1、2014高考英语阅读理解抓分练习题（20）及答案 If you want to stay young, sit down and have a good think. This is the research finding of a team of Japanese doctors, who say that most of our brains are not getting enough exerciseand as a result, we are ageing unnecessarily soon.Professor Taiju Matsuzawa wanted to find ou
2、t why otherwise healthy farmers in northern Japan appeared to be losing their ability to think and reason at a relatively early age, and how the process of ageing could be slowed down.With a team of colleagues at Tokyo National University, he set about measuring brain volumes of a thousand people of
3、 different ages and varying occupations.Computer technology enabled the researchers to obtain precise measurements of the volume of the front and side sections of the brain, which relate to intellect (智能) and emotion, and determine the human character. (The rear section of the brain, which controls
4、functions like eating and breathing, does not contract with age, and one can continue living without intellectual or emotional faculties.)Contraction of front and side partsas cells die offwas observed I some subjects in their thirties, but it was still not evident in some sixty- and seventy-year-ol
5、ds.Matsuzawa concluded from his tests that there is a simple remedy to the contraction normally associated with ageusing the head.The findings show in general terms that contraction of the brain begins sooner in people in the country than in the towns. Those least at risk, says Matsuzawa, are lawyer
6、s, followed by university professors and doctors. White collar workers doing routine work in government offices are, however, as likely to have shrinking brains as the farm worker, bus driver and shop assistant.Matsuzawas findings show that thinking can prevent the brain from shrinking. Blood must c
7、irculate properly in the head to supply the fresh oxygen the brain cells need. “The best way to maintain good blood circulation is through using the brain,” he says, “Think hard and engage in conversation. Dont rely on pocket calculators.”36. The team of doctors wanted to find out _.A. why certain p
8、eople age sooner than others B. how to make people live longerC. the size of certain peoples brains D. which people are most intelligent【答案】A【解析】细节理解题。由第二段“Professor Taiju Matsuzawa wanted to find out why otherwise healthy farmers in northern Japan appeared to be losing their ability to think and re
9、ason at a relatively early age, and how the process of ageing could be slowed down.”可知医生们想要研究出为什么一些人比其他人老得更快。37. On what are their research findings based?A. A survey of farmers in northern Japan. B. Tests performed on a thousand old people.C. The study of brain volumes of different people D. The la
10、test development of computer technology.【答案】C【解析】细节理解题。由“he set about measuring brain volumes of a thousand people of different ages and varying occupations.”可知选C。38. The doctors test show that _.A. our brains shrink as we grow older B. the front section of the brain does not shrinkC. sixty-year-old
11、s have the better brains than thirty-year-oldsD. some peoples brains have contracted more than other peoples.【答案】D【解析】细节理解题。由“The findings show in general terms that contraction of the brain begins sooner in people in the country than in the towns.”可知医生们的测试发现，一般而言，乡下人比城镇里的人的大脑收缩的更早。故选D。39. The word
12、“subjects” in Paragraph 5 means _.A. something to be considered B. branches of knowledge studiedC. persons chosen to be studied in an experimentD. any member of a state except the supreme ruler.【答案】C【解析】词义猜测题。由“but it was still not evident in some sixty- and seventy-year-olds.”可知“subjects”指的是被选入实验中做
13、研究的人。故选C。40. According to the passage, which people seem to age slower than the others?A. Lawyers. B. Farmers. C. Clerks. D. Shop assistants.【答案】A【解析】细节理解题。由“Those least at risk, says Matsuzawa, are lawyers,”可知律师变老的风险最小。故选A。 The speaker, a teacher from a community college, addressed a sympathetic au
14、dience. Heads nodded in agreement when he said, High school English teachers are not doing their jobs. He described the inadequacies of his students, all high school graduates who can use language only at a grade 9 level. I was unable to determine from his answers to my questions how this grade 9 le
15、vel had been established.My topic is not standards nor its decline（降低）. What the speaker was really saying is that eh is no longer young; he has been teaching for sixteen years, and is able to think and speak like a mature adult.My point is that the frequent complaint of one generation about the one
16、 immediately following it is inevitable. It is also human nature to look for the reasons for our dissatisfaction. Before English became a school subject in the late nineteenth century, it was difficult to find the target of the blame for language deficiencies（缺陷）. But since then, English teachers ha
17、ve been under constant attack.The complainers think they have hit upon an original idea. As their own command of the language improves, they notice that young people do not have this same ability. Unaware that their own ability has developed through the years, they assume the new generation of young
18、 people must be hopeless in this respect. To the eyes and ears of sensitive adults the language of the young always seems inadequate.Since this concern about the decline and fall of the English language is not perceived as a generational phenomenon but rather as something new and peculiar to todays
19、young people, it naturally follows that todays English teachers cannot be doing their jobs. Otherwise, young people would not have a poor command of English.41. The speaker the author mentioned in the passage believed that _.A. the language of the younger generation is usually inferior to that t of
20、the older generationB. the students had a poor command of English because they didnt work hard enoughC. he was an excellent language teacher because he had been teaching English for sixteen yearsD. English teachers should be held responsible for the students poor command of English【答案】D【解析】细节理解题。由“H
21、igh school English teachers are not doing their jobs.”可知作者提到的说话人认为，英语老师应该为学生的英语不好负责。故选D。42. In the authors opinion, the speaker _. A. gave a correct judgment of the English level of the studentsB. had exaggerated （夸张）the language problems of the studentsC. was right in saying that English teachers w
22、ere not doing their jobsD. could think and speak intelligently【答案】B【解析】细节理解题。由“As their own command of the language improves, they notice that young people do not have this same ability. Unaware that their own ability has developed through the years, they assume the new generation of young people mu
23、st be hopeless in this respect.”可知作者认为发言者夸张了学生的语言问题。故选B。43. The authors attitude towards the speakers remarks is _.A. neutral B. positive C. critical D. compromising【答案】C【解析】细节理解题。A.中立的；B.肯定的；C.批评的；D.妥协的。由“Unaware that their own ability has developed through the years, they assume the new generation
24、 of young people must be hopeless in this respect.”可知作者不同意发言者的评论。故选C。44. It can be concluded from the passage that _.A. it is justifiable to include English as a school subjectB. the author disagrees with the speaker over the standard of English at Grade 9 levelC. English language teaching is by no
25、means an easy jobD. Language improvement needs time and effort【答案】C【解析】细节理解题。“Unaware that their own ability has developed through the years,”说明成年人的语言能力是经过了多年的发展的，所以语言教学绝不是一项简单的工作。故选C。45. In the passage the author argues that _.A. it is unfair to blame the English teachers for the language deficienc
26、ies of the studentsB) young people would not have a poor command of English if the teachers did their jobs properlyC) to get rid of language deficiencies one must have sensitive eyes and earsD) to improve the standard of English requires the effort of several generations【答案】A【解析】细节理解题。由“Since this c
27、oncern about the decline and fall of the English language is not perceived as a generational phenomenon but rather as something new and peculiar to todays young people, it naturally follows that todays English teachers cannot be doing their jobs.”可知作者认为，因学生语言上的不足而责备英语老师是不公平的。2、 （201*辽宁卷D）On May 23,
28、1989, Stefania Follini came out from a cave at Carlsbad, New Mexico. She hadnt seen the sun for eighteen and a half weeks. Stefania was in a research program, and the scientists in the program were studying body rhythms (节奏). In this experiment Stefania had spent 130 days in a cave, 30 feet in depth
29、.During her time in the cave, Stefania had been completely alone except for two white mice. Her living place had been very comfortable, but there had been nothing to tell her the time. Shed had no clocks or watches, no television or radio. There had been no natural light and the temperature had alwa
30、ys been kept at 21.The results were very interesting. Stefania had been in the cave for over four months, but she thought she had been there for only two. Her body clock had changed. She hadnt kept to a 24-hour day. She had stayed awake for 20-25 hours and then had slept for 10 hours. She had eaten
31、fewer meals and had lost 17lbs in weight as a result! She had also become rather depressed (抑郁).How had she spent her time in the cave? As part of the experiment shed done some physical and mental tests. Shed recorded her daily activities and the results of the tests on a computer. This computer had
32、 been specially programmed for the project. Whenever she was free, shed played cards, read books and listened to music. Shed also learned French from tapes.The experiment showed that our body clocks are affected by light and temperature. For example, the pattern of day and night makes us wake up and
33、 go to sleep. However, people are affected in different ways. Some people wake up naturally at 5:00 am, but others dont start to wake up till 9:00 or 10;00 am. This affects the whole daily rhythm. As a result, the early risers are at their best in the late morning. The late risers, on the other hand
34、, are tired during the day and only come to life in the afternoon or evening!68. Stefania stayed in the cave for a long time because_.A. she was asked to do research on mice B. she wanted to experience lonelinessC. she was the subject of a study D. she needed to record her life69. What is a cause fo
35、r the change of Stefanias body clock?A. Eating fewer meals. B. Having more hours of sleepC. Lacking physical exercise. D. Getting no natural light.70. Where does the text probably come from?A. A novel. B. A news story.C. A pet magazine. D. A travel guide2、【文章大意】本文通过一项研究表明人的生物钟是受光线和温度影响的。68. 【解析】选C。细
36、节理解题。根据第一段中Stefania was in a research program, and the scientists in the program were studying body rhythms (节奏)。以及第四段中As part of the experiment shed done some physical and mental tests. Shed recorded her daily activities and the results of the tests on a computer.，可知她是被实验对象，即 the subject of a study
37、.69. 【解析】选D。推理判断题。根据第二段中There had been no natural light and the temperature had always been kept at 21.以及最后一段的The experiment showed that our body clocks are affected by light and temperature.可知是因为得不到自然光线使得她的生物钟发生了变化。70. 【解析】选B。推理判断题。从全文的内容来看，本文主要报道了一个实验及实验得出的结果，所以由此判断本文可能来自于新闻报道，A项小说不可能。因为文章没有小说的特点；
38、C项不正确，本文没有涉及宠物问题；D项不正确，因为本文也没涉及旅游的问题 3、（2010湖北卷E篇）Have you winterized your horse yet? Even though global warming may have made our climate more mild, many animals are still hibernating(冬眠) . Its too bad that humans cant hibernate. In fact, as a species, we almost did.Apparently, at times in the past
39、, peasants in France liked a semi-state of human hibernation . So writes Graham Robb, a British scholar who has studied the sleeping habits of the French peasants. As soon as the weather turned cold people all over France shut themselves away and practiced the forgotten art of doing nothing at all f
40、or months on end. In line with this, Jeff Warren, a producer at CBC Radios The Current, tells us that the way we sleep has changed fundamentally since the invention of artificial(人造的) lighting and the electric bulb.When historians began studying texts of the Middle Ages, they noticed something refer
41、red to as “first sleep”, which was not clarified, though. Now scientists are telling us our ancestors most likely slept in separate periods. The business of eight hours uninterrupted sleep is a modern invention.In the past , without the artificial light of the city to bathe in, humans went to sleep
42、when it became dark and then woke themselves around midnight. The late night period was known as “The Watch”. It was when people actually kept watch against wild animals, although many of them simply moved around or visited family and neighbours .According to some sleep researchers, a short period o
43、f insomnia(失眠) at midnight is not a disorder. It is normal. Humans can experience another state of consciousness around their sleeping, which occurs in the brief period before we fall asleep or wake ourselves in the morning. This period can be an extraordinarily creative time for some people. The im
44、pressive inventor, Thomas Edison, used this state to hit upon many of his new ideas.Playing with your sleep rhythms can be adventurous, as anxiety may set in. Medical science doesnt help much in this case. It offers us medicines for a full nights continuous sleep, which sounds natural ; however, acc
45、ording to Warrens theory，it is really the opposite of what we need.67. The example of the French peasants shows the fact that_. A. people might become lazy as a result of too much sleep B. there were signs of hibernation in human sleeping habits C.people tended to sleep more peacefully in cold weath
46、er D. winter was a season for people to sleep for months on end68. The late night was called “The Watch” because it was a time for people_. A. to set traps to catch animals B. to wake up their family and neighbours C. to remind others of the time D. to guard against possible dangers69. What does the
47、 author advise people to do ? A. Sleep in the way animals do. B. Consult a doctor if they cant sleep. C. Follow their natural sleep rhythm. D. Keep to the eight-hour sleep pattern.70.What is the authors purpose in writing the passage?A. To give a prescription for insomnia. B. To urge people to sleep
48、 less.C. To analyze the sleep pattern of modern people. D. To throw new light on human sleep.3、【文章大意】本文介绍了一些睡眠专家的研究成果这对人们如何对待睡眠习惯有所启示。属于科普类说明文。67【解析】选B。细节推断题。根据第二段讲述的内容，联系第一段最后一句分析推定B项符合题意。C项为干扰项，但原文未做比较而且也不符合中心。68. 【解析】选D。细节推断题。由第五段中最后一句It was when people actually kept watch against wild animals ,a
49、lthough many of them simply .直接推断出正确答案为D。69. 【解析】选C。细节推断题。综合分析最后一段内容可知作者建议人们遵循自然睡眠规律，因此，C项符合题意。70. 【解析】选D。主旨意图题。根据各段的main idea综合分析即可得出结论。para.1 lead in the topichuman sleep. para.2 an example for human hibernating. Para.3-5 different types of human sleep.para.6 as for insomnia and another state of consciousness para.7 advice on human sleep. 此题也可用排除法排除A、B、C均为片面性。
