not clear about the principles they should follow
14. Gandhi and Martin Luther King are typical examples of outstanding leaders who ________. A) are good at demonstrating their charming characters B) can move the masses with their forceful speeches C) are capable of meeting all challenges and hardships D) can provide an answer to the problems of their people
15. The author concludes that historical changes would ________. A) be delayed without leaders with inspiring personal qualities B) not happen without heroes making the necessary sacrifices C) take place ff there were heroes to lead the people D) produce leaders with attractive personalities
11. A 12. C 13. B 14. A 15.A
Passage Two
Questions 16 to 20 are based on the following passage.
According to a survey, which was based on the responses of over 188,000 students, today‘s traditional-age college freshmen are ―more materialistic and less altruistic (利他主义的)‖ than at any time in the 17 years of the poll.
Not surprising in these hard times, the student‘s major objective ―is to be financially well off. Less important than ever is
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developing a meaningful philosophy of life.‖ It follows then that today the most popular course is not literature or history but accounting.
Interest in teaching, social service and the ―altruistic‖ fields is at a low. On the other hand, enrollment in business programs, engineering and computer science is way up.
That‘s no surprise either. A friend of mine (a sales representative for a chemical company) was making twice the salary of her college instructors her first year on the job—even before she completed her two-year associate degree.
While it‘s true that we all need a career, it is equally true that our civilization has accumulated an incredible amount of knowledge in fields far removed from our own and that we are better for our understanding of these other contributions—be they scientific or artistic. It is equally true that, in studying the diverse wisdom of others, we learn how to think. More important, perhaps, education teaches us to see the connections between things, as well as to see beyond our immediate needs.
Weekly we read of unions who went on strike for higher wages, only to drive their employer out of business. No company; no job. How shortsighted in the long run!
But the most important argument for a broad education is that in studying the accumulated wisdom of the ages, we improve our moral sense. I saw a cartoon recently which shows a group of businessmen looking puzzled as they sit around a conference table; one of them is talking on the intercom (对讲机): ―Miss Baxter,‖ he says, ―could you please send in someone who can distinguish right from wrong?‖
From the long-term point of view, that‘s what education really ought to be about. 16. According to the author‘s observation, college students ________. A) have never been so materialistic as today B) have never been so interested in the arts
C) have never been so financially well off as today
D) have never attached so much importance to moral sense
17. The students‘ criteria for selecting majors today have much to do with ________. A) the influences of their instructors B) the financial goals they seek in life C) their own interpretations of the courses
D) their understanding of the contributions of others
18. By saying ―While it‘s true that... be they scientific or artistic‖ (Lines 1-3, Para. 5), the author means that ________. A) business management should be included in educational programs B) human wisdom has accumulated at an extraordinarily high speed C) human intellectual development has reached new heights
D) the importance of a broad education should not be overlooked 19. Studying the diverse wisdom of others can ________. A) create varying artistic interests
B) help people see things in their right perspective C) help improve connections among people D) regulate the behavior of modern people
20. Which of the following statements is true according to the passage? A) Businessmen absorbed in their career are narrow-minded. B) Managers often find it hard to tell right from wrong.
C) People engaged in technical jobs lead a more rewarding life. D) Career seekers should not focus on immediate interests only.
16. A 17. B 18. D 19. B 20. D
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