switch with only two positions, on or off. My use of the bathtub hoax is intended to illustrate that belief does not have to operate as a simple yes or no choice, all or nothing. Belief can be more conditional; it can be something that we decide to have “up to a point.” And so, the question we might ask ourselves while reading does not have to be “Should I believe it or not?” but instead can be “How much should I believe it?” This later question implies that the belief we have in any given fact, or in any given idea, is not determined by whether it sounds right or whether the source is an authority. It means that our beliefs are determined by the reasons that justify them. Belief is not a mechanical action, brought about by invariable rules of nature. It is a human activity, the exercise of judgment. With this in mind, we might say that we perform this action better when we know what the reasons are that have led to our belief, and why they are good reasons.
These observations do not deprive us of our ability to believe in what we read. They are not intended to transform you from credulous believers into stubborn doubters. The process of weighing beliefs against the quality of reasons is one that you already go through all the time, whether you are aware of it or not. We all do. The practice of critical reading is the exercise of this kind of judgment on purpose. By doing it, we protect ourselves from being led into belief for inadequate reasons, but at the same time we open up our minds to the possibility of arriving at belief for adequate ones. If we decide to grant or withhold consent based on the quality of the reasons that we are given we admit at the same time that two things are possible: We admit that we might consent less in the future if we discover that the reasons are not so good after all; and we admit that we might consent more if we are ever
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presented with better reasons than we had formerly known. This attitude is not pure skepticism any more than it is pure credulity. It is somewhere in between. It is the attitude of an open-minded thinker, of someone who wishes to be responsible for deciding for herself or himself what to believe.
41. The author’s use of the bathtub hoax is meant to suggest that __________.
A. facts must be believed unconditionally B. belief is more than a simple yes or no choice C. nothing should be believed or disbelieved D. belief is nothing but a light switch
42. To believe or disbelieve what you read should be based on ________. A. the facts that you are given
B. whether the author is an open-minded authority C. the quality of reasons provided by the material D. the assumption that you know everything about it
43. As a human activity, weighing the facts about something is actually _______.
A. determined by the rules of nature B. a performance
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C. brought about even at birth D. experienced by everyone
44. According to the author, which of the following is true?
A. Our attitude toward what we read may change if we are given better reasons.
B. An open-minded thinker is responsible for what he or she says. C. Critical reading can make us believe more in what we read. D. We ought to question the value of what we read if its source is not authoritative.
45. What is the topic of this passage? A. Judgment and Responsibility. B. Reading and Belief. C. Trust and Faith.
D. Reading and Human Activity.
Passage 3
Things don’t come easily to Matteo, a 4-year-old New Yorker with brown bangs and cowboy bandanna. Afflicted by cerebral palsy, he moves awkwardly. He thinks slowly and doesn’t talk much. Small frustrations upset him terribly. But when Matteo visits Clive Robbins, his music therapist, he bangs gleefully on a snare drum, placing one
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hand on the rim to steady himself, he uses the other to rap in tempo to Robbins’s improvised song. As the tune progresses, Matteo moves his act to the piano, banging along with one or two fingers and laughing excitedly. By following the rhythm, he is learning to balance his body and coordinate the movement of his limbs. He’s also learning to communicate. “He is grown much more motivated and intent,” says Robbins, the co-founder of New York University’s Nordoff-Robbins Center for Music Therapy.
Disabled children aren’t the only ones feeling the therapeutic power of music. A 79-year-old stroke survivor listens to Viennese waltzes on his headphones to help him to relearn to walk. A woman in labor had LeAnn Rimes’ country tunes blaring from a stereo to help her keep in step with her contraction. And, yes, ostensibly healthy people are listening to airy New Age discs, and maybe lighting a candle or two, to lessen stress and promote well-being. They may all be on to something. Mounting evidence suggests that almost any musical stimulus, from Shostakovich to the Spice Girls can have therapeutic effects.
Music therapy isn’t mainstream health care, but recent studies suggest it can have a wide range of benefits. In 1996, researchers at Colorado State University tried giving 10 stroke victims 30 minutes of rhythmic stimulation each day for three weeks. Compared with untreated patients, they shared significant improvements in their ability to walk steadily. People with Parkinson’s disease enjoyed similar benefits. A musical beat from any genre seemed to provide a rhythmic cue, stimulating the brain’s motor systems.
Other body systems seem equally responsive. Scottish researchers have found, for example, that a daily dose of Mozart or Mendelssohn
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significantly brightens the moods of institutionalized stroke victims. Using psychological tests, the Scottish team showed that patients receiving 12 weeks of daily music therapy were less depressed and anxious, and more stable and sociable, than other patients in the same facility. Music therapy has also proved useful in the management of Alzheimer’s and other neurological diseases. And Deforia Lane, a music therapist at University Hospitals in Cleveland, has shown that music can boost immune function in children. That’s consistent with a 1995 finding by Louisiana researchers that preemies exposed to lullabies in the hospital went home earlier.
46. Which of the following would be the best title for this passage?
A. Why Music is Powerful B. Music and Pain Medication C. Music and Disabled Children D. The Medical Power of Music
47. What does the passage say about Matteo?
A. He is suffering a paralysis of the brain. B. He is late in his ability to walk and talk. C. He plays music better by taking the advice. D. He’s ambitious to become a professional drummer.
48. Paragraph 2 mainly tells that ________________.
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